Google Earth has a pretty nifty feature called the “Flight Simulator.” The flight simulator basically allows for users to take control of a plane as they navigate around locations, mountains, oceans, and landmarks of their choosing. Most of us played some variation of this during our teen years, and it’s great to know that Google Earth has added this feature to allow for working professionals like all of us to waste even more buckets of time on the computer.

To enter the flight simulator, simply go to Tools –> Enter Flight Simulator, or you can press the hotkeys (Ctrl + Alt + A). This will bring up a menu shown below:

I don’t really know the difference between the two planes except that one looks cooler than the other, and it doesn’t seem to make a difference which one you choose. You can start the simulator where you are currently positioned, or choose one of many airport runways worldwide.

It’s very easy to get the general gist of the Google Earth flight simulator and the controls are very flexible. Although it is recommended that you use a joystick to have your fun, one can also control the plane using keyboard or mouse. Personally, I like using the mouse to fly the aircraft, but this may be counterintuitive for some. I’m not going to get into the details on how to start flying – there’s dozens of resources dedicated to learning about the specifics of the program, and what to press to become a super pilot (the controls are listed here).

Here’s a really nice tutorial by the Google Earth blog that explains the basics of getting in the air:

So now that you’ve tinkered around with the flight simulator, there are add-ons to play with as well. These are just a few that I found to be useful on my journeys across the world, but there are probably more open source code somewhere on the internet with all types of features.

A silly thing to try out is to upload a cockpit add-on which displayed a dinky aircraft cockpit and two legs (supposedly yours):

Cockpit add-ons for each of the airplanes can be found here. Just open the file using Google Earth and you’re ready to go! Note that the cockpit can obstruct your view of the beautiful scenery, so unless you’d rather be staring at the above picture rather than breathtaking mountains, well, you make your decision.

Another more useful add-on is a GPS arrow developed by Nearby. Simply go to the website, enter the coordinates of your destination, download the link, and it will open up in Google Earth:

This in turn deposits a small compass-like navigator at the bottom right corner of your flight simulator:

It may be hard to tell, but I have about 6,500 km left until Ireland. You would think that after using the flight simulator for some time now that I would be pretty well versed in terms of the flying simulation scene, but as you can see my plane still occasionally stalls (don’t judge me).

A more specified extension of this application is a static Google Maps overlay developed by some guy named Barry Hunter. It is a small map located in your flight simulator GUI that updates itself every 5 seconds, with varying levels of zoom capability on the map. You can find it here.

So now that you are equipped with a plethora of tools that will make your flight simulator experience no doubt enjoyable, pretend to be a pilot and let yourself go!

Do you know of any addons and other goodies to make the Google Earth flight simulator better?

Ragnarok Online is a freely downloadable client much like Gunbound or Rakion, the only difference being that you have to pay a subscription in order to play. This is originally a Korean based MMORPG, but since its inception in 2001, the game has been sponsored by various regional ventures which have been given much freedom in determining how they would like to run the platform. Recently, the U.S. region has decided to try out a “free to play” server called “Valkryie,” supplemented with a shop where gamers can pay real money to purchase certain items and such.

Ragnarok Online is based off a manga called Ragnarok, and there is obviously an amazing story filled with fairies, swords, magical items, and evil powers at work. If anyone who is reading this has played Diablo 2, World of Warcraft, or other games of this nature, Ragnarok Online has the same taste.

Players can gain experience points and obtain more powerful weapons by accepting quests or just going out into the open and fighting monsters. But what makes this game so fun is the gameplay and the community. People form guilds, fight larger battles, and interact with each other. I personally played this for some time, and the players on the servers are helpful, gregarious, and fun to be around, which is not something we can say about all online games these days.

