http://www.househacker.com/ househacker/tags/tips Making Every Pixel Count", which is about the importance of properly photographing your home for online real estate sites.

From the article:

When selling properties online, agents and Web designers say that the pictures buyers see of houses and apartments for sale are often the first ? and sometimes the only ? chance for a seller to make a good impression. Less-than-flattering pictures can turn buyers off and lead to lonely open houses.

So why is this so important? Well, some stats, from the piece:

Eighty percent of people across the country who bought a new home last year used the Internet while house hunting, and they rated photographs as the most useful tool in their search, according to a survey of buyers and sellers by the National Association of Realtors. The survey also found that 24 percent of home buyers got their first glimpses of their new homes on the Web, up from a mere 2 percent in 1997.

And let's face it, this number is probably going to continue to tend upward. If you've ever searched for a house or apartment online, you've probably been surprised and/or frustrated at the lack of pictures some listers provide. As many people will tell you, all the details in the world are still taken with a grain of salt when pictures aren't provided. Unless listers are trying to hide something, why not give web searchers what they want?

And although the mere act of posting pictures is crucial to attracting web-savvy prospects nowadays, the variance in the quality of the pictures can change the buyer's impression drastically. Be sure to see the audio slideshow that accompanies the article for examples of this.

Via 37Signals]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Taking-Better-Real-Estate-Photos
This article by George Ou should help sort things out. He covers the advantages and disadvantages of:

Projection: Pro: price. Con: viewing angle.
Plasma:Pro: resolution, colour, viewing angle. Con: price.
LCD:Pro: picture quality. Con: expensive large size sets.

George also advises, bluntly, against getting suckered into buying so-called high end cables:

Consumers need to get the concept of "monster cables" out of their minds since they DO NOT apply to the digital world. There is zero difference in quality between the cheapest $12 HDMI to DVI cable versus the $100 gold plated "monster cable".

He also makes available some colour gradient graphics and explains how to use them in testing the colour quality of an HDTV.

This is a great piece for anyone in the market for a new HDTV, and it's especially useful for those of us that may be more than a little confused and/or overwhelmed by variations in HDTV technology.

Also see this previous post on HDTV resolutions. ]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/ZDNet-Offers-Thorough-Rundown-on-Numerous-HDTV-Options
The antennas supplied with your router are designed to be omni-directional, meaning they broadcast in all directions around the router. If your router is near an outside wall, half of the wireless signals will be sent outside your home, and much of your router's power will be wasted. Most routers don't allow you to increase the power output, but you can make better use of the power. Upgrade to a hi-gain antenna that focuses the wireless signals only one direction. You can aim the signal in the direction you need it most.

and also changing the router's wireless channel:

Wireless routers can broadcast on several different channels, similar to the way radio stations use different channels. In the United States and Canada, these channels are 1, 6, and 11. Just like you'll sometimes hear interference on one radio station while another is perfectly clear, sometimes one wireless channel is clearer than others. Try changing your wireless router's channel through your router's configuration page to see if your signal strength improves. You don't need to change your computer's configuration, because it'll automatically detect the new channel.

Check out the rest of the tips to ensure your wireless network is running at it's optimum level.

Link: 10 tips for improving your wireless network.]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Microsoft-Offers-Ten-Tips-on-Improving-your-Wireless-Network Enviroscaping to Conserve Energy is an interesting guide on maximizing your home's energy efficiency by modifying various aspects of its immediate environment, or "Microclimate".

A microclimate is any small, local area within which the effects of weather are both relatively uniform and easily modified. Microclimate modification involves the best use of structural and landscape design elements to maximize or limit sunlight, shade and air movement. Structural modifications involve the design of the house and associated construction (walkways, fences, patios). Landscape modifications (enviroscaping) involve the use of plants to further increase or decrease the impact of sun and wind upon the local environment.

This site, which applies mostly to homes in hot weather climates such as Florida, offers a lot of interesting ways that a home owner can creatively reduce energy usage. Some of the suggestions apply to potential home builders, such as home orientation (a house is more energy efficient if it is oriented with the long axis running east-west), however the majority of the tips apply to existing residences.

There are many examples of "enviroscaping" strategies on the site, such as optimal tree placement for maximum shading, tree type (In winter, the sun is low in the southern sky. Southern exposures of a home in north and central Florida can receive free benefits of passive solar heating, provided that deciduous trees are used along the southern exposures. Deciduous trees shed their leaves in the fall, and are bare during the coldest months of the year.), fencing options (fences vary in amount of air circulation), shrub and vine placement along walls, increasing air conditioner efficiency and much more.

