26 good parenting tips

Raising kids today is arguably harder than ever before. But, there are some ways to help ease the stress and strain of raising your little ones and prevent behavior problems through good parenting.

1. Establish "together time" Establish a regular weekly routine for doing something special with your child -- even if it’s just going out for ice cream.

2. Don’t be afraid to ask where your kids are going and who they’ll be with. Get to know your kid’s friends -- and their parents -- so you’re familiar with their activities.

3. Try to be there after school when your child gets home. Eat together often. Meals are a great time to talk about the day and bond.

4. Be a better listener. Ask and encourage questions. Ask your kid’s input about family decisions. Showing your willingness to listen will make your child feel more comfortable about opening up to you. Don’t react in a way that will cut off further discussion. If your child says things that challenge or shock you, turn them into a calm discussion.

5. Be a living, day to day, example of your value system. Show the compassion, honesty, generosity and openness you want your child to have.

6. Know that there is no such thing as "do as I say, not as I do" when it comes to your kids.

7. Examine your own behavior.

8. Reward good behavior consistently and immediately. Expressions of love, appreciation, and thanks go a long way – even for kids who think themselves too old for hugs.

9. Accentuate the positive. Emphasize what your kid does right. Restrain the urge to be critical. Affection and respect will reinforce good (and change bad) behavior. Embarrassment or uneasiness won’t.

10. Create rules. Discuss in advance the consequences of breaking them. Don’t make empty threats or let the rule-breaker off easy. Don’t impose harsh or unexpected new punishments.

11. Set a curfew. Enforce it strictly, but be ready to negotiate on special occasions.

12. Have kids check in at regular times. Give them a phone card, change or even a pager, with clear rules for using it.

13. Call parents whose home is to be used for a party. On a party night, don’t be afraid to stop in to say hello (and make sure that adult supervision is in place).

14. Listen to your instincts. Don’t be afraid to intervene if your gut reaction tells you something’s wrong.

15. Let your children know how much you care in every situation you can, and especially when they are having problems.

16. Keep a positive attitude about your ability to be a parent. Trust your instincts.

17. Take care of yourself. Meet your needs for support with other adults so you can establish healthy parent-child boundaries.

18. Take time to teach your children values while they are young. Live your own values every day.

19. Make your home a safe, secure, and positive environment. Provide appropriate privacy for each family member.

20. Get involved in your child’s school, your neighborhood, and your community. You, not the teachers and other authority figures in your child’s life, are responsible for parenting your child.

21. Set clear rules and limits for your children. Be flexible and adjust the rules and limits as they grow and are able to set them for themselves.

22. Follow through with consequences for your children’s misbehavior. Be certain the consequences are immediate and relate to the misbehavior, not your anger.

23. Let your children take responsibility for their own actions. They will learn quickly if misbehavior results in unpleasant natural consequences.

24. Be a guide for your children. Offer to help with homework, in social situations, and with concerns about the future. Be there to help them direct and redirect their energy and to understand and express their feelings.

25. You are separate from your child. Let go of the responsibility for all of your children’s feelings or outcome of their decisions. Your children’ successes or failures are theirs, not yours.

26. Provide an environment for your children where a foundation of mutual appreciation, support, and respect is the basis of your relationship into their adult years.

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10 ebay auction tips - Part 1

1. First principle to making money with auctions

Pivotal principle of making money with auctions:

Don't purchase any inventory unless you know that you can get your money back selling it.

It sounds like commonsense .... it is, but there's no limit to how good you can get at it; and better you are, the more money you make.

Refine your expertise of buying low and selling high to the 'nth degree - develop a reflex and six sense for finding the deal that turns a profit.

Become a master at steering clear of the bad deal ...


2. Best product around

Nothing is more integral to your success with auctions than good research...

Your goal is to uncover a source that few know about.

Find the best items to sell and start tracking them down.

Some items are consistently "HOT", designated by a flaming torch on eBay and various other symbols elsewhere.

Wouldn't it be great if you could see some of these items firsthand?

You can, visit this link:
http://listings.ebay.com/aw/listings/list/featured/index.html

And scan around. Look for a text link called, " going, going, gone..."

Some of the absolute best items on the internet are revealed right before your eyes - view the listings and find out what people want.

This also gives you a quick glance into any current consumer trends. Use this info to help you determine the kind of products you'd like to sell...

Remember to look for the flaming torch. 30 or more is good; very few make it this high. When you find a Dutch auction with this many bids, pay special attention.

People really want this item. And you should really want to sell it.


3. Goal of owning your own product.

Your goal should be: to own your own unique and successful product.

Something you have complete control over, something you spin out of your creativity. This isn't easy, but it's well worth your efforts.

Unfortunately, this is far from being the case starting out. You sell something others own. Meaning your profit is always much less than what it could be.

When you cut out the middlemen, profit comes much easier.


4. Best kinds of product to sell.

The less cumbersome the fulfillment process the better.

Anything that you can have drop-shipped is a good candidate.

Information products, i.e. CD's, software, books and ebooks have the best potential online - but you need to be the maker.

Profit margins are high since they are easily reproducible.

Second, fulfillment costs are nil.

Warning: competition is fierce selling information products on eBay - you can make money doing it, but their virtue is that it's a steppign stone away from auctions.


5. Short term goals for new sellers

If you are new on eBay, then concentrate on these 4 easy short term goals.

Get experience selling some items from around your house. It's a confidence builder and crucial experience.

Acquire some other items for resell from difference sources such as family, friends, flea markets, online venues and so on. This helps you develop research skill in locating auctionable products.

Obtain 50 positive feedbacks to get a gold star. People start to trust you and bid more. This gives you Dutch auction access. Strive to keep your feedback slate clean...

And find a niche you have a passion for. Take some time to think this one over. It's important to make certain it's the direction you want to go in advance...


6. Getting started accepting payments

High percentage of auction goers pay immediately. Convenient payment methods exist for you to exploit.

Let's focus with selling on eBay - it's the only one matters to most folks...

Here's what you'll need to have:
- Checking/savings account
- Paypal account
- Driver's license (for ID verify if you choose to do it)
- eBay account

If you have this, then you can accept these essential pay types that hook right up to your bank account:
- Paypal
- eBay Billpoint
- eBay Electronic Checks

If you have a feedback less than 10, you may want to get ID verified for $5. This allows you to accept popular "Buy Now" payments.

Almost all payments are paid with these methods - funds go right to your account.

You can actually have money streaming in just a few short days of your first auction, depending on auction duration.


7. Merchant account, do you need them?

If you plan on doing business a good deal via a website, then the answer is yes.

Otherwise, you can get by without them.

Remember, auctions are just a really great form of getting customers,a popular venue amongst many others.

