Pithaly

Launchy is the most efficient way to open files, folders, websites, and
programs on your computer. Nobody likes to hunt through the start menu to
find an application, just to find that the application is hidden under some
obscure folder named after a company you have never heard of! Instead,
Launchy is a smart search program which tries to guess which program or file
you are looking for and will launch it when you hit the enter key. It is only
visible when you hit the alt+space key combination; otherwise it hides in the
background. Once you have used it for a few days, it becomes an indispensable
You can also configure Launchy to index more than the programs in your start menu,
such as folders, mp3s, docs, pdfs, avis, etc.

Awarded SourceForge.net Community 2007 award.

http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=132975&package_id=146049

End of Post Read more on this article...

Update:

Seems that the newspaper have used a pic from the 1990 Belgium sighting. Here's the original Belgium "Dorito: sighting 17 years ago.









I'm not a UFO fan or anything like that, though the mystery that there may be other life on other planets does fascinate me. I confess I have a huge collection of SF novels collected over the years!

Some UFO sightings do draw a lot of attention, especially if the UFO has been photographed, and confirmed that it is not a fake. The UFO sighting filmed by the Italian astronomer was pretty amazing, and so I blogged about it.

There's news today of a flurry of sightings, of what's being called the "Dorito" UFO, and seems someone has actually filmed a 10 minute shot of the low-flying giant craft.

The still photo above is amazingly clear, and does not represent any known experimental craft, nor was any sound heard. I'm waiting for more news on this!

Read the original full story dated 1st December 2007 in the "ExpressStar" here.
End of Post Read more on this article...

The experience with Shock4way freeware 3D mutiple desktop cube has been, well, a little dissapointing. When run in Mojopac, there is a possibility of a hang, probably due to some sort of memory clash. The search for a stable multiple desktop led to this gem: Virtual Desktop.

Virtual Desktop is open-source, free and stable. What's more, you can have any number of deskops and switch easily from one to another. As a bonus, you can literally drag an application from one desktop to another. It's stable, I virtually (heh) guarantee that!

http://sourceforge.net/projects/virtual-desktop/
End of Post Read more on this article...

Paint.NET is free image editing and photo manipulation software designed to be used on computers that run Windows. It supports layers, unlimited undo, special effects, and a wide variety of useful and powerful tools.

If all you want is a quick image retouch, Photoshop is overkill. Paint.NET, on the other hand, is an open-source freeware editor with all the essentials, including tools to crop, rotate, resize images, adjust colors, and create collages.

Paint.NET supports common image formats--JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF, and others--but not high-resolution RAW files. There are enough basic and intermediate effects and features to keep image-tweakers happy, though the red-eye removal tool is notably weak; those images may require manual attention.

End of Post Read more on this article...

Read more on this article...

Maybe the first app. that I will install in Mojopac 1.8.0.0. That would make my Mojopac install in Windows a portable operating system residing on my hard disk, where I could gather all the nice apps. I've been discovering and intend to use. Finally nuke Windows to have a fresh install, heh. How's that! Yeah, cool, but make sure that you install DOTNET 2.0 framework in Mojopac for those apps. that need them such as Tudomo and Windows Live Writer.

Tag your tasks, e.g. @Calls, @Home
Filter, on tag, heading, date, state or any combination!
Search-as-you-type
Use the heatmap, to identify stale actions
Undo/redo anything
Print
Change the state, Is your task an action? next action?, Waiting for?
USB-ready, - take it with you!
Auto-save, auto-update, focus on your work

http://download.tudumo.com/TudumoSetup.exe
End of Post Read more on this article...

Vectorization (aka tracing) is the process of converting a raster image to a vector image.
Raster images are pixel-based, whereas vector images are represented by geometric shapes such as lines, circles and curves. Vector art is useful because it allows you to scale an image without making it blurry or pixelated. The site is currently tuned for tracing logos and photos.
Lots of possibilities, starting with your signature!

http://vectormagic.stanford.edu/
End of Post Read more on this article...

For years we have been struggling with search engines which do not understand implicitly what we are trying to ask. Google merely throws up a set of links based on key words. All that is set to change now, thanks to True Knowledge, a search engine which supposedly throws up real answers to both human and machine questions.

An an example, check out the video for the answers to the question "Is Jennifer Lopez single?" in Google as well as True Knowledge. It's very interesting. This potentially opens up hours of play.

It's still in Beta and you need to register.

http://www.trueknowledge.com/
End of Post Read more on this article...

Download updated 8th November 2007

The Desktop Cube effect for Linux is extremely popular because people love eye candy, but the choices for Windows are much less interesting. The latest utility to give this effect for Windows is surprisingly fast, and works on both XP and Vista.

