tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23515829209694286352024-02-08T02:29:17.447+05:30Shankness TechBlogHi all! Welcome to my blogShankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comBlogger92125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-82873002043170789072011-10-16T17:37:00.000+05:302011-10-16T17:37:32.370+05:30For the future generation: We need to change the look of the 'Save' button<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The floppy disk icon must go away.</td></tr>
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When was the last time you used or even saw a floppy disk? Ages ago. But even though its an obsolete item, we still use them - as a symbol to represent the 'save' action in interfaces. I agree that the symbol is familiar to the user and represents the idea of 'saving' something effectively. But that's for those of us who were born in the 80s or early 90s. But what about users who were born after say 2000. Most of them would never have used or seen a floppy disk. That floppy disk icon doesn't make sense at all to them. Many interfaces have stopped using the icon and have started using simple buttons just labeled as Save. It has always been a norm to have quick action buttons which have symbols which speak for themselves. For example the marker felt pen icon for 'highlighting text'. In a similar way, it would be great to have an icon for 'Save' as well. Something new but not the 'floppy disk' should be the face of the Save button. I thought about this and came up with three solutions. All of these would make sense to at least today's kids.<br />
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<b>Solution 1: The down arrow button</b>:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOvtJ11HC-4sMgQlsC4ZiCjcN9ccnzkkxVLOjwDoocKj5O1FMBmGJCxksxyOaZN4PEb3lSZ8Lq8jgJI1IRfr3jibgkh5SU28mYS4jWndlSMcm-ZNC1sKZzROF4dSE9rsWWXXeu9Ecu3dL2/s1600/Save1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOvtJ11HC-4sMgQlsC4ZiCjcN9ccnzkkxVLOjwDoocKj5O1FMBmGJCxksxyOaZN4PEb3lSZ8Lq8jgJI1IRfr3jibgkh5SU28mYS4jWndlSMcm-ZNC1sKZzROF4dSE9rsWWXXeu9Ecu3dL2/s320/Save1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This one symbolizes a download. Downloads and saves are fairly related to each other. Hence, this icon would make sense.<br />
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<b>Solution 2: The Hard Disk</b>:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxV04FpxYL7UUNyhds-PaQEc-HsADeCcYaf78yn9koM1uNkifuN33Wu-IEFySKguVqSY_lwO_Po6cdey8RVbeuH9Ii_iVieanD9rc-xq4KitPrU2DEz5lUaJnQJn9DTQMSukoQR4k73prj/s1600/Hrddisk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxV04FpxYL7UUNyhds-PaQEc-HsADeCcYaf78yn9koM1uNkifuN33Wu-IEFySKguVqSY_lwO_Po6cdey8RVbeuH9Ii_iVieanD9rc-xq4KitPrU2DEz5lUaJnQJn9DTQMSukoQR4k73prj/s320/Hrddisk.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Hard disks have been and will be for the years to come, our primary storage devices. It easily conveys to the user that clicking it would save data to the disk.<br />
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<b>Solution 3: The Thumb drive:</b><br />
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Thumb drives are also one of the popular mediums of storage. Even though this icon suits the 'save' button, thumb drives are also headed in the direction of floppy disks. They will eventually become obsolete. <br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b> Future and beyond</b>:</span><br />
There will come a day when all kinds of software interfaces will get rid of the 'save' action. Documents will be automatically saved, without the user's intervention and stashed away in to the cloud. Google docs and apps like Simplenote already do that. Cloud will be our new primary storage place. But that's a long way to go. For now, we must get rid of the virtual floppy disk icon.<br />
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Thanks for reading and DO share this article with others. <br />
<br /></div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-46949282020252751782011-10-14T20:56:00.002+05:302011-10-14T20:57:18.951+05:30How to: Move all your Google contacts to iCloud<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Right after I updated my iPhone 4 to iOS 5, I was greeted with iCloud and its syncing options. I enabled all options and thought I was good to go; before iCloud settings threw a warning that it will not merge my Exchange (google sync) contacts with icloud contacts. The problem is that I don't have any contact groups which reside natively on my phone. All my contacts reside on google's servers. Since I had now enabled syncing of contacts on both iCloud and Google sync, it got a little messy- some contacts got uploaded to iCloud and the rest were in google contacts. Here's a step-by-step procedure to move all your google as well as phone contacts to iCloud:<br />
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<li> Delete your iCloud account from your iDevice if you have added one.</li>
<li> Connect your device to iTunes on PC/mac.</li>
<li>Under the info tab, check "sync contacts" and select Google calendar from the dropdown menu.</li>
<li>Now, when the sync is complete, eject your device and go to contacts app.</li>
<li>You will see that there is a group called "Contacts from my PC" along with an "All contacts" group.</li>
<li>Now in the <u>settings app, go to Mail,contacts,calendar > your google sync/exchange account > Delete account <i>or</i> you can simply select to switch off contacts in the sync list.</u></li>
<li>A warning will pop up asking you whether you want to delete or keep all the contacts. Tap "Delete contacts".</li>
<li>Now in your contacts app, all you will be left with is one group - which is "All contacts".</li>
<li>Next, go to <u>settings> icloud</u> and sign into your iCloud account. Choose to sync whatever data you want including contacts. </li>
<li>Now all your contacts have been moved from Google to iCloud. <i>A small refresh button can be found in the top left corner of the contacts app when iCloud sync is enabled</i>.</li>
<li>When you decide to enable google sync later on, it will be best to turn off contacts sync and just get mail and calendar events pushed. </li>
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Thanks for reading :-) </div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-32867352084884873652011-09-19T00:04:00.000+05:302011-09-19T00:04:24.768+05:30Windows and iOS can both trump Android. Yes, its possible.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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After looking at the title, you must be thinking. Android is doing well, so whats this post all about? This post is all about one thing which both Microsoft's upcoming Windows 8 and Apple's iOS5 have. And that could worry Google and prove to be a threat for Android. In the recent months, all we have been hearing about is is the CLOUD. yes. That's the magical word. Cloud is what is going to revolutionize the way we handle our data, settings, preferences,everything. As I have already <a href="http://shankness.blogspot.com/2011/02/top-4-reasons-ipad-2-will-outsell-other.html">written before</a>, Android lacks a good ecosystem. Fragmentation is the biggest issue there. So how can windows and iOS beat Android to death? Lets look at the scenario. Lets start with Microsoft first. At the build conference last week, MS showed us how one can buy a Windows 8 tablet, PC and a Windows phone and never worry about syncing all the devices. Microsoft' s approach is fresh and simple. You have a windows phone, hook it up with your live account and there you are- all your photos, contacts, mail, and much more is synced easily without any thought. You snap a photo on your phone and its available for view immediately on your home PC. Even more, Microsoft has some very good cloud services like office 365 which can always work well with just one account. And that's your Windows live account. Surely they will also figure out a way to keep track of purchases, other accounts, settings, browser preferences etc synchronized across all Windows machines. On Apple's side its the same story again. You sign in once with your Apple ID and iCloud takes care of everything. Even iWork and some other native apps backup data to the cloud every few seconds. All your deleted apps are in the cloud for immediate download. And Apple has even gone to the extent of syncing your iMessages so that you can switch iDevices in the middle of a conversation. Everything is smooth and simple. The biggest worry for Android is not the ability to backup data to the cloud (google sync has been around for years), but the inability to sync your data across all your devices. That's what is required in the near future. Your phone and PC will no longer be independent stand-alone devices. The Personal computer is going to become even more personal. A whole lot of manufacturers produce Smartphones and tablets based on Android, and all of them use different custom layer for the OS. It will be a difficult task to keep your Android phone and Tablet in sync with each other because there will be many dissimilar aspects between both the devices. And moreover, people who own an Android phone/tablet use a PC or MAC as their desktop computer. How is the PC/MAC going to fit into the equation? Windows 8 and Mac will both be more sync-friendly towards windows and iOS devices respectively. And the answer to all this doesn't lie in the Chrome OS. Because that's a big FAIL. Both MAC and Windows PC are well established. And with their strong foothold in the smartphone market, it is only going to help them more. Windows 8 tablets are already looking promising. If Android goes kaput in the long run, it could all be because of just one reason-- 'the inability to sync across all your devices'.</div>
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Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-58535801105926221432011-09-03T02:43:00.001+05:302011-09-03T02:43:43.271+05:30One little known iOS gesture<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I don't know how many people know about this little gesture in iOS, but I found this accidentally while trying to mimic the iOS5 style pull down gesture for notifications . <i> </i><br />
