Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Cool Tools: Google Drawing

The best simple drawing program there is is hidden away inside of Google Docs. It's free, and completely intuitive to use. Google Drawing is the opposite of Adobe's Illustrator, which while insanely deep (and expensive) requires hours if not years to master. You can draw with this one in seconds.
Cool Tools: Google Drawing

Offbeat travel: Crime-themed tourism

As any fan of “CSI,” “Law & Order” or “The Untouchables” knows, there’s something about crime and punishment, mobsters and the long arm of the law that piques our interest. The why of it is better left to a psychologist or doctor, but whatever the reason, we humans seem to be programmed to find the macabre a little intriguing.
Offbeat travel: Crime-themed tourism

How to Password Protect Files and Folders on Computer or USB Flash Drives

Do you have files and folders on your computer that you absolutely don’t want anyone else to see? Or do you even carry important documents on those easy-to-misplace USB drives?
How to Password Protect Files and Folders on Computer or USB Flash Drives

7 Services to Find and Reserve Your Name Across the Web

If you choose a different username for every site you’re on, it can be hard to create a consistent identity across the web. The problem, however — as Megan Fox, BP, and even the Dalai Lama recently found out — is that being the first to claim your name on every site can be difficult. And since most of the hundreds of sites that can host your profile prevent automated sign-up processes, you need to manually create one profile at a time.
7 Services to Find and Reserve Your Name Across the Web

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Is it “Ms.” or “Miss”?

A rare occurrence of “Ms.” in 1885 suggests that the term is an abbreviation of “Miss.”
Is it “Ms.” or “Miss”?

How to Delete Friends on Facebook

Are you just tired of that friend who constantly bugs you with messages or just spams your Facebook wall? Do you want to "un-friend" him/her? Here's how.
How to Delete Friends on Facebook

HopShopGo Ships From US-Only Stores

Tempting online stores with “we only ship to the continental US” clauses are a perennially annoying fact of life. HopShopGo is the latest site to offer shipping to Australian addresses from a range of US stores, selling itself on the ability to pay via PayPal.
HopShopGo Ships From US-Only Stores

Backup your Windows Device Drivers with this Free Tool

When you buy a new PC, the vendor will almost always provide you with a “driver CD” that has the device drivers for all the hardware that’s inside your new machine. The CD comes handy when you are reinstalling Windows from scratch or are trying to recover your machine to its original state after, say, a system crash.
Backup your Windows Device Drivers with this Free Tool

Complete Guide to Breathing New Life Into Your Old PC or Laptop

Do you have an older PC or laptop laying around just collecting dust and not sure what to do with it? You could sell it, but not get much for it. Here we bring you a guide on how to bring it back to life.
Complete Guide to Breathing New Life Into Your Old PC or Laptop

Monday, August 16, 2010

Five Best Deal-Hunting Sites

Today's deal-hunting web sites have changed the once hit-or-miss aspect of scoring an amazing deal into more of a whenever-you-want affair. Check out these five popular deal-hunting sites to score deep discounts and bargain-basement prices.
Five Best Deal-Hunting Sites

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 17/2010

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

Use a Password Hasher to Generate More Secure Passwords

The trouble with secure passwords is that they’re hard to remember, and you should really use a different one for each site or application you use. One solution is to use randomly-generated strong passwords and store them in a password manager, like LastPass. Alternatively, you could use a password hashing tool to create a strong passwords for each of the sites you use from a master password in conjunction with a parameter.
Use a Password Hasher to Generate More Secure Passwords

Friday, August 13, 2010

Top 40 best free legal movies you can download right now

While you constantly hear about how downloading movies is illegal, there are numerous free legal movies you can download. Sure we aren’t talking about the latest summer blockbusters here, but there are some great films out there on the Internet that can be had for free.
Top 40 best free legal movies you can download right now

