Do you own a digital camera and have access to the internet

If so you can start to earn some decent cash for very little effort

HOW -  Become a Google Business Referral Representative

Joining the Google Local Business Referrals (LBR) program is a great way to earn some money while connecting people to the businesses in your neighborhood. The information you collect could be seen by millions of people who use Google every day. And you’ll be helping the businesses you refer attract new customers while also making it easier for people in your community to find the products and services they’re searching for.

1. What will I be doing as a representative?As a Google Business Referral Representative, you’ll visit local businesses to collect information (such as hours of operation, types of payment accepted, etc.) for Google Maps, and tell them about Google Maps and Google AdWords. You’ll also take a few digital photos of the business that will appear on the Google Maps listing along with the business information.  After the visit, you submit the business’ info and photo(s) to Google through your Local Business Referrals Center, and we’ll pay you up to $10 for each listing that is approved by Google and verified by the business.

   All you need to be a successful Business Referral Representative is a passion for helping local businesses succeed, a love for the Internet (some knowledge of Google is great, too), and access to a computer and a digital camera.

2. How much will I be paid? How will I be paid?You can earn up to $10 for each approved, verified referral you submit. This includes $2 when a business referral is approved by Google; and $8 when an approved business verifies that the information you submitted is accurate. Referrals are approved by Google based on the completeness and quality of data supplied by representatives. Businesses verify their information either by sending us a response postcard or verifying their information online. 

   As long as your earnings total at least $25 a month, you’ll receive a monthly check

3. Why is Google doing this?In keeping with our mission to organize the world’s information, we’re always looking for new ways to make that information more universally accessible and useful. With the Google Local Business Referrals (LBR) program, we’re focusing our efforts on small businesses across the United States, helping connect them with potential customers in their communities.

4. How much can I earn?It all depends on how many businesses you refer. For each referral you make, you have the potential to earn up to $10 ($2 for the approval and $8 for the verification).  The more time you spend making hiqh-quality referrals, the more you’re likely to earn

5. How many hours do I need to work? At what time of day?There’s no set schedule, so you can work whenever you’d like, for as long as you want. However, you’ll need to visit businesses during their hours of operation. But you can submit your referrals online at any time of day, and spend as little or as much time as you want referring businesses. Just remember: The more time you spend developing business referrals, the more money you’re likely to make.
6. What are the terms? Do I have to sign something? Before you can begin working as an active representative, you must agree to the program Terms & Conditions, which explain the requirements, restrictions and expectations for those serving as Google Business Referral Representatives. As part of these terms,  you’ll be free to discontinue your participation at any time. Likewise, Google may end your involvement with the program at any time.
7. Will Google cover my expenses (gas, computer, digital camera, etc.)?No. You’ll be responsible for any expenses associated with your participation in this program; you’ll be paid only for approved and verified business referrals, according to the program terms. However, Google will pay for printing the handouts you’ll be giving to businesses during your visits. You’ll learn more about how to request handouts for business visits when you join the program
8. What are the eligibility requirements for the program?To be eligible for consideration as a Google Business Referral Representative, you must be authorized to work as a contractor in the U.S., be at least 18 years of age, and be able to complete an IRS Form W-9. You must also have access to a computer and a digital camera.
9. How do I sign-up to join the program?First, make sure that you understand what the program entails (read this whole FAQ for the big picture), including the eligibility requirements listed above. Then, sign in to your Google Account (or create a new Google Account if you don’t have one) at this page.

   To apply, you’ll be asked to answer some basic questions about your interest in this position, your experience with Google products, and to tell us in detail about why you want to become a representative. If you’re approved, you’ll receive an email from us telling you how to sign into your Local Business Referrals Center, view the training materials, and start making referrals.

Worldwide music at your fingertips

The WM201 can pick up internet radio wirelessley, but also lets users listen to music stored on PCs.

Setting up the device is easy as long as you are connected to a broadband connection. Connecting involved entering the WEP or WPA key into the radio. If the radio is to be placed close by the router, it can be connected using the network cable supplied.

To stream music from the computer, a small application needs to be installed. It can play MP3 and WMA files, including those bought from online music stores.

Switching on the radio by pressing the scroll wheel in the middle automatically makes the radio scan for stations, and this is where it gets a little bit confusing. All the functions are controlled by the one scroll button in the centre of the radio. However, this we found it hard to tell which way to navigate and when to push the button in.

