40Tech

App of the Week: Easily Find What’s Hogging Space on Your Hard Drive with Space Sniffer [Windows]

Bobby Travis — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:28:44 +0000

Every once in a while you try to download or install something, only to be told by your impertinent machine that you don’t have enough space. You try and try to resolve the issue, but, for the life of you, can’t find the files that are hogging up your hard drive. Everything seems accounted for. You’ve even emptied your Recycle Bin and cleared your temp folder, but all you get from your computer is some digitized, maniacal laughter — or maybe that’s just me.

Potential crazy aside, there is an easy and very handy free tool that you can use to smack some sense into your Windows PC. It’s called SpaceSniffer, and it will help you find and destroy what’s eating your computer’s storage space. You’ll probably be surprised by what you find.

I’ve tried a few different HDD analyzing tools. Many of them are ugly and not very fun when it comes to usability, and they are usually packed with features that you probably don’t need, because they take away from your singular goal: to find and delete what is keeping you from getting that new file or program on your machine.

SpaceSniffer’s interface gets to the point. Every button has a point, and the display is clean and easy to understand — in it’s simplest form, the bigger the block, the bigger the file. There are a few simple animations that happen as the files populate, or when you double-click to zoom in on a folder or block, but they don’t distract or have any major impact on speed. If you’re in a hurry, though, you can decrease the graphics refresh rate in the Configure/Effects panel (or remove the animations completely in Configure/Colors). It won’t be as pretty, but it will be faster.

Basically, what SpaceSniffer does is go through your folders and analyzes how your disk space is being used, then presents it in a dynamic grid. From there, you can drill down into folders, tag and filter files to get a more specific look, and use the Windows context menu by right clicking to open folders or get right to the deleting part. You can even navigate during the scanning process, and SpaceSniffer will react to file system events (like clearing your Recycle Bin or deleting a file) to always stay in sync.

There are a few other tips and tricks such as printing customized reports and creating batch files for automation, but chances are you won’t really need them — if you do, check out the Tips and Tricks page of the SpaceSniffer website. You can also get a full list of the features here.

I have to tell you: I love this program. I used it to clear a whopping 50GB of space from my hard drive. 50 frickin’ gigabytes!! Of course, I immediately cut that down by half after installing the free-to-play MMORPG Age of Conan… but that’s another story. Bottom line: 50GB, man! I found files that made no sense, a bunch of space taken up by the mysterious $Recycle.Bin (even though my Recycle Bin was empty), and decided that, since I never use Hibernate in Windows, there was no need for me to allow the OS to reserve 4.5GB for it. I turned that off…

Check Out These SpaceSniffer Videos:

Running a Simple Scan

Click here to view the embedded video.

File Tagging

Click here to view the embedded video.

SpaceSniffer is a portable program that plays nice with your machine, and doesn’t clog up your registry. Download it here, and see what’s taking up space on your hard drive.

SpaceSniffer | Uderzo Software

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Is the iPhone stifling competition?

Guest Poster — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:50:49 +0000

The launch of the iPhone 4S set new records in the smartphone market in 2011. Hitting the shelves in the UK, US and Canada in October, with a staggered global launch continuing to the end of 2011, Apple shifted 30 million units. It has helped their profits soar and has also quietened the naysayers who thought the iPhone 4S might not have the same impact on the market as its predecessors.

Yet the iPhone 4S might have had an even bigger and more important impact on the smartphone market, aside from the eye-watering sales figures. Reports suggest the dominance and popularity of Apple’s latest device has been so extensive, the firm’s competitors are putting off launching their own handsets because of fear that they won’t make enough of a splash.

While it may not be the most powerful or even the best looking handset available, there’s no doubt the iPhone 4S has been a hit with consumers. An 8 megapixel camera, a dual-core A5 chip first seen in the iPad 2 and promising a faster processing speed, iOS5 offering greater interactivity with other Apple devices along with the iCloud, iMessage, and Siri — the virtual talking assistant — the iPhone 4S has an impressive list of features. For some, it was merely Apple catching up with what other smartphone manufacturers, like Samsung and its Galaxy S2, had begun to produce already. Yet for Apple customers, who will wait for the company to release new devices rather than shop around, it was what they had been waiting for. Battery issues aside, the launch of the iPhone 4S generated enthusiasm, excitement and, occasionally, egg-throwing hysteria.

Figures released in the US claim Apple controls almost a quarter, in fact 24% of the smartphone market. Those numbers relate to the final quarter of 2011 but analysts believe sales figures are not going to drop off in the first three months of 2012.

