By (author unknown), Columbus Business News – Local Columbus News | Business First of Columbus – June 02, 2010 at 11:55AM
Ohio State University will leverage the expertise of its business school and expansive research faculty, while still seeking outside market experts, in a reorganization of its lagging efforts to turn discoveries into dollars.
By Lee Mathews, Download Squad – June 01, 2010 at 03:30PM
Filed under: Utilities, E-mail
A customer’s pitifully poorly maintained Outlook Express deleted items folder had ballooned into multiple gigabytes from years of reckless archiving. No, I’m not sure why people use the deleted items and recycle bin to store things they actually want to keep, but that’s a discussion for another day…
I needed a tool which I could use to re-assemble her OE mailbox and eliminate a few problematic messages. Enter UnDBX!
Choose the source folder, choose a destination, and UnDBX spits out every message as individual .EML files which you can drag-and-drop back into Outlook Express. Delete items you don’t want — or file them away in a folder on your hard drive instead of overtaxing the aging mail app.
Sure, it would’ve been nice to get her using webmail — or at least a more modern email program. Sadly, however, comfort is a key factor for many users. This won’t be the last time I have to rescue an Outlook Express install, so I’m keeping UnDBX on my flash drive.
UnDBX extracts email messages from Outlook Express data files originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 01 Jun 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Outlook Express – Email client – Download Squad – Email – Recycle Bin
By Jorge Sierra, MakeUseOf – June 01, 2010 at 02:20PM
There are many great tutorials on the web for using a Mac to install Mac OS X Snow Leopard on a PC. Unfortunately, you may be unable to follow such tutorials if you do not readily have access to a Mac to perform the preparation necessary for the installation.
Great progress has been made in hacking PCs to run OS X, and it is now possible to install Mac OS X without a Mac. Thanks to some great tools put together by some brilliant hackers, it is also much easier and does not involve nearly as much time and effort as was once required.
I recently purchased the following set of hardware for the purposes of building a Hackintosh (often PCs running Mac OS X are referred to as such):
The motherboard has an 8-pin power connector on it, and although it is possible to connect a single 4-pin connector to it, you may encounter odd issues running with just a single 4-pin connector. To ensure that you provide sufficient power to the board, you should purchase the 4-pin to 8-pin power adapter. Alternatively, you could purchase a power supply with 3x 4-pin connectors (1 for the 20+4-pin main connector, and 2 for the 8-pin connection) or an 8-pin connector.
I did not purchase a hard drive or video card, as I used some I already had from another PC, but you will need those items as well. As of the time this article was written, you can get a 1TB drive shipped for $75 and an NVIDIA GeForce 9500 GT video card for $65.
I also purchased v10.6.3 of OS X Snow Leopard retail DVD for a mere $29 (was about $35 with shipping & handling).
All-in-all, the full system (without monitor) will run you around $600 (you could also add a 22″ monitor for $170). You could certainly try doing it even cheaper with different hardware, but you’ll need to figure out the appropriate changes to make in the BIOS and boot loader installation.
I did my best to put together a fairly modern system for a very reasonable price. Having used this set of hardware, I can affirm that it runs OS X Snow Leopard very well. Without a doubt, $600 – $800 is a far cry from what you would spend on an equivalent Mac from Apple. Granted it won’t be as compact or pretty as an iMac, but it will be just as functional.
If you purchase the hardware I used, along with a hard drive and NVIDIA GeForce video card, you should be able to follow the instructions exactly as I’ve laid them out. If you’ve never built a PC before but are willing to give it a try, you’ll definitely want to check out The Idiot’s Ultimate Guide to Build Your Own PC. It is a step-by-step guide to building your own PC, with plenty of photos to help you out.
You can try following this tutorial with existing hardware you have as well, although you may need to make adjustments when configuring the BIOS and installing the boot loader. The more modern your hardware is, the better the chances are it will work for you. It would be best if you have a 64-bit Intel dual-core (or quad-core) processor, although an older CPU might still work as well. I would recommend NVIDIA GeForce video card, but ATI cards should work too.
In addition to the hardware and a retail copy of Mac OS X Snow Leopard, you’ll also need a blank CD. You may want to use a rewritable CD if you’re using a different hardware configuration, just in case the first one I recommend doesn’t work for you. There are two boot disk images that will allow you to install OS X directly from the installation DVD:
I successfully used both of them with my hardware setup. However I recommend you try iBoot first, as it is a bit leaner and doesn’t take as long to boot. If you’re using my hardware configuration, be sure to download the iBoot Supported disk image. If you use Empire EFI, download the Empire EFI v1.085 R2 image.
