Reader SciFiGuy wants an easy way to annotate existing Gmail messages to add keywords and notes, and reader Saibot says there’s an easy solution: Just forward the message to yourself with your notes in the body. I do it all the time, to add keywords for easier searching, to link one thread to another with a common phrase, etc.
Yup, that would do it. In this scenario Gmail’s message permalinks come in especially handy for referencing one message from another. How do you annotate or keyword your email? Let us know in the comments.
The New York Times points out that nearly every benefit attributed to drinking a glass of wine each day can be had by drinking grape juice. Skip the sugar-added stuff, though, and aim for dark red or purple varieties, and you might just see lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels. [photo]
Looking for a laptop, but don’t want to pay cutting-edge prices? The Sustainablog has a wise and helpful 10-point checklist to run through when sizing up a used laptop, and ensuring its value after it arrives. For example, the author suggests buying only from a refurbishing manufacturer, an eBay seller with 100% positive feedback (to ensure cooperation), or a Craigslist vendor who’s willing to meet in a coffee shop and let you examine the unit on-site. Once that’s arranged, make sure you check everything, including the ports: Check all plugs, sockets, and wireless connections like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Many of these are attached to the motherboard, which is costly to replace. If one USB port is broken and you can live with the other three, then do it. If the headphone jack is broken but you have Bluetooth headphones anyway, then rejoice.
There’s a lot of great stuff to be done with an old laptop, but only if it works. What have our thrifty readers found to be best practices when trying to snag a decent laptop at used prices? Share your stories in the comments. Photo by Declan TM. 10-Step Guide to Buying a Used Laptop That Works [Sustainablog]
Getting a start in writing seems easier than ever in the blogging era, but getting your words into print in book form is still a daunting task. Seek inspiration from the author interview podcasts at the Sydney Writers Centre. Featured authors include comic novelist Nick Earl, hugely successful fantasy writer Garth Nix, and budget cookery specialist Rachael Bermingham, discussing how to get into print and tips for successful writing. You can grab the podcasts online or subscribe via iTunes.
eBay is now allowing payments for auctions via PayPal on mobile phones (and holding a contest to promote the service). My personal view is that using any eBay-related service on a mobile is a potential recipe for disaster, since the one time I did my account suffered a still-unexplained security breach. If you’ve had a better time taking eBay mobile, tell us about it in the comments. More »
The Microsoft Office Outlook Team Blog runs down the steps needed to send a mail merge email to multiple contacts from Outlook 2007. If you’re an experienced Office user, this might seem like obvious advice, but mail merge is one of those tasks that causes perennial problems and, as the post itself notes, “mail merge in Outlook is pretty hidden” (that is, you can only see it from Contacts, which is, let’s face it, counter-intuitive). [Microsoft Office Outlook Team Blog]
iPhone owners really are keener on browsing the Internet on the go than other people. As I’ve reported at APC, the average Australian iPhone browsing session lasts for a minute longer and consumes six times more data than a typical mobile phone owner, according to a study by Amethon Solutions. A lot of that arguably comes down to unintelligent browsing behaviour; using the mobile versions of popular sites — or the iPhone specific versions where they exist — will chew through a lot less bandwidth without noticeably affecting your experience. (And at the other extreme, choosing an iPod Touch instead will make it way easier to avoid shock bandwidth frenzy.) Has your iPhone data usage surprised you? Confess all in the comments. More »
Trying to track down the cheapest petrol price in your area? Google’s new iGoogle Petrol Price Tracker lets you select your preferred petrol type and brand, and offers twice-daily price updates by postcode (sourced from MotorMouth). Google claims to cover 50% of major metropolitan areas; I found a few holes on a quick search of Melbourne, but if your suburb is covered, it’s a useful way to check prices before heading out the door. [Google Australia Blog]
iPhone only: iPhone application iNap uses your location-aware iPhone to set off an alarm to alert you when you’re nearing your destination. Say, for example, you’re riding the train to work but want to catch some shuteye on the way. Just fire up iNap, set your stop as the destination, and let iNap worry about the rest. You can tweak the alert radius to make sure you’re up in plenty of time, from 0.1 to 100 miles. iNap works with any iPhone, but the results will be most accurate with an iPhone 3G. Also, you’d definitely want to make sure you’ve got a signal near your destination; the app obviously won’t work if it can’t determine where you are. iNap costs $US1 from the iTunes App Store. iNap [iTunes Store]
Another reason to take up wireless broadband: Telstra is now offering its Next G wireless broadband service as a prepaid option, joining Optus in the prepaid crowd. Purchase a wireless broadband kit (including a USB modem) for $149 and then top up with a range of credit options, from $20 for (effectively) 150MB through to $100 for 6GB. The biggest restriction is the expiry period, which is 30 days. While you can stop the credit expiring by purchasing more credit, you can’t buy a large initial bundle and then top up with small amounts effectively, since the rate per megabyte is much higher on the cheaper plans. Nonetheless, if you’re an occasional regional traveller, this could well be your best travelling broadband option. Thanks Beau! Telstra
