Archive for November, 2008
Cooperative online searching
Searching the Internet is mostly a solitary job but as the Web becomes more oriented to social activities so perhaps will searching become a cooperative activity. The New York Times reports:
OPPORTUNITIES for social networking abound on the Internet, but not when it comes to one standard job: using a browser and search engine [...]
A report card for Vista
This month I have given a presentation to several groups about the current status of Vista and its relation to Windows 7. A quick summary of part of what I have been saying was posted previously. Here is the PowerPoint show:
Vista Report Card
Make Vista run your way
A lot of people complain about one thing or the other in Vista. However, in many cases you can configure Vista to run more to your liking. Here’s a collection of links where you can find out how to tweak Vista:
Vista Annoyances ResolvedAn extensive discussion at TweakGuides of Vista annoyances and what to do about [...]
Vista poll results
Here are the results from the participants in the Vista poll:
50% said they are already using Vista.
8% said they will be using Vista within the next year.
21% said they will continue to use Windows XP
18% are waiting for Windows 7
3% are uncertain what they’ll do.
Many thanks to those who responded. The results of the poll [...]
Holiday gift guide
The choices that are made at ZDNet are not always what I would want in my Christmas stocking but for what it’s worth here is the ZDNet Holiday Gift Guide.
Searching Twitter
I don’t know if it is a passing fad or a social site with permanence but there is no denying that Twitter is currently getting a lot of attention. Since the content runs the gamut from the inane to important breaking news, you might want a way to sift its contents. Search Engine Journal has [...]
Customizing your Google searches
Google has announced a method for editing your search results to better suit your preferences:
Have you ever wanted to mark up Google search results? Maybe you’re an avid hiker and the trail map site you always go to is in the 4th or 5th position and you want to move it to the top. Or [...]
A better way to package
I have previously written about the problems with the packaging that is often used for computer and consumer electronics items. Now it seems there is hope for us during the coming holiday season. In an article, Packages You Won’t Need a Saw to Open, the New York Times reports:
A number of retailers and manufacturers have [...]
Making long URLs more manageable
A lot of Web sites have many pages and have to employ long complicated names for their links. Long names are no problem when you are just clicking on a link but when you want to list an URL in printed material there can be a problem. For that and other reasons, there are services [...]
What to do with an old email address
Those of us who have been around for a while are apt to have old email addresses that we never use anymore. Maybe the spam just got too heavy or we switched from AOL or MSN or whatever. The problem is that sometimes friends or other contacts keep sending stuff to these old addresses. So [...]
Google SketchUp 7
I’ve mentioned Google SketchUp before. It has been updated to version 7. The Google Blog describes it this way:
SketchUp is software you can use to build 3D models of anything: your house, killer robots, furniture, trees, abstract art — anything. Architects and engineers use it to design buildings and other structures. Woodworkers use it to [...]