You can use one of many free programs to burn CDs if you don’t have one. Be sure to use the disk image burning mode in your CD burning software. Do not just simply copy the disk image file to a blank CD. I like InfraRecorder, because it makes this very easy. All you have to do is click the Write Image button, select the image, and burn it. Once again, you may wish to use rewritable media if you’re using a different hardware configuration than mine.
Fortunately, the Gigabyte GA-H55M-USB3 does not require a lot of configuration to run Mac OS X. When you first turn on or reboot the machine, press the delete key to enter the BIOS setup. You can just load the Optimized Defaults, and just make a few changes within three sections of the bios: Advanced BIOS Features, Integrated Peripherals, and Power Management Setup.
4.1 – First, go to Advanced BIOS Features and set the First Boot Device to CDROM. I have my USB drive as the second drive and then Hard Disk as third – you can configure yours the same way if you wish to ever boot from a USB drive. Just be sure that Hard Disk is the Second Boot Device or Third Boot Device.
4.2 – Next, configure SATA to run in AHCI mode in the Integrated Peripherals menu. You’ll need to set both PCH SATA Control Mode and Onboard SATA/IDE Ctrl Mode to AHCI.
4.3 – Finally, go to Power Management Setup and set the HPET Mode to 64-bit mode.
5.1 – Insert the iBoot (or Empire EFI) boot disk.
5.2 – When you see screen below, eject the disk.
5.3 – Insert the Retail Mac OS X Snow Leopard DVD, wait a few seconds, and press F5.
5.4 – When you see the screen below, select Mac OS X Install DVD (it should already be selected) and press Enter.
5.5 – If all goes well, you should eventually see the language selection screen for the installer. If all did not go well and you do not make it to the language selection screen, try downloading a different version of iBoot or Empire EFI.
5.6 – Select your language and click the arrow to proceed.
5.7 – Next, you need to partition your drive. Click on Utilities > Disk Utility.
5.8 – Select your disk drive.
5.9 – Click Partition.
5.10 – Select 1 Partition for the partition scheme. Note: If you have a drive that is larger than 2 TB, do not create partitions larger than 1 TB. Split the drive into multiple partitions, and be sure the main installation partition is 1 TB or smaller.
5.11 – Enter a name for the partition (I used Hackintosh).
5.12 – Select Mac OS Extended (Journaled) as the Format.
5.13 – Click Options…, select GUID Partition Table, and then click OK.
5.14 – Click Apply.
5.15 – Quit Disk Utility and proceed with the installation. Install on the Hackintosh partition.
Do not fret when you reboot after the installation and get a boot error, as you will need to first boot the machine with iBoot (or Empire EFI). Eject the Mac OS X Snow Leopard install DVD, put your boot CD back into the drive, and reboot the machine. Now when you boot up, you should see a second choice for your installation partition (Hackintosh if you named it that way). Select the Hackintosh partition and press Enter to boot into OS X.
Once you’ve completed the first-run setup, open up Safari and download Multibeast. Multibeast is another superb tool by tonymacx86 and MacMan that makes it stupid easy to install the boot loader, along with all the drivers necessary for your Hackintosh to function properly.
In addition to downloading Multibeast, you will need to download the DSDT for the Gigabyte GA-H55M-USB3 and copy it to the desktop. Launch Multibeast and make the following selections (your choices will differ if you have a different motherboard/hardware configuration):
After MultiBeast finishes installing, eject the iBoot CD and reboot the system. You should be able to boot right up from the hard drive, and all your devices should work just fine.
So what now? Most certainly you’ll want to check out 5 apps to get more out of your new Mac as well as 15 must-have apps for your Mac. In fact, you should probably just go ahead and browse the entire Mac section on MakeUseOf, as you’ll find a wealth of great free stuff for your new Mac in there. And most importantly make sure to download MakeUseOf’s getting started manual for Mac. Highly recommended for switchers.
If ever you encounter into problems with your new Mac, you can always seek help from MakeUseOf Answers.
