New iTunes steals your ability to turn Apple music into iPod-friendly MP3s [via boingboing.net] >O
I'm so not surprised.
Personally, although I own an iPod, I never use it. I know this statement probably makes me sound bad.... ._.
The "biggie" about owning an iPod was managing to hook it up to my linux box. Once I did it (painlessly, if I might add), I lost interest in it.
I even formatted it into a mac-ipod to add a little bit more complication to it, but yeah... once it was done, I wasn't interested in using it anymore. =/
Nowadays all it takes to sync up your iPod to your linux box is plugging it in and opening amaroK.
Friday, June 01, 2007
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
CBS bought last.fm
Music site Last.fm bought by CBS. =O
I'm no sure this is making me sad nor happy. But I guess when earlier this month they said they would provide video streaming, they probably knew this was cooking.
When I read the video-streaming bit, I was a little skeptic as they barely seem to be able to do what they do. However, perhaps now everything falls into place.
Microsoft's surface. I don't know..... I wouldn't want to have to reboot my coffee table because it froze badly... and BSOD doesn't really match my decoration.
I'm no sure this is making me sad nor happy. But I guess when earlier this month they said they would provide video streaming, they probably knew this was cooking.
When I read the video-streaming bit, I was a little skeptic as they barely seem to be able to do what they do. However, perhaps now everything falls into place.
Microsoft's surface. I don't know..... I wouldn't want to have to reboot my coffee table because it froze badly... and BSOD doesn't really match my decoration.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Recommended software!
Recommended software entry! Wee!
A friend of mine bought himself a new computer. Because he didn't want to spend much money, as his sole intention was to replace his dinosaur-old computer, he went for an averagely cheap over-the-counter computer that came with windows xp pre-installed.
I know. BAAAAD IDEA.
Because this is the third world, and Micro$oft doesn't like people who aren't willing to pay high amounts of money for defective products, my friend got the "Windows XP Starter Edition" pre-installed. I think this version of Windows is one that those of you in prettier areas will never get to see and only consider it to be a matter of crypto-softwarelogy.
Anyway, jokes aside... there are lots of applications my friend does not get and is not allowed to install. One of them is Windows Media Player.
When he told me this, I tried to cheer him up by telling him that this is actually GOOD NEWS! as the less Micro$hit on your comp, the better. But I don't think he thought I was doing a great job at helping.
So, I recommended him VideoLAN/VLC.
VideoLAN, as much as wifey hates it, is a wonderful MultiMedia player that supports many many codecs and video/audio formats. It is available for Windows, MacOS and Linux, and it's free.
It installs fast and nicely, it has a very intuitive interface without much stupid eyecandy, and it doesn't hog your RAM. \^_^/
It can be skinned to look prettier, if that's what rocks your boat; and it can also be used to stream music and videos, but we won't go there yet. Concentrate on the playing your music easily part.
The most important thing about software like VLC is that it's OPEN SOURCE, which means, anyone can see the code that makes the application work and suggest changes, tweaks and improvements to it; as well as security fixes.
If you find that the software you use to play videos, dvd's or even music is too bloated and too fucked-up, give VideoLAN a try. I have a feeling you might like it a lot, and who knows... maybe that old video auntie sent you of her puppy Rigobert that you could never open with WMP or QT can be played now with VLC. =D
A side note about FOSS:
Free Open Source Software (FOSS) reaches you at no cost. However, writing these applications does cost the programmers time, patience, resources, etc.
Usually the people behind these applications -who are regular human beings like you and me- do these projects in their spare time, because they don't get paid for it. As you can imagine, since they don't make a living out of this, they most surely make a living out of something else.
Sometimes users protest about not getting features they want or stuff they want in their FOSS, disregarding the fact that the person who writes this software is putting everything on his or her part on it and getting nothing in return.
So, please, if you find a piece of FOSS to be useful to you, remember to support the writers of this software. They all take donations and it helps them a lot to make ends meet more smoothly and keep writing the software that is so useful and we like so much.
You don't need to donate a lot, and you aren't in obligation of donating money, just please consider it next time you have some spare money. It goes to a good cause. ^_^
A friend of mine bought himself a new computer. Because he didn't want to spend much money, as his sole intention was to replace his dinosaur-old computer, he went for an averagely cheap over-the-counter computer that came with windows xp pre-installed.