In addition to the fun atmosphere, what’s truly addicting about this (and probably all MMORPGs) is the battle system. Players all start out labeled “novice,” and as they gain experience and level up by battling monsters and passing so-called “exams,” they move up by being able to choose more specified professions ranging from high wizard to mechanic to clown. Here we are fighting some Porings and Chonchons:

If you don’t want to battle monsters, you can also fight other players via the nature of PvP, or player vs. player. There are certain arenas split by level bounds that players can duke it out in. Death in some arenas result in penalties such as a loss of experience points. We could sit here all day and discuss the game, but the best option is for you to go out and try it! Here is a small trailer of the game when it first came out (you may want to watch it in HQ):

The downside to playing Ragnarok is that the engine updates and patches every couple of days, so if you don’t play for a long time, you will have to wait a while for the system to update itself.

System Requirements

Intel Pentium 500 MHz equivalent

At least 128MB RAM

At least Direct X 8

8MB graphics card

At least 1 GB Hard Drive Space

As stated before, the game differs from region to region, so if you don’t live in the U.S., you may want to check if your country supports the game and has the free server available. If you DO live in the U.S., you can get it here.

Note that you will want to download the Ragnarok “Valkryie” option to get the free version so you can play Ragnarok for free, do not download the premium version.

These routers have the power to transmit intangible signals; these signals, powerful as they may be, are prone to constant interference whether it be by physical objects, other signals floating around in the air, or even because you didn’t plug the wire in all the way.

Regardless of what the issue, there are some proven ways to try to remedy the situation of a weak Wifi signal. Some may simply be a little bit of common sense, other methods require purchasing additional parts.

Here are 8 tips on how to boost your wireless router signal.

Position it better

Unless you are living in a cave and you somehow miraculously have internet connectivity at the same time, you probably figured out that if your wireless router was in the corner of your kitchen under a pile of old newspapers and your computer was located on the second floor on the opposite side of the house — it is a great idea to place your router in an open position (preferably in the center of your house) where it isn’t obstructed by dense or metallic objects such as file cabinets or brick walls.

Other items that may interfere with your signal include (but are not limited to) microwave ovens, cordless phones, garage door openers, and even baby monitors. The bottom line is that the less objects in the signal’s way, the easier it is for it to relay information to your computer.

Change the WiFi Channel

Generally, Wifi routers transmit their signals on a radio frequency of 2.4 GHz. Many other household objects may operate on or around the same frequency, like cordless phones, for example. So, the channel becomes bogged down over time with lots of excess traffic that slows down your wireless connection. In the U.S.,  routers have a predefined set of 11 channels, and the default on a lot of them is channel 6. Changing the channel would reduce some interference. So how do you change the channel?

A great utility many people use is called NetStumbler, a wireless networking tool that just so happens to offer the option for you to change your wifi channel. Once opened, the program gives the choice of fooling around with all of your wireless utilities. Here is where you change your channel:

Which leads to:

Since the default for most people (at least in the United States) is 6, you may want to change your channel to something like say, channel 11. Take note that the changing of your wireless channel will NOT in any way increase your speed or bandwith. It will simply remedy your network connection if it keeps breaking off or getting lost.

Update firmware or drivers

Updates, whether related to the router firmware or your computer’s network adapter are done to fix bugs, smoothen out performance and reliability, and maybe even add new features. It is always a good idea to stay up to date with the latest releases by either of these parties.

Tim suggested using RadarSync to easily automatically update your computer’s drivers at once.

Buy your equipment from the same company

Compatibility can be a big problem, especially for two way transmissions. It may help to purchase your adapter and your router – everything, from the same company. Aside from that, some companies have embedded enhancements that improve speed or signal strength when everything is under the same brand.

Replace your antenna

Most routers come equipped with something called an omnidirectional antenna. This means that the antenna attached to the router broadcasts the signal equally within a certain circular radius. This is great if the router is positioned in the center of a hub where it needs to be able to reach ever corner of a room, but it can prove to be extremely wasteful if your router is in the corner (then again, why would it be there in the first place?). Since the signal is transmitted in a radius, if you place it in a corner, a lot of the transmitted signal is sent into the wall or outside into the open.

