Ecumen & Presto Services sign agreement to bring computerless email to Ecumen customers. Read more about it on the Presto CEO blog: here.

Today Presto is launching a new “virtual community” helping transform how families communicate, engage and entertain each other and their friends to create a better quality of life. We call this a “virtual” community because unlike traditional online communities like PrestoPlace, we aren’t using only one online platform to achieve our goal. We will combine the best of Facebook, Twitter, the Presto Blog, and Presto’s websites in addition to PrestoPlace.com to create a holistic experience that brings value to families. 

We are kicking off this launch with a photo contest just in time for Mother's Day. This contest is all about you, and Mom. You can be a contest entrant, or a judge, it’s up to you. If you wish to enter, you can win $100 worth of flowers for Mom from high-end online florist Calyx & Corolla. All you have to do is post a photo that celebrates motherhood on the Presto Facebook page

PrestoPlace members have asked if we could develop a way to more easily get photos to their Presto Printing Mailbox users. That easier way is now here -- announcing a new free service: Presto DailySmile™ which lets you deliver a photo-a-day from Facebook or your computer to a Printing Mailbox. 

If you are a Facebook user, just tag photos from your albums or those you have access to, and they will automatically be added to a DailySmile "Photo Queue." Photos from that queue are then automatically delivered to your Presto user one per day.

For people who don't use Facebook, just upload photos from your computer at the Presto DailySmile website ( http://www.PrestoDailySmile.com ) and they likewise will be delivered one per day.

Facebook users who use Facebook Mobile will be able to add photos to their queue from their cell phones. And, you can even subscribe to certain albums which will post any added photos directly to the DailySmile Photo Queue.

Sometimes an idea comes along that just makes so much sense that it takes on a life of its own. A number of months ago, I was meeting with Craig Caryl and Marion Somers Ph.D. (a.k.a. Doctor Marion) of Elder Health Resources of America, Inc. We were talking about the synergies between our two businesses and what a need there is in the U.S. for solutions like Presto, and experience like that amassed by Doctor Marion over 35+ years as a geriatric care manger. We also were talking about the economy and how business had changed, requiring new innovative ways of working together to get things done.

At that point in the conversation, a phone rang and both Craig and I reached for our Apple iPhones. After a shared smile and the obligatory discussion of our favorite apps, it dawned on us. We started talking about the possibilities of combining Presto's expertise in software development with Doctor Marion's expertise in elder care to provide expert advice to family caregivers when and where they need it most--on their smart phone. Right then and there we decided to work together, leveraging each organization's strengths to bring something new and very much needed to the world: the first Elder Apps.

PrestoPlace is now two years old, and I've noticed a number of things while browsing through the posts tonight.

When reading the daily newspaper, most of the news is bad. Just as there is little impetus for a newspaper editor to write about things that are going well, there is little point in conversing in a forum like this if you're not looking for some kind of assistance.

I've done my best to contact each and every PrestoPlace poster with a problem to get them back up and running (thanks to my expert customer service staff at the office). Unfortunately, people viewing PrestoPlace posts do not always see the resolution to the problem, just the frustration prior to the fix.

So, I thought I would give instructions as to what to do if you have a problem with Presto.

1) Self-Help on Presto.com
Start by visiting http://help.presto.com and seeing if there is an answer to your problem within Presto's online help system.

A PrestoPlace member suggested that members share ideas for Presto Mail messages they send to their Presto users. Here are my favorite types of messages that I use with my own family:

MEDICATION REMINDERS
Sit down with your Presto user and make a list of what medication they are taking and when they take it. Also take digital photos of the bottles and individual pills. Then set up a recurring reminder for the whole list, or for specific days (depending on the schedule), so that they have a paper reminder. This may be intrusive or overkill if the Presto user is young enough, but as they age, this can be a tremendous help.

EXTENDED FAMILY BIRTHDAYS
I set an annually recurring reminder using PrestoConnect for all of the member of my extended family which includes a photo of the birthday boy/girl and a message reminding Grandparents of the date.

