Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Survey says
11:59PM Gina Trapani | According to a survey, teenagers aren’t getting enough sleep because they are distracted by electronic gadgets in their bedrooms. More »
Cranky geek
11:45PM Gina Trapani | Cranky geek John C. Dvorak rails against web-based services’ single-point-of-failure. Of course, it all comes down to trust. More »
Embed a Terminal in the Desktop with Compiz Fusion
11:00PM Kyle Pott | Linux users: You can configure Compiz Fusion to embed a terminal in the desktop. The last time we covered this process you needed to install Devilspie and create a configuration file. With Compiz Fusion the process is much simpler and the end result looks much more streamlined. The Ubuntu Unleashed weblog details the entire process. You need to create a terminal profile that will only be used when it is embedded into the desktop. Then just configure Compiz Fusion and you’ll be all set. Howto: Completely Transparent Shell on your Ubuntu desktop with Compiz Fusion [Ubuntu Unleashed] More »
Position Your Satellite Dish with the Alignment Calculator
10:30PM Kyle Pott | Perfectly aim your satellite dish or antenna using Google maps mashup, Satellite Alignment Calculator (SAC). With SAC you choose your satellite provider (DirectTV, XM, Sirius, etc.), enter your address and SAC will show you the exact direction you need to position your satellite for the best signal. Since I’m dish-less I can’t test SAC’s accuracy. Can anyone out there confirm SAC’s usefulness? Share in the comments. Satellite Alignment Calculator 2.0 [UKSatelliteHelp] More »
Overlooked Items To Bring To College
10:00PM Lifehacker US Edition | With the US college year starting in just a few weeks, weblog College and Finance has a list of 18 overlooked items that should be packed before you head back to the dorms. I have a little sister in college who should have gone for earplugs last year, and I ended up buying a hammer on campus when I was at school. Other must-have items include a bottle opener, duct tape, cleaning supplies, pliers and air fresheners. Oh, how I wish I had this list when I was in school! Photo by jamelah. 18 Overlooked Things Everyone Should Bring to College [College and Finance] AU – Going away to college isn’t the rite of passage for us that it seems to be in the states, but I know plenty of country kids end up living in residential colleges when they go to Uni here. Did you really need to bring your own hammer and pliers? More »
Make Springloaded Chopsticks with a Clothespin
9:30PM Gina Trapani | Make chopsticks easier to wrangle for the little one with a clothespin. Using the spring mechanism, you can easily make spring-loaded ’sticks that make grabbing that slippery rice a breeze. New cartoons-meet-HOWTO site howtoons has the step-by-step. Springloaded Chopsticks [howtoons] More »
The “Perfect” iTunes equaliser setting for MP3s
9:00PM Gina Trapani | Rocker Merlin Mann posts his favorite iTunes MP3 equaliser settings as recommended by Mac OS X Hints (pictured). They are: db +3, +6, +9, +7, +6, +5, +7, +9, +11, +8 db Merlin says it gives tracks a “nice pop.” Got any equaliser settings you love? Do share in the comments. “Perfect” iTunes equaliser setting [43 Folders] More »Tonight’s Eclipse – a Q&A factsheet
7:06PM Sarah Stokely | Apologies for the very late post, but if you, like me, will be heading outdoors and checking out the total lunar eclipse tonight, check out the ABC website for a Q&A by ABC Science’s Bernie Hobbs, as well as their Live Eclipse Cam
The Q&A is a fun read, and contains answers which will help if you have inquisitive kids asking you questions.
If they happen a few times every year, how come we hardly ever see them?
If you were rich enough and nerdy enough you could see them all. You’d just fly or sail to whichever part of the earth was going to see the eclipse. But those of us who live in one place and have cheaper hobbies have to wait for the conditions to be just right, and for the hour of totality to not clash with bedtime.
Eclipse of the moon August 2007 [ABC] More » 
Yahoo7! Mail confirms no SMS for Oz
4:16PM Sarah Stokely | Updating our earlier story on the new features of Yahoo7! Mail in Australia…
Elke Keeley, Senior Comms Manager for Yahoo!7 got back to me this afternoon regarding my enquiry about Yahoo!7 Mail in Australia. Turns out that, as suspected, we won’t be getting SMS.
At this point [for] Yahoo!7 Mail there are no clear timelines for introducing the SMS feature into Australia. However, like many of the Yahoo! markets, we’re actively exploring new opportunities and sms is definitely one on the radar.
Australian users will get the following new or improved features though:
*choice of email or integrated messaging – providing the option for real time conversations
*better speed and performance than previous beta versions
*users can now refine their email search results using advanced search options, including the ability to narrow results by sender, folder, date, attachment type and message status
*Six customisable colour themes
If you decide to check out the new improved Yahoo! Mail, let us know how you get on. More » Avoid unexpected data charges on your GPS phone
1:53PM Sarah Stokely | Derek Fung at CNET posts a warning on how to avoid the mistake he made of racking up unexpected data charges on his Nokia 6110 Navigator phone.
Derek says that even without doing an websurfing from the phone, he racked up $50 worth of data charges because he’d mistakenly enabled the “assisted GPS” function when he set up the phone. The article talks you through assisted GPS and how to disable it to avoid being charged.
Watch out for data charges on your GPS phone [CNET Australia] More » 