Category: Just For Fun

Pet Peeve: Why do companies still send me my password through email?

March 15, 2007August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell 12 Comments

Passwordkey Let’s face it; we all reuse the same password for login accounts all over the Internet. At best, some of us create a few passwords through which we rotate. So why is it that some companies still insist on sending me my password via email right after I create my online account? The reason I have a password in the first place is so that it doesn’t flow back and forth openly in cyberspace only to reside peacefully on multiple mail servers.

Do-It-Yourself Tech, Just For Fun, Privacy, Web 2.0

Costco Limits Return Policy for Electronics: It Was Only A Matter of Time

February 26, 2007August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell 10 Comments

Looks like your friend and mine, the amazing Costco return policy, is on its way out. Apparently, it did enough damage to the already razor thin profit margins of the company for management to take action. For those unfamiliar, it used to be that you could return anything whenever you wanted for a full refund (with the exception of desktop computers, which had a limit of six months). The policy was one of the reasons why I was an avid Costco electronics shopper (if the wanted gizmo was carried there).

But I always knew it would only be a matter of time before the too-good-to-be-true shopping scenario changed. Though even with the change, Costco likely still has the best return policy out there. Here’s what to expect:

Do-It-Yourself Tech, Gadgets, Just For Fun, Shopping, Tech News

North Koreans Wish for Internet While Retired People Elsewhere Surf Over Gardening

February 4, 2007August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell No Comments

I came across two pieces of information today, and the juxtaposition was too much to not share. First piece: a new study out by AXA has found that retired people in 11 countries are now spending more time using the Internet over traditional pastimes of gardening, hiking, traveling, etc. Apparently, the term for this new demographic is “silver surfers.”

Second piece: Near North Korea’s northern border, Chinese cell phones and prepaid phone cards are a hot black-market item, regardless of the government trying to ban them. The reason: the new phones have free access to the Chinese Internet, which, even if censored, is a portal to the outside world not available to North Koreans through their regular Intranet.

Cyberlaw, Just For Fun, Privacy, Tech News

Philanthropy 2.0: Kiva.org Teams Up with Google & PayPal for P2P Microfinancing

January 15, 2007August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell 4 Comments

Most of us want to be more charitable, though somehow giving to a random charity often leaves us with too many unanswered questions: Where specifically does my money really go? How much of it actually makes it to the end destination?

Enter San Francisco based non-profit Kiva.org: a peer-to-peer microfinance gateway, which combines the Nobel Peace Prize concept of microcredit with the power of the Internet to facilitate micro-lending to small business owners in developing countries. Here’s how it works:

Just For Fun, Microsoft, Tech News, Web 2.0

Why Costco & Rebates Go Together: You Keep the Rebate After Return

November 3, 2006August 19, 2008 Bob Caswell No Comments

Costco A friend of mine was explaining how he wasn’t impressed with a certain Canon camera he had purchased from Costco months earlier. There was a problem with the focus that he was hoping would just go away. Otherwise, it was a great camera for a great price. In fact, the original price was greatly reduced by a $100 mail-in rebate. After finding out from other owners that this focus problem was not unique to his particular camera, he decided it was time:

Do-It-Yourself Tech, Just For Fun, Shopping