How to solve spell checker in MS Office 2010.  This issue has been reported when using MS Office 2010 with Windows 7. The error reports that spell checker is working fine when it fact it was not.

Microsoft offered the following help online.  Just my luck that method 1-4 did NOT work! Luckily Method 5 worked for me.

And here are the steps in case anyone else runs into this problem. As instructed from MS Support:

- To resolve this problem, complete the methods that are provided in this article in the order in which they are presented. If you have previously tried one of these methods, and it did not help to resolve the problem, you can skip that method and proceed to the next one.

Method 1: Install proofing tools

Method 2: Enable the speller EN-US add-in

Method 3: Enable Check Spelling as you type

Method 4: Select language and clear “Do not check spelling or grammar”

Method 5: Use Fix it to modify the registry

To fix this problem yourself, follow these steps:

Click Start, and then click Run.
In the Run box, type regedit, and then press Enter.
Locate and then right-click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Shared Tools\Proofing Tools\1.0\Override
Click Delete.
Exit Registry Editor.
Exit and then restart Word.

Office 2010 looks interesting, I am hoping to make more use of Publisher, OneNote, and Access.

I’ve been looking for LED bulbs to come to the market for some time now. No sign of them at regular retail outlets. Sometimes Costco has them and so does Amazon. But they are still expensive and not as bright compare to regular bulbs.

Then I finally came across “Foreva” LED light bulbs. They are truly nice and bright at 600 lumen. Best of all, they are suppose to last over 20 years!

I also got a great deal on them from Groupon ($10 plus free shipping). I’m normally hesitant about buying anything before actually reading reviews on them. Since Groupon has good customer service/return policy I figure it was worth a try. Only regret now is I wish I had got more of these LED bulbs!

CFL bulbs were suppose to be the next best thing in lighting. But they are extremely toxic and bad for our health. And this is even before they break too. Because when they break, you have to take extra care in handling them.

Now that I think about it, I can imagine CFL bulbs breaking all over America all the time. Especially with young kids in the house, knocking over lamps, etc. Therefore exposing the children and environment to the toxic fumes.

CFL bulbs aren’t just bad for the environment, they are also bad for our health. Health Canada issued a warning after UK Health Protection recommends you should not be more than 30 cm from the light bulb for more than 1 hour per day as it emits UV rays. Test are currently being done in Canada.

CFL bulbs also contribute to dirty electricity. Which can cause migraines, dizziness, nausea, confusion, fatigue, skin irritations, and eye strain.

It would be nice if LED light bulbs were made in the U.S.A. Maybe a better investment than Solyndra. Most of all, I hope the price of LED light bulbs come down so more people can benefit from them. And I really need to phase out of CFL bulbs for good!

I finally decided it was time to get an e-reader. The Kindle Fire was one of my first choices, but after trying it out, it wasn’t for me.

My next choice was either Barnes & Noble Tablet or the Nook Color. The best thing about these two compared to the Kindle Fire was the expandable memory w/ microSD card.

I decided on the Nook Color because Target was offering $40 gift card towards the $169 retail price. Plus I like to support Target since they give back to local communities and schools.

Back to the Nook, Barnes & Noble offers some nice things. Such as previewing a magazine free for 2 weeks before deciding to buy it.

Another great thing about the Nook Color is that it runs on Android. Android is open source. Many people have been turning their Nook Color into a fully functional Android tablet. Either by rooting (hacking), which would void it’s warranty. Or run CyanogenMod 7 for a custom, open version of Android 2.3 Gingerbread off a memory card. This way it’s configured for dual-boot Android and Nook.

I chose the memory card route. And I’ve been having lots of fun running the Nook with CyanogenMod 7. There are lots of apps you can chose from Google Play (formerly Android Market) and Amazon’s Android Store. And many of them are FREE! From calendars, notepads, knitting & recipe help.

As for web browsing, it’s pretty fast. Some browsers include Opera Mini and Dolphin. I switch back and forth, but Dolphin has a much better layout.

The only glitches I’ve had was the wi-fi would get discounted out of the blue. Or it would say “weak wi-fi signal”. Then I installed a wi-fi widget app from Google Play and now I don’t have any connection problems.

A few other glitches I’ve noticed is when I charge up the Nook, it would not read the SD card and was reverting back to Nook Color all on it’s own. I solved that problem by shutting off the device completely. Check the SD card by removing it and putting it back inside. Boot up the device and it’s back to Android.

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Here’s how to save Youtube videos to your iPod Touch. This way you don’t have to worry about it being remove or gone forever on Youtube. Plus you can always have access to them all the time.

Since I use Firefox as my main browser, this method works best for me.

Go to Mozilla Firefox Easy Youtube downloader available here. It’s a simple add-on page for Firefox.

Click “Download Now,” click “Install” and restart Firefox. Just follow the instructions.

Then when you go to Youtube’s website, the “download” option will appear. See photo below.

You can save as other formats, such as mp3 for music and MP4 for videos.

On your computer, locate the videos file, add them to iTunes movies library. Sync it.

Another way is to select the titles and drag the videos you want to the iPod icon on the left side of iTunes. Sync it.

Once it’s done the videos will be on you iPod home screen. Just tap and watch!

Note: Some people were having trouble synching their iPod as it was showing up as a digital camera.

What you need to do is remove and reinstall iTunes. Make sure you remove all files, including Quicktime. Also make sure your firewall is turned OFF.

Since knitting isn’t exactly much of a work-out, I am starting the new year by getting more exercise into my life.  So I’m hoping the Wii Fit Plus is my virtual answer to get moving.

