Free (or almost free) helpers while traveling

I use a lot of helpful sites while full-timing, sites that let me do things conveniently and efficiently. I am often referring folks to them so thought I would toss them all in a blog and maybe some of them will help others. I use all of these.

faxZERO.com
This site allows you to send up to two free faxes of up to three pages each once a day. The faxes can be PDF or DOC files or you can type a text message to be sent. If you need to send more then two in one day it's $1.99 per fax (paid through PayPal). Same for sending a fax for more than three pages...for $1.99 you can send up to 15 pages. I have used this several times and it has been WONDERFUL and much cheaper than hunting up a spot to send a fax. FAQ here.

eFax.com
This site has three plans and they are compared here. I use the free version and have used it off and on since their early years. In order to read the free fax attachments that are emailed to you, you will need to install their free eFax Messenger program. There aren't a lot of choices out there for free fax sending. Most require a fee for the faxes or they require you to join (for pay) another type of service offering to get the free faxing. I have had documents sent to me this way, printed it out, filled it in, scanned it in, printed out as a PDF, and sent back using faxZERO. eFax help.

FaxDigits.com
I am adding this site because I had signed up for it quite a while back and just rediscovered it. I like it better than eFax because they email you a PDF file, no special reader or other download needed. They offer unlimited incoming faxes but on the free plan they don't store them for you. Read the FAQ.

mail2web.com
Many of us use web-based email addresses or access our ISP email via their web interface. For those that don't have easy access to their email when not at their own computer, mail2web offers a great way to get to your mail. You can set up your own personal page and store multiple email accounts to check (this is what I have done). One other NICE feature about mail2web - someone sends us that HUGE attachment and it locks up our mailbox because of its size. I go into mail2web, read the message, delete it and my incoming mail is now back working. More info.

SimpleVoiceBox.com
Yes, most of us have cell phones. Yes, most of our cell phones have voicemail. No, our cellphones don't always have service. So how can you be sure you stay in communication with family & friends? I set up a free SimpleVoiceBox account. I tell my family & close friends that if they can't get to me via my cell phone and it's urgent, then leave me a voicemail at 641-715-3900 x6315069 (my SimpleVoiceBox number and extension). Go ahead, leave me a message (I will remove the number in a couple of days and use a fake one). Here is the FAQ.

GrandCentral.com
A newer offering is one from Google - GrandCentral. Currently in BETA testing, you can sign up for your number now. They advertise; "One number that rings all your phones. One voicemail box, all your messages in one place." Many features....time will tell how much I will use it, but hey, the sign up is free and I already use a TON of other Google stuff.

MyWay.com
Okay, so you have all these neat new sites bookmarked. Your computer dies and you need to get online at the library. How do you remember all the sites you need to check? What about your favorite forums and other sites?

I use a personalized MyWay portal page (my home page - sample below). I have local newspapers from home bookmarked on the left, followed by weather in areas of interest to me. I have my news sources in the middle, on the right the only advertising they use is a small Google box of contextual ads and under that I have a HUGE list of all my favorite sites.

This makes it very easy if I need to use another computer, I just log into MyWay.com and I'm set. But even on my computer it makes it easy because I can click to all my favorite forums, check weather, find out sunrise/sunset times, all my favorite sites - from one page. In addition, I have my TV listings for the stations I watch the most at the bottom of the page, nice quick overview to see what's on. It's all very customizable, even the color scheme. Read the FAQ.

I am sure other portal sites (Yahoo, ISP home pages, MSN, etc) all offer something similar. I just happen to like the clean interface and minimal ads offered by MyWay.

IrfanView
The best freeware around for image/graphic manipulation. I have used this program for over 10 years now...I love it so much that I recently sent in a small donation to help in the continuing development. I can't begin to tell you all that it can do, you need to learn as you go (I'm still learning). The basics we all need are the ability to resize the dimensions of an image (width x height), optimize the file size of .jpg photos (I use 85% optimization most of the time), crop the edges of an image, flip it horizontal/vertical, rotate it to the left or right.

