News Sites
#CNN, The New York Times, PC Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today

ACCESSING YOUR LONG-DISTANCE CARRIER (IN THE U.S.)
Toll-free number , Long-distance carrier codes
AT&T 800-225-5288 ,102880
MCI 800-888-8000 ,102220
Sprint 800-877-8000 ,103330

AUTOMOBILE RENTALS
Alamo 800-327-9633
Avis 800-331-1212
Budget 800-527-0700
Dollar 800-800-4000
Enterprise 800-325-8007
Hertz 800-654-3131
National 800-227-7368
Thrifty 800-331-9111

LOST CREDIT CARDS
American Express 800-528-4800
Diners Club 800-234-6377
MasterCard 800-826-2181
Visa 800-336-8472

LODGINGS
Best Western 800-528-1234
Courtyard by Marriott 800-321-2211
Doubletree 800-222-8733
Embassy Suites 800-362-2779
Fairmont 800-527-4727
Four Seasons 800-332-3442
Hilton 800-445-8667
Holiday Inn 800-465-4329
Hyatt 800-233-1234
Inter-Continental 800-327-0200
ITT Sheraton 800-325-3535
Marriott 800-228-9290
Meridien Forte 800-543-4300
Omni 800-843-6664
Radisson 800-333-3333
Ramada 800-272-6232
Resinnter Group Accor* 800-221-4542 *Manages several chains, including Novotel and Sofitel.
Ritz-Carlton 800-241-3333
Westin 800-228-3000

OVERNIGHT DELIVERY SERVICES
Airborne Express 800-247-2676, 800-229-4685*
DHL 800-225-5345
Federal Express 800-238-5355
UPS 800-742-5877, 800-782-7892* * For international destinations.

The Road Warrior Guide Travelers' Checklist
These are the essentials for notebook road warriors.

Critical Items:
Notebook computer.
Notebook AC adapter and cables.
Removable floppy disk drive, CD-ROM drive.
Modem and connector cable (dongle). RJ-11 phone cord.
International electrical and phone adapters.
Business cards. Day planner and meeting schedule.
Cash, traveler's checks, credit card, local currency.
Tickets, itinerary, directions. Car and hotel confirmation numbers.
Passport, necessary visas.

Important Tasks:
Charge notebook batteries.
Change your voice mail message.
Set up your desktop PC for remote access.
Transfer working files to your notebook.
Get dialing codes (for international travel).
Get toll (non-800) phone numbers (for international travel).

Optional Items:
Spare notebook battery.
Blank floppy disks. Notebook manual.
In-line RJ-11 coupler (makes two short cords into one long cord).
RJ-11 Y splitter (to attach two devices to one jack).
Acoustic or handset coupler (especially for international travel).
Spare pointing-stick cap. 12V DC-to-120V AC converter.
Short printer cable. Three-prong-to-two-prong AC adapter.
AC extension cord or power strip.
Cellular phone (and charger, spare battery,car adapter).
Pager and spare battery.
Blank courier-service airbills, envelopes.
Phone-line tester (checks for unsafe lines).
Toolkit (needle-nose pliers, screwdriver, pocketknife, alligator clips, small flashlight).
Velcro cable ties.

Personal Information:
Phone Number: E-Mail System Phone number:
Remote access Phone number: Voice mail
Your travel agent's phone number Your notebook's serial number
Security tips

Need travel accessories?
Check the following vendors for a full list of supplies, from notebook PCs to acoustic couplers.

Konexx Unlimited Systems Inc.: Hardware solutions for telephone connections. Products include acoustic couplers for telephone handsets, which let you use virtually any phone anywhere. 800-275-6354; fax, 619-550-7330; www.konexx.com.

Magellan's Catalog: Every international power and telephone/modem adapter imaginable. 800-962-4943, dept. 92; fax, 805-568-5406; www.travelocity.com.

Mobile Planet Inc.: Notebooks and accessories as well as international power adapters. 800-675-2638; fax, 818-888-3484; www.mplanet.com.

1-800-Batteries: Batteries for just about everything, as well as AC adapters and rapid chargers. Services include free recycling of spent batteries. 800-228-8374; fax, 408-879-1969; www.800batteries.com.

PC Connection: A last-minute source for hardware and software you forgot to bring. Orders received by 3:00 A.M. eastern time are delivered the same day (except Sunday). 800-800-0009; fax, 603-446-7791; www.pcconnection.com.

PC Zone: Another source for last-minute supplies and accessories. Order up to 8:00 P.M. Monday through Friday for same-day shipment. 800-408-9663; fax, 206-430-3420; www.pczone.com.

Road Warrior Outpost: A source for GPS (global positioning system) equipment, modems, memory chips, and spare batteries; the company's site also lets you track your FedEx or UPS orders online. 800-274-4277, ext. 730; fax, 714-839-6282; www.warrior.com.

TeleAdapt Inc.: A source for international power and telephone/modem adapters; the company has offices in the U.S., the U.K., and Australia. 408-965-1400; fax, 408-965-1414; www.teleadapt.com.

Disable Call Waiting Data transfers can be cut off by call waiting. Dial *70 (or 1170 from a rotary phone) to disable Call Waiting for the next call. If *70 doesn't work, try #70, 70#, or 70*.

Cellular connections Modems must support cellular error-correction protocols such as MNP10 or TxCel. Initialize your modem using the string AT&F1*H0 S69=15 S70=20 W2. Most cellular carriers let you connect to your provider's modem bank by dialing *3282 (*DATA). The AT&F command restores your modem to its factory-set default configuration.

Printing Install popular printer drivers on your notebook (such as those for the HP LaserJet and DeskJet and the Epson dot matrix printers, along with a generic "text-only" driver). The Web sites for HP (www.hp.com) and Microsoft (www.microsoft.com) offer downloadable printer drivers. Or use your fax modem to "print" to a fax machine.

Data transfer in the air Many airlines offer GTE's Airfone (800-247-3663; www.gteairfone.com) or AT&T Wireless Services (800-247-6636; www.attws.com) phones. Both support data and fax transfers. Cost is about $3 for setup, then $3 per minute for domestic calls. International calls cost $5 for setup and $5 per minute.

Data transfer at the airport AT&T's Public Phone 2000, available at many airports, offers a full-size keyboard, a color video display, an RJ-11 phone jack, and a credit card slot. Follow posted data-transfer instructions exactly. You may have to dial manually using the phone keypad.

In-line handset coupler This device lets you connect to the handset jack (as opposed to the wall RJ-11 jack) on any phone, including digital PBX phones. This avoids the damage that can be caused by plugging a PC Card modem into a digital phone jack.