There’s No Such Thing As A Free Lunch….. Or Is There ? 

If I had been asked the question just under two years ago, I would probably have just laughed or muttered something about not being born yesterday.

In recounting what has happened since, I should make it clear from the outset that I am not attempting to influence or convert anyone, just giving an honest picture of what was achievable for me and the real “cost”. 

As often happens with these things, I discovered the free gift scene totally by accident.  Christmas 2006 was rapidly approaching and I was trying to get hold of a cheap Xbox 360 console to use as a media centre.   One of the first listings I came across on eBay was offering information on how to get the console totally free; I didn’t exactly have money burning a hole in my pocket and am always up for a challenge, so decided to find out if there was a catch, expecting to get an e-book on bankrupt stock or police auctions.

Instead, I was about to enter the world of affiliate (referral) marketing.   I am sure there are volumes on the subject, some of which are no doubt labelled pyramid schemes, but for those who want a bit of detail on the specific business model employed in this instance, you might want to take a look at a short video podcast put together by the BBC’s Newsnight program or maybe my own guide how to get free stuff online.

All I had to do to get my free console was sign-up to an affiliate site, take out a free DVD rental trial and refer a few friends.  How difficult could that be?

I am a regular online shopper and knew the DVD rental company LOVEFiLM (the equivalent of Blockbuster or Netflix in US and Canada) from a recent national TV campaign, so had no problems with that part of the process. To be fair, the service they provide is actually pretty good!

The harder part was getting referrals…..and I needed 12 of those (who would each have to take up their own offer) to get the Xbox 360 console. Luckily, after running out of family and friends who were either willing to believe what I was saying or just gave in to my constant nagging, I stumbled upon eXceem forums.  They have a buzzing community of like minded freebie hunters who gave me confidence that I would get me gifts and provided tips on how to achieve that.   I have since discovered similar sites such as Anything4Free.com

To the cynics’ amazement, my Xbox 360 arrived on 2^nd December 2006 along with a second generation iPod Nano that I had also earnt…and a freebie addict was born.  I would be embarrassed to say how many other gadgets, gifts and cash have passed through my hands since!

I mentioned the real “cost” in my preamble. That has not been a financial one, far from it, you can get out as much as you put in…..and there’s where the problem lies; getting referrals can start to take up every waking hour, your whole life spent thinking about, talking about and implementing new “methods”.  Well, that is, if you are not checking your accounts for new sign-ups, waiting for account verification or delivery of your free stuff.  Getting your affiliate links out there will also almost invariably require an element of spamming and I am not proud of some of the tactics I have employed along the way.  In fact,  I could devote another who article and more to “methods”, the choice of free sites out there and how to avoid getting your affiliate account cancelled (termed “put on hold”).

Fortunately, things changed for the better when I set up my first ever websites, Simplyfreeiphone and Gadgets4nowt - my background is certainly not web coding or design but I love a challenge (did I say that before!) and now have them both ranking extremely well.   I obviously have to update the content and keep working on links but overall, it’s a fairly easy ride these days.  With the evolution of the affiliate sites themselves, I no longer get my free stuff in the form of goods, most now offer custom orders in the shape of bank transfers at £17 ($35) per referral.   My sites bring me in an average of 3 completed referrals a day, so there’s good money to be had. 

All that’s left is to decide where do I go from here?  I guess I could push some new keywords and increase traffic to my sites through rankings but there is a limit to people looking for a free games console or iPods.  Can the sites be taken in another direction or should I sell them?

SocialVibe is a social media tool that allows people to utilize their online influence to make a real difference. Members choose a brand to endorse, which earns them opportunities to get brand perks and points within SocialVibe. The points that members earn are then turned into funds for the charitable cause of their choice.

karlturnbull invites you to SocialVibe.com    

Getting paid to search just got even better

My Search Funds Have just added yahoo and msn to the search results

And better still The Big Guns Are Getting in on the action

GOOGLE is also being added to the searches you do also

Some members are getting upwards of £0.10 per search they make through

My Search Funds

SO SIGN UP TO DAY AND START GETTING PAID TO SEARCH THE WEB

Nintendo DS Lite is a lighter and brighter version of the highly successful Nintendo DS, which has sold more than 4 million units across Europe and 16 milllion units worldwide.

