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Jul 08

Count Mouse Clicks and Keyboard Presses

Posted in: Freeware, Software, stats, Today's Chili, Windows

This article was written on July 16, 2010 by CyberNet.

Windows only
Most geeks love stats, and what could be more interesting than to see how many times you click your mouse or press a key on the keyboard each day? If you want to do something like that you’ll need to hop on over and grab the free WinOMeter app. It doesn’t require any installation to use, and I know you may be hesitant to have a “novelty” item like this using your system resources. You can rest easy knowing that this will consume less than 1MB of memory while running.

I haven’t put this to full use yet, and in the screenshot above I merely “simulated” several days so that you could see that it tracks your history. I plan to run it for awhile though to see what my real stats are like. I have a feeling that I will be rather shocked at how many mouse clicks and keyboard presses I perform on a regular basis. I might even have some fun with it to see how few mouse clicks I can use by resorting to keyboard shortcuts.

I know what you’re thinking… why doesn’t it show some pretty graphs? No problem – the data can be exported to CSV which you can then pull into Microsoft Excel or Google Docs. From there you can generate those pretty graphs your heart so desperately desires.

WinOMeter Homepage (Windows only; Freeware)

Related Posts:

CyberNotes: Auto-Click Your Mouse

Two Cool Stat Programs From App-A-Day

New Poll: Do You Use a Mouse Pad?

Calibrate Your Mouse

Microsoft Developing a Wearable Mouse?

Jul 07

WOT Keeps You Safe On the Internet, Tops Bloated SiteAdvisor

Posted in: Features, Firefox Extensions, Freeware, Reviews, search, Software, Today's Chili

This article was written on September 25, 2009 by CyberNet.

SiteAdvisor started out as a really good idea. Whenever you went to a site, the SiteAdvisor label would turn green (safe), yellow (shady) or red (dangerous) to indicate the safety of that site. But then McAfee got involved and bundled SiteAdvisor with a search bar, a resident Windows service and other common signs of bloatware. Fortunately, the Web of Trust (WOT) extension stepped up to fill the gap that SiteAdvisor left.

Setup

When installing Web of Trust for the first time, the extension asks you how it should behave. Depending on your needs, you can go with the full package (Basic), a less intrusive version (Light) or a child-safe version. The latter will first check whether or not the site your kid wants to navigate to is safe. If no ratings are available, the site will be blocked. Interestingly, an accessibility setting for color blind people is also available. After choosing which version you want to go with, WOT will prompt you to create an account with them to unlock the full potential of the extension.

How it works

After installing WOT, a color indicator will be placed in the navigation toolbar. Much like SiteAdvisor, a quick glance at this icon lets you know whether you’re safe or not. Additionally, you can click the indicator to reveal more information about the site. WOT keeps track of trustworthiness, vendor reliability, privacy and child safety. It is also possible to read user reviews by clicking ‘View scorecard for rating details’.

WOT also protects you when you’re searching with Google, Yahoo and Bing. Depending on your settings, you can choose to have WOT always display a rating next to every search result, only display the rating if it’s not green or not display ratings at all. Similarly, if you’re a Hotmail, Gmail or Yahoo Mail user, WOT will display these icons in your incoming e-mails too.

Blocking features

Depending on how cautious you are, you might want to set up WOT like a passive advisor or rather like a mom who is always on your side to keep you out of bad neighborhoods. Either way, you can pull up the settings panel and configure the lowest permissible safety level for each category. Depending on your choice, WOT will either alert you or block you from visiting sites that do not meet your customized safety criteria.