In addition you can save as many different file types, open many different file types, crop out the INSIDE of an image, adjust the colors, reduce the colors, change to black & white, make a negative image, save a GIF with a transparent background, auto adjust photo colors, and so much more. I keep finding new things all the time. You do need to remember to check for updates from time to time, there is no auto-update procedure. Once downloaded and installed, be sure to download and install the plug-ins as well.

pdf 995 ~ CutePDF Writer ~ PDF reDirect
All three of these provide you with a free and easy way to create PDF files. They install a printer driver and all you do is choose that as your printer. Sweet! Each offers a slightly different way of saving the file, some have more options, some have PRO (paid) options. I have used all three and have opted for the pay version of CutePDF & PDF reDirect. Over time I had some Vista issues with CutePDF so I almost exclusively use PDF reDirect PRO now. But for most folks, the free version is all you need. Try them and keep the one YOU like best.

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Froggi/Donna

Can you find me now?

If you have been following my blog, you remember my post about passing out and hitting my head one night while sick. Several folks made comments about setting up a way to have others local to you check in on you, nightly/daily check-in phone calls, etc.

None of these are perfect...if you like to boondock in the middle of nowhere, there isn't someone you can ask to check on you. And if you're a solo lady, that in of itself is a bit scary (asking someone you don't know....). A daily check-in by phone can be difficult as well...you might be out of cell phone range is the first problem. The second is inconveniencing someone on a daily basis.

In one of my favorite motorcycle forums they have been discussing Personal Locator Beacon solutions.

"The PLB (Personal Locator Beacon) is a pocket-sized emergency 406MHz beacon, a scaled down version of the EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon) and ELT (Emergency Locator Transmitter) that boaters and pilots, respectively, have had available to them for years."
~ Landfall Navigation

These items were brought up in a boondocking session I attended at RV Life on Wheels recently. While a nice option, they are pricey...VERY pricey at $500-700 although there are no annual fees.

Recently some new products have come into the marketplace. One is the TracMe Beacon, only $99 and again, no annual fees. Note that this is not satellite communication and it does not automatically start a search & rescue operation. Not does it allow you to notify someone that you are okay. But it is one newer solution to be considered.

The new product now being discussed in The Motorcycle Tourer's Forum is the SPOT Satellite Messenger. Priced at $170 by the manufacturer, it is in the affordable range. (The cheapest price I found was at Amazon.com, at under $135.) There is an annual fee of $99 for the basic services with a couple of upgrade options. But for the $99 you get a lot...

• ALERT 9-1-1:
  Dispatch emergency responders to your exact location. Unlimited usage included.
• CHECK IN:
  Let contacts know where you are and that you’re okay. Unlimited usage included.
• ASK FOR HELP:
  Request help from friends and family at your exact location. Unlimited usage included.
  

This means you can easily use it to notify family/friends that you are okay. Run into a problem, then you can ask for help via the SPOT Messenger. And in an emergency you can send a message to the control center who can notify your emergency contacts for you.

It's not perfect...like any satellite solution it needs a clear line of sight for the best signal. It can take up to 20 minutes to lock onto the signal. Too many trees or other obstructions and the signal may not go out. But if you have been using the CHECK IN feature, then your last location sent is available as a starting point.

Here are some reviews I found, Lets Go Mobile and Wild Snow, as well as a good FAQ page on the emergency service. One of the motorcyclists has sent check in updates to his blog! I really like this product and think it will only get better. I think I see one in my near future....

UPDATE 5/12/08: I have purchased a SPOT Messenger - see the link in the sidebar or click HERE for the best price including Priority Mail shipping.

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Froggi/Donna

Always a new adventure.....