Nintendo’s latest console includes all the existing features of the Nintendo DS, yet includes a variety of distinctive changes which truly sets it apart from other handheld consoles. Nintendo DS Lite retains the advanced touch screen technology, allowing players to control the software with a stylus or even their finger, as well as dual screens, voice recognition and Wi-Fi capabilities of the Nintendo DS but is now both smaller and lighter. Weighing nearly 60g less than the original, it is just two thirds of the original size. The redesign isn’t only cosmetic though, the Nintendo DS Lite features adjustable screen brightness with four settings, a repositioned microphone for ease of use and a larger and more comfortable stylus. With its new design and unique features, this console is perfect for everyone regardless of age, gender and gaming skills.

Special features

• It’s less than two-thirds the size of the original Nintendo DS and more than 20 percent lighter.
• Its two bright screens can be adjusted to four levels to adapt to different lighting conditions and to extend battery power.
• The microphone sits in the center of the unit, and the LED lights are clearly visible whether the unit is open or closed.
• The stylus is 1 centimeter longer and 1 millimeter thicker than the stylus of the original, and slides into a side storage slot.
• The Start and Select buttons were repositioned for easier access.
• A removable cover keeps the Game Boy Advance cartridge slot clear from dust and debris when it’s not in use.

It’s amazing that products such as this aren’t more common, being a normal widescreen PC monitor with the ability to receive digital (Freeview) television.

It even comes with a remote control and an socket for connecting a high-definition (Blu-ray) player or games console.

But all of that is pointless gimmickry if the LG Flatron M228WD can’t hold its own as a computer monitor.

Fortunately enough, it can – in fact, it’s an excellent monitor, giving a lovely image with great clarity and vibrant colours, thanks to the high resolution of 1680 x 1050 pixels.

That’s enough to just about squeeze two pages of the same document on the screen together, just like a large book or magazine.

It even looks nice from a design point of view, although it does have the depressingly clichéd blue light to tell you it’s switched on. We’ll forgive LG for that because there’s no on/off switch – instead it uses a rather pleasing touch sensor. It’s also extremely capable when it comes to gaming, which hasn’t always been the case with flat panel monitors.

Viewing angles – the ability to see a bright image from either side of the screen - were acceptable. One disappointment is the stand, which doesn’t allow much tilting or rotating. It is easy to assemble, though, and while not oozing flair, it certainly isn’t ugly.

As a TV, the setup is very easy. Simply plug in a suitable aerial and use the remote control to scan for channels. The set picked up all the available channels and had very impressive reception on each.

There are outputs on the rear panel for plugging in external speakers (which would probably be in addition to your PC’s speakers) – we’d suggest using these if you have the space, because the monitor’s own internal speakers were quite poor, easily the weakest point of the package.

We are a little concerned at the pricing - £260 is quite a lot more than you can expect to pay for a monitor of the same and size similar quality without the TV features. However, given that you can find the M228WD for less online it makes much more sense.

Compared to a hundred years ago, or even 50 years ago, the world has become smaller thanks to the advancement of technology specifically telecommunication. A person from the US could easily talk to a loved one in another country, say somebody from Spain for example.

For people who do not possess telephone at home and for those who are always on the go, using prepaid calling cards can help them communicate. Communicating is very important, so people are always looking for ways to keep in touch easily with a phone card.

With the use of these cards, you will have a convenient and affordable way to make calls when you are away from your family friends and associates. These calling cards are being sold in lots of stores, shops, hotel lobbies, bus terminals, airports and on the internet.

This international phone card can be use any time and any where you are, since you can bring with you these cards. These cards are handy, so you put on your pocket each time you go out, so you can make calls any time and any where. You can use prepaid calling cards with any regular phone, cell phone, pay phone and at the hotels.

There are several ways to search Rapidshare, one is to simply use Google with the site parameter to find files on Rapidshare. This method is somewhat complicated because a user needs to know the advanced parameters that Google provides and will encounter several links that are still in Google’s index but not available anymore at Rapidshare which deletes files after a certain amount of time automatically.

A far better way to Search Rapidshare would be to use one of the many websites that have databases with files that are hosted at Rapidshare. The main benefit is that those websites are normally up to date which means that most files are pointing to working pages at Rapdishare in contrast to the search results of search engines like Google.

