Approximately 1,000 words

Luke Vavricek will be the speaker for the first and third weeks.

Jen Clausen will be the speaker for the second week.

See the end of the article for artwork Smart Computing provided for your articles.

Luke grew up in a small town in Nebraska.  After graduating high school he went to college at Northwest Missouri State University where he double-majored in Marketing and Business Management, and a few months after his graduation in May of 2004, he interviewed with Sandhills Publishing and shortly after was offered a job at the company working with Smart Computing!  Obviously, he’s been there ever since!

Jen Clausen is a Nebraska native. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Communication from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. Jen currently works with User Groups and various other projects for Smart Computing and has been with the company for a year and a half.

Smart Computing is a monthly computer magazine that is written for users of all skill levels. Whether you’re a novice or advanced computer user, Smart Computing has timely information to help improve your computer-related productivity. Each issue provides software and hardware reviews, how-to’s, tutorials, and easy-to-understand explanations of current technologies.

This helpful information can be found in such sections as Plugged In (articles about Internet and Email), Tech Support (solving PC problems), Windows (information on Windows 98, 2000, ME, and XP), Quick Studies (brief tutorials on how to get the most out of popular applications), and the monthly Cover Story (15-25 pages devoted to a specific topic–also featured on the cover).

Readers love Smart Computing for three main reasons:

1) Smart Computing is written in plain English. This means we won’t bog you down with technical terms or industry jargon and we always take the time to explain things thoroughly.

2) Smart Computing covers a broad range of topics for all users—it’s the perfect place to go to stay on top of current and emerging PC-related technologies.

3) Finally, Smart Computing is reader-driven, not advertiser-driven. This means that the magazine exists because of our readers, not our advertisers. The editorial-to-ad ratio is consistently 80-to-20, meaning that Smart Computing contains roughly 20% ads, compared to typical ad-driven publications in which 30%, 40%, or more pages are devoted to advertisements.

Smart Computing is your plain-English resource for safe, trouble-free, and productive computing!

SmartComputing.com is where the true value of a Smart Computing subscription lies. Not only can you access current and past issues of the magazine online, but there are numerous other benefits available*. Each user-friendly tool is designed to help you find the computing and troubleshooting information you need, when you need it. Some of the tools available at SmartComputing.com include:

Search All Articles: Put the power of SmartComputing.com’s extensive article archive to work for you by searching the article archives from current and past issues of Smart Computing and our sister publications, including PC Today, CE Lifestyles, CPU, and the Reference Series.

Tech Support Center: Just click the Tech Support logo or link, and you can access our entire database of error messages, the solutions knowledgebase, a huge archive of troubleshooting articles, maintenance procedures, tutorials on how to install just about anything, a computing dictionary and encyclopedia, and the new manufacturer tech support index!

Q&A Board: Find answers fast with SmartComptuing.com’s user-to-user Q&A Board. You can post questions and search for answers to avoid the long waits for costly tech support.

My Personal Library: This tool allows you to organize, sort and store tutorials, reviews, tips, and articles in one easy-to-access location. This library is saved on the Smart Computing Web site servers, so the information you save takes up no space on your hard drive! Plus, it’s available from anywhere you can access the Internet.

Daily Section: Every day you will find a computer-related tip, term, featured question from the Q&A Board, fun fact, and more. You can also take a sneak peek at the upcoming issue with Next Month’s Articles Online Now!

*Only paid subscribers get unlimited access to Smart Computing.com.

Did you know that Smart Computing offers FREE tech support? That’s right! There are no hidden charges and all calls are routed to our home office in Lincoln, Nebraska so you can get the tech support help you need, in plain English!

Bypass the hassles associated with other tech support services that charge an arm and a leg for their services. Not only will you speak to a live person, but we will go out of our way to help you find the answers you need!

Experience the personal service you deserve. Contact Smart Computing Tech Support today.

Phone: (800) 368-8304 – Monday through Friday, 7AM to 8PM CST

Email: webhelp@smartcomputing.com

Online: www.smartcomputing.com/techsupport

As most of you know, we LOVE our user groups here at Smart Computing!  Our goal is to make sure that you, the end computer user, have all of the technical and computing resources you need right at your fingertips to stay up-to-date with the ever-changing industry and be efficient and productive with the hardware and software you use everyday.  Here are just a few of the great benefits of the Smart Computing User Group Program:

Ÿ The Buy 5 Get 1 FREE Program – Help us help your group with this reward program. For every five paid subscriptions generated by your group, we will reward your group with one free subscription! Use this freebie as a door prize or volunteer incentive!

Ÿ Homepage Link On SmartComputing.com –We list a link to your group’s homepage from the user group section of SmartComputing.com.

Ÿ Monthly Newsletter – We send out a monthly newsletter to user groups. This newsletter contains tips, tricks, and articles that you can use in your user group’s newsletter and during your monthly group meetings and SIG classes.

Ÿ FREE Reprints – Smart Computing allows user groups to reprint our material for classroom and newsletter use. All we ask is that you contact us to receive permission. Call (800) 334-7458 or email user-groups@smartcomputing.com.

Ÿ Special Offers – Smart Computing makes special offers available at each user group presentation we make. We also have various special offers available throughout the year and at regional events.

Ÿ FREE Meeting Publicity – We will promote our upcoming meeting with your user group for free on our Web site. Check out http://www.smartcomputing.com/groups/events.aspx!