In the interests of saving money during this crunchy time, maintaining older OS (Operating Systems) and making free phone calls over the Internet could help stretch dollars.

If you are running WXP (Windows XP) as an OS at home (as we are still doing at my house) you might want to see this link for help if your computer is slowing down:

WXP Maintenance

If you are running an apple computer, it's necessary to buy separate software in order to maintain it; I bought mine at Best Buy for $30. They can help you at the store; you need to know your 'last update' OS version. Usually, Apple is famous for not needing maintenance, but if you are online a lot, and want to get rid of tracking cookies, for example, running this software weekly or monthly can reduce the 'targeted' marketing and perhaps speed things up.

If you have relatives far away, or near for that matter, you can use your computer to "see and talk" to them for free.

I know this technology is not new, but it's been new to our house since last summer & fresh in my 'learning curve,' so in case you haven't done it yet, (& maybe have new grandchildren on the way? : ) here are a few details:

Perhaps you already know about Skype. It's free. It works for PCs and MACs. We use ours with basic HP cameras we bought at Best Buy (about $60 each, I think)...those you are 'Skyping' have to have a camera, run the same software, know your logon name - and, of course, be on the computer with you at the appointed time. When we set ours up at home, we were on the phone with family out East who had already set up theirs, and they coached us through. Skype works great on my husband's PC, when we 'Skype' out East where they also have a PC.

When we use my IMAC, we've found another free software program which works better than Skype for us - LogiTech Vid...also free; those to whom you connect must use this free download as well (but, of course, they can have either a PC or an APPLE computer). Bear in mind, though, that we are using the same brand basic HP camera on my IMAC, and we are not using the apple version of Skype & LogiTech (IChat)...If you're using the apple camera which probably came with your purchase, using the apple IChat software (Apple's equivalent of Skype & LogiTech Vid) might be your best bet.

This is so much fun. It is worth buying the camera, downloading the software, and setting it up!!! If you have trouble, get a neighbor kid. Really - this is very 'doable.'