File your taxes for free

February 24, 2005

Computer Corner is a weekly video report examining the latest trends in technology. Helpful links are listed. Walt Zwirko reports from WFAA-TV in Dallas.

It's now less than two months until that date all Americans know and most Americans dread.

We're talking about April 15, the deadline for filing your federal income tax.

If you're one of the millions who typically wait until the last minute to mail off your return, you should know about an alternative method that could change the way you deal with the Internal Revenue Service.

It's the IRS Free File program, and while the government's Web site portrays participants as happily lounging in a hammock with a notebook computer, your mileage may vary, as they say in the car biz.

What you will find is a consortium of companies that have agreed to process your tax forms for free. Some of these firms — like H&R Block and TurboTax — you've probably heard of already. Others, like Taxnet and 123EasyTaxFiling.com, are not exactly household names.

But as long as you go to these businesses via the IRS Free File Web site, they will let you fill out Form 1040 (although some of the providers set limits on participation).

You're probably wondering why the members of the Consortium are giving away their services. They are gambling that many users will choose to pay additional incremental fees for a higher level of service, such as additional help or the ability to import information from financial software.

They also recognize that a good experience with tax software can engender loyalty to their company in the years ahead.

So if you have never used a computer to prepare your taxes, be sure to take this free opportunity to try a paper-free alternative.

I've been doing my taxes "offline" by computer since the 1980s using TurboTax (from the makers of Quicken) and TaxCut (from H&R Block) software in alternating years, and I'd never go back to the old-fashioned way of doing things.

My preference is for an offline product because my Internet connection simply isn't reliable enough to risk losing carefully prepared data during an outage.

Either way — online or offline — you'll be able to take advantage of the error-checking and calculating accuracy of today's tax preparation software packages, dispatching a brief file with your tax return information to the IRS.

All those factors should help speed your refund and reduce the likelihood of an audit.

Web sites catalog the worst album covers

WARNING: The Web sites mentioned in this article contain some content that is unsuitable for children.

You'll still find an old-fashioned record album or two in the bins at Half Price Books, but most of those vinyl relics have been banished from the living rooms of America in favor of high-tech, shiny CDs.

But I recently found a growing number of Web sites devoted to the worst that the music industry had to offer.

The Museum of Bad Album Covers is a comprehensive (if occasionally offensive) resource for prospective collectors, featuring 107 examples of the genre.

One wing of this virtual museum is devoted to records featuring ventriloquists. No chance of seeing anyone's lips moving here.

Ready to groove to spills and chills? You won't want to miss the action-packed artwork adorning The Exciting Sounds of Model Road Racing.

Check out the fashion faux pas from Swedish singing sensations ABBA on the cover of a Spanish-language album. You may be even more amused by Mike Terry's glamorous getup for his Live at the Pavilion Theatre release.

Museum of Bad Album Covers

From The Best of The Singing Postman to Ken... By Request Only, you will be dumbfounded by the uninspired awfulness of these album selections. And The Museum of Bad Album Covers isn't the only spot on the Web to soak it all in.

The Worst Album Cover Gallery spotlights more than 400 stupefying selections.

And what Dusty Scott's compilation of the 10 Worst Album Covers of All Time lacks in quantity, it makes up for in quality, with large, clear reproductions of tempting titles from singing stars like Joyce and Country Church. Ten titles were not enough for Scott, who added a second installment of long forgotten (with good reason) cover art.

The Internet is the perfect medium for compilations like these, which rely on suggestions and contributions from music lovers around the world.

Simple online game tests news knowledge

There's an addictive new guessing game online that's quite literally ripped from today's headlines.

It's called Prognosticate, a British concoction that asks you to choose a category, pick a headline, and then guess what's next.

As the story begins to display on the screen, it pauses, waiting for you to pick the next word from an on-screen list. That's the easy level. Choose 'hard' and you'll have to guess the word without any help.

Prognosticate brings out your competitive spirit by ranking your effort against other players.

It's an entertaining and even an educational way to have fun with the news of the day.