Two great sources for free software and software reviews

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soupornuts is moving!!! In order to have more control over my blog (how it looks, plugins, etc.) I have decided to move soupornuts.wordpress.com to soupornuts.com. When you come to soupornuts.com, you will see my new postings along with updated and edited versions of most of my old articles. Don’t panic if the site looks different the first couple of times you visit. I am trying different themes to see which I prefer.

Do you ever find yourself needing software? Of course, the answer is yes. Did you know that there are sites where you can download both free trials and free software?

Download.com – this site offers a huge assortment of software along with some reviews by both the site and people who have downloaded the software. I have downloaded a couple of software packages and have been pleased with their performance.

Snapfiles – This is another site that offers a very large assortment of software. It’s worth your time to go and look. You might find something you can’t live without.

Tags: free+software, software+reviews

Web 2.0 Toolbar provides a one-stop solution to information overload.

The article will begin below this paragraph

soupornuts is moving!!! In order to have more control over my blog (how it looks, plugins, etc.) I have decided to move soupornuts.wordpress.com to soupornuts.com. When you come to soupornuts.com, you will see my new postings along with updated and edited versions of most of my old articles. Don’t panic if the site looks different the first couple of times you visit. I am trying different themes to see which I prefer.

Time management is essential to being productive. Being productive is essential to being successful. Therefore, if we can manage our time better, then we can be more productive. Due to the democratization of information via the internet, we are constantly bombarded with an ever increasing number of new sites, blogs, news readers, video sites and more vying for our attention. What’s important? What needs to be read? How do we decide which sites to visit?

I recently came across the Web 2.0 Toolbar and thought that it looked like a promising solution to information overload. This toolbar is like a super aggregator on steroids. It offers over 30 different search engines, 16 submission sites, 20 different news reader feeds, 10 links feeds, job listings feeds, 11 video feeds, picture feeds and press feeds.

I’ve been using it for about a week and have had no problems other than there is a lot to look at. At least it’s all in one place. Take a look at it and let me know what you think.

Tags: web2.0, aggregator, timemanagement

Video how-to: tubetorial is providing information to the masses

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soupornuts is moving!!! In order to have more control over my blog (how it looks, plugins, etc.) I have decided to move soupornuts.wordpress.com to soupornuts.com. When you come to soupornuts.com, you will see my new postings along with updated and edited versions of most of my old articles. Don’t panic if the site looks different the first couple of times you visit. I am trying different themes to see which I prefer.

The cornerstone of all enlightenment, motivation, inspiration, education and change is knowledge. Knowledge is the accumulation of information. If we sift through our available knowledge base ( the information that we have stored in our brain and other places) and we use this accumulation of information in a way that benefits ourselves in particular or society in general then we are considered wise.

In the past, wisdom was a much desired trait. This was due, mostly because of the scarcity of information. In ancient times, the priesthood and royalty controlled the dissemination of information. Later, the church assumed this role and doled out to the common man only what they needed to know in order to control and pacify the masses. The invention of the printing press by Gutenberg in 1447 made available to the common man, first the scriptures and later other works of literature. This led to the first mass proliferation of information which allowed the common man access to facts, thoughts, ideas and teachings that had previously been denied. This was the first step to enlightenment for the common man.

It is tempting to say that today we are at the zenith of the information age. But, to our advantage, I don’t believe this to be the case. Due to the exponential growth of the internet (the second mass proliferation of information), there will be more information available tomorrow than there is today and it will keep increasing.

If there is any subject or idea that you desire to know about, gain a better understanding of, or want to research then head on over to your nearest search engine and start typing. Within seconds, you will have access to more information than you’ve got the time to view or even new existed on this subject. However, it is up to you to sift through this vast storage media and determine what is accurate and what is not. All this brings me to the point of this post.

It is my goal to help as many people as I can with this website. I do this by writing articles to inspire, motivate and educate. Today, I want to expose you to a website that I found to be very educational and I believe that anyone who has thought of starting their own website or blog will find the information presented timely, easy to understand and applicable. Go to:

www.tubetorial.com

This site is a great source of video how-to information. Do you want to know how to start a blog on your own domain? They’ve got it. They have a very large library of pertinent videos dealing with all sorts of subjects like web development, technological issues, legalities, search engine optimization and more. If there are some web related question that you’ve wanted to ask but didn’t know where to go, give them a shot.

All of the videos that I have had the opportunity to view so far have been informative, very well produced and easy to understand. An added bonus is that they are all FREE!!!

Go check them out. I will be including them in my blogroll under education.

Tags: howtovideo, videolearning, education, webtools

15 coolest firefox tricks ever

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soupornuts is moving!!! In order to have more control over my blog (how it looks, plugins, etc.) I have decided to move soupornuts.wordpress.com to soupornuts.com. When you come to soupornuts.com, you will see my new postings along with updated and edited versions of most of my old articles. Don’t panic if the site looks different the first couple of times you visit. I am trying different themes to see which I prefer.

a bunch of hacks to tweak, maximize and customize your firefox browser. Go to www.lifehack.org to see the whole story.

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Signs that you or someone you know is a “toolaholic”

I nervously stand.  As I look around the large auditorium, I see faces.  Some are known to me, many are not.  Gathering all the courage I possess, I announce, “Hi, my name is Chris and I’m a toolaholic! 

You may know me or someone like me.  We live in your neighborhood, maybe even on your street.  We might be your coworker, cousin, neighbor or friend. 

It starts innocently enough.  But before you know it, you are obsessed.  Are you a “toolaholic”?  Answering the following questions may help you find out.

1. Do you eagerly await the annual Sears tool catalog?
2. Does every errand that you run involve stopping by Sears, Lowe’s or Home Depot for a quick look through their tool department?
3. Do you peruse the classifieds regularly just in case someone is selling something that you “might” need?
4. Have you ever bought a tool that you already owned because, “it was too good of a deal to pass up”?
5. Do the guys at the local pawnshop know you by your first name?
6. Does the pawnshop have a number to reach you in case “something interesting turns up”?
7. Have you ever taken on a project that you didn’t really want to do, but did anyway because it involved the purchase of a new tool?
8. Does or can your wife bribe you with the promise of a new tool?
9. Do you cruise flea markets looking for “good used tools”?
10. Have you ever taped an episode of “This Old House“, “The New Yankee Workshop“, “The Woodwright Shop“, or “Tools & Techniques“?
11. Do you “collect” old (your term is “antique”) tools?
12. Do you have a secret “tool fund” in case you run across a “great buy”?
13. Do you have an itemized list of your tools with accompanying pictures for insurance purchases?

If you are like me, then there are a number of these questions that hit close to home.  However, the one that you should take seriously is #13.  If you have more than a very minor investment in your tools, please make the time to go through your shop or garage to photograph and list all your tools.  This information will be priceless to you if your home or garage catches fire or if someone breaks in and steals your tools.  You might have fantastic insurance, but insurance companies seldom pay claims on items that you cannot prove were there.