If you have any problems installing Mac OS X on your PC, just post a comment right here and we’ll do what we can to help. Just be sure to provide as much information about the hardware you’re using:
I never managed to get sleep to work. When I try to put the computer to sleep, it sort of goes into a coma. The fans never shut down and the machine doesn’t wake up when you press the power button. If you manage to get sleep to work with my hardware configuration, please do feel free to share your solution in the comments on this article.
There are also many great forums and sites out there that provide a lot of information and assistance with running Mac OS X on PC. Here are just a few you may want to check out:
If you do seek assistance from any of these or similar resources, be sure to search for your problem before posting it. You will be flamed to no end if you ask a question that has already been answered. Another tip for posting in these forums: never call it a MAC (in all caps) instead of a Mac, or you will solicit many abusive responses. Mac is an abbreviation not an acronym.
Here are a few more links that provide tools and files to help you set up a Hackintosh on hardware other than what I’ve mentioned here:
A million thanks to tonymacx86 and MacMan for developing iBoot and Multibeast to make installing Mac OS X Snow Leopard on PC a piece of cake. Enjoy your new Hackintosh and let us know what you think of it!
Disclosure Statement: Please note that the links to the hardware in this article are affiliate links. MakeUseOf will earn a small commission on any purchases you make. Commissions earned will support the staff of MakeUseOf and allow us to continue to bringing you more great articles.
Disclaimer: Please note that running Mac OS X Snow Leopard on hardware other than a Macintosh is against the Mac OS X End User License Agreement (EULA). If you have concerns about this, you may wish to read Is Making Your Own Hackintosh Legal? By installing Mac OS X you are in breach of a contract (breaking a contract is not the same as breaking the law). As long as you own a legal copy of the software, you are not in violation of copyright law.
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By Jeffry Thurana, MakeUseOf – June 01, 2010 at 01:30PM
By nature, humans always want to improve their quality of life by finding or inventing the easiest possible way to do something. This basic behavior continues on even in the digital age. Computer users rely on applications to make their computing life easier.
But life is not static. What we consider as the best solution today might become obsolete tomorrow. Most of the time, there are also more than one solution to a problem, more than one way to do something, more than one applications to achieve the same thing.
The result is a bloated Applications folder which filled with unused and outdated apps. Here are two steps that I took to tidy up my Mac’s Applications library.
Actually, there’s not much of a problem here. Most modern applications come with automatic updating. If you turn the feature on, the app will check whether there’s any update available and then pop-up the notification.
But this process has to be done individually. And the availability of updates is different from one app to another. If you have hundreds of apps on your Mac, checking and updating them all could take a lot of time.
Luckily there is a more convenient way available. To check the status of your applications, you can use the help of another application.
One of such apps is Bodega. Jackson discussed this app a little while back. This is actually a kind of application store where you can browse for applications and download the ones that you want. Some of the apps are free and some others are not free.
But Bodega can also be used to check the availability of applications updates. Just select the Applications folder from the left pane and Bodega will show you the status of your installed apps.
You can sort the result by status – updated, free updates, and paid updates, and click the “Get” or “Buy Now” buttons to update a specific app.
But Bodega does not show all of your apps, only the ones that matches the data that they already have. The reason is – as mentioned in their support page – that they want to be sure that they’re giving users the right updates and information on those applications.
Another alternative that you can use to update your apps is AppFresh which is specifically built for this purpose. We’ve discussed the features of this app already so I won’t repeat the babbling here. AppFresh gives more complete list of applications, but it doesn’t offer the experience of “discovering new cool apps” like Bodega.
Using Bodega or AppFresh, you can find unwanted apps that still reside inside your machine. Maybe those apps are so old that they are unusable, maybe you’ve found another better alternatives, or perhaps the available updates are not free anymore and you are not willing to pay for the updates — like iCompta here.
To uninstall apps in Mac, you can just drag and drop them to the Trash and get away with it. But there are apps that will leave behind some system files. Even though these leftover files are harmless, they do litter our system.
To get rid of any app completely, you need the help of uninstaller app. We have discussed three free uninstaller for Mac before and they work just fine. But I’ve just find another alternative that I like called TrashMe which comes from the same developer who created TunesArt.
Using the app is as simple as dragging and dropping your unwanted app(s) to the drop zone. You can also use the “Places” on the left pane to search for and filter your unwanted app(s). After you found the one that you don’t want, check the box next to it and click the “Related files” button.
You will have a list of the files related to the app that you are going to delete. Double-check for unrelated files. You don’t want to delete files that you still need. If everything is checked, hit the “Delete” button.