Yup, a NEW adventure for me. I had requested that my mail be forwarded on the 7th rather than the 10th because my plans had changed and I wanted to leave the Bouse BLM boondocking area on Friday morning, the 14th and wanted to be sure my mail arrived in time. No problem...right? You would think so....LOL!

After checking on Tues & Wed and still no mail, I contacted my mail forwarding company. Turns out my mail went out on the 7th but it went to the previously requested address in Winterhaven, CA (when I was boondocking outside Yuma). Can you say OOPS? They had it redirected to the Bouse General Delivery and I was told it would be there on Thursday or Friday. So instead of bumming rides over there (I was expecting three boxes so not something I really wanted to do with the bike), I decided to call on Thursday. No mail....sigh...

Friday morning I head out to Quartzsite to get my inverter looked tweaked. When done, I get gas then go by the RV Pit Stop to top off my propane, dump & take on fresh water. When I was done I headed to Bouse and the Post Office, REALLY hoping all the mail would be there. Well, one box was....at least it turned out to be the one with my new Garmin Nuvi 760 GPS in it. Phew! But that meant I needed to hang around for at least one more day, hoping that the other two boxes would show on Saturday. They were open for packages between 9-10 am.

So I headed back out of town and parked on the first 14 day BLM area I found....yup, my first REAL night of boondocking solo. Okay, so there was another RV barely within sight, but it wasn't anyone I knew and we could barely see each other. Peace and quiet...totally mesmerizing.

Many people don't realize that I am actually somewhat of in introvert and basically shy. Normally I spend a week or two with others and then go off by myself for a while. I've been with friends since I hit Quartzsite in the middle of January! That is a record for me...LOL!

Okay, back to the saga of the missing mail. I was wide awake last night and ended up sleeping in a little bit. I made it to the Post Office about 9:30....box number two was there. This one had more stuff that I had ordered (but not all of it) and still no "real" mail. Guess all that is in the LAST box.

Fortunately the Post Mistress had told me on Friday that she would hold it for 30 days and could do a one time forwarding for me. I called the campground in Tucson where I will be staying for a week after the RV Life on Wheels and got their permission to have the mail sent there. With that set I hit the road. I needed to stop at the Super Wal-Mart in Buckeye and get some groceries and other stuff. Ended up getting a haircut while I was there since they could fit me in right away.



After spending a couple of hours there, opted to hunker down in Augie's Quail Trail RV Park in Gila Bend. I had spent one night there before and liked the park and the folks that run it. I desperately needed to do laundry after spending 5 weeks in the desert. LOL!

I arrived just before 4pm, unloaded my bags from the store, loaded up all the laundry and headed over to get it started. I ended up with 4 loads and I still need to do my sheets...think those will wait till Tucson. Nasty weather is forecast to move through tomorrow. The wind is already blowing and there is a good chance of thunderstorms.

I'm very tired, achy tonight and have a sore throat. Often this happens when I overdo things...toss in a little stress and you have a perfect recipe for a flare of Fibromyalgia. So tomorrow really sounds like a good day to do NOTHING...

I did use my new GPS for routing today....my old one was just too small for the dash and my old eyes. Since it's pocket size, I will keep it for hiking. The new one, Garmin Nuvi 760, has a touch screen which makes it much easier to use than the old one, Garmin Quest 2, where I had to figure out what button combination to push.

While I love some of the new features on the Nuvi, there are some things that went away. Things I really liked....for example, while traveling I could see the current time, elevation and my travel speed. Boy do I miss that! I tended to use the speed rather than my speedometer since it was right at eye level. The elevation and time were handy.

On the Nuvi I can choose between male or female voices as well as American, British or Australian English (as well as many other languages that I don't speak). I tried all six combinations. I liked the idea of a male voice but find my hearing isn't the best in that range so ended up settling on the Australian female. So my GPS now has a name....Sheila. My old GPS is now Ernestine (think Lily Tomlin's switchboard operator character).

