There is a great website at https://www.lds.org/youth/for-the-strength-of-youth?lang=eng that provides inspiring messages on issues relevant to the youth today.  The messages ring true and will help our youth learn how to develop moral strength and good character.  The site also features articles, videos, and music associated with each topic.

Use the internet for good today and take a step to strengthen your rising generation.

Assuming you already have an internet connection, Skype allows you and your loved ones to carry on a conversation for free over the internet.  All you have to do is head over to the Skype web page, make sure you have the required equipment, and sign up for an account.  Your loved ones will have to do that as well.  Once your both setup, exchange your contact information and wait for that magic ringing sound.

Don’t let cost keep you from talking with family and loved ones that live far away.  Answer the call today and re-kindle those precious relationships.

How do I do it?  The IRS has a great page that will help you get started.  You can then pick from a selection of free options for filling out and filing your taxes.  Many of these solutions are entirely online and do not require you to download or install anything.

With the April 18th deadline fast approaching,  you’ll appreciate the help that the online filing will give you.  File your taxes today and then on the 18th you can just relax with a delicious snack and a good movie while others stand in the long lines at the post office.

http://tech.lds.org/

“Today the information highway, with all of its means of communication, affords an opportunity for us to carry the mission with a thousandfold greater speed and ease than Peter, James, and John and the other intrepid disciples.”–President James E. Faust, Ensign, May 1999, 18-19

Make sure you check out the forums and wiki.

Want to help work on some of these projects check out this site:

https://tech.lds.org/wiki/index.php/Getting_Involved_with_Projects

Want to help with other simple acts of service, check out:

http://simpleacts.lds.org/

There are great opportunities to serve and help others while doing the stuff that you think is fun.  Take some time to look at what you can do.

Want to watch or listen to it live over the internet?  Go to http://new.lds.org/general-conference/watch?lang=eng within half an hour of when it starts.

Want to watch a previous session?  Check out the archives at http://new.lds.org/general-conference/sessions/2010/10?lang=eng.

Want to watch from your mobile device?  Check out the Mormon Channel App for your device at: http://radio.lds.org/eng/how-to-listen/mobile-applications.

Today’s technology really makes it possible for anyone with an internet connection to tune in to and enjoy the conferences of the church.

General searches on your project can reveal many helpful links with tips and recommendations for getting it done right. There are usually some YouTube videos available that show someone actually doing the job so you can watch how it’s done.

There are some sites which specialize in helping you as well.

Instructables is a web-based documentation platform where passionate people share what they do and how they do it, and learn from and collaborate with others.

wikiHow is a collaboration building the world’s largest, high-quality how-to manual. Eventually, it will contain accurate instructions on almost every imaginable topic as a multilingual resource.

FindHow’s Mission is to empower people to achieve success at every task, in whatever role and stage of life they are in, by simplifying and speeding access to trusted, reliable How-To content on the Internet.

eHow.com is an online community dedicated to providing visitors, like you, the ability to research, share, and discuss solutions and tips for completing day-to-day tasks and projects.

Good luck with your projects!  Now if something goes wrong, you can blame it on someone else.

Things as They Really Are – By Elder David A. Bednar Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

Positive Uses of the Internet – By Elizabeth Stitt

When you get to the book and chapter that you’re interested in reading, notice in the upper left hand corner the link to listen (written in the language you have chosen).  If you click this you will be able to listen, or download the audio of that passage of scripture.  Both reading and listening will allow you to learn about the pronunciation and language structure.

There are many resources available for learning languages online.  Don’t pass up the valuable, and free, resources found at http://www.lds.org.

We have K9 installed on the “kids” computer (http://www1.k9webprotection.com/). (It actually makes a barking noise if a site is accessed that is not allowed) It has worked pretty well and lets you type in a password to override the settings for any given web page.  We have customized it a little bit to allow some sites (like Facebook).  It locks out the internet after so many blocks in so much time.

Probably the simplest and most effective protection we have used is to put our computer out in the open and have a password to unlock it.  Sometimes it is a pain but if we have to log them in, then we know when they are on and can keep track of what they are doing (because we are around).  We have the computer set to lock when the screensaver kicks in.  Sometimes we turn this off when somebody has to do homework while we are gone or something.

On the “parents” computer I have Privoxy installed (http://www.privoxy.org/).  This is basically a proxy that the internet traffic goes through.  It blocks most of the ads and junk that I don’t want to see anyway.  It helps from accidently coming across something I didn’t want to see.

Another tool that we use on both computers is the Firefox browser with the add-ons of Adblock Plus (http://adblockplus.org/en/) and NoScript (http://noscript.net/).  Adblock Plus will block the ads and will also let me right-click on any image and block it so that I don’t have to see it.  This works good if there is a certain image that keeps showing up that I don’t like (e.g. somebody’s profile picture in a blog).  NoScript prevent scripts from running unless you allow them.  It can be a bit of a pain to “allow” all of the good sites but after awhile you’re pretty well set and are more protected visiting new sites.

The last thing we use on the “parents” computer is OpenDNS (http://www.opendns.com/).  We have the single computer set up to use OpenDNS but you can also set this up on the router so that all the computers will use it.  Signing in on their website (it’s free) allows you to set up filtering options to block the types of sites that you don’t want.  When any application requests a web page (like www.google.com) it goes to OpenDNS (instead of your internet providers DNS service) to convert it to the IP numbers (like 208.67.216.231).  If an application requests a page that falls into a blocked category, OpenDNS will just return their generic web page instead.  This has been helpful to block bad or unwanted pages that you didn’t mean to go to.

Probably your best option is to try out the different choices and keep and use what works for you.