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Filed under: OS Updates, Windows, Microsoft

How to make a DVD of that student-only Windows 7 you bought for $29.99

So you're a student who has taken advantage of the crazy upgrade deal from win741.com but instead of looking at a nice, shiny ready-to-install ISO of Windows 7, Digital River sent you a handful of random files and no ISO! Fortunately, it's very easy to turn them into an installable ISO! Follow this very quick guide to get Windows 7 installing right away.

To start with, make sure your downloaded Windows 7 files (the 'expandedSetup' directory) is unzipped into C:\ -- it'll make things easier later.

1. Download this tool -- alternatively you can obtain the official pack from Microsoft, but that's a whole darn gigabyte.

2. Unzip and move oscdimg.exe to your System32 directory (likely to be C:\Windows\System32)

3. Open an elevated command prompt. In Vista you do this by typing 'cmd' into your 'Start Menu' and hitting ctrl+shift+enter. In XP, just type 'cmd' into the Run dialogue (Windows Key+R or from your Start Menu).

4. Type (or copy and paste) the following into your command prompt (this will vary a little, depending on where you've put your expandedSetup folder):

oscdimg.exe -u2 -b"C:\expandedSetup\boot\etfsboot.com" -h "C:\expandedSetup" C:\WIN7.ISO

5. Ta'da! You've got a burnable ISO!

All you need to finish the job is a good burning application like ImgBurn, CDBurnerXP, or InfraRecorder. For this particular task I'd recommend ImgBurn - then just right click the ISO file and start the burn from your context menu. Or launch ImgBurn and choose "write image file to disc" -- your choice!

No DVD burner? If you have a 4GB USB flash drive handy, check out this app!

Big thanks to Brian Wasylkoski, who was kind enough to let me harass him while he went through this process at the University of Manitoba. --Lee.

Filed under: Internet, OS Updates, Windows, Microsoft, Commercial

Shopping for Windows 7? Score it free or heavily discounted

So you got your party hat on and want to buy Windows 7 but don't feel like shelling out $119.99 - $319.99 for the various editions upgrade or full version? Well, we made life a little easier for you and your wallet. Below is a shopping site roundup of Win 7 deals and discounts. Check it out and see what deals you are eligible for.

Student
- Microsoft is selling the student edition for $29.99 but you have to be enrolled in a college or university as they require a vailid college or university email. If you don't have one of those, you can scan in your student ID, proof of course payment (yes, I'm serious) or class list. Sheesh.

Home Premium Upgrade - $119.99. You need to be running a genuine copy of Windows XP or Vista to be eligible for this edition. (Sorry to say Microsoft had this on sale for $49.99 up until July 11th when it was sold as a pre order for Win7). Another option would be to buy the Family 3 pack for $149.99, however, Costco is currently selling this version for $134.99.

Read more →

Filed under: Utilities, Macintosh, Commercial

Get VMware Fusion for as little as $9.99 today only


Twitter does have legitimate uses after all! One is finding sweet deals on some of our favorite software. If you happen to follow @vmwarefusion, you know what I'm talking about.

Team Fusion announced in their updates that today only, December 1, 2008, a copy of VMWare Fusion 2.0 for OSX is available for just $39.99! That's 50% off the regular price! The site has just updated to reflect the special price, though earlier, the promo code CyberMondayDeal needed to be entered to take advantage of the offer.

VMWare has a competitive upgrade offer in effect. If you're an existing Parallels or Virtual PC user, you're eligible for an additional $30 rebate.

The 30-day trial is still available for download as well, but how can you go wrong for $10?

[via TUAW]

Filed under: Fun, Internet, Web services, Google

Search Google for coupons

Search Google for couponsAlong with pinpointing business locations on Google Maps, companies can also list coupons to draw traffic into their locations. However, what if we wanted to search deals in a certain area only, and the store location didn't matter much. That could be a little difficult to find, until now.

Mike Blumenthal has discovered a way to search through a unique Google interface that pulls up coupons that have been entered into Maps. This secret interface allows users to search for coupons in a city based location and get results back without a giant pinpointed map. Simply visit this link and type in a city for all participating area coupons, you will be presented with a listing of deals. Happy coupon hunting!

[via SearchEngineLand]

Filed under: Business, Fun, Internet, Web services, Social Software

Get unknown online coupon deals with RetailMeNot

Get unknown online coupon deals with RetailMeNot
Is there a better way to end a long week than to sit down in front of the screen and do a little shopping? For some, maybe, but how about when you get good deals?

Shopping online. We all do it out of convenience and the fact that we are able to surf around for the best deals from the comfort of our own homes. RetailMeNot is a website that compiles coupons from major online retailers and makes them available to anyone who wants them. They are the coupons that the stores don't tell you about. We covered this site way back in 2006, but since then they have completely redesigned their service.

The RetailMeNot website is simple to use, enter the shopping site you want to check coupons for and you will be presented with a generous list of coupon codes and what their deals consist of. Then use the coupons upon checkout from said stores. RetailMeNot also lets users surf around by popular stores, popular coupons and keywords that they have in their database.

RetailMeNot is a quick and easy way to make sure you are getting the best deal online. Some of the deals might have limited time access, and their success rates are noted under stats for each coupon.

Filed under: Internet, Google, Microsoft, Social Software

Microsoft buys a $240 million piece of Facebook

FacebookIt looks like Microsoft has beat out Google in the bidding war over a stake in Facebook. But while we had been hearing that Microsoft had been looking for a 5-10% stake in the $300-$500 million range, the company is instead spending $240 million on a 1.6% stake in Facebook.

