Before you plunk down $20 for a disposable camera, think about the environment and try an alternative which won't hurt your pocketbook, but will give you value for your money.

I just purchased Microsoft's Digital Image Suite 10 at Circuit City and used a competitive ad  from another store to  lower my purchase price to $109. With a $60 rebate, I'll pay a net of $49, not bad for a great suite of very friendly graphic and photo applications.

I then bought a digital camera, on sale this week,  from Radioshack.com for $50: FlatFoto 1.3 megapixel with 16 meg onboard and a slot for a SD media card. The purchases makes me eligible for the $30 rebate from Microsoft for purchasing a non-disposable camera. Voila: my net cost for the camera is effectively $20.

I also bought the wellmade pawprint designed wireless "Pet Doorbells" for $10 (regular $20) and the very cool RadioShack Photo SlideShow PhotoFrame, for $50 (regular $130). The dogs haven't warmed up to the pet door bell yet (training sessions not included), but I've beened wowed by the SlideShow which includes an SD media card slot (and plenty of cables) so you can instantly project your photos on your bigscreen tv in a slideshow or on your desktop in the photo frame. My XP computer instantly regcognized the PhotoFrame when I connected it and I was able to add and delete photos from my computer's photo archive.

There are other cheap, but perfectly good digital cameras out there. I also like the DigiPenII, which was $30 a few months ago from SharperImage.com's clearance sales...

Decide for yourself whether Barney, the presidential dog, makes a good political animal... [NBC4]

Buy your tickets for  Dances with Dogs, benefiting the Montgomery County Humane Society. Make a difference and help the animals.

A doggy star event! When: Saturday, September 18, 2004, 7:00 p.m. -11:00 p.m. at the Gaithersburg Marriott Washingtonian Center (9751 Washingtonian Blvd., Gaithersburg, MD 20878). Leashed dogs are welcome, but a dog is not necessary! Tickets must be purchased in advance. You'll have a gourmet dinner, appetizers,beer, wine, soda, doggie bar, music and dancing, pet photographs, caricaturists, contests, a shelter alumni parade, and a treasure-filled silent and live auction!

For more information and to purchase tickets, go to www.danceswithdogs.net or call (301) 279-9677.