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FReeper Canteen ~ Online Shopping 101 ~ November 22, 2005
22-NOV-05 | Gummy News

Posted on 11/21/2005 5:59:15 PM PST by GummyIII

Christmas Shopping
Gummy Style!

gift          

Newsflash:  Gummy Hates to Shop
November 22, 2005


I hate to shop.  I know. You are thinking, "She's not normal."  Perhaps I should clarify.  I hate to drive to a busy mall or store, get out, fight the crowds, look in umpteen stores for the best bargain, and come home with nothing but achy feet and head.  When Al Gore invented the internet, he did it for me.  Honest. (Psssst....He would have told you that, but he's afraid you wouldn't believe him.) OK,  you've guessed it...I do all my shopping online.  Below are my best tips for online shopping. Oh, there is ONE drawback, gentlemen...you can't wait until Christmas Eve to shop.  It's a good thing I believe in Santa Claus! He brings me my present EVERY year.

(Hint:  if the animated background bugs you, hit the "stop" button on your browser.)

We Support Our Troops!!!!  Thank you for your service!!!

Shop Online Safely

Use credit cards. The big three credit card issuers, American Express, MasterCard and Visa, have a zero liability policy. You pay nothing for unauthorized transactions if you notify your financial institution.

For extra fraud protection, sign up for MasterCard's SecureCode or Visa's Verified by Visa. These are password challenge programs for online shopping.

Look for signs that online purchases are secure. At the point that you are providing your payment information, the beginning of the Web site address should change from http to shttp or https, indicating the information is being encrypted. Your browser may also signal that the information is secure with a symbol, such as a broken key that becomes whole or a padlock that closes.

Never enter your personal information in a pop-up screen. When you visit a company's Web site, an unauthorized pop-up screen created by an identity thief could appear with blanks for you to provide your personal information. Legitimate companies don't ask for personal information via pop-up screens. 

Keep your computer secure for safe shopping and other online activities. Protect your computer with spam filters, anti-virus and anti-spyware software, pop-up blockers and a firewall, and keep them up to date. Go to http://www.staysafeonline.org and http://www.onguardonline.gov to learn more about how to keep your computer secure. Or use El Gran's wonderful site:  Canteen Resource Center.

Disclaimer: Not suitable for Grinches or Scrooges. Santa reads this news, too!!

Tips for Saving Money and Sanity

Try online coupons. Many online stores provide regular customers with promotional codes. These codes are entered during the online checkout process. They save you money, just like a traditional coupon. Coupon Cabin, Current Codes and Naughty Codes are three websites that list promotional codes for online stores. (Google "promotional code" and the name of the store from which you are purchasing.  Others may show up.)

Promotional codes usually offer free shipping or a reduced price. Often, online stores offer multiple codes, but you'll probably have to use one or the other. 

Use disposable e-mail. You must register an e-mail address with stores when you purchase online.  The store e-mails a confirmation of your purchase and, often, tracking information. Additionally, it may send you promotional codes. But it may also send you unwanted e-mail.
There are a couple ways to handle this. You could create a new e-mail address. A number of sites offer free e-mail, including Hotmail (www.msn.com), Yahoo (mail.yahoo.com), Techemail (www.techemail.com) and Netscape (www.netscape.com).

Or, sign up for a disposable e-mail address. Free services such as spamgourmet and Sneakemail allow you to create a temporary e-mail address. They forward mail to your "real" one. Sign up for a temporary address before making a purchase. When you've received your purchases and are satisfied with them, you can eliminate the temporary address.

COMING NEXT WEEK:  
All I want for Christmas is..........

Gummy News is produced  as a service to our troops.  Volume 1, Number 1. 

grinch

Comparision Shopping 101

Yahoo, Inc., Shopzilla, Shopping.comGoogle Inc.'s Froogle.com, PriceWatch, PriceGrabber, NexTag and ShopLocal are a few of the top contenders for online comparison shopping.  Take the time to see how each one works.  Most will sort by price, look for items within a price range, and look for specific brand items which you specify. 

Many of the above sites have ratings for you to check the product.  Other sites are cnet.com, zdnet.com, consumersearch.com, epinions.com, PCMagazine, BusinessWeekOnline, ConsumerGuide, and many others.  Also, many of the consumer online sites offer customer reviews.  Use those in conjunction with other reviews. For example, Amazon.com and Circuit City's online store are two sites with customer reviews.



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TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; Free Republic; Technical
KEYWORDS: bath; computer; ecommerce; heroes; ma; online; shopping; troops; troopsupport; trouble; woohoo
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To: Mrs.Nooseman

LOL! That's when I got mine this morning!


781 posted on 11/22/2005 1:51:51 PM PST by luvie (Our will is strong, our nation is united, and we will settle for nothing less than victory. GWB11-11)
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To: MS.BEHAVIN

Hi CyberMa!

{{{HUGS}}}


782 posted on 11/22/2005 1:51:58 PM PST by Mrs.Nooseman (Tony Snow and Mark Levin fan)
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To: LUV W; GodBlessUSA

LOL.

That's the only way I can get them anymore.


783 posted on 11/22/2005 1:52:44 PM PST by Mrs.Nooseman (Tony Snow and Mark Levin fan)
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To: Coop; MS.BEHAVIN; 2LT Radix jr; 68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub; 80 Square Miles; acad1228; AirForceMom; ..
 

Hi Y'all!!

This is an official request for help!
Whenever you see a thread on FR that involves supporting the troops, please add the keyword "troopsupport" to that thread if it's not already there!  This will help draw in folks like you and me who DO support our troops, and keep those threads bumped to the top!  The more folks that see them, the better!