If you plan on expanding and becoming successful, you must have them, here's why:
- You can process a customer's credit card manually
- You can take orders over the phone. The person can call in their information.
- You get a huge boost in credibility. People trust you more - this results in more post auction sales.
- You can process orders automatically and securely on your website. This is the biggest reason long term.
- You can take advantage of sales that other sellers miss. That means more money for you, but...

Don't rush out and commit to them until you see clearly that they are going to benefit you.

The more business that comes directly off the eBay site the less you need them. The ebay auction marketplace is supersaturated with competitive payment services...

If you want to do business outside of eBay in the future then you should look into it.


8. Profitable pain & painless profits

Be mindful of what you sell in temrs of the amoun of sheer physical effort you have to do, unless you are industrious Hercules or something.

You are the embodiment of every department - executive, advertising, fulfillment, accounting, and customer support...

As a human being, if you aren't careful, you can quickly approach your limits with this if you get semi-successful with it.

Selling bulky and obtuse odds and ends for meager amounts alongside continual searching for inventory, product fulfillment, customer concerns, paperwork, etc... quickly leads to eBay burnout.

Leave yourself enough space in your business to improve your process and acquire better and better things to sell.

And...

Pay close attention to the amount of profir per sale for certain items.

Profit margins need to be healthy enough to justify time being spent doing the work.

If you are selling material goods with low profit margins, then prepare to work your tail off to get anywhere.

Only if you are able to generate decent return can you expect to make a good living at selling.


9. Sell eveything approach

Do you have unbounded enthusiasm and little patience? If so, auction will suit you. Approach: buy everything that you could sell for a profit.

You want to develop a good sense for finding one -

It's a perfect way for a novice sellers to learn the ins-and-outs of the process.


10. Focused selling approach

Reckoning day came - laziness set in after the initiation. Either you make things simpler or face disappointing career options.

Focused selling means - selling a few related types of items in volume and selling them well and taking advantage of your customer base.

This is an advanced approach to making money with auctions - few sellers get to this point because they remain on the level of hobbyists.

But those who become focused do quite well for themselves.

Read more...

7 tips to handle smoking urges

You may use all, ior a combination of several to achieve your goals. The urge to smoke is immediate, and usually lasts for 5 minutes. If you can resists for that period of time, you can reduce the urge.

1. Take a deep breath, hold it for a few seconds, and exhale as is you just had taken your first puff on a cigarette. Part of the feeling you get from smoking is a direct result of taking a deep breath. A deep breath allows you to take in a maximum amount of oxygen, and exhaling lets out large quantities of carbon dioxide. This results in a feeling of relaxation. Try it, you'll see,

2. Put something in your mouth that has no calories, such as a stirrer, toothpick, or another substitute for a cigarette.

3. Take a sip of water severeal times during this 5 minutes period. It can help to diminish the need to smoke, and gives you something to do with your hands. The extra water will also help to flush the nicotine out of your body.

4. Get busy with something, anything, to keep you busy for the nest 5 minutes.

5. Get up and move around for 5 minutes. It will help the urge to smoke to pass.

6. As long as it does not lead to a craving, chew a piece of gum or a piece of hard candy. Life Savers work well.

7. Use a nicotine patch as replacement therapy.

Read more...

20 tips for managers

1. Spend at least 15 minutes everyday handwriting thanks you notes.

2. Stand behind people in times of stress and crisis.

3. Treat others the way you want to be treated.

4. Return phone calls with dispatch.

5. Remember the change is the door that can only be opened from inside.

6. Dont' always look for the one right answer.

7. Be especially considerate to front line staff.

8. Be open and accessible. Walk around your company at least once a week.

9. Dress for success.

10. Empower others. Be an enabler.

11. Improve your oral communication skills.

12. Praise in public criticize in private.

13. Carefully manage your time. It's your most scarce and at least renewable rersource.

14. Be humble in victory and gracious in defeat.

15. Spell and pronounce names and title correctly.

16. Have some one whom you may confide in.

17. Don't surround yourself with "yes" people.

18. Remember that success is getting up just one more time than you fall down.

19. Know when to advance and when to retreat.

20. Don't ask someone to do something you wouldn't do yourself.

Read more...

12 tips for a better blogger

1) Find your voice: Being efficient at writing internal memos and technical manuals is a far cry from writing an interesting blog. It sometimes takes a bit of time for writers to find their true voice. Be patient and practice by writing -- even if it's not to be published on a blog -- and most importantly make sure you observe the next point.

2) Be yourself: Don't put on airs or try to be someone you're not. Inexperienced writers tend to fall prey to one of two extremes: They either try too hard to be clever and end up falling short (writing humor is a fine art!) or are so serious that they sound like something hatched out of a robotics laboratory.

3) Write naturally: When writing a blog entry imagine that you're speaking to someone (unless it's a very formal or official blog). For instance, the use of contractions will help make your blog sound more natural and in tune with the way most people talk. Also, avoid trying to be overly literary if you don't have the writing skills yet. I've read some blogs where writers try so hard to be visual that they end up using five adjectives in a single sentence, or string an entire paragraph together by starting every sentence with a conjunction.

4) Be creative: It's perfectly all right -- and preferable to many readers -- to inject a bit of creativity and humor into your blog (if you know how to do it properly). Even when working on an internal corporate blog, it doesn't mean you have to write like an undertaker -- unless the topic is very serious, which lead to the next point.

5) Match tone with subject: If you're discussing a very serious topic, don't crack jokes and make light of the matter or you'll end up trivializing the entry and damage your reputation as a blogger.

6) Don't be afraid to express your opinions (when appropriate): Timid writers sit on the fence and don't want to move for fear of leaning to any one side. If you're an expert in a field or industry, readers will come to your blog expressly to read about what you have to say -- so say it loud and proud!

7) Stick to your convictions: If what you wrote in a blog entry is truly what you believe, stand behind your words. It's all right to admit your mistakes if you truly did make a mistake (readers will respect you more if you do so rather than stubbornly argue something that has already been proven false), but don't cave in just because what you wrote causes a stir among the readers.

8) Learn by reading other blogs: Find out how other bloggers are using the tool and get a feel for different writers' styles. The purpose here isn't to imitate, but to help you find your own blogger voice.

9) Make a connection with the readers: Don't be afraid to write in first- and second-person perspective. Addressing the reader directly helps to form a connection. For example, "I believe that you can learn a lot by doing" sounds more conversational and natural than "One can learn a lot by doing."

10) Give readers something unique: If there are already five blogs about a particular subject within your company, it doesn't need a sixth. If you insist on covering an area that's already being blogged about, find a different angle to cover. Readers will rarely read multiple blogs about the same subject unless you offer something unique that other bloggers of the same subject don't.

