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2020 is Hindsight

WELCOME 2021

I can’t believe the year we’ve just had. It’s been a tough one for everyone, but I really hope you are all still hanging in there.

I feel like I’ve been going non-stop since June, but I am loving every minute of it. Before I begin to recall the events of 2020, I should probably state that I’ve seen through the BS and propaganda since the beginning. I don’t trust the people that call themselves government, or their media that’s trying to polish their turds. With that said, I’m not going in to details about any of it – just wanted to clarify before I start raving about the thousands of people I’ve been in contact with.

I began 2020 in Atlantic City, where I stayed for a month. I drove from there up to NH for Liberty Forum in Feb, and then back down to my site in AC. I stopped for a bit in Philly and DC before I headed to Charlotte, NC. I was living In Charlotte for a couple weeks when the ‘rona madness started, so I didn’t get the brunt of it like the New Yorkers did. I won’t get into that much here, but as you might guess I have a LOT of opinions on it.

Ultimately, it didn’t affect me much… I continued working and living as usual, just without bars and casinos (so my wallet is happier). After Charlotte started closing up shops around the end of March, I decided to boondock for a while. I drove from Walmart to Walmart for almost a month, running on Solar power and free water at truck stops.

Myrtle Beach was just starting to open up to the public in May, and I was there on day 1.
I stayed in a beautiful campground right on the ocean for a weekend, while I toured the city again for the first time in 30 years. I found one bar that was open for drinks – without restrictions (FINALLY!). The beach was nice and weather was perfect.

One place on my bucket list has always been Jekyll Island. If you’re not familiar with the history, there’s a book called “The Creature from Jekyll Island” that I’d highly recommend. I haven’t read it, but I know the story and met the author last year. TL;DR: it’s where the Federal Reserve started after a secret meeting of America’s wealthiest men (JP. Morgan, Rockefeller, etc). The Federal Reserve still continues to control the dollar that you use every day – and it’s NOT a government entity, it’s private.

The Jekyll Island Club – In 1910 the Federal Reserve Act was drafted in a secret meeting here.

So, I went to see where history happened. I have hours of video that I’ll sift through someday, but I have to admit it’s one of the most beautiful places I’ve been. Spanish moss hanging from huge Oak trees, perfectly groomed sidewalks covering the entire island, historic buildings very well preserved, and a beach that runs for miles. The island is a combination of state preserves, and extreme wealth that just showcases the utopia that the rich and powerful strive for. It’s disgustingly beautiful.I had planned on staying another week to get more video, but I actually cut my stay short.

Rode my scooter 3 miles before the battery died. Guess who walked 3 miles back…

On my last night, I tried to boondock in one of their huge empty “public” parking lots right on the beach. That lasted until about 10PM when Gomer Pyle came up to politely let me know that “the owner” would make him ticket me if he saw me there. I’m not sure who “the owner” is, but I left anyway. Drove back to Brunswick, GA for the night and started my trip to NY in the morning. On the way to NY I stopped again in CLT and WV for brief visits. CLT bars were just starting to open back up, so I had a drink in public there. It’s amazing how much that feels like an accomplishment. BTW, Georgia bars and restaurants were mostly open while I was there. No facemask requirements, except maybe for some employees. It’s appearing that Georgia could be moving close to one of the freest states in the country.

Actions like this speak louder than words. As much as I was hoping New Hampshire would be the trendsetter, I think New Hampshire’s governor chose money over freedom. Just one more reason I think money IS the problem, and we need to control that before anything else ever changes. (Read: Bitcoin)

Soooo anyway… I made it back to NY by Memorial Day, and booked a site at The Ridge in NY for the month. Was nice to actually camp, like with friends, and campfires and such. For four years I’ve been living in a camper, but rarely do it like this.

Camping at The Ridge, Leroy, NY

I stayed long enough to attend a “drive by” graduation, and visit more friends.

I will finish this page someday, but 2021 has been off to a great start… Posting as is for now, and hope to add the 2nd half of the year soon!

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Google is Evil

Maybe they started out with good intentions, but as usual: power corrupts.

Google updated their Terms and Services on 3/31/2020, and made it a point to notify everyone months in advance. This caused some suspicion as usually companies try to get you to accept new terms as slyly as possible. Google published a notice on their home page to be sure every single person had no deniability for not knowing what they are about to do.

