It feels VERY ironic to look at the headlines on CNN and see that forcasters are telling residents of Galveston, Texas to prepare for hurricane Ike.

Just this evening my daughter I read the book “Hurricanes” by Christy Steele. It’s a children’s book, but it has a gripping chapter about the Galveston hurricane of 1900, which hit 108 years ago today (September 8, 1900). It killed 8,000 people and it is said that people from miles away cold smell the rotting bodies that were floating in the water and wedged into treetops.

Nuns trying to recue children in an orphanage tied themselves with ropes to rows of children and were overtaken by the floodwaters. All of the nuns and the children died – still tied together. It was a harrowing disaster.

Thank God we have the blessing of modern technology now. We can see radar images and Doppler forecasts and have days to prepare for potential disaster – enough time to get people and pets out of danger.

I know social networking is all the rage online now and I have put up my profile over the course of time on a couple of the more popular sites. And, I have chosen my favorite finally – Facebook.

I find MySpace next to useless and glommed up with young kids and too many people looking for weird “encounters” for my taste. I also dislike how it has become basically a site where people promote their businesses.

LinkedIn is very cool as well, but it is primarily for professional networking and that is what I use it for exclusively, so it just doesn’t really fall into the category of “social” networking for me.

FaceBook, though, I love. I don’t go in for the all the “apps”, but I enjoy the simplicity of keeping up with all of my friends on my sign-in page. And, with just a little time invested, I have found quite literally tons of my old friends. It’s been lovely to use.

I’ll admit that beyond the most common texting terms, I am clueless as to what the texting generation is saying to one another. So, as a follow-up to the post I recently wrote about kids getting cell phones, here is a handy texting terms translations chart I found online. It does not include the more sexual or crude terms.

•911 – Emergency, call me.
•999 – Emergency, call me.
•2DAY – Today.
•2MORO – Tomorrow.
•2NITE – Tonight.
•AAMOF – As a matter of fact.
•AFAIC – As far as I’m concerned.
•AFAIK – As far as I know.
•AFK – Away from keyboard.
•ASAP – As soon as possible.
•ATB – All the best.
•ATK – At the keyboard.
•ATM – At the moment.
•AWHFY – Are we having fun yet?

•B – Be.
•B4 – Before.
•B4N – Bye for now.
•BAK – Back at keyboard.
•BB4N – Bye Bye for now.
•BBIAB – Be back in a bit.
•BBL – Be back later.
•BBS – Be back soon.
•BCNU – Be seeing you.
•BF – Boyfriend.
•BHL8 – Be home late.
•BION – Believe it or not.
•BRT – Be right there.
•BTW – By the way.

•C – See.
•CM – Call me.
•CU – See you
•CUBL8R – Call you back later.
•CYR BRO – Call your brother.
•CYR MA – Call your mother.
•CYR PA – Call your father.
•CYR SIS – Call your sister.
•DK – Don’t know.
•D8 – Date.
•EOL – End of lecture.

•FAQ – Frequently asked question.
•FC – Fingers crossed.
•FWIW – For what it’s worth.
•FYI – For your information.
•F2F – Face to face.
•F2T – Free to talk.
•G1 – Good one.
•G2G – Got to go.
•GAL – Get a life.
•GMTA – Great minds think alike.
•GR8 – Great.
•GUDLUK – Good luck.

•IAE – In any event.
•IBK – Idiot behind keyboard.
•IC – I see.
•ICQ – I seek you.
•IDK – I don’t know.
•ILU – I love you.
•IML8 – I’m late.
•IMTNG – In meeting.
•IOW – In other words.
•IOU – I owe you.
•IRL – In real life.
•IYSS – If you say so.
•JAM – Just a minute.
•JTLYK – Just to let you know.
•J4F – Just for fun.
•KHYF – Know how you feel.
•KWIM – Know what I mean?

•L8R – Later.
•LDR – Long distance relationship.
•LMHO – Laughing my head off.
•LOL – Laugh out loud.
•LTNS – Long time no see.
•LTNT – Long time, no type/text.
•LUV – Love.
•LYLAS – Love you like a sister.

