How to Get Your Identity Stolen in One Easy Step

I recently found a discarded desktop computer, a Dell Inspiron model, lingering by the dumpster. Anything left next to dumpsters signifies that the former owner wants you to take it. Whoever abandoned the computer wants to do someone a favor. Unfortunately, computer donators don’t really know what they’re actually giving away: Privacy, passwords, security and potentially a great deal of money. After giving the discarded computer a quick teardown, I put it through a variety of security tests and found glaring problems – problems our readership may learn from. Stealing someone’s identity doesn’t take a lot of intelligence or even...

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YouTube's Follow Back in Google+

Emanuele Bartolomucci spotted a new YouTube feature: when you're watching a video from a channel associated with a page that follows you in Google+, you get this message: "X added you on Google+. Follow back for exclusive updates!"

I wasn't able to trigger this feature, so it's probably an experiment. It's also a sign that YouTube will integrate more with Google+.



{ Thanks, Emanuele. }

New Interface for Google+ Notifications

Google+ notifications have a new interface: there's a "previously read" section, just like in the Google+ app for Android, and there are some new transitions that mimic scrolling down.



The previously read notifications are no longer displayed below the Jingles icon, so you need to click "previously read" to see them. The notifications box is less cluttered and you can still read all your notifications.

{ Thanks, Mukil. }

What Do You Hate About YouTube’s Comments Section? [We Ask You]

Google recently made huge changes to the way the YouTube comments section works. Powered by Google+, and therefore requiring every commenter to have a Google+ account, the new YouTube comments section looks and feels different than it used to do so. There were some major bugs present at the beginning that Google has now fixed, but the changes to the ordering of comments and the need to create a G+ profile before commenting aren’t going anywhere. And, it has to be said, the spammers and trolls still seem to be leaking through, somehow. So let’s get to the bottom of...

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Google Wallet Card

Google Wallet users in the US can now get a physical card from Google. It's free, but you need to verify your identity, which means you'll have to provide more information to Google: the last four digits of Social Security Number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) and more.



"The Google Wallet Card is a physical prepaid debit card that allows you to access your Wallet Balance in the real world, at ATMs, banks, and wherever MasterCard® Debit is accepted. If you're in the US, and you have already verified your identity, you can request a Wallet Card from the desktop site at wallet.google.com, or from the mobile app. Once you receive and activate it, you'll be able to pay with the Wallet Card at online and physical stores that accept MasterCard® Debit, and make cash withdrawals at ATMs or banks."

Android Police reports that "Google says the card should be delivered to interested parties in 10-12 days". It's US-only, there are no fees to order or activate the card and the issuer of the card is The Bancorp Bank, which provides private label banking services.



Google provides a use case for the debit card: "Your roommate finally paid you back for dinner through Google Wallet, and you want to use that money right away to pay for groceries this week. Now, you can use the new Google Wallet Card to spend the money instantly, either by purchasing in stores or by withdrawing cash at ATMs, without having to wait for money to transfer from your Google Wallet Balance to your bank account."



Other advantages: free notifications on your mobile phone and no monthly/annual fees to use the card (there are some fees, though).



An important limitation: "you cannot use the Google Wallet Card outside the US right now".

Be An Energy Star: 20+ Reddit Tips That Help To Slash Your Utility Bill

Is your utility bill killing you? Costs for gas, oil, water, and other natural resources rise steadily. In great parts of Europe, Australia, and Japan the worst price driver is electricity. Who would have thought that Reddit is a source of wisdom that can help you counter-balance these developments. Upon closer inspection, however, it’s not so surprising. Reddit is a haven for geeks, nerds, and intellectuals, interested in all sorts of niche topics, including energy efficiency and saving money. Moreover, Reddit is a community where everyone can contribute, regardless of education, status, or rank. And most importantly, contributions are evaluated...

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Surf Safety: 5 Ways To Keep YouTube Safe And Fun For Kids

YouTube is dirty. Not intentionally, of course, and there are plenty of dirtier websites out there, but at the end of the day YouTube is not as clean as you might think it is. There’s much more to it than fluffy cats, homemade bloopers, and comedy sketches — like unwarranted mature content that can pop up from time to time. Fortunately, if you don’t want your kids to be exposed to such things, there are some precautions you can take to keep YouTube as clean as possible. Will these tips and tricks be foolproof? Not exactly. When it comes to...

