Staying in touch with loved ones can be quite a chore if yourely mostly on phone calls and snail mail. If rising postage andlong-distance costs are keeping you from connecting with family andfriends, consider one of the many options available through themagic of digital communication. The only hard part of communicatingdigitally is deciding which connection best fits your circumstance.Check out these online options to meet your needs and use some orall of them for optimal communication.

* Skype: Video chat is becoming one of the most popular andexciting methods for staying in touch, whether you’re down thestreet or abroad on vacation. Install free software on an Internetand webcam-enabled computer, cell phone or TV to connect. Enjoyvideo chats and conferences for free or pay a small fee to do extrathings like making and receiving calls to landlines and cellphones. No matter the features you use, make sure you have a fastmobilebroadband Internet connection to avoid any visual or audio lagtime.

* Twitter: Share the minutiae of your day in 140 characters orless. Tell your husband what’s for dinner, send a friend a link toan article, or even tweet about the great deal you just scored.Stay involved by following and tweeting with other users, postingphotos and making your tweets search friendly with hashtags.Navigating your live Twitter feed is simple and can be organizedinto contact lists like “college friends” and “celebrities.”

* WordPress: Blog about an extended trip, a recent move or a newinterest and share a multitude of details without repeatingyourself. This user-friendly platform tracks stats, offersinteresting interactive widgets and hosts big-name blogs like CNN’sPolitical Ticker and People Magazine’s Style Watch. Create aprivate blog that only approved members can read if you’re hesitantto broadcast your life to the entire Internet. This is a greatoption for those trying to keep up with and share major lifechanges, like having a baby or planning a wedding.

* Foursquare: Gather agroup of friends at the last minute by tracking their locations.”Check in” to your location and broadcast it to others. Earn andcollect badges for visiting a new location or checking into thesame location several times within a time period. Access Foursquareby downloading a smart phone application (available for limitedsystems), visiting the website from your smart phone or sending atext message to the service’s SMS code of 50500 from a regular cellphone. This tech-savvy site is rumored to be the next big wave insocial networking.

* Gmail: Communicate with one or a select few through thiswidely-used outlet. Google’s free e-mail service makescommunication easier with a sharable reader service, calendar anddocuments. Verify that you have a secure wimax 4g Internet connectionbefore sending important and private information, and never open asuspicious e-mail from someone you don’t know.

Whether you live in different cities or different countries,keeping up with friends and family has never been easier. Thedigital age has brought with it a multitude of solutions for yourcommunications needs, so spend some time deciding which ones workfor you. Sharing information through the use of technology is notonly fast, but fun.

Courtesy of ARAcontent