TrashMe will ask for your confirmation one more time. Be brave and move on with your life.
You may continue uninstalling other unwanted apps based on your findings from Bodega and AppFresh. I myself also using TrashMe to uninstall other uninstallers, which I no longer use.
What about you? What method do you use to tidy up your installed applications? Do you know other alternatives to the applications mentioned here? Share using the comment below.
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By noreply@blogger.com (David), Strobist – June 01, 2010 at 01:00PM
Moishe Appelbaum and the folks at MPEX were never ones to leave well enough alone. Building on the sold-out LP120, the original quad-sync flash, LumoPro today announced the arrival of the more powerful LumoPro LP160 — a second version borne of user feedback from the original model.
It’s a lotta flash, for notta lotta cash. Details after the jump.
__________
This is the reason those LumoPro LP120’s have been out of stock the last couple of months. They were not re-upped in anticipation of the impending arrival of the LP160.
I am told that for those of you who had previously unfilled LP120 orders (for instance, in Strobist kits) they are simply gonna swap you out for the LP160. You’re welcome, internet.
The feature set is improved all around (except they kept it to quad-sync, cause quintuple-sync woulda been crazy…)
Specs
• Power level: Equal to a Nikon SB-900 or Canon 580 EX II
• Four-second recycle time w/NiMH batts
• Metal, screw-lock hot shoe (sync #1)
• Rotating head turns 180 degrees to the right, 150 degrees to the left for 330-degree coverage. (So you can aim the flash head and the slave in any two directions.)
• Built-in slave (sync #2, and extremely sensitive)
• Built-in PC jack (sync #3, until the industry finally comes to its senses)
• Built-in 1/8″ sync jack (sync #4, giving you access to cheap sync cords)
* Motorized Zoom Head goes from 24mm to 105mm
• 7 f/stop range: 1/1 – 1/64th power in 1-stop increments
• 2-year warranty.
The LP160 ($159.99) ships with the following accessories: Slip-on ultra-wide diffusor, 1/8 to PC pigtail sync cord (for remotes) and a cold-shoe stand. Note, the stand does not have a 1/4 x 20 socket embedded.
Additionally, it has a “digital” slave that somehow ignores preflashes. I have never used one of those, and do not usually have to deal with preflashes. But for those of you interested, have at it.
As for road testing, I got to play with a beta unit for a while a ways back. My results confirmed the power levels, and the flash was very color- and level-consistent from pop to pop.
Essentially, it has everything an manual off-camera flasher could want, without a lot of TTL doodads to drive up the price.
I am excited about this not just because it is great value for dollar in an off-camera speedlight, but also because the improvements came largely as a result of user feedback on the already user-inspired LP120.
__________
:: LumoPro LP160 Product Page ::
By Mark Wilson, Gizmodo – June 01, 2010 at 12:20PM
For this week’s Shooting Challenge, 168 of you were brave enough to not only share your photography, but to share a little piece of yourself with it. The results are sometimes funny, sometimes haunting and sometimes beautiful. More »
Photography – Business – Arts and Entertainment – Photographers – Portrait
By Kevin Purdy, Lifehacker – June 01, 2010 at 12:00PM
We feature hundreds of different downloads every year at Lifehacker. If all you want is the best of the best, look no further than our annual Lifehacker Pack: One download that installs only our favorite, must-have Windows applications in a few clicks.
As with last year’s Lifehacker Pack (and its much older predecessor), the Lifehacker Pack is intended as both an up-to-date compilation of our favorite Windows apps and utilities, and an actual bundle of software you can easily install.
This year we teamed up with the good folks at Ninite to create an unattended installer for the 2010 Lifehacker Pack. That’s right—run this puppy on a brand-new Windows 7 installation, walk down the street to grab a cup of coffee, and when you get back, Ninite’s bundle installer has finished automatically installing the apps we’d recommend anyone have on their system. Just to make sure we’re on the same page, here’s the screaming link you should follow to download the streamlined Lifehacker Pack:
Download the Lifehacker Pack 2010
We divided up the Lifehacker Pack into two sections this year—the “Essentials” and the “Extended.” Each is just what they sound like—the Essentials is just what you need to make a modern Windows system usable, and “Extended” adds a lot of apps and functionality that not everybody needs, but some folks may find incredibly helpful.
