Get weather updates..on your cell phone! Check out http://www.my-cast.com/ and stay ahead of the weather.

Are you a frequent flyer? Try Seat Guru to search airlines and their planes to find the best seat to meet your needs!  http://www.seatguru.com/

Tired of manually entering contacts into your Outlook address book? Try AddressGrabber. This free, downloadable application allows you to import contact details from any text into your Outlook Contacts folder. Find out more at http://www.egrabber.com/addressgrabberbasic/outlookusers/index.html

Microsoft has a great photo tool called Photo Story3. With this free, downloadable application, you can upload photos, add captures and special effects and even put in some background music! It's easy and fun. Check it out at

Photo Story 3 for Windows

ChangeDetect is a FREE service that will notify you by email when your favorite webpages have been updated!  They even color code your email to highlight which parts of the site have been updated!  http://www.changedetect.com/

eHow is a very informative site with thousands of "how to" answers! They even offer a daily "how to" email for those inquisitive minds! There are eHow answers to almost everything you can think of!  http://www.ehow.com/

Here are links from various sites to help you when you need general or vendor specific information and support:

PC World: 
http://www.pcworld.com/

CNet: 
http://www.cnet.com/
http://www.download.com/

Microsoft:
http://support.microsoft.com/

HP:
http://welcome.hp.com/country/us/en/support.html

IBM:
http://www.ibm.com/support/us/en/

Dell:
http://support.dell.com/

Compaq:
http://h18000.www1.hp.com/cpq_support.html

Palm:
http://www.palm.com/us/support/index.html

BlackBerry:
http://na.blackberry.com/eng/support/

Apple:
http://www.apple.com/support/

Here are links to cool and inexpensive products to help you work smarter!

From Google

Google Desktop
Find your email, files, media, web history and chats instantly. View web pages you've seen, even when you're not online. Search directly from your desktop with the deskbar: 
http://desktop.google.com/

Picasa

Picasa is software that helps you instantly find, edit and share all the pictures on your PC. Every time you open Picasa, it automatically locates all your pictures (even ones you forgot you had) and sorts them into visual albums organized by date with folder names you will recognize.
http://picasa.google.com/

 

Google Earth

Want to know more about a specific location? Google Earth combines satellite imagery, maps and the power of Google Search to put the world's geographic information at your fingertips. 

http://earth.google.com/

 

 

Google Maps

Provides directions, interactive maps, and satellite/aerial imagery of the United States.

http://maps.google.com/

 

From Mozilla

The award-winning Web browser is better than ever. Faster, safer, and easy to use, Firefox delivers a better Web experience.
http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/

From Lavasoft

Ad-Aware 2007 Free remains the most popular anti-spyware product for computer users around the world.

http://www.lavasoftusa.com/products/ad_aware_free.php

From GriSoft

AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition is one of the most popular solutions to provide basic security protection on home and non-commercial PCs.

http://free.grisoft.com/doc/5390/us/frt/0?prd=aff

From Microsoft

Get free clip art and media from Microsoft's easy-to-download media center!http://office.microsoft.com/clipart/default.aspx?lc=en-us

From Speedbit (Download Accelerator)

Use Download Accelerator to download files at incredible speed!  http://www.speedbit.com/Default.asp

From Trillian (Instant Messaging)

Do you use multiple instant messaging services (such as Yahoo Instant Messenger, AIM, AOL, etc.)? Trillian is a fully featured, stand-alone, skinnable chat client that supports AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo Messenger, and IRC. Log in once and no matter which instant messaging service you use, your clients and friends can get in touch with you!
http://www.trillian.cc/learn/

 

PrimoPDF

FREE! Convert to PDF from any application by simply 'printing' to the PrimoPDF® printer - it couldn't be easier! Within minutes, you can create high-quality PDFs by converting from Word, Excel, and virtually any other printable file type.

http://www.primopdf.com/

 

 

Note about downloads: These links are provided for research, educational  and informational purposes only. Matthew Ferrara Seminars, Inc. and the TECH HOTLINE do not endorse products and services from third parties. Always check with your corporate policies prior to downloading any information, documentation or software to your computer.

 

Here are links to keep you informed about industry-specific and general topics:

From Realtor.org

Government Affairs - What's New and Top Legislative/Regulatory Issues can be found here:
http://www.realtor.org/government_affairs/index.html

Research - Find the latest industry research, resources and useful links here:
http://www.realtor.org/research/index.html

Law and Policy - What's New and important Legal and Policy Resources can be found here:
http://www.realtor.org/law_and_policy/index.html

Field Guide to Reducing Spam:
http://www.realtor.org/libweb.nsf/pages/fg908

Field Guide to Do-Not-Call, Do-Not-Fax and Do-Not-Email Laws:
http://www.realtor.org/libweb.nsf/pages/fg707

Education - What's New, Resources and Useful Links can be found here:
http://www.realtor.org/education/index.html

From FCC.org

National Do-Not-Call Registry Information:
http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/donotcall/

From EPA.gov

Environmental Protection Agency Information:
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/whereyoulive.htm

From HUD.gov

HUD News, Homes & Community Information:
http://www.hud.gov/

HUD Handbooks, Forms & Publications:
http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/handbks_forms/handbooks.cfm