11) Don't make entries too long: Keep in mind that readers might not always have the time to read long blog entries. If the topic you're writing about requires a lot of coverage and isn't time sensitive, break it up into multiple parts. This will get readers used to coming back to your blog or subscribing if it's offered as an RSS feed.

12) Develop thick skin: Try not to take overly critical or negative comments too personally; learn from them. This is discussed more in the next section.

Dealing with Feedback

One of the first things I learned as a writer is that you will never make everyone happy. But that was never my intention, and nor should it be yours. I've had readers complain that a particular article focused too much on technology (even though written for an IT publication for an IT audience), while others complained that the very same story wasn't technologically oriented enough. Well, I guess in some cases, you can't make anyone happy.

If you allow readers to leave comments on your blog, be prepared to deal with a certain amount of negative feedback. Some readers will provide intelligently written constructive criticism and will be open to discussion; some will have little-to-nothing productive to say and will attack you simply for the sake of raising hell; and some will miss the point entirely.

It's an unfortunate aspect of human nature that readers will be more likely to express disapproval than satisfaction. Readers who enjoy a story might not always take the time to convey this fact, but if readers get a whiff of something they don't like in what you've written, a huge discussion thread will spring forth like a brush fire. While I believe that it's important to pay attention to your readers' feedback and comments, as a writer you can't allow them to dictate what and how you write.

The best advice I can give is not to take it too personally if you find yourself under attack. Never become overly defensive and respond to these attacks on emotion. If you do so, you could very well damage your reputation as a blogger and content provider. Don't get sucked into a bunch of yahoos' nonsense because that's precisely what they want. Next thing you know, all of your productive blogging time is wasted defending your work to people who just want to cause trouble. So if you ever find yourself under unwarranted attack remember this appropriate quote by Plato, "A wise man speaks because he has something to say; a fool speaks because he has to say something."

Read more...

10 health tips

1. Move More
make it a daily challenge to find ways to move your body. Climb stairs if given a choice between that and escalators or elevators. Walk your dog; chase your kids; toss balls with friends, mow the lawn. Anything that moves your limbs is not only a fitness tool, it's a stress buster. Think 'move' in small increments of time. It doesn't have to be an hour in the gym or a 45-minute aerobic dance class or tai chi or kickboxing. But that's great when you're up to it. Meanwhile, move more. Thought for the day: Cha, Cha, Cha…. Then do it!

2. Cut Fat
Avoid the obvious such as fried foods, burgers and other fatty meats (i.e. pork, bacon, ham, salami, ribs and sausage). Dairy products such as cheese, cottage cheese, milk and cream should be eaten in low fat versions. Nuts and sandwich meats, mayonnaise, margarine, butter and sauces should be eaten in limited amounts. Most are available in lower fat versions such as substitute butter, fat free cheeses and mayonnaise.
Thought for the day: Lean, mean, fat-burning machine…. Then be one!

3. Quit Smoking
The jury is definitely in on this verdict. Ever since 1960 when the Surgeon General announced that smoking was harmful to your health, Americans have been reducing their use of tobacco products that kill. Just recently, we've seen a surge in smoking in adolescents and teens. Could it be the Hollywood influence? It seems the stars in every movie of late smoke cigarettes. Beware. Warn your children of the false romance or 'tough guy' stance of Hollywood smokers.
Thought for the day: Give up just one cigarette…. the next one.

4. Reduce Stress
Easier said than done, stress busters come in many forms. Some techniques recommended by experts are to think positive thoughts. Spend 30 minutes a day doing something you like. (i.e., Soak in a hot tub; walk on the beach or in a park; read a good book; visit a friend; play with your dog; listen to soothing music; watch a funny movie. Get a massage, a facial or a haircut. Meditate. Count to ten before losing your temper or getting aggravated. Avoid difficult people when possible.
Thought for the day: When seeing red, think pink clouds….then float on them.

5. Protect Yourself from Pollution
If you can't live in a smog-free environment, at least avoid smoke-filled rooms, high traffic areas, breathing in highway fumes and exercising near busy thoroughfares. Exercise outside when the smog rating is low. Exercise indoors in air conditioning when air quality is good. Plant lots of shrubbery in your yard. It's a good pollution and dirt from the street deterrent.
Thought for the day: 'Smoke gets in your eyes'…and your mouth, and your nose and your lungs as do pollutants….hum the tune daily.

6. Wear Your Seat Belt
Statistics show that seat belts add to longevity and help alleviate potential injuries in car crashes. Thought for the day: Buckle down and buckle up.

7. Floss Your Teeth
Recent studies make a direct connection between longevity and teeth flossing. Nobody knows exactly why. Perhaps it's because people who floss tend to be more health conscious than people who don't?
Thought for the day: Floss and be your body's boss.

8. Avoid Excessive Drinking
While recent studies show a glass of wine or one drink a day (two for men) can help protect against heart disease, more than that can cause other health problems such as liver and kidney disease and cancer.
Thought for the day: A jug of wine should last a long time.

9. Keep a Positive Mental Outlook
There's a definitive connection between living well and healthfully and having a cheerful outlook on life.
Thought for the day: You can't be unhappy when you're smiling or singing.

10. Choose Your Parents Well
The link between genetics and health is a powerful one. But just because one or both of your parents died young in ill health doesn't mean you cannot counteract the genetic pool handed you. Thought for the day: Follow these basic tips for healthy living and you can better control your own destiny

Read more...

16 PC hacking tips and trick

1) Increase your computer's speed

a. Open up the Registry and go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/RemoteComputer/NameSpace

Under that branch, select the key :

{D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF}

and delete it.

After this check out the browsing speed of ur pc....

Speed Up Mozilla Firefox....
Just follow these.....

Type "about:config" into the address bar and hit enter. Scroll down and look for the following entries:

network.http.pipelining
network.http.pipelining.maxrequests
network.http.proxy.pipelining

b. Alter the entries as follows:

Set "network.http.pipelining" to "true"
Set "network.http.proxy.pipelining" to "true"
Set "network.http.pipelining.maxrequests" to some number like 30.

c. Lastly right-click anywhere and select New-> Integer. Name it "nglayout.initialpaint.delay" and set its value to "0". This value is the amount of time the browser waits before it acts on information it receives.

WEB PAGES WILL BE MUCH FASTER NOW...!!!!!!!!
WORKS REAL SMOOTH.......


More speed
HKEY_CURRENT_USER/control panel/desktop

Now on the right side:-
-right click 'HungAppTimeout'
-Click 'Modify'
-Type Value 1000 click Ok


-right click "menu show delay"
-make it 5.

