JaVa

utility for file transfer. It connects to the the FTP server, delete file, receive and put the file to the FTP server.

2011-03-25T23:44:00.000-07:00

import java.io.BufferedReader;

import java.io.File;

import java.io.FileInputStream;

import java.io.FileNotFoundException;

import java.io.FileReader;

import java.io.IOException;

import java.io.InputStream;

import java.io.InputStreamReader;

import java.util.ArrayList;

import java.util.List;

import org.apache.commons.net.ftp.FTP;

import org.apache.commons.net.ftp.FTPClient;

import org.apache.commons.net.ftp.FTPFile;

import org.apache.commons.net.ftp.FTPReply;

import org.apache.log4j.Logger;

public class SandvineFTP {

private Logger logger = Logger.getLogger(SandvineFTP.class);

private static SandvineFTP sFTP;

FTPClient client = new FTPClient();

// make singleton

private SandvineFTP(){

}

public static SandvineFTP getInstance(){

if(sFTP==null)

sFTP = new SandvineFTP();

return sFTP;

}

// make connection with the server...

public boolean getConnection(String serverName, String uName, String pwd){

boolean result=false;

try {

client.connect(serverName);

int code = client.getReplyCode();

if(FTPReply.isPositiveCompletion(code)){

logger.info("successfully connected to remote server");

System.out.println("Connected to Server ... Code ::: "+ code);

}

result = client.login(uName,pwd);

}

catch(Exception e){

logger.error("Error ::: " + e.getMessage(),e);

e.printStackTrace();

}

return result;

}

// close connection

public void closeConnection(){

try {

client.disconnect();

} catch (IOException e) {

// TODO Auto-generated catch block

logger.error("Disconnect Error ::: " + e.getMessage(),e);

e.printStackTrace();

}

// list all files

public List listAllFiles(){

try {

FTPFile[] ftpFile = client.listFiles();

List fileNames = new ArrayList();

System.out.println(fileNames.size());

for(FTPFile file : ftpFile){

fileNames.add(file.getName());

}

} catch (IOException e) {

// TODO Auto-generated catch block

logger.error("List Error ::: " + e.getMessage(),e);

e.printStackTrace();

}

return null;

}

// change the working directory

public boolean changeWorkingDirectory(String dirName){

boolean result = false;

try {

result = client.changeWorkingDirectory(dirName);

} catch (IOException e) {

// TODO Auto-generated catch block

logger.error("Change Directory Error ::: " + e.getMessage(),e);

e.printStackTrace();

}

return result;

}

// delete the file

public String getCurrentWorkingDirectory(){

try {

return client.printWorkingDirectory();

} catch (IOException e) {

// TODO Auto-generated catch block

e.printStackTrace();

return null;

}

// put the file

public boolean putFile(String completePath){

boolean result = false;

try {

client.setFileType(FTP.ASCII_FILE_TYPE);

File f = new File(completePath);

if(f.exists()){

result = client.storeFile(f.getName(), new FileInputStream(f));

}

else

{

logger.info("File does not exist");

System.out.println("file does not exist");

}

}catch (FileNotFoundException e) {

// TODO Auto-generated catch block

e.printStackTrace();

logger.error("File Transfer Error ::: " + e.getMessage(),e);

} catch (IOException e) {

// TODO Auto-generated catch block

e.printStackTrace();

logger.error("File Transfer Error ::: " + e.getMessage(),e);

}

return result;

}

// receive the file

public InputStream getFile(String fileName){

InputStream iStream=null;

try {

client.setFileType(FTP.ASCII_FILE_TYPE);

iStream = client.retrieveFileStream(fileName);

// iStream.close();

System.out.println("File Transfer Successfull");

}catch (FileNotFoundException e) {

// TODO Auto-generated catch block

e.printStackTrace();

logger.error("File Transfer Error ::: " + e.getMessage(),e);

} catch (IOException e) {

// TODO Auto-generated catch block

e.printStackTrace();

logger.error("File Transfer Error ::: " + e.getMessage(),e);

}

return iStream;

}

public boolean deleteFile(String fileName){

boolean result=false;

try {

result = client.deleteFile(fileName);

} catch (IOException e) {

// TODO Auto-generated catch block

logger.error("File Transfer Error ::: " + e.getMessage(),e);

e.printStackTrace();

}

return result;

}

What is the difference between http and https

2011-03-02T06:34:00.001-08:00

Don't know how many of you are aware of this difference, but it is worth sending to those that may not.

The main difference between http:/// <http:///> and https:// is it's all about keeping you secure. HTTP stands for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol.

The S (big surprise) stands for "Secure". If you visit a Website or webpage, and look at the address in the web browser, it will likely begin with the following: http://. <http://./>

This means that the website is talking to your browser using the regular 'unsecure' language. In other words, it is possible for someone to "eavesdrop" on your computer's conversation with the Website. If you fill out a form on the website, someone might see the information you send to that site.

