Tag Archive | "Check"

Secretly Check Out Your Reddit-Using Friends Using Reddit Investigator


reddit friends pageA few of us here on MakeUseOf like Reddit, and apparently so do quite a few other people out on the Internet. Some of those people like it so much that they even create their own web apps and phone apps to use the site in much more creative ways.

Once again, we have another unusual way to use Reddit, and this time, it comes in the easy-to-digest form of the Reddit Investigator, a covert web app for all you Internet snoops out there. So grab your binoculars and your notepad (and maybe a first aid kit), for today, we’re jumping into the Reddit Investigator.

Get To Know Someone (Better)

I’ve seen several instances on Reddit in which people say that they have met other users of the site, and although the chance of meeting someone is probably better than I think, it at least seems rare. This almost makes the online world “real”, and it’s at that moment when you go to these sites that you realize you are dealing with actual people. With that being said, since we’re in the social networking era, I believe it can be safely assumed that everyone still stalks their friends online on at least some level – don’t deny it.

reddit friends page

The issue here is that Reddit isn’t so of much a social networking site as it is a link aggregator with many users. However, at the same time, it builds up quite a bit of discussion and sometimes even friendships. So there certainly is a social element, and for those lucky few whose friends are also Redditors, it can be assumed that social element is kicked up a few notches.

But let’s say that you just met someone and found out they are a Redditor….well, in this hypothetical–not–likely-gonna–happen situation, Reddit Investigator is a great way to creep up on them.

Discover Their Interests

It’s fairly simple to figure out someone’s interests with Reddit Investigator. Simply plug in their username on the front page of the site, and the web app will lurk the corridors of Reddit, peeking into every hall and scouring each electronic scroll in which the searchee has written their thoughts upon. It’s interesting that it’s able to do this, and although I’ve harped about privacy before, you have to understand that this is Reddit – it’s a rare instance if anyone knows who you really are.

reddit friends

Basically, on the left side of your Reddit Investigator results, you will see every single subreddit that the user has commented in since the beginning of time itself (except not really). Furthermore, you’ll be privileged to find every single subreddit that they have submitted items to, as well.

Check Out Their Stats & Data

Some of you are number crunchers (for those of you that can figure out the chances of meeting another Redditor, please do). With Reddit Investigator, you jump on those crazy little things called stats that some of you crave. Here are just a few of the things you can unravel:

  • Most Active Hours Timeline.
  • Link Karma Timeline And Data.
  • Comment Karma Timeline And Data.
  • Activity Timeline.
  • User Data.
  • Word Data.
  • Fun Guessed Data (stuff like location, political stance, reputation).

For those of you that noticed the timeline that covers the Redditor’s most active hours, I can only hope that your boss doesn’t know your username. At least you could probably figure out how to best manage your time with this web app. Always a silver lining, right?

reddit friends page

Conclusion

That’s pretty much all there is to it, ladies and gentlemen. Honestly, there isn’t any tool quite like a functional tool, and that’s what we have here. You really can’t beat that. Granted, I don’t know how legal your intentions are for Reddit Investigator, but in the meantime, I’ll play dumb.

What other tools for Reddit do you use besides Reddit Investigator? Did you find anything interesting about this one? Have you ever met someone from Reddit?

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Check Out These 4 Online Video Communities For Budding Filmmakers


class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/camera.jpg?323f2c" alt="" />As a title="YouTube Launches YouTube For Schools, Features Safe & Educational Content Only [News]" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/youtube-launches-youtube-schools-features-safe-educational-content-news/">video production student, I still don’t know title="Greenlight Your Indie Flick With These 3 Sites" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/greenlight-indie-flick-3-sites/">what direction I’m going in. I don’t know if I want to make music videos, and I don’t know if I want to make documentaries. I could be doing corporate video, or I could be operating a TV camera at a football game (fortunately, I’ve already gained some experience in each of these).

So when I’m feeling frantic and disoriented in life, I go to the Internet to gain insight on what people are doing with their video careers. But instead of title="Check Out 3 DIY Video Series For Professional Tips On Video-Making" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/3-diy-video-series-protips-videomaking/">hogging all this information to myself, I thought I’d share it with you. Check out these four online video communities, and try to learn something!

href="http://www.dvxuser.com">DVXUser

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/dvxuser.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="145" />

The DVX User forums seem pretty awesome. I found them via a tip from title="Why Reddit Isn’t As Bad As Some People Would Make You Believe [Opinion]" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/reddit-bad-people-opinion/">Reddit, and I was quite pleased upon my arrival. This site features discussion about everything you can think of video-wise, including cams, software, techniques, festivals, and more. As a matter of fact, the forums helped me decide on a replacement for my recently broken camera, so I’m very grateful to the site.

Another cool thing about DVX User is simply the ability to share your work on the site. The site provides plenty of online fests and sections to put your stuff out there, so take advantage of it! Also, if you want to pump up your skills, check out the forum’s Film School.

href="http://www.reddit.com/r/videography">r/Videography

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/redditvideography.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="145" />

Moving right along, r/Videography is actually the subreddit that I discovered DVXUser in. After posting an inquiry about my potential replacement camera, I received a variety of responses each detailing information on the camera (and maybe one that was absolutely irrelevant). Basically, this is one of the better subreddits on Reddit, and it is a very friendly community.

What I like about the Reddit format rather than the forum format is that you can post any topic, and the most popular ones get voted to the top. With r/Videography, you get a smorgasbord of video-related topics, and it semi-constantly changes. Albeit a slower-updating title="5 Ways To Find The Best Obscure Subreddits On Reddit" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-ways-find-obscure-subreddits-reddit/">subreddit, the community is very active and willing to help or critique your skills.

href="http://www.creativecow.net">Creative Cow

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/creativecow.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="145" />

I’ve lurked on Creative Cow a little bit, but I will be the first to admit that I’m not an avid user of it. However, if I have ever had a video-related question on my mind or inquiry, I’ve ended up on CC before Googling it. Furthermore, based on what I’ve seen, it’s an authoritative website, so you should use it.

Creative Cow is bent on being a community for creativity in general, and it focuses on drawing many individuals and their personal resources together. Along with the basic forums offered, it brings title="How To Make Wrinkled Paper In Photoshop" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/wrinkled-paper-photoshop/">lots of tutorials to the table covering all the major media editors and techniques. This site is fairly well-known, and although I’ve not been a regular visitor, you can rest assured that I will be changing that.

href="http://www.videomaker.com/community/forums/">Videomaker Forums

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/videomaker.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="145" />

Back when I was in high school, I received a lot of support by an older mentor who helped me become more active in videomaking. He even went as far as to give me his copies of Videomaker magazine whenever he was finished looking through them (or even before he looked through them at all), and thus, my interest in video soared.

Seeing how interesting Videomaker magazine is, I ventured into the depths of the Internet and discovered that they actually have forums. With that being said, you can assume that the folks that read the magazine are likely to be pretty involved with their field, and those same folks use the title="9 Online Communities To Enhance Your Minecraft Game Experience" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/9-online-communities-enhance-minecraft-game-experience/">forums. I’d suggest going to Videomaker’s forums and getting involved, because the community (and the site itself) offers a wealth of information that you should know if you want to get into video.

Conclusion

So there you go, my fellow video buffs. These are just a few of the many sites out there that you can use to polish your video knowledge, so have some fun.  Let us know in the comments if you swear by another site.

By the way, I know there has to be a lot more of you out there who get into this videomaking nonsense. Do us all a favor and leave us a comment with some of your favorite websites for tips, tutorials, and communities. Also, what kinds of stuff have you found using the sites mentioned here?

Image Credit: href="http://morguefile.com/archive/display/62277" rel="nofollow">clarita



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Check Out These 6 Sites That Decide On The Truth About Bigfoot


class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/bigfoot.png" alt="bigfoot sites" />The Internet is a breeding ground for conspiracy, fantasy, and myths – a goblet of mystery that is filled to the brim with unanswered questions. It’s kind of like the X-Files, but instead of Skully and Mulder, there is href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/reddit">Reddit and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/youtube">YouTube. However, there’s one particular creature that has perplexed me over the years, and that’s href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tech-fun/bigfoot-searches-good-facebook-profile-photo/">Bigfoot.

