Software Tips: tools + addons that enhances your computing experience.

[Dapxin]

Title speaks for itself.

If you find some addon or utility irresistibly good for your computer , share it.

For Starts:

Check out http://www.stereopsis.com/flux/ which I found from my blogfeeds few days ago. You need to see the site to see what it is about really.

You either love it or hate it, but try it.

Will update the thread over time..

[Dapxin]

Here is another one I can't work without


Get it here http://abstractpath.com/powermenu/

It allows you to keep an IM window ontop of everything else while you surf away...

At the price of free, its priceless.

[Dapxin]

KatMouse - one piece of timeless computing gem.

Here - http://ehiti.de/katmouse/

You are going to have to try this to see what it does. Basically, once installed, you can use your mouse-scrollbutton everywhere on your Windows box, without having to click to select first.

So, if you have 5 scrollbars in 3 different places on your screen, your mousewheel works on all 5 without you having to select which of the 15 areas - just point and spin. Terrific!

[Dapxin]

Flux - http://stereopsis.com/flux/flux-setup.exe

New! PC supports slow transition and exact location finding


Ever notice how people texting at night have that eerie blue glow?

Or wake up ready to write down the Next Great Idea, and get blinded by your computer screen?

During the day, computer screens look good—they're designed to look like the sun. But, at 9PM, 10PM, or 3AM, you probably shouldn't be looking at the sun.
f.lux

F.lux fixes this: it makes the color of your computer's display adapt to the time of day, warm at night and like sunlight during the day.

It's even possible that you're staying up too late because of your computer. You could use f.lux because it makes you sleep better, or you could just use it just because it makes your computer look better.

[ahbego]

Originally Posted by Dapxin

Title speaks for itself.

If you find some addon or utility irresistibly good for your computer , share it.

Really cool idea. Probably should be a sticky though. Over time, the thread might get buried, which would be a shame for newbies.

Here's one >> Mozilla Firefox <<

I've heard that ... (sorry, I'm laughing) ... I've heard that ... (ho ho ho! ) ... people are ... (sorry, ) ... are using ... ( - oh my god!, ha ha ha ) ... people are still using ... (he he he HA HA HA!! Oh you guys are going to kill me o! ) ... people are still using, internet explorer ( ah gad! oh no! ha he ho haaa! )

Kai, that wasn't fair, you people want to kill me ne? Ah beg o!

[Dapxin]

l0ls at abhbego. But at the risk of turning it all into a browser ware-fare of a thread, here http://www.opera.com/browser/ is a far more superior browser.



I cant do WWW without it.

By the way, there is a version still in the labs - Opera Turbo - designed exclusively for slow internet links.



Check out its video

YouTube - Opera Turbo

[ahbego]

Haaa! My broda! Weytin come bring dat one come?

Ah gree say make we no do warfare here, but seriously; ah beg o! Ya opera get automatic download-to-computer for all dose youtube videos? U fit steal - am sorry - `save` videos weda from Microsoft o, or any oda place, *automatically* to ya computer? What of all dose - ahem! - video sites FREE?! What of Advertisement blockers, ah no de efer see dose advertisments again until ah move to anoda man im machine, na im ah go come remember say some people de expose demselves to such tins! (In fact, ah tank god for dis ad-blocker, e allow me to block one kind stupid picture of some homosexuals dem dem on top dis page. Which kain admin allow such an advert in a naija forum? Abi we too don turn to useless like oyingbo? )

My broda, weytin pour palm hoil inside dis ya opera egusi? E get dodging-ya-I.P. so dem no fit to ban you from any forum?

Haba oga!

[Dapxin]

Mouse Gestures for Internet Explorer
----------------------------------

Mouse gestures, was first introduced in Opera and it is one of those things that are better seen than described.
Basically, you do all browser functions with your mouse and ONLY your mouse(click and UP n down movement)

There is a version for IE ( see http://www.ie7pro.com/mouse-gesture.html ) and a wikipedia entry http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mouse_gesture

And you can always learn more here http://www.opera.com/browser/tutorials/gestures/

[Dapxin]

Opera Tricks


Ever since the Opera web-browser hit version 9.5, it has been my top choice. Aside from solid performance and standards, it has a lot built right in, but at first glance it can be a little daunting, and there’s a lot you can overlook. This guide is to point you toward some of the more useful and overlooked features.

