08 April 2014

Official Windows 8.1 Update Direct Download Links



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In the first week of April, at its annual developer conference, BUILD, Microsoft officially announced the wildly leaked Windows 8.1 Update, a free update for Windows 8.1 to make it more keyboard and mouse friendly. During the event, the Windows 8.1 Update was made available to MSDN and TechNet subscribers. Though Windows 8.1 Update was […]

YNAB Makes It Easy To Make A Budget And Stick To It



ynab-featured

It’s quite embarrassing, but my checking account resembles more a debt-burdened Southern European nation than it does an actual grown-up, taxpaying adult. I’m old enough to know better, but it’s just so hard to make a budget and stick to it. Part of that is impulse purchases. Quite frankly, these decimate my bank balance like locusts in a cornfield. It’s really damn tiring to keep track of each £3 coffee and each £0.70 candy bar. It’s the attribute I dislike most about myself. There’s no dignity in being fiscally feckless. And hey, I’d love to spend less money, save more...


Read the full article: YNAB Makes It Easy To Make A Budget And Stick To It



Microsoft Kills Windows XP, Hollywood Sues Megaupload, Virus Shield Scam [Tech News Digest]



windows-xp-fingers

Today in Tech News Digest, RIP Windows XP, Hollywood sues Megaupload, Virus Shield scam, Xbox 360 emulation, multiplayer Goat Simulator, and Mario escapes into the real world. Microsoft Ends Support For Windows XP I have no strong feelings about the death of XP because I stopped caring about it 7 years ago. — Carmen Crincoli (@CarmenCrincoli) April 8, 2014 Microsoft has officially ended support for Windows XP, with the ancient operating system no longer receiving updates after today (April 8, 2014). Despite Microsoft having given plenty of warning of the impending XPocalypse, around 30 percent of computers are still running...


Read the full article: Microsoft Kills Windows XP, Hollywood Sues Megaupload, Virus Shield Scam [Tech News Digest]



Microsoft Kills Windows XP, Hollywood Sues Megaupload, Virus Shield Scam [Tech News Digest]



windows-xp-fingers

Today in Tech News Digest, RIP Windows XP, Hollywood sues Megaupload, Virus Shield scam, Xbox 360 emulation, multiplayer Goat Simulator, and Mario escapes into the real world. Microsoft Ends Support For Windows XP I have no strong feelings about the death of XP because I stopped caring about it 7 years ago. — Carmen Crincoli (@CarmenCrincoli) April 8, 2014 Microsoft has officially ended support for Windows XP, with the ancient operating system no longer receiving updates after today (April 8, 2014). Despite Microsoft having given plenty of warning of the impending XPocalypse, around 30 percent of computers are still running...


Read the full article: Microsoft Kills Windows XP, Hollywood Sues Megaupload, Virus Shield Scam [Tech News Digest]



Of Toasters And Smartphones: Apps And The Economy



toaster-smartphone

Your relationship with your toaster is pretty simple – at least, I hope it is. You bought your toaster, and now you can toast things with it. Sure: there are various bakers out there vying to sell you bread, and you need to pay your electricity bill to keep things working. But the company that makes your toaster isn’t hoping to take home a percentage of these sales – and it isn’t showing ads based on your past toasting history. You bought your toaster; you use your toaster. That’s it. Your Smartphone and The Economy Compare this to your relationship...


Read the full article: Of Toasters And Smartphones: Apps And The Economy



The Best Speed-Reading Extensions For Chrome



speed-read-chrome

The Galaxy S5 just got Spritz, a speed-reading app that is shaking up the way we read on our tablets. And now many of us want that speed-reading tool elsewhere too. What are the best speed-reading apps for Chrome? Let’s take a look. Spreed – Speed Read The Web (Chrome) Spreed is the clear favourite of the Chrome store. To use it, click Alt-V and then highlight the passage you’d like to speed read, and Spreed will even guess which text you’d like in advance. Or right-click and choose “Spreed selected text” from the context menu for the same results....


Read the full article: The Best Speed-Reading Extensions For Chrome



5 Woodworking YouTube Channels You Should Subscribe To Today



woodworking-youtube

Woodworking is a highly visual craft. There’s just something photogenic about lumber getting cut to size, dry-fit, glued or tacked together, and finally sanded down and finished into a beautiful piece of furniture. Even if you’re not a woodworker yourself, watching high-quality woodworking videos is a great way to learn about how stuff gets made, and who knows, you might even realize you want to make something yourself. Over a year ago, I wrote up a round-up of three woodworking resources which included talented YouTube woodworkers Matthias Wandel, Steve Ramsey, and Marc Spagnuolo, AKA The Wood Whisperer. All three still...


Read the full article: 5 Woodworking YouTube Channels You Should Subscribe To Today



07 April 2014

Remapping: The Secret Software Solution To Increase Keyboard Productivity



keyboard-remapping

Are you constantly hitting the Caps Lock key by mistake? Or need a keystroke or Mouse Action in a game that for whatever reason you are not able to execute. There are solutions. It would be safe to say that the majority of us as computer users assume that the purpose of a key on the keyboard is to type the letter or symbol which it has and that is all, end of story. In fact it is possible to remap all the keys on the keyboard in Windows. Enter remapping software. Essentially, applications which allow you to change what...


