I consider tablets to be used  in medicine, architecture, engineering and not so much in the day to day life, maybe because I’m just a bit old school and I like PCs, but nonetheless, regardless of my opinion, the iPad remains the number 1 tablet PC in the world, and it seems the future will see even more tablets. This is just the start of an era that will be around for some time. Being so loved by the masses, this accessory has gained lots of accessories itself. From skins, cases, RC cars or drones to thousands of apps. All to make your experience with the iPad more entertaining and immersing.

Top 50 iPad Wallpapers

Now, apps and gadgets were covered and re-covered, but this time it’s all about the look of your iPad, and as specially the background image of it. On the iPad’s 9.7 inch screen, with the resolution of 1024 x 768 you can fit many types of images, and trust me, some full HD images look amazing! I’ll try to make a list of the coolest iPad wallpapers I could find. I’ll try to group them in categories, but keep in mind this: images are more about each one’s own preferences, so I made this list based on others opinions, but also, on my own. I tend to like more abstract and dark-light pictures, so don’t be surprised if you will see quite a lot of these here. I apologize beforehand to the authors that have made or took these pictures for not including the credit link. It was very hard, in many cases, to find the source. Don’t forget to click for the full size!

1. Apple Tribute iPad Wallpapers

Colored Apple Layers

Think Different

Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish

Scrat with Apple Logo

Blue Metallic Apple Logo

Wooden Apple Logo

Apple Marbles

Apple White Spots

Apple Logo Grind

Apple Green Logo

2. Art iPad Wallpapers

Jack Sparrow

Glass Art

Hydro

Tiny World

Everyday Life

Motorcycle of The Future

Sword

Dream

Atoms

Dragon

Chronoscape

Violin

Leafy

Made for Dancing

3. Animals iPad Wallpapers

Woolf and Kitty

White Kitty

Family of Cats

Frightened Baby Rabit

Maou Cat

Birds in Water

Sleeping Cat

Lonely Rabbit

Blue Eyed Cat

Gorgeous Cat

3. Nature iPad Wallpapers

The Rock

Winter

Hay Bales

Droplets in Grass

Nature vs City

Water on Leaf

Sunflowers

Spring Daisy

Water on Leaf 2

Blue Flower

Yellow Flower

Shells

Bamboo

Yellow Flowers

Grass

Haystack

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1. Avast! Free Antivirus

Meeting again with Avast!, but now, in spotlight is the Free Avast! Antivirus. This is, in my opinion, the best free antivirus available. In the free version, all you have to do is register (for free) once a year and you get top notch protection on your computer, emails, downloads and IMs. It has a powerful heuristics engine that allows it to find almost every virus around. The experience gathered over the years (since 1988) by its developers shows really well in Avast!

2. Panda Cloud Antivirus

I must admit that Panda antivirus does not differentiate itself from other free antivirus software in any way when it comes to protection. It offers the same level of detection from viruses, trojan, spyware, adware, worms and malware and its features are not that specific. The thing that made Panda Cloud Antivirus the second position in my list is the fact that it is, as the name suggests, Cloud based. What that means, is that when you scan your computer, it doesn’t use resources from your computer, but it operates in the cloud, keeping your computer working as normal.

Related Read: Get 370 GB Using These 24 Free Cloud Storage Options!

3. Microsoft Security Essentials

I know Microsoft is new to the internet safety game, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t develop a great antivirus. Microsoft Security Essentials is a great antivirus, it’s incredible easy to use and it’s absolutely free! It updates automatically and, being produces by Microsoft, it actively interacts with Windows and it’s perfectly integrated in the operating system.

4. Avira AntiVir Personal Edition

Avira is another example of a really good free antivirus program that has very much to offer. Excellent protection, user friendly and it consumes next to nothing from your resources. I’ve used it for some time and must say I’m really happy with the results. It detects most threats and it works in silence in the background. It’s perfect for laptops and netbooks, but also for your own personal computer.

5. AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition

AVG is again on our list of best antivirus programs, this time, the free version. This antivirus works great and its top notch detection stats are impressive. If you are looking for a really good free antivirus, with cool features, like link scanner and email scanner, than you should definitely try AVG Anti-Virus, it’s one of the best.

6. Comodo Antivirus

Comodo Antivirus is a fairly good antivirus program. After making all the steps in installing it (it requires some extra steps from your usual antivirus), I saw a nice looking antivirus with a detection rate of up to 90% and a resolving percentage of 60%, but I recommend to use in parallel with another antivirus that provides more cleaning power. Its detection engine is really good, but you might think of getting another software if you want to clean your infected files.. Those numbers are what makes Comodo come on our list of best free antivirus programs.