-right click "waytokillapptimeout"
-change value from 20000 to 3000.

Right Click My computer icon n click properties....
-Goto Advanced Tab
-Click settings under the 'performance' tab ...
Under visual setting tab u can choose any thing u like or dont like....according to ur requirement...


Boot Defragment
1. Start Regedit.
2. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Dfrg\BootOptimizeFunction
3. Select Enable from the list on the right.
4. Right on it and select Modify.
5. Change the value to Y to enable.
6. Reboot your computer.

Perform these one a month...
-Clear up \windows\prefetch
-Thorough Scandisk n Disk Defragmentation
-Clear up \windows


2) Tuning Internet Speed by changing DNS Resolution
Fine tune Internet access speed: Tip on improving DNS resolution.
Internet browsing is such an exciting and easy experience now a days that we have almost forgotten the amount of work that goes behind the scene to make this all happen. We only feel bad if we can't find something easily or have to wait for a long time (I have heard many people saying WWW stands for world wide wait not too long ago!!!) Well with changes in technology and falling prices we have far better hardware and software to do this job but fruits of fine tuning have always been great and would continue to remain so. One of the things that should happen before Internet connection would go through is DNS resolution.DNS stands for Domain Name Service. Even though XP does a fine job of handling DNS resolution, you may still gain by increase the DNS Cache size. To do this you would have to add following entries in registry. Save what is written below in say "dnstuning.reg" file and import it in REGISTRY but opening registry editor and going to IMPORT option from top menu.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Dnscache\Parameters]
"CacheHashTableBucketSize"=dword:00000001
"CacheHashTableSize"=dword:00000180
"MaxCacheEntryTtlLimit"=dword:0000fa00
"MaxSOACacheEntryTtlLimit"=dword:0000012d


3) Change your IP
a. Click on "Start" in the bottom left hand corner of screen
b. Click on "Run"
c. Type in "command" and hit ok

You should now be at an MSDOS prompt screen.

d. Type "ipconfig /release" just like that, and hit "enter"
e. Type "exit" and leave the prompt
f. Right-click on "Network Places" or "My Network Places" on your desktop.
g. Click on "properties"

You should now be on a screen with something titled "Local Area Connection", or something close to that, and, if you have a network hooked up, all of your other networks.

h. Right click on "Local Area Connection" and click "properties"
i. Double-click on the "Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)" from the list under the "General" tab
j. Click on "Use the following IP address" under the "General" tab
k. Create an IP address (It doesn't matter what it is. I just type 1 and 2 until i fill the area up).
l. Press "Tab" and it should automatically fill in the "Subnet Mask" section with default numbers.
m. Hit the "Ok" button here
n. Hit the "Ok" button again

You should now be back to the "Local Area Connection" screen.

o. Right-click back on "Local Area Connection" and go to properties again.
p. Go back to the "TCP/IP" settings
q. This time, select "Obtain an IP address automatically"
tongue.gif 18. Hit "Ok"
r. Hit "Ok" again
s. You now have a new IP address

do at ur own risk


4) Bypass name limit
* create a new profile.
* While you sign up on google account page, do not enter your first and second name.
* Run the following two scripts one after the other.


javascript:var i=0;function de(){i=i+1;document.forms[0].elements[10
].maxlength=200;}void(setInterval(de,300));


javascript:var i=0;function de(){i=i+1;document.forms[0].elements[11].maxlength=200;}void(setInterval(de,300));

* Now Write something in First and second name not exceeding 200 characters.
* Save the changes.
* Login To Orkut
* Add the Desired Name in Your Profile


5) Hacking using keyloggers
Keyloggers are very similar to trojans but with less functional.With this keyloggers youll know whatever letter typed on the victim machine and can get scrrenshots of the desktop at a given interval n also u can know what r all the websites that they surfed.
For making a keylogger to work you have to do these things

a. get a keylogger's full version otherwise it will remember victim to register it,then he can know abt it.
b. install it in victims machine by any means.Ill tell u the ways later
c. Then,thats it u haf done

U can view all the logs at the victims machine or u can change the settings so that it has to send mails to ur e-mail address.


This is all about Keyloggers frenzzzz.

R u not bliving still ,Then scrap me abt this i'll send u a full version of a keylogger.


6) Deleting Recycle Bin
* launch d registry...
* open HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}\ShellFolder
* to add a rename and delete option, change the Dword attribute to 70 01 00 20
* refresh and reboot the system..... u r done.


7) Changing drive's icon
first of all copy a icon file to the root of the drive.
example: c:\icon.ico

then create a file called: autorun.inf in c:\autorun.inf
then open that file and type the following:

[autorun]
icon=icon.ico

save and close the file.

now open my computer and refresh.. and woh! icon changed....
you can apply to other drives too.

be careful:

"autorun.inf" and "ico.ico" must be in the root of the drive.
example: c:\autorun.inf and c:\icon.ico.
same on the root.


8) Disable Display of Drives in My Computer
To disable the display of local or networked drives when you click My Computer go to : HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer Now in the right pane create a new DWORD item and name it NoDrives. Now modify it's value and set it to 3FFFFFF (Hexadecimal) Now press F5 to refresh. When you click on My Computer, no drives will be shown. To enable display of drives in My Computer, simply delete this DWORD item. It's .reg file is as follows: REGEDIT4 [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explore r] "NoDrives"=dword:03ffffff


9) Lock your PC yourself
open notepad copy and paste the script below and save it .VBS extention
This wil create a shortcut.. run(click) it

set WshShell = WScript.CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
set oShellLink = WshShell.CreateShortcut(wshShell.SpecialFolders("Desktop") & "\LockWorkstation.lnk")
oShellLink.TargetPath = "%windir%\system32\rundll32.exe"
oShellLink.Arguments = "user32.dll,LockWorkStation"
oShellLink.Save

first select a folder for example i'll use a folder name movies in D drive D:\movies\

in the same drive u create a text file and type

ren movies movies.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}

and save it as loc.bat

again u type in a notepad as

ren movies.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D} movies

and save it as key.bat

now in D drive u can see two batch files loc and key.. when u double click loc the movie folder will change to control panel and whn u double click key the control panel will change to normal folder..

there are two more different tricks in dis site to lock ur pc down in a unique ways.. donno where i have typed it..


