Clear browser cookies between offers

Every time you visit an advertiser's web site to complete an offer, tracking cookies are stored on your computer to allow the advertiser to tell you apart from other users, know which pages and offers to show you, and remember that an approval must be sent to Points2Shop.

The problem is that a lot of offers use the same systems for displaying ads (think "eltpath" or "eversave"). When you hit one of these systems, if you haven't cleared your cookies they immediately think you are doing the previous offer that you just completed. This means that for the majority of the offers, you will not receive credit if you do not clear your cookies between offers.

CCleaner

CCleaner is a simple tool for Windows which will clear your cookies (and other temporary/junk files) across your entire computer. It also has convenient options for cookies that you want to keep, which is especially useful for web sites like Points2Shop which keep you logged in.

Benefits

• Easy to use and configure
• Clears cookies from all browsers
• Ability to preserve specific cookies

Shortcomings

• Must close browser to clear cookies/cache
• Slower than cookies-only cleaners
• Windows-only
  

1. Visit ccleaner.com/download and click Alternative Download to get the free and safe program.
2. During the install you have the option to enable or disable desktop shortcuts, automatic updates, etc. The only important thing is to disable the Yahoo Toolbar checkbox.
3. Run CCleaner, you will see something like this:
   

   
   

4. First, let's configure the options, you will not need to do this every time (just skip to step 9).
5. Go to Options and find the Cookies page:
   

   
   

6. In the Cookies to delete column, select the names of any web sites that you use frequently (hold down the Ctrl key to select more than one). Points2Shop.com is a good choice.
   
7. Press the -> button between the two lists to move these sites to the Cookies to keep list. Now these specific cookies will be preserved.
8. Now click the Cleaner button and ensure that "Cookies" is checked under Internet Explorer. Firefox and other browsers will appear on the Applications tab, make sure their Cookies entries are checked as well.
1. I suggest checking Cookies, Download History, and Internet Cache.
2. If you use the browser a lot you probably do not want to check History or Saved Form Information.
9. Close your web browsers to ensure that everything can be cleaned.
   
10. Click the Run Cleaner button and wait for the CLEANING COMPLETE message.

Now you're ready to do another offer. You can leave CCleaner open if you're doing multiple offers and just follow steps 9 and 10 between offers.

CCleaner will also clear other useless files from your computer to free up space. If you're interested in tinkering, you can change other options to remove even more junk, just make sure you know what each option means before changing it.


CookieCuller
CookieCuller is a Firefox plugin which can be used to clear your cookies between offers without closing your browser. It also allows specific cookies to be preserved so you don't have to log in again to frequently-used sites.

Benefits

• No need to close the browser
  
• Works on any computer
• Ability to preserve specific cookies
  

Shortcomings

• Only works in Firefox
• No keyboard shortcut
• Cannot select entire sites, only specific cookies
  

1. Visit addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/82 in Firefox and click Add to Firefox to get the free and safe program.
2. Follow the installation prompts, restart Firefox.
3. In the Firefox Tools menu, click CookieCuller.
4. You will see a list of all cookies in Firefox, this may seem daunting at first but once you follow the steps below, the "Remove All Cookies" button is the only important part:

   
   

5. Find a web site that you use frequently, like points2shop.com and click on the first cookie from that site.
6. Holding down the Shift key, click the last cookie from that site. This will select all cookies from the site.
7. Click the Protect Cookies button to prevent these cookies from being deleted.
8. Repeat steps 5-7 for any other sites that you use frequently.
9. When you have done this, click Remove All Cookies and everything you haven't protected (most importantly, cookies from offers sites) will be removed instantly. See "Semi-automatic cookie and cache cleaning" below for an even easier way to use CookieCuller.
10. Go back to Points2Shop and find another offer!

In-Browser Settings
It is also possible to delete your cookies from within the browser itself, and this may be the only option if do not have a computer running Windows. This is, in my opinion, far inferior because it only deletes cookies in one browser and there is no way to specify which cookies to keep.

If you're using Firefox you can go to Tools then Clear Private Data and select Cookies and Cache. This will delete all of your cookies, so for any sites like Points2Shop which keep you logged in, you will need to log in again every time you clear the cookies in this manner.


Semi-automatic cookie and cache cleaning!
If you use Firefox and think it would be convenient to just close and restart your browser to clear your cookies and cache between offers, CookieCuller and in-browser settings to the rescue!

