Positive Tracfone Experience

I had to add some activation time to my Tracfone (a Kyocera 126C) so I logged in to Tracfone's website and added a 60 minute card with code 53322 (60 bonus minutes). On the next page I chose to add an additional 60 days of activation time for $10.
Once all was complete I ended up with 60 + 80 = 140 minutes. Great, 20 extra minutes. Thanks Tracfone!
The final page had me dial *228 to update. Now I know my Tracfone is on Verizon's network.
Option 1 is a full update
Option 2 is PRL (Preferred Roaming List)
I chose 2 and then restarted the phone when complete.

Fluorinated Water and the Elderly

Fluoride is good for your teeth but that is about it.
What does it do to your bones? It makes them hard.
Is that bad you say? Well, the bones of children aren't that hard. It fact they are much more flexible that adult bones. Which is good for them or they'd have many more fractures.
So on to my main point. Fluoride in the water is unsafe for the elderly. Is it just me or are more seniors suffering from broken hips and falls from fractures during daily activities? We hear all the time about getting enough calcium to prevent fractures. What if that isn't really the problem?
Call me crazy but I'd rather have the possibility of bad teeth than broken bones. Your toothpaste has fluoride so why put it in your water? You do brush right?
Don't drink it and save yourself a trip to the hospital.
Ask your dentist what toothpaste they use. Then go find it in the store and see how much fluoride it contains. I did and was quite surprised. It has much more fluoride than then the other brands. Trust your dentist. They know what's good for teeth.

Insignia NS-DXA1 (aka Zenith DTT900) review

I finally got my digital tv converter box. I ended up getting the Insignia NS-DXA1 at Best Buy. It is just a rebranded Zenith DTT900. I used a 10% off coupon (search for Best Buy 10% coupon) and one of my $40 government coupons (more like a debit card actually) so I ended up paying less than $18.
After installation and initial setup I now receive 9 channels verses the 5 I received over analog. The extra channels are all subchannels (2 PBS, The CW, and 1 local) of existing stations.
Picture and audio quality are very good on my aging 19" TV. The remote works great and can turn the TV on/off. Volume is controlled by altering the audio stream (like changing volume on your computer when your speakers also have a volume knob). You set the TV's volume to mid range and leave it. The only downside is if you pop in a DVD you might get an earful at that volume setting.
I get good reception with a cheap indoor antenna though I'm only 15 miles from the transmitters.
I'm glad I spent a few extra dollars instead of getting my other option (the RCA DTA 800B at Walmart).

Freenet 0.7 Release Candidate 1 now available

After over 2 years of development the first release candidate for Freenet 0.7 is now available for download. Freenet is free decentralized peer-to-peer software designed to allow information to be published and consumed anonymously, without fear of censorship.
Freenet 0.7 supports both darknet (where you only connect to people you trust which is very useful if you live under a repressive government) and opennet (where you connect to others you don't know). If you run both darknet and opennet your node will be considered a hybrid.

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Ethanol Gas? Save your money.

I did a little test in my car. I checked my mpg using Super Unleaded containing 10% ethanol and Regular Unleaded respectively; as I expected the ethanol reduced the miles per gallon.
Where I live, fueling with the ethanol blend will save you money per fill-up but not in the long run once you figure your mileage.
Try it yourself. As always, your mileage may very.

Take you time paying off your student loan

Don't pay any more than you need to each month on your student loan. This may seem obvious but it might not be.
Often times the loan's interest rate is lower than you could earn else where in interest. I consolidated my loans to a much lower fixed interest rate. I also set up auto payment and made my payments every month which lowered the interest rate even more. My rate is now only 1.875%.
The bottom line is try to earn interest on any extra money you have. If you can earn 5% in a money market account or a CD and your loan is 2% then your net gain is 3% instead of a net loss of 2%. Putting your money in mutual fund is even better but the returns aren't guaranteed so be careful.

Storm Water Power Generation

Here's a novel idea to generate some more electricity.
Why not build reservoirs to hold water from storm drains and use it for hydro power. Sure this only works when it rains so rainy climates would benefit more. Flat areas would also not work as well because you need greater elevation drops to generate more electricity. Turbines could also be attached where a city's storm water dumps into a large ditch or river.
I have no idea whether this is feasible both from a cost perspective and an engineering one. Would the returns be worth it? Can hydro power turbines take the punishment of periodic operation while being dry the rest of the time? I don't know either of the answers. Perhaps you the reader can help. Please comment.