Keep your dishwasher in good working order

You can get cleaner dishes and extend the life of your dishwasher by maintaining the appliance's spray arm(s), filter, and gasket.
Keep your dishwasher in good working order

Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 3/2010 - January 30, 2010

The latest issue of new Family Friendly sites listed on The Black Stump.
Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 3/2010 - January 30, 2010

What To Do When Your Washing Machine Floods

By the time you realise your washing machine has sprung a leak, it’s probably already pumped out enough water to cause major damage. What should you do next?
What To Do When Your Washing Machine Floods

Australia's Environment: Issues and Trends, Jan 2010

Presents a broad selection of environmental statistics and information which illustrate topical environmental issues. The subject matter will vary in each issue, as new environmental issues emerge or more current data sources become available. While ABS data forms a core component of the statistical information, data from other government agencies, international organisations, industry, and individual researchers is also included. Value is added to these widely sourced datasets by bringing them together and analysing their import for selected environmental issues.
Australia's Environment: Issues and Trends, Jan 2010

Recover Corrupt Word Documents

The remaining option is a file recovery software to recover the text. Damaged docx2txt is one of those programs. The recovery application can be downloaded from the developer’s website. The website is offering an online recovery option as well but most users will probably prefer the offline recovery solution especially when privacy is an issue.
Recover Corrupt Word Documents

Better weather forecasting for Australia's east coast lows

Better weather forecasting computer programs are needed to improve on the specifics of each violent storm system occurring in the eastern coast region of Australia, especially as the world’s climate increases in temperature.
Better weather forecasting for Australia's east coast lows

Browser Speed Tests: Firefox 3.6, Chrome 4, Opera 10.5

Firefox 3.6 is out, Chrome’s stable version got a big upgrade, and Opera 10.5 is inching toward release. It’s a great time for us to break out the timer, process manager and code tracker for some up-to-date browser speed tests.
Browser Speed Tests: Firefox 3.6, Chrome 4, Opera 10.5

How to Permanently Erase Data Off a Hard Drive

So you want to make sure that someone can't get their hands on your private files on a hard drive. Here's a trick that will destroy the hard drive! You will need a set of Torx wrenches. the T-9 sized Torx wrench is the one that fits most hard drive screws.
How to Permanently Erase Data Off a Hard Drive

Human-powered ferris wheel in Nepal

At the Hindu Swasthani Mela festival held in Kathmandu earlier this month, there was a small ferris wheel that appeared to be non-functional. It consisted of four octagonal open-air cages and a simple metal frame. When two kids climbed into one of the octagons, though, a man got up on the other side and started jumping up and down, eventually getting the thing to turn like any other ferris wheel.
Human-powered ferris wheel in Nepal

Science Question from a Toddler: The color of light

Why does a glow-in-the-dark Frisbee glow green? Why does a spark from a light socket look blue? Two different questions, but one intertwined answer.
Science Question from a Toddler: The color of light

Google Reader Lets You Monitor Page Changes Without RSS

It’s not as nifty as a cell phone, or as amazing as street views of businesses all over the world, but to me it is big news — really big news. Google announced yesterday
that Google Reader can now be used to monitor pages for Web changes — whether they have RSS feeds or not.
Google Reader Lets You Monitor Page Changes Without RSS

50 Banned Books That Everyone Should Read

As long as there have been books, there have been people opposed to what is said in some of those books. Authors who challenge the accepted norms in their literature are often the target of angry people who do not understand or appreciate their literature. The following books are excellent examples of great literature that has become banned or challenged in an attempt to shield the public from what some see as inappropriate.
50 Banned Books That Everyone Should Read

Numbers Galore: The Internet 2009, A Collection of Stats You’ll Likely Keep All Year

Pingdom, a company that offers services to measure server uptime and performance monitoring along with letting the webmaster (in many cases that the server is down, has done one impressive job compiling a large amount of stats from a variety of sources (they’re provided at the bottom of the post) about the Internet in 2009.
Numbers Galore: The Internet 2009, A Collection of Stats You’ll Likely Keep All Year

Naked airport scanner catches cellphone, misses bomb components

Check out this German TV clip highlighting the failure of the new, privacy-violating full-nude scanners going in at an airport near you. As Bruce Schneier notes, "The scanner caught a subject's cell phone and Swiss Army knife -- and the microphone he was wearing -- but missed all the components to make a bomb that he hid on his body... Full-body scanners: they're not just a dumb idea, they don't actually work."
Naked airport scanner catches cellphone, misses bomb components

What is the most popular password?