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<i>When in a particular app, swipe down from the time on the status bar to the center title on the blue(title) bar in an app</i>.</div>
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For example when in the settings app, if you are in Settings > General, swipe down slowly starting from the time on status bar till the point where the word General is written. The thing with this gesture is that it activates the function of the left side button. So in messages app's main screen, you would end up activating the edit function for the messages. Works across any app in iOS.</div>
Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India13.060422 80.24958312.936679000000002 80.0916545 13.184165 80.4075115tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-16952788445790356352011-06-21T03:43:00.004+05:302011-06-26T17:59:59.309+05:30Desktops will never disappear. Here's why..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Many people think that tablets are going to completely replace desktops. Before I tell why they are wrong, lets answer this question-<br />
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<b>So Who needs a tablet?</b><br />
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When I ask this question, I mean who really needs it- as a primary computer. Lot of us never get tired of the number of gadgets we have. Getting to the question now, Tablets are for those who don't do extremely serious stuff on their desktop. The average internet user (6 out of 10 of us) uses the computer to check email, read some news and occasionally watch a few videos here and there. This guy is no Developer or Designer. Nor does he have his computer running 24x7, 365 days. This guy wants to do his simple activities quickly and easily. No waiting for computer to switch on, no modems and no wires. This is where tablets step in. Google and Apple saw this an opportunity and are already churning out faster tablets every year.<br />
Tablet is also for those who want to do some desktop specific stuff on desktops and then move to their tablets for casual browsing, reading,etc. Tablets can handle many task in an intuitive way. Thats the reason why they are such a huge success. Now coming to the main point-<br />
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<b>Why will desktops be around for the years to come?</b><br />
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No wonder how 'magical' those tablets are, there are a few things they cannot do. And not only that, Desktops are the grass root level of technology. This is where things start developing. Even those amazing apps for your iPhone or iPad are created on a desktop. Can you have the same experience on Photoshop on a tablet as on the desktop? Can we manage various kinds of files without any fuss on a tablet? What about all those graphics you see in movies? The answer for all these: NO. What I mean here is that extremely serious applications will always be best on a desktop. A desktop machine can be upgraded easily. You can even build your own custom windows PC. It is the platform for every other kind of technology to flourish. <br />
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Did E-mail ever go away because of the rise of social media? No. Yes, we resort to Twitter or Facebook most of the time these days for communication, but e-mail is still the go-to method of communication for all when it comes to professional communication. Desktops are like that. like email.<br />
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<b>Conclusion:</b><br />
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I don't mean that Tablets aren't great. They are super cool and will eat into desktops' market share but desktops will still continue to find a place in homes and offices. Tablets will become our companions wherever we go. Notebooks, and not desktops will feel threatened by these touch screen wonders. </div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-59192242156399210382011-06-11T13:36:00.000+05:302011-06-11T13:37:28.620+05:30Firefox Dashboard concept<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">While menus in browsers are now available under a single button, menu items are still displayed in a dropdown list. This concept of mine presents a solution where users click one button and are taken to the dashboard where all settings , history, bookmarks,addons etc are available. It also enables users to search across them. Now menus are easier to use and in one place.<br />
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<b>The UI outside dashboard.</b> (click to enlarge image)<br />
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</div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-40154539090016386242011-02-19T01:37:00.000+05:302011-05-05T23:41:42.474+05:30Top 4 reasons iPad 2 will outsell other tablets in 2011<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIt7U_e9Y0u_LxMk4vpovW8XLIIjCmdn1LH7bM4JAPwFQk1mtuxXpd9xED2baeR6JGcnt0OTYZ7dH0JY8Mzx6YdVtzncuFAtKR5bdFsrjckWVJaM1TfGBxiEl_5ptwAAzTdE852fQ3bzTP/s1600/hardware-04-20101116.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIt7U_e9Y0u_LxMk4vpovW8XLIIjCmdn1LH7bM4JAPwFQk1mtuxXpd9xED2baeR6JGcnt0OTYZ7dH0JY8Mzx6YdVtzncuFAtKR5bdFsrjckWVJaM1TfGBxiEl_5ptwAAzTdE852fQ3bzTP/s400/hardware-04-20101116.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
The iPad 2 doesn't exist in the market at the time I write this. The Honeycombs tablets are already here and I must admit that the Android team has done a wonderful job for a tablet OS. I have always believed that iOS isn't as feature rich as Android is. In other words, Android is the real OS. Real multitasking, real voice control and real notifications. iOS always pretends to do what it actually doesn't. The iPad (1st gen) gets away with all its flaws because its a first. Its the first tablet which created a revolution. Just like the iPhone, the iPad is the first device of its kind. Its been a year now since its launch and things have changed. The Androids have arrived and its getting sweeter in an alphabetical order. As we talk, we are getting closer to the iPad 2's launch. Lets analyse what will make it stand out from the rest and create a splash once again.<br />
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<u><b>Android is a sweet candy with a bitter coating:</b></u><br />
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<b> </b>As I said before, Android is an amazing OS. No second opinion about that. Coming to tablets, its not just about the OS. Its much more than that. Its about the ecosystem.<b> </b>Apple ensures that everything the end user gets is of ultimate quality. Be it the apps or music content or books, the user is never in the dark about anything. Everything is plain simple in Apple's world. If something is available, it works. I really mean the last two sentences I wrote. Just open up iTunes on your PC and go to the iTunes store. You search for an app, buy it and download it. You can download it to your PC if you dont have your device around and then sync it back later. Dead simple. Now go to the Android market ( http://market.android.com). One of the first things you would notice is that Google hasn't given much attention to designing the store properly. Layout is fine, but its not visually appealing. Now who is the loser here? The developer. And to an extent, the user.<br />
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Android market is confusing. The picture below will tell you why. Search for need for speed shift in the Android market. There are two results of the same app, they cost different and there is no indication whatsoever about what is what. Pure Fail.<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b><br />
<u><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Hardware:</b></u><br />
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<b> </b><br />
In terms of Hardware, Apple has always been late to implement a few components into their devices. The iPhone got flash for camera only in its fourth iteration. The Androids on the other hand, have a lot to boast about on their spec sheets. 3D Android tablets are already on their way as we talk now. But this difference has never hampered Apple’s success. Their approach is a step by step incremental one where they keep adding better features every year on a strictly followed schedule while others try to play catch up. <br />
The main advantage of such an approach is a consistent form factor over generations of devices; thus avoiding inconsistency. Android's messy approach spoils the whole ecosystem. Not all apps work on all devices. On the contrary, Apple’s ecosystem is not an unsorted mess. Apps are neatly categorized as “iPhone and iPod touch”, “iPad” and “Universal”. The one size fits all strategy works really well for them. <br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b><br />
<u><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">iPad 2 will get at least 3 major iOS updates; without fail:</b></u><br />
<b> </b> <br />
Ah, here we are talking about Fragmentation once again. Google is never going to solve this one. At present, different Android devices are running at least 4 different versions of Android. Every quarter, there is a new version of it and people are stuck with an old version of Android thus feeling completely helpless. What’s the use of such amazing hardware when you don’t get the latest software updates? Only a handful of devices are running the latest Gingerbread version while many are still using Eclair or Froyo. Again, this leads to incompatible apps, buggy experience and an unhappy user. <br />
Apple handles software updates in a very planned manner. There’s an iOS update every year around July and they give a preview of the upcoming OS in march. This schedule has been strictly followed since the very beginning and they have never failed to deliver the updates at the promised dates. The user is never in the dark and gets an update via iTunes without any hassles. Whereas Android users are always kept waiting for their updates. <br />
