Activate specific windows in Windows 7 with a taskbar keyboard shortcut

This week, we're running a series of keyboard tips and tricks that help you make the most of Windows 7. To see the previous tips, check our Tips index.

The Windows 7 taskbar has large, chunky icons. They're easy to hit with the mouse, but what's nicer still is that they're easy to count. You can easily see what's the third icon, for example, and so, hitting Win+3 would be like clicking that icon. That means if the application isn't running yet, Win+3 is going to run it; and if it already is running, Win+3 will switch between all open instances of that application, and even pop up a neat Aero Peek pane next to the taskbar, showing you thumbnails of all of the instances you're switching between. If have a few apps pinned to your taskbar and don't switch their order very often, very soon you'll know their numbers by heart, and using Win+Number could become second nature.

Come back tomorrow for the next keyboard tip, or, if you'd like to read a whole bunch at once, check out Sebastian's epic list.

[Image credit: orangeacid]

Activate specific windows in Windows 7 with a taskbar keyboard shortcut originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 04 Jan 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/01/04/activate-specific-windows-in-windows-7-with-a-taskbar-keyboard-shortcut/

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iOS 4.3 beta 2 released, iPad multitasking gestures just a developer preview

Apple just dropped iOS 4.3 beta 2 on world, and with it a big sad bomb: those nifty iPad multitasking gestures we discovered in beta 1 won't be enabled when 4.3 ships to customers. Instead, Cupertino says it's "providing this preview to gather input on how these gestures work with your apps," Oh well -- there's always 4.4, or even iOS 5, we suppose. We're on the lookout for other new features, but for now let us know what else you spot in comments, okay?

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

iOS 4.3 beta 2 released, iPad multitasking gestures just a developer preview originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Jan 2011 17:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/19/ios-4-3-beta-2-released-multitasking-gestures-just-a-developer/

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Ke$ha Rises From Oddball To Icon In 2010

This year, nobody defied description quite like Ke$ha, the pop oddity who shows no signs of slowing down.
By James Montgomery


Ke$ha
Photo: Venturelli/ Getty Images

In January, when "Tik Tok" was just starting to hit, I described Ke$ha as "a 22-year-old pop confectionary/cautionary tale." By November, when "We R Who We R" debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, I had crowned her an "outcast icon." The truth probably lies somewhere in between those two statements, but if there's a better way to sum up the pop star's rather incredible rise to fame, I am unaware of it.

Because in 2010, there really was no one else who came close to matching Ke$ha, whether in terms of sheer chart dominance ("Tik Tok," enjoyed the year's longest run at #1, spending nine weeks atop the Hot 100), or pure WTF-ery. She began the year as a belching, squelching, booze-swilling party monster and ended it as perhaps the most unlikely of role models — an unrepentant oddball who not only dared to speak her mind, but defy conventions, too. And through it all, she remained largely unclassifiable, shifting between genres (pop, hip-hop, rock) and personas (dumpster-diving diva, Topanga Canyon bohemian, DayGlo star child) with each successive hit. And because of that, Ke$ha became one of the year's most interesting characters, the kind of pop oddity that leaves critics alternately grasping at adjectives and scratching their heads.

"I think 'What is Ke$ha?' is definitely the question, more than 'Who is Ke$ha?' because the 'What?' is really the thing," New York Times writer Jon Caramanica told MTV News. "When she first came into the game, she was this pop singer with a little bit of a country background, but [doing] this sort of whiny, white-girl rap ... but, if anything, 'Tik Tok' proved there's an entire audience of people who are pop fans, but who have a really high tolerance for rap music. Maybe they're not going to buy a Kanye West record, but they're not unafraid of hip-hop. And with Ke$ha, and her loose, 'I don't give a f---' approach to making these songs resonates with the loose, 'I don't give a f---' approach of the fans in listening to the songs. They hear something of themselves in her."

Of course, Ke$ha suffered for her, uh, art, becoming one of the year's most popular punching bags — particularly following a pair of bizarre performances on "Saturday Night Live" — but as the year draws to a close, her grip on the pop world seems to be permanent. Not only is she the unlikeliest of stars, she's also one of the most persistent ... and love her or hate her, you've got to admit that she made 2010 just a bit more bearable, even if it was with her willingness to push the boundaries of absurdity. Well, her songs were pretty great, too. And she did it entirely her way.

"I think Ke$ha's definitely gone way past her 15 minutes of fame, [but] the appeal with her is that there's an honesty," Noah Callahan-Bever, editor in chief of Complex magazine, said. "In a market of totally prefab pop stuff, there's almost a sloppiness to her whole persona, and I think that realness appeals to people. I think it doesn't hurt that she works with the best producer in pop music, either," he said, referring to right-hand man Dr. Luke.

