Monday, December 10, 2007
Multimedia
11:40PM Tamar Weinberg | Two years ago, you created an awesome multimedia photo movie complete with pictures, voice narration, and background music. More »
Channel 7 & 10 launch HD channels this week
11:52AM Sarah Stokely | Channels 7 and 10 are both beginning High Definition TV broadcasts this week. Seven’s new channel, 7HD, which launches today, will have up to 50 hours a week of unique programming which it won’t show on its main standard definition channel. Ten-HD will begin broadcasting on Sunday, and will likewise show unique content. While some of this “unique content” is stuff considered too niche for the main channels (gridiron anyone?), Seven will also invest in making shows specifically for HD, according to a story in the SMH today.So do you have an HD tuner or set top box? I’d be interested to know your thoughts on HD-TV so far. More » Your computer can work as a fitness motivator
11:23AM Sarah Stokely | Here are some study results which are right up Lifehacker’s street. According to researchers at Stanford Uni, an automated computer message reminding people to get out and exercise is almost as effective as having a human counseller do the same job.The study found that people called by the computer with an exercise reminder averaged 157 minutes of exercise per week, compared to 118 minutes for the people who didn’t receive a reminder.We’ve offered up a range of reminder apps in the past ranging from setting up email reminders for recurring activitites with HassleMe, text message alerts with iCal, or you can do what I do and set up SMS alerts through Google Calendar. Got a system for automated exercise reminders? Please share in comments.
The computer called, it said to get off the couch [MSNBC, via Techdirt]
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Make a secret compartment book
11:11AM Sarah Stokely | My inner Nancy Drew sqee-ed with excitement when I saw MAKE’s instructions on how to make your own secret compartment in a book. The Good Weekend magazine this past weekend had a story on former Columbian drug lord Pablo Escobar which had a photo of such a book, hollowed out to conceal a gun. But we’re geeks not drug lords, so let’s hide something less violent and illegal – what would you suggest?
Make a Secret Compartment book [MAKE]
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Google releases Picasa 2.7 beta for Linux
10:51AM Sarah Stokely | Google has rounded out the feature set of the Linux version of its photo suite, Picasa, with the release of the beta version of Picasa 2.7. Linux users will know that Picasa for Linux hadn’t included a number of features available in later Windows versions (including Picasa web intregration). However the new version lets you upload to Picasa Web albums using the new “web album” button. Other new features include the ability to save edits to disk (including batch saving), folder hierarchy views and improvements to the import function and RAW support.The preview version of 2.7 can be downloaded here.It’s not all good news though – the Google Operating System blog points out that the new version “still doesn’t support videos, full-screen slideshows and it’s still using WINE.”
More » ASUS drops warranty void on Eee PC memory upgrade
10:23AM Sarah Stokely | ASUS’ Eee PC just got a little more awesome – Gizmodo reports this morning that the company has dumped its draconian “warranty void if removed” sticker on the Eee PC’s access panel in favour of a more reasonable policy. Further details over at Gizmodo AU.
ASUS Eee PC is no longer voided by memory upgrade [Gizmodo]
More » Remember your online subscription details
9:59AM Sarah Stokely | If you’re an infrequent user of sites like ebay or paypal, you probably make more use of the “I forgot my password, please email it to me” function than you should. I decided to take the simple step of creating a “subscription management” folder in my email client so I’d always have those details to hand.Now whenever I create an account on a website (which usually generates an email confirming my login details), I just drop the email into my subs management folder and it will be there next time I’m trying to remember my password. Requesting a new password usually generates a reminder email with your new login details – I keep those in my subs folder too.My subs management folder has a long list of subscriptions, ranging from Remember the Milk, Ticketek, YouTube and Wikipedia. Now they’re just a Thunderbird search away, which has been a real time saver. How do you remember all your online subscription details? More » 
Clean Your Household with Wine
6:00AM Tamar Weinberg | Wine is a great household cleaner since its acidity and alcohol can combat against popular dangerous kinds of bacteria. Wipe your kitchen counters with wine, or in the absence of (or in addition to) water, douse fruits and vegetables in the alcohol and let the acids within do their tricks. It’s not a bad idea when traditional chemicals aren’t readily available, and it may ultimately be safer too. Do you have any other household cleaning tips and shortcuts? Let’s hear about them in the comments. Wine as Household Cleaner [Epicurious] More »
How Do You Prepare Your Car for Driving in the Winter?
5:00AM Tamar Weinberg | Many of you might have already experienced your first snowfall of the season, and it’s far from over. How do you prepare your automobile for winter? Weblog Dumb Little Man suggests ten tips, from ensuring that your windshield wipers give you maximum visibility on the road to inspecting your antifreeze to adding a protective layer of wax to your car to prevent rain, snow, or salt from wearing down your car’s paint. What else do you do for your car before the season gets really chilly and the snow begins to fall heavily? Let’s hear your tips in the comments. 10 Tips to Prep Your Car for Winter Driving [Dumb Little Man] More »
