5 Cool Widgets To Add To Your Blog

Widgets are the latest easy, cool, handy and a very simple way to add some more color and value to your blog. There are any number of widgets available on the internet to choose from. You need to decide what you want on your blog. Some widgets can make you money and add value to your blog while others are simply to provide information like for example, the weather report, number of visitors to your blog, your page ranking etc..However, just remember the golden rule, Don't overdo it! Just add the appropriate widgets to your blog and see the results. I have compiled a list of 10 cool widgets to add to your blog.

1. Histats.com counters: Another cool widget to add to your blog is this hit counter from Histats.com. It's a free stats counter service, with hundreds of cool counters to choose from. It gives you Real time stats, number of online users and pages visted among many other exciting features. Display this widget or you can keep it hidden.

2. How Much Is Your Blog Worth: Display your blog's worth with this simple widget. Dane Carlson created this little applet using Technorati's API which computes and displays your blog's worth using the same link to dollar ratio as the AOL-Weblogs Inc deal.

3. Widgetbox: Whatever you’re doing on the web - blogging, socialising, or doing business - Widgetbox widgets make your site or profile more fun, friendly, and functional. They have the biggest selection of widgets to choose from which can be theme oriented. It’s fast easy and free. Try it.

4. Free World Clock: This cool widget provides fashionable clocks that you can easily embed in your web page. All you need to do is simply paste the tag on your web page.

5. AuctionAds: Another cool and handy widget to add to your blog. This widget displays auctioned items on eBay, and gives you a percentage of the price paid when someone buys an item. Cool way to earn money.

Like I said in the first paragraph, there are any number of widgets available on the internet to choose from. So, be careful in choosing the ones that would be most appropriate to your blog or web page. Let us know if you find anything else exciting in the widget world worth knowing about.

Hypermiling - The Latest And Best ways To Decrease Fuel Consumption!

What is Hypermiling? It is nothing but a new term that has cropped up due to the increase in gasoline or fuel prices all over forcing all the motorists to find new ways in which they can drive their vehicle so as to get the maximum mileage out of it! That is, maximum miles per gallon!

We are all aware that the gasoline prices are hitting new records on a daily basis, all over the world! This is emerging as a very serious problem as also the biggest economic concern for the general public. Therefore, to save on gasoline and extract the maximum mileage, the motorists in the US are looking to new and innovative or skillful ways to drive their cars/vehicles, known as "hypermiling".

The different ways suggested to achieve this is by:

# pumping up tyres to the maximum (more than that mentioned in the manuals)

# Using Engine oil of low viscosity

# Drafting behind other vehicles on the highway to reduce the aerodynamic drag. (this method, though controversial, is known to be practised by the truck drivers).

# there are other advanced techniques to help hypermiling, like keeping speed down, accelerating gently, avoiding excessive idling and removing cargo racks to also cut down on aerodynamic drag. 

Well, you generally get the hang of it? Basically, different people devise their own ways to save on fuel and most people who have done this have admitted to the fact that they have almost doubled the official fuel consumption of their vehicle.

A CNN.com article gives a very detailed explanation regarding the basic concepts behind Hypermiling, you can read them here at this link:

http://money.cnn.com/2006/05/01/Autos/driving_for_mpg/index.htm

Here is another link with some more tips on hypermiling:

Hypermiling : Ways to decrease your fuel consumption

http://www.hypermiling.com/car-mpg.html

Well, all I can say is that I think the time has come when each and everyone of us has the responsibility to find new ways to "save energy" and help in conserving all the resources that we are left with on this planet! Go on, Do Your Bit!

First Full Review Of Mahindra Logan 1.6 GLS

I searched the net far and wide to look for suitable and well meaning reviews about the Mahindra Logan. But, alas, i got nothing. I had first driven it in Hyderabad in the month of October and even though the i liked it i was not sure whether it was a good choice compared to the Honda city which i had been eying for a long time before i even heard about the Logan. Six months of deep thinking and forcing myself to be practical i finally gave in and went in for the Mahindra Logan. The reasons were very obvious and i list them down below:

(a) The Honda city body seemed to be fragile, in fact all the cars i have seen have a dent. If that was not enough i saw dealer adverts specifying zero waiting period for body repairs. Mahindra Logan on the other hand looks and is sturdy.

(b) The shock absorbers, Honda city's are much better initially but how long they would last on Indian roads is any body's guess.

(c) Resale value - I am not the kind who would sell the car anyways

(d) Mileage - I had a gut feeling Mahindra would deliver the same or better

(e) Maintenance cost- The Mahindra Logan spares are about 60 % cheaper than Maruti SX4, Honda is way much more.

(f) While I was still trying to make up my mind, the roads got flooded with Honda citys. No novelty in possessing one any more.

Any ways i went ahead and bought a Mahindra Logan 1.6 GLS. I don't drive much so the diesel did not make any sense. The buying experience was great. Goel Motors in Mohali, Punjab, did not leave any stone unturned to make me feel special and had a delivery ceremony with red carpet, unveiling and all.

After having read half baked reviews of the Logan on the Internet i was looking for those very things while driving and i was shocked about some things which people had written. First the Engine. They do not come any smoother. The 1.6 engine in the Logan made sure that i did not have to continually change gears. It climbed uphill even in the fourth. The sound proofing is great. You can hardly hear the engine inside and at times on the crossing lights one wonders whether the engine is on or not. The A/C is fabulous which is obvious for the big cars.

The suspension is great and i passed over many a big pits which felt like minor distortions in the road. I touched 150 kmph on the highway and there was no obvious strain on the engine. The car handled it well and would have taken a bit more had my guts permitted me to do so.

Now comes the big part, the mileage. From Chandigarh to Delhi i got a whopping 18.5 km/l without A/C and mind you this was a new car which was opened up to extra fuel. So one can assume that it would give at least 19-20 once the engine was retuned after the first service. Overall i got about 16.5 over a 2000 km run with the A/C on for about 70% of the total run. This is something that all other petrol cars will struggle to match.

As advertised, the Logan has the biggest space on the inside as well as in the boot and well endowed full bodied adults can easily fit in. The boot is a bit too big for any kind of family traveling in a car. Power steering, windows, central locking, fog lamps, music system, defoggers, remote boot opener, driver seat height adjustment, lumbar support etc are features which one does not get with any other cars at this price.

Talking about price. The car is 5.25 lakhs on road in Chandigarh, compared to more than 7 lakhs for Honda City. The Logan 1.6 GLS is probably the only fully loaded car one can buy for such acheap price and it does not disappoint at all.