I'm a great believer in using words. Not randomly as they come into my head, but by sorting them into all their correct categories.

It might be because I have one of those untidy brains that can't keep all the data neatly stored away in the  the gray matter where it belongs.

I give my brain some help by telling it where all the words belong. Nouns belong next to that lamp, I can put Verbs there and Adjectives within easy reach. 

What about these Pronouns, Adverbs, Conjunctions and all these other leftovers bits? .. hmm, I'll just sweep them under the carpet and hope nobody will notice.

It's amazing what you can do with lists of words.
All known inventions (and unknown) can be named by combining simple groups of nouns. 
With just 2 lists of identical Nouns consisting of 5,500 words each, we can form over 30 million combinations. 

This was the basis for a program I conceived, called The Xerotron*. It allows an easy way of combining words in a semi random fashion. It may sound weird, but it's fascinating to see the results this "poker machine of words" can produce. 
*It's also the basis of The Baby Name Generator.

"Helicopter + Fire engine" is an example which at first may have seemed ludicrous, but it's now an accepted method of fire fighting. (see opposite). 

Another one that comes to mind: "Radar + Cooker". This is your everyday Microwave Oven. Not that I'm suggesting that this was how these inventions were discovered.  I'm just trying to find any easier way!

If you find a combination that nobody else has seen, you might discover an important new invention!

If you find this concept interesting, you can find out more about it at the web site  Click Here

I would also like to remind readers, Elliot J. Huntley's book (printed version) about George Harrison will be on sale this month. It would make an ideal gift for anyone who grew up during The Beatles era.

Now where's my Thesaurus? 
I could have sworn I left it over there next to the Adjectives.  Or maybe it's under those Verbs! 
Nope, sure enough, here it is, under the Nouns!

Yes folks .. Canada is our country of the month.
Can't say's I'd enjoy that freezing weather though,
seein as I come from Down Under an all ..

Have a great February everyone! 
Wishing you a happy St. Valentine's day too.
Talk to you again soon.

Dr John K. Flynn B.D.Sc.
The Xerostar Times Editor 
"Caring for Creative People"

PS.   I hope to get some feedback from you, for a change, so get busy on those keyboards and drop me a line. 
Don't forget whe're looking for some additional Bill Gates rules to publish next month.
 ..

If MIDI music is new to you, then please read the article in the March edition of XT entitled:
"The 7 essentials to enjoy MIDI music." 
The article will show you how to set up your computer for maximum enjoyment of MIDI music.
You can see it under the Articles too. Click Here
.

A story about how several San Francisco chefs tackled their weight problems had a common thread that hit home. For three of them, simply sitting down to eat, as opposed to standing up and picking at food all day, was the key. 

Most admitted they had no idea how much food they were eating during work on the line - it was "unconscious" eating. 

How many of us can take a hint from that? If you're around food all day in a kitchen, chances are you're a picker, too. 

But if you're not, you might still have a "location" eating problem. 

I've talked to enough working women and stay at home moms to know they share my secret weakness: They're vertical diners. They eat standing up, generally over the sink. Or worse, directly from the refrigerator. 

It's especially bad for me at breakfast, when I'll peel an orange or flip up a piece of toast and gulp my coffee while fretting over everything I have to do that day. I have a perfectly lovely back porch where I could breakfast and watch the birds at the feeder and sailboats nearby, but no: I choose the view 
of the dirty dishes and the spitting coffeepot. How dumb is that? 

Football fans are well known for their sofa dining. Sticking your hand in a potato chip bag is almost as crucial to game day as yelling at the ref on TV. 
But next thing you know, the bag is empty, and you're thirsty from all that salt and gulping down too many suds or sodas. A mean cycle. 

Book lovers who read in bed tend to snack there, where a good book can blind you to just how many candy pieces or handfuls of nuts you've eaten. 

All this stuff is simply unconscious eating. 

Sitting at a table with a plate in front of you, you are aware of your food and how much you're eating. 
With your mind on the meal, you focus on what's going into your mouth. Your digestion is better, and you get more pleasure out of your food, even if it's smaller portions. When you eat more slowly, your brain has time to catch up to your stomach - the sated feeling will hit sooner, and you can leave the table feeling satisfied but not "stuffed." 

It would be grand if you could do this for three meals a day and snacks. Most of us can't. Busy lives take us away from the dining room, especially at lunch 
or on the run at breakfast. 

But you can try to avoid the problem places that cause you to overeat. Make an effort to get up 15 minutes earlier to eat breakfast, sitting down. 