The Best Online Backup Services Compared

While it is easy to create a local backup of your computer, the physical media where you are storing the backups, like the DVDs or external disk, may not be very reliable in the long term. The other disadvantage is that local backups don’t always happen in real-time. It is therefore recommended that you switch to an online backup service – these are inexpensive and will automatically copy your computer’s data over the Internet to a more secure off-site location (aka the data center) in near real-time without your involvement.
The Best Online Backup Services Compared

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Population by Age and Sex, Australian States and Territories, Jun 2009

This issue contains estimates of the resident population of Australian states and territories as at 30 June of each reference year. Estimates up to 2006 are final, based on the results of the 2006 Census of Population and Housing. Estimates for June 2007 have been revised and estimates from June 2008 onwards are preliminary.
Population by Age and Sex, Australian States and Territories, Jun 2009

The Oddest English Spellings, Part 17

Even the staunchest opponents of spelling reform should feel dismayed at seeing the list in the title of this essay. How is it possible to sustain such chaos, now that sustainable has become the chief buzzword in our vocabulary? Never mind foreigners—they chose to study English and should pay for their decision, but what have native speakers done to deserve this torture? The answer is clear: they are too loyal to a fickle tradition.
The Oddest English Spellings, Part 17

OUPblog » Blog Archive » The Oddest English Spellings, Part 17

Even the staunchest opponents of spelling reform should feel dismayed at seeing the list in the title of this essay. How is it possible to sustain such chaos, now that sustainable has become the chief buzzword in our vocabulary? Never mind foreigners—they chose to study English and should pay for their decision, but what have native speakers done to deserve this torture? The answer is clear: they are too loyal to a fickle tradition.
OUPblog » Blog Archive » The Oddest English Spellings, Part 17

How Secure Is A Password?

New technologies and more powerful computer systems have made it important in the last years to create secure passwords to avoid successful automatic password cracking attempts via brute force and dictionary attacks. But how do passwords have to look like to be considered secure? And who determines that? There is no authority with guidelines on the creation of secure passwords. Companies, organizations, software developers and end users all have their own definition of secure passwords.
How Secure Is A Password?

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

The Best Way to Send Important Files Really Fast

When you need to send an important file to a contact, you can either send it as an email attachment or, if the file size is too big for an email message, you can upload it to any of the file hosting services and share the download link with your contact over email.
The Best Way to Send Important Files Really Fast

Virus Check Files Online Without Downloading Them

It sometimes is a good idea to check a file online for malicious code before downloading it to the local computer system. While it is usually not dangerous to download a file as long as it is not executed, it can save some time to perform a virus scan before downloading the file. The developers of one of the most popular online Virus scanning services, Virus Total, have released a Firefox add-on today that can be used for exactly that purpose, and more.
Virus Check Files Online Without Downloading Them

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer 2.2

Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer (MBSA) 2.0 is an easy-to-use tool that helps small and medium businesses determine their security state in accordance with Microsoft security recommendations and offers specific remediation guidance. Improve your security management process by using MBSA to detect common security misconfigurations and missing security updates on your computer systems.
Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer 2.2

Snap Send Solve Sends Reports To Local Councils From Your iPhone

Out for a walk and spot a litter problem, an overflowing drain or another problem the local council should fix? iPhone app Snap Send Solve uses your GPS coordinates to determine which council is responsible, and then lets you send an email report direct to the relevant party.
Snap Send Solve Sends Reports To Local Councils From Your iPhone

Remove Multiple Toolbars In Windows

Toolbars are not necessarily installed as standalone applications
these days. Toolbar developers have established business relationships with software developers to include their toolbars in the software installer. Users who do not pay close attention to the installation process may inadvertently end up with one or multiple toolbars installed on their system.
Remove Multiple Toolbars In Windows

Monday, August 09, 2010

Five Best Mobile Fitness Apps

Mobile fitness apps have changed the way people create, record and reach fitness goals, thanks to mobile phones and mobile devices that put a powerful computer right in your pocket. Here’s a look at five of the best mobile fitness apps.
Five Best Mobile Fitness Apps