That is why you can manually detach your antenna and replace it with a high gain antenna. This focuses its energy to direct the signal in one general direction. Simple enough? You may have to check and see if your router has an external antenna jack/removable antenna.

Replace your wireless adapter

Since this is a two-way transmission, it may not have occured to you that it may not be the router that is the problem, but actually the wireless adapter attached to your computer. If your computer cannot send signals back to the router, the same problem ensues.

What is an adapter?  It used to be the card that you inserted into your computer or laptop. These days, most of the adapters are in the form of USB devices. Consider switching to a USB adapter that houses an external antenna, like this one depicted below.

This is usually only applicable to desktop computers. If you purchased a laptop that has a built-in adapter, it probably isn’t your adapter because they are usually very high quality installations.

Add an additional Wireless Access Point (WAP) or Repeater

If all else fails, you may need to purchase a repeater or a secondary Wireless Access Point. The consensus among these two options is rather mixed. Constructing a secondary WAP requires the ability to feed an ethernet cable from your primary router to the new access point. There are also cost considerations to be aware of, as WAPs cost more than regular wireless routers. Even so, WAPs have certain flexibilities that normal routers do not have. They can be configured as gateways, bridges, clients or repeaters. But that’s another story. The bottom line is that the WAP is an extension of the original hub in order to extend the distance of the signal. The repeater works the same way.

Here is a tutorial on how to set up the WAP courtesy of Techskillsvideos:

Try weird things

Apparently aluminum foil amplifies reception and transmission. It may or may not work, YMMV.

A little bit of background: You may have seen 802.11b or 802.11g written somewhere on your router – these are merely wireless LAN standards that the particular router adheres to. The main difference between these is that 802.11b has a maximum data transfer rate of 11 Mbps, whereas 802.11g has a much higher 54 Mbps rate.

With that being said, there is no way to improve data transmission or bandwith outside of hardware applications and upgrades. The tips mentioned above are meant to help you solve the problem of an interfered or weak signal. These may or may not work for you, but there is a strong correlation between troubleshooting and success rate.

Have you any other tips to help strengthen a weak signal? Has changing channels made a big difference for you? Tried attaching aluminum foil to your router’s antenna? How did that turn out for you? Share your experiences in the comments!

Latest Article “10 More Cool Things You Can Do With YouTube Videos”

Some people say that golf isn’t a real “sport” because it doesn’t involve large, muscular and sweaty men running into each other. Let me just say one thing: golf is both mentally and physically demanding. I have played golf for many years now, and if I hit a 200 yard shot that lands in the woods, I will have to walk 200 yards to reach my golf ball, which by now is probably being gnawed on by some squirrel. For these 200 yards, I will also have to think about how much I regret snapping my wrist while hitting my shot, effectively ruining my score. Even so, playing golf is a very calming experience – it may be a chance for you to reorganize your thoughts in your mind on the quiet golf course, or you may just want to smack something as hard as you can (the driver makes a very satisfying noise when you hit the ball correctly).

Now that everyone is so eager to learn about golf, including some of the basic principles as simple as how to hit a golf ball, here are 3 sites that will definitely help you pick up the game.

Golf.com

Simple site, simple interface, loads of information. One would naturally think that a website with such a demanded URL should have all of the info about golf. Since the main purpose of this article is to inform the masses about where to find tips on how to learn golf, let’s get straight down to business.

Golf.com has a section called “Lesson Finder”:

Once here, you can click on a variety of different topics to choose from, including “basics”:

Inside, there is a plentiful selection of videos and articles to learn about how to swing a golf club, get the shot you want, and learn more about the game. These videos and articles are all certified and submitted by GOLF Magazine’s Top 100 golf teachers.