EXTENDED FAMILY CONTACT LIST

Presto Services Inc. is today announcing to the PrestoPlace community a major enhancement to the Presto Mail service. This enhancement affects all Presto account managers and has already been activated as an automatic upgrade to all accounts. Note: all existing Presto features are still available, the enhancements add new functionality to the system.

Presto account managers will now have access to the all new “PrestoConnect,” account manager web site. PrestoConnect is a central online hub that enables ten powerful new functions:

1. Pre-scheduled message delivery - messages can now be scheduled for delivery at a later date and time. This can be a great time saver, allowing you to create a number of messages in one sitting that can be delivered on days and times of your choosing.

2. Activity reporting - PrestoConnect allows you to monitor email traffic that comes from approved senders, seeing when they were sent, and from whom. The PrestoConnect home page gives a

Dear PrestoPlace Members:

Presto has been contacted by an award-winning, nationally recognized radio broadcaster looking to do a story on Presto. They are asking us at Presto to provide them with the name of a Presto user and their daughter or granddaughter in the Washington D.C./Virginia/Maryland area. I thought I would throw this out to the PrestoPlace community and ask for your assistance in providing a nice viewpoint into how Presto has changed one family's life positively. I'm sure this will not be too much of an intrusion since it is radio.

Would any of you please help us out by agreeing to be interviewed? It makes a big difference to everyone here at Presto. If you are interested in helping, please send me a PrestoPlace private message with your name, email address and phone number plus the name and presto address of your Printing Mailbox user.

Of course, you are not committing to anything until you have more information. I'll be glad to tell anyone who contacts me more about this opportunity. Thanks, in advance, to anyone who is willing to help.

PrestoPlace members, you heard it here first!

Introducing "Presto Mail Preview" -- a new feature for current Presto users and people wanting to learn more about Presto before buying.

Presto Mail Preview allows anyone to see how an email they send will be delivered to the owner of a Presto Printing Mailbox. This is especially helpful if you want to see how attached photos will be formatted on the page or how PDF documents will print out.

HOW IT WORKS: It couldn't be simpler. Just compose an email and attach a photo or PDF document if you like. Address the email to preview@presto.com and click "send." In a minute, you will receive an email from Presto Bulletins with a link to your document. Click the link and you will be taken to a Web page that shows exactly how that email will print out of a Printing Mailbox.

SENDING BEAUTIFUL PRESTO MAIL:

On December 19, 2007, Presto was featured on The Martha Stewart Show. And, the PrestoInsider (yours truly) was on-air in addition to the HP Printing Mailbox. Martha's supervising producer Deb Savo has been using Presto with her parents for about a year. She tells her story to the audience and we all get to see her darling son Julian. Martha talks about how she loves Presto.

If any of you PrestoPlace members would like to see a video clip of the show segment, just visit: http://tinyurl.com/2opmd7

Note: We at Presto were all sad to hear that Martha Stewart's Mom passed away in December of 2007.

1. Letting you still contact Mom & Dad when you don’t have time for a 30 minute call

2. Eliminating excuses from your siblings for not staying in touch with Mom & Dad

3. Sending photos of their grandkids so you have something to talk about

4. Making a list of dates and events so Mom & Dad don’t forget

5. Creating a PDF of Google map directions so they don’t get lost

6. Forwarding an authoritative article that proves to Dad that you were right all along

7. Giving the gift of bragging rights via same-day photos of grandkids doing something spectacular

8. Discovering that Presto has twenty-one 5-star user reviews on Amazon.com

9. Making your folks the envy of all their friends

10. Finding the perfect gift for your parents

Exclusive news for PrestoPlace members: Presto opens up the world of information to HP Printing Mailbox users.

Beginning around midnight, 10/19/07, the Presto Service added a new feature: the ability to deliver Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (PDF) email attachments through the Presto Service to owners of HP Printing Mailboxes.

This is a significant advance for Presto users because of two reasons.

