About Lifehacker Australia

Lifehacker is a technology blog with a slightly different way of looking at the world. We see technology as a shortcut to life. When we look at products, software or gadgets, we stop and ask – how does this make my work or play faster, more efficient, and more fun?

If you’re tech savvy and looking for a better, faster way to do things, or you’re just starting to explore what you can do with technology, stop by Lifehacker to check out the latest tips, tricks and shortcuts. Part technology guide, part productivity tool, Lifehacker aims to help you organise your workday and maximise your playtime.

The Australian edition delivers all the best Lifehacker tips from the US, cutting ojut the irrelevant bits and adding our own Antipodean flavour with local updates and articles to ensure that Lifehackers down under have all the best and most relevant tech tips at their disposal.

If you’d like to contact Lifehacker, you can email us at tips@lifehacker.com.au. We’d love to hear your favourite tricks, tips and tools, and we love finding out about new products too.

Lifehacker Australia is published by Allure Media in association with Gawker Media.

Who is the Lifehacker?

Angus Kidman is the current editor of Lifehacker Australia. He’s an IT writer and all-round geek, based in Sydney but spending a frankly unhealthy portion of his life on the road, tracking down the latest technology stories.

Angus has been obsessed with computers of all kinds ever since he wrote his first program on the Apple II back in 1983. He once knew machine code, but that was a long time ago. He’s worked as an IT writer since 1993, and remembers an era when dial-up Internet prices dropped to $1 an hour and everyone got excited.

Angus is primarily a Windows user, though the Eee PC has rekindled his enthusiasm for Linux and he regularly writes articles on various models of BlackBerry. He’s never quite got the whole Apple thing. His many other obsessions are detailed in frightening technicolour on his personal site Gusworld.

Angus inherited the job from Lifehacker Australia’s first editor Sarah Stokely in mid-2008.

Frequently asked questions

Hang on, isn’t there already a Lifehacker blog? Who the hell are you?

Yep, our venerable parent blog Lifehacker (www.lifehacker.com) is published by Gawker Media out of the USA. It’s been around for several years now, and is edited by Gina Trapani. Our blog, Lifehacker AU (www.lifehacker.com.au) was born in mid-August 2007.

Lifehacker AU is the localised version of Lifehacker US – so if you subscribe to Lifehacker AU you get all of the useful Lifehacker US goodness, plus local stories and comment.

So what’s the difference between Lifehacker US and Lifehacker AU?

I’m glad you asked! Lifehacker AU is the localised version of Lifehacker US – so it contains most of the posts from Lifehacker US, with the added goodness of local stories which you *won’t* find on Lifehacker US.

Why is this good? Well, there are inevitably some Lifehacker US posts that aren’t relevant to the local market (especially stuff about “cell” phones and the like), so we take those out of the mix. We’ll also be looking at locally produced software and products and stores which may fall below the Lifehacker US radar, or only be of use to Australians.

Basically, if you read Lifehacker AU you get all of the Lifehacker US usefulness, plus extra local comment and stories. Win!

I tried to go to Lifehacker and ended up at Lifehacker.com.au. What’s that about?

There is an automatic redirection in place to catch Australian readers who are looking for Lifehacker. This is to catch people and let them know there’s a local version.

But I want to read the American Lifehacker! How do I get back there?

If Australian readers want to visit the Lifehacker US site, they can hit the “US edition” link at the top of any Lifehacker AU page.

Why haven’t you posted about my favourite software/hardware/online service/productivity tool?

Hey I’m good but I’m not omniscient! How about you drop me a line at tips AT lifehacker.com.au and tell me about it!