Keeping Your Droid Safe and Secure With Advanced Mobile Care 2.0 [Android]
It’s a sad truth, but you do need an antivirus to securely use Android these days. Google Play is teeming with beautiful and interesting apps, but it also has its fair share of bad apples seeking to misuse your personal data, drain your battery life, or be malicious in other creative and surprising ways. Fortunately, there’s no lack of high-quality antivirus apps.
Cerego - A Powerful Learning Service That Tries To Make You Smarter [500 Reader Invites]
Learning is a subject often fraught with frustration, angst, and pressure. But it really doesn’t have to be that way. The traditional school system, conceived long before the advent of computers and modern learning methodologies, isn’t really the best way to learn. There are many tools and methods that improve on what’s available in most schools today, but in this post I’d like to introduce you to one specific contender called Cerego.
MakeUseOf Tests: What Is The Best Android Keyboard?
In this follow-up to our post from 2011 featuring 6+ fantastic Honeycomb keyboards, I’d like to take a good hard look at four of the most popular and well-regarded sliding keyboard. Call it a “keyboard death match” if you’re feeling particularly nerdy today. To test all four keyboards, I’ve picked the same text and swiped it out without making any corrections. Let’s see who’s the most accurate – It’s science!
8 Tried & True Tips For Learning How To Code
Skilled programmers have been in high demand for years now, and it doesn’t look like that demand is about to go down anytime soon. But even if you don’t intend to make a living as a professional programmer, being able to code proficiently is going to come in handy in any computer-related job – even as a manager. But if you’re reading this, I probably shouldn’t have to tell you why becoming a coder is a good idea. You already know.
Interesting Galaxy S III Features That Make Samsung's ROM Better Than Stock Android
I just got a brand-new Galaxy S III. It’s a beautiful device, except for one big flaw: Samsung TouchWiz. But when you eliminate the ugly looks, it turns out TouchWiz actually does add value! If you’re running a stock Android ROM on your Galaxy S III, or considering replacing Samsung’s ROM with something like Cyanogen, wait a moment: Samsung offers a few features that are well worth keeping, and here are just a few.
Keep All Of Your Notes Organized And Off The Cloud With Free, Portable, Treepad Lite
In these heady days when everything seems to be cloud-based, is there still room for a lowly desktop note manager? I think there is, and we covered quite a few of these over the years - WikiPad, Zim, and more recently, ResophNotes. Today, it’s time to take a look at an oldie - a free, portable utility Treepad Lite. It’s a classic, but it received its most recent update back in 2009. Is that because the developer lost interest, or because at version 4.3, it’s just deemed "done"?
Harness Morse Code Shortcuts to Control Numerous Computer Actions
Ah, the humble keyboard key. Each computer user has over a hundred of them at his disposal, but most of us don’t give them a moment’s thought (except, maybe, to hunt-and-peck if you’re not a touch typist). Using the keyboard almost exclusively is one of the hallmarks of the skilled computer user, but even the nerdiest of users is usually limited to just typing and using hotkey combinations. But what if there was another way to use your keyboard?
Capture Vintage-Looking Images Through Old Virtual Cameras With Retro Camera [Android]
Who doesn’t like taking photos with their smartphone? Of course, taking the photo itself is usually just half the fun. The other half (the “larger” half, some would say) is applying funky effects to those photos. Apps like Instagram and FX Camera make it easy to apply beautiful effects to your images, and often have creative names for those effects like "Willow" or "Orton". Retro Camera is very much like those two apps.
Get To Know Your Graphics Accelerator In Excruciating Detail With GPU-Z [Windows]
The GPU, or graphics processing unit, is the part of your computer in charge of handling graphics. In other words, if games are choppy on your computer or it can’t handle very high quality settings, it’s likely that the GPU is too weak (rather than the CPU, the central processing unit). These days, many computes (especially laptops) have "integrated graphics", which means that the GPU is actually on the same physical chip as the CPU.
Love Typography? Then You’ll Love WP Clock Live Wallpaper For Android
If you’re looking for a quick way to end up with a beautiful all-text homescreen, you should check out WP Clock Live Wallpaper. It’s not as customizable, but it’s simple, has over a million installs, and boasts an impressive 4.3-star average out of over 23,000 user reviews – so it must be getting something right.