What is it that they’re doing? I can’t say for sure, and I’m sure there’s a 10% chance that it’s not totally malevolent. I chose not to take my chances, and decided to delete anything remaining in Google’s servers. This is where the fun starts.

Sure, they are fairly open about your option to “Takeout” and move to other services. I’m sure they realize that almost no one is going to do this, but they give you that guise of an option.
That is available here https://myactivity.google.com

I downloaded all of my data, and turned off web history and cleared everything from the MyActivity screen. This took a while, and I did keep my Maps data because I have yet to find an alternative for that service.

Hangouts was where it gets really interesting.
I have been using Hangouts as my primary mobile phone since it’s inception… even before. It started as Google Voice, and prior to Google’s purchase – was called Grand Central.
It is an incredible service that gives you a free local phone number, linked to your Google account, that will allow incoming and outgoing calls, texts, transcribed voicemails, cross platform, multiple device options to text from, international calling, and more.

The service is (was) great, and still works… but at some point Google decided that “Not being Evil” was too hard, and they’ve even removed that from their policy.

Now, since I’ve been using this service for at least 10 years, I’ve got over 6,000 calls and messages stored in my history. Since I’d like to remove my data from G servers, I’d also like to delete all calls, texts and voicemails. This is not a part of the MyActivity mentioned above, so I went to Hangouts. In here, I could delete messages 1 by 1, but in the Phone I could select 200 at a time. This is not a technical limit, it’s a process that Google chose to implement to dissuade you from doing this. Well, I painfully did it this way anyway.

But, what about photos? With Hangouts, when you send a photo to someone else, it is uploaded to Google’s server, and a link to the photo is sent instead of the bits and bytes of the actual photo. Well, I’m sure I’m not the only one that has texted a photo to someone that you’d prefer not to be stored in Google’s archive forever.
If you’ve ever sent it with Google – Check this link

https://get.google.com/albumarchive

I found 10 years of history containing every single photo I’ve ever texted to anyone.
Google – this is utterly creepy, and you know for a fact it’s completely unnecessary. It’s an obvious deliberate choice to handle pictures this way. (No other message service handles photos this way).
Also, every one of these photos are available to everyone in the world, without logging in to anything. If you have the link to the photo’s location, you can see it.

Back to the call logs and messages. Luckily I was able to find this blog that discussed some of the options, and that led me to some scripts that would let me automate the tasks. Keep in mind, Google could add a Delete All button pretty easily, but their motives are just something that I wouldn’t understand.

I used this Powershell script to perform the 3000 mouse clicks it would have taken to delete over 6000 call logs.

[void] [System.Reflection.Assembly]::LoadWithPartialName(“‘Microsoft.VisualBasic”)
[Microsoft.VisualBasic.Interaction]::AppActivate(“Google Voice – Call history – Mozilla Firefox”)
[void] [System.Reflection.Assembly]::LoadWithPartialName(“‘System.Windows.Forms”)
while ($null -eq $null){
[System.Windows.Forms.SendKeys]::SendWait(“*”)
[System.Windows.Forms.SendKeys]::SendWait(“a”)
[System.Windows.Forms.SendKeys]::SendWait(“#”)
sleep -Seconds 3
}

Within about an hour my robot cleaned up everything. All 6000+ are still sitting in the Trash folder, but Google claims that that will be deleted permanently in 30 days.

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Camp Hacks

After living in my RV full time for a couple of years, and traveling around the US with it, I’ve gathered together some tricks that should be useful. I will update this with more when I can.

Boondocking (free) sites

  • Search Google maps for
    • Walmart Supercenters
      • Use satellite maps to find white lined parking spaces, or other RV’s and trucks
    • Cabellas (possibly Bass Pro and other Sporting stores)
    • Casinos
    • Rest Areas
    • Truck Stops – literally search for “truck stops”
      • Flying J
      • Loves
      • Pilot
      • Buckys
      • etc. 
    • Most of these places are easily accessible with any RV, but you can always look at the satellite maps in advance to plan an easier entrance/exit.
  • BLM, LTVA
    • Bureau of Land Management
    • Long Term Visitor Area
      • Arizona and California have multiple areas
      • These are mostly found in the South West US, but are well worth looking for.
      • Many are either free, or require a very inexpensive permit
    • The best part is that you can un-hitch the trailer and stay a while!
  • Some websites to check for free overnight parking
  • Mobile Apps (At least Android)
  • I am working on this personal collection – Camp Map