This is why you never ever enter your credit card number in an Http website ! But, if the web address begins with https://, <https://,/> that basically means your computer is talking to the website in a Secure code that no one can eavesdrop on.
If a website ever asks you to enter your credit card Information, you should automatically look to see if the web address begins with https://.

If it doesn't, you should NEVER enter sensitive information such as a credit card number.

LOCK FOLDER WITHOUT ANY SOFTWARE

2010-12-19T02:27:00.000-08:00

To do this just follow the steps given below

1. Suppose you want to lock the folder "games" in d: which has the path D:\Games.

2. In the same drive create a text file and type

ren games games.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}

3. Now save this text file as loc.bat

4. create another text file and type in it

ren games.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D} games

5. Now save this text file as key.bat

6. Now you can see 2 batch files loc and key.

7. Now press loc file and the folder games will change to control panel and you cannot view its contents. Press key file and you will get back your original folder.

Best social networking sites

2010-12-19T02:21:00.000-08:00

Today my post will be on Top "Best social networking sites"Social networking sites are doing more than one another to get on the top

Here is the list of some Popular and well know social networking sites and information on them:

Facebook
With Facebook officially turning five years old recently, combined with the site surging past MySpace in Monthly Unique Visitors, it seems like a good time to take a little deeper look at the social networking giants.

It’s hard to believe that last year around this time we discussing the effects of bad PR for Facebook and if the site had ‘jumped the shark,’ but those arguments now seem to more appropriately apply to other properties.Facebook has now became the largest social networking site in 2009.Ranked at number 4th spot according to AlexaOrkut:
A social networking site sponsored by Google and named after Google developer Orkut Buyukkokten. Launched in early 2004, Orkut was originally an invitation-only site, but was later opened to the general public. Membership exceeded 40 million users within two years.For some reason the graph of orkut has gone down in 2009Myspace:
MySpace ( myspace.com) is an online social networking service, allowing users to share messages, interests and photos with a growing body of friends. Users can send emails, post videos, listen to music, and write blogs; the site also includes classified ads and posting of events. Currently one of the top ten Internet sites, MySpace was founded in July 2003 by Tom Anderson and Chris DeWolfe.Its Alexa ranking is 11Twitter:
A Web site and service that lets users send short text messages up to 140 characters in length from their cellphones to a group of people. Launched in 2006, Twitter www.twitter.com) was designed to keep friends and colleagues informed about one's daily activities.Its alexa rank is"40"Flixster:
Flixster is a social networking site for movie fans. Users can create their own profiles, invite friends, rate movies and actors, and post movie reviews as well.Linkedin:
With more than 30 million users representing 150 industries around the world, LinkedIn is a fast-growing professional networking site that allows members to create business contacts, search for jobs, and find potential clients.Hi5:
hi5, was launched in 2003 and is now one of the world’s largest social networks — ranked by Alexa® as a top 34 website globally and the #1 social network in more than 25 countries across Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa. hi5 is also the #1 social network for the world’s Spanish-language population.

A year ago, we ranked the top 25 social networking sites by monthly visits, and I was curious to see how the positions would change if we re-ranked those same sites with the most recent figures

Some key metrics in the health of a social network revolve around the activity of the user base – visits per unique visitor and time on site. While Facebook has excelled in both areas, MySpace has remained flat or fallen off, with new hot property Twitter climbing the ranks.
Some key metrics in the health of a social network revolve around the activity of the user base – visits per unique visitor and time on site. While Facebook has excelled in both areas, MySpace has remained flat or fallen off, with new hot property Twitter climbing the ranks.

Some key metrics in the health of a social network revolve around the activity of the user base – visits per unique visitor and time on site. While Facebook has excelled in both areas, MySpace has remained flat or fallen off, with new hot property Twitter climbing the ranks.

Nokia cell phone hacking codes

2010-12-19T02:16:00.000-08:00

These 3 codes work on 90% of Nokia phones;

*#06#=Display the IMEI (Standard GSM command, works on all phones)
*#0000#=Display the firmware version and date

*#92702689#=Here you can view the S/N and the IMEI as well as the life timer (newer models). The date the phone left the factory and the date it was purchased. If your phone has been repaired the date of the repair is also visible. You will need to turn the phone off to exit this menu. Newer phones simply require you to press ok.

