Product and Software Reviews

Free AdWords ROI Explosion Product Review

Anyone who uses AdWords will be interested in this free tool that Portal Feeder is offering for a short time. If you use AdWords, check it out. Watch the video and see if this tool will help you.

If you are not using AdWords now, check it out anyway in case some day you want to use AdWords and end up kicking yourself for not taking advantage of this free download.

You can find it here: AdWords ROI Explosion

The video at that site explains it all. By putting in your keywords the tool returns a bunch of sites that are highly targeted for your niche. It even tells you if those sites show AdSense ads or not. And it tells you the Alexa rankings for each site.

You take that information and copy those URLs that you want to have your AdWords ads show up on. You put that information in the Google AdWords site placement area and your ads will show up on those sites.

Because your ads are now showing up on highly targeted, high traffic sites, your conversion rate should go up as your AdWords expense goes down.

This is a great tool. The price is right, it provides a needed function, and it will help you make more money with AdWords while spending less.

Comment Kahuna - A Review and How to Get it Free

One of the best ways for getting links pointing to your site is to comment on blogs and include the URL for your site. But finding blogs that have page rank, that discuss the right topic, and then filling in the comment form can take a lot of time.

Not any more. CommentKahuna Software is a piece of software that you download onto your computer. Once installed you open it up, fill in your name, e-mail and URL that you want to use, give Comment Kahuna a few parameters to search on, and within seconds you are provided a list of blogs where you can post a comment.

The parameters include:

• keyword
• number of blogs to return
• minimum pagerank you want
• type of blog (Wordpress, Typepad, etc)

Comment Kahuna returns a list of blogs that meet the parameters and you simply click each one, make a comment, and hit the submit button. What used to take an hour or two can now take a few minutes.

The newest version even sniffs out blogs that use "nofollow" so you can find the blogs that follow your link to your site!

Comment Kahuna could easily be sold but right now you can download a free copy: FREE CommentKahuna Software

There is a video on the site that demonstrates how to use it. It gives you step by step instructions for using Comment Kahuna.

I highly recommend it if you want to increase the incoming links to your site, get more visitors, and grow your online business. You can't beat the price, and it's a great tool to have, too.

Product Review of Windows Vista

We have had some time now to get accustomed to Microsoft's latest incarnation of Windows with its release of Vista. And it seems the general consensus is….PASS!

If you are considering a new computer, understand the hardware has not caught up to the physical demands set forth by Microsoft and it's newly born cash cow.

The most important upgrade you could buy to make your computer experience worthwhile is more memory. In other words, the hardware needs to catch up to the software.

Running 512k memory is useless so don't even bother to buy one with this amount of memory. You have to get AT LEAST 1 gig of memory to even consider running Vista.

But here is a point to consider, why should you have to go out and spend more money on more memory just to be able to run a spreadsheet and watch the latest episode of 30 Rock? Why should any new machine slog along as if it has been subjected to year’s worth of unprotected malware attacks?

Sure there are some great security features built into Vista that pretty much prevent you from doing anything to your machine, but what is the cost? The user experience really has taken a hit with this release.

Why? Vista takes at least 350k of memory for it just to run. WOW! Nothing like streamlining your software Bill since you have only delayed the launch four times.

People have been buying computers for twenty years now and at no time was your new machine worse than the old one! It seems as if Microsoft and the hardware people need to get together and come up with a decent performance standard that would be acceptable for everyone.

Companies like CompUSA and Best Buy are charging consumers $150-$200 to UNISTALL Vista! That's right, up to $200 to take the software off of your machine. Seems like we really have taken a step back with this upgrade.

The new UI (user interface) is clean and rounded and bubbly and smooth and looks nice. There is a bit of a learning curve with some of the functionality so you want to spend some time going over the built in "what’s new" function.

Microsoft seems to be taking user feedback and using it to eliminate or bury unused features. For example, in previous incarnations of Windows you would get to the "Run" feature (used primarily when your DVD or CD that was supposed to autorun decides not to run) by going to Start>Run.

Vista hides Run - here is your trick. Start>Acessories>Run, not too big a deal, but it is if you can't find it where you have been looking for it for the last four years.

In short, if you are in the market for a new machine, put your arms around the fact that you are getting Vista no matter what. Just make sure you save a few bucks to upgrade your memory or your user experience is not going to be what you want it to be.

Software Updates - How do You Know When to Buy It

It's that time again: a major upgrade has been released for software you use regularly, and when you read about all the bells and whistles, you start salivating. Hmmm… can you afford an extra couple of hundred to buy it? Should you… or shouldn't you?

Too often, eager consumers become carried away by the hype and slap down a credit card - only to find that the upgrade comes with headaches, or the extra features are not worth it. To buy or not to buy becomes an easier decision if you run through a quick checklist.

1. Will You Use The New Features?

Sure, your new software can do everything but cook dinner - but how many of these features do you actually need? Are you thinking: "Well, I don't need these now but they might come in handy later…"? If so, you could be going to needless expense. You can always upgrade when you DO need the new features.

2. Will You Lose Any Favorite 'Old' Features?

Sometimes it's a toss-up - will what you gain outweigh what you lose? A quick example: many users have been delighted with the new layout of tools in Microsoft Office 2007, and find that they can do their work much faster (or more easily). Others are aghast to find that their old macros won't work - and that they can no longer customize toolbars full of autotext for different purposes. Make sure you know exactly how the program has changed before you upgrade.

3. Compatibility - Will Others Be Able to Read Your Files?

This is an important one. There's not usually a problem with importing files in an older format, but you can face big problems if you send files in the new format to others. Microsoft Office 2007, for example, saves files in a very different format.

You can set the default to save files in the standard format for older versions of Office, but if you forget, you're likely to get irritated phone calls from others telling you that they can't open your files. (Yes, they can download a compatibility pack from Microsoft - but it's another step they have to take before they can make use of your file.)

4. Can You Afford The Learning Curve?

When an upgrade is significantly different from what has gone before, you're going to have to factor in time to become familiar with the new version. This might not be a problem if you have plenty of time to do it (it can even be fun) but if you are constantly racing to meet deadlines, then block off enough hours to learn how to use the new features. When you're pressed for time, it's not much fun scrolling through an FAQ page to find out how to complete a task you used to do with your eyes closed.

Bottom line: before you invest in any upgrade, do your homework. Read the reviews and visit a few forums to see what problems real-world users have encountered. Make your own list of pluses and minuses, then make an educated decision about your purchase. If you do decide to buy, keep a working version of the old software on your backup machine or on a different drive.