MakeUseOf.com: “Cool Websites and Tools [March 17th]” plus 10 more |  |
- Cool Websites and Tools [March 17th]
- Top 10 Most Downloaded Portable Apps [Movers & Shakers]
- Three Places To Get Excellent Advice About A New Camera
- Sobees: The Best Windows Twitter Client You’ve Never Heard Of
- How To Create A Wordpress Blog With The Foxinni Facebook Template
- 5+ Ways To Enhance Productivity With FireFox’s Location (Address) Bar
- RapidDownloader: A Small But Powerful Rapidshare Download Manager
- 5 Channels To Visit When You Reach BBC Online
- How To Use The Character Panel In Photoshop
- Ubuntu Remote Desktop: Built-In, VNC Compatible & Dead Easy
- Destroy Some Free Time With Monster Truck Destroyer
| Cool Websites and Tools [March 17th] Posted: 17 Mar 2010 08:31 PM PDT
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. Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!
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| Top 10 Most Downloaded Portable Apps [Movers & Shakers] Posted: 17 Mar 2010 07:31 PM PDT
This week we are looking at portable applications. These are the apps that can be carried on a USB thumb drive and can be used on pretty much any computer.
Weighing in at first place, raking in 13,696 downloads this week, is winPenPack 1GB. It is a suite of portable applications. It has over 100 useful shareware apps that will make your life easier carrying them around on a USB drive. This is a must for tech support guys like myself! We have mentioned similar portable app suites on MakeUseOf before. Now we have all been in situations where we had to clean the registry on another person’s machine. In this situation you can run this registry cleaner to find and destroy obsolete registry entries. Ah another winPenPack – this one is geared towards students. This pack comes with over 50 apps from 8 different categories all aimed at helping you learn and further your education. The categories are titled Computer, Geometry, Graphics and Drawing, Languages and Translators, Math, Music, Science and Utilities. For those pesky programs that leave behind remnants and other crap on your PC after uninstalling. If that iffy program you tried does not even have an uninstaller then Uninstall Expert is for you. It lets you run a deep scan and get rid of broken registry keys and files associated with the tool. Price: Free to try (7-day/12-use trial); $17.99 to buy. Do you have a U3 enabled Flash Drive or Memory Stick? Have you ever wanted to customize your own applications to run on the U3 platform where you can plug your USB drive in and it launches the application living on it? Well this makes it SUPER easy to do and its free. Check it out. Can't install apps and you need your Skype? Do you use a lot of other people's computers and want to bring Skype with you? It works the same way as the normal Skype but in a portable package. Don't leave home without it! Before it was available officially, our very own Mark O'Neill had a write up on how to make Skype a portable app. There has been a lot of hub bub about Cody Safe. They say that you can use it to create a computer on a stick. After looking at it I say it is a way to create your own portable application suites and have a place to save the files you work on. This is a pre-created CodySafe pack for network admins, IT specialists and anyone who needs to deal with other peoples computers. You get a suite of apps but it also lets you script them so you can add commands before/after running an app from the menu. This can let you run batch scripts or registry files so you don't have to do it manually. This one offers up support for our non-English speaking friends. This is made for a 512MB stick and has apps in 7 categories. They are Graphics, Internet, Multimedia, Security, System, Office, and Utilities. There are a few freeware and shareware apps in the genre and usually the most popular of the bunch i.e. Firefox, uTorrent, GIMP, ClamWin, Foxit, etc. FCleaner is similar to the above little registry cleaner due to the fact that it cleans your registry and supposedly speeds up your Windows computer. Some of my favorite portable apps that have been featured on MakeUseOf in the past are: NirLauncher, Transfer Time Calculator, Notepad, Google Chrome, Ccleaner, Windirstat, Format Factory, Liberkey, and SearchMyFiles. Thank you for your suggestions and let us know what you think of the new format – like it, love or hate it? Your comments keep shaping MakeUseOf and we appreciate it! Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!
