It's Monday, December 20th.
I'm Natali Morris and it's time to get loaded.
Best Buy has dropped its re-stocking fee.
This is the fee that used to charge you for returning an electronic even if it was within its return time.
It was 15% of your purchase or 10% on phones.
It is no more.
So buy your electronics with some comfort that you can return them without penalty.
What was that fee really for, anyway?
Just putting
the gadgets back on the shelves.
Good riddance re-stocking fee.
Google TV may not be the bell of the ball at the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas in a few weeks.
The New York Times reports that Google have had to ask TV makers not to show off their Google TV's at the show because the software is not quite ready for primetime.
A new privacy bill is circulating and it aims to set ground rules for companies that collect user data and use that data for marketing or tracking or any other reason.
The bill is called the Privacy Bill
Of Rights.
And it is being championed by the Commerce Department.
It's part of the government's attempt to stop companies from collecting your information without you knowing about it.
It does not intend to stop that collection altogether just make it more transparent or we would hope.
Meanwhile, in the UK, the government wants to make all pornography opt in.
This means that adult content will be blocked by default so that minors could not browse it at their leisure.
So if you are a willing adult at an appropriate age, you will have to specify that you
are eligible to look at that site of your fancy and then prove your eligibility which may shame some out of using some sites.
And also block content that is not pornographic.
Interesting idea in theory, it could be a little hairy in implementation.
Google's PowerMeter Web application can now track your home electricity using your Wi-Fi or Broadband connection.
You would need a power cost monitor that connects to Google's PowerMeter System.
But if you have that, you could track your home's power use in real time on a computer
or a smart phone.
You can also create an energy budget, predict costs and share energy saving tips.
And finally this app is worth checking out, it could save your life someday.
TellMyGeo is intended to help adult children care for their aging parents.
It creates a tether between 2 phones so that one person can monitor the location of the other.
It can also push alerts from one phone to the next if someone gets lost or needs help.
It costs $10 per month
And is available only on Android but it is basically the hi-tech version of "I've fallen and I can't get up!" Make sure you look out tonight at the lunar eclipse if you are in North America and Central America, that includes you, Alaska and Hawaii.
You have to safely [unk] it happens between 2:41 and 3:43 a.m.
eastern.
Enjoy.
I will see you tomorrow.
Remember you can find links to anything we've discussed at CNET.com/loaded.
I'm Natali Morris for CNET.com and you've just been Loaded.
