Below are some tips that may help you stay on top of your loans:

Both the borrower and any co-signer are each responsible for the loan’s repayment. Even if you are a co-signer (taking out the loan with another person) you are also on the hook for the loan. Make sure your fellow borrower knows their responsibilities, as well.

If you don’t repay your loan on time or according to the terms in your promissory note, you might go into default, which has serious consequences and will affect your credit rating.

You must make payments on your loan even if you don’t receive a bill or repayment notice. Billing statements (or coupon books) are sent to you as a convenience, but you’re obligated to make payments even if you don’t receive any reminders.

If you apply for a deferment or forbearance, you must continue to make payments until you’re notified the request has been granted. If you don’t, you might end up in default.

Know who your loan “servicer” is. The servicer is the entity that will handle billing and payments, and it is often a different organization from the lender who made the loan. You should keep an eye out for communication from the servicer.

Remember to notify your loan servicer when: you graduate; withdraw from school; drop below half time status; change your name, address, or Social Security Number; or transfer to another school.

Notes: Always remember to fully exhaust your government student loan options first, before you pursue private student loans.

The religion and philosophy known as Buddhism was founded in India c.525 BC by Siddhartha Gautama. Surprisingly, although India was the country of origin for Buddhism, it is not the major religion practiced over there today!

That’s a good question. We can offer a “formal” definition for it (and confuse you even more)… or we can just offer a simple solution…

Here it goes:
Anytime you ad the suffix “-ly” to a word, you are forming an adverb. Examples would be: “beautifully” or “highly” or “deeply”

Adverbs don’t always end in “-ly” but we just wanted to make it easy for you to figure out what an adverb is…

I see these offers often on my email. Can they really give away free satellite TV?

You’ve seen the online and offline ads — “Free satellite TV!” “Get a 4-room Satellite TV System Free!” and “Satellite TV Dish and Receivers Absolutely Free!”

But is satellite TV really free? The answer to that question is yes … and no.

Yes, the equipment you get — the satellite TV dish and satellite TV receiver — is free. But no, the programming service will cost you money.

Let’s examine the facts.

Due to the demise of Pegasus and Voom, there are only two major satellite TV providers in the USA — Dish Network and DirecTV.

Dish Network Satellite TV Service
When you order a free satellite TV system from Dish Network, you will be asked to pay a $49.99 activation fee. This fee will be credited to your programming bill, so in essence, your satellite TV system is free. Installation of your satellite TV system is also free.

With Dish Network you have the option to upgrade to a DVR (digital video recording) receiver, or an HDTV (high definition TV) receiver at no charge.

Dish Network programming starts at $31.99 per month for 60 program channels, and goes up to $86.00 for 230 channels including Showtime, Starz!, HBO, Cinemax, and Sirius radio.

Dish Network offers more movies, shows, and HDTV than cable or DirecTV, and with one of their free DVR receivers you can record, pause, and fast forward live TV with a click of your remote. All Dish Network programs are broadcast in digital format for crystal-clear picture and sound.

DirecTV Satellite TV Service
Depending on your credit rating, when you order a free satellite TV system from DirecTV you may be required to pay a deposit or prepayment. Because the deposit is refunded to you and the prepayment goes toward your programming fees, the DirecTV satellite dish and receivers are free. Installation is also free.

If you want a DVR receiver you will be charged an additional $49.99. The charge for HDTV receivers is $299.99.

DirecTV programming packages start at $41.99 per month for 115 channels (including 31 music channels), and go up to $93.99 per month for 185 program channels, including Showtime, Starz!, HBO, Cinemax, and 31 music channels.

DirecTV offers more sports programs than you can get with cable or Dish Network, including the popular NFL Sunday Ticket, and is broadcast in all-digital format.

The Bottom Line

Both Dish Network and DirecTV’s basic satellite TV dishes and receivers are free … but the service will cost you anywhere from $32 to $94 a month.