Learnaboutgolf.com

Another great site that offers plenty of tips on how to improve your golf game. At the top of the site, there is a navigation bar. Click “Golf Lessons” to get to this screen:

There are more than 50 of these articles, but you get the point. Each is a simple article about 1 page in length that provides tips and tricks on how to improve your golfing game. You can also click on the “Video Golf Lessons” link next to the image in the above screenshot, and it will bring you to a new page with a bunch of short video lessons by some guy named Bobby Eldridge:

Here’s an example of one of his videos in Youtube:

Golf.about.com

Believe it or not, About.com has a very detailed and rich database of beginner golf guides. There are 4 tabs at the top – click on the one labeled “Instruction,” and you will be brought to this page:

There really isn’t anything else to elaborate on. Any link you click is chock-full of information and tips. There’s also a golf video section, although the number of instructional videos are comparatively smaller than the other sites:

There are a lot of information floating around the internet on how to play golf or techniques on how to hit a golf ball, but these 3 websites are very concise, organized, and easy to follow; all house some form of video lessons paired with articles and tips. This helps the golfer gain a better understanding about what is trying to be conveyed, both conceptually and visually. The bottom line is that golf is a hands-on sport – you cannot just read about it and learn to play. So grab a set of clubs, any clubs, and get on the green and practice!

P.S. If you are a left-handed golfer, it may be extremely hard to find instructions on how to play left-handed golf. The most consolidated database of videos I have found is located at eHow’s Left Handed Golf Tips: Video Series. Note that a lot of left-handed golfers still play with the same stance and swing as right-handed ones, save for the fact that they grip the clubs and swing a bit differently. This is probably because learning left-handed golf doesn’t really give you an advantage in the sport like it sometimes does (tennis for instance), and it’s really hard to find reverse clubs and an instructor who can teach you to learn opposites.

Even so, there are golfers who play left-handed golf exceptionally well at the higher levels (most notably Phil Mickelson), so if you really feel that you want to play left-handed golf, then by all means, go for it. Utilize symmetries in establishing foundations around your golf game, and the above sites should be able to provide great tips that you can use as well (just flip everything)!

If you haven’t left the house in days and your computer is your sanctuary, then check out Simon’s article on PangYa, an online golf game.

Would you really consider golf a sport? Did you find the resources helpful? Do you have any pro tips for beginner golfers? Shoot away in the comments!

That is why I have compiled a list of 3 handy dandy features of Google Maps that you may not have known about – features that will help you make it through the day without hitting a pedestrian due to your frustrating experiences like the ones pictured above.

Google Driving Directions – Drag and Drop Routes

For those who really want to customize how they get from Point A to Point B, Google Maps has a tool that allows you to drag the route they have provided in certain directions say, because you know that the driving directions given will require you to traverse a heavily bogged down construction zone. New directions are provided on the spot, as if you had just searched for them. Here’s an example.

In light of the Los Angeles Lakers’ recent NBA Championship, here is a set of directions from the Staples Center (where they play) to The Walt Disney Concert Hall, both in Los Angeles:

Now if I decided that I wanted to go on the Harbor Freeway, CA 110 for some crazy reason, I could drag the route:

Here is a side by side comparison of the driving directions. They are automatically calculated and changed as you drag your route. Pretty neat, huh?

One thing you may need take note of is that your constant dragging back and forth may be cumbersome to sort through. You may find that the final directions you obtain after fooling around with the path is an infinite loop. Although this is a very handy feature, make sure to double check that all of the directions are feasible.

Congestion Overlays

It is every traveler’s worst nightmare to run into accidents, construction, congestion, or an overall slowing down of traffic. This is most likely why Google Driving Directions has provided an extremely useful overlay of your map that describes current driving conditions, with a full blown legend that houses live traffic updates along roads.

The only foreseeable downside to this feature is that it mostly only provides these overlays on larger roads, highways and interstates. Then again, larger roads are the ones that we worry the most about.

I’m sure all of you can read, so I won’t go into detail to explain what the colors mean. Certain icons mean certain things, for instance in the above screenshot, the warning sign denotes some type of accident or stoppage due to hazardous conditions, whereas a small man shoveling coal (or at least that’s what it looks like) denotes construction. A red circle with a line through it means that the current lane is closed.

