10 Online Resources For Bicycle Maintenance And Riding Skills

How much do you know about repairing and maintaining your bike? How good of a rider do you think you are? Whether you’re just beginning to become a more avid cyclist (perhaps because you saw all those awesome biking videos), or you’ve been riding for a while, there is a lot to know. Just like there are things you can do to maintain your computer for free, there are things you can do to keep your bike in great shape too, so that when you’re out on a ride, you encounter fewer problems. The same applies to your own riding...

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Why These 7 Uses Of YouTube Could Be Better Than Kittens And Music

YouTube is more than an alternative to “MTV”. Or loving cute cats without going through the hassle of actually owning one. There are many alternatives to YouTube and some you might even consider as better than YouTube itself, but there is none other that lays out the same buffet on the video-serving table. The visual smorgasbord of amazing YouTube channels seems like a never-ending stream. The ease and wide-reach of hosting videos on YouTube makes it an ideal medium for many novel uses. We explore some below. Some might be new…some might be familiar…but all show what can be done...

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Technophilia 91 Live From MakeUseOf

This week on Technophilia, Justin is out of town, so Dave and James hold it down, along with the help of one of MakeUseOf’s big wigs, Dr. Jackson Chung. We talk about the biggest tech headlines of the week, as well as take part in plenty of other nonsense. This week’s show is brought to you by Bitdefender’s Clueful for iOS. It is the world’s first and only way to really understand how iOS apps treat user’s privacy. Installed apps are easy to analyze for understanding of the privacy-associated concerns that may affect you. Tech News Teachers Can Now Offer...

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Pop Up Archive Transcribes and Tags Sounds, Searches Historical Broadcasts

Initially started as a project at University of California, Berkeley, Pop Up Archive is a new tool to help journalists, media, archivists, historians and others easily find and reuse sound. “As we launch Pop Up Archive publicly, our goal has grown much bigger. We want to make it easy for all storytellers to find and reuse recorded sound. Now, anyone can visit popuparchive.org to make audio findable through auto-transcription, auto-tagging, and easy-to-use sound management tools. We’re gathering thousands of hours of sounds from around the world, audio collections large and small — and they’re all waiting to be discovered,” says...

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Real Google Androids, UPS Drones, Free Office 365, Star Wars Selfies [Tech News Digest]

Today in Tech News Digest, Google starts building robots, sales of PCs are expected to fall sharply, Spotify woos artists, the PlayStation 4 hits the 2 million sold milestone, UPS tries to one-up Amazon, Office 365 is offered free to students, and Star Wars lands on Instagram with a Darth Vader selfie. Google Building Androids, For Real Andy Rubin emerges from the shadows with an army of robots. Sleep tight! http://t.co/FGabL6fNHd — Casey Newton (@CaseyNewton) December 4, 2013 Google is developing its own army of robots, with Android founder Andy Rubin in charge of bringing this vision through to reality....

Read the full article: Real Google Androids, UPS Drones, Free Office 365, Star Wars Selfies [Tech News Digest]

Location Autocomplete in Google Calendar

When you enter a location for a Google Calendar event, Google now shows a list of suggestions. For example, if you type "Google H", one of the suggestions is "Google Headquarters". The nice thing is that Google also adds the address.

It's not clear how suggestions are ranked, but they're different from the Google Maps search suggestions. Nearby places are placed at the top of the list even if they're not that important.



{ Thanks, John Wilke. }

Short URLs in the New Google Maps

One of the cool things about the new Google Maps is that the URL is updated automatically when you navigate the map, so you can simply copy it from the address bar. Unfortunately, the URL is still huge and a short version is often useful.



Now you can get a short URL by clicking the gear icon at the bottom of the page, selecting "share and embed map" and checking "short URL". I think the short URL should be displayed by default, since the long version can be found in the address bar. "By using a short URL, you can squeeze a long Google Maps link into fewer characters to leave more room to say what's on your mind," explains Google.