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| Three Places To Get Excellent Advice About A New Camera Posted: 17 Mar 2010 06:31 PM PDT
It's important to work these things through, and to find the combination of features and price that work for you. And I've got some great places to start. Firstly though, a general rule. Don't trust anyone who is trying to sell you something. I've had more than one example of the sales process getting in the way of the facts. And that's where the web comes in. Although it's difficult to trust any one source, you can cross-check easily and comprehensively. Don't buy a lemon just because you didn't do the homework.
Get The Low-DownI'll use my purchase as an example. I'm a Canon guy, but it's not a religion. Replacing my 30D with a new model was a matter of weighing up what I did and didn't want, and what I was and was not prepared to pay for it.
DPreview also provides links to sites that will sell you the camera. They may or may not be useful to you. I like to buy cameras in New Zealand if I can, so I just use those links as helpful pointers for pricing. Other great places for advice and reviews are Steve's digicams, and the camera review section of CNet. Tech Specs
If you need explanations about some of the technology in your biggest purchase of the year, there is nowhere better than Wikipedia to go. It's dangerous as well though, for two reasons. First, everything is linked to everything else, and you can forget all about why you went there in the first place. Secondly, it's not always the most authoritative place around, but most of the disagreements relate to things other than established technical standards, so you should be on safe ground.
For instance, in my case I was going to need to upgrade memory cards. My old and valued EOS 30D used the same broad range of Compact Flash (CF) cards, but my 4GB cards weren't going to be much use with a camera that creates 30MB RAW images. DPreview and a number of other sources mentioned about how the 7D supports UDMA, and Wikipedia was able to provide enough information to tell me that it Turns out, by the way, that some 133X CF cards would do the trick, so I now have a Kingston 16GB one, along with a 32GB. Early days yet, but they seem to be great! Real PeopleIt turns out that, so long as the camera you are considering isn't really new, some of the best advice comes from people who use them. So make use of the community.
In this case, there's a group specifically for the EOS 7D. In fact there are over 50 groups specifically for this camera. The biggest one has over a thousand members at last count.
For instance, there's a Canon EOS forum that deals with a whole range of Canon SLRs, and huge numbers of helpful people are actively involved in there.
All of these places are filled with people who have opinions. Some are researched, balanced and helpful. Others are seriously biased and illogical. It's best to take it all with a degree of cynicism, and to check up on anything that sounds suspicious. BonusI know I said three places, but I wanted to add a little friendly advice. Something to take on your journey. Please don't research and purchase a camera online without actually touching an example of the model you want to buy. You can confirm as many tech features as you like, but if it turns out that the viewfinder irritates your eye, or the screen flickers, or it's just too damn heavy for your little hands, you'd be much better to find that out before the purchase is being drip-fed from your hard-earned income. If you are purchasing something which you might need some help with later, it could be well worth it to buy the camera from an actual store. Somewhere that they know what they are doing, and can offer good advice. You know. The place where you touched the camera. That's it. Oh, the 7D? It's amazing.
Have you purchased any camera gear lately? Have any horror stories or advice? I'd love to hear about it in the comments. Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!
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| Sobees: The Best Windows Twitter Client You’ve Never Heard Of Posted: 17 Mar 2010 04:31 PM PDT
When I'm considering a new Windows Twitter client, there are a few criteria I look for each time: customizability, support for multiple accounts, lists (preferably in columns), native retweet functionality, and all the standard features from the web interface. Sobees includes all of these features along with great support for Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn.
Customizable LayoutsOne of the best features of Sobees is its extremely customizable layout. After you've added your social networks accounts, click the Change Layout button to select from any of 16 different layouts.
You can then assign different portions of the layout to each of your social networks by dragging and dropping them.
View In Columns Or TabsYour social networks will be displayed in a tabbed view by default. This is great if you are working on a small screen, but you can easily change it to a separated column view (like TweetDeck) which is much easier to use. To switch to the column view, click the Settings button for the particular service you are using then click the View in Columns button.
You will now have a column layout just like TweetDeck, and you can add or remove specific columns by clicking the buttons on the left.
Twitter ListsSobees has full support for Twitter lists. You can select your lists via the dropdown box at the top of the Twitter section.
