This will transform the way your computer looks, and make it look like a Mac with Leopard. It's really cool. Plus, no separate software is needed, and it's free.
So download it, try it out, and see if you like it. It's easy to switch back to the normal XP look.Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
How to Make a Flash Based Video iPod
I found an article that shows you step by step how to replace the Hard drive in a video iPod to a Flash-based (SSD-Solid State Drive) Video iPod.
It definitely looks fairly easy to do.
Quoted from:
http://www.mactips.org/archives/2008/01/29/how-to-make-a-flash-based-video-ipod/
If you have an iPod Video with a broken hard drive or just want to upgrade to more energy efficient and more durable Flash memory, then Tarkan has just what you need. It's a straightforward operation that shouldn't take you more than 20 minutes. Here's what you'll need:
- 1 Compact Flash card of any size (No less than 4 GB), I highly recommend this one
- 1 iFlash Video iPod Compact flash adapter (available at Tarkan's store)
- 1 iPod opening tool (also available at Tarkan's store)
- 1 iPod Video (5 gen or 5.5 gen will work)
Once you have all the necessary materials, the process is actually quite simple. First, you must pry open the iPod casing with the opening tool, this is the hardest part of the whole operation. To do this, create a small gap in between the front and back panels by holding the iPod face up in the palm of your hand and pulling the front panel towards yourself. Then insert the opening tool into the gap and work your may around the iPod until all the retaining clips come undone.
Next, you need to release the battery connector ribbon cable, you can do this either by just gently pulling on the ribbon cable or by releasing the locking mechanism with a toothpick/ eyeglass repair kit. Once this is done, lay the front and back sides next to each other so as to not strain the headphone connector ribbon cable
Afterwards, flip the hard drive over to expose the connection between the motherboard and the hard drive. Use your fingernail/screwdriver to lift the black bar on the hard drive to release the hard drive.
Next, plug the CF card into the iFlash adapter. Make sure the black bar on the iFlash adapter is raised, then plug the ribbon cable (the one formerly connected to the hard drive) into the iFlash adapter. Once it is in, press the iFlash adapter firmly into the iPod so that it can't move around. Once that is done, connect the battery connector ribbon cable back into the motherboard.
Before closing and sealing everything up, restore the iPod by plugging it into your computer and opening iTunes. Once everything is confirmed to be working, seal up the case and then you have yourself a fully functional FlashPod!
This operation won't just fix your broken iPod, it will also make it run faster, weigh less, and extend your battery life. However, the best part is that you no longer have to deal with fragile hard drive. Flash memory is extremely tough, I've found memory cards covered in mud and thoroughly soaked that somehow still work after they're dried. The only downside to this is that syncing your iPod will take more time.
FreeRice
Give free rice to the hungry by playing a simple word game.
Free rice is a vocabulary building word game based charity, I suppose you could say. They give you a word and you must pick the correct synonym. For every word you get right free rice will donate 20 grains of rice through the United Nations to poor nations. It's good for your mind and your soul!
If you think it's fake, check the FAQ. It isn't.
Monday, January 28, 2008
How To: Add Pages in Blogger
An easy-enough-for-you-to-do tutorial on how to add the functionality of pages to your blogger blog. I'll Probably be doing this, considering I really need a page for... stuff.
But yea, if you have a blog hosted by blogger, check it out.Neg's Urban Sports
My friend showed me these hilarious videos. This guy basically plays games that he made up.
Warning - A 'lil bit of swearing.
One of the games, is where he runs into a shop, sets off the alarm, and runs to the nearest Burger King/McDonalds, all while being chased by guards. It is so funny!
Another game, is where he will run into a shop, covering his hand under his shirt to act like he has a gun. He then yells at everyone in the store to fall down on the floor. Whoever falls for it he counts, and then runs off.
He made other games too, but I'm not going to explain them all. I set-up a playlist of all of the ones I could find. You found more? Post a link!
New Blog Design
I have changed my blog design, nothing much, but I think it suites it better. Several of my friends agree.
Keep in mind, I didn't actually create this... someday I will though.
Qtrax is still not up.
Qtrax still isn't up for download, their entire site is down. Well, they aren't very reliable before people start downloading millions of songs--even the program! I'm beginning to wonder if their service is ever going to be available.
They are probably just working out the kinks, but it makes you wonder.
Google Image Update
Yes, that's right. Google updated their home page logo banner. It's going LEGO! I just had to post this... considering I like LEGO very much.
edit: Google already switched it back to their original logo. Glad I caught it.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Qtrax
Qtrax allows you to download music for free! And yes, legally. Qtrax simply gets paid by their advertisers, and with that money, pays for the music you download.
