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December 2009
You are browsing the archive for December 2009.
Turn Any Phone into a SmartPhone
Get Smart without a Giant Phone
OVERVIEW: This article will show you how to take a regular mobile phone and give it many of the capabilities of a much more expensive SmartPhone.
Be Jealous No More
Just because you don’t have a SmartPhone, you don’t have to go without all of the cool, useful, and fun stuff that they can do. As long as you have a phone that can take pictures, send MMS, and access the internet (just about all phones made in the last 3 years), you can do a lot more than you think.
Let’s look as some of the key capabilities that make SmartPhones what they are:
- Personal Information Management (PIM)
- (Calendar, Contacts, Notes & Memos)
- News
- (Sports, Finance, Weather, etc.)
- Web Browsing
- Social Networking
- Instant Messaging
Let’s take a look at how you can approximate many of these features on any phone.
*Some of these options are not free. I know that’s a major departure from how I usually roll, but if you want all of these features for free, you’ll have to pay for a SmartPhone any way.
Personal Information Management (PIM)
Calendar, Contacts, and Notes syncing have always been the main features of SmartPhones. If you’re willing to fork over $15 – $30 you can get those features on your phone. Here are two excellent applications for syncing your computer’s PIM data to just about any phone.
Susteen’s DataPilot
Mobile Action’s Handset Manager
Just install their software on your computer, configure the settings, and plug your phone in using the provided cable. That’s it! All of your PIM data is synced to your phone.
Get Your News on the Go
The ability to keep up with some key pieces of news is a great capability. There are tons of services that have mobile versions of their pages or will even send news alerts to your phone. Here are a few that you can try.
Headline News – CBS Mobile News, CNN Mobile, Google News Mobile, MSNBC Mobile
Sports – ESPN Mobile, Yahoo Sports Mobile, Sports Illustrated Mobile
Weather – Weather Channel Mobile, Wunderground Mobile
Finance – CNBC Mobile, Yahoo Finance Mobile, CNNMoney Mobile
Browse the Web with Style
One of the great things about SmartPhones is their ability to browse the web. Let’s face it, the standard browser loaded on a typical non-smartphone is just about unusable. There is an option that makes the internet much more usable on a mobile phone. Opera Mini is a JAVA based browser that can be installed on most regular mobile phones. This is about as close as you’re going to get to a real browsing experience on your phone.
Just point your phone’s crappy browser at: “m.opera.com” and follow the installation prompts. Now you can see all of that cool stuff you’ve been missing.
Social Networking
Do you want to be able to update your Social Networking sites from your phone? Well, there are a bunch of ways that you can do this. If you have instant messenger on your phone, you can use an IMbot to update any of your networks.
Ping.fm is a simple and FREE service that makes updating your social networks a snap! You can post to Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and over 40 others just by sending a simple Instant Message. Here is a full list of networks that you can post to.
Here are the ways that you can update your services through Ping.fm
Do you want to post your pictures and videos to services like Flickr, YouTube, and Twitter? Well, you can use PixelPipe.com to post media and messages to over 70 of your favorite social media sites. (Yes there are actually over 70!) Pixelpipe supports photo, video, audio, file, and text posts.
Upload your media from MMS & Email to your private upload address.
To use: Attach your file(s) to a new message and send the message to your personal upload address. Your personal upload address is boulder77banners@upload.pixelpipe.com
Tip: Add ‘Routing Tags’ (denoted by @service) to the body of the message to send to specific destinations or groups. For example, to make a post only on your Facebook and Twitter, type this into your message: “This is a post @facebook @twitter”
HelloTXT will also let you post updates to many of your favorite social networking sites via a simple text message, email, or Instant Message.
One of the methods that HelloTXT supports is a service called Dial2Do.com . This service allows you to call in and speak commands and information to a virtual secretary. Dial2Do will then carry out your tasks. You can also create and/or hear emails, calendar appointments, to-do’s, texts, and more. That’s way cooler than a SmartPhone.
The following video shows you some of the amazing things that you can do with this service.
See a complete tutorial on using Dial2Do.com as a personal secretary.
How Do You Make Your Phone Smarter?
If you have any tips on making your phone smarter, I would love to hear them in the comments below.
Get Your New Computer From Box to Awesome in a Flash
Get that Holiday Gift Working Right Away
OVERVIEW: This article links to several resources that will help your new computer go from the box to maximum usefulness as fast as possible.
So You Got a New Computer for the Holidays, Now What?
Just getting a new computer is only half the battle. Once you get that thing out of the box, that’s where the real fun begins. Here are a few guides and resources that will help you do all of the painful things necessary for making a mass-produced box of electronics into your very own PERSONAL computer.
Configuring Your New Computer
After you get your new machine up an running, you will need to perform a few vital configuration steps. Whether it’s a Windows, Mac, or Linux machine, these resources will get you going.
Set Up and Get to Know Your New Windows, Mac, or Linux Computer – The folks over at LifeHacker.com have a bunch of great tips on setting up a new computer. The didn’t cut any corners either; Windows, Mac, and Linux are all thoroughly covered.
