Online students: what are your New Year’s Resolutions for 2012? If you need help finding suggestions then you’re in the right place.

Realistic New Year’s Resolutions for College Students

How often do you make New Year’s resolutions that you stick to? Most New Year’s resolutions are broken in the first few weeks because they are not realistic. The very first thing you want to do is to make sure that your goals are realistic and not too difficult to accomplish. Don’t set yourself up for failure by setting career goals that you know are too difficult to handle. Start off small the first year, and then increase the next.

New Year’s Resolution Wish List

When you set realistic goals, you are much more likely to stick to them. Make a list of all your New Year’s resolutions, then pick only a few easy ones that you can accomplish.

Here are some useful suggestions to add to your New Year’s Resolutions list as an online student:

• Get an extra hour of sleep every night by going to bed early.
• Spend an hour each day reviewing your notes and class material.
• Participate more in online discussions.
• Connect with other classmates.
• Don’t stay out too late on school nights.
• Spend less time watching TV.
• Spend a little less time socializing on Facebook, Twitter or MySpace
• Join online networking groups.
• Complete projects and assignments on time.
• Get up early for study online exams.
• Do your laundry more often.
• Don’t miss too much class time.
• Eat breakfast every day.
• Stay away from negative people.
• Cut back on buying unnecessary items.
• Use less credit.
• Eat healthier.
• Exercise more often.
• Get a study partner
• Sign on to your online classroom daily.

Are New Year’s Resolutions Attainable?

It all depends on what you want to accomplish and the time-frame you have. Unrealistic goals are not going to help you get to where you want to be, there are many career opportunities so make sure you pick things that are attainable. Only you know what you are capable of doing and achieving.

These are just a few simple New Year’s Resolutions that you can start off with. Don’t push yourself too hard or else you’ll get overwhelmed and will give up. Start with the easy things first, then advance to the ones that are a little more difficult to accomplish.

Do add on to the wish list by posting your suggestions in the comments below.

Happy New Year!

What do you do when the holiday season coincides with your online exams? Do you enjoy the holiday season, then study for the exam or do you do a little bit of both? Here are 10 simple tips to manage the holiday season with looming exam deadlines.

1. Study on a Regular Basis.

Do you set aside a specific time to study each day or do you wait until the very last minute to study for your online exams? If you study on a regular basis you’re in good shape. You should be able to enjoy the holiday season without stressing about exams.

2. Study for Each Class.

For every hour of time you spend in class you’ll need to study at least an hour, to an hour and a half for each class. Top online degrees from accredited universities require as much effort as traditional degrees do, so make sure you give your studies the time it deserves.

3. Go Over Your Class Notes Immediately After Each Class.

If you review your notes right after your class it will help you understand the lesson better. Come test time, you won’t have to study so hard.

4. Prepare a Study Schedule.

Make a study schedule and stick to it even during the holiday season. Take breaks in between to relax your mind and to spend time with your family and friends.

5. Find a Quiet Spot To Study.

This way you can concentrate on your studies and not get distracted by noise. Make sure the place you choose is comfortable and well-lit.

6. Organize Your Study Material.

Keep all your notes and study material close by so that you don’t waste time searching for them. The habit of organizing yourself and your life is a very important habit to inculcate and one that will help you immensely when you go out in the real world looking for career opportunities.

7. Do Your Holiday Shopping Early.

Don’t wait until the last minute to do your holiday shopping. Shop early so that you don’t get too exhausted and tired to study.

8. Maintain a Balance.

This is the season to visit friends and family and to have fun. However, know when to say goodbye so that you can go home and hit the books.

9. Study a Little Every Day.

If you study a little bit every day you’ll have more time to participate in the holiday festivities.

10. Relax!

Remember you are doing all this to have a wonderful online degree career but it doesn’t hurt to let your hair down once in a while and enjoy the holiday season with your loved ones.

Do you have anything else to add to the list? Do let us know.

What do all students scream on Friday? “TGIF!” Come November and it changes to, “TGIBF!” (Thank Goodness it’s Black Friday!) Black Friday is to shopaholics what heaven is to the rest of us. The Friday following Thanksgiving, which falls on 25th November this year, is the busiest shopping day in the US.

