One of the very first Photoshop skills we learned in my tenth grade photojournalism class was cropping the background out of images. I hated it. It was extremely time consuming, and the magnetic lasso tool never seemed to want to cooperate with me.
Love or hate 'em, you've got to admit that cupcakes really had their moment. They started rising in popularity back in 2003 with the opening of Crumbs Bake Shop in Manhattan, and quickly became one of the most annoyingly ubiquitous food trends to date. Seriously. Type "cupcake" into Google. While I wouldn't turn it down if you put one in front of me (red velvet, please), I can't say that I was particularly disappointed to hear that the cupcake trend is coming to an end. I'm more of a cheeseca...
Most of you probably have a set of blinds at home, the most popular being horizontal or vertical. They're great for keeping the sun out of your eyes and maintaining privacy, but unfortunately, each comes with its own set of problems.
Some of my Facebook status updates are absolutely hilarious, and sometimes (though rarely) even my friends updates can get me on the floor laughing. And like most of you, I'm sure, when you come across something funny—you have to share it.
UPDATE: The whitehouse petition has received enough signatures to require a response from the government. Your voices have been heard! Now we wait...
If I could win a trophy for waking up to go to work or for eating a bowl of Frosted Mini-Wheats without any of the biscuits getting soggy, I think my life would be so much more awesome. The gaming industry has cornered the market when it comes to achievement-based rewards, because they know that we love challenges.
Sherlock Holmes is one of the most famous characters in modern history, and has appeared in film more often than any other character. No less than 78 different actors have taken their turn at portraying the enigmatic deduction machine in various mediums, and each has brought their own foibles to the role. Some of the names may even surprise you: Tom Baker, John Cleese, Peter Cushing, Charlton Heston, Christopher Lee, Roger Moore, and even Leonard Nimoy.
I like to call Netflix my quiet, digital friend. She's been there for me on many many occasions—from when I had to move home for a few months, to when the cable was down for days.
The first alarm clock in recorded history can be traced back to ancient Greek philosopher Plato, known for laying the foundations of Western philosophy and science. Plato was said to possess a very large water clock with an alarm signal similar to that of a water organ.
Facebook has been looking to launch a new product for a while now, and it seems they've finally realized what they're best at—being as creepy as possible. If you thought your boss checking out your girlfriend's beach photos was weird, Facebook's new Graph Search has only upped the ante. Now, I don't want to be an alarmist, because I'm sure there are a bunch of great things a Facebook search would find. If you're single, perhaps you could search "Girls that are single that like Goodfellas." Th...
When LinkedIn first arrived on the scene, I thought it was a great resource for staying connected and getting in touch with those people in your desired career path. Keyword: Thought. Like most businesses, money and shareholders seem to have taken over the driver's seat, pushing the company towards a business-first, users-second approach.
I don't know how many of you had this experience in your youth, but when I was a kid, I used to actively think about what would happen if I suddenly woke up in a fantasy land, or were to pass through a portal into another space and time. I knew it wouldn't really happen, but when you're a kid, these can be important issues to you. So I slept with my glasses on every night, just in case. Photo from George Pal's The Time Machine.
It's really no wonder why Christmas is the most popular and widely celebrated holiday of the year. Your whole family gets a chance to spend some much needed quality time together—and not just gorging on food like at Thanksgiving. But in all seriousness, that's not the reason at all... we're talking Christmas presents here.
Using a second monitor is great for multitasking, especially if you tend to max out your computer's brain power on tons of simultaneously running apps that you want to see, well, simultaneously. That second screen becomes more like a lifesaver.
TIFF 2012 Wrap-Up - Pounds Personally Gained: 4.5
As someone who never uses Newsstand, it's pretty frustrating to have it clogging up the home screen on my iPad and iPhone. It's one of those applications that Apple doesn't allow you to delete, like Passbook and Nike + iPod. Why? Simply because Apple wants to make more money.
So you've decided to go as Captain America for Halloween and you've got everything from the helmet to a sweet pair of red boots. You've even managed to get your hands on some Super-Soldier Serum (or a realistic set of inflatable muscles), so you've got the physique, too. But what's missing? His shield! In order to make your Captain America costume legit, you cannot skip the shield. Fortunately, it's pretty easy to make yourself a DIY shield—so you can fend off enemies and look good doing it. ...
Even if you're not a hipster with your own self-sufficient garden, making your own edibles at home can be pretty cool. And while it's obviously easier to pick up a bottle of 7-Up at the store, there's something undoubtedly fun about making your own. For those addicted to their fizzy drinks, DIY soda is a great way to save some cash and make their drinks healthier with natural flavors and sweeteners, instead of something like corn syrup or aspartame.
Having a flash drive is more or less a must, but the biggest downside is that they often get stolen, and it's not hard to figure out why. They're small, so they easily fit into pockets, and a lot of people store valuable information on them. Want to pretty much guarantee no one takes yours? Disguise it as a broken USB cable like Windell Oskay of Evil Mad Science Labs so it just looks like a piece of junk to would-be thieves. The materials are pretty simple: a flash drive (the smaller the bett...
Facial recognition software is being more widely used with every passing day. Your local law enforcement is probably already using it, and it will be even easier for them now that the FBI handed out its own facial recognition software to state authorities. Even the fine folks at Facebook are using this technology. Obviously, this brings up some pretty serious privacy concerns amongst most people, because honestly, who wants to be tracked? Right now, there's not a lot we can do about it being ...