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5 Up And Coming Gaming YouTube Channels To Add To Your Subscriptions



youtube_upcoming_gaming_intro

YouTube has some of the best gaming content on the Internet. But not all good content is made by the top channels — there are plenty of up and coming YouTubers that provide content just as good, but they’re simply not as well know. Finding good but lesser-known channels is hard enough, so we did it for you. Here are five of them that you should take a good look at. Strictoaster and Zhatt Strictoaster and Zhatt are two YouTubers that tend to work together on videos, and they make awesome, high-quality content. They’re primarily known for their videos on...


Read the full article: 5 Up And Coming Gaming YouTube Channels To Add To Your Subscriptions



Legal Anime Exists: 4 Websites Where You Can Watch Anime For Free (Or Cheap)



free-anime

Looking to watch more anime, but not sure where to find it online? Look no further. These four websites make anime more accessible to the general public than ever before — and they’re completely legal! Three out of the four are even free. Anime, Japanese animated TV shows and movies, has exploded in popularity in recent years, and more and more people outside of Japan are discovering this awesome fusion of storytelling, art, music, and animation. A few years back, we reviewed some of the best anime sites on the Web, but times have changed and you can now find...


Read the full article: Legal Anime Exists: 4 Websites Where You Can Watch Anime For Free (Or Cheap)



Apple Admits Failure, Android TV, Windows In The Car, Amazon Dash [Tech News Digest]



apple-power-button

Today in Tech News Digest, Apple admits failure, Google works on Android TV, Microsoft wants Windows in your car, Amazon unveils Dash, Microsoft fixes Xbox One flaw, IFTTT comes to the iPad, and every SNES start screen ever is compiled into one epic video. Apple Admits It’s Failing To Deliver Apple’s solution to a bad selling ridiculous priced iPhone 5c? Reduce memory + add an even more ridiculous price for it and #FAIL again. — Stefan Esser (@i0n1c) March 18, 2014 Apple has privately admitted it’s failing to deliver what consumers want. Not publicly, of course, but in a highly...


Read the full article: Apple Admits Failure, Android TV, Windows In The Car, Amazon Dash [Tech News Digest]



Apple Admits Failure, Android TV, Windows In The Car, Amazon Dash [Tech News Digest]



apple-power-button

Today in Tech News Digest, Apple admits failure, Google works on Android TV, Microsoft wants Windows in your car, Amazon unveils Dash, Microsoft fixes Xbox One flaw, IFTTT comes to the iPad, and every SNES start screen ever is compiled into one epic video. Apple Admits It’s Failing To Deliver Apple’s solution to a bad selling ridiculous priced iPhone 5c? Reduce memory + add an even more ridiculous price for it and #FAIL again. — Stefan Esser (@i0n1c) March 18, 2014 Apple has privately admitted it’s failing to deliver what consumers want. Not publicly, of course, but in a highly...


Read the full article: Apple Admits Failure, Android TV, Windows In The Car, Amazon Dash [Tech News Digest]



How To Easily Uninstall Windows 8.1 Update 1



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Less than a week ago, Microsoft officially announced and released the widely leaked Windows 8.1 Update at its annual BUILD conference. The Windows 8.1 Update (also known as Windows 8.1 Update 1) is completely free and adds a couple of features to Windows 8.1. Windows 8.1 Update is Microsoft’s attempt to appease desktop and laptop […]

Kill Bill Duology In Chronological Order



kill-bill-feat

If you feel the need to immortalise the events in Kill Bill Volumes 1 and 2 in your bedroom, then designer Noah Daniel Smith has just what you need. This $30 custom illustration will be available in full colour as a 24 x 36-inch poster. Each poster will be signed by Noah and will be numbered. Get in quick – Noah is taking pre-orders now, and the poster is limited to 1000 copies. Also, don’t miss out Pulp Fiction In Chronological Order


Read the full article: Kill Bill Duology In Chronological Order



06 April 2014

Have You Ever Used BitCoin? [MakeUseOf Poll]



physical-bitcoins

Last week we asked for your help. We wanted to know what type of articles you’d like to see more of here on MakeUseOf. We gave you 16 options to choose from, and over 4,000 of you gave your voice to help us find out more about what our readers want. So first of all, thank you! Since there were many topics to choose from, we’ll only go over the ones that came on top. Keep scrolling to see the full results! In 5th place, you voted for Security & privacy tips (8% of the votes), In 4th place, we...


Read the full article: Have You Ever Used BitCoin? [MakeUseOf Poll]



A YouTube Experiment Resizes the Player Dynamically



There's a new YouTube experiment that changes the video player's size, depending on the browser window's size. When resizing Chrome's window, YouTube switches from 360p to 480p and to 720p, while the player gets bigger.



