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This guide is a quick list of things you might want that you just don't know you want yet. We will have full articles on the pros/cons and usage guides at a later point. Content 2. Hardware Software/Services In this section we will be talking about the software and services that can make your life a lot easier. Some of it is free, some of it is practically free considering the value. We will include links and prices in every short description. Dropbox
Available for all platforms (Mac, Windows, Linux), Dropbox is a very handy file synchronization tool. If you need to keep track of a lot of files for work and you use more than one computer, this tool is great. Simply install on all the computers you use, save the files you want to have on both computers in your Dropbox folder, and Dropbox will automatically sync your files to your other computers. If you make a small change, it will update automatically. No worries and it beats saving and e-mailing files to yourself or carrying them around on a USB drive that you could potentially lose or simply forget at home/work. If for some reason Dropbox isn't your cup of tea, there are many similar tools: Click this link to see alternatives. Some tools are more powerful in some ways, but more limited in others. Dropbox is simply the best-known. Price: Dropbox is free for 2 GB of space and upgraded accounts cost $9.99/mo. or $19.99/mo. depending on your desired storage space. Portable Apps
Portable Apps is a great free set of applications for Windows users. With Portable Apps you can install a suite of common, useful applications on your USB drive and carry them (and all associated preferences, documents, etc.) with you. Especially abroad you will probably find it invaluable if you use a computer fairly heavily for your job. Here are some example applications:
There are a lot more very useful applications to choose from, but I chose the apps that are most likely to be used. The big advantage to using Portable Apps is, wherever you go, your applications (in English) go with you. Not only that, but all of your preferences like bookmarks in your browser. Depending on your job, you may sometimes have to move between a lot of computers or be faced with using something like Microsoft Office in a different language. In many cases, it's much better to use an alternative program in your own language. Price: Free! VPN A VPN can be a very handy addition to your arsenal in the "feeling right at home" category in addition to being useful for a few other things. Here is a short list of what a VPN can do for you. First, it can make you and your computer look like you're in your home country. You might not know it if you haven't lived abroad yet, but when you visit certain websites that you're used to, they may treat you differently since you're now outside of the country. Good examples of this are video websites such as PBS, BBC, or Hulu. With a VPN you can trick these websites in to thinking you're still back home so you can access the content you want to see. Not only will video websites block you, but many will appear in your new home country's language and make it difficult/impossible to navigate properly to get the things you are after. If you are browsing for something to buy online, then sometimes items will simply not be listed or stop you from buying because you're in another country, which can be very frustrating. A good example of this is when buying PC games via Steam or Direct 2 Drive. Second, you can avoid some unwanted events at work. For instance, there may be blocks placed on your connection that prevent you from seeing certain websites. Generally, that's not a bad thing since it can help keep you on task, but occasionally you'll find that you'll be blocked from websites that serve a legitimate use. If you use your VPN, then all internet activity on your computer is hidden from local filtering and so you can see your websites uninterrupted and without anyone knowing what you're looking at. Price: Starting at $55/yr. if you select a special package. Link: VoIP (Skype, etc.) For a lot of people, this might be one of the most important things you can get. Having a program like Skype will give you the ability to call home phone numbers (yes, even your friend's cell phone) for an unlimited number of hours for an extremely low rate ($30/yr. in some cases). There is even an option to buy a phone number for your computer so friends can call you from their cell phones just by dialing a number. The only downside to this is you need to be near your computer to use it and you have to have a working internet connection. Besides that, it's cheap and it and works very well. In another guide we will discuss how to untether yourself from your computer a little bit and at least walk around your house. It's a bit complicated, but it works well. Price: Free to call computer to computer, wide price range to call phones. Hardware This is the section where we will be discussing some of the things that you might want to buy that could really help you out, depending on your habits, lifestyle, and plans. eBook Reader Past generations of book readers were no good in this Author's opinion. The idea was great, but in practice the practicality of such devices was just not that great. With the advent of e Ink there are now many devices that make eBook reading a very attractive option - especially for someone that travels a lot and needs to keep baggage at a minimum. What's new and great about them:
When you're living abroad you might find it difficult or even impossible to get the books you want without paying huge amounts in shipping, waiting a long time to receive them, or else a long travel time and scavenging adventure on your weekends. Instant delivery and cheap books from a single device makes sense to us. Price: $139 for the smallest Amazon Kindle and $359 for the larger screen Kindle DX. There is also the option of the Apple iPad for $545, but even though we support Apple, we don't recommend it if you're only looking for an eBook Reader. Mostly because of diminished battery life and a screen that is harder to read in a place that might produce glare (like outdoors or under fluorescent lights). Amazon Kindle (recommended) MP3 Player You are probably going to be doing a lot of traveling. That could come in the form of walking, biking, riding a scooter, carpooling, or riding a bus. Or you could be doing a lot of waiting. In any case, that time adds up. If you don't have a good MP3 player and you enjoy listening to music or the radio back home at all, we recommend you go ahead and dive in now. Here are some things you might be missing that you don't know about:
If you're not in to Apple products, you can still get a very nice MP3 player in your local country. Even if it's a brand you've never heard of it likely has an English menu system and you can still get podcasts from outside the iTunes Store. It's just much easier to do it from within.
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