MakeUseOf.com: “Thank You To MakeUseOf Friends!” plus 6 more |  |
- Thank You To MakeUseOf Friends!
- Cool Websites and Tools [April 25th]
- Is It OK To Use Your Neighbor’s Wi-Fi? [MakeUseOf Poll]
- 5 Free MP3 Downloads From Bands On Tour Now
- Hot Tech Deals [April 25th]
- 5 Great Tutorial Websites To Learn How To Do Something
- The 3 Best Free Personal Finance Managers For iPhone
| Thank You To MakeUseOf Friends! Posted: 25 Apr 2010 09:31 PM PDT
ShrinkTheWeb – Website Screenshot Thumbnail Service
Walyou – Cool Gadgets for Geeks
PXLEyes – Photoshop Contests and Tutorials
Pair – Reliable Web Hosting
rade | eccles – iPhone Application Development
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| Cool Websites and Tools [April 25th] Posted: 25 Apr 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. Do you like MakeUseOf articles? Do share our articles with others! It’s really important to us. Similar MakeUseOf Articles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Is It OK To Use Your Neighbor’s Wi-Fi? [MakeUseOf Poll] Posted: 25 Apr 2010 06:31 PM PDT
 Last week we asked you what version of Windows you are running. We had 1,394 responses. I was shocked at the results! It looks like 47% of you or 652 readers are using Windows 7! Windows XP came in second place with 36% or 500 votes. I had expected Windows XP to still be in the lead, as most companies are still using it as their main operating system. Third place was held by Windows Vista and then there were 13 votes for Windows 2000, 9 votes for Windows 98/ME, 8 votes for Windows 95 and 6 votes for Windows NT.
We saw our own Mark O'Neill having issues with it in the comments. If you want my advice, get a new hard drive and do a clean install of Windows 7! Here are the full poll results:
This week’s poll is asking you if it is OK to use your neighbor’s Wi-Fi. Open access points or easily hackable WEP access points are hard to resist, especially if you are strapped for cash. There are a lot of reasons not to steal Wi-Fi. You can have your data stolen or contract a virus. The network you are connecting to could be set up to do harm to you. I have set up many wireless networks that push users’ DNS queries to bring them to being rickrolled regardless of what they type in. Then there is the breach of your neighbor’s contract with their Internet provider. They agree not to share their Internet connection with others via open networks. On the other hand if you have no Internet and your neighbor has left their Wi-Fi access point wide open, it is hard to resist. We have people that would rather use their neighbors net instead of paying $50 or even $80 a month. Over the course of a year that all adds up. So what is a regular Joe supposed to do? Our morals should tell us stealing is wrong but some people say that it is NOT stealing. Is it stealing? Is it wrong? What do you do? We would love to hear from you in the comments as well! Follow MakeUseOf on Twitter. Includes cool extras. Similar MakeUseOf Articles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5 Free MP3 Downloads From Bands On Tour Now Posted: 25 Apr 2010 03:31 PM PDT
Music is very dear to my heart, especially live music. Over the past couple of years there has hardly been a month during which I did not see at least one concert. Hence, this first article is dedicated to bands presently playing live shows around the globe.