Sunday, August 08, 2010

Top 5 Free Antivirus for Windows

When asked about Anti-virus, I often recommend everyone Kaspersky because of its performance and detection level. But for a less hostile and home environment, going for a free anti-virus alternative is a better choice. Thinking of which, I began my search for the best free antivirus to my already paid license of Kaspersky. I visited most of the AV-companies sites and saw what they had to offer and then compared all those those alternatives to the results of the test conducted by AV-Comparatives in the month of May. According to my observation and my past experience, here are top 5 free anti-viruses.
Top 5 Free Antivirus for Windows

Private Browsing Modes Not So Private After All, Report Says

Cnet’s Seth Rosenblatt today published a story about privacy risks in private browsing modes of modern web browsers. He summarized the findings of a soon-to-be published report of researchers at Stanford University’s Computer Science Security Lab. The researchers analyzed the private browsing modes of Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Internet Explorer and Apple Safari
.
Private Browsing Modes Not So Private After All, Report Says

Saturday, August 07, 2010

How to Extend the Battery Life of an iPad

Just as with an iPhone or iPod Touch, the battery life of your iPad will be shorter during heavy use. However, there are some measures you can take to keep your device on and active for hours of enjoyment, and this article explains what you can do to lengthen the battery life.
How to Extend the Battery Life of an iPad

Yoko Ono: Beatles Not Coming to iTunes Store Any Time Soon

Yesterday, Yoko Ono, the widow of John Lennon and part owner of the Beatles music catalogue, revealed that there’s been no progress in negotiations with Apple when it comes to getting the band’s music in the iTunes store. Her statements quiet ongoing rumblings about the matter.
Yoko Ono: Beatles Not Coming to iTunes Store Any Time Soon

Thursday, August 05, 2010

WobZip, Uncompress Archives Online

The right archiving software may sometimes be out of reach to unpack an archive. This can be the case when using a public computer in an Internet Cafe or library for instance. Users who need to extract an archive but cannot do so locally can resort to online services to do so.
WobZip, Uncompress Archives Online

A Girl’s Guide to Car Problems

If you’re anything like me, your automobile knowledge doesn’t extend much beyond the gas cap and ignition switch. I find myself much more comfortable under the hood of a stove than the hood of a car and happily leave it to the men in my life to tell me when something’s wrong. Yet, in an age where women are becoming increasingly independent and adept at a variety of skills, I think it’s time to demystify the automobile world.
A Girl’s Guide to Car Problems

Internet Explorer 9

The Internet Explorer 9 Platform Preview gives developers and curious end users an early look at some of the features coming to IE9.
Internet Explorer 9 - WinPlanet Windows Software Reviews and Downloads

Is It All Over? Liberal Party Will Not Support The Filter

Late this afternoon on Triple J’s Hack program, Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey announced the Coalition would act to block Labor’s mandatory internet filter if they find themselves in opposition after the election. With the Greens also taking a position against the filter, it is highly unlikely Labor will have any chance of getting the numbers they need to push their legislation through during a next term.
Is It All Over? Liberal Party Will Not Support The Filter

Five Easy Ways To Avoid Any Internet Filter

We’ve covered similar territory before, but the post at Gizmodo by Colin Jacobs from the EFA showing five ways any filter can be avoided in two minutes is well worth checking out. What exactly is this plan to create a secret government list of banned sites protecting us from again?
Five Easy Ways To Avoid Any Internet Filter

An Online Easter Egg Hunt is Underway!

Want to learn about all the new features in Microsoft Office 2010 and SharePoint 2010? Microsoft has launched a fictional research and development company, Allure Bay Corp., and the fake company’s website is chock full of Easter eggs to demonstrate the new features of Microsoft’s latest software releases. Embark on the hunt by clicking the projector at the end of the introductory video.
An Online Easter Egg Hunt is Underway!

