From the monthly archives:

December 2006

How to change your own IdahoFallz.com password

by Joe Vandal December 29, 2006

When you register at IdahoFallz.com or any site powered by WordPress, you are emailed a password the system generates. If you ever lose your password, it can also generate a new password for you.
These are not the prettiest passwords nor the easiest to remember. Here is how you can change your password in a simple [...]

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Smokers Are Unique Fools

by Joe Vandal December 28, 2006

They say the most annoying preachers are the reformed, the reborn. I must admit I smoked for a couple years back in high school, and yes, I judge smokers harshly.
The biggest differences between now and back when I smoked are the widespread availability of information demonstrating the detrimental effects that smoking has on your body. [...]

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Are RINOs Stampeding Over Idaho Community College Plans?

by Joe Vandal December 27, 2006

It appears Idaho is doomed to repeat our past mistakes. Our elected leaders will likely fail to make changes that will encourage more of our high school graduates to become college graduates.
First, there is a problem. Idaho’s rate of high school graduates going onto college and completing college is among the worst in America. This [...]

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Idaho Falls’ Best Sledding Areas

by Joe Vandal December 26, 2006

We finally got our snow delivered in southeast Idaho! Sledding is a great physical (and cheap) activity to take children out to do here. I wonder the same thing each year: where are the best sledding spots?

There is the small hill in Community Park, close but likely crowded.
There is the Ucon pit next to [...]

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New Christmas Computer Tips

by Joe Vandal December 22, 2006

I have a few tips and downloads for anyone you know who is lucky enough to get a new computer for Christmas. These little things will help ensure they get started on the right foot and make their overall experience much better than without.
You can really help them out by downloading a few of these [...]

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Should Idaho Falls require disguised cell phone towers?

by Joe Vandal December 21, 2006

Here is a four-minute report about communities that require cell phone towers to be disguised as other structures. According to CBS’ report, the cost is about four times greater than “naked” cell towers. I do not think those costs can be passed onto customers in the local areas, though.

So some communities have required better aesthetic [...]

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Tom Luna Must Directly Answer Allegations or Face Consequences

by Joe Vandal December 20, 2006

What we have here is a failure to communicate.
Our elected Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tom Luna, has failed to adequately respond to last week’s AP story that he exaggerated his work with the USDE.
Rather than defend himself directly, Tom chose to cite a response written by his former boss, Bill Hansen. Hansen’s piece [...]

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Going online to find things to do around Idaho Falls

by Joe Vandal December 18, 2006

This is the fifth installment of a series published every Monday called “IF Online”. Each article will examine an aspect of our Idaho Falls area that has an online presence. This week I will examine Idaho Falls’ online events calenders.
Creating an ultimate local events calendar was about the tenth idea I had when designing IdahoFallz.com. [...]

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Where are the Biggest Idaho Falls Christmas Light Displays?

by Joe Vandal December 17, 2006

Christmas season is nearing the end, but there is still another week of time to drive around and look at the holiday lights. Some homes hang a few up (like mine), some hang many up, and then there are those few that hang so many up you wonder at their electric bill.

These are the “doozies” [...]

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Keyboard Shortcuts Are Path to Tech Expertise

by Joe Vandal December 15, 2006

I often get to help others with computers. I have to quickly size up their technology experience, because it determines the depth of instructions I give. I will have a different conversation with someone clearly experienced with technology than the conversation with someone who clearly is holding the mouse for the first time.

Believe it [...]

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Share Your Holiday Recipes, Idaho Falls!

by JeremyPlo December 14, 2006

‘Tis  the season to abandon your diets, my friends, and in that spirit, I thought it would be fun to provide a space to swap your favorite holiday recipes, whether it be your family’s famous top-secret stuffing recipe, gingerbread cookies for Christmas, or a killer Matza Ball.
Merry Christmas to you and your family!  May God’s [...]

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Need Idaho Falls Daycare Information

by Guest Writer December 14, 2006

Below is an article originally written by author:
“new in town” on December 14, 2006 @ 1:20 am.
Hi – we’re looking into part-time daycare in the IF area for a 21-month old. In scanning the yellow pages, Little Miracles at Taylor Crossing has webcam access to watch your children. This was an attractive feature. Also curious [...]