I have 2 drawings, Excel, and Wincommander open in the cube, which gives me great flexibility!

Download Shock4Way3D exe

Download Shock4Way3D portable

End of Post Read more on this article...

www.haltadefinizione.com

Leonardo Da Vinci's masterpiece "The Last Supper?" at 16 billion pixels - 1,600 times stronger than the images taken with the typical 10 million pixel digital camera. Why?? heh. End of Post. Read more on this article...

Update: MojoPac 1.8.0.0 released. 10th Nov. 2007

1. Improved performance on flash drives
2. Running MojoPac on host with limited mode access
3 Ability to run MojoPac on the host computer without an external USB drive


Mojo Experience

Your experience using Mojopac is exactly as if you are using an ultra portable PC (your MojoPac device) and docking it to a computer (the Host PC you are plugged into).

Your MojoPac PC is running from your portable device, but it is borrowing the resources (screen, processor, CD/DVD drives, internet connection, printers, etc.) of the Host PC. In other words, MojoPac is your real PC (your applications, settings, data), and any computer it is connected to is being used as a utility to run MojoPac.

Creating a MojoPac PC: Creating a brand new MojoPac PC takes less than 3 minutes.

• Plug your portable storage device (such as an iPod or a USB Flash or Hard Drive) into any Windows XP PC. Download MojoPac from our website and install it onto the device.
• Once you have installed MojoPac, you can log into this MojoPac PC you created (which is running from your portable device), and bring up your newly created MojoPac desktop (MojoView). What you see is similar to a brand new Windows XP PC, and behaves exactly the same.
• You can now install your applications from MojoView. The applications installed in the MojoView will be available for you on any PC you would connect and run MojoPac.

Using a MojoPac PC: You can plug your MojoPac enabled device to any Windows XP computer (Host PC), and you will immediately be presented with your personal applications, files and environment - and it looks exactly like a standard PC experience. In your MojoPac PC view (MojoView), installing applications is similar to installing applications on any PC - simply load the application installer CD/DVD, or download the application installer from the web and proceed as you would on any normal PC. In fact, in your MojoView, your "C" drive represents your MojoPac device, NOT the Host PC. So applications install in the right place automatically, no extra steps required.

MojoPac lives side-by-side with the Host PC: When you bring up your MojoPac PC after plugging your device into a Host PC, the Host PC will keep running as it was before the connection. You don't need to change the Host PC's settings, install anything on it, or close any of the applications that were running on it. Even more importantly, you can go back and forth between your MojoPac PC view and your Host PC view - you can work on both PCs at the same time, and operate both environments simultaneously. Using your MojoPac toolbar (MojoBar) you can easily toggle back and forth between the host PC view and your MojoPac view. Each presents you with whatever personal preferences and environments you have chosen for that system and MojoPac will never alter the settings or status of the host PC.

Go to source >>

http://www.mojopac.com/portal/content/hellomojo.jsp

Read more on this article...

Have you ever wanted to remove Windows components like Media Player, Internet Explorer, Outlook Express, MSN Explorer, Messenger...How about not even to install them with Windows ? Requires .NET Framework 2.0. There's a vLite for Vista too.

http://www.nliteos.com/nlite.html

nLite is a tool for permanent Windows components removal and pre-installation Windows configuration. After removal there is an option to make bootable image ready for burning on cd or testing in virtual machines.
With nLite you will be able to have Windows installation which on install does not include, or even contain on cd, the unwanted components.

Features

* Service Pack Integration
* Component Removal
* Unattended Setup
* Driver Integration *
* Hotfixes Integration **
* Tweaks
* Services Configuration
* Patches ***
* Bootable ISO creation


* - Textmode (CD Boot) and normal PnP
** - hotfixes with white icons, *KB*.exe, including update packs
and Internet Explorer 7
***- supports generic SFC, Uxtheme, TcpIp and Usb Polling patching.

nLite supports Windows 2000, XP x86/x64 and 2003 x86/x64 in all languages.
It needs .NET Framework 2.0 in order to run... Check if you have it already, maybe on some of your CDs before downloading if your connection is slow.
Read more on this article...

Samsung + Bang and Olufsen = Hi Fi speakers + amazing earphones.
4 gb memory.

http://www.serenatamobile.com/

End of Post Read more on this article...

Interactive web radio.

http://musicovery.com/

End of Post Read more on this article...

During routine observations of the cosmos, Italian astronomers have recently spotted and tracked on video an Unidentified Flying Object or UFO.

End of Post Read more on this article...

Music is like alcohol.