I am pretty sure that iPad 2 will at least get iOS 5 ,6 and 7 updates till the hardware gets too old to run an iOS version.<br />
<br />
<u><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Lots of magazines and tabloids will tie up with Apple in 2011:</b></u><br />
<br />
The latest announcement of “The Daily” on iPad showed the rich experience of a newspaper on the tablet. Since the iPad is a more successful product, and an established one at that, many mag publishers will have more faith in Apple than anyone else. This will be just another reason why people will consider going for the iPad and not the honeycombs.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"> Android is growing and its becoming too difficult to manage. There are too many manufacturers jumping onto the Android bandwagon. Android is a powerful OS, but its the ecosystem and the roadmap which they don’t get right. They will eventually outsell iPads in the coming years, but there’s no denying that for the time being, iPad 2 will be a runaway hit. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div></div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-47145825023177477812010-11-26T19:14:00.000+05:302010-11-26T19:18:40.793+05:30The way to a clutter free desktop<div style="text-align: justify;">Have you ever wondered how much of a garbage your PC collects every time you browse the web, every time you install and uninstall a file and every time you use a file. There's a lot of errors that are generated in the registry when you uninstall a program from your PC. From time to time, such garbage and errors in the system cause your PC to slow down. Its also highly important to Defrag your hard disk as and when possible. I would like to tell you all about a software I have been using for more than three months now. Its called Win utilities<b style="color: black;"><a href="http://www.ylcomputing.com/content/view/327/135/">(Download link)</a></b>. It acts like a personal maintenance manager for your system. Here are some of the features the software boasts of:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiUpWnppLcDA6fDhnWWwX2GND2OhoI8ay7nNgqlvns7pTV9uyQW_d41JH_89UoQ1zvMbnmBKBzS4vN8yiGCgZ-i8aNg5hSGib5No-e9_usXZsUqphSMGsdyt46a7I4hlLgcuWIPMGRStg3/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiUpWnppLcDA6fDhnWWwX2GND2OhoI8ay7nNgqlvns7pTV9uyQW_d41JH_89UoQ1zvMbnmBKBzS4vN8yiGCgZ-i8aNg5hSGib5No-e9_usXZsUqphSMGsdyt46a7I4hlLgcuWIPMGRStg3/s640/Capture.JPG" width="617" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Also, there is this feature called 1-click maintenance where you can check or uncheck many common tasks and get them running with the click of a single button. The best part about Win utilities is the simple UI it offers. Its very easy to follow and even novice users will feel at home.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> It also has a File undelete program. I must say that this works. It really does unlike some other programs which just show your deleted files but never let you retrieve it. Even the defragging of disks works well. With so many features, the software isn't a bloat at all and thats a good thing. Its as good as the popular CCleaner and offers many more features than that. All in all I would rate it 4/5.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">Download WinUtilities from <a href="http://www.ylcomputing.com/content/view/327/135/"><b><span style="color: black;">here</span></b>.</a></div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-47621470663052854362010-09-01T01:00:00.001+05:302010-09-01T17:23:13.640+05:30[HOW TO] Add “I’m Feeling lucky” feature to the Address bar in your Browsers<div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKK04aHW7SJlVoGILdBlcpHtYQ41ctjRxmDAKKJLm1AaGbH4iFRrGS51r9i236xx8EUy2XTAFTFX5usOjziQ6xxtlFxhOX42WQOpKbWDoAbowqCnkOHYzQO-gY17KqnEYGIrraDoNhSW2k/s1600-h/magnifying_glass9.jpg"><img align="left" alt="magnifying_glass" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXNyw5ZLfHAooAEZ32zYQ3aQ-ig2DwZ5wt4ne9LvswaPd22MwxMB9a6P7UTlMc8dNyw20G9ehdhmyw7ZaMuPmnyabcLMvWxIjEmxN7J6-LUuxeJOUvQAzyGdrrUGe6dl5j2LJ18nR2UYYz/?imgmax=800" style="border-width: 0px; display: inline; margin: 0px 10px 0px 0px;" title="magnifying_glass" width="240" /></a> Web search is the first thing we do when we open our browsers. Recently, the latest crop of browsers have gone to the extent of a dedicated search bar or like chrome, which has merged both the address bar and search bar into a single text field. Many users are unaware of the fact that even in browsers like Firefox, IE and Opera, you can enter a keyword into the URL bar and that will initiate a Google search for that keyword. Ability to search the Internet using simple keywords is great and is something we have been doing for ages now.But it is always easier to find a web page we want instantly. I mean, enter a keyword, press return and boom!- the page you want opens up; without even you entering the web address! If you look at Google's homepage, there are two options after you key in your search query: First, is the standard search button. The other one is the 'I'm Feeling Lucky' button. So what is this 'I'm feeling lucky'? . For example, you enter the keywords 'wiki bill gates' it directly takes you to the wikipedia article on Bill gates instead of showing search results for it. This is a huge time saver. When we enter queries in the URL bar, our browsers come up with search results from our default search engine. However, in this [How to] I will brief you about adding the 'I'm Feeling lucky' feature to your browser's address bar. </div> <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="background-color: #ebebeb;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Internet Explorer 8</span></b> </div><br />
click on the arrow next to the search bar.<br />
<br />
click <b>Find more providers.</b><br />
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You will be navigated to the add-ons page of IE. At the bottom of the page, click <b>create your own search provider.</b><br />
<br />
Now, in the URL field, paste the following URL: <a href="http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=TEST"><b>http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=TEST</b></a><br />
<br />
click <b>Install search provider</b><br />
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In the dialog box that pops up, check ‘<b>Make as my default search engine’</b> and click ‘<b>ADD</b>’<br />
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<b></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="background-color: #ebebeb;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Google Chrome 5</span> </b></div><br />
Right click the URL bar, and click <b>Edit search engines</b><br />
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In the dialog box that opens, click <b>Add</b><br />
<br />
Give the following details: N<b>ame</b>: any name you wish <b>Keyword</b>: %s <b>URL: </b><a href="http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=%s" title="http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q="><b>http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=%s</b></a><br />
<br />
Click <b>OK</b> and then select this search engine and click <b>Make default</b><br />
<b></b><br />
<b></b><br />
<br />
<b></b><br />
<b></b> <br />
<div style="background-color: #ebebeb;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Mozilla Firefox</span> </b></div><br />
Type <b>about:config</b> in the URL bar. Click ‘i’ll be careful’.<br />
<br />
In the <b>Filter</b> field, type <b>Keyword.URL</b><br />
<br />
<b>Right click</b> the Keyword.URL entry and click <b>Modify</b>.<br />
<br />
Paste the following URL in the text box that appears. : <a href="http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=%s" title="http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q="><b>http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=%s</b></a><br />
<br />
Click <b>OK</b> and close the about:config tab.<br />
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<div style="background-color: #ebebeb;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Opera 10</span></b></div>click on the arrow next to the search bar.<br />
<br />
click ‘<b>Manage search engines</b>’<br />
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In the dialog box that opens, click <b>Add</b><br />
<br />
Give the following details:<br />
1. N<b>ame</b>: any name you wish <b> </b><br />
<b>2. Keyword</b>: %s<br />
<b>3. URL: </b><a href="http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=%s" title="http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q="><b>http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=%s</b></a> .<br />
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<br />
Leave the <b>Query string </b>field empty.<br />
<br />
Click <b>OK</b> and then select this search engine and check <b>Use as Default search engine. </b>Click <b>OK</b> again.<br />
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<b><span style="background-color: #ebebeb;"></span></b>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-24221746342524953632010-07-25T01:02:00.001+05:302010-07-25T19:54:31.172+05:30Adding iOS4 features to your iPhone 2G<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVmhEa3R1uiJmhhWud03JEfZcKbng38SVcdXtjJi5ojPVWdlXmSuB_yQuhBne4JpEVITc4tEem51RgXwDoAhIwGeG_QQn_1xTGuAh-LnQjfOXWMdBVd9h9EpFEc4mzK909gZV4KvONMEpV/s1600/iphone2g.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="116" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVmhEa3R1uiJmhhWud03JEfZcKbng38SVcdXtjJi5ojPVWdlXmSuB_yQuhBne4JpEVITc4tEem51RgXwDoAhIwGeG_QQn_1xTGuAh-LnQjfOXWMdBVd9h9EpFEc4mzK909gZV4KvONMEpV/s200/iphone2g.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div align="justify">All the fanboys and the tech world as a whole is buzzing about the iOS4. According to this <a href="http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/ios_4_takes_lead_with_50_of_iphones.php"><b>recent report by chitika</b></a><b>,</b> 50 % of all iPhones are running on iOS4. Recently , i posted about the <a href="http://shankness.blogspot.com/2010/06/ios4-compatibility-for-idevices.html"><b>devices compatible for iOS4</b></a>. So ,this post is for the devices which don’t cut it. So what if Apple doesn’t allow you to share a piece of its latest pie? You can always get them by jailbreaking your iDevice (iPhone 2G and iPod touch 1G). By jailbreaking, you can get almost all the features . Sounds great, right?</div><div align="justify">Before you start, read my <a href="http://shankness.blogspot.com/2010/02/jailbreak-iphone-and-ipod-touch-312.html" target="_blank"><b>Guide</b></a> on how to jailbreak your iPhone.</div><blockquote><div align="justify"> <b>Home screen wallpaper</b></div></blockquote><div align="justify">This is not a big feature, but then, when its an Apple device, each small feature counts. To get home screen wallpapers, head over to cydia, and search for Winterboard. Install it and your springboard will restart. Tap on the winterboard app and set wallpapers option ON. Any wallpaper you set from your Photos app will now be the home screen wallpaper. </div><div align="justify"><br />