Want to quickly and automatically install the apps we’re recommending? Head to our Ninite bundle, then click the link at the top to “Select All Essential Apps.” Don’t need one or more of the apps included? Un-check the box next to each item you’d remove. You can then hit “Select All Extended Apps” in the second section, and do the same kind of cherry-picking of additions and removals.
When you’re all done picking out the apps you want, click the “Get Installer” link that appears in the lower-right corner, and you’ll be sent to a download page for your personalized installer package.
Here’s how the Lifehacker team came up with the Lifehacker Pack selections, and a brief explanation of why each app is included:
Notepad++: Microsoft Word, OpenOffice.org, and other office suites are good for just that—writing business documents in an office setting. When you need to edit text, and need just a bit more than Notepad/Wordpad offer, Notepad++ is, as you might guess, much better. There’s a good selection of text search and manipulation tools, tabbed editing of multiple documents, syntax coloring for those working with code, and scripting abilities that can add in functions written by the app’s very enthusiastic user base to add functions like automatic saving. (Previous coverage: AutoSave adds reassurance to Notepad++ editing)
Texter: Built by our own Adam Pash, Texter remains the only truly free text replacement utility for Windows systems. It saves time and mental cycles by filling in long passages and tricky code when you type in a few key characters, and it is, in fact, how most of the Lifehacker editors track and write the HTML and text snippets that get reused everywhere. It can work with text from the clipboard, insert times and dates, and make semi-personalized email responses and signatures a snap. If you’ve got a bug complaint or code to add for Texter, you can contribute through GitHub.
Belvedere: Belvedere, another Adam Pash production, emulates the automated cleaning and sorting powers of the Hazel application for Macs. It takes care of the file actions you’d normally do (or forget to do) manually—remove image files from the desktop when they’re a certain age, delete leftovers in the downloads folder after a certain point, compress and back up files matching certain conditions, and so on. Like its television namesake, Belvedere handles your messy files and folders without a stiff upper lip and unspoken understanding of what needs doing.
SumatraPDF: What does SumatraPDF do that Adobe Reader doesn’t do? Makes reading PDF documents very, very simple, and fast. SumatraPDF downloads PDFs and opens them, rather than try to offer a browser plug-in experience. It opens those PDFs quickly, seems to support the majority of PDF features, including tables of contents, and offers smart navigation shortcuts for those who want to learn.
Chrome: When Lifehacker first launched in early 2005, Internet Explorer had a near-monopoly on browser usage, and Firefox was everything it wasn’t—open-source, faster, extensible, and full of helpful little features—like, say, tabbed browsing. Firefox is still a smart alternative to Internet Explorer, but these days (as hard as it is for some of us to say it), the fastest, simplest, and most search-savvy browser around is Google’s own Chrome browser. At this point, the browser has incorporated most of the features one needs from a browser, has added some nifty new stuff, like built-in browser preferences and bookmark syncing, and has an extension library that’s covering a lot of ground.
In short, for those without special, only-available-for-Firefox needs, Chrome gets the job done. The majority of Lifehacker editors are using Chrome as their primary browser for work and personal browsing these days, and we see it as the best web tool we can recommend. And don’t worry, Firefox lovers—you can still grab Firefox as well in the Extended download. (Previous coverage: Fix the web’s biggest annoyances, The power user’s guide to Chrome [and 2009 edition], Should I use Firefox or Chrome?)
Thunderbird: With so many people using web-based email services these days, we could easily leave out a desktop email client. But Thunderbird is free, and its latest version is easy to set up as a kind of backup tool for Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, and most non-Exchange email services. Why keep a desktop client connected to a webmail service? Because IMAP clients tend to still let you access Gmail, even when it’s “down”. And with Google’s support for offline Gears on the wane, Thunderbird’s smart download-then-work-offline feature is great for air travel and other non-connected situations. (Previous coverage: Ultimate online/offline message hub, ultimate Gmail IMAP client)
Pidgin: Pidgin isn’t as flashy as its newer, more social-media-focused counterparts like Trillian or Digsby, but in this case, simplicity is a virtue. Set up Pidgin with your AIM, Google Talk, Yahoo Messenger, MSN, or other chat accounts. Sync your Pidgin profile with Dropbox (a download also included in this pack), and you don’t have to mess with settings anywhere or go hunting for chat logs. Better still, stash a portable copy in Dropbox, synced to that same profile, and you’ve always got a chat client ready to go on any Windows system. (Previous coverage: 10 must-have plug-ins, Use Dropbox to sync profiles across multiple PCs)
Adobe Flash: Yes, it causes a good number of browser crashes (though fewer when bundled with Chrome). Yes, it’s harder on laptop and mobile batteries than straight-up browsing. And, yes, HTML5 is the future. But at this moment, you need Flash, on occasion. If you want a say in when and how it runs, install the FlashBlock Chrome Extension, and the original FlashBlock Firefox add-on if you’re running that, too.