So if you watch just a few television programs a week and have access to over-the-air TV, or if you have cable TV and are happy with your service, then satellite TV probably isn’t for you.

If, on the other hand, TV is one of your primary forms of entertainment and you want the biggest variety of shows, movies, sports, and new — or if your cable bill is beginning to equal your mortgage payment — then satellite TV may be just the ticket.
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Brian Stevens is a professional freelance writer and webmaster who has written extensively on free satellite TV systems

I drink green tea often, and I just started wondering: “Does drinking green tea do me any good?” I was hoping you had some kind of info on that thought…

Recent studies by medical researches seem to point that Green Tea has a variety of health-promoting properties. One study, for example, was conducted in Japan.

Over a five-year period, researchers from Osaka University and Osaka City University looked for a relationship between consumption of Green Tea on development of Type II diabetes in 17,413 individuals (6,727 men and 10,686 women; 40 to 65 years of age) from 25 communities across Japan, who had no history of the disease. There were 444 self-reported new cases of physician-diagnosed diabetes in 231 men and 213 women. Consumption of Green Tea was inversely associated with risk of Type II diabetes after adjustment for age, sex, body mass index, and other risk factors.

Furthermore, total caffeine intake from Green Tea was associated with a 33-percent reduced risk of developing the disease. These inverse associations were even more pronounced in women and overweight men.

Don’t take this as a “Yes” though. You may need to look up several studies and compare them with each other. At least this particular one I have referred to points out associate benefits in drinking coffee. It’s always best to lookup several studies to draw conclusions… and most importantly, to ask your doctor or nutritionist.

SOURCE: Annals of Internal Medicine (144, 8:554-62, 2006) and The Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology (58, 5:599-604, 2006).

What if a spouse does not want to get a divorce? Will he or she be able to stop the divorce from happening?

If one person does not want to get a divorce, but one party in the relationship does and it is a no fault divorce, then the spouse cannot stop the divorce. This is called an irreconcilable difference and is a justification for divorce.

A spouse can prevent a fault divorce by convincing the court that he or she is not at fault. This is something that they would have to prove and it is up to the judge to decide. There are other additional ways to defend a divorce from happening may also be a choice for some situations.

If a person who condones that a spouse is having an affair files for a divorce, the spouse may contest the fault divorce by arguing that the spouse knew of the affair and condoned the action. This is one way for a person to defend himself or herself in court.

Connivance is the setting up of a situation so that the other person commits something to jeopardize the marriage. One type of situation to explain is if a women sets up her husband in situation where he is alone with his mistress. This is known as a set up and it is an argument that one can make in court to defend their actions.

Provocation is the inciting of a spouse to do a certain act. If a spouse is suing for divorce and claims that the other spouse abandoned them, the other spouse might defend their suit because they were provoked by the abandonment. Collusion is if a couple lives in a state where no fault divorce requires that the couple separate for a time and the couple doe not want to prolong the situation. This may lead the couple to mislead the court and pretend that one of them was at fault just to get out of the marriage.

These above defenses are not usually used for a few different reasons. Proving a defense may require witnesses and involve a lot of time and expense. Your efforts will usually bring nothing to the situation. Chances are that a court will eventually grant the divorce. A person should not have to stay married if they do not wish too. The law is designed to give people the opportunity to get out of the marriage if that is what he or she really wants to do. If you are involved in a marriage that you don’t want to be in any longer, the process can be hard to get through, but you can make a divorce really happen, and put an end to the marriage.

We have lost the application buttons from the taskbar on my wife’s computer. I have tried several things to get them back but have not been successful. I have her using “alt-tab” or just leaving the applications open but not full screen so they can be found with a mouse click, to switch between applications. Your suggestions would be appreciated.

This may be a challenge to answer, since I have not experienced this in the past. One thing I do when I’m troubleshooting errors or problems is to ask myself some questions, and this may help you. For example:

Do you remember what you were doing before this ever happened? Did you try to change the location of the taskbar? Do you have any third-party software that may have changed taskbar settings? Also, what operating system/computer are you currently using? Who used the computer last?