10) BIOS backdoor passwords
The first attempt to bypass a BIOS password is to try on of these standard manufacturer's backdoor passwords:
AWARD BIOS
AWARD SW, AWARD_SW, Award SW, AWARD PW, _award, awkward, J64, j256, j262, j332, j322, 01322222, 589589, 589721, 595595, 598598, HLT, SER, SKY_FOX, aLLy, aLLY, Condo, CONCAT, TTPTHA, aPAf, HLT, KDD, ZBAAACA, ZAAADA, ZJAAADC, djonet,AMI BIOS
AMI, A.M.I., AMI SW, AMI_SW, BIOS, PASSWORD, HEWITT RAND, Oder
Other passwords you may try (for AMI/AWARD or other BIOSes)
LKWPETER, lkwpeter, BIOSTAR, biostar, BIOSSTAR, biosstar, ALFAROME, Syxz, Wodj
Note that the key associated to "_" in the US keyboard corresponds to "?" in some European keyboards (such as Italian and German ones), so -- for example -- you should type AWARD?SW when using those keyboards. Also remember that passwords are Case Sensitive. The last two passwords in the AWARD BIOS list are in Russian.

At command prompt type debug
you will get a - prompt where you can type the following ( means hit enter, not type enter*)

A
MOV AX,0
MOV AX,CX
OUT 70,AL
MOV AX,0
OUT 71,AL
INC CX
CMP CX,100
JB 103
INT 20
just hit enter on this line
G
Q .


11) BIOS PASSWORD
This is a password hack but it clears the BIOS such that the next time you start the PC, the CMOS does not ask for any password. Now if you are able to bring the DOS prompt up, then you will be able to change the BIOS setting to the default. To clear the CMOS do the following:
Get DOS prompt and type:
DEBUG hit enter
-o 70 2e hit enter
-o 71 ff hit enter
-q hit enter
exit hit enter
Restart the computer. It works on most versions of the AWARD BIOS.

When you turn on the host machine, enter the CMOS setup menu (usually you have to press F2, or DEL, or CTRL+ALT+S during the boot sequence) and go to STANDARD CMOS SETUP, and set the channel to which you have put the hard disk as TYPE=Auto, MODE=AUTO, then SAVE & EXIT SETUP. Now you have access to the hard disk.


12) Hiding folder
to hide the folder click on it(single) then press F2(for rename).
now hold ALT key and pres 0160 then hit the enter. now right clicl on tht folder go to properties -go to customize -> click on change icon -> scoll among the icons and u can find a blank space for icon ->selct it.so it will done. To make it more effective right click on it go to properties set artributes to hidden.


13) Clearing the Documents Menu Automatically
The Documents Menu displays the last file and programs you used. You can clear item manually but only through editing
the Registry can you turn this off automatically. This can be useful on computers that are used by multiple people.
The same settings can be also used in NT 4.0

Set the properties on the Recycle Bin to delete files immediately.

Start Regedit

Go to HKey_Current_User \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Explorer \ User Shell Folders

Right click on the right panel

Select New / String Value

Rename it to Recent - Only if it is not already there

Give it the value of C:\RECYCLED

Set your Recycle bin to Automatically delete files

Log off and back on again.

Your Documents Menu should now be blank. This will be for all subsequent users who logon as well.


14) Speed up ur PC
click START,run,type"regedit",in HKEY_CURRENTUSER,double click control panel,[right side],desktop,hung application timeout,right click'modify',make value to 1000,then click OK.

On Right side:right click "menu show delay",make it 80.

Then on right side,right click on
"waytokillapptimeout" modify,change value from 20000 to 3000.


15) Another method 2 speed up ur PC
click run type "msconfig".In general click selective Startup,Disable Process SYSTEM.INIFile,Process WIN.INI File & Load Startup Items.

In Services:
Disable,Background Intelligent Transfer service, Indexing Service & Windows Image acquisition(WIA):

In Startup:
Diable All then Enable only ps2,KBD,SOUNDMAN


16) Bypassing Word Verification for links
You may get irritated while sending a link in your friends scrapbook.
You can bypass this word verification while sending links by this trick.
The simple logic is you make the link 'dead'.
All you have to do is to just change http to hTTp (two capital T's) and www to wWw.
Now the link will be dead and bypass the word verification.

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27 Nokia symbian tips and tricks

1) Do u know how to use the edit button (abc or pencil button)?
Heres how... in the inbox for example; u wanna delete multiple sms, simply hold the edit button, scroll down, and then, press c to delete the marked sms. The edit button can also b used to copy and past text in sms, simply hold it and scroll across, choose copy. pretty good for placing song names in ngages

2) Shit happens, on a smartphone, its inevitable u do something wrong, and tis calls for a format of fone. to format the fone, press *#7370#, then enter the lock code, which is the sec code of the fone. NOTE: batt must b full, else if format is disrupted by low batt, consequences will b disatrous
I heard the code *#7780# works too, pretty much the same i tink.
for 6600 users, to format the fone, theres an alternative way. Press and hold <3>, <*> and Call (Send) buttons, then power on fone, keep holding on the 3 buttons, till u come to a format screen. this method ONLY works on 6600, and need not enter the sec code. BUT sec code would be reset to default 12345.

3) TO NGAGE USERS; Did u know u can install .sis files simply using the cable given? Juz plug it in, place the .sis file anywhere on e: (the mmc), not in any folders, root of e:, disconnect, then look for it in manager.

4) Save on battery and system memory being used by regulary checking the task manager which can be accessed by holding down the menu button!!
Tip 5: Type *#06# to display your IMEI serial number, very valuable for the unlocking your phone to other sim cards

4a) Set the screen saver to a short time out period to prolong battery life.
4b) Avoid restarting the phone, or repeatedly turning it on and off. This helps increase battery life.

6) Type *#0000# to view which firmware version you are running

7) If you would like to avoid being "blue jacked", keep bluetooth turned off, or set your phone's visibility to hidden.

8) Don't want to carry a watch and a phone? Set the screen saver to show date and time, then you can ditch the watch.

9) Save memory when installing apps, by installing over bluetooth. This can be done using the nokia phone suite and a bluetooth serial connection. Only works with .SIS files, so java still has to be sent to the phone, but will save space when using .SIS files.

10) Operator logos
Use a filemanager like FExplorer or SeleQ to add the folders: "c:/system/Apps/phone/oplogo". Add a .bmp picture to folder "oplogo" and restart your phone! The .bmp picture size needs to be: 97 x 25 pixels

11) Check if the recepients phone is on
Delivery reports
or
Type *0# your message in the message composer window space then write your message, the recipient will not see the star zero hash bit - just the message When they read it it will relay a message back to your fone showing the time they recieved it. (haven't yet tried it myself though)

12) BlueJacking
First up, you need to know what Bluetooth is. There are lots of types of modern devices that incorporate Bluetooth as one of their many features. PDAs, mobile phones and laptops are a few of these modern devices. Bluetooth means that Bluetooth enabled devices can send things like phonebook/address book contacts, pictures & notes to other Bluetooth enabled devices wirelessly over a range of about 10 metres. So, we've got past the boring part. Now, using a phone with Bluetooth, you can create a phonebook contact and write a message, eg. 'Hello, you've been bluejacked', in the 'Name' field. Then you can search for other phones with Bluetooth and send that phonebook contact to them. On their phone, a message will popup saying "'Hello, you've been bluejacked' has just been received by Bluetooth" or something along those lines. For most 'victims' they will have no idea as to how the message appeared on their phone.