The following codes are specific to older series 40 phones; (Entering the following codes will restart the phone)*4720#=Activates Half Rate, Half Rate is 5.6kbit/s and uses half the bandwidth at the cost of call quality. Network operators often activate half rate on overloaded towers during peak times to save costs.#4720#=Deactivates Half Rate*3370#=Activates Enhanced Full Rate, EFT attempts to match wire quality. The calls are 12.2kbit/s and are not supported by all operators. It is compatibale with the hightest AMR mode.#3370#=Deactivates Enhanced Full Rate*#746085685#=Display the SIM clock status

The following codes are phone specific or phase related;*#7220#=Activate the GPRS PCCCH support (Packet Common Control Channel)*#7230#=Deactivate the GPRS PCCCH support*#7760#=Display the manufacturing serial number

This only works on the 3310 and 3330;*#67705646#=Clear the operator logo, the logo will be reset to the default network operator logo.

The following codes work on newer series 40 & series 60/80 phones;*#2820#=Display the Bluetooth MAC address (Phone must have a built in bluetooth adapter)*#7370925538#=Reset the mobile wallet (Phone must have the mobile wallet feature)*#7370#=Soft-format the memory (Symbian)*#7780#=Reset to factory defaults, confirmation required (also known has a Hard-format), all phone contents will be wiped clean

Sony bringing official PlayStation app to iPhone and Android

2010-12-16T23:28:00.000-08:00

Over in Europe, PlayStation fans are getting a treat in the form of mobile apps for iPhone and Android. No, the app won't turn your phone into a PSP, but it does sync up with your PlayStation Network account, which allows you to check trophies and see which of your friends are online. It also loads up announcements about new PlayStation titles. Predictably, there's also social networking, so you can do some volunteer Facebook and Twitter advertising for games you like.

The catch: this app doesn't have a US release date yet. In fact, only the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the Netherlands will get it at launch. On the plus side, the app is free, and an upcoming version will let you comment on the PlayStation blog.

Facebook introduces new privacy controls for mobile users

2010-12-11T00:44:00.000-08:00

Facebook continues to tweak privacy controls for users, and now they've added mobile access to your privacy settings. The new mobile privacy settings include a list of every application you use, sorted by the last time each app accessed your information. From this list, you can fine-tune the access level of each app individually.

Within each app's settings, you can decide whether or not to grant it access to your profile info, friends' info, Places check-ins and photos. This is a long-awaited addition to the existing privacy controls that rolled out over the summer, and allowed you to control everything but apps.

This update works on the Facebook mobile website, m.facebook.com, but the Facebook iPhone app still loads up the full website in a mini-browser when you want to adjust your settings.

Access the desktop version of Google Docs on your iPad

2010-12-11T00:42:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, Google enabled Docs editing on iOS and Android devices through a lightweight, mobile-optimized version. Yesterday the iPad, with its larger screen real estate, got access to the full-blown desktop version of Docs -- there for when the mobile version simply won't cut it. You'll have access to all the formatting features available on the desktop when you need it, as well as formulae in spreadsheets. But Google recommends using it in one-off scenarios rather than as a full-time solution, with the mobile-optimized version staying as the default for now.

If you've ever needed more power than the mobile-optimized Docs will allow, now you have the option, just hit Desktop version, or go to spreadsheet view.

Ben the Bodyguard iPhone app is gorgeous, but security functionality may disappoint

2010-12-11T00:31:00.000-08:00

Over at PreCentral, Dieter Bohn has been lucky enough to score some quality preview time with Incredible -- a Swiss-knife social networking app for webOS. The app is another creation from developer Geoff Gauchet, who built the popular Foursquare app our own Nik Fletcher showed you earlier this year.

Incredible supports all the services you'd expect, like Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Foursquare, and Gowalla. It's still a work in progress, but Incredible already looks like an amazing app. Apart from the features you've come to expect from social apps like inline maps and media previews, Incredible offers some serious filtering, rule, and interface options. Display your pals' updates in one color and updates from others you follow in another. You can also filter by service, content type, or account.

Want to post a single update to multiple networks? Just create a group (set up as many as you like) and cross-posting is a snap.Incredible can even build a list of trending topics from all the networks you connect -- rather than a single source like Twitter.

Have a look through the gallery at PreCentral for a better look. For social media mavens with a webOS device, Incredible looks like it could be a must-have app.

Rumors of windows 8 launch in 2012..

2010-12-10T02:24:00.000-08:00

People who are eagerly waiting for some news about Microsoft's upcoming OS "Windows 8", should get excited about today news.

Our friend site "winrumors" along with "windows8italia" is reporting that Windows 8 will sport a new GUI codenamed "Wind".

    Microsoft's next-generation Windows operating system will be 32-bit and 64-bit with two separate interfaces. The main interface will be codenamed "Wind" and will initially only be supported by high-end notebook and desktop PCs with dedicated video cards
    . The interface will require around 170MB of video memory.

    "Wind" will only activate on 64-bit copies of Windows 8 and will be fully 3D.