{ via +Google Maps }

15 Ways To Turn Your Best Instagram Shots Into Gorgeous Gifts

Instagram gifts? Who would want a thing like that? If that’s your thinking, it’s only because you have no idea what’s in store for you out there. Yes, it’s that time of the year again, and you’re racking your brain to find some original gifts. Instagram-based gifts may sound like the tackiest thing of earth, but by the time you’re through reading this, you’ll find the perfect gift for at least several family members, and maybe some Instagram-loving friends. This is not just magnets and prints we’re talking about. Turns out there’s almost nothing you can’t print your best Instagram...

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How To Build A Desktop Start Menu Replacement In Windows 8.1

Are you tired of the Modern interface? Windows 8.1 allows you to boot to the desktop. If only the restored Start Button would launch a proper Start Menu! Well, it sort of can. Step 1: Boot To Desktop This is the thing Microsoft got right in Windows 8.1: you can finally boot to the desktop natively. To enable this feature, go to the desktop, right-click the taskbar and select Properties. In the Taskbar and Navigation properties window, switch to the Navigation tab and under Start screen, select the option “When I sign in or close all applications on a screen,...

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Chromecast Game

If you have a Chromecast and you want to try a new app that supports Google's dongle, install TicTacToe for Android or for iOS. It's a very simple game that requires 2 players and displays the results on your TV. You can install it on an Android phone or tablet, on an iPhone or iPad, but you need 2 devices to play the game.

While the game is pretty simple, it shows that Chromecast isn't just for streaming music and video. Once the Google Cast API is out of beta, you'll find a lot more interesting apps.



{ via Reddit }

Create A Killer Website Analytics Dashboard With Google Core Reporting API

If you had the choice between flying an airplane blindfolded or flying it with your eyes open, which would you prefer? The same holds true for running a website. Would you like to just publish a site and run it blindly, or would you like a full-featured, functional dashboard that shows you what’s going on with the site at all times? If you’re familiar with Google Analytics, then you’ll be pleased to learn that Google offers a powerful API called the Google Core Reporting API, which lets you tap into the numbers from your Google Analytics account. You can use...

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The 10 Best YouTube Channels For Automotive Enthusiasts

Cars aren’t as cool as they used to be. Fewer teenagers are applying for a driver’s license every year (in the United States, at least) while European gearheads try to still have fun while dealing with emission taxes. While today’s best automobiles are truly the best ever made, getting into the hobby isn’t as easy as it used to be. Thankfully, YouTube can help. The Internet’s favorite video streaming site is brimming with excellent automotive channels that provide informative reviews, excellent head-to-head comparisons, and in some cases, a fair bit of humor. In many ways, these channels seem to provide...

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Teachers Can Now Offer Office 365 To Their Students For Free With Worldwide Launch Of Microsoft’s Student Advantage

The worldwide launch of Microsoft’s Student Advantage program now allows teachers to offer Office 365 to their students for free. The initiative will allow teachers to help their students prepare for the technological demands of the modern workplace. The program was announced in October, and with the latest announcement on Microsoft’s blog, the Student Advantage program has been opened up to 35,000 schools and colleges worldwide. Students are uniquely placed to derive the benefits. If their educational institution signs up and uses a license for the Office 365 ProPlus or Office Professional Plus (for official use by staff and faculty),...

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Sites that Pay you for Writing Articles (Sponsored Posts)

Sponsored Posts are one of the most popular ways to make money from your blog.Though Google says that Sponsored Reviews or sponsored posts are against their webmaster guidelines, if done with care and a little common sense you can make good money.In this article I have listed some best sites to get sponsored reviews.

1.SponsoredReviews.com

One of the old yet very popular site to find advertisers and write sponsored posts on your blog for which you will be getting paid.

• The bad thing about Sponsored Reviews is they keep 50% commission you generate from every sponsored post as they were acting as a mediator between you and the advertiser.


