Lifehacker

Use Technician's Codes to Diagnose Your Android Phone [Android]

Jason Fitzpatrick — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 06:30:00 PDT

Android: Get a closer look at the inner workings of your phone by using the diagnostic codes technicians use to trouble shoot everything from an unresponsive GPS device to backlight problems. More »

Devote Four Minutes Every Morning to Actual Couple Talk [Relationships]

Kevin Purdy — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 06:00:00 PDT

It's easy to make mornings into an impersonal assembly line—get showered, get caffeinated, eat, get to work. One early riser suggests making a serious habit of focusing four minutes every morning on significant others. No, not those four minutes. More »

Survey Shows We're All Checking Email Way Too Often [Email Overload]

Kevin Purdy — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 05:30:00 PDT

Xobni, makers of an Outlook plug-in that improves your email contacts and analytics, did a little analyzing of their own through a survey of 2,200 U.S. workers, and more in the UK. The results are anything but happy. Among Americans, 72 percent check their email on vacations, sick days, and in bed, with one in five stating that checking email is the first thing they do in the morning, or last thing right before bed. Half of those who check email outside work hours said they also check their email during vacations, and that's likely because 26 percent of respondents said they felt overwhelmed and unproductive from the volume of email received while gone. Priority Inbox, you couldn't come soon enough. [PRNewswire via TechCrunch] More »

Notes for Later Creates Personalized "Email Yourself" Bookmarklets [Bookmarklets]

Kevin Purdy — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 05:10:00 PDT

For all the to-do apps and reminder services out there, some people, at some times, just want to email things to themselves. To make that lo-fi reminder possible, Notes for Later has a bookmarklet that quickly sends web page write-ups to email. More »

Try Out Chrome's Side Tabs in the Canary Build [Chrome]

Kevin Purdy — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 04:00:00 PDT

Windows only: If you keep a copy of Chrome's bleeding-edge Canary build on hand, you can check out Chrome's optional Side Tabs feature right now. Update Canary, activate a "Labs" feature, and you're a right-click away from vertical tabs. More »

From the Tips Box: International Gmail Calls, Standing Desks, and Dropbox Drives [From The Tips Box]

Whitson Gordon — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 17:00:00 PDT

Readers offer their best tips for calling from Gmail overseas, making easy standing desks, and mounting Dropbox as a virtual drive. More »

Remains of the Day: Amazon Gets 99-Cent HD TV Show Purchases [For What Its Worth]

Arvin Dang — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 16:20:00 PDT

Amazon announces 99-cent downloads for TV shows in HD, winning the lottery isn't what it's cracked up to be, and Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 mobile operating system is ready for prime time. More »

Share Your Expertise on Lifehacker Expert Pages [Reader Guide]

Whitson Gordon — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 15:00:00 PDT

Some of the best posts and ideas at Lifehacker come from you, the readers, and we're always looking to improve the ways you guys can contribute to the site. Today, we're introducing a new way you can flex your specialties: Expert Pages. More »

August 2010's Most Popular Posts [[this Is Good]]

Adam Pash — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 14:30:00 PDT

This August we stopped Facebook from invading our privacy yet again, rounded up our favorite iPhone and Android apps, got up and running with Usenet, made the most of Gmail Calling, and more. Here's a quick look back. More »

How to Keep Up With the US Open Online [Tennis]

Adam Dachis — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 14:00:00 PDT

The US Open is underway and available to watch online. Here's how to pick up live streams, get updates, and follow along on your smartphone. More »

Strobox Pairs Photographs and Their Lighting Schemes [Photography]

Jason Fitzpatrick — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:30:00 PDT

If you're a photography student, formally or informally, learning about lighting schemes is one of the trickier and more time consuming aspects of study. Strobox pairs user-submitted photographs with lighting diagrams to help you learn how lighting schemes impact the final photo. More »

Disable Windows 7's Homegroup Feature to Save System Resources [Windows 7]

The How-To Geek — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:00:00 PDT

If you're not using the new Homegroup feature in Windows 7, or you've only got a single PC, you can disable the Homegroup feature to save memory and get rid of the items in the navigation pane. More »

How to Change Wireless Network Priority in Windows [Windows Tip]

Whitson Gordon — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 12:30:00 PDT

