Blog24 » Dugg

30 Different Uses for RSS

Chris — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 21:42:19 +0000

Sometimes I find it tricky to describe what RSS is — I often end up explaining how I use Really Simple Syndication rather than what it actually is.

With this in mind I feel that this article provides a good roundup of what RSS can do for you. If you are new to using RSS, or have often wondered what that orange icon is all about then I highly recommend 30 Different Uses for RSS by Michael Fruchter.

I’m making an effort to become less reliant on visiting websites for the data I need. Spending a majority of my time in Google Reader, I decided RSS could help me accomplish this task. I no longer have to visit Yahoo to read my horoscopes or sports scores. I now track my Ebay auctions from Google Reader. These are some of the ways I started to recently use and rediscover RSS.

Similar Posts:

Putting an End to the Apple Brick Rumour

Chris — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 10:14:34 +0000

The latest in the Apple Brick speculation is that the term refers to the manufacturing process that Apple will begin using in the near future.

Apple news website, 9to5mac.com were first to publish the latest twist and said that their source was adamant about the revelation:

“Now Apple is in charge. The company has spent the last few years building an entirely new manufacturing process that uses lasers and jets of water to carve the MacBooks out of a brick of aluminum.”

9to5mac.com — The ‘Brick’ is…

This newly adopted manufacturing process ought to lead to cheaper Apple computers but only time will tell. Oh and this is not the first time that Steve Jobs has used carving to build Apple computers…

Similar Posts:

Apple to Make iTunes 8 and iPod Accessible to the Blind

Chris — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 10:58:02 +0000

Once again Apple are striving to make their products accessible.

Gizmodo reports that Apple are working to make iTunes and the whole iPod range accessible for the blind using VoiceOver technology.

“Apple has committed to work with the state of Massachusetts to use its VoiceOver technology from Mac OS X to make its iTunes and iPod ecosystem fully usable for the blind. Before the agreement, Apple had already been making strides: VoiceOver and Braille support for OS X and closed captioning for iPod and Apple TV have already been implemented to a degree. But Apple’s taking it even further.”

Similar Posts:

How to Make Awesome Business Cards at Home

Chris — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 06:40:42 +0000

Faced with a need for business cards and no time to wait for a printer (or moo.com) 0at.org author, Matthew Inman explains how he made his own very nicely designed business cards at home.

How to Make Awesome Business Cards at Home

Similar Posts:

iPhone 3G to be in ‘very short supply for weeks’

Chris — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 21:13:48 +0000

The Register reports that O2 Sales Director, Steve Shurrock, followed-up a complaint about yesterday’s O2 website failure by writing an email in he blamed Apple for causing the online fiasco.

Quote from The Register Hardware website:

O2 has blamed Apple for the “disappointing and frustrating experience” many would-be iPhone 3G owners had to put up with when the carrier began taking advance orders for the handset this week.

iPhone 3G to be in ‘very short supply for weeks’ – carrier

Similar Posts:

Flickr and Twitter on BBC Sport

Chris — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 18:22:28 +0000

A brief overview on how the British Broadcasting Corporation uses Twitter and Flickr to add instant updates to the BBC’s sport website.

“These tools make sharing our – and your – images and stories simple, easy and fast.

Read on to discover more about the tools we use, and see examples of the ways we use them.”

Flickr and Twitter on BBC Sport

Another recent mention of Twitter on The Beeb was on the Radio 4 programme and podcast iPM. Twittering Around The World is worth a listen.

Similar Posts:

Cheap and Eco-friendly Cardboard Bike Design

Chris — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 22:40:58 +0000

A student at Sheffield University has designed the ultimate in environmentally friendly transport. 21 year old Phil Bridge developed a bicycle made from recycled cardboard during his 3 Year Degree at Sheffield.

Phil, from Stockport, is a keen cyclist and a member of Cheshire based Will’s Wheels Cycling Club. The idea behind the cardboard bike was to have a cheap and recyclable form of transport that everyone could afford.

“You can get a whole bike out of one sheet of cardboard, including the frame and the wheels. The sheets are about £3 if you buy them in bulk. So to sell, I’ve priced it as £15 for the whole bike, including additional components.

