How 2 ... weekly technology tips

Etan Horowitz: iPhone 3G S has slew of new features

If you've been thinking of buying an iPhone, the release of the iPhone 3G S makes it a lot easier to join Apple's telecom family. But if you already own an iPhone, deciding whether to buy this new model is a little more complicated.

How 2 . . . Filter updates on your Facebook page

The explosive growth of Facebook means you might have trouble keeping up with important friends and family members when you look at your News Feed. You could "unfriend" people who update too often or whose updates you don't want to read, but that might offend them. Creating a friend list will make sure you only see the updates you want when you log into the site.

Etan Horowitz: Q & A: How to help Mom watch digital videos

It's time once again to answer some of your questions about technology:

How 2 . . . Fix balkiness of iPhoto software

Apple's iPhoto software lets people easily organize and edit pictures on a Mac, but the program can sometimes get a little erratic over time, especially with large photo libraries. How do you fix that?

Etan Horowitz: Palm Pre: It's almost an iPhone

The new Palm Pre from Sprint is the best attempt yet to create a phone that is as powerful, elegant and simple to use as the Apple iPhone.

Etan Horowitz: A primer on the end of analog TV

Friday marks the end of analog television broadcasting.

How 2... Display the classic menus in Office 2007

The first time you use Microsoft Office 2007, you'll quickly notice that familiar menus such as "File," "Edit," "View" are gone from Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

How 2... Watch free TV on the iPhone

Apple's iPhone is great for watching TV shows that you downloaded on your computer and loaded onto the device. But since the iPhone can't play Flash-based Web videos, there aren't that many ways to stream full episodes of popular TV shows for free. Here are some ways to do it.

How 2 . . . Make sure you pack everything for a trip

Packing for a trip usually isn't fun, but if you don't do a good job, you may forget something important. It can also cost you more money if you have to buy items you forgot. Using Packwhiz.com can speed up the process and help prevent you from forgetting something important.

How 2... Insert images in Gmail messages

Instead of having to attach an image in a message for someone to open, you can now insert images directly into a Gmail message so they are visible in the body of the message.

How 2 . . . Easily compare MP3 prices

Apple recently started charging different prices for songs in its iTunes music store, making now a good time to make sure you are getting the best deals on MP3 downloads. By downloading a free program called "Advantageous mp3," you can quickly see if the song you want to buy from iTunes is available for less from Amazon. The Windows version does not currently work with the latest version of iTunes, but the developer of Advantageous said he is working on fixing that.

How 2 . . . Check your Hotmail when you're away

For years, one of the biggest problems with Microsoft's free Hotmail e-mail service was that it did not support POP3 technology. That meant there was no easy way to check a Hotmail account through the e-mail programs on many cell phones or computers. Hotmail recently introduced POP3 support, so your account just got a lot more useful.

How 2 . . . Call back sent e-mail in Gmail

Ever realize you accidentally hit "Reply All" seconds after it was too late? Or forget to send the attachment mentioned in your message? With Gmail's "Undo Send" and "Forgotten Attachment Detector" features, you can give yourself an extra five seconds to call back a message so you can fix it.

How 2 . . . Save money with your iPhone

Yes, the iPhone is an expensive gadget, but if you already have one (or have an iPod touch), there are lots of applications you can download to help save money. Here are five of the best, which can all be downloaded by going to the iTunes store and searching for each one by name. Once you download the applications, you may be able to customize settings for each application.

Your Strategy

How 2... Update Google Maps info

Google Maps is great for finding local restaurants and stores, but sometimes the information is out of date. If you own a business, you can make sure the listing about your business is accurate.

Your Strategy

How 2 . . . play less: Too much YouTube? Lock it up

We all love to waste time at work checking out a YouTube video or updating our Facebook profiles, but if you can't control yourself, there's keepmeout.com, a free service that lets you set limits on your Web browsing.

Your Strategy

How 2... Use texting as reminder

There are lots of things you hear while you're out that you might want to remember later, such as the name of a movie to rent, restaurants to try or shows to program on the DVR. A free service called kwiry makes it easy to use text messages to help you remember all of these things later. Standard text messaging rates apply.