•M8 – Mate.
•MEGO – My eyes glaze over.
•MTE — My thoughts exactly.
•MTFBWY – May the force be with you.
•MYOB – Mind your own business.
•NETHNG – Anything.
•NMHO – In my humble opinion.
•NO1 – No one.
•NP – No problem.
•NRN – NO reply necessary.
•NTW – Not to worry.

•OIC – Oh, I see.
•OMG – Oh my God.
•OTOH – On the other hand.
•OTT — Over the top.
•PCM – Please call me.
•PITB – Pain in the butt.
•PLS – Please.
•PLZ4GVME – Please forgive me.
•PRL – Parents are listening.
•PRT – Party.
•PUKS – Pick up kids.
•QT – Cutie.
•R – Are.
•RGDS – Regards.
•RNGL8 – Running late.
•RLR – Earlier.
•ROTFL – Rolling on the floor laughing.
•RTM – Read the manual.
•RUCMNG – Are you coming?
•RUOK – Are you OK?

•SK8 – Skate.
•SK8R – Skater.
•SPK – Speak.
•SUM1 – Someone.
•SWIM – See what I mean?
•SYS – See you soon.
•TAFN – That’s all for now.
•THNQ – Thank you.
•THX – Thanks.
•TMB – Text me back.
•TTFN – Ta ta for now.
•TUL – Talk to you later.
•TTTT – To tell the truth.
•TTYL – Talk to you later.
•TVM – Thanks very much.

•U – You.
•UI! – You idiot
•UOK – You OK?
•U2 – You too.
•U4E – Yours forever.
•UR – Your
•W — With
•WAN2 – Want to?
•WB – Welcome back.
•WE – Whatever
•WKEND – Weekend
•WOA – Work of art.
•WOT – What?
•WRU – Where are you?
•WTH – What the Heck
•WTG – Way to go!
•WUF — Where are you from?
•W8 – Wait.
•W84ME – Wait for me.
•XLNT – Excellent
•XOXO – Hugs and kisses.
•YKWIM – You know what I mean?

What is the right age to get a cell phone for your child?

That’s a question that will have 100 different answers if you ask 100 different parents.

I was faced with the first glimmer of reality in this issue Tuesday night as my sister and her husband presentd my nephew with a brand new cell phone for his 7th birthday. Seven. The kid is seven.

I held my breath, feeling what was coming at me next. I was right. My daughter, five-and-a-half, turned and asked me when is SHE getting a phone.

Ouch.

I had hoped that question would comes a few more years down the road. I am not a big fan of giving a young child a cell phone. I do eventually want her to have one of those basic units that can call out to a limited array of numbers and maybe even one with a way to block texting and internet. I have not actually given it all that much though, aside from hoping I would be able to deal with it later.

In the wake of all the local stories about back-to-school in the local papers is a whole lot of coverage about cell phones and kids. The stories talk about six and seven year old kids getting phones, kids texting all day, and the fact the cellular companies are spending more advertising money than ever before to target young children.

My dreams of getting Gigi a “kid” phone with like three buttons died when I saw a statistic that said 10% of 8-year-olds have a cell phone, by age 12 that statistic is 50%, and at the age of 15 a full 84% of kids have their own phone. The phones they what are BlackBerries, Apple iPhones and phones with full-size QWERTY keyboards and social networking software.

Studies show that parents do try to maintain some sense of control when they give out a phone, though. A good number of children start out with pre-paid phones so that parents can control the costs. About one-fifth of parents say they attach the achievement of a particular grade-point-average to the privilege of having a cell phone.

I’ve gone over in my head the fact that a cell phone can be a safety for my daughter. It is a good feeling to know she can call me when she needs to, just like I carry a cell phone to know I can make a call from the car if I break down on the road. I think about how much easier it would be to get in touch with her when she is at her dad’s house.

On the other hand, I did just fine in school without a phone. I used a pay-phone if I needed to call home. My teachers did not have phones in their classrooms, but these days all of the teachers do. If there really is an emergency at school, there are many ways for my child and the teachers to get in touch with me aside from my daughter having a cell phone. At the age of not-yet-six, I do not plan on her being out on her own outside of school anyway.

