GeoffCJ

Why I uninstalled Digsby and installed Pidgin....

2009-08-13T20:19:00.000-07:00

Digsby and Pidgin are two competing programs that perform pretty much the same task, consolidating your all your chat services into one program. I've got accounts with Google, Yahoo, AIM, Facebook and MSN. Until recently, I used Digsby to run all. When I installed it, I had to click no to a 1/2 dozen or so "offers" to install other programs, but considered this to be a tolerable trade off for a functional program. Turned out Digsby was doing something far more insidious. Lifehacker reports:

15. USAGE OF COMPUTER RESOURCES.
You agree to permit the Software to use the processing power of your computer when it is idle to run downloaded algorithms (mathematical equations) and code within a process. You understand that when the Software uses your computer, it likewise uses your CPU, bandwidth, and electrical power. The Software will use your computer to solve distributed computing problems, such as but not limited to, accelerating medical research projects, analyzing the stock market, searching the web, and finding the largest known prime number. This functionality is completely optional and you may disable it at any time.

Wow. Scary....

Custom Web Crawling – 80legs is using Plura to do distributed web crawling. Rather than having data centers with very fat pipes, they use a portion of the bandwidth of the Plura nodes to crawl the web. In order to improve the success ratio for each work unit, 80legs sends out Plura WUs with very few URLs to crawl.

http://lifehacker.com/5336382/digsby-joins-the-dark-side-uses-your-pc-to-make-money

Turns out these guys can, and will, use your computer for activities quite unrelated to the function of the program, and without your knowledge. To make money that is not share with you.

Goodbye Digsby, hello Pidgin.
http://www.pidgin.im/

And if you want Facebook caht, use this plugin:
http://code.google.com/p/pidgin-facebookchat/

TripIt - Trip planning website

2009-07-22T11:07:00.000-07:00

TripIt is a very slick web tool, for planning trips. It's pretty simple, but works great. Register, and give it any email addresses you might use. Then, as you plan your trip and get plane, hotel and car confirmation emails, simply forward them to plans@tripit.com. It parses the data, and makes a master iternary. I've been testing it for a bit now, and am using it for a rather complicated trip to Europe, and it works great. You can also publish your trip details, and share the link with others. You can also add information manually, usefull for adding meetings or plans.

On the road, you can access your info via email, mobile web browsers, or text messages. Handy.

TripIt has some premium features that look attractive too, I ahven't tried them yet but if I continue to travle frequently, it might be worth the membership. There are also some social networkign features, but I don't se the point. If you travel much, or even just have one big trip planned, it's worth checking out.

Use Gmail as your default email client in Firefox

2009-06-16T14:25:00.000-07:00

It's always frustrated me when clicking a "mailto" link in a browser, and it tries to open Outlook. I use GMail for all my email. Turns out that since Firefox 3.0, there is a fix.

* go to Tools > Options
* select the Applications tab
* search for mail
* select Use Gmail from the list of actions associated with the mailto protocol
* click OK to save the settings.

Thanks to the Google System Blog for pointing this out.

http://googlesystem.blogspot.com/2009/06/set-gmail-as-default-email-client.html

Steps to making your garden more bird friendly

2009-04-16T12:30:00.000-07:00

Birds are a wonderfull sight, pleasant to listen too, and incredibly important to the environment. Unfortunately, they are also very susceptible to environmental changes, loss of habitat and other issues that threaten their survival.

The Daily Green has a great article about simple steps we can all take to make our yards more bird friendly, including things like what of feed, what to plant, and how to provide shelter. I'm going to try and incorporate several of them.

http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/bird-gardens-47022602

How to clean up your Facebook Feed - Get rid of all the quiz and application notices.

2009-03-22T17:25:00.000-07:00

Facebook had a significant design change last week, and for many, this was not a positive change. I might be in the minority, but I don't actually mind the visual aspects of the design, with one huge, glaring, obnoxious exception. I love to see my friends statuses, links they find interesting, photos, videos, and wall posts. I have little to no interest when they take a quiz and the quiz tells them they should be living in Ireland. Or similar things.