Nothing digests your Thanksgiving dinner better than standing at the doors of shops as early as 3 am, braving the windy night with your friends waiting to get your hands on that door buster. However not everyone can deal with the parking hassles and the long lines. So what can the faint hearted do? Shop online! Yes, now all the major stores put their Black Friday ads online, even deals from retailers that do not have an online presence can be found there. Just as online colleges seem to be coming equal to their brick and mortar counterparts, the same is happening with shopping; and online Black Friday shopping seems to be getting ahead of traditional Black Friday shopping.

Best Black Friday Websites

In order to make Black Friday shopping easy for you, we have compiled a list of sites that can really help you in your search. While there are hundreds of sites telling you about the best Black Friday deals, we have chosen the following sites as they have neat interfaces, allow you to search for products category wise as well as store wise, and have mailing lists and community forums as well.

• fatwallet.com/black-friday/
• http://blackfriday.gottadeal.com/
• http://bfads.net/
• Blackfriday2011.com
• http://www.black-friday.net/
• http://dealnews.com/black-friday/
• Amazon.com/blackfriday
• http://blackfriday.dealsofamerica.com/

Best Black Friday Tech Deals

Online students can buy all the gadgets and gizmos they will need for college by bookmarking the following sites which focus on the best Black Friday tech deals (yes that includes all the tablets, HDTVs and e-readers).

• www.techsaver.pcmag.com
• Gizmodo’s Ultimate Black Friday 2010 Cheat Sheet (We’re hoping they’ll put an updated one for 2011)

Comparison Shopping To Get the Best Deals

While you are searching for Black Friday deals, don’t forget to comparison shop at the following sites to make sure that you get the lowest rates.

• http://www.pricegrabber.com/
• http://www.shopzilla.com/

Have fun and make the most of this day (don’t wait for Cyber Monday because most of the good deals would be gone by then)!

If you are working and want to go back to school, by pursuing an online degree you need to take the help of technology. There are various tools available online to help you to manage your studies. Firefox offers many add-ons which can help you to tackle assignments, lectures and manage your life more effectively.

Firefox Add-ons for People Going Back to School

Firefox is considered to be the number two web browser in the world. It is a stable browser for students as it offers a host of useful features ranging from tabs, private browsing, and session restore through its extensions. Here are 20 awesome Firefox add-ons for people going back to school:

1. Tab Candy/Tab Set sis only available in Firefox 4 Beta and makes academic multi-tasking much easier. You can create Tab Sets for Facebook, Twitter and Gmail and then create another Tab Set for the academic portals you are associated with.

2. After the Deadline or ATD can help you tremendously if you are pursuing an online degree and can help you if you are writing an essay or report in Microsoft Word or Open Office. It can help you rectify spelling errors.

3. ReminderFox helps in keeping a track of your schedule and manages your appointments and deadlines online so that you are not late for your submissions.

4. Wired-Marker is an effective add-on which looks simple yet has many functions. You just have to select text, right click and give it a color; this can help you to mark your content.

5. Quick Wiki can help you search information quickly and easily. You have to pressShift+right click a word and access the Wiktionary definition; with the help of Ctrl+right click, you get the Wikipedia entry. When the pop-ups appear, you can just click it and get the necessary information without navigating away from your current page.

6. Taboo can be helpful if you need to open a lot of tabs while doing research. It is an extension for Firefox which can help you save tabs for later stage. After saving a tab, you can close it and get back to it whenever you feel like at a later stage.

7. Firefox Environment Backup Extension helps you in automatically getting a back up of all your work.

8. LeechBlock can help you block out sites to avoid distraction and wastage of time.

9. Trailfire can help you to comment on web pages and link pages to develop topic trails.

10. Del.icio.us is a bookmarking site which can help you to search and organize your bookmarks and tags.

11. Juice can take any text on a page and automatically provide additional research information about that text with the help of Wikipedia, IMDB, YouTube, Yahoo! Local, and many other sites.

12. Zotero is a bibliographic plugin which can help you collect, manage and cite all the research you are conducting on the web.

13. FireCal caters to the needs of students pursuing a math major as it is a comprehensive calculator extension for Firefox. It is also useful for medical, nutrition, finance, science, and meteorology students.

14. Bibliomania helps in searching for references from classic English literature.

15. Merriam-Webster is a popular add-on dictionary.

16. Project Gutenberg is a search engine for an online library of material in the public domain which anybody can read for free.

