The Digital Inspiration blog points us to Google’s opening up of the API for buttons in Picasa, and includes a link that installs a button to send pictures directly from Picasa to Adobe Photoshop for editing. Expect to see a lot more of these buttons, now that both desktop and web applications can create their own links. To install the Photoshop button, head to the Digital Inspiration link below and click the “Install Photoshop CS3 Button,” which should launch Picasa (if it’s not already running) and ask you to place the button yourself. Those with a head for hacking can check out the APIs for themselves. Send Pictures from Google Picasa Directly to Photoshop for Editing [Digital Inspiration]
Whether Brita filters really give you better-tasting or cleaner water is a subject for debate, but most agree on one point—paying $5 or more for each 3-month replacement filter isn’t very fun. But with a bit of time and the right supplies—a sharp utility knife (and/or drill), a cheap polyethylene plug, and an activated carbon mix from an aquarium store—you can refill an old filter over and over again for far less cost. The hardest part seems to be getting just the right size hole in the top of your filter; after that, you treat the refilled filters as if they were new. Thanks, Jamie! How to refill a “disposable” Brita brand water pitcher filter with activated carbon. [Instructables]
Mac OS X only: Freeware application AppCleaner completely uninstalls applications from your Mac. As most of us know, the process of “uninstalling” applications on the Mac is generally as simple as trashing the application, but many programs leave behind settings and other small files that continue to take up space on your hard drive. AppCleaner identifies these files and takes them down with the application they belong to. To use it, you can either drag and drop the app you want to uninstall onto AppCleaner or click the tabs to select what you want to uninstall from the list of apps, widgets, or plug-ins AppCleaner finds. If you’d rather not run AppCleaner every time you want to uninstall an app, check out previously mentioned AppTrap. AppCleaner is freeware, Mac OS X only. AppCleaner [via MacApper]
All-things-Mac web site Mac OS X Hints discusses how to automatically Quick Look certain files as soon as they’re downloaded to your Downloads folder. The best approach from the thread involves setting your browser to automatically open certain file types (like your PDF or Word documents) with the Quick Look Droplet, a simple application that launches a Quick Look preview of whatever file it opens. Of course you could just set your browser to automatically open downloaded files with their default applications, but if you don’t want to load up heavy software like Microsoft Word just to peek at the file’s contents, this Quick Look Droplet might be a worthwhile solution. 10.5: Automatically Quick Look certain downloaded files [Mac OS X Hints]
Readers are submitting their best life hack for a chance to win an autographed copy of our new book, Upgrade Your Life. Here’s our latest winner. Reader Jeadly got sick of hitting the Caps Lock key without meaning to, and uses a custom utility to stop the madness without disabling it completely. Jeadly writes: I’ve written an AutoHotkey script that handicaps the Caps Lock key. I suppose I should call it “Handicapslock.” With my script running, the Caps Lock key doesn’t lock “on” unless you double tap it, so its behaviour is more like the Shift key.
Windows only: Freeware application Direct Folders jumps quickly to any folder on your filesystem (and then some) for quick navigation through regular Explorer windows or save dialogs. After installing Direct Folders, double-click any free space on an Explorer window to bring up the Direct Folder menu. From there you can choose one of your favourite folders (or even apps), add new favourites, or access recent folders. With a lot more time-saving functionality worth using (like automatic folder resizing), Direct Folders seems almost magical. For a full run-down of everything it can do, check out the demo screencast. Direct Folders is freeware, Windows only (a pro version is available for a price, but most of the marquee features are available to the freeware version). If Direct Folders isn’t quite what you’re looking for (but close), check out previously mentioned FindeXer and PlacesBar. Direct Folders [Code Sector]
Productivity consultant Jared Goralnick offers ten reasons why your phone shouldn’t automatically notify you the moment you receive a new email message—like protecting your sanity, for one. Some phone email clients (like Gmail Mobile for Java-based phones) require that you start them up to check your mail; other devices like the Blackberry check automatically and notify you the moment a new message lands in your inbox. It may seem convenient to have your phone auto-check email, but do the constant interruptions actually save you time? After the jump, tell us how you like email on your phone—pushed to you on the fly or only there when you check.
The concept of the runner’s high has been around forever, but the New York Times is reporting that, for the first time, scientists have validated the claimed euphoria that follows a run. Researchers in Germany, using advances in neuroscience, report in the current issue of the journal Cerebral Cortex that the folk belief is true: Running does elicit a flood of endorphins in the brain. The endorphins are associated with mood changes, and the more endorphins a runner’s body pumps out, the greater the effect.
Of course, the real runner’s high euphoria is more likely to come with more intense, longer workouts, but I can guarantee running a marathon should get you there. If you’ve been trying to motivate yourself to get out and run more, the idea of chasing that runner’s high might help. If you’ve got firsthand experience with the runner’s high, let’s hear about it in the comments. Yes, Running Can Make You High [NYT]
Walk by most office’s shared network printer and chances are you’ll see a stack of discarded extra pages the person who printed them didn’t need after all, or print jobs that were so “important” they were abandoned. PC World suggests three easy ways to reduce the amount of “Whoops! Didn’t need to print that!” moments, like making liberal use of Print Preview (and selecting only the range of pages you need) and printing documents to PDF instead of paper. We like the free doPDF Windows utility for saving paper and printing documents to a searchable file instead of filling up printer trays. Three Steps to the Paperless Office [PC Magazine]
Mac OS X only: If you’re the type to leave your computer on overnight—say to complete a big BitTorrent download or something along those lines—you may also have been woken up by an unexpected beep from that always-on Mac. Freeware application SoundAsleep sets up a mute schedule for your Mac, muting and unmuting the system sound at times you specify. It does one simple thing, so whether you’re using it for a quiet computer at night or you just have a quiet schedule you’d like to keep up with, the freeware, Mac OS X only SoundAsleep is there for you. Now if only the same functionality were available for our cell phones.
