Apple today announced the release of Safari 5.0.1. What’s significant in this point release is that Apple has turned on support for the Extensions Gallery. When Safari 5 was released in June, it included support for extensions so that developers could start building them, but without access to the Extensions Gallery, users had no easy way to find and install those extensions.

The Safari Extensions Gallery is accessible from the Safari menu or via extensions.apple.com. Users can download and install extensions from the gallery with a single click, with no need for a browser restart. Extensions can be automatically updated and are managed within Safari.

Safari Extensions are built with HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript web standards. Every Safari Extension is signed with a digital certificate from Apple to prevent tampering and to verify that updates to the extension are from the original developer. Safari Extensions work in a sandbox, so they can’t access information on a user’s system or communicate with websites aside from those specified by the developer.

While the Safari Extension Gallery is launching with a range of extensions from the likes of Bing, the New York Times, Twitter and eBay, it’s nowhere near to matching the usefulness of Chrome’s extensions, let alone Firefox’s gigantic range of add-ons. Apple’s decision to include extension support in Safari is a smart one, but until developers start porting the most useful extensions to Safari, I’ll find it tough to switch from my favorite browsers.

You can download Safari 5.0.1 for both Mac and PC for free from Apple.

(Via GigaOM.)

Roku and MP3tunes have formed a rather interesting partnership, which will allow users to upload their iTunes music to an MP3tunes locker, and you’ll be able to play your entire library, including the playlists, on your TV via Roku player. This was achieved by using Roku’s open SDK to create a channel that will in turn make good use of the MP3tunes API. A limited time offer is currently available which allows you to get $20 off a Roku HD or Roku HD-XR, along with a free, premium 50GB MP3tunes locker.

(Via Ubergizmo.)

Foursquare may be helpful for seeing what your friends are up to, but the act of checking in — standing in a bar, face buried in your phone’s screen as you hunt for the right venue — is anything but social. Now, hot on the heels of its partnership with the New England Patriots, location-based gaming service SCVNGR is announcing a nifty new feature that could go a long way toward resolving this issue (and we’ll probably see other services copy it). If you’ve tried Bump, it will sound very familiar: a social check-in involves getting a group of friends to physically tap their phones together at the same time (it’s more fun than it sounds).

So why would anyone actually want to do this? First, it’s more fun than your standard check-in — I could see this working as a decent, albeit nerdy, icebreaker at bars. And it’s probable that the Patriots will be trying it out during a game as part of a stadium-wide social checkin. SCVNGR is also incenting users to do this by offering in-game bonuses that make social check-ins worth significantly more than most other actions.

SCVNGR CEO Seth Priebatsch says that he initially hoped to implement the feature using Bump’s API, but found that that service couldn’t properly handle multiple phone taps at once — he says it’s designed for 1-to-1 transfers of contacts and other media. So SCVNGR designed a system that would allow many (even thousands) of people to tap their phones together in order to achieve a group checkin.

Of course, physically hitting devices that cost upwards of $500 isn’t always the best idea, especially when you’re trying to get a bunch of people to do it at once (some of whom may not be especially sober). Fortunately there’s an alternative: Priebatsch says that some well-timed phone shaking when you’re in the vicinity of your friends will work just fine.

(Via TechCrunch.)

If you’ve never heard of the NetTalk TK6000, you’re certainly not alone — suffice it to say it’s an as-seen-on-TV product that converts a standard ethernet internet connection into a VoIP telephone cord. And to be clear, the new NetTalk Duo doesn’t seem to offer anything different than its predecessor, only a shiny bullet case, but that just makes it the perfect salvo across incumbent MagicTalk’s bow. We can hardly wait to see how the latest chapter in the infinite long distance call saga will play out. However, on the off-chance you’ve been looking to Fire Your Phone Company(R), don’t wait, act now — peep the press release after the break for your ten percent discount.

(Via Engadget.)

Today note-taking application and service Evernote rolled out the latest addition of its platform, Evernote Trunk. Think of it as an app store for Evernote users.

Evernote Trunk features nearly 100 add-ons for the Evernote service, including mobile and desktop apps and plugins, all built to support the underlying service. It’s clear that with Evernote Trunk, the company wants to turn the service into a larger platform for developers and end users.

Evernote recently passed the three million user mark and has apps available for Windows, Mac OS X, iOS, BlackBerry and Android devices. It also has extensions for Firefox, Safari and Google Chrome browsers.

The real point of Evernote Trunk, however, is to draw attention to the many other apps that can connect with the service. For instance, Canon and Lexmark both have scanners that can integrate directly with Evernote, and an increasing number of mobile apps support sending links or clippings to the service.

You can access Evernote Trunk via the web or from within the desktop application. In addition to apps and plugins, Evernote also has some special Notebooks created by some of its partners with content that users can import directly into their accounts. Cool Hunting and Make: Projects both have notebooks available for users that provide access to special clippings and information, for instance.

The Notebook feature is actually pretty cool and we would like the see the ability to syndicate or create group-curated notebooks built into Evernote’s core product.

What do you think of Evernote Trunk?

(Via Mashable!.)

Matt posted the steps he took to build a proper stompbox development platform -

Designing and building your own guitar effects is a great way to combine a passion for electronics and guitar.  However, when testing new designs, I found the fragile circuit on the solderless breadboard was difficult to connect to patch cords and control the potentiometers.

The answer was simple: build a guitar pedal just for prototyping!

