April 23rd, 2013
My cousin and I put our cell phones on the table in front of us. “This is going to be fun,” she said, eyeing our almost identical blue gel cases. To avoid a “switched at birth” moment, maybe I need something a bit more distinctive before my phone ends up halfway to California before we realize the accidental swap.
Case Gorilla offers custom iPhone and Galaxy cases using your own graphics and photos. There isn’t a library of premade selections, so every case is truly customized. You can upload your photo or graphic, stretch it by width or height and orient it exactly how you wanted in relation to the edges and lens.
I played around with the site and tried a photo, then a text-only design. For a case with custom photo, the site charges $39.99 for either option. (You can create a design incorporating both text and graphics, also.) Right now, however, you can use coupon code googleapril for 50% off!
Let the pet/grandkid advertising begin.
Posted in Product Reviews and Mentions | No Comments »
April 14th, 2013
Back in the day – to be specific, the 1990s – you did not need a deluxe web hosting package in order to introduce your Felix the Cat collection, list of your top 10 dislikes in no particularly order or your grand kids. You just Googled – No, at the time you AltaVista-ed or Netscaped – and found Geocities, or later Tripod, and set up residence in one of their friendly “neighborhoods.” If you were truly tech savvy, you even put a counter to show Uncle Stan that you had more than two visitors, or even an animated .Gif that you swiped from somewhere, or purchased. The disadvantage was your url: It was a bit long and drawn out.
Today, the “free” option is to set yourself up on Blogger, or the like. The disadvantage is that it does not come with your own domain name, but it will be something a bit shorter than a lengthy Geocities neigborhood. The other is that unless you hack around it, the post most likely has a date on it. You can buy a domain and have it direct to your blog, though.
If you want your very own domain and do not want to be attached to a free platform that will swallow up your site once it disappears, there are a limited amount of free web hosting provider that do offer space that is not attached to having your wedding blog page attached to The Knot.
Free Rider Web Hosting offers “free” hosting, but there is a catch: The monthly bandwidth allotment 100 GB, and the bandwidth is 10 GB. What – were you expecting to run your ecommerce site for free? It may not seem like much, but for Aunt Mavis and her thimble collection or for your grandfather trying his hand at html after taking an exploration class – it is “just right.” How do they make their money? They offer tiered premium web hosting that you will most likely opt for when the thimble collection goes viral.
Are there any other free web services that you would recommend?
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January 12th, 2013
When a Mac user or computer programmer desires a Mac or computer-themed wedding, the most difficult element to theme is the wedding flutes. There are several choices for this, but you really have to use artistic license.
Yes, you might be able to find flutes with apples on them, particularly if the are not specifically made as wedding flutes, but use them cautiously. There is a whole different biblical undertone and popular symbolism. Just ask Eve.
The only two obvious ways to go are to find glasses matching the colors of the wedding, or even glasses that look like science test tubes.
When in absolute doubt, maybe a glass is a glass. No one will complain that you used the hotel-provided plastic champagne flutes if you don’t
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January 10th, 2013
Many websites offer personalized napkins and other party necessities. An ambitious designer can make them from home and save a few pennies, but not without a long and tedious process. If you want bragging rights rather than a time saver, give it a whirl.
First, spread the napkin on a piece of wax paper. Then with the wax paper between the napkin and the iron, iron the paper to the wax paper. Once it cools, feed it through your printer with the desired printed side up. Lay the napkin out to dry. After the paper dries, put it in the freezer. After about a half an hour, carefully peel the napkin from the wax paper.
Quick and easy? No. You will get the design you want in a pinch and can say you did it yourself.
Posted in Just for Fun | No Comments »
January 9th, 2013
It doesn’t surprise me to see broken computers, moose taxidermy and even Justin Bieber’s hair for sale on the internet. You can even find a dental practice for sale to surprise your sweetheart. For some reason, I thought buying a dental office was so specialized that they weren’t widely promoted on the internet. It’s not like your wife or husband will say “Honey, stop the car!” when they see the “For Sale” sign in front of the picture window of one.
Apparently, there are firms that just specialize in selling dental practices, particularly if the current dentist or partners don’t want the world to know they are thinking about selling. A dentist hoping to relocate from out of town can discreetly review the profit and loss statement without marching into the office and disturbing worried patients. If it works for other types of businesses…why not for tooth mechanics, too?
