Helpful Tips for Everyday Life
This page will be updated with ongoing Helpful Tips for Everyday Life. You will enjoy reading it and using the information for your daily life: vacation plan, money saving tips, college planning, credit report, home improvement, and much more...
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Free E-Books and Music Sheet
Gutenberg.org: You can download more than 30,000 e-books
http://books.google.com: You can search the text of seven million books
http://www.mutopiaproject.org/: Musicians can print sheet music by more than 250 composers, inlucing Mozart, Bash, Tchaikovsky and Joplin.
Free Video Games
Visit Kongregate.com, Popcap.com, Pogo.com and OnlineFlashGames.org for thousands of free online and downloadable games of all types.
For educational or just-for-fun games suited to young kids, check out PBSkids.org, DiscoveryKids.com, NickJr.com and Scholastic.com/kids.
Free Shipping
FreeShipping.org to find out deals
Free Software
For word processing and spreadsheets, go to OpenOffice.org. For antivirus protection, head to http://free.avg.com. For free basic photo editing, check out http://picasa.google.com, or for more advanced touch-ups, try Gimp.org. And to manage your finances, use the free programs at Mint.com or Wesabe.com
Free Credit Report
Get one free report once a year from each of the three main credit bureaus. Go to www.annualcreditreport.com for your credit history.
Free TV and Movies
Go to OVGuide.com to find a list of TV and movie sites including Hulu.com, Veoh.com and Fancast.com, as well as individual network Web sites, such as ABC.com and CBS.com.
Free Financial Management Tools
Get free Mint.com or Quicken apps help you track your spending and manage your money and investments on the go.
Free Music
For a free way to get your groove on, try Pandora.com. Type in a favorite song or artist and this online music-streaming service will play similar tunes it thinks you'll like. It's a fun way to discover new music. You will have to listen to the occasional ad –- but they're super-short and infrequent. Pandora gives you 40 free hours of listening per month.
Slacker.com is another good (and free) music-streaming site. You'll also have to listen to a brief ad here or there, but there's no time limit on your free listening.
FREE DIRECTORY ASSISTANCE
Save a buck or two and dial 1-800-GOOG-411 next time you need directory assistance. Google's free phone service will connect you with the business you're looking for, and there are no ads to listen to. However, it doesn't offer residential listings yet.
You could also dial 1-800-FREE-411 for business and residential directory assistance, but you may have to listen to a short ad.
Free Digital Storage Space
With free online backup storage, you can protect your important files and photos from computer crashes, theft or natural disaster.
For instance, Spideroak.com and Myotherdrive.com each give you 2 gigabytes of free and secure digital storage space. You can also store your cherished photos and videos at sites such as Photobucket.com and Flickr.com. You can also store your pics at photo-print ordering sites such as Snapfish.com, Shutterfly.com or Walmart.com.
Free Tech Recycling -- With Benefits
Not only is it getting easier to keep your old electronics out of the landfill, but you may even get some free cash in exchange. Services such as BuyMyTronics.com, Gazelle.com, MyBoneyard.com and GreenPhone.com recycle or refurbish your old tech and send you a check in return. They take cameras, cell phones, MP3 players, game consoles and more.
Costco’s Trade-In Program now puts more money in your wallet. Responsibly trade-in electronic gadgets (such as laptops, cell phones, LCD monitors, digital cameras, MP3 players, gaming systems & more) for Costco Cash good for anything in Costco warehouses or at Costco.com. Visit this link for details.
Free Capital Gains
Investing in a Roth IRA - Any money you put into your Roth grows tax-free, and you won't owe Uncle Sam a dime when you cash out in retirement. It's all yours.
FREE RECIPES
Allrecipes.com and Epicurious.com together, they boast more than 100,000 recipes
FREE PLACE TO STAY
Traveling? Consider trading spaces. Hospitality exchange Web sites are growing in popularity. You can network to trade homes with someone who wants to visit your town, or even take turns hosting each other.
Some popular sites that specialize in connecting members with free places to stay include CouchSurfing.com, HomeExchange.com and IntervacUS.com. See Free Getaways Around the World to learn more.
Credit Score
You can get free credit reports from annualcreditreport.com. You can request three reports from three credit bureaus at one time or along the year depend on your preference. It is totally free and once a year deal. Learn more information about FREE Annual Credit Report from Federal Trade Commission.
Find out your credit score from Myfico.com by paying small amount of fee.
Tips for healthy credit: Making all payments on time (usually four to six credit card accounts should be easy to manage, make sure no late payment), using the right mix of credit, and not maxing out on available credit and paying bill in full are the keys to a having a great credit score.
It is wise to monitor your credit score. Read your statement carefully each and every month.
Read more info from Citicards website.
School Rating
http://www.schooldigger.com/ - school ranking, reviews
www.greatschools.org
College Prep Info
A few websites which provide good information for both parents and high school students to prepare getting into college:
College saving plan
College search, college admission, college financing
Fastweb -the leading scholarship search provider for every student
Northwestern University's Midwest Academic Talent Search
Free ACT Online Demo and Practice Test
ACT Practice Questions
4tests.com - free online practice test site
Housing
Realtor.com
Frontdoor.com
Simple upgrades increase home value: Keep kitchen and bathroom countertops clear. Clean and organize storage areas which can help adding value to your home.
Use flowers to add color to your yard. Add path lighting.
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