</div><div align="justify"> <img alt="wallpaper" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgehuEPys5KhuNIuoPxSTPRfKrXog1VvLxcnlQcUdSuQ4k2EGTDEme4S74nwi0HQDlUfzGoj8H8a9LFQusLOiisNsQej2WagwIJoS9JvIOceX_T58N8oTKaA2ZzJI23c-OJqBzuchsRzlYe/?imgmax=800" style="border-width: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="wallpaper" width="164" /> </div><blockquote><div align="justify"><b>Folders</b></div></blockquote><div align="justify">Again, go to cydia and get categories and install it. Once you have installed, tap add and all your apps will show up. Add the ones you want and then name the folder. Boom! All your apps are now neatly tucked away into a folder. Remember, when you restore your device or update the firmware, make sure you remove all apps from the folder and move them to your springboard. </div><div align="justify"><br />
</div><div align="justify"> <img alt="iPhone-Application-Categories-1" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCv_J3W6yd5WvAHqPmFU6s0ya3RYFHhLQDFP8cmJcOdRt92SpeVr2RV-_1nfJOIV3XbOck2y0hBGhYvvl8WgiQ9rV3u0EALJABrEnX0Cb5-6BD_e6KaUnAiU7zbF9_bGf5saCR3-qnmIF5/?imgmax=800" style="border-width: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="iPhone-Application-Categories-1" width="164" /> </div><blockquote><div align="justify"><b>Multitasking</b></div></blockquote><div align="justify"> Go to Cydia. Go to manage>edit>add. Add the “http://booleanmagic.com/repo” repository. Search for Backgrounder or Activator and install it. Then, search for Pro switcher. Install and what you will find is a wonderful web-OS like multitasking interface. </div><div align="justify"> <img alt="ProSwitcher" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAfH2DcK1hgm8latPVUIFfSVqz8ci3mRC0shGgeGX_EalH0CyA-Zjgiwt3situi31O_-JPiTwiCfPfWaK0xONTGlL0ahKbf1aLSwCWR6dJOnPwCUQLkr-RhQK-ujcCUgnje8quKjRjy2xA/?imgmax=800" style="border-width: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin: 0px auto 5px;" title="ProSwitcher" width="164" /></div><blockquote><div align="justify"><b>Reflective dock</b></div></blockquote><div align="justify"> iOS 4 changes the dock’s looks. The icons are reflective now. Once again, hit cydia and search for “reflective dock”and install it. Enable Reflective dock in winterboard and see the magic.</div><div align="justify"><br />
</div><div align="justify">These were some of the most useful and important features. I will keep you updated on more features as they come.</div><div align="justify"><br />
</div><div align="justify"><b>NOTE</b>: Even though Multitasking is useful, it can drain your battery life faster. Also, move all apps from a folder to your springboard before make any changes to firmware or decide to remove “categories”.</div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-42020076721725219522010-06-29T23:08:00.000+05:302010-06-29T23:22:01.191+05:30Switch Tabs faster and search across open Tabs in Firefox<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTFnql0f1Gq5PJXSb0Cb9AFf8Cv-uGz4wAk2V9Wd5bmU5od7pK4XbLDU1wvfjmpEmqUdkYA7oelBMVhPv5jbW5pAd0-UdLp5w7UPZm6LXv-q-uEQOYG1Tpc7_epLOrmQEyP-6YG38kJxOx/s1600/firefox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTFnql0f1Gq5PJXSb0Cb9AFf8Cv-uGz4wAk2V9Wd5bmU5od7pK4XbLDU1wvfjmpEmqUdkYA7oelBMVhPv5jbW5pAd0-UdLp5w7UPZm6LXv-q-uEQOYG1Tpc7_epLOrmQEyP-6YG38kJxOx/s200/firefox.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><u>Skill level of tweak</u>: <b>EASY </b><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">Ever wanted to manage tabs on your Firefox in a better manner? Want a preview pane for open tabs? Want to switch between tabs faster? Then this small trick will help you. The following about:config tweak will help you to view and search content across tabs and also switch between them quicker. A few posts back i wrote about a tweak on <b style="background-color: yellow; color: blue;"><a href="http://shankness.blogspot.com/2010/05/how-to-start-and-use-firefox-always-in.html">How to start firefox always in private browsing mode</a></b> which also uses about:config's options. For the uninitiated, about:config is an under the hood page in the Firefox browser where you can tweak the default settings.</div><br />
In the Address bar, type <b>about:config</b> .<br />
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In the search box on this page, type <b>browser.ctrlTab.previews</b><br />
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Change the value of this option to <b>true</b> (default is false)<br />
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Now close the about:config page. I would recommend restarting firefox after this. <br />
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This tab preview feature works when two or more tabs are open i.e a minimum of 3 tabs must be open. Well, that makes sense since tabs are difficult to manage only when they are more in number.<br />
<br />
After you have at least 3 tabs open, press <b>ctrl-tab</b>. This will bring up a new floating pane in the centre of your browser which looks strikingly similar to the windows Alt-Tab pane.<br />
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It works very much the same as your Alt-tab feature of windows. Holding the ctrl button, keep pressing the tab button to switch tabs.<br />
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Also pressing <b>shift-ctrl-tab</b> will open a pane showing all open tabs.Just click on a tab to go to that tab.<b>Middle clicking</b> on a tab closes it. And, this works even if one tab is open unlike the above said ctrl-tab option.<br />
<br />
Another interesting option is the ability to search for keywords across tabs. This is a bit different from the Ctrl-F feature which searches for content in the current tab.<br />
<br />
<i>I am unable to see the reason why Firefox disabled this option by default.</i><br />
<u><br />
</u><br />
<u>Note</u>: Even though there is a search feature in the tab preview pane, its still hit or miss. Seems like the reason why Firefox decided to disable it. The tab switching works well though.<br />
<br />
There is also an add-on called <b style="background-color: yellow; color: blue;"><a href="https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/8879/">fox tab</a></b> which does the trick. But then, it is not as lite and comes with too many options which can confuse the user. The above tweak gives a simple yet useful solution.Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-14238236198206001312010-06-23T01:10:00.000+05:302010-06-23T01:12:44.564+05:30Tweaking Windows 7 Taskbar to look like Vista/XP<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHAOWjLqudq53GkAlW3sBPlD6eRkFIVWpNmHty6P8TOUJEDrcKbsZIyPmINsX873TMciRWpgWkZ9kghr6GQ12B1pXD4YTVsxiHg6KALmOh3dOaZ9SODs7DgU_ru-Tu1MZW5wcgukW4TjXz/s1600/windows7_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHAOWjLqudq53GkAlW3sBPlD6eRkFIVWpNmHty6P8TOUJEDrcKbsZIyPmINsX873TMciRWpgWkZ9kghr6GQ12B1pXD4YTVsxiHg6KALmOh3dOaZ9SODs7DgU_ru-Tu1MZW5wcgukW4TjXz/s200/windows7_01.jpg" width="200" /></a>Windows 7 has a wonderful dock. Personally, I like it a lot as I have always envied mac users who have enjoyed a dock for many years. This new windows taskbar is a worthy competitor for the mac OS dock. But this new system has not pleased all. It can become a little uncomfortable with the default settings, for long time xp users and at those times when you have multiple instances of the same app open. There is a small tweak which will make your windows 7 taskbar look and behave a lot like vista or XP. This will make users feel at ease and they can work faster. This is how the standard windows 7 taskbar looks like:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyH5-E-lNI1iDNGTLlr8cevcQZnQMvGR4dPRiFY_0Dz7B2UcEDF0ARgulsopgQU7nuVC-FZWzxw6znY9d6Ir1yh7azUzSVIvWAUuP5MJsc25z-J6D8zjCMx0ikPYJkAjxx5JXuSq2fOnhb/s1600/Capture1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="11" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyH5-E-lNI1iDNGTLlr8cevcQZnQMvGR4dPRiFY_0Dz7B2UcEDF0ARgulsopgQU7nuVC-FZWzxw6znY9d6Ir1yh7azUzSVIvWAUuP5MJsc25z-J6D8zjCMx0ikPYJkAjxx5JXuSq2fOnhb/s640/Capture1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>Programs are pinned to the taskbar with large icons shown.<br />
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First of all , we need to unpin any pinned programs here. Right click and 'click <b>unpin program from taskbar</b>'.<br />
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Now, we are ready to add the 'quick launch' toolbar to our taskbar.<br />
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To do this, right click on the taskbar, go to<b> Toolbars->new toolbar</b>.<br />
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Navigate to<b> User/Appdata/Roaming/Microsoft/Internet explorer/Quick launch </b>. Then click Select folder after selecting Quick launch. (Pic shown below) <u>NOTE</u>: <b>User</b> is your PC name.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic_z-JRKybmiQeJSLtEKLfwsBjfIB94pvoMOrfFbcZfN_O4dpPHbA_a6AA-Lr6WfkGLgVg2IcMRdeaLXK34YR-6LHTtZU2cwPKZaXqiFOcuO1cmeB8lk0HPN1xrOvdkbKLaSbE25WpbNO0/s1600/Capture2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic_z-JRKybmiQeJSLtEKLfwsBjfIB94pvoMOrfFbcZfN_O4dpPHbA_a6AA-Lr6WfkGLgVg2IcMRdeaLXK34YR-6LHTtZU2cwPKZaXqiFOcuO1cmeB8lk0HPN1xrOvdkbKLaSbE25WpbNO0/s640/Capture2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br />