Skype: It’s one of the cheapest ways to call somebody overseas and, amazingly, it’s still free if you both use your computers. Even better, Skype for Windows’ new screen sharing/remote control feature turns out to be a pretty great tool for troubleshooting problems from far away. At some point, someone will ask to call you on Skype. It doesn’t hurt to have it available.
uTorrent: The best, most secure, and most full-featured BitTorrent client for Windows. Our voting readers agree by a wide margin, and we’ve found quite a few neat things to play with in uTorrent, too, like share your own files, remote control your torrents, and running it from a thumb drive.
Dropbox: It’s only been two years since this file syncing service debuted, but it’s already hard to imagine how we lived without it. Everybody gets 2 GB of free space to store files in the most simple interface possible—if it’s in the Dropbox folder, it’s synced. We’ve discovered and linked to many clever uses of this one-folder-every-computer setup, but at its heart, Dropbox is the service that frees you from having to remember to unplug your USB drive from every computer you use it on. (Previous coverage: The cleverest Dropbox uses, Sync files outside your Dropbox folder, The ultimate password syncer)
Mozy: Where Dropbox is simple, Mozy is detailed—in a good way. The web-based backup service also offers 2 GB of free space, but keeps an eye on many different folders, or types of files, across your whole computer, with versioned copies of everything. They’re trying to entice you into signing up for their full service, costing $54.45 for a full year of unlimited storage, but that’s not such a bad thing—having a copy of all your stuff in a place you can’t delete it, set it on fire, or spill your coffee on it is a savvy move.
ImgBurn: When it comes to disc-burning software, “Just works” is a big recommendation, because it really stinks to deal with image files, disc types, or driver incompatibilities right before you want to hit “Burn.” ImgBurn works with CDs, DVDs, and Blu-Ray, creates and opens all kinds of image formats, and supports every Windows OS back to 95.
CCleaner: You may not think you’ll ever run out of hard drive space, and maybe you won’t. But the extra files, leftover data, and cache files left hanging around by your apps can get very big, and make your system work harder to find the good stuff. CCleaner finds the cruft and cleans it out, nice and simple. (Previous coverage: Run CCleaner on a schedule, Really browse without a trace)
Revo Uninstaller: Windows is too lenient in what it allows each piece of software to do when it “uninstalls.” Some leave files, others leave menu links and file associations. Revo Uninstaller is like bleach when it comes to cleaning out apps. It also has a handy startup program manager for deeper cleans of what’s dirtying up your system.
7-Zip: Windows (thankfully) opens and creates ZIP files creatively. For opening the many other kinds of archives floating around the internet, install 7-Zip. You’ll only see it hanging around when you open up a file, or right-click to create new files.
VLC: It plays nearly any kind of media file you can find on the internet, and with hardware acceleration now in early builds, it should be even snappier very soon. (Previous coverage: Master your digital media with VLC)
Picasa: Picasa makes sense of the myriad folders, files, and faces that make up our often discombobulated photo collections, and does it with an interface that’s easy to understand. It also serves as a one-stop shop for quick photo touch-ups, collage creation, web album uploading, and easy, no-pain photo emails. (Previous coverage: Clean up your photo collection)
Paint.NET: When you need to crop, cut, or otherwise edit an image, Windows’ built-in Paint isn’t quite enough, while a full-fledged Photoshop or GIMP installation is probably too much. Paint.NET is just about perfect for the graphic design needs of a non-graphic-designer.
iTunes: We are not in love with iTunes, by any means—it’s nearly a textbook example of feature creep, and it’s not a fast, easy, or particularly stable bit of Windows software. Still, it seems like everyone has to install iTunes at some point, either to make or release purchases or manage an iPod. There are apps that can manage iPods without iTunes, but they are not elegant. So we include iTunes because it still handles the basic functions of a music library, and makes sense for the many, many iPod owners out there.
