Research Blog : blogs

Kids eat free!

googler@evpl — Sat, 30 May 2009 19:32:00 GMT

I just came across a vast list of restaurants that routinely offer free or discounted meals for kids (variously defined). This might take a little effort, because you need to pay attention to the age limits, the days of the week, and of course always call ahead to see if our local restaurant offers the promotion (which they are not obligated to do).

But if you're looking to save some money when you take the kids out for dinner, this is a great place to check.

(Link found at the Frugal Living blog.)

Battening down your financial hatches

googler@evpl — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 14:37:00 GMT

Lifehacker has a good article on making sure you're in the best shape possible for any economic downturn. They recommend making sure your savings are FDIC insured, continuing to reduce your debt, not panicking about your investments, and recession-proofing your career, among other things. There are lots of links to all the financial experts they're drawing from. Well worth a read!

A blog I recommend for personal finance in general is Get Rich Slowly -- they always have sensible advice.

Tips for college students at HackCollege

googler@evpl — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:33:00 GMT

First off, I should explain that "hacking" no longer necessarily carries a negative connotation. In fact, its original negative connotation was a kind of misunderstanding. "To hack" means to come up with a creative or clever solution. Thus, one of the more popular blogs today is Lifehacker ("features tips, shortcuts, and downloads that help you get things done smarter and more efficiently"). (Check out their entry on StudyRails, a webapp that works a bit like Outlook to track time for students and notify them of upcoming assignment deadlines.)

Another blog, especially for college students, is called HackCollege. Recent posts include settling debts between roommates, five great faux-homecooked-meals to make in the dorm microwave, and an essay pondering the future of textbooks on the Kindle.

Great stuff for the college student -- and high school seniors as they start preparing for the big transition.

Digital photography school

googler@evpl — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 16:25:00 GMT

"Digital Photography School" is a remarkable site for free digital photography tips and lessons. It's basically just a blog, but each entry is either a review of a particular resource (whether a book or a piece of equipment) or a lesson in a specific aspect of digital photography ("What the Mona Lisa can teach you about taking great portraits"). They also have a discussion forum, where you can not only participate in conversations but do assignments and have them critiqued.

Nielson Media Research blog

googler@evpl — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 22:33:00 GMT

Nielson, the ratings company, has recently launched a pretty interesting blog. In addition to expected posts about television viewership (over 211 million viewers watched the Olympics, a new record), they also provide an interesting quantitative perspective on other current happenings ("Obama's text message reaches 2.9 million").

"It's Evansville"

googler@evpl — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 22:36:00 GMT

If you know of any Evansville blogs worth reading, I'd be interested in hearing about them. The only one I know of is It's Evansville, which is a pretty interesting mix of restaurant reviews, movie reviews, and general views on local issues. The authors and readers have get-togethers locally, too. There may be some way to network with these folks and publicize library blogs. If nothing else, library bloggers could comment on posts (those of you who like restaurants, movies, and local issues).