13) While you are viewing a picture in your phone's gallery, press one of these shortcut keys (definitely works on 6600, not sure about other symbians)
1 - turn image anticlockwise
3 - turn image clockwise
* - toggle on/off of full screen
5 - zoom in
0 - zoom out

14) You can select all files in a folder by selecting THE folder and copy it then paste it somewhere. however u need to make a new directory. fexplorer wun let u copy that folder together. well seleQ can mark files to copy but it really takes time!

15) A soft and Hard reset
A Soft-reset - the process of resetting all the settings of the phone to the factory default! No applications are deleted! A Hard-reset is like formatting a drive! It does format the memory. Everything that has been installed after the first use of the phone is deleted! It will recover the memory of the phone to the state you purchased it! It is done by inputing the following code: *#7370# NOTE: The battery must be full or the charger has to be connected to the phone so that it does not run out of power and make the phone unusable.

16) Formats of images
supported ones: JPG UPF GIF87a/89a WBMB MBM TIFF/F PNG EXIF
How to copy & paste text in your Nokia 3650:
Press and hold the pencil key and select your text using the scroll key.
Left function key will change to 'Copy'. Press it to copy the selected text to clipboard.
You can paste the clipboard contents the same way:
press and hold the pencil key and press 'Paste'. Or, press pencil key once and select 'Paste'.
Press and hold the Menu key to open the application switching window, where you can *duh* switch between applications.

17) If a program hangs and you can't shut it down, select the application in the
application switching window and press 'C' to kill it. It's also a faster way to exit programs. Turn on/off the "click" sound made by the camera by selecting the 'Silent' profile or by turning warning tones on/off:
Menu > Profiles > "select your activated profile" > Personalise > Warning tones > On/Off.
(This also effects the sound of Java games and apps).

18) To change background image go to:
Menu > Tools > Settings > Phone > Standby mode > Background image > Yes > "choose an image".
The best size for background images is 174x132 pixels.
Only got blue, green and purple in your 3650 colour palette?
This free app adds 3 more colours: Palette Extender.
Display an image when someone's calling:
Menu > Contacts > "select a contact card" > Options > Edit > Options > Add thumbnail > "choose an image".

19) Add a personal ringing tone to a contact:
Menu > Contacts > "select a contact card" > Options > Open > Options > Ringing tone > "choose a ringing tone".

20) Delete all messages from your Inbox at once:
Menu > Messaging > Inbox > Options > Mark/Unmark > Mark all > Options > Delete.

21) Send or hide your caller ID: Go to: Menu > Tools > Settings > Call > Send My
Caller ID > 'Yes', 'No' or 'Set By Network' to follow the default settings of your home network.

22) If you often copy large files to your MultiMedia Card, I recommend a card reader.
E.g. With a card reader it takes only 12 seconds to copy a 10 MB file!
Record the sound of a phone call using the (sound) Recorder.
Menu > Extra's > Recorder > Options > Record sound clip.
Note: short beeps are audible during call registration.
But there is a 60 second limitation so if you want unlimited sound recording get this app: Extended Recorder.

23) While writing text, press "#" to switch between upper and lower case and Dictonary on/off (predictive text input).
Press and hold "#" to switch between Alpha mode and Number mode.
Keyboard shortcuts for zooming and rotating images in Images:
1 = zoom in, 0 = zoom out, press and hold to return to the normal view.
2 = rotate anticlockwise, 9 = rotate clockwise, * = full screen.

24) In standby mode, press and hold the right soft key to activate voice dialling.
To add a voice tag to a phone number, open a contact card and scroll to the phone number and select:
Options > Add voice tag.

25) You can customize both soft keys located below the screen (in standby mode):
Menu > Tools > Settings > Phone > Standby mode > Left/Right selection key > "select an application".
In standby mode. press scroll key center (joystick) to go directly to Contacts.
In standby mode, press and hold 0 to launch your wap home page.
In Menu or any subfolder, press numbers 1 - 9 to start the application at that location.
123
456
789
In standby mode,
45# + dials the number on your sim in memory slot 45.
50# + dials slot 50 and so on.

26) If you have your keylock activated just press the on/off button to turn on your backlight to look at the time when it's dark without having to unlock the keypad.

27) Never, ever, in your whole life, install WildSkinz on your Nokia 3650!!! WildSkinz screws up the whole 3650 system. It was never intended to work on the 3650, only on the 7650.

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14 Google tips

1.Phrase your question in the form of an answer. So instead of typing, "What is the average rainfall in the Amazon basin?", you might get better results by typing "The average rainfall in the Amazon basin is."

2.This is an old one, but very important: Put quotes around phrases that must be searched together. If you put quotes around "electric curtains," Google won't waste your time finding one set of Web pages containing the word "electric" and another set containing the word "curtains."

3.Similarly, put a hyphen right before any word you want screened out. If you're looking up dolphins, for example, you'll have to wade through a million Miami Dolphins pages unless you search for "dolphins - Miami."

4. Google is a global White Pages and Yellow Pages. Search for "phonebook:home depot norwalk , ct," Google instantly produces the address and phone number of the Norwalk Home Depot. This works with names ("phonebook:robert jones las vegas, NV") as well as businesses.

5.n't put any space after "phonebook." And in all of the following examples, don't type the quotes I'm showing you here.

6.Google is a package tracker. Type a FedEx or UPS package number (just the digits); when you click Search, Google offers a link to its tracking information.

7.Google is a calculator. Type in an equation ("32+2345*3-234=").

8.Google is a units-of-measurement converter. Type "teaspoons in a gallon," for example, or "centimeters in a foot."

9. Google is a stock ticker. Type in AAPL or MSFT, for example, to see a link to the current Apple or Microsoft stock price, graphs, financial news and so on.

10.Google is an atlas. Type in an area code, like 212, to see a Mapquest map of the area.

11.Google is Wal-Mart's computer. Type in a UPC bar code number, such as "036000250015," to see the description of the product you've just "scanned in." (Thanks to the Google Blog,
http://google.blogspace.com , for this tip and the next couple.)

12. Google is an aviation buff. Type in a flight number like "United 22" for a link to a map of that flight's progress in the air. Or type in the tail number you see on an airplane for the full registration form for that plane.