Get away from your desk at work. Take your lunch outside or to a dedicated lounge to sit and eat without phone or work interruptions. You won't chomp your food to get back to work in a hurry. It might increase your work productivity to get away from it for a while. 

At dinner, put away the TV trays or move the coffee table from in front of the couch: Make it hard to sit and watch TV and eat. Invite a friend over if you don't like to dine alone; maybe swing a deal with them to cook a couple of nights a week, then you reciprocate. 

For all of us, sitting down and becoming civilized diners again is the answer. So for this year, let's designate the dining room as the only room in the house where fork will meet the mouth. 

(C) 2002 The Palm Beach Post. via ProQuest Information and Learning Company; 
All Rights Reserved Click Here
             ..

The previous message board had to be closed due to an avalanche of un-invited pop-up messages that forced visitors to flee our web site without even reading the first page! 

I can't understand the morons who advertise their products like this.  Who would want to buy anything from them, with this in-your-face harassment! 

Unfortunately the enjoyment of the Web is being spoiled by a proliferation of scumware and browser parasites. 

I highly recommend that you get a copy of "Adware" that can clean out unwanted spyware from your computer. I also recommend that you install "Zonealarm" to prevent unwanted programs being silently installed on your computer.

With our new message forum, you can view discussion folders quickly in the left-hand column and read up to 20 messages at a time. You can even attach files (such as pictures and programs) directly to messages -- just like e-mail.  It's fast, easy, and efficient.

The other options include real-time Chat, voice chat, and polls. A great improvement on the last one.

I've chosen to make this Forum 'public' so anyone can participate, so feel free to tell your friends!
To view the Forum:   Click Here
...

Due to its popularity we have decided to extend the
FREE offer. We only ask that you sign up with 
the free MIDI-eBooks Club first.   Click Here
We hope this MIDI-eBook will be an inspiration to all
readers. 

Choose from a popular range of miracle pills all at bargain prices !  World-wide fast delivery.
We have pills for weight loss, hair growth, help to stop smoking, pain relief, birth control, herpes remedies and skin care. 
Find out more  Click Here
.

Most people's conception of Canada goes little beyond appreciating its vastness, recognizing its flag and identifying a few well-known physical features. And while it's true that the majority of travelers are attracted by the opportunity to explore Canada's wilderness areas, natural wonders and low-key rural charm, there is a lot more to Canada than maple trees, Niagara Falls and wide open spaces.

It's the edginess between Canada's indigenous, French and British traditions that gives the nation its complex three-dimensional character. Add to this a constant infusion of US culture and a plethora of traditions brought from Europe, Asia and Latin America by migrants, and you have a thriving multicultural society very much in the process of forming its own identity. Those expecting Canada to be a blander counterpart of the USA should check their preconceptions at the door - Canada's wild northern frontier, which has etched itself into the national psyche, and its distinct patchwork of peoples have created a country that is decidedly different from its southern neighbor.

Full country name: Canada
Area: 9,976,000 sq km (3.9 million sq miles)
Population: 31,280,000
Capital city: Ottawa (pop: 1,010,500)
People: British descent (28%), French descent (23%), Italian descent (3%), aboriginal peoples (2%), plus significant minorities of German, Ukrainian, Dutch, Greek, Polish and Chinese descent
Languages: English, French and 53 native languages
Religion: Catholic (45%), Protestant (36%) and minorities from most of the world's major religions
Government: Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister: Jean Chrétien
Governor-General: Adrienne Clarkson

GDP: US$774 billion
GDP per head: US$25,000
Annual growth: 3%
Inflation: 3%
Major products/industries: processed and unprocessed minerals, food products, wood and paper products, transportation equipment, chemicals, fish products, petroleum and natural gas
Major trading partners: USA, Japan, EU, China and South Korea

To find out more about Canada Click Here
.

To find out more Click Here
...

If you have a Web site, and you're interested in
creating some EXTRA profits within 15 minutes or less, then   click here now   and discover how a simple, yet extremely effective system for using pop-ups can add thousands to your annual revenue.
.

The biggest online bookstore in the world is having a sale! Not only books, but CDs, DVDs, Toys and ... 

Dot easy are that easy. 
If you want to start a new web site, without any annoying banners then you won't do better than doteasy.com. 
A no frills web site of 20 MB site costs you nothing at all per year! Amazing but true!
There is a once only charge of $25 to register a full domain name and that's it. Incredible value!
We chose doteasy to host all our web sites and
they continue to upgrade their service.
If you need any help getting started, let us know,
we will be glad to give you any help or advice.
It's quite easy (doteasy) when you know how!
When you register, they will ask you how you found out about doteasy, so don't forget to mention the
Xerostar Times.  To sign up  Click Here
..