WOT Homepage

"Hacker Safe" Sites are Really Hacker Friendly

How to Start Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or Outlook in Safe Mode

Google Safe Browsing Protects Your From 4,195 Sites

How the Internet All Began…

Jul 07

Apple’s request for preliminary injunction denied, Amazon’s Appstore needs no alias

Posted in: amazon, Apple, AppStore, lawsuit, legal, Software, Today's Chili

Remember when Apple sued Amazon, claiming the online retailer was infringing its “App Store” trademark? To stop Bezos and his boys from using the “Appstore” moniker for their Amazonian Android Market, Apple filed for a preliminary injunction last month, and today the judge denied that request. Despite the Cupertino company’s claims of consumer confusion and brand dilution, the court found in Amazon’s favor — in part because the term “app store” is descriptive and is used by plenty of mobile software purveyors. Of course, this doesn’t end the legal shenanigans between these two tech titans, but it does mean that Amazon’s Appstore can keep its incredibly original name… for now. Want the full breakdown why Apple got a judicial stiff arm? Dig into a copy of the order denying its motion in the source link below.

Apple’s request for preliminary injunction denied, Amazon’s Appstore needs no alias originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Jul 2011 06:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Reuters | Order [PDF] | Email this | Comments

Jul 07

Firefox 2 Users Prompted to Upgrade to Firefox 3

Posted in: Firefox 3, Freeware, Software, Today's Chili

This article was written on August 26, 2008 by CyberNet.

Last week we told you how Mozilla would soon be pushing Firefox 3 onto the Firefox 2 users who have yet to upgrade. Well, that day is today. If you’re still running Firefox 2 you should see the update prompt in the next day or so when your browser checks to see if a new version is available.

You can, of course, choose not to upgrade. The prompt you’ll receive will give you options to update later, never, or at that very moment. If you have any extensions that won’t work in the new version you should see a notification similar to this:

firefox 3 upgrade.png

If you choose not to upgrade it’s important to know that come December Mozilla will stop supporting Firefox 2. At that time they won’t be releasing any security or stability patches, which could leave you vulnerable to outside attacks. By that time most users will have probably transitioned over to the new version though.

Mozilla has created a guide that walks you through the steps in the upgrade process.

End of the Road for firefox 1.5 Updates… Upgrade Now

Mozilla Firefox 1.5.0.8 Released

Mozilla Will Support Firefox 2 Until Mid-December 2008

Del.icio.us for Firefox 3 Released

Jul 06

CyberNotes: Keyboard Shortcuts For Your Programs

Posted in: CyberNotes, Software, Today's Chili

This article was written on August 29, 2006 by CyberNet.

Time Saving Tuesday

Keyboard shortcuts are a real time saver but they definitely take some getting used to. It is almost out of instinct that I reach for the mouse to perform a lot of my tasks but they can often be done much quicker if you learn how to use the keyboard as your primary input device.

I always bookmark a site that I come across that has some useful keyboard shortcuts for applications. I know that eventually I will want to come back and learn them but not maybe I don’t have the time right now. Well, it is time that I share my list with you in hopes that they will save you as much time as some of them have saved me.

Web Browsers:

Camino
Firefox – Also has Internet Explorer and Opera shortcuts listed
Flock
Internet Explorer 7
Maxthon
Opera
Safari

Operating Systems:

Office Applications:

Microsoft Office
OpenOffice.org (PDF – shortcuts start on page 10)

Email:

Eudora (PDF – shortcuts start on page 395)
Outlook
Outlook Express
Thunderbird – Also has Outlook Express shortcuts listed

Google:

Other Programs:

Dreamweaver
Foxit Reader (PDF – shortcuts start on page 66)
Photoshop (5, 6, 7, CS, and CS2)

So that is the list of keyboard shortcuts that I have come up with so far. It may not be the most extensive list but they sure save me some time.

If you have a good site for some shortcuts please let us know. We’ll go ahead and add it to the list above to help make it a little more comprehensive.