Microsoft Security Essentials: As the How-To Geek put it in his headline, stop paying for Windows security—Microsoft’s security tools are good enough. The free download integrates tightly into your Windows system, but not in the annoying icons-everywhere, constant-nagging fashion of the big commercial providers. It also doesn’t drag down performance, is quickly and automatically updated, and, best of all, is just quietly working.
Firefox: When we’re not using Chrome, we’re using Firefox. It’s still a great browser with a lot of add-ons that can’t be had anywhere else, and a good alternative to keep handy.
Recuva: When you or your computer accidentally delete something important from a hard drive, memory card, USB drive, or other space, Recuva can often find it for you, be it the assignment due today or the priceless photo from last weekend.
Foobar 2000, Songbird, and Winamp: Windows Media Player works better than you’d think, and iTunes and VLC get the job done for straight-up library organizing and music listening. Music, though, is a very personal thing, and many of our readers love the customization, power features, and, in the case of Songbird, avoidance of Apple lock-in of these great media players. Installing them all doesn’t take that much space, so why not give them a try?So there it is—the app Essentials we’d imagine any fresh Windows re-install (or virtual machine, or BootCamp, or triple-boot-on-Mac) should have in place, and the Extended stuff for covering all the bases on a productivity machine.
Once again, you can install all or a chosen few of these apps at once, with no license approvals or other unnecessary “Next” clicks, at the Lifehacker Pack 2010 Ninite page. Thanks again to the Ninite team for making this year’s pack very easy to put together and put out there.
What app Essentials, or Extended goodies, did we leave out? If you were designing a Lifehacker Pack for Windows, what would you recommend everybody have installed? Give us a tiny bit of free consulting in the comments!
By Drea, Business Pundit – June 01, 2010 at 07:20AM
By Beth Ritter-Guth, MakeUseOf – May 31, 2010 at 11:30AM
We all love sharing pictures with friends and family. And with online solutions like Flickr, getting your photos out into the world is a snap. Here’s something that will make it even more fun!
Flickery is a Mac application that allows you to search, download, and share pictures directly from your desktop. Sharing on Flickr and finding images have never been easier!
This week, we will be giving away 10 licenses for Flickery worth $180 in total! Find out how you can be in the running to win one.
Flickery is extremely simple to use. Once you download, install and launch the app, you’ll be presented with an intro screen which quickly explains its functions.
In order to use the application, you’ll need to sign in to your Flickr account. If you don’t have one, click on “Get Flickr account”, then follow the instructions to create a new account.
Once connected, you’ll have access to your Flickr account directly from your desktop. You can easily browse through your image albums, Flickr contacts, photo groups, favourites, and even upload your photos directly from the app.
Besides that, you can also search for images on Flickr. There are several search options: by tags, title, username, location, nearby, most interesting or newest. The last 3 search options are pre-defined — that is to say, you can always gain access to them via the left sidebar.
To search for a photo, click on the blue Search button and enter a term in one of the search fields (for example, Henry David Thoreau) and click Search. As soon as you do, that search criteria will automatically be saved in the left sidebar for quick access.
Flickery will find images that are tagged with the same word or phrase. Click on the pictures you would like to keep and click on the Download button in the menu. That’s it! The pictures will download directly to whichever folder you designate.
If you want, you can import them directly into iPhoto.
Or you can share them with others through iChat, email, or Twitter. Simply select the “Share” button!
Besides that, you can also perform any of the regular functions i.e. marking an image as Favourite, viewing more images by a particular user, viewing the EXIF information attached to the image and even commenting on the image; all from your desktop.
Flickery works seamlessly with your Mac and is really simply to use. It helps you easily download, organize, and share photos on Flickr with ease!
Try Flickery completely free for 15 days by downloading the trial. If you’re happy with it, be in the running to grab yourself a copy by participating in giveaway.
It’s simple, just follow the instructions.
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| Join our Facebook page by clicking the Like button or you can follow us on Twitter, if you prefer. If you’re already following us, you may skip this step. | |||
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If you can’t see the fanbox, click on this link. |
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| STEP 2 | Here’s our new giveaway form. Please fill it in accurately. Be sure to enter your real name and email address so that we can get in touch if you are chosen as a winner. Click here if you can’t view the form. |
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| STEP 3 | |
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| You’re almost done. Now, all that’s left to do is to share the post. There are 2 options to choose from or you can do both! |
Share it on Facebook
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Or on Twitter
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| And that’s it! You’re done! |
This giveaway begins now and ends Friday, June 4 at 2100hrs PST. The winners will be selected at random and announced via email.