I know. BAAAAD IDEA.
Because this is the third world, and Micro$oft doesn't like people who aren't willing to pay high amounts of money for defective products, my friend got the "Windows XP Starter Edition" pre-installed. I think this version of Windows is one that those of you in prettier areas will never get to see and only consider it to be a matter of crypto-softwarelogy.
Anyway, jokes aside... there are lots of applications my friend does not get and is not allowed to install. One of them is Windows Media Player.
When he told me this, I tried to cheer him up by telling him that this is actually GOOD NEWS! as the less Micro$hit on your comp, the better. But I don't think he thought I was doing a great job at helping.
So, I recommended him VideoLAN/VLC.
VideoLAN, as much as wifey hates it, is a wonderful MultiMedia player that supports many many codecs and video/audio formats. It is available for Windows, MacOS and Linux, and it's free.
It installs fast and nicely, it has a very intuitive interface without much stupid eyecandy, and it doesn't hog your RAM. \^_^/
It can be skinned to look prettier, if that's what rocks your boat; and it can also be used to stream music and videos, but we won't go there yet. Concentrate on the playing your music easily part.
The most important thing about software like VLC is that it's OPEN SOURCE, which means, anyone can see the code that makes the application work and suggest changes, tweaks and improvements to it; as well as security fixes.
If you find that the software you use to play videos, dvd's or even music is too bloated and too fucked-up, give VideoLAN a try. I have a feeling you might like it a lot, and who knows... maybe that old video auntie sent you of her puppy Rigobert that you could never open with WMP or QT can be played now with VLC. =D
A side note about FOSS:
Free Open Source Software (FOSS) reaches you at no cost. However, writing these applications does cost the programmers time, patience, resources, etc.
Usually the people behind these applications -who are regular human beings like you and me- do these projects in their spare time, because they don't get paid for it. As you can imagine, since they don't make a living out of this, they most surely make a living out of something else.
Sometimes users protest about not getting features they want or stuff they want in their FOSS, disregarding the fact that the person who writes this software is putting everything on his or her part on it and getting nothing in return.
So, please, if you find a piece of FOSS to be useful to you, remember to support the writers of this software. They all take donations and it helps them a lot to make ends meet more smoothly and keep writing the software that is so useful and we like so much.
You don't need to donate a lot, and you aren't in obligation of donating money, just please consider it next time you have some spare money. It goes to a good cause. ^_^
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Yahoo! Unlimited
Yahoo has just begun implementing the "unlimited" mail storage system. =D The storage-meter on my account is gone (I'd appreciate a counter that tells me how much space I'm using, though) now I can have an unlimited number of old e-mails that will be stored in Yahoo!'s unlimited hard disks. >P
The bad news is that yahoo! photos will be replaced by flickr, which is sad because I used to store lots of interesting photos there that I will now have to backup. =/
I keep wondering about the Y!Disk and whether I'll be able to store large files there, cuz if that is correct, I might have less trouble backing up 120 gig of data in the future.
!
The bad news is that yahoo! photos will be replaced by flickr, which is sad because I used to store lots of interesting photos there that I will now have to backup. =/
I keep wondering about the Y!Disk and whether I'll be able to store large files there, cuz if that is correct, I might have less trouble backing up 120 gig of data in the future.
!
Monday, May 07, 2007
GAIM is now Pidgin
GAIM is now Pidgin.
From what I'm reading there seem to be some notable improvements, and the new Pidgin also has a portable feature that allows you to load it onto a pen-drive and use it without installing it to the computer. =] Think of it as a "light" version of an instant messenging client.
I don't know when Lenny will have it, and I'm not in the mood to compile from source lately 'cos I've a headache and a backache of huge proportions; but those of you running Windowsand Mac may already test it by downloading it and installing it from its official site.
I haven't tried this "on the fly" option (by loading it to a pen drive) yet, but if it works it could prove very useful.
Personally, I like multi-protocol clients because it's incredibly annoying to have 100000000 different clients open to connect to the 100000000 IM networks that people use.
In this way, with just one client (uh... some call those "program") you can use many different networks, like AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, etc. Even LJ's IM or Google Talk; all at the same time. You can also be signed up to two different AIM (or whatever) accounts at the same time, and chat from both. That often saves resources (that your comp can use for something else), RAM, time and you have less chances to crash your system.