At any rate, most errors are fixed by restoring your settings to their defaults. I’m not sure if you have tried that yet, but if not… it’s certainly a good step in troubleshooting your taskbar woes.

If all else fails, there is a taskbar tool created by Kelly Theriot that cures all kinds of taskbar problems. You might find it helpful in fixing the problem you are currently having. I think the free version covers your taskbar error and repair your computer woes. I know you must be very frustrated.

You can download the toolkit here. She also has a section on her website called “Tweaks and Tips.” You might find it useful.

Let us know if you ever get this fixed and what steps you’ve taken. Our site visitors might find it useful too!

Good luck!

I am a new mother and I’m looking for information about naptime for babies. Got anything on this topic?

If you baby is not napping well during her first few months of life, you may want to try to cut back on the time she is awake by 15 minute increments. If she is getting overstimulated, then she will fight sleep and be difficult to get to nap. The way to prevent this is to watch her “sleepy” cues to make sure that you put her down when she is beginning to get sleepy.

Some parents believe that letting their child cry will harm him or her. Fifteen or twenty minutes of crying will not harm your child physically or mentally. Babies will learn to self-soothe and fall asleep by themselves, but only if you let her. It is very important that babies learn to fall asleep by themselves so that they can self-soothe if they awake in the middle of the night. Otherwise, you may have a child that will not sleep through the night for years.

Regular sleep patterns are intermeshed with regular eating patterns, so let us look at the stages of a baby’s life.

• Newborn: Your newborn will sleep anywhere from 16 to 20 hours a day, including the naps that he takes between feedings. When your baby has been fed, let him stay awake for a short while and then put him down before he becomes overstimulated
• Two months: At two months and older, your child should be allowed to try to self-soothe during their naptimes and bedtime. Crying is normal when you put your baby down, but it is okay. If he cries for longer than 10-15 minutes, then go in and check on him. Don’t get him up, but pat his bottom or lightly rub his back until he calms down
• 3-6 months: At around 3-6 months, your baby will stop taking one of his naps. Usually it is the third nap or late afternoon nap that they do not need as much. He may be a little fussy and may want to take a little nap, but you need to try to keep him up if you want him to go to bed at a decent time and sleep soundly through the night
• 16+ months: When your child is between 16-20 months, they usually quit taking the morning nap in favor of a longer nap in the afternoons. Babies this age usually sleep between 10-12 hours a night and take a 2-3 hour afternoon nap.

Ground Rules about Naps

• 1. You decide when the nap starts and ends, not the baby.
• 2. When your baby is older than 4 months old, she will wake up crying if she hasn’t slept enough. She might have a dirty diaper, be in a position that is not comfortable, or cold/hot. Fix the problem and encourage her to go back to sleep. Babies that have enough rest wake up happy, talking, and in a good mood.

I have a website with products I’d like to promote. I’m looking at an email campaign. Do you have any advice to give for email promotions?

If you’re thinking of promoting your product or services via email campaigns, then you might want to consider an advice from Gail Goodman, the CEO of Constant Contact. She wrote an article called, “Writing Compelling Promotional Copy - 10 Commandments for Great Copywriting.”

Here’s what she has to say:

The execution of an excellent promotional email campaign relies heavily on the effectiveness of the copy you write. If you are the person writing for your email campaigns, it would be wise to invest some time into strengthening your skills.

I would wager that you can count on both hands (and both feet) the number of letters, emails, ads, and articles that you read in a given day. Would you agree that you don’t need any more information, you just need it to be better—easier to understand and respond to?

Good copy helps your readers understand what you are offering them and gives them a clear way to respond. The following copywriting tips are ones that the pros know well. Keeping these “commandments” in front of you when you write will help you to create compelling copy that will engage your readers.

