Wired @ Home

My parents are extremely slow when it comes to typing and in this day and age, typing is standard on your resume. So to get up to speed on how to type efficiently without opening your wallet, try RapidTyping Typing Tutor. It has a kid friendly interface but don't be taken back as it has many great features that will get you typing blindly in no time. There are no pop ups before, during, or after to pester you about registration, an upgrade or anything like that. There are different skins and it records multiple users with many statistics to show you your WPM, CPM, and percentage of mistakes. A cool part of this free software is it acts like a game where the better you become and advance into different difficulties, the more picturesque the underwater scenery becomes. Another cool feature but not really that useful is the Create Your Own Exercise. This might not be used unless you become really skilled and the program doesn't challenge you enough

Are you tired of Windows Live Messenger? Want something new? We'll MirandaIM is here to the rescue with a fast, easy, small, open source protocol for instant messaging. Included is support for many of the major instant messaging platforms including MSN, Yahoo, ICQ, AIM, Jabber and more. Additionally they provide with tons of plugins, icons, sounds, and other amusing content. It currently is in Beta stage so do backup your computer before you choose to download it. Even though it is new, MirandaIM can be installed on Vista and Windows 95 and above. It is obviously worth a try because in my opinion Windows Live can become Windows Death.

GetbyMail is a piece of software that works just like Remote Access programs that require you to download a program and send it to another persons computer. The reason you may use this is because those programs don't work if the remotely acceessed computer cannot access FTP, P2P, or are behind NAT or other firewalls. GetbyMail bypasses these things and makes accessing your computer a breeze. All you need is at least 2 email addresses that, one per computer and they do support internet emails such as GMail. The great thing is you don't need GetbyMail installed on both computers, you just need it on the remote computer and your local (home) computer will be able to access it. To learn more go to GetbyMail.