So, let’s look at some ideas that you can use to overcome these obstacles / challenges during these summer.

• Biggest challenge is working around other people’s vacation schedules to get things done
• Work with web designer for improvement and keep update the contents
• Need to be very persistent and methodical in following up with people in order to keep projects moving along and meet deadlines
• Keeping the blog alive during this summer
• Adding a podcast features or add more podcasts on the site
• Incorporating RSS or widget capability to your website
• Summer is a great time for innovation due to the larger blocks of uninterrupted time!
• You can also do some marketing activities since it will give some leads once you end the summer
• Plan ahead for the coming months
• Summer is a great time to network – you can talk to others about how they are incorporating new technologies
• Summer is a great time to attend an industry trade show and see how technology advances are changing your industry
• Summer is a good time to implement changes that affect limited number of individuals in your company (e.g. – a new electronic filing system for business cards that only an Administrative Assistant would use).
• Hold off on implementing changes that involve training everyone in your company (e.g. – new computer system, new video e-mail software) until everyone’s back from vacation => minimizes potential confusion/disruption
• Also, you can work on new product development

Scott Swaney
CEO
Swaney Sports Consulting

Scott Swanay – A biography

Scott Swanay is a fully qualified statistical wizard and sports guru. He graduated from Harvard in 1987 with a degree in Applied Math & Computer Science, and worked as an actuary for the next 17 years, holding a series of positions with increasing levels of responsibility. He completed a series of ten rigorous exams to become a Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society (FCAS) in 1998.

In 2004, Scott decided to combine his great knowledge of sports with his statistical and analytical expertise, leaving his previous field to pursue his dream full-time.  He spent the next two years developing the database that led to the creation of Fantasy Baseball Sherpa, a sports projecting web-site that stands out in the many, because Scott, the statistical expert, has figured out how to include unique elements into the player predictions.

About Swaney Sports Consulting:

Swanay Sports Consulting, located in New York, NY.  Swanay Sports Consulting’s line of business is business consulting services.

Fantasy Baseball Sherpa offers customized baseball player rankings for fantasy baseball team owners.   New Fantasy Baseball Sherpa product forecasts players’ performance for the rest of the season – it’s the first product of its kind!  He is also developing a Fantasy Football Sherpa website – will be launched later this summer.

• Find a Pro – this service helps small businesses outsource specific parts of their business operations and activities.  Small business owners can be more productive by outsourcing specific tasks, which are mundane or regular in nature to someone and focus on what they love to do. Try Find a Pro service.

• Selling a Business – More business sellers are choosing BizTrader.com because it is the most effective and affordable business selling solution in the world.  BizTrader.com’s massive distribution service lets sellers place one ad that gets distributed to dozens of other websites, keeping your time short (in just 5 mins) and reach wide for marketing a business for sale.

Implement a summer schedule allowing employees to leave early on Fridays to spend time with family or to start the weekend early.   Having a few extra hours to commute to weekend destinations will encourage employees to get some much needed R&R and will contribute to their overall well-being – and keep them more productive in the long run.

Hire a summer intern — Many college students are looking for summer experience to boost their resume and to test out different fields.  This is a great opportunity for your business to hire someone eager to work who can help out with extra tasks, especially the administrative ones, which may often be placed on back burner during vacation season.

You can also offer on-site child care services or discounts so employees do not have to spend as much time and money on summer day-care.

Take advantage of available technology and offer solutions to allow employees to telecommute on days when office presence is not imperative.

On the flip side – make sure employees ARE unplugging as much as possible during vacation time so they can relax and come back to work relaxed and recharged.

Make sure working environment is comfortable for employees, especially if you’re in a hot climate.  Be sure to keep air conditioning in working order and encourage employees to take frequent breaks and to drink plenty of water when outdoors during high heat.

Colby Sambrotto
President and CEO
BizTrader.com

Colby Sambrotto – A biography

Colby Sambrotto founded BizTrader.com in 2007 and is directly responsible for leading the company’s growth and operation.

With a track record of founding, growing, managing and selling a series of successful web-based businesses including ForSaleByOwner.com, the internet’s leading resource for buying and selling real estate without a commission, Colby was inspired to start BizTrader.com to meet the needs of entrepreneurs and investors.

BizTrader.com is a global business resource – it is designed to connect business owners and operators with prospective buyers, lenders and investors.  BizTrader.com is a multilingual one-stop-shop for the small business owner who is looking to expand internationally, get a loan or be acquired.

Since BizTrader.com’s beta launch in 2008, the site has listed tens of thousands of businesses for sale and Colby has successfully brokered business partnerships with companies including Experian, and Microsoft subsidiary Franchise Gator to give the small business owners or investors the tools and resources needed to conduct business in today’s a global marketplace.

Prior to founding BizTrader.com, Colby was chief operating officer of ForSaleByOwner.com for seven years, where he directed the day-to-day operations of the company and was responsible for overseeing all operational aspects of the company including business development, web development, strategic planning and human resources.  Under his strategic leadership, ForSaleByOwner.com was acquired by Tribune Company in 2006.