Following the announcement of an attack at RockYou.com whereby a hacker managed to obtain all the account details of 32M users, the security companies have had fun analyzing the data. It appears that the hacker only shared the actual passwords, not the accompanying account information, but that was probably just to keep the useful stuff to themselves. There was a website featuring all the passwords, but this has now been taken off-line.
What is the most popular password?

New Online from Fortune: The 100 Best Companies to Work For, 2010

Fortune’s 2010 List is Now Available. Lists Back to 2006 are Also Online.
New Online from Fortune: The 100 Best Companies to Work For, 2010

Mastering Photoshop: Unknown Tricks and Time-Savers

We all have shortcuts that are essential to our daily workflow. A majority of them are staples such as Copy (Command + C) and Paste (Command + V), but occasionally we stumble upon a shortcut we wish we’d learned years ago. Suddenly, this simple shortcut has streamlined our process and shaved quite a bit of time off our day. Collected here are some lesser known but extremely useful shortcuts. Many of these are not documented in the “Keyboard Shortcuts” menu, and some of them don’t even have equivalent menu options.
Mastering Photoshop: Unknown Tricks and Time-Savers

Stay Under 7 Megapixels to Avoid Photo Noise and Diffraction

Ross at the Petravoxel blog gets precise, and provides proof, on why going over 7 megapixels in a point-and-shoot makes absolutely no sense.
Stay Under 7 Megapixels to Avoid Photo Noise and Diffraction

"Memorize Now" Helps You Commit Long Passages to Memory

If you find yourself in a position of needing or wanting to commit long passages of text to memory, webapp Memorize Now can help.
"Memorize Now" Helps You Commit Long Passages to Memory

Reminder Of Why You Should Never Put Foil In A Microwave

Here’s why your mother always said never to put aluminium foil in the microwave. Can someone buy this Swedish guy a new kitchen, please? And a box o’ wine, too?
Reminder Of Why You Should Never Put Foil In A Microwave

PDFmyURL Generates PDFs from Any Web Address

We've covered online file converters, browser extensions, and psuedo-printers that convert web pages into full PDFs. For a simple, no-software-required solution, PDFmyURL spits out PDF files when you plug in a web address. And, yeah, there's a bookmarklet.
PDFmyURL Generates PDFs from Any Web Address

What Is My Computer Doing

Have you ever asked yourself why the computer’s hard drive is trashing like mad or why everything seemed to come down to a halt without you doing anything on the computer right now? What’s My Computer Doing is a free software program for the Windows operating system that tries to shed light to those questions.
What Is My Computer Doing

Newton's apple: The real story

Newton's apple: The real story

Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 2/2010 - January 17, 2010

The latest issue of new Family Friendly sites listed on The Black Stump.
Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 2/2010 - January 17, 2010

The Best Doctor-Recommended Health Websites

The best way to scare yourself silly: Type your symptoms into a search engine and hit Enter. These doctor-approved sites will inform you, not worry you.
The Best Doctor-Recommended Health Websites

Recent Satellite Imagery of Haiti

Today, two new images have become available via the European Space Agency.
Recent Satellite Imagery of Haiti

Haiti

News roundup, new satellite images, tweets from the ground.
Haiti News Update

Sarcasm Gets Its Own Emoticon

Are you prone to that most glorious form of humor known as sarcasm? Do your e-mail contacts frequently misinterpret your superior wit as outright cruelty? SarcMark has the solution you require.
Sarcasm Gets Its Own Emoticon

SCUM: Haiti Disaster Attracts Hoaxes and Scammers

There’s a word for it: sad. Even in the wake of a disaster the magnitude of the Haiti earthquake, some individuals feel the need to play hoaxes or — even worse — try to scam their way into an actual profit off the tragedy.
SCUM: Haiti Disaster Attracts Hoaxes and Scammers

iPhone App Tells You When You Get Defriended on Facebook

There’s a 99-cent iPhone app in the App Store that will let you know when an old friend, coworker, ex or family member decides they’ve had enough of you on Facebook.
iPhone App Tells You When You Get Defriended on Facebook

Google Wave: What’s It For?