If you have a few wireless networks in or around your home or office that you use, you can easily prioritize which one your computer connects to first in Windows' Control Panel. More »

What You Can Expect from iOS 4.1 and the Upcoming iOS 4.2 [Updates]

Adam Dachis — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 12:05:00 PDT

Today Apple announced iOS 4.1, addressing many bugs (like iPhone 3G performance) as well as bringing new features like HDR photography, HD video upload and TV show rentals. Additionally, Apple previewed iOS 4.2, bringing this and more to the iPad. More »

Unhearit Gets that Song Out of Your Head with a Catchy New One [Annoyances]

Jason Fitzpatrick — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 12:00:00 PDT

Unhearit uses a fight-fire-with-fire approach to getting annoying songs out of your head by barraging you with new and catchy tunes. More »

iTunes 10 Gets a Streamlined Interface, Adds a Social Network for Music [Downloads]

Kevin Purdy — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:50:00 PDT

Windows/Mac: If you were hoping for a totally redesigned, less twiddly iTunes 10, you're out of luck. But Apple added a social tool, Ping, for following artists and friends' tastes and tracking concerts. And your music list looks a bit tidier, too. More »

Greplin is a Personal Search Engine for Your Cloud Data [Search]

Adam Dachis — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:30:00 PDT

Greplin indexes data you store in the cloud and provides a quick and simple search to let you find what you're looking for. More »

Command-Click to Move Background Windows in OS X [Mac Tip]

Whitson Gordon — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:00:00 PDT

If you have a lot of windows open at once, you may find yourself doing a lot of rearranging. If you want to keep an eye on your frontmost window, though, you can move windows without focusing them. More »

Zootool is a Visual, Social Bookmarking Tool [Bookmarking Tools]

Adam Dachis — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 10:30:00 PDT

Getting through a long list of bookmarks to find that site you vaguely remember can be a pain. Zootool bookmarks with images, letting your visual memory help you locate sites faster. More »

Adioso Finds the Best Deals for Travelers with Flexible Travel Plans [Travel]

Jason Fitzpatrick — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 10:00:00 PDT

There are plenty of ticket search engines that will help you find the best price for a specific day and time. Adioso takes a different tact, showing you the best times to fly within a longer, more flexible travel window. More »

Battle of the Android Home Screen Launchers: ADW vs. LauncherPro vs. HelixLauncher [Android]

Whitson Gordon — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:00:00 PDT

Many Android devices ship with a default home screen launcher that, frankly, kind of sucks. The good news? You can install a new launcher offering better shortcuts, more home screens, and extra configuration options. Here's the lowdown on the most popular options. More »

DIY FlashBender Is a Cheap and Flexible Flash Modifier [Photography]

Jason Fitzpatrick — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:30:00 PDT

If you're looking for a lightweight flash modifier for your camera you'd be hard pressed to find a DIY option more flexible—literally and figuratively—than this DIY FlashBender. More »

Do the iPod Touch and Other Semi-Smartphones Still Make Sense? [Reader Poll]

Kevin Purdy — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:08:00 PDT

If the rumors are true, Apple could launch a streaming media service at their annual music event today. But the iPod touch might also get some key upgrades. We're wondering if our gadget buyers still see life in Wi-Fi-only products. More »

QR Code Generator Creates Smartphone-Friendly Barcodes from Chrome [Downloads]

Kevin Purdy — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 07:30:00 PDT

Chrome only: If there's an app, a link, or anything else on the web you want to quickly pull up on a smartphone, or send to friends, QR Code Generator gets you there with just a right-click from Chrome. More »

Google Now Indexes Scalable Vector Graphics [Google]

Kevin Purdy — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 07:05:00 PDT

On the lookout for graphics that look good at any size, or some specialized font images? Google's search bots just started indexing SVG files, so you can find them on any site they're available (and wherever webmasters haven't blocked Google). You can find your scalable vector graphics with a filetype:svg search. [Google Webmaster Central via SearchEngine Land] More »

HTC Home Brings the HTC Weather Widget to Windows 7 [Downloads]

Jason Fitzpatrick — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 06:30:00 PDT

Windows: If you're sporting an HTC phone with the HTC user interface you may have grown fond of the combination clock and weather forecasting widget. HTC Home ports the HTC interface from your phone to your Windows desktop, complete with animations. More »