Internet Explorer 9, Platform Preview 4 Released

The Internet Explorer team just as expected released the fourth platform preview of the upcoming Internet Explorer 9 browser. The preview still offers no “real” user interface, but lots of progress has been made under the hood. Hardware accelerating everything that is rendered on the user’s PC seems to have been one of the main goals in the development. The developers have added additional hardware accelerated elements into IE9, including fully hardware accelerated HTML5. This basically means that Internet Explorer 9 uses hardware acceleration whenever possible.
Internet Explorer 9, Platform Preview 4 Released

Wednesday, August 04, 2010

Top 5 Firefox Extensions for Web-Developers

There are many tools to solve basic problems that we face while embedding javascripts, while defining CSS or while optimizing the web-site’s load time, and the best of them all are actually addons of Firefox.
Top 5 Firefox Extensions for Web-Developers

Tuesday, August 03, 2010

See Mercury, Venus, Mars, Saturn

Over the next few nights early in August 2010, sky watchers should be able to see the planets of Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Saturn in the western night sky. Don’t wait too long because Mercury soon disappears!
See Mercury, Venus, Mars, Saturn

How to Get Started with Usenet in Three Simple Steps

Usenet is a wonderful service for finding and downloading digital media, giving you speed and reliability you won't find with other file-sharing options—like, say, BitTorrent. Here's a quick guide on setting up and getting started with Usenet.
How to Get Started with Usenet in Three Simple Steps

Microsoft Office is licensed for two PCs

Surprise! surprise!! Did you know that the MS Office license you bought is actually valid for two PCs?
Microsoft Office is licensed for two PCs

Checklist Guide for Reinstalling Windows

Do you need to reinstall Windows on your computer? Here’s a checklist of the things you should do before you make the leap and reinstall.
Checklist Guide for Reinstalling Windows

Reset Web Browsers To Factory Default Settings

Resetting a web browser to its factory default settings is sometimes a last troubleshooting option, especially if all other repairing options have failed. The consequences are manifold. All custom settings and preferences will be reset to their default parameters, which means that the browser has to be customized after the resetting again. All popular Internet browsers offer an option to reset the settings. This article describes how to reset the settings of Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Opera and Google Chrome.
Reset Web Browsers To Factory Default Settings

Monday, August 02, 2010

5 Awesome Optical Illusion Videos

How long has it been since you watched a video that made you go “Whoa?” If the answer is more than a day, then fear not, as we’ve got five lined up, each chock-full of “whoa” potential. Using nothing more than our eyes’ and brain’s perceptive weaknesses, these clever videos will trick your gray matter and leave you amazed. Or, if you’re really hard to impress, you’ll at least be mildly taken aback. Assuming you don’t have a medical condition that would make it unwise to stare at these brain busters, hop on through our gallery below. We pinky-swear there are no trick videos.
5 Awesome Optical Illusion Videos

Best Google Search Tricks And Easter Eggs

Google was built by geeky programmers, and geeky programmers have a great sense of humour. For evidence, look no further than the weird range of bonus features hidden in Google’s search and other products.
Best Google Search Tricks And Easter Eggs

Sunday, August 01, 2010

Google Earth Now Displays Real-Time Rain and Snow

The latest version of Google’s (Google) 3D map application, Google Earth (Google Earth), now has the ability to display real-time rain and snow in certain parts of the world. To see it, you must first enable the clouds layer, and then zoom in to a location where it’s raining or snowing. Google Earth displays rain and snow only in certain parts of North America and Europe; to see where exactly the new feature is available, enable the radar layer.
Google Earth Now Displays Real-Time Rain and Snow

10 Best Viral Video Remixes on YouTube

You know a viral video has truly made it into the zeitgeist when it gets the remix treatment, which can itself go viral; so meta. For your viewing pleasure we’ve hit up YouTube for 10 of the best examples of memes remade to music. From Leeroy Jenkins to Chris Crocker, these amusing remixes take a video and make it even more memorable.
10 Best Viral Video Remixes on YouTube

Saturday, July 31, 2010

Friday, July 30, 2010

5 Time Zone Tools

One of the problems with working people in other time zones is that figuring out whether it’s a good time to call them can be tricky; scheduling meetings can become positively nightmarish if you have participants in several time zones. Here are some tools that make things a little easier.
5 Time Zone Tools