That is what has worried Apple’s competitors, claims DigiTimes, a technology website in Taiwan. They claim Samsung, HTC and Nokia are biding their time waiting to release big name handsets so that they don’t have to fight for recognition alongside Apple. This is the reason, DigiTimes complains, that the only major smartphones launched at Las Vegas’ Consumer Electronics Show in January was the Sony Xperia S and the Nokia Lumia 900, although at that launch that device was only announced for the US and not the UK. Instead, the big hitters are waiting for Mobile World Congress, which takes place in the spring.

If true it’s great news for Apple, as who doesn’t want the competition running scared. Mobile World Congress has become an increasingly important platform for smartphone manufacturers. It just goes to show how far Apple have been able to dictate launch dates and the ebb and flow of the market worldwide. The trade show ensures big names will get column inches and the undivided attention of bloggers, tech writers and industry experts.

Alternatively, how far do companies like Samsung really allow Apple to dictate their own roadmap for releases? Although Apple might have dominated in the fourth quarter, before then 2011 was the Korean manufacturer’s year. Their ambition to be able to produce devices to fit in with every corner of the market has been clear. There will also be wild excitement over the prospective launch of the Samsung Galaxy S3.

It might be good for Apple-lovers to think they have the competition running scared but the one problem with breaking records is that, the next time, you have to do even better. If Apple’s competitors get the momentum in the spring and get it right with their new releases, like the S3 and the rest of the Sony Xperia NXT range, then the pressure is on for the iPhone 5, rumoured for launch in the third quarter of this year. Let battle commence, again.

This was a guest post by Simon from Best Mobile Contracts, one of the leading mobile phone comparison websites in the United Kingdom.

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Should You Buy From the Mac App Store, Or Directly From the Developer?

Evan Kline — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 02:00:00 +0000

The Mac App Store debuted in January 2011, and has been quite a hit. Over a million apps were downloaded in its first year of operation. Those certainly aren’t iOS numbers, but very solid for a non-mobile system. Some apps are available only in the Mac App Store. Others, though, are available in the App Store and directly from the developer. So what should you do when buying an app – get it from the App Store, or buy it directly from the developer? Here are some considerations to keep in mind.

Mac App Store vs. Directly From Developer

1. Faster updates

Fast updates can be important, especially when a developer fixes a bug or releases a new feature. Developers typically can get updates out faster on their own sites, since they don’t have to go through Apple’s approval process to release them.

Advantage: Straight from the developer.

2. Functionality

The Mac App Store, much like the iOS store, has strict rules regarding what developers can do with their apps. Things are going to get even more strict, too. The App Store’s new sandboxing requirements go into effect in March. The oversimplified explanation is that apps will be limited in their access to the system. While this should keep your system more secure, it could bode ill for certain apps with deep hooks into the system, like Keyboard Maestro or Transmit.

Advantage: From the developer, if functionality is important; from the App Store if you favor security. My vote is for functionality (I trust the steps I take to stay secure).

3. Ease of use

This one is a no-brainer. If you want an easy installation and patch process, go with the Mac App Store. On a per app basis, the upgrade of most apps purchased from a developer is simple (usually a menu option, often using the Sparkle framework), and there are even stand alone apps that monitor your apps for upgrades. But for a centralized, one-click system, you can’t beat the App Store. Click to purchase an app. Click the “update all” button, and your apps are upgraded. Dead simple.

Advantage: Mac App Store

4. Friendly licensing terms

If you’re buying an app from the Mac App Store, you can install it on all of the computers that you personally own and use. It’s a bit different for a business, where an app is licensed to a user, or for a single computer that several people use. Apps purchased directly from a developer have a variety of licensing terms (sometimes, but not always, allowing you to install it on any computers that you own and use). Developers also often sell a “family license,” giving you a discount for multiple licenses in the same family.

Advantage: Mac App Store, unless you need multiple copies and a developer sells a family license at a discount.

5. Upgrade pricing

At times, developers upgrade their apps. This is to be distinguished from an update. An update is a patch to an app, while an upgrade is usually more of an overhaul. Developers often package upgrades as new releases, requiring a new purchase. If the prior version was purchased directly from the developer, the developer will often offer a discount on the new release. There is no way to do this in the App Store, but some developers offer a reduced price to all customers for a limited time when a new version of an app is released. If a developer doesn’t do this, though, you’ve got to buy the app again at full price.

Advantage: From the developer.

6. Try before you buy

Developers aren’t permitted to release demo versions or free trials of their apps in the Mac App Store. If you want to try out an app, the only possibility is to get it directly from the developer. Apple is missing out here. I’ve found that if I download a trial from a developer, I’m more likely to purchase a license key directly from the developer and plug it into the trial installation, instead of deleting the trial and re-downloading the app from the App Store.