First, install CookieCuller using the instructions above.

In Firefox, go to Tools > Add-ons then select CookieCuller and click the Preferences button. Select the checkbox next to "Delete Unprotected Cookies on Startup" and then close the options and Add-ons windows.

Next, to enable cache deleting, go to Tools > Options > Privacy and then take a look at the Private Data section. Check "Always clear my private data when I close Firefox" and un-check "Ask me before clearing private data." Finally - this is important - click Settings and ensure that only the Cache option is checked (or if you want to clear other things as well that's up to you). Click OK a couple times to get back to Firefox.

Now you can just close the browser and open it again between offers!

If you want to get really slick, install the QuickRestart add-on which will restart Firefox and allow you to - once you have followed the steps above - do all this by clicking a toolbar icon or pressing Ctrl + Alt + R! After installing the addon, go to View > Toolbars > Customize and drag the Restart button wherever you want it.

Safely install programs with Sandboxie for effortless removal

Most programs are bundled with an uninstaller that cleans up when you no longer want a program. Generally an uninstaller can be trusted to do its job, but what about adware, spyware, and other "nuisanceware" programs?

Chances are the uninstaller might accidentally forget a few important steps, like removing that extra browser toolbar it installed or shutting down that program that runs in the background, sending your computer usage information to a database somewhere. It's also possible that even your anti-virus and spyware removal software cannot detect these annoying .

There is a safe way to install and uninstall programs
Sandboxie is a software program for Windows which creates a completely isolated environment called a sandbox which essentially acts like separate computer. You can open programs and install new software in a sandbox and any new files or changes to existing files are locked inside, non-sandboxed programs cannot access or be affected by them. These barricaded programs display on your screen and respond to your interaction just like usual but with just a few clicks the sandbox and its fake, temporary files are deleted; your computer is unchanged.

How can Sandboxie help to earn points and cash with download offers?
Once you install Sandboxie you can right-click any program and select "Run in Sandbox" to run an isolated copy of the program. This ensures that anything downloaded or installed by the program is also locked in the sandbox, protecting your computer from harm.

Most offers on Points2Shop and Cashle are not dangerous, but they are certainly a nuisance and occasionally can be difficult to uninstall. Sandboxie helps to make the process of completing download offers faster and safer!

Download and installation walkthrough
The following guide is lengthy but the process is very easy once you've done it once or twice. Be sure to read everything the first time to avoid any confusion!

1. First, download Sandboxie from sandboxie.com and install it. You may need to restart your computer.
   
2. Open Internet Explorer as you usually would, not in sandbox mode yet. Most download offers do not credit if downloaded with Firefox and other browsers.
   
3. Log in to Points2Shop.
4. Close your browser; when you start it up again in the next step you will already be logged in to Points2Shop. Steps 2-4 are just for convenience if you will be completing multiple download offers in one sitting.
5. Pause your anti-virus and firewall protection. Some offers do not credit with these protections running.
   
6. Now, right-click your Internet Explorer shortcut and select "Run in Sandbox."
1. You may be asked which sandbox to run it in, choose "DefaultBox."
   
2. You will notice that the window title now has pound signs around it (i.e. [#] Internet Explorer [#]), this is the indication that the program is safely locked in a sandbox.
3. You may see notices about "Quick Recovery," recovery is the process of moving sandboxed files out to your computer (which is not what you want to do). Just click "Close."
   
7. Go to Points2Shop and search for a download offer. You might want to start with the downloads in my high-paying free offers list or simply search "download."
   
8. Visit the advertiser and click the Download button. You generally do not need to provide any contact information for download offers.
1. If there is a bar at the top of the page mentioning ActiveX, click it and select the option to install the ActiveX control.
2. Otherwise you will be presented with a prompt to run or save the file, choose "Run."
   
9. Follow the installer's instructions and leave your browser window open as the program installs.
1. You may be presented with multiple additional offers, such as Weatherbug and the Yahoo Toolbar. You do not need to install these to receive credit, check for a Decline button or uncheck the option's checkbox.
10. The installer will notify you that the download is complete.
11. There may be a Finish or OK button, click it to close the installer. Otherwise the installer will close automatically.
    
1. Freeze offers will open a new browser window at this time. Be sure to go through each of the additional offers displayed here, you will probably want to click Skip until you get to the Freeze homepage.
2. If the software you downloaded was a browser toolbar, close all IE windows and open a new IE window (right click to run sandboxed), make sure you see the new toolbar.
   