Camping discounts

  • Clubs
    • Passport America Offers half price discounts at select campgrounds around the US
      • Use Referring Member number C-702863 for referral discounts
      • Many sites have restrictions based on season, or max # of nights.
    • Good Sam parks usually offer around a 10% discount on nightly rates
    • Thousand Trails – I have no experience with this, but may be worth a look
  • Use Google Maps to locate RV parks, check the park website for weekly, monthly, and seasonal rates

Precautions

  • For your first times, be sure to land at the site during daylight. It makes parking and setup much easier. This is also helpful as many camp offices close early.
    • This doesn’t apply to boondocking
  • Be mindful of the wind when towing
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Freedom

I have been a gypsy for the past couple of years. My house in NY is almost sold, I have already moved to New Hampshire, and have been living out of my RV full time.
It’s WONDERFUL! and I would highly recommend considering it if you can somehow manage to make that drastic of a change in your life.
I have never been fond of winter or lack of freedom in NY, as most aren’t, so I decided to do something about it. I now spend the cold half of the year somewhere in the South part of the country. It’s the ultimate freedom to just travel anywhere/anytime and move on when you feel like it.

I was originally inspired by watching videos on tiny houses, and realized that would fit my housing need perfectly. I didn’t even think of going the mobile route until I started pricing tiny houses, and permanent plots of land to build it on. This also comes with the limitations put on by the government, which can restrict minimum house size, zoning, septic, water, etc. The list really goes on and on, but that’s beside the point of this. So, the expense and limitations really got me considering alternatives.

When I realized that a mobile house would be even more ideal for me than a tiny house, I also remembered when I first saw inside a motor home around the age of 10. I decided that when I moved away from home, a camper would be what I would live in. Now I’ve finally made that dream a reality.

Most of my initial conceptions have proven to be a bit inaccurate, although I have also exceeded my expectations in some other ways.  My original plan was to retire if necessary, purchase a huge RV with the money from selling my house, run everything from 12v power charged by the sun, stay in free campgrounds or maybe spend $1,000 for a 6 month season. I would create the most eco-friendly, inexpensive, minimalist life, that would permit me the ultimate freedom to travel and  see the world in style.

Well now this missed me a little bit. The reality is that it can be pretty expensive to live this life. The gas alone can run about $20 per every 100 miles. The cheap campsites range from $500 – $1,2000/month. Plus the maintenance on the vehicles is basically doubled.

The trailer that I bought was $15k and then the truck that I chose to pull it was about $40k. The decision on what type of RV to get is a big one. There are 5th wheel coaches, all in one motor homes, and tow behind travel trailers. I chose to go with the truck/trailer so that I could drop the trailer in a place to create a home base, while using the truck to mozy around town like a normal person. I purchased the trailer before I got the truck. I had it delivered, and spent a year with it parked in my backyard in NY. During this time, I made it my home and moved stuff in little by little.

I emptied out the house,  and gave away almost everything I owned. I then realized that I was still somewhat of a hoarder and needed someplace to keep the remainder of stuff that I didn’t want to haul around the country. So, I ended up getting a 14′ cargo trailer to use as my semi-mobile storage unit. This was about $4,000. This part was optional, and not in my original plan. It made it much easier to finish cleaning out the house for sale though. I plan to purchase a vacant plot of land, where I can leave the cargo trailer, and use the land as needed for a home away from home.

There are options for staying free at various public lands, but you will need to fill the water tanks, pay for propane to run the fridge and heat, and dump the wastewater every few days. This is still my favorite option though since it’s much more relaxed. You don’t need reservations, or have to pay in advance for the length of time that you think you’ll want. You also have your choice of sites. I bought a generator, so I never worry about running out of power. I also plan to upgrade the battery and solar system soon, since it’s currently not capable of powering everything that I’ve connected to my grid. Being single, the water tanks will last about 4-5 days including regular showers.

While your results may vary, I was fortunate to step into a job that would permit me to work from anywhere, and pay the bills. The job also took care of one of my biggest hurdles, which was unlimited internet access. I researched mobile internet for many months, and came to the conclusion that there is no such thing as unlimited. ISP‘s are one of the biggest monopolies in the country, and are diligently working to make you pay per byte. This is also known as censorship.

To be continued…

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Free State Project

Brian Starts a Minimalist Life in New Hampshire

Jul 21, 2017 | Originally posted in Free State Project’s Mover Stories

BrianI am a father, anarchist, minimalist, business owner, and systems engineer. I have traveled throughout the country, cruised around the Caribbean, and visited Europe. I have lived my whole life in the small town of Bergen, NY. It is a great community, with the unfortunate geographic issue of being located in the least free state in the country.