Some of the tasks that Google Wave could be used for.
Google Wave: What’s It For?

Haiti Imagery Now Available for Google Earth, Google Maps

We’ve worked closely with GeoEye throughout the afternoon to make their most recent satellite imagery of Haiti, taken at approximately 10:27am EST today [1/13/2010] , available as a KML overlay for Google Earth. You can download the KML here and open it in Google Earth, or look at it via the browser plug-in below. You can also open the file in Google Maps. As you’ll see, the imagery shows a powerful glimpse into the destruction in Haiti.
Haiti Imagery Now Available for Google Earth, Google Maps

Internet Survival Guide for Traveling Where Privacy Isn't Respected

Two things have really changed the face of independent backpacker travel in the last decade: digital cameras and—even more so—the internet. While some people can afford the luxury of traveling with a laptop or even a netbook, a real backpacker doesn't want to have to carry the extra weight nor the responsibility of carrying expensive equipment that would be difficult to lug around, relatively easy to steal, and expensive to replace.
Internet Survival Guide for Traveling Where Privacy Isn't Respected

YouTube - Haiti Earthquake

Various videos from YouTube showing the devastating earthquake in Haiti.
YouTube - Haiti Earthquake

Fourteen Tips for Getting More Sleep -- and Why It Matters

Many researchers argue that not getting enough sleep has broad health consequences, such as raising your risk for cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and even obesity, but in addition to those, it has a profound effect on happiness and energy level. We get accustomed to being sleep-deprived, and although at first, we notice the effect on mood and alertness, before long, we adjust to that state as normal. So even if you insist that you feel fine, if you got more sleep, you might feel a lot better.
Fourteen Tips for Getting More Sleep -- and Why It Matters

Flip Your Complaints to Get Them Heard

Author and entrepreneur Seth Godin has a handy suggestion for making complaints—to customer support, bosses, or anyone, really—that will actually get heard and acted upon. The secret? Reverse your starting preface, and leave out the word "but."
Flip Your Complaints to Get Them Heard

Haiti Earthquake Relief: 9 Ways to Help Now

Want to help the people of Haiti who lost homes, friends and family members in the 7.0-magnitude earthquake yesterday? Well, there are several places online where you can easily and quickly donate without even leaving your desk.
Haiti Earthquake Relief: 9 Ways to Help Now

How to Sleep When You Are Not Tired

You go to bed early, or for a nap, but for whatever reasons, you're not tired or sleepy. There are many things you can do to fall asleep more easily, but this article will focus on a few simple, quick fixes that'll nudge your body into slumber mode when you're already in bed.
How to Sleep When You Are Not Tired

Turn Your iPhone Into a Security (Spy) Camera

Everyday there are so many new iPhone apps being added into the app-store and I normally don’t like to talk about them as such. Last time we discussed about iPhone apps, we saw 15 cool Augmented Reality apps for iPhone. Today, I will introduce to another cool application which converts your iPhone into a security (or a spy) cam for real!
Turn Your iPhone Into a Security (Spy) Camera

Triskaidekaphobia

triskaidekaphobia • \triss-kye-dek-uh-FOH-bee-uh\ • noun
: fear of the number 13
Triskaidekaphobia

“Name” That Trend

One of the most popular Wolfram|Alpha features is the name directory. Whether you’re researching your own name or brainstorming baby names, the Wolfram|Alpha given name directory is a fun tool you can use to compare name popularity and statistics.
“Name” That Trend

Clean and Maintain Plasma TVs

When you spend a great deal of money on a new Plasma TV in order to have the best quality viewing experience possible, you want to do everything you can to make sure that your TV is properly maintained. Correctly cleaning and maintaining your new Plasma TV will help to ensure that you get years of enjoyment from it.
Clean and Maintain Plasma TVs

Airport Security Fail

What airport?
Airport Security Fail

5 Eye Popping 3D YouTube Videos

3D is set to be the next big thing in home cinema this year, as the multitude of three-dimensional television launches at CES have shown. While many of you may have caught a high profile 3D flick in cinemas over the last year with Up, Monsters vs Aliens, and of course, Avatar, it’s another thing to get ready to view 3D content on the small screen.
5 Eye Popping 3D YouTube Videos