I haven't tried it just yet, but it is being released soon! Follow-up post/review coming in a bit!
edit: Their servers are down/slow, I guess this might be a bit popular?
Windows Live Writer
I never even heard of this program until my friend asked if I had a MSN messenger account. I knew I did, but I uninstalled MSN because I didn't like it at the time. Now MSN is updated, and I actually like it, but with it, they had some other software you could download. One of those, is Windows Live Writer.
Surprisingly, Windows Live Writer has a very cool looking interface, and it's way better than just writing through Blogger's interface, or any other blog interface for that matter. You can easily add hyperlinks, pictures, tables, maps, tags, and videos. Plus, it all makes it look like you are writing directly onto your blog, not with a plain, boring text box.
Also, it spell checks while your typing--if you don't use a browser with that capability already.
When you first look at it, it doesn't look like it allows you to see/edit the html of the post, but it does. Simply press shift+f11, or view -> HTML code.
It's definitely very cool. If you have a blog, try it out! (it's free)
Download Windows Live Writer
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
500xl iPod earbuds
I found these. They don't tell the price of them, or where you can get them, but they sure look cool.
NetVibes
I just discovered a site which allows you to have a personal customizable homepage. It's like iGoogle, only better.
NetVibes has different widgets that you can add, and lets you have multiple tabbed sections of your homepage.
(http://www.netvibes.com/)
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Wallpaper #4
A pack of six abstract wallpapers made by Uribaani at deviantart.
(all wallpapers are copyrighted by their respective owners)
My favorite websites.
I go to so many websites so often, it's hard for me to put a finger on what my three favorite websites would be, although I'll try to, for the sake of this article.
First and foremost: Google.com
Google would have to be my most used and frequently visited website. I use it for search, email, blogger, calendar-so many things! All of their services are all synced up, all into one, single account. While I work, I always have Gmail running in the background, checking my email messages for me. Plus, Google owns Youtube, so Youtube could be right here too.
Second in line: Apple.com
Even though I own a Windows PC now, I'll definitely be moving to a Mac. I always go to Apple's website just to see their newest products and news-or look at their shiny glass staircase.
Third place: Livebrick.net
This is operated by me and my friend, so obviously theres enough reason that I would like it. I use this website for making "brickfilms"-stopmotion animation with LEGO.
Of course, these are just my most visited websites. Other than my top three, I also enjoy the following: (in no particular order)
topleftpixel.com-Picture a day. Photography site.
gaiaonline.com-A community forum website which is directed towards art/mini shops and dressing your avatar up. Sounds odd at first, but it's actually pretty cool.
runescape.com-MMORPG I sometimes like to play.
facebook.com-Social network site, in my opinion, way better than MySpace.
vulomedia.com-Great for hosting images and audio files, no signup.
deviantart.com-Show your art to many people for free.
youtube.com-Host your videos and share them with others here.
revver.com-Host your videos and share them with others-all while making money.
cdbaby.com-Purchase music from artists you may not know of.
last.fm-Find music you like.
pandora.com-Listen to music in the same genre as your favorites for free.
purevolume.com-Find more music you like.
drummerworld.com-See videos of drummers, drumming.
helium.com-Write articles to make money.
pixel2life.com-Great tutorial site.
paypal.com-Receive payments quickly.
ebay.com-Buy and sell items off the internet.
newegg.com-Great for buying tech items.
Those are just the ones off the top of my head! I hope you enjoyed reading this list!
On the topic of Set-ups. . .
Here's the set-up I'd like to have, and the prices. The first price shown is the educational price, and the second, just the normal price. Too bad the Apple keyboard doesn't work with PCs, I'd buy it now.
MacBook 13-inch (White), 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo - $1,216.00 - $1,318.00
Part Number: Z0FA
Superdrive 8x (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Keyboard/Mac OS - U.S. English
Apple Mini-DVI to DVI Adapter
120GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm
1GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM - 2x512MB
Accessory Kit
2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
Crucial 2GB, 200-pin SODIMM, DDR2 PC2-5300 memory module - $64.99
AppleCare Protection Plan for MacBook Air/MacBook - Auto-enroll - $183.00 - $249.00
Apple Cinema HD Display (23" flat panel) - $799.00 - $899.00
Time Capsule - 500 GB - $279.00 - $299.00
Apple Keyboard - $49.00 - $49.00
iPod touch, 8GB - $299.00 - $299.00
Contour iSee for iPod touch - $29.95 - $29.95
Logitech MX™ Revolution - $99.99
Logitech Z-4i Speakers - $99.99
Subtotal: $3,119.92 - $3,407.92
My Set-up - Show me yours!
Today I felt like showing you my set-up, please, feel free to show me yours. Comment!