After selecting a list, it will appear as a new column.
Updating Multiple Services SimultaneouslyYou can update your social networks individually, but Sobees also includes a unified update button which you can use to update your social networks all at once. To update your status, click the Update my status on multiple services button then select the networks you would like to post to.
Additional Social NetworksSobees is more than just a Windows Twitter client; it also supports Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn. Facebook support includes full access to your news feed, inbox, friends list, profile, and events. Best of all, you can filter items in your news feed by using the buttons on the left side of the Facebook section.
Languages & ThemesSobees can be customized to use English, German, French, Spanish, and Italian and also includes 5 different visual themes. To access these settings, click the Gear icon in the top right of Sobees.
ConclusionSobees is a great Twitter client that includes all of the features applications like TweetDeck and Seesmic offer but in a much more customizable package. Sobees is still in a beta version so don't be surprised if you find a few bugs, but the development team seems to be very active. This is definitely one of the best Twitter applications I have ever used, and I hope it grows in popularity in the future. If you've enjoyed the Sobees desktop application, you might also want to check out their web-based application, Sobees Web. Got Tech Questions? Ask Them on MakeUseOf Answers! Related posts
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| How To Create A Wordpress Blog With The Foxinni Facebook Template Posted: 17 Mar 2010 02:31 PM PDT
This is also another reason I was excited when I learned about Foxinni, because if you’re using the Foxinni Facebook template for your own hosted blog, then obviously you’re free to tweak the theme all you like. And in all honesty, I really do like how content is laid out and featured to the reader in Facebook – I just wish that we could change colors and modify the appearance just a little bit more easily. Using The Foxinni Facebook Template For Your BlogYes, it’s absolutely true. You can make your Wordpress blog have the identical look and feel as Facebook. Why would anyone want to do that? Well, maybe you just love the layout, or maybe you’re starting a blog that’s has content about Facebook and you want to appeal to Facebook users. Whatever your reason is, Foxinni absolutely goes above and beyond in providing the perfect Facebook template for your Wordpress blog. Even better, Malan, the innovative web designer from South Africa, provides the theme absolutely free…what a cool guy! For his efforts, we should really support his paid work over at WooThemes if you ever have the need for a professional theme.
In this exercise, I’m going to convert my blog DebtDreams, which I haven’t done much writing on lately, over to this new, cool Facebook template. First, obviously, download and unzip the files from the Foxinni website, and then FTP the Facebook theme into your Wordpress “themes” folder. Then go into Wordpress, go into Appearance and Themes, and click on the Foxinni Facebook theme to activate.
Take a look at the preview, and if you like how the theme looks – go ahead and click on the link at the top to activate the theme. Now that we’ve got it active, let’s take a look at the settings and see how the theme can be customized. Under Appearance, if you click on “Facebook Theme Options,” you’ll see the following page.
Since this is a blog about money, I thought I’d go with green. Also I opted to hide the “Wordpress” logo, and align my title on the left side. Now, my DebtDreams blog still looks a lot like Facebook, but with the colors that I want!
I really like this theme! The only problem is that the widgets on both sides are matching – so it’s time to customize the sidebars and see if we can make the Facebook theme look even more like Facebook using the sidebar widgets and some code. First, I’ve inserted my profile picture and a link to my profile on the upper right, just like on Facebook. Then, I wanted something a little like the friends widget on Facebook, so I decided to embed my Twitter followers in place of that, using the TweetRoll tool. You can add all of these left sidebar features in a simple text widget with HTML and the embed code.
Then, moving the category widget over to the right bar and adding a few other necessary widgets, the blog finally looks pretty close to my actual Facebook page…except with even more features and customized to exactly how I want it to look.
What makes the Foxinni Facebook template so useful is that so many people are accustomed to the layout and the flow of information as it’s presented on Facebook. In fact, Facebook is drawing more “newbie” Internet users to the web every single day, and the Facebook template is fast becoming the simplest layout for people to follow. If you want your Wordpress blog to appeal to people who use Facebook a lot, and you want to have your content flow in much the same way as it does on your Facebook profile, then this is definitely the theme for you. What do you think of the Foxinni Facebook template? Do you know of any other Wordpress themes that offer the same sort of layout? Share your opinions in the comments section below. Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!