I have been searching for liberty my whole life, but for a while I didn’t know what that really meant. I never bought in to the political party system and division tactics. I never registered to vote or participated in this corrupt and manipulated system. The first half of my life, I ignored the political system as much as possible. It was 9/11 that shook me awake, and I realized that the beast wasn’t going away. I spent the next 10 years engulfed in the alternative world news, from Alex Jones to Occupy Wall St, RT, and on and on. It was a bit overwhelming to say the least (especially Alex!).

It wasn’t until September of 2012, when I was watching a YouTube video of a girl in Texas being arrested on a bicycle that I found, among the thousands of comments, a link to The Free State Project. I dove in, and was so ecstatic that I signed the Statement of Intent that night.

I looked at houses in NH, and discovered the tiny house movement. Being a single, minimalist, outdoorsy freedom lover, this was perfect. I have always wanted to rewire my house with all 12v battery operated led lighting and electronics – enabling a permanent solar powered life. All of this came together perfectly, in a plan to sell my house and live permanently in an RV. It is pre-built, runs on 12v natively, and comes with a huge bonus of being mobile.

By 2014 I bought the camper, and spent a year living in my backyard as a trial run. The next summer, I bought a truck and tried a few short trips with my house on wheels. In 2016 I attended Liberty Forum for my very first visit to NH. This was an absolutely amazing experience, and I was instantly assured that this was better than I could have ever anticipated. This feeling was only amplified after attending PorcFest the same year.

I have some serious regrets about not visiting sooner, as that decision has literally cost me millions of dollars. When I first read about Bitcoin online in 2013, I realized its potential immediately. It was exchanging at $25-30 at the time. Although I couldn’t figure out how to get it or store it back then, I would have invested heavily into it. From the stories I’ve heard, all I would have had to do is show up at PorcFest and I would have learned about Bitcoin back when it was in the single digits… and I would have been able to buy and store it. So, there’s a lesson in procrastination I guess.

During the summer of 2016, I was offered a position with a new company that would enable me to telecommute. I was ready to hit the road. Come spring, I saw my family, tied up loose ends, hitched up, and headed to the ‘Shire. I explored the state, staying at some outrageously beautiful campgrounds.

Unfortunately, living on wheels in a campground does not qualify one as a permanent resident. I tried many different town and state offices pleading my case, and kept running into walls. They were not sympathetic to my situation, and could only repeatedly quote from their rule book that was written well before they were born. It was frustrating, exasperated by my take on government systems.

Then I recalled the few thousand friends that I had on standby, and I put out a public cry for help. The first response came within hours, and then the floodgates opened. Within a day, I had more options to choose from than I knew what to do with. This was my first post to any of the FSP groups, and I was completely overwhelmed with the response. I think my FB friends list doubled in a week! I eventually decided to rent an apartment short term to satisfy the archaic residency requirements.

The overwhelming feeling of happiness that I had when the clerk told me “It looks like you have everything you need” is indescribable. At that moment, I truly regained hope and have a new outlook on my future.

My dream is to build an open shared community on 100 acre woods, in the Free State, that would qualify as a permanent residence for whatever type of homes are built/parked on it. I think that project has a few years to come to fruition, but I won’t give up hope.

Brian Becker,
Moved June 2017

 

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Elisa Lam

Full story

Timeline

The Speakeasy WAS AWESOME
except I lost a cellphone
SIGH
#and
it’s not even mine #it’s my friends old blackberry #that he’s lending
to me #and ughhh #well not lend #he doesn’t want it anymore #but UGHHH
#STUPID #caliblah

I’m going out tonight
I really hope no creeper comes near me
Seriously though
those Italian and Mexican guys go after you STRONG
Show the slightest inclination and they hound you
#GOOD GOD I JUST WANT TO LISTEN TO SOME LIVE JAZZ #UGHKLAJSDL:KAJS #ok ok #caliblah

Today I slept, took a long hot shower, stuffed myself silly with a $3 dinner. It has been most productive and enjoyable.
I seriously have done nothing in San Diego that is out of the my normal routine at home.
I DO WHAT I WANT
After all, I like my home comforts and every now and then I do something entirely impulsive and reckless like tell a guy I just met I like him…….
I do like people watching at the hostel.