Oh, and believe it or not, the Nuvi came without a manual....just the quick start guide. I have downloaded and saved both the manual from Garmin as well as a great review of all the features from one of the GPS review sites. So far the BIGGEST dislike is the lack of a way to build a route on my computer and upload it....if I do that I have to input each of the waypoints and build the route manually. Sort of going backwards to me....hmmmmmmm

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Froggi/Donna

When did I lose my technical edge?

I'm not sure when it happened. I used to be an early adopter. As soon as I read about a new gadget, I just had to have it. New software, new computers, new peripherals, new whatever. I reveled in the knowledge that I was "out there", staying on the technological edge.

I worked with computers when they took up a hole room and no one had a personal computer. I was in the field when few women were interested. Quick to adopt the "new", I learned to adapt quickly. I laughed at jokes about flashing numbers on video recorders. I snickered at those who sneered that they would never use an answering machine. I smiled when listening to gripes about how difficult it was to use their new device. I was the queen, I ruled.

Then one day I realized that I was losing the edge. Commercials left me wondering what they were selling. Why was that person wearing headphones and dancing? My Palm Pilot languished in a drawer while I noted events in my paper pocket calendar. GPS and geocaching were foreign terms. Why in the world would someone want satellite radio?

Determined to get my edge back, I started out with an MP3 player. Very proud that I got one with removable memory so I can store more songs, I brought it home and opened the package. I had no idea what to do next. Several readings of the documentation, I figured it out. Phew!

From there I moved to installing my own wireless network. Piece of cake...I'd worked in the computer industry for years. Yeah, right! After spending an hour on the phone with a 19 y/o son of a friend of a friend, it was up and running.

The purchases continued as did the confusion. New DVD players/recorders, GPS devices, satellite radio, programmable kitchen appliances....I read the instructions. I muddled my way through...sometimes it was like reading Greek. But in most cases I managed to get things set up.....finally.

Then I realize I need to change something....or the power flickered and I need to reset my options....or the government changes daylight savings time. And once again I realize that I can't make the change without digging out the instructions and starting all over again. Wondering if I will ever find the instructions for the neat atomic alarm clock and be able to finally set the alarms!

I've become one of those I used to smile at and snicker about.....I'm now technologically challenged and use my son and grandkids for help. Sigh....

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Froggi/Donna

I love my TiVo®...I hate my TiVo®

I have had TiVo® for over two years now and am hooked. I rarely watch anything in "real time" unless I am on the computer in the office (no TiVo®there). I love watching a 60 minute show in 40 minutes. I love pausing a show when I need to do something, or I get a phone call. I love having a backlog of shows to watch when I want to watch them. But most of all, I love not worrying about missing my favorite shows, thanks to the Season Pass feature.

In addition, mine is connected to DirecTV and I can record two different shows at a time...and while I can't watch a third station, I can watch a previously recorded show while it records the other two.

That said, there are a couple of flaws with TiVo®. The first flaw was discovered when a football game pushed my Sunday night shows off by almost an hour. Imagine my dismay when I went to watch my TiVo®'d show only to discover the end of a game. Managed to catch 10 minutes of my show....grrrrrr.

Okay, fixed that by changing my recording option to record for two hours for Sunday nights during football season. Phew!

Next flaw is a variation of the above. I'm merrily watching a TiVo®'d show, getting to the last couple of minutes, fast forward through the last commercial break....to hit the end of the recording! What the...? It may be caused by a show running late but I have found that some shows don't seem to be quite on the same time schedule as others and a show may actually go 1-3 minutes past the hour.

Humph! Fixed that....set all my shows to record an extra 5 minutes.

Then one day a favorite show wasn't recorded.....trying to figure out why, I discovered that adding that 5 minutes sometimes created a conflict with a third show which was scheduled to start on the hour, thus it was skipped completely! So here I am back at square one, all my shows set to record normally with no variations.

I love my TiVo®. I hate my TiVo®.

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Froggi/Donna