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Next, Right click on Taskbar, and under the <b>Taskbar buttons</b> option in the taskbar tab, select <b>Combine when taskbar is full </b>and <b>Apply</b>.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtb0KYzaLctBfVbRV0CXjNxMFCRFSqMWhYG7o7tOeKQcbLjQ7M5-bKdjYQ-Az2Po6n83xvHhEwiNautLFFVzWhARXf9MIkMR6-FY-gtQrEMC35urSYUslgjEL_hOo2Bp4KI7jAYNKC0JiI/s1600/Capture3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtb0KYzaLctBfVbRV0CXjNxMFCRFSqMWhYG7o7tOeKQcbLjQ7M5-bKdjYQ-Az2Po6n83xvHhEwiNautLFFVzWhARXf9MIkMR6-FY-gtQrEMC35urSYUslgjEL_hOo2Bp4KI7jAYNKC0JiI/s400/Capture3.JPG" width="356" /></a></div><br />
Drag the Quick launch tool bar all the way to the left.<br />
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Right click on the Quick launch toolbar, and <b>uncheck</b> both <b>show text</b> and <b>show title</b>. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdd2nqOJ5KOQrunYvWNm_7Y2n5gnQIaSjdNYhTzlYiRza4fqBSA57ixmNynTJaY0v0HDIhkDDSoC4nScXr0t9gG5uO1wtYr7QZW4-twJJqrLXY72zufzwybcxeD8hYjn_PijuVgn2b8vcZ/s1600/Capture4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdd2nqOJ5KOQrunYvWNm_7Y2n5gnQIaSjdNYhTzlYiRza4fqBSA57ixmNynTJaY0v0HDIhkDDSoC4nScXr0t9gG5uO1wtYr7QZW4-twJJqrLXY72zufzwybcxeD8hYjn_PijuVgn2b8vcZ/s320/Capture4.JPG" /></a></div><br />
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Now the Quick launch looks like this:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7IY6dNCKTknuETRXvHjo5vAB3Xsnx4xbiH1RFVFzwEeFMlo3rJ_N5aFcI4lxpBEnIh82Psg12SbEUzqu1bVotpjfxZbz0WNnXu_rtdNI9xLn2C0U1MWqklW8f_QUmaDTaSQ0z8tmjmzoO/s1600/Capture5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7IY6dNCKTknuETRXvHjo5vAB3Xsnx4xbiH1RFVFzwEeFMlo3rJ_N5aFcI4lxpBEnIh82Psg12SbEUzqu1bVotpjfxZbz0WNnXu_rtdNI9xLn2C0U1MWqklW8f_QUmaDTaSQ0z8tmjmzoO/s320/Capture5.JPG" /></a></div><br />
The Task bar will now look like vista/XP :<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDw5oJTQiCLBpw0MO17E8kjs9hlWGfq-VCcPF9N09fYJatCYQ-o0aHHxhj5wtdEQbPstBVm_QiG6KY9aeQuQX9LDGiEtY1EStC33H-Il1zor3FNV2Q7Au4ODnqyjoWWGSrf6d1Wntjdvo6/s1600/Capture6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="26" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDw5oJTQiCLBpw0MO17E8kjs9hlWGfq-VCcPF9N09fYJatCYQ-o0aHHxhj5wtdEQbPstBVm_QiG6KY9aeQuQX9LDGiEtY1EStC33H-Il1zor3FNV2Q7Au4ODnqyjoWWGSrf6d1Wntjdvo6/s640/Capture6.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br />
You can turn off Aero peek by <b>Right click taskbar->Under preview aero desktop (taskbar tab)-> uncheck Aero peek</b> to disable preview desktop feature.<br />
<br />
<br />
You can Always get back to the usual default settings by removing the quick launch toolbar and using the Hide labels option from the taskbar properties menu.Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-11604840536680598362010-06-21T23:08:00.000+05:302010-06-23T01:28:33.367+05:30iOS4 :compatibility for iDevices<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpIFc3L32povntxfJPxEIhaTLcmOPLlMPaRM6506nQ5QkGvg-7FqjAtUDrFU-yuf1O61ImdehaYMgATE6eEc6egNu9fmoqJbct4eMhulMYTN4j_L7KCXXegVFfInB8uJmJAA2Mq4H77mn-/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpIFc3L32povntxfJPxEIhaTLcmOPLlMPaRM6506nQ5QkGvg-7FqjAtUDrFU-yuf1O61ImdehaYMgATE6eEc6egNu9fmoqJbct4eMhulMYTN4j_L7KCXXegVFfInB8uJmJAA2Mq4H77mn-/s320/Capture.JPG" /></a></div>iOS4 is live. But not all iDevices are compatible right now and not all of them will get all the features.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Devices Eligible for upgrade:</b></span><br />
<br />
* <u><b>iPhone 3G (June 21st)</b></u><br />
<br />
Not all features announced by Apple are available.Features like Multitasking will not be available for this device. <br />
<br />
*<u><b> iPhone 3GS (June 21st)</b></u><br />
<br />
All features except facetime specific and the iMovie app will be available.<br />
<br />
*<u><b> iPad (coming this Fall)</b></u><br />
<br />
May be just like the iPhone 3GS but iPad specific features will be seen close to the release<br />
(currently the iPad is running on iOS 3(v 3.2)<br />
<br />
*<u><b> iPod touch 2Gen (June 21st)</b></u><br />
<br />
Similar to the iPhone 3G(multitasking will be left out) and iPhone specific features will be unavailable.<br />
<br />
* <u><b>iPod touch 3Gen (June 21st)</b></u><br />
<br />
Again similar to the iPhone 3GS with iPhone specific features left out.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Devices which are not eligible</b>:</span><br />
<br />
*<b> <u>iPhone 2G</u></b>: No updates will be available this year and in the future. iOS3 (v 3.1.3) is the last update.<br />
<br />
* <u><b>iPod touch 1Gen</b></u>: Similar to the iPhone 2G<br />
<br />
* <b>All Jailbroken iPhones and iPod touches which are otherwise actually eligible must not be updated. You might lose your jailbroken apps and your 'unlock' .</b> Please wait till the Dev team comes up with the solution.Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-47136457131845126722010-05-27T19:25:00.000+05:302010-05-27T19:27:26.421+05:30Use Google search as calculator and converter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7QPvhyphenhyphenfm6zL7G_6St4ITHGUp6l3IFctqedYuifmVWBqCYSYW-bEDB_wnMnR7IR8zfG4MN-B8D-uM1Nejdi5hHH5V14KttDhQLL5624ELjhrzP6Pj4sNv5X94UPI0J8ivPFh0sunMr43cS/s1600/1998_google2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7QPvhyphenhyphenfm6zL7G_6St4ITHGUp6l3IFctqedYuifmVWBqCYSYW-bEDB_wnMnR7IR8zfG4MN-B8D-uM1Nejdi5hHH5V14KttDhQLL5624ELjhrzP6Pj4sNv5X94UPI0J8ivPFh0sunMr43cS/s200/1998_google2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Windows comes with a very nice calculator but even after so many years, it hasn't matured into something which can be easy to use.And coming to converters, there are apps for download from the web but what we want at our disposal is a simple solution which could do some simple currency and unit conversions,do some simple calculations,and all this without installing any app. We use Google search for anything and everything. And if you are someone like me who keeps the browser open throughout the day, then google is your base. We use google for all our search needs. But not many know that it doubles as a very efficient calculator and converter application too. Here are few examples of how you could use google as a calculator..</div></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: blue;"><b>In order to fire up a simple calculation just type your query and the answer is shown.</b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLLt_U7GETtzX5sLhcTRs1YpjrU1fV-tpcjIIoT6Iph4ugud4bIiG10y3E5X_R9lKv9It4FXBcsY-F0A5YoQ987hizWRMGB4J0A9tKezz0ibh6zWR1S-OGzhc5cb9VhyphenhyphenCC_NM54EBKrhLb/s1600/Capture1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="142" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLLt_U7GETtzX5sLhcTRs1YpjrU1fV-tpcjIIoT6Iph4ugud4bIiG10y3E5X_R9lKv9It4FXBcsY-F0A5YoQ987hizWRMGB4J0A9tKezz0ibh6zWR1S-OGzhc5cb9VhyphenhyphenCC_NM54EBKrhLb/s640/Capture1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="color: black;"><b><br />
<span style="color: blue;">Complex calculations are also possible.</span></b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKjLfpqf7FvjMZEyhhRjKhTQ6bk7v-_RKPCYZyqA7iMw8lI3xtyO01ODnL65OCh7n-Kc5wdKgI-SSbL5vyB84o_Mrc4OtZIfCXyyT3p2oGmHytSC8efBg-KL_wz7GAmcV-G6DTjzjecWuj/s1600/Capture2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKjLfpqf7FvjMZEyhhRjKhTQ6bk7v-_RKPCYZyqA7iMw8lI3xtyO01ODnL65OCh7n-Kc5wdKgI-SSbL5vyB84o_Mrc4OtZIfCXyyT3p2oGmHytSC8efBg-KL_wz7GAmcV-G6DTjzjecWuj/s640/Capture2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="color: blue;"><br />
</div><div style="color: blue;"><b>For performing conversions, you need to include the '?' symbol in order to get the result as shown in the examples below.</b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipYFLUYTgB_xOXtDnBkAKmeASj1B9Tqpdv0zNe0Zb2BE-E2p8kBV9LsiDFZ4otdxq7g0g3PQUPBC9fDbDjUmXgYrU8M9Wll0x1rHjYTGV_Zopo5ojLYQI0ZAi3JljmO_WAWc0cKrLUxGxM/s1600/Capture3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipYFLUYTgB_xOXtDnBkAKmeASj1B9Tqpdv0zNe0Zb2BE-E2p8kBV9LsiDFZ4otdxq7g0g3PQUPBC9fDbDjUmXgYrU8M9Wll0x1rHjYTGV_Zopo5ojLYQI0ZAi3JljmO_WAWc0cKrLUxGxM/s640/Capture3.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: blue;"><b>Any kinda conversion is possible. Not only currency.</b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimtilJi2fbkAeXxH0vSWkqdtoQkWzLoOmp0z0ntFMtzX1TprP2DsgIn16K26GldhUHcxjp0HpwTUPXMNwR9KoQBrS_3ScM0zg5blw-hFxIVvFkU7VSrEqp4gOmdv2qKibmLjtON3XiuJ7m/s1600/Capture4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimtilJi2fbkAeXxH0vSWkqdtoQkWzLoOmp0z0ntFMtzX1TprP2DsgIn16K26GldhUHcxjp0HpwTUPXMNwR9KoQBrS_3ScM0zg5blw-hFxIVvFkU7VSrEqp4gOmdv2qKibmLjtON3XiuJ7m/s640/Capture4.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">Hope you liked this simple yet useful tip. :-)</div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-89707500308600672332010-05-23T20:43:00.000+05:302010-05-23T20:49:56.230+05:30Run TurboC in full screen mode and Play DOS games in WIndows 7 using DOSBOX<div style="color: black;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsArmE2YtmIC_VlZ2czMnuxJTw8zBgdFcHYlvogWAMERE_N9M3TsI-C7Gz7jq6ILiQCRphCGH-fAt3Be8h6tGnVqcZxmTdFBu8YoZFT4l-2jkTr0EQvbD_gwBCnts4MekOBUo7qR1FERhb/s1600/MS-DOS_icon.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsArmE2YtmIC_VlZ2czMnuxJTw8zBgdFcHYlvogWAMERE_N9M3TsI-C7Gz7jq6ILiQCRphCGH-fAt3Be8h6tGnVqcZxmTdFBu8YoZFT4l-2jkTr0EQvbD_gwBCnts4MekOBUo7qR1FERhb/s200/MS-DOS_icon.png" width="200" /></a> Performance is not to the fullest yet in Windows 7. There have been quite a lot of compatibility issues in 7. One of the most common problem is the inability to run Turbo C compilers in full screen mode and the issues with DOS games(yes we all love some of those games still and we want them badly). There are DoS games which don't run at all in 7. With a few simple steps you can resolve these issues. </div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><b>What you need: </b></div><div style="color: black;">> DOS BOX software <b><a href="http://sourceforge.net/projects/dosbox/files/dosbox/0.74/DOSBox0.74-win32-installer.exe/download" target="_blank">( Click here to Download)</a></b> </div><div style="color: black;">Steps: </div><ol style="color: black;"><li> Install <b>DOS BOX.</b> </li>