    "Wind" will be "fully dynamic" and able to adapt to user habits. Icons and shortcuts will adapt to different usage scenarios to speed up daily tasks. Windows 8 is also rumored to include a new fast hibernation system. The system will hibernate in around three to six seconds and save all open documents and running tasks.

A recent release of NVIDIA’s Quadro 265 driver specifically references a new kernel with the number 6.2 (Windows 7 is 6.1) and includes references to Windows 8:

    NVIDIA Windows Vista / 7 / 8 (64 bit) Display INF file
    DiskID1 = "NVIDIA Windows Vista / 7 / 8 (64 bit) Driver Library Installation Disk 1"
    NVIDIA_WIN8 = "NVIDIA"

So following are some interesting things about the claimed Windows 8 GUI codenamed "Wind":

    * It'll have 2 separate interfaces for 32-bit and 64-bit editions which is quite interesting and new thing.
    * New new GUI "Wind" will only activate in 64-bit edition. May be we find some way to activate in 32-bit editions as well. Who knows? ;)
    * "Wind" will be fully dynamic. Not sure but it might adopt Windows Phone 7 interface.
    * "Wind" will be able to adopt user habits. That sounds really impressive. :)

New skype.

2010-12-06T05:10:00.000-08:00

Skype, the ever popular (but struggling) VoIP and video calling platform, officially releasing version 5.0 for Windows. The first thing regular users will likely notice is an overhauled interface that feels significantly more modern and clean than past versions. But the big news is that Skype will be integrating with Facebook using the social network's Connect feature. The interface will have a dedicated Facebook tab that displays your news feed, and will also place a call and/or SMS button next to your friends who have either a Skype name or cell phone number on file. You can also browse your Facebook phonebook, though apparently this only displays phone numbers, not Skype handles.

Otherwise, this is largely the Skype you've come to know and love. It still offers top notch voice and video calling, and supports 10-way group video calls. It's not clear when, or if, Facebook integration wil be coming to other platforms (like Linux, OS X or mobile apps), but it's a good bet the company is working to add the functionality across its offerings. You can download Skype 5.0 for Windows here.

AVG Update Keeping Some PCs From Booting

2010-12-06T05:07:00.000-08:00

Users running both the 64-bit edition of Windows 7 and the free AVG 2011 antivirus suite may have had a little trouble booting their PCs after a recent update. The update, which AVG released yesterday, was causing a STOP error, thus preventing PCs from booting into Windows. It's since been pulled, but, if you've been stung by the bug, be prepared to break out that recovery disk. You can find detailed instructions here.

Google Calendar: Get Your Weather Forecast and Custom Date Views

2010-12-06T05:00:00.000-08:00

For all the good that Google has done in helping us keep our e-mails and events organized, it's notoriously bad for hiding useful tools and features out of sight. We've got two simple tips today for opening up Google Calendar's potential. Google Calendar's '4 days' view has always seemed out of place, but makes much more sense when you realize it's customizable. You'll need to head to Settings to make changes. Buried in the General Settings tab is a field for Custom view, which is set at '4 days' by default. You can limit the view down to '2 days' or open it up to as much as '4 weeks.' Any change here will be reflected in the tab between the Month and Agenda views.

Similarly, Settings also hides the option for daily weather forecasts. In the Location field, enter your zip code or city, select your favored temperature scale, and tap 'Save' at the bottom. Now, Google Calendar will display the weather for the next few days; clicking on the weather icon will reveal a more detailed forecast with highs, lows, humidity and more.

How to Move Your iTunes Library to a New Computer

2010-12-06T04:59:00.000-08:00

Here at Switched, we've been through countless hard drives over the years. That trusty ol' 400-gigabyte drive is going to fail sooner or later, swallowing your precious, carefully crafted music library as it goes -- unless you've prepared yourself. Fortunately, transferring your fully intact iTunes library to a new drive or computer is a cinch. You can, of course, grab the music files themselves and throw them on your new computer, but you'll probably lose all of your metadata like playlists, playcounts and ratings. Instead, the following technique will preserve all of your hard work, and save you the effort of manually rebuilding your library. (Who does anything manually anymore, anyway?)

Setup

Before starting, make sure that you've been diligently backing up your files and that you've set iTunes to automatically organize your media. We can't stress this enough: all of your media must be organized in a single folder for this to work. It's possible to pull it off without a consolidated iTunes library, but it's an extremely involved process. It's far easier to move thousands of files when they're contained in a single place to begin with. Also, if you happen to have an additional external drive, we recommend backing up all of your media a second time. The following process is straightforward, but you never know when a drive will fail, and it's always good to have a backup of the backup.