Now that I’m rested and well, starting tomorrow I should venture outside more.
1. Seaworld
2. The Zoo
3. Museum because it’s free!!!!
4. Whale watching at Coronado/Point Loma ?
#caliblah #OK OK ENOUGH OF THE HOUSEPLANTING #It’s time to get down to business

I got lost in the airport and missed my connecting flight
UGHH. Sleepover at the airport again.
Oh well. It could be worse.
United Airlines provides blankets

I have wifi and I can pretend I’m Tom Hanks in the Terminal (not at all similar but SURELY if a fictional character in a movie can live in an airport than so can I)
#caliblah #this trip is STARTING OUT GOOD #the
movie did not mention that vacuum cleaners are really loud #it’s a lot comfier than ottawa for sure

I’m too tired to pack

I just got my flightbook’d
Vancouver: Jan 18 – 22, San Diego: Jan 22 – 27
and the rest is to be written…
#caliblah

Next leg of my whirlwind adventure: the West Coast
Meet-up applications now accepted for Vancouver, San Diego, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Luis Opispo, Santa Cruz, San Jose and San Francisco.
SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS HIGHLY HIGHLY APPRECIATED AND NEEDED!!!!
#caliblah

Other info and resources:

Facts still need checking

  • Katie Orphan owner of “THE LAST BOOKSTORE” recalls talking to Elisa on Jan 31st in her book store
    • Bought gifts to take home
  • What about invisibility cloak?
  • Missing Facebook and Twitter
  • Need records of fire alarm going off or dispatch on that date.
  • Was known for posting pictures from rooftops to facebook
  •  Contacted family every day until Feb 1
  • Was originally checked in to 5th floor, but moved to 4th floor after roommates complained about behavior
  • Hostel had shared bathrooms, unsure about shared rooms.
  • Did Elisa see the film Dark Water, or have any history with it

My Theory:

  • It was her last day on vacation before going home.
    • Either she was being adventurous and enjoying the last night.
    • or she was locked out of her room
  • Could not get in room.
    • Check out would have been Jan 31, 2013 – around 11am
    • Elevator video from Feb 1, 2013 12:22am
    • May have been looking for safe spot to stay/sleep and ventured to the roof
    • Could be debunked if shared room guests would let her in?
  • Tried 15th floor roof access door before getting in elevator.
    • Most speculation is that she was on the 14th floor
    • Either looking to hide for the night for a place to sleep
      • or being adventurous
    • Possibly set off alarm and was hiding from security, or expecting security.
      • May have been accidental by opening alarmed roof door
    • If alarm was going off in elevator footage
      • Could explain why doors wouldn’t close
      • Maybe elevator resumed operation after alarm was reset
      • Explains behavior
        • Calm when first entering elevator
        • Panics when doors don’t shut
        • When reentering after standing in hall, hands appear to be covering ears.
  • No glasses on
    • Bent to see buttons when first entering elevator
    •  Pushed hold button or open door button instead of floor so elevator didn’t close.
  • Stayed open while talking or looking in the mirror
    • may have held button on outside of door.
    • Unclear what she is doing outside of elevator
    • Could have been talking to security about alarm.
  • Climbed fire escape ladder to rooftop
    • May have been common for her
    • However it would have been dark and no glasses
  • Climbed to highest platform above water tanks on roof, up another ladder
    • Likely just adventurous
  • Could have fallen or jumped in to water tank
    • If jumped, obviously didn’t foresee the lack of a way out.
    • May not have known there was water in there
      • It’s dark, and it was a hatch… possibly open
    • May have stripped before or after falling in
      • after to aide in staying afloat
      • unsure if clothes were found inside tank

Conclusion

It was one YouTube comment that led me in the direction of the Fire alarm. I couldn’t find any evidence to back this up, but her elevator actions could be better explained if she had just done something wrong.
She didn’t appear to be scared for her life as much as she appeared to fear being in trouble.
I don’t know the circumstances that led her to be in the tank, but I believe she wanted to be on the roof.
So, no mystery solved, but another unbiased logical opinion.
This started out as a note sheet for myself, but due to the popularity of this case, I thought another reference sheet could be useful to others.