Back to your regularly scheduled chatting!

*HUGS!*

 

 


784 posted on 11/22/2005 1:53:04 PM PST by StarCMC (Old Sarge is my hero...doing it right in Iraq! Vaya con Dios, Sarge.)
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To: LUV W

LOL! Now your pinger will go off for just a LOL! LOL!~


785 posted on 11/22/2005 1:53:09 PM PST by GodBlessUSA (US Troops, Past, Present and Future, God Bless You and Thank You! Prayers said for our Heroes!)
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To: LUV W

You've got that right. Down time is so important. The turkey coma is also a very important part of the week ;)


786 posted on 11/22/2005 1:53:32 PM PST by Colonel_Flagg (Inertia: It's not just for breakfast anymore.)
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To: MS.BEHAVIN

MS.BEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

((((hugs))))

Good that you have joined the par-ta, as Beachy calls it. We're being bums this afternoon, and it is great! I have been saying for the last hour that I was going to start some housework, but haven't done it yet! LOL!


787 posted on 11/22/2005 1:53:33 PM PST by luvie (Our will is strong, our nation is united, and we will settle for nothing less than victory. GWB11-11)
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To: Mrs.Nooseman
That's not true. You use to steal them all the time. Help, Booboo is on high frequency over drive. LOL!
788 posted on 11/22/2005 1:54:10 PM PST by GodBlessUSA (US Troops, Past, Present and Future, God Bless You and Thank You! Prayers said for our Heroes!)
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To: StarCMC

You betcha! I can do that!


789 posted on 11/22/2005 1:54:33 PM PST by luvie (Our will is strong, our nation is united, and we will settle for nothing less than victory. GWB11-11)
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To: All
USS Nassau Strike Group Deploys

A tugboat approaches the USS Churchill to guide the ship out of Naval Station Norfolk, Va., Nov. 7, 2005. The USS Churchill departed Norfolk on its regularly scheduled deployment in support of the global war on terrorism. The Churchill is part of the USS Nassau Expeditionary Strike Group. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Maja Dyson

U.S. Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Thomas Hernandez, Petty Officer 3rd Class Angel Arellano and Petty Officer 3rd Class Kyle Adams, line handlers assigned to the USS Bataan, prepare to cast the lines for USS Nassau to get underway from Norfolk, Va., Nov. 7, 2005. The Nassau Expeditionary Strike Group departed on a regularly scheduled deployment in support of the global war on terrorism. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Laura A. Moore

790 posted on 11/22/2005 1:55:18 PM PST by Kathy in Alaska (~ www.ProudPatriots.org ~ Operation Season's Greeting~)
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To: darkwing104

Ah HA! An ME. My Dad and brother are both engineers. ChemE both of them, although my bro went on to get his MAsters and ALMOST his PHD in Chemical Systems Analysis.


791 posted on 11/22/2005 1:56:00 PM PST by StarCMC (Old Sarge is my hero...doing it right in Iraq! Vaya con Dios, Sarge.)
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To: Mrs.Nooseman

Hiya Sweetie!
*HUG*
Cyber Ma


792 posted on 11/22/2005 1:56:56 PM PST by MS.BEHAVIN (Women who behave rarely make history.)
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To: LUV W

Tanks Luv! :o)


793 posted on 11/22/2005 1:56:59 PM PST by StarCMC (Old Sarge is my hero...doing it right in Iraq! Vaya con Dios, Sarge.)
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To: GodBlessUSA

~chuckle~

I just had to tease you a little to see if you are paying attention.LOL.

BooBoo,does Mrs.Noseman have to come over there to come you down?;)LOL.


794 posted on 11/22/2005 1:57:02 PM PST by Mrs.Nooseman (Tony Snow and Mark Levin fan)
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To: All
USS Nassau Strike Group Deploys

Tug boats prepare to push the USS Nassau out of the Naval Station Norfolk, Va., harbor as the ship departs for a regularly scheduled six month deployment in support of the global war on terrorism, Nov. 7, 2005. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Laura A. Moore

U.S. Navy sailors man the rails as the USS Nassau departs Naval Station Norfolk, Va., Nov. 7, 2005, for a regularly scheduled deployment in support of the global war on terrorism. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Laura A. Moore

795 posted on 11/22/2005 1:57:04 PM PST by Kathy in Alaska (~ www.ProudPatriots.org ~ Operation Season's Greeting~)
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To: GodBlessUSA

Ready?


796 posted on 11/22/2005 1:57:26 PM PST by Mrs.Nooseman (Tony Snow and Mark Levin fan)
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To: GodBlessUSA

GO!


797 posted on 11/22/2005 1:57:42 PM PST by Mrs.Nooseman (Tony Snow and Mark Levin fan)
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To: Kathy in Alaska

*sigh*


798 posted on 11/22/2005 1:57:52 PM PST by StarCMC (Old Sarge is my hero...doing it right in Iraq! Vaya con Dios, Sarge.)
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To: GodBlessUSA

Mine


799 posted on 11/22/2005 1:58:02 PM PST by Mrs.Nooseman (Tony Snow and Mark Levin fan)
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To: All
USS Nassau Strike Group Deploys

The parents of U.S. Navy Lt. j.g. Thomas Griffin wave American flags to show support as the USS Nassau departs Naval Station Norfolk, Va., Nov. 7, 2005, for a six month deployment in support of the global war on terrorism. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Laura A. Moore

800 posted on 11/22/2005 1:58:17 PM PST by Kathy in Alaska (~ www.ProudPatriots.org ~ Operation Season's Greeting~)
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