Thursday, July 31, 2008

An Illustrated Guide to Every Stupid Cable You Need

We put up with too many cables. There are at least four different kinds of USB plugs, two kinds of FireWire and like a million different ways to connect something to TV or monitor. Modern gadget life can be kind of retarded in this way. Why not one kind of cable, or just a couple? I don't know. But until everyone gets on the same appendage-to-hole scheme, in the meantime, you can use this: an illustrated guide to pretty much every kind of cable you will see in current gadgets and what it's used for.
An Illustrated Guide to Every Stupid Cable You Need

10 Skills You Need to Succeed at Almost Anything

What does it take to succeed? A positive attitude? Well, sure, but that’s hardly enough. The Law of Attraction? The Secret? These ideas might act as spurs to action, but without the action itself, they don’t do much.
10 Skills You Need to Succeed at Almost Anything

8 Great Anti-Hacks to Fundamentally Change Your Life

Albert Einstein stated that “problems cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them.” Einstein, of course, was right. Sometimes our problems require more than life hacks, tips, tweaks, etc. Sometimes our lives don’t need optimization, they need to be fundamentally reconfigured.
So What are Anti-Hacks?
8 Great Anti-Hacks to Fundamentally Change Your Life

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Nineteen tips for cheering yourself up -- from two hundred years ago

In 1820, Sydney Smith wrote a letter to an unhappy friend, Lady Morpeth, in which he offered her tips for cheering up. Most of Smith's suggestions are as sound now as they were almost 200 years ago – though a few are amusingly odd, and it might be tougher today to work "good blazing fires" into everyday life.
Nineteen tips for cheering yourself up -- from two hundred years ago

I’m Sorry, I Don’t Know, I Can’t …

I find myself blurting out I don’t know as an instant answer to questions I don’t have immediate answers for. Lately, I’ve been noting how these simple words made me feel, and I’m starting to take notice that on some level, these casual words are effecting my emotions and self-esteem.
I’m Sorry, I Don’t Know, I Can’t …

11 Things You Shouldn’t Leave For School Without

A simple list to simplify your life.
11 Things You Shouldn’t Leave For School Without

100-year-olds use Wikipedia too

A survey of 100 centenarians published by healthcare coordination program Evercare found at least two very wired respondents. Three of the 100 said they've used Wikipedia. The full results:
100-year-olds use Wikipedia too

Monday, July 28, 2008

7 Ways to Manage Your Passwords

One inescapable facet of web work is the need to come up with, and remember, usernames and passwords. The days when you could get away with picking a single combination and using them everywhere are pretty much gone: that strategy reduces your security to that of the weakest site you use. It’s simply not worth risking that the person who gets hold of some Web 2.0 startup’s database can also get into your online banking.
WebWorkerDai7 Ways to Manage Your Passwords

Friday, July 25, 2008

Paper misspells its name on front page

New Hampshire and Vermont’s* Valley News could be a favorite for 2008’s Typo of the Year, thanks to it misspelling its own name on the front page on July 21. It published an editor’s note yesterday.
Paper misspells its name on front page

30+ Tools for Synching Files and Folders

The amount of important data that we now store digitally on our desktops, laptops, mobile phones, and PDA’s is growing exponentially every year and accessing that data whenever we want from wherever we want is not an easy task. So whether you have GB’s of family pictures and music stored on your computer or lots of MS Office documents with critical business data, here’s a list of over 30 resources to sync your data between computers and mobile devices so you can have ubiquitous access.
30+ Tools for Synching Files and Folders

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Follow The Sun - Australian Travel Posters 1930s - 1950s

The posters in this exhibition are drawn from the collections of the National Library of Australia.
Follow The Sun - Australian Travel Posters 1930s - 1950s

Statue of 'Elvis' chiselled 1800 years before his birth

With his dashing chiselled features, swept back hair and perky bouffant the resemblance is unmistakable.
But incredibly this carving of Elvis Presley was created around 1800 years before the King of Rock and Roll first warbled his first note.
Statue of 'Elvis' chiselled 1800 years before his birth

Human Mirror

For our latest mission, we filled a subway car with identical twins, creating a human mirror. Enjoy the video first and then see below for our report with tons of photos.
Human Mirror

How to Fix a Stuck Pixel on an LCD Monitor

If your LCD screen has a stuck or dead pixel (a point on the screen that is always lit or always dark), it is usually due to a transistor malfunction or uneven distribution of liquid in the liquid crystal display (TFT LCD). This can often be fixed.
How to Fix a Stuck Pixel on an LCD Monitor

Top 10 Water Wasters

Many of us use water thoughtlessly; it seems as abundant as the air we breathe and a free swig is available almost anywhere. But fresh, potable water is already a precious commodity in many drier parts of the world, and as it grows rarer—and thus, dearer—in developed countries, the true value of H2O is beginning to seep in.
Top 10 Water Wasters: From Washing Dishes to Watering the Desert