Download Squad Guide to Making Your New Holiday PC More Kick-Ass! - DownloadSquad.com has lots of great tips on making your new Windows computer better. A lot of the tips center around getting the garbage software that the manufacturers are paid to install gone and replacing it with much better options.
Setting Up Your New Mac: The First 25 Things You Need To Do – If you got a new Mac, the team at MacLife.com take you through a series of steps to make it a workhorse in no time at all.
The Best Free Software for Your New Computer
After you configure your new computer, you need to install the right software to help you get things done. Here are some of my favorite free applications for WIndows and Mac.
22 Most Useful Free Applications for your Windows PC – These are some of the best Windows applications at any price, but when you consider that they’re free, how can you go wrong.
26 Best Free Mac Applications – Macs come loaded with a decent set of software, but here are some additions to put you over the top.
100 of the Best (Useful) OpenSource Applications – UbuntuLinuxHelp.com has a massive list of useful Linux applications in every category imaginable.
A Computer is Not All Function, I Can Look Pretty Too
After you have your new computer set up to work like a team of mules, you may want to make it look like a sexy supermodel. Check out a few of these resources.
Five Best Wallpaper Sites – LifeHaker.com has some great places to go get beautiful wallpapers to put your own style on that new machine. I’m going there myself, as soon as I’m done with this article.
Don’t Forget Your Other New Gadgets
Even if you didn’t get a shiny new computer for the holidays, you might have another fancy gadget that you want to set up the right way. Here are a few guides to help you out.
5 Sites to Help You Set Up Your New Gadgets – ReadWriteWeb.com has a few resources you can use to help set up your new gadgets. They are mostly sites that have video tutorials or Q&A message boards that are helpful.
Setting Up Your New iPod: The First 25 Things You Need To Do – Those helpful guys at MacLife have another good set of tips for you to get your new iPod or iPhone running like a champ.
What are your New Computer Setup Secrets?
Dont’ forget to leave any good new computer setup tips in the comments below.
5min.com Video of the Day
What I would Like to See in Tech for 2010 (That Probably Won't Happen)
This is my 2010 technology wish list. These are the things that I would love to see happen or be invented in 2010. Some are reasonable and others are just plain crazy. Enjoy!
10 Best VitaminCM.com Articles of 2009
Looking Back on Another Fun Year of Blogging
What’s a Year End Without a Countdown?
As 2009 draws to a close I decided to do a quick look back on the top posts of 2009. The list is based solely on the amount of visits that each article received, however I threw in a few of my less appreciated favorites. Without further ado, here’s the list.
10 – You can Create the Web Operating System Today (My Personal Favorite)
This post shows how to cobble together a complete Web-Based operating system from a bunch of common, free web apps. The main tools used are iGoogle, and Zoho apps. This was a fun article to put together.
9 – iPhone Photoshop Application Review
One of my favorite iPhone apps is Photoshop. You can do quick, simple edits to your pictures right on your phone. There are just enough features to make your photos go from blah to good.
8 – Never Forget Another Idea – Capture Everything with Evernote
Evernote is one of my very favorite productivity tools. This tutorial shows you how to use it on Windows, Mac, iPhone, Windows Mobile, and Linux (via the web). If you need a great note taking system that goes anywhere, take a look at this article.
7 – How to Upgrade the Memory in your Netbook
If you have a netbook computer, one of the biggest drawbacks is the performance. If you max out the RAM, you will get a noticeable boost. This video shows you how to replace the existing memory with a new stick.
6 – Add Magical Powers to Your Browser with Bookmarklets
Bookmarklets are like regular browser bookmarks on steroids. They have javascript commands that add extra functionality to your favorite web sites. Bookmarklets can do things like open a url in an email, subscribe in Google Reader, send a link to Twitter, and many other things in one click. See how to make it happen in this article.
5 – Remote Control Your Computer From The Internet
Did you ever wish you could log onto your home computer from work, a friend’s house, or even your iPhone? Well, this tutorial shows how to use VNC and your router’s Port Forwarding to do just that. You will be able to access your computer from anywhere in the world.
4 – Sync Files on Multiple Computers Using DropBox
If you work on multiple computers (work, home, etc.) then you know what it’s like to not have the files you need. DropBox will cure this problem for good. This tutorial shows you how to set up and use DropBox on all of your machines.
3 – 36 Ways to Work Seamlessly on Two Computers
If you use more than one computer with some combination of Windows, Mac, and Linux and a Smartphone than you know how difficult it is to have all of your stuff when and where you need it. I’m going to show you a variety of tools and strategies to help you have everything you need, when and where you need it.
2 – 26 Best Free Mac Applications
This year I switched from exclusively using Windows to spending most of my time on a Mac. I cover a collection of very useful free applications that you can use on the Mac. If buy a Mac and have no money left to spend on apps, take a look at this article.
Drum Roll Please…
This was far and away the most popular post of the year. It actually had 10 times more visits than the second place finisher.