12. Right-click the yellow Sandboxie tray icon, and in the DefaultBox menu select "Delete contents."
13. Click "Delete Sandbox" to close all programs running in the sandbox and delete all of the fake temporary files which were installed.
14. Your computer is now in the exact same state as it was when you started the process, no need to run uninstallers or spyware cleaners.
    
15. Go ahead and return to step 5 to try more download offers!
    

You do not need to clear your cookies because any cookies saved in your sandboxed browser have been deleted. Some people prefer to use Sandboxie for all the offers that they complete. It can be configured to automatically delete the contents of the sandbox whenever all the running sandboxed programs are closed, which can make it faster and more convenient than clearing the cookies separately.

Keep in mind that any changes made in a sadboxed program will be lost - so if you add a new bookmark or change browser settings, they will be lost along with browser history and cookies.

If you're wondering exactly what and how Sandboxie protects, check out sandboxie.com for more information.

Here is a variety of free download offers to get you started, nearly 30 download offers have credited for me so there are a lot more out there for you to find! 100 points is equal to $1.00 and you will need a Points2Shop account to complete these offers.

Total value of this list: 780 points ($7.8 USD)

Sort offers by: point value | number of approvals

• 240 download Nielsen/Netratings - Wave & Win Game
  • Approved for: 132 users
  • Your status:
• 36 download Alot.com: Health and Fitness Tips
  • Approved for: 48 users
  • Your status:
• 120 download Nielsen NetRatings
  • Approved for: 16 users
  • Your status:
• 60 download EZ Game Cheats
  • Approved for: 13 users
  • Your status:
• 60 download Music Video Downloads
  • Approved for: 10 users
  • Your status:
• 60 download Popular Screensavers
  • Approved for: 10 users
  • Your status:
• 60 download Smiley Central (INT'L)
  • Approved for: 10 users
  • Your status:
• 60 download Hot Music Downloads
  • Approved for: 9 users
  • Your status:
• 84 download Hotbar: Games (US,UK)
  • Approved for: 6 users
  • Your status:

Sort offers by: point value | number of approvals

• 240 download Nielsen/Netratings - Wave & Win Game
  • Approved for: 132 users
  • Your status:
• 120 download Nielsen NetRatings
  • Approved for: 16 users
  • Your status:
• 84 download Hotbar: Games (US,UK)
  • Approved for: 6 users
  • Your status:
• 60 download EZ Game Cheats
  • Approved for: 13 users
  • Your status:
• 60 download Hot Music Downloads
  • Approved for: 9 users
  • Your status:
• 60 download Music Video Downloads
  • Approved for: 10 users
  • Your status:
• 60 download Popular Screensavers
  • Approved for: 10 users
  • Your status:
• 60 download Smiley Central (INT'L)
  • Approved for: 10 users
  • Your status:
• 36 download Alot.com: Health and Fitness Tips
  • Approved for: 48 users
  • Your status:

Updated on Monday, December 01, 2008 at 4:59 PM
(Eastern Standard Time)

Reduce or eliminate telemarketer calls

This article must be prefaced with this very important point:

Do not make up a phone number when filling in personal detail forms online. By providing false information you are committing fraud which could have consequences far beyond not receiving credit for the offer.

Telemarketers are annoying and difficult to get rid of. Some people who complete offers online with their primary phone number may become so burdened by the calls that they are forced to change their phone number!

To avoid this predicament if you like completing offers online to earn points and cash, there are several options to prevent telemarketing calls from plaguing your phone. The primary distinction is that by applying one method you must spend money but will not receive any telemarketing calls, while with the other method you can earn money but will still receive a few calls now and then. This advice is not a cure if you are already suffering from Acute Telemarkitis but it will certainly save you some grief, especially if you're a beginner at an earnings site like Points2Shop or Cashle.


Prepaid phone

If you want zero telemarketers, prepaid phones are an excellent investment. For $10-15 every 3 months or so you have a legit second phone number to use when completing offers.

You may want to research costs, but unless you have other plans for the phone you can just buy it, leave it off at all times, and pay to recharge the minutes when they expire. If you shop around, look for a plan with the longest minute expiration period. Look for prepaid phones from national and local cell phone providers as well as cheap prepaid phones available at the local dollar store or retail center.

Then, simply use your new phone number to complete offers online and don't forget to recharge your minutes!


