Out of State, but Not Out of Touch

True confessions. There's a bit of glee in all of us whenever we answer an email from the beach, know that we've arranged to forward calls to our vacation spot, or figured out how to automate the bill paying at home while we're away, right? Every now and then technology works as promised and doesn't chain you to the desk.

With vacations surrounding us, I thought I'd see what the masters are saying about how to deal with life while you're recharging. This week, James Martin at PC World has the definitive word on vacations. He suggests using ebills when you're planning a long stay out of town, or alternatively, using sites like Paytrust which lets you receive, review, and pay bills.

Traveling light in the U.S.? Here's a list of Internet cafes. World travelers might drop by this site, though I know it's far from complete. Ditto for Wi-Fi hotspots. In the U.S., sites like Wi-FiHotspotList provide a decent directory. Sites like JiWire get you started, but are incomplete.

If you're an Outlook user but your company doesn't set up a fancy rule for you to list yourself as being Out of the Office, then watch the demo at Microsoft.com and set up your own "out of office" message.

If you're a VoIP user, have your calls forwarded to your cell phone.

Just remember, don't gloat too much when the others are chained to their desks. Nobody likes a "guess where I'm calling from" caller. And for heavens sake, don't pride yourself on how much of the time you can be connected! That's why they call ‘em vacations.

Any other tech tips for staying in touch on vacation?