The Wii was actually an early Xmas gift.  I was using it consistently but got a little busy during the holidays.

My Mii in the pink shirt, bright eyed and ready for training! And M’s Mii is falling asleep.  There is also Kitty, my pet mii.

Working out with the Wii Fit games for just 30 minutes a day is easy and it doesn’t feel like work at all. I can already tell how much stronger I’m getting already.

And when it’s too cold to go outside for a walk, just play Wii Fit and you’ll be warm in no time.

So far I really like Yoga and aerobic games. My favorites Yoga poses are Half-Moon,  Warrior and Tree.

These activities really does bring out the kid in you! Running is also neat because the scenes remind me of all the best outdoor parks in California without having to go there. Just remember to stay hydrated.

On a side note, I also love that I can stream Netflix ($7.99 per month) on my Wii. Still the movie choices are not as great and the video quality is not consistent.  Probably due to the Wii console as Netflix streams fine on my computer and mobile devices.

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I got these neat gloves from Agloves. These gloves allow users to effectively operate many touchscreen devices while staying warm. Before I had these gloves I was using my handknit fingerless gloves while using touchscreen device such as iPod or eReaders.

There are 3 varieties available and I chose the one made with eco-friendly bamboo yarn. 70% bamboo, 15% silver yarn, 11% spandex, 4% rubber thread. Both bamboo and silver are naturally antimicrobial.

From the company’s website:

“Agloves has developed a patent-pending technology that makes them work brilliantly on all touchscreen devices.

Unlike other gloves, Agloves harnesses the body’s natural bio-electricity from the surface of the entire hand by using silver - the most conductive element on the Periodic Table of the Elements.”

I can’t say that it’s warm or comfortable as regular winter gloves. As it does feel a little stiff and somewhat itchy. But it does the job well.

I also like that silver and bamboo fibers are antimicrobial so it helps protect me from dirt and germs. Especially if you want to use the ATM machine!

Prices start from $17.99 and the bamboo one retails at $23.99. Mine were offered for $15 by Groupon Goods but shipped by Agloves. Agloves offer 90 day test period too. So it’s worth a try.

Note: The brand tags are folded over to touch the skin inside and it was itchy. So I ended up removing it and it’s much more comfortable now.

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.

You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. Believing that the dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart, even when it leads you off the well worn path, and that will make all the difference.” - Steve Jobs

Memorial for Steve Jobs (1955 – 2011)
Cupertino, CA

It’s one week later. Lots of apples and it smells like rain and roses here.

Great speech by Jobs at Stanford University’s 114th Commencement on June 12, 2005 via . The above quote can be found at 05:08/15:05

Back in April of this year, Amazon announced they would be partnering with OverDrive to bring Kindle Library lending to 11,000 libraries across the U.S.

Can’t wait to look into this option when it’s available later this year for Kindle and free Kindle app users. At the moment I am using Google’s eBook. And it makes reading so much more neater!

A note from Amazon:

- With Kindle Library Lending, customers can take advantage of all of the unique features of Kindle and Kindle books, including:

- Read everywhere with free Kindle apps for Android, iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, PC, Mac, BlackBerry and Windows Phone

- Whispersync technology wirelessly sync your books, notes, highlights, and last page read across Kindle and free Kindle reading apps”

Read more at TechCrunch.

UPDATE: October 4, 2011

I have been using OverDrive app on my iPod Touch. Some things to know to make it run smoothly. The EPUB books have to read with Adobe and requires free registration.

Must set your Touch to military time, 24 hours mode. And make sure your time zone is correct.

Some things I didn’t like about the lending library. The selection is limited, buy hey it’s FREE. You can only check out 8 books and you set the loan limit starting at 1 week to 3 weeks.

Once you’ve check them out, there doesn’t seem to be an option to delete these books on the list.

Many interesting books are checked out and there’s a waiting period. You would think with E-books they shouldn’t have a waiting list. So anyway it’s OK so far, but can be better.

RFID stands for radio frequency identification and have been showing up in many things. They can also be found in identity cards, debit and credit cards. Also commonly found embedded in pets with their owner’s contact information.

I personally don’t have any credit cards with the new RFID chips. But I have noticed the reader at some places such as gas stations and restaurants. As convenient as this sounds, there is a price to pay for it all. And that is identity theft.

Identity theft occurs when the cards are being skim. This is done when someone uses an RFID reader (can be bought for $100) to scan data from an RFID chip without the person being aware of it.

In order to protect your personal information from skimming, you can put them in RFID blocking case or wallet (as seen from photo). I bought this one by Travelon from Amazon for about $12. It looks nice and sturdy. I like the extra pockets for other cards.

The one drawback is that it doesn’t close up, so I’ll probably have to sew on some type of closure.

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This time lapse video was taken by Simon Christen over the period of one year in the San Francisco bay area. It really brings out the beauty of the place. It’s very mesmerizing to watch. I never realized how beautiful it is to see the moon rise or the cloud of fog rolling in across the landscape.

The Unseen Sea from Simon Christen on Vimeo.

Music by Nick Cave - Mary’s Song from the Soundtrack of “Assassination of Jesse James”.

Here is how Simon explains what settings to use for the night shots:

“I am always shooting in full manual mode and then adjust the exposure as the light changes. I take care of the “jumps” later in post. The exposure really varies depending on the shot. For example a bright city needs shorter shutter speeds then fog illuminated by moon light. The shutter speeds ends up being around 4-5 sec with the aperture wide open and high ISO settings. This way I get to take a picture every 5-6 seconds.”

Find more of Simon’s work at simonchristen.com