I am reading with blessed out awe this article on CNN’s website about the Global Catastrophic Risk Conference being held at Oxford University in Britain. One of the topics will be “unintended consequences of new technologies, such as superintelligent machines that, if ill-conceived, might cause the demise of Homo sapiens.”

I might not live to see the day that human will be more robotic than human, but if you listen to the theories in this article, it could be possible that my daughter will live to see it.

My awe lies mostly in the medical breakthroughs that are being attempted: nanobots that can go in and cure diabetes, cancer, and even enable a body to go without breathing for a half an hour. The idea is astounding and exiting – thrilling and at the same time a little frightening.

Scientists point out that the use of technology will change faster than most of us can imagine; that it is not a matter of hundreds of years before these things are a reality, but rather 8 or maybe 20 years. The use of technology and electronics operates at an exponential growth rate.

Most interesting is Dr. Ray Kurzweil’s idea of Singularity –”the culmination of the merger of our biological thinking and existence with our technology, resulting in a world that is still human but that transcends our biological roots.”

It sounds like an interesting read. I plan on picking up a copy — The Age of Spiritual Machines: When Computers Exceed Human Intelligence.

I think I mentioned that I bought a new digital camera: an Olympus SP-570UZ. I just wanted to give an update about the camera.

Quite simply, I love it.

I had an older Olympus D series camera and loved it as well, but was ready for more megapixels and more zoom and more handling options. The 570UZ has a 20x optical zoom, room for the use of additional professional lenses and filters, the option to use the hot shoe for the flash and the option to go fully manual.

As of yet, I have just used it as a point and shoot. It’s comfortable in the hand, quick on the mark and super easy to navigate around the menus and such. It helps that I am already intimate with the typical Olympus buttons and symbols. I had to get used to a whole new type of data card. I used to use a Smart Media card and reader. Once I struggled through the difference between SD cards, micro sd cards, Xd cards (both M and H types) then I was ready to go.

The camera is what I consider to be just one step below a digital SLR. I am not ready to invest the time into learning to use an SLR right now, but once I am I can go fully manual on this. It’s lacking some of the finer, more sensitive imaging components you will get in a fully SLR cameras, but you’ll hardly notice.

I want to share with you a panoramic shot I took in Harpers Ferry, WV. In the picture you can see Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia as well as both the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers. I’m also including a pretty cool picture I took through glass, using a flash, or Abraham Lincoln’s life mask.

Most of us are already familiar with the national Do Not Call registry. You can sign your phone numbers up for inclusion on a list that bars solicitors from calling your home.

Now consumer groups are asking the Federal Trade Commission to create a “do not track list”. The list would be an attempt to advertisers from collecting information about you. They have also asked the FCC to ban the collection of health and other sensitive information by companies who do business online; that is, unless you expressly consent.
Of course, advertisers are against the creation of a do not track list. They would rather self regulate. We all know how well self regulating does in the business place – she said snidely.
Other advocacy groups are also trying to urge the legislation of information collected about individuals who are under the age of 18.

I’m all for a Do Not Track list. Consumers should have the absolute right to stop the collection of information from their computer, while still retaining the right to use the internet.

I took a look at Google’s Street View program way back when it first came out. I was kind of impressed, but wondered how I would feel if my apartment window was in one of the images, complete with a look at my bedroom. Or, what about the shots of the men coming out of strip clubs? Not too cool, really.

Anyway, Tampa finally made the cut and you can see ground-view, 360-degree images of hundreds of square miles of Bay area roads are in the system now. I took a look and although major roads in outlying areas are covered, things like my street are not included. I was actually pretty happy about that. Nonetheless, if someone coming to visit me wanted to see the roads right up to one of the intersections near my neighborhood, they could.

When it comes to photo editing, I have always loved Photoshop. It’s been painful in the past when someone has asked me to recommend a photo editing software and I say Photoshop, but then have to throw in that it is super expensive and has a steep learning curve.