Config page
First is to direct you to main control panel of the browser: opera:config. This holds tonnes of individual settings, some of which you can’t access anywhere in the GUI menu system.

Double-click to close tabs
In opera:config under User Prefs, there is a setting as of Opera 9.6 called Doubclick to Close Tab. Check this and you’re set.

When inside a text field, you can press the down arrow to bring up a list of notes to choose from to paste into the field.

Edit Page Source
A unique feature to Opera is the ability to make changes to a page source and see the results without having to save it. For example, you can to to Google, right-click and choose View Source. Then at the top, enter: Hello World! then click Save Changes in the top left. Go back to your Google tab, and you’ll see Hello World! on the page.

Change your source viewer
Another option in opera:config is the ability to choose a program to view source with if Opera’s default viewer isn’t doing it for you. Just set the Source Viewer box to the path of your program.

Notes
A little feature that can go easily overlooked in Opera is the Notes feature. It’s a very simple option to save text as a note for later. Highlight any text and right-click and you can choose “Save to Note”. You can view your notes by going to Tools->Notes.

Trash Can
An easily ignored icon on the right-side of your toolbar is the Trash Can icon. This allows you to reopen closed tabs.

Tab bar below address bar
While you can’t directly move the tab bar below the address bar, you can make the functional equivalent. The Personal Bar and Main Bar are by default above the Tab Bar. Display one using the View menu then add the address bar and related buttons by right-clicking it and selecting customize. From the Buttons tab you can drag and drop items to the different bars.

Prevent a tab from being closed
Right-click any tab and choose Lock Tab. This tab will not close until you unlock it using the same procedure.

Vertical Tab Bar
Right-click the tab bar and choose Customize. Find the dropdown menu labeled Placement and choose Left or Right from the dropdown.

Custom Search Box
Many have Google on their toolbar (Opera has this by default), but I like Merriam-Websters, Thesaurus.com and Wikipedia. To add a custom search box for any site for your toolbar, we’ll use Merriam-Websters as an example. First go to http://www.merriam-webster.com and perform a search for the word “test”. This will take you to the address http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/test - copy this and go to Tools->Preferences and choose the Search tab.

Click Add and enter Merriam-Websters into Name and mw into keyword (this allows you to enter “mw test” in the address bar to search for the word “test”). For the Address field, paste the web address we got earlier, but replace “test” with “%s” for the search term.

Finally, to add the box to your toolbar, rightclick the toolbar you want it on, and choose Customize. Go to the Buttons tab, then choose Search from the left menu. You should see your search box in the list, and you can drag it onto the toolbar.

Synchronize your settings across installations
Opera provides the option to store your Speed Dial, Bookmarks, Notes, etc. online so it synchronizes them when you can still have everything you need whether or not your at your usual computer. Just go to File->Synchronize Opera and follow the steps to set up an account.

Change the Speed Dial search engine
By default Opera has Ask.com as the search engine for the Speed Dial page. To change this, go to Tools->Preferences, then under the Search tab, select whichever search you want to use (or create it), then under Details, there should be a checkbox for “Use as Speed Dial search engine”. Check that.

Save multiple pages as a single bookmark
If you often start browsing by opening the same 5 or 6 pages, you can use Opera’s Sessions to save them as essentially a grouped bookmark to open them all at once. Close all your tabs, then open the ones you want to save as a session. Once opened, simply go to File->Sessions->Save this session. You can open it from the same menu.

Adblock
Opera’s block content filter can be used as an equivalent to the ever-popular Adblock plugin of Firefox. The main functionality is to right-click any page and choose Block Content, then click anything you want to block then save. This works well enough, but isn’t complete nor as convenient as it could be.

What you can do to speed things along is to include the list of advertising domains to your filter file manually. Opera’s configuration shows your local machine file’s location. Open it, and under [exclude] (if it’s not there, add it), add this list of domains.