• To get quick approval you must have good page rank and alexa rank.

Read more »

Boost Productivity With These Excellent Google Spreadsheet Scripts

Did you know that the suite of products on Google Drive, especially Google Spreadsheet, can have their functionality extended by custom scripts? These scripts can dramatically improve your productivity while using Google Spreadsheet, and it’s relatively easy to alter existing scripts or even create your own! If you use a spreadsheet application to crunch data, then custom scripts could be the master key. Start rolling with these excellent Google Spreadsheet scripts and make use of your data in new ways. How To Use Scripts Before you begin drooling over the following Google Spreadsheet scripts, it’s important to know how to...

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Top 5 Online Subscriptions You Can Give As Gifts

With the ever increasing digitization of society, online subscriptions have become a valid form of gift-giving and they're often more fulfilling than a physical gift of same worth.

Read the full article: Top 5 Online Subscriptions You Can Give As Gifts

Personalized Embedded Google Maps

Last week, Google announced that you can now embed maps in the new Google Maps interface. Just click the gear icon at the bottom of the page and select "embed map". You can pick from the 3 sizes that are available or click "custom size" to enter your favorite width and height.

The most interesting thing about the new embeds? "This map is built for you. When you view this map on your site, you'll see your saved places on the map. Your site's visitors won't see those saved places – they'll see a map built for them." This only happens if you see your profile icon in the top right corner of the map. You can star locations in an embedded map and they'll be saved to your Google account.

"You can embed a basic map, driving directions, or a local search into your website or blog from the new Google Maps," informs Google.

Google Santa Tracker

Google no longer offers the official Santa Tracker. Last year, NORAD partnered with Microsoft and Google launched its own service. Now the Google Santa Tracker is back with cool games and nifty features that help you get into the Christmas spirit.



"On Christmas Eve we'll be proudly showcasing a preview of Santa's dashboard -- the technology that powers his sleigh during his around-the-world journey. We've received this special preview from one of Santa's many developer elves, who are hard at work in the North Pole helping Santa prepare for his big day. Santa's dashboard - featuring the latest and greatest in Google Maps technology and sleigh engineering - will allow you to follow his progress around the world, and also learn a little about some of his stops along the way. Our friendly elves have also invited you to explore Santa's village while Santa gets ready for his journey. So go ahead and explore his village, you might just find some fun activities and meet some interesting elves," informs Google.

{ via Adam Haberlach. }

Chrome Download Tips

These features aren't new, but they're pretty useful and they might help you become more productive when you download files in Google Chrome.



1. Do you want to open a file immediately after Chrome downloads it? You don't have to wait, just click the file in the download bar and you should see something like "opening in X minutes".

2. If you always want to open certain files after Chrome downloads them, click the arrow icon and check "always open files of this type". You can use this for .mp4 files or .torrent files, for example.

3. How to move to the desktop a file you've just downloaded? Just drag it from the download bar and drop it onto your desktop.



4. Some files open directly in Chrome: PDF documents, MP4 videos, MP3 songs. How to download them? Use a keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+S or Command-S for Mac. Another option is to right click and select "save as". You can also right click the link to the file and select "save link as".



5. Don't worry about closing the Chrome window accidentally while downloading some files. Chrome shows a warning: "download in progress".

6. Manage your downloads by clicking "Downloads" in the Chrome or pressing Ctrl+J (Command-J for Mac). Use the search box to find a file you've downloaded last month, right-click the URL and you can copy it, click "Show in folder" to locate the file. You can also clear all the downloads.

More Search Results in the New Google Maps

The new Google Maps for desktop updated the local search card and now shows the top 3 results instead of only one. You can still go to the list of top results or check the results from the map, but the card is more convenient. Google is the king of search, so people expect to find a hierarchy. The list of top results is one click away, but many people will never find it.

{ via Jérôme }