Sell your old books
Time for a little light relief after the recent heavy stuff, I think! Following a recent clear-out at home, in which we sold several books (mostly technical manuals) on Amazon, I wondered if any of you have heard of or used this facility to get rid of unwanted items? It really is quite easy, especially if you already have an Amazon account.
First, go through your bookshelves to identify items which may be saleable; enter the title or ISBN into Amazon, and check how many of them are for sale 'Used'. If it looks as if there may be a demand for the title in question, then decide on a selling price - I usually pick a number slightly lower than the bottom price - and then enter the details requested. That is basically all there is to it! Of course you may find that there are hundreds of copies available at 50p, you may decide that it isn't worthwhile :-) .
One category of books that apparently sells well is children's books. So, if you are hoarding things that you read as a child, you may find that they are in demand from others who also had them when they were young!
Amazon do take a commission on each item sold, but the main benefits of using them are that they handle all the payment administration, and books just sit on their site until they sell or until they are withdrawn.
Bypass Vista; go straight to Windows 7!
As some of you already know I have been running a pre-release test version of Windows 7 for some time now, and believe it to be far superior to Vista in many ways; speed, usability, and stability, to name but three. Today is the first date on which you can pre-order Windows 7,which becomes available on 22nd October. Microsoft have authorised a small number of retailers to sell W7 at heavily discounted prices, depending on the version that you are interested in. For example, W7 Home Premium, which will suit the majority of home users, is for sale at around £50, as opposed to the predicted full price of £150. W7 Professional can be bought for around £90 instead of £250. One good thing about these licences is that they are full retail versions, which means that they can be re-used on other PC's if you upgrade your machine. Most licences are OEM (Other Equipment Manufacturer), which means that they are tied to the PC you buy and cannot be moved to replacement machines.For more information about this offer, and about the features of each version, go to http://www.microsoft.com/uk/windows/buy/offers/pre-order.aspx. I should warn you that the number of licences available is limited; I tried to buy from ebuyer this morning as they were slightly cheaper than other places, only to find that their allocation of 300 licences had gone within a few minutes of being available this morning!
You are eligible for this offer if you already have a genuine copy of XP or Vista, and your PC meets the minimum hardware specification. To be sure, go to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/upgrade-advisor.aspx and download the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor tool, which will check your PC's hardware configuration.
Time for a little light relief after the recent heavy stuff, I think! Following a recent clear-out at home, in which we sold several books (mostly technical manuals) on Amazon, I wondered if any of you have heard of or used this facility to get rid of unwanted items? It really is quite easy, especially if you already have an Amazon account.
First, go through your bookshelves to identify items which may be saleable; enter the title or ISBN into Amazon, and check how many of them are for sale 'Used'. If it looks as if there may be a demand for the title in question, then decide on a selling price - I usually pick a number slightly lower than the bottom price - and then enter the details requested. That is basically all there is to it! Of course you may find that there are hundreds of copies available at 50p, you may decide that it isn't worthwhile :-) .
One category of books that apparently sells well is children's books. So, if you are hoarding things that you read as a child, you may find that they are in demand from others who also had them when they were young!
Amazon do take a commission on each item sold, but the main benefits of using them are that they handle all the payment administration, and books just sit on their site until they sell or until they are withdrawn.
Bypass Vista; go straight to Windows 7!
As some of you already know I have been running a pre-release test version of Windows 7 for some time now, and believe it to be far superior to Vista in many ways; speed, usability, and stability, to name but three. Today is the first date on which you can pre-order Windows 7,which becomes available on 22nd October. Microsoft have authorised a small number of retailers to sell W7 at heavily discounted prices, depending on the version that you are interested in. For example, W7 Home Premium, which will suit the majority of home users, is for sale at around £50, as opposed to the predicted full price of £150. W7 Professional can be bought for around £90 instead of £250. One good thing about these licences is that they are full retail versions, which means that they can be re-used on other PC's if you upgrade your machine. Most licences are OEM (Other Equipment Manufacturer), which means that they are tied to the PC you buy and cannot be moved to replacement machines.For more information about this offer, and about the features of each version, go to http://www.microsoft.com/uk/windows/buy/offers/pre-order.aspx. I should warn you that the number of licences available is limited; I tried to buy from ebuyer this morning as they were slightly cheaper than other places, only to find that their allocation of 300 licences had gone within a few minutes of being available this morning!
You are eligible for this offer if you already have a genuine copy of XP or Vista, and your PC meets the minimum hardware specification. To be sure, go to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/upgrade-advisor.aspx and download the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor tool, which will check your PC's hardware configuration.
Medical update
The Oncology Centre have confirmed that my planning appointments are this Friday morning at 0930, and treatment starts on Monday. All I need to do now is decide whether I want a wig (probably not), or what style hat I want to protect my head; I quite like those turbans which we see all the time on the news, although they are usually worn by the bad guys :-)
I’ve also just received by email in the past few minutes a draft copy of a referral letter to the Cromwell, asking them to consider me for Gamma Knife treatment. Presumably my consultant has thought about this since yesterday and has decided that this is the more appropriate of the two advanced treatments which are available. It sounds as if this could take place in early August, immediately after the whole head treatment.
Sorry for the length of this post, but, like buses, news seems to arrive all at once!
I’ve also just received by email in the past few minutes a draft copy of a referral letter to the Cromwell, asking them to consider me for Gamma Knife treatment. Presumably my consultant has thought about this since yesterday and has decided that this is the more appropriate of the two advanced treatments which are available. It sounds as if this could take place in early August, immediately after the whole head treatment.
George
You'd look good in a turban!
ReplyDeleteJan x
i can't quite imagine you in a turban! would be an interesting sight though :)
ReplyDeletejosh.
As you know, I do a lot of knitting and I could knit you a hat with a pom pom !!!!!!!!! I think pink would suit you !!!!!!
ReplyDeletelove Bren x
Hi George,
ReplyDeleteThe book club mafia drew my attention to your blog and I'm glad they did as it is a fine piece of work. I think your tone is remarkable, I hope (but doubt) I would display such fortitude if ever faced with similar issues.
BTW I am something of an ebay veteran (CD-Simon, a highly stared trader). I found a similar phenomenon to you but with 'niche' music CDs.
Simon
mum says turbans are out and wigs no longer look like dead cats however i have recently started knitting i have shocking pink,or baby blue wool which one do u fancy? second thoughts perhaps go for the wig mum loves a challenge. i have looked at the treatments on offer and i see that 60s music is on the music list you may need to learn a few tunes . keep smiling !!
ReplyDelete=]
Danielle
xxx
Are you sure you are on the right blog? I have red hair - what makes you think pink might be my colour:-)
ReplyDelete