Commandment #1 - Know Your Audience
Who is this email going to? Picture the “average” person on your list. Give them a name, even. Think about what their day is like. Think about what is important to them. What are they passionate about? How old are they? What products or services have they purchased from you in the past and why? The more you know about the audience you are writing for, the more targeted and relevant your copy will be.

Commandment #2 - Determine Your Value Proposition
Answer these questions to determine what your value proposition is: Why should your customer buy your product or service? What’s in it for them? Why is your product better than the one down the street? What are your key differentiators?

Commandment #3 - Find a Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
The more unique your offer is, the better your chances of getting a response. Rosser Reeves, the author of Reality in Advertising, defines the USP as a promotion that offers “something that competitors do not, or will not, offer.” He also states that, “The proposition must be strong enough to pull new customers to the product.”

Commandment #4 - Establish an Objective
What is the purpose of this email? What action are you trying to get the reader to take? You need to be clear on this before you start writing. If the answer isn’t clear to you, it certainly won’t be to the reader.

Commandment #5 - Use a Compelling Subject Line
The subject line is what gets your email opened, right? So, don’t write something quickly just before sending. You have to convince your reader that they really need to open your email. The best word you can use to get the reader’s attention is “you.” The word “you” says that the message is about them. Other great words for subject lines (and headlines) are “new,” “exciting,” “exclusive,” and “introducing.” Also, try to keep your subject line to 50 characters or less, including spaces.

Commandment #6 - Include a Great Headline
If the subject line gets your reader to open the email, then the headline gets them to read further. Consider using some of the words from the list above for the headline. Your headline needs to grab readers with an obvious “what’s in it for me” message. Here’s a question to ask yourself: “What if they only read the headline?” Will they know enough about you and what you offer?

Tip for #5 and #6: Write 5-10 different subject lines and 5-10 different headlines to see what works best. Also, you may find that it is easier to write a subject line and headline after you’ve written the body copy.

Commandment #7 - Avoid Weasel Words
When writing headlines, subheads, and body copy, don’t use words that avoid a direct command, a.k.a, “weasel words.” These include may, maybe, hope, wish, try, but, could, perhaps, and strive. Instead use words like “will” and “can” to describe what your product or service will or can do for your reader.

Commandment #8 - Don’t Use Passive Voice - Write in the Present!
Passive voice weakens your message. It’s best to avoid it. A few examples are:

“Our company was chosen to receive an award” vs. “Our company received an award”
“We have had 15 new products arrive.” vs. “15 new products arrived.”
“10 new designs were created.” vs. “We created 10 new designs”

Commandment #9 - Include a Customer Quote
Do you have a great customer quote that you can include in your email? A brief and convincing quote can add credibility to your campaign. The more real you can make the person to your readers, the better. Including their name, what city or state they live in, and even a photo, if it fits your campaign, is a great way to communicate the value of your service.

Commandment #10 - Keep Copy Clean and Concise
After you write your first round of copy, read it out loud. Also, have someone else read it to see if they understand the message and the call to action. As you edit, cut unnecessary words and consolidate ideas. See if you can get your text down to 30-50% of what you started with. Also, include bullet points and possibly subtitles to make it easy to read, and more importantly, easy to scan, as most readers scan a page before deciding whether or not to read all the details.

Great Copywriting is Within Reach.
Keeping these tips in mind when you write will greatly improve your copy, making it easier for your readers to understand and respond to your email campaigns.

To visit the Constant Contact website, just click on the banner ad below:

Okay, there’s all this hype about Viagra and such, but they’re quite expensive (and you need a prescription). Can I take natural supplements for sexual enhancement?

Sexual enhancement… you’re quite bold to ask this type of question. But before this question is answered, I want to emphasize that we do have a disclaimer on our site regarding usage of any information we provide here at AskBoard.com.

Now that we got that covered, yes there are natural supplements available in the market to enhance your sexual libido and satisfaction with your sex drive. However, please do ask your doctor’s opinion first and foremost. You also need to find out if any of these are appropriate for you.