Now I can’t say for a fact that Bigfoot is real (even though he is), but I will leave you with these sites so you can decide for yourself (just know that the overwhelming evidence can’t be ignored). So grab your low-quality camcorders and your best camouflage, because we’re going on a hunt of the cryptozoologic nature!

href="http://ourbigfoot.com/">Our Bigfoot

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/ourbigfoot.png" alt="bigfoot sites" width="580" height="180" />

We’ll start the links off with something a little more personal. Well, it is only personal because the word “our” is in the title of the site, and I figured that you might like that. Just go with it.

Our Bigfoot is a rather gaudy looking site (just as you would expect) that is full of surprisingly detailed information. Click around, and you’re sure to find something worth reading. Beyond that, the site has plenty of evidence archives, photos, and videos to scour through.

href="http://www.bigfootencounters.com/">Bigfoot Encounters

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/bigfootencounters.png" alt="real bigfoot photos" width="580" height="180" />

A lot of these sites will be rather similar, but it’s good to have a lot of different resources at your disposal when you are Bigfoot hunting. You never wrote your title="Study Up On Your University With Koofers [US-Only]" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/study-university-koofers-usonly/">university research papers using only one source, did you? (don’t answer that).

Bigfoot Encounters provides a lot of the same information that Our Bigfoot does, but it also includes Bigfoot-related news, sightings, and even events all on the site. Also, as far as the techie stuff goes, the site includes a nice search function.

href="http://www.bigfootforums.com/">Bigfoot Forums

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/bigfootencounters1.png" alt="real bigfoot photos" width="580" height="180" />

My friends, I have good news. If you believe that you’re the only one in the whole wide world that actually believes in Bigfoot, you’re wrong. There are plenty of people on the Bigfoot Forums that are into this stuff, and you can be one of them, too!

Granted, the site may take you on a trip to the world of nineties web design. However, the title="Build A Great Online Community Using The myBB Forum" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/build-great-community-mybb-forum/">forums are a fairly active community that is definitely worth visiting if you feel like discussing the possibility of Bigfoot being in your area. Go ahead – plenty of people use it, and so can you!

href="http://www.bfro.net/">Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/bfro.png" alt="real bigfoot photos" width="580" height="180" />

The BFRO is a scientific research organization that is authentically bent on gathering every bit of information about Bigfoot that it possibly can. On their Bigfoot site, there is a sighting submission form if you feel so inclined to share your Bigfoot story, and furthermore, there are quite a few tips to enhance your Bigfoot hunt.

Speaking of hunts, the BFRO actually has quite a few expeditions to search for Bigfoot that are available to non-members throughout the year. If you check the site, you may actually find one in your state or within traveling distance.

href="http://bigfootsightings.org/">Bigfoot Sightings

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/bigfootsightings.png" alt="bigfoot videos" width="580" height="180" />

When I first arrived on the Bigfoot Sightings site, I honestly wasn’t that impressed. By all appearances, it’s a title="How To Edit Thousands of WordPress Posts With Just One SQL Command" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/edit-thousands-wordpress-posts-sql-command/">personal blog, and I’m not too crazy about writing about such things for MakeUseOf.

However, there are quite a few valuable links related to Bigfoot sightings on this site, and with that being said, I felt like the site was worthy enough to include on here. Granted, you must take this with a grain of salt considering our subject matter.

href="http://listverse.com/2011/05/23/top-20-bigfoot-sightings/">Listverse’s Top 20 Bigfoot Sightings

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/bigfootlistverse.png" alt="bigfoot sites" width="580" height="179" />

Instead of totally copying this article from Listverse (which is the lowest thing I could do), I decided to give credit where credit was due and link you to their top 20 Bigfoot sightings. All of them have title="5 YouTube Vlogs To Put On Your Web Video Watching List" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-youtube-vlogs-put-web-video-watching-list/">video recordings, and each one comes with a detailed description of the event.

src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/lOxuRIfFs0w" frameborder="0" width="580" height="423">

Granted, it’s up to you to decide whether or not the sightings are legit. I’ll keep my personal opinions to myself, but I’d love to hear about yours.

Conclusion

Is Bigfoot real? Honestly, I don’t know. There’s a chance of him being real, but there’s also a chance of me falling off of the bed I am sitting on while I write this, smashing my head against the floor, and dying instantly. It’s not likely, but it could happen. Granted, that’s me just being logical for the rest of you.

What interesting finds did you see on these sites? What other Bigfoot sites do you know about?

Image Credit: href="http://morguefile.com/archive/display/700323" rel="nofollow">earl53



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Share Audio & Video With Your Friends When You Check In At Places With Clingle [iPhone & Android]


class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/0_clingle.jpg" alt="check in mobile app" />Do you ever witness interesting things happening whenever you go out? Better yet, are you one of those people who seeks out interesting things? If so, you probably cherish those moments with your friends, especially the ones who were there with you at the time. But how do you share a place with those of your friends that weren’t with you?

Well, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/gps/">geo-location apps sure help. You can use these types of applications to check in wherever you’re at and tag things to share with your friends, filling them in on where you’ve been and giving them a brief inside look at what made it so interesting. Most location-based apps focus on letting you share a photo along with your location at the places you visit, but what if they were to take it a step further?

In this article, I’m going to show you the one geo-location app that allows you to attach audio and video to your check-ins, which should help give you (and your friends) some added value around every check-in that you make from here on out.

What Is Clingle?

href="http://clingle.com/">Clingle is a geo-location app that incorporates multimedia into your check-ins. Like other location-based applications, Clingle utilizes the GPS utility of your mobile device to help you interact with others and share information about the interesting things you see and places you visit.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/1_clingle.jpg" alt="check in mobile app" width="324" height="487" />

Clingle makes capturing and sharing moments a rich experience. When you’re out visiting an area, you can use the app to take live video, explore popular places around you, start conversations, or leave messages for friends at specific locations. And if you like, you can also leave them a video, photo, or even audio to further engage them.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/2_clingle.jpg" alt="check in mobile app" width="361" height="542" />

What differentiates Clingle from other check-in apps is the inclusion of video into check-ins. One of the things I love about apps like href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/foursquare/">Foursquare and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/recommend-stuff-social-network-followers-oink-kinetik-iphone/">Oink is the ability to add photos to check-ins, which really add to the experience and help users show off a little bit about the places they’re visiting, activities they’re doing, and things they’re seeing. According to Clingle, “It’s the best way to check-in ever!

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/3_clingle.jpg" alt="check in android app" width="350" height="526" />

The other cool feature is being able to leave messages – called Clings – at places for your friends. These can be in the form of a surprise audio, video, or picture message that friends would then have to unlock when they visit a particular place. Regardless of the type of Cling you leave for your friends, it should be a nice surprise for them once they unlock it.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/4_clingle.jpg" alt="check in android app" width="361" height="542" />

You can also start a private group conversation with your friends, which you can use to do anything from planning a future trip with them to sharing a song that comes to mind whenever you visit a specific place. iTunes audio can be used as Clings too, which really makes sharing audio easier.

Currently, Clingle works best for users located in the US, UK, India, and Singapore, but you’ll soon be able to use it everywhere. It’s available for href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/clingle/id449924410?mt=8">iPhone and href="https://market.android.com/details?id=com.clingle">Android, with support for other devices coming soon as well.

What do you think of Clingle? Will you be adding video to your check-ins?



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Check Out These 6 Sci-Fi Wikis To Kill Some Time On


class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/stormtrooper.png" alt="sci fi wiki" />In my spare time, I read a lot of href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/host-full-feature-wiki-site-tiki-wiki/">wikis (I really need a href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-tools-to-track-how-you-spend-time-online/">more interesting life). Typically, what happens is that I’ll hear of a subject, find a wiki that covers that subject, and then I’ll end up reading the entire collection of articles for a long time.