Stretching Before Running Doesn't Help, But Don't Stop Right Away [Exercise]

Kevin Purdy — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 06:00:00 PDT

Stretching, especially the static reach-and-hold kind we've previously suggested was all wrong, had virtually no effect on injury prevention in a study of 1,400 runners, ages 13 to over 60. Not only that, but stretching could actually hurt your workout. More »

SweetSearch Finds Credible Research Sources for Students [Research]

Kevin Purdy — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 05:30:00 PDT

Google's a really big sandbox to be digging through if you're looking for only the most legitimate material for a research paper. SweetSearch ranks up primary sources and credible sites, like universities and public repositories, for students looking to narrow their search. More »

FilerFrog Puts Truly Helpful File Operations in Windows' Context Menu [Downloads]

Kevin Purdy — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 05:00:00 PDT

Windows only: You probably do a lot of things to files and folders that could be easily automated. Enter FilerFrog, a free Windows add-on that adds image resizing, file renaming, encryption, listing, path copying, and other abilities to your right-click options. More »

Drink a Glass of Milk to Neutralize Garlic Breath [Food Hacks]

Kevin Purdy — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 04:00:00 PDT

Scientists looking deep into garlic odor recently came to the conclusion that it's water and fat that reduce garlic breath, so milk is the perfect delivery vehicle. Consider milk, or a non-skim latte, or even ice cream, as a post-pasta breath fixer. More »

How to Remember People's Names (and Deal with Unusual Names) [Mind Hacks]

Philip Guo — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 17:00:00 PDT

Accurately remembering names is one of the simplest yet most important components of interacting with people, no matter in what capacity. This article presents some tips I've acquired over the years with regards to remembering and using people's names. More »

Microsoft Research: Buttons Beat Multitouch Mouse [Microsoft]

Gary Cutlack — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 16:30:00 PDT

Microsoft carried out some exhaustive research into the benefits of multitouch-enabled desktop mice over traditional desktop mice. And discovered there aren't really any benefits at all for most users, who prefer the speed offered by mechanical buttons and wheels. More »

Remains of the Day: webOS 2.0 Is Looking Good [For What It's Worth]

Arvin Dang — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 16:10:00 PDT

Palm's mobile operating system webOS set to gain several cool new features features, Google Wave will finish out the year, and customer service in America is so bad because companies want what they don't have.
More »

Three New Gmail Shortcuts You'll Want to Memorize [Keyboard Shortcuts]

Adam Pash — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:00:00 PDT

If you're a keyboard shortcut lover using Gmail's new Priority Inbox feature or the awesome new Gmail calling feature, you've got three new shortcuts you'll want to add to your Gmail repertoire. More »

Best Text Recognition Tool: ABBYY FineReader [Hive Five Followup]

Jason Fitzpatrick — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:30:00 PDT

Last week we asked you to share your favorite text recognition tool—more formally known as optical character recognition (OCR)—then we compared them all. Now we're back to highlight the most popular text recognition tool. More »

How to Wirelessly and Automatically Back Up Your iPhone Photos [Backup]

Scott Enriquez — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:00:00 PDT

Syncing your iPhone doesn't backup your photos, and if you're not in constant sync you could easily lose them in a crash. Here's how to jailbreak your iPhone and set up an automatic photo-syncing process. More »

Ask for "Oops!" Paint to Score Premium Paint at Bargain Prices [Frugality]

Jason Fitzpatrick — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 13:30:00 PDT

Next time you need some quality paint but the budget doesn't allow for it, hit up home centers and paint stores to check out the "Oops!" selection and score premium paint at a massive discount. More »

Use AutoHotkey to Scroll the Command Prompt Backwards by Keyboard [Autohotkey]

The How-To Geek — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 13:00:00 PDT

Windows only: There's no question that the Windows command prompt is anemic, but even if you upgrade it with Cygwin, you're still left with a console window that won't let you scroll backwards with the keyboard. Here's the fix. More »

Google Docs Adds Wave-Style Collaborative Text Highlighting [Collaboration]

Adam Pash — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 12:55:00 PDT

Google Wave may be on its way out, but a lot of the features that made Wave so great at collaborating already have or seem to be making their way into Google Docs. Case in point: Today, Google Docs incorporates live text highlighting to Docs. More »