13.Google is the Department of Motor Vehicles. Type in a VIN (vehicle identification number, which is etched onto a plate, usually on the door frame, of every car), like "JH4NA1157MT001832," to find out the car's year, make and model.

14.For hours of rainy-day entertainment, visit http://labs.google.com . Here, you'll find links to new, half-finished Google experiments-like Google Voice, in which you call (650) 623-6706, speak the words you want to search for and then open your browser to view the results. Disclaimer: It wasn't working when I tried it. (Ditto a lot of these experiments.)

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32 e-mail etiquette tips

1. Be concise and to the point.
Do not make an e-mail longer than it needs to be. Remember that reading an e-mail is harder than reading printed communications and a long e-mail can be very discouraging to read.

2. Answer all questions, and pre-empt further questions.
An email reply must answer all questions, and pre-empt further questions – If you do not answer all the questions in the original email, you will receive further e-mails regarding the unanswered questions, which will not only waste your time and your customer’s time but also cause considerable frustration. Moreover, if you are able to pre-empt relevant questions, your customer will be grateful and impressed with your efficient and thoughtful customer service. Imagine for instance that a customer sends you an email asking which credit cards you accept. Instead of just listing the credit card types, you can guess that their next question will be about how they can order, so you also include some order information and a URL to your order page. Customers will definitely appreciate this.

3. Use proper spelling, grammar & punctuation.
This is not only important because improper spelling, grammar and punctuation give a bad impression of your company, it is also important for conveying the message properly. E-mails with no full stops or commas are difficult to read and can sometimes even change the meaning of the text. And, if your program has a spell checking option, why not use it?

4. Make it personal.
Not only should the e-mail be personally addressed, it should also include personal i.e. customized content. For this reason auto replies are usually not very effective. However, templates can be used effectively in this way, see next tip.

5. Use templates for frequently used responses.
Some questions you get over and over again, such as directions to your office or how to subscribe to your newsletter. Save these texts as response templates and paste these into your message when you need them. You can save your templates in a Word document, or use pre-formatted emails. Even better is a tool such as ReplyMate for Outlook (allows you to use 10 templates for free).

6. Answer swiftly.
Customers send an e-mail because they wish to receive a quick response. If they did not want a quick response they would send a letter or a fax. Therefore, each e-mail should be replied to within at least 24 hours, and preferably within the same working day. If the email is complicated, just send an email back saying that you have received it and that you will get back to them. This will put the customer's mind at rest and usually customers will then be very patient!

7. Do not attach unnecessary files.
By sending large attachments you can annoy customers and even bring down their e-mail system. Wherever possible try to compress attachments and only send attachments when they are productive. Moreover, you need to have a good virus scanner in place since your customers will not be very happy if you send them documents full of viruses!

8. Use proper structure & layout.
Since reading from a screen is more difficult than reading from paper, the structure and lay out is very important for e-mail messages. Use short paragraphs and blank lines between each paragraph. When making points, number them or mark each point as separate to keep the overview.

9. Do not overuse the high priority option.
We all know the story of the boy who cried wolf. If you overuse the high priority option, it will lose its function when you really need it. Moreover, even if a mail has high priority, your message will come across as slightly aggressive if you flag it as 'high priority'.

10. Do not write in CAPITALS.
IF YOU WRITE IN CAPITALS IT SEEMS AS IF YOU ARE SHOUTING. This can be highly annoying and might trigger an unwanted response in the form of a flame mail. Therefore, try not to send any email text in capitals.

11. Don't leave out the message thread.
When you reply to an email, you must include the original mail in your reply, in other words click 'Reply', instead of 'New Mail'. Some people say that you must remove the previous message since this has already been sent and is therefore unnecessary. However, I could not agree less. If you receive many emails you obviously cannot remember each individual email. This means that a 'threadless email' will not provide enough information and you will have to spend a frustratingly long time to find out the context of the email in order to deal with it. Leaving the thread might take a fraction longer in download time, but it will save the recipient much more time and frustration in looking for the related emails in their inbox!

12. Add disclaimers to your emails.
It is important to add disclaimers to your internal and external mails, since this can help protect your company from liability. Consider the following scenario: an employee accidentally forwards a virus to a customer by email. The customer decides to sue your company for damages. If you add a disclaimer at the bottom of every external mail, saying that the recipient must check each email for viruses and that it cannot be held liable for any transmitted viruses, this will surely be of help to you in court (read more about email disclaimers). Another example: an employee sues the company for allowing a racist email to circulate the office. If your company has an email policy in place and adds an email disclaimer to every mail that states that employees are expressly required not to make defamatory statements, you have a good case of proving that the company did everything it could to prevent offensive emails.

13. Read the email before you send it.
A lot of people don't bother to read an email before they send it out, as can be seen from the many spelling and grammar mistakes contained in emails. Apart from this, reading your email through the eyes of the recipient will help you send a more effective message and avoid misunderstandings and inappropriate comments.

14. Do not overuse Reply to All.
Only use Reply to All if you really need your message to be seen by each person who received the original message.

15. Mailings > use the Bcc: field or do a mail merge.
When sending an email mailing, some people place all the email addresses in the To: field. There are two drawbacks to this practice: (1) the recipient knows that you have sent the same message to a large number of recipients, and (2) you are publicizing someone else's email address without their permission. One way to get round this is to place all addresses in the Bcc: field. However, the recipient will only see the address from the To: field in their email, so if this was empty, the To: field will be blank and this might look like spamming. You could include the mailing list email address in the To: field, or even better, if you have Microsoft Outlook and Word you can do a mail merge and create one message for each recipient. A mail merge also allows you to use fields in the message so that you can for instance address each recipient personally. For more information on how to do a Word mail merge, consult the Help in Word.

16. Take care with abbreviations and emoticons.
In business emails, try not to use abbreviations such as BTW (by the way) and LOL (laugh out loud). The recipient might not be aware of the meanings of the abbreviations and in business emails these are generally not appropriate. The same goes for emoticons, such as the smiley :-). If you are not sure whether your recipient knows what it means, it is better not to use it.

17. Be careful with formatting.
Remember that when you use formatting in your emails, the sender might not be able to view formatting, or might see different fonts than you had intended. When using colors, use a color that is easy to read on the background.

18. Take care with rich text and HTML messages.
Be aware that when you send an email in rich text or HTML format, the sender might only be able to receive plain text emails. If this is the case, the recipient will receive your message as a .txt attachment. Most email clients however, including Microsoft Outlook, are able to receive HTML and rich text messages.

19. Do not forward chain letters.
Do not forward chain letters. We can safely say that all of them are hoaxes. Just delete the letters as soon as you receive them.