Brring!


Sign up for your new
private Brring phone number!

Brring is a free service for US residents which gives you a private, local second phone number to use in place of your primary phone. Any calls to this number forward to your primary phone, but only after playing a short advertisement (10 seconds or less). This short ad will deter approximately 90% of telemarketers and they will hang up before the call comes through and rings on your phone.

It's not only free, you actually make money... if they pay you, that is.
Brring pays its users for referring new members and for profiling their friends to specify what types of ads they would like to hear (earnings details). Although they had previously paid money for each call ($1 for each of the first 10 calls, $.05 per call after that), they have discontinued these earnings due to funding issues.

It behooves me to note that I have earned over $30 from Brring but I have not received a check yet. Do not use Brring with high hopes of getting paid, it is privately funded and for whatever reason they are collecting no money from their advertisers while their product is still in development stages. Conditions may improve in the future, no one knows for sure.

Using Brring
This guide assumes that you are using Brring as an alternative phone number to reduce annoying telemarketer calls while completing offers online, although if you want your friends to call your Brring number that's fine too!

First and foremost, after creating your new Brring account (sign up here), go to the "Earn More Rewards" page and select "Set ad playing rules." Move the ad frequency slider to "Always" to ensure that every caller hears an ad. If you skip this step, you are guaranteed to hear more telemarketing calls ringing your primary phone.

Your Brring number is ready to go! If you call it from your own phone, you can check your balance and record audio clips of your name and invite greeting. If the next paragraph interests you, you can upload the MP3 ringback tone by going to "My Ringback."

Icing on the cake for reducing the annoyance of telemarketer calls
Brring allows you to upload an MP3 file as a ringback tone which is played while Brring connects the caller to your phone. My suggestion if you want telemarketers to hang up right away is to use a busy signal! Where can you get an MP3 of a busy signal, you ask? I have one which you can download right here!

Results
Of the 220 calls I received to my Brring number in the first two months, approximately 25 of the callers stayed on the line long enough to make my phone ring. Of those 25, less than 10 stayed on the line long enough to make the phone ring a second time (because they heard my busy signal ringback tone). Of those 10, I answered about 5 because I wasn't sure if it was someone I knew or not. I earned $25 from calls (back when calls earned money) and another $10 at the time of writing from referrals. I cashed out over a month ago but have not received a check, so I am eagerly awaiting the day when Brring receives funding and moves their product out of the development stage.


National Do Not Call Registry

Many Americans, when considering how to stop telemarketers, think of the Do Not Call Registry (donotcall.gov). This is a great way to curb annoying calls from companies you've never heard of which seem to pull your number out of the ether (aka unsolicited calls).

However, when you're earning points online by completing offers, you are submitting your phone number directly to advertisers. You are soliciting their calls. Therefore, by agreeing to the terms of many of these offers, you are giving the advertiser express permission to use (and sometimes even distribute) your phone number. The calls directly relating to these offers are not bound by the Do Not Call list.

Here is a direct quote from the Terms of Use of one of the advertisers:

"By clicking on the Continue above I am requesting to be contacted by I Can Print Photos.com's offer sponsors and marketing partners regardless of any DNC List registration."

Thanks to Akari for finding this quote

It may still be a good idea and may deter some telemarketers, but if you sign a form stating that bees can't sting you, all the bureaucracy in the world can't protect you when you stir the hornet's nest.



If you have any alternative suggestions or would like to note your personal success or failure with any of these methods, please create an account with Blogger or log in with an existing Google account to post your comments!

A special thank you goes out to navymarinemom for the tips about prepaid phones and for sharing her personal experience with this method!

How to earn with Points2Shop and Cashle, the Getting Started Guide

If you're interested in earning money on your laptop while you watch TV or want to make your time between classes more productive, or just want to take some time here and there to earn gifts for your family, Points2Shop and Cashle may become your hottest bookmarks.

Before registering I'm sure you have a lot of questions, like how much does it cost and how do I earn points. The intention of the More Nickels n Points blog is to answer those questions and show you how to earn points and cash more efficiently.

Both Points2Shop and Cashle are entirely free and you can make hundreds of dollars by completing only the free offers. Once you join either Points2Shop or Cashle, you are instantly a member of both sites and can switch between the sites simply based on whether you want to earn points or cash. Most people prefer to earn points with Points2Shop even if they have already tried sites like PrizeRebel or MyPoints; you can earn more money, faster, and help is available any time of the day.