This led us to scroll through to the Uruguayan radio section instead of the one for Britain. The small screen centred beneath the wheel was little help: it may be bigger than average for such a device but the tiny text didn’t do much to ease the scrolling confusion. There is a remote control, but you still need to use the screen.

When we finally worked our way around to British stations we were able to pick up a decent 540 stations in the UK There is of course also the array of other global stations, and there are 12 presets so you don’t have to go through the process of tuning using the scroll wheel each time. Handily, it can also access recorded programming such as the BBC’s Listen Again service.

Sound quality from the radio and streamed music was amazingly clear, and the device is capable of quite high volume levels without a problem. Overall, the quality lives up to what we have come to expect from Roberts.

Although the radio keeps pace with the looks and quality of an iconic Roberts mode, the scroll wheel is very confusing. That said, the sound quality goes some way to make it more worth the £200 price tag.

Regardless of your sexual orientation, there are many ways on how you can meet a man through the Craigslist service.

The best way is to load up the Craigslist website and access the city closest to you. From there, you should head to the personals section. Depending on your own interests, you should click the “men seeking men” or the “women seeking men” link. After that is done, accept the warning agreement and start to read through the personal advertisements (typical Craigslist actions here).

The most important thing to remember is that not every post is authentic. Many of these posts are automated messages trying to get you to join a service. If you notice one of these posts, you should ignore it and report it to the Craigs list service for it to be removed. Threads with pictures may not be authentic as most users wish to not share their pictures to such a wide audience of random people.

Once you have contacted the person that you would like to meet up with, the rest is up to you. It is very important to gain some type of relationship with the individual before you agree to meet them as the meeting could be a trap. While this is very uncommon, there is a small possibility that some individual may want to exploit you. Using common sense is the best way to prevent these issues, of course.

Cheap, rugged waterproof video camera

Most waterproof cameras - for video or still images - seem to be long on attitude and short on features, which means that instead people risk taking normal kit outdoors or buy a cheap camera for more daring outings.

However, we were genuinely impressed with the Sanyo CA65 which is designed for just such tasks. It uses SD memory cards rather than tapes to store video, so recording isn’t cheap, but as prices of such cards are coming down this is less problematic.

Operation is simple and video quality impressive for the price, and it’s possible to take decent still photographs as well. Some of the key controls are protected by the screen when it’s closed, and need a fair amount of dexterity to reach when holding the open camera one-handed. We weren’t expecting much from the twin microphones, but they worked surprisingly well.

The camera can be awkward to hold. Its body tapers outwards and, held in one hand, it can feel like the camera is about to pop out of the top of the hand like a bar of soap. This never happened, and there is a reassuringly large loop at the bottom of the camera for a strap, but it was disquieting nonetheless.

An iPod dock with hidden talents

While some people know that an iPod can quite easily be hooked up to an audio system using a single cable, the player can also be quickly added to a hi-fi using a docking station.

The ASD-3W is such a docking station but it goes one step further, allowing complete control of the contents of the iPod using a television screen and the supplied remote control.

You are able to browse the entire music and video collection on the iPod from the comfort of an armchair and play it all back in full-screen, surround sound glory on a home cinema system.

The dock’s Wifi capability adds several useful features. It makes it possible to browse and play music from a PC in another room. Once we had selected our wireless network connection from the on-screen menu we had access to internet radio stations and podcasts from around the world, all logically and effectively organised by country, type and genre. If you don’t have a wireless network, the dock can also be connected to the internet using a standard network cable.

The ASD-3W is substantially chunkier than the standard Apple iPod dock and is circular in shape with a built-in remote control slot, all of which point to its extra features. The glossy black or white plastic finish lends it a premium feel and matches the iPod well. As we would expect from a high-end audio manufacturer such as Denon, the supplied cables are gold-plated to improve sound quality.

We were not disappointed with any aspect of the dock’s performance. Browsing and accessing a vast iPod music library of over 5,500 tracks posed it no difficulty. The device’s menus were instantly responsive and the small, logically designed remote control allows access to every function with ease. Sound quality from most of the internet radio stations we tried was excellent - comparable to a strong FM signal with a notable absence of the long pauses usually associated with internet broadcasts.

The ASD-3W is an accomplished, complete way to fully integrate an iPod into a home audio setup, and its extra features are genuinely useful, making it worth the asking price.

Canon’s Canoscan 8800F is a traditional flatbed scanner, as opposed to the combined printer-scanners that are more popular nowadays.