Let’s say you have a planned event, and you would like to know what the traffic conditions will most likely be like at that time. No problem! There is a feature that allows users to choose the day of the week as well as the time of day, and Google Maps will provide a prediction based on aggregate data it has compiled previously. This should give users a better idea of what to expect on certain roads during rush hour or things of that nature:

Search Box Customizations

Although technically more than one “feature,” there are certain things to know about the direction search box that can prove to be useful when finding directions. Believe it or not, I have had more than one friend come up to me and ask me if there was a way to add multiple “checkpoints” to stop by on along their trip. It’s amazing what you can accomplish if you take time to read:

If we should decide to add a final destination (no pun intended), we can simply click the link and hooray, we have successfully set up segmented directions for a cross country road trip to the Empire State Building:

Google Driving directions also has a dropdown menu for you to choose by what medium would like to travel through. This service may be limited because most of it is still in beta, but certain locations DO give users the freedom to choose. As of now, it is limited to “by car,” “by public transit,” or “by walking”:

Finally, if we click “show options”, we can choose to have Google Driving directions search for routes that avoid toll roads or highways, or both:

So, there you have it. We hope that wherever you go, you drive safely and are aware of your surroundings. Google Driving Directions is an extremely powerful branch of Google Maps – it provides users with a lot of freedom and flexibility to roam around and explore new areas without actually going there.

This article only provides a few of the handy features that Google Driving Directions encompasses, but there is so much more to learn about. Check out other features of Google Maps, as well as their new mobile phone feature!

Has Google Maps helped you map your transit route or get your out of stuck traffic? Let us know how you have used it, in the comments.

Yet at the same time, we as a public feel the need to fuel these fires by constantly promoting such things. Just like with the buying and selling of stocks, if you mis-time your information, you might have just let the jackpot go.

Feel like you’re lagging behind lately in the viral video scene? Feel like everyone’s talking about some new video posted on Youtube that you missed out on? Feel like you’re missing out on the next Susan Boyle? If you feel that you haven’t getting your latest dose of “viral-ness” lately, here are some sites to check out.

Buzzfeed

The name says it all. It’s what the web is abuzz about, with a slight twist on things. Buzzfeed, the so-called “viral web in real-time,” incorporates something of a badge system in which people can tag certain issues, whether it be news articles, viral videos, or images and the such with exclamations that capture the essence of the viral issue.

Let’s take a look at an example.

These are the top viral issues over a certain period of time, as voted on by people who visit the site. In response to certain posts, users can also follow up with their own “badge” emoticons and tag their comments with other related images or videos. In a sense, it is a forum of weird and interesting things that are currently going on all around the web.

Just like any other blog, there’s archives, different categories (ranging from geeky to lol to omfg to cute), and a social network in which you can build a widget and request to link your site to Buzzfeed. Then again, if you’re really lazy (or you don’t know how to read), here’s another one:

Viral Video Chart

The concept behind Viral Video Chart is rather simple. Aggregate search or viewing data over a certain period of time and compile which videos garnered the most page views. In short, they count the number of times each video is linked to and the number of times each video is embedded, and make lists of the top videos over various periods of time.

So, whether you want to see the top videos of the past year, month, or week, Unruly Media’s Viral Video chart will most definitely satisfy your need of figuring out what exactly everyone is watching.

Remember, these sites are for your time wasting viewing pleasure only. If you’re interested in a more consolidated database of what’s hot on the web, check out these sites:

popurls.com – Lists the current popular headlines circulating around the internet on one single page.  Sites are sorted according to original medium (Youtube, Digg, Yahoo).

alltop.com -  Updates popular headlines every hour and sorts them based on categories (fashion, technology, gaming).

Wikirage.com – Displays which Wikipedia webpages were updated or edited over a certain span of time. Most likely, if the page was edited multiple times within a time period, something’s up!