Related Posts:

Ultimate List of Keyboard Shortcuts

Using Google’s Keyboard Shortcuts

CyberNotes: Your Week In Review With Sunday’s Summary

CyberNotes: Override & Modify Keyboard Shortcuts on a Mac

CyberNotes: Quickly Assign Hotkeys to Folders, Programs, URL’s, and More

Jul 06

D-Link brings the Boxee Box remote to PC, Mac users

Posted in: boxee, Mac, PC, remote, Software, Today's Chili

Boxee users on PC and Mac should no longer feel ignored, with promises of updated software on the way and now the option to use a Boxee Box remote from D-Link. The two sided QWERTY design is unchanged and the included RF dongle means your HTPC can stay safely out of sight while you enjoy some branded remote control action without selling out for a one-size-fits-all box. The roll your own media player crowd can pick up the remote at a penny under $50 at a variety of online retailers right now, the long awaited software update is still due this fall.

Continue reading D-Link brings the Boxee Box remote to PC, Mac users

D-Link brings the Boxee Box remote to PC, Mac users originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 06 Jul 2011 12:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | D-Link | Email this | Comments

Jul 06

Skype 5.2 for Mac is here with group video calls and group sharing

Posted in: app, Apple, Mac, skype, Software, Today's Chili

Much to iPad owners’ chagrin, everyone’s favorite video chat service, Skype, has just been updated for Mac. iPad users are still waiting for an iPad app update that was rumored to be released last Tuesday. However, it’s safe to say that a good amount of iPad owners are also Mac owners, so they should be […]

Jul 06

Dell’s Most Requested Features Focus on Open Source Software

Posted in: Freeware, Software, Today's Chili, Web Sites

This article was written on February 20, 2007 by CyberNet.

Dell’s IdeaStorm website has only been available for a few days and the votes are already pouring in. With users from sites like Slashdot and Digg there is no doubt that many of the requested features would be related to open source software. Looking through the most popular suggestions list makes me wonder whether Dell will actually listen to user feedback:

Pre-Installed Linux | Ubuntu | Fedora | OpenSUSE | Multi-Boot (42,165 votes)
Pre-Installed OpenOffice | alternative to MS Works & MS Office (22,528 votes)
NO EXTRA SOFTWARE OPTION (17,547 votes)
Linux laptop (15,423 votes)
No OS Preloaded (12,250 votes)
Have Firefox pre-installed as default browser (10,766 votes)
Build computers not loaded with extra software (10,304 votes)

Note: Each time a person votes it actually counts as 3. That means the number one suggestion currently has 14,055 unique people who have voted for it.

Those are the top 7 suggestions available on the site right now, and with the big tech sites writing about the new IdeaStorm site I would imagine that the open-source related ones will continue to grow in popularity. I am really impressed because the person who wrote the top two stories took some time to think out what they were going to say. They reference several applications, such as Firefox and GAIM, that should be offered to customers when purchasing a new computer.

If Dell starts to take some action on these requests you’ll find out about it on this page. That’s where they post about suggestions that they are actively working on to meet the consumer’s request. Right now, however, there is nothing available since Dell still has to “analyze” which requests are feasible.

I think it would be great if Dell started offering Linux PC’s with a variety of options, but I have a hard time seeing that happen. Right now Dell is able to offer their PC’s at such a discounted price because of the software companies who pay to put their “junk” on PC’s that new users purchase (with AOL probably being one of the most common). The Linux-only computers would probably be more expensive so Linux users would still buy a Windows machine (with all of the bloat) and just format it themselves.

News Source: Slashdot

Dell’s “In-Action” Ideas: No Extra Software Option and Pre-Installed Linux

Dim Background Windows Using Jedi Concentrate

Man Tries To Contact Michael Dell To Share His Idea

CyberNotes: SWiK – Community Driven Resource for Open Source Software

Jul 05

Get Drive Shortcuts on Your Windows Desktop

Posted in: Features, Freeware, Software, Today's Chili, Windows

This article was written on June 05, 2008 by CyberNet.

desk drive.png Windows only
One of the features that Mac and Linux users alike are accustomed to is having shortcuts to any connected drives sitting on their desktop. It provides a quick and painless way for you to access USB drives, memory cards, cameras, and anything else that you connect to your computer.

