Readers offer their best tips for wearing worn-out socks, using Lion’s “All My Files” feature in the Finder, and finding a replacement for bubble wrap.
Every day we receive boatloads of great reader tips in our inbox, but for various reasons — maybe they’re a bit too niche, maybe we couldn’t find a good way to present it, or maybe we just couldn’t fit it in — the tip didn’t make the front page. From the Tips Box is where we round up some of our favourites for your buffet-style consumption. Got a tip of your own to share? Email it to tips at lifehacker.com.au.
Flip Around Old, Worn Socks to Make Them Last Longer
Steve Mould discovers a way to make his socks last a bit longer:
If you get holes in your socks from your big toes make them last a bit longer by turning them inside out. The hole shifts to the other side where it’s much less annoying.
Use All My Files as a Continuous Paperwork Record
Mike Beato shares how he uses OS X’s “All My Files” feature:
When I saw the All My Files item at the top of my Mac OSX Lion’s Finder sidebar, I thought it would be totally useless. How could I possibly deal with ALL my files at once?? But then I spotted the Arrange button in the toolbar. It started to make sense. I could replicate my preferred office filing system for paper documents. For over 20 years I’ve been doing what I call a Super Simple 2-Hole Punch System. I file my paper bills, receipts, statements and check stubs in a continuous stack on a 2-hole clipboard. In essence, all my paper documents are filed chronologically with the most current paperwork on top. The deeper you go in the paper stack, the older the documents.
- In the Finder, click on All My Files in the sidebar
- View > Hide Sidebar
- View > as Columns
- Click the Arrange button. Select Date Last Opened (or other sequence to your personal liking)
You’ll see your files — all your files — nicely arranged and grouped in chronological order with the newest files at the top of the window list. In the above example, I’m limiting my view to only include files related to the word “marathon” (making the window smaller puts the search field under the toolbar). Clicking on a file shows a preview since this is in Column view.
Use Shredded Newspaper in Place of Bubble Wrap
Photo by Daniel R. Blume.
Teknophilia lets us know an easier way to pack fragile things:
If you’re out of bubble wrap, just get old newspapers or other paper and pass it through a shredder. The “mulch” is great packing material for sending things off (and it’s free). That said, please use bubble wrap for glass and other fragile things!
Use One “Family Account” for Digital Media Stores
Photo by the.approximate.photographer.
Dathbe tells us an easier way to share media with DRM:
This might be an obvious one, but if you and your other family members have separate Amazon accounts, it probably still makes sense to pick one of those accounts to use for all your e-book needs. That way, whatever device you happen to have nearby will have access to your books (and your spouse’s and your kids’). If my wife wants to read on my smartphone, she can pull up her stuff without a problem, and if I want to read on her Kindle I can do so.
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