Granted, I’m sure that at least some of you do it too, so I thought I’d share some sci-fi wikis with you. You may have heard of a few of these, but if you haven’t, they are worth checking out.

href="http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page">Wookieepedia

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/wookieepedia.png" alt="sci fi wiki" width="580" height="155" />

With all the intricate details (and changes that George Lucas makes) to the href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/3-ways-prepare-star-wars-mmo-gaming/">Star Wars universe, it can be a little hard to keep up with who was the Padawan of who and which planet was home to which Jedi. Fortunately, with Wookieepedia – a rather well-known wiki – you can get all the nitty-gritty details that exist from here to Tatooine.

Unlike the aim of most rebel blasters, Wookieepedia seems to hit spot-on with every bit of information about Lucas’ space opera. As a note, Wookieepedia doesn’t cover just the movies – it goes into the Expanded Universe too.

href="http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Portal:Main">Memory Alpha

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/memoryalpha.png" alt="science fiction wiki" width="580" height="155" />

Trekkies, I was going to write something clever utilizing the phrase, “Beam me up, Scotty,” but then I realized the phrase isn’t actually canon. Speaking of canon, Memory Alpha is a comprehensive wiki of all things true to the href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/watch-full-length-star-trek-episodes-on-youtube/">Star Trek story arc.

With at least 33,494 articles held in the servers of Memory Alpha, you could spend forever reading up on the history and details of Star Trek. It also might be good to mention that the wiki includes data (pun intended) from all the TV shows, the films, and yes, the animated series.

href="http://firefly.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page">The Firefly & Serenity Database

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/firefly.png" alt="science fiction wiki" width="580" height="155" />

Albeit not being an actual Firefly fan, I understand the importance of this show’s wiki being found on the list. Before you cry out accusations of blasphemy, I just haven’t got around to watching it. However, Justin says it’s the greatest science fiction series ever made, and you can actually href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-great-tv-shows-completely-watch-online/">watch it (among other shows) on Hulu. Granted, I need to as well when I get the time to sit and watch it!

Packed with information concerning the Firefly series, the Serenity film, and even the fairly recent Firefly Darkhorse comics, you’ll have a quite a bit of information packaged for you in the Firefly and Serenity Database. This wiki has about 789 articles, so you’ve got a lot of reading to do.

href="http://www.bladerunner.wikia.com">Off-World: The Blade Runner Wiki

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/bladerunner.png" alt="science fiction wiki" width="580" height="155" />

As a fan of Blade Runner, I was pleased when I discovered that there is an actual Blade Runner Wiki. Unfortunately, it’s really small  – 81 articles exist for the entire thing. However, it’s worth reading, and maybe you can help add onto it.

What I liked about this Sci-Fi wiki (and granted, mostly every wiki has it) is the information about the actual production of the film. With most wikis, you get a lot of information all about the characters, settings, and technology. However, this one goes into a lot of the behind-the-scenes aspects.

href="http://www.tardis.wikia.com">The Tardis Index File

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/tardis.png" alt="sci fi site" width="580" height="155" />

For all you href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/watch-5-cool-fan-films-online-track-upcoming-fan-productions/">Dr. Who fans, the Tardis Index File compiles (mostly) all the knowledge you need of the show’s universe. However, it doesn’t just stick with Dr. Who. It actually dives into its spin-off series – Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Adventures, and K-9.

Founded in November 2004, the wiki has gathered about 26,570 articles generated entirely by the users. It’s definitely worth checking out, but with that many articles, you may find yourself constantly reading articles in a manner similar to TV Tropes.

href="http://x-files.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page">The X-Files Wiki

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/xfiles.png" alt="sci fi wiki" width="580" height="155" />

I really miss the X-Files and all of its supernatural/extraterrestrial/terrifying wonder. It was a genuinely cool show, and although the movies are also cool, I’d love to see it back on the air. With that being said, about the closest I’ve been able to get to the show as of late is the X-Files Wiki.

This wiki packages all the characters and stories from the X-Files (such as the Smoking Man and of course, the Lone Gunmen). Furthermore, it is a source reference for the show tie-in shows Millenium and… well… The Lone Gunmen.

Conclusion

What are the purpose of wikis? Well, they are technically used for reference and research. However, with these, it just seems like they are purely fun to read.

What kind of cool stuff did you find on these wikis? Do you know of any other awesome sci-fi wikis that we should check out?

Image Credit: href="http://morguefile.com/archive/display/219910" rel="nofollow">dmscs



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Like Video Games? Then Check Out These 5 Gaming-Inspired Albums


class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/goldeneye.jpg" alt="gaming music" />Maybe you’ve heard of nerdcore, but the realm of video game music spans beyond that. Video games often capture us with their soundtracks, and every now and then an awesome band, singer, or rapper comes along and twists those nostalgic tunes into a new track.

Being a gamer and a fan of music is brought together upon listening and a whole new form of enjoyment can be experienced. Ever felt like you’ve lived through replaying one of your favorite games just by listening to an album? With this post, let’s hope to achieve that. I’ve got some smooth hip-hop, a little bit of metal, mashup, and arrangements for you to enjoy!

href="http://megaranmusic.com/album/black-materia-final-fantasy-vii">Random (Mega Ran) & Lost Perception – Black Materia: Final Fantasy VII

src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/wpMitqOoSpo" frameborder="0" width="570" height="320">
/> No one is going to argue that Final Fantasy VII is one of the most influential and breathtaking games that the RPG genre has ever birthed. Squaresoft hit this one right on the head, and more than 10 years after it was dropped we’re still discussing the possibility for a proper sequel. Ran and his partner, href="http://lostperception.com/">Lost Perception, blend together some awesome beats with the FF7 OST.

Ran’s music isn’t your average rap. His lyrical content is meaningful, and the wordplay and lyricism of the Black Materia album theme perfectly. You can learn a whole lot about FF7 before even playing it by just listening in to the content of this beautiful album. If you’ve never played FF7 before and you give this album a listen, you’ll be thoroughly impressed with the way that a hip-hop artist can proudly and effectively blend amazing lyricism with video game culture.

If you have played FF7, you’ll be blown away. If you’re a fan of FF4, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/final-fantasy-iv-free-remix-music-album/">check out this album.

href="http://artificialfear.bandcamp.com/album/loz-metal">Artificial Fear – LoZ: Metal

src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BSFGGGe8HgA" frameborder="0" width="570" height="320">
/> Fans of Zelda have been going absolutely nuts over this album for more than a year now. Artificial Fear does an outstanding job of playing back tunes from the Legend of Zelda series–mainly Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask – with a hardcore metal twist.

The album is crammed with 24 tracks for you to enjoy and bang your head to.

href="http://goldnfly.com/">Alex Kresovich – Gold N’ Fly 007

src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Ll9Vp4R3bGA" frameborder="0" width="570" height="320">
/> When GoldenEye 007 hit the N64, FPS fanboys had a fit (and in a good way). Alex Kresovich takes the sounds from GoldenEye and mashes them together with some very lyrical rap songs. This album is the bomb.

Some of the featured artists include Tech N9ne (in the video above), 50 Cent, 2Pac, T.I., Rick Ross, Nas, and Jay-Z. If you’re a hip-hop fan, snag this!

href="http://music.jhsounds.com/album/hedgehog-hysteria">JH Sounds – Hedgehog Hysteria

src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/uAXOf_YjnQo" frameborder="0" width="570" height="320">
/> If you had a SEGA Genesis, you had Sonic the Hedgehog. If not, I’d argue that something was wrong in your childhood. JH Sounds’ arrangements of the Sonic soundtracks are stunning and beautiful. What’s even more is that this album is 100% free.

Give this one a quick listen and I bet you’ll be taken back to the days of holding the right directional button on that bulky, black controller.

href="http://megarankmurdock.bandcamp.com/album/forever-famicom">Random (Mega Ran) & K-Murdock – Forever Famicon

src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/j7zVhnYMIws" frameborder="0" width="570" height="320">
/> We started with Random and we’re ending with Random. The nerdcore legend collaborates with beatsmith K-Murdock to make one of the most nostalgic and memorable gamer classics out there.