Custom Site Settings
Opera has the option to make site-specific settings, including styles and scripts, which essentially means that you can use a custom skin for absolutely any site that you wish. One site that works well with this is Reddit, because I can’t stand its design. Here’s the stylesheet we want to use: http://pastebin.com/f54346827

Create a text file, paste that in and save it as reddit.css. Then in Opera, go to
Tools->Preferences

Under Advanced, choose Content from the left menu, then click the Manage site preferences button. Click Add, then enter “reddit.com” into the box that comes up.

Finally, from the Display tab, under My stylesheet, find your reddit.css file. Close the box and refresh Reddit. It now can use our new skin!

And just to get your imagination working, did anyone say WordPress themes?

Control Opera with your voice
Opera has the option to browse using only your voice through a microphone. You can configure this under Tools->Preferences, then under the Advanced Tab you’ll find Voice. Unfortunately, this is a Windows-only feature.

Quick Image Save-As
Click any image while holding CTRL and it will bring up the Save As dialogue. For those used to using CTRL+Click to open a new tab, you can open a foreground tab with SHIFT+Click or a background tab with CTRL+SHIFT+Click. If you’re still unsatisfied, you can customize the shortcuts under Tools->Preferences, then Advanced and choose Shortcuts.

Fit to Width
If you’re having issues with a site horizontally scrolling for whatever reason, flip on Fit to Width. Opera with a little magic adjust page content to fit what little width you have. Find it under View->Fit to Width.

[Dapxin]

MAXTO - Split your monitor screen into areas/sizes of your liking...

http://www.maxto.net/using

MaxTo splits your screen into rectangular regions. Every time a window is maximized, MaxTo intercepts the event, and instead moves the window to fit inside one of these regions. You set up these regions yourself.

Very useful if you have widescreen

[Dapxin]

TaskBar Shuffle
---------------------------------

Here http://www.freewebs.com/nerdcave/taskbarshuffle.htm

Description here self explanatory

Taskbar Shuffle is a simple, small, free utility that lets you drag and drop your Windows taskbar buttons to rearrange them. Here’s a full feature list:
Reorder your taskbar buttons by dragging and dropping them
Reorder your tray icons in the same way
Reorder tasks in a grouped button's popup menu in the same way
Middle-click to close programs on your taskbar
Works with UltraMon taskbars
Tweak taskbar button grouping

If you run more than a few applications at a time, you'll definitely find Taskbar Shuffle useful, so give it a try!

[ahbego]

Note: IE 8's just been released. It's MSN bar still tries to sell you stuff non-stop, sort of like having CNN on a toolbar.

For those using the more-sensible Firefox, here are a couple of cool add-ons.
1) FastDial - let's you store bookmarks of your favourite pages in a graphical form
2) British English Dictionary; highlights badly-spelt words in any editor hosted by the browser
3) Adblock Plus - for hiding all those irritating (and time-wasting) advertisements


OTHER SOFTWARE:
1) WordWeb Free Dictionary (The link takes you to the download page for Windows, but the dictionary is also available for Mac users.)
2) Put your machine on a flash drive! No, REALLY! OpenOffice, the Firefox web browser, your documents, music files and games-to-go. Check it out.

[Dapxin]

A Night at the Opera

A terrific prose about Opera, for the really deep..... I enjoyed this piece, and being an Opera user for 8years+, I connect to every word, the soul of this engagement....

A continuing theme of Opera, in my life, is that it is something I have always wanted to know more about. Relative to the general population, there is a small community of people who rave about the musical theater and the Web browser, and I have always wondered what those people knew that I did not. But, as I wander through the course of a day, careening from inspiration to distraction, from obligation to moments of quiet nothing-to-do-ness, I never seem to find the time to really experience Opera in any meaningful sense in either of its incarnations.

You are probably like me. Your life is filled with the movie of the week, and situation comedies like My Name Is Earl and game shows like Who's Got An Elbow? Throw in a special or two on how the world would look a hundred years after Man's extinction and, of course, Shark Week, and who has time for Dvorak or Wagner? And you point, you click, you get information and it all seems to be working, so why take the time and trouble to learn a new Web browser?

Well, you would do it because the experience was rewarding. It enriches you, either emotionally or productivity-wise. Maybe you have been a perfect fit for years and just never known. I was like that with Lamb Korma.