You can use iTunes' built-in Backup to Disc option, but that will probably take far too many CDs or DVDs. We recommend the external drive approach; storage is cheap these days. Plus, if you're moving your library to an internal drive, you'll be able to use the extra external for dedicated backup. Windows users, navigate within the file system to the iTunes folder (Your account\music), and copy the entire iTunes folder over to the new drive. Mac users, you'll want to go to your User Folder/Music/iTunes. Depending on your drive speed and library size, this could take a while.

Once backup is complete, disconnect the drive and plug it into your new computer. Now, you've got two options. First, you can keep your library on an external drive. Some externals take a moment to spin up, which can cause a lag while playing tracks in iTunes -- and, of course, you'll have to lug the drive with you if you want mobile access to your tunes. Second, you can import all your music onto your new computer's internal drive. This may not be the best use of space if you've got a giant media library, but, fortunately, most new computers come with hundreds of gigabytes of storage.

External

If you opt for the external drive, quit iTunes and hook the drive up to your new computer. Mac users should hold down the 'option' key and click on iTunes, forcing the app to prompt you about your library location. Windows users, hold down the 'shift' key during iTunes startup. Click Choose Library, navigate to the iTunes Music Library folder on your new drive, select, and wait. After a few moments, iTunes should load with your library intact, complete with ratings, metadata, artwork and play counts.

Internal

The internal drive process is similar. Make sure iTunes isn't running, and hook up your backup drive to your new computer. Make sure the iTunes folder that currently exists on your internal drive is empty of any music or video files you need, because you'll be writing over it. Drag the iTunes folder on your backup drive into your Music folder (under users), and wait for it to copy. Now, open iTunes according to the directions above and repeat. You'll want to navigate to the iTunes folder that now cozily resides on your computer's internal hard drive. While you are at it, take this time to prune and streamline your tunes. Smash Mouth? No one wants to listen to that. Trust us.

Apple's Smart Playlist....... For iPhone,iOs.

2010-12-06T04:57:00.000-08:00

Since album art practically defines music (e.g., Joy Division's 'Unknown Pleasures,' Nirvana's 'Nevermind', even Britney Spears's 'Britney'), no collection is complete with covers in disarray. Artwork is a key component to any obsessively organized music library, and the latest version of iTunes makes it a breeze to sort and add art. While most downloads from the iTunes Store come with artwork, you'll know that any time spent ripping CDs, transferring vinyl or downloading tracks from the Web will fill a library with shoddy and incomplete graphics. Read on to get your lovely library looking top-notch, and wow your friends with a complete Cover Flow.

Getting Started: How to Add Artwork

There are several ways to get images into iTunes, but the most basic involves selecting a track and manually adding it. Once you've single-clicked a track (or tracks) in any iTunes playlist, you've got three ways to do this: 1) navigate to File > Get Info; 2) right-click and select Get Info; and 3) tap Apple + i on a Mac, or CTRL + i on a PC. To add the image, drag or paste the artwork you've found to the 'Artwork' box. Make sure you double-check your selections; you don't want to accidentally apply the wrong artwork across multiple albums.

The first semi-automated, extremely powerful image-finding process is built directly into iTunes. Simply right-click any song and select Get Album Artwork. (This will work with any track you've got, not just purchases from the store.) If available, the art will be downloaded and applied, and you can speed up the process by selecting multiple songs (even your entire Library). It may take a few minutes, but iTunes will display the processing status. Once complete, a window will pop up showing you the albums that couldn't be found.

If your music is impeccably tagged and organized, this trick will quickly cover most of your unillustrated tracks. If you've got a deep collection of obscure albums, EPs, foreign pressings or vinyl rips, you're probably still missing a lot of artwork.

Filter Your Artless Tunes in Seconds

Clearly, adding artwork to your entire library could take a while, and simply finding the albums lacking artwork could take hours of sorting. Fortunately, iTunes 10 introduced a powerful new filter criteria for album artwork, so finding all of your unillustrated albums can be done in a few seconds. Create a smart playlist (File > New Smart Playlist) that searches for 'has artwork' and 'is false.' Rename this playlist 'No artwork' or something easy to find, and click to view all your songs without artwork.

Moving on from iTunes

Grab your drink of choice (we recommend something strong), and dig in; you'll need to manually add album artwork for these stragglers. For high-res art, start with Google Image Search, and set the search filter to large. Ideally, you're looking for images that are at least 500x500 pixels. (You can check in the image info.) Wikipedia often offers decent images for popular albums, and some smart googling can help you track down the harder-to-find covers. Automated third-party tools like GimmeSomeTune, TuneUp and Artwork Gofer will reach outside of the Apple ecosystem to Amazon, Google Images and other services to track down more obscure artwork. Yes, it's probably best to get in the habit of double-checking artwork whenever you add a new album, but these tools and tricks will help any library that's gotten out of aesthetic hand.

