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Filed under: Kids, Search

Google's SafeSearch mode gets safer with new lock feature

If you've ever used Google to search for, ahem, "adult" content, you're aware of the site's SafeSearch feature. It filters out questionable content, to the delight of parents and the dismay of porn-seekers. Now there's a new "lock" function for SafeSearch, which keeps your account's settings locked in strict filtering mode until you enter a password and change them. The obvious use here is for parents looking to keep risque material out of view of their kids, but I can also see it being handy to prevent embarrassing search results from accidentally popping up at work.

When SafeSearch is locked, you'll see four extremely conspicuous, very large colored balls in the top right corner of your search results. Google says this is so parents and teachers can tell from across the room whether the lock is still in place, and come over to reset it if it's not. It even works across Google's various languages, so clever kids can't get around it that way. Could they thwart SafeSearch in an even more obvious way, though, by simply logging out of Google? I guess that's where keeping a close eye on the giant colored balls comes in.

If you're confused about how to go about turning the lock on, the very clear video instructions in Google's official blog post will shed some light.

[via AppScout]

Filed under: Utilities, Windows, Freeware, Open Source

MonitorES pauses media playback, adjusts IM status when your PC is locked

MonitorES
MonitorES is a tiny Windows application that lets you adjust the behavior of some running applications when you lock your PC. For instance, you can adjust MonitorES to show a screen saver or turn off your monitor to save electricity.

The utility also lets you automatically update your instant messenger status, mute your system, and pause playback of 16 different media players including Winamp, Foobar, and Windows Media Player. As for IM clients, MonitorES supports Google Talk, Yahoo! Messenger, Digsby, and Miranda.

When you login to your computer again, media playback will resume, your IM status will be updated, and of course your screen will turn back on.

[via Lifehacker]

Filed under: Photo, Security, Windows, Open Source

Lockimage: password protects your images

lockimage password protect images
We can think of many reasons why it'd be a good idea to password protect an image, and, whatever your reason may be (patent pictures, blueprints of the Death Star, or maybe a couple naughty shots of the wife), sometimes it's best that others don't find out. To solve this problem, we present Lockimage.

It consists of just one file and doesn't need to be installed. Lockimage will convert any picture into a "password protected executable," which means the file will open on any PC without the Lockimage program. This means, however, the modified file is no longer considered an image file, so this may not be the right solution for some.

Lockimage is similar to Locknote, which uses a similar method of locking files. It's also a Windows-only application, and it's probably best to use this against non-hacker types. With the program being open-source, the recipe isn't exactly a secret.

[via Life Rocks 2.0]

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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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