It used to be that Facebook allowed you some control over what showed up in your feed. I told it really liked photos, and didn't like quizzes, and it worked reasonably well. They removed this option. Boo Facebook.

But there is an answer- And it's name is Firefox and Greasemonkey. For those not familiar, Firefox is a great cross-platform web browser. through the use of Extensions and Add-ons, it allows a level of control over your browsing unmatched by other browsers. Chrome might be faster, but I can't give up my extensions. If you're not using it, you should be.

Greasemonky is an add-on for Firefox that allows you to run scripts that customize your browsing. Greasemonkey scripts are designed to run when you visit certain websites, and they can do all kinds of magic. Here are the 4 steps to Facebook happiness:

Install Firefox - http://www.firefox.com
Install GreaseMonkey
Restart your browser
Go here and click Install- this adds a script to Greasemonkey
Enjoy a new, nicer, quieter Facebook.

Ordinary objects, super uses.

2009-02-24T12:57:00.000-08:00

This definately falls more on the "tools" end of the spectrum, since many of these are decidely low-tech, but this article has some great suggestions for some unexpected uses for stuff you've probably got around the house. I've used some before, and will certainly try others. Some of my favorites:

22 Tenderize a roast by adding a peeled banana to the pan.

32 Sprinkle soda in tennis shoes, socks, boots and slippers to eliminate odor.

42 Get rid of slugs in your garden. Put a shallow dish of beer into your soil buried up to the lip. The slugs will be attracted to the beer and become stuck in it. Empty the dish each day and replace with new beer as they are attracted to the smell.

81 Keep brown sugar soft by adding a few marshmallows to the bag before closing it.

85 Repair fine cracks in china plates and cups can by boiling them in milk. The milk reacts with the kaolin in china and closes the crack. Place the plate in a pan, cover it with milk (fresh or reconstituted powdered milk) and bring to a boil. As soon as it starts to boil, lower the heat and simmer for about 45 minutes.

There are 112 tips here, worth a quick read: Ordinary objects, super uses

Evernote - Great online/computer notebook tool. Better than Google Notebook.

2009-02-12T08:00:00.000-08:00

After the disappointing discontinuation of Google Notebook, I've been testing a few different replacements, and I think I've settled on Evernote as by far my favorite. I can't imagine anyone who does ANY amount of online research not using a tool like this.

From their site, the list several great features:

On the web - Create, clip, and share notes on the web and see them everywhere

There is an excellent Firefox extension too. Definitely worth the install.

Evernote on Mobile Phones -Take snapshots, read to-do lists, record audio whenever and wherever you like
Evernote on Mac and PC -On your desktop - Search through all your notes, even find text within images, whether online or off

The mobile phone application is cool. If you're out an about, you can easily add notes or photos to Evernote, and they'll be on you computer when you next fire up the program. Slick as snot.

Another really cool feature is that it recognizes text within images. So if you've got a photo of a donut sign, and search on the word donut, it should find it. Awesome.

A few disappointments-

The Free service has limitations, based on quantity of notes. This is a pretty minor complaint, as the free limit seems relatively generous. And anyone using the tool enough to hit those limits should be willing to pay a bit.
Bigger disappointment is that it lacks the easy collaboration tools that Google Notebook had. It'd be awesome to be able to share notes with other Evernote users. You can publish you notes, so others can see them, but there is not an easy way I see to allow others to share a common Notebook. Hopefully Evernote will add this feature in the future.

Online Vector Image editor from Aviary

2009-02-10T14:37:00.000-08:00

There are dozens of good capable online Photo editing programs out there, but few Vector image editors. And sometimes you need to edit or create a vector image.

Raven is a new product from Aviary that allows vector image editing in your browser. I don't think it'll replace Illustrator for serious designers, but for casual or occasional users, it seems very full featured.

Some Features:

Raven is a vector editor. Those familiar with graphic design will appreciate this tool because vector art is fully scalable (it doesn’t pixelate or distort when size is changed).