The reason you might want to go for a separate unit rather than the more convenient combination is that this kind of scanner promises much better quality of images.

The 8800F can also be used to scan negatives and slides - it has a built-in adapter for this, so there’s no need to buy anything else. The inside of the scanner’s lid unclips neatly to reveal the lamp it uses when scanning negatives and slides, and the supplied negative holder can then be placed on the bed of the scanner.

Up to 12 negatives in two strips are held in the guide, and unlike with a standalone film scanner, the supplied software automatically detects the frames and scans them as separate images. Scanning times are not especially startling - it took around 12 minutes to scan 12 frames at the default high quality settings, but this is less than with a film scanner, and there’s no need to manually feed the strip of negatives through after each frame.

The software is quite user-friendly, and can be used through your normal paint program as well as the supplied programs. The package includes a copy of the latest Adobe Photoshop Elements (for both Mac and PC), which complements the scanner well.

Scan quality was very impressive, with better colour reproduction than we’re used to from standard film scanners. Likewise for standard scans (from a paper image, for instance), quality was impressive, with good speeds at slightly lower quality settings.

The scanner is big - much larger both in terms of space required on the desk and in terms of bulk, than Canon’s cheaper (and lower quality) Lide range of scanners. But that’s worth putting up with in exchange for the marked increase i n quality that the Canoscan 8800F provides. The addition of the excellent Photoshop Elements software rounds off the package nicely.

Vista compatible: Yes

YouTube has become one of the most popular websites on the internet. Being used by millions of users per day, certain establishments are attempting to stop their users from accessing the video website. From government computers (schools, libraries, et cetera) to employment based internet, access to YouTube is starting to be denied. With this being said, there are ways as to how you can access YouTube even with the site is blocked.

The preferred way to access YouTube on a restricted server is by using a YouTube proxy. While this method of unblocking YouTube is not the safest, it is the easiest and fastest. The only required step is to find a YouTube unblocking site via Google, access the website, and type in the YouTube address. In less than a minute, you have gained access to YouTube. The main side effect to this method is that sometimes the videos are prone to not loading. This is an issue you will have to deal with if you decide to stick with this method.

There are other methods, such as proxy software, browser settings, et cetera that you can use, but these methods are easier to detect on computer networks. These methods also require you to change settings on your computer, which may not be ideal for some environments.

Logic3’s Soundstage is a surround sound unit that has only one speaker section instead of the usual six.

While normal surround sound speaker sets rely on the user to place the various speakers in the right positions around the room, the Soundstage sits directly under the television and distributes the sound around the room from there.

It’s similar to the Evesham Soundstage (in this regard, but unlike the Yamaha YSP products (look out for a future review).

While those speakers use an in-built microphone to figure out the shape of the room and how to distribute the sound accordingly, the Logic3 Soundstage simply uses a built-in estimate of how the surround sound should sound.

It comes with an impressive number of inputs, including two optical connections and two coaxial digital connections, plus analogue sound input and even an FM radio tuner. All of these can be controlled using the supplied remote control, or the inputs can be selected using the buttons on the front of the unit.

We were able to set up the device easily, although its weight - the box weighs 17Kg - and its bulk mean that it’s worth having someone else to help put it in position. It also comes with fittings to fix it in place.

Basic sound quality was very impressive, with good response at all levels, and able to reach high volume levels without any distortion. The surround sound was less convincing - although the sound was noticeably fuller using five channels rather than the two for normal stereo, we weren’t able to tell the distinct channels apart as much as we could from a real six-speaker surround sound system.

Vista compatible: Yes

Losing weight is all about eating the right kinds of foods and not by depriving your self of it. There are reasons why a person goes overweight and the main reason for it is because of eating too much of the wrong kinds of foods. How to lose weight effectively means eating the right kinds of foods with the right amount of servings as well. With Smart for Life’s smart cookie program or the cookie diet it is advisable for anyone who yearn for losing weight to eat several high protein and small serving meals per day, about six times per day, this is to ensure that your body will get all the nutrients it deserve and also control the amount of food getting in your body. Smart for Life smart cookie program teaches individuals to reprogram their eating habit and turn it into a healthy one, thus eliminating improper junk food consumption and replacing them with the right way of diet that will make it possible for them to easily lose weight. Remember with Smart for Life’s the cookie diet living a healthy life can be very easy and losing weight will come in naturally and therefore gives more color to your life.