6 Great Reasons for Paying off the Mortgage on Your Home

Should you pay off the mortgage on the home you are living in? Mortgage interest rates are at historic lows and a fixed rate mortgage seems to be a deal of a lifetime right now, so why would anyone pay it off? Here are six reasons why paying off your mortgage is still worthwhile in the current economic climate.
6 Great Reasons for Paying off the Mortgage on Your Home

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Astronomers discover new threat to Earth

Astronomers have detected a half-kilometre wide asteroid that appears to be on a collision course with the Earth - in 172 years time.
Astronomers discover new threat to Earth

Swan hints at possible filter changes

Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan has suggested changes could be made to the Federal Government's proposed internet filter.
Swan hints at possible filter changes

Common Passwords That You Should Avoid

This poster has a list of top 500 common passwords that you should absolutely avoid using with your online and offline accounts.
Common Passwords That You Should Avoid [Poster]

How Women Use the Web [REPORT]

More women than men across the world visit social networking sites and spend 30% more time per month using them.
How Women Use the Web [REPORT]

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Beginner Geek: Do More With Windows 7 Sticky Notes

Would you like an easy way to write down a quick note and keep it in front of you without wasting a piece of a dead tree? Let’s take a look at the Sticky Notes app in Windows 7 and how you can use it to its fullest potential.
Beginner Geek: Do More With Windows 7 Sticky Notes

Use System File Checker to Repair Your Unbootable Windows PC

The System File Checker (sfc.exe) is a command-line tool built into Windows that helps you repair corrupted system files. If you can't boot your PC, the Winhelponline blog explains how to use it from the install disc.
Use System File Checker to Repair Your Unbootable Windows PC

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Top 10 "Unusual" Uses For Duct Tape

It’s versatile, it’s cheap, it comes in a variety of colors and it’s as tough as old boots.
Top 10 "Unusual" Uses For Duct Tape

Apple Sets Australian Price For iPhone 4

We know the iPhone 4 goes on sale this Friday, and now we know how much it costs. If you buy the 16GB model direct from Apple, it will cost $859, according to a press release sent from Apple late on Monday night.
Apple Sets Australian Price For iPhone 4

The Science Behind "Having a Bad Day" (and How to Solve It)

Sometimes you wake up, and within the first hour or so, you know it's going to be a bad day. It happened to me a couple days ago, and it happened to my girlfriend just this morning. So I'd like to take this opportunity to go on the record saying this entire notion of having a "bad day" is bulls! Don't worry, this is not a rant, there's real science behind it.
The Science Behind "Having a Bad Day" (and How to Solve It)

Friday, July 23, 2010

Top 10 Browser Add-Ons to Heighten Your Internet Experience

The fun doesn’t end with choosing a browser. These days, there are innumerable ways to customize your Internet experience by selecting add-ons, which boost your browser’s ability to work for your own unique needs. Spend hours on end updating your social networking sites? The Yoono add-on will let you update them all at once. Lose entire afternoons researching real-time media? The Cooliris add-on lets you scroll through videos and pictures without clicking through the website. Love reading long articles, but not squinting at the screen? Greasemonkey lets you change the font size.
Top 10 Browser Add-Ons to Heighten Your Internet Experience

Australian government blocks out 90% of document on web-spying plans

Australia's web-censors have outdone themselves. After Stephen Conroy (the Australian minister notorious for proposing the Great Firewall of Australia) promised greater transparency in his government's efforts to regulate the Internet, they replied to a Freedom of Information request on plans to monitor Australians' internet traffic with a document that was 90 percent blacked out.
Australian government blocks out 90% of document on web-spying plans

10 Fascinating Facebook Facts

Facebook’s astronomic rise, staggeringly large user-base, and world’s youngest self-made billionaire CEO make it one of the most fascinating companies around today. While everyone knows the basics about the service’s Harvard dorm room origins, we’ve delved a little deeper to find out more interesting snippets of info. Here are 10 facts you might not know about Facebook, so read on.
10 Fascinating Facebook Facts