Colby has provided his views and commentary on a range of business topics in hundreds of media outlets including The Today Show, Wall Street Journal, 20/20 and Businessweek.

Filled with unique tools for both buyers and sellers and led by a seasoned, successful management team, BizTrader is compiling an extensive network of business owners, brokers, and lenders to make this the most comprehensive site for buying and selling a business.

All content on BizTrader.com, including customer postings, articles and software programs, is available in English, Spanish and Mandarin.

If you are business owner and would like to:

• Sell a business, asset, or commercial property
• Value a business
• Coordinate a barter arrangement
• Find a lender, investor or potential buyer
• Multi-lingual translation
• Find a professional – from lawyers and insurance carriers to painters and computer repair

If you are an investor and buyer and would like to :

• Multi-lingual translation
• Check a company’s credit
• Buy a business
• Value a business
• Find a franchise

All the above products are ideal gifts on Father’s Day.  You will have detailed information on each product and can have specific product examples too.

You can have big brands and multiple products of same brands with stunning features.  All the brands have been arranged alphabetically, so that users can find them easily.  You can also browse the products category-wise.

Amazon also provides Electronics blog, where you can read reviews, views, opinions of latest products by End users.

At Amazon, we’ve found that our consistent bestsellers, and those that really generate customer excitement, are the products that are incredibly easy to use.  They represent a leap forward and offer a full solution for enjoying media and entertainment, communicating, downloading and sharing, in exciting new ways.

Customers can refer to Amazon’s Bestsellers list  (the most popular items by category updated hourly) or Most Gifted lists (the most popular items ordered as gifts) to get a sense of what other Amazon customers are buying, watching, listening to and reading.  You can also check today’s deals which throws information on hot deals on daily basis.

Amazon’s robust editorial and customer reviews, buying guides, the ability to upload customer images and videos, and our click-to-call feature helps customers find and discover the perfect gift for all Dads.

Amazon.com’s “Most Wished For” Consumer Electronics for May ‘08.  Below is product wise ranks

1. B000Q3043Y  Canon PowerShot Pro Series S5 IS 8.0MP Digital Camera with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
2. B000H49LXQ  Garmin nüvi 660 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator
3. B000NK8EWI  Canon PowerShot SD1000 7.1MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom (Silver)
4. B000JLKIHA  Apple iPod classic 80 GB Black (6th Generation)
5. B000V1PXMI  Flip Video Ultra Series Camcorder
6. B000JO7PIM  Apple iPod nano 4 GB Silver (3rd Generation)
7. B000M2GYF6  Kingston DTI 4 GB USB Flash Drive
8. B0007QKN22  Canon Digital Rebel XT 8MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f3.5-5.6 Lens (Black)
9. B0012YA85A  Canon Digital Rebel XSi 12MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens (Black)
10. B000NP3DJW  Canon Speedlite 580EX II Flash for Canon EOS Digital SLR Cameras
11. B000I1ZWRC  Canon Digital Rebel XTi 10.1MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens (Black)
12. B000LRMS66  Garmin Portable Friction Dashboard Mount for Nüvi Series and StreetPilot I Series
13. B0012JCYPC  Apple iPod touch 8 GB with Software Upgrade (not the iPhone)
14. B00007E7JU  Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Camera Lens
15. B0012JNQYK  Apple iPod touch 32 GB
16. B000AO3L84  Canon 430EX Speedlite Flash for Canon Pro1
17. B000EOMXM0  Kingston 2GB Secure Digital Memory Card (SD/2GB
18. B000EXS1BS  Garmin nüvi 360 3.5-Inch Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator
19. B000BKJZ9Q  Garmin nüvi 350 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator
20. B000Q30420  Canon PowerShot SD850 IS 8.0 MP Digital Elph Camera with 4x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
21. B00006JN3G  Nikon Lens Pen Cleaning System
22. B000U9WVW6  TomTom ONE 3rd Edition 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Vehicle Navigator
23. B001413D94  Samsung LN46A650 46-inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV with RED Touch of Color
24. B001413DF8  Samsung LN52A650 52-inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV with RED Touch of Color
25. B000BY52NU  Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED-IF AF-S VR DX Zoom-Nikkor Lens

The Movers & Shakers index identifies, by category, the biggest gainers in sales rank at Amazon.com in the past 24 hours. For example, suppose a music item has a sales rank of 10 today, but was ranked as low as 30 yesterday, its Movers & Shakers increase would be 200 percent.

The most popular items ordered as gifts in Electronics.  This is updated daily.  The product changes day by day.  Hence, keep watch this space very often.

Paul Ryder
VP Consumer Electronics
Amazon

Paul Ryder -  A biography

Paul Ryder is the Vice President,  Consumer Electronics, Amazon.com

Paul Ryder was appointed vice president of Amazon.com Consumer Electronics and Wireless businesses in August of 2006. He is responsible for Amazon.com’s merchandising, marketing, and customer service for all Consumer Electronics categories.