What most people are concerned about:
Millions of men and women have impaired circulation, which can reduce the ability to have erections and diminish sexual sensation. Chronic stress diminishes libido and blocks sexual performance. Insomnia and low energy levels can make people too tired to fully enjoy sex.

Specific herbs and other natural nutritionals target these problems and have been used safely and successfully for hundreds of years. Natural nutrient- based remedies, supplemented in combination, can improve sexual energy and performance. They promote better blood flow, increase libido and make erections stronger.

Here are a few that you may consider…

GINKGO BILOBA

• FUNCTION: Dilates blood vessels and improves circulation to the penis or vagina and clitoris. Impaired circulation is the most common cause of ED (erectile dysfunction) in men. In women, reduced blood flow can result in diminished sexual sensation and responsiveness. Ginkgo Biloba is a very effective vasodilator, which functions to open (dilates) blood vessels. In one study, more than 70% of men with ED who took Ginkgo improved their ability to have erections.
  People who are prescribed a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressant, such as Prozac, should consider taking Ginkgo. It offsets the libido-dampening side effect that often occurs in people taking these drugs.
• CAUTION: Ginkgo reduces the ability of blood to clot. Do not use Ginkgo if you are taking coumadin (Warfarin) or other blood-thinning drugs. Patients taking daily aspirin, which also inhibits clotting, should be sure to talk to their doctors before using Ginkgo supplements.
  Combine Ginkgo Biloba (which enhances blood flow) with Ginseng (which improves overall energy). Always check with your medical doctor, health practitioner before taking any supplement.

GINSENG

• FUNCTION: Supports the adrenal glands, which produce hormones that affect genital circulation and the ability to have erections. It helps modulate emotional stress . . . increases overall energy and libido. Ginseng safely increases levels of testosterone, the hormone that stimulates sexual response in men and women. People who take Ginseng usually notice an increase in energy after about one week.
• CAUTION: Ginseng is a mild stimulant that can increase blood pressure. Don’t take if you have been diagnosed with hypertension or heart disease.

ARGININE (Amino Acid)

• FUNCTION: Increases pelvic circulation . . . improves erections . . . boosts libido and clitoral sensation. Arginine is an amino acid that is used by the body to produce nitric oxide, a chemical that relaxes blood vessels and promotes better circulation.
• CAUTION: Patients with heart problems who are taking nitroglycerin should not take Arginine. The combination could result in excessive vasodilation. Also, don’t take Arginine if you get cold sores from the herpes virus or have genital herpes. Arginine promotes viral replication and can increase flare-ups.

DHEA

• FUNCTION: Increases sexual arousal in women . . . improves erections in men.
  Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is a naturally occurring hormoe that is converted to testosterone in the body. Testosterone and other adrogens stimulate libido and sexual performance in men and women. The body’s production of DHEA declines by about 1% annually after age 30, which can result in diminished sexual desire, performance and satisfaction.
• CAUTION: Patients should take DHEA only if blood tests show that they have lower-than-normal levels. An excessive amount increases risk of side effects, such as acne, facial hair growth in women and sometimes heart palpitations. It also increases risk of tumors in the prostate gland. Men with a history of prostate cancer should not take DHEA.

WATER

• FUNCTION: Increases blood volume . . . improves erections in men and sexual responsiveness in women. How can good old water be an aphrodisiac? Because millions of Americans are chronically dehydrated - they don’t drink enough water or they consume excessive amounts of caffeine, a diuretic that removes water from the body. Dehydration can result in diminished blood flow to the pelvis and genitals. Adequate hydration improves blood flow and makes it easier for men to have erections. Women who stay hydrated experience greater sexual comfort and satisfaction. Water is definitely a life essential!

Hope this info helped a bit. Please, please, please consult your health provider before doing anything. I know you’re looking for sexual enhancement, but you need to do it safely too!