Raven allows you to work with paths, lines, curves, and objects. You have control over stroke, fill color, and gradient.

Just like in Aviary Phoenix, students can work with layers, groups, and layer masks.

Unlike Illustrator, Raven has built in collaboration and sharing tools, a big advantage if working remotely with others.
Free!

Try it out. http://aviary.com/tools/raven

My earlier reviews of online photo editors:
http://www.geoffcj.com/2008/03/free-online-photo-editors.html
http://www.geoffcj.com/2008/03/photoshop-online-eh-not-so-much.html
http://www.geoffcj.com/2008/03/fotoflexer-better-than-photoshop-online.html

GMail gets even better with offline access and "flakey connection mode". Faster too!

2009-01-30T14:52:00.000-08:00

I'm an unabashed GMail (Google Mail) fan. It's fast, searches work great, and I love tags vs. folders. It simply works great. And it's easy to manage multiple email addresses from one spot. If you've got an email address that you want to keep, you can manage nearly any email address through Google.

And Google has released a new option that makes it better. It's a local cached and sync'd copy of your email. It does a couple of things:

It offers offline access. So if you're working somewhere without internet, you've got your email. And in the same format and features you are used too. Even search works. Awesome. Of course, you won't get new emails, and your sent emails won't go until you have internet, but great for flights or anywhere without a connection.
They also offer a "flakey connection mode". I've got a client I want to set up with Google Apps email, but I've hesitated because his office is in the sticks and uses satellite email that is intermittent. This takes care of that.
Cool, unexpected feature? Even when you are connected, it's clearly, clearly faster on my machine. Selecting a new folder or hitting compose simply happens quicker.

Downsides? Of course, it will use some local storage space, so if your harddrive is packed, maybe not the best option. Other than that, I can't think of any.

You need to have Gears , but if you're using Chrome you've already got it, otherwise it's easy to install. Then

Click Settings and click the Labs tab.
Select Enable next to Offline Gmail.
Click Save Changes.
After your browser reloads, you'll see a new "Offline^0.1" link in the upper righthand corner of your account, next to your username. Click this link to start the offline set up process and download Gears if you don't already have it.

Want to sign up for Google Mail? http://mail.google.com

Woah, when did Google add Ocean floors to Google Maps?

2009-01-28T21:24:00.000-08:00

I didn't see this in any of the blogs I follow, but it seems like Google has added ocean floor details to Google Maps. As a kayaker and scuba diver, I absolutely love this. Amazing.

R.I.P Google Notebook

2009-01-15T19:37:00.000-08:00

What a shame. Google has shut down Google Notebook. (They actually shut down several sites/services, but Notebook was the only one I used. See a wrap up here.) I love Google Notebook, and I'm pleased to see they will continue to offer it to those of us that have used it for awhile, but they will no longer update it, or offer it if you're not already signed up. You might try signing up today, just in case you want ti at some point in the future.

This is a shame. My first Google disappointment in a long time.

I've got a Beta invite to WebNotes. I've been meaning to try it, but been busy. I'll try it soon and report back. You can also read my review of Notebook and competitor Zotero here

50 crazy cool CSS Tools

2009-01-15T07:00:00.000-08:00

CSS defines how most every modern website works. It's powerful, but not always easy to use. Smashing magazine has an excellent list of CSS tools. Any web designer would be well served to look through this list, and bookmark it for later. If you're trying to do anything in CSS, this will likely make it easier.

50 Extremely Useful And Powerful CSS Tools | CSS | Smashing Magazine

Awesome roundup of photoshop tutorials

2009-01-14T16:00:00.000-08:00

I love Photoshop, and going through detailed tutorials is an incredible way to build your skills. This is an incredible list of great tutorials.

50 Excellent Digital Photography Photoshop Tutorials | Tutorials | Smashing Magazine

The Top Green-Tech Breakthroughs of 2008 | Wired Science from Wired.com

2009-01-14T13:45:00.000-08:00

WIRED is a great blog, and they have a list of top ten clean breakthroughs for 2008. It's an excellent list. I think they forgot one very, very important one - Gas going to $4/gallon. Of course, it also went back down, but for that period, everyone was interested in clean tech, smaller vehicles, hybrids, etc.