Advantage: From the developer.

7. Price

This one varies, depending on the price a developer sets for each location. If the app is made by Apple though, though, it is probably significantly cheaper in the Mac App Store.

Advantage: case by case basis, but often the Mac App Store.

8. Security and Stability

Apple’s app approval process is a blessing and a curse. It has led to some well-publicized delays and embarrassments, but it also ensures a certain base level quality to apps. This contrasts with the wilds of the Internet, where you never know what you’re going to get. Any tech geek worth his or her salt will research what other users have said about an app, regardless of where he or she buys it. It’s just easier to find those opinions in the App Store.

Advantage: Mac App Store

And the winner is . . .

There is no clear cut winner, at least for me. All things being equal, I tend to buy apps from the Mac App Store, just for the sake of convenience. But if an app has functionality that might violate Apple’s sandbox rules when they go into effect, I buy directly from the developer. Also, if there are whispers of an upgrade coming to an app, then I buy it from the developer. Finally, if I’ve demoed an app, I’ll often just buy the license from the developer. Call me lazy.

How about you? Where do you buy your apps?

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The Counterargument: Laptops Are Better For Travel Than Tablets

Guest Poster — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 22:19:04 +0000

Today, 40Tech is pleased to present a guest post by Andris Piebalgs, a freelance writer from My Destination.

The answer to this question may seem like an obvious one. Many people feel that tablets are the clear superior gadgets for travelling since they are, after all, smaller and lighter than laptops and can service many of the basic needs that most traveling users desire. Who cares about the extra computing power that laptops provide since you rarely have use for them during your travels anyway? I, however, disagree with this viewpoint. With the electronic and technology industry booming in terms of innovation and creativity, laptops offer you the chance to truly realize the potential of travels by making use of the newest programs and technologies. Let me explain with an example.

I went snowboarding in Norway, Hemsedal and had with me an iPad, an Android tablet and a relatively small laptop. The aim was to capture moments of dynamic action on the slopes and in the snow park through videos and pictures using the relatively new GoPro device. The ability to check my footage at the end of the day, to see what needed to be added and changed in terms of the lighting and camera angle, was essential in capturing the beauty of the sport. It was possible to do this only with the laptop, which made editing and displaying the footage easy and comfortable. The picture shows a still shot captured by the camera during a beautiful sunrise in the morning. Without a laptop to support the program, these feats would have been considerably more difficult. It is technology of this calibre that you should use to make your holiday worth remembering.

Having said all this, I appreciate the entertainment a tablet can offer during one’s travels. Easy access to the internet via WiFi or 3G allows for the installation of many great apps ranging from magazine subscriptions to countless legendary games such as Angry Birds. This experience is all the more enhanced when you have a large, shiny touch screen to interact with, making any app all the more entertaining. One of the greatest attributes that tablets have is their quick start-up and performance as well the relative ease with which you can download both movies and music to your device. All this coupled with a light and compact design with a battery that can last several hours does in many ways make a tablet an ideal traveling partner.

Despite all this, I stick to my guns and advocate for the use of a laptop for travel as it offers everything a tablet offers and more. Laptops are continuously becoming smaller and more powerful. They are essential when you want to use technology to capture the beauty of wherever you are going or whatever you are doing be it sport, music or just being in another world. Furthermore, if you have a busy schedule, than a laptop is easier to work with to burn away the traveling hours. If you simply want a device for entertainment purposes and note taking, than I would agree that tablet might be better, and more stylishly suited to the job.

What do you think? Would you rather travel with a laptop or tablet?

Andris Piebalgs is currently studying Chemical Engineering at Imperial College London and is a keen traveller and amateur snowboarder, climber and tennis player. He is also a freelance travel writer for My Destination, your local travel guide to worldwide destinations.

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Speed Up Your Listening to Enjoy More Podcasts and Spoken Audio

Evan Kline — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 02:00:00 +0000

If you’re like me and many other tech geeks, you’re overloaded with content to consume, tricks to try out, and gadgets to play with. Throw all of that into a busy life, and you might lament not having time to pursue your interests. I’ve felt that way recently. Lately, the time I’ve had to listen to podcasts and other audio content has decreased. In the past, I had a long list of podcasts I enjoyed. I wrote about them a few months ago, but since that time, I don’t even listen to half of the podcasts on that list. I just don’t have the time. I enjoy those podcasts, so I want to get back to listening to them. Coupled with a desire to listen to more books on Audible, I thought about how to consume more of the content that I enjoy. I think I’ve come up with one way to do it.