Take Control of Your iPod and iPhone's Playlists (With an Ironlike Grip)

2010-12-06T04:56:00.000-08:00

This week we've primarily covered iTunes as it exists on your computer, but we've left out an essential component of the iTunes system: mobile devices. Of course, managing music on your iPhone and iPod opens up a brand new set of problems and issues. By default, your iDevice is set to automatically sync with your iTunes Library; if you've got an extremely small media library and rarely listen to music on the go, auto-sync may work for you. For most, though, libraries are showing no sign of slimming down, and auto-syncing all your media is a sure-fire way to get an irritable and error-laden iTunes.

Although iTunes does let you sync specific playlists, you'll end up playing mind games every time you go to hook up your phone or iPod. "Did I add too many songs to the Late Night Jams mix? Will this overwrite my Morrissey B-sides collection? Exactly how many songs have I added to my 'New Albums' folder since last syncing?" Here is a rare Switched recommendation: Going manual is your best bet. This way, you gain complete control over the music you're carrying around, as well as the power to delete and filter without auto sync's playlist-based constraints.

Turn on Manual Media Management

To change the setting, click on the icon of your iPhone or iPod where it's located in the left rail of iTunes, and check Manually manage music and videos under the Options header. Manually managing your music is, to an extent, just like filling your CD binder of yore. You can simply drag and drop songs and playlists directly onto your device. Want to trash a song from your iPod? Select it under the Music folder, and simply tap the delete key. Want to clear out old playlists? Click the sidebar, and trash it. By selecting your iPod in your left rail, you'll see a mini iTunes within your device, with the same rules and ways to organize.

Autofill!

One of the best parts of manual management is the extremely powerful Autofill feature. Autofill is, for lack of a better metaphor, the space at the top of your suitcase, allowing you to cram whatever socks, sunglasses or shoes you can fit. If you are carrying your device, why not fill it to the brim with a selection of tunes? To access it, click your device in the left rail and look at the bottom of the iTunes window.* You'll see an option to select a playlist, as well as a Settings button, where you can adjust the randomness of choices, propensity for higher-rated songs and a slider for precisely filling disk space. For example, augment your hand-picked albums with a random selection of songs you haven't listened to lately. (Just create a smart playlist to grab all the songs you haven't played in the last six months.)

*Note: If you select your device and click the Music tab, Autofill is nowhere to be found. Instead, it's only accessible by clicking the Music playlist. Great design choice, Apple.

Manual Management and Smart Playlists

Earlier this week, we wrote about the power of smart playlists in iTunes, and they're just as powerful on mobile devices. Auto-syncing smart playlists simply copies everything in that filter over to your device. For example, if you try to sync your 200 GB smart playlist of 1980s music, iTunes will balk due to 'not enough space.' Sidestep this by manually managing your music, and creating the smart playlist on your iPhone or iPod itself; select your device, and start a new smart playlist under the Music heading. This will create a device-specific filter that only looks for '80s music already on your device. Or, as a couple of our writers have pointed out, you can create specialized smart playlists (e.g., only songs with five stars, anything from the recently added list or any tune marked "Alternative hip-hop") by manually checking the playlist on your device. These smart playlists, then, will function as live filters that sort new music as you add it, creating a new way to rediscover your favorite songs or find the ones you haven't played yet.

iOS 4.2 Music Bug Got Ya Down? Here's How to Fix It

2010-12-06T04:54:00.000-08:00

Chances are that if you own an iPod touch, iPhone or iPad, you jumped up to get the latest iOS update. iOS 4.2, in addition to introducing multitasking to the iPad, brought along a little bug that's making music collections vanish into thin air. A number of iPhone 4, 3GS and iPod touch owners have complained that, after iOS 4.2 brings multitasking from iPhone and iPod touch to iPad. So you can be more productive as you work, have more fun as you play, or do a little of both. Everything happens smoothly and efficiently — without slowing down the performance of the foreground app or draining the battery unnecessarily.²
updating to 4.2, the iPod app displays a message reading "No Content" (even if the files are still there, floating about in iOS purgatory.) Thankfully, the Switched team and their precious playlists have escaped the issue, but TechCrunch's MG Siegler couldn't locate any of the 7.8 gigs of music on his phone. After some forum digging, however, Siegler found that there's a relatively simple answer to problem.

Just plug your device into your computer, play a song that's stored on your iPhone or iPod through iTunes on your PC, then resync. Disconnect, and voilà -- your music will have magically reappeared when you open the iPod app. No need to fire off obscenity-laced e-mails to Steve Jobs.

