debcook

Maintaining an organized office is important for many reasons. Data security as well as data retention often involves CD and DVD discs which are physically awkward to store and access. Excessive handling will eventually cause scratches which will eventually make them unreadable.

Paper labels peal and curl. Writing directly onto a disc can shorten its life span. CD and DVD albums take up a lot of workspace. How many times have you said “there has to be a better way”?

Organization is an ongoing process. However there is a starting point and that is where most people have a problem. A Discgear CD and DVD Selector and Organizing System is the place to start.

The all-in-one features of the Discgear make it a compact solution. The features include a list of CDs and DVDs and their location within the box. Depending on the models there are up to 50 Individual slots that are designed to house the CDs and DVDs. A sliding push button that selects the CD or DVD you wish to use. The lid opens and the selected disc is raised so that you can remove it easily. Simply replace the disc in the correct slot when finished with it.

Several models of Discgear Selectors are available. Color selection is varied and even the shapes are different. Some organize 50 discs, some organize 80 discs and others hold 100 discs. There is one to suit most any need for organizing CD and DVD discs.

Traveling with gadgets is fun but keeping track of their charging cables is not. Fortunately there are options to those tangled masses of power cables and chunky AC adapters.

At this moment I have a bag of charging cables setting at my side. If they were not labeled there would be no way to keep them matched to their gadget. It is very important that the correct charger be used for the correct device. They are seldom interchangeable.

Any gadget that can be charged via USB typically has a much smaller and more compact charging solution. USB universal wall chargers are a great option when extra USB ports are needed for charging devices.

Several companies sell USB universal chargers with some of the most well known being from Belkin and Maxwell. There are some that plug directly into a wall outlet and others plug into the cigarette lighterof your car. Either model works the same way. If the device can be charged with a USB cable it can be charged by a USB universal charger.

Toss a USB universal charger into your travel bag and you will always have a way to keep your USB chargeable devices juiced up.

Gadgets are not always easy to carry with you. If not contained they will drop to the bottom of a bag and could possibly be damaged. Flash drives are small and will not cooperate in most bag pockets. Digital cameras are especially difficult because many bags cannot accommodate a bulky camera case.

The USB Quick Grip Flash Drive Holder is an answer to both gadget problems. It is made from neoprene and measures approximately 4” x 3” x 0 .5”. Three pockets on the front are perfectly sized for flash drives and the back pocket is perfect for a compact digital camera, an MP3 player or even your Garmin GPS. The soft fabric will not scratch screens and the stretchy feature will not let the gadgets slide or slip out easily.

A carabiner clip is located at one corner of the USB Quick Grip Flash Drive Holder is convenient to clip to a key ring, a strap or backpack hook.

There are other flash drive shuttles (cases) on the market. Some hold single drives and some house multiple drives. I like this case best of all because it is a combination of two cases. Multi-tasking cases are a welcome in my bag.

Is it important to you to be environmentally friendly? Are you willing to go a little out of your way to do your part? Do you like colorful and interesting bags better than those plastic bags that stores send you home with? If you answer yes to any or all of these questions there is a bag for you. It is reusable, it is inexpensive and it is fashionable.

The Envirosax Reusable Bags are lightweight yet strong and are typically sold in sets of 3 to 5. Each set comes with a pouch to keep them together and ready to use. Double stitched seams allows you to carry up to 45 pounds in each bag and one bag should hold as mush as two plastic grocery bags.

A folded Envirosax measures approximately 4” x 1.5”. An unfolded ready to use Envirosax measures approximately 19.5” x 16.5”. Either way an Envirosax is easy to use and is convenient enough that you will use it.

There is a child size Envirosax that measures about 2” smaller and is designed to please any girl or boy. Design is the optimum word when talking about any Envirosax Bag. Whether you like floral, solid, geometric, colorful or subdued there is an option for you.

A thick cold smoothie is a wonderful thing after a jog. Even when the weather is cool the treat is no less wonderful.

Smoothies can be made in many ways – personally I prefer a fruit smoothie with a tropical flavor. Frozen fruit, water, crushed ice and Crystal Light powder is a tasty low fat-low sugar smoothie recipe. Protein powder can be added if you prefer.

The Shake-n-Take smoothie blender is an easy way to make a smoothie. Simply add the smoothie ingredients, blend and go. The 16 oz. mixing bottle can be removed from the base and taken with you. The lid even has a flip up straw built in.

Multiple mixing bottles can be purchased separately from the blender base. Each member of the family can have their own. The tall thin shape of the mixing bottle lets it fit into most cup holders, which makes taking them to work or to the gym an easy thing.