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| 5+ Ways To Enhance Productivity With FireFox’s Location (Address) Bar Posted: 17 Mar 2010 01:31 PM PDT
Quite naturally, if you configure the Firefox address bar to best fit your needs, you may be able to considerably increase your productivity. Again, no need to install all those addons listed, just choose those that are likely to help you get things done faster.
1. FireFox Shortcuts For The Address BarIn the official list of the shortcuts we only can find a couple of those related to the Firefox address (location) bar:
Note: you can change the auto-complete behavior by installing this Firefox plugin: URL Suffix . This addon is also great for non-US users who need to quicker access regional extensions (like .com.ua, .ru, etc):
2. (Mistyped) URL Path FixesWith FireFox’s awesome bar which does a great job suggesting what I am going to type, I use the address bar more and more often to type the URL manually. Therefore the following two addons (that make sure I don’t spend much time dealing with mistypes) are just invaluable: URL CorrectorThis addon makes sure you always type the address using English letters, no matter which language your computer is currently set to use. As a user with Russian origins (and thus having two languages on my laptop I regularly switch between), this addon is very useful for me. (Note: I haven’t tested it with any other languages except Russian):
URL FixerThis addon corrects typos in URLs that you enter in the address bar. You can enable or disable confirmation options for the tool to ask you first if you want the URL corrected:
You can turn off/on the confirmation window by right-clicking on the Firefox address bar:
Another similar addon that can be used for URL correction is FireFix. It claims to “learn and correct mistyped web addresses typed in the address bar”. I found URL Fixer more usable but it’s up to you. 3. Faster BrowsingLocationbar2 “linkifies URL segments” which basically means that you can easily click-through upper-level folders in the URL path (hold CTRL, Shift or Alt for that). Besides, it has a nice visual effect putting emphasis on the domain to reduce the clutter:
UrlbarExt extends the Location Bar with a set of commands. I have hidden most of the commands but a few of them seem really useful:
The options allow to hide any of the commands from the location bar:
4. Enhanced Search OptionsThere are quite a few addons that add/fix search capabilities of FireFox (Awesome) Location bar. Here I am listing my personal picks (choosing is either of them is the best way to go): CyberSearchThis one was already mentioned by me in the post on making FireFox more search-friendly. The addon supports multiple Google services and also displays your related search history (it's limited to Google only):
OmnibarThis addon integrates search bar into the location bar: it shows both search and URL suggestions and adds some handy search options. With Omnibar you can switch between the search engines right from the address bar (just click on the search engine icon in the location bar):
It has other nice features like wildcard support, mouseless search engine switching (works pretty much like FireFox’s smart keywords) and auto-complete. The addon is not perfect (see the discussed bugs) but it has been doing its job pretty well for me so far. Via options you can set the number and the style of the suggestions displayed:
5. About:Config Hacks1. Auto-Completion:If you don’t have Omnibar installed for auto-completion functionality, you can add it yourself from about:config
2. Easier Partial URL HighlightingBy default, Firefox automatically highlights the entire URL; to change this default behavior (if you, like me, have to copy parts of the URL paths frequently), you will need to do the following:
Non-Productivity Addons For The Firefox Address BarJust a couple of addons that are not really about productivity but are just fun:
Now, which hacks do you use to customize your FireFox address bar? 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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| RapidDownloader: A Small But Powerful Rapidshare Download Manager Posted: 17 Mar 2010 12:31 PM PDT
For those who support the spirit of free-ness, living in the Rapidshare world is a kind of cat and mouse game. On one side, Rapidshare is always improving its way to try to ‘force’ the free users to switch to premium users; whereas on the other side, the free users are also always improving their way to get around every ‘obstacle’ to download the files that they want without having to pay the premium price.