How To Break The DRM On Kindle eBooks So You Can Enjoy Them Anywhere
When you pay Amazon some money for a Kindle eBook, you probably think it’s yours now. I mean, you paid some money, you got some content, and now you have it, just like any other book you buy on a brick-and-mortar store. Well, that’s wrong. Actually, you didn’t buy anything, and you don’t own that book you just paid for.
Screen Too Bright, Speakers Too Loud? Don’t Despair: Use Volumouse For Windows!
If your pointing device of choice is a mouse (rather than a laptop trackpad), then you surely don’t just use its buttons – its scroll wheel must get quite a bit of use too. But what do you use it for, really? Wait, don’t tell me: For scrolling documents and webpages! If you’re an advanced user, you probably use it for zooming in and out, too, changing font size with a quick flick of the wheel. That’s all well and good, but it doesn't even scratch the surface of what your mouse wheel can do.
Photo Tutorial: Create Your Own One-of-a-Kind Phone Case Using Napkins, Glue, & Inspiration
Today’s post comes from Shira Z. Carmel, a musician, teacher, and designer from Jerusalem, Israel. I met Shira a couple of weeks ago and was quite impressed with her custom phone cover. When she told me she made it herself, I had to know how. Shira was kind enough to repeat the process, and take a photo of each and every step. This process works with any phone – in fact, it works with any plastic surface, really. If you want to customize your phone’s case for a completely unique, handmade look, read on.
Better Than Text Messages & Free - WhatsApp For Android Reviewed
A moment of introspection, please: What do you do more often - call people using your phone, or text them? I would bet it's the latter. For many people, texting is more convenient than calling. It's discrete, so you can do it on the bus (unless you happen to be the driver); it's asynchronous, so the other person doesn't have to be immediately available, and more.
Google Gesture Search: Better Than Your Launcher [Android]
Look at your phone. Now look at me. Now look at your phone. Now me. Okay, how many apps do you have installed on your droid? 50? 100? I bet you don’t even know! To start those, you probably pop open your launcher’s app drawer, and scroll through screen after screen suffocating with a dense grid of icons, looking for the one you need. You could be using Google Gesture Search for those infrequent apps. It’s an official Google app, and it’s free.
What Does Your Computer Say About You?
A personal computer is, well, personal. Assuming like most people, you bought your own computer (or had some say about what it's going to be), your choice of hardware likely reflects quite a bit about you. So, what sort of person are you -- just an occasional user? A nerdy coder? A hard-core gamer? Tell me what your hardware is, and I'll tell you who you are.
A Look At Free Machinima Tools: Make Your Own Game-Themed Movies
Who doesn't like telling a good story? Imagine bringing your audience into a world you created, and immersing them in a tale full of intrigue, humor, and killer action scenes. Sounds like fun, right? Most people do this by writing stories, but did you know you can actually make animated movies to tell your stories, without having to buy any expensive software?
How to Send Sensitive, Secure Emails, Passwords, and Files Without Fear
So, here’s a common case: You need to share a password with someone, but if you just email it to them, it’s going to languish in their inbox and be exposed to any future hacker that might gain access to their account. Or perhaps you want to share a longer note, but don’t want to email it for the same reason. No matter your scenario, I’ve rounded up several solid ways to get your data across securely and privately.
View, Resize, & Manipulate Image Files With Classic Utility IrfanView [Windows]
We all work with image files, all the time; be they graphics for the Web, corporate images for work, or just holiday snaps. These days there are more digital images than ever before. Windows comes with its own built-in image viewer, and if you have Google’s Picasa, it comes with its own fancy viewer. But neither of these options surpasses a true classic.
Using Google Chrome? Here's How to Reach Under The Hood & Customize Special Settings
Chrome is one of my favorite Google products. Google got a few core, basic principles right in its design, and instead of becoming bloated over time like most software, Chrome remained svelte, secure, and very, very fast. That doesn’t mean Chrome can’t be customized. There are countless add-ons in the Chrome Web Store, many of which work well without adding bloat. But today I’d like to discuss a different sort of customization.