7. Immunet Protect FREE

This is a fairly good antivirus, much like Panda Cloud Antivirus, it works in the cloud, keeping your computer working free. It offers really good protection against bots, worms, viruses, trojans, keyloggers, and spyware, so a full protection. This was a surprise, but Immunet is a really good antivirus and it has my thumbs up and recommendation for anyone who wants to try it.

8. PC Tools AntiVirus Free

PC Tools AntiVirus is one of the most basic antivirus programs you will find. It has some features, but don’t get excited. I featured it in this list because it is still better than other free antivirus software, but not by much. If you are not an avid internet browser, and more of the type that only sends emails, it will get the job done, but any more than that, I recommend something stronger.

9. Malwarebytes

Malwarebytes is 9th on our list because it doesn’t run in background, so no real time protection and it cannot protect you in real time. Technically, it is not an antivirus. But, the reason it is on our list is because when you run into a problem with malware or worms, trojans and such and your top of the line antivirus can’t handle it, all you have to do is run Malwarebytes and the problem is solved. This little program can handle anything you throw at it. I recommend keeping it on a USB flash drive and when your computer crashes, try giving it a scan in safe mode with this program, it might just save you from a “format C:/”.

10. ClamWin Free Antivirus

ClamWin Free Antivirus is not the best free antivirus. Although you may know it from the Linux version (CalmAV), this is more a basic tool that you use to scan your computer. The reason ClamWin is at the bottom of the list are: no real time protection, lack of features and a little tricky to use. But, on the other side, it does make a really good detecting tool and it doesn’t use many resources.

Keep in mind, the system I tested all these antivirus programs is an Intel i5 750@ 3.5 GHz with 4 GB of DDR3 Memory. Try to find out if these powerful antivirus programs will work well on your systems, as some require lots of horsepower.

There you go, top best antivirus software around. But keep in mind, there is another antivirus that is better than all of those put together! Do not click on suspicious ads or links, do not open spam mail or add in your IM list bots or people who you don’t know. And most important of all, update your antivirus on a regular basis and don’t think just because you have an antivirus software installed you’re protected and you can do whatever you want on the web, be on the guard and help your antivirus, your in this together!

Suggested Read: Top 10 Antivirus Software for Windows

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By requiring US Internet service providers, advertising networks, Internet payment gateway providers and search engines to blacklist copyright violators, the pending Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) seeks to bring The Pirate Bay and other similar foreign sites into their knees. Met by strong opposition from liberty advocates and internet giants like Google, Facebook and Youtube, SOPA will authorize the Department of Justice to seek court order and require ISPs and search engines to blacklist infringing websites or web pages.

In anticipation to impending government intervention on DNS flow, Mozilla supported an open-source browser extension, DeSOPA, to enable American internet users to automatically connect to foreign DNS servers. Although the recent amendment to SOPA addressed security issues related to domain name server resolution, it still leaves many legitimate websites exposed to undue censorship from ISPs and search engines. Under the proposed bill, a foreign website that received a temporary restraining order from a US court due to copyright violation can be completely blocked by local ISPs even if the court only orders the removal of a particular content hosted on a subdomain. Doing so is expected to reduce compliance cost on the part of local ISPs.

How DeSopa Works

By simply installing this browser extension, online surfers can access pirated content and contested services even if the DNS servers of their local ISPs block them. Just click the DeSopa button and Firefox will send the client request to DNS servers outside the US. DeSopa will cache the IP response of valid servers to resolve future DNS requests faster.

When DeSopa is activated, the address bar of the browser will display the IP address of the website rather than its domain name. The IP address will be visible instead of the domain name even if you click the internal links.

Downsides of DeSopa

DeSopa is slower at first usage as compared with DNS servers provided by ISPs. DeSopa has to compare responses from three different offshore DNS services. Moreover, this tool will not work for millions of websites hosted on a common server since they share the same IP address.

Mozilla Under Government Pressure

DeSopa developer Tamer Rizk said that his add-on is a proof that suppressing the flow of Internet via SOPA will not work. In addition to browser workarounds, offshore DNS services will definitely get more lucrative as they serve blocked but popular websites. Others who oppose the bill cite security concerns, arguing that mandatory DNS filtering will prompt American users to choose unsafe foreign DNS services.

Early this year, Mozilla was asked by the Justice Department to drop an add-on that automatically performs DNS workarounds to serve client requests for government-seized domains. Mozilla refused to yield, citing the lack of definite court ruling on the legality of such add-on.

This was a guest post by Bradley Zarich who manages the outsourcing operations of eServe BPO. He writes about wireless gadgets, satellite broadband trends, C-band connectivity and other techie stuffs.

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Update: Firefox 9 is now officially released. You can check for the update within the browser or read below to manually download.

Firefox 9 will be released officially anytime now, but for the impatient souls like me, Mozilla has made available the final version of Firefox 9 on their FTP servers.

