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Download a free copy of The University of Hard Knocks below.

I don’t often get excited about books. We have a sordid affair. I never liked reading much as a kid…maybe it was the continuous pounding I received in grade school over reading. It was always a competition. Who could read more books? Who had the “I Read 100 Books” t-shirt? I just didn’t like it. So, once I got further along school, I stopped reading for “fun”. I only remember reading 2 real books from 3rd grade on: The Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever and Ramona Quimby Age: 8.

I really do like to read in spite of it all, but I must be engaged. I enjoy historical books with a lot of pictures. I enjoy books that contain facts, short stories, and lists. I need rapid change to hold my interest. As I perused the classics available for my Amazon Kindle, I mostly went for the timeless classics every book lover should own. Aesop, Grimm’s, The Wizard of Oz…but nothing that really said, “Read me now”.

As I was shopping, I saw it. I’m not sure what made me click it…The University of Hard Knocks. The tune from Annie played in the background of my mind…”It’s the hard knock life…for us!” I read the customer reviews…there are 3 at the time of this writing. Well, it’s free, I’ll give it a shot. I haven’t been able to put it down since.

The University

The University of Hard Knocks is a figurative school, but it’s lessons are far from figurative. The idea behind this University is the education one receives from one’s life experiences, and how they put that knowledge to use. Are you easily educated or hard-headed? Ralph Parlette uses a number of personal stories and object lessons in an artful and interesting plea for you to see that living life is the only true education. Formal education only gives us finer tools, but no experience in how to use them.

He begs you to see that if you are not actively learning, giving, and serving then you are not genuinely moving upward. He draws an equal sign between the executive and the janitor. He advises on teaching children how to support themselves rather than buying them a way through life. This book is categorized as a classic, but its language and meaning are very much relevant to today. In its pages you will find that you already know how to be great and how to be happy…you just have to use your experience in the right way to take you upward.

You will find the most important lessons of life in this book. That is why I am including it here, courtesy of Project Gutenberg, for download. Download it, read it, and change your world for the better…a vibrant person you will always be.

The University of Hard Knocks
The University of Hard Knocks.pdf
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The University of Hard Knocks by Ralph Parlette. Put in ebook format by Project Gutenberg.

Author:	Ralph Parlette
Date:	January 13, 2011

390.9 KiB
195 Downloads
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I set out to research mobile broadband providers a little over a month ago after I acquired a new job where I’d be able to utilize my laptop. I have used Verizon and Sprint mobile broadband in the past and they worked wonderfully with an expansive coverage area. The problem with them are the 5GB per month limits. This makes it impossible to use their broadband for any streaming media, and well let’s face it, the internet is all about streaming media these days.

Being that as it may, I quickly ruled out any company with a limit from the running. This left me with three options to consider in my area: TimeWarner, Cricket Wireless, and Clear.com.

• TimeWarner was simply too expensive. Even if I bundled the service with other services I currently utilize, it was just too much money.
• Cricket Wireless had some decent consumer reviews out there, but there was a major problem with their service. They advertise their mobile broadband as unlimited, but they put a soft cap on it after you reach 5GB. This means they throttle your internet speeds and slow down your browsing to limit your use in a different way. This allows them to advertise unlimited use and to profit from the fact that they do not charge a per MB overage like other cell companies. The price was right, but I just can’t deal with the limits.
• Clear.com, also known as Clearwire, didn’t have the best reviews online. It seemed that people were saying the same things. The Clear coverage map showed service in their area, but they had a heck of a time picking up a signal. However, they advertised their service as the one to use if you are interested in streaming media from videos to gaming.

I had a decision to make. I decided to take a gamble and go with Clear. It seemed to be my only viable option at this point. I didn’t feel that researching deeper would bring out any more reliable companies or services in my area. The benefits of having internet access from my workplace overruled the risks. I had to give it a fair try before settling in for a long wait for another service to come along, settling for limited service, or shelling out more dough.