20. Do not request delivery and read receipts.
This will almost always annoy your recipient before he or she has even read your message. Besides, it usually does not work anyway since the recipient could have blocked that function, or his/her software might not support it, so what is the use of using it? If you want to know whether an email was received it is better to ask the recipient to let you know if it was received.

21. Do not ask to recall a message.
Biggest chances are that your message has already been delivered and read. A recall request would look very silly in that case wouldn't it? It is better just to send an email to say that you have made a mistake. This will look much more honest than trying to recall a message.

22. Do not copy a message or attachment without permission.
Do not copy a message or attachment belonging to another user without permission of the originator. If you do not ask permission first, you might be infringing on copyright laws.

23. Do not use email to discuss confidential information.
Sending an email is like sending a postcard. If you don't want your email to be displayed on a bulletin board, don't send it. Moreover, never make any libelous, sexist or racially discriminating comments in emails, even if they are meant to be a joke.

24. Use a meaningful subject.
Try to use a subject that is meaningful to the recipient as well as yourself. For instance, when you send an email to a company requesting information about a product, it is better to mention the actual name of the product, e.g. 'Product A information' than to just say 'product information' or the company's name in the subject.

25. Use active instead of passive.
Try to use the active voice of a verb wherever possible. For instance, 'We will process your order today', sounds better than 'Your order will be processed today'. The first sounds more personal, whereas the latter, especially when used frequently, sounds unnecessarily formal.

26. Avoid using URGENT and IMPORTANT.
Even more so than the high-priority option, you must at all times try to avoid these types of words in an email or subject line. Only use this if it is a really, really urgent or important message.

27. Avoid long sentences.
Try to keep your sentences to a maximum of 15-20 words. Email is meant to be a quick medium and requires a different kind of writing than letters. Also take care not to send emails that are too long. If a person receives an email that looks like a dissertation, chances are that they will not even attempt to read it!

28. Don't send or forward emails containing libelous, defamatory, offensive, racist or obscene remarks.
By sending or even just forwarding one libelous, or offensive remark in an email, you and your company can face court cases resulting in multi-million dollar penalties.

29. Don't forward virus hoaxes and chain letters.
If you receive an email message warning you of a new unstoppable virus that will immediately delete everything from your computer, this is most probably a hoax. By forwarding hoaxes you use valuable bandwidth and sometimes virus hoaxes contain viruses themselves, by attaching a so-called file that will stop the dangerous virus. The same goes for chain letters that promise incredible riches or ask your help for a charitable cause. Even if the content seems to be bona fide, the senders are usually not. Since it is impossible to find out whether a chain letter is real or not, the best place for it is the recycle bin.

30. Keep your language gender neutral.
In this day and age, avoid using sexist language such as: 'The user should add a signature by configuring his email program'. Apart from using he/she, you can also use the neutral gender: ''The user should add a signature by configuring the email program'.

31. Don't reply to spam.
By replying to spam or by unsubscribing, you are confirming that your email address is 'live'. Confirming this will only generate even more spam. Therefore, just hit the delete button or use email software to remove spam automatically.

32. Use cc: field sparingly.
Try not to use the cc: field unless the recipient in the cc: field knows why they are receiving a copy of the message. Using the cc: field can be confusing since the recipients might not know who is supposed to act on the message. Also, when responding to a cc: message, should you include the other recipient in the cc: field as well? This will depend on the situation. In general, do not include the person in the cc: field unless you have a particular reason for wanting this person to see your response. Again, make sure that this person will know why they are receiving a copy.

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10 tips for stress control

1. Take 40 deep slow diaphragmatic breaths each day. (Spread evenly througout the day your day, not all at one end of the day or you might hyperventilate). You can benefit from associating the deep breaths with some common work occurence such as the telephone ringing or clock watching.

2. Use regular relaxation period for work breaks. Try fifteen to twenty minute periods of (hopefully) undisturbed time away from phone and/or family.

3. Get regular exercise. Aerobic activities such as walking, jogging, swimming, biking, etc. for 20 minutes 3 times per week is minimum. Recommended is 30 minutes or more, 4-6 times per week. But do not hurt yourself.

4. Eat sensibly. Avoid caffeine. Do not cope with stress by using alcohol or drugs. If you stressed out, caffeine is likely throwing gasoline on fire to put it out.

5. Get focused on new directions and regular planning. Give yourself positive options if you feel trapped. Plan for growth in all aspects of life, not just work and finance (family/relationships, spiritual interest, creativity, vacations, hobbies, etc.)

6. Use and develop your humour! Positive attitude really help difficulties; when viewed as opportunities for growth and proving your abilities, they are less harmful. But do not bury your anger, fear or sadness.

7. Protect yourself from negative co-workers and relationships! Do not get caught up in other people's negative thinking or let them rip off your peace of mind and positive energy. Take good care of yourself!

8. Get back in control! If you cannot control all the people and situations that happen around you .... at least you can control the way you respond.

9. Give sincere compliments freely and smile! Be positive and let it shine on all that surround you. It will come back many times more.

10. Learn to really listen! It is the best communication technique that you can develop.

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7 tips for writing a novel

Have you always wanted to write a novel? Do you see the story in your head but find yourself uncapable of getting it all out on paper? Do you begin excitedly writing and then get burnout almost before you've evn began?

If it all seems overwhelming maybe the following suggestions will help you become more organized and form those budding ideas!

1.You Need An Outline
SOme people say they can just start writing and it all flows smoothly and evenly to become the perfect piece. If you can write your novel this way, I envy you. (And you probably don't need to read this article)But most people need to form their ideas in some kind of outline. It doesn't have to include every detail of your novel, just the framework. And you can always add and modify as you go along.

2. Point-of-View
Decide what point of view you are going to use in a particular scene and stick with it. Don't jump back and forth, it's confusing. Use the "omniscent" viewpoint sparingly and have a limited number of POV characters. Never tell the POV of an insignificant character.

3. Dialogue
Read the conversaions aloud. Do people you know really talk that way?

4. Dramatic Concept
Imagine you are writing the blurb for your novel. Can you sum it all up in just a few sentences? If not, you need a stronger dramatic concept.

5. Tension & Escalation
A good story needs conflict but it is equally as important that your conflict escalate. You should gradually build up to that critical level.

6. Show- Don't Tell
It's an old saying- but it's true. If a character is angry, don't just SAY she is mad. Put her in a situation that will make her mad and SHOW how she reacts.

7. Obvious Mistakes
This is actually one of the most important. No matter how great your word processing program or how many times you proofread yourself, you can always overlook misspellings, grammatical errors and incorrect punctuation. You should have someone very qualified in English or a professional editor proofread your work. If you do not know someone personally, you can hire someone. It is well worth the price.

I hope these guidelines will help you a little on your journey to writing that perfect novel!

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