My solution? I now listen to my podcasts at 1.5 times the normal speed. Before you laugh at my solution, let me get this out of the way: it works. The first couple of podcasts I listened to at that speed seemed fast, but my brain has adjusted, and sometimes I have to double check to make sure that the audio is still playing at the increased rate. Certain speakers sound better at increased speed than others. Leo Laporte, for example, is a pro, and he comes across perfectly. I’ve only ever had a bit of trouble with one or two speakers, and they’ve both been guests who spoke at a fairly rapid but clipped pace already. My brain has adjusted to the point that recently I listened to a podcast at normal speed (an old file downloaded for another app that didn’t support variable playback speeds), and I found myself saying “hurry up!” to the hosts.

As I’ve previously covered, I use Doggcatcher on my Android phone for podcast listening. Doggcatcher supports a third party plugin, Presto, to facilitate variable rate playback. All I need to do is tap an icon in the bottom right of the playing screen to increase the playback rate. Presto currently goes for $4.99 in the Android Market.

I’ll probably keep audio books at normal speed. I view audio books almost like a performance, and wouldn’t want to distort the reading. But for podcasts, this works great.

Would speeding up your audio work for you?

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Make Google Reader Pretty with Reeder for Chrome

Bobby Travis — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:25:58 +0000

Google Reader is the best RSS subscription collector out there — but only as a base. In practice it has one of the ugliest user interfaces I’ve ever come across. It’s busy, cluttered, and generally hard to look at and use. If it weren’t for all of the apps that utilize Google Reader within their own UI, I’m guessing it would have tanked along with other unwieldy Google services. Thankfully, some enterprising folks have used browser technology to re-skin Reader into something that actually makes content easy to consume. One of the best is Reeder for Chrome.

First things first: Reeder for Chrome is not an official extension by the creator of Reeder for iOS and Mac, Silvio Rizzi. It was created by @DazChong, someone who loved the slick design and easy usability of Reeder. 40Tech’s Evan Kline shares that love — he’s included Reeder as the first of his top 10 consumption apps for the iPad and one of the top 10 Mac App Store apps he can’t live without, and has cited it in several posts as his go-to app for RSS.

Note: Reeder for Chrome will, at some point, be changing its name to avoid confusion.

Reeder for Chrome delivers. It may not have all of the features you’re used to from the actual app, but most of them are there, and the look and feel makes Google Reader not just bearable, but a pleasure to use. It is especially useful for Windows, Linux, or Google ChromeOS users that want what those Mac folks have.

Download Reeder for Chrome

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Rizzoma May (Soon) Be the Wave Alternative You’re Looking For

Bobby Travis — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:20:09 +0000

In our last post on Google Wave, we talked about the impending final shutdown of the service on April 30th, 2012 (it is currently in read-only mode), and the potential for Apache Wave and Walkaround to keep the real-time collaboration tool going. We’ve even done a bit of hunting on our own for a suitable Wave alternative, but the reality is that Wave was a bit ahead of its time. Fortunately, another possibility for resurrection has surfaced: Rizzoma.

Rizzoma is a free, open source version of Google Wave that boasts some improvements to the look, feel, and function of the service. Some of the features they talk about on their site are an easy to use mobile version that actually works, improves search, the ability to to assign and track tasks within Rizzoma, easy team management and content sharing, and a built in mindmap mode.

Rizzoma also promises the ability to re-install your favourite open source gadgets from Google Wave, and the ability to import your old Waves to the new platform.

The unfortunate truth, however, is that Rizzoma’s current level of marketing far outstrips the actual state of the product. Their website looks very promising, with a big button that says log in with your Google account and a video that makes you believe that the service is ready to go. I don’t know if it was an oversight on their part that they don’t include a note that the service is in beta and most of the truly awesome features are still on their way, but the reality is that a newcomer to Rizzoma will likely find themselves confused and disappointed. At least for now. After a bit of hunting on their support forums, I found that the bulk of what’s promised should be available within a month.

Right now, @mentions work, basic document creation, editing, and collaboration is available, the mobile version is functional, and the improved look and feel is on point. Importing your old Waves is also working, via the WaveShortcuts Chrome extension created by Project Volna — who are also the people behind Rizzoma. Importing your Waves via the extension is fairly simple, and the final result is readable and usable, though huge Waves with a lot of nested upon nested replies could get a bit unwieldy.