Prior to working at Amazon.com, Ryder was a vice president at Honeywell International, leading portions of their aerospace business.  In addition, Ryder held various positions at General Electric Company in general management and marketing positions, as well as developing digitization strategies and productivity initiatives.

Ryder holds an MBA from the Krannert School of Management, Purdue University and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Amazon is an American electronic commerce (e-commerce) company in Seattle, Washington. Amazon was one of the first major companies to sell goods by Internet, and was an iconic “stock in which to invest” of the late 1990s dot-com bubble. After the collapse, the public became skeptical about Amazon’s business model, yet, it turned an annual profit in 2003.

Jeff Bezos founded Amazon.com, Inc. in 1994, and launched it online in 1995. Amazon.com started as an on-line bookstore, but soon diversified to product lines of VHS, DVD, music CDs, MP3 format, computer software, video games, electronics, apparel, furniture, food, toys, etc. Amazon has established separate websites in Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, China, and Japan. It also provides global shipping to certain countries for some of its products.

Pain-Free, Hair-Free is the next-generation of laser hair removal. It’s an effective and permanent hair reduction solution that is simple and easy. It uses cutting-edge medical laser technology and combines it with the comfort and convenience.

Pain-Free, Hair-Free breaks the mold of previous laser hair removal systems. The system’s unique IN-Motion™ technology, along with the sweeping motion of the laser, safely and gently heats the targeted area under your skin while you stay comfortable.

Most people find Pain-Free, Hair-Free treatments very comfortable.  While pain tolerance is subjective, many patients often describe the sensation as soothing as a “hot stone massage.”

The treatment works by using pulses of infrared diode laser energy to gradually heat the hair follicles in the subdermal layer of skin until they can no longer produce new hair. Using unique, IN-Motion™ technology and a patented DualChill™ treatment tip, the surface of your skin stays cool and comfortable. The sweeping motion also eliminates any skipped or missed spots common to other types of laser hair removal.

It’s safe for all skin types, hair types and most hair colors.  It can even be used on tanned skin. The bottom line is - if you have hair where you wish you didn’t, Pain-Free, Hair-Free is for you.   The body hair removal process is permanent, predictable, and virtually pain-free.

The Pain-Free, Hair-Free treatment performed with the Soprano device by Alma Lasers is the next-generation of laser hair removal.  It’s effective and offers long-term hair removal with NO PAIN (the first of its kind).

The Pain-Free, Hair-Free is great for busy dads as it requires no down time or recovery time.  You can have a treatment and return to work immediately.

Compared with a lifetime of shaving, waxing or plucking, help your dad in both time and money-savings with the Pain-Free, Hair-Free treatment.

You can locate a doctor near you.   To know about the after effects of hair removal, click here.

Dr. Douglas Senderoff
Plastic Surgeon
Pain Free- Hair Free

Dr. Douglas Senderoff -  A biography

Dr. Senderoff is experienced in the latest techniques in cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery including tumescent liposuction and endoscopic surgery. He specializes in body contouring procedures including breast enlargement and liposuction, as well as face and eyelid surgery and rhinoplasty.
Dr. Douglas Senderoff completed his undergraduate degree in Biology at Emory University and his master’s degree in Human Nutrition, at Columbia University. After he received his medical degree from State University of New York Health Science Center, Brooklyn, New York, Dr. Senderoff trained in general surgery at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City.

Dr. Senderoff completed his residency in plastic surgery and a Microsurgery Research Fellowship at The Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. He is the author of numerous publications relating to wound healing and has received local and national recognition for his research in the field of microsurgery. Dr. Senderoff has lectured both nationally and internationally on the various areas of his expertise. Dr. Senderoff is certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and the National Board of Medical Examiners.

He is a Clinical Instructor of Surgery at Weill Medical College of Cornell University.

About Pain-Free-Hair Free:

A revolution is underway, for body hair removal that is virtually painless. The Pain-Free, Hair-Free treatment, offered by spas and physicians around the world, can now free you from daily shaving, painful plucking and expensive waxing to give you silky smooth and beautifully bare skin.

Pain-Free, Hair-Free is the next-generation of laser hair removal. It’s an effective and permanent hair reduction solution that is simple and easy. It takes cutting-edge medical laser technology and combines it with the comfort and convenience of a trip to the spa. In fact, Pain-Free, Hair-Free uses new breakthrough technology that has been described as one of the most comfortable laser hair removal options available.

