Welcome back, my greenhorn hackers! As hackers, we often take for granted that nearly all of our hacking tools and operating system are free and open source. I think it's important to examine a bit of background on how we arrived at this intriguing juncture in the history of computer software. After all, we pay for nearly all of our other software (Microsoft, Adobe, etc.) and nearly everything else we use in life, so how is it that Linux and all our hacking tools are free?
Beginning with KitKat, I've been used to customizing every aspect of my Android phone, but with the release of Lollipop, there is quite a bit of catching up that developers need to do. Most customization features, like quick settings rearrangement and theme support have already been ported over, but any type of lock screen customization has been noticeably absent.
The biggest complaint I hear about Android Lollipop is the fact that the new Priority Mode notification system has effectively killed off "Silent Mode." Sure, you can still put your phone on vibrate, but that's not truly silent. Selecting "None" as your notification mode isn't a perfect solution either, since no notification icons will be shown in your status bar and your alarm will not go off in the morning.
Willpower is a pretty significant word. It's the difference between sticking with a clean eating diet and diving face-first into a plate of brownies. It's what drags you out of bed on Monday mornings and into work rather than letting you stay snuggled under the covers asleep. And, most importantly, it's the kick in the butt we all require to both accomplish goals and make changes.
Widget toggles, or "power toggles" as they're often called, have been around for quite a while. They serve their purpose nicely as an easy way to add switches to your home screen or notification area for functions that don't come with the stock software on your device.
Many Nexus 6 owners, myself included, have already started to experience the dreaded burn-in issues that often come with AMOLED display technology. These displays are different than your typical LCD screen in that each pixel emits its own light instead of using a backlight, so this leaves AMOLED screens more susceptible to issues with dim or unresponsive pixels.
Samsung phones have a pretty nifty little feature called Smart Stay that will prevent your screen from turning off while you're actively using your device. Trouble with this is that it's exclusive to Galaxy devices and it uses a ton of battery since it monitors the front-facing camera to detect when you're facing the screen.
After utilizing Spotify's My Year in Music tool, I came to realize that I listened to over 30,000 minutes of music in 2014. Most of that was played while working from my Mac using the desktop version of the service.
Sweaty palms, stuttered speech, and terror blackouts: if you're someone who absolutely despises speaking before audiences, you've probably experienced side effects like these. No matter how well prepared we are, or how familiar our audience is, giving a presentation can be an experience more terrifying than death, according to psychologists. Unfortunately, it's impossible to avoid public speeches, but you can make these events less frightening with a few simple hacks.
With its white Apple logo on a plain black background, iOS 8's animated boot screen isn't very interesting. While there is no built-in way to change this boring animation, you can customize this boot screen animation if you have a jailbroken iPhone, and the process is fairly easy. You can even create your own using your favorite GIF file.
Osteoarthritis can affect every gender and at any age but it commonly occurs in women than in men. In America there are approximately 27 million Americans aged over 25 who live with osteoarthritis.
It seems like custom Google Now commands are a dime a dozen these days. With Commandr for Google Now giving non-rooted users their first taste of custom voice commands just a couple weeks ago, you may wonder why we're covering this subject again.
Long-exposure photography gives us the ability the capture some pretty amazing shots by delicately capturing moving elements in an image while keeping the shutter open at a slow speed. While that's great for things like traffic, scenery, and carnival rides, it can come in especially handy for 4th of July fireworks.
Aside from the newer HTC One M8 and Samsung Galaxy S5, the Nexus 5 still has one of the fastest processors on the market today. However, despite its superpowers, some graphically intensive games can still have a bit of lag to them during gameplay.
I'm a textaholic, as I've said many times before, but even textaholics forget to respond sometimes. When I'm watching a YouTube clip or devouring delicious snacks in Candy Crush Saga, I'll often ignore incoming texts and forget to respond later.
Your new HTC One M8 has a ton of really cool features, some of which relate to waking the device up. A swipe up to unlock to your last active screen, a swipe down to access the voice dialer, and a double-tap (or knock) to wake the device and bypass the lock screen.
For the days when you don't want to, or don't have time to wash your hair, dry shampoo can be a lifesaver. There are tons of commercial brands that make them, but personally, I've always had better luck with homemade ones. Read on to learn how to make your own dry shampoo for any hair color (and why you should use it).
Sometimes you need more than just your brain to split the bill at a restaurant or to calculate how much your cable company is ripping you off.
With a 5-inch screen, it's possible that the Samsung Galaxy S4 can be a bit large for our hands. While my grubby hands let me navigate the phone pretty easily, the same can't be said for everyone. A lot of us use two hands to type on the phone, play games, and perform tap or swipe gestures.
I have literally played Madden, watched YouTube videos, and listened to music on my phone all at the same time. Some would call this pathetic, but I call it talent. Life is way too short, so I need to get the most out of it when I can. Thank goodness for multitasking, which should be a key feature when you're looking into a new tablet or phone.
While becoming the next Mark Zuckerberg may be out of reach for someone just getting introduced to code, the skill has never been more valuable. Just understanding basic programming language is a great thing to put on your resume, and if you know how to code, you’re golden. Software developers and programmers have been the most resistant to the recession, as jobs in the tech industry continue to grow.
