I guess I’m just old school, but in most cases I prefer receiving blog news and updates by email rather than through an RSS newsreader.

Scratch that… it has less to do with being “old school” than it does with the fact that email is still my main direct communications channel. Simply put, I spend a lot of time daily using my email client software. First thing I look at in the morning, and more often than not, the last thing I check before signing off for the day.

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Popularity: 100%

You’ve probably seen those small “Share This”-type links on many blogs and sites (like right here, the green thingie all the way at the bottom) that, when clicked on, let you “tell a friend” about a site, article, blog post, etc. For word-of-mouth marketing, they’re excellent…

…if people use them.

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Popularity: 47%

I spent 15 minutes yesterday talking to an old friend in Darwin, Australia. Video too. Cost? $0. We were online, at our respective Net connections, and using Skype. Cel phone + Skype = land line killer. Seems that about the only reason why any business would need a land line nowadays is for faxes, and even that doesn’t seem to make much sense anymore either. If you haven’t checked out Skype yet, go do it (free, and I’m telling you, it’s really easy to figure out!).

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Popularity: 18%

The deadline for filing your 2008 tax returns is fast approaching (one week and counting down!). If you’re not done yet, no need to give me a story or an excuse — that’s between you and the Tax Man — but you’re certainly far from alone.

No worries. For those of you who may need it, here are a few last minute resources you may want to tap to get it all done (or delayed) and out of your hair so you can get back to writing.

If you need to file for an extension, here are a couple services to check out:

FileLater — Get a 6-month income tax extension in just minutes. FileLater is an authorized IRS e-file provider. Over 98% approved. Anyone can extend automatically; the IRS doesn’t ask for a reason. You’ll receive an email confirmation when your extension is IRS-approved. GO »

TaxExtension.com — Avoid large tax penalties by electronically filing your tax extension using the most comprehenseive IRS tax extension filing system available on the Web. 97% of their clients are accepted by the IRS (94% on their first attempt). A trusted tax extension service provider since 1997. GO »

If, for whatever reason, you need copies of previous returns and/or W2’s, there’s a resource for that too:

Tax9er — Get express copies of previous tax returns and W2’s, for both you and your spouse. Most can retrieve and request instant online delivery of prior-year tax documents previously filed with the IRS. GO »

Of course, chances are there’s still time to get your returns in on or before the deadline. Lots of services and software out there to help you out. Here’s another service you may want to check out:

CompleteTax — Online federal and state tax preparation and submission with free E-Filing and unlimited support. GO »

Have fun!

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25 Ways to Write for Money. Open your eyes to a variety of ways to make money with your writing skills, many probably previously unknown to you!
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Popularity: 14%

I hate spam as much as the next guy, and of all the anti-spam solutions out there, the ones I like the most (although I don’t use them) and undoubtedly the most effective are the ones that employ “challenge-response” technology. Like Spam Arrest.

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Popularity: 19%

Although briefly mentioned in a blogging advice piece I reprinted not very long ago, I got reminded of this plugin by Mike Haydon’s comment on my recent Blog Spring Cleaning Tips and Tools – Part 1 post. Thanks for the reminder, Mike!

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Popularity: 34%

In my head, this was all very recent, but on paper, it’s crystal clear that man, I’m getting old: It’s been 15 years since using desktop publishing (DTP) software was a big part of my daily routine. So it’s been about at least that long since I last thought about upgrading any of the DTP software licenses I owned.

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Popularity: 10%

My friend, master programmer William Bontrager, sent this tip over to share with all of you. Interestingly enough, I’m a long-time user of the free Google tool in this tip; never used it for the purpose described, but it’s crystal clear that it’s an excellent application for it!

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Popularity: 13%

You all know what a dictionary is (tells you what a word means)… and a thesaurus (tells you what other words mean the same thing, or the opposite). But what if you know the meaning, but not the word? It’s exactly this kind of “reverse dictionary” ability that I find most useful with OneLook, a free online Web service.

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Popularity: 15%

Have you checked the price of Adobe Acrobat lately? Well, not even just lately… Acrobat has always been pricey (not the Reader, which is free, but the full Acrobat package). Although not out of reach or even unreasonable for serious professional use, it’s definitely not inexpensive.

If you can’t afford it (or just don’t want to), I recommend you check this out. Heck, even if you already have purchased Acrobat, take a look at this anyway… it may just do everything you need. If it does, then you’ve just saved yourself from the $100 or so annual Acrobat upgrade expenditure.

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Popularity: 21%