The Top 10 Green-Tech Breakthroughs of 2008 | Wired Science from Wired.com

Tax breaks for Bike commuters. But why pay the company, not the cyclist?

2009-01-14T00:02:00.000-08:00

Good - Tax breaks for people who bike to work.

Silly/Moronic - The tax break goes to the company. The company decides if and how to pass it on.

I suppose the idea is that with the tax break, companies will be incentivized to provide better facilities or other benefits to bike commuters, but there is no guarantee of that. I think that it would make a lot more sense to offer the break directly to the cyclist. $240/yr would pay for a decent used bike, lot's of innertubes, a set of very nice bike lights, or warm bike clothing for commuting when it's cold. Seems like a lot of other bailout stuff we're seeing, they give the money to the companies and hope it'll trickle down. Why not start with the guy/girl who get's out of bed 30 minutes early to ride?

MPR: Bailout law helps bike commuters

Make your entire bike reflective, without looking horrible. Awesome idea

2008-12-18T12:44:00.000-08:00

Seeing lot's of cool bike related ideas lately.

This guy outlines a way to use reflective tape to make your entire bike reflective, without looking horrible. i think this could be cool for all kind of applications, not just bike. I used to paddle my sea kayak at night all the time, and things like this would certainly help you show up. We ride our tandem at dusk frequently, I think I might add some tape to it. Simple, cool, effective idea. My favorite kind..

brightbike Via Gizmodo

Neat, simple bike rack for 5 bikes, and only $25

2008-12-16T13:40:00.000-08:00

Cool rack for storing 5 bikes. only $25, and free standing, so great for places where permanant mounts would be frowned upon.

$25 Rack stores five bicycles!

Brilliant and finally! Integrate Calendar into GMail

2008-12-08T17:10:00.000-08:00

I love Gmail and many other google products. My wife calls me, probably accurately, a Google fanboy. But I've always felt that Google Calendar could be better integrated into Gmail. You've been able to add a puny side bar for a while, but I wanted more. Using the experimental Firefox add-on below, you can get Calendar integrated, along with other Google or non-google sites. I had some issues when I tried to add Google Reader as a custom site, but i have several other Greasemonkey and similar add-ons that customize my Gmail. Still not perfect integration, but awesome.

You do have to create a log-in to get Experimental add-ons. IMHO, worth it.

Integrated GMail :: Firefox Add-ons

Lifehacker was the source of the Tip, and has some good screenshots and other advice. Looks like some users are having issues in the comments section, so use at your own risk, but works fine for me. If it doesn't work, just uninstall.

10 Awesome NASA Spinoff products

2008-12-04T07:03:00.000-08:00

If you've ever wondered why we should support NASA (tongue somewhat in cheek here) check out this awesome list of 10 products derived or developed from NASA research. Click through to Wired's original article for the links.

Life's DHA and ARA
Algae- and fungus-based baby formula additives that are chock-full of brain-developing fatty acids.
Liquidmetal
A unique alloy—also known as metallic glass—that's more flexible and twice as strong as titanium.
Paragon CRT contacts
Lenses that reshape your corneas while you sleep, temporarily fixing nearsightedness.
LifeShear LS-100 Cutter
Pyrotechnic cutting tool that's 50 percent lighter and 70 percent cheaper than older explosive-powered choppers. FEMA uses it for rescues.
Zeno
A zit-zapping device that transmits heat to pimples, causing the offending bacteria to self-destruct.
EagleEyes StimuLights
Specs built for poor light—they let in vision-enhancing rays while blocking those that muddy your vision.
Insuladd
An additive consisting of hollow ceramic microcapsules that turn ordinary paint into insulation.
GameReady Injury Treatment System
Based on spacesuit tech, these wraps provide precise cold and compression therapy.
PRP Powder
Beeswax microcapsules that absorb oil and float at the surface to help clean up spills.
Field Scout CM-1000 Chlorophyll Meter
A plant stress detector that can sense nitrogen levels.