<li> Download <b>TURBO C</b> compiler <b><a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/390725161/TURBOC3.zip" target="_blank">(click here to Download) </a></b></li>
<li> On your desktop, <b>Right-click</b> and navigate to <b>new > shortcut.</b> </li>
<li> In the location text box, type in or copy-paste the location of the exe file of your DOS BOX software( <b>within double quotes</b>).Leave a <b>space</b> and type in the location of the Turbo C.exe file(<b>within double quotes</b>) >> <b>Example shown in the pic below (your location path can vary depending on where your files are located)</b></li>
</ol><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRJFzZ3hSzHZTSF0wy1chgt8726w_CHWQGuimG9bk_T2uMhra9AS2coHoMPm54oSc5fAxYfKszBCrv8G83Peew3tfOA-2UbRho9r3YurogYvKGE_PERt-wu9HXjjIi2bqL56Q_s7slFrcv/s1600/dosshortcut.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRJFzZ3hSzHZTSF0wy1chgt8726w_CHWQGuimG9bk_T2uMhra9AS2coHoMPm54oSc5fAxYfKszBCrv8G83Peew3tfOA-2UbRho9r3YurogYvKGE_PERt-wu9HXjjIi2bqL56Q_s7slFrcv/s400/dosshortcut.JPG" width="400" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: left;">5. Give your shortcut a name and your shortcut is ready.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: left;">6. When you have opened the shortcut, DOSBOX opens the compiler for you in this case. Press <b>Alt-Enter</b> to toggle between Fullscreen and normal modes.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><b>NOTE</b>: I recommend that you download the Turbo C listed in <b>step 2</b>. It has all the include and lib files in a single folder. </div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><b>FOR DOS GAMES</b> </div><div style="color: black;">In order to run DOS games in Windows 7, repeat the above steps. Remember to enter the appropriate location of the Install folder of the DOS game as instructed in step 4.</div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">There are a few alternative methods which can be found on the web but this is one of the easiest methods to do it. </div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-56528177614213662322010-05-16T01:36:00.000+05:302010-05-16T01:40:56.021+05:30The Best sites to follow for the Best iPhone app deals<div style="color: black;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwO-YTDWOXptZTUp3njOXgWx7PUONPFd0CA-gsvtcYJfeQnFoPDZL6_7ty6YTxsIXArnasmdPPLgZEzIM9xT4v2jP1yXNtq77YS0MXWWvl9BQXFvLHcepnWhBqHP-sJKR1aY48VbzIboDf/s1600/18_sexy_iphone_apps_headline2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwO-YTDWOXptZTUp3njOXgWx7PUONPFd0CA-gsvtcYJfeQnFoPDZL6_7ty6YTxsIXArnasmdPPLgZEzIM9xT4v2jP1yXNtq77YS0MXWWvl9BQXFvLHcepnWhBqHP-sJKR1aY48VbzIboDf/s200/18_sexy_iphone_apps_headline2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>The Apple app store for iPhone and iPad apps is growing by each and everyday and a there are a plethora of applications out there. There are apps which are free and there are some which are Paid. Not all of us get Paid apps and thus settle for the free ones. Not many know that the prices of the apps in the app store keep changing. Sometimes they go free too (for a limited time). With over 100,000 apps out there, its difficult to keep track of when which app went free or cheaper. The app store only allows us to search for apps and lists the top paid and free apps and that is all. So to have a constant knowledge and feed of all the apps and their prices by following these sites.>></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><b>APP SHOPPER</b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTklHW2JQdw2huDpdcF3HkNl0d9qgc5yTmOo-KEDq2FhyIXIggd8WmJpwBOyJY0NPXuFAaHFhJrnf7W2LZ4hdWc6pqH4XNqeCDdQE8_wNcPAfKLrIQq-NmAPvnj1j85ATShqNmo-uWypW3/s1600/appshopper.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTklHW2JQdw2huDpdcF3HkNl0d9qgc5yTmOo-KEDq2FhyIXIggd8WmJpwBOyJY0NPXuFAaHFhJrnf7W2LZ4hdWc6pqH4XNqeCDdQE8_wNcPAfKLrIQq-NmAPvnj1j85ATShqNmo-uWypW3/s320/appshopper.JPG" /></a></div><div style="color: black;">This site lists the no. of apps available and you can easily see the top 100 apps of the app store. There's a 'popular recent changes' listing on their homepage which shows recent price changes in the store. When you click an app, it shows the price history of the app too. So this shows whether you are getting the app at an all time low price or at a high price. Apps are also neatly categorized as paid and free. Not only this, you get alerted when there's a price change in any of the apps in your wish list. You can follow them on twitter at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/appshopper">www.twitter.com/appshopper</a></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><b>KRAPPS</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizDk6vbuSFhVFdseJomcaXJ2QhmlG0MlegSr8U_LQAmENRaeaEKmOrORm9x-qrqI4JaEXYHXxKHmGdYU6BL_BQAEx70ggo1wGoK1CNn_qzJ0lmFBtuHkfU1MTA2QrT3ZQ3J_fntvjh26Wg/s1600/krapps.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizDk6vbuSFhVFdseJomcaXJ2QhmlG0MlegSr8U_LQAmENRaeaEKmOrORm9x-qrqI4JaEXYHXxKHmGdYU6BL_BQAEx70ggo1wGoK1CNn_qzJ0lmFBtuHkfU1MTA2QrT3ZQ3J_fntvjh26Wg/s320/krapps.JPG" /></a></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">Krapps is one hell of a funny site. Really.. they get some great news as well as keep us informed of the best app deals. Their site gives detailed reviews of apps with a lot of humor and more than that, they are the best to follow on twitter.Their twitter feed provides info on apps not only from their site but from various iPhone sites. So you gain a lot there. Follow them on twitter at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/krapps">www.twitter.com/krapps</a></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><b>APPSAFARI</b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifGMHC6KptioyC-XY6tTVgS4bzeODsiD9u-4LZBI78_BnvZC7TbzfK7_xFupqIjrmmoEwr4m1nuvWYS1qhvkCVsoG0QrBrH-UGxnaFLqZUX4MN8CRga0bo6DqcfZ2I0AEbc26rfIFKpylf/s1600/appsafari.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifGMHC6KptioyC-XY6tTVgS4bzeODsiD9u-4LZBI78_BnvZC7TbzfK7_xFupqIjrmmoEwr4m1nuvWYS1qhvkCVsoG0QrBrH-UGxnaFLqZUX4MN8CRga0bo6DqcfZ2I0AEbc26rfIFKpylf/s320/appsafari.JPG" /></a></div><div style="color: black;">Appsafari's home page displays the newest of apps and unlike the top 100 on appshopper, they have a unique top 25 listing. This gives you a choice to choose the best of the best.Again, there are apps listed in various categories and one great thing at appsafari is the daily app giveaway. If you are lucky enough, you can win an app for free.There's a giveaway daily, so your probability of winning is increased if you follow them keenly. Follow them on twitter at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/appsafari">www.twitter.com/appsafari</a></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><b>148APPS</b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrC_jgg-vnsSz6846W5cGSm_748SDZGsUViilRG9L9nMLCbD7IEUPIcNbn9rvZN4MTFjWiVTL9wYrsfX60tTIiqdHTmokr3W5uYK-LNjpSWGjQ_dy9kb5D61dQJxHV5u9hnZiE7670Wmjp/s1600/148.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrC_jgg-vnsSz6846W5cGSm_748SDZGsUViilRG9L9nMLCbD7IEUPIcNbn9rvZN4MTFjWiVTL9wYrsfX60tTIiqdHTmokr3W5uYK-LNjpSWGjQ_dy9kb5D61dQJxHV5u9hnZiE7670Wmjp/s320/148.JPG" /></a></div><div style="color: black;">This site offers some nice reviews of the newest apps at the homepage and there's a unique top 148 apps category.Its quite interesting as some of the top apps are chosen for this category.Not only that, they have a 'top 148 apps of all times' and '148 most recent apps' category too. There are also top '148 free apps' and 'top 148 paid apps'. So that pretty much sums up why the site is named so.All the price drops and changes are neatly listed out in a categorised manner in a separate section of the website. Follow them on twitter at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/148apps">www.twitter.com/148apps</a></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">I hope you find this guide useful.Happy app shopping!</div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-2851259095264879852010-05-13T01:53:00.000+05:302010-05-13T01:59:10.645+05:30HOW TO: start and use FIREFOX always in Private Mode<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlptll1tEEEKlhj1dMJs38G__H5pIVEMSNJqeeVd_j1XFYTS0sFjiDC7VtImV4AWTPm4nZ4D0iLzn6-MemGiJgG2nA3cqjDWsvtFYAY5R54iUhTECeAHc8nDteScTGVorbPNtcvUN8RQvn/s1600/pb.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlptll1tEEEKlhj1dMJs38G__H5pIVEMSNJqeeVd_j1XFYTS0sFjiDC7VtImV4AWTPm4nZ4D0iLzn6-MemGiJgG2nA3cqjDWsvtFYAY5R54iUhTECeAHc8nDteScTGVorbPNtcvUN8RQvn/s320/pb.JPG" /></a></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">In all Browsers these days, we have the Private mode or Incognito mode for some privacy of our online activities. For some, its always necessary to be secure and safeguard their data.The Private mode is great but takes a couple or more clicks to get into it. Here's a small Hack as of how to get into the private mode each time you start Firefox. Not only that, you won't even find the label of Private Browsing on the title bar of Firefox.</div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">1.<b> Launch</b> Firefox.</div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">2. In the <b>Address bar</b>, type <b>about:config</b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">3. <b>Ignore</b> the <b>warning</b> given by firefox.</div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">4. In the <b>Filter</b> text box of the about:config page, type the following:</div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><b> browser.privatebrowsing.autostart</b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"> in this name, change the value to <b>True</b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">5. Now, <b>restart Firefox</b></div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">You can now start browsing in privacy mode right from start without any saving of history. Also, you can search your old history.</div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;"><i><u>Note</u></i>: In order to move back to the original settings, you can rechange the above mentioned value to <b>False</b>.</div><div style="color: black;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">I will try to post a How-to for other browsers too, later.</div>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-29523331008064005102010-05-03T15:52:00.000+05:302010-05-03T15:52:12.823+05:30How to: Jailbreak iPad, iPhone and iPod touch using SPIRITThis is one of the easiest jailbreaks on earth for iPhone OS 3.0. It has been in the pipeline for quite a few months now and SPIRIT is finally out. This is one of the easiest methods to jailbreak but Apple might crack down on this quite easily the next time you hit the update button. This is jailbreak only, so those who want to unlock will not find this useful. Spirit is applicable for all generations of iPhone and iPod touch and also for the iPad 3G and wifi.<br />