As with Firefox 7 & Firefox 8, there are no notable changes to the user interface. The onus is on the performance this time around. There is a new feature called “type inference” added by Mozilla which helps Firefox choose how to handle JavaScript and hence doesn’t require a developer to define a variable. This new feature has resulted in boosting the performance of Firefox by 20-30%.

The beauty of type inference will be seen while using JavaScript heavy sites like Facebook, Google+ & GMail. Personally, I’ve preferred Google Chrome (even with its memory management issues) for its superior JavaScript performance. With type inference, Firefox surely has made me think about going back to Firefox as my primary browser.

Another major improvement in Firefox 9 is the addition of “two finger swipe navigation” in Mac OS X Lion. Also the theme integration for Mac OS X has been improved. Check the change log below

Added Type Inference, significantly improving JavaScript performance
Improved theme integration for Mac OS X Lion
Added two finger swipe navigation for Mac OS X Lion
Added support for querying Do Not Track status via JavaScript
Added support for font-stretch
Improved support for text-overflow
Improved standards support for HTML5, MathML, and CSS
Fixed several stability issues

Download Firefox 9 for Windows
Download Firefox 9 for Linux
Download Firefox 9 for Mac

[via] TNW

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Karaoke software for Windows

1. KaraFun Player

This software is one of the coolest and user friendly ones available. You can benefit from 9000 songs stored in the cloud and the interface is very intuitive. It also gives you the possibility to create your own playlists with your favorite songs and videos. It supports almost any extension you can think of. But to benefit from its full list of features, you have to pay a monthly subscription of $9.99.

KaraFun is also available on mobile platforms, not only on Windows.

2. Siglos Karaoke Professional

This player is offered by Power Karaoke, a website that offers a full range of karaoke software. This software is host to lots of features, including a computer scan for karaoke songs, the capability of making your own playlists, tempo changer and many others. You may want to use this software if you’re a club owner or in other commercial purposes since it will cost you almost $100. But, hey, what won’t you to do become the next Elvis Presley?

3. OneKaraoke

Created by a group that loves karaoke, this software is very intuitive and it promises to bring life to any party. This software is capable of running almost any type of file and it’s fully packed with features from the average karaoke fan to those that love karaoke and want to bring out the best in them.

4. CDG plug-in for Winamp

CDG is a Winamp plug-in for Windows users. This app allows users to run songs from their computer in karaoke format. A great idea, since Winamp is a well-known music player and this plug-in allows users to enjoy karaoke without any additional programs installed. You won’t have to pay a dime for it and that’s the best part of it! The plug-in may be old but it’s great as in the first day!

5. Advanced Karaoke Player

This software is more than a karaoke player, it also has the capability to organize your media files and do all your heavy lifting for you. This software allows you to quickly access your karaoke files, so a party can never catch you unprepared. Maybe the bad part about is that you first have to convert your files into ones that have a compatible extension.

6. PC DJ Karaoki

This software is a bit more advanced; it helps you organize a karaoke night by adding karaoke songs and editing the play options. It’s really intuitive and simple to use and the feature of using a second monitor for displaying the lyrics and the main monitor to continue editing the playlist, lets you keep the show going.

7. Karaoke Player

A simple name for a simple software. Karaoke Player is just what it says it is: a software that allows you to play karaoke files on your computer. The program is very user friendly and really simple to use. Perfect for those who don’t want to hustle with synchronizing their karaoke files.

Karaoke software for Mac OS

1. KJams

KJams is a Mac OS software for karaoke, that somehow resembles iTunes. It allows users to download their favorite songs and sing them in karaoke format, for everyone to enjoy. You can export your songs to your iPod or iPhone and it has the possibility to play any format. So, it’s not a karaoke player only for for Mac but basically for all your Apple devices.

2. iStar

This app is one of the coolest karaoke players available on Mac. It lets you import music to the player and create playlists according to your preferences. The simple, easy to use interface lets anyone use it with no hustle and its beautiful features are enough for every karaoke enthusiast.

3. TunePrompter

TunePrompter is a software that lets you create your own karaoke tunes. With its simple to use interface, you can easily create and upload all your karaoke videos to your iPod, iPhone and Apple TV, or burn them to a disc. Another cool feature of TunePrompter is that it automatically searches for lyrics, a nice feature that will certainly save a lot of time.

4. KaraTunes

This software is a simple Mac OS application that also lets you create or edit your karaoke collection. It automatically searches for lyrics and it is really simple to use. In just a few minutes you are ready to sing to your heart’s content. If you didn’t know, “cara” in Italian means “dear”.

5. ARIA

Aria is more than a karaoke player. This software can also be used in DJ mode or in Scratch mode. It has a simple interface, therefore anyone can use it and the list of features just keeps going and going: it has the possibility to use two monitors, it features an online music store and the editing options are really cool. Aria is one of the best and complete packages I’ve ever seen.

