Windows only: BitMeter is a small bandwidth-monitoring application packed with features to help you track and analyse your bandwidth usage and avoid end-of-month shaping or excess bills. On top of the basic features like a real time usage meter, BitMeter allows you to export your usage stats as a spreadsheet for further number crunching and remotely access your bandwidth data when away from your computer. Additionally, you can set BitMeter to alert you when you’ve reached a user specified percentage of your bandwidth allotment. For another free Windows bandwidth meter, check out Net Worx. BitMeter is freeware, Windows only, and requires Microsoft .NET 1.1 or later. Thanks nfs! BitMeter II
LiveDrive, not to be confused with Windows Live Skydrive, is a free and unlimited online storage service. LiveDrive users can upload an unlimited number of files, and while the size limit per file isn’t explicitly stated anywhere on the site I had no trouble uploading multi-GB files. The upload speed maxed out the available upload bandwidth I had, someone with a much faster pipe will have to weigh in on what the upload ceiling is. Users running Windows XP/Vista machines are able to download a stand alone client which adds a virtual drive to their computer assigned to the letter L. According to the site a client for Mac users is in the works. During the sign up process users are able to select a custom domain, http://someusername.livedrive.com, for accessing their files and sharing them. While the service is in beta, accounts are free. LiveDrive [via TechRadar]
Don’t Forget Your Toothbrush makes the packing list you scribbled on the back of an envelope look down right anemic. Take advantage of the useful features and arrive without anything, including toothbrushes, left behind. Tell Don’t Forget Your Toothbrush where you are going and when, and it will generate a list of potential things you need to do based on your travel type. The to-do list is divided into advanced planning, two weeks before, one week before, the day before, the night before, and as you are leaving for the trip. Because not all suggestions may fit you, you check only those that apply to your situation and trip. Once you’ve created your custom list the site will give you a list of items that aren’t actionable but that you may need for the trip such as tickets, directions, additional memory cards for your camera, and so on. Again, customise the list by checking only the things you’ll need for your trip. Finally you are given an option to add extra items that may not be on their—rather extensive— packing list. After you create the list you have the option to print it as well as have reminders sent to you based on the time frames in the list. Don’t Forget Your Toothbrush [via DumbLittelMan]
Windows only: ColorPad is a lightweight colour picking application. Weighing in at only 148k and fully portable, it’s no burden at all to tuck it in your flash drive toolkit. The default interface is spartan and will appear a bit dated to users that have grown used to some of the flashier graphics in modern operating systems like Vista. Fortunately if the chunky graphics of the default skin bother you, it’s a completely skinnable app. Appearances aside, ColorPad delivers a ton of features in a tiny package. You can grab the colour value of anything you can see on your screen in hex, dec, and floating point number format. ColorPad has a persistent zoom function and a split screen option. There are numerous keyboard shortcuts that cover the basic functions and allow you to do more advanced tweaks like shift the colour once you’ve grabbed it. ColorPad is freeware, Windows only. ColorPad [via Customize.org]
Last week we asked you where you found wallpaper to customise multiple monitor setups, you responded and we rounded up your favourite sites to help share the high resolution goodness! Read on for the dirt.
This past week proved that you can’t rely on something as simple as a web browser to keep your personal data and identity safe from harm. Critical flaws were found in the Internet Explorer and even Firefox web browsers, leaving users potentially vulnerable to spyware, viruses, and password-sniffing. But don’t throw up your hands in defeat—with the right software tools and a little Advanced Common Sense, you can secure your data so that even if someone did get onto your computer or into your email, they’d find nothing but headaches and woe. Read on for our list of software apps and strategies for locking down your online life. Photo by Anonymous Account.
WhichBook is a web-based book suggestion engine. Unlike the site What Should I Read Next?, WhichBook doesn’t ask for a list of books you have already read. At WhichBook you use a series of sliders to indicate how much of a given element you want in your reading. Looking for funny happy sex? Peg the sliders for each to the maximum and see what WhichBook kicks out. Lists of books are generated and displayed on the right side of the screen for your browsing. For readers in the UK there is a “borrow” button in the upper corner which will link you into the public library system in the UK. Strangely the designers of the site seem to have missed out on an enormously profitable and useful feature: they could have easily linked the titles of the generated books into the Amazon.com system making it easier for people to read more about and buy the books. For another book recommendation service that uses writing styles as opposed to reading list comparison, check out BookLamp. WhichBook [via Eat, Read and Be Merry]
The long-awaited 2.2 firmware updates for iPhones and iPod touch models hit iTunes at midnight last night, pushing a good deal of new features and long-awaited fixes to the mobile devices. We’ve already detailed some of the major new features already: Street View with walking/transit directions in Google Maps (iPhones only, unfortunately) and “emoji” face emoticons, over-the-air podcast downloading, and, while not really a feature, it’s expected that 2.2 will be jailbroken before you know it. There’s a good number of interface and usability improvements too, like improved HTML email formatting and location sharing, stability and menu bar tweaks to Safari, and a few other punch-list items. I’m downloading my 240MB-ish iPod update just fine; tell us your impressions of 2.2 in the comments. iPhone 2.2 Update Available Now [Gizmodo]
Windows only: Free file browser Q-Dir makes for a good USB drive app or installed replacement for Windows Explorer for those who do a serious amount of file swapping, or just like to be able to keep multiple folder views open at once. The app—which installs by default, but can run by itself after renaming it “Q-Dir.exe”—offers a customisable number of panes, though the default four-square is a pretty good starting point. You can save any view you like to a favourite button, along with adding shortcuts to frequently-accessed folders. There’s also a quick-filter box in the lower-right for easy sorting and finding, and if you use Q-Dir regularly, you’ll be glad it keeps your right-click shell extensions and offers its own “*Q-Dir” launch option on right-clicking a folder. Q-Dir is a free download for Windows systems only. Q-Dir [via FreewareGenius.com]