Spread the word to your friends and have fun!
MakeUseOf would like to thank Matthias from Eternal Storms Software for his generosity while participating in this giveaway. Interesting in sponsoring? We’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with us via email.
Hey Facebookers, make sure to check out MakeUseOf fan page on Facebook. Over 20,000 fans already!
By Jason Fitzpatrick, Lifehacker – May 30, 2010 at 12:00PM
Computers are easier to use and more dependable with each new generation of hardware and operating system update, but that doesn’t mean they’re problem-free. Here’s a look at the five most popular tools for troubleshooting your computer problems.
Photo a composite of images by jimrhoda and Axonite.
Earlier this week we asked you to share your favorite diagnostic tool. Below, we’ve rounded up the top five answers, and now we’re back to highlight the most popular computer diagnostic tools among Lifehacker readers.
If things haven’t gotten bad enough that you’re forced to take refuge with a Live CD, SIW is a Windows-based diagnostic tool that can help you get to the bottom of things. SIW is incredibly detailed in its analysis, next to nothing is left uncatalogued from the timings of your memory modules to the DLL files loaded to what applications you have set to autorun at startup. Even if you’re not currently experiencing any computer issues, SIW gives you a really interesting peek inside your computer.
Hiren’s BootCD is an impressive toolkit rolled into one packed DOS-based Live CD. Sporting over a hundred separate diagnostic and repair tools, Hiren’s BootCD can help you do everything from diagnose a memory problem to clone a disk to speed test your video card. If you can’t find out what is wrong with your computer after running through all the tools on Hiren’s BootCD the diagnostic answer you may end up at is “Time to buy a new computer.” A note about Hiren’s BootCD: many of the diagnostic tools gathered on the disc are abandonware or older versions of still produced commercial software. The legal status of Hiren’s BootCD is murky so Hiren doesn’t directly host the disc image himself. You’ll need to search Google to find locations like here and here where the disc is hosted. If you’re not comfortable with murky areas of Hiren’s method for assembling the boot disc, you’ll find plenty of other excellent boot discs in this Hive Five that contain only freeware and open-source software.
Your first reaction to the phrase “computer diagnostic tool” might not be “Google!”, but every computer diagnosis begins with the user wondering what the error code or chain of events leading up to the error means. We’ve solved countless problems around the Lifehacker office by simply plugging in an error code or describing the problem in common terms and letting Google do the heavy lifting. Google tirelessly kicks back thousands of web pages, forum posts, and even old Usenet postings to help you drill down to your specific issue. Your favorite search engine isn’t necessarily a diagnostic tool in the traditional sense, but it should be the first place you stop whenever you have a computer issue. Many of the solutions we’ve found over the years using Google were extremely specific and pointed us towards using a just-for-that-problem application or tweak we would have never found otherwise.
You’ll find no shortage of Live CDs for Linux distributions, but Ubuntu has a particularly user-friendly Live CD and many people have experience with Ubuntu outside of diagnostic work, both make an Ubuntu Live CD extra appealing. You can use an Ubuntu Live CD to test your computer’s memory, recover data, or scan your computer for viruses among other tasks. Live CDs are great for giving you a platform to work off of independently of your troubled system and an Ubuntu Live CD has the benefit of an enormous community of Ubuntu users and all the accompanying how-to guides and information.
If you’re a Windows user and you’re not comfortable going back to your roots with a DOS-based boot disc and you definitely don’t feel comfortable with a Linux one then UBCD4Win is just what you’re looking for. UBCD4Win’s strongest selling point is the stripped down version of Windows XP—Windows PE—which makes it dead simple for Windows users to jump in and start using the numerous diagnostic tools on UBCD4Win. When your version of Windows is flaking out on you, it’s comforting to jump into a Live CD version of Windows to continue your diagnostic work without having to mess around with the nuances of using a Linux Live CD.
Now that you’ve had a chance to look over the top contenders for best diagnostic tool, it’s time to cast your vote in the poll below:
Which Diagnostic Tool Is Best?online survey
Have a favorite diagnostic tip, trick, tool, or tech support site you want to give a shout out? Let’s hear about it in the comments. Have an idea for the next Hive Five? Drop us an email at tips@lifehacker.com with “Hive Five” in the subject line.