Best Free Data Recovery Software

How many times have you deleted something from your hard-disk and immediately realized you made a mistake? How many times have you shift-deleted something really important, only to bang your head on the keyboard later? How many times have you wished you could un-delete a file from USB drive?
Best Free Data Recovery Software

Thursday, July 22, 2010

NASA Uses Space Lasers to Map the World’s Forests [PICS]

Typically, we’d associated terms such as “lasers from space” with global destruction. However, the good folks at NASA have used three satellites and LIDAR laser technology to do something much more interesting — and with much more value for residents of Earth.
NASA Uses Space Lasers to Map the World’s Forests [PICS]

Find DNS Problems with Pingdom Tool

Pingdom tools – one of the most popular and accurate tools to test page loading time of websites has added DNS Health checkup tool to its arsenal.
Find DNS Problems with Pingdom Tool

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

“Refudiate this, word snobs!”

Here at Oxford, we love words. We love when they have ancient histories, we love when they have double-meanings, we love when they appear in alphabet soup, and we love when they are made up.
“Refudiate this, word snobs!”

Uni delves into Aussie diminutives

A new study aims to find out why Australians use so many abbreviated words like 'servo', 'rellies', and 'barbie'.
Uni delves into Aussie diminutives

Watch The Apollo 11 Landing With New Audio, Multiple Cameras

Forty-one years ago today, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon. Millions watched the grainy video and listened to the noisy sound from space. Now Stephen Slater and Footagevault have joined multiple camera feeds with restored audio.
Watch The Apollo 11 Landing With New Audio, Multiple Cameras

Reduce Computer-Caused Eye Strain with the 20-20-20 Rule

Repetitive stress injury (RSI) and eye strain are common ailments among computer users, and there's no silver bullet for avoiding them beyond taking regular breaks to relax. Following his doctor's advice, tech blogger Amit Agarwal suggests a simple 20-20-20 rule.
Reduce Computer-Caused Eye Strain with the 20-20-20 Rule

First (Australian) surfing photo?

Is this the first Australian surfing photo? Taken in 1912, the shot depicts surfing pioneer Tommy Walker catching a wave at Main Beach on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia.
First (Australian) surfing photo?

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Buy Cheap Sunglasses Without Sacrificing Quality

Apart from the price tag, It turns out the difference between a $40 pair of sunglasses and a $400 pair is often as little as the shiny designer logo stamped on the side. Save money without sacrifice by grabbing some cheap shades.
Buy Cheap Sunglasses Without Sacrificing Quality

Monday, July 19, 2010

Display All Special Folders In Windows With Special Folders View

Special folders in the Windows operating systemare presented to the user abstractly, they are not represented by their folder path but solely by their function. Examples of special folders are the My Documents or My Music folders in the user directory, application data folder, the desktop or the temporary Internet files folder.
Display All Special Folders In Windows With Special Folders View

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Friday, July 16, 2010

How to Do Tasseography

Tasseography is a grand name for the enjoyable art of tea leaf reading. Although most people use teabags nowadays to make tea, this change of preference need not deter you from practising what is perhaps the most homely of all the methods of divination.
How to Do Tasseography

Ancestry.com.au Launches the Australia Birth, Marriage and Death Index

The Australia Birth, Marriage and Death Index, a compilation of the records of those who were born, married or died in Australia between the years 1788 and 1985.
Ancestry.com.au Launches the Australia Birth, Marriage and Death Index

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Scientists think chicken came first

What came first, the chicken or the egg? Scientists in Britain think it was probably the chicken, after using new computer technology to try and crack the age-old riddle.
Scientists think chicken came first

Paul the Octopus Gets His Own (Unofficial) iPhone App

You know that German octopus who successfully predicted all those World Cup games? He’s back in the form of an iOS app that makes predictions about anything you want it to, not just football.
Paul the Octopus Gets His Own (Unofficial) iPhone App