Link: Enviroscaping to Conserve Energy: a Guide to Microclimate Modification]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Enviroscaping-to-Conserve-Energy
From the site:

Keep necessities within easy reach. You don't want to waste precious time during dinner prep looking for things. Make a place in the hot zone (around the stove and the sink) for the essentials: oil, vinegar, knives, cutting board. Move special-occasion cookware, like a fondue pot, out of cabinets in the zone so what's left can be neatly organized and easily spotted.

And also:

Make recycling efficient, too. Having a bin for bottles and cans right next to the one for regular trash, instead of out in the garage or in the mudroom, streamlines end-of-meal cleanup.

Link: RealSimple.com ]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Keeping-an-Organized-Kitchen handy list of home energy reducing techniques that will not only help make your home a little greener, but will also put some money back in your pocket in the process. Tips cover heating and air conditioning improvements, greener gardening, hardwood floor choices and a few more.

Wikibooks also has a very large page of energy saving tips that should be useful to most of us, including efficient heating and cooling ideas as well as lighting, water, household waste and electricity reducing suggestions. ]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Ten-Easiest-Ways-to-Green-Your-Home cables? With the number of peripherals many of us use, it doesn't take long before an evil wireball from hell forms below our desk. An annoying, eye-sore of a cabling situation can quickly become something that is easier to relegate to the to-do list then to actually deal with. Perhaps seeing this sweet, organized cabling solution will help by motivating us to finally take action.

This step-by-step guide from Lifehacker.com uses an Ikea cable management basket, some Zip ties and a power bar to give a computer workstation the appearance of cordlessness. There's nothing groundbreaking about what's being done here, but there is something about seeing great results that can inspire one to take needed action.]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Be-CordFree-by-Untangling-your-Computer-Workspace home theatre. Topics covered include cabling choices, speaker positioning, video tuning, connection types and a ton more. Here's a television tip, from the article:

Try this simple visual test to determine if you have your video image too bright or contrasty. Look at any white area on the screen during scenes from live TV or a movie. It could be the white shirt or blouse on an actor or TV host. Are you able to see detail within the white areas? If you can't, then you are likely running the brightness too high, which washes out fine detail in bright areas. So lower the brightness and/or contrast. There's a reason why control rooms for TV productions and telecasts are always dimly lit: it's because video images on the monitors look best in a dim or darker room and the greatest range of colors and tones can be displayed.

Alan's website is also packed full of home theatre information and worth checking out. ]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Detailed-Article-on-Setting-up-your-First-Home-Theatre
Martha Stewart's got a couple of basement organization tips, as well as a basement layout that suggests different areas for long term and short term storage.

The Dollar Stretcher has a bunch of tips as well:

Handling Sentimentals. If you haven't organized the basement or attic in awhile, be prepared to take a trip down Memory Lane--old photographs, games that haven't been touched in years, ice skates, granny's silverware, and so on. Try to put these items to one side until you've reached your organizing goal for the day. Then, reminisce with your family later on that night after dinner, rather than right now. This way, you'll finish what you set out to accomplish. ]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Basement-Tuneup-Ideas excellent list of random tips and tricks for getting things done around the house, from fixing your squeaky floor (use baby powder!) to sanding down the bottom of a door:

If a door is dragging on the floor or threshold--making scraping sounds-place sandpaper on top of a stack of magazines and position the pile under the door. (Use enough magazines so that the door hits the sandpaper.) Then work the door back and forth over the abrasive.

Now that's pretty clever.

Via 43Folders.com]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Old-Text-File-Jam-Packed-with-Tips-and-Tricks these foam eavestrough fillers, mind you), to giving your dishwasher a tuneup to silencing squeaky floors. They've also offered a list of the regular maintenance tasks that every homeowner should follow.

]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Quick-Home-Repairs-from-Popular-Mechanics here.

From the videos available on Homegain.com:

...thoroughly cleaning and removing clutter from your home can be worth up to five times what it cost you to do it."]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Best-Return-on-Investment-Home-Improvement-Tips Lifehacker has a nice howto on setting up your own personal web server, giving you the ability to do things like stream mp3s from your personal collection to work, set up a web based shared calendar for your family or give yourself quick access to your personal files from anywhere you've got net access. The system is password protected of course, but it is built on a windows box, so beware and be patched.]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Nice-Howto-on-Setting-up-your-own-Personal-Web-Server how to use a hammer) to intermediate (repairing cracked tile, repairing a defective light switch) to more advanced topics (basement foundation repair). They've also got a nice list of reference materials on topics ranging from the various nail and screw sizes to weights and measures and the metric system.

