Admit it—you've still got some last-minute gift items to pick up before you gather with family or friends this holiday season. Even though it's December 21st, if you need to purchase some gifts online for delivery tomorrow or Saturday, or even on Christmas day, it's still possible. If you're that daring, the first step I recommend you take is to download a new shopping application called MaxManager. The program is less than 1 MB and downloads fairly quickly on most systems. It does require at least Windows 98 and Internet Explorer 4.0, and there doesn't appear to be a Mac version.

So what does Max (a frog) do for your shopping experience? He helps you to organize all of the receipts from past purchases at online stores that are part of its system; he keeps track of special offers available from online stores, and if you shop with Max often, he reminds you to add coupon information where applicable. And he helps you to make up your mind on a purchase by pointing you to product reviews.

I downloaded MaxManager and started to fiddle with it. At first, when I tried to download receipts from prior purchases at Amazon.com, the program appeared to freeze on the first receipt. I tried again and the same thing happened, so I rebooted. When I opened the program the next time, I decided to try a store where I'd only bought a couple of items. The download worked this time, but I noticed that the status bar pauses for 30 seconds to a minute for each receipt it's downloading. When I tried Amazon.com again, the download worked, but there was a significant time lag in downloading each receipt. So be patient if you try this, but it does work.

Once you have downloaded receipts, you can doublecheck to make sure you've received everything you've ordered. If not, you can add a flag to the item to remind you to keep checking your porch.

The next step might be to check the special offers available. If you have a genealogist you're shopping for and are looking for the perfect gadget, why not check Staples.com. MaxManager advises that you can get $20 off an order of $100 or more until the end of this month. The best news about Staples is that in most instances, the store delivers the next day. I ordered some items from Staples last week, and the truck pulled up to deliver them before 10 a.m. the next day. So if you order today, the items will be on your doorstep tomorrow. How's that for service?

What about books? Genealogists always need more books! Amazon.com participates with MaxManager, so you can check what's available for the avid bookworm, and possibly take advantage of a coupon in the process. Amazon.com doesn't just sell books anymore though—it also sells music, toys, electronics, and other gifts. If you order today, you can still receive items marked “usually ships in 24 hours” using the Holiday Saturday Delivery. Of course, you'll pay a bit more for shipping, but it's convenient to order online and not fight the crowds. You can also give someone a gift certificate to Amazon.com, and that doesn't require any shipping. I've done that for birthdays and Christmases past, and the gift was always welcome.

Speaking of gift certificates, you should visit GiftCertificates.com, which allows you to purchase gift certificates for more than 500 merchants from its Web site. Through MaxManager, you'll also receive $5 off any order of $50 or more—not bad for buying coupons. It's too late to have the gift certificates shipped to your intended recipients, but you can have a gift certificate e-mailed to someone up until 8 p.m. EST Sunday, December 24th, if you'd like the certificate to be in the person's inbox on Christmas day.

This is handy for out-of-town friends whose names were mistakenly left off of your shopping list. Make sure to check the “eMailable” selection on GiftCertificates.com's main page for participating vendors. Or you can purchase a Super Certificate from GiftCertificates.com, which is redeemable at the Web site for whichever gift certificate the recipient is interested in. Let them choose—by now you're weary of trying to figure out what to buy people. I know I am.

MaxManager is a free, downloadable assistant to help you organize your online shopping. The interface is straightforward and easy to use. If you're tired of trying to keep track of your purchases and receipts, let Max do it for you. He'll help you wrap up your holiday shopping so you can sit in front of the fire and enjoy a nice cup of hot chocolate.

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year! I'll see you again in 2001!

Elizabeth Kelley Kerstens, CGRS, is the managing editor of Genealogical Computing (GC), editor of the Board for Certification of Genealogists' newsletter OnBoard, the creator of Clooz—the electronic filing cabinet for genealogical records, and a frequent contributor to Ancestry Magazine. She can be reached via e-mail at liz@ancestordetective.com or at gceditor@ancestry.com.