Most ads are just the same old shit and we get immune to them after a while. But I thought this one was worth sharing, an email from a UK travel company - got me clicking!




Looks like some good deals there. Sorry, I couldn't copy the links to the flights & accommodation but happy to post them here if anyone's interested.

All those sites are great for a little extra cash but they only pay, on average around $0.25 (US) per download.

http://www.shutterstock.com/
http://www.bigstockphoto.com/
http://www.stockxpert.com/
http://www.istockphoto.com/
http://www.canstockphoto.com/

- These all work pretty much the same and take the form of a browsable catalogue. If someone's looking for what you've got and yours is the most suitable then you make a sale.

http://www.fotolibra.com/

- This one is quite cool because they take requests from publishers and the like and then email you with what they are currently looking for so you can upload your photos of said thing. This one gives you a much higher rate for each sale.

You'll need the equivalent of an 8MegaPixel camera to play on istockphoto and 2MegaPixel for the others. There are a lot of other stock sites like these out there but you really need to have professional kit to compete on them.

Another video from Red February.

If that's not reason enough to go to China I don't know what is

<a href="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=932372&amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;fullscreen=1&amp;show_title=1&amp;show_byline=1&amp;show_portrait=0&amp;color=01AAEA" target="_blank">http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=932372&amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;fullscreen=1&amp;show_title=1&amp;show_byline=1&amp;show_portrait=0&amp;color=01AAEA</a>

Recently we're seen instability in Kenya - formerly regarded as one of the most stable African states. Now it's Zimbabwe looking very volatile. No oil there, so we'll probably let Mugabe carry on and destroy what's left of a once prosperous country.

The way much of Africa has been treated the rich west is despicable, but no doubt very profitable. Politicians might very reluctantly admit that the gap between the rich and poor is wider now than ever before, and still increasing, but they won't take any real action. Rich farmers in the west still get handouts from our taxes help them compete with poor African farmers. The only loans available for governments are tied to privatisation of water supplies.

So while the WTO and IMF are ensuring that water companies make a healthy profit from supplying something essential for human life, over a billion people still don't have access to clean water and 5000 children die every day across the continent due to lack of clean water and sanitation.

Another million babies die each year in their first month from preventable infections and 1 person every 13 seconds dies of AIDS in Africa, all while rich drug companies try to block the manufacture of generic drugs, seemingly preferring to see people die than use a copy of a drug they developed to save lives.

Bit of rant, sorry. An article about Zimbabwe lead to me reading other stuff about Africa and although we all know it's shit, seeing numbers like those... 5000 kids a day... it's just sad really.

If 5000 white kids started dropping dead each day you know they would find the money to sort it out. All this cash was found to 'help' Afghanistan and Iraq, just a little of that could save millions of lives across the neglected continent.

Ok, so Africa is fucked, but what can we do about it?

Other than donating to any of the many charities doing great work, or spending a bit more on fairtrade products, voting for someone who does give a shit about Africa, how about (finally on topic!) tourism?

While I bet in some countries the only ones benefiting from the tourist Dollars are the corrupt leaders, in many others I'm sure the money spent really helps people that actually need it. How much could increased tourism help Africa?

The first bit was very funny, the second very sad. How could they leave New Orleans like that? I hope they have done more since then but somehow I doubt it.

I went to New Orleans in 1994. It was definitely one of the prettier cities I visited and it was a lot of fun too. Great food, great music, great nightlife.

Just watched that all for the first time since it was on tv, forgot about the New Orleans bit. Wonder what it's like there now, Google are still showing those ads so I'm guessing there's still a lot to do.

I can imagine the mountains are beautiful! Had to google the islands (kept thinking of San Juan in Puerto Rico) they look great, definitely worth a visit. Could be an ideal spot to do some more scuba diving.

The main thing that normally puts North America near the bottom of places to go is that a lot of the US and Canada are so similar to here, so when I spend time there I want to make sure I catch more of the differences than the similarities, both in culture and environment.

Hopefully I'll be a bit more er.. culturally sensitive than these Brits in the US:

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/2syY12OPkwI&rel=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/2syY12OPkwI&rel=1</a>

I didn't like the US much when I was there but one of the nicest areas to visit was around Seattle.

The mountains are beautiful, especially Mt Rainier, as are the San Juan Islands - many of which are uninhabited.

I'm still thinking about it. I take forever to buy things like that.

I'll probably wait until just before my next trip and then get the latest model.

I'll let you know when I get something.

What are the forum rules?

1. No spam please.
2. Be nice to each other!

Otherwise, there are no hard and fast rules here. The forum is not censored, but you are responsible for what you say and your IP address is logged. You are entitled to disagree with anything someone says, but please make your point in a constructive way, petty name calling isn't going to win you any friends. If you feel a post is inappropriate (spam for example) then please use the "Report to moderator" link at the bottom of the post. Be assured we will take action when needed.

How do I insert a url/web address?

Inserting a url is easy, just type or paste it and it will be automatically converted into an active link. (If the address starts with www you don't even need to include the http:// part.)

How do I use different text for my link?

All you have to do is select the text you wish to use, then click the globe icon (third one in on the second row, underneath the underline icon). Then add =hxxp://www.the-url-to-link-to.com to the first url tag (replace xx with tt).

It should look something like this:


How do I insert images into posts?

The easiest way to post a picture is to use an image hosting site, Forum Image Codes is a great one to use. Unlike a lot of similar sites, you can upload an image from the web without having to save the picture to your computer first. You can also upload pictures from your computer and if you sign up with them you can create your own picture gallery. It will give you codes to insert the picture either in it's original size or as a thumbnail with a link to the full size picture and it takes any image type up to 2Mb in size (larger if you sign up).

Forum Image Codes is completely free to join (but you don't need to join to use it) and really easy to use with no limits on the number of images you can upload. I also run that site, so if you do experience any problems with it you can always find me here to help.

You can of course post an image hosted on your site or elsewhere, simply use the img tags or the second button on the second row (under the italic button). It should look like this (it may also have url tags):


Please do not hotlink images - that is posting images hosted on a site that is not yours or you do not have permission to use. Instead, paste the url to the image here and then use the forum code.

How do I embed videos in my posts?

All you need to do is post the url (e.g. hxxp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FG6tRSpWqJA - replace xx with tt) and it will automatically embed the video. There is no need for object or embed tags, so you may find it easier to copy the link from your address bar rather than copying the embed code that YouTube and other sites give. This works with pretty much all the video sites and should "just work", but if you do have any problems please let us know.

I'll add more FAQs to this as and when needed, but if you do have any questions at all about please feel free to contact me, either by pm or by email: admin-at-workingtravelling.com.

~Si