These jobs often involve local knowledge and range from things like checking what street signs say in rural Sudan for a satellite-navigation service to translating words into a Kenyan dialect for companies trying to spread their marketing.

ECONOMIST: A way to earn money by texting

For those who really want to keep track of their socks, the app also produces a range of data - checking how black they are, offering to replace worn-out socks and even finding a close match for socks whose partners have gone astray.

BBC: Who wants hi-tech socks for Christmas?

Bank of America currently charges a wide range of monthly fees for checking accounts, unless customers meet certain requirements, but the new plans being tested could change the amounts being charged and the triggers for fees.

WSJ: Bank of America Weighs New Set of Fees

Roles for volunteers will range from interpreting, first aid, checking tickets and giving travel advice.

BBC: Thousands to be trained as 2012 Olympic volunteers

Interest rates on checking accounts at many brokerages range from 0.05% to 0.10%, the same as at many stand-alone banks, according to researcher DepositAccounts.com.

WSJ: Should You Bank at Your Brokerage?

The article suggests installing smoke alarms, inspecting power cords, checking wiring, practicing kitchen safety, clearing range hoods of grease and keeping dryer vents clear as other preventative measures.

FORBES: Time Well Spent: How to Avoid Appliance Fires

The Wi-Fi will come in handy for things like checking e-mail and browsing the Web when you're near a hotspot or perhaps within range of your own wireless network at home.

FORBES: PDAs Grow Well Beyond The Basics

It says by checking on the NHS choices website, people will be able to see which trusts are in the normal range, those among the best and those among the worst.

BBC: How one question can change the NHS