“The lightweight quality of the cardboard, combined with its low cost, means it is possible to create a bargain-bike that is also less susceptible to thieves. At the moment low-cost bikes are usually very heavy, which can also put people off.”

With an estimated cost of £15 ($29 €19) per bike, if it were mass produced, the cardboard bicycle could become a winner for people looking for cheap eco-friendly transport.

The cardboard used in Phil’s design is usually used for advertising hoardings and low-cost partitioning in the building trade and is manufactured to be hardwearing and weatherproof.

Obviously a cardboard bicycle is not going to last as long as a regular steel or aluminum tubular frame as Phil clarified;

“It wasn’t designed to be a performance bike so no, it doesn’t go better or faster than a normal tubular framed bike. But it is suitable for everyday use – just cycling quite slowly in the street not for racing!”

Phil’s bike is currently on display at the Creative Spark exhibition along with other students‘ work. You will have to be quick though as it ends this Thursday (19 June) at Hallam University Building on Paternoster Row, Sheffield.

The World’s 50 Most Powerful Blogs

Chris — Fri, 16 May 2008 19:11:32 +0000

Whether you are an avid blog reader or new to the world of blogging the list of the world’s most powerful blogs, on the Guardian website, is well worth bookmarking.

Ardent blog readers will already be fed by some of the blogs mentioned in this Top 50 list and will doubtlessly wonder why some of their favourites are not included.

The Top 5

This blog list will be useful for those wanting to explore blogs and find new interesting content to read.

From Prince Harry in Afghanistan to Tom Cruise ranting about Scientology and footage from the Burmese uprising, blogging has never been bigger. It can help elect presidents and take down attorney generals while simultaneously celebrating the minutiae of our everyday obsessions.

The World’s 50 Most Powerful Blogs

Similar Posts:

A Positive Article About The Benefits Of Twitter

Chris — Thu, 08 May 2008 11:34:38 +0000

A great article about Twitter and its usage. The article has instructions on how to use Twitter a comprehensive list of software, and a list of related links that makes this article worth bookmarking.

The links are organised into, Finding People, Searching and Organising, Sharing and Visualise along with a few miscellaneous websites including a personal favourite, the very useful twerpscan.com.

LINK: Guardian : How to make the most of Twitter

Real-time micro-blogging is gaining in popularity. But if you’re wondering what’s the point, here’s Charles Arthur’s guide to the benefits of Twitter – and how to get started.

Similar Posts:

Want Ubuntu On Your Apple Mac? Use Parallels Desktop

Chris — Thu, 08 May 2008 10:25:32 +0000

I recently purchased Parallels Desktop as part of a bundle from Mac Update Promo. I didn’t think that I would use Parallels having recently purchased a cheap Vista based laptop. However, I read a Tweet that mentioned installing Ubuntu using Parallels. I made a mental note and today found time to download Ubuntu and actually make use of Parallels.

The process was made easy by a great article that helped me get Ubuntu running in no time [see below].

First impressions of Ubuntu? Really easy to use and very fast, even when running it virtually on an iMac via Parallels Desktop. Within minutes of installing Ubuntu I had used Firefox and downloaded and updated software while working back in the Mac OS environment. Ubuntu does seem very intuitive and perhaps simpler than other versions of Linux that I have used over the years.

There do seem to be a few issues with the latest version of Ubuntu at the time of writing so perhaps try downloading Ubuntu 6.06 (as recommended by Stuart’s article). At the moment Ubuntu does not want to start up again since closing it down and quitting Parallels.

Please share your suggestions about fixing this, other than using an older version of Ubuntu, via the comment form below.

LINK: Running Ubuntu Under Parallels Desktop For Mac – Thanks Stuart!

Similar Posts:

Blog24 » Dugg

30 Different Uses for RSS

Putting an End to the Apple Brick Rumour

Apple to Make iTunes 8 and iPod Accessible to the Blind

How to Make Awesome Business Cards at Home

iPhone 3G to be in ‘very short supply for weeks’

Flickr and Twitter on BBC Sport

Cheap and Eco-friendly Cardboard Bike Design

Read more about Phil’s Cardboard Cycle

The World’s 50 Most Powerful Blogs

The Top 5

A Positive Article About The Benefits Of Twitter

Want Ubuntu On Your Apple Mac? Use Parallels Desktop