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Galaxy Gear, PS4 Profit, NokSoft, Selfie Satisfaction [Tech News Digest]

Today in Tech News Digest, there is confusion over just how successful the Samsung Galaxy Gear is, the PlayStation 4 is revealed to be a profit-maker for Sony, Microsoft’s acquisition of Nokia’s smartphone division is greenlit, Snapchat eases past Facebook, Twitter explains itself, 3D Builder for Windows 8.1 is released, and ‘Selfie’ is named word of the year. Galaxy Gear Sales Confusion Samsung claims Galaxy Gear sales have hit 800,000, but Business Korea claims the true figure is actually closer to 50,000. Samsung told Reuters, “It’s the most sold wearable watch available in the market place… and we plan to...

Read the full article: Galaxy Gear, PS4 Profit, NokSoft, Selfie Satisfaction [Tech News Digest]

How To Disable or Stop Desktop Background (Wallpaper) Syncing In Windows 8.1

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Unlike Windows 7 and previous versions of Windows operating system, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 let you sync your personal settings and preferences across your Windows 8/8.1 PCs. In order to enable the feature and sync your settings, you need to sign in with a Microsoft account, though. The problem with this handy feature is […]

Top 6 Apps To Track Your Lost Android Phone

An Android phone is a treasured technology that helps you to store all your important information, personal or business! All of the smartphones are being used in a very intelligent way, and mostly as a personal device, that stores and manages all your personal data, including the business transactions. Therefore when it comes to managing these devices, you should take extra care while protecting these to avoid loss of critical information. Android phone can be protected with the help of location finder apps, anti-theft apps, that help you to find out the location of your lost/stolen android phone. We have listed top 6 apps that can help you track your lost android phone.

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3 Insanely Rare And Valuable Atari 2600 Games You Wish You Owned

More often than not, when gamers get nostalgic for the games of yesteryear, Nintendo consoles are the ones that come to mind. There are some ridiculously valuable games out there for NES, and on the Sega side, the Genesis/Mega Drive has its fare share of sought after games as well. If you really want to spend some big money (or make some big money if you are lucky enough to own any of them), the Atari 2600 is actually a gold mine. Sure, Stadium Events and the NES World Championships are worth some big money on NES, but Atari has...

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7 Stellar Visualizations That Help Us Fathom The Mysteries Of Space

“Cool” is a much abused word. Cool sometimes is an understatement. When it comes to appreciating the power of visualizations, the former is true, and the latter is just as apt. Visualizations have one basic purpose – they help us fathom the unfathomable. When it comes to understanding the mysteries of outer space, visualizations help to give its vastness some scale we can understand easily. Data visualization is a well-practiced art (and science) now. Informational visualization is about communication and the newer web technologies are just the right vehicle for it. When we have to talk about space and how...

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Microsoft Has Designs On 3D Printing As It Releases 3D Builder For Windows 8.1

Microsoft has just released a 3D builder for Windows 8.1, meaning Windows users will be able to print their own 3D objects. Yes, you will need a 3D printer. After that, Microsoft’s recently introduced app called 3D Builder for Windows 8.1 should make it easier for amateurs to try their hand on 3D printing. The application takes advantage of the native 3D printing feature on Windows 8.1 which comes with plug ‘n play support for 3D printers. The operating system also recognizes 3D print file formats. 3D printing technology is trending, and though still not mainstream, there are sufficient resources...

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Bitcoin Bonanza, vBulletin Hack, PS4 Fix, Google Canal View [Tech News Digest]

Today in Tech News Digest, Bitcoin enjoys its biggest day yet, Google and Microsoft team up to combat child porn, vBulletin is hacked, Sony issues a fix for your bricked PlayStation 4, Pocket 5.0 is released, Venice is added to Google Canal Street View, and YouTube goes down for around half an hour, causing the Web to lose its collective s**t. Bitcoin’s Big Day Bitcoin, the virtual currency that has entered into mainstream conversation in 2013, had quite the day on Monday (Nov. 18). First up, its value hit a new all-time high (at the time of writing) of US$900,...

