Friday, December 7, 2007
Command line
11:30PM Tamar Weinberg | Last year on Lifehacker, guest writer Tom Baker shared his rule-based list processing workflow using an application he calls “shawkle.” More »
The 2007 Lifehacker reader survey – $250 voucher up for grabs
8:40PM Sarah Stokely | Responses have been rolling in for the reader survey, but we’re keen for more feedback so if you can spare 5 minutes to fill it out, we’ll have our undying gratitude and you’ll go into the draw to win
a $250 Coles/Myer, David Jones, Harvey Norman or Bunnings gift voucher.
Thanks, and have a great weekend. :)
2007 Lifehacker Reader Survey More » 
Avoid Speeding Tickets with Speed Trap
3:00PM Adam Pash | Steer clear of speed traps during your holiday travel with web site Njection’s Microsoft Live Maps mashup, Speed Trap. To search for traps, just look for any big red dot in your area. Speed traps are user-submitted, so at the moment the listings are somewhat sparse, but with a free registration users can easily begin adding to the database. We’re not saying you should make a habit of speeding when you’re not near a speed trap, but just in case—your insurance rates will thank you. For a more comprehensive but decidedly unfriendly alternative, check out the previously mentioned Bear Trap Guide. Thanks rainmanjam! Speed Trap [Njection] More »
Play Any Video Type with CodecInstaller
2:00PM Adam Pash | Windows only: Ever download a video file but can’t for the life of you get the thing to play back for you? Freeware application CodecInstaller detects the audio and video codecs already installed on your system, analyzes video files to determine what codecs they need, and helps you download and install them if you don’t already have them so those unplaying files start playing again. Not everyone needs this sort of granular codec support (especially if you’re using a player like VLC), but if you have run into this sort of situation, CodecInstaller should come in very handy. CodecInstaller is freeware, Windows only (just avoid the toolbar installation when you install it). CodecInstaller [Jockersoft via FreewareGenius] More »
Get Productive to Groove Salad
1:00PM Gina Trapani | Just in time for finals week, the HackCollege blog recommends studying to a continuous ambient music stream from SomaFM called Groove Salad. If you can’t stand the drop-dead silence of the library but also can’t concentrate with lyrics, ambient music’s the ticket. Groove Salad, “a nicely chilled plate of ambient beats and grooves,” will stream directly to your music player for free. Been tapping keys to it myself as I rewrite the Lifehacker book. Here are more good study music suggestions from readers. Groove Salad[SomaFM via HackCollege] More »Bruce Schneier to speak at Linux.conf.au
12:13PM Sarah Stokely | Earlier this week we pointed you to an
interview with security guru Bruce
Schneier, who has previously advised Lifehacker readers on how to
pick secure passwords. Turns out he’ll be visiting our shores as a
keynote speaker at Linux.conf.au in January.
LCA is probably
Australia’s largest open source technical conference. I spoke with
conference organiser Donna Benjamin this week and she told me they’ve
closed early bird registrations and the conference is on track to
selling out, with 2/3 of the tickets already sold.The other keynote speakers are Stormy Peters,
Director of Community and Partner Programs at Open Logic and Anthony
Baxter, the release manager for the Python language.The main conference programme features an array of
speakers from different fields presenting on the Linux kernel, the X
Window System, media, applications, desktop, law, security and
usability.
LCA 2008 will take place at the University of
Melbourne from January 28 to February 2 at the University of
Melbourne. You can register online at http://linux.conf.au/register.
More information on the conference can be found at:
http://linux.conf.au/.
If you go, I’ll see you there. :)
More » 
Download Any Web Video for Your Mobile Device with Movavi
12:00PM Adam Pash | Convert any online video for your iPod, iPhone, cell phone, or pretty much any other mobile device with web site Movavi. We’ve seen similar conversion web sites in the past (perhaps most notably Zamzar), but Movavi is focused on video, its interface is cleaner and ad-free, and it offers cool options like merging several videos into one large movie and bookmarklets for converting new videos on-the-fly. If you’ve been looking for a way to get internet video (or even convert files from your desktop) on your mobile device, Movavi might be just the ticket. Movavi [via eHub] More »
Quick Reference to Windows Alt Codes
11:00AM Gina Trapani | Need to type a women’s symbol, musical note, copyright, trademark, or Greek letter on Windows? You need the right “alt code,” a series of numbers you type while you hold down the Alt key. Reader Nathan writes in with a helpful PDF cheat sheet that lists characters you’ve never seen before, as well as the Wikipedia Alt Codes entry for bookmarking. Thanks, Nathan! Alt Keycodes [Wikipedia]Alt Codes Reference Sheet [PDF] [Useful Shortctus] More »