If you have been on the hunt for a Google Wave alternative, or are just looking for a real time collaboration tool that works across platforms, Rizzoma looks promising, despite the potential marketing/first impression snafu. If they are true to their word about getting the big features up and running effectively within a month, then we may finally have a winner here — proivded they can get enough support. Rizzoma is definitely the most promising Google Wave alternative I’ve come across so far. If you are at all interested, you may want to check them out and start importing your Waves now, as the time window is closing fast.

Check out the video below to see where Rizzoma is taking Wave:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Learn how to import your Waves to Rizzoma:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Check out Rizzoma and tell us what you think!

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App of the Week: Paper Camera [iOS, Android]

Evan Kline — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 02:00:00 +0000

Both the iOS App Store and the Android Market offer an abundance of camera apps. There are so many, that it takes either great functionality or a unique twist for an app to stand out. One that does so is Paper Camera, available as both an Android and an iPhone/iPad app. Paper Camera lets you use your camera to output real time cartoon and painting effects that have to be seen to appreciated.

I’ve tried out Paper Camera on Android, so I can’t speak for the iOS version. On Android, the app takes a few seconds to start, but when it does you’re presented with a unique interface, that almost looks hand-sketched.

From that interface, you select the effects you want by scrolling through options. The effects include ones called Sketch Up (your image looks like a sketch), Comic Book (your image looks like it jumped off the pages of a comic book), Old Printer (your image will look pixelated, like it was printed with an old printer), Neon Cola (your image will have parts of it outlined in Neon), Pastel Perfect (your image will be shaded in pastel tones), and a few others.

You’re also presented with sliders to adjust the contrast, brightness, and lines, and buttons to zoom in and zoom out. There’s a button to take the photo, and one to go to your photo gallery. If you go to the gallery, you can select a photo, which will then be imported into the app. From there, you can apply the same effects that you can to photos taken from directly within the app.

There’s also a share button and an email button on the screen, but they’re not there to let you share your photos. Instead, they only let you share news of the app or email the developer, respectively.

Paper Camera is one of those apps that, when I’ve shown it to people, they’ll often pick up their phone, head to the App Store or Android Market, and download it. It’s currently $1.99 in the Android Market, and $0.99 in the App Store.

Paper Camera [iOS] [Android]

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How to Take Screenshots With Your Mac

Evan Kline — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:00:00 +0000

You’ve got your new Mac, and want to take a screenshot. Where’d that Print Screen key go? Things work a bit differently on the Mac. You could go with a third party solution, such as Skitch or Littlesnapper. Or, you could use your Mac’s built in ability to take screenshots. There are three different ways to take a screenshot on your Mac, by holding down key combinations. All screenshots go to your desktop by default.

COMMAND – SHIFT – 3

This takes a screenshot of your entire screen. In fact, it is instantaneous, so you might not even know it worked.

COMMAND – SHIFT – 4

Your cursor changes to crosshairs, and you can then take a screenshot of whatever area you select.

COMMAND – SHIFT – 4, THEN HIT SPACEBAR

Your cursor changes to a camera, and you can then take a screenshot of the dock, the menu bar, a single open menu, the desktop, or any open window. Whatever you hover over will become the target of the screenshot, and turn blue.

That’s all there is to it. If you’d rather have a screenshot go to your clipboard instead of to the desktop, then add the CONTROL key to each of the above methods. So, for example, COMMAND-CONTROL-SHIFT-4 will let you select an area of the screen to send to your clipboard.

If you’d prefer a free app that comes with your Mac, you can also try out Grab, which is located in your Applications/Utilities folder.

What’s your favorite method for taking a screenshot on your Mac?

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What’s Your Favorite App – Ever? [Reader Feedback]

Evan Kline — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 02:00:00 +0000

In a recent TWiT podcast, one of the hosts mentioned WordPerfect 5.1 as an all-time great piece of software. That got my mind racing, trying to think of some great apps that I’ve used over the years. While those of us in the 40+ age bracket might have a longer timeline of app usage to draw from, we probably all have our favorite apps. What are yours?

To be honest, I had a hard time thinking back to the apps that I’ve used over the years. Some that came to mind were WordPerfect 5.1, Netscape Navigator, Dreamweaver, Eudora, and an old version of Paint Shop Pro that I used for many years. I also turned my mind to games, remembering fondly Zork and an early Ultima game, as well as Baldur’s Gate and Neverwinter Nights (which, along with its sequel, sustained me for years and also led me to meeting our senior editor, Bobby Travis). I’m sure some modern apps would have to be in the running, too. Evernote, Dropbox, and LastPass are such an integral part of my daily life, that they’d be hard to overlook

So, travel down memory lane with me. What apps would be on your list? If you had to pick a favorite, what would it be?