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- Cool Websites and Tools [July 15]
- How To Analyze A Windows Blue Screen Of Death With WhoCrashed (Windows)
- Choosing A Laptop: 9 Great Review Sites
- Free Ringtones That Sound Like Real Phones
- How to Color Your Pictures Like Famous Paintings With FlauntR
- Alice – Your Personal Shopping Assistant
| Cool Websites and Tools [July 15] Posted: 15 Jul 2009 04:00 PM PDT
(1) Bookmaplet – This is an address mapping bookmarlet for your browser. It allows you to quickly view a map of any physical address you come across online without having to leave the page you are on. Read more: Bookmaplet: Handy Address Mapping Bookmarklet (2) GrungeTextures – Online resource that lists free collection of high quality background textures focused mainly on weathered and worn surfaces. Anyone can download and use them without restrictions. The site lets you search images, browse them by categories and also view popular and latest additions. Read more: GrungeTextures: High Quality Background Textures (3) Milo – Shopping site which focuses on offering real-time product availability information from local retailers including Wal-Mart, Target and BestBuy in 30,000 towns across the United States. Consumers can check the availability of desired products at local stores, filter the results by stores, brand or prices and compare them to find the cheapest and the best item for themselves. Read more: Milo: Check Real Time Product Availability At Local Stores (4) Symbols – Website where you can easily look up symbols and read their meanings. It currently lists around 2500 western (both modern and ancient) symbols organized in 54 categories. Read more: Symbols: Look Up Symbol Meanings (5) SlideServe – Web service where you can upload PowerPoint presentations and then easily share or embed them on the web. Once you upload the presentation, it is converted into a Flash video and all the text from slides is extracted into a separate transcript which is displayed on the same page below the video. Read more: SlideServe: Upload and Share PowerPoint Presentations
These are just half of the websites that we discovered in the last couple of days. If you want us to send you daily round-ups of all cool websites we come across, leave your email here. Or follow us via RSS feed. Related posts
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| How To Analyze A Windows Blue Screen Of Death With WhoCrashed (Windows) Posted: 15 Jul 2009 02:00 PM PDT
Of those type of errors, BSODs (Blue Screen of Death) are the worst and are often caused by poorly written device drivers, kernel extensions or faulty RAM (Random Access Memory). You can't recover to the normal software environment without either a soft or hard reset. Soft resets are usually the case, as the computer will try to automatically reboot or display the error code and require the user to initiate the restart sequence, the infamous "Ctrl-Alt-Delete" or "Press Any Key" prompts. Many of you probably have encountered this type of error and know that any files that weren't saved at the moment of crash have either lost changes or have been corrupted. Personally, as a writer, I consider this to be one of Windows' greatest flaws. I have lost a lot of work due to this kind of issues and the problems seem to continue in Windows 7, although the frequency appears to be greatly reduced.
WhoCrashed, an application developed by Resplendence Software Projects, aims to demystify the error codes and present you with a likely culprit of the crash. Finding out what caused it can be the first step in eliminating the problem and creating a more stable computing environment. RAM memory, as well as faulty drivers, can be replaced – but your time can't be. With the help of WhoCrashed, an error code like "0×0BJS00341110B12" can point you to a kernel module like "nvlddmkm.sys" which comes most of the time with vendor information. In this case, as the 'NV' prefix suggests, an nVidia Miniport driver caused the crash. Unlike many applications these days, WhoCrashed is presents you with only two buttons and a simple text-oriented interface. The 'simple is always better' motto holds true in this case. All you have to do is press the 'Analyze' button and scroll down to the date of the computer crash you want to inspect. Most of the times WhoCrashed will identify the module that failed and allow you to fix the problem.