In 2010, thanks to that winning combination of pitch-perfect pop and pure, unfiltered weirdness, Ke$ha pretty much conquered the world. She won over fans and earned begrudging respect from the critics. And she wore dead animals on her head. Wherever she goes in 2011, I'll follow. And I'll likely be just as perplexed as the rest of you.

Do you expect Ke$ha's party to stop or keep rocking in 2011? Let us know in the comments.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1654928/keha-rises-from-oddball-icon-2010.jhtml

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App review: SlingPlayer Mobile for Windows Phone 7

As you might have heard a little while back, Windows Phone 7 is the latest smartphone OS to have joined the SlingPlayer gang, meaning WP7 fanatics like Ballmer can be couch potatoes wherever they are. Well, assuming they have data connectivity -- be it 3G or WiFi -- and some battery juice on their phones. For better or for worse, the latest SlingPlayer Mobile app is very much like its other flavors -- same easy preparation, a familiar interface, and a similarly tear-inducing $30 price tag. There is, however, one nice addition: a new "Zoom" button on the menu page, which actually chops away a good portion of the black border around the picture. Another noteworthy difference is the more stylish interface in comparison to the Android and iOS versions, but of course, some might think otherwise.

Also on the menu page is a "Quality" button for toggling between standard video quality and high video quality. Annoyingly, said switch is always set to standard at every launch. We can't help but to think that this is for covering up the app's shortfall -- we noticed while high quality streaming does indeed have good picture quality, the frequency of buffering increased over time. Similarly, response time to our button and gesture inputs also got longer and longer -- at one point it took about 20 seconds for us to change a channel on our Freeview box, and that's with our HTC 7 Mozart sitting on the same network as our Slingbox Pro HD! Needless to say, it took even longer over 3G. We then double-checked using our iPhone and Nexus One but failed to reproduce the same bugs. Thankfully, a simple restart of the app eased our frustration, but we expect Sling Media to actually deliver a fix soon. Anyhow, there's a video walkthrough after the break while you wait for the update.

Continue reading App review: SlingPlayer Mobile for Windows Phone 7

App review: SlingPlayer Mobile for Windows Phone 7 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Jan 2011 15:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/CwCRBK8hz5I/

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Docs.com update brings speed, stability, and support for additional languages

Microsoft brought its Office apps to the Web late last year, and the Fuse Labs team has been busily working to improve the suite ever since. Today, a backend update has brought more stability, increased speed, and support for more languages. Docs.com now supports 30 languages in total -- all of which are supported by the built-in spellchecker. Ambitious polyglots will be excited to know that the Office Web apps will even let you mix multiple languages in a single document.

In addition to posting the announcement on the Fuse Labs blog (which still sports the post-migration WordPress favicon), the news is also available over on Docs.com as a .docx. If you haven't seen Docs.com in action yet, hit the link -- it's pretty darn cool.

Docs.com update brings speed, stability, and support for additional languages originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 19 Jan 2011 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/01/19/docs-com-update-brings-speed-stability-and-support-for-additional-languages/

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Adobe initiative to let you easily clear 'Flash cookies' from your Mozilla or Google Web browser

In a strong, head-held-high missive, Adobe has detailed a new initiative to bring Flash local storage clearing to Web browser UIs. The new API, NPAPI ClearSiteData will let Firefox and Chrome users clear Flash's Local Shared Objects, or 'Flash cookies,' in the same way that you currently clear cookies and temporary Internet files.

LSOs are very commonly used throughout the Web, but unlike conventional cookies they're a little harder to delete. A lot of websites use them to track you across the Web, but they're also used by sites like YouTube to store your video preferences.

The thing is, you've always been able to delete these LSOs, it's just a bit of a pain in the ass. You have to visit the Flash Global Storage Settings Panel -- and honestly, how many of you knew that? The difficulty of deleting LSOs led to the creation of evercookie, which is likely the main reason behind this new effort from Adobe.

As for when the new API will be rolled out, Chrome Dev will be the first, hopefully in the next couple of weeks. There's no word of when it will be implemented in Firefox, but presumably it will be after the launch of Firefox 4. Opera and Internet Explorer -- who knows!