*Regarding PDFs: it's been said before, but Foxit Reader is a really fast and lightweight alternative to Acrobat Reader that deserves some attention. Give it a shot. ]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Nice-List-of-General-Home-Repair-Howtos here are some tips on making the most out of the space you have available to you, including things like where to place the toilet, amount of space required for sinks, showers and baths, as well as storage and safety ideas.]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Good-List-of-Bathroom-Design-Tips Fleur de Lys and the next could be the Bull. Go crazy! The tutorials walk the reader through each step with clear illustrations and directions. As a bonus, all the folds are rated for difficulty (simple to hard), so you'll know where to begin.]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Great-Site-with-Fancy-Napkin-Folding-Tutorials cool Japanese shirt folding technique.

Edit: Fixed the link. Thanks et. ]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/How-to-Fold-a-Fitted-Sheet The Cooking Blog has an excellent list of tips and tricks for making life easier in the kitchen. Pros may know a lot of these already, but clever tips like: "Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of a sugar cone to prevent ice cream drips" are sure to be new to many, if not most, of the kitchen novices among us.]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Great-List-of-Kitchen-Tips-and-Tricks BabyCenter.com has a great, idea packed article on organizing your home through a concerted familial effort. The article has plenty of useful tips for anyone feeling that they are losing the clutter battle. Another solid resource for a variety of general purpose organizational ideas is Online Organizing's aggregation of organization tips from the pros.]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Secrets-of-Organized-Families "Big Chill Fridges" should wait until after you've maximized your kitchen's usable space with this article from SignOnSanDiego.com. The article is full of tips for uncramping your kitchen, even if you're working with very little square footage and/or counter space.

Regarding clutter: see Frugal Homemaker's "Taking Control of Your Clutter" for ideas.

If the kitchen re-org puts you in clean sweep mode, then the plethora of tips over at HowToCleanAnything.com should save some serious elbow grease.]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/How-to-Best-Make-Use-of-a-Small-Kitchen

Turn your hot water heater down. Most hot water heater's medium setting is fine for most uses. Check your dishwasher manual for minimum recommended temperatures just to be sure.

Consider a hot water heater blanket. Minor debate on the subject here.

Combat heat loss by caulking around doors and windows.

Install compact fluorescent light bulbs.

Change your furnace filter monthly. The less work your furnace has to do to push air throughout the house, the better.

Drop the temperature in your home to 68°F (20°C). Install a programmable thermostat and set it to a lower temperature at night as well as when you are out for longer periods of time.

Run foam insulation on the hot water pipe coming from your hot water heater. Foam insulation sells for pennies per foot.

If you suspect your furnace is due for maintenance, have it done as early in the season as possible. It's better to have the most efficiently running furnace for the entirety of the season to maximize energy savings.

Energy efficient appliances often qualify for government rebates and of course offer the monthly savings of a reduced energy bill.

Check your garage door for gaps and seal around it with weather stripping.

Install foam electrical outlet and light switch seals. This may seem futile, as each outlet only lets a small amount of heat escape, but when you consider the number of outlets and switches in the average home, the aggregate heat loss can be significant.

Turn off electrical devices you are not using. According to this site, a ball park figure you can use in calculating annual costs of electrical devices is one dollar per one watt (i.e. a 60w light bulb, left running year round, would cost around $60 dollars). Obviously not many things run year round, but for some, this rule of thumb would be easier to conceptualize than kw/h numbers. So, a single 150W PC, therefore, would run you about $150/yr.

Add insulation wherever needed - check your attic or between accessible walls.

Open the blinds or drapes as much as possible on sunny winter days - and at night, to keep that heat in the house, close them.

Use clear cling-wrap style window coverings available at most hardware stores. The plastic simply adheres to the window sill with the help of your hair dryer and the provided thin tape, forming an airtight seal.

Don't heat rooms that you don't use. Close off vents and tape them air-tight to prevent wasted heat.

Install reduced flow aerators in your shower. This will cut down on hot water usage.

Check out the DIY network's home energy audit to trace the source of heat loss in your home, without calling in the pros.

Stay warm. ]]> http://www.househacker.com/permanent/Winter-Energy-Saving-Tips-with-DIY-Audit