Windows only: Free application UnChrome bolsters your browsing anonymity by removing the unique ID from Google Chrome that Google associates with your Chrome installation. UnChrome isn’t the first app to do this; we highlighted another program called Chrome Privacy Guard in our power user’s guide to Google Chrome. But for the many who installed Chrome for the first time after Chrome officially left beta last week, it’s worthwhile to highlight this kind of tool once more. UnChrome is a free download, Windows only.
UnChrome [via Download Squad]Here at Lifehacker we’re pretty keen on e-cards as a form of Christmas greeting, but it’s worth reminding people that holiday cheer is also often utilised as a means of distributing spam and malware. AVG Technologies (whose free security software is amongst the top five anti-virus options favoured by Lifehacker readers) estimates that 500 million electronic cards will be sent this season, and its polling suggests that 74% of people will unthinkingly open e-cards. It’s always tempting to open what looks like a message from family, but if your Brisbane-born mother has apparently described herself as “Mom”, it’s a safe bet you’re dealing with an intruder. If you follow sensible security practices — never opening attachments, deleting anything that looks even mildly unfamiliar, keeping your system patched, and running reputable security software — you shouldn’t run into trouble. It’s also worth reminding friends and family of the same rules, lest you spend the holidays fixing everyone else’s compromised PC.
3 already has some of the cheapest 3G broadband plans out there, but a current offer reduces the cost even more. If you sign up before January 31, 3 will cut its per-month fee in half for the first six months if you sign up for a 24-month contract (which is pretty much the only option you have if you’re not going prepaid). The deal doesn’t apply to the entry-level $15 a month plan, but for other plans amounts to a 12.5% saving over the life of the contract. Lifehacker’s usual caveats about 3′s limited coverage outside capital cities apply, but if you’re looking for a mobile insurance policy or an Internet insurance policy, this is worth considering.
Three [via OzBargain]The holiday season is in full swing and our Lifehacker Desktop Show and Tell Flickr Pool is overflowing with smart and fun desktop configurations bursting at the seams with holiday spirit. Let’s take a look.
Web-based to-do list Remember the Milk‘s streamlined interface and excellent shortcut key support are great out of the box, but there are a few useful fixes and tweaks, too.I’ve compiled a short list of user styles and scripts that can be used with the Stylish or Greasemonkey extension in Firefox to make RTM much friendlier. Let’s take a look.
LogMeIn Ignition lets you remotely connect to and control your Windows or Mac PC from your iPhone. The catch: It costs a whopping $US30—expensive by any standards, especially in the iTunes App Store. LogMeIn may be the most popular remote desktop tool on the market, but it seems unlikely that it’s $US30-for-your-iPhone good. LogMeIn users, let’s hear what you think in the comments. Alternately, check our previously mentioned Mocha VNC Lite for free (but perhaps less simple to set up) remote control.
Firefox only (Windows/Mac/Linux): Greasefire is a companion extension to the popular Greasemonkey extension designed to help you customise your web browsing by finding user scripts for any page you’re currently visiting. Once installed, the extension automatically searches the popular Greasemonkey script repository Userscripts.org for scripts related to the site you’re visiting; if a script is available, the Greasemonkey icon in your Firefox status bar will display a fiery background to indicate that it found matches. From there, installing new scripts is simple. Just click the “X scripts available” entry, then browse and find a script you like in the pop-up window. Click the install button at the bottom of the window when you find something you like.Greasefire is a great tool to discover new user scripts and customise your web with Greasemonkey. Greasefire is a free download, works wherever Firefox does. Greasefire [Firefox Add-ons via Download Squad]
If you’re souping up Google Reader with our Better GReader Firefox extension, download today’s latest update—which fixes the excellent Minimalistic skin, that toggles Readers’s top bar with a key press.
Mozilla engineer Christian Sejersen announced today that Firefox Mobile (codename Fennec) will be released for Symbian phones by the end of April, 2009—complete with full browsing features. The bad news: Sejersen says we shouldn’t plan on seeing Firefox Mobile on the iPhone, BlackBerrys, or Android any time soon due to “technical or licensing reasons.” If you’re curious about what Firefox Mobile will offer once it’s released, check out our screenshot tour of Fennec. [via Gizmodo]