6. QMidi v2.0

This complete karaoke studio is absolutely great! It features a sound mixer and it supports almost all audio formats and it has lots of features for synchronizing and formatting your lyrics. Just what you need to get the party going!

7. KMid v2.4.0

KMid is a little karaoke player that plays MIDI and karaoke files. It supports playlists, MIDI mappers and it has the possibility to change the tempo, volume and pitch and configurable character encoding, font and color for lyrics. It also has lots of graphic views for piano play and other instruments.

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This has been a very busy week and bad news is that it is not over yet. There was the Le Web where Eric Schmidt showed of Android 4.0 (ICS) on the Nexus S and on the tablet, Twitter came out with  a new UI for Android, iOS and web, also updated the Desktop UI, we also saw the Facebook app for Android UI changes. Yup, have been busy. We also saw the launch of the famous Flipboard app on the iPhone and the iPad which lets you see the regular news feeds in form of magazines with rich text formatting and good UI. Just last night, Google uploaded Google Currents to the Android market and the Apple App store which seems to be Google’s answer to Flipboard. Let’s look a bit closely to this application.

First of all I was disappointed when I came to know that this application is available only in the U.S for now. With Le Web going on, I thought at least Google will make it available in Europe, also Hugo Barra who was present at the Le Web demonstration did not show any peek or give hints of this new application they have been working on. Anyway, leaving that aside I managed to download the application by spoofing my Android market to believe I am from the U.S. As soon as I finished downloading I extracted the APK and uploaded it for all the people in any country to download. You will be able to find the link to download this application at the end of this post.

At first I used it on my tablet, when I opened the application it asked me to which Google account all the data should be synced, as soon as you select your preferred account it takes you to a window which gives you tips about how to use and go about with the application, you can swipe past each tip which is very helpful for a first time user. As soon as that window is closed you are greeted by a neat UI with white background and a few websites already synced like Forbes and 500px which are being downloaded to the right. To the left we can see large images with it’s title in the bottom, these are the various articles or posts from the websites you have subscribed to in the library and you can go to the p0st you are interested in just by clicking on it.

Google Currents: Layout

There are are basically two views, one is where you can find the websites you have subscribed to and it is called as the “Library“. If you have subscribed to many websites then you can just swipe to the left to go onto the next page. The second view is “Trending“, this shows you the trending news all around the world whether you have subscribed to that website or not. To view this just click on Trending besides Library on the left pane. Here you will also be able to add more trends, if you are interested in science and technology then you can add that or if you would also want to know more about entertainment then you can add that too by selecting “Add more Trends” at the bottom of the left pane. One thing that I did not like about trends is that it shows me articles from the websites I have not subscribed to  but I cannot open it until I subscribe to that website, which means I will not be able to view that single article until I have downloaded the entire content on the website which is a bit irritating. But I do love the option to look at what the user generated trends are, all about the posts and various stories related to a particular topic.

How to subscribe to new websites

It is very easy to subscribe to new website, just click on Add more at the end of the page in Library and it will take you to a window where in the left you have an option to select the category you are looking for like Science & Technology, Lifestyle, Entertainment, etc and to the right you have the websites which belong to that category and you can subscribe to them by pressing Add for free. I think all of these websites currently are available to download for free, but in the future there might be paid magazines too. You can also add trends to your trending list by pressing the options besides Library on the top. One good thing I found here is that you can also add websites from your Google Reader, in short this app syncs with Google reader too. One thing I found weird is we can also subscribe to the Google+ account of people like Robert Scoble, Guy Kawasaki, etc. If you subscribe to this people then you will be able to check out there Google+ posts from inside the application, though currently there are very few people to subscribe to.

Update: If you are getting error messages like “An unknown error while searching for Editions” while trying to sync with Google Reader, all you need to do is, Go to Google Reader -> Manage Subscriptions and then delete/rename any ‘Untitled Subscriptions’ [Credit: cdcooperuk]

Options bar:

To the bottom you will find a small bar which has settings button to the extreme left, share and search button, it also shows you which website it is currently syncing. In settings you will be able to change the accounts which is currently synced too, you can change the text size, change the sync settings to change battery when on WiFi and while charging, and you can also give feedback, it is just a small pop up. You can start/stop the syncing by pressing the sync button which is to the right of the settings button. To the left most you have the share button and the search button where you will be able to search any article inside your library.

Let’s take a look what happens when you click on any website:

Once you click on a website you get a whole new interface with options to choose view articles of various categories like Technology, news, videos, but this is limited to some of the websites whom Google has been working with, if you have subscribed to a normal website then it will show the normal articles in a magazine style which when pressed will open the entire article. Here we can also see that the options in the bottom bar has been changed too, we can see back button, and besides it there is a book shaped button which when pressed opens up all the articles on that particular website and you can navigate to the article you want from there itself, what I found useful is that we can even search from inside that pane. You also have the home option which when pressed will take you to the main window of the application, to the right you have the share button and besides you have the button to view the next page.