Opera was there when nobody else was, in the darkest days of Internet Explorer. Opera began in the middle 1990s as an alternative to IE, and was made available on Linux, Macintosh and Windows PCs and eventually handhelds and other mobile devices. Starting around 2000, these were all made into more or less equivalent versions, the way Dreamweaver looks and acts the same on PCs and Macs. Opera was one of the first browsers to offer a tabbed interface. But what it was most famous for was its speed, and… its advertising.

Yeah, probably the biggest reason you haven't been absorbed into the Operaverse is that for many years, development was funded in part by advertising which appeared within the otherwise free browser environment. So everyone could click on a link to your blog and there would be a photo of your kitty. And you could click on a link to your blog in Opera and there would be a photo of your kitty, and above everything on the page an ad for ibuprofen or some vacation Web site. If you sent a tiny pile of money to Opera, they would then send you back a key that would turn off the ads. But yeah, it was fast.

I feel like we all owe Opera a debt of gratitude for hanging in there, even though it never has managed to capture the imagination the way, say, Firefox has. The powers that be, behind the Opera browser, are the same minds that brought us so much of the baked-in goodness of CSS, and one of the first good CSS books, too.

Opera was always different. We didn't realize how important that alone was, back in the day. Lately, it hasn't just been different for difference sake, but innovative. Opera features a QuickFind functionality now that not only remembers what Web pages you have surfed to recently—every browser does that, now—but also remembers the content on that page. So if you are shopping for Hawaiian shirts now that the weather is nice and remember that the place you liked the most was actually in Colorado [!] you could search within Opera and find the page you visited.

Opera offers all of the standard features most people take for granted in any third-millennium browser, history, synching, search engine customization and so on, and a few that we may come to expect in the years ahead, like Mouse Gestures, where certain mouse movements will trigger certain behaviors in the browser, such as moving you forward or backward through a site.

I am really happy with Marc Cohn and Rickie Lee Jones. And I am really happy with Firefox and Safari, too. But I understand why people are impressed with Aida, too. And maybe one day I'll be one of them….

[ahbego]

Originally Posted by Dapxin

A Night at the Opera

A terrific prose about Opera, for the really deep..... I enjoyed this piece, and being an Opera user for 8years+, I connect to every word, the soul of this engagement....

I thought you said you weren't starting a `browser war`? You've already extolled the virtues of Opera, and your latest post hasn't added anything of value.

[Dapxin]

Originally Posted by ahbego

I thought you said you weren't starting a `browser war`? You've already extolled the virtues of Opera, and your latest post hasn't added anything of value.

true. I gree. But I didnt throw any punches o.

[Dapxin]

A collection of userscripts to enhance Opera's browsing session:

Here-->http://my.opera.com/Lex1/blog/index.dml/tag/userjs

[Igboamaeze]

Originally Posted by Dapxin

true. I gree. But I didnt throw any punches o.

--------------
Ol boy jus shmall tin u don bigin de beg. No hallow him chance you with his molue.

Una welu don o oo.

Na pass I jus de pass. A beg o oo...

[Dapxin]

Opera 10 arrives.

http://www.opera.com/browser/next/

[Dapxin]

A very simple tools to backup your computer drivers.



described thus:
Welcome to Double Driver

One of the main reasons why you would want to collect installed drivers is if you don’t have the Driver CD that came with the computer or they are unavailable online. This comes in quite handy if you purchase a computer and want to backup the initial set of drivers. It can be quite difficulty for example to find drivers for hardware installed in a notebook if the operating system has to be setup again. Luckily Double Driver can now lend you a hand with that and save you a lot of time.

Double Driver is a very simple and useful tool which not only allows you to view all the drivers installed on your system but also allows you to backup, restore, save and print all chosen drivers simply and reliably.

Double Driver analyzes your system and lists the most important driver details such as version, date, provider, etc and offers you the chance to update to the latest version. All drivers that are found can easily be backed up the application and easily restored at a later point in one go.

Its a free download from here http://www.boozet.org/dd.htm

[Dapxin]

A collection of useful little tools for Microsoft Outlook - http://www.labnol.org/software/micro...k-guide/10722/