Adobe initiative to let you easily clear 'Flash cookies' from your Mozilla or Google Web browser originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 13 Jan 2011 11:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/01/13/adobe-working-with-mozilla-and-google-to-bring-clear-flash-cook/

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T-Mobile intros DriveSmart Plus service to block texting while driving, FamilyWhere to track down your kids

The texting-while-driving epidemic is starting to get a lot of carrier attention, and T-Mobile's taking it to the next level today by throwing its weight behind a new subscription-based upgrade to the DriveSmart app that's been available on the LG Optimus T since launch. DriveSmart Plus runs $4.99 a month for all lines on your account (provided the lines are attached to compatible devices) and upgrades the basic DriveSmart app by automatically detecting when your car's in motion -- no need to enable it by hand -- at which point incoming calls are automatically sent to voicemail and incoming text messages are met with an automatic response that the recipient is currently driving. Naturally, there's an emergency override built-in -- but to make sure young drivers aren't abusing it, DriveSmart offers parents the option of being contacted by text or email when it's overridden and can let them monitor overall phone usage through a web interface. The service is only available on the Optimus T initially, but more hardware support is "coming soon."

On a related note, T-Mobile is also introducing FamilyWhere, matching similar services already offered by Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint by letting parents see where their young'uns are and set up customized alerts by location and time; it's apparently compatible with "nearly any type" of phone on the T-Mobile network, so you shouldn't need to equip the tykes with superphones just to get this action set up. It runs $9.99 a month and covers all the lines on your account; follow the break for both press releases.

Continue reading T-Mobile intros DriveSmart Plus service to block texting while driving, FamilyWhere to track down your kids

T-Mobile intros DriveSmart Plus service to block texting while driving, FamilyWhere to track down your kids originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Jan 2011 11:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/j3pW6CGkRcw/

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WriteMonkey bare-bones text editor now has "typewriter mode" and new syntax coloring

writemonkey
Version 2.0 of bare-bones text editor WriteMonkey has just been released. This release comes after a lengthy testing period (some of it covered on Download Squad), and adds several news features:
  • Text comments: When working on a manuscript, sometimes you may want to add comments and thoughts that should not be included as part of the final text. Now you can preface a paragraph with // (two slashes), and WriteMonkey will regard it as a comment. It would not be included in the word count, you could select not to export it, and its text would be slightly dimmed, using the new syntax coloring engine.
  • Typewriter mode: This mode carries WriteMonkey's typewriter metaphor to the extreme. It keeps the text insertion point in the middle of the line, and moves the text around it. So you type and the lines move back and forth. It's actually lots of fun, and can be toggled by hitting Ctrl+Shift+Alt+L.
  • More statistics: WriteMonkey's had text statistics for a while now (accessible using F12). These have been made more comprehensive, and they now show average words per sentence, estimated reading time, amount of "hard words" (words with more than 3 syllables), and more. There's also a list of word frequencies so you can avoid repetition. This feature has been around since version 2.0 preview 1, but if you haven't upgraded from 0.9 (the previous "Stable" version), it's a great addition.
There are quite a few other features - read all about them in WriteMonkey's release notes.

WriteMonkey bare-bones text editor now has "typewriter mode" and new syntax coloring originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 17 Jan 2011 08:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/01/17/writemonkey-bare-bones-text-editor-now-has-typewriter-mode-and-syntax-coloring/

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Focus the taskbar and switch windows with the arrow keys in Windows 7

This week, we're running a series of keyboard tips and tricks that help you make the most of Windows 7. To see the previous tips, check our Tips index.

The taskbar seems like it was meant to be used with the mouse only; it's a very visual thing, especially in Windows 7. But it turns out there's a way to "switch" to the taskbar and then work with it using the keyboard only! Hit Win+T to focus the taskbar, and then use the arrow keys to cycle between the icons. Whenever the focus switches to an application that's currently running, its Aero Peek pane will show up. To start an application that isn't running, press Enter.

What's nice about this system is that it takes your taskbar's orientations into account: for a vertical taskbar, Up/Down will switch windows, while Left/Right would activate the Aero Peek thumbnail pane; for a horizontal one, Left/Right would switch windows and Up/Down would activate the thumbnail pane.

This little nugget concludes our weekly Keyboard Tips series. I hope you've enjoyed it, and maybe even learned some new tricks! Check out Sebastian's list for a comprehensive rundown of many other hotkeys.

[Image credit: orangeacid]

Focus the taskbar and switch windows with the arrow keys in Windows 7 originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 07 Jan 2011 14:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/01/07/focus-the-taskbar-and-switch-windows-with-the-arrow-keys-in-windows-7/

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You Might Not Be Able to Cook, But These Knives Make You Look Damn Good Doing It [Food]

I consider myself a master chef. When it comes to steak, I can cook, season, and eat like a pro. But I feel like my kitchen swag is lacking due to my knife collection. Enter these all-black cutlery wonders. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/3jceiD7PtkU/you-might-not-be-able-to-cook-but-you-can-look-damn-good-doing-it

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