Additionally, it provides "tabbed" chat-windows, which helps at keeping things organized, in clear view and handy. It comes with spell-check support and several other options, it allows transfer of files, buddy notifications, custom away messages, custom IM icons and all that jazz.
But the best part of it is that it is FREE AND OPEN SOURCE. =D
From what I'm reading there seem to be some notable improvements, and the new Pidgin also has a portable feature that allows you to load it onto a pen-drive and use it without installing it to the computer. =] Think of it as a "light" version of an instant messenging client.
I don't know when Lenny will have it, and I'm not in the mood to compile from source lately 'cos I've a headache and a backache of huge proportions; but those of you running Windows
I haven't tried this "on the fly" option (by loading it to a pen drive) yet, but if it works it could prove very useful.
Personally, I like multi-protocol clients because it's incredibly annoying to have 100000000 different clients open to connect to the 100000000 IM networks that people use.
In this way, with just one client (uh... some call those "program") you can use many different networks, like AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, etc. Even LJ's IM or Google Talk; all at the same time. You can also be signed up to two different AIM (or whatever) accounts at the same time, and chat from both. That often saves resources (that your comp can use for something else), RAM, time and you have less chances to crash your system.
Additionally, it provides "tabbed" chat-windows, which helps at keeping things organized, in clear view and handy. It comes with spell-check support and several other options, it allows transfer of files, buddy notifications, custom away messages, custom IM icons and all that jazz.
But the best part of it is that it is FREE AND OPEN SOURCE. =D
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Good news... sort of.
Dell to use Ubuntu on Linux PC's. =D Although I know this is for the most part irrelevant, as most people will hire someone to wipe off the GNU/Linux installed on their new machines and have a pirated copy of MSWindows installed on it, not even taking a minute to check out Ubuntu (which is a great distro, imho) nor to give it a chance. =/..
I know I sound like a pessimist. It is not my intention, by the way.
I know I sound like a pessimist. It is not my intention, by the way.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Michelle's pick of free webhosts
Do you remember the days before geocities was bought by yahoo? Do you remember the days of xoom? How about darkhosts/darkservers? Redribbon? Do those names sound even remotely familiar to you?
It seems nowadays it is very hard to find a webhost that satisfies your needs, if you plan to put up a non-profit, highly informal personal site that looks good and lets you use all those cheesy scripts one sees on paid hosts.
Today, reading my round of daily feeds, I found AwardSpace, and I was awed by their features.
Don't get me wrong... I know many of these hosts die away unexpectedly because they offer too much for too little (or even for nothing) and that quickly puts them out of business.
However, awardspace seems to be fairly reliable (I wouldn't trust it with important data, mind you) for small personal sites, or for those of you wishing to try out your madskillz at webdesign.
For as much as $0.00 you get (and I'll copy and paste from the site):
This sounds quite good to me.
I have just signed up for an account in order to try it. I already have a webhost and I'll be sticking to it for as long as it holds on together. D=
For the basic type of account (that is the free one) you get a file size limit of 500KB (half a megabyte) which prevents you from uploading media. I think this is reasonable considering they are providing a free service. You don't get SMTP either; which means mail-scripts will not be able to send e-mails, but I doubt many people in my flist are benefiting from this option.
You do get traffic statistics, usage reports, ssh (again, I doubt anyone in my flist benefits from this option), mailing lists manager (careful with that!), php, database, email filters, spam protection, cronjobs, and a bunch of other options that are undoubtedly interesting. Especially for a FREE webhost.
If you don't have a domain name, you can assign it a free one. If you do have a domain name, you can easily direct it to your account. =]
Most importantly, your website will be hosted on a unix-like server (ie: linux) which makes it more stable and reliable than any windows-based server can ever dream of being. Plus, you don't need to contact your sysadmin eeeeeevery time you need to change file permissions (which is, once again, something I doubt lots of people in my flist do... You all seriously need to be geeked up by me -safe for a couple of exceptions-).
You can try uploading content management software like joomla! or mambo. Or blogging/journalism stuff like wordpress; discussion boards, image galleries (teh-yum!) e-commerce solutions, etc.
If you want to get a free domain name, but you don't know how to do it, head towards http://www.freedomain.co.nr/ to get an http://www.yourname.co.nr domain. =] All they ask is
1) a link back to co.nr (a small button)
2) valid personal information
co.nr has a 2 months inactivity limit, after which they will delete your account without notice.