When a driver caused the crash, which happens 99% of the time, a simple and easy way to fix the problem is to identify it and download the latest version from the manufacturer’s website. When a Windows component frequently causes a crashes, the problem will most likely be fixed by running Windows Update. Overheating can also be responsible for faults in data transfer or processing. If crashes happen while playing intensive 3D games, photo or video editing, check the ventilation system and revert to previous clock speeds if you're overclocking any of the system's parameters. Overheating can permanently damage the hardware, so fixing the problem as fast as possible is recommended. Pressing and holding the F8 key while the systems boots will bring up a screen with various system recovery options including Safe Mode, which only loads the basic drivers and modules, and a RAM verification tool. Various Linux distributions including Ubuntu, have a similar memory check module (memtest) which is presented at boot-time when the live CD is inserted or by the bootloader in multi-boot environments. You can download WhoCrashed for free. Installation is achieved via a simple and straightforward wizard. A Pro version aimed at tech support staff is also available for $35. The Pro license removes the 'home-use-only' restriction and provides more details about the crashes among other features. At under 1MB, WhoCrashed is a must-have in any geek's virtual toolbox. Check out more posts related to Windows or RadarSync, an application which automatically keeps your drivers and software up-to-date. Are you annoyed by BSODs or Windows errors? What’s the most common one and what did you do to fix it? Let us know in the comments. Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/ Related posts
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| Choosing A Laptop: 9 Great Review Sites Posted: 15 Jul 2009 12:00 PM PDT
However, when buying a new laptop, there are always several questions to ask yourself. What size do I buy? Which brand should I get? HP, Dell, Acer, Apple? Reflective versus non-reflective screen? What good is a backlit keyboard? I know, there are heaps to choose from. Here are 9 sites to help you find a laptop that suits you, your budget and its application. But before you start your hunt, you should read the MakeUseOf Laptop Buying Guide first to know what to look for in a laptop. Alright, in no particular order, here are 9 great sites to help you on your hunt for a new laptop! Liliputing
Liliputing has great reviews, has a developing community and reasonable size product database that gives the specification of everything you need to know when comparing laptops. Each laptop is subjected to personal opinions and links to more reviews about a laptop. Cnet Reviews
Cnet is a very popular site that covers a lot of reviews on a lot of different products from Televisions, Camcorders, Car Tech, Cell Phones to Computers. Finding a laptop is very easy. Just select your budget, manufacturer, notebook type, product line or other options such as RAM, hard drive or weight, and your choice will be narrowed down. When beginning your laptop hunt, you should start off at Cnet. Notebook Review
Like Cnet, Notebook Review can help you find a laptop that suits your needs. However, there is one advantage. Not only does Notebook Review provides links to buy products online, they also have a database of promotional codes and deals for huge discounts. ZDNet
ZDNet is another popular site that allows you to search and narrow down your choice of laptops. The specifications that ZDnet provides are good and comparing different laptops are a breeze. Most of the information you find on ZDnet is from Cnet, so you might want to check out Cnet first.
Engadget
Engadget provides some great articles on laptops and on other gadgets. It's more of a blog so it doesn't provide you with the comparisons that Cnet and Liliputing provides. However, they provide good images and provide you with their opinion on the device. Their reviews are based on daily and real-life use, something to consider when purchasing a new laptop. PC Magazine
PC Mag keeps you covered on news, reviews, prices of laptops and computer accessories. Just visit the Laptop compare prices section and you can get reviews, specs and price ranges from different suppliers and online websites. PriceGrabber
Price Grabber mainly gives you the specification of laptops, their prices and where to buy them. The main aim of Price Grabber is to allow you to perform a comparison between many different products and suppliers. When you have found your perfect laptop, head over to Price Grabber and see where you can pick up a good deal. Laptop Magazine
Laptop Mag is great because they give a round-up of best laptops for certain group of people. Whether it be students, or for dads. They also publish news about the latest on laptops, when manufactures are releasing products and more. If you don't know how to do something, then Laptop Mag has some handy tutorials and How To's which are worth to check out. Laptopical
Laptopical provides a range of laptops to fit your budget. Although I wouldn't suggest finding a laptop through this site, but once you have found a laptop that you want, visit Laptopical and have a read what they say. If you are searching for a laptop, MakeUseOf hopes that you find the right computer for you. If you have any other suggestions for good laptop review sites, let us know in the comments. Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on Twitter ? Now you can follow MakeUseOf on Twitter too. Related posts
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| Free Ringtones That Sound Like Real Phones Posted: 15 Jul 2009 10:00 AM PDT
Who knew that your career would end to the song you moonwalked to at your junior high dance? How about getting a ringtone that actually sounds like a real phone? Remember those Bakelite behemoth’s that used to hang on the kitchen wall or the rotary that sat in your dad’s den? Ahh, those were the good old days – when the Weather Channel was known as a window and a leaf blower was known as a rake. With a good, “real phone” ringtone, you’ll probably find that you don’t get as many strange looks when that electronic ball and chain goes off in public. People are still used to the ordinary phone ring and find it less offensive than hearing about your humps, your humps, your lovely lady humps. Here’s some of the best free, “real phone” ringtones I could find online. Most of them were found through forums where people said they made the recordings themselves. I presume since they put them on the forums, they are free and royalty free.
This one should sound familiar to almost everyone as it is the phone ring used most often in old movies and TV shows. Thanks to Hollywood Lost and Found for this one.
Sounds just like the one that your dad might have had in his office, doesn’t it? Those were the days.
Ever seen those old phones where the earpiece hung on the main phone that looked like a candlestick? This is the ring from one of those.
Looking for that certain je ne sais quoi? This one is the ticket. C’est bon!
I like the distinctive double-ring of the UK phones. Reminds me of old episodes of Coronation Street.
Here’s the same kind of UK ring, but with a little higher pitch. Now for some famous classic phone rings…
This is the ring that Agent 86’s shoe phone made. Yes, there was a TV show of Get Smart before the not-so-good movie.
This one is my favourite! It seems not many people under 40 know that the phone ring from Austin Powers was taken from the Our Man Flint movie, starring James Coburn. It was also a sort of spy-spoof movie.