Add "Scam" To Your Searches When Checking Out A Business, Product Or Web Site

People often turn to services like Yelp or Amazon to see what people think about a business, product or web site, but to cut straight to complaints that may have made it everywhere, reader MrYdobon adds one word to his searches.
Add "Scam" To Your Searches When Checking Out A Business, Product Or Web Site

Common Netiquette Questions: Answered

The ground rules for online courtesy gelled sometime in the late ’90s: Don’t swear on public forums. Zip large files before sending. AVOID WRITING IN CAPS, AS IT IS RUDE TO CYBERSHOUT.
Common Netiquette Questions: Answered

15 Fascinating Facts About Smiling

Everyone loves the quote “laughter is the best medicine,” and as a nurse, I have experienced the benefits of smiling and laughter with my patients. In fact, smiling can boost your mood and even your immune system. Keep reading for more fascinating facts about our smiles.
15 Fascinating Facts About Smiling

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Why The Filter Proposal Won’t Work

Gizmodo’s Fight The Filter campaign continues to produce great material on why Internet filtering is a bad idea, even if it’s been deferred by a year. Today’s contribution from SAG-AU member Andy Leyden offers a technical-but-not-confusing explanation of why the planned technology is doomed to failure, no matter when it gets deployed. Well worth a read.
Why The Filter Proposal Won’t Work

Share an Internet Connection Between Wireless Machines with an Ad Hoc Network in Windows 7

When you’re traveling sometimes you don’t have a Wi-Fi connection available for your portable devices or need to share files with another wireless computer. Here is how to create a wireless ad hoc network in Windows 7 to solve the issue.
Share an Internet Connection Between Wireless Machines with an Ad Hoc Network in Windows 7

Monday, July 12, 2010

Bright Future Fail

From the FAIL Blog.
Bright Future Fail

Five Best Personal Money Management Sites

Web-based financial management tools have grown in sophistication to the point where many people manage their entire financial lives with online tools. Here's a look at five of the most popular personal money management sites.
Five Best Personal Money Management Sites

19 Essential Social Media Resources You May Have Missed

A weekly power-guide to the best social media resources this side of the ‘Net. This edition includes some tips for cleaning up your social media presence, a few key considerations when designing mobile apps, and a look at social’s huge disruption of advertising.
19 Essential Social Media Resources You May Have Missed

Friday, July 09, 2010

10 Fascinating Facts You Didn't Know About Apple

It can be argued that no consumer electronics company has captured the public’s fascination the way Apple has. Over the years it has morphed into more than just a company or corporation, but for many it has become a representation of a lifestyle or culture, and a status symbol complete with a larger fan base than most pop stars.
10 Fascinating Facts You Didn't Know About Apple

How to Enable or Disable the Libraries Feature in Windows 7

If you just can’t get used to the new Libraries feature in Windows 7, you can easily disable it with a registry hack—though we’d recommend learning about the benefits instead of disabling it.
How to Enable or Disable the Libraries Feature in Windows 7

Getting started with Microsoft Office 2010 Guide

Microsoft has just released a Getting started with Microsoft Office 2010 guide that gives customers an overview of the Microsoft Office 2010 suite and how to get started with Office 2010.
Getting started with Microsoft Office 2010 Guide

Decrypt and Copy DVDs to Your Hard Drive Without Ripping

Have you ever wanted to make backup copies of your DVDs but didn’t want to mess with confusing DVD ripping software? Today, we’ll look at drop dead simple method to decrypt DVDs on the fly with DVD43 so you can easily copy them to your hard drive.
Decrypt and Copy DVDs to Your Hard Drive Without Ripping

Get Rid Of UAC Prompts With Microsoft’s Application Compatibility Toolkit

The number of UAC prompts in Windows 7 has been reduced significantly in Windows 7 by Microsoft. To increase security applications are limited to standard user privileges in Windows Vista and Windows 7. The UAC prompt informs the user if an application requires elevated privileges to run.
Get Rid Of UAC Prompts With Microsoft’s Application Compatibility Toolkit