With his trademark storybook lyricism, Ran and Murdock give us goodies from games like Earthbound, Little Nemo, Kirby’s Dreamland, Metroid, and Street Fighter.

Got an album on your mind that I didn’t manage to list? Let us know about it in the comments and we’ll all share some tunes for the gamers to play to. If you’re obsessed with video game OSTs, we’ve previously shared href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-sites-download-free-video-game-music/">five awesome sites where you can find those.



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Check Out MPEG Streamline For Basic Editing & Converting [Cross-Platform]


class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Icon.png" alt="" />In the world of href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-simple-tips-to-record-great-looking-home-videos/">home video editing, it seems like you are either forced to settle with the standard editors that are already provided on your system, or you’ll have to fork over a few dollars just to buy something decent (even items such as Sony Vegas Movie Studio or href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/adobe/">Adobe Premiere Elements).

With that in mind, there are a few free video editors available in the land of Internet, and although they aren’t entirely useful for heavy editing, they are good for small projects or learning the basics before you make a major purchase. Take a gander at href="http://www.squared5.com/">MPEG Streamclip, a basic clip-trimmer and and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/video-converter/">video converter that is simple yet effective.

Embrace The Clip Trimmer

Straight-up, href="http://www.squared5.com/">MPEG Streamclip is not a full-blown nonlinear video editing system. It’s more of a small clip-trimmer – something that you would find as a mere feature in href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/apple-refunding-dissatisfied-final-cut-pro-customers-news/">Final Cut Pro 7 (the good one) or Adobe Premiere Pro. With that being said, don’t expect to create a major motion picture with this editor/converter. However, I have found some practical uses for the app that you can use in conjunction with your onboard movie editors (like href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/imovie">iMovie and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/windows-movie-maker/">Windows Movie Maker).

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Basic.png" alt="" width="580" height="405" />

Instead of trimming clips within your standard editor, you could first sort through them using MPEG Streamclip and pick out only the ones that you want. After this, just pop the clips in a folder and choose what you want to use. This beats throwing in a clip from a href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/video">video that is half an hour long.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Trim.png" alt="" width="580" height="253" />

Besides splicing the footage, you could always just use Streamclip to pull a piece of footage from a long video that you shot. A good example of this could be a hidden camera prank video which normally takes a long time to shoot. This makes Streamclip ideal for basic href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/youtube">YouTube videos or for quick and easy editing. One thing that comes to mind is vlogging which is normally pretty sporadic.

Convert Files However Needed

On top of the extremely primitive editing system included in MPEG Streamclip (and primitive is how I like it in some cases), the app offers the ability to convert files as needed. Just by clicking File on the menu, you will be presented with a variety of formats that your video can be exported in. Below is a list of some of the formats offered.

  • href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/quicktime">Quicktime
  • DV
  • AVI
  • MPEG-4
  • iPod/iPhone

Beyond these, the converter will also allow you to export only audio if this is what you happen to desire. I’d assume that this would be decent if your camera has a decent microphone and you have recorded an acoustic performance. After that, you could very well pop the track right onto your href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/ipod">iPod or href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/iphone">iPhone.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Export.png" alt="" width="580" height="253" />

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/OtherFormats1.png" alt="" width="580" height="269" />

Conclusion

So there you have it – an incredibly basic editing tool for any simple videos that you may have in mind. href="http://www.squared5.com/">MPEG Streamclip is relatively easy to use, but there are a few extra heavier video and audio options for those of you that want to dive a little deeper down the rabbit-hole.

What other simple editors have you ever used? Do you know of any similar video converters?



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Check Out MPEG Streamline For Basic Editing & Converting [Cross-Platform]


class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Icon.png" alt="" />In the world of href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-simple-tips-to-record-great-looking-home-videos/">home video editing, it seems like you are either forced to settle with the standard editors that are already provided on your system, or you’ll have to fork over a few dollars just to buy something decent (even items such as Sony Vegas Movie Studio or href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/adobe/">Adobe Premiere Elements).

With that in mind, there are a few free video editors available in the land of Internet, and although they aren’t entirely useful for heavy editing, they are good for small projects or learning the basics before you make a major purchase. Take a gander at href="http://www.squared5.com/">MPEG Streamclip, a basic clip-trimmer and and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/video-converter/">video converter that is simple yet effective.

Embrace The Clip Trimmer

Straight-up, href="http://www.squared5.com/">MPEG Streamclip is not a full-blown nonlinear video editing system. It’s more of a small clip-trimmer – something that you would find as a mere feature in href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/apple-refunding-dissatisfied-final-cut-pro-customers-news/">Final Cut Pro 7 (the good one) or Adobe Premiere Pro. With that being said, don’t expect to create a major motion picture with this editor/converter. However, I have found some practical uses for the app that you can use in conjunction with your onboard movie editors (like href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/imovie">iMovie and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/windows-movie-maker/">Windows Movie Maker).

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Basic.png" alt="" width="580" height="405" />

Instead of trimming clips within your standard editor, you could first sort through them using MPEG Streamclip and pick out only the ones that you want. After this, just pop the clips in a folder and choose what you want to use. This beats throwing in a clip from a href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/video">video that is half an hour long.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Trim.png" alt="" width="580" height="253" />

Besides splicing the footage, you could always just use Streamclip to pull a piece of footage from a long video that you shot. A good example of this could be a hidden camera prank video which normally takes a long time to shoot. This makes Streamclip ideal for basic href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/youtube">YouTube videos or for quick and easy editing. One thing that comes to mind is vlogging which is normally pretty sporadic.

Convert Files However Needed

On top of the extremely primitive editing system included in MPEG Streamclip (and primitive is how I like it in some cases), the app offers the ability to convert files as needed. Just by clicking File on the menu, you will be presented with a variety of formats that your video can be exported in. Below is a list of some of the formats offered.

  • href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/quicktime">Quicktime
  • DV
  • AVI
  • MPEG-4
  • iPod/iPhone

Beyond these, the converter will also allow you to export only audio if this is what you happen to desire. I’d assume that this would be decent if your camera has a decent microphone and you have recorded an acoustic performance. After that, you could very well pop the track right onto your href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/ipod">iPod or href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/iphone">iPhone.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Export.png" alt="" width="580" height="253" />

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/OtherFormats1.png" alt="" width="580" height="269" />

Conclusion

So there you have it – an incredibly basic editing tool for any simple videos that you may have in mind. href="http://www.squared5.com/">MPEG Streamclip is relatively easy to use, but there are a few extra heavier video and audio options for those of you that want to dive a little deeper down the rabbit-hole.

What other simple editors have you ever used? Do you know of any similar video converters?



View full post on MakeUseOf

Posted in Useful APPsComments (0)

Check Out MPEG Streamline For Basic Editing & Converting [Cross-Platform]


class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Icon.png" alt="" />In the world of href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-simple-tips-to-record-great-looking-home-videos/">home video editing, it seems like you are either forced to settle with the standard editors that are already provided on your system, or you’ll have to fork over a few dollars just to buy something decent (even items such as Sony Vegas Movie Studio or href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/adobe/">Adobe Premiere Elements).

With that in mind, there are a few free video editors available in the land of Internet, and although they aren’t entirely useful for heavy editing, they are good for small projects or learning the basics before you make a major purchase. Take a gander at href="http://www.squared5.com/">MPEG Streamclip, a basic clip-trimmer and and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/video-converter/">video converter that is simple yet effective.

Embrace The Clip Trimmer

Straight-up, href="http://www.squared5.com/">MPEG Streamclip is not a full-blown nonlinear video editing system. It’s more of a small clip-trimmer – something that you would find as a mere feature in href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/apple-refunding-dissatisfied-final-cut-pro-customers-news/">Final Cut Pro 7 (the good one) or Adobe Premiere Pro. With that being said, don’t expect to create a major motion picture with this editor/converter. However, I have found some practical uses for the app that you can use in conjunction with your onboard movie editors (like href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/imovie">iMovie and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/windows-movie-maker/">Windows Movie Maker).