We hoped, when Apple’s touchscreen iPhone appeared last year, that it was only a matter of time before other manufacturers followed suit.

Sure enough, LG is hot on Apple’s heels with the touchscreen Viewty phone.

The appallingly named Viewty (its proper name is KU990), combines phone, camera and portable music player, but takes it one step further as it also comes with the ability to edit photos.

On any other standard-sized phone it would be hard to see the point of this, but the Viewty’s 3in screen is big enough to see exactly what you’re doing.

The software, which is extremely easy to use, is especially handy for cropping people who’ve accidentally made their way into pictures from the phone’s 5-megapixel camera. We particularly liked the Muvee application, which makes slideshows of photos taken, in different styles, and sets them to music stored on the phone.

However, we were disappointed to find that we could not adjust the colour or brightness of phone images, which tended to come out very bright, lending the people in them a ghost-like pallor. Despite this, we were impressed with the camera’s face-detection technology, which does exactly what it promises, and focuses the camera on people’s faces. The only other complaint about the camera is that there is no protective lens cover, which could be a real problem for those people who like to throw their phones in their pockets next to a set of keys.

LG has also made concessions to those who like to share video footage with the rest of the world, allowing users to upload their recorded movies directly from the phone onto Youtube. Design-wise the Viewty really is a beauty, with its sleek black housing, and despite its many features it is also very light. The t ouchscreen is extremely bright and clear, and very sensitive, making it easy to navigate the phone’s menus.

The keyboard that appears on the touchscreen is hard to use for text messaging: in some cases we had to press a letter four or five times before it was recognised. The Viewty’s saving grace, though, is that it recognises handwriting, so we were able to write directly onto the screen, a technique that worked well once we were used to it. It’s also easy to access and view websites using the built-in web browser, and it can be used to read and send email.

As with most modern phones call quality was extremely good, with clear voices at the other end of the line. The Viewty also comes with a USB cable for synchronising contacts with the computer, and for charging the battery (there’s also a mains charger), stereo headphones, a hand strap and a stylus.

Overall, while it’s not as versatile as the iPhone, this is a very impressive, stylish phone that’s easy to use.

Security researchers are warning of a new piece of malware targeting smartphones equipped with the SymbianOS.

SymbOS/Beselo is currently spreading through the wild in Asia, deceiving victims by posing as an image file.

The attack is launched via an MMS message in which the user is sent a file called either ‘beauty.jpg,’ ‘love.rm’ or ’sex.mp3′.

McAfee researcher Jimmy Shah explained on a company blog that the worm plays on the unique way in which SymbianOS runs application files.

Most operating systems will match a file with its preferred application based on the file extension. A file ending in .jpg will be loaded inside an image viewer, while a .exe file will be recognized as an application.

Symbian, however, does not load files based on extensions. Even though the worm may have a .jpg extension, it is still recognised and loaded as an application, said Shah.

On being launched, the worm copies itself into the user’s memory card and sets itself to load on startup.

The malware then attempts to send itself to every contact on the user’s phone. It also generates random numbers to send itself to and attempts to spread to any nearby device via Bluetooth.

Because the infectious message will often come from a friend or trusted contact and is not obvious as an application, Shah warned that the malware could have a very high rate of infection.

“The message says ‘photo’ and it comes from a friend, so the user is likely to open it to see the photo,” he wrote.

“When the request to install pops up, it’s very likely the user will click OK and be infected.”

Drobo is an external hard disk with a difference. Whereas most such devices come with just one disk inside, this one has room for four hard disks, although it doesn’t actually come with any installed, so that’s an extra cost to bear in mind.

It’s designed to offer backup as well as just storage, so that you can copy files to it and not have to worry about data security.

Since its launch in the USA it’s been very popular with photographers there who like the ability to quickly archive images. It’s suitable for home users too, although the price is on the high side.

The Drobo is easy to set up - we just plugged it into the PC and it recognised the device as a disk. You have to put at least one disk in, of course, but that’s easily done. The front of the case slides off easily and disks can then be slid into place.

There are several lights that indicate the health of the disks and whether they’re being used. If a disk fails, its light goes red, and you can simply swap a new one in. The Drobo will then copy everything over to the new disk so it all remains backed-up properly.

We got pretty good data transfer speeds, even faster than a standard USB hard disk, and the device was unfazed even when we unplugged one of the disks as it was being used (that’s not to be recommended, though). It’s an expensive backup device, but if your data is worth keeping, this is an excellent way to keep it.