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Recent Comments Widget
I was just searching around today, and I found a website which generates a code specifically for blogger.
It's a widget which shows the most recent comments. Very handy, and free.
Sadly I don't have any comments yet. If your here, please comment!
My recommended Firefox add-ons.
I recommend the following firefox add-ons to get: (ordered from most useful to least useful, in my opinion)
#1 Adblock Plus
I like to use Adblock Plus to block--literally--every single ad. The Google ads I actually like, as they bring content that is related to the content of the page, and it doesn't distract from what you are viewing. So I disable Google ads.
To disable it for only Google ads, simply press Ctrl + Shift + A while in firefox, and scroll down the list until you find "http://pagead2.$~other" and click on the green dot to the right of it. Click apply, and your done.
I find McAfee SiteAdvisor very handy when I am searching the web. It tells if the site is a virus-free or scam-free site by a simple icon next to the search result. If it is not, it shows a red icon.
Firefox Showcase shows a thumbnail preview for every tab you have open, like EI 7 does.
#4 KeepVid
Not necessarily an add-on, but it allows you to drag a "button" into your bookmarks toolbar, and when you click it, it downloads the video that is on the page you are viewing. Very handy if you want to download a Youtube video or something.
#5 Foxdie
Foxdie has many themes in one! All of them look Mac-ish.
If you have any that you like to use, please feel free to comment under this post.
Vulomedia - Free image host
Now, I know most of you will already know of a free image hosting website that you use, but I recommend this website to anyone looking for one.
It's called Vulomedia. Their slogan says everything about it: Free, simple image hosting.
Check it out!
On a side note, they also host audio files for free.
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Wallpaper #3
A classy blue Apple wallpaper, found on deviantart.
(all wallpapers are copyrighted by their respective owners)
If you like it, I'm sure sikeyaout would appreciate if you favorite it!
Official Web Apps Directory
A web apps directory created by Apple. This may be old news for some of you, but for the others, here it is.
All you have to do is visit the url of that Web App, for instance, if you wanted to go to Facebook, you’d go to the url http://iphone.facebook.com. You can find the url of the Web App on Apple’s website.
Oh, and one last thing. They are all free.
New Apple TV Rentals-Way around the time limit?
There's a simple way of getting around time limit of 24 hours to watch a rented movie.
Simply change the clock on your computer back! The farther you go back, the more time you have to watch it. You can go back as far as days and years. Obviously Apple is going to fix this error, but for now, take your time.
Of course, you may not always want to be far back in time, so to keep your clock at the current time. . . Change your clock forward in time, rent your movie, and then switch the clock back to the current time.
This is so easy, I kinda feel bad for Apple.
Wallpaper #2
An abstract iPhone/iPod touch wallpaper I found. Many more at 320by480.com.
(all wallpapers are copyrighted by their respective owners)
iGas
iGas is a web app that allows you to input your zip code to find the cheapest gas in your area. Of course, you don't have to use this only on your iPhone or iPod touch, you could use it on a computer too. I find this extremely useful.
Two Mac Buying Guides
I have found two very useful Mac Buying Guides, they have been out for awhile now, but I figured I would post about them.
The first one is mactactic. Mactactic indicates when a new Apple product should be released by using status bars and weeks/days estimate. They were only 9 days off on the Mac Pro update! The only downside - when I am posting this - is that they do not have estimates for many of the iPods. A cool thing about mactactic, is that they have Dashboard widgets, so you keep up to date without visiting their website all the time.
The second website is on Macrumors. Macrumors has estimates for just about every Apple product except for the Apple TV, and of course the newest products, the Macbook Air and Time Capsule.
I usually compare both of these websites, going back and forth in between them.
FlyakiteOSX v3.5 - Transform Win XP to a Mac! (for free!)
FlyakiteOSX transforms your Windows XP computer into a Mac, for free! I have personally tried this on a Windows machine, and it looks great! This is most definitely the easiest and cleanest install I've ever had.
When you first install it, it gets a little laggy, but after about 5 minutes of use, it starts to act like a normal computer would. Also, if you don't like it, uninstalling is very easy. All you have to do is click uninstall, and everything related to Flyakite is uninstalled--so your machine goes right back to normal. Keep in mind, this is for Windows XP machines only! If you have any questions about it, simply comment on this post.
Edit: Known Glitches:
#1 iTunes won't load after you first install it, but if you use this to uninstall the multi-plugin, it will work.
Wallpaper #1
As my first few posts, I'll be posting a few wallpapers that I like to use. I'll be posting more content-filled posts once I have time.
(all wallpapers are copyrighted by their respective owners)
Grand Opening!
Welcome everyone to my first tech-related blog! I will allow multiple authors, so If you want to be an author, simply comment under this post.
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