Two Door Cinema Club – What You Know
Earlier this month I was able to witness this spectacle live at a sold out midnight show in Berlin, where they presented their debut album Tourist History, released in March. If you can’t make it to a show, at least play them loud! Preview and download the track from Broken Silence. Additionally, the song Costume Party is available from the band’s homepage, for subscribing to their newsletter. Upcoming shows:
Two Door Cinema Club MySpace and Homepage. Maps & Atlases – Solid Ground
The singer’s voice strongly reminds me of Chris Cornell (Soundgarden, Audioslave). Some of their songs are quite a challenge to the ears. This piece, however, is finest indie pop with a rich melody. Their debut album Perch Patchwork is set to be released on June 29th. Preview and download the tune from We All Want Someone To Shout For. Also have a look at the media on their homepage for new free mp3 downloads. Upcoming shows:
Maps & Atlases MySpace and Homepage. Turin Brakes – Sea Change
This year Turin Brakes are touring with their latest album Outbursts. I had the chance to see them play a show in Berlin earlier this month and highly recommend the live experience. Preview and download the track directly from SleepWalking Magazine. Another free track is available from their homepage for signing up to the newsletter. Upcoming shows:
The XX – Islands (Nosaj Thing Remix)
Preview and download the track from The Music Ninja. At The XX’s homepage you can download Basic Space for signing up to their newsletter. Upcoming shows:
Kings of Convenience – Scars On Land
To give you a taste of this enchanting music from Norway, I found a track from their 2009 album Declaration of Dependence. Preview and download the track from earmilk.com. Upcoming shows:
Kings of Convenience MySpace and Homepage. Which genres or themes would you like to see here in the future? And what do you think of the bands profiled here today? We NEED Your Comments!!! Please do share your thoughts in article comments. Similar MakeUseOf Articles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Apr 2010 01:30 PM PDT
For more fresh hot deals, visit our Hot Tech Deals page, which is constantly updated.
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| 5 Great Tutorial Websites To Learn How To Do Something Posted: 25 Apr 2010 12:31 PM PDT
No more driving to the library to find a book that's not even there. No more reading the entire book only to find it doesn't help you at all. Finding how to do something on the internet is as simple as typing what you want into a search engine and the results are right at your fingertips.
eHoweHow is a great site to find out how to do something quickly. The tutorials aren’t overly descriptive and most of them are less than 10 steps, but they do get straight to the point. Want to learn how to play tennis? Just type the keyword "tennis" into eHow's search engine and you will get heaps of results on how to hit a tennis forehand, or even how to build a court in your backyard. Not only are there just text tutorials, eHow also provides many video tutorials. eHow is a great website to learn the basics of just about anything. From The Internet, to Parenting, to Education, to Electronics and Business.
wikiHowwikiHow currently has about 76,000 articles in its database, so there is a high chance that it covers a "how to" that you want to know. Similar to eHow, wikiHow's content is created by the community. Say I want learn how to create a website. I did a search on “how to create a website” and I got some good results.
InstructablesWant to learn how to build something physical from scratch? Then you should definitely check Instructables out. The instructions are much more in-depth then the previous sites mentioned, and they have some nice tutorials on how to build things you wouldn't normally build. For example, there is a tutorial on How to Build a Multi Touch Surface. Although it will cost you $2,500, it is still something pretty cool to have.
About Video TutorialsOften when I want help with something, Google often refers me to About. Their tutorials are pretty comprehensive. A while back I wanted to learn how to add a log in page for a website I was developing and it had a nice, easy to read and follow tutorial. They have many more tutorials at a more beginner’s level, such as how to use Skype. Finding a particular topic is a bit more difficult on About due to the large number of pages it holds. I searched for "learn to sing" but I didn't find any accurate results. I did with eHow though. But if you want help with computers or tech, you should find some useful information.
YouTubeMost people might think that YouTube only has videos to entertain us. But in fact, YouTube has some pretty useful tutorials. For example, want to learn how to play the guitar? There are hundreds of useful tutorials. Depending what sort of tutorial you are looking for, YouTube is a good choice if you want visuals as well. You may also want to read these How To Video Sites That Don't Suck for more sites similar to YouTube.
Other Great Sites & ToolsThere are so many sites that could included in this list, but instead of reviewing them all, I am just going to link to them and you can make your own mind up about them. Every site has their pros and cons and focus on different topics. So depending on what you are searching for, each site will be different. Wired How To Wiki – Great tutorials about computers, technology and gadgets PC World How To – Tutorials related to buying, using and fixing technology products VideoJug – A video tutorial website 'to get good at life' 5min – 5 minute video tutorials SuTree – How to and tutorial video's Previous Make Use Of Tutorial Articles Lists
Do you have a favourite tutorial and 'How To' website that you regularly visit? What were you trying to learn and what site did you get the most help from? Got Questions? Ask Them Now FREE on MakeUseOf Answers! Similar MakeUseOf Articles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The 3 Best Free Personal Finance Managers For iPhone Posted: 25 Apr 2010 10:31 AM PDT
There are several free finance management apps in the App Store, but I chose to examine the ones that don’t limit you to the number of transactions you can make.