Still not satisfied? Then check out our article on 21 sites to find out what’s hot online.

What do you think? Have any better sites than the ones I listed above to get your daily dose of what’s hot online? Shout it out in the comments!

Orisinal.com is a site started in 2001 by a quirky guy named Ferry Halim, winning awards and acclaim for its simple yet addictive cute flash games. This website is the essence of simple, cute, fun, and relaxing to take your mind off your worries and put you at ease, at least for a while. So, let’s talk a bit about the games, shall we?

Each of these little squares represents a separate flash game. Each flash game has its own custom composed music, controls, gameplay, and graphics. No two games are alike.

Orisinal likes to use lots of cute and cuddly animals in its games, and the music is some of the best ambient and gentle music I have ever heard. As for the gameplay, most if it requires that you have a mouse and are at least half awake. Take probably its most famous game, for instance: Winter Bells (depicted below). As you move your mouse around the screen, the bunny follows. Once you click, the bunny jumps into the air. The goal is to jump on consecutive bells and go higher and higher, trying to not fall back onto the ground:

There are some other features on the site including linkback, guestbook, “tell a friend”, and an online store where you can purchase mugs, t-shirts, clocks (like the raccoon clock below), and other assortments of goods to make your abode a sunnier, happier place.

You can also arrange flowers in a vase of some sort and send it to someone’s email to brighten their day. Spending a couple of minutes on this site is like enjoying a cup of camomile tea: it’s warm, its relaxing and it generally calms your nerves.

So, when you have some free time (maybe even now), give this great site a shot. It’s main purpose is to have you spend 5 hours at work playing its cute flash games instead of working, then whistle your way back home. Who knows, you might even hug a co-worker or two. Let us know if this brightened up your day.

And who doesn’t like simple, other than my grandmother? According to their website, they aim to be a “swiss army knife” type of tool, providing access to a plethora of various free programs that can be accessed at any moment on any computer (and in a variety of ways!).

Just to name a few of the many programs included:

- Notepad: text editor
- Google Chrome: web browser
- Ccleaner: program uninstaller and registry cleaner tool
- Windirstat: hard drive usage mapper
- GIMP: images editing and manipulation program
- Format Factory: video converter
- and many more.

The software is split into three different compilations – Basic (28 softwares) , Standard (106 softwares) , and Ultimate (all 200+ softwares). It is further divided into easily identifiable categories including video, system utilities, audio, CD-DVD, file management, among many others.

Aside from running Liberkey after it’s installed on your computer, you can also install it on a portable hard drive or USB and run it straight from the device. This saves the trouble of you having to install everything on a host computer, and it provides a lot more mobility.

The Liberkey application doesn’t take up much space at all, and its size is about that of Trillian or Pidgin. If you minimize, it’ll just be a small icon in the system tray. The reason I downloaded this program was that I thought its GUI (Graphical User Interface) was very intuitive. All of the programs are categorized very concisely and to the point, making it easy for people who aren’t that computer literate to be able to access everything without getting lost.

Liberkey prefers that you register an account with them before downloading their package, but it’s free to download so you’re not required to. Even so, Liberkey constantly updates their package and adds to its program repertoire. Members who are signed up through their website are able to instantly update their Liberkey software by automatically downloading any of the new addons through the internet.

Liberkey also has a “associate file extensions” feature which allows users to launch any file whether from a directory or drive without compatibility problems.

One last thing to note is that I think Liberkey is written by a group of French programmers, as their main website (and a lot of the correspondence including forums) is in French. But don’t worry, they have an English website as well.

If you’re interested, you can check it out here. Also, if you’re interested, check out one of our very popular posts, 100 Portable Apps for your USB Stick (for Mac and Win) and view all other posts regarding apps that can fit on a thumbdrive.

Have you used Liberkey? How did you find it? Any other better alternatives to recommend? Shout out in the comments!