Windows users can get the shortcuts on their desktop as well with a handy little application called Desk Drive (from the same people who created FreeSnap). With it you can automatically add desktop shortcuts for any external devices and media, including networked locations. You can also specify drive letters that you want to be excluded.

This is really a feature that you’ll either love or hate. Personally I like keeping my desktop as tidy as possible, and don’t place many shortcuts on it. If you frequently access an external drive this could be useful to you, but for me it’s just added clutter.

The only bad thing is that Desk Drive always needs to be running in order for it to work. It stays tucked away in the System Tray, but it does eat about 12MB of memory while running. Not a whole lot, but enough to make you think twice about using it. You might be better suited to just create shortcuts to your drives the old fashioned way, but that doesn’t work so well if you have multiple devices that always get assigned different drive letters.

Desk Drive [via Freeware Genius]

New Poll: How Big is Your USB Drive?

Helpful Tip: How to Keep your Desktop Clean

Using Google’s Keyboard Shortcuts

Ultimate List of Keyboard Shortcuts

Jul 05

Instant Google Results in the Firefox 3 Location Bar

Posted in: Firefox 3, Firefox Extensions, Freeware, Google, search, Software, Today's Chili

This article was written on June 04, 2008 by CyberNet.

firefox awesomesearch.png

One of the my favorite things in Firefox and Opera is having the ability to perform searches right from the location bar using keywords. In fact I’ve always removed the search box from the browser simply because I never use it. But when I found out about the Peers extension I thought it was going to be the extension that would actually get me to use the search box once and for all. I was wrong.

Ghacks uncovered an incredible extension that could very well be the best one ever created. I know, a lot of extensions have passed through the golden gates of the add-ons site, but I don’t think any of them will save me as much time as this one does.

The extension is called AwesomeSearch, which is named after the new Firefox 3 location bar (pictured above) that’s dubbed the “Awesome Bar.” With it you’ll get Google and Amazon search results intermingled with the items from your browser’s history. Here’s a video demonstration put together by the author to show you how it works.

As you can see in my screenshot the search results that are pulled in are highlighted with a blue background, and that makes it easier to differentiate what’s a search result and what’s a site you’ve previously visited. The true power of the extension, however, will only be revealed if you’re familiar with some of Google’s advanced search operators. A good example of this is what I have typed into the location bar in my screenshot, where the “site:cybernetnews.com” is the advanced search operator. By including that as part of the query it only returns results from our site. This basically gives you a nearly instantaneous way to search specific sites. Another example would be using “site:en.wikipedia.org” to only show results from the English Wikipedia site. Now do you see why this is so cool?

I sent an email to the developer with some recommendations that would make the extension even better. One of the things that came to my mind was having the ability to create keyword searches so that you can force it to only show Google results, and not anything from your browser’s history. That can be taken even further by being able to automatically append text onto the query based upon which keyword you use. For example, typing “wiki [search text]” into the location bar would actually be like performing a Google search formatted like “[search text] site:en.wikipedia.org“. That’s just an idea, but it would give people the chance to add site-specific search capabilities without the developer working overtime trying to make it compatible with dozens of different services.

The extension is currently in the experimental stage, and you’ll have to login with your Mozilla account to install it. It’s also not officially compatible with the latest Firefox 3 release, which means you’ll also need to ignore extension compatibility checking before trying to grab it.

It’s been awhile since I’ve gotten this excited about a Firefox extension! One thing that I do want to point out is that this does also search Amazon, and it uses affiliate links for the results it retrieves. It’s just an easy way to support the developer though.

Get the AwesomeSearch Extension for Firefox 3

CyberSearch Firefox Extension Pre-Launch

Safari’s Inquisitor Comes to Firefox

MySpace Has An Instant Messenger, Too!

Keyboardr: Real-time Google & Wikipedia Search Results

Hasta La Gadget!

Count Mouse Clicks and Keyboard Presses