CashFlow FreeFirst up is the ad-supported CashFlow app. It's an easy to set up application that allows you to track your income and expenses and export data in CSV/OFX format via e-mail. It includes a built-in numeric keypad, and it keeps track of your payee names and expense categories so that you don't have to re-enter them each time you make a new transaction for the same data.
You can also export weekly and monthly budget reports, as well backup and restore via Wi-Fi. And if need be, you can set a PIN code for security.
The ease of use of CashFlow allows you to input data a few seconds before or after you make a transaction. It's really that simple. BalanceBalance is similar to CashFlow and is ad-free. This free version, though, limits you to just one account. This app is great for replacing the paper-based checkbook register that you might still be using. However, its shortcoming is that it doesn't save payee names and categories, so that means re-entering data that you have previously typed. You can also export reports to your computer in spreadsheet format.
Balance is not as good as CashFlow, but it's an option say for keeping track of a secondary account credit card where you might not be inputting data on a daily basis. Spend LiteOne of the best ways to monitor your spending is to keep a budget, especially for non-discretionary items and services that decrease your cash flow very quickly. Spend Lite is an almost perfect, easy to use budget manager. You begin by setting up budgets for items and services you want to monitor. In the free version, you can set unlimited budgets for daily or weekly spending. In the paid version, you can set biweekly, monthly and yearly budgets.
As you spend against those budgets, Spend Lite will keep track of your spending and how much you have left for each budgeted item. You can choose to roll over your allotted amounts to the following week or day. I used this app for several months when I first got my iPhone and really helped me decrease the amount I was spending for music, books and fast food.
Spend Lite is not like a traditional check registering book, so if you're needing that kind of accounting, you will want to find an app that incorporates both account management and budgeting expenses. Otherwise, this easy to read and graphically well designed application does a great job. And it's ad free. Let us know if you use any of these or other free personal management apps on your iPhone and iPod touch. Smart gadgets like these are not cheap, so you should be keeping an eye on your spending. Hey Facebookers, make sure to check out MakeUseOf fan page on Facebook. Over 17,000 fans already!
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Check out some of the latest MakeUseOf discoveries. All listed websites are FREE (or come with a decent free account option). No trials or buy-to-use craplets. For more cool websites and web app reviews subscribe to 
With this post MakeUseOf launches a new series covering free mp3 downloads. Every Sunday I will share with you the latest and greatest music downloads available online.
The sound of this band from Northern Ireland is a rapid mix of electropop and indie rock. The music is intensive, upbeat with an ever changing rhythm, lots of surprising elements mixed in, and great melodies.
Turin Brakes are a modern folk pop duo from the UK. In 2002 they had a major UK hit with the song Pain Killer from the album Ether Song. Fans of the TV shows Hollyoaks, The O.C., Gossip Girl, or Smallville may recognize the band.
This indie rock band from the UK has taken Europe by storm. Their nostalgic and reduced music earned them sold out shows all over the continent. Soon they’re heading overseas again and will be appearing at the music festivals Sasquatch, Coachella, Bonnaroo, and Lollapalooza, among other shows.
In October 2009 Kings of Convenience played a sold out show in Berlin. Their calm acoustic music magically captivated the entire audience. 1,600 people stood still and listened devotional, like I had never seen it before.
If you’re in the market for a new computer, laptop, mobile phone, games and other accessories; don’t waste your time searching online. We’ve taken the liberty of locating the best deals tech deals and unifying them into a single post for your convenience.
The internet can be a very powerful tool to learn how to do things that you might need to do but don't really know how to do it. Finding how to do something is much easier now then it was 20 years ago. The internet is full of useful resources and you don't even have to leave your own home to get access to it.
Anyone with an average income has to be very budget conscious these days. And if you have bought an iPhone or iPod touch, you no doubt went over your gadget budget purchasing one of them. But that's okay, because there are three useful finance apps for the devices that will help your management and monitor your personal expenses, and they won't cost you a penny.
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