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Basic.png" alt="" width="580" height="405" />

Instead of trimming clips within your standard editor, you could first sort through them using MPEG Streamclip and pick out only the ones that you want. After this, just pop the clips in a folder and choose what you want to use. This beats throwing in a clip from a href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/video">video that is half an hour long.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Trim.png" alt="" width="580" height="253" />

Besides splicing the footage, you could always just use Streamclip to pull a piece of footage from a long video that you shot. A good example of this could be a hidden camera prank video which normally takes a long time to shoot. This makes Streamclip ideal for basic href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/youtube">YouTube videos or for quick and easy editing. One thing that comes to mind is vlogging which is normally pretty sporadic.

Convert Files However Needed

On top of the extremely primitive editing system included in MPEG Streamclip (and primitive is how I like it in some cases), the app offers the ability to convert files as needed. Just by clicking File on the menu, you will be presented with a variety of formats that your video can be exported in. Below is a list of some of the formats offered.

  • href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/quicktime">Quicktime
  • DV
  • AVI
  • MPEG-4
  • iPod/iPhone

Beyond these, the converter will also allow you to export only audio if this is what you happen to desire. I’d assume that this would be decent if your camera has a decent microphone and you have recorded an acoustic performance. After that, you could very well pop the track right onto your href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/ipod">iPod or href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/iphone">iPhone.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Export.png" alt="" width="580" height="253" />

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/OtherFormats1.png" alt="" width="580" height="269" />

Conclusion

So there you have it – an incredibly basic editing tool for any simple videos that you may have in mind. href="http://www.squared5.com/">MPEG Streamclip is relatively easy to use, but there are a few extra heavier video and audio options for those of you that want to dive a little deeper down the rabbit-hole.

What other simple editors have you ever used? Do you know of any similar video converters?



View full post on MakeUseOf

Posted in Useful APPsComments (0)

The 3 Best Android Tablets Available Today That A Buyer Should Check Out


class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/bestandroidtabthumb.jpg" alt="android tablets" />While the iPad was able to jump on the tablet market before anyone else, Android tablets from competitors are starting to flow like water. There’s now a wide variety of options available and many of them are quite mature.

There are some Android tablets that stand out from the crowd. Let’s have a look at three of them that any potential buyer should be sure to check out.

class="vt-p" href="http://www.asus.com/Eee/Eee_Pad/Eee_Pad_Transformer_TF101/">ASUS Eee Pad Transformer TF101

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/eeepadtransformer1.jpg" alt="android tablets" width="560" height="488" />

When the Eee Pad Transformer debuted, it made a surprisingly big splash. According to some reports this tablet is the second most popular currently available behind the iPad 2, which is surprising. It’s not as if ASUS has put much effort into marketing.

The reason for its sudden popularity is the optional keyboard dock. While many tablets have docks, the Eee Pad Transformer was designed from the ground up to work with one. Once inserted into the keyboard dock this tablet operates much like a netbook. A battery is hidden in the dock, as well, extending life to between 14 and 16 hours in most situations.

One downside of this Eee Pad is a lack of support for mobile data plans, although a class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/gs-ltes-understanding-mobile-broadband-technology-explained/">3G version is expected sometime this month.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/eeepadtransformer-21.jpg" alt="best android tablets" width="560" height="372" />

Don’t let yourself be hung up on the dock, however – you don’t need it to make this a great device. The base tablet is excellent and it’s just $399 (the dock is an additional $150). It offers solid build quality combined with an elegant Espresso finish. While the pricing might lead one to think this is a budget option, the Eee Pad is actually on par with the competition, right down to the Tegra 2 processor.

class="vt-p" href="http://shop.lenovo.com/us/products/tablets/ideapad/">Lenovo IdeaPad K1

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/lenovoideapadk1.jpg" alt="best android tablets" width="520" height="434" />

Just released in July, the Lenovo IdeaPad K1 is the company’s first consumer Android tablet. Sex appeal is one of the K1’s greatest strengths. It’s offered with several different color options for the back panel and features a smooth design that, in my opinion, is even more attractive than the iPad 2.

Another impressive feature is the user interface. Stock Honeycomb is common on Android tablets, and any changes are usually not for the best. The K1, however, adds a convenient class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/great-3d-launchers-revamp-android-phone-homescreen/">launcher widget in the middle of the home screen that lets users sort apps into specific categories like Watch (movies) or Listen (music/podcasts). This organization reminds me a lot of class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/windows-7-libraries-%E2%80%93-and-why-you-want-them/">libraries in Windows 7. There are a few other extras as well, such as an App Wheel that can be used as a quick-launcher for your favorite apps.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/lenovoideapadk1-2.jpg" alt="best android tablets" width="559" height="373" />

The rest of the K1’s features are standard for Android tablets. It has a Tegra 2 processor and battery life of over 8 hours, which is a bit better than average. The only potential deal-breaker is the tablet’s relatively hefty weight of 1.6 pounds. Still, the base price of $499 is attractive.

class="vt-p" href="http://www.samsung.com/global/microsite/galaxytab/10.1/index.html">Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

 

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/samsunggalaxytab-1.jpg" alt="android tablets review" width="492" height="400" />

Apple’s iPad had no serious competition until Samsung released the Galaxy Tab in the latter half of 2010. The original was quite robust, but in response to the iPad 2 it has been redesigned significantly.

The new version, called the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, is a formidable opponent. It’s slightly lighter than Cupertino’s tablet (1.24 pounds vs. 1.35) and is approximately as thin. The design doesn’t have the punch of the K1 or the elegance of the Eee Pad, but it’s attractive in its own right and it’s lighter than either of those entries. Users can expect over eight hours of endurance from the battery. Like the other entries here, this tablet has a Tegra 2 processor.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/samsunggalaxytab-2.jpg" alt="android tablets" width="594" height="442" />

At $499, the Galaxy Tab 10.1 doesn’t try to win on price alone. The Eee Pad Transformer is clearly better value, but its subdued aesthetics won’t be to everyone’s taste and it’s heavier. The K1 carries extra bulk as well. As a result, this tablet is likely the best choice for frequent fliers, road warriors, and other users who will often be using the tablet without a stand or solid piece of furniture to sit it upon.

Conclusion

In my opinion, these three tablets are the clear winners in the current Android market. The Xoom was great when it came out, but the styling is now unimpressive and the display was never great. The Acer Iconia Tab feels cheap but remains more expensive than the Eee Pad Transformer. Toshiba’s Thrive is bulky yet offers less battery life than the options above.

The market is changing rapidly, so buyers should keep a look out for the latest-and-greatest. But for now, these are truly the best Android tablets.  Do you have one of these three?  If so, how do you like it?



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Looking To Upgrade Your Wardrobe? Then Check Out The MakeUseOf T-Shirt Store!


class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/linux_tshirt.jpg?54167" alt="" />Are the t-shirts in your wardrobe starting to look a little tatty?  Are the holes in your favorite shirt so big that it’s become positively embarrassing when you have company round?  Do you want to impress those around you with your impeccable fashion tastes? If that’s the case, can we interest you in a class="vt-p" href="http://splitreason.com/makeuseof">cool geeky MakeUseOf T-shirt?

The cash registers have been steadily “ker-chinging” since our T-shirt store first opened last year. We now have 10 designs, including some in baby tee size for the slim petite female readers among us. Some Mac OSX-related designs are currently being developed and we’ll be sure to let you know about them as soon as they become available!

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/tshirt_store.gif?54167" alt="" width="576" height="610" />

The price for each T-shirt is $16.95 and shipping to anywhere in the world. Each shirt is made of very high quality material and is well worth the money!  Mine have been through the wash countless times and they still look good! Why not buy in bulk and save on shipping costs? Just class="vt-p" href="http://splitreason.com/makeuseof">head on over to the store and see if anything strikes your fancy.

If you have already bought a MakeUseOf T-shirt, what did you think of it? Are you happy with your purchase?