Your Strategy

How 2... Simulate old-school photos

If you're heartbroken that Polaroid has stopped producing its instant film, this free downloadable program is for you.

Your Strategy

How 2 . . . Mix your own NPR podcast

National Public Radio has hundreds of great podcasts on music, technology, news, politics and lots of other topics. But those are broad categories that might not always have stories you want to hear. Now, you can create your own custom podcast of stories from NPR.

Your Strategy How 2...

Use Gmail for your to-do list

Free e-mail service Gmail just unveiled a new feature that lets you keep a list of tasks inside your inbox and even convert e-mails into items on your list.

Your Strategy

How 2 . . . Send mass voice messages for free

E-mail is great for sending a message to multiple people, but not everybody checks their e-mail all the time, or on weekends. A free service called DialMyCalls.com lets you record a single message with your voice and instantly send it out to dozens of people. It's a great service for quickly getting the word out about a cancellation of a Little League game or change of a meeting location.

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How 2 . . . save on your cell-phone plan

Choosing the best cell phone plan can be maddening, and with the economy in distress, who wouldn't want to save some money on their monthly bill? BillShrink .com makes it easy to see if you are getting the best deal.

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How 2... Send a canned reply in Gmail

Out-of-office messages are great when you want to send the same reply to everyone, but what if you want to send certain replies to certain messages? You could copy and paste the same text over and over into e-mails, but if you use Gmail, you can automate this process.

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How 2... Type e-mails in landscape mode on iPhone or iPod touch

For all of the great features found on Apple's iPhone and iPod Touch, one of the big annoyances is that when you are writing an e-mail you can't turn the phone horizontally to make the keyboard bigger (landscape mode). Although Apple may fix this problem in a future software update, if you can't wait, you can download TouchType, a 99-cent program that lets you write e-mails in landscape mode.

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How 2 . . . Create your own search engine

Doing a Google search can sometimes be overwhelming because it provides so many results. Creating a Google Custom Search Engine allows you to only search the sites you choose, so you get fewer results. You may want to have several custom search engines, each focusing on different subjects. Custom search engines can also be an alternative to bookmarking interesting links and articles you want to read later.

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How 2 . . . Send mass e-mails addressed to each recipient

Ever get a message that is clearly a mass e-mail but has your name after "Dear" and wonder how the sender did it? It's easy to do using the "Mail Merge" feature of Microsoft Outlook and Word. The following instructions are written for Microsoft Word and Outlook 2003, although the steps are similar if you are using Word and Outlook 2007. Don't use this feature to spam people!

Your Strategy How 2...

How 2 . . . Keep your computer screen from dimming (Mac only)

The Internet is full of great TV shows and movies that you can watch for free online, but sometimes, Mac computers will often dim the screen slightly while you are watching the video. You can brighten the screen back up by moving the mouse or hitting a key, but that can be annoying. A free program called Caffeine will keep your Mac from dimming or going to sleep while you're watching Web video.

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How 2 . . .Make call directly to voice mail

Ever want to bypass the awkward small talk and go straight to someone's voice mail so you can leave a message? A free service called slydial lets you do just that.

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How 2 ... Get MP3 books from the library

The Orange County Library System just introduced a service that lets you download and listen to audiobooks on your iPod, iPhone, Microsoft Zune, cell phone or other MP3 player.

Your Strategy

How 2 ... Plot addresses on Google map

A free program called "map a list" lets you take a list of addresses and easily plot them on a Google map, which could be helpful if you were planning a party and wanted to see where most of the people you invite live.

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How 2 . . . Create and use e-mail templates in Microsoft Outlook

If you are a heavy Microsoft Outlook user, you probably send the same types of e-mails pretty frequently. You can save yourself time by creating e-mail templates, which you can quickly call up, modify and send, instead of typing the same text each time.

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How 2 . . . Watch the Olympics on 3 screens

There are more ways than ever to watch this year's Summer Olympics from Beijing. Here are five.

Your Strategy

How 2... Transfer voice mail to your computer

Ever get a really funny voice mail from a friend or family member that you want to transfer to your computer for safekeeping? Some phone services provide ways to do this, but if not, you can do it yourself for $10 using a few downloadable programs.