Digital Measuring Tape -  How about getting accurate measurements from a tape with a digital display.  Here is a tape, that records measurements for easy reference, shows inches and fractions or decimals.  Does metric also.   The Digital Measuring Tape features a large easy-to-read display, memorizing measurements with the push of a button. It can give measurements in either feet and inches or metric units and will even display fractions of an inch (as small as 1/16th) just like a standard tape measure. There is also a setting for adding the case length for taking inside measurements. The Digital Measuring Tape turns on and off automatically.  This is a perfect tool for repair project around the house and cost only $24.99.  Check out more features and functionality at www.thinkgeek.com

Ion USB Turntable - converts LPs to digital format MP3 for preserving music and transferring to your iPOD.  Simply plug this high-quality turntable into the USB port on your PC (Windows or Mac) and use the included Audacity software to rip your vinyl directly to MP3 (or WAV format) for playback on all your newfangled devices like the iPod. The software can remove clicks and pops and cost around $99.99. Check out at www.thinkgeek.com for more details.

Palmsize R/C Helicopter - fun item.  These mini copters can take off from your hand and circle your desk as your co-workers gape in amazement. Full control allows you to hover and turn left or right as your copter moves slowly forward.  5-7 minute flight time.  Indoor only.  You can have Reflex, Firefly and Duelling one depending upon your choice.  The cost starts from $29.99 to $49.99.

35mm Slide & Negative Digital Converter - Now you can bring your relatives kicking and screaming into the digital age with this handy 35mm Slide & Negative Digital Converter. Take 35mm Slides or Negatives and scan them at up to 1,829 DPI for easy conversion to Jpeg or whatever digital image format strikes your fancy.  This handy scanner connects with USB and comes with easy to use Windows software for editing, cropping and resizing photos. Since it comes with a Twain drives, you can connect it to Photoshop too.  So, please make Grandma do some work converting her old photos from 20 years of church bingo.  So what are you waiting for? Start takes slides and negatives and converts to digital for preserving or putting on webpage.  The machines costs around $99.99.  For more information, click here.

USB Memory Watch – This is a James Bond Watch.  In addition to displaying the time, this watch helps you carry your valuable data with you at all times (MP3 files, favorite images, data).  With either 2GB or 4GB of capacity it has more than ample storage space.    The USB Memory Watch has a built-in USB connector and can transfer files to and from most computer operating systems. The USB connector is cleverly stored in the watch band and flips up for easy connecting. There is also a LED light that indicates the device status. The watch is surprisingly sleek and lightweight - it is not a bulky watch. The band is comfortable, flexible, shock proof and Anti-static.  It costs between $29.99 - $49.99.  The 2 GB model costs around $34.99.   Check out for more details.

Indiana Jones Officially Licensed Fedora – This officially licensed 100% fur felt fedora has got to be worn to fully appreciate its majesty. It is so comfortable and soft.  It’s a hand made work of art.  Even the inside is beautiful - with a leather sweatband and satin lining both emblazoned with “Indiana Jones.”  You’ll have to provide your own theme music.  It comes with a price tag of $99.99.

Here’s a list of ThinkGeek’s top picks for the holiday with hi-tech devices.

Nano Drive R/C Ferrari Replica - “Hey Dad, I got you a Ferrari!”   The Ferrari is a bit slower than the larger version but at only 3 inches long these mini Ferrari cars do zip around your desk nicely.  With working headlights and a turbo button you do get some exotic car perks.  This is a wonderful piece and priced at $29.99.

1.3 Megapixel Spy Camera Sunglasses – Not exactly sure why you’d want to arm your father with covert means of snapping pictures via his sunglasses? He’ll be sure to have fun with this gadget – which also comes with built-in ear buds to enjoy MP3s.   These camera sunglasses capture 1.3 megapixel still images (at a resolution of 1280×1024). Built in RF remote-control is ideal for easy, stealth-style photo shooting. It has high-quality lightweight frame material and UV400 polarized flip-up lens. A polymer ion rechargeable battery provides a battery life of up to 9 hours (shooting 1 photo/minute). USB 2.0 interface via a standard Mini USB port for data upload and download & re-charging the battery.  An ideal one for Dad’s to do some shooting at beaches.  This sun glass costs at $99.99.

Version 1.0 and Version 2.0 T-Shirts -  After software version, here comes T-Shirt versions.  If having kids were only as easy as updating your software.  Matching tees reveal that kids are just a chip off the old version.  These T-Shirts will definitely distinguish child – parent relationship.  Comes with a price tag of $12.99 - $16.99

Stainless Steel Wallet – This amazing wallet has the texture of silk – but is made of woven micro fibers of stainless steel. Dad will feel sleek and stylish as he doles out more cash for his children.