Why not send us a photo of you wearing it and we may post it here on the site for all to see! />
/>Need Assistance? Ask questions to MakeUseOf staff and thousands of other readers on href="http://www.makeuseof.dev/answers/" target="_blank" >MakeUseOf Answers!

/>

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/upgrade-wardrobe-check-makeuseof-tshirt-store/">Looking To Upgrade Your Wardrobe? Then Check Out The MakeUseOf T-Shirt Store! is a post from: href="http://www.makeuseof.com">MakeUseOf

More articles about: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/announcements/" title="announcements" rel="tag">announcements, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/t-shirts/" title="t-shirts" rel="tag">t-shirts />

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    Check Out These 2 Smart Calendar Apps With Task Integration


    class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/1328011_35408138i.jpg?54167" alt="" />I have fiddled with many class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/gtd/">organization systems, trying to find one that I could stick with. I’ve used class="vt-p" href="http://www.rememberthemilk.com/">Remember the Milk (a class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/8-easy-ways-to-manage-tasks-with-remember-the-milk/">sophisticated system whose iPhone app just didn’t cut it for me), class="vt-p" href="http://www.springpadit.com/">Springpad (with its class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/organize-your-life-with-springpad/">refreshing features that I thought could still mature a bit more), class="vt-p" href="http://www.toodledo.com/signin.php">Toodledo (which, despite being a class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-customise-toodledo-to-productively-get-things-done-in-your-day/">great place for valuable notes and tasks, it proved a bit too advanced), class="vt-p" href="http://www.reqall.com/">Reqall (with its class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/top-10-free-productivity-ipod-touch-apps-offline-capabilities/">great iPhone app whose development seems to have paused), and now, I’m trying to go with the simpler class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/organized-semester-google-calendar/">Google Calendar and class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-ways-to-access-your-google-tasks/">Google Tasks.

    After trying so many different ones, I noticed that I yearned for specific features in a not-too-complicated system, like for example, integration between a calendar app and the task app in question. When it comes to calendar integration, the experience just isn’t completely optimized in Google Calendar and Google Tasks yet (e.g. you can’t view tasks in mobile calendar apps, even though Tasks shows up as a Google Calendar), which is a shame because calendar and task apps should work closely together. I consider this to be pretty much a difficulty brought by Google Calendar’s import/sync issues. GCal usually syncs once a day or less (except for native calendar clients like on the iPhone). If you’ve tried to import a calendar by URL to GCal from, say, Springpad, you will know GCal doesn’t act instantaneously when changes are made.

    Thus, in my search for alternative calendar/task list applications, I’ve found two, class="vt-p" href="http://www.coolendar.com/">Coolendar and class="vt-p" href="https://1calendar.com/">1Calendar, that seem to focus a bit more on this integration. Hit the jump to find out more about these two applications.

    class="vt-p" href="http://www.coolendar.com/">Coolendar

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/2011-07-04_202837.png?54167" border="0" alt="" width="580" height="284" />

    Besides looking very coolly designed, class="vt-p" href="http://www.coolendar.com/">Coolendar accepts class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/coolendar-simple-online-calendar/">calendar/task entries in plain English, as long as you type the due date or time first, and then the event or task. All undated entries can be sorted in a specific order of your preference, and the ones that have due dates will be listed chronologically in the main list and in the appropriate tabs of either today, tomorrow or this week. Notice that there’s no matrix-like grid for month view. If ordering undated entries according to your own order isn’t enough, you can prioritize tasks by clicking on the red circle to the left of the entry.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/2011-07-04_202148.png?54167" border="0" alt="" width="433" height="445" />

    That’s where Coolendar distinguishes itself from Google Tasks. The latter displays tasks in either your order or by due date. On the other hand, Coolendar lets you have both, but also lets you view tasks that are due today, tomorrow or this week, which means that if you’re on the iPhone or iPod Touch, you don’t need two separate GCal and GTasks apps. One ( class="vt-p" href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/coolendar/id434828509?mt=8">the official Coolendar iPhone app) will do.

    Since Coolendar has a different philosophy on task or event duration and recurrence, it doesn’t have options to specify these two details. Coolendar believes that you can decide when you get reminded via SMS or Twitter about whether or not you need to reschedule the event for next time. In regards to event duration, Coolendar considers this a poison concept that simply doesn’t work. In these two aspects, Coolendar does work like Google Tasks.

    If you want a simple, all-in-one solution to bring together your calendar and your task list, check out Coolendar. All you need to try the service is to sign in with your Google Account as there’s no registration procedure. If you’ve decided that Coolendar totally suits your needs, be sure to download the class="vt-p" href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/coolendar/id434828509?mt=8">free iPhone/iPod Touch app. Coolendar developers class="vt-p" href="http://coolendar.uservoice.com/forums/59797-general/suggestions/1190733-app-for-android">promise that the Android app is nearing completion, but if you’re still impatient, check out the mobile Coolendar web interface at class="vt-p" href="http://m.coolendar.com/">http://m.coolendar.com/.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/2011-07-04_202724.png?54167" border="0" alt="" width="580" height="415" />

    class="vt-p" href="https://1calendar.com/">1Calendar

    class="vt-p" href="https://1calendar.com/">1Calendar will look similar to the GCal desktop interface as the former contains a matrix-like grid for a weekly view of events in the center of the application, while to its left lies a sidebar of calendars in different colors.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/2011-07-04_223816.png?54167" border="0" alt="" width="580" height="498" />

    On the right of the application, you’ll be able to create new tasks, as well as see previously added tasks in all their color-coded glory.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/2011-07-04_223839.png?54167" border="0" alt="" width="580" height="410" />

    1Calendar differs from GCal in that it can sync Facebook events, as well import timetables from high schools and universities, though there are, of course, plenty of schools that need to get added.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/2011-07-04_224107.png?54167" border="0" alt="" width="394" height="375" />

    1Calendar’s development seems to still be in its infancy, but its class="vt-p" href="http://itunes.apple.com/dk/app/1calendar/id385133297?mt=8">iPhone app (and the class="vt-p" href="https://market.android.com/details?id=onecalendar.calendar.ui">Android app probably, too) at least offers an event list view, which I wish most free GTD or task list apps could have.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/2011-07-04_234521.png?54167" border="0" alt="2011-07-04_234521" width="580" height="418" />

    Though the iPhone app looks simple, this setup is much cleaner and does not involve poking around two different, separate apps, namely the native Calendar app and either Notes or third-party to-do list app.

    border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" width="522" align="center">
    width="106" valign="top"> width="110" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Google Calendar width="86" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Google Tasks width="123" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Coolendar width="95" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">1Calendar width="106" valign="top">Month view width="110" valign="top">Yes width="86" valign="top">No width="123" valign="top">List view width="95" valign="top">Week view width="106" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Prioritize tasks width="110" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">No width="86" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Manual width="123" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Yes width="95" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">No width="106" valign="top">Tag entries width="110" valign="top">No width="86" valign="top">No width="123" valign="top">Yes width="95" valign="top">No width="106" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Entry recurrence width="110" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Yes width="86" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">No width="123" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">No width="95" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Yes width="106" valign="top">Entry duration width="110" valign="top">Yes width="86" valign="top">No width="123" valign="top">No width="95" valign="top">Yes width="106" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Custom entry order width="110" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">No width="86" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Yes width="123" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">Yes width="95" valign="top" bgcolor="#B4CFEC">No width="106" valign="top">Alerts width="111" valign="top">SMS, email, browser notification width="89" valign="top">No width="131" valign="top">GTalk, email width="116" valign="top">Limited to subscribed schools

    Overall, these two apps, though still young, are refreshing alternatives to sometimes frustrating to-do list apps that lack integration with calendars.

    Do you prefer to have separate apps to view your calendar and tasks, or do you wish to see more integration between your favorite calendar/task list apps? Let us know in the comments also if you know of other similar apps.

