The Internet is instrumental to me for researching news and travel destinations, as well as for shopping and for pursuing my hobby of Paint Shop Pro. I spend time sharing my art projects with others online. I follow tutorials on various websites, learning animation and photography effects, and I purchase various artists' licenses online which enables me to use their work.
Without the Internet, I would never have met my close friends that live in Spain, Australia, New Zealand and France that I chat with on a regular basis.
Video chatting and instant messaging have been invaluable for staying in contact with my husband and children when they have been deployed. I have also been able to stay in touch with my extended family and friends, who live in other states, by looking at their pictures and videos on Facebook and sharing pictures of my own.
One thing that I have done on the Internet that has been fun and challenging was to trace my genealogy. I have connected with several distant relatives and shared family information taking us back hundreds of years. None of this would have been possible before the Internet came along.
If you like crafts, you'll love my favorite site: www.Digital-crea.fr/
Digi Diva Blog
Apr 20, 2012
Catching Up On My Shows – On Demand
Posted: 04/20/2012 4:40 PM (None Assigned)
On Demand is such a great feature of my cable service!
Seriously, there are so many times, like during March Madness when all that's on is sports or reruns, that I depend on the service. In those moments, I go immediately to my On Demand.
First, I check out all the movies. I have come to the conclusion that MOST movies are just as good watched at home in comfy clothes, with my snacks of choice (way cheaper than the theater), a pause butto... Read More
Apr 9, 2012
My Winning March Madness Bracket!
Posted: 04/09/2012 8:44 AM (None Assigned)
Yay!!! I won!…Or should I say thanks to my sports fan husband? Since he’s the reason I won. Watching all those sports channels and ESPN3 paid off for us! Although, as I’ve said before, I’m not into sports, I’m glad my husband is, because now we can have a dinner date night with my prize! Thank you Midcontinent for all the sports channels and our fast Internet that kept my husband entertained and informed!!
... Read More
Apr 4, 2012
The Countdown to 4G
Posted: 04/04/2012 1:10 PM (None Assigned)
Yesterday, I picked up my new smartphone and tried to download the new MAX GO and HBO GO products. It started out being a bit frustrating for me. I kept getting an error message that I "didn't have the necessary token" when I tried to register. When I called support they had never seen that error message, but we circumvented the issue by registering online on my desktop. Then I used my smartphone, downloaded the app and signed in rath... Read More
Mar 16, 2012
March Madness
Posted: 03/16/2012 9:14 AM (None Assigned)
Once again, because of my extreme love of sports…(not!), I deferred this project to my husband. I didn’t even know, or care, what a bracket was!
Here is what he said about his rationale behind his selections:
“My selection process began by selecting who I thought would be the eventual winners based on performance during the past season, how well the team was playing, and the rich school history.
I am predicting that Kentucky... Read More
Mar 8, 2012
I may HATE Sports but My Husband LOVES ESPN3!
Posted: 03/08/2012 9:47 AM (None Assigned)
I am not ashamed to say that I HATE sports. Not all sports, the ones my kids played I watched and enjoyed, and I can handle some gymnastics and even a little skiing. But other sports are not my cup of tea.
However, my husband more than makes up for my, according to most people, abnormality. He loves sports – basketball, baseball, football, cycling, triathlons, marathons, swimming, etc. If it's on, he's watching it, and when he’s... Read More
Mar 6, 2012
An On Demand Adventure
Posted: 03/06/2012 7:00 PM (None Assigned)
We have had the best winter ever! With all these great temperatures, I have been able to still walk my dogs and get out of the house to do other things. But, when those spurts of cold weather hit, it seems even more annoying than when it's cold all winter. We feel the cold even more because we aren't acclimated. During these times, I like to reach out to some of my friends in other states. After all, I do have free long distance with my phone pla... Read More
Feb 23, 2012
Using Xstream to Watch My Weight
Posted: 02/23/2012 7:55 AM (None Assigned)
New Year's Resolutions! Last year I made a resolution not to make one…and I didn't! This year though, my husband and I both made one together.
We wanted to take off the weight that has crept up on us from too many dinners out and not enough healthy choices, so we made a resolution and joined Weight Watchers.
Granted, neither of us have a lot to lose, but we had discussed it with our doctor years back and were told Weight Watchers is th... Read More
Feb 17, 2012
Using Xstream to Save
Posted: 02/17/2012 7:33 AM (None Assigned)
It's 2012, and like many other people we are trying to figure out how to save money and get the most bang for our buck.
We already utilize things that save money. We usually shop at the mall, find what we want and then go home and do online searches for the same exact article. We usually find them for way less money on Amazon, even with the shipping involved.
We also use Skype for phoning family and friends that are very far away, once again ... Read More
Feb 10, 2012
A Valentine's Day Plan
Posted: 02/10/2012 8:39 AM (None Assigned)
Valentine's Day is quickly approaching, and I have a special day planned for my honey.
First, I will make him a nice breakfast before he goes to work. I don't usually do this in the mornings so it will be a nice surprise for him.