So, it is exciting to see that as of today Adobe Systems Inc. is offering their basic Photoshop Express for free. It is web-based, so there is nothing to download and you can access your account from any computer in the world.

Adobe says that the Photoshop Express software is designed with the layman in mind. Gone is that steep learning curve and now nearly anyone can master photo editing quickly. Of course, if you find that you like Express and want to go with something a little more advances, Adobe’s Photoshop Elements is still only about $99.

I personally still prefer the full, professional version, but even I never use all of the features it is equipped with. Most people are going to find that Express does the trick for them. Express allows you to store up to 2 GB of photos online, crop them, rotate, edit for quality. You can automatically correct color and lighting, retouch photos, fix red-eye, sharpen, add effects, and more. It has all of the features the basic user would ever need.

Just make sure you have Adobe Flash 9 installed, and you are good to go.

Years ago, I had a GPS system in my Pathfinder. That vehicle was only leased, though, and when we bought the van we did not get a GPS system in it. I cannot tell you how much I missed that GPS! I had become far more dependant on it that I knew. It was especially helpful when I had doctors’ appointments or interviews at locations where I had not been previously.

So, I eventually bought a handheld GPS for myself and I can take it in whichever car I drive, or when I am riding with someone else. We used it last month when we went to Disney for the Pirate and Princess Party.

The only problem I have with my TomTom is that the little suction cup mount that came with it does not work at all. I usually end up with the GPS in my lap or in the seat next to me. When I have tried to place it on the window or dash, it just pops off unexpectedly and startles me while I am driving. Not cool.

I’m pretty delighted to see this product called GPS Pal. It’s a cup holder mount for a handheld GPS. This is a much safer option for me than trying to mess with the suction cups or hold the GPS in my lap. I cannot tell you how many times the TomTom has slipped out my lap while I am driving. The GPS Pal is under $20 and in my opinion, it is a much needed invention.

…but, the catch is that they are going to raise the commission sellers pay for items that do sell. All in all, eBay is still planning on bringing in the same money as they do now. Their fee changes are an attempt to entice more people to list more times. They say they are making the changes in order to keep pace with other online commerce sites.

But, is cutting the listing fees by up to 50% really going to convince more people to go back to using eBay to sell items? It may have, if the commissions you have tp pay on the final sale price were not going to go up a whopping 68%. Sellers will now pay 8.75 of the final sale price for items under $25.

The new fee structure goes into effect February 20 in the United States. More pricing changes are coming shortly in the United Kingdom and Germany.

EBay says that their growth has flattened out and they are currently seeing a drop in the number of items being listed for sale. They feel the fee changes will remedy this. They are up against sites that do not charge listing fees, like Amazon.

I say, simply remove the listing fees altogether. I know that I stopped selling on eBay when the fees got too high. I could do as other sellers do and simply charge more for shipping, but I feel that is dishonest and I cannot bring myself to play that particular game.

On the other hand, I met a mom at school today who sells new and used Gymboree on eBay for a living. We talked about her selling my daughter’s used boutique clothing. She says there are ways to make sure you make more than enough profit to cover fees.

I’ve lived in or near large cities all my life, save for the few years I was in college in a small West Virginia town. I was born and raised in the Washington, DC area. I live near Tampa, Florida now. Traffic is just a part of daily life.

As much as I appreciate having traffic cops at the ready for things like accidents and tracking dangerous drivers, I am absolutely not charmed when I drive by and see a speed trap. Who is? I suppose I see more worth in that same officer being out and about patrolling potential aggressive drivers than just sitting on the side of the road radaring passing cars.

Have you heard of Trapster(TM) Speed Trap Sharing System for Mobile Phones? It’s an ingenious system for your mobile phone. If you see a speed trap, you can simply press a button on your phone to port the location. Then, as other drivers using the service get ready to pass the same trap, they will receive a beep on their phone to alert them. How cool is that?

Best of all, the whole thing is free. And, it works in real time.

You can download the free program to your cell phone for the best results, or you can just opt to participate by calling in reports to a toll free number and receiving alerts via SMS.