17. Google Books enables you to read whole books or sections of new releases.

18. SmarterFox: Browse Faster helps in completing certain tasks faster.

19. Diigo: Web Higlighter and Sticky Notes can help you organize your web notes and highlights

20. MyStickies can help you place notes on any web site.

People pursuing online degree programs should make use of FireFox Add-ons to enjoy the convenience offered by the internet. These add-ons can enhance the distance learning process and can make your online education experience a more productive one.

One of the requirements for distance learning education is that you have a reliable computer and unlimited internet access. Laptops are great for online learning because you can take them anywhere with you and still have access to your online classroom wherever there is internet connection. You can simply log in to your class and complete your work from anywhere and at anytime. Laptops are the most convenient for distance learning students.

Laptops for Online Learning

There are a lot of laptops to choose from and prices to fit any budget. These laptops range from the big screen desktop replacements to the extra light ultra portables. They all have many features in common. Choosing which laptop is best for you is a difficult task because there are so many to choose from. The list of laptops below will help you narrow your choices and make a decision that will fit your requirements to learn online.

The Top 8 Laptops for Distance Learning Students are:

• 1. Dell XPS 15
• 2. Dell Studio 1537
• 3. HP Pavilion dv7-4183cl
• 4. Gateway ID49C13u
• 5. Acer Aspire AS5745-7247
• 6. Sony VAIO VPC-Z1390X
• 7. Toshiba Satellite T235-S1350
• 8. Apple MacBook Notebook

Computer Requirements for Online Learning

As a distance learning student, it is probably best to have your own computer so that you can have access to your online classroom at anytime. Make sure the computer you decide to get have the minimum requirements for web-based learning. Computer requirements for online learning may vary so check with the online school you plan to attend to see what their requirements are. Some of the basic computer hardware and software requirements for web-based education are as follow:

• 1GB of RAM or above
• Monitor Resolution of 1024 X 768
• Keyboard and mouse
• Speaker
• Sound card
• Cable modem/DSL
• DVD Rom drive
• Microsoft Office XP
• Windows XP Operating System
• Firefox, Mozilla, Netscape, Safari or Internet Explorer

Choose Your Laptop Wisely

The 8 laptops listed will help you narrow down your choice so that you can get started with your online learning effectively. Take your time to research each one before making a decision. Keep in mind that the laptop you choose will have to last for the duration of your online education, so do not make a short-term plan — think longevity!

iPhones are very popular amongst the college students today. If you own one of these devices, make sure you have easy access to these ten unbeatable apps for e-learners, which come handy at all times. Most of you would probably be familiar with the popular ones that the college students use more often and you might have a few favorites of your own. However, the ten apps listed here are, so far, the best for online learners pursuing an online degree.

1. iHomework

iHomework is an indispensable iPhone application for students pursuing an online education. This app helps you keep track of class work and assignments, due dates, test scores, and helps you stay organized.

2. Netters Anatomy

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If you are a medical student seeking an online degree, then this iPhone app is a must have. This app helps you memorize anatomy by using full color flash cards.

3. Voice Memos

Yet another absolutely great iPhone app for online college students. It records lectures, makes notes and allows you to transfer them to your computer for future use.

4. The Chemical Touch

This is another great iPhone app for e-learners because it allows you to explore the standard amino acids and the properties of elements. It also has a Wikipedia page for instant information.

5. Blackboard

A must have app to use at school. This is an online educational service that helps students collaborate online. Students can also view their grades, assignments and tests online with the help of this application.

6. eTextbooks for iPhone

Electronic textbooks are available at your fingertips via this application. Not only will you be saving a lot of money with this great app, you‘ll also never be without your textbook.

7. Wikipedia Mobile

Wikipedia is an extremely useful app. It comes handy when you are not familiar with a certain subject or if you do not completely understand something. With this app available on your iPhone, you can get the answer to your queries instantly.

8. Google Mobile

This iPhone app is almost like Wikipedia. It offers information on the spot just by keying in the word.

9. Musee de Louvre

This is a great app for students pursuing an online degree in Arts or Humanities.

10. Evernote

If you want to keep track of everything you wish to remember, then Evernote is what you need.

With these ten unbeatable iPhone apps, the e-learners or the online students can have a smooth sailing in academics and college life.