Clear.com Evaluation

Pros

• FAST shipping. I had my equipment within 2 days of placing my order.
• Chat. Clear.com has representatives available via chat to answer any questions you have. They also post their customer service phone number prominently in multiple places on their website.
• Easy setup. The Clear modem is virtually plug and play.
• Able to stream ANYTHING. I’ve been watching Netflix without any problems.
• Full reception. I have all 10 bars at work inside 4-hour firewalls with NO windows.
• Low price. It’s $40 per month for unlimited access.
• Additional options. Clear offers packages for more than one mobile device, home internet, and hotspot devices that support multiple connections. No package is over $55 as of this writing.

Cons

• Freezing. If you plan to leave your computer, close down Clear and remove your device. Otherwise, you will have to do it anyway. It doesn’t work well as a continuous connection that is not constantly being utilized.

Additional Observations

When I received my equipment, I installed and then plugged in the device for about 5 minutes to run an initial test. I had one bar and trouble with reception in my home, but I didn’t move around with the computer. I just unplugged it and decided to check it out at work. I have ‘net at home, so I really only car that it works at my job. The only problem I have had with the service is Netflix adjusting streaming because my connection had slowed. I’ve watched a week’s worth of shows, approximately 20 hours, and this has happened TWICE.

Overall Impressions

I’m EXTREMELY happy with the service so far. It has delivered on all fronts and I can do exactly what I want online. The device is compact, and the software is streamlined. It’s actually much better than the Verizon and Sprint equipment I used before. I would recommend the service, but keep in mind based on other reviews, it may end up being a bit of a gamble for you.

Links and Resources

Yelp.com Clear Reviews

Gizmodo Review

Please Note

This is not a paid review of any kind. There are no affiliate links posted here. This my honest experience. I hope it helps you make a decision. If you found it helpful, please leave a comment. Thanks for reading.

This is one of the websites that I maintain for a client. I actually work at the store 2 days per week which really makes it an easy project since I have that inside scoop. When I first started working at Tony’s, they were kind of struggling with the upkeep of their site. I mentioned that I could help with that, and the project was mine.

The site is built on WordPress. I designed the template using Artisteer. The font in the header is drawn in Photoshop based on the company sign. About 50% of the photography on the site is mine. I’ve been adding articles here and there to pull in traffic. It is still going through a bit of an overhaul in the content department.

The design and functionality of the site is simple which is just what is needed for Tony and the type of business he runs. His users need a simple interface that is is clearly labeled where they can get useful information about his inventory. WordPress is perfect for this. The admin tools in WordPress are also user-friendly and make it ease for anyone to maintain the site and monitor traffic.

I’ll let the website tell you about Tony’s. If you are local to Winston-Salem, or the Triad aread, you should check out one of the two locations. It’s a one-of-a-kind store and you’ll find a lot of unique things including new and used furniture, electronics, housewares, tools, books, DVDs, CDs, and so much more. Mention this post!

WordPress is notorious for its ability to be customized. Most of that customization happens through plug-ins made by developers. There is a plug-in for most anything you need or want WordPress to do including, but certainly not limited to: providing downloads, allowing users to upload photos, displaying images in snazzy galleries, tracking stats, database backups and so much more than can possibly be imagined. Here are a few basics that you shouldn’t live without.

Akismet – This one is so essential that it comes packaged with WordPress when you install it. It’s easy to configure, but you might get stuck when it asks for your API key. This post will help you out. Akismet helps you manage your comments on your blog by filtering out the spam.

All In One SEO Pack – This plug-in helps you optimize your content for search engines by providing fields for meta data like: post title, description, and tags. This one takes the leg work out of search engine optimization.

Contact Form 7 – Have you ever seen those sharp and professional contact forms on other websites and wondered how to get one or even tried to figure out how to make one and found out it was way out of your technical reach? Contact Form 7 gives you…the contact form. When someone fills out the form, it sends the data to the email you specify.

Google XML Sitemaps – A sitemap is a must if you’re trying to get anywhere on the Internet. A sitemap makes it possible for Google to index all the pages on your site and increases your search engine placement. This plug-in automatically updates your sitemap when you write a new post. It makes a chore into something you never have to think about.