Ok so this is not tech/gadget related but i had to post about this

i have found a great new site and it is earning me £0.03 for every single search i make on the net

My search funds have teamed up with ask.com

So basically this meens you get paid to search the net , this is not paid to click but paid to search

So sign up today

and also

refer your friends and earn 10% of every thing they make also

Customers who are looking to purchase items online always looking for guarantees that their ordered items will reach them safely aside from the fact that they want to know right after making a purchase online all the required payments or amount of their ordered items. With Supreme Tracking you can offer your online customers the net shipping component of their ordered items and net rating components as well. This will afford them to easily calculate the total cost that they will be paying. After their purchase as the seller you need to track their ordered products closely and by monitoring and using Supreme Tracking’s website you can perform an online package tracking which also includes DHL tracking and other leading courier services such as FedEx and DHL as well. This will ensure your customers that you care for their well being and you’re making efforts to make sure that the items they ordered will be safely delivered to their homes and in return you will earn their trust and will patronize your company more in the future. Package tracking is an important part of e-commerce it safeguards the customers and also makes the companies thriving in this industry to perform well and improve their services.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Microsoft has made an unsolicited offer to buy Yahoo Inc for $44.6 billion (22.4 billion pounds) in cash and stock, seeking to join forces against Google in what would be the biggest Internet deal since the Time Warner-AOL merger.

In its boldest-ever acquisition move, Microsoft said on Friday it offered $31 per share for Yahoo, or a 62 percent premium over the Internet media company’s closing stock price on Nasdaq Thursday.

Yahoo, whose shares jumped to $30.75 in premarket trading, said it would evaluate the bid.

Microsoft shares, which have a market capitalization of about $300 billion, fell 6 percent to $30.78.

Speculation over a Microsoft move on Yahoo has swirled for at least a year, as investors wondered whether the two would seek a joint stand against an ever more powerful Google.

Internet audience researcher comScore estimates Google’s share of the worldwide Web search market has reached 77 percent, while Yahoo is second with 16 percent and Microsoft was a distant third with 3.7 percent.

“Microsoft’s wanted to do things that could build up its online business dramatically,” said Brendan Barnicle, an analyst at Pacific Crest Securities. “This is going to be a big bet for them. But I also think it’s where they see the market going, so they really needed to get there.

“This is more than a shot across the bow at Google, because you put these two guys together who are basically two and three in search and makes them far more relevant,” he added.

Critics of a tie-up, however, have pointed out that Microsoft and Yahoo have very different corporate cultures and many overlapping businesses, from instant messaging to email and advertising, as well as news, travel and finance sites.

“To me, the premium seems exorbitant, for what is a dwindling business. I personally don’t see how the synergies of Microsoft-Yahoo is going to take on Google,” said Tim Smalls, head of U.S. stock trading at brokerage firm Execution LLC.

Yahoo attracts more than 500 million people monthly to a range of media sites including Yahoo Mail, the world’s biggest e-mail service for consumers.

It has been losing market share to Google in the increasingly strategic Web search market, and warned earlier this week that Yahoo faced “headwinds” in 2008, forecasting revenue below Wall Street estimates.

Microsoft said the online advertising market is growing rapidly and expected to reach nearly $80 billion by 2010 from over $40 billion in 2007. It added it is “increasingly dominated by one player,” referring to Google.

“We have great respect for Yahoo, and together we can offer an increasingly exciting set of solutions for consumers, publishers and advertisers while becoming better positioned to compete in the online services market,” Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said in a statement.

Microsoft, the world’s largest software company, said it had identified four areas that would generate at least $1 billion in annual synergies for the combined entity.

Under the proposal, Yahoo shareholders can choose to get $31 cash, or 0.9509 of a share of Microsoft common stock. The deal in aggregate must consist of one-half cash and one-half Microsoft common stock, it said.

Mark May, analyst at Needham & Co, said that while the price is a premium to Yahoo’s recent trading price, it was in line with its average trading value over the last 2 years.

“I would not be surprised to see this bid have to be raised over time,” he said. “I think there are companies out there like Comcast and Viacom and others that still need to address the emergence of online media and haven’t. So there are clearly other strategic companies out there.”

The Microsoft-Yahoo deal would be the largest in the Internet market since the $182 billion purchase of Time Warner by AOL in 2001, which was seen as the worst merger in recent corporate history, with clashing corporate cultures and many of the promised synergies never materializing.

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.

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.