10 Best NASA Spinoffs

GeoTagging photos, What's the easiest way to do it with a Canon?

2008-12-02T11:07:00.000-08:00

Normally, I post here with products I've tried, but I'm going to try a question. I love the idea of auto-geotagging the photos I take with my Canon Rebel XT. I'd like to do, and a device like this would be PERFECT. But it's for Nikon. Anyone know of an easy, seamless way to do this with a Canon, or my small Pentax Point and shoot. Or both. Ideas? Email me or comment below.

GPS: Nikon GP-1 SLR GPS Now Available for $240

2 cool sites for anyone doing design work, particularly web design.

2008-11-26T07:05:00.000-08:00

They sort of work like Digg, but with a focus on design tips, tutorials and resources. Good stuff.
http://www.designbump.com/
http://www.designfloat.com/

Online Research Tools - Google Notebook vs. Zotero

2008-11-25T22:24:00.000-08:00

I do a lot of research online. Having the right tool can make it much simpler. I've been using Google Notebook for several years, and have been really happy with it. Get the Firefox extension, and taking a note is as simple as highlighting the text/images you want to save, and right-clicking and choosing "Note This". It will add the text or image to your notebook, and includes the URL from where you got it. You can have multiple notebooks, for different subjects, and move or share notes between them. You can also export your Notebook to Google Documents, and from there to Word. Sort of silly that it's two steps, but it can be done. You can also blog from Google Documents, so this could be a method for collecting information to blogging.

Coolest of all, you can share with others. When my life and I plan trips, or major purchases, we'll use a shared Notebook, either of us can add information, type notes, etc. Works awesome. It'd be great for students or workers collaborating on research for a project. Simple, powerful, and effective. I love it.
www.google.com/notebook

Zotero is another competitor. It functions much like Google Notebook, but has significantly more sophisticated tools for tracking notations and references. It has a considerably more complicated interface, and doesn't seem nearly as intuitive, but for people writing papers or doing academic research where a fully notated bibliography will be needed, it offers considerable advantages over Google Notebook. However, it lacks easy collaboration, which is a disadvantage to me.

http://www.zotero.org/

So, for casual use, collaboration, or easy integration with Google Docs, Google Notebook wins. For academic or scientific research, Zotero is certainly worth a close look. Anyone doing research online should be using one or the other.

10 Online Photo Editors reviewed

2008-11-25T21:23:00.000-08:00

In the relatively short time I've been keeping this blog, I've reviewed a few different online photo editors. Daily Gyan has done a nice roundup of 10 photo editors. Unfortunately, they don't really cover the pros and cons of each one, but if you want to try some, this would be a good place to start.

Their review:
http://www.dailygyan.com/2008/11/10-online-photo-editors-that-you.html

My earlier reviews:
http://www.geoffcj.com/2008/03/free-online-photo-editors.html
http://www.geoffcj.com/2008/03/photoshop-online-eh-not-so-much.html
http://www.geoffcj.com/2008/03/fotoflexer-better-than-photoshop-online.html

Google offers new themes for GMail

2008-11-19T20:23:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I feel like a shill for Google. But they just keep introducing cool, free tools. This isn't really anything that will increase productivity, and certainly isn't a new tool, but for those of us that spend a lot of time in Gmail, a little eye candy to freshen up the look is nice. Google has introduced Themes in Gmail. It's under the settings tab, but is being rolled out over time. Strangely, I hadn't seen it, then I clicked this link and it was there. Coincidence? Maybe, but worth a shot.

http://mail.google.com/mail/?shva=1#settings/themes

Google does it again. Offers archive of 10 million old LIFE magazine photos online.

2008-11-18T12:57:00.000-08:00

Say what you want about Google, but the amount of information they've made accessible to you and I in amazing. They've just announced an archive of LIFE magazine photos. 10 million of them. Loved it.

You can find it one of two ways:
http://images.google.com/hosted/life

Or simple add the notation
Source:life

to any google images search.

Neat.