This amazing wallet made from real stainless steel. This wallet has the texture of silk and is woven from micro fibers of stainless steel.  When you touch the silky metallic surface you’ll think they were created by sophisticated nanobots… and almost nothing is more geeky than nanobots.  Available in a bi-fold wallet format (4 card slots, 1 money pocket and 1 clear ID window), or a bi-fold wallet with criss cross card slots.  It costs around $79.99

Pogo iPhone Stylus – Tool specifically designed to let dads fool hi-tech touch screens into thinking they have something other than stubby fingers.   Pogo iPhone Stylus somehow tricks the iPhone into thinking it’s really a finger. The tip of the stylus is a soft felt like material that has the added benefit of keeping your screen clean while you tap away.  It costs around $24.99

USB Storage Carousel for CD/DVD – For hi-tech fathers who have traded in their 45s - an automated storage solution that holds 150 of the non-vinyl discs.  It can store all kinds of discs in 12cm size, such as CDs, DVDs, game CDs, or music CDs. The unit can be connected to your PC via USB cable and the shape of the USB Storage Carousel for CD/DVD means it’s stackable, thus conserving your desk spaces. You can manage the CD database with the included software and you can locate the CD/DVDs by CD title, CD contents, category, remarks, etc. After searching with the software, simply double click the desired disc and the USB Storage Carousel will spin and pull out the CD.    You can also use this as a stand alone unit that index the discs too.  It comes with a price of  $129.99

E-Ink Display Watch – Dads can now stare disapprovingly between curfew breakers and this piece of timekeeping brilliance, which easily changes its face with the push of a button.   It has a look of electronic paper and can be read accurately and instantly from any angle and has LCD screen display system. It comes with the price of $249.99

Stand Alone or Car Cassette MP3 Player – Hip fathers with one foot in the digital age can rock out to their digital music while riding in their cassette-playing Oldsmobile.   This MP3 player is built into a standard cassette tape, letting you use it as either a uniquely old-school-style MP3 player, or with any car cassette or cassette player to play your music. You will have no problems listening to hours of your favorite songs via the built-in SD card slot, and you can easily change to different songs if you have multiple SD Cards. If you are into retro style looks but with a new technology upgrade, this is a MP3 player worth adding to your gear.  It has a price tag of $39.99

Dueling Space Marines Copter Set - This set of two amazingly small infrared remote control helicopters look like Space Marines and can battle by shooting invisible IR beams (and thus answer the question of who gets to drive).  This Dueling Galactic Marines Copter Set gets you a set of two mini r/c helicopters with infra-red laser tag style battle action.  Each Copter can actually run on any one of 3 channels.  You will need to practice up to get good control of these little copters.  Just $39.99

Dough-Nu-Matic – Dads love doughnuts. ‘Nuff said.  Those who love cooking and would like to pursue a career in fast food can have a look at this little automatic machine. It’s just $129.99.

iRecord 1-Touch iPod Video Ripper – Let Dad instantly record episodes of CSI or the entire Die Hard trilogy directly to his iPod, PSP or any USB-based mass storage device.  Now, iRecord you can rip video from your cable box, dvd player or any other video source by only pressing a single button.  Simply connect the iRecord using the standard video and audio outputs from any video capable device, connect your iPod to the USB port on the iRecord and push the red button.  Instantly record movies and TV directly to an iPod, PSP or any USB-based mass storage device.  The quality of video is stunning and uses built in H.264 based encoding.  It records over 3 hours per GB and costs up to $199.99.

You can keep watching thinkgeek for the latest and tech products.

Scott Smith
Co-Founder
Think Geek

Scott Smith -  A biography

Scott has done a number of crazy and stupid things in the past, most of which he can’t really remember. In high school, his mom actually made a list that filled a legal-sized piece of paper and posted it on the fridge with a magnetic holder. he was kind of proud of the list, myself.

Scott select a lot of the gadgets that he sell at ThinkGeek.  So, feel free to send him any suggestions you might have for new and interesting stuff.

About Think Geek:

ThinkGeek started as an idea. A simple idea to create and sell stuff that would appeal to the thousands of people out there who were on the front line and in the trenches as the Internet was forged. From programmers, engineers, students, lovers of open source, to the masses that helped create the behind-the-scenes Internet culture. ThinkGeek started as a way to serve a market that was passionate about technology. Three out of the four founding members started an ISP in the Northern Virginia area way back in 1995. We couldn’t afford Solaris, learned about a free UNIX-like OS, and spent almost an entire day downloading it onto over 50 floppies for installation on an old 486 laptop with no cd-rom (thanks Slackware!). After a few years with the ISP gig, the ThinkGeek idea popped into our heads, and, operating out of a spare room at the ISP office we setup shop and launched the site on Friday the 13th, 1999…

A month or so later they were Slashdotted. Promptly thereafter, ThinkGeek was acquired by the good folks at Andover.Net who through an acquisition and a couple of name changes, is now known as SourceForge, Inc. So we’re part of a cool gaggle of sites including slashdot.org, sourceforge.net, linux.com, and freshmeat.net. Pretty nice company to be amongst, eh? They’re pretty proud of it!

All the founding members are developing product line, expanding staff (including several canines) and enhance the way they interface with customers. Who would have thought…

In today’s mobile society, dads are looking for accessibility everywhere: lunch with a client or their son’s soccer game.   Working dads need to always be available for important, time sensitive things like phone calls and faxes.

