Hello and welcome to Mac's Picks of the Week. If you are interested in why this site exists, how it operates, and a little about Mac, then click on the Why and How Info link and see what is there. When you have finished please return to this Home page and see what sites I have chosen this week to receive a Mac's Picks of the Week award. Thank you for visiting and please share this site with friends, family, and colleagues who you feel will enjoy it.

This page is updated on a weekly basis, each Monday Australian (Queensland) time (GMT + 10 hours according to the world clock). Please come back and visit often.

As you will be aware, not all international correspondents get everything they investigate published in the general media. Also, some very well-known correspondents publish their own news via things like web sites and their own blogs. Such a man is Kevin Sites, from the CNN network. Kevin publishes his own blog at Kevin Sites Blog and I personally feel it is one that should be read, and read often. You may not like what he has to say at times, but it is what he has found. Maybe mainstream media should release more of its correspondents to do the same thing?

If you are concerned about internet security (who isn't?) then you will be aware of programs called KeyLoggers, which plant themselves onto your computer without your knowledge and log every keystroke, sending occasional reports of all the data it collects to its owner, again, without your knowledge and/or permission. It logs things like logins, passwords, personal information, etc and keyloggers are among some of the more difficult to block - until now. There is a lovely small piece of software which you can find and download to your system at the QFX Download - KeyScrambler Personal site, which interposes itself at your CPU level, scrambling all of your typed keystrokes and then unscrambling them again when they reach your browser. Keyloggers, thus, get garbled information, not your login, password, etc. I have also spoken to the writer of this software who is working on a version that will also protect your yahoo messenger, msn messenger, ICQ, etc logins and passwords as well. I suggest using what they have and keeping an eye out for the new version when it happens. This is really a great piece of freeware to use. Try it out.

Looking for something a little different for dinner? Or, maybe something traditional? Hop over to the Recipes - American and International site and have a browse around. I think you could well find something different to tantalise your tastebuds at your next meal.

Everyone knows that Yahoo is one of the better search facilities but did you also know that it has a place that allows you to search for video? It has, and if you hop over to the Yahoo! Video - Featured Videos site you will see those they feature at the moment, but also you can look for others they may have on almost any subject. Just be careful with your young folk - when I say "almost any subject", I mean it.

What makes an earthquake happen? If you answered the movement of the earth's crust and the rubbing of plates against each other you would be right. However did you know that many cultures have their own version of what happens to create this frightening phenomenon? Hop over to the FEMA For Kids Earthquake Legends site and have a look around. You'll be amazed at some of the folk lore that surrounds this easily explained natural occurrence. Scary stuff and, the stuff of legends.

When you log onto the net you are issued with what is known as an IP address. That sticks with you until you log off again. It is either static (you get the same number every time you log on) or dynamic (your ISP gives you a new one every time you connect). If you hop over to the IPID Your IP address is ... site you will see what your present IP address is in red at the top of the page. You will note that you also are showing the world what particular browser you use, which version, what language it is in, what your html port is on your system... and to be frank, the list goes on. Now maybe you can understand why you need all that security on your system?

Don't you just love new things? I can't wait to see new innovative things that someone somewhere has just figured out how to do or how to make. Luckily there is a site devoted to new inventors and inventions called the Inventor of the Week site. Hop over and have a look. You could also be looking at your next tech breakthrough as well as learning some history about things you already use. Interesting stuff.

Are you a reader? I mean, do you love reading books as well as the local newspaper etc? If you do you will love the Free eBooks - Project Gutenberg site, which now boasts over 18,000 free downloadable books for you to read. The name refers to the inventor of a movable type printing press and though these aren't the type of book you hold in your hand, they are the real article none the less. Have a good look, find one that interests you, and read away *smile*.

When you signed up with your ISP you were told that your internet speed would be xyz and most of us take it that that is what we are experiencing. However that may not necessarily be true. To find out what your speed really is, hop over to the Speed Test Home site, do their test, and find out once and for all how fast you really are surfing the net. Wanna bet it's not what you thought it was? *smiles* Don't panic. Almost no one gets the full number.

Do you enjoy visiting museums? I do, much to my family's chagrin when they were younger. Still, now I can visit many of them right here online. If you hop over to the Welcome to MW On-line Museums and the Web On-line site you will be able to as well. Happy exploring.

Was I really the only one who hated math in school? Well, let's say I just never really understood it, whereas my eldest daughter, Heather, who inherited her brains from her mother, was, and is a math and logic lover. If you find you struggle with it, or indeed, if you teach math yourself, you may well find that the site called MathDL - Digital Classroom Resources a very useful site indeed. It has all manner of things that can help in the understanding of math of various forms. Have a look. Even I might learn it finally. *smile*

I enjoy things like optical illusions. If you do as well, have a look at the Optical Illusion - Optical Illusions and Visual Phenomena site and I'm sure you'll find things to amuse you for hours. Neat looking eyes watching you as well... a little scary maybe but neat all the same. Enjoy.

Rebecca Game of "Digital Women - Women with their modems running...", is my web designer and a graphic designer who is superb to say the least. Her site, dedicated to women on the net, is worth seeing and bookmarking for future reference. If you are looking for links of interest to women, please visit her site. And if you need the best graphic designer on the planet, I seriously can't recommend her more highly. Oh yes, and when you visit her site, tell her Mac sent you. Thank you Rebecca. I am eternally grateful for your assistance and expertise. ;-)