A look at the articles:

Once you click on any article it shows you the article nicely formatted with pictures and title in bold. I would love to read any article in this format though I wish the next page button, actually all the buttons at the bottom to be a bit bigger. well if the article is too long then at the bottom before the bar there will be an indicator which will show how many pages there are in total and on which page you are which is very useful, you can go through these pages by just swiping, once the article is finished you can just swipe to go to the next article. It is easy to share these articles just by pressing the share button and choosing which application to share. You can also open the all articles view to choose the next article or just click on home to go back to the main window.

Google currents on phone

Google Currents on phone has a similar interface and gestures and the buttons go very well due to the size of the display. One thing I liked about the phone application is that it automatically synced all my subscribed websites from the tablet to the phone as soon as I selected my account. This feature can be useful to a lot of people and personally I loved it. But if you have low internal memory and if you have subscribed to many websites then this can be a problem as Google currents stores the data and images of these websites internally if you have enabled sync images for offline use then there will be loads of data coming your way and your device could run out of space.

Wrap-up

The User Interface of Google currents looks brilliant but I think that Google updated this app in a hurry to compete with Flipboard. It looks like a half baked app, no wonder it is only being pushed in the U.S. It is not ready for everyone to use.

Upsides:

• Beautiful User Interface
• Easy to share and navigate
• Good method to view random articles and trending topics
• Syncing with Google reader and Google accounts on various devices
• Easy to use on a whole
• Good optimization for tablets and phones

Downsides:

• Pixelated images on some articles
• Performance issues and lack of smoothness (A bit choppy sometimes)
• Slow in loading
• No method to stack websites in same category
• Can’t read a single article in trends unless subscribed to that website
• Some people have reported that they are thrown an error messages: “An unknown error while searching for Editions” when they try to sync with Google Reader (Worked fine for me)

This is just the initial look at this application, it was just made available yesterday and not globally. I am hoping that Google’s update is on it’s way and will reach us anytime soon. Google currents is available on Android phones and tablets, it is also available on the iPad and the iPhone.

If you are in the U.S you can look for the app in Android market or click here.

If you are outside the U.S you can download the app from here.

If you are using an apple device you can look at it over here or download it from the iTunes.

Note: You can subscribe to Technically Personal on Google Currents.

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Guest post by David Lazar.

With more and more students of all ages taking to the Internet to learn instead of going to the library, online tools for aiding a person’s quest for an education are more numerous than they have ever been. If you are using Google Chrome as your default browser to study and do research, you are probably already aware of the many helpful extensions that are available to help you with your studies.

Here are some of the best education-related extensions and add-ons available for Google Chrome.

To start off, here are some great chrome extensions that are geared towards enhancing your learning experience in some of the most common school subjects.

Math

Graphing calculator by Desmos.com

If you are looking for the ultimate graphing calculator for your browser, look no further. It’s easy to use and very powerful, considering it’s free.

Carrotsticks

If you are looking for a fun way to get elementary school students interested in learning math, Carrotsticks is an entertaining and informative learning tool that helps kids learn the basics through a fun online, multiplayer game.

Numerics Calculator & Converter

This tool offers you the assistance of a calculator and powerful converter all in one. It can also be used offline, which makes it even more attractive for students always on the go.

Cloudy Calculator

If you need a simple and easy-to-use calculator for everyday calculations and mathematical equations, Cloudy Calculator is your best bet.

Science

The Elementals

A fun and simple way to get students to learn the periodic table. Each element is represented with its own personality, making it easy and fun to learn.

Planetarium

If you are interested in astronomy, this is a great extension. Explore the skies with a click of the mouse.

Scientific calculator

Powerful, programmable and works offline – one of the best scientific calculators you’ll find for your browser, especially if you are working with complex calculations.

Advanced Periodic Table

For more advanced science students, this is a great way to perfect your knowledge of the elements and conquer the periodic table once and for all.

History

Quotes Book

This great add-on continuously supplies you with some of the most famous quotes from throughout history. You can save the ones you like and create your own book of favorite quotes that you will be able to revisit anytime.

QuintessArt

This extension gives you a virtual tour of museums and art galleries, helping you discover the world’s most famous masterpieces of art. It’s perfect for art history students.

Ustimeline

A great add-on for students, teachers and all US history enthusiasts, it provides tons of information on American history through many interesting games, quizzes and exercises.

Geography

Google Maps

A convenient way to browse Google Maps within your browser. Learn geography firsthand by exploring the world virtually.

USA Maps

A great interactive game for students you want to learn all 50 states and gain knowledge about American geography in general.

Maps of World – Quiz

A fantastic quiz that will improve your geography skills through fun tests that not only involved geography, but also history and current events as well.