    Image credit: class="vt-p" href="http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1328011">rdragan79 />
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    href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/check-2-smart-calendar-apps-task-integration/">Check Out These 2 Smart Calendar Apps With Task Integration is a post from: href="http://www.makeuseof.com">MakeUseOf

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    Summer Is Near! Check Out The MakeUseOf T-Shirt Store!


    class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/tshirt_thumb300x300.png" alt="" />Summer is fast approaching! The birds are tweeting, the flowers are blooming, and you may be considering overhauling your wardrobe, in anticipation of the warm weather to come. If that’s the case, can we interest you in a href="http://splitreason.com/makeuseof">cool geeky MakeUseOf T-shirt?

    Our selection has steadily grown since our T-shirt store first got started last year. From an initial selection of 6 designs, we now have 10 designs, including some in baby tee size. Some Mac OSX-related designs are currently being developed and we’ll be sure to let you know about them as soon as they become available!

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/tshirt_store.gif" alt="" width="576" height="610" />

    The price for each T-shirt is $16.95 and shipping to anywhere in the world. Each shirt is made of very high quality material and is well worth the money! Why not buy in bulk and save on shipping costs? Just href="http://splitreason.com/makeuseof">head on over to the store and see if anything strikes your fancy.

    If you have already bought a MakeUseOf T-shirt, what did you think of it? Are you happy with your purchase?

    Why not send us a photo of you wearing it and we may post it here on the site for all to see! />
    />Need Assistance? Ask questions to MakeUseOf staff and thousands of other readers on href="http://www.makeuseof.dev/answers/" target="_blank" >MakeUseOf Answers!

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    Read comments: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/summer-coming-check-makeuseof-tshirt-store/#disqus_thread">Loved it? Hated it? Join discussion here …

     

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    3 Things To Check When Your System Restore Is Not Working


    class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/intro6.jpg" alt="system restore not working" />When your computer works smoothly, don’t you wish it would always stay this way? Even if you exercise caution with the programs you download, regularly perform defragmentation and do other things to ensure your system runs at its best, problems may still arise without warning.

    System Restore may work wonders and save your behind in those cases. If however you find system restore not working, there might be a number of things to check before you reinstall Windows. If you’re sure System Restore is turned on, but it’s still not working properly, try the following.

    Run System Restore From Safe Mode

    If you get any problems while running System Restore, or System Restore did not complete successfully, try running System Restore in Safe Mode. To run Windows in Safe Mode, restart your computer and press F8 (if you have Windows installed only). If you have a dual-boot configuration, select Windows and press F8 before the Windows logo appears. You can also make the system go into Safe Mode by typing ‘msconfig’ in the Start search box and enabling Safe Boot in the Boot tab.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/31.png" alt="system restore not working" width="566" height="381" />

    When you’re on the desktop in Windows Safe Mode, type ‘System’ in the Start search box and press Enter when System Restore is highlighted. You should be able to run System Restore at this point. If System Restore works in Safe Mode, then perhaps your antivirus program or a corrupted file is preventing it from starting. You may need to adjust your antivirus program (like turn off Norton’s Tamper Protection feature) or perform scans before attempting to run System Restore again.

    Sometimes, your System Restore files may also have become corrupted. You may have to use an earlier restore point (especially if you’ve tried the more recent ones without success), but if that doesn’t work, you may need to switch System Restore off (this will delete all your existing restore points), restart your computer and turn it on again.

    Configure Disk Space Usage (300MB)

    If you still can’t get System Restore to run properly, try adjusting the disk space allocated for System Restore since you might have run out of it. Microsoft href="http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/System-Restore-frequently-asked-questions">recommends at least 300MB of free hard disk space and since System Restore might actually use up to 15% of space, you might look into increasing the allocated space or deleting old restore points.

    To adjust disk space for System Restore, type ‘create restore’ in the Start search box and press Enter when Create a restore point is highlighted.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/4.0.png" alt="system restore does not wor" width="412" height="555" />

    Now click on the Configure button and move the slider in the next dialog.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/4.5.png" alt="system restore does not wor" width="426" height="474" />

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/4.6.png" alt="system restore does not wor" width="421" height="472" />

    To delete old restore points, you can use the option below the slider to delete all restore points and previous versions of files (which I would not recommend), or only delete older restore points while still keeping the last, most recent one. To do the latter, type Disk Cleanup in the Start search box, right-click on the first item and choose Run as Administrator.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/11.5.png" alt="system restore disabled" width="377" height="162" />

    Now click on More Options, and then on Clean up.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/11.png" alt="system restore disabled" width="389" height="476" />

    Try System Image Backup Programs

    System Restore may have always worked for you, but if you’ve tried a lot of things and System Restore just doesn’t work at all, try performing system image backups. These will create an image of your system when it’s stable and performing smoothly so you can restore your machine to that state in case it runs into problems. Windows 7 already has a function for you to create system repair disks and images. Just type ‘repair’ or ‘system repair’ in the Start search box and follow the instructions to create a repair disk.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/13.png" alt="system restore disabled" width="411" height="514" />

    To create system images, type ‘back up’ in the Start search box.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/62.png" alt="" width="409" height="552" />

    Click on Create a System Image on the left of the window.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/12.png" alt="" width="316" height="224" />

    You’ll be prompted to choose somewhere to save your system image so you can start saving the backup. To restore image backups, read href="http://www.sevenforums.com/backup-restore/89828-system-restore-doesnt-work-2.html">this.

    You can also use href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/free-advanced-hard-drive-cloning-solution-from-clonezilla/">Clonezilla, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-prepare-yourself-for-system-restore-from-scratch/">Paragon’s Drive Backup Express or any of the excellent 5 tools in href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-ways-to-clone-and-copy-your-hard-drive/">this list.

    If you would rather reinstall Windows, read href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-reinstall-windows-without-losing-your-data/">Jorge’s guide for reinstalling without losing your data.

    Additional Consideration: Make Sure Restore Points Are Being Created

    Just to be on the safe side, check regularly that restore points are being created because the last thing you want is to find out your System Restore function doesn’t work after your computer has gone awry. Type ‘rstrui’ in the Start search box. Click Next on the dialog and on the next screen, make sure there are recent restore points.

    class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/10.png" alt="system restore not working" width="580" height="465" />

    How do you deal when System Restore is not working? Let us know in the comments!

    Photo credit: rel="nofollow" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/cat.mhtml?lang=en&search_source=search_form&version=llv1&anyorall=all&safesearch=1&searchterm=restore&search_group=&orient=&search_cat=&searchtermx=&photographer_name=&people_gender=&people_age=&people_ethnicity=&people_number=&commercial_ok=&color=&show_color_wheel=1#id=26256076&src=198c6320628e8c94b134d1d21c9e2870-1-34">Shutterstock />
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    6 TV-Ready Media Center Programs You Should Check Out


    tv media centerIf you’re looking to set up a media center, you need to know what free software is out there. Choose the media center application that works best for you by comparing the best programs on the market.

    If you’re looking for a program to watch your favorite videos from the comfort of your couch, you’re going to need a good TV media center program. These programs are designed to be readable and browsable from your couch, and present you with the media on the web and on your hard drive. All vary in terms of features, and all have something to offer. One of them is right for you. This list is by no means definitive, but it does cover most of the major players.

    Browse the list, find more information. Try them all out if you have to; after all, all of these programs are free.

    XMBC

    tv media center

    It started as a media center for the original Xbox, but it’s evolved to become so much more than that. XBMC is considered by many to be the best media center out there, and it’s not hard to see why. Insanely customizable, and giving you quick access to your movies, music and TV shows, it’s simply a hard program to top. Like XBMC, but want more online content? Check out NaviX, the ultimate extension for XMBC. You’ll find lots of streaming content there, so enjoy.

    Boxee

    tv media center software

    Built using code from XBMC, Boxee can seem overwhelming at first. There are TV shows, movies and more to browse, and even an entire App store. Start using it for a while, though, and you’ll wonder how you lived without it. That’s because Boxee allows you to customize everything enough that your favorite videos on the web are only a few clicks away.

    Want to learn more? Read 5 things you should do after installing Boxee.