Ranges from very sweet Port, to Rose, to sherry, to the dry white, to highly over-rated champagne, to fine single malt scotch, to the most delicious +100 proof cognac, to the extremely fragnant cashew Feni of Goa, and the brilliant, (and in my opinion), the finest wine in the world, Mahua, made of the small white Mahua flowers found in West Bengal, drunk freshly distilled, warm from the distillery, sitting in the open mud courtyard in the Adivasi forest at midnight.And then there are the exotic local flavours such as Tequila, Vodka and of course the Britney Spears and the Paris Hilton of alcohol, for the current generation, Bacardi. Not to speak of the fabulous medical wines of India, like Drakasav ("Drak"=grapes, "asav"=wine), the famous fermented rice beer of West Bengal, of which I have partaken so often, sitting in the warm afternoon, with my friend, a matka-full (matka= a large clay water storage vessel, about 10 litres in volume), 3/4 full of freshly extracted rice beer, a couple of snacks, partaken by the very poor santhals (tribal folks). We sit in the cool shade of a tree, on a charpoy, and spend a leisurely 3 hours sipping away 7 litres of rice beer from mud cups, occasionally decanting from the matka. Time passes slowly. Very slowly, and as the sun sets, it's time to head back home on our bicycles. Night arrives, with her purple legion, heh. We roll back to civilisation, with the bright lights, and the constant clamour which surrounds occupied areas. Oh yes. Where was I? Yes. Alcohol is like music. hic. See and hear the equivalent of Indian country liquor. A brash, harsh, 100 proof stomach lining remover. The Pioneers of Punk.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2316500855086732828

Read more on this article...

Looks like the pressure of Micro$oft Open xml format, which has been recently put up to International vote and opposed by Brazil, is being pipped by IBM, by releasing it's suite in ODF format.

Lotus has always been a compact and efficient office suite, and I've been using Lotus 123 since, let's see, 1988!

Download the free components here.

Equally important, is the breaking news that Google has added a presentation software to its online suite.

Google Presentations launched as part of Google Docs & Spreadsheets... or now just “Google Docs,” as some of the logos already read. If you have a Google Account you can go start a presentation by clicking New -> Presentation, or by switching to the Upload tab to convert an existing PPT file.

Simultaneously, OpenOffice 2.3 has also been released today. End Of Post Read more on this article...

Leafletter (Beta)

It does not get richer and more web 2.0 than this. I mean you can literally create a "mini website" just in your browser (something akin to tiddlywiki, a wiki which can be edited in a browser), and you can then "post" the flash-based content anywhere! In blogs, on social networks, wherever. It has 36 standard layout, and its wigitiness allows you to change the layout anytime merely by dragging and dropping.

Yes, that's what it is. A flash-based tiddlywiki, heh.



Photographic and graphic portfolios, and advertisements seem to have the greatest potential, but the possibilities are really limitless.

"Leafletter is the "revolutionary" way for anyone to create a portable, interactive "little web site" ("Leaflet") using nothing but a web browser. You can easily distribute Leaflets to social networks, blogs, and other web sites.Use Leaflets for everything from portfolios to marketing materials. It's simple and it's free."

Check out these samples;

http://www.leafletter.com/Showcase.php

Read more on this article...

See the finished result in the left column. Neat!

Why not mash a few blogger feeds, and then make a "description only" Twitterfeed, which would show up on a "Twitter" account? . That would be a neat way to access all the blogs that you read from one Twitter account. the Twitter feed itself could be posted on your blog.

Step 1: Blog feed: This is an example of a blogger atom blogfeed.

http://xxxxblogspot.com/atom.xml

(You could use the automated feedburner feed too, but that would require the blogger to activate the feedburner feed in blogger.)

Step 2: Create a new twitter user at twitter.com

(or use your existing one)This twitter user is going to be the one posting your blog entries - twitterfeed needs to know your chosen twitter username and password so it can post your blog updates to your twitter account.

Your Twitter account would be:http://twitter.com/mashedblogs

Step 3: Get an OpenID from https://www.myopenid.com/

e.g., xxxx.myopenid.com

(OpenID is a way for individuals to create identity online and use it anywhere OpenID is supported. OpenID means the elimination of multiple user names and passwords and a smoother, more secure, online experience.)

Step 4: Login to twitterfeed using your OpenID.

Step 5: Enter the URL of the blog's RSS feed, and how often it should post to twitter. Both RSS and Atom feeds are supported. Posts need to contain publish dates in order for our server to know what's new. Feeds requiring authentication will fail.

Step 5: Create a new Twitter feed:

http://pithaly.blogspot.com/atom.xml

Step 6: Add another blog feed:

http://theothermy.blogspot.com/atom.xml

Step 7: WAIT!

The Twitterfeed server will check the blog feeds.