A Minuscule Rapidshare Download ManagerRapidDownloader is yet another Rapidshare download manager, similar to jDownloader. But what makes RapidDownloader unique is that this one focuses on the function and light weight of the app so much that the developer chose to abandon the pretty UI and use a text interface instead. The download comes as a zip file of only 12KB in size. In the world of gigabytes and terabytes, this size could be considered a speck of dust. You could download it in less than a second. And when you extract it, you’ll have a 45KB folder – bigger, but still extremely small – with everything that you need inside, ready to use, no installation necessary.
However, no installation doesn’t mean no set up. There are some things that you need to prepare prior to using RapidDownloader. The first thing that you would want to do is to read the “Readme.txt“. You’ll find some quick info about this app inside. Next, edit the “Downloads.txt” file. Put all of your Rapidshare links there. You could insert the links tidily line by line, or you could just select all text in one conversation at some forum which contains some Rapidshare links and paste the text inside the Downloads.txt. RapidDownload is able to recognize those links among other text.
With your download links ready, you can start RapidDownloader – the “.exe” one. This tiny app will be opened as a text window displaying all of the ’status updates’.
You can minimize the app and forget about it. It will hide itself in the taskbar and work dutifully in the background; downloading all the files one by one, waiting and retrying the downloads when necessary. All the downloaded files will be saved inside the “Downloads” folder within the RapidDownload folder. The app will also create “history.dat” – to record the history of all downloaded files so they will not be re-downloaded; and “error.txt” – to record the history of all errors. Further AdjustmentsAlthough everything will work as it is, RapidDownloader gives its users some tweaking possibilities. First, the IP changer. There’s a file called “IP_changer.bat” that you can edit using Notepad. The function is to bypass the waiting time. Rapidshare is famous for making its free users wait for long minutes/hours between downloads. To eliminate the waiting time, you can change your IP and continue downloading the next file as “another entity”.
There are several ways that you can use to change the IP using “IP_changer.bat”. If you know a command line proxy switcher, you can insert one here. Or you could try the codes that are already written in the file by erasing the word “REM” (sans quote) in front of the last three lines in the text. Next, the configurations. Open the “RapidDownload.ini” file using Notepad and edit the ones that you want to customize. You could set the download location by writing down the path after the “DownloadFolderPath=” command. The waiting time after executing the IP Changer can also be adjusted to whatever number of seconds you want.
To activate other commands, change the “0″ after the equal signs into “1″. And finally, the final command. If you want to execute something after all the downloads finish, write the command line here. I was thinking something like scanning the files for viruses, or popping out notifications about the finished downloads. Honestly, I’m not geek enough to be able to come up with examples; but if you are a command line maestro, maybe you could help us out with several examples of command lines to use?
One little footnote before wrapping everything up, there are many sites that you can use to find Rapidshare files to download, including the big “G” and “Y”. One example of such sites is FilesTube.
My short experiment with RapidDownloader told me that this app is worth keeping. But what about you? Have you tried the RapidDownloader? Do you use other alternative Rapidshare download managers? Please share using the comments below. Image credit: Frankie Roberto Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!
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| 5 Channels To Visit When You Reach BBC Online Posted: 17 Mar 2010 11:31 AM PDT
The 'wherever' and 'whatever' part especially held true for a child growing up in India. My general awareness of the world around me went up a few notches with the help of the BBC World Service held close to my ears. Those were the early days. Of course, it wasn't so early for the broadcasting network which is one of the oldest and definitely the largest in the world. The new media arrived and BBC devotees didn't have to feel deprived as BBC went online with a slew of services. Today, BBC online is just as popular as its radio and television elder siblings. To top all that, it offers a lot of niche content which probably touches every area of our lives.
Ah! You have come back. I thought you were going to stay there for a while. But there are some which you may not find in the A-Z index (though you will get it using the search on top). The list of five below is a spoon scoop from the huge pitcher that's the world of BBC online. Lonely Planet
If you are a chronic traveler, it is impossible that you haven't heard about Lonely Planet. Business-wise, the BBC is a major partner of the media company that's branded as Lonely Planet. Lonely Planet is an important online destination for any offline destination you may be planning to visit. In-depth travel guides with honest reviews culled from travel experts and popular opinion makes this a must read travel reference. Lonely Planet also brings out travel guides for low-cost travelers and backpackers. There's a whole lot to discover in the site and what makes it easy is its personable content. Top Gear
Jeremy Clarkson is a familiar face on the television episodes of Top Gear as he goes vrooming away in the coolest cars. You can get to read columns from him and several others here. Plus, the videos from the TV show too.
