How To

How to disable Facebook chat alerts

Facebook is heavily distracting with pictures and games--add in chat messages and you'll be spending more time on the site than you originally intended. This is usually because every time someone sends you a message, an alert sound plays to notify you of its presence. Not only that, but the title bar of your browser will start displaying that they have messaged you. Here are three quick steps to turning off the alert sound, or disabling chat completely if you choose to do so:

Step 1: Login to your Facebook account.

Step 2: Locate your chat window. … Read more

Five distraction-free text editors for Google Chrome

With the Web having so many interesting things to look at, it can be difficult to get work done. Since you can already use Google Chrome to check your e-mail, the weather, and news stories, why not try to get some work done in it, too? Here's a serving of five distraction-free (and free in cost) text editors available in the Chrome Web Store that you can use right inside of your browser, yet still save your work for later.

Write Space

This app offers that blank slate you often hear about. Working offline is no problem, … Read more

How to delete your YouTube account

If you have multiple Gmail accounts, chances are you also have multiple YouTube accounts as well. This isn't very convenient when you're making favorite playlists, or uploading videos and have to keep paying attention to which account you're logged into. Now that you've moved the majority of your favorites, playlists and content to your other account, you might want to tie up some loose ends by removing the one you aren't using anymore. Follow these quick steps to completely remove a YouTube account and all of its related information:

Step 1: Log in to your&… Read more

How to get automatic notifications of new album releases and shows

Last.fm is a great online music service that can deliver high-quality themed stations or just quietly pay attention to that you listen to and then suggest more music you might like. They are also open to third-party developers building apps to build on their service and data to create a much richer music experience. For music lovers who don't have time to scan listings or press releases, there are two great Web apps that can keep you informed of upcoming concerts and album releases from the artists you've listened to online. Here's how to get … Read more

How to get automatic updates to Craigslist search results

Craigslist evokes much of what's best about the internet: free, simple communication accessible by everyone. It's democratized sales and keeps paid sites honest (and, to be sure, has contributed to the long, slow death of print media). Still, as with many popular sites, it can be hard to keep up with, especially for those of us who monitor several different areas. It's easy to get updates through RSS, though, and well worth the tiny effort it takes. Here's how you do it: 

If you already use an RSS reader, skip ahead to step 2. … Read more

How to use iPhoto to share on Flickr

iPhoto makes sharing photos on Flickr a snap. The process is so simple, in large part, because there isn't a great deal of functionality built into iPhoto's Flickr integration beyond the capability to upload photos. True, you can also delete photos on Flickr from within iPhoto, and you can add a title and a description in iPhoto before or after a photo is uploaded that will appear on Flickr. And there is two-way syncing, so if you move photos among your various sets on Flickr, those changes are reflected in iPhoto. Let's take a quick look at the Flickr sharing options in iPhoto, starting with the first step of linking iPhoto to your Flickr account.

… Read more

How to use iPhoto to share on Facebook

iPhoto '11 introduced more tightly integrated Facebook features. No longer do you need to export photos from iPhoto to your desktop, and then go to your Facebook page to upload them. Directly from iPhoto '11, you can publish photos or videos to your wall, as an album on Facebook, or as your profile picture. And from iPhoto, not only can you easily see which photos you've shared on Facebook, but you can also edit how they are shared or delete them.

… Read more

Five tools for collaborative file sharing

It wasn't all that long ago that digital collaboration meant a constant stream of e-mails, or even handing off flash drives from colleague to colleague--hardly a revolution. Lately, though, we're starting to see the promise of collaborative file sharing really start to shine. This means we need to change some habits, but once we've started to make the most of these tools, our workflow can speed up dramatically. Here's a few of the best collaboration tools out there:

Dropbox: This free tool makes file sharing incredibly easy, both between users and across platforms. It starts at … Read more

Nine Netflix alternatives

Netflix recently announced price increases that upset a lot of customers, to say the least.

Whether or not you're planning to cancel your own Netflix account, it's good to know what alternatives are out there. Here are nine Netflix alternatives:

DVD rental

Redbox Redbox rents physical discs through strategically located kiosks inside retail stores. You may have already seen them in your local drug store or grocery market; the all-red kiosks are hard to miss. To rent a title, you walk up to a kiosk, make your selection, and pay for it. For added convenience, you can also … Read more