LifeTips - short tips that help make life easier.

In a bid to increase the frequency of LifeTips (as you can see, they're currently moving at around one a year!), we've decided to make the tips shorter and more frequent with the aim of posting at least one helpful hint every week! So, to kick it off...

7th December, 2009

RE-REGISTER FOR THE DO NOT CALL LIST: Most Australians have probably heard of the Do Not Call list - where to date more than four million people have listed their phone number to protect against some unsolicited marketing calls (there are exceptions for organisations like charities, government bodies and political candidates) - but you may not be aware the listings have a time limit of three years. Which means that if you listed your number when it first opened in May 2007, you will need to relist it for a further three years before May, 2010, or run the risk of having those annoying calls begin again! Head to the Do Not Call website for further information.

28th February, 2009

THE 'HOW TO' GUIDES : The world is full of experts and the good news is that they’re all out there wanting to share their helpful hints for life with you! Since it’s been a long time between posts in our lifetips column - OK, more than a year is a very long time - we’ve decided to bring to your attention a whole raft of websites simply filled with helpful tips for life. First up is wikiHow, a user-generated site offering advice on everything from how to build an igloo to how to perform a “fireman’s carry” or maintain a mountain bike. Other sites include eHow - which features step-by-step instructions on ‘how tos’ in 25 different categories ranging from how to play the A minor scale on a piano through to how to select a diamond and setting for your wedding ring - and sites such as expert village - which has more than 131,000 video clips, Howcast which features videos and wiki (user-generated) guides, and WonderHowTo which claims to collate instructional videos from 1,700 other websites. Should keep you busy!

- DAVID ADAMS

Come across a good 'how to' site? Why not share it with others in our Your Say section below...

28th January, 2008

CALLING 'ICE': It's a simple idea aimed at helping to make life easier for emergency services personnel. Called ICE (standing for 'In Case of Emergency'), it involves people like you and me entering our emergency contacts in our mobile phone address book or contacts list under the name 'ICE' with the idea of assisting emergency personnel in identifying us and contacting our next-of-kin should we be involved in an emergency. UK ambulance paramedic Bob Brotchie is credited with coming up with the idea which is apparently fast gaining a following across Europe and North America. In Australia, an email has been circulating which endorses the practice and purports to come from the New South Wales Ambulance Service. In a statement on its website, however, the service has denied the email comes from its offices and says it has not launched a campaign supporting ICE. But it does add that the ICE concept "has merit" and, alongside information contained in people's diaries, wallets and drivers’ licences, could be used as another source of information to assist with identification. However the service also notes that in situations where more than one person is involved or mobile phones have been borrowed, it could be difficult to match the phone with the right person, a factor which may lead to "unnecessary distress".

- DAVID ADAMS

Do you have a tip or an idea that others could benefit from? Just add it on the Your Say below or simply send us an email to lifetips@sightmagazine.com.au.