Year: 2009

  • Gmail Labs Adds Google Web Search, Never Leave Gmail Again

    Let’s face it: Gmail is fantastic and Gmail Labs keeps adding features we didn’t realize we couldn’t live without.  New to Gmail Labs this week is the Google Search “experiment” which allows you to perform a Google web search through a sidebar widget – all without ever leaving Gmail.  The next time you’re in the…

  • Windows 7 Release Candidate to Launch Late April/Early May

    Microsoft has announced that a release candidate version of Windows 7 (a version with potential to be the final product) will be released to developers via MSDN and TechNet networks on April 30th, and more publicly on May 5th. Windows 7, which was released as a semi-public beta in January, has initially been well received…

  • How To: Add Panels (Toolbars) to a Secondary Display in Ubuntu 9.04

    If you’re using multiple monitors in Ubuntu, you may find it frustrating that the Panels (Windows users will recognize these as toolbars) are only available on your primary display.  This means that if you’re working with applications on a secondary monitor, you have to look back to your primary to do any application switching, as…

  • How To: Install Adobe AIR in Ubuntu 9.04

    Adobe AIR is a platform that allows software developers to build rich Internet applications that run outside the browser on multiple operating systems.  A few examples of applications that are based on the Adobe AIR platform are Twhirl and TweetDeck. To install Adobe AIR in Ubuntu: Navigate to http://get.adobe.com/air/ and click the “Download Now” button.…

  • How To: Install and Configure Nvidia Drivers in Ubuntu 9.04

    Although Ubuntu has fantastic driver support in recent editions, I had some initial difficulty getting the Nvidia graphics drivers (for my GeForce 8600GT) properly installed and configured in Ubuntu 9.04 “Jaunty Jackalope”.  The built-in video drivers supported multiple monitors, but I was only able to drag windows halfway across the secondary monitor before they would…

  • Ubuntu 9.04 “Jaunty Jackalope” Released

    Ubuntu – currently the world’s most popular Linux distribution – released it’s newest version today named “Jaunty Jackalope” which offers some major improvements over previous versions.  Available in desktop, server, and netbook editions, Ubuntu 9.04 offers faster boot-up times (23 seconds on a solid state drive!), better device compatibility, and new software such as Firefox…

  • Apple’s App Store Hits One Billion Downloads

    At approximately 2pm on April 23rd, 2009 the 1,000,000,000th application was downloaded from Apple’s App Store since it first launched only nine months ago.  Although the App Store has had its fair share of problems (and it seems that developers are still getting stuck in the application approval process), this statistic is a significant milestone…

  • How To: Fix Your Wireless Mighty Mouse’s Bluetooth Connection

    An issue that’s been popping up around the blogosphere recently is losing the Bluetooth connection with an Apple Wireless Mighty Mouse on Mac OS X. Essentially, the Bluetooth connection will be working fine and then – without warning – it will stop, leaving the user with no mouse support whatsoever. Here’s a simple way to…

  • How To: Automatically View YouTube Videos in HD and Resized to 720p

    Firefox Only:  Now that YouTube has a high quality / high definition option available for almost all videos, you may have found yourself wishing it would be enabled by default.  Realistically, YouTube has the higher quality mode disabled by default to save bandwidth on users who don’t mind lower quality videos, but this guide will…

  • How To Check Your HDD’s S.M.A.R.T. Status

    As your hard drive begins to age, the chance for failure and resulting data loss increases.  Today’s hard drives feature a monitoring system called Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology or S.M.A.R.T. for short.  With S.M.A.R.T. and the appropriate software, it is possible to keep updated on the status of your hard drive and the important…