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The Lifehacker Total Security Guide 
Spotify And Its Rivals: Subscription Music Services In Australia Compared 
The Stupid Things You Do On Facebook (And How To Fix Them) A study in the US has found that sleep cycles are now more likely to revolve around TV viewing times than cicadian rhythms. The US Department of Labor Statistics found that most people went to sleep after switching off the TV around 11-11.15pm at night – while the time that nightfall actually occurred made very little difference to the time people slept:
While natural daylight patterns have some effect on people’s life patterns, the demands of global business–market openings, etc–and regular television schedule demarcate the boundaries of most Americans’ lives . . . Individuals in early television zones (Central and Mountain) are 6.4 percentage points less likely to be watching television between 11 and 11:15 p.m. than those in later zones, but if the sunset is pushed back by an hour the probability of watching TV at 11pm only increases by about one percentage point. The implications for people who want to change their sleep patterns — to get up earlier, say, or go to bed at a regular time — are enormous. If you are somebody who watches TV, you can simply turn the TV off earlier and give your body a cue that it’s time to sleep.
As Analee said over at IO9, it’s cool to think it can be that easy to reprogram your sleep cycle, but creepy that most Americans’ sleep patterns are now controlled by the TV!
Based on reports from our email inbox, it sounds as if lots of Gmailers—including Google Apps users—saw the upgrade to the latest version of Gmail this weekend. You’re using the new version if you have access to label colours, and an “Older Version” link on the upper-right hand side of the page inside Gmail. So, we want to know:
Weblog Geeksugar raves about the Dave laptop table from Ikea, a small, sturdy, and inexpensive solution for taking your laptop away from the desk and into your living room. The Dave (oh Ikea, you and your names!) features adjustable height and angle, and can double as a TV tray or simple end table when you’re not computing. If you’ve been looking for a better way to surf the internet from the comfort of your couch, the $US25 Dave might be just the ticket. Dave Laptop Table [Ikea via Geeksugar]
Throughout this week, readers are submitting their best life hack for a chance to win an autographed copy of our new book, Upgrade Your Life. Last Wednesday Adam showed you how to download music from shared iTunes libraries over the internet using third-party app Mojo, but PC users were disappointed to find the Windows Mojo beta only works on local networks. But reader Dexter put two and two together, and shares his Windows iTunes library over the internet with Mojo and the free VPN client, Hamachi.
Tap into the wisdom of the crowd for your health with community web site PatientsLikeMe. Using the site, you can read all about the experiences of other real people who are afflicted with certain illnesses as well as share your own experiences. The purpose, then, is to allow users to interact with one another, track how treatments are working for other members, and explore the side effects patients are seeing with certain treatments. The site’s motto is “Patients helping patients live better every day,” and it provides a tonne of tools to help you do just that. If you’ve given it a try, let’s hear your thoughts in the comments.
Every six months when a new version of Ubuntu Linux gets released, long-time users and curious toe-dippers ask the same questions: “What’s new?”; “Is it worth upgrading?”; and, “Will my wireless card finally work with this version?” Having grabbed the newest beta release of Ubuntu and spent a few hours looking around, I can answer, “A few great things,” “Yes, once it’s officially released,” and, well, “Hopefully.” Version 8.04, or “Hardy Heron,” is more a compilation of stable-ish features and proven apps than a showcase for the latest and greatest in Linux technology. But for those seeking a usable, steady system in which to get things done, that’s a real killer app in itself. Follow through the jump to see what’s new, and what just works (and doesn’t) in Hardy Heron.
Google expert Philipp Lenssen has come up with a brilliant spreadsheet that creates a world map coloured by how often a term gets Googled by country. Data nerds will love this: The sheet dynamically pulls in the number of results for a given search term and updates a map widget with colours representing the totals. After the jump, check out what the map looks like for a search for “lifehacker.”
The Googling Google blog points out a tucked-away mobile search feature that the search giant isn’t quite rolling out yet, but is already accessible. Fans of the Yahoo’s classic directory trees will feel at home here, as you can browse through food, entertainment, shops, and other features around a city or town, but the nifty part is that your phone remembers locations you’ve already searched for, and offers direct mapping links for the results, possibly saving you from ever having to type in a thing. It’s obviously in an early stage, but for those with really tiny screens or averse to keypad typing, a list of links might make for better searching. Google Search (Mobile) [via Googling Google]
AU – I don’t have Google Search set up on my mobile, but I suspect this is a US-only thing. Anyone able to shed any light?
Apple’s Software Update on Windows (which comes with iTunes) is now automatically including Apple’s Safari browser, even if you didn’t have it installed before. Windows users, how do you like having Safari forced on you? The Mozilla CEO doesn’t like it.
Windows/Mac/Linux (Firefox): You can always customise where you want files you grab in Firefox to end up, but a catch-all “Downloads” folder, or just a desktop, often ends up seriously cluttered. Free Firefox extension FavLoc lets you set pre-defined locations where you’ll likely place files and send them there directly from your right-click menu. For dual-booters like myself, it’s really handy, as you can see above, but it’s also useful for sorting the images, pictures, programs, and all the other downloads any avid browser ends up grabbing. FavLoc is a free download, and works wherever Firefox does.