Gift Guide: Apple iPad, the No Brainer Tablet for 2010

2010-12-06T04:52:00.000-08:00

It's rare that a gadget feels as transformative as the iPad. With its recent iOS 4.2 update, which essentially brings the device up to speed with the iPhone/iPod interface, the iPad finally feels like the tablet we wanted from the beginning. The addition of the multi-tasking and folders functions is huge, and, if you've got an AppleTV, AirPlay should prove to be a nice way to seamlessly experience your videos and music on the big screen (and on real speakers). There are now tons of great apps available, and pairing Apple's own productivity suite (Pages, Numbers, and Keynote) with a Bluetooth keyboard can even turn the 'Pad into a usable work machine in a pinch. Battery life is great (roughly 10 hours), and it's become our platform of choice for watching videos on YouTube, Hulu Plus, Netflix and Vimeo, as well as for checking RSS feeds (with our favorite app,Reeder), scanning the New York Times, and much more. It won't replace your laptop anytime soon, but it will begin to feel like an essential part of your digital life very, very quickly.

iOS 4.2 Ends the iPad's Wait for Multitasking

2010-12-06T04:47:00.000-08:00

Oh, what's that? Are iTunes 10.1 and iOS 4.2.1 finally here, ending months of anticipation for millions of early adopters? Yes, eight months after blessing the iPhone with multitasking , Apple is finally bringing multitasking to the iPad. While iOS 4.2 introduces a slew of media, app and printing updates to the Apple tablet, you'll find that your day-to-day use of the iPad is changed most by multitasking and folders. Neither are anything new, as the implementation is nearly identical to the iPhone, just bigger. This isn't necessarily a bad thing; both features drastically improve the device, and you can finally stream Pandora and check your mail at the same time. Groundbreaking...

Folders, Media and Printing

Upgraders will get access to folders, which can save you from scrolling through endless pages of apps on the home screen. Much as you would on the iPhone or iPod touch, just press and hold an app icon, and drag it onto another one to create a new folder on the home screen. The new AirPrint adds wireless printing capability to the iPad, while AirPlay is an expansion and rebranding of AirTunes that lets you stream music, photos and video to your Apple TV and other AirPlay-enabled devices, many of which will be launching this fall.

Mail and Safari

The iPad Mail app gets bolstered by much-needed messaging, which sorts your mail into conversations. Game Center brings social competition and leaderboards to your marathon iPad 'Angry Birds' sessions, but is otherwise just as underwhelming as the iPhone version. Mobile Safari finally lets you search on the pages you're currently browsing. Start typing in the search bar, and you'll see 'On This Page' results below the stock Google suggestions.

Losing the Hardware Orientation Lock

We've been using a dev version of 4.2 for a few weeks, and we most regret the loss of the iPad's hardware orientation lock, which has been repurposed as a mute button. With all the reclined reading we're doing, the lock was handy for quickly switching from portrait to landscape mode, or locking while going horizontal. The interaction works on the smaller iPhone, but is needlessly complex on the iPad; compare a simple button to a process that will usually involve two hands (one to stabilize) and four actions (double tap, swipe right, tap). While it's interesting that Apple is effectively reprogramming dedicated hardware buttons, it should be an optional, or at least a software-reversible change.

Wrapup

Once Apple pushes the update live, make sure you've recently synced your iPad, iPhone or iPod touch, grab the latest version of iTunes, boot up Software Update, and get updating!

Facebook Unveils New Profile Pages

2010-12-06T04:44:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, Facebook announced big changes for Profile pages, hours before Mark Zuckerberg's '60 Minutes' interview. The biggest change is the emphasis on photos: from the summary at the top of the page to photos of your relationships, images dominate the new design. You'll also notice that Facebook has done away with the old tabbed interface that separated your wall, info, photos and events into different pages. These viewing options have largely been pushed into the left rail below your primary profile photo.

Instead of hiding most of your personal information behind the 'Info' tab, the new design features an introduction at the top of your profile page that summarizes your job, relationship status, hometown, birthday and more. Beneath your summary is a row of the most recently tagged photos of you. Because these are highlighted so prominently on your profile, you'll probably need to be even more vigilant than before in making sure bad party pics or embarrassing high school candids are removed. Fortunately, you can hide any of the photos in your new Profile summary by clicking the 'x' that appears when you hover over each one.

Your relationship status and significant other will be revealed directly beneath your profile photo. Facebook is also introducing the sure-to-be controversial Featured Friends section in the left rail. You can use friends lists to highlight (micromanage?) your family, best friends and other "friends who are important to you." The Friendship Pages that debuted in October are now integrated directly into the profile page; you'll find a Friendship module showing off shared photos and friends at the top right of profiles you visit with a link to explore the more detailed Friendship Page.

Facebook now visually displays most of your personal info (including music interests, college and employer) by using photos instead of text links. Your personal likes will become easily browsable grids of movie, book and album cover art. Additionally, your photo albums now have infinite scroll, so you'll be able to scroll or tap the space bar to move quickly through hundreds of photos.

