Windows only: Carry any application with you on your thumb drive with freeware virtual PC software MojoPac Freedom. Back when we showed you how to build your own PC-on-a-stick with MojoPac, the application had a $30 price tag, but it has since launched several versions, and MojoPac Freedom is the…
Create an address bar/tab icon for your web site instantly with Favicon.cc, a web-based paint application and image converter that creates favicons. Draw your icon and preview the results in actual size while you work. Publish the finished image for personal use or licence it for reuse under Creative Commons….
Linux only: View processes running from in Linux interactively—complete with full command lines and arguments—with free application htop. Beyond providing detailed information about processes, htop displays a progress meter that fluctuates based on CPU usage, memory usage, and swap space. Easily terminate one or more processes without remembering the PID….
Savvy buyers of tech online will probably already be familiar with StaticICE – probably the price comparison search engine of choice for antipodean geeks shopping for tech products. But did you know that there are also Firefox and IE7 search plug-ins for the StaticICE price comparison engine at http://www.staticice.com.au/tools.html? I…
The MacApper weblog details how to clean out Finder’s Open With menu so that uninstalled and duplicate applications don’t bog down the list of apps you want to use. Go to your Home/Library/Preferences folder Find “com.apple.LaunchServices” file and trash it (you can back it up if you want) Test it…
Mac users: you’re most likely not running any virus scanners or spyware killers, but you’re just as vulnerable to careless computing habits that could compromise your system as anyone else. Macworld lists five ways you can secure your Mac, including: Use admin accounts for administration only Don’t share user accounts…
Google Maps’ controversial Street View feature has ground-level, 360-degree views of six more cities today: Chicago, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Ore. and Tucson, Ariz. That makes 15 cities total where residents can dodge parking tickets and wait to see the funny/crazy sights around town. Google Maps Street View [via Chicago…
Dear Lifehacker, I’m going to finally take the leap from PC to Mac. But the next version of the Mac OS is due out soon, right? Should I wait? Now that I’ve decided, I’m just dying to head on over to the Apple Store today to scratch this itch. Signed,…
43 Folders has written a guide devoted to the fine art of tagging. No matter what the data is that you’re tagging – blog posts, photos on Flickr, or bookmarks at del.icio.us, a good tagging system will help you find what you seek with ease. This three point guide basically says consider what you’re tagging and how…
About to email a tirade flaming your co-worker for the rude, abrupt message he just sent you? Wait. The New York Times reports on the psychological reasons why email is so easily misread and misunderstood: Face-to-face interaction, by contrast [to on-screen interaction] , is information-rich. We interpret what people say…
Looks like a little freezer time can save more than just a dead hard drive: according to this video over at Metacafe, you can also revive a dead laptop battery by freezing it for 14 to 15 hours. We haven’t tried this trick ourselves, but a little cursory research using…
Windows only: Previously-mentioned auto software updater AppSnap can now detect what applications already exist on your system and check for new versions online in one click. AppSnap comes with a fabulous list of free software built in. You check off the ones you want and AppSnap downloads and installs them…
Linux.com recently posted a helpful beginner’s guide to digitising vinyl and tape albums with the help of the cross-platform, open-source audio editor Audacity. With the exception of a few Linux-only tips on tag editing, this should work on any platform that Audacity does. Digitizing records and tapes with Audacity [Linux.com]
With the launch of Apple’s iPhone and the newer iPods, CoverFlow adds a whole new visual element to your music experience on the go. While iTunes alone can help you get the album cover art you’re missing into your library, it’s not as obvious how to get that eye candy…
US-centric: Sure, you’ve signed up to get alerts from the transit companies themselves, but wouldn’t you rather hear how the trains are running from someone already on board? The Clever Commute allows riders and those wondering which line to take to trade information and tips among themselves, or at least…
If you have a lot of documents you’re trying to organise, put them all together in one folder, rather than separating by filetype. Self-management site Mind Tools has more: For example, store Word documents, presentations, spreadsheets, and graphics related to a particular project in a single folder – rather than…
Professional organisers have secret tricks they use to get things nice and tidy, including these suggestions to get your closet in order from O, the Oprah magazine: go through your wardrobe and jettison anything that’s one of the four S’s: stretched, small, smelly (ew!), or stained (sure, you could clean…
Search for radio stations online with iHeard, a search engine dedicated to finding internet radio stations. You can search by keyword, by category, by genre, country, etc.; if you don’t know what you’re in the mood for, try the Most Popular chart. Search results come back with a brief description…
Make sure that the person you’re emailing responds or acts upon your requests by including only one action item per email. Web Worker Daily states that utilising this practice will make it more likely that your email will actually be read AND acted upon, rather than ignored. One subject, one…
For those inevitable times when you feel down in the dumps, DIY Planner suggests making a “life-map” of your accomplishments. Similar to the process of mind mapping, making a life-map simply includes your life achievements rather than brainstorming an idea. You can make it as basic or as detailed as…
The Google Friends newsletter points out in a recent issue that Google has now made it possible to find the time in locations in all over the world. Next time you do a web search, type “time” followed by a city, state, or country and Google will return the time…
Beer batteries create energy from bacteria that feed on waste water. The technical term for them is “microbial fuel cells” (MFCs), and they earned the nickname beer batteries because beer company Fosters has funded the development of MFCs in Australia that run on waste water produced by the beer-making process….
If you’ve got a disorganised drawer full of tangled string, twine, or ribbon—in my house we used to call this the “junk drawer”—DIY web site Curbly suggests using funnels to organise and dispense your stringy things. It’s a very simple and kind of elegant idea if you’ve got a place…