But one thing you will surely love to check out is the Games section. There are just three (Amphibious Challenge, Rocket Robin, and Office Drive) at the moment with the promise of more to come. Open2Net
It's not all play as we now take a studious turn with Open2net which is an online learning portal from the Open University and the BBC. Open University is UK's distance learning university. The TV and Radio program listings might not be relevant for those outside the UK but there's a whole lot more, from articles to online learning games. Explore the games in Take the Bang Challenges. Interesting videos also add enriching educational value to the Open2net learning portal. Browse the five main sections – Health & Education, History & The Arts, Money & Management, Science, Technology & Nature, and Society. BBC Earth
BBC Earth has its roots in the landmark Planet Earth TV series that came out in 2006, superbly narrated by Sir David Attenborough. The focal attention on this site is taken up by The Earth Explorer. The Earth Explorer is an interactive explorer which astonishes you from the word go. To experience the superb play of graphics and video via the seamless Flash interface, you have to pay BBC Earth a visit. To spice all that up, you also get amazing facts about the flora and fauna of our planet.
I didn't know that lions can count, dolphins can point and chimpanzees can remember the value of Arabic numerals for three years! Each click on the Earth Explorer will bring you something new. BBC iPlayer
Of course, living outside the U.K, I can't try out the television feeds via this service and put in my two bits worth. BBC's iPlayer for TV is limited to the UK only. But if you are there, you can catch all that's been happening on radio and television in the past week. The streaming service works on Windows, Macs, Linux, Nintendo Wii and iPhones, and also certain other mobile phone models. But the great thing is that I can listen to most of the radio programs without restrictions. As those living outside the U.K are limited to radio programs only, you might want to start off with any of the radio stations listed. There are sixteen channels plus a bevy of local stations. There are plenty of choices and the slick iPlayer to play them all. The second way is to click on Categories and then pick up one like Music or Sports. If you love all the content that streams in and you would like to keep it for posterity, check out how Simon managed to Download Audio From BBC's iPlayer Broadcasts. When you begin from A and end up on Z of the BBC online site index, you will have made your own set of favorite places to visit. Tell us the ones you like and also let us know which of the above five found a place in your list. Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons Related posts
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| How To Use The Character Panel In Photoshop Posted: 17 Mar 2010 10:31 AM PDT
Like other tools in Photoshop, text is put on its own layer. You can have several layers of text which can moved around, flipped, rotated, and scaled. You can add text on top of an image without destroying the original image itself. If you’re totally new to Photoshop, you might want check out my introductory tips to Photoshop here on MUO.
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| Ubuntu Remote Desktop: Built-In, VNC Compatible & Dead Easy Posted: 17 Mar 2010 09:31 AM PDT
Using Ubuntu Remote Desktop you can have total control over your desktop from any other computer: Linux, Mac or Windows. You’ll see what’s on that screen and be able to move the mouse and even type. Best of all, the feature is built into the operating system by default, so you won’t have to install a thing. Let’s check it out!
Turning Ubuntu Remote Desktop OnSimply put, turning on Ubuntu’s version of Remote Desktop could not be easier. You don’t need to install a thing: everything you need is built in. Simply click “Settings,” then “Preferences,” then “Remote Desktop.” You’ll be presented with a simple window of options.