If you have a Barnes & Noble Nook, you may be surprised to find that your eReader can do a lot more than just display ebooks, which makes it a great alternative to those more expensive all-in-one tablets that do everything (seriously, everything). If you want to get more bang for your buck, here are a few ways you can hack your own Nook.
Collodion—it's one of those things that you probably never heard of before, but have actually come across many times in life. It's used for all kinds of applications, from photography to special effects, and it even has a few medical uses. So, what exactly is collodion? Photo by Bostick & Sullivan
Whether you're making a poster, drawing a logo or designing a website, the font you use can make a huge difference in any visual design, and the ones available in most word processors can get pretty boring. There are thousands of sites online where you can download free fonts, and even a few that let you design your own. Here are some of the best.
Taking screen captures is a standard feature on iPhones and newer Android smartphones, but for some reason it's not very intuitive. Screenshots allow you to share your phone's screen with your friends, document technical problems for customer support, and even make how-to guides easier to follow. So, it's definitely worth remembering. Here's how you do it.
Considering how often many of us fly on commercial airlines, the idea that a hacker could somehow interfere with the plane is a very scary thought. It doesn't help to learn that at Defcon, a researcher found that the Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B), transmissions that planes use to communicate with airport towers are both unencrypted and unauthenticated.
This design is super simple and is the easiest invisible door that I've ever seen. Unlike designs that use horizontal pistons, the redstone here is completely hidden underground, and the door itself doesn't create an unsightly dip or gap in the wall.
There's a strange grey area for "guerrilla filmmaking" on YouTube. Generally, someone shooting a video needs to get permission from the people in it to show their faces. But on YouTube, that "rule" is more of a suggestion (and sometimes not even that).
A redstone clock is a pretty easy mechanism to make. A digital readout for that redstone clock is a little harder, and that's what Lesnoydude has made that won him the staff choice award.
Control is important. Mankind inherently wants to control its environment, which is why we have things like indoor plumbing, electric lights, air conditioning, and more. Likewise, Minecraft has redstone, which is a way for users to control their environment and manipulate it to suit their needs.
Movember is here, and if you haven't already started growing your moustache, then you still have time. Movember takes place during the entire month of November, and if you haven't figured it out quite yet, it is a portmanteau of the words moustache and November.
By the time you reach Act 3 and the quest "Best Served Cold" in Dragon Age 2 you're already pretty deep in this whole mage-templar thing. You initiate this quest by reading the Best Served Cold letter on Hawke's desk. The vieo and this walkthrough will take you through the rest.
The single-player campaign mode in Call of Duty: Black Ops may be intense, but the multiplayer mode is a bloodbath of pure addiction. Black Ops takes the super successful formula of Modern Warfare and adds its own special twist. There's some changes, and Jessica Chobot from IGN Strategize is going to tell you all about them!
If you know what a cam slider is, you know you want one. But camera sliders can be pretty pricey, so that's when it's time to resort to DIY techniques. In this video, see how to build your own pro-slider. It's super easy and only takes ten minutes to make!
Starcraft 2, like it's predecessor before it, has a very robust level editor that allows you, the DIY modder, to create nearly any scenario within the bounds of the Starcraft 2 engine that you could imagine. We have compiled videos on how to do all sorts of fun things with it, from making RPG's and Tower Defense games to just making you dream Starcraft 2 level. This video will teach you how to create a basic Warcraft 3 style hero using the Starcraft 2 patch 13 beta editor. He won't be quite a...
If you're a serious diver, especially anywhere cold, then your dry suit is probably a near and dear friend. If something goes wrong with it, you may think that you need to pay someone a lot of money to fix you baby. But no! They're actually pretty easy to fix yourself. This video will show you how to fix the neck seal on an OS Systems drysuit yourself with just some spare parts that you can order from the manufacturer.
If you need to remove vocals from a song in Pro Tools first you need to open Pro Tools and load the song. First, you need to split this track so go to Track and click split to mono. Now, mute this first track. Next, you want to remove the stereo by panning each the bottom to 0. Now, flip the phase by going to the bottom clicking EQ plugin. Now the vocal is pretty much gone.
To make a french spiral bouquet you first start with straight stemmed flowers such as roses. It is very important that you rid the stems of foliage such as leaves as well as removing all the thorns. You can do this by using a gardening glove or washcloth and sliding it down the stem. Once that is completed it is time to begin the bouquet. The first step is to pick a base flower. It is important to use a flower that has a straight stem. From there you begin to add flowers by crossing them with...
The instructor from the Knitting Board shows you how to make a criss cross stitch. This stitch has two weave patterns that you alternate to create a pretty textured look. Using a knitting board, the first stitch starts on the first pin of the back board down to the fourth pin. Then you weave back and forth across the board skipping a pin. At the end, take the yarn straight across the board and turn the board around. Return by picking up the pins that you skipped. Each pin will have two loops ...
What would happen if you stick your hand in a pool of liquid nitrogen? Would your hand freeze to death? Would it harden to an unnatural state? Would it shatter as soon as you touched something? Well, real life isn't like the movies (i.e. Demolition Man), so believe it or not, your hand would be safe, thanks to a little known phenomenon called the Leidenfrost effect.
In this "super" video tutorial, you'll learn how to convert a Super Nintendo controller to PC controller. Now, dig deep into your garage and pull out those old SNES pads (or controllers) and get ready for some "super" modding!