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

How to Maximize Your Memory

Students (of all ages) might have more on their minds now than ever before — from work, to school to all of the other distractions pulling at them. So how can they be expected to concentrate, focus, memorize and execute the educational materials they have in front of them each night?
How to Maximize Your Memory

Best global roaming deals for iPhone travellers

Travelling from Australia with your iPhone overseas? Here's the best value for your data-roaming dollar!
Best global roaming deals for iPhone travellers

Encrypt Your USB Stick

Encryption is absolutely essential, especially if you’re the kind of person that carries their USB stick around as if it’s your car keys or your lipstick. USB sticks are so small that they are easily lost and they are also easily stolen. Just think of all the information that gets stored on one of these things.
Encrypt Your USB Stick With Truecrypt

Monday, July 21, 2008

UNESCO World Heritage Centre - Twenty-seven new sites inscribed

The World Heritage Committee, meeting for its 32nd session, finished inscribing new sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List on 8 July with the addition of 19 cultural sites and eight natural sites to the List.
UNESCO World Heritage Centre - Twenty-seven new sites inscribed

11 ways to eat the 11 best healthy foods that you aren't eating

When I was a kid, my grandmother never relied upon the classic "Because I said so!" when pressed with the ubiquitous "Why?" Instead, she would give very concrete, inarguable reasons supporting her statements and if she wasn't quite certain, she'd make something up that sounded good.
11 ways to eat the 11 best healthy foods that you aren't eating

Saturday, July 19, 2008

How to prepare for an interview

Ok, you’ve graduated. You’ve just spent tens of thousands of dollars and a large chunk of your life to get your degree. Why?
My guess is that you’re hoping to get a great, well paying, fulfilling job that matches your interests, skills, and abilities as well as your degree. To get that job, you’ll first have to “WOW” your potential employer in an interview.
How to prepare for an interview

Photograph of jumping shark behind surfers

Photog Kem McNair snapped this amazing shot of a spinner shark jumping out of the water behind surfers at New Smyrna Beach, Florida. No, it isn't Photoshopped.
Photograph of jumping shark behind surfers

Backyard Cooking: A Guide

Light a grill and he will come: the know-it-all meat expert—usually a male relative—with dubious advice. To help you silence such goons, Steven Rinella, author of The Scavenger's Guide to Haute Cuisine, shares his best cooking philosophies. Learn them and defeat all comers.
Backyard Cooking: A Guide

How to Reach Age 99: 100 Essential Habits

Are you competitive? Maybe you just want to beat the odds of the average lifespan for most Americans? The average lifespan of an American born today is between 77.5 to 80.0 years of age, so you would live almost a full quarter century past this average if you make it to age 99. The first step you might want to take is to move to Australia, where life expectancy is, on average, age 81.
How to Reach Age 99: 100 Essential Habits

The Most Dangerous Roads in the World

North Yungas Road is hands-down the most dangerous in the world for motorists. If other roads could be considered impassable, this one clearly endangers your life. It runs in the Bolivian Andes, 70 km from La Paz to Coroico, and plunges down almost 3,600 meters in an orgy of extremely narrow hairpin curves and 800-meter abyss near-misses.
The Most Dangerous Roads in the World

How To Demolish A Skyscraper One Floor At A Time

What you are going to see in this post, is one of those rare things in life that leaves you truly speechless, and one more reason to say that technology in these days has no limits.
How To Demolish A Skyscraper One Floor At A Time

Friday, July 18, 2008

Blurred Out: 51 Things You Aren't Allowed to See on Google Maps

Depending on which feature you use, Google Maps offers a satellite view or a street-level view of tons of locations around the world. You can look up landmarks like the Pyramids of Egypt or the Great Wall of China, as well as more personal places, like your ex’s house. But for all of the places that Google Maps allows you to see, there are plenty of places that are off-limits. Whether it’s due to government restrictions, personal-privacy lawsuits or mistakes, Google Maps has slapped a "Prohibited" sign on the following 51 places.
51 Things You Aren't Allowed to See on Google Maps

Top 20 Productivity Lists to Rock Your Tasks

The productivity list is a common animal these days (goodness knows I’ve done my share), but how do you sort among them all?
You’d need a list of the best lists, that’s how.
Top 20 Productivity Lists to Rock Your Tasks

Top 10 Computer Annoyances and How to Fix Them

Computers are supposed to make our lives easier, but too much of the time they can be frustrating, time-wasting, stubborn machines. From the irritating "Access Denied" message when you can't remember your 147th password, to all the useless email that clutters your inbox, to IT lockdown restrictions that keep you from getting your job done, let's take a look at 10 of the more common gripes amongst computer users.
Top 10 Computer Annoyances and How to Fix Them