SolSuite 2001 is a huge collection of 295 solitaire card games featuring animated and custom cards, dozens of backgrounds, automatic play, high scores, and sounds. Features include a Shortcut menu, a Snapshot Position feature, and an Undo to Snapshot feature.
The last update included eight new games. This latest version adds two new games: Coleopter and FreeCell Two Decks; there are now over 312 solitaire games in all. This is a 30 day trial (shareware)

Download SolSuite 2001 now Click Here
..

A web site where you will find a huge choice of ezines covering every interest.

Please rate the XT at Cumuli.com  Click Here
..

This months gadget can hardly be called "a gadget" but it sure looks like one!
Erickson Air-Crane manufactures the S-64 Aircrane  in Central Point, Oregon USA.

It has many uses including fire fighting, logging, hydroseeding, heavy equipment transport, building construction, oil industry support as well as ski-lift and powerline construction.

The fire fighting model has a 2,650 gallon (10,000 litre) variable flow tank, a hover-snorkel 45-second refill hose.  A sea-water ram scoop, and a water cannon that can pump 300 gpm from a horizontal delivery nozzle.

These aircraft were used extensively against the recent severe bush fires in south eastern Australia.

For more info see the Web site:   Click Here

This is a special slide show with sound that was originally created to advertise the Xerotron program.

Take a journey back to ancient Egypt and witness the amazing magic powers of Imhotep's stone.

You will need to download and install the special viewer called iplay.exe but we think you'll be delighted with the show, it's different. Rated G.

You might even be motivated to create some of your own mini movies! It's creative fun!

To find at more please Click Here
..

"Welcome to join acme.com!" 
This is the subject header of a welcome message I received when I joined a new program.  I was also told that: now I could "Put all their non-money bulk works in and take lots money out from acme.com account daily! without having to spend a penny! Instead, you get paid!"

I realize that English is not everyone's first language and we all make mistakes but there is a BIG difference between "We except checks by snail male," and "We accept cheques by snail mail."

If you are not a native English speaker then you MUST be extra careful when creating your web site.  Most surfers don't have the time, or the attention span, to look through a maze of complicated or difficult-to-understand instructions.  You may have important or even exclusive content on your web site, but you MUST make it easy to find and straight- forward to read.

If you want to be taken seriously and you want returning visitors, you must showcase your information to your best possible advantage.

If you are told to "Click here to share my enjoy," would you?  I did and I discovered it to be a very interesting place to visit - although it took a while to understand the instructions for using the page.  I'm still not sure how I'm supposed to share the aspects I like about the sites offered for review - which is what was actually being asked.

We've all been to sites that seem to make it as difficult as possible to find anything, but who has enough time to spend trying to decipher such sites?  Make sure your site is not one of them.  You want your visitors to browse through your entire site - don't send them away before they've even scrolled down to the bottom of the page.

You all know how to perform a spell check when you write articles, ads, etc., but what about your web site titles, menus, autoresponder messages and welcome letters?  Don't ignore these, they are just as important as your actual site.  More so in fact if you are sending or responding to enquiry letters or if you are making any personal contact with someone through email.

You must project a professional image at all times.  If YOU are not confident about your use of the English language you should get someone who IS to proofread everything you write.  If you're stuck, you could always ask me!

You've spent hours on the design, content and layout of your site.  Don't let it go to waste.  Your web site is your window to success.  Use it wisely.

Chrisoulla Nicolaou  is in Larnaca, Cyprus and is well known for her "Baby Talk" ezine Click Here
Copyright © 2001 all rights reserved.
...

Bill Gates recently gave a speech to some high school students where he outlined 11 things that they didn't learn in school. He claims "feel-good", politically correct teachings don't prepare students for real life. 

His "Rules" are: 

1. Life is not fair - get used to it. 

2. The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something before you feel good about yourself. 

3. You will not make 40 thousand dollars a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice president with a car phone, until you earn both. 

4. If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss. He doesn't have tenure. 

5. Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different word for burger flipping - they called it opportunity. 

6. If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them. 

7. Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you are. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room. 

8. Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life has not. In some schools they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as many times as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to anything in real life. 

9. Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you find yourself. Do that on your own time. 

10. Television is not real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs. 

11. Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one. 