Health

BioDigital Human

Students can learn about anatomy, disease and treatments through this excellent interactive tool that allows them to get familiar with the human body by exploring it in 3D.

HealthAliciousNess.com

Learn about nutrition and healthy eating habits and lifestyles through this easy-to-follow guide for all things food and health related.

WebMD

Medical students must get this great extension. It provides a great way to keep up with all of the latest medical news and information from around the world.

English

Google Dictionary

This fantastic add-on enables you to look up the meaning of any word you find on the Internet by simple highlighting it. It can save you a lot of time when you are reading something demanding and challenging.

Thesaurus

A free app that will get you the synonyms and antonyms of any word within seconds.

Word Joust for SAT

A perfect tool for students you are preparing for their SATs and need to polish up on their vocabularies.

Foreign Languages

Polyglot

Polish up your foreign language skills with this great tool that will translate websites into various different languages.

Japanese Kana

This application enables you to learn the Japanese writing systems hiragana and katakana through entertaining quizzes.

Google Translate

All the power of Google Translate right at your fingertips and easily accessed within your browser – what more can you ask for?

Learn Spanish – SpanishPod101.com

A fast and easy way to learn Spanish through fun audio and video lessons provided by one of the most trusted Spanish language learning centers working online.

Learn French

This add-on offers you games and interactive lessons that makes learning French easier and more efficient.

Now check out these tools that will help make studying easier and help you out in getting all of your school work done on time and staying productive while learning and researching on the Internet.

Note Taking

Note Anywhere

This tool enables you to put reminders and notes all over the web on any site that you find interesting or information.

ChromePad

Use this extension to leave notes for yourself and create a virtual to-do list while studying or working on a school project.

Diigo Web Highlighter

This is a great tool for when you are doing research online that lets you highlight pages and leave yourself notes on pages that you want to go back to later.

myNotes

One of the handiest tools for taking notes while researching on the web.

Layers

With Layers you can add content and sticky notes to what you are viewing on the web, giving the sites that you are viewing additional layers of information.

Snippy

This extension enables you to take small snippets of web content and save them into your Google Docs account.

Research

Evernote Web Clipper

This tool works like a virtual book of clippings that will help you save pertinent content and have easy access to it while researching on the Web.

Wikipedia

This tool allows you to gain easy and fast access to Wikipedia, one of the most important research sites available on the Internet.

GradeGuru Citation Manager

A great tool for managing references and citations when you are writing a research paper.

Email This Page

You can use this extension if you find an interesting page that you want to email to yourself for later use.

Session Buddy

This tool allows you to save, edit and restore your browser sessions so that you do not lose track of your research after closing your browser.

Google Similar Pages

This tool helps you to find pages that are similar to good pages you have found in your research and helps you to find lesser-known webpages that might be very helpful to you.

Productivity

Incredible StartPage

By creating a start page that has everything you need on it, this tool makes navigation a lot easier and says you a lot of time.

Highlight to Search

This add-one enables you to search words and phrases by simply highlighting them instead of having to type or copy and paste them into your Google search.

StayFocusd

This extension keeps you focused by blocking all of the sites that you tend to waste a lot of time on.

RemindMe

A fantastic extension that will remind you of import things that you have to do. A lot of people can get caught up in studying and forget about their other obligations – this add-on helps them to remember these duties as well.

Google Tasks

This add-on aids you in using Google Tasks for effectively and quickly so that you always have all of your projects at your fingertips without missing a beat.

Google Chrome Dual View

This extension enables you to easily look at two sites at once by splitting your Chrome browser into half and displaying both for you.

Things To Do

This add-on shows you your to-do list every time you open a new tab so that you do not forget what you have to do while browsing the Internet.

My Shortcuts

This extension gives you a browser pull-down menu that enables you to create new Google Docs, Calendar event or emails with just one click.

Tab With Clock

If you are interested in seeing how much time you are spending on viewing a site, this extension shows you. It is a good way to see which sites you are wasting time on most and then try to avoid them when studying.

Split Screen

Yet another add-on that will split the screen and enable you to compare two different sites at once when doing research.

ChromeMilk

This add-on is for those of you that use Remember the Milk, a service that reminds you of what you have to do. It puts your to-do list right inside your browser.

Rescue Time

Another extension that will show you what sites you waste your time on most and what sites you need to stay clear of in order to remain productive.

Google Calendar Checker

A great extension for those that use a Google Calendar to keep track of their responsibilities. It lists all of your obligations and tells you how long you have to get them done.

This was a guest post by David Lazar who is a blogger at PdfConverter.com. With a background in journalism, he enjoys writing about and following a variety of topics, including careers, technology and new media.

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Screen sharing applications and programs present a way to say good-bye to never-ending business meetings and conference calls. People from all around the world use this feature to ease the communication and better expose one’s work or project.