Make a bootable USB installer for Windows XP, Vista, 7 with WinToFlash

2010-12-06T04:42:00.000-08:00

Making a bootable USB flash drive for Windows Vista and Windows 7 isn't all that tricky, but it's always nice to find an app that simplifies things. Not only does WinToFlash make the process about as easy as it can get, but it can also create Windows XP, Server 2003, and Server 2008 installers.

The default options make it easy to roll a silent Windows install, or you can flip the custom switch and specify the exact setup parameters you want to use.

The handy app also has one more trick up its sleeve: moving Windows Preinstall environments. PE discs can be extremely handy for troubleshooting and repairs, and being able to painlessly zap them over to a USB flash drive means not having to burn a new copy every time someone's haggard old optical drive decides to chew up your CD.

WinToFlash is a free download and is totally portable. It's an excellent tool to add to your USB-related utilities.

Opera Mobile will support Flash and HTML5 video... soon

2010-12-06T04:40:00.000-08:00

Speaking frankly and quite technically, Pavel Studený of the Opera Mobile team has posted some info about its Android development experience. The post itself is pretty thin on details, except for two gems: both Flash and HTML5 video are coming to Opera Mobile.

The interesting thing is, Pavel doesn't say that Flash and HTML5 support are only coming to Android; in fact, he says "if you have Flash player installed on your phone, Opera will support it." Now, it's not like Flash actually runs on many mobile phones, but it still leaves some interesting possibilities open -- will it support Flash Lite for Symbian, for example? For now, though, only Android 2.1 and newer has access to an official Flash player. HTML5 video support, on the other hand, is far less exciting -- in fact, most mobile browsers, including the upcoming Firefox For Mobile, already support it. Opera Mobile is actually playing catch-up in that regard.

Beyond the Flash and HTML5 news, Pavel talks about the trials and tribulations of writing apps for Android. Unlike Symbian, the operating system behind Nokia phones, Android is very young, very fresh, and prone to rapid changes that developers sometimes struggle to stay on top of. The trade-off, of course, is that Android is accruing exciting features, and thus apps and users, at break-neck speeds.

Google rumored to have bought Groupon for $2.5 billion

2010-12-06T03:41:00.000-08:00

It seems, if unnamed insider sources and some speculation from TechCrunch are to be believed, that Google has just bought Groupon, the deal-of-the-day website, for $2.5 billion.

Yahoo tried, and failed, to buy Groupon for over $3 billion earlier this year, but little is known about why the deal fell apart. That Google has now apparently bought them for 'only' $2.5 billion would suggest that Groupon's management team would prefer a future as part of Google instead of Yahoo.

As far as what Google stands to gain from the deal, other than raw cash -- Groupon is rather profitable -- we will probably see extensive integration between Groupon and Google's Places and Shopping products. When searching for Places, coupons for local businesses could be shown. When looking for the lowest prices with Shopping, coupons could be worked into the results.

Ultimately, though, I just hope that this merger will result in a site called Goopon.

Tab Bundles for Chrome - Bit.ly link bundles made easy!

2010-12-06T03:37:00.000-08:00

Bit.ly recently released link bundles -- a feature that lets you share multiple URLs using the same shortened bit.ly link -- but it's not the easiest feature to use. The Tab Bundles extension for Chrome makes copy-pasting links into bit.ly a thing of the past, by allowing you to bundle all your currently-open tabs with one click.

Tab Bundles works with both bit.ly and j.mp (a bit.ly-owned even shorter URL), and it allows you to create custom filters that automatically tell it which tabs to include in your bundle. Basically, it's a real time-saver for anyone who regularly shares a pile of links on Twitter. Even if you only need to use it once, installing and uninstalling an extension in Chrome might be easier than copy-pasting half a dozen links

Dolphin Browser Mini brings better Web browsing to older Android devices

2010-12-06T03:35:00.000-08:00

Dolphin Browser HD is an excellent browser, but like a lot of Android apps it's not available on devices running older versions of the OS. If you're using an inexpensive Android tablet or smartphone, however, there's a great new browser which brings a much-improved Web experience: Dolphin Browser Mini.

A new preview build is now available for download, and it offers many of the same features as its HD cousin on Android 1.6 or newer. About the only major component missing is Dolphin Browser HD's add-on support, but Mini still shines with its built-in functionality. To get you started, Mini can import bookmarks from the Android default browser, Dolphin HD, or sync your Google Bookmarks. Dolphin Mini also offers tabbed browsing, a download manager, orientation lock, gesture support, private browsing, and a 'screen cut' tool for capturing Web pages as a JPEG.

Dolphin Browser Mini preview 2 is a free download [APK installer] -- the QR code is after the break along with a gallery of the nifty little browser in action!