Way back when, the go-to word processor for me was ClarisWorks. In grade school I mastered its simple interface. I was able to make pamphlets and donation sheets for scouting bike-a-thons, keep team statistics for my youth hockey team in a spreadsheet and type out all of my homework. In a time before America Online, these would all print out of an original StyleWriter.

Over the years I’ve transferred this time capsule of my childhood from double-density floppies, to high-density floppies, to zip disks, to jaz disks, to burned CDs, to external hard drives, and one day I finally consolidated all of it and emailed it all to myself using Gmail for relative perpetuity.

Eventually, ClarisWorks became AppleWorks when Apple bought Claris. AppleWorks functions under Snow Leopard but not under Lion, so if you upgrade you’ll need to give it up. However, the documents all remain accessible in Pages under Lion.

I’m not really sad that AppleWorks is dead, unlike so many customers who’ve written in with similar nostalgia or, sometimes, panic; I’m just glad the documents are all still viable. There are way too many of them, but one of these days I expect they’ll all need to be converted to PDF, or whatever format seems to have the longest expected lifespan in a few years or so.

Things are similarly simple for those of us who used early Microsoft Office programs. Office 2011 will effortlessly open these ancient files, but don’t expect them to look perfect (not that the old Apple and ClarisWorks files always come out perfectly either).

What digital data do you value, and hope to access far into the future? What safeguards do you have to ensure its safety? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Our FREE eWaste Recycling Events are back, and it’s easier than ever to participate. Check out the list of “*acceptable materials*”:http://www.smalldog.com/ewaste at our website before you load up, head on over and watch as the staff from WeRecycle unloads your vehicle.

*Vermont event:* Saturday, September 24th from 9AM to 2PM at Ben & Jerry’s headquarters in S. Burlington.
*New Hampshire event:* Saturday, October 8th from 9AM to 2PM in Manchester, NH at the Mall of New Hampshire’s food court parking lot.

Our partners at “*WeRecycle*”:http://www.werecycle.com are fast and professional and they pledge to safely and responsibly recycle all materials collected, while securely destroying all electronic data. They insure that any harmful chemicals such as cadmium, chromium and mercury are kept out of landfills so they do not leach into the soil and contaminate our groundwater.

For more information our *Vermont eWaste event,* “*click here.*”:http://www.smalldog.com/ewastevt
For more information our *New Hampshire eWaste event,* “*click here.*”:http://www.smalldog.com/ewastenh

A great example of our community outreach efforts was our recent donation of four MacBooks to Girls Inc. of New Hampshire, an affiliate of the national Girls, Inc. organization. Girls, Inc. is a nonprofit organization that responds to the changing needs of girls and their communities by utilizing advocacy and research based programs specifically designed to empower girls to reach their full potential and to understand, value, and assert their rights.

I had the pleasure of presenting the computers to the staff at the Manchester, NH center, where over 50 joyous young girls were learning, playing games, and having fun. The addition of MacBooks to their computer lab was met with elation, seeing how they only had a handful of PCs!

When I booted up the laptops and got Photo Booth running, the faces on these little girls lit up. It was like Christmas morning! These laptops will provide a great resource to help these bright young girls develop into inquisitive, confident and intelligent women. Small Dog was thrilled to be able to support Girls Inc. with this donation.

We’ll be “Going to the Dogs” at Shelburne Museum this Sunday, September 18 from 10am – 5pm, rain or shine (though they’re calling for shine)! $10 adults; $5 children (5-18); Museum Members and dogs are free! Dogs must be on leashes.

There will be games, giveaways, live music and more. Check it out:
bq. “Shelburne Museum and Pet Food Warehouse proudly present the zaniest, wildest, biggest dog party on the planet! Bring your fur bearing, four legged best friend for a day dedicated to dogs.”

This year’s theme is the Wild West and here are just some of the amazing happenings in store:

* Cowboy parade with costume judging*
* Masterful MC Mr. Woodhead with Junior and Bella
* Live music by Rick and the Ramblers
* Dog gone good demonstrations by police dogs, hunting dogs and dancing dogs
* Flying disc dogs competing in the Vermont state championships
* Hilarious balloon animals
* Fantastic face painting

*Costume Contest Categories: Best Western costume; Best dog/owner combination; Most creative.

The event benefits local animal rescue groups and humane societies.

“*Read more here.*”:http://shelburnemuseum.org/visit/shelburne-museum-goes-to-the-dogs/
“*Download event schedule here.*”:http://shelburnemuseum.org/webMedia//2011/08/SMGTDschedule.pdf

It’s Jan filling in for Don again as he and Grace wind down their vacation. As I write, they’re in Switzerland motorcycling their way through the Alps. Several of the folks here at Small Dog have motorcycles, and I am already hearing the chatter about getting some good last rides in before the snow flies. Hopefully, they can ride up until December!

I thought a good subject to write about this week is Small Dog’s involvement within the communities we serve. Year after year, Small Dog is recognized by local and national organizations for being a socially responsible and caring corporate partner.

We contribute thousands of dollars to charitable causes either by directly matching customer contributions through our Charitable Contribution program or by in-kind donations. Our employees also donate their time to local efforts, through various community service initiatives.

We believe that it is imperative to strengthen the bonds within our community, and to facilitate a strong network of individuals and businesses. Read more about our community efforts below.

The Apple Magic Trackpad is designed to be the perfect companion peripheral to the Apple Wireless Keyboard, and Twelve South has created a product that makes the combo even more magical: the MagicWand connects the Magic Trackpad to the Apple Wireless Keyboard, creating a unified system that is great for keeping your desk tidy or controlling your home theater setup from the couch.

This week we’re offering *Kibbles & Bytes readers free shipping when you purchase an Apple Magic Trackpad and Twelve South MagicWand.* This special is particularly great for iMac users who have recently upgraded to Lion but don’t yet have a Magic Trackpad, which is necessary for executing all the gestures Lion supports!