The deal gives Facebook a valuation of $15 billion, even though the company only made about $150 million in revenue this year.

OK, enough with the numbers. What does the deal mean? Microsoft will sell advertisements that show up on Facebook outside of the US. The two companies will share the revenue from those ads. Microsoft is already selling ad space for Facebook in the US.

And what does Facebook get out of the deal? A boatload of cash. Oh, and the ability to hire new workers, expand in more countries, and work on their own advertising system.

Filed under: Internet, Web services, Search

Check out unbiased deals with Tjoos

Check out unbiased deals with Tjoos

Everyone wants the best price possible when buying goods and services, and with so many shopping comparison sites online we are sure to get goods that are priced to our satisfaction. But are they really showing us all the deals out there?

Services like MySimon, Bizrate and NexTag aside, Tjoos does not play favorites to stores that only have affiliate programs where these sites earn a commission by referring visits. Some of these comparison shopping websites may indeed not show lower priced merchandise in favor of only showing goods that are part of affiliate programs.

Users are still shown good deals, however, not all the good deals that might be available in the marketplace. For instance, a search on Bizrate for a 'Canon digital camera' brought up affiliate results for stores such as eBay and Dell among others (mouse over product links to see affiliate URL paths). Tjoos scans the web and searches out the best deals, volume discount options, coupons and discounts from all over, comparing the actual prices and not just the advertised prices. The website is still a work in progress with contact lenses the only item listed under products. However, the coupons section is jam packed with online retailers listed in alphabetical order and offering such deals as 15% at Adobe, Unlimited DVD rentals at Blockbuster, $30 off at CompUSA, 10 free songs at Napster and 40% off shoes at Zappos.com.

If it's an unbiased deal you are after, Tjoos is a site you should add to your list of discount hunting locations.

Filed under: Internet, Web services, Beta, web 2.0

Snoopr- Digg for Deals

Snoopr.net is a Digg inspired website for finding deals. Users submit deals that they find to the site and then other users can "snoop" deals that rock their world. Each deal has a "Snoop Gauge" beside it that shows how popular a particular deal is with the Snoopr.net crowd. Like Digg, deals with the highest score earn top billing on the site. Unlike Digg however the deals score takes into account not only the deals amount of snoops but also time and the comments the deal has received.

Users on the site can earn points for getting positive snoops on deals they've submitted, and for commenting on and snooping other deals. There are promises made on the website for "cool prizes" that can be purchased with the points however we did some snooping and couldn't find a prize section on the site where you could redeem them. The site is currently still in beta, so maybe thats "in the works." Deals and prizes? What could be better?

[via EmilyChang]

Filed under: Blogging

50 places to get your deal on


We're all looking to save a buck. Well, maybe not all of us; but if you are one of the many searching for great deals, here's a list you should check twice.

The Frugal Panda, a "very new" frugality blog, has listed their top 50 sites to help you get a handle on your wallet. Everything from college to home and garden is covered in the list, including the tips of some frugal celebs like Terri Hatcher and Warren Buffet.

[via Lifehack]

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Palm, Holiday Gift Guide

December PDA software sales

20 percent offIt's December, and that means crazy sales on everything, even PDA software. Not that I really expect you to buy a copy of Conduits Pocket Player or eSoft Interactive's Word Challenge for that special somebody in your life. But if you do, you can save a few bucks this month.

Here's a few bargains we dug up. Feel free to post others in the comments section.
  1. Conduits has a coupon code for 35% off of anything in the Conduits Store. The code is holidaysale2006 and it's good through January 31st, 2007.
  2. eSoft Interactive is going a bit further, slashing prices on all the games in their store by 50%. The coupon code ESOFTHOLIDAYS is good through Januardy 1st, 2007.
  3. PocketGear is offering 20% of any purchase. The code holiday20 will only work for a limited time, but it's not clear when it expires. In the past, PocketGear codes have been known to work long after the promotion had ended, so keep this one handy and see if it works even after PocketGear takes the banner ad down from their site.
  4. This one's not software based, but Pocket PC Techs makes cables, screen protectors, and power accessories for PDAs. They also do PDA upgrades and repairs. The coupon code PPCTCAMPXMAS02 will save you 20% on any purchase made through January 15th, 2007.

Filed under: Business, Internet, Web services, Social Software

Shoutback, the digg of deals?

shoutback dealsWith the grand success of social news site digg, you had to figure that there were going to be a number of copycats. We have all came across a few of them in our travels I'm sure, but maybe none like the digg of deals. Shoutback might just be that. Like Dealsplus, users can vote up deals that other users have submitted. Everyone loves a great deal, so if you find deals, you can also share them on the system, and shoutback will in turn grant you shopping points. In order to shout, or receive extra points for actually purchasing an item, you must be a registered user. So far it seems like it has potential, and it will stay on my radar. My only wish list item would be to add some pictures of the items.

Filed under: Web services

Clipfire: Social shopping engine

ClipfireIt was only a matter of time before someone combined a social links site like Digg with one of the web's favorite pastimes, shopping. Clipfire lets you "clip" good deals found on the web. Deals with lots of "clips" get promoted to the "Popular Deals" page. Sound familiar? It has a search function but notably missing are any sort of categories or tags that would make it easier to navigate.

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The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

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