Today I learned my laptop died...

Perhaps their advice to me will help you:

Laptop Tips and Advice (Don't Say We never told you so!)

There are so many things that you can do wrong it is hard to know where to start, but here is a list of some of common actions to avoid ...

Don't Leave your Laptop on all the time: At least once a day, turn off your laptop and give it a chance to cool off. This is more important for the stability of the Operating System than to save wear and tear on the hardware. Also, I like to go with a complete shut down, not just sleep mode or hibernate.

Don't Download Files from just anywhere: File Sharing Sites are a Virus Superhighway and when you start downloading files from just about any "free" site, you are asking for trouble.

Don't use your Laptop in Bed, or on your Lap: Ironically, using your laptop on top of your lap can lead to poor air circulation and may even cause health problems.

Don't Keep Opening and Closing the Lid: I call em like I see em, and even though a laptop is designed to be opened and closed on a regular basis, the more the lid is opened and closed, the more likely you are to end up with loose hinges that do not hold the LCD in place. This is not to say that you should never open or close the lid, just that you should try to keep it to a minimum.

Don't even Look at the Power Plug the Wrong Way! For sure the Achilles Heal of any laptop, The DC Input Jack, commonly known as the Power Plug, is one of the most delicate parts of a laptop and yet one of the most important. If this dainty jack is bent more than 15 degrees in any direction, you are headed for an expensive repair that most technicians would not want to attempt. Of course, here at Laptops plus we can handle that kind of repair, but it is not cheap.

Keep drinking and computing separate! While it has not been determined what percentage of spills are related to alcohol consumption, I have noticed that wine spills are very common, with beer a distant second.

Avoid installing software just to see if it's something cool: Every application uses resources when running - some even when they're not running. Uninstalling isn't necessarily the answer either --- there are a lot of programs out there that don't remove everything they install.

Use Compressed Air to blow out dust regularly: If enough dust and dirt collects inside of your laptop, you will have poor air circulation and the heat will remain in your laptop, instead of being blown out with the exhaust air.

Keep Your Screen Clean ... Cloths made to clean eyeglasses can be used to gently wipe dust from LCD screens. Finer hotel rooms sometimes have small soft cloths for shining shoes in with the toiletries - these also work well.

Fast is the New Big when it comes to Hard Drives. When purchasing a laptop - don't underestimate the value of a fast hard drive. If you do a lot of operations that access the drive, like multi-media editing, a faster drive will give a performance boost.

Your battery needs exercise too. If you would like your battery to retain its ability to hold a charge, you must keep it exercised. Don't keep it plugged in all the time, and when you do have it plugged in, make sure you let it charge 100% before unplugging it.

Dont leave your laptop in your car. Not only do you run the risk of it being stolen if your car is broken into, but drastic temperatures or temperature changes can actually crack the LCD screen.

If you have Microsoft Vista, make sure you always shut down correctly. Unfortunately, Vista is a lot less fault tolerant than XP, so shutting down correctly is a must. Vista can take some time to shut down, but be patient because you will avoid corrupting Windows.

The next San Diego Creative Investors Assn. (SDCIA) meeting is Tuesday, April 14th. We’ve left you another day to get your taxes completed or extension in on time.

This is a longer message than usual... for good reasons at the end of the email.

This month’s speaker is Claude Diamond. Claude is a long-time friend of the SDCIA; he’s been speaking to the group since the early 90s. He was one of the first presenters to teach us how to find, negotiate & properly document lease-purchases.

Claude has been splitting his time between his two homes in San Diego & Colorado. Our schedules coincided and we’re glad to have him speak to the group.

Claude will be speaking about sales. This is one of the least appreciated skills that you need to learn. Sales skills, in addition to negotiating skills, are essential to selling and buying. You will make better and safer deals if you learn how to sell.

Mike Cantu says, “Good deals aren’t found, they’re created.” And you use sales skills to create them.

Bruce Norris thought sales skills were important enough that he devoted most of one day of his Multi-Millionaire Maker seminars to learning sales methods and techniques!

Come to our meeting on Tuesday and learn why!

Presentation title:
What is the 2009 G.U.T.S.™ Success System?

Answer: Great Untraditional and Unorthodox Techniques Of Sales and
Success

SDCIA meetings are open to everyone. Just show up on the 2nd Tuesday of the month to the Scottish Rite Center at 1895 Camino del Rio South in Mission Valley. No reservations are necessary. Doors open for networking at 6 PM and the program starts at 7 PM.