MyFax is the fastest growing Internet fax service for individuals, small, medium and large businesses to send and receive faxes using existing email accounts or the web.   MyFax allows dads in a SOHO setting and mobile professionals to send and receive faxes from a computer or laptop no matter their location.  You can also send and receive faxes from wireless devices (blackberry, palm treo).

Faxes can be stored online so those important faxes are always at your fingertips. Dad no longer needs to dig through bankers boxes full of faxes to find what he needs, and spend that time doing important dad things - like mowing the lawn and playing with the kids. Plus dads don’t have to make that extra trip out to purchase toner and paper for the fax machine.

MyFax service is available at $10 per month. You can send 100 faxes and receive 200 pages per month. It’s very cost effective and offers 24×7 quality customer service with live chat facility.

For more details about pricing and features can be accessed at www.myfax.com.  Signing up is fast and simple so you can get your tech savvy dad up and running in no time.

My1voice is a virtual PBX phone service that allows dad to be out of the office and never miss an important client call.  With features like:

• Toll free or local no:   Provide your callers with a dedicated toll free 800 number, vanity number, or local phone number in your calling area. All extensions and voicemail boxes are accessible from this number.
• Initial greeting: Plays an automated initial message for callers to hear when contacting your business.
• Call scheduling:  Schedule a set of actions for each phone number based on the day and time of incoming calls.
• Live call forwarding: Keep callers always connected and forward to an alternate extension.
• Find Me/Follow call forwarding:  Never miss a call.  Customize your preferences to route callers to multiple phone numbers including your mobile, office, and home number. Choose your call forwarding to ring all numbers at the same time or in sequential order.
• auto-attendant, voicemail notifications that stream through e-mail as wav file and, calls will be received no matter of location, phone type or brand and the list of features go on.  Please check more features at http://www.my1voice.com/features.asp

So when dad leaves the office, he can forward his office phone to his cell phone when he’s at Junior’s soccer game. When dad heads home for the night, he can route calls to his home office with the touch of a button. All other features in a normal phone is applicable to this service  You can also access the voice mail from your PDA or your mobile phone.  No technology or software are required for this service.  No other investment is required except a phone line.

My1Voice phone comes with a different pricing. To start with you can opt $10 / month.  You will get 100 free minutes / month to talk.  It’s cost effective and to know more details of pricing, please visit http://www.my1voice.com/pricing.asp

Both MyFax and my1voice are cost-efficient and can be signed up for online by visiting www.myfax.com and www.my1voice.com.

Steve Adams
Vice President of Marketing
Protus

Steve Adams -  A biography

Steve’s role within the company is to distill a keen understanding of market opportunities and customer needs into a highly effective corporate strategy and a practical set of product attributes.

Steve has extensive experience in creating and marketing new products and expanding high-tech organizations. He has over 15 years of experience in the high-tech and software industry, most recently with Ottawa-based Spotwave Wireless, a provider of in-building wireless coverage solutions. While with Spotwave, Steve was instrumental in establishing the company as a leader in the wireless marketplace.

Prior to Spotwave, Steve was with CrossKeys Systems Corporation, a global telecom software solutions provider. During seven years at CrossKeys, Steve held senior leadership positions as the company grew from start-up, underwent a successful IPO and was later acquired. He has also worked at Corel Corporation and Nortel.

In 2002, Steve was recognized as one of Ottawa’s Top 40. Steve is a seasoned industry speaker having spoken at a variety of telecommunication trade shows and conferences. He is a graduate of the University of Waterloo and the Ivey School of Business.

About Protus:

Protus provides the highest quality Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) communication services and solutions to the business market, including:

MyFax, the award-winning and the fastest growing Internet fax service and my1voice, a feature-rich virtual PBX service that connects calls regardless of phone-type or location.

Protus’ commitment to delivering a superior user experience has resulted in a continually growing and loyal customer base, allowing market leadership in industries including finance, insurance, real estate, healthcare, transportation, and government. With over 200,000 subscribers worldwide, Protus now offers service in sixteen countries.

Now you can buy and read your favorite magazines while you are on the move — at a low, digital price.  You can also download these magazines on your desktop, laptop or on your iPhone and keep up to date with the latest happenings.

Zinio gives you the ultimate magzine platform.  I’ve been using it for the past few months and found that it saves time, gives me a better experience than even the paper magazines and saves me money.  For a nominal subscription fee, Zinio allows you to download magazines of your choice onto your computer when they become available from the publisher.  You can also read them at the zinio library.   Zinio uses its own reader that can be accessed online, through web browser—no software installations or downloads required.  You should be subscriber to download the reader.  By bringing the reading experience online, Zinio is recreating the same great reading experience, and providing users the immediacy and convenience of online.