Thursday, July 08, 2010

More Tactics For Putting Off Telemarketers

Commenter Jack Cola offered up a link to his own collection of tactics for putting telemarketers off. The essence of his strategy is to make the telemarketer hang up rather than doing so yourself, using tricks such as pausing after each answer or pretending you can’t hear them. For me, a simple slam-down still works the best, but it’s always good.
More Tactics For Putting Off Telemarketers

Wednesday, July 07, 2010

Fix Overheating Issues With PC Temp Monitoring Apps

Proper cooling solutions ensure that PC systems do not overheat and PC temperature monitors are used to check temps and post warnings so that the user can react in time to avoid data loss
and crashes. The following paragraphs list PC temp monitor applications. It has to be noted that they only work if the hardware contains temperature sensors, which is the case for most modern motherboards, cpus and hard drives.
Fix Overheating Issues With PC Temp Monitoring Apps

5 Handy iPhone Apps for Home Improvement

While there’s no iPhone app that can help you avoid hitting your thumb with a hammer, falling off a ladder or stepping in a tray of paint, certain apps can be a useful addition to your tool kit when attempting some DIY projects.
5 Handy iPhone Apps for Home Improvement

Tuesday, July 06, 2010

Top 10 Dropbox Alternatives to Securely Sync and Share Files Online

Dropbox is a hugely popular “cloud based” file sharing service (and app), that allows you to synchronize files among different computers. It has a cool user experience, but has its downsides as well. If you are using Dropbox for a long time I am sure you will be so impressed with its ease of use and feature-richness, that you might not have cared to look for an alternative. But there are quite a few new (and old) services which can really give Dropbox a run for their money.
Top 10 Dropbox Alternatives to Securely Sync and Share Files Online

Complete Australian Prepaid 3G Broadband Deals Guide

A prepaid 3G broadband service is a great option for people who occasionally want Internet access on the road, or who want a backup option if their main Internet connection goes down. Here’s what’s currently on offer in the Australian market.
Complete Australian Prepaid 3G Broadband Deals Guide

Sunday, July 04, 2010

9 Cool Tools to Monitor Internet Bandwidth Usage

Working online requires internet connection and costs you too much or less depending upon the needs. Minimizing the cost of internet connection totally depends on you and this will only be controlled by tracking and monitoring it every day. There are some tools available for this purpose which helps you in monitoring and controlling the flow of your internet bandwidth and speed.
9 Cool Tools to Monitor Internet Bandwidth Usage

Recognize The Real Signs of Drowning and Save a Life

The splashing, the yelling, the struggle for life, everyone knows that's what a drowning person looks like, right? Wrong. Outside of Hollywood sets, nobody drowns dramatically. Learn how to spot the signs of drowning and save a life.
Recognize The Real Signs of Drowning and Save a Life

Saturday, July 03, 2010

Friday, July 02, 2010

4 Free Firewall Software for Home Users

Technically Personal are starting a series of weekly articles where they will discuss various aspects of computer security and give you suggestions that will keep you protected. The aim is to make even the non-geeks feel comfortable. They will start with the outermost realm, the Firewall.
4 Free Firewall Software for Home Users

Full List - Best Blogs of 2010

From the savvy to the satirical, the eye-opening to the jaw-dropping, TIME makes its annual picks of the blogs we can't live without.
Full List - Best Blogs of 2010

Thursday, July 01, 2010

Services to Check Whether a Web URL is Safe to Open

Phishing and social hacking are the most wide spread methods of hacking nowadays. Social hacking can be used to trick web users into revealing confidential data. Hackers can create clones of popular websites or pose as support center executives asking for usernames and passwords.
Services to Check Whether a Web URL is Safe to Open

Whatever you do, don't link to our website

Would you believe that in 2010, there are still websites that forbid linking to them? If you think it's odd to try and prevent others pointing to pages they've made freely accessible to the public, it's odder still to see who is doing it.
Whatever you do, don't link to our website

(and just for the record; please DO link to our website, any part you like!)