    Hulu Desktop

    tv media center software

    Simply put: it’s all of Hulu’s videos, from your TV. There’s really not much more to this program; you can’t add your own videos, or watch any videos that aren’t on Hulu.com. This makes it useless outside of the USA, naturally, but assuming you’re in the States and most of the shows you like are on Hulu, this can be a good program to have around. Read more about the Hulu Desktop

    Kylo

    tv media center software

    This one’s a little different. Basically a web browser built for television, Kylo is a pretty good media center in itself. Links to most of the major video sites on the web are easily accessible, and an interesting control paradigm makes for easy browsing. Sadly, Hulu is blocked, but there’s still a lot to discover here. If you want your media experience to be the web, try out Kylo.

    Moovida

    media center tv setup

    A slick user interface for browsing your own videos. While lacking in online content, Moovida is a great option for those looking to organize their desktop video collection. Lots of customization options await, so check it out!

    Enna

    tv media center

    A recent addition to the field, Linux media center Enna comes with some capabilities not seen elsewhere. Support for couchbound book reading, for example and a pretty slick photo browser as well. This exciting new application also gives you access to your local music and videos, so give it a spin.

    Record Live TV

    Like these desktop clients, but want to record live TV as well? You’re not alone, particularly if you’re paying for cable anyway. There are a number of programs you can use to accomplish this, and all are outlined in Dave’s recent article How to record TV shows to your PC. Check it out.

    Conclusion

    Know of a tv media center application I missed? Share it below; it might well be featured later. Also feel free to recommend any of the programs for the benefit of our readers, because they love to learn!


    Need Assistance? Ask questions to MakeUseOf staff and thousands of other readers on MakeUseOf Answers!


     

     

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    15 Awesome Dual-Monitor Wallpapers You Should Check Out


    class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/intro2.png" alt="dual monitor wallpaper" />Having multiple monitors can sometimes help you be a lot more productive, helping you digest more information at once, but this usually requires a bit of configuration, which you can easily achieve with href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/3-useful-programs-that-help-manage-multiple-monitors/">these programs.

    Having more screen real estate also gives you an excuse to beautify your now extra-long desktop, which shouldn’t be too hard, as there are many resources out on the web that only collect dual-monitor wallpapers for your convenience. Among these sites are href="http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/dualscreenwallpaper-hot-dual-screen-wallpapers/">Dual Screen Wallpaper, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/multimonitorgroup-multiple-screen-wallpaper/">Multiple Monitor Group, etc.

    We’ll go ahead and make it even easier for you to get started exploring wallpapers for your multiple monitor setup. While you’re at it, you should also check out href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/use-videos-as-screensaver-or-wallpaper-windows/">how to go a step further and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-tips-improve-desktop-wallpaper/">create animated wallpapers in Windows 7, because sometimes static images just aren’t exciting enough.

    Hit the jump for some great landscape wallpapers, which I thought would be apt for dual-screen setups.

    id="more-67672">

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2489/a_place_in_the_sun.html">A Place in the Sun

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/1aPlaceSun.jpg" alt="dual monitor wallpaper" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken in the Maldives

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2489/a_place_in_the_sun.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2481/ocean_on_the_rocks.html">Ocean on the Rocks

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/2oceanOnRocks.jpg" alt="free dual monitor wallpaper downloads" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken in Palm Beach, Florida

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2481/ocean_on_the_rocks.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2522/monument_valley.html">Monument Valley

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/3monumentValley.jpg" alt="free dual monitor wallpaper downloads" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken at Monument Valley, Utah

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2522/monument_valley.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2514/the_hills_of_munnar.html">The Hills of Munnar

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/4hillsMunnar.jpg" alt="free dual monitor wallpaper downloads" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken at Munnar, India

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2514/the_hills_of_munnar.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2509/uluru-ayers_rock.html">Uluru-Ayers Rock

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/5uluru.jpg" alt="free dual monitor wallpaper" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken at Uluru ““ Ayers Rock in Australia

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2509/uluru-ayers_rock.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2496/a_demain%2C_fontvieille.html">A Demain, Fontvieille

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/6fontvielle.jpg" alt="free dual monitor wallpaper" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken in Monaco

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2496/a_demain%2C_fontvieille.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2494/hachinohe_sunrise.html">Hachinohe Sunrise

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/7hachinoSunrise.jpg" alt="free dual monitor wallpaper" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken in Japan

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2494/hachinohe_sunrise.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2492/great_ocean_road.html">Great Ocean Road

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/8greatOceanRoad.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken at Victoria, Australia

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2492/great_ocean_road.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2488/calm.html">Calm

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/9calm.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken in Bavaria, Germany

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2488/calm.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2487/misty_water.html">Misty Water

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/10mistywater.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Unknown location but possibly Portugal

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2487/misty_water.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2471/jasper_from_mt._whistler.html">Jasper from Mt. Whistler

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/11jasper.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken in Alberta, Canada

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2471/jasper_from_mt._whistler.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2499/old_pier.html">Old Pier

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/12old-pier.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Unknown location

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2499/old_pier.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2461/african_sunset.html">African Sunset

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/13africansunset.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="232" />

    style="text-align: center;">Taken at Save Valley Conservancy, Zimbabwe

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1024

    Available at href="http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/details/2461/african_sunset.html">Interfacelift

    href="http://nature.desktopnexus.com/wallpaper/611165/">Beautiful Sky

    style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/14beausky.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="363" />

    style="text-align: center;">Unknown location but possibly China

    Dimensions: 2560 x 1600, 1920 x 1200, 1680 x 1050

    Available at href="http://nature.desktopnexus.com/wallpaper/611165/">Desktop Nexus

    href="http://www.dualscreenwallpaper.com/index.php?act=view&id=138">Earth View

    style="text-align: left;"> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ee.jpg" alt="dual monitor wallpaper" width="580" height="181" />

    style="text-align: left;">Dimensions: 3360 x 1050

    Available at href="http://www.dualscreenwallpaper.com/index.php?act=view&id=138">Dual Screen Wallpaper

    For more wallpapers, be sure to pay a visit to href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-best-resources-to-pimp-your-wallpaper/">these sites (especially href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/8-sites-funny-computer-wallpapers/">these top-rate sites for funny wallpapers) to find new and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/best-sites-to-download-very-high-resolution-wallpapers/">high-quality href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/4-great-places-find-free-beautiful-photo-desktop-wallpapers/">eye candy for your desktop. If you prefer to be surprised with random wallpapers from a specific RSS feed, see href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-set-a-bing-wallpaper-desktop-slideshow-in-windows-7/">this post on how to easily achieve that with Bing images in Windows 7 and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-wallpaper-changer-apps-for-linux/">Linux, though you can use any other source, of course, like href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/take-flickr-straight-to-your-desktop-with-interactive-wallpaper-updates/">Flickr, for which href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/8-simple-ways-flickr-wallpaper-downloads/">there are many ways to download wallpapers from. There’s also href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/personalize-desktop-wallpaper-social-wallcast/">Wallcast, which is a my favorite new app with a cool twist: not only does it help you create a cool collage of photos on your desktop, it also lets you easily share photos with your family and friends, whom will see your pictures right on their desktops.

    Speaking of collages and collections, be sure to see more of our very own collection of handpicked wallpapers:

    - href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-beautiful-green-grass-wallpapers-for-your-desktop/">Top 10 Green Grass Wallpapers

    - href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/15-cool-facebook-wallpaper-themes-windowsmaclinux/">15 Cool Facebook Wallpapers

    - href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-sexy-wallpapers-significant-approve/">10 Sexy Wallpapers Your Significant Other Will Approve Of

    - href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/cool-windows-7-wallpapers-check/">Cool Windows 7 Wallpapers You Have To Check Out

    Now, if you perhaps want to try your hand at creating your very own wallpapers instead of hunting for others’ creations, you can start making wallpapers in href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/create-cool-desktop-wallpapers-quickly-microsoft-word/">Microsoft Word and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-tutorials-amazing-wallpapers-gimp/">GIMP.

    Care to share your favorite or current dual-monitor wallpapers? Let us know in the comments! />
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