• We love Dads: A good amount of Zinio’s success can be attributed to “dad’s” who are among our most avid readers and loyal customers.  One of Zinio’s strengths is their robust selection of both business titles and entertainment related titles.  Whether it’s BusinessWeek, or Boating magazine, they provide visitors with the ability to customize their digital reading experience.
• Video and High Fidelity images:  The Zinio reading experience actually takes magazine reading to a whole new level.  You know the difference a high definition TV makes - imagine if your magazine images could look that good?  Or even better, with added video!  Each one of Zinio’s digital magazines are given the utmost care and attention to detail whenever imagery is involved.   The technology allows a reader to zoom in, jotting notes, highlight specific words, or sentences on these magazines.  So quality will not suffer since it is using HD technology.  You can jot your notes is a good features.  Some people have the tendency to write notes at the end of the pages or right side of the pages.
• Mobility:  Many Dad’s we all know and love have a long commute every day, or travel quite a bit. For that reason (and many others) Zinio labs has focused on creating a reading experience you can take with you. With our iPhone, iTouch application, you can browse and read on the go, where-ever, whenever.  And even better you can access any Zinio digital magazine when you are on your computer or laptop, but not on the internet using our downloadable reader.
• Archives: Who doesn’t need to reduce clutter?  Zinio makes this necessary task bear-able by holding over 8 years of magazine archives inside our newsstand.  Now, when you are looking for that old article on Lance Armstrong, or that secret barbeque recipe, you don’t need to page through stacks of magazines, you can open your Zinio library and quickly search through editorial articles and ads within seconds.   Contents can be archived with your notes.  Any note or highlighting is preserved in your library.  You can also search for notes or highlighted words at a later date. So, notes won’t vanish.
• Issues or Subscriptions: For Father’s Day digital subscriptions are often times less expensive than their print counterparts or you don’t need to invest in a full year. With Zinio, you can also choose from any single issues. Imagine how happy Dad will be with 3 issues of Men’s Journal, followed by 3 issues of Car and Driver and then 3 issues The Sporting News, with a few Harvard Business Reviews just to make it look good. Zinio lets you build a custom experience that meets your Dad’s needs.  You can access free business magazines too.

Zinio is continuously developing new applications, which can take care of highlighting, annotations, search inside, and additional printing options.  Zinio is moving toward digital creation and advertisements.  Also have plans to incorporate audio and videos on magazines.

Jeanniey Mullen
Global Executive Vice President
Chief Marketing Officer
Zinio

Jeanniey Mullen – A biography

Jeanniey Mullen is the Global Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for Zinio Systems and VIV Magazine. In her role at Zinio and VIV, Jeanniey is charged with reinventing the publishing industry as a digital cornerstone of the consumer’s lifestyle.

She is also the founder and Executive Chair of the Email Experience Council (recently purchased by the DMA).

Prior to her role at Zinio and VIV, Jeanniey was the Senior Partner, and Global Executive Director of the Email Marketing and Digital Dialogue Practice at OgilvyOne Worldwide. In her role at Ogilvy, Jeanniey was responsible for leading the worldwide efforts that use digital dialogues and email to create powerful, meaningful and profitable customer communication strategies for Ogilvy clients, including IBM, American Express and Yahoo!
Prior to her role at Zinio and VIV, Jeanniey was the Senior Partner, and Global Executive Director of the Email Marketing and Digital Dialogue Practice at OgilvyOne Worldwide. In her role at Ogilvy, Jeanniey was responsible for leading the worldwide efforts that use digital dialogues and email to create powerful, meaningful and profitable customer communication strategies for Ogilvy clients, including IBM, American Express and Yahoo!

Jeanniey’s experience spans across B2C and B2B initiatives and many verticals including publishing, entertainment and events.

Prior to joining OgilvyOne, Jeanniey founded and ran her own interactive agency, The Lift Network. Before that, she served as the CMO and EVP at Avalon Digital Marketing Systems, where she helped launch one of the first B2B email platforms that incorporated on-demand video into the email message. Prior to Avalon, Jeanniey was the Global GM and VP of the email marketing department. Before entering the advertising agency world, Jeanniey was the Director of Customer Relations and Marketing Experience for JCPenney’s five key businesses, Store, Catalog, Direct, CreditCard and Insurance, Jeanniey is recognized in the industry as pioneering the first global email marketing practice, and was named one of the top 25 media people to watch while at Grey Direct.

Jeanniey’s expertise in the discipline spans both the B2B and B2C industries. In addition to her board position at the eec, Jeanniey is a columnist for ClickZ, has published numerous white papers and best practice guides, has been appeared in the Wall Street Journal and New York Times. She is a frequent keynote speaker on the topics of email and digital marketing for organizations like Media Post, ClickZ, DMA, Shop.org and many others.

About Zinio

Zinio is the global leader for digital publishing products and services. Zinio provides publishers with new circulation and revenue growth opportunities through its comprehensive offerings from marketing programs that include customer acquisition, retention and cross-promotion to seamless production services, a robust e-commerce engine and extensive digital delivery, circulation and fulfillment services.