What do you think of these rules?
Can you think of a few more?
Please send me your suggestions Click Here
..

This is the very first in-depth critique of George Harrison's solo career since the break-up of 
The Beatles. 

To order your copy please see the directions
at the web site.  Click Here
.

This software takes a new approach to finding a name for your baby. The fascinating results can be seen in context with your surname, so you can see immediately if the name is suitable. Possible matches can be saved to a list and printed out for final consideration. Categories include thousands of ethnic names to ensure the program is universal.

Find out more about this program Click Here
 

John Stevenson has a variety of resources for book lovers including "free online fiction"
Check it out now:  Click Here
 

Do you enjoy word puzzles or playing with words?
Are you a Scrabble®  fan?
This fascinating program will help you solve the
most difficult word puzzles. The manipulation of English words is taken to a new level. 
To read all about it. Click  Here
...

Free Classified Ads can now be viewed or posted at
www.MIDI-eBooks.com and www.xerotron.com
16 Categories to choose from!.....Click Here
...

Increase your chances of a win by 40 to 45 times!
Save time - everything is automated for you.
Never miss an entry. Monthly statement with full details. No need to check results!
Winnings are deposited direct to your account.
Find out more about this amazing system.
See a powerful flash presentation that will explain how the Oz Power system works. Click Here

Canada's restaurant scene is one of the best kept secrets in the culinary world. From French Montreal to Pacific Vancouver, the country's innumerable ethnic communities rival with each other to offer culinary delight with rare quality and value, with great originality but little pretentiousness. 

If you are a visitor or are planning to be one, this site will welcome you to Canada, where the weather is necessarily cold, to cool off the blazing passion of their chefs and the burning warmth of Canadians. 

See the restaurant Guide now  Click Here
..

Rocketry Online is devoted to making available the most up-to-date information about the hobbies of model, high power and amateur rocketry. 
Whether you are looking for vendor's web sites, individual's personal web sites, organizational web sites or rocketry club web sites, you will find the latest information here.
Rocketry Online also has information about rocketry related school and university programs as well as other rocketry and space related web sites.

Find out more about this hobby  Click Here
.....

To what extent are YOU making choices about your activities, your values and your attitudes rather than being affected, and thus controlled, by what others may think? It is difficult to be a real power performer if you think it is important to behave like everyone else. 

Do you back down because some folks do not agree with what you want to do? Being confident in your ideas and your ability to think them through is the starting place for innovation. 

Who do you ask when you have a new and, maybe, different idea? Do you go to someone who is likely to agree with you, or someone who is likely to tell you that you are mistaken? 
Do you want to be supported . . . or stopped ? 
Many people count on others to keep them from turning in new directions or taking new risks. What is your pattern? 

The extent to which other people affect you is important to examine. Some people are very dependent on those around them and are greatly influenced by the moods, attitudes and opinions 
of others. Others keep their own counsel and are empathetic to others while remaining true to them- selves. This is preferable, isn't it? 

Keep friends around you who will ask you good questions and show interest in your ideas rather than giving you their judgments and raining on your parade. Sure, you may want their opinions to consider. That's helpful to your thinking. It's the folks who believe that their opinions are "facts" that are the difficulty. 

Surround yourself with people who are living fully and help pull you in the direction of your dreams. The extent to which you feel that you control your future is the measure of what you will get out of life. 

To some folks, life is like the weather - it just happens to them, and they think they have no control. 

Really, though, life is a majestic journey, an exciting adventure, that you orchestrate and direct by the hundreds of choices you make every day.

Keep it in mind!

About the Author:
Rhoberta Shaler, PhD, is a speaker, consultant, author and executive coach. She provides strategies, tools, insights and inspiration to individuals and organizations to Achieve Goals, Create Quality Relationships & Maintain Healthy Balance -simultaneously! Succeed on Your Own Terms! 

See Jackie's web site and be inspired Click Here
..

This powerful new guide takes you step by step through the entire process -- 
A must-have book for anyone that's interested in developing and selling software on the internet

The mission of this Center for Creative Leadership is to advance the understanding, practice and development of leadership for the benefit of society worldwide.

To find out more please Click Here
...

Produced by the glum serfs at Despair.com 
The Wailing List neatly parodies every dotcom convention, especially those cheery, glib sites for motivational speakers, whose own primary motivation seems to be separating you from the few crumpled dollars you have left over from the pathetic paycheck
you earn from your crummy job at that miserable company. 

To subscribe or, "Join the Chain of Pain"
Just visit the web site at:  Click Here