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Filed under: Utilities, Features, Social Software, web 2.0, Web

10 Facebook apps you might actually want to install



Facebook apps are pretty controversial, as far as developments in the world of social networking. When they first arrived on the scene, some people rejected them as ugly and useless, while others loaded their profiles with as many apps as they could find. I admit, I was in that first camp for quite a while. But, while I'm still disappointed with Facebook apps in general, I also have to admit that we've come a long way since the days of pirates versus zombies and throwing virtual sheep at one another. Here are 10 Facebook apps that I think represent the best of Facebook:

Integration With Other Social Sites


1) Dopplr: Where Next?

What It Does: Displays your upcoming trips from the excellent travel-centric social network Dopplr on your Facebook profile.

Why You Need It: Because telling people where you are by manually changing your "current town" on Facebook is passé and a waste of time when you have Dopplr. With this app, friends can easily see when you're leaving town and when you're getting back.

2) Upcoming

What It Does: Integrates your Facebook events with local events from Upcoming. Lets you add events and view events from either site.

Why You Need It: You're using Facebook to create, browse and confirm events anyway. You might as well make sure you don't miss anything because you forgot to check both sites. Upcoming also suggests events in your area, so you might find out about a cool opportunity that would have otherwise passed you by.

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Filed under: Photo, Web services

Top 10 Flickr Hacks

Flickr Leech
I have a Flickr account, and I take plenty of photos, but I find myself not using it as much as I feel I ought to. Maybe Thomas Hawk's list of Top 10 Hacks on Flickr will help remedy that. It's a round-up of tricks, scripts, and sites that make Flickr more pleasurable to use, and though I'd seen some of them already, several of them were pleasant surprises. His #1 Flickr "hack" is Flickr Leech. Its tagline is "because paging sucks," and what it does is shows you all of the thumbnails for any user, photoset, or pool all at once. Very refreshing. That's just the tip of the iceberg--Hawk also points out some great Greasemonkey scripts, some web (and desktop) apps, and more for your Flickr enjoyment.

Filed under: Blogging, Freeware

The best minimalist WordPress themes

Best Minimalist WordPress Themes
Is your WordPress blog too cluttered? Too dark? Too boxy? Take a look at plaintxt.org's list of the Best Minimalist WordPress Themes. Minimalism isn't quite so in vogue as it was last year, but it's definitely still going strong, so if you're looking for something clean, airy, and uncluttered, these 10 themes, with names like Barecity, Way Too Clean, Zen Minimalist are for you. I'm particularly a fan of Simpla and The Simple Life, both of which have a bit more color than the others.

Filed under: Linux, Open Source

Top 10 Ubuntu apps and tips for Linux switchers

Top 10 Ubuntu apps and tweaksI've long been meaning to give Ubuntu a more serious look, and Adam Pash's Top 10 Ubuntu apps and tweaks over at Lifehacker is all the more motivation. Pash identifies ten ways you can improve your Ubuntu experience, including Automatix (application installation automator), Beagle (desktop search), Gnome Deskbar Applet ("a great app launcher and then some"), VLC (video player), Firefox (web browser), amaroK (audio player), and CheckGmail (email notifier for Gmail). As usual, the comments following the article are a great trove of further tips.

Filed under: Fun, Macintosh, Shareware, Freeware

Ten cool OS X screensavers

Top 10 OS X ScreensaversPhill Ryu is making us Windows users jealous (again) with his list of the Top Ten OS X Screensavers. With one $20 shareware exception, all of his picks are free, and all of them are universal binaries and look stunning. I'm particularly intrigued by the Simpsons-inspired Mr. Sparkle screensaver at #9, Hills at #3, and Fenêtres Volantes, which turns your windows into floating, drifting 3D objects, at #1. Ryu also names a handful of promising runners-up.

Vista sucks/doesn't suck: The Top 10

Windows Vista Flip 3DOh, how we love the Top 10 lists. TechWeb's Alexander Wolfe has written a Top 10 list that's actually one Top 6 list and one Bottom 4 list: Top 10 Windows Vista Hits & Misses, i.e. what's awesome in Vista and what ain't so great. Here's your basic spoiler:

Hits:
  1. Sidebar and gadgets
  2. Pretty Aero interface
  3. Media Center integration
  4. Windows Media Player 11
  5. Non-intrusive DRM
  6. Flip 3D task switcher
Misses:
  1. Installation problems
  2. Lousy performance
  3. Bad Search and security behaviors
  4. Steep memory requirements for Aero
Wolfe concludes that "Vista is very strong on its consumer presentation skills, but has made less of a business case for corporations to upgrade from Windows XP," and that he would be willing to pay the OEM price of about $85, but not the $199 or $299 that we've been hearing for a retail copy.

Filed under: Features

Top 10 Web Moments of 2005

In December 1990 there was a single web site on the Internet, and by the end of 1991 that figured had jumped to ten. Today there are millions of sites and billions of pages, and the web is a universe unto itself. It's impossible for any one person to keep track of even one percent of the interesting stuff happening on the web, but still we try until our favorites folders are overflowing, our social bookmark sites crash, and our inboxes choke on forwarded links. Occasionally, though, all of that collective interest organizes itself into something more orderly and, for a moment, it seems like everyone on the web is thinking about the same thing. Below are ten moments from the past year that the people who make the web found coolest, most interesting, funniest, and most throught-provoking.

10. Numa Numa Dance

Numa Numa DanceWhat do you get when you combine a Romanian chart-topper, an American teenager, and a webcam? The Numa Numa Dance. New Jersey 19-year-old Gary Brolsma found Internet fame when he not only lip-synched, but did a slick choreographed routine—albeit without leaving his chair—to "Dragostea Din Tei," a dance track by Romanian pop trio O-Zone.

Though Brolsma ultimately shunned his fame, his performance is among the most-linked, forwarded, and immitated videos of the the year, even earning him a profile in the New York Times.

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Featured Time Waster

Graveyard Shift - zombie-busting Time Waster

With Halloween fast approaching, it's a great time to get in some practice defending your territory against zombies. In Graveyard Shift, you take aim at zombies and other creepy-crawlies, blasting them into splatters of cartoony green guts. It's a casual first-person shooter, and it's very easy to get the hang of - use the mouse to aim, click to fire. Graveyard Shift has at least 15 levels, and it might even have some secret stages I haven't unlocked yet. They key to getting good at Graveyard Shift is learning to use ...

View more Time Wasters

Featured Galleries

Defective by Design, London: Protest Pictures
Microsoft Security Essentials
Chromium Pre-Alpha on CrunchBang Linux
Safari 4 Beta
10 Firefox themes that don't suck
IE8 RC1
Download Squad at the Crunchies After-Party
Download Squad at the Crunchies
WordPress 2.7
Cooking Mama: Mama Kills Animals
Windows 7 Hands On
Comodo Internet Security
Android First-look: Amazon.com MP3 Store
Android First-look: Twitroid
Google Reader Android
Android Hands-On
Twine 1.0
Photoshop Express Beta
Mozilla Birthday Cake
Palm stuff
Adobe Lightroom 1.1

 


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