Major publishing partners include, Bonnier, Hearst, IDG, Gruner + Jahr, Hachette Filipacchi, IPC Media, Mariah Media, McGraw-Hill, The National Magazine Company, Playboy Enterprises, Source Interlink, Rogers Publishing and Ziff Davis. Zinio has offices in San Francisco and New York with several franchisees worldwide. For more information, or to purchase any of the digital magazine-specific titles offered by Zinio, please visit http://www.zinio.com.

Currently more than 52% of Internet users are exposed to this problem due to ISPs who haven’t properly updated their DNS (Dynamic Name System) servers, but there’s a way you can tell if you’re at risk.

Visit www.doxpara.com and click on the “Check My DNS” button on the upper right side of the page.  It will run a series of tests for you, automatically, and tell you if your machine is at risk.  There’s another checker at DNS-OARC and one at the lower left corner of DNSstuff, but you don’t have to run all three.

Business personnel must check their DNS to ensure that there are not problems that could expose personal or proprietary data to criminal enterprises abroad.  Failure to do so could result in criminal prosecution for the company themselves  — it’s unlikely the true criminals will ever be caught.

As of July 28th we passed the 3,000,000 podcast downloads mark, with 900,000 coming directly from my site!  That’s actual podcasts downloaded.  Amazing. My podcasts have become so popular that they are now being cached by the two biggest network bandwidth caching companies in the world — which means that the actual number of downloads is north of 3,000,000.  Wow!

Thanks to everyone who regularly listens to my podcasts and visits my web sites.  It’s quite an honor to be so well listened to!  (I still can’t believe it)

Make sure you drop me a note to let me know what you think of the radio show and my podcasts!  I’d love to hear from you.

Craig Peterson.

Are you fond of writing books?   Have you stored a lot of photos on your hard disk or CD / DVD?  Then, why don’t you start creating a book and sell it?

The free innovative software, BlurbBookSmart, from Blurb will do all the above for you — and help you sell your works when they’re done.

Blurb is a creative book publishing platform that enables anyone – photographers, bloggers, artists, writers, travelers, families, anyone – to produce quality books.  To start a Blurb book, simply visit www.blurb.com and download Blurb’s free BookSmart software to your PC.  If you are using Mac or Windows, it doesn’t care.  It works on cross platform.

Blurb has created pre-defined layouts designed by designers, which will help you to create your own books. You can pick up any of the layouts designed by professional book designers and many tools to customize your book. It’s as easy as “dragging and dropping” your content into the layouts of your choice.

You can create books from any formats and insert images, edit texts and many more.  It has a good collections of font support and image library to manage images.  You can shoot your own images and import photos from your collection -  digital camcoder, CD / DVD or any other format.

You can create many types of books – Photobooks, Business Books, Wedding Books, Blog Books, Cook Book, etc.  If you are not familiar with book ideas, you can take help from blurb support or join Blub Forum.

Blurb offers four book sizes – 7×7”, 10×8”, 8×10” and 13×11”.  You can produce your book in softcover, hardcover with a dust jacket, or hardcover ImageWrap. ImageWrap is a brand new offering from Blurb that prints your cover image directly onto the front and back of the book, resulting in a sophisticated matte finish.

Blurb’s BookStore and online marketing tools let people share, market and sell their books, and keep 100% of the markup.

Blurb produced nearly 90,000 unique titles in 2007. Blurb was recently honored with a Webby Award for Best Services Website of 2008.

Self-published photography books are undergoing a renaissance with the democratization of publishing and this year.  Blurb is presenting photographyBookNow – an international Salon & Symposium series of events along with a photography book competition open to anyone who’d like to submit their self-published work.  The deadline to enter is July 14 and the grand prize is $25,000.   For more details, check out www.photographybooknow.com.

If you are facebook member, you can use now use Blurb’s new GroupBook application to collaborate on a book project with your Facebook friends.  Initiate a project and invite your friends to contribute photos through the GroupBook application.  You can all view everyone else’s contributions…making it a fun bookmaking experience for the group.

Chad Jennings
VP, Product Design
Blurb

Chad Jennings – A biography

Chad was one of the first members of the Blurb team and helped build the company’s user-friendly and professionally-designed BookSmart software.

Before being enticed into the world of books with Blurb, Chad was the face behind many an interface during his days at Method and SmartDesign, working with brands like Gucci, Macromedia, Reuters, HP, Samsung and Palm to give consumer products a friendly interface.

Blurb is a startup that allows anyone to create customized books (as in, a real, tangible book that you can hold).  Using the company’s BookSmart software (Mac and PC), users can create photo books, portfolios, business books, wedding books, blog books and more.  Books can either be created for self-use or shared, marketed and sold at cost or for profit in Blurb’s online bookstore. Blurb authors get to keep 100% of the book’s mark-up.

In October of 2007, the company introduced features that let users collaboratively create books and share photos.

Blurb initially launched in May of 2006 with a tool to turn your blog into a book. The service has since been expanded.   Many of Blurb’s competitors like Lulu and iUniverse tend to focus on creating books out of manuscripts, rather that photo-oriented books. Picaboo appears to be Blurb’s closest competitor.