Just check the “Allow other users to view your desktop” button. If you want other users to be able to control your computer, also click the “Allow other users to control your desktop” button. This window also provides you with a couple of security options. It’s highly recommended that you enable a password, but at the very least you should set it so that anyone connecting to your machine needs your permission before continuing. As soon as you enable remote connection you’ll be told your IP address on the local network. Write this down. Ubuntu’s remote desktop technology is based on the existing VNC standard. This means you can connect to a Ubuntu remote desktop using any VNC client. There are more than a few VNC clients around, so if you have a favorite on any platform you can use that to connect to Ubuntu already. If you don’t have a favorite keep reading; you’ll find one by the time you’re done. Connecting From Ubuntu/Linux
Ubuntu, and most Linux distributions, comes with an excellent VNC-compatible remote desktop viewer by default: Vinagre. You can find this program by clicking “Applications,” then “Internet,” then “Remote Desktop Viewer.” Open this up and you’ll see all the desktops you can open on your current network. If not, you can always enter the IP you want to connect to directly. Use this tool to connect to other Ubuntu desktops on your network and you’ll be controlling your computer remotely. Nifty, right? The tool can also be used to control any computer with a VNC client installed. Connecting From Windows
Want to control your Ubuntu computer from a Windows computer? Don’t worry; it’s more than possible. You’ll just need to install a VNC client, such as TightVNC, on your Windows computer. Then you can connect to your Ubuntu machine just by entering your IP address. Varun wrote all about this in his article about establishing a remote desktop connection to Ubuntu from Windows. Connecting From MacMac users wanting to connect to their Ubuntu machines should check out Chicken of the VNC. Again, connecting to your Ubuntu machine is a simple matter of entering your IP address, but if you’re looking for some in-depth information about using VNC on a Mac you should check out Jackson’s article on easy remote desktop support on the Mac. Away From HomeWant to connect to your Ubuntu machine while away from work? This is a little more tricky, but not totally impossible. You’re going to need a static IP, or a dynamic address from a service such as DynDNS. I could get into it here, but I’ve already written an article about using DynDNS to connect to your computer from anywhere with more than enough information to get you started. Best of all, that article already deals with VNC in a couple of examples. ConclusionThere you have it: everything you wanted to know about Ubuntu’s remote desktop feature but were afraid to ask. Do these tricks work for you? Do you have a preferred VNC client that I failed to touch on? Do you have any tips to share with the crew? Don’t be shy; comment away! Got Tech Questions? Ask Them on MakeUseOf Answers! Related posts
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| Destroy Some Free Time With Monster Truck Destroyer Posted: 17 Mar 2010 08:31 AM PDT
Hmmm…maybe I just have a severe case of the Mondays! But do you know what? I think I have a quick cure that can be administered in 15 minute intervals. That cure, if you haven't figured it out from the post's title yet, is Monster Truck Destroyer. It is a free flash-based app where you can play a monster truck game online. I played it this morning from Shockwave. When you get to the site it will take a moment for the game to load. When it is finished you will see a screen like the one below.
It offers you three menu items. The first is to play the game, followed by your game options and a quick "How to play" tutorial. And when I say quick I mean quick! It just shows you which keys does what. You can see the "How to play" screen below.
And here is the options screen which allows you to toggle sound effects and music on or off. You can choose the video quality that is displayed from the game and you can also go to a specific board in the game (if you have already beaten the previous ones!)
So as a beginner you will only have the first board enabled for you. You can see which boards are locked by the big red lock on them. Go ahead and click on the first board and let's begin.
You can also unlock other big monster trucks. The first few boards you play, you will only have access to the first monster truck. Go ahead and click on it to continue.
Now that we have selected our board and truck, we can begin. Here we go with level one. Remember the up arrow makes you go faster, the down arrow makes you brake, the left and right arrows make you lean left or right, respectively. You can see the beginning of the first board below:
Unlike some other games in Monster Truck Destroyer you want to hit the bombs and collect points. You also get points for destroying, smashing and making things go kablooey!
When you hit the end of the board you will see a black and white checkered flag and then the game will tally up your score.
To save your points and tokens you will need to create a Shockwave account. If you are like me and hate setting up accounts you can easily not use one or use a BugMeNot account as I do.
You will find each board getting increasingly difficult. There will be more things to destroy, you will find things like school buses to destroy and loop-de-loops. This is a fast paced action game and it is very fun to play. Let us know what your high scores are and if you have any tips or tricks for our soon to be addicted Monster Truck Destroyer players! Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!
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