I wait! (11.51am). It works!! Twitterfeed even shortens the url for you.

---------

Popular sites which accept OpenID:

Only a tiny fraction of Web sites--mostly blogs like WordPress, (through a plug-in), Technorati, AOL, LiveJournal and its clones, Digg and SixApart sites, and individual blogs--now accept OpenID credentials.

Check out this link for sites which support OpenID: http://www.openiddirectory.com/

Maybe the biggies like Google and Yahoo will also support it one day. Social networking sites are beginning to migrate to OpenID.

If you want a more secure OpenID, consider Vidoop. It's in Beta and by invitation.

This post through Windows Live Writer Beta 3.

Read more on this article...

If you want to soup up your blog posts, by using common windows fonts then here is an easy three-step method that I've adopted. This does not require any heavy weight blogging clients, but merely requires simple html, the sort of which can be easily done in any html editor. (I recommend Editplus, 'cause it's one of the best, is free, and never expires).


Step 1:

Wrap your text in the html snippet as shown. Use common fonts which are available in Windows.



( Replace the [ ] by < > )

The font size can be changed by changing the % size. similarly, you could change the font colour by spanning the text by:

[font color="#ff6600"]test[/font]


( Replace the [ ] by < > )

You would need to type out the above snippet, because for some unknown reason, Blogger strips off the font-family part of the code!)


Step 2:

If you want to add emoticons to your posts WITHOUT uploading images (!!), then merely add the following snippet just before your text. (The position has been shown by an * before the text in this case just before "test" in the line above).

You can use the emoticons listed at the end of the post, instead of the "smile_tongue.gif" in the above exapmple.


* [img src="http://picturelli.com/images/emo/smile_tongue.gif" valign="absmiddle" alt=":-P" border="0" /]

( Replace the [ ] by < > )


Step 3:

If you want to give a coloured background to your text, then add this html snippet hust BEFORE the text, in this case, just before "test".

**

That's it! This opens up infinite possibilities!!


Here are two examples: One with the background highlighted, and one without.
(Note that I've tried to use a "digifaceWide" font which has been installed on my PC, and while it displays fine on my PC it will NOT on others, unless they have installed the same font! Still, a lot can be done with the usual Windows fonts by changing the color and size, not to speak of the many enhancements that CSS can bring.

Example 1:

test

Example 2:

Test

If you want to bold or italicise something, merely enclose it by this html snippet, deleting what you do not need, or alternatively, use the Blogger composer to span a word or a para of text. ( Don't block any customised code and change the font through Blogger! It will strip off your custom code!)

[span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"]test[/span]

( Replace the [ ] by < > )

Do note that when you post in Blogger, ensure that the post screen is in "html" mode. Do NOT use the Blogger composer for fonts if you are adopting this method. Do the entire html in Editplus or another html editor only.


I said it was easy, and it really is! Have fun!!


A List of emoticons for you to use:

smile_smile.gif
smile_wink.gif
smile_tongue.gif
biggrin.gif
smile_cool.gif
smile_lol.gif
smile_wub.gif
smile_wink.gif
smile_devil.gif
smile_rolleyes.gif
smile_rolleyes.gif
smile_undecided.gif
smile_sad.gif
smile_crying.gif
smile_blink.gif
smile_ohmy.gif
smile_huh.gif
smile_unsure.gif
smile_thumbdown.gif
smile_thumbup.gif
smile_mad.gif
smile_punk.gif

Read more on this article...

Dig this site:

http://boomp3.com

You can upload music anonymously, and they have a superb embeddable player.
End Of Post. Read more on this article...

Researchers at MIT have shown, that even if words are garbled, so long as the first and last letters are not changed, the paragraph is still readable!

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.



Or rather...

According to a researcher at Cambridge University, it doesn't matter in what order the letters in a word are, the only important thing is that the first and last letter be at the right place. The rest can be a total mess and you can still read it without problem. This is because the human mind does not read every letter by itself but the word as a whole.


To do it online, use this link: (This does not have "easy", "medium" and "hard" readability though, as the offline software has.

http://www.stevesachs.com/jumbler.cgi

For offline software (which is a very small and has the above features) download "wordreplacer" from:

http://home.zonnet.nl/hebels13/letterreplacer.zip

You'll need the Visual Basic runtime files to be on your system if you want to run the executable, the installation for this files can be found here:

http://download.microsoft.com/download/vb60pro/install/6/Win98Me/EN-US/VBRun60.exe

I tried wordreplacer, and it works absolutely fine.

For proper nouns, misspell them by duplicating another letter such as "Googlle"

http://www.mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk/~mattd/Cmabrigde/

Read more on this article...