Apparently this is the ring tone from Jack Bauer’s CTU unit on 24. Honestly, I’ve never made it through a full episode of this show, but the ringtone is pretty cool. If what we have here doesn’t fill your boots, there is one other really good source for classic real phone ringtones that I found over at BeepZoid’s Vintage Phone Ringtones. With over 60 different ringtones in MIDI, MP3 and iPhone formats, there’s a good chance you’ll find what your looking for. What do you think of “real phone” ringtones versus all the clips and top 40 stuff out there? Got a favourite ringtone to share with us? Drop us a line in the comments below. I’ll have my people call your people. Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/ Related posts
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| How to Color Your Pictures Like Famous Paintings With FlauntR Posted: 15 Jul 2009 08:00 AM PDT
I didn't have to look far: we covered FlauntR, a free photo editing download, here at MakeUseOf when it was in its Alpha stage. Register with FlauntR, and see how you can use its picasR function in 3 easy steps to quickly give your pictures that million-dollar painting look! After logging in, click the picasR button in the top left row to get to the painting effects functionality. If this is your first time using flauntR, the interface might seem complex at first, but I assure you that it's not. The upper left box holds your source picture, the lower left box holds the painting you would like to use as a reference. Results of your magic appear in the center. Simple! Step 1: Get Your PhotoFrom the bottom section, you can upload a picture from your computer, or directly import a picture from Flickr, Facebook, Picasa, etc. The flauntR tab shows your pictures saved in flauntR albums.
If you upload a new picture from your computer, switch to the flauntR tab to access your album and drag your picture to the workspace. I selected a simple photograph of a bunch of trees on a hill as an example.
Step 2: Select Famous PaintingFrom the famous paintings gallery on the right, select any painting. You can choose a subject that matches your picture (portrait, landscape, etc.) or you can get creative by blending anything you fancy. If you have a particular painting in mind that is not listed in the gallery, you can get its image from the Internet and use that as your reference image.
For example, let us select Arnold Böcklin's The Sacred Wood in the symbolist style. Your desired reference image appears in your workspace below your original picture.
You can get help, zoom into the picture, or select a portion of the picture, using the icons at the top of both your picture and the reference image. If you wish to selectively apply the desired effect to only a part of your photo, use the selection icon. I liked the simple one-click process, but you can get creative if you want to apply effects of different paintings to different parts of your picture! Step 3: Abracadabra!Click Apply! Here are the results of my quick experiment as compared to my original picture:
The ‘Editing Tools’ drop-down toolbox lets you save your image, reset it back to original, and more. Once you've saved your new picture, you can easily download it, or share your 'artwork' with your friends on Flickr, Facebook, and other networks. The painting color effect works best with outdoor pictures, but you can also use famous portrait paintings as your reference images. I found that I could work with large image sizes with no restrictions on file size. The ability to apply special effects, save, download, and share, are all free with no strings attached. Which paintings did you use for your pictures? Share your results with us in the comments! Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on Twitter ? Now you can follow MakeUseOf on Twitter too. Related posts
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| Alice – Your Personal Shopping Assistant Posted: 15 Jul 2009 06:00 AM PDT
True but she has lots of other important stuff to do like, I don't know… Um, how about raising my daughter? We have found a website that helps keep our stockable items in stock! It even can beat most of the prices you are currently paying – especially if you are buying things in a brick and mortar store. Alice is the help we have been looking for and this handy web service is free! Just the way we like it! Let's take a look at how she works:
First, you have to sign up for the service and tell them a little bit about your family and what products they/you use. For example, if you add an adult female, tampons become a stockable item or a child under 3 — diapers. The service categorizes items by the person who will most likely use them. So I selected the This is me button next to “Adult male”. Then, I choose an adult woman and a baby. This was easily done by the screen you see below:
Next up is your chance to narrow down products that you don't use. Everything starts out checked, so uncheck the products you don't want to see or that you do not care about. For example, if you do not use women's deodorant or you do not want Alice to track this (ie: you get it somewhere for free or really cheap) than just uncheck the box and continue on.
You knew it was coming… The registration. Fill in your info along with a valid email address and you are on your way to completing the setup process.
Now you should search and add your favorite products. Then you can order what you need online for right now as well as let Alice remind you when it thinks you are running low on a specific product.
Let's take a look at your products. From here, you see each item represented by a blue duck. To go into one (or remove one) click on the plus sign on the duck.
That takes you to the individual product page and you can find your brands or specific products here. Or simply click “Delete the duck” to remove this item.
When you click “Let's Go Find Some” you will come to a product page where you can add products, pick sizes and see what discounts are available. See the listing from baby diapers. This is only a small fraction of the 50 items they carry. 17 of them have coupons or savings available.
Next, you can create a custom label, choose how many you order at a time, and you can choose when Alice should remind you to get some more. If a product is out of stock, you can select “Save for future order” and add it to your list. Then you will be notified when it becomes available.
After you are done, you can always go back and add or modify products in one of three ways. You can search, browse or click an item’s place holder.
Well, to me, this service is simply awesome! It helps me out a lot! Do you use a similar service? Do you save money using it? If so, let us know in the comments! Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/ Related posts
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