Read the full article: Bitcoin Bonanza, vBulletin Hack, PS4 Fix, Google Canal View [Tech News Digest]

Google+ Shows Line Counter for Long Posts

Google+ now shows the number of lines that are collapsed next to "read more", so you can see if the post is long. If the post has less than 10 lines, Google doesn't display the number of lines.

Here's an example of a long Google+ post: "read more (50 lines)".

Google+ shows a similar line counter for long comments:

These are only displayed in the stream and profile pages, not for the post pages.

Google Asks Users to Disable Ad Blocking for Its Sites

It looks like Google started to show warnings if you use AdBlock Plus, the most popular ad blocker and the most popular browser extension. A reader from Brazil noticed this message: "Oh no, it seems like you are blocking Google's ads. These ads pay for Google products that people use every day. It's easy to deactivate ad blocking just for Google. And it won't change your ad blocking settings or other settings".



The message links to a filter that includes a long list of exceptions like "@@||www.google.com^$document" and "@@||maps.google.com^$document".

Here's a screenshot of the Google whitelist filter (it actually includes more domains):

This is pretty weird, considering that the ads were not blocked, as you can see in the screenshot. Google ads are not blocked by default in AdBlock Plus, since they're considered "acceptable ads". Some sites have speculated that Google paid AdBlock Plus to whitelist its ads, but that's not very clear.



Google Discovery also reported about this back in May, so it looks like the experiment is limited to Google Brazil, at least for now.



{ Thanks, Marcos Alexandre. }

Changing Windows 8.1 Boot Logo Using 8oot Logo Changer Tool

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In our previous post, we let you know about the release of 8oot Logo Changer, a free tool designed to help you change the original boot screen logo of Windows 8.1 with a custom picture. Even though replacing the default boot logo using this tool is relatively easier, first time users might need some help […]

Flipboard Launches on Win 8.1 With Live Tiles, Introduces Catalogues

Flipboard, which makes personalized social magazines for you on Android and iOS, has finally launched a native app for Windows 8.1 that takes advantage of the new Live Tiles. The service has also embraced e-commerce to launch a Pinterest-like catalogue feature. The Flipboard Live Tile gives you an up-to-date look at all the content you’ve subscribed to, along with the ability to pin specific Flipboard selections to your Start Screen. In the app, you can swipe up from the bottom for Subscribe, Refresh, Edit, Flip It, and other options, while swiping down from the top brings up suggestions like what...

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How to Write SEO Friendly Blog Posts to Stand out in Google Search Results

In the past days, low quality keyword-rich contents could get ranked well with less effort. In fact, following spam methods, one could be successful very easily. But now the search engines are growing smart. They intend to show only relevant results on their search engines. Concerning about the matter, the search engine sensation ‘Google’ is rolling out many algorithm updates regularly. They started to filter their search results from December, 2000 but I think the most significant year for them is 2013. Till 19 August, 2013 the ‘Panda’ and ‘Penguin’ updates were effectively rolled out to hit upon website results with low quality contents and spam backlinks.

But in 20th August the same year, a new Google algorithm update ‘Hummingbird’ tingled all the search results. After every 3 or 4 months, a new update reveals to filter search results. It is almost unbelievable that many popular sites lose approx 90%-100% of their traffic instantly just because of these algorithm changes. So, the question is how to do proper SEO to prevent algorithm updates of all time? When it is about blog posts, how should we optimize these? I am actually not a search engine expert but I will advise to go naturally. Here I will focus on the major areas of blog posts that should be naturally optimized to beat Google updates.

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How To Increase Storage Space On Windows 8.1 Devices With SD Cards

Windows 8.1 devices are all full PCs — yes, even the tablets — and often support SD cards. This allows you to easily expand your PC’s storage. Just insert an SD card and you can treat it as a “permanent” part of your device. The SD card will likely be slower than your device’s built-in storage, but it’s a great way to store music, videos, pictures, and other files. The original release of Windows 8 didn’t have very good support for SD cards. You couldn’t easily access them from Windows 8-style apps without going through some obscure tricks on the...

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