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

7 Free Books That Should Be On Your Shelves

Who doesn’t like free stuff? And if we’re talking about stuff that will actually help you out in the long run, it’s hard to find a reason to turn it down. Free books, for example, are more than worth their price, especially if they are good reference materials. But sometimes it can be hard to find free books — it’s not necessarily something that’s advertised.
7 Free Books That Should Be On Your Shelves

Our Googley advice to students: Major in learning

Management guru Peter Drucker noted that companies attracting the best knowledge workers will "secure the single biggest factor for competitive advantage." We and other forward-looking companies put a lot of effort into hiring such people. What are we looking for?
Our Googley advice to students: Major in learning

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

30 Most Incredible Abstract Satellite Images of Earth

Indeed, the world reproduces itself not only in the course of several gyrations, but at several different heights. At ground level, one can only imagine the sheer beauty of mountain ranges, deserts and deltas seen high up from NASA’s satellites.
30 Most Incredible Abstract Satellite Images of Earth

How Our Bodies Age

Aging is the natural wear and tear of the body's component parts. It's inevitable, and endlessly intriguing. While many age-related changes cannot be prevented, a lifestyle that includes exercise and a well-balanced diet will slow or minimize many problems related to aging.
How Our Bodies Age (And What You Can Do About It)

Monday, July 14, 2008

Best Life Magazine: Body: The 10 Machines You Must Avoid at Your Gym

Defenders of stationary equipment argue that machines are designed to limit what you can do wrong. But seated machines often put heavier loads on the back and joints than is necessary.
The 10 Machines You Must Avoid at Your Gym

Waiters Share Restaurant Stories

Waiters share insider secrets about restaurant -- from what days to avoid dining out to how much to tip.
Waiters Share Restaurant Stories

Saturday, July 12, 2008

7 Super Snacks That Heal

What most people don’t realize is that the first line of defense against stress, fatigue, depression, and so many other maladies is found in supermarket aisles, not in the drug store.
7 Super Snacks That Heal

Friday, July 11, 2008

Is your car likely to be stolen?

If you're in the market for a new car, or just wondering how secure your current set of wheels is, the RACV's annual review of how secure different models are is essential reading. While some manufacturers produced consistently good results, there are plenty who aren't doing enough, especially with cheap but effective technologies such as self-voiding vehicle labels.
Is your car likely to be stolen?

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Michael Jordan's 10 Secrets To Reaching the Top

Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player that ever lived. Was he genetically predisposed to be faster and stronger, or was it his iron discipline that was responsible?
Michael Jordan's 10 Secrets To Reaching the Top

How to win Arguments

There is not much point in having brilliant ideas if we cannot persuade people of their value. Persuasive debaters can win arguments using the force of their reason and by the skillful deployment of many handy techniques. Here are some general dos and don’ts to help you win arguments together with some sneaky tactics to be aware of.
How to win Arguments - Dos, Don’ts and Sneaky Tactics

Digital TV in Australia

The five major Australian cities are due to have analog TV turned off at the end of next year, progressively the remainder of the country will be forced to convert by 2013. So, knowing that any equipment older than around 5 years will stop working in 18 months, how are we doing?
Digital TV in Australia

The Golden Money List: Hundreds of Tips for Turning Your Financial Life Around

A list of the best money articles on Zen Habits and a resource for anyone trying to live more frugally, get out of debt, save money, or simply create a better financial system in their lives. Bookmark it for future reference if you like. Enjoy!
The Golden Money List: Hundreds of Tips for Turning Your Financial Life Around

Tuesday, July 08, 2008

How to Calculate How Much Money You Need to Retire

Whether you've reached middle age and you are just now starting to wonder if you are going to be able to retire comfortably at a reasonable age, or you're one of those few people in your 20s or 30s who's already thinking about retirement, you need to crunch some numbers in order to make it happen.
How to Calculate How Much Money You Need to Retire

Print to PDF in Windows Vista

The go-to Vista fix-it guy, The How-To Geek, offers a much-needed tutorial and walk-through on installing print-to-PDF functionality in Windows Vista.
Print to PDF in Windows Vista

9 July – Happy Constitution Day!

The National Archives of Australia is embarking on an annual Constitution Day event program for 9 July. The date is special for all Australians yet few understand why.
9 July – Constitution Day

History of "jet lag"

Air & Space magazine posted a fascinating short history of "jet lag," beginning with what appears to be one of (?) the first printed appearances of the phrase in a 1966 L.A. Times article.
History of "jet lag"

Monday, July 07, 2008

Eight Handy Tools in Microsoft Word You Probably Don't Know About

Microsoft Word is full of tools that can help you work faster and smarter—but only if you know about them. Here's a list to remind you of just what Word can do for you. You're probably familiar with some of these. Your neighbor knows a few, too, but not the same few. Eight Handy Tools in Microsoft Word You Probably Don't Know About