<br />
<b>To jailbreak your iDevice</b>,<br />
<br />
Download SPIRIT from <a href="http://spiritjb.com/">http://spiritjb.com/ </a><br />
<br />
1. Open <b>Spirit.exe</b><br />
<br />
2. Connect your device. After connecting, Spirit shows the device connected.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1lwEjsYdX8JglIiJP0tWY1B02FKgbiKtAUBciBY3ouyW7OHP48PSHqm259UgJ8iT9DOCYtz64JRV0DrM7GZEQoDQkeCR6QfPXyBca0UFF9c4-SN8kx91eEOx7_ODN9TPJBtOxZNfg2TE8/s1600/untitled.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1lwEjsYdX8JglIiJP0tWY1B02FKgbiKtAUBciBY3ouyW7OHP48PSHqm259UgJ8iT9DOCYtz64JRV0DrM7GZEQoDQkeCR6QfPXyBca0UFF9c4-SN8kx91eEOx7_ODN9TPJBtOxZNfg2TE8/s640/untitled.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br />
3. Hit the Jailbreak button, and guess what! you are done...<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggO6y9HhOJO0jA77IORcqMWWXCnLW7LOTitv-w5Sr5jpWsuLT3t8SJeAVITqNxLyBFoIyNTqkEi7umWycr_UGBDXQ4LJJlJ2JCd2YN90QkZxu3m6WRdGCEZl6K5ScBTNSNqfcGYscFjEU7/s1600/untitled1.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggO6y9HhOJO0jA77IORcqMWWXCnLW7LOTitv-w5Sr5jpWsuLT3t8SJeAVITqNxLyBFoIyNTqkEi7umWycr_UGBDXQ4LJJlJ2JCd2YN90QkZxu3m6WRdGCEZl6K5ScBTNSNqfcGYscFjEU7/s640/untitled1.bmp" width="640" /></a></div><br />
<br />
4. Your iDevice will restart in a few moments and is now jailbroken.<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Remedy for error c0000005</b></span> <br />
<br />
Some people have been getting the <b>error c0000005</b> on their <b>PC</b> while using Spirit.<br />
<br />
<br />
To overcome this, <b>right click on spirit.exe</b> and click on <b>properties.</b><br />
<br />
<br />
Click the <b>compatibility</b> tab and select <b>run this program in compatibility mode for windows 98/ME</b><br />
<br />
<br />
This should work.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Thanks</b> to the spirit team for all the great work.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>NOTE</i>: Spirit is for iPhone OS 3(upto 3.2) onlyShankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-73490280582256869812010-04-29T21:23:00.000+05:302010-04-29T21:24:56.586+05:30How to: Adding shutdown shortcut on windows 7Since windows vista, Accessing the shutdown and restart buttons hasn't been so easy. With the new taskbar features in Windows 7, we can solve this by pinning a shortcut of shutdown to the taskbar. Here's a <b>How-to</b>:<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>O</b></span>n your desktop,right click and navigate to create a new shortcut. In the location text box, type the following:<br />
<br />
<b>shutdown.exe -s-t00</b><br />
<br />
Click <b>next</b> and you can give the name of your choice for the shortcut.<br />
<br />
<i>example</i>: <b>Shutdown</b> <br />
<br />
Click <b>OK</b> and you are done.<br />
<br />
On the Desktop, right click on the icon and click <b>properties</b>. Navigate to the <b>shortcut tab</b> and click on the <b>change icon</b> button at the bottom of dialog box.Choose from the available options and assign an icon for the shortcut.<br />
<br />
Once again,On your desktop, right click the icon and click "<b>pin to Taskbar</b>" <br />
<br />
The shutdown button now appears in the taskbar.<br />
<br />
Click on the button anytime to shutdown your PC.<br />
<br />
<b>Note</b>: The same procedure can be applied for <b>restart </b>as well with the following piece of command:<br />
<br />
<b>shutdown.exe -r-t00</b><br />
<br />
<i>Also, you can apply this trick on any windows PC(and not just windows 7) but the "pin to taskbar" feature will not be available though.</i><b> </b><br />
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Do you have any other useful shortcuts in mind? Do share them in the comments section.Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-64838798797343350572010-04-05T23:47:00.000+05:302010-04-05T23:47:49.240+05:30The fourth coming : iPhone OS 4.0<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4-owSAWODSU7yYy2yvgqodDUvOg-TdoASO4s2wk770vznea8ouvDlQSO7FmRvd8kpRWWROGBhIfJwV_0-NiCDGtoqJf30qcab1nRsO_IQaFexvuBBtcLrCvfn0zbj3h6908va5Yujf0Cw/s1600/top.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4-owSAWODSU7yYy2yvgqodDUvOg-TdoASO4s2wk770vznea8ouvDlQSO7FmRvd8kpRWWROGBhIfJwV_0-NiCDGtoqJf30qcab1nRsO_IQaFexvuBBtcLrCvfn0zbj3h6908va5Yujf0Cw/s320/top.jpg" /></a></div>Well, the fourth iteration is here.Hold your breath and wait for this one. OS 3.0 was awesome and we all hope that the iPhone will continue the awesomeness with 4.0 Here's a short list of what i expect from OS 4.0:<br />
* Multitasking<br />
* All in one mail inbox integration<br />
* Flash (not expected)<br />
* A better home screen<br />
* Snappier interface<br />
* more sharing options via Bluetooth<br />
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All in all, i cant wait for the curtains to go down on this one.So keep yourself updated with all the latest news on 8th April.Till, then, let the rumors pour in. :)Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-45065971749405689562010-02-01T18:50:00.000+05:302010-03-06T20:14:59.064+05:30Jailbreak iPhone and iPod touch 3.1.2 using redsn0w 0.9Redsn0w 0.9 is finally out of beta. redsn0w 0.9 is applicable for devices running <b>3.0 and 3.1.2 only.</b><br />
<b>Redsn0w does not unlock your iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G.</b><br />
<b>It can unlock as well as jailbreak your iPhone 2G only.</b><br />
<b>iPod touch 1G , 2G and 3G can be jailbroken using redsn0w.</b><br />
<b><u><i>Note</i>: <i>All late model devices including iPod touch 3G, the latest 2G(8gig model) and the iPhone 3GS must undergo tethered boot.</i></u></b><br />
<br />
<b>Step1</b>: Download redsn0w 0.9 from <a href="http://wikee.iphwn.org/howto:rs9">here</a><br />
<b>Step2:</b> Google for the latest firmware for your device and download it.<br />
<b>Step3</b>: Restore your device to the latest firmware(3.1.2 in this case).<br />
<b>step4</b>: Open redsn0w and point it to the latest firmware(choose your appropriate device).<br />
<b>step5</b>: For iPhone 2G(only), download the bootloaders 3.9 and 4.6 from <a href="http://www.iphonedownloadblog.com/iphone-downloads/">here</a> and<br />
Click install cydia and then unlock.<br />
<b>step6</b>: From the on screen menu, choose to install just cydia and uncheck other options.<br />
<b>step7</b>: Redsn0w will now take your device into DFU mode. Just follow the onscreen instructions and you are done.<br />
<b>step8</b>: for late model devices, remember to tether boot your device.<br />
<br />
<u><b>Tether boot</b></u>:<span style="color: #38761d;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This means that each time your device gets reset or runs out of power, connect it to a computer and then boot it. This is applicable for late model devices only.</span>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-37399610941202615962010-01-27T18:48:00.000+05:302010-01-27T18:48:47.902+05:30Great Expectations: Apple's latest Creation eventThe day has finally come guys. Apple is ready to present its latest creation. As a gadget geek, i dont want to see just another lame tablet. We want something special and at a special price.<br />
<br />
<b>What we don't want it to be:</b><br />
what we don't want is a tablet with a huge screen and is difficult to carry around. Huge screen is fine but it does matter how portable it is. So we dont want just another tablet like the HP's or like the ones DELL makes.<br />
<br />
<b>Is it really the tablet today?:</b><br />
<br />
Well, even though there hav been rumors all over that we will see a tablet today,you never know, Apple could pull out some last minute surprises. It could be a sizzling new iPhone. But i am not buying on that because an iPhone cannot be a new creation. What if apple pulls a dampener here by announcing an ordinary HD tv? nah, we dont wanna see anything like that right? All in all, I will bet for the tablet to be announced today.<br />
<br />
<b>What kind of a tablet?:</b><br />
<br />
It should be something godly.Something like heaven has dropped a golden egg on the tech world. I expect the same oomph and wows which the iPhone extracted from us. Portability should be a major consideration since no one would like to carry a fragile piece of chunk in their hands. As far as the functionalities are concerned,it should be able to do something unique. Great features which would make you crave for it should be the biggest criteria for the device. If its not a piece of fragile chunk and is unique, the slate device is bound to create a wave among the masses. Else, Apple's plans of surprising the world and repeating an iPhone kinda show will go kaput.<br />
<br />
<b>What price?:</b><br />
<br />
In the times of economic slowdown, no one wants to spend on a tablet. It must be priced well below 1000$ in order to click with the masses. Everybody is expecting a friendly price tag but as all of us know , Apple's products always cost a premium. So i won't be surprised if the tablet's priced even over 1000$. <br />
<br />
<b>One more thing:</b><br />
<br />
