The Best Ways To De-Stink Your Stuff 
In Memoriam: Our Favourite Apps And Services That Have Gone Belly Up 
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From Saucy Pics To Passwords: How To Share Sensitive Information 
How Do IKEA's Prices In Australia Compare? 
New flybuys Earns Discounts Faster (But They're Not Good Discounts) The CyberNet weblog details a reliable Windows standard: How to map an FTP drive in Windows Explorer using the Map Network Drive dialog. It’s a very simple process provided you’ve already either got a hosted FTP server or set one up yourself, and when you’re finished you’ll be able to access your remote FTP server like you’re browsing any other drive on your computer. The one thing you won’t get is the ability to mount the FTP site with a drive letter that shows up in My Computer, so if you need that for some reason you might want to try out NetDrive instead. If not, this is a very simple, useful solution.
CyberNotes: Map a FTP to a Drive in Windows [CyberNet]Mac OS X only: Donationware application SurplusMeter monitors and records your upload and download traffic volume and offers tonnes of useful bandwidth stats, like average daily use and bandwidth allowance tracking (if your ISP has a cap, that is). Keep in mind that the application doesn’t actually keep track of what traffic is from the internet and what traffic may be local network traffic (like transferring files from your desktop to your laptop), so it won’t be 100% accurate if you have much network traffic on your LAN. However, if you’re looking for a simple method for tracking your bandwidth, it’s a handy little utility. SurplusMeter is donationware, Mac only. Windows users, check out Freemeter.
SurplusMeter [via Simplehelp]US-centric: Find a local merchant fast with web application FastCall411, a tool that calls multiple businesses at one time and then connects you to the first business to pick up. FastCall411′s goal is to put an end to the days of flipping through your Yellow Pages calling one business at a time until you finally get ahold of someone. Right now the app only supports limited areas and services (I can only quickly get ahold of a plumber in Los Angeles), but in time it should have a pretty robust list of service offerings. If you happen to see a merchant you like in the search, you can also tell FastCall411 to dial only that merchant. Right now FastCall411 has a little way to go, but in time it could be an interesting and useful service. Alternately—if you’re feeling lonely—you could just use the demo on the front page to call up three of your friends and talk to the first one that answers.
FastCall411 [via Webware]Learn to accept criticism—no matter how harsh—with aplomb by following tips from weblog Zen Habits. For example: Thank the CriticEven if someone is harsh and rude, thank them. They might have been having a bad day, or maybe they’re just a negative person in general. But even so, your attitude of gratitude will probably catch them off-guard.
I don’t know how many times I’ve fielded extremely negative criticisms sent to the Lifehacker inbox with a “Thank you” and then received an apology. Of course, not all criticism is unfounded, and the post discusses how to handle the ego blow that comes with a critique and how to work toward improving where the criticism is valid. Let’s hear how you handle criticism in the comments. Photo by Zara-Jay.
How to Accept Criticism with Grace and Appreciation [Zen Habits]Windows only: Freeware application CDBurnerXP is an easy to use, all-in-one CD and DVD burning suite with an impressive range of features. This app can burn gapless audio CDs, create and burn ISOs, and even handle burning to Blu-Ray and HD-DVDs. It’s simple Drop-Box feature offers a really smooth way to add new files to a project via drag-and-drop. If you’ve got the urge to burn a lot of optical media but you don’t want to shell out $100 for Nero or some other professional suite, CDBurnerXP is an excellent alternative. CDBurnerXP is freeware, Windows only.
CDBurnerXP [via FreewareGenius]And uses a Mac! But she seems to be losing the war against clutter.
(Photo from an American Express ad.) See also: attack of the piles in Al Gore’s home office.
Ah the system tray. It’s that little corner of screen real estate that holds all of your must-have, always-on utilities. They’re generally not the sexiest apps you’re running on your system, but to many of us, our favourites would be impossible to live without. Today we’re looking at the system tray applications your fellow readers use every day to get things done.
Wired magazine profiles productivity guru David Allen and offers a good summary of his Getting Things Done system, its history, and some great quotes from The David. First, for folks who say GTD is too complex: [Allen]realises that his system can be difficult and that he’s often accused of going overboard with elaborate schemes. He responds with a shrug. “Look, the workings of an automatic transmission are more complicated than a manual transmission,” he says. “To simplify a complex event, you need a complex system.”
The people willing to take on that complex system? They’re the ones who know they need help and are trying to improve.
Keep an eye on that eBay auction in its closing minutes automatically with Page Reboot, a web service that refreshes a given web site every 30 seconds (or any interval you set). Similar to the ReloadEvery Firefox extension, drop the URL into Page Reboot’s refresh box, set the refresh interval (in seconds) and go. A bookmarklet version is also available.
PAGE REBOOT [via Micro Persuasion]