Everyone's invited to a no-host pre-meeting dinner at Mimi's Cafe, 5180 Mission Center Road, from 4-6 PM. 619-491-0284

This month and next month there are three seminars that I strongly recommend:

April 17-19 – Gary Johnston and Clyde Wilson – “Financial Freedom Class”. Gary & Clyde are putting on the BEST workshop I’ve ever attended on the basics of wealth and money! No ka oi! (THE BEST) The instructors are truly the “millionaires next door”. I really urge everyone to attend this seminar at the Embassy Suites in Santa Ana. $495 www.moneynotmath.com

Read the testimonials. Two of them are from SDCIA speakers. And we all believe that this is a “must take” course for everyone!

April 18 – Rick Harmon - “53 Ways and Plays to Probate Profits”. Rick is the most knowledgeable investor in probate properties in California. He knows more than those probate gurus selling those very expensive seminars. They’ve actually had Rick teach segments of “their” course that they didn’t understand! Rick has helped me with several probate deals so I know he is the expert! Sheraton LAX. $397 www.irca-losangeles.com

May 29-31 – Jack Miller, Peter Fortunato & John Schaub – “Cash Flow Workshop”. These are three of my mentors. I ALWAYS recommend these educators. We haven’t been able to get Jack or Peter to speak to the SDCIA for over 10 years. We’ve been fortunate that John comes. Each of them has each been teaching real estate investors for over 30 years! They have hundreds of very successful students. You will learn as much from the experienced investors that will attend this workshop as from Jack, Peter & John themselves. Their students repeatedly take their classes and learn or relearn investment ideas. I do! San Francisco Holiday Inn. $750 http://bawb.info/cashflow/?ref=SDCIA

See you on Tuesday. Have a great Easter and eat as much candy as you want!

This may be a little late however I will be attending this class tomorrow Sunday. Jack's techniques for lease-options are the best I've ever seen. Options are creative financing at it's best. And it's all day for only $145!!!

"LEASE OPTION TECHNIQUES"JACK SHEA

(SUNDAY) APRIL 5, 2009 @ Embassy Suites, 1325 E Dyer Rd, Santa Ana, CA 92705,
(714) 241-3800

Jack Shea buys, sells, manages, finances houses and operates a national 1031 Exchange Facilitator Company. He specializes and teaches Creative Option Strategies.

LEASE OPTIONS ARE BEST IN DOWN MARKETS
By Jack Shea

Real estate and business cycles repeat themselves. There have been 20 business cycles in the past 100 years. The downside recessions averaged 14 months long. The upside recoveries averaged almost four years. The current 2009 down market may last several years. Problems with oversupply, difficult financing and a declining economy present a dim view and possibly a grand investment opportunity. (National Bureau of Economic Research)

Lease options offer the best tool for controlling property with a minimum investment and less risk in a declining market. They deliver tax benefits and the ability to do a 1031 tax-free exchange with the gain, without ever owning the property. Experienced investors use the option to maximize profits tax-free, especially in this chaotic investment environment. The power and leverage of options are widely used in the business and financial world. They have also been misused and are a contributing factor to the 2008 Wall Street collapse.

Why are options a favored technique? They are not well understood in the market by investors, owners, realtors, attorneys or escrow agents. There are few books or courses that cover advanced application of options in buying or selling. A working knowledge of the legal and tax implications of options will empower the user to acquire real property, personal property (mobile homes, vehicles, etc.), notes and other rights with personal, business or IRA funds.

The option buyer pays a fee for the right to purchase at a set price some time in the future. This unilateral contract allows him to buy or not, an unusual but enforceable legal concept. An option is personal property, but can be exchanged tax-free. It can control all of the profit in a transaction. It can be invisible, portable, private and not attachable.

If a property drastically declines in value, the option can be abandoned at a minimum loss. The real cost of funds in option transactions is usually lower than market rates, a considerable benefit.

A special agreement is required to capture all the tax and ownership benefits of a lease purchase. Additional documents, such as escrow instructions, deeds, notes and deeds-of-trust are also executed to protect all parties equally.

A different approach is used for tenants who desire a rent-to-own lease. Due to the possibility of a lease option tenant being considered having a title interest in the property, a Contract for Option is used. This avoids having to foreclose a non-paying tenant.

Several other profitable applications of options will be discussed in detail. The most important of these is the use of options to multiply IRA accounts. Four different strategies will be covered. The control and purchase of notes using options is another available technique.

The book "Secrets of Lease Option Profits" contains 180 pages of text and forms to implement all of the above and more. It contains the relevant legal requirements and tax aspects of options. The one-day course, including the book, presents a complete system of documents, forms and procedures developed over 25 years of application and hundreds of transactions. These unique applications cannot be found anywhere else. This is an opportunity to master the most profitable tool for investors.

Come & learn how to do lease-options properly & safely. Maybe I'll see you there.