5+ Ways To Watch The Tour De France

The Tour de France began earlier today out of Brest, Valverde raised his fists in triumph, and we haven’t told the cycling fans among you how to watch the action.
5+ Ways To Watch The Tour De France

Saturday, July 05, 2008

Recorded Crime - Victims, Australia, 2007

This publication presents national crime statistics relating to victims of a selected range of offences that have been recorded by police. These statistics provide indicators of the level and nature of recorded crime victimisation in Australia and a basis for measuring change over time.
Recorded Crime - Victims, Australia, 2007

AVG Fakes User Agent, Floods the Internet

Anti-virus provider AVG is spamming the internet with deceptive traffic pretending to be Internet Explorer. Essentially, users of the software automatically pre-crawl search results, which is bad, but they do so with an intentionally generic user agent. This is flooding websites with meaningless traffic.
AVG Fakes User Agent, Floods the Internet

Your brain lies to you

The brain does not simply gather and stockpile information as a computer's hard drive does. Facts are stored first in the hippocampus, a structure deep in the brain about the size and shape of a fat man's curled pinkie finger. But the information does not rest there. Every time we recall it, our brain writes it down again, and during this re-storage, it is also reprocessed.
Your brain lies to you

Friday, July 04, 2008

10 Spectacular Cockpit Photos

Gliders, Space Shuttles, Airbus...
10 Spectacular Cockpit Photos

How to Reset Your Body Clock

Not an unusual predicament for web workers. Especially since we own our time. Although we don’t necessarily have a boss who prefers that we start at 9:00 am, waking up late in the afternoons isn’t ideal either.
So how can we fix a broken body clock?
How to Reset Your Body Clock

Thursday, July 03, 2008

Who’s Mindful of Who’s Apostrophes’?

While rambling incognito through a remote town, I saw this sign gracing the upper floor of a restaurant: “The Party’s at Sally’s.” I was intrigued. The quotes look out of place, I thought, unless the whole is the title of a movie or musical. However, the smell coming out of the building in conjunction with rather wild music convinced me that the establishment was indeed an “eatery” in which the party was never over. But forget the quotes. What is “party’s”?
Who’s Mindful of Who’s Apostrophes’?

How to stop Junk Mail

From Matt Cutts, Google. I’ve been learning how to stop receiving junk mail, and I thought I’d share what I’ve learned.
How to stop junk mail

Australians making odd choices for Funeral Songs

A large cemetery and crematorium in Adelaide, Australia reports that Frank Sinatra's "My Way" has become the most-played funeral song. Second on the charts is "Wonderful World" sung by Louis Armstrong. Only two traditional Christian hymns are in the top 10.
Australians making odd choices for funeral songs

Wednesday, July 02, 2008

20 Ways to Attack Shyness

Can you remember the last time you stepped into a room full of strangers and felt that self-conscious and awkward feeling rush over you? Or that heart thumping moment when you wanted to ask someone on a date, but were too shy to do so? Or wanting to approach someone for business, but was too hesitant to actually do it? That anxiety in the pit of your stomach in social situations? Does it always feel like something is holding you back?
20 Ways to Attack Shyness

The Secret to Ultra-Sharp Photos

The following post on The Secrets to Ultra-Sharp Photos is by San Francisco based photographer Jim M. Goldstein.
The Secret to Ultra-Sharp Photos

Pranks: Just Say 'Yes' To Telemarketers

Want to drive a telemarketer crazy and amuse yourself at the same time? Here's an example of how to do it.
Pranks: Just Say 'Yes' To Telemarketers

7 Most Unhealthy Carnival Foods

There are few things in the universe more evil than carnival food. Why do they feed us deep-fried sugary food before we get on rides that spin us around and around? Why is it that carnies aren't all 500 lbs.? Must be the meth. Check out Newsweek's list of the 7 most unhealthy carnival foods.
7 Most Unhealthy Carnival Foods

How to get the most from Qantas' new Frequent Flyer program

Qantas today unveiled major changes to its Frequent Flyer program, adding options to fly on any day where seats are available and an expanded range of other products to its traditional use-points-and-fly-if-you're-lucky approach. Where can the best deals be had and how can you ensure you get the flights you want?
How to get the most from Qantas' new Frequent Flyer program

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

10 Essential Sites for Tips and How-To’s

The advent of the Internet and social media have spawned a number of how-to sites, which has made finding tips and resources easier than ever before. We’ve put together a list of 10 essential sites where you can find or in some cases contribute tips and how-to’s on a wide range of topics. And the eleventh is The Black Stump!
10 Essential Sites for Tips and How-To’s