Trained Smelling Bees
August 13, 2008
Scientists are training bees to smell certain diseases. The bees are then used to recognize whether or not someone has a particular disease by smelling their breath. This is a far cry from the little hand held scanner StarTrek predicted we’d have, but it demonstrates a valuable lesson. Don’t get so caught up in looking for high tech solutions that you overlook simple, but very effective low tech opportunities.
A few useful links
August 13, 2008
Unclutterer has some photos of a wall mounted laptop desk from Ikea. It looks like it would be useful in homes where you are short on space. GetRichSlowly examines some of the changes people are making due to high gas prices and considers getting a scooter. LIfeClever looks at some tools to help you focus on a single window in OS X.
Take a Nap for Memory
August 12, 2008
Studies suggest that your memories are solidified while you sleep. Your brain does a lot of work during your rest–almost like it is busy filing and making sense of everything you’ve discovered while you were awake. When you’ve learned a new concept or information that you want to retain, consider taking a nap or reviewing it right before going to bed. This will give your brain the best chance to assimilate the new information.
Pre-Charged Batteries
August 5, 2008
Duracell sent me a few of their new pre-charged batteries to try out. The idea is that people don’t purchase rechargable batteries because they need to use them right away. In the past you couldn’t pre-charge Ni-Cad rechargeable batteries because they would lose their charge while sitting on the shelf. The new pre-charged batteries seem to overcome this problem which also means you can charge up the batteries and not use it for awhile without losing power. I’m still testing them out to write up a better review of their performance. Duracell seems light on stats for the batteries with most of their efforts going into marketing based on humor, however the product seems good and will probably convert me back to using rechargeable batteries after a long hiatus due to the short comings of Ni-Cad technology.
Mobile Me Email Down for a week.
July 25, 2008
My .mac (now Mobile Me) email has be non functional since last Friday. I can’t believe a company with the resources of Apple can’t get an email server fixed in 4 to 6 hours much less a whole week. Walt Mosberg says the other services aren’t very reliable either. I had been told that they were storing all incoming emails in a queue, but when I asked them if they could print out my emails and fax them to me (I know that is insane, but they weren’t offering me anything useful and being down for a whole week is even more crazy than faxing emails) I found out that their servers are simply rejecting incoming connections so after four days they will be returned as undeliverable. At this point, Gmail looks a whole lot more reliable than the Apple’s service.
iPod Shuffle Giveaway on Twitter
July 24, 2008
If you use twitter, you might want to enter our iPod Shuffle giveaway. Ends in 4 hours. You simply retweet the linked message and make sure you are signed up as a follower of Productivity501. Good luck!
“Free” Color Printers Warning
July 24, 2008
If you’ve seen Textronic/Xerox’s offer for a free color printer, take a look at this post before signing up.
Add Productivity501 as a Friend
July 20, 2008
You can add Productivity501 as a friend on: StumbleUpon, Digg, YouTube, and Vimeo
Contests
July 16, 2008
We have number of contests going on right now. The Belkin Concealed Powerstrip Giveaway, the Bento Software Giveaway, and the Fruitfultime Software Giveaway are all still open for entries. Each contest has a different way to enter so be sure to check them all out. If you have any suggestions for future, prizes, please leave them on this post.
Server for Productivity501
July 15, 2008
If you are looking for a dedicated server, be sure to checkout Server Pronto. Productivity501 has been hosted there for quite some time now and I’ve been very happy with their value. There aren’t many places you can get a dedicated server for less than $30 per month. (If you sign up using the link, it helps support this site.)
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