I've been using godaddy.com for paid domain names. They don't charge much and they are good.
co.nr also offers a cheap domain registration service, for US$5.99 a year per domain name. In this case, since you are paying for it, you don't have a two-months inactivity limit. =]
If you know of other free-domain services, please let me know. ^^
So, I guess everyone can get started learning website-building basics, or advanceds (XDD), or those of you wishing to try out new things but not wanting to risk ruining your paid website, you could use this kind of service to do so (which is what I plan to do, btw). I'll be looking forward to seeing what you guys come up with, if you want to share it. I will share mine as soon as I've put something pretty in it. ^-^ (Mostly pictures of my kitties, hahaha)
Right now, I'm off to dine out with friends. ^_^v
It seems nowadays it is very hard to find a webhost that satisfies your needs, if you plan to put up a non-profit, highly informal personal site that looks good and lets you use all those cheesy scripts one sees on paid hosts.
Today, reading my round of daily feeds, I found AwardSpace, and I was awed by their features.
Don't get me wrong... I know many of these hosts die away unexpectedly because they offer too much for too little (or even for nothing) and that quickly puts them out of business.
However, awardspace seems to be fairly reliable (I wouldn't trust it with important data, mind you) for small personal sites, or for those of you wishing to try out your madskillz at webdesign.
For as much as $0.00 you get (and I'll copy and paste from the site):
200MB Disk Space
5GB Monthly Traffic
2 Domains Hosting
5 Subdomains
Free DNS Server
PHP, Perl/CGI-BIN
1 MySQL Database
FTP/FrontPage Access
5 POP3/IMAP E-mails
Instant Account Setup
Web-based File Manager
Easy-to-use Control Panel
Reliable RAID Backups
GRID Hosting Platform
Super Fast Servers
Reliable Data Center
99.8% Uptime Guarantee
24x7 Network Monitoring
Forum Support
NO BANNER ADS
Fully Upgradeable
This sounds quite good to me.
I have just signed up for an account in order to try it. I already have a webhost and I'll be sticking to it for as long as it holds on together. D=
For the basic type of account (that is the free one) you get a file size limit of 500KB (half a megabyte) which prevents you from uploading media. I think this is reasonable considering they are providing a free service. You don't get SMTP either; which means mail-scripts will not be able to send e-mails, but I doubt many people in my flist are benefiting from this option.
You do get traffic statistics, usage reports, ssh (again, I doubt anyone in my flist benefits from this option), mailing lists manager (careful with that!), php, database, email filters, spam protection, cronjobs, and a bunch of other options that are undoubtedly interesting. Especially for a FREE webhost.
If you don't have a domain name, you can assign it a free one. If you do have a domain name, you can easily direct it to your account. =]
Most importantly, your website will be hosted on a unix-like server (ie: linux) which makes it more stable and reliable than any windows-based server can ever dream of being. Plus, you don't need to contact your sysadmin eeeeeevery time you need to change file permissions (which is, once again, something I doubt lots of people in my flist do... You all seriously need to be geeked up by me -safe for a couple of exceptions-).
You can try uploading content management software like joomla! or mambo. Or blogging/journalism stuff like wordpress; discussion boards, image galleries (teh-yum!) e-commerce solutions, etc.
If you want to get a free domain name, but you don't know how to do it, head towards http://www.freedomain.co.nr/ to get an http://www.yourname.co.nr domain. =] All they ask is
1) a link back to co.nr (a small button)
2) valid personal information
co.nr has a 2 months inactivity limit, after which they will delete your account without notice.
I've been using godaddy.com for paid domain names. They don't charge much and they are good.
co.nr also offers a cheap domain registration service, for US$5.99 a year per domain name. In this case, since you are paying for it, you don't have a two-months inactivity limit. =]
If you know of other free-domain services, please let me know. ^^
So, I guess everyone can get started learning website-building basics, or advanceds (XDD), or those of you wishing to try out new things but not wanting to risk ruining your paid website, you could use this kind of service to do so (which is what I plan to do, btw). I'll be looking forward to seeing what you guys come up with, if you want to share it. I will share mine as soon as I've put something pretty in it. ^-^ (Mostly pictures of my kitties, hahaha)
Right now, I'm off to dine out with friends. ^_^v
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