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December 31st, 2012
Off and on, I see creative ideas for reclaimed and recycled Mac gear. The Power Mac Cube didn’t take off like other Mac products, though some core aficionados loved it. The abandoned form lives on as many desk top fish tank aquariums. Hopefully, all the computers used in these experiments were spent, rather than someone taking perfectly good computers and turning them into tanks.\
It would not be a stretch for the imagination to create wedding centerpieces out of Mac Cubes. They could be aquariums, less the fish, as that would be cruel to move them multiple times between house and hall and car and house, not to mention foisting them upon relatives who may not care for them. The more likely concept would be a terrarium, with shiny river rocks and foliage, or more appropriately, maybe bits of old computer chips and even action figures.
It may be too difficult to find one each for twelve tables, but you could create amazing things with lights and color for the head table or for a smaller wedding.
Posted in Just for Fun, Retro Mac | No Comments »
December 31st, 2012
Wedding invitations are a cinch to make on a Mac. If you don’t have the inkling or the time, there are several sites on the web where you can order printed invitations that benefit charity. The organization makes a percentage of the cost. Some sites allow you to select from a roster of designs and select any registered charity.
There is a high cost and low profit margin in printing small batches of cards (any wedding, unless you are members of the royal family and have 1,000 guests, would be a small batch.), so the organization really benefits more from volume. One order will never fund a project, but like anything else, if you are buying invites anyways, every little bit helps.
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December 25th, 2012
For couples who add geek touches to their wedding, like a Mario Bros. groom’s cake, or add elements of time travel portals somehow, the hardest thing to find “geek-ified” are wedding garters.
The tradition of tossing the garter, then shielding your eyes from the embarrassing scene of an unsuspecting wedding guest hiking it up the leg of their cousin, the bouquet catcher, is enough to have the tradition deleted from the menu. Even so, couples might desire one.
In visiting various wedding websites, it seems most brides opt to merely place a charm with a sci-fi or gaming character on the garter to theme it. There aren’t too many more deeply creative ideas. At your wedding, what did you come up with?
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December 24th, 2012
A wedding guest book is easy to make on a Mac. There are several options. Set up your own ruled template with lines for guest wishes, or make a more personalized option with iPhoto. There are no templates per se in iPhoto for text, but this is a different kind of book. Guest will leave messages in the margins and in the white space of the photos.
In choosing a layout, consider the amount of white space around the photos. Also, choose or edit photos with the express intent of encouraging guests to leave wishes on the photo pages. For example, edit a photo of the couple with a background defocused in Photoshop. Alternatively, take photos with the photo book in mind, featuring the couple in 1/3 of the photos, and leaving gracious space for neutral scenery.
A book showcasing photos of the couple makes a more displayable item for the couple’s bookshelf or table and a more active conversation piece.
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December 21st, 2012
There are so many jobs a Mac expert can do from home, from web design to desktop publishing to game design to computer repair. There is little overhead if you meet with clients at the coffee shop or exclusively accept work by mail and email, but to move to the next level and keep up with technology, the cost of software starts to run up. You can only go so far with a copy of PageMill and a dream.
Some opt for a small business loan versus waiting for an accumulating savings account before embarking on a venture. There are two types of loans you will find: Secured and unsecured. Secured loans require collateral. This includes your home, a car or even a CD, to be liquidated if you should default. Unsecured small business loans require no collateral. They often carry a higher interest rate, as they are a higher risk.
Before you embark, carefully analyze your assets and how comfortable you are at risk. There is no risk if you make your payments on time, but if you are gambling with an idea that isn’t proven and you haven’t had modest success in, keep your day job for now.
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December 10th, 2012
It’s inevitable: There will be Mac users and PC users at a wedding. For pleasing computer-themed wedding favors that those of either preference will use, consider flash drives.
The target price for wedding favors, depending on the number of guests and the wealth of the bride and groom, is anywhere from $1-12, generally speaking. At this price point, unless you find a mega sale, the drives won’t house an entire hard drive, but will be amply big for a few photos. Even if some guests do not have a digital camera, surely they have someone in the household that wants it for school work or shuttling their MRIs on disks from doctor to doctor. A plastic swan can’t do that.
Posted in Just for Fun | No Comments »
