SIMPLE, DO-IT-YOURSELF AUTO CARE

We at Osceola Garage believe it's important to keep our customers informed about the importance of regular vehicle maintenance. Follow these simple steps to help ensure top performance, avoid costly repairs, save money, and ultimately encourage vehicle longevity:

Check all lights to ensure proper working condition.

It's important that you're able to see and be seen on the road whether it's day or night. Regularly check the headlights, brake lights, and turn signals to ensure that they are in proper working order, and promptly replace any burned-out bulbs. Though it may seem like a no-brainer, this is one of the easiest steps that you can take to prevent a traffic ticket or even an accident.

Check tire pressures.

Ideally, you should check tire pressures once a week with an air pressure gauge. Aligned, balanced, and properly inflated tires can provide a smoother ride, which in turn can save gas. Additionally, you don't want to get stuck on the side of the road with a flat tire. Slow leaks can be caught by regular pressure checks and repaired to prevent future issues.

Inspect the tire tread for abnormal wear.

Tires are one of the most expensive, most often replaced, and most neglected parts on a vehicle. Every so often, examine your tire treads. If you discover any signs of abnormal or excessive wear, have your tires inspected by the car care professionals at Osceola Garage. Properly aligned and balanced tires last longer, ride better and are critical to steering and braking.

Change the oil, filter, and keep the chassis well-lubricated.

Vehicle owners should aim to change the oil and filter as well as lubricate the chassis as recommended by their vehicle manufacturers, usually every 3,000-5,000 miles (about every 3-6 months), to ensure long engine life and optimal performance.

SMART TIP:        Keep a notebook and log the date of each maintenance procedure taken by either yourself or your auto care professional. This will ensure timely maintenance and dually serve as a record for the history of care your vehicle has received.

Smartphones Now Reach 62% of Young Adults 25-to-34

Smartphone penetration in the U.S. has not reached that psychologically significant tipping point of 50% quite yet, but among young adults, the needle passed the midway mark long ago.

Nielsen's latest quarterly report on the mobile landscape shows that 62% of U.S. cell phone owners ages 25 to 34 have a phone with an advanced operating system.

Overall, smartphone penetration is at 43%, but a majority of people in the most desirable marketing demos now are running Android, iOS, BlackBerry or Windows OSes. In the college-age segment (18-24), 54% own smartphones, as do 53% of 35- to-44-year olds.

This means that well over 50% of the 18-44 segment are now on smartphones and can be reached via apps or mobile Web. The dropoff in smartphone use after age 44 is sharp, however, with only 39% of the 45-54 segment on advanced devices -- almost on par with the 38% of teens (13-17).

In terms of OS share, Google Android continues its dominance of sheer reach, with 43% of the smartphone market over 28% for Apple's iOS running on iPhone. Adding in other iOS devices like iPads and iPod Touch units would change that figure substantially, but when it comes to the most mobile device of all -- the phone -- Google's share is formidable.

Research in Motion's historic decline continues from market share leadership only a few years ago to a mere 18% of the smartphone OS field now. Windows Mobile has only 7% of the market. But Microsoft's recent partnership with Nokia and a version upgrade that will be pushed in new phones coming to market may give the also-ran another shot at the market in the next quarter.

Smartphone ownership remains the best predictor of mobile media use. Much as always-on broadband penetration reached a tipping point in the mid 2000s and sparked a sharp rise in online video use, social network membership and digital downloading, advanced phone technology invites new classes of mobile media interactivity.

The dramatic increases in app downloading, mobile Web access, social network access, search activity and even ad inventory have paralleled the increased distribution of smart devices as owners seem eager to move many Web operations off their desktop and into their pockets.

(Source: Online Media Daily, 11/03/11)

Presidents Day

Washington's Birthday is the official name designated to what many of us know as President's Day. During the month of February the birthday of two of our greatest President's takes place. Both George Washington who was born on Feb. 22nd and Abraham Lincoln born on Feb. 12th.

However, Washington's birthday has been publicly celebrated since he was in office, before Abraham Lincoln was even born. Much of the debate over the name of the holiday springs from the fact that state's can follow their own holidays how they see fit and many of them chose to also honor Lincoln, calling the celebration President's Day.

It was in 1968 that the term President's Day came up for legal consideration in the Congress but was shot down, though the holiday was moved to fall between the two President's birthdays. Again in the 1980's there was a resurgence of the term with advertisers which solidfied the holiday name in American culture. Today, few Americans perfer to call the holiday Washington's Birthday in lieu of President's Day.

Educate yourself and others about the presidents of the United States. At Patriotism.org, we also encourage you to show your patriotism and support our army