Jan04
Last week we covered some fun Google Easter Eggs, that you can find while browsing the site. This week, to take a more academic approach, we are going to cover 7 almost unknown specialized Google search engines that can be used for specialized consumer and academic research.
Also included in this realm, but not within this post are Google Video, Pictures, News and Blogs which most users will already be familiar with so we have not included them in the list below.
Its amazing that a database like this exists, but most people don’t even know about it. Google has taken it upon themselves to fully index and cross-reference over 7 million patents of past and present. Complete with drawings, cross references and similarities to other patents, there are many lifetimes of explorations to be had.
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\\ tags: google
Jan04
While you are still hunting down Christmas presents, we here at MakeUseOf are already getting into the mood for Easter.
No, not really! But during this stressful pre-holiday season I thought it would be a good idea to spread some laughter.
Since Google is a source for quite a bit of entertainment, I compiled a list of the coolest Google treasures. Here are April Fool’s Day jokes, Easter Eggs, bombs and more in no particular order:
1. Search Google with MentalPlex
Of course this was an April Fool’s Day joke.
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\\ tags: google
Jan03
If you want to set yourself apart as a blogger, you have to do a few things differently. These tips are the best advice I have to offer. They are the result of two years of intensive blogging. I welcome feedback as comments or questions.
Be mentored: offer someone doughnuts!
Monitor inbound links.
Don’t link out more than you have inbound links.
Write a a dynamite “ABOUT” page for your blog.
Have a “Best of” page.
Guest blog out there.
Host guest bloggers on your blog.
Write reviews with proper references (ie; IMDB for movies)
Optimize use of categories.
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\\ tags: Blogging Tips
Jan03
Overlooked and difficult to find, there are hundreds of thousands of U.S. government web sites that can help you accomplish a variety of tasks. At the right federal .gov destination you can locate historical documents, keep tabs on Congressional happenings, view presidential paperwork, and a whole lot more. Keep reading for the most useful U.S. government web sites out there.
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Jan03
Okay, I’m finally out of the Windows 7 mania and have an interesting freeware to share that will be helpful to all Facebook-addicts (like me). I always wanted a complete desktop aplication for Facebook, and I’ve found one now.
Visual Sage for Facebook is an innovative Facebook chat and desktop application implemented by VisualSage, an innovative software technology company. This app is built upon Microsoft’s new technology WPF which shows all our friends at Facebook in a network.
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\\ tags: Facebook
Jan03
When a user uploads a photo on Flickr, it resizes it to various sizes and gives viewer the choice to view in whatever resolution (size) he wants.
Similarly, if you want to view or save the original Flickr image, you have to go all the way through the photo page and select Original from the sizes available.
Flickr Original is a Firefox extension that lets you directly download or view the original Flickr image. You just have to right click on the image, and it will show you the option to download or view it.
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\\ tags: Flickr
Jan03
Popular social networks and bookmarking sites like MySpace, Facebook, Digg, StumbleUpon etc. are all blocked in schools and workplaces. One way of going through these blocked sites is to use a proxy server in your browser, but that doesn’t always help as free servers go down quite often.
When I needed to access my favourite sites like Facebook in my school, I used web proxy sites that allowed anonymous browsing.
Another advantage of web proxies is that they help you protect your identity online. They hide your IP address and enable you to surf the web under their location. I have compiled a list of 25 web proxies that you can use to access blocked sites.
25 Web Proxies To Surf Web Anonymously
Jan03
2008 proved to a historic year for Twitter both in adoption through the sheer number of twitter users signing up to the services, but also as evidenced by many influencers writing about using Twitter for PR, Social Media, Branding and other such purposes. With such an influx of great information, it often becomes difficult to distill signal from noise. This round up of the Top 20 Twitter Posts of 2008 provides another valuable meta-list to bookmark and refer back to, as Twitter continues to grow exponentially in 2009.
20. Twitter in Plain English - A video by the well respected guys as Common Craft that explains the nature and application of Twitter effortlessly in just under 2 1/2 minutes.
19. Why You Need To Be Looking At Twitter- Twist Image writes about the gaining clout of Twitter, especially due to adoption by the governments, corporations, and top brands.
18. Top 10 Uses of Twitter - Top Rank talks about 10 uses for Twitter beyond just as micro-blogging service.
17. 15 Twittery Things For Your Holiday Enjoyment - MakeUseOf tally’s up some of the year’s more interesting Twitter tools, including one’s that measure your sphere of influence and help you find new friends and followers.
16. Three Ways to Maximize Your Twitter Time for Networking, Marketing and Fun - Copyblogger breaks it down on using Twitter as a networking and marketing tool.
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\\ tags: Twitter
Jan03
2008 is nearing its end, time to make a list of the top 10 BitTorrent sites that got the most traffic this year. The Pirate Bay is out in the lead followed by Mininova and isoHunt. TorrentSpy shut down earlier this year and is the most notable absentee.
The list is based on traffic rank reports from Compete and Alexa, backed up by visitor reports from some of the site admins.
It has been a good year for The Pirate Bay. The number of visitors spiked, despite efforts in Denmark and Italy to block access the site. Last month, The site celebrated its 5th anniversary, just after it broke the 25 million peers mark. At any given point in time, more than 25 million peers actively trade files thought the Pirate Bay tracker.
Compete rank 885 / Alexa rank 117 / 2007 #3
Mininova has seen a steady rise in visitors in 2008, and more than 3 billion torrents were downloaded from the site in the past 12 months. In addition to user uploaded content, the Mininova team has started to focus more on premium publishers with their content distribution platform.
Compete rank 1,225 / Alexa rank 79 / 2007 #1
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\\ tags: Torrent
Jan02
1. Britney Spears
The singer’s steep trajectory to redemption restored her to the top of searches. Her year began with a police visit, hospital stay, and psych evaluation. She returned under her father’s shelter and, by summer, settled custody with her ex. Professionally, she guested on a sitcom, won thrice at the MTV Video Music Awards, broke records with “Womanizer,” relaunched her site, and released a documentary detailing her fall and comeback…by age 27.
2. WWE
A June explosion destroyed a World Wrestling Entertainment stage and
“injured” chairman Vince McMahon, unleashing a sweaty soap opera of chaos that included his kids appealing for cooperation in difficult times. The stunt could’ve symbolized the sporting empire’s battles against the economy’s fall and
mixed martial arts’ rise. WWE produced more events,
video games, and movies to make up for
fewer paying fans, and faithfuls kept track online to maintain its Top 2 status.
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