jeudi 14 octobre 2010
End of the Road
If you're like me and have enjoyed unlimited data on your cell phone and smartphone, well...the party's over. Following ATT, Verizon announced that they are ending unlimited data plans as well. For may people who don't use a lot of data, it's actually going to reduce their bill. Not me.
mercredi 13 octobre 2010
X Marks the Spot
Xmarks, the bookmark syncing service formerly known as Foxmarks, announced recently it will close its doors and delete its users' data on January 10, 2011. The always-free, cross-browser syncing service couldn't find a business model, it seems, especially among newer auto-syncing browsers.
I first wrote about Xmarks back when it was Foxmarks, and even then, it was an impressive service that simplified a process that could be done, but in geeky fashion. Then it went on to add selective bookmark syncing, password syncing, and eventually became the full-fledged Xmarks, with support for the other three major browsers and a few new social-ish search enhancements baked in.
Those search enhancement features never really took off, though, and while Xmarks is currently hosting more than 1.2 billion bookmarks from roughly 5 million computers for 2 million users (and adding an estimated 3,000 accounts on a day like today), the firm has struggled to find a money-making service or offering to support the staff and servers. More importantly, as their blog post points out, each of the major browsers offers some kind of synchronization service now—though none with the kind of cross-browser reach that Xmarks enjoyed.
Xmarks has put up the crucial information on getting your bookmarks out and migrating to other services on its Shutdown page. The short of it: the service and servers will be up until January 10, and Xmarks promises that it won't be selling or monetizing its users' bookmark data—in fact, it all gets wiped after shutdown. There's a link included at the Shutdown page to wipe out everything you have on Xmarks right now, if you used to have an account and want it gone.
I first wrote about Xmarks back when it was Foxmarks, and even then, it was an impressive service that simplified a process that could be done, but in geeky fashion. Then it went on to add selective bookmark syncing, password syncing, and eventually became the full-fledged Xmarks, with support for the other three major browsers and a few new social-ish search enhancements baked in.
Those search enhancement features never really took off, though, and while Xmarks is currently hosting more than 1.2 billion bookmarks from roughly 5 million computers for 2 million users (and adding an estimated 3,000 accounts on a day like today), the firm has struggled to find a money-making service or offering to support the staff and servers. More importantly, as their blog post points out, each of the major browsers offers some kind of synchronization service now—though none with the kind of cross-browser reach that Xmarks enjoyed.
Xmarks has put up the crucial information on getting your bookmarks out and migrating to other services on its Shutdown page. The short of it: the service and servers will be up until January 10, and Xmarks promises that it won't be selling or monetizing its users' bookmark data—in fact, it all gets wiped after shutdown. There's a link included at the Shutdown page to wipe out everything you have on Xmarks right now, if you used to have an account and want it gone.
mardi 12 octobre 2010
Print Between the Lines
Some Web pages are easier to print than others. Some provide printer-friendly versions, or printer-friendly CSS, but what do you do when you need to print out a page that isn't so friendly? What if a Web page, printed as-is, would use up a ton of toner or would spread across multiple pages in a confusing hodgepodge of menu items, superfluous banners, and useless navigation links?
Well, Print Edit is one option. This Firefox add-on hooks into the Print Preview mode, and it adds an Edit button. Once you click Edit, you're returned to Firefox (i.e., it seems like you've exited Print Preview mode), but now, a red frame appears around any page element that your mouse hovers over.
You click all of the elements that you wish to hide or delete, and then you click Hide or Delete. You can also choose to Undo, Hide All Except, or Delete All Except.
The difference between "deleting" and "hiding" is that hiding does not affect page layout. You basically get a blank spot where the element used to be. Deleting an element does impact page layout – so if you delete a banner ad, you could make the rest of the page use that space for text (and thus require less paper for printing).
Once you're done formatting the page, click Preview to see the result. If you're happy with it, print away. If not, you can always click Edit again and continue tweaking it.
Well, Print Edit is one option. This Firefox add-on hooks into the Print Preview mode, and it adds an Edit button. Once you click Edit, you're returned to Firefox (i.e., it seems like you've exited Print Preview mode), but now, a red frame appears around any page element that your mouse hovers over.
You click all of the elements that you wish to hide or delete, and then you click Hide or Delete. You can also choose to Undo, Hide All Except, or Delete All Except.
The difference between "deleting" and "hiding" is that hiding does not affect page layout. You basically get a blank spot where the element used to be. Deleting an element does impact page layout – so if you delete a banner ad, you could make the rest of the page use that space for text (and thus require less paper for printing).
Once you're done formatting the page, click Preview to see the result. If you're happy with it, print away. If not, you can always click Edit again and continue tweaking it.
lundi 11 octobre 2010
Free to Me
There are a lot of great, free antivirus programs for Windows -- as long as you're using those programs at home. When it comes to options for the dental office, there's really nothing good available for free.
At least, not until now. Starting this month, Microsoft is opening up the licensing for Security Essentials and will allow small businesses up to 10 users to utilize one of the top-rated, free antivirus apps on their systems.
Anyway you slice it, free MSE for your small business computers is great news!
At least, not until now. Starting this month, Microsoft is opening up the licensing for Security Essentials and will allow small businesses up to 10 users to utilize one of the top-rated, free antivirus apps on their systems.
Anyway you slice it, free MSE for your small business computers is great news!
dimanche 10 octobre 2010
Cat O' Nine Tails
Most of you may have heard that the beta of Internet Explorer 9 was released a few weeks ago. Most of the reviews I've seen explore the very esoteric and minute details of the browser...but that about those of us who really don't care? Here are Five Things the Average User Will Love About IE9.
samedi 9 octobre 2010
You CAN Take It With You
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced a big change recently. Users will now have the ability to download all of their Facebook data, anytime they wish, as a big ZIP file. Expect the new feature to hit your account settings in the next few days.
The option to download your data will show up in your Account Settings, just below the line for Account Security. After clicking it, you'll have to click through an enormous warning about keeping your data safe and secure after downloading it, which acts as some sort of disclaimer. After you click through that, you're given a second "Download" button, after which point Facebook will package your stuff and proceed to email you a download link for the .ZIP archive.
The option to download your data will show up in your Account Settings, just below the line for Account Security. After clicking it, you'll have to click through an enormous warning about keeping your data safe and secure after downloading it, which acts as some sort of disclaimer. After you click through that, you're given a second "Download" button, after which point Facebook will package your stuff and proceed to email you a download link for the .ZIP archive.
vendredi 8 octobre 2010
Scammers Delight
As social media like Facebook and Twitter are on the rise, there's no doubt that some people will try to take advantage of you on these sites. Here's How to Avoid Getting Scammed by Social Media.
Inscription à :
Articles (Atom)