As the world is slowly but surely shifting its focus towards smaller, portable solution for every day use, consumer technology seems to be the part of civilization that makes this possible. The incredible race of smartphone and tablet wars is producing newer, shinier products every year. That’s why most of the applications presented below will work with your smartphone, be it an iPhone, Android, BlackBerry or WP7. But let’s start with the desktop screen sharing tools.

Windows Screen Sharing Tools

1. Team Viewer

A picture says more than a thousand words! The best way to describe probably the world’s best known screen sharing application. TeamViewer allows users to remote control servers and other PC’s, attend business presentations and file transfer. Using this software, users don’t have to worry about firewalls, blocked ports and proxy servers and it even compensates for low bandwidth and dial-up connections, changing the quality of the transmission to better suite the network connection of every user.

2. Skype

Instant messaging, file transfer, video calls, in one word: Skype! Microsoft’s most recent acquisition is taking a step forward, and that is screen sharing. Skype offers a broad range of services to its users, user friendly interface and for Mac users, group screen sharing. Available on all the platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux, Mobile), users can benefit from its functions everywhere. Business calls now can be enhanced with presentations and group meetings.

3. Free Screen Sharing

As the name suggests, this is a free screen sharing software giving users up to six hours of web conferencing, product demonstrations, webinars and more. This software grants users the possibility to access phone conferences and video conferences, making their own lobby, complete with company logo, uploaded images, meeting title, which give the meeting a sense of real life interaction.

4. Vyew

A browser-based screen sharing tool that has the flexibility of using any Operating System(Windows, Mac, Linux), upload documents(PowePoints, images, videos, mp3’s or flash files). Users have the possibility to use a whiteboard and Voice-over-IP. Very intuitive and easy to use, Vyew offers users the possibility to customize their meeting room in any way they want, using files, pictures and videos with up to 10 partners.

5. Cross Loop

If you are looking to deliver online support, Cross Loop is an effective tool that gives users the possibility to remote access their computers and screen sharing. CrossLoop is available in over 20 languages and in over 188 countries, so that anyone can collaborate with someone who has the knowledge to help them. Those who have the expertise to make a difference should be able to easily share their knowledge and be recognized.

6. SkyFex

SkyFex is a browser tool which works through firewalls, proxies and gives users a secure 256 bit SSL encryption, ideal for business meetings, screen sharing and remote control and file sharing. This tool also allows multiple monitor casting and voice calls. The software is user friendly and gives tech support staff a detailed list of the remote system they are analyzing.

Mac OS Screen Sharing Apps

1. Jing

This software is a intuitive screen sharing application with simple and elegant design. It goes hand in hand with the social needs of everyone, by giving users the possibility to make, customize and send screenshots and video recordings to their online social networks, use clipboards and send their files in no time anywhere. Jing can also record video and audio at the same time, feature that helps in the making of instructional videos. Jing is a fun to use software and gives users the possibility to share their content fast and easy.

2. Yuuguu

High quality screen sharing, easy to use and no installer needed, Yuuguu promises business meeting like you never had before! With the network speed detector, Yuuguu can adjust the transition to bring flowing images. Yuuguu offers users the possibility of web conferences, schedule meetings and collaborate with customers and business partners In just 3 steps and nothing to install, you benefit from a web-browser conference anywhere in the world.

3. Bosco’s Screen Share

The bridge between Windows and Mac is a thing of the past with Bosco’s Screen Share. This tool is very intuitive to use, works on every platform and gives users the possibility to multicast their screen over the Internet. Using a proprietary p2p protocol, Bosco’s Screen Share can skip over the sometimes difficult client/server setup and gives users easy screen sharing sessions.

4. Mikogo

This all-in-one package gives users the benefit of screen sharing, chat, whiteboard and has a broad range of usages: technical support, business meetings and presentations, teaching. The multicasting capability of the program and the fact that it gives cross platform possibilities(Windows, Mac, Linux) make it a wonderful tool for any conference. Mikogo also has file transfer feature, therefor making it easy to transfer presentations and reports while in the meeting.

5. AnyMeeting

AnyMeeting has a number of features that make it a screen sharing application worth considering. It doesn’t need a installer and can host meeting with up to 200 members, it gives users the possibility to send meeting invitations and create custom registration forms, sell tickets for webinars, record meetings and screen sharing with live video conferencing, voice-over-IP calls and many others. This free tool offers the possibility to promote your meetings over social networks(Twitter, Facebook), display presentations and it’s compatible with Mac and Windows alike.

Mobile Screen Sharing Apps

Android Screen-Sharing Apps

1. Show My PC

Show My PC is an online meetings and remote support software which gives users a wide range of features like: website widgets for customer support, desktop and audio recording, a personal homepage from which you can access a remote PC, schedule meeting, whiteboard, P2P connections, local server connection and many others. The software is available for many platforms(Windows, Mac, Linux and Android)and the Reconnect on Reboot feature is really useful for technical support.