1 – 22 Most Useful Free Applications for your PC
List of the most useful free applications for your Windows computer. Firefox, Digsby, filezilla, Picasa, Cute PDF Writer, rocket dock, windows live writer, etc. If you’re looking for some great free apps for your PC, this is the article for you.
What Was Your Favorite?
I would love to hear what your favorite article was. Also, if there is something that you would like to see covered I REALLY want to hear that. So jump into those comments and let your voice be heard.
And Thanks for another great year!!!
Ultimate Portable Computer Rescue Kit Saves Any Computer
Build a USB Rescue Drive with Free Portable Utilities
OVERVIEW: This video tutorial shows how to set up a collection of portable apps on a USB drive that can be used to diagnose and repair almost any broken windows computer.
The Difference Between Men and Monkeys is Tools
During the holidays I typically spend a great deal of time travelling to see freinds and relatives. As you may have guessed, I frequently get asked to "fix" everybody’s jacked up computers. When I’m not at home with all of my resources, it’s pretty hard to figure out what’s wrong and even harder to fix it. What if thier internet connection is down? There goes just about all of the things that you can download to fix any problems. These are the sort of catch 22′s that I’m usually up against.
Since I’m not about to carry my laptop and a bunch of other junk to a New Year’s Eve party, I decided to build myself a portable USB Rescue Kit that takes up no space in my pocket. Now, next time I get asked for help, I can spring into action, diagnose, and fix thier PCs in time to see the big ball drop. If you’re the "computer guy or gal" in your family, you can prepare yourself to handle these situations by investing about $10 and 30 minutes of your time building your own kit.
How to Set Up Portable Apps on a USB Drive
Here is a tutorial for loading portable apps on a usb drive that I wrote a while ago. It walks you through the process of setting up a portable application suite on a USB drive.
What Apps to Load on Your Rescue Drive
Now that you know how to set up your USB drive, you need to know which applications and utilities that you want to have in your arsenal.
I set myself up with the following applications (in no special order):
- Antivirus (ClamWin)
- Disk Defragmenter (JKDefrag and Defraggler)
- Archive Tool (7zip)
- FTP Tool (Filezilla, Putty, WinSCP)
- Remote Access Tools (VNC, RDP)
- CD / Disk Imaging Tools (InfraRecorder)
- Screenshot / Screen recorder – (Lightscreen and VTuteRecorder)
- Spyware Remover – (SpyDLLRemover and RootKitRevealer)
- Password Manager – (KeyPass)
- System Cleaner – (CCleaner and Revo Uninstaller and PC Decrapifier)
- Registry Tools – (Wise Registry Cleaner and Dial-A-Fix)
- Media Player (VNC and K-Lite Codec tool)
- PDF Tools (Foxit and PDFTKBuilder)
- Software Serial Numbers (ProdUKey)
- Communications – (Skype and Pidgin IM)
- Startup Management – (Startup Manager and CCleaner)
- Wi-Fi – (WirelessKeyFinder)
- Plus any Office, Internet, and Graphics tools that you may think you need.
ReadWriteWeb recommends a good list of portable apps and utilities that you can use to repair a computer. A Computer Repair Utility Kit You Can Run From a Thumb Drive (Just about all of them are included in my build.)
Where to Get Good Portable Apps
There are a few great sites that have all of the applications on this list and plenty of others.
PortableApps.com has a great suite of applications and a very nice launcher tool that basically makes your portable suite into its own operating system.
LiberKey.com has a 270+ applications in their extensive catalog. If you can’t find the right tool here, it probably doesn’t exist.
PenDriveApps.com has a large, albeit poorly organized collection of useful application and utilities.
LupoPenSuite.com has a collection that combines dozens of USB and Web-Based apps that can perform typical productivity, media, and maintenance activities.
Video Tutorial for Building a USB Recue Kit
The following video will show you how to install and configure your USB Rescue Kit.
What to do After Everything is Fixed
After you get that nasty mess cleaned up, you may want to do a little preventative maintenance. Set up this newly healthy machine with a few good tools:
- Antivirus Protection (AVG or Avast)
- A Good Browser (Firefox, Chrome, or Opera)
- Malware Protection (Spybot Search and Destroy, Malwarebytes, Microsoft Security Essentials)
- PDF Tools (Foixt Reader and CutePDF Writer)
- Safe P2P Downloading (uTorrent and eMule)
- Zip Tool (7zip)
- System Cleaner (CCleaner)
- VNC Server (RealVNC so that you can connect to their machine and fix it later)
Before you balk at how much time this will take to set up, there is a great tool that will make this take just a few minutes. Ninite.com allows you to create a "batch installer" that will download and install dozens of great free applications in just a few clicks.
Set yourself up with a bulk installer of recommended applications and keep that on your USB drive to install once your done. Since they download the actual files at the time of installation the files will take up less than 200K on your drive.
My Holiday Gift to You
Here’s the prize for the diligent PC repairman who has read this far. On Christmas Eve (December 24th, 2009) I will select one random commenter to receive a 4 gig USB drive that I set up with everything mentioned in this article, plus a few extra goodies. The rules are simple: Just leave a comment about who you would help with this USB Emergency Kit. Good luck to all!!!