When he is at work, I have made several tags (like cards) to send to him throughout the day. In order to do this, I had to go online to different sites and download some scraps and some artist tubes to use with my P... Read More
Feb 1, 2012
Not a Football Fan, but an Xstream Fan
Posted: 02/01/2012 8:11 AM (None Assigned)
It's time for the biggest football game of the year!! Millions of men around the nation are getting ready for one of the largest man-competition party traditions of the year. I have long tried to understand this event, but not being a big sports fanatic, it's a bit beyond my scope of comprehension.
I have been to one party for the big game in my life. I went for the food! I know I'm not the only one because the house was clearly divided int... Read More
Jan 13, 2012
Xstream Challenge – 7 Days with No Internet
Posted: 01/13/2012 8:14 AM (None Assigned)
Midcontinent challenged its Xstream Team members to go for one week without accessing the Internet. Keep reading to see how many days I lasted.
This was a difficult challenge for me, because I had some obligations I had already signed up to fulfill online. I did try to stay away from most things, I didn’t go on Pogo (http://www.pogo.com/), and missed my friends terribly since we have been chatting on there for over 10 years. I especially m... Read More
Dec 29, 2011
Two Thumbs Up for Xstream
Posted: 12/29/2011 3:19 PM (None Assigned)
I asked two members of my family to tell me their impression of MidcoNet Xstream: my husband, who has been using the service consistently, and my adult son, who doesn’t have MidcoNet Xstream at his house.
My husband loves the speed of the new service compared to our old service. He enjoys using it for all the things he does online, which includes looking at websites for work research, taking online courses, downloading music and downloadin... Read More
Nov 3, 2011
An Xstream Halloween Artist
Posted: 11/03/2011 5:36 PM (None Assigned)
I am an Xstream Halloween artist, not because I am extremely creative myself, but because I used the Internet to find a tutorial for a scary tag I needed to make for a Halloween challenge in one of the graphic design groups I belong to.
I wanted something a little creepy and found this tutorial http://www.insatiabledreams.net/haunted.htm while searching the net. I was able to follow the tutorial and create the tag below. I learned some thin... Read More
Oct 16, 2011
My Invaluable Websites
Posted: 10/16/2011 6:37 PM (None Assigned)
Surfing the web can be fun, but there are also a number of utilities and tools that help me get my work done while keeping me up to date. Check out my most clicked sites:
1. Google
The major one of course is www.google.com. I use it for finding everything I ever need. If I want to look for a font to match a tag and can't seem to find one in my huge font folder, I use Google. If I want Halloween scraps, Google gives me a... Read More
Sep 29, 2011
It's Endless
Posted: 09/29/2011 9:37 AM (None Assigned)
Above is a picture of Liberty Memorial Bridge. It spans across time and space. Huge amounts of water flow under it, and it has the ability for an endless number of vehicles and pedestrians to cross over it in the future, giving them access to vast lands on each side. It is also a memorial to those past and future North Dakotans who have served and will serve our country, fighting for our freedom throughout the world.
I look at MidcoNet Xstream... Read More
Sep 9, 2011
Xstream: Handling the Challenge Without Batting an Eye
Posted: 09/09/2011 5:20 PM (None Assigned)
To see how MidcoNet Xstream would perform with all our Internet devices accessing online content, I lined up my laptop, my desktop and my Nook.
Downstairs my husband was set and ready to start downloading music onto his desktop. I got everything ready to download on the computers upstairs. I prepared to download different files I needed for my art projects on each computer so that all I had to do was push the button on each. I used my Nook ... Read More
Aug 22, 2011
Connected & Entertained
Posted: 08/22/2011 2:45 PM (None Assigned)
We have several devices in our home that connect us to the things we enjoy online.
I use my desktop computer, which I am on all the time, to play games, talk to friends on Skype, post in my Photoshop groups, check news, shop and do just about everything. I have a dual monitor set up so I can use both windows at the same time. I love being able to see everything I am working on at once!
My husband’s desktop also receives heavy us... Read More
Aug 8, 2011
Smooth and Dependable
Posted: 08/08/2011 9:54 AM (None Assigned)
The minute my MidcoNet Xstream® Wideband was connected I went online and was shocked beyond belief. I surfed to a site that usually takes forever to download and before I could blink an eye, I was connected. My first thought was perhaps I had dozed off for a second waiting for the usual lengthy download, so I tried it again. WOW, Astounding!! I got excited and started clicking on every site I knew to challenge it. It was screaming fast!
... Read More
Jul 25, 2011
Pathway to a Peaceful Existence
Posted: 07/25/2011 11:58 AM (None Assigned)
Before I got MidcoNet Xstream® Wideband 3.0, the Internet was a constant source of frustration for me. Let’s start with just trying to connect to the Internet. Can we say monotonous? I would sit and wait, and wait, and wait and then wait some more. Well, you get the picture – booooring!
Staying connected was another issue. Just when I would see a glimpse of where I was trying to navigate to, it would disconnect. All would be lost... Read More
Jul 13, 2011
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