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DirecTV Fails Local Channels Promise for Five Years

by Joe Vandal December 13, 2006

Idaho Falls residents are being deceived.
Anyone who has received a DirecTV mailer has been frustrated that the great bundled offer cannot include local channels in our area. DirecTV representatives try to mollify us with offers of using an antenna to receive channels over-the-air, that we “should” be able to get a waiver and receive [...]

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Idaho Falls Online Classified Ad Websites

by Joe Vandal December 11, 2006

This is the fourth installment of a new series I am publishing every Monday, called “IF Online”. Each article will examine an aspect of our Idaho Falls area that has an online presence. This week I will call your attention to local classified ad websites.
The critical success factor for any classified source, whether printed or [...]

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How to write more effective comments

by Joe Vandal December 8, 2006

I want to express my sincere and deep appreciation for the thousands of comments you all leave in response to the published articles at IdahoFallz.com. Those comments generate many great discussions here. People sometimes ask me why I put so much time into fostering this online community, and one of them is the excitement I [...]

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Idaho Falls Citizen Design Charettes Could Help Long Term Growth

by Joe Vandal December 7, 2006

Annual design charrettes would dramatically help guide Idaho Falls city improvements. The intensive design collaborations would also be a fun and smart new thing for residents to do every year.

I encourage you to read Wikipedia’s excellent explanation of charrettes to really get a sense of what I am proposing.
The point of the annual design [...]

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Look Ma, No Local Advertisements!

by Joe Vandal December 6, 2006

Some may have noticed I quietly removed advertising solicitations a few weeks ago. IdahoFallz.com will no longer solicit or accept local advertising.

I am a designer, programmer, writer, many things, but definitely not a salesman or telemarketer. It is ironic that nobody wants to receive a hard sales pitch, but it takes a hard sales [...]

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Liberals or Conservatives- Who Gives More???

by flyonthewall December 5, 2006

Is it me or did anyone else find the 20/20 story on charity a bit ironic? If you didn’t see the episode it was a John Stosell report in which he interviewed Arthur Brooks who is a Professor of Public Administration and Director of the Nonprofit Studies Program at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School [...]

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Evidence of Idaho’s Christmas Spirit

by Joe Vandal December 5, 2006

I am buffeted by advice that this site should focus on more positive stories. I like to point out most anyone is free to register and publish positive stories on their own, so long as it is locally interesting.
Most everyone is also free to leave positive comments in some of the more positively-oriented articles, [...]

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How To Shovel Snow

by segrue December 4, 2006

This may sound like a no-brainer but I every winter I see folks turn snow-shoveling into a hazardous sport. And make no mistake that snow removal can be a serious health risk. Just ask the hospitals how many extra patients they see for pulled muscles, back sprains, and heart attacks, after a good [...]

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Get More and Faster Local News Online

by Joe Vandal December 4, 2006

This is the third installment of a new series I am publishing every Monday, called “IF Online”. Each article will examine an aspect of our Idaho Falls area that has an online presence.
This week I will call your attention to local news websites. We know they exist, but do you know how they can save [...]

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Thanksgiving Dinner Restaurant in Idaho Falls

by Joe Vandal December 3, 2006

I would like to see an Idaho Falls restaurant focused exclusively on Thanksgiving meal-type foods. It could be called something like “Thanksgiving Dinner”, “Thanksgiving Diner”, “Thanksgiving Eats” or “Thanksgiving Fixings”.
The menu would feature things traditional Thanksgiving foods like turkey, smoked turkey, fried turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberries, rolls, deviled eggs, pumpkin pie, etc. The food [...]

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How you can return to anonymity

by Joe Vandal December 1, 2006

I really enjoy the new “users online” display in our chatbox. Before, I had to run a separate script to show how many visitors we had at any time and who was on, and you had to click a link to see the information. Now we see current visitor information displayed conveniently and concisely.

However, it [...]

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December 1, 2006 State of the City Blog

by Joe Vandal December 1, 2006

IdahoFallz.com publishes monthly updated visitor counts and highlights some of the best-written stories in the past month. This is done in the interest of conducting open and honest business, and to update our stakeholders, which include Idaho Falls residents, anyone concerned with positive improvements the Idaho Falls area.
November 2006 was our fourteenth month in operation [...]

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