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August 1-15, 1996
Rules of the Road - 94 Tips, Tricks, and Resources to Make Your Business Trips Trouble-Free
Don't Leave Home Without Them

By Mark Binder
Reprinted by permission from Home Office Computing, May 1996

Every business traveler has a disaster story. Mine occurred on my very first business trip, when I installed a password-protection program during the plane ride. Securing my laptop seemed like a good idea at the time. But the next morning when I turned it on, I found that I'd locked myself out of my own computer. So much for productivity, connectivity, or computerized efficiency. From the hotel, I called everyone I could think of and even visited the local Apple dealership, without success. I spent the rest of the week lugging around a 10-pound paperweight, and I took all my notes by hand. Fifteen minutes after I got home, I solved the problem. All I needed was my boot disk.

Whether you're a first-time traveler or a seasoned jet-setter, no one's immune to the mishaps that can wreck a business trip. The tips compiled here prevent or solve just about anything that could go wrong, so you can get down to work while you're on the road - and safely return home, raring to go again.

Tips Index:
Before You Go
Care and Feeding of Your Notebook Computer
Luggage and Packing
Staying Connected
Planes,Trains,and Automobiles
When you get stuck at the airport
If your only laptop computer battery dies
Protecting your stuff
At your destination
Working from home
Modem notes
More fun with phones
Staying safe and sound
When your computer freezes
You’ve spilled coffee on the keyboard
Other resources on the road
Sending it home
The last resort


Download Rules of the Road as a Word Document (39kb)