A thoroughly sturdy design, including a custom cut/drilled & folded aluminum enclosure with standard hole sizes for swappable pots and switches. Check out the projects instructable for details.

More:

• FX pedal proto board MAX
• Guitar pedal prototyping kit

(Via MAKE Magazine.)

Facebook is a fun place to be.  You can call anyone from your closest relative to some acquaintance you knew way back in high school a ‘friend’ and not feel awkward because of it.  Friends on Facebook are basically people you know and Facebook is a fun place to either get to know people better or just to keep up with the family.

Notice that I mentioned the word ‘fun’ a few times in the previous paragraph.  It is true that Facebook is a place to network and to keep up with people.  However, it can also be a fun place to play around with your friends.

No, I am not talking about those stupid little games like throwing sheep around or pretending you know anything about farming.  I’m talking about just plain old having fun at your friends’ expense.  If you are creative enough, you can find all kinds of ways to have fun with each other without selling your soul to any of those applications.

I can come up with a few.  Try them out and see if you can pull them off in the spirit of fun without making enemies.  Without further adieu, here’s how to go out of your way to annoy friends on Facebook.

1.  Go Through Their Profile Pictures, Add Stupid Comments In Speech Balloons & Tag Them.

A friend of mine did this to his sister and the result was hilarious!  The idea is to choose a picture where you can see their faces.  If they are doing something funny, it’s even better.  Go to the page with the picture, right-click and click and save the image.  Open it in your favorite image editing program, and add some mad cool text.  Use a speech balloon if you’ve got the skills.

Don’t forget to tag them or else what would be the fun?

2. Make Annoying Comments On Their Updates.

Try to be creative in your annoyance here.  You could try repeating everything they say (ever done the ‘copying’ game as a kid… or coworker?).  This game becomes easier with a tool like Facebook because you can always copy and paste.  Indubitably they’ll respond with ‘Stop copying me!’ and that conversation could become endless.  You could also respond to every update with something like ‘That’s stupid.’  You may get lucky and have them respond with ‘Why?’

3. Create A Fanpage For A Friend & See How Long It Takes Him To Notice.

Fan pages are fun, but not as much fun as making one for a friend!  Make sure you make up lots of goofy stuff that people will know is not true.  Share with the world all of their super powers and the type of stuff they like to eat.  Just make it totally annoying and you’ll have succeeded.

When the fan page is done, start inviting mutual friends and see how long it takes for the friend to notice.  I suppose you could either communicate on his behalf in an annoying manner or just speak about him in the third person.

4. Tell The World Every Single Thing You Are Doing Throughout The Whole Day.

OK, I know this one hits too close to home for a few of you but for the sake of being annoying, take it to a whole new extreme.  Don’t just say that you brushed your teeth, but describe it for us.  Find every detail of your life that day and describe it.

If you want to make life easier, guess as close as possible how your day is going to be, and what you are going to be doing, and use a tool like HootSuite to schedule posts ahead of time.  Schedule them every couple of minutes or even once an hour.  Just enough to really get under your friends’ skin.

5. Paste Random Bits Of Code Into Your Status Updates.

Not sure why you’d want to do this, but random bits of code will be sure to annoy your friends.  It could also show your techier side at the same time.

You could either use it in conjunction with actually saying something.

or just by itself.

6. Become Infatuated With CAPS Lock.

Ever since the internet began to be popular, the CAPS lock has always meant you are yelling.  Start updating using all caps.  It’ll really get people’s attention.  You may get annoying responses telling you to keep it down as if their ears are actually hurting.

Be careful as you do some of these.  You don’t want to bombard your friends with so much annoying garbage that you start losing them.  Oh and these are just a few ways to get on the nerves of your lovely friends on Facebook.  I know for sure that there are more so share your favorites in the comments, would you?

(Via MakeUseOf.com.)

We know you’ve been waiting on pins and needles, and at long last, the gap between announcement and ‘now shipping’ has been closed. IK Multimedia has just revealed that its AmpliTube iRig adapter is shipping, enabling iPod touch, iPad and iPhone users to jack their guitar or bass directly into their iDevice and access all sorts of effects. From there, users can pipe the audio to a pair of headphones or a guitar amp, theoretically allowing your handheld to supplant your mess of pedals. Were also told that the iRig can be used with line level signal sources such as synthesizers, keyboards or mixing consoles, so theres that. Its available as we speak for $39.99 (or €29.99 overseas), and users can expect an iPad-specific version of the AmpliTube app to be released in the near future.

(Via Engadget.)

Are you a Twitter addict who owns an Apple device? If yes, then undoubtedly you regularly use Twitter’s official iPhone app. You will be glad to know that the app now has a wonderful new improvement.

Currently the app has a number of cool features which facilitate Twitter usage on the iPhone. Some of the app’s standard features include real-time search, top Tweets, trending topics, and maps that show whatever is currently happening nearby and everywhere else.

All these features, while great, have not left the Twitter developers complacent. In order to keep their app on top, they need to regularly update it to take advantage of the new OS’s abilities. They have done exactly this to integrate iOS’s most important feature, multitasking, in their app.

Multitasking lets you use multiple applications simultaneously. Twitter was smart enough to update their app in order for it to support multitasking on iOS 4. This new version of the app is compatible with iPod Touch, iPhone, and the iPad; the OS requirement is iOS 3.0 or later. These requirements let any modern Apple device owners take advantage of the app and all its great features, including multitasking.

Check out the official Twitter iPhone app  HERE

(Via Free and Useful Online Resources for Designers and Developers.)