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RT @aral: Just updated the 'Avit screencast: No longer exits to mobile Safari and has a much more streamlined flow :) http://avitapp.com/
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16Dec
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16Dec
Apple may never open-source their technology, but ifixit.com has announced that they’re releasing their entire collection of guides and illustrative images for Apple computer repair under a Crative Commons licence. The specific license they have opted for means anyone can copy, publish and adapt the guides as long as they acknowledge the original source and don’t use them for commercial purposes. The same will apply to any future material listed on the site.
While the guides have always been free to use, the site hopes the licensing will make it easier for people to put forward improvements and corrections to the details inside. It also says the license is a message that it’s not only OK to translate the guides into other languages, but that doing so is actively encouraged.
As well as the instructions themselves, the license also covers more than 150,000 images designed to make it easier to be sure you are carrying out every step of the repairs correctly. That still doesn’t mean carrying out your own repairs is for everyone, but the guides certainly provide a viable option to paying a hefty sum for an official repair, particularly for something relatively simple such as replacing an iPod battery.
The site’s reasons for making the information available in this way isn’t necessarily what you might expect. It says the idea is to make it easier for people to repair their products rather than needlessly throw them away and buy replacements, thus cutting down unnecessary production and bringing about environmental benefits.
While the information is given away without charge, the site makes its money by selling spare parts. It says this is why it has chosen to block commercial use of the guides as it can’t afford to risk losing business to fellow parts sellers.
As well as producing the repair guides, the site also hosts a series of “teardowns“: a comprehensive project taking an Apple device apart and detailing exactly what parts are inside and where they come from. It’s also great for picking up some nerdy trivia such as the fact that on the latest iMac models, the Apple logo (being the only plastic area in the casing) houses the Wi-Fi antenna.
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16DecChrome gets recursive and tells you to download itself. http://skitch.com/adzap... /via @lachlanhardy
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16Dechttp://scriptcanary.com/ launched today. It is a service that monitors your site and tells you when there are JS errors :)
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16DecChrome Extensions and webOS Applications look quite similar: “If you squint, Chrome Extensions and webOS applic... http://almaer.com/blog...
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16DecChrome Extensions and webOS Applications look quite similar - http://almaer.com/blog...
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16Dec
Well, it’s December, and for many of you (not me – I’m in Georgia!), the weather outside is frightful. Which means that it’s time for some potentially geeky art projects of the snowy variety. After all, snowmen are to winter as jack-o-lanterns are to autumn. So if you were looking for some ideas for your creations, have a look at these!
Corncob pipes and button noses are so low-tech. – dominichargreaves (CC)
Frosty the Cylon was a jolly, happy soul… – don solo (CC)
Frosty Who? Though as far as scarves go, you can’t really get much better than that. – great beyond (CC)
This is not the snowman you’re looking for. – balakov (CC)
The snowman itself might be fairly nondescript, but there’s nothing like letting your favorite manga character help you build it. – manic (CC)
… or you can get the assistance of a robot. Even low-tech robots can handle a little snow. – flygraphix (CC)
At Oxford, even the snowmen are intellectuals. – daveybot (CC)
I’m convinced at this point that you canmake a Dalek out of pretty much anything. – thebadastronomer (CC)
It might not look like much, but this snowman can be freely distributed or modified! – eriol (CC)
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16Dec
Earlier this week we saw a stark lesson in the power of a label when it comes to promoting your business.
Using the right vocabulary is everything when it comes to writing powerful copy. And though I adore words even more than donuts, it was only recently that I realized I had been using some of them all wrong.
In fact, for far too long, I was beating my thick head against a wall I never should have built in the first place. A wall I built by using the wrong words, or by using them in a way that didn’t support my business.
Shedding a comfortable skin
When Writer Dad first started to take off late last summer, the most frequent responses were compliments on the strength of my writing.
So, like Pavlov’s dog I started to salivate every time someone sent any sort of praise my way.
I began to focus on the way I was writing more than the thoughts that my writing conveyed. I was losing sight of the fact that people were reading my words because of the ideas behind them, not because of the way they were strung together.
There were times I wrote posts with sentences I thought were good enough to frame. But it was doing nothing to pay my bills or push me forward in any significant way. James Chartrand, on more than one occasion, kindly warned me, “clarity over cleverness.” But of course I didn’t listen.
I was a writer. Not only would I reinvent the wheel, I’d make up a new word for it too. Perhaps wheelovation.