Sexy Bookmarks – This plug-in makes adding your post to a myriad of social media sites easy for your readers. It has almost every social networking and social bookmarking site imaginable. Choose the ones you want to appear, where you want them and let Sexy Bookmarks do the rest.

Simple Tags – Simple Tags turns tagging your post from a typing nightmare into point and click ease. Select your tags from a list of local tags and popular tags from the Internet.

StatPress – StatPress is a powerful and informative tracking plug-in that gives you all kinds of information about your visitors. Here’s a detailed review. If you use StatPress, you will want to ban any IP address you use personally to check your site, or it will count you as traffic. Here’s how to do it.

WordPress Database Backup – This plug-in backs up your WordPress database so you can restore your site in the event that you get hacked. You can perform a backup manually, or use the scheduling tools in the plug-in to back it up automatically and send it to your email.

WP Download Manager – This plug-in allows you to easily add files to your posts or pages and make them available for download. It’s a must have if you create any type of content that you want to make available to your readers for free.

WP Decoratr - WP Decoratr makes adding images to your posts easy. Instead of having to search for stock images or find royalty free photos to enhance your posts, WP Decoratr pulls keywords and phrases from your post. It then gives you a wide array of pictures to choose from that are royalty free or available through Creative Commons.

These are plug-ins that I endorse and use on my own sites. I’ll be doing reviews of these and others as time goes on because I’m rather addicted to finding new and useful plug-ins. If you found this post helpful, drop me a comment. I’d like to hear from you.

I came across this blog at Digital Point and when I first loaded the page, I thought, “Wow, this is plain…especially for a webmaster.”  The title of the blog…”I Am Blogging”. Why, yes you are…you are blogging plainly.

Something about the plainness made me want to know more. It’s almost like reverse psychology. Some people think a blog can’t pull you in unless it has a fancy design and a lot of widgets, gadgets and whatnots. The longer I stayed, the more intrigued I became. “So you’re blogging, ” I thought, “but what the heck are you blogging about because I sure can’t tell by looking.” Even the About page is ambiguous.

So I started clicking around and the page exploded with screen shots. I LOVE SCREEN SHOTS! AnirbanRoy.info is a webmaster blog with long, informative articles on many aspects of webmastering including the likes of: hosting, blogging, advertising, WordPress, SEO and more! The first category I clicked was Advertising. Several articles about Adsense greeted me. Who can’t use more information about Adsense? I have had an Adsense account for YEARS, but I’m certainly no guru. To be honest, I barely know how to use it anymore. Mr. “I Am Blogging” has a handle on it and I found his posts on advertising very informative. I found a few new things to try. It was a nice surprise and made me forget the fact that the site was plain. In fact, it no longer seemed plain in the least. I was happy to not be distracted by a thousand ads dancing and glaring in my face as I tried to read. Content is King, my friends.

I had to visit the WordPress category next because it’s one of my favorite subjects respectfully. I wasn’t disappointed. This Anirban fellow knows what he’s talking about. He covers it all from plug-ins to pinging. If you don’t know what any of that is, read this blog! I would recommend this site to anyone just starting out with webmastering, blogging, WordPress or any online endeavor. It’s a great place to learn the basics and then some. Eye candy isn’t everything, in fact, it’s rather overrated. There are other ways to intrigue your readers and Anirban has it down pat. I love the unique approach he has to blogging and blog design. There are a lot of webmasters and bloggers who stand to learn from his outside-the-box methods.

I came across RocketDock while reading an article about making a Windows PC look and run like a Mac a couple years ago. I decided to give it a try, and it’s been a staple on my computer ever since. RocketDock is an piece of software that docks to the top, bottom, or sides of your screen and launches applications. It looks and works a lot like the icon bar on a Mac/Apple computer. The main reason that I like RocketDock is because it greatly reduces the number of icons on my Desktop. Even items like My Computer, Recycle Bin, and the Show Desktop icons can all be added to RocketDock with a simple drag and drop.

See it in action:

Check out the Addons for RocketDock too. You can download high resolution user made icons for a customized look. It’s a fun little piece of software that adds a sleekness and convenience to your PC.