 

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Personal Computer FAQ and Tips

Computer/Virus cleanup

  • First off, know how to use the internet safely
    • No matter if you are looking for games, programs, porn, or videos… you should not download or install any software unless you are 100% certain it is safe to install.
    • If you have the Recommended apps (see below) installed, you should not need to install anything else to view that video, or read an email. Many sites are set up to trick you with ads, popups, etc. that convince you to install their “software” (malware, phishing, virus, etc)

 Infected Computers

  •  If your computer is extremely slow, try these steps
    • Press Ctrl-Alt-Del and click on Task Manager
      • Click on Processes, and tick the box to Show All Processes.
      • Click the CPU column header to sort by CPU largest to smallest
      • Find the largest CPU hogs and end the process
        • This may kill something important, but the damage is undone once you reboot
        • You can ignore System Idle Process.
        • iexplore is Internet Explorer
        • svchost is used by Windows, but also by viruses
          • Killing it can be good or bad depending, but is worth a shot
    • Eliminate startup programs with WhatInStartup
      • If you are really infected, just remove everything in the list.
    • Scheduled Tasks
      • Start – Control Panel – Scheduled Tasks or
      • Start – Control Panel – Administrative Tools – Task Scheduler
      • Some Virii hide in here.
      • You can pretty safely remove any tasks that are not in the Microsoft folder
  • Download TDSSKiller
    • Scan computer and remove threats
      • Reboot if prompted
  • Install MalwareBytes
    • Opt out of the professional trial when installing
    • Update, Scan and Remove all infected Malware
  • Install Microsoft Security Essentials
    • Update, Scan and Remove all infected items
  • Browser Toolbars
    • Remove ALL toolbars and suspicious add-ons from each browser
      • Internet Explorer
        • Tools – Settings – Manage Addons
      • Firefox
        • Tools – Addons – Extensions, and Plugins
      • Chrome
        • Settings – Extensions
    • Change Search provider to Google as default
  • Download and run Cleanup to clean Temp files and free up space
  • Please see my warning about Cryptolocker
    • If this applies, seek immediate attention
    • This will destroy all of your files, and leave  “HOW_TO_DECRYPT” files in your folders.

New computers/Windows 8

  • Windows 8
    • Windows 8 can be improved with the Installation of Classic Shell
      • This will give your start menu back, and nearly eliminate the Metro start screen.
  • Startup – Speedup
    • Eliminate startup programs with WhatInStartup by Nirsoft
      • Extract/open the zip file and run the exe program
        • Never do this unless you trust the origin – but you can trust me now
      • You can pretty safely delete everything in here to speed up your computer and eliminate background programs.
      • Once you’ve removed everything, reboot for the changes to take effect.
      • Keep this program, and check it again in a month, things tend to reappear and need to be cleaned out regularly

Applications

  • Installing
    • Be careful installing ANY programs that are downloaded from the internet.
    • Even if you know it’s safe, click through the installer carefully. Almost every installer now contains additional “sponsored” software that you don’t need.
      • ie. Ask toolbar, Safesearch, MyPCBackup, Trial antivirus, Trial professional versions, etc.
    • Use the links below to get the apps
      • They go to the best source to download them
  • Safe applications
    • You can find many free, useful and safe apps at Sourceforge
    • Any application that is “Open Source” is generally safe to install
  • Highly Recommended for every computer
    • All of this software is free but can contain sponsored software, so again – Be careful
    • Necessities
    • File unzip
      • 7-Zip
    • Internet
    • Pictures
    • Video
    • Email
      • Thunderbird
        • This has many add-ons available to integrate calendar, sync with Google contacts, etc.
      • I recommend Gmail for free email as it allows you to sync email, contacts, and calendar with nearly any Android, PC, or Apple device.
    • Microsoft Office
      • MS Office is not free, but there are alternatives
        • Office Viewers  (allow you to view but not edit files)
          • Just install the latest version for each program
        • Google Docs
        • Open Office
          • This is a free competitor to MS Office
      • If you have an older version of Office and want to open newer files, just install the Compatibality Pack
    • PDF viewer
      • Adobe Reader
        • Be sure to uncheck the optional offer before downloading
    • Notes
      • Evernote
        • Permits you to save and sync notes from any device
  • Removing programs
    • You can uninstall most programs in the Control Panel
      • Start – Control Panel – Programs and Features
        • You may need to change the View by to Large Icons, or classic view
      • Windows XP is Start – Control Panel -Add/Remove Programs
    • Any program listed here that you do not currently use is generally safe to Uninstall

Everything Else

  • If I have forgotten anything, please let me know in comments and I can add it.
  • Bookmark and check this blog as needed, I will try to keep it up to date.
  • If you don’t know how to do something Google it