Keep the following in mind when deciding whether to use Points2Shop or Cashle:

• Each point is worth a penny ($0.01 USD) toward any Amazon purchase
  
• Points earned at Points2Shop can be used to purchase any non-giftcard item on Amazon.com
• Cash can be converted to points but points cannot be converted to cash.
• You will need an E-Gold or Paypal account to redeem cash rewards
• Cash can also be converted to an Amazon gift card
• For a small fee, Cashle can send a paper check
• You must have enough points to pay for the entire Amazon purchase plus shipping and sales tax, if applicable.
• Some advertisers only allow point incentives, so Points2Shop has some offers that Cashle does not.

Points and cash are earned primarily by completing offers and referring other people to sign up. Verify your phone number with Points2Shop to earn your first 250 points! Offers are provided by advertisers to encourage visiting a new web site, filling out a survey, learning about a new product, entering a contest, and much more. Most of these offers require your basic personal information: name, email, phone, address, and birthdate. In exchange for providing this information and usually for viewing a series of ads, the advertiser awards you by approving your offer which awards your cash or points.

Create a brand new email address for doing offers
While it is mandatory to provide correct information, it is possible to minimize the amount of junk mail and telemarketing calls you will receive. First and foremost, create a new email account with Gmail, Yahoo, or another provider and use this email for completing offers. Once you begin to receive too much junk, it is okay to open a new account.

You can reduce or avoid telemarketers
To curb telemarketing calls, consider a phone forwarding service and using your second phone number to complete offers. Brring provides a free second phone number which forwards to your existing phone after playing a short advertisement. Not only does this cause telemarketers to hang up (over 95% of the calls I receive never reach my phone), but you also earn money for each call! Check it out, there is a lot more information in the article: Reduce or eliminate telemarketer calls.

Clear tracking cookies between offers
After completing each offer, you will need to clear your browser's cookies to prevent the offer sites from confusing which offer you are completing. An easy tool to use is CCleaner - just install it and between each offer, close your browser and click Run Cleaner. There is a lot more information in the article: Clear browser cookies between offers.

Using Points2Shop to find and begin offers
Now that you have the basic tools for completing offers, it's time to get started! If you find an offer on Points2Shop or Cashle which looks appealing, click the Visit Offer button to go to the offer's web site. In most cases you will need to complete a form to provide your contact information, then skip through several pages of ads.

Free offers never require a credit card
Usually you will reach a page at the end of the offer asking you to "Complete 2 offers below" with a list of paid signup offers. You do not need to complete these offers to receive points, simply click on the number specified and close the pages once they finish loading. There are usually three such pages of offers - Silver, Gold, and Platinum. When you have finished these pages or otherwise reached the end of the offer, close the browser window or tabs.

After an offer is completed...
Once you complete an offer, you can return to Points2Shop or Cashle and click the Mark as Completed button which will list the offer as pending. If you forget, it's okay because clicking this button does not affect your chance of getting credit, it just serves to organize your offers. It's important to know which offers you have already done and also helps to show how much time offers took to credit.

Receiving your points or cash
If all goes well, most offers will credit within 10 minutes, although some advertisers only approve offers daily or weekly. You will receive an email stating that the offer approved and the points or cash will be added to your account. If an offer does not credit within a week you can try it again, from the offers page click View Claimed Offers, find the offer, click Would you like to comment? and then visit the advertiser and complete the form again. Do not attempt any completed offer a second time. For more information about redoing offers, see the article: How to redo pending offers at Points2Shop

Extra Earnings
You can increase your earnings by playing games, posting comments on offer detail pages to earn lottery tickets, competing in contests, referring new members with your referral link and banners, verifying your phone number, and even just for signing up!

Your first offers
Get a good head start with reliable and high-paying offers. All offers listed at MoreNP.com will take you to Points2Shop or Cashle, just click the offer title.

• Step-by-step offer walkthroughs to learn the basics
  
• High-paying free offers for US residents
• High-paying free offers for UK residents
• High-paying free offers for Canada residents
• Most reliable free offers for US residents
• Most reliable free offers for UK residents
• Most reliable free offers for Canada residents

Points2Shop is great for free electronics, free Microsoft Xbox 360 Live Points, free toys, free Xbox 360 and PS3 games; in fact, anything you can find on Amazon.com is free when you earn points at Points2Shop!