1) Much of the information found on the Internet is saved as PDF-format documents. Those documents include articles, news pieces, research papers, product information, government services, and much, much more. Authorized senders can now download PDF documents from web sites and attach them to emails being delivered to HP Printing Mailboxes.

2) Many of the most popular computer applications now have the ability to create PDF-format documents. This functionality is either included as an option in the "Save-As" function, or more commonly, in the "Print" function. Pretty much any application that can print a document can

Did you know that people who send email to Presto owners can make them look as beautiful as a greeting card? All you have to do is include a special code in the subject line of your email (which doesn't print) and "Presto!" your email will be printed with a seasonal theme, or with birthday wishes, or as a calendar, etc. You can find all of these Presto Styles listed in the "styles" section of PrestoPlace. Or, just look at this cheat sheet presented below. Take note, to invoke a Presto Style, you must put the name of the style in brackets, like this: "[style name]", and, you must spell it exactly. What I do is print this style cheat sheet on a small card and I carry it in my wallet. Then, I can remember what to use when I send my Mother-in-Law Presto Mail from my email-enabled cell phone.

In between speaking to people about Presto at the AARP National Conference and Expo, I have been walking around talking to people who make interesting products and services. Here are a few:

Eons.com - Very cool. From the founder of the job hunting site Monster.com comes Eons. It's a social networking web site aimed at the AARP set. Capture and check off those 100 things you have yet to do in the next 50 years of your life, or tell your life's story...Eons gives you a platform for managing that communication that is really fun. Look for big things from Eons ( visit: http://www.eons.com )

Clarity - Not overly new or cool, but absolutely essential to those who have hearing impairment are the products sold by Clarity. They have a robust catalog of products for the hard of hearing (and the people there are really nice, too). Check them out at clarityproducts.com

I've come across a few items recently that I wanted to share with any Presto enthusiasts who are caregivers to their elderly parents:

"The Complete Eldercare Planner: Where to Start, Questions to Ask, How to Find Help" by Joy Loverde (ISBN-10: 0812932781) Consistently getting five-star reviews, Joy's book should be on every caregiver's "to read" list. Be sure to visit Joy's web site at: http://www.elderindustry.com

"Caregiving: The Spiritual Journey of Love, Loss, and Renewal" by Beth Witrogen (ISBN: 0471254088) Mitch Albom, author of Tuesdays with Morrie, said that Beth's book was "A fine source to help bring out the helping heart in all of us." You can find out more about Beth at her web site: http://www.witrogen.com/index.php ( also, be sure to check out Beth's fantastic photography at http://www.witrogenphoto.com/ )

AssistGuide Information Services, or AGIS, is an online resource for caregivers that claims to "help caregivers and their loved ones meet the challenges of aging.

"If you build it, they will come." Well, at Presto we aren't that patient, so we built it, and took it to Boston to participate in the AARP's National Expo and Show entitled: Life@50+. The photo was taken right after we finished setting up our booth (#1541 for those of you attending the show).

The AARP web site mentioned that this nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization has over 39 million members. Hopefully they won't all be in Bean Town this week or there won't be any lobster left for us hard-working Prestonians. I only mention this event on my PrestoPlace blog because I'd love it if any Presto users who are attending the show would stop by the booth and say, "Hello." We'd love to hear what you think of Presto and how we can make it even better.

See you in Boston. Go Sox!

 The world is exploding with ever-new gadgets like the iPhone that empower a tech-savvy world while creating an ever-greater divide with people who are technology shy. Presto is a product that bridges that divide, enabling the iPhone-crowd to have a direct link to their loved ones who don't use a computer. Presto makes it possible for a Grandson with an iPhone to 1) take a photo, 2) compose an email, 3) send them both to his Grandmother and have them automatically printed out as a full-color, nicely designed page that looks more like a greeting card than an email with attachment. Presto not only helps bridge the generational and technology divide, it also lets a large part of the population have some fun with a tech-toy that was purpose-built for them. Who says that only the wired generation has all the fun!