No longer is fast food necessary just because you are in a hurry.

Our photos are dear to us and it is fun to have our favorites available to show friends and strangers alike. Photo albums are bulky and hold a very limited number of photos so a digital Photo viewer is a better choice. A number of devices can be used as a digital photo viewer such as a Garmin type GPS or a digital camera. Small digital photo viewers that hang on your keychain are much more convenient and ready to view than any other options.

The typical viewing area of the keychain digital photo viewers is 1.5”. Some are larger and some are smaller – I do not like anything smaller. At some point what good is having the photo if no one can make out what the picture shows. Anything much larger may be too bulky.

The number of photos stored on a digital photo keychain varies according to the size of the digital photo. The higher the megapixel count the fewer the photos. Most digital cameras have available settings that make a digital photo more appropriate for displaying on such a small device. Look at your own digital camera and you will most likely see three settings – low, medium and high which simply means that the photos will have either more or fewer megapixels. To clarify, a digital photo is made up of pixels, each containing color and detail.

Keychain digital photo viewers have at least two buttons that scroll through the photos either forward or backwards. There is a slot designed for the power connector. That is about it except for the frame and the screen. Photos are loaded to the viewer via a computer.

Compared to other portable viewers the keychain digital photo viewer is very reasonably priced. They can be purchased at most department stores or online and make great gifts.

Sometimes I need to work and my husbands wants to watch a movie. “And the point is” you ask? We want to be in the same room. If the lights are on he does not enjoy the movie and if the light is off I cannot see to type on my laptop.

Fortunately a small LED light is available that can work for both of us. The 9” tall Mighty Bright XtraFlex2 Clip-On Light is perfect. Designed for the Amazon Kindle 2 the Might Bright Light has a clip that also works as a stand. The adjustable neck of the light can be aimed as you would a task light. The lens is optical grade lens gives even light and does not cause those annoying “white spots” or glare. Plenty of light is produced by two super LED bulbs that illuminate as much as 6 ordinary LED bulbs.

If both LED bulbs are too bright you have the option of turning one out. Neither LED bulb ever needs to be replaced. The Might Bright Clip-On Light uses three AAA batteries that will last for up to 40 hours per charge. The AC adapter is available but is sold separately.

I like that the Mighty Bright Clip-On Light can work as a free standing light as well as a clip-on. It folds nearly flat for storage or transport. Amazon sells this light for under $15 so it is reasonable enough to have more than one. One in my bag and one on my desk.

You have probably seen numerous portable chargers that provide a “charge-on-the-go” for a cell phone, an iPod or other small gadget. The Ecosol Powerstick USB Powered Universal Portable Charger has to be one of the most unique and possibly the most useable on that I have ever seen.

It looks like a USB flash drive but instead of holding data it holds battery power for your gadgets. It can be re-charged from any laptop or desktop through the USB port. A gauge on the front tells you how much power is left. Be prepared to allow approximately 90 minutes for a full charge.

Small gadgets can be charged by the Powerstick with the included dongles. Connectors are included for Sony Ericsson, LG, Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, Blackberry, iPod as well as the Mini-USB. Gadgets that require 4.5 – 5.5V are compatible. Do not expect to charge a laptop.

The Ecosol Powerstick USB Powered Universal Charger is a lithium polymer battery rather than a lithium-ion battery which gives it more stability which makes it safer to use and safer for your gadgets.

This is a device that will have a place in my bag. I like that it can be charged via my laptop and will not require a power cable. In fact it will take the place of several power cables.

Is gift giving a stressful act for you? You are not alone. Between the cost and not knowing what a person wants hours can be spent trying to come up with the perfect gift.

Clocks are utilitarian gadgets. We all need them. They wake us up in the morning, they get us to work on time and they remind us to take that all important break midday. Maybe the most important time a clock tells us is – time to stop working. We all have more than one clock but do we all have a really great looking clock?

Why should clocks just tell time? What if you need one to fit your style and décor? The Oregon Scientific Translucent Crystal Weather Station should please anyone that enjoys a modern look. The name should give its second function away – now you can know what the weather is saying as well.

The base is solid black and the top is crystal. The base displays the time and the inside temperature. A wave of your hand over the clock will change the readout from time to temp and vice versa due to the infra-red motion sensor. The crystal top displays rain, cloud and sun representations that have been laser etched into 3D form. Green light indicates rain, blue light indicates cloudy and red light indicates sunny.

The Oregon Scientific Translucent Crystal Weather Station is designed from unusually materials. That gives it a special and unique look.