Here's the same video in a larger player (480p) and an almost fullscreen player (720p) on a 1080p display:









YouTube's "stats for nerds" show the size of the player ("dimensions") and the video resolution:






The nice thing is that the player resizes automatically and you don't have to click a button. It's the power of responsive design. The YouTube player still has a "large player" button, but it only moves the right sidebar and centers the player.



How to try the new interface? If you use Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Safari or Internet Explorer 8+:



1. open youtube.com in a new tab



2. load your browser's developer console:



* Chrome or Opera 15+ - press Ctrl+Shift+J for Windows/Linux/ChromeOS or Command-Option-J for Mac



* Firefox - press Ctrl+Shift+K for Windows/Linux or Command-Option-K for Mac



* Internet Explorer 8+ - press F12 and select the "Console" tab



* Safari 6+ - if you haven't enabled the Develop menu, open Preferences from the Safari menu, go to the Advanced tab and check "Show Develop menu in menu bar". Close Preferences and then press Command-Option-C to show the console.



* Opera 12 - press Ctrl+Shift+I for Windows/Linux or Command-Option-I for Mac, then click "Console".



3. paste the following code which changes a YouTube cookie:



document.cookie="VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE=E_OLzg3yeLw; path=/; domain=.youtube.com";window.location.reload();



4. press Enter and close the console.



To go back to the regular interface, use the same instructions, but replace the code from step 3 with this one:



document.cookie="VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE=; path=/; domain=.youtube.com";window.location.reload();



{ Thanks, Maurice Wahba. }

How To Write A Great Lede When Writing For The Web



web-writing-lede

Writing for the Web is a skill that’s easy to learn but difficult to master. One of the hardest elements is concocting a great lede; ledes being the one chance you have of persuading readers to commit to an article in full. Which is exactly what you’re doing in your head right about now. What Is A Lede? A lede, also known as a lead or intro, is that collection of words you see above you. It’s an introduction, an opener, an invitation to read further. Ledes exist in all forms of media, and burying the lede is generally considered...


Read the full article: How To Write A Great Lede When Writing For The Web



05 April 2014

Spotify Rolls Out New Darker Theme And New Features



spotify-new-look

Spotify, one of the most popular methods of consuming music on the go and in front of a computer, has launched a huge refresh that changes the look of all of its applications while also adding some new functionality and features that should make everything easier to use. The first thing you will notice is that the app has been given a new look, with dark colors throughout. Everything from the colors to the icons and text has been given a major overhaul, and it’s definitely slick looking. The redesign allows the content of the app to look like it’s...


Read the full article: Spotify Rolls Out New Darker Theme And New Features



8 Geeky Ways To Customize Windows To Your Needs



customize-windows

Whether you’re a tech guru or you feel as if you’re hardly getting by on your computer, customizing Windows is for everyone. That’s right – even if you don’t feel as though you’re the “tech savvy” type, you should customize Windows. In fact, there’s a pretty good chance it’ll help you navigate your computer better. And thanks to the Internet, you don’t have to figure these customizations out yourself – we’ve covered a significant portion of them right here on MakeUseOf. Manage & Enhance The Context (Right Click) Menu If you thought your context menu could never be edited, you’ve...


Read the full article: 8 Geeky Ways To Customize Windows To Your Needs



How to Force the Browser to Remember the Username and Password



When you enter your username and password to log into a website, Google Chrome will prompt you to remember the password. If you accept, Chrome saves the password internally and the next time you open that site, it will auto-fill the username and password fields for you.


The password-saving feature is available in all modern browsers but some websites, maybe for security reasons, disable this option for their login forms. For instance, the PayPal website doesn’t allow the browser to remember your password and thus you are forced to enter the password every time you open PayPal. Some banks websites do that as well.


TL;DR — Use the Remember Password extension for Chrome and it will force the browser to remember passwords even if the site has disabled the option.


You can force the browser to remember your password

You can force the browser to remember your password



How Websites Disable Password Saving


Websites can easily disable the auto-fill option for login forms by setting autocomplete=off for the password field. For instance, if the login form is written as below, the browser will never prompt the user to save the password field because form autocompletion is turned off.



<form>
<input type="text" name="username">
<input type="password" name="password" autocomplete="off">
</form>

Force the Browser to Remember Password


Now that you know how websites turn off the option to remember passwords, getting around this problem is simple.


You can set the autocomplete attribute of the password fields on a web page to on (if they are off) and you’ll be able to save passwords. Here’s a piece of JavaScript that will automatically turn on autocomplete for all password fields on a web page.



var fields = document.querySelectorAll('input[type="password"]');
for (var i = 0; i < fields.length; i++) {
fields[i].autocomplete="on";
}

No, you don’t have to worry about the code as there’s a simple extension for Chrome – Remember Password – that does it automatically for you.


Install the Remember Password extension and then open a site like PayPal that does not allow you to save passwords. Login with your username & password and the browser will now prompt you to remember the password.


Also see: The Best Google Chrome Extensions




This story, How to Force the Browser to Remember the Username and Password, was originally published at Digital Inspiration on 04/04/2014 under Google Chrome, Password, Software