Last Week’s Top Ten Posts

You wanted Seinfeld’s productivity secret, the right amount of sleep, and clues to what happened with the whole Telstra outage. Get the new week going by checking out the ten most popular posts from Lifehacker Australia last week:

1. How Seinfeld’s Productivity Secret Fixed My Procrastination Problem
   I’ve long been overwhelmed by an unwieldy list of goals that would sit, unaccomplished, in a long-term to-do list year after year. Then I came across a simple trick that solved my chronic problem. As gimmicky as it may sound, I’m now accomplishing everything I’d been putting off in just an hour a day. Here’s how you can, too.
2. Think You Need Eight Hours Sleep? You’re Wrong
   The notion that eight hours sleep is essential to health is widely repeated, but — as we’ve noted before — fails to take into account that individual requirements vary. Something else you probably didn’t know: the idea that we need a long continuous period of sleep is a relatively modern innovation.
3. Ten Things We Can Learn From #TelstraOutage
   So Telstra suffered a Dodo-induced outage yesterday, millions of Australians were temporarily internet-free, and those who weren’t were bombarded with messages on Twitter and Facebook about what went wrong. Normal service has been restored, but there are lessons for everyone from the experience, whether or not you’re a Telstra customer.
4. Brainwashing Techniques You Encounter Every Day (And How To Avoid Them)
   While it’s pretty unlikely that you’re a target of deliberate brainwashing, you probably have been subjected to some of the common techniques associated with the less-than-ethical practice. Here are a few common methods you encounter on a regular basis and what you can do to avoid them.
5. Hungry Jack’s Summer Value Meal: Approach With Caution
   At $3.95, the “Summer Value” meal from Hungry Jack’s is one of the cheaper burger meal deals we’ve seen. However, you’ll need to approach with caution and edit your selections if you don’t want to risk fattening up.
6. Qantas Vs Virgin Australia For Business Travel
   Virgin Australia is increasingly promoting itself as a business travel alternative; domestic business trips are a core part of Qantas’ profitability. But how much difference is there really between the two? Road Worrier decided to find out by flying both in a single day.
7. Five Best Professional Nameplate Sites
   Building a “web business card” for yourself doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive. There are several professional nameplate sites that give you the tools to build a page you can put on your business cards or in your email signature that anyone — employers, friends, and business partners included — can visit to learn more about you, how to reach you, and even see some of your work or connect to you through your social networks
8. What Happened To Telstra’s Net Connection?
   Telstra had an unexpected net outage today, which (as you’d expect) impacted millions of Australians. We’re tracking what happened and why over at Gizmodo; hit that story for all the latest updates.
9. How To Stop Everyone Tracking You On The Web
   It’s no secret that there’s big money to be made in violating your privacy. Companies will pay big bucks to learn more about you, and service providers on the web are eager to get their hands on as much information about you as possible. So what do you do? How do you keep your information out of everyone else’s hands? Here’s a guide to surfing the web while keeping your privacy intact.
10. Why Apple Can’t Refuse App Refund Requests
    Over at Gizmodo, there’s a handy guide to how you can try and get a refund through Apple from the App Store for non-functioning apps, a process which does leave you at the mercy of Apple’s digital staff. It’s worth remembering that if an app doesn’t work in the way it’s described, under Australian law you’re entitled to a refund no matter what “conditions” Apple tries to impose.