Last weekend, some unlucky Gmail users inadvertently had their email accounts wiped out. Actually, it was 0.02 percent of all Gmail users—or roughly 40,000 of the 200 million who use the email service, due to an "unexpected bug" which affected copies of the data. Gmail does make backup files of everything, so eventually everyone will reclaim their email history. In fact, as of yesterday, Google has successfully restored all information from their backup tapes and has started returning everyon...
Gunmetal gray is one of the coolest, most biker-chic finishes out there when it comes to jewelry making. If you enjoy working with filigree pieces in your bracelets and necklaces, why not make them less granny fantastic and more urban chic by adding a nickel-free gunmetal finish?
In this video, you'll learn how to convert format files accurately and for free in two different ways. You can use a program called Format Factory, which you can download here, or you could use a website called Zamzar.
You can get your energy to go beyond your maximum! Earn over one hundred energy, even if your maximum is much less! Here are some tips to accruing free energy - always visit your neighbors, and maintain a stable of horses and full grown animals.
There are many music programs beyond Audacity which you can download for free, and which will allow you to mix and edit your own music. This tutorial shows you where to get these programs, like ROC, Myna, FreeSound and FlashKit, and how to use them for your own projects.
This tutorial has been designed for those who are using iTunes on a Mac computer. You can get ringtones for free and download them onto your iPhone, just through using iTunes. This short tutorial demonstrates exactly how you can make this work for you.
This tutorial is for PC users who have both iTunes and an iPhone, and shows you how to get iTunes ringtones on your phone for free. All you really have to do is convert your chosen track to the right format, then clip and download onto your iPhone!
Tired of having to install multiple files every time you set up a new computer? This tutorial shows you how Ninite.com to set up a free installer so you can install all your free software applications at once (like web browsers, iTunes, GIMP, etc), instead of having to do it one by one.
In this free video exercise lesson, you'll learn how to do a lateral raise lifting routine with free weights. With weight lifting, as with any physical fitness system, a basic mastery of proper technique is essential for both maximizing the effectiveness of your workouts and avoiding accidental injury. For more information, and to get started using this weight lifting exercise yourself, watch this handy home-fitness how-to.
In this free video exercise lesson, you'll learn how to do tricep extensions with free weights. With weight lifting, as with any physical fitness system, a basic mastery of proper technique is essential for both maximizing the effectiveness of your workouts and avoiding accidental injury. For more information, and to get started using this weight lifting exercise yourself, watch this handy home-fitness how-to.
In this free video exercise lesson, you'll learn how to do a shrug routine with free weights. With weight lifting, as with any physical fitness system, a basic mastery of proper technique is essential for both maximizing the effectiveness of your workouts and avoiding accidental injury. For more information, and to get started using this weight lifting exercise yourself, watch this handy home-fitness how-to.
In this free video exercise lesson, you'll learn how to do a dumbbell front raise weight-lifting routine. With weight lifting, as with any physical fitness system, a basic mastery of proper technique is essential for both maximizing the effectiveness of your workouts and avoiding accidental injury. For more information, and to get started using this weight lifting exercise yourself, watch this handy home-fitness how-to.
In this free video exercise lesson, you'll learn how to do an incline dumbbell press weight lifting routine. With weight lifting, as with any physical fitness system, a basic mastery of proper technique is essential for both maximizing the effectiveness of your workouts and avoiding accidental injury. For more information, and to get started using this weight lifting exercise yourself, watch this handy home-fitness how-to.
In this free video language lesson, you'll learn how to ask how to say the Spanish words for thank you: "Muchas gracias." Interested in learning Spanish but haven't got the time to take a weekly class? No problemo! The Internet is awash in free, high-quality video lessons like this one. For more information, and to get started using this phrase yourself, watch this helpful video guide for Spanish students.
In this free video language lesson, you'll learn how to ask "where?" or "¿dónde?" Interested in learning Spanish but haven't got the time to take a weekly class? No problemo! The Internet is awash in free, high-quality video lessons like this one. For more information, and to get started using this phrase yourself, watch this helpful video guide for Spanish students.
In this video, we learn how to spice up your desktop with free Windows 7 themes. These are provided on the Windows website, where you can search through the personalization gallery. You can choose from a number of different themes that best fit your personality and preferences. You can change not only what you see, but also the sounds that you hear! If you don't see a theme that you like now, check back often because there are always new themes being uploaded to the website. These are all fre...
Tired of paying for ringtones? With the right software, it's easy to make your own. This guide will show you how. Whether you're the proud owner of an Apple iPhone 3G or perhaps just considering picking one up second hand, you're sure to benefit from this free video tutorial. For more information, including a detailed overview, watch this iPhone user's guide.
In this video tutorial, viewers learn how to play DVD movies on the computer for free. Usually, users will need to purchase expensive codes or plug-ins for a media player in order to play a DVD movie. This video introduces the VLC Media Player. This media player is able to play any DVD movie and is a free program. To download it, open your the Google website. Then search for the media player and select the first result. Then click on Download and install the program. This video will benefit h...
In this free video CSS tutorial, you will learn how using attribute selectors easily add images to download links and email links. Whether you're using a fancy WYSIWYG (or what-you-see-is-what-you-get) page editor like Adobe Dreamweaver CS5 or a barebones text editor like Notepad, if you want to build websites, you'll need to have some understanding of HTML (for the structure of your web pages) and CSS (for their style). And this free coder's guide will get you started along that path.
