I needed a second lcd monitor around the house. Do I need a top of the line model? Nope. I shopped around online at the box stores, looked through the free or trader websites and asked friends if they had anything laying around they wanted to get rid of. I found a pretty decent or new monitor with a ding in the top of the screen. You can't even notice it when the monitor is on but the owner wanted to get rid of it.

I went out looking for a mouse for use with my laptop. I bought a $60 cordless mouse. I took it back the next day and bought a $15 wired mouse. What do I care if it is plugged in or not as long as it does what I want it to.

You have to ask yourself. Do you need a top of the line Nasa powered computer system or can you get away with something less expensive that does what you want. Keep your money in the bank, pay off your credit card and settle for something in your price range and gets the job done.

For instance this week my wireless connection was acting really goofy and dropping the connection. I thought there was something from with my Linksys router. I thought my network was comprimised. I thought my network card was perhaps broken. I went into total panic mode and wasn't sure what I was going to do.

The first thing I did was make sure that I could get on the net the old way, wired. Once I did that I used good old google and searched for my problems. You can bet if you have a problem you aren't the only one in the universe. Sure enough I found my solution. I had to delete my current network settings, reset my router and set up a new secured network. No problems since then.

My computer is under warrenty right now but it it wasn't, I saved some money by staying calm and using the internet to solve my problems. Remember, back up on a regular basis and stay calm. I will blog some good free computer applications and how to use them over the next bit. You can protect your computer for free.