Playpen Fail

I'm nervous!
Playpen Fail

Sleep Cycle Analyzes Your Sleep Patterns for a Better Wake-Up

iPhone only: Getting jolted awake by your alarm in the middle of a great dream is a drag. The Sleep Cycle app watches your slumbers and wakes you when you're lightly dozing, instead of right before you win the lottery.
Sleep Cycle Analyzes Your Sleep Patterns for a Better Wake-Up

How to Deter Graffiti

Being constructive about protecting your business or residential premises from unwanted graffiti is a positive way to help yourself and to reduce the costs of having it removed. If you're in a place that is easily or frequently targeted for graffiti, there are a number of things you can do.
How to Deter Graffiti

Internet filter - national day of protest on March 6th

There is a growing groundswell of protest against Conroy’s internet filter. This is planned to culminate in a national day of protest on March 6th.
Internet filter - national day of protest on March 6th

The Ultimate Guide To 2010 Investment Predictions and Outlooks

The Pragmatic Capitalist have compiled many of the very best outlooks from various analysts, gurus, hedge funds and investors. We hope you find the list helpful in mapping your successful 2010.
The Ultimate Guide To 2010 Investment Predictions and Outlooks

Let's get physical: Nine facts about fitness

DOES an activity have to get you out of breath to count as exercise? Do you really have to do half-an-hour a day? Is pumping iron a good way to keep your heart healthy? These are just some of the dilemmas many of us face when working out the best way to get fit. The good news is scientists do broadly agree on the best ways to get fit, they just haven't been very good at telling us what they've discovered.
Let's get physical: Nine facts about fitness

Revisiting 10 Golden Rules of Social Media

As 2010 opens its doors, I wanted to take another look at my Golden Rules of Social Media, published back in May of 2009, to see if I could consolidate those rules into five actions we can take to work better in — and through — social media in the coming year.
Revisiting 10 Golden Rules of Social Media

Why hard drive prices might actually go up

After a rough 2009 and a decade of decreasing costs and increasing capacity, prices for hard drives and other forms of mass storage might rise for the first time in recent memory.
Why hard drive prices might actually go up

9 Essential iPhone Apps for Cat Lovers

Pups aren’t the only furry pals that get love on the iPhone. Our feline friends are well looked after in the App Store, as well, with a wealth of kitty-themed widgets available for download. Narrowing down the best cat-friendly apps can be a challenge, though.
9 Essential iPhone Apps for Cat Lovers

Watch Sydney’s New Year Fireworks in Full

Every New Year, Sydney, Australia wows crowds with a massive fireworks display. In a smart marketing move, that extravaganza is now available uncut, online, courtesy of Tourism NSW’s Sydney.com.
Watch Sydney’s New Year Fireworks in Full

Twitter's Most Influential Topics of 2009

In 2009, influence emerged as a source of filtering and focus, especially when TwitterTwitterTwitter released its new “lists” feature to empower users to organize and follow custom streams by topic, personality, and themes.
Twitter's Most Influential Topics of 2009

100 Skills Everyone Should Master

In 2008, Esquire published 75 Skills Every Man Should Master and Popular Mechanics published a list of 100 Skills Every Man Should Know. My list was inspired by those, but it was Jason who mentioned that someone should do a list of gender neutral skills; I’ve been working on this on and off since then.
100 Skills Everyone Should Master

Is aviation security mostly for show?

Last week's attempted terror attack on an airplane heading from Amsterdam to Detroit has given rise to a bunch of familiar questions.
Is aviation security mostly for show?

New Year’s Eve Folklore

For most English people, New Year’s Eve is either spent quietly at home, or at a party, which lasts till after midnight to ‘see the New Year in’. Such gatherings differ little from other parties, apart from the ubiquitous singing of ‘Auld Lang Syne’…The only other regular features of the season are the ubiquitous salutations of ‘Happy New Year’ and the tendency to make personal ‘New Year resolutions’.
New Year’s Eve Folklore

The 1979 Cabinet Records

The year 1979 was the middle year of the second term of the Fraser Government. The Government had a comfortable majority in the House of Representatives and control of the Senate, but the opinion polls were less encouraging. A Morgan Gallup poll held in November 1979 showed the Government parties trailing the Australian Labor Party (ALP) by 48 per cent to 43, and Malcolm Fraser’s approval rating at only 35 per cent (behind Opposition Leader Bill Hayden at 43 per cent).
The 1979 Cabinet Records