Publications.USA.gov

Hi All,

Just a quickie post today about a US government site called Publications.USA.gov.  What is the site about?  Simple, it's a federal website where citizens can order government publications. 

Specifically the FCIC (Federal Citizen Information Center) has been "a trusted one-stop source for answers to questions about consumer problems and government services. "  Publications.USA.gov has replaced the old Pueblo, Colorado website.  For more information about the organization, click on this link. 

Users can search for publications by using drop-down menus on the homepage.  Categories include Animals, Cars, Computers, Education, Family, Health, Housing, Money and Travel among others.  Material can be ordered in printed, pdf, e-reader or online format.  Material also comes in Spanish and English.  Finally, users can search for publications using a text search which is also on the homepage.

Instead of using the drop-down menu's at the top of the page, users can choose categories at the left side of the homepage...(same categories are listed as in the drop-down menu).

Features publications are listed on the right side of the page (and are hyperlinked).  Examples of featured publications when I was writing this entry included 'Men: Stay Health at Any Age', 'Buying a Used Car', and 'How to Fix Mistakes in Your Credit Card Bill'.  

Note: not all publications need to be ordered.  In fact, many of the publications can be viewed online directly on the site by the viewer.  Advantages: You can see the publication directly and then you can decide whether or not print them out on your printer....

The 2015 Consumer Action Handbook is available on the site as well - which is a very, very popular publication!

And...users can sign up for email for free email updates on nearly topics (including benefits, grants, financial aid, health and nutrition, money, and taxes. Users can sign up for free email updates or to access subscribers preferences by clicking on this link.

Site users can order publications by catalog item number as well - click link for more information.

Finally, in order to display the variety of publication topics available on the site, I did a deep-dive in the the list of education publications.

Preparing For College
Examples of publications include:
Choosing Your Student Loan
Choosing a College: 8 Questions to Ask
Funding Your Education
My Future My Way: First Steps Toward College

Preschool
Helping Yor Child Become a Reader
Helping Your Preschool Child
Toddlers Get Ready to Read: How Parents Can Help Their Toddlers Get Ready to Read

K-12 Years
Choosing a School For Your Child
Extracurricular Activities: The Afterschool Connection
Imagine! Introducing Your Child to the Arts
Parent Power: Build the Bridge to Success

And on and on it goes...what a great free site from the federal government!

Enjoy the links and the publications.

Regards,
Stu

Manuals Online

Hi All,

Have you ever needed to find the manual to your washing machine or dryer?  Or what about your refrigerator or a lawn mower or digital camera?  Well, have I got a solution for you!

There is a website called Manuals Online.com and it has all sorts of manuals for your use and for you to download. 

The site has owner manuals for thousands of products in the following categories: Baby Care, Car Audio & Video, Cell Phone, Communications, Computer Equipment, Fitness & Sports, Home Audio, Household Appliances, Kitchen Appliances, Laundry Appliances, Lawn & Garden, Marine Equipment, Musical Equipment, Outdoor Cooking, Personal Care, Photography, Portable Media, Power Tools, TV & Video, Video Games.

Once you pick a category there are further breakdowns until you get to the item you need.  Note that manuals open in PDF format.  Also note that manuals can be printed for your use at a later time. 

Another interesting feature of the site is that users can obtain 'customer support' for the product manual they are looking for.  This customer support option is somewhat fluky - so be prepared.

Other features of ManualsOnline that are notable include the fact that they have over 700,000 products and there is a search box on the homepage.  Click here for the link. 

There is also a robust community of people who help with product support questions and who help to provide answers to all your product and manual questions....signing in is free. Click here for more information about this part of the site. 

So there you have it a - a wonderful site to help you get your manuals when you need them!

Regards,
Stu

Getting From Here to There: Mapping Websites

Hi All,

Just a quickie post today about mapping and direction (how-to-get-there) type websites.

Some quality sites that have good maps, easy-to-read directions and a few that have some extra 'perks' include:

Google Maps
Users can enter the address of where they are leaving from and the address of there destination. Users can click on the 'Direction' icon and a menu will appear when users can enter the starting point and the destination.   Once that information is entered a map appears and the route is traced in blue.  Trip length - both in time and distance (miles) appears on the screen.   The actual turn-by-turn directions are included as well.  Users can scroll in on the map to get a more detailed view of the trip.  Users can also scroll out on the map to get a more general - larger - view of the trip.  And, of course, the map can be printed so that you can use it when you are on the trip.   With Google Maps users can get an actual street view of that the street looks like.  Users can also get a satellite view of the map they are looking at.

A new feature that Google Maps has is the option to choose a travel route by mode of transportation. For example, users can see how to get from A to B by car, walking, bicycle or by bus.

Users can share maps, embed maps in documents, change search settings and save map search history for the future.
 


Mapquest.com
Mapquest is a competitor to Google Maps.  Some folks think it is better than Google Maps.  Others don't.  Take your pick.  But....Mapquest enables users to find charging stations for cards, lodging, restaurants, travel services, shopping, and more.  There is a MapQuest app available - just click the option 'App' and then enter your mobile phone number and the app will be sent to your phone.  Like Google Maps, users can print, email or link the map as well as scroll in and out of the map (once generated) to get the 'bigger' or 'smaller' picture of the map. Once a map is generated, estimate fuel cost is available.  Alternate routes are given as possible options for the user.  Live traffic can be seen by clicking on the Live Traffic option.  Also, traffic cameras are identified along a particular route.

So there ya have it...now there is no reason for you to be late or to get lost when you visit anybody, anywhere, anytime.

Hope the maps work well for you!

Regards,
Stu