May 21, 2010 8:48pm GMT
Checking whether a specific Web server is up and running is as easy as issuing the ping command in the terminal, but if you are looking for a more versatile tool that you can use while on the move, try httpmon for Android. For starters, this nifty tool lets you set up multiple monitoring profiles, which can come in handy when you want to keep an eye on several servers. Besides ping, httpmon sup... more »
Perfect Backup Solution with Amazon S3 and awsMay 20, 2010 5:47pm GMT
Amazon S3 provides unlimited storage at low prices, which makes it an ideal solution for storing backups. But to make use of it, you need a piece of software that can actually interact with Amazon S3: create buckets, list the contents of a bucket, upload and download files, etc. And aws, a simple command-line utility written in Perl, is the perfect tool for the job. You might wonder why not use... more »
Extension Watch: FeedSquares for Google ChromeMay 14, 2010 7:47pm GMT
Google Reader is a mighty good feed aggregator with a boatload of useful features, but its traditional two-pane interface has some room for improvement. And the FeedSquares extension for the Google Chrome browser represents a bold attempt to rethink the way you read and manage RSS feeds. The basic idea is pretty simple: the extension displays all feeds from your Google Reader account as colored... more »
Keep Your System Clean with BleachBitMay 10, 2010 9:48pm GMT
Keeping your system clean can be a time-consuming affair, unless you use specialized tools like BleachBit (thanks to Nick Lord for the pointer). With just a few mouse clicks, this nifty little utility can help you to purge all the junk produced by the system and installed applications. Packaged versions of BleachBit are available for many popular distributions, so you can easily install the uti... more »
Trick Out a Fresh Lucid Lynx Installation with the Ubuntu 10.04 Start ScriptMay 07, 2010 10:53pm GMT
While it is possible to upgrade Ubuntu 9.10 to the latest 10.04 Lucid Lynx release, a clean install is the best way to go if you want to avoid update headaches. Usually this means reinstalling your favorite applications and applying tweaks all over again -- but now with Ubuntu 10.04. A clever script with the imaginative name Ubuntu 10.04 Start Script can help you to install software and tweak t... more »
Beef up Firefox Privacy FeaturesMay 05, 2010 10:37am GMT
Whether you want it or not, your Web activities are tracked and analyzed in many different ways. But you don't have to put up with this, especially if you are using Firefox as your primary browser. There are a few handy Firefox extensions that can beef up your favorite browser's privacy features. Here are my three personal favorites.Besides regular cookies planted in your browser by many Web si... more »
photoDiary: Web-based Photo Album with a TwistApr 20, 2010 9:55pm GMT
Although photoDiary looks like just another Web-based photo album application, it has a couple of nifty features that make it a good choice for hosting and showcasing your photographic masterpieces. For starters, photoDiary is rather straightforward to deploy. Grab the latest release of the application, unpack the downloaded archive, rename the resulting directory to photodiary, and copy it to... more »