2. Webex

It seems that Android is the mobile platform of the future and as people are more and more on the move, the software designers are trying to give our smartphones the capability to take us everywhere we need to be. WebEx is a screen sharing application for Android OS which does exactly that: gets us to meetings, with excellent audio and video capabilities and lets us use documents and applications remotely. It’s an easy to use app, perfect for all you business-men out there who go by every day thinking “time is money”.

3. Remotix

Flexible and fast, Remotix is an Android (there is an iOS version, as well) screen sharing application which provides a number of customizable features for its users to enjoy! Apart from the flawless performance, Remotix has the possibility of typing on an extended keyboard, multi-touch gesture set and it searches for servers and  setups without any human intervention. Available on most mobile platforms, the users have reported some problems when trying to use Remotix on the Tegra platforms.

iPhone, iPad Screen-Sharing Apps

1. Join Me

A simple screen sharing tool that is designed to save time and be used by anyone, anywhere. No registration and no download needed, this tool offers screen sharing, instant messaging, share control and being available for Windows, iPad/iPhone and Android, users use this tool to successfully replace business meetings and much more. The tool is extremely intuitive and it covers a range of users from helpdesk technicians to family members looking to get closer to their loved ones from anywhere in the world.

2. Mobile Presenter Pro

An app that allows iPad owners to wirelessly share their screen and files with other iOS devices, print to network and shared printers and send faxes, as well as a whiteboard. There is the disadvantage of having an iPad frame on the shared screen, making it smaller on the viewing devices.

3. iDemo

Ever wondered how Steve Jobs did the iPhone presentations? Well, he used the iDemo app, which lets you mirror your iDevice (iPhone/iPad) on a computer screen. It works via Wi-Fi connection or USB cable and if you want to see how it’s like to be Steve Jobs and do an iPhone presentation, you can give it a try. The days of singing in front of the mirror are over, now we “iSing” in front of a computer screen.

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AnchorFree’s Hotspot Shield has to be one of the most popular Free VPN services in the world right now, so much so that country specific web services like Hulu & BBC iPlayer ensure to block Hotspot Shield’s IPs from their network. Yet, it is still one of the most widely used free VPN on desktops, and now, it is available for iOS devices too. Ironically, it’s not a free app!

Hotspot Shield was always available on iPhones, but users had to manually set it up. But now, AnchorFree has launched a native app which offers safe and private browsing and comes with an unique data compression feature which can potentially halve a user’s data consumption.

Hotspot Shield for iPhone & iPad is particularly useful when you are using a public WiFi or any other unsecured network as it provides you with a protected gateway, keeping your passwords and private data secure. Hotspot Shield provides people with a temporary IP address and encrypts their data so they can browse safely, away from prying eyes. In this age, security threats to mobile phones are increasing multi-folds and services like Hotspot Shield should come as a great help.

The data compression service can greatly reduce the mobile bill at the end of the month. Hotspot Shield compresses all text and images through its servers but doesn’t address video yet. Users can choose between high, medium and low settings to set how much compression is applied, which affects image quality.

Hotspot Shield app for iOS isn’t free as such, but users can try it out for a week, and then subscribe to service for 99 cents a month or $9.99 a year, with one subscription for all their iOS devices. AnchorFree is also providing two hours worth of free Skype calls for users who subscribe. An Android version is expected later this year.

Download Hotspot Shield VPN for iOS [via Gigaom]

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The next major version of Firefox web browser – Firefox 8 is scheduled to go live from November 8th, but the final versions for Windows, Mac & Linux are already available on Mozilla’s FTP servers. Though Mozilla has restrained from making any major changes to the UI, they have managed to address some key security aspects in this new release.

Third party add-on installation management

The most important change is in the way Firefox handles third party add-on installations. Previously, there were no checks in place in the browser, as any third party software could add its own extension into the browser without even asking the user for permissions. This has been addressed in Firefox 8.

Integrated Twitter Search

Twitter search is now integrated within the Firefox browser search. Users can now look for Tweets right from the browser’s address bar and search bar.

Improved Startup time

Another useful feature added in Firefox 8 is the way the browser loads the tabs on start. Users can configure Firefox to only load the selected tab on browser start, and the remaining ones once they are activated by the user. This can result in faster start of the browser.

There’s also improved WebSocket support, improved tab animations, improved memory handling and added support for HTML5 context menus.

Download Firefox 8 via Mozilla FTP Servers

As I mentioned before, Firefox 8 will be officially available on November 8th. If you are restless and want to try out the final version right now, you can head over to Mozilla’s FTP channels and manually download the installables. Others can wait for the official release.

Download Firefox8 for Windows, Mac and Linux

[via]Ghacks

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