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Calibrate your HDTV without professional help

Unless you pay someone to do it for you, your new HDTV may not be properly calibrated, meaning the picture might not appear as vibrant and sharp as it should. Many Lucasfilm DVDs including Star Wars, and many DVDs of recent Pixar films including The Incredibles, Monsters Inc., Cars and Toy Story, come with a "THX Optimizer" that lets you calibrate your TV. They also come with blue glasses to help you perform the calibration, but you can still do it if you don't have the glasses. The back of the DVD case should say if it includes the Optimizer.

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How 2 . . . Turn PowerPoint presentations into videos and post them online

E-mailing a PowerPoint presentation to someone who couldn't make the meeting isn't the same as being there in person. So why not add narration to your slides and post the presentation online as a video? Here's how:

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Create free online polls

Ever want to quickly poll your friends and family on something? With BuzzDash, you can create a poll in minutes that you can e-mail or post on a blog, Web site or social-networking profile.

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Etan Horowitz: Get "free" Wi-Fi at Starbucks

It's not totally free because you only get two hours per day and you have to have spent some money in the past 30 days to use it. But hey, it's better than nothing.

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Google Docs lets you create, edit and store documents online that you can access from any computer. But what if you want to access and edit your Google Docs when you aren't online, like when you are on a plane? Installing the free Google Gears plug-in allows you to do this. Google Gears works on Windows and Apple computers.

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How 2 ... Electronically store emergency contact numbers in your Florida drivers license

If you are ever in a serious accident, law-enforcement officers may need to notify your loved ones. But it's not always easy for them to figure out who to call or how to reach them. The state's Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles has come up with an easy solution to this problem.

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How 2 . . . Only print the portions of a web page you want

Even with more Web sites offering printer-friendly buttons, it's still easy to waste a lot of ink trying to print from the Web. Hewlett-Packard's free Smart Web Printing software lets you print only the parts of a Web page you want. You don't need an HP printer and the software works with both Internet Explorer (6.0 or higher) and Firefox (version 2 only). The software only works on Windows computers.

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How 2...Expand the storage capacity of your cable DVR

Many of the Scientific Atlanta DVR boxes offered by the cable companies allow you to connect an external hard drive to increase the storage capacity of your DVR. To do this, your DVR box must have an external SATA port (eSATA) and it must be active. Most of the DVRs offered by Bright House Networks allow you to do this, but the company says it cannot provide technical support if you run into a problem. A Comcast spokesman said the company's boxes do not support this.

TECH SUPPORT

How 2...Send snail mail from your computer for free

Who said e-mail has killed the art of letter writing? Chances are you probably have an older relative or someone else in your life that you can't e-mail, but would still like to correspond with. So instead of having to type up a letter, print it out, put it in an envelope, address the envelope, slap a stamp on it and put it in the mail, you can you just go online, type up a letter, address the envelope, click a few buttons and have it sent out for you. And if you are willing to submit yourself to advertising pitches, the service is free.

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Finding answers to any question just a phone call away

The Internet can answer almost any question you can come up with, but wouldn't it be great if you could call someone and have them search the Internet for you? A new free service called ChaCha lets you do just that.

Decorate your space like Draper

What the world needs now is more Dorothy Draper.

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How 2 ... Work faster in Microsoft Outlook

Using keyboard shortcuts instead of a mouse to perform routine tasks in Microsoft Outlook can save you time and let you work more efficiently. Of course you'll want to make sure you know what you are doing before executing these shortcuts so you don't end up sending a raunchy joke to everyone in your office.

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Get traffic predictions with your online directions

Ever wonder what the traffic is going to be like when you head to the airport at 5 p.m. on a Friday. Or what the best time of day is to drive somewhere? Google Maps now offers traffic predictions as well as live traffic conditions for certain cities.

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How 2 ... Easily store and share files online for free

With drop.io you can share large files privately with friends or store them online so you can access them whenever you want.

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How 2 ... Buy items online with free shipping

The widespread availability of free shipping on items bought online makes it seem silly to ever pay for shipping again. Free Shipping On . . . makes it easier to find items that come with free shipping.