From:         Bob Rankin 
Subject:      TOURBUS - 15 Jul 2008 - Free Faxing / Wireless Printers

TODAY'S TOURBUS TOPICS: FREE FAXING / WIRELESS PRINTERS /

Performance Boosters / Taking Over the World

This week marks the 13th birthday of TOURBUS. Patrick and I want to say thanks to all who have been "on the Bus" since 1995, as well as those who have hopped aboard recently. We appreciate your interest, your words of encouragement -- and we're going to keep on rolling!

And in today's TOURBUS, you get all the presents. You'll find out how to send and receive faxes for free, without a fax machine. I'll share some nifty ways to secure an external hard drive, and my top picks for "truly wireless" printers. You'll also learn the secrets (and perils) of accessing blocked websites at school or work, and pick up some tips on how improve your computer's performance.

Oh, and there's a bonus. No, I'm not revealing my Secret Plans to Take Over the World, but I am giving you a list of my favorite productivity boosting software tools. Which is almost as good. Read on!

Free Online Faxing

If you occasionally need to send or receive a fax, but don't own a fax machine, I have good news -- you don't need one. There are several online tools that will enable you to send faxes for free, right from your browser. You can also get a free inbound fax number that will forward incoming faxes to your email inbox. Here's the scoop:

SEND FAX - http://askbobrankin.com/send_a_free_fax.html

RECEIVE FAX - http://askbobrankin.com/free_inbound_faxing.html

Defrag Your Hard Drive

If you've noticed your computer is a little sluggish lately, it might be time to defragment your hard drive. Find out how fragmentation happens, and how to fix the problem on both Windows and Mac systems. Here's the what, why and how of defragging...

DEFRAG - http://askbobrankin.com/defrag_your_hard_drive.html

External Hard Drive Security

If you have an external hard drive that serves as a backup for your laptop, desktop or network, it's critical that you protect that data with a password, encryption, or some other form of physical security. If the drive is lost or stolen, all your sensitive personal files go with it. Here are some cool data security products that can be used to lock down your external drives...

ENCRYPT - http://askbobrankin.com/external_hard_drive_security.html

Wireless Printers, No Strings Attached

The latest mobile wireless printers on the market are pretty cool. Some of them even run on rechargeable batteries, so you can print from a laptop, digital camera, PDA, or cell phone wirelessly. I even found a wireless printer that weighs only 11 ounces, and it can print letter-sized documents. Here are my picks for wireless document and photo printer...

PRINTERS - http://askbobrankin.com/wireless_printers.html

Accessing Blocked Websites

If you work for The Man, you've probably experienced the frustration of not being able to get to your webmail (or other sites) at work. If you're a student, in the military, or you live in a country with restrictions on accessing certain online resources, there are some things you can do to access these blocked sites.

Of course you have to weigh the pros and cons of doing an end run around the rules, so be sure to read the Words of Caution before you try these techniques...

UNBLOCK - http://askbobrankin.com/accessing_blocked_websites.html

Make Vista Faster With ReadyBoost

Did you know you can make Windows Vista (or XP) run faster just by inserting an ordinary jump drive into a USB slot? Vista ReadyBoost (and a similar tool for XP) can significantly boost system performance using cheap external flash memory devices to effectively add usable RAM without having to pop the hood on your system. Here's how...

BOOST - http://askbobrankin.com/vista_readyboost.html

Rule the World With the Right Software

In the course of doing my job, I use a core set of software programs on a regular basis. I might be doing word processing, web design, programming, image editing, trouble shooting, or just email and web surfing. I run on multiple operating system platforms, so my tool set must include software that runs on Windows, Mac and Linux systems.

Here are some of my favorite software tools to get the job done, boost my productivity, and move one step closer to realizing my subtle plan to take over the world. Most are free to download, check 'em out!

SOFTWARE - http://askbobrankin.com/my_favorite_software.html

That's all for now, see you next time! -- Bob Rankin