So, how is Trapster different from all of the other speed trap notification sites? Its location based and as I said before, it works in real time. And, it’s not just for speed traps. It is also for speed cameras and other road hazards. Again, in real time.

There are days I find it difficult to contemplate just shopping around for a new cell phone plan for car insurance policy. It feels to me a lot like buying a mattress. The products are all so similar that I can barely find the justification for price fluctuations between companies. Then, I just get confused and decide to stay with my current company for a couple more months.

I have an old employer who is setting up a new business. He hired me to do odd jobs like design his logo and help choose communications providers and office software. I’m hoping that once the business takes off, there might even be more work for me. Right now he is trying to decide to whether to go with refurbished used cisco or brand new ones. I have heard that it is always best to just go for the new models and equipment, but he has a sales guy giving him a pitch. You know the drill. He is just as confused as I get when I start looking at those cursed cell phone plans. And, when you are not an absolute expert on a subject, you want to be able to trust your sales person to give you all the information you need to make an informed decision – when in actuality, it is a very biased process.

Thanks goodness for the myriad of review sites you can access online. You just have to apply some common sense in interpreting the opinions of others and then an more informed decision is yours for the asking.

Cell phone plans still confuse me, though.

Not that online chatting isn’t already a lot of fun, but there is a fun little program called SweetIM that you can download for free that lets you add emoticons, winks, sound effects, glitter effects, and nudges to your existing instant messenger programs, as well as web mails, blogs and your spaces on social networking site. I like the handful of extra smileys that Gmail lets me use, but the idea of having a load more at my fingertips is an exciting prospect.

The program is adware and spyware free, and it’s not supported by ads. It’s just a free and clear little enhancement for your online communications. If you already have MSN, AIM or Yahoo messengers on your computer, you don’t have to download a new chat tool. You simply download a small add-on. It also works with Yahoo email, Gmail, Hotmail; and most blogs, forums and social networks. It’s a universal bit of fun and pizzazz that anyone can use. You don’t even have to register to use it, although they have a full featured support forum on their website if you need help or what to see the latest news about new games, nudges, and upgrades.

Sweet IM is free, but you can also choose to purchase premium content, like additional packs of winks, emoticons and audibles, and premium Ringtones for mobile phones.

I have a mailing list for this website I created that is a clearing house for free hair bow instructions. The mailing list is getting close to 1200 members and a majority of them are very active on a daily basis. You can only imagine the amount of e-mail this generates. It is my opinion that using a mailing list to keep this group of people together is not the most streamlines way to go about things.

Since my members upload a lot of pictures, sets of step-by-step instructions, and tips about the crafting industry, I was thinking that a great way to better organize all of the information coming in and still give my members a way to participate heavily would be to add a wiki to my website. A wiki is user-generated set of web pages. You can set the permissions and anyone can make additions and edits. All of the changes are logged so that accountability is present. Your users can add entire pages of information, photos, videos, links,

WetPaint is a site that allows you to create a free wiki. They’ll even host it for you. You can’t knock a freebie that won’t even tax your own server account. Although I would eliminate the dynamic e-mail list I currently use, the free wiki has a discussion forum on it that members can use to interact and comment. It would make finding old information much simpler and organization would upgrade considerably. I have also been looking at other Wetpaint wikis that have chat rooms and blogs. This is a highly nteractive way to bring a group of people with the same interests together.

Now, nothing is really absolutely free you know. There are contextual ads on the pages and links to other Wetpaint Wikis. This is something you can have waived if you are using the wiki in an educational setting and can qualify for the removals. I think this is a GREAT tool for teachers. A classroom wiki is a super way to engage children in learning about collaborative efforts through technology. Technology and children are like catnip and cats, so the draw will be strong.

Wikis are gaining momentum. If you’ve done a search on any given topic lately, you have probably noticed that wiki pages tend to come out near the top of your search results. If you want to bypass all of the irrelevant search results that search engines like Google spit out at you, you can use Qwika. It simply searched through all of the wikis on the net. How cool is that?