Will apple show us the iPhone OS 4.0 today? maybe yes, maybe no. I also expect a new version of iTunes today. Let us wait and watch.Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-83982130283630434232010-01-15T23:26:00.000+05:302010-01-15T23:26:20.169+05:30How to: Sharing paid iPhone apps with othersConsider you have multiple iphones or iPod touches or many including you own an iphone or touch, you all wouldn't consider buying the same app from the iTunes store. Its always good to share your things with family and friends. There is a method (a legal one to share your paid apps with others).<br />
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* Go to applications in iTunes .<br />
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* Drag and drop the desired application onto your desktop.<br />
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* copy the file to a pen drive and transfer it to your friend's pc.<br />
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* Now double click the app to add it to ur friend's app library.<br />
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* In iTunes, click authorize computer and enter your username and password.<br />
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* Sync their iPhone and they have now got the app!<br />
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Alternative:<br />
* Ask your friend to login to itunes store using your id and password.<br />
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* iTunes remembers that you have paid for the app before and lets your friend download the app for free this time around.<br />
<br />
* hurray and they can now download the app and sync it to their phone.<br />
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Note: <i>One iTunes account can work with only 5 authorized computers at a time.</i>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-91440169001509081332010-01-15T22:18:00.000+05:302010-01-17T12:37:46.225+05:30How to: Backing up iPhone appsWe love our ipod touch or iphone apps, don't we? But we dont like to download them over and again. You can find all your apps in the applications category of your iTunes. What if you want to uninstall itunes or u format your PC for any reason? You may lose all your apps and more than that you have to download them again. So, here's a brief "how to" on backing up your apps in case of any reasons mentoined above:<br />
<br />
1. Before you format or uninstall iTunes, go to MyDocuments on your PC.<br />
2. Go to MyMusic>iTunes>Mobile Applications .<br />
3. In the Mobile Applications folder you can find all the apps which you had downloaded.<br />
4. Select all those files and copy them onto your external hard drive or a pen drive.<br />
5. That's it you are done.<br />
6. After you have reinstalled iTunes and ready to go, place all the files you backed up in the same location path mentioned in step 2.Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2351582920969428635.post-20678989390668717072010-01-09T22:59:00.000+05:302010-01-09T23:18:00.631+05:30Tech 2k10: What to expect in Tech for 2010<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8qZ3dyYbSH5dVJh3e3dAQ7VI6kcnRznwDjCrVU2Zlw2U1vFHAGmb0LwhdJtli3CRERSNqpYjEWqmSNEbQm1EoVyTf1cujHdDHg_Gjf1QlUT_igPQPrfc-Y9cyafogwQdDWDm2UCQXKV-w/s1600-h/crystalball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8qZ3dyYbSH5dVJh3e3dAQ7VI6kcnRznwDjCrVU2Zlw2U1vFHAGmb0LwhdJtli3CRERSNqpYjEWqmSNEbQm1EoVyTf1cujHdDHg_Gjf1QlUT_igPQPrfc-Y9cyafogwQdDWDm2UCQXKV-w/s400/crystalball.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><span style="font-family: segoe UI; font-size: small;">2010 is here. Technology is ever evolving and we will see more of that this year too.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace; font-size: small;">2009</span><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-family: segoe UI; font-size: small;">was a great year for tech geeks. We saw many smartphones evolving and many new mobile OSes showed up with significant updates. Android jumped to version 2.0, iPhone came up with a very major 3.0 update and also, we saw new OSes like the web OS and the bada OS being announced. 2009 also saw Nokia join the touchscreen bandwagon. Many tablets came up and many new environmentally green devices too became a trend. So, what would it be like in 2010? Will we see more mobile OSes? Will 2010 mark the birth of web 3.0? Also, there are many new products and technologies which have been in the pipeline for years and could see the light of the day this year. Here are my views on what lies in the future:</span><br />
<div style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Apple's Tablet:(expected in jan):</b></span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: segoe UI; font-size: small;">This could be apple's entry into the netbook market. This is one of the most awaited devices this year. Rumored to be named as iSlate, many versions of specs have been circulating the web in the past one year. The announcement of such a device is itself a rumor, amusingly. Thats the best part of the rumors sorrounding apple's devices. It never exists till apple says it does.Rumored to be a 10-inch device in the form of a large iPod touch , this one may or not click with the masses. Wait till Jan 27 when Steve job comes up on stage at yerba buena center,San francisco.</span><br />
<div style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Nexus One:(already announced):</b></span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: segoe UI; font-size: small;">Google has been stepping into every field of tech lately and mobile phone industry is no exception. There was a lot of hype and hoopla sorrounding the device and google drew everyone's attention. After the event, i felt that nexusone didn't deserve the pre launch stardom which it did. I mean come on, it doesn't have multitouch. Android 2.1 is awesome though. But you cant say that Nexus one made you feel awestruck. Actually, nexus one is not the first device which has the android+HTC+google combo.Then why the hype in this case? Well, Android 2.1 deserves a lot of appreciation and we will get to see a lot of devices supporting this OS.</span> <br />
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<div style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Nokia's Catchup Games:</b></span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: segoe UI; font-size: small;">Nokia is one company which would like to forget 2009. Not all went well for them in 2k9.Nokia's share in the mobile market went down thanks to HTC, Samsung and iPhone 3GS. Nokia has promised its fans that they will upgrade symbian OS to a new level (finally) and try to bring quality smartphones into the market(5800 was the antonym of quality). They have been trying to sue Apple recently, but that won't really help them get back on track for sure.</span><br />
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<div style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>iPhone OS 4.0:</b></span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: segoe UI; font-size: small;">Getting back to the cupertino giant again, its time that there is one more update to this revolutionary OS. Who knows, we could expect an announcement of the OS4.0 on jan 27 and a detailed preview in march just like it happens every year. The fourth coming of iPhone OS will also bring with itself the prospects of the fourth gen iPhone. No one knows what the fruit-named company has in mind but there are some things which we can predict. A 5.0 megapixel camera is quite common a guess. Multitasking is something i like to see happenning this time around.Apple should not cite battery life as a reason for not including the feature. Wireless syncing is something which is not on everybody's lips but its surely something significant considering the fact that how many people really hate wired syncing and on the top of that you need to bear the burden of iTunes. A 1 ghz processor would be great and would keep it in the league of nexus one and other players. Also, we can some great features from apple which we cant even think of.</span><br />
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<div style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Microsoft Office 2010:</b></span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: segoe UI; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">The best office suite will be refreshed soon and I can't wait to get my hands on it.The beta is out for testing though. It is said to have many new features and carries ahead the trend set by office 07. I hope that they don't change the file extensions this time around(like they did in 07) and a price drop would also be great.</span> </span><br />
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<div style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Bada OS:</b></span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: segoe UI; font-size: small;">Samsung surely made its mark in the tech industry last year and they have decided not to rest on their laurels and have developed their own mobile OS. They keep asking 'What's Next?' in their commercials and this time around they seem to have answered it themselves.Bada OS is a full fledged touch OS. They have left no stone unturned and have tried to gather developers for developing apps. The first screenshots of the OS projected the OS to be great and fresh. They have released their SDK and and developers are already working on apps. Samsung has said that there will be a device running on bada OS in the first quarter of 2010. Bada OS is not open source though unlike Android. Well lets expect a Bada device in Mobile World Congress.</span><br />
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</span><br />
<span style="font-family: segoe UI; font-size: small;">I can go on with this forever but that's it for now. A lot is there to expect and the battle between tech giants will be only more intense this time. Hoping for perfect ten for Tech in 2010, i sign off. Happy new Year again!</span>Shankarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01060724142554779985noreply@blogger.com0