on this big shopping weekend, arkansas, minneapolis or new york city and why keep it here at home. small business saturday is a national push to get people to shop local. rosie has more. >> it is what you hear from politicians to small business owners but it is true, small businesses create more than 6 five percent of all new jobs every dollar helps you to create new jobs and experience something you may not have seen in awhile, customer service. >> put that guy up there. there you go. >> reporter: it is perhaps one of the few jobs where you have to know about dinosaurs to monsters to other things. in three years, kim norris says she has learned that you have to know all these things

because good customer service is where small businesses have the edge. >> we know our products and we can help them and when someone comes in when a grandfather says i have ad grandchild is 8 that i don't see very often. >> that helps them separate from the big boys. downtown main street bellaire has had up and downs with entrepreneurs that are willing to take a chance. the national small business saturday campaign is to have people come to main street and window shop and have lunch and support their shops. >> it is a nice and sane alternative to shopping and it is, it is nice to be part of a community. it is nice to be part of your town and to be able to have that special experience. it is fun.

>> tiny toe's owner says this gives people a chance to get far from the crowds and the service that they don't get. that is what people appreciate because people love the service. >> i love to be close to home and support our community and that's a wonderful thing. >> now, part of the deal here that's you can actually make a little money. american express is offering rewards. buy $25 or more from a registered business on their site and many small businesses are offering their own version of door busters if you come out and shop downtown. rosie, abc2 news. whether you are planning to shop in person or online for the best deals, there are a few things that you should keep in mind. according to the better business bureau here is how you can make sure you are getting a good price and really getting

the product that you think you are. be cautious about unsolicit the e-mails with links for coupons because they could have viruses and make sure you know a store's refund and exchange policy and restocking fees is becoming more and more common and some items are final. and if you are shopping online using credit card means you will have consumer protection if a scammer gets a hold of your credit card. make gift cards presents but by them from a retailer but not from a secondary store. deputies on the eastern shore arrested a man on kent island in connect with a string of car break-ins yesterday using facebook. one camera store manager in the area says he thinks the arrest and attention might boost the popularity of the camera use similar to the cameras that

hunters use. the sheriff's office used the facebook page hosting pictures from a bank robbery in centerville. an edgewood man is dead of a bizarre home invasion, the man who died walked into a family's home, the woman that was home got her husband and he came in with her and ordered the man out and restrained him but he became unresponsive and later died. no one has been charged and police are waiting for an autopsy to be completed. weatherwise as we check out maryland's most powerful radar you can see the showers eastward, across kent island and in chester town, travels in this direction still dealing with some water on the windshield and some relatively slick roads. the other showers we have seen earlier in the last hour or two have been down along the

beaches where a lot of people are traveling for the holidays and still wet weather along the coastline and other than that, the winds with cooler air as they rush in and they will dry everything up. through the overnight the steady ones 10 to 15 but the gusts are 25 to 30. temperatures in the 40s this evening and still the few showers mainly east of baltimore and then gusty with falling temps and we talk about your thanksgiving forecast, raven's game weather coming up. it is a 6 6-year-old thanksgiving tradition, hundreds of volunteers show up at the goodwill thanksgiving dinner and was 1800 pounds of turkey and trimming given out. and another tradition, president obama took part in pardoning two lucky turkeys and

one of the birds is a 19 week old 45-pounder named liberty. they were raised on a farm in minnesota and groomed by the future farmers of america club. and everyone is looking forward to the big turkey day here but you can't forecast about a local thanksgiving tradition tomorrow morning. the catapult turkey bowl will kick off at 10:00 on abc2e the cardinals will face off against loyola for the 9 2nd time. we will be live from johnny knight stadium. we will be shown live on abc2 news.com. we have video of a helicopter crash and we will tell what you happened to the pilot and how the accident started. and a semi-truck is almost

blown off of a bridge and what nearly pushed it over the head. and looking at 695 and old court road a lot of traffic but the good news is that it looks like it is moving. we'll check back in just a little bit.

it is not often that anyone survives a helicopter crash but a pilot in new zea land did just that. the routine landing until the blades hit a cable and flipped the chopper landing it to the ground the cause of the crash is uninvestigation but he walked away without any injuries. western oregon has been dealing with crazy weather, a truck driver driving over a bridge looked at his side view mirror and saw his trailer lifted off of the road by winds. the semi tilted over and spilling nearly 100 gallons of fuel in the road. the truck driver was able to walk away from the accident. and in washington state, a strange crash, the driver ended upstairing down the car down an embankment and parking it by a tree, a rescue driver came to help out. if you are making a black friday shopping list but you're not quite sure what to put on

that list, we are going to break down some of the most important thing between smart phones and tablets and help you figure out which one is right for you. and whether you are traveling today or later this holiday season we have tips to help keep you and your family healthy even on a crowded holiday plane.

the book tablets are expected to be the the holiday season and what is the buzz about. we are going to show you why a tablet is different than a smart phone and computer. >> i want to hold it. >> canes not talking about holding a new baby or pet, it is his tablet. >> once you find that there is

an easier way to do what you need to do in your life, it is like where has it been. >> cane bought a tablet, a little computer and a little bit of a smart phone that is fast and easy to use. >> you can press the button and use the app to type. >> it is not like the apps on a smart phone, they won't kill your battery. >> i must say that this tablet only died once. >> consumer reports test the tablet life with this machine nicknamed the boinker. this man made machine measures how long a man can use the tablet before the battery dies and the boinker keeps it awake. >> they usually find they are

getting between 11 and 12 hours of battery life and smaller once like five to seven. >> and consumer reports measured the screen and read billity and this light simulates the sun. >> you couldn't see much on this screen until we cast a shadow but when we held it to the light the text was as clear and crisp as a printed page. that's the struggle, if someone wants to read books primarily you are better off getting a book reader with this e ink screen. >> consumer reports that the tablets through five tests and rate them and the ipad is the tablet to beat there's an android competitor. >> series 2 does rival the ipad, has not exceeded it yet.

there are other manufacturers like sony that has got in the market and we expect them to be competitive with the samsung. >> should you buy now or wait? >> i don't think there's a reason to wait. >> consumer reports says the manufacturers are sending updates so the models don't become updated. >> do you use your computer? >> just once. >> the way technology is going these may be dinosaurs. >> and we will be back at 6:00 to tell you whether you should purchase the smart phone

insurance. now, maryland's most powerful radar and the forecast certified by weather accurate. most of the rain has left the baltimore area and we still got rain across the eastern shore and even down through roundal county and if you look closely you can see the camera shake and cloud cover today and some showers and this is our weather bug camera at the u.s. naval academy and bellaire finding cloudy conditions in downtown and ocean city a lot of people headed to the beach for the holiday and still rain coming down at the beach and take at maryland's most powerful radar, you can see the rain from arnold to the bay over to the island area and we have showers continuing to clear out and one moderate shower impacting chester town

through centerville and annapolis picking up the drizzle. look at the wind gusts, 40 in baltimore and 45 in silver spring and 50 in raftton. it was one windy scenario and winds steady at 15 to 28 at pa toxin river and the winds are beginning to die off and will diminish. the winds are letting up some but not completely. a regional view showing clearing from the west to east and some rain we are dealing with across i-95 going to new york and up towards new york city, you will find wet roads and complications in the high volume to new england and having wintery weather from basically new hampshire to

maine and that's the worse travel weather in the country northern new england and rain to be dealt with from philadelphia to new york and boston. chilly conditions coming in from the west. now, travelers headed west and southwest getting into better weather, chilly but clear conditions to the west and again from the city eastward the clearing will come over the next few hours. thanksgiving thursday one of the nicest in a long time, upper 50s and abundant sunshine and great weather for the ravens and kickoff forecast about 48 degrees and in our black friday, big shopping day here, crystal clear, not a cloud in the sky. overnight down to 34 and clearing and colder and still windy out there, no question about that and tomorrow as we look to the thanksgiving, 58 degrees and the 2-degree guarantee and tomorrow night as the bird gets cooked 36 degrees and, of course, rooting hard

for the ravens and the overnight low is 36 and your seven-day forecast featuring a nice warmup into the thanksgiving weekend. we do see temperatures in the mid-60s on black friday. why do i keep wanting to say good friday? this weekend looks outstanding. >> well in tonight's democracy 2012 last night in washington the republican candidates took the stage in the 11th debate so far this campaign season and this one was focusing on national security. newt gingrich in the spotlight and torrey was there and will tell us more. >> kell lee we got a lot to talk about, if you watched it you probably noticed that republican candidates are cross the board in foreign policy and some of the second tier candidates had great performances and then finally that newt gingrich might have a

new problem. >> a serious country. >> reporter: newt gingrich looked strong until a question on amnesty for illegal immigrants. >> i'm prepared to take the heat for saying let's be humane enforcing the law and creating legality so that they are not separated from their families. >> reporter: he may take heat in states like iowa where conservative republicans mostly oppose any form of amnesty. other take aways from last night, strong performances from candidates with strong foreign policy expertise. like former ambassador to china john huntsman. >> are you suggesting we take the troops out next week? did you hear what i said draw down from 100,000 troops. >> reporter: michelle bachmann. >> you are not going to be an

alli of the united states do not expect a dime of our citizen's money to come in your country. >> i think that is highly naive. >> reporter: and there were gotcha moments. >> torrey doning reporting live. thanks for that report. jamie. coming up all new at 6:00, a homeless man killed while walking to a shelter after getting out of the hospital and now there are efforts to find a home for his most priced possession staring at you. and nearly half of you have smart phones and that means personal data on the contacts, e-mail addresses and what you put on the apps and the website and we will tell you how you can protect from hackers. i'm james costello and those stories and more coming up at six.

well of course one of the busiest travel period of the year coincides with primetime for cold and flu season so how do you and your family stay healthy and happy even when cramped inside of a plane with sick passengers. we have some tips. >> reporter: more than 23 million americans will fly over the thanksgiving holiday and with the weather getting chillier in parts of the country it can mane a lot of sneezes and coughs and germs. >> it is greater the closer you are to the person coughing and sneezing. >> reporter: how close is too close, dr. p orrent says when it comes to the flu the hot row

is two or three row from the passenger that is coughing and sneezing. >> past two or three rows it is a small chance. >> reporter: candy sabin says when boarding a plane with the family there are two must-s have. hand sanitizer and antibacterial wipes to clean surfaces. >> when you get on the plane, spray the tray table, the arms and everything, the seat, when do you think that was last cleaned? >> touching surfaces like armrests and the door to the lavatory can get you sick so the best advice. >> use soap and water and antibacterial, wash your hands as frequently as possible. >> reporter: and it shouldn't stop when you get to your destination, if a family member has the cold or flu avoid the handshake or kiss and don't

share food off of your holiday plate. a child in need of a specially trained dog finds help from a fellow student, how a 5th grader showed us the true spirit of giving. abc news at six starts right now. they said he was known for doing this, walking him home unannounced. an intruder dies of a struggle with a homeowner was his next door neighbor. >> all of them were upset. william had nothing, nothing but this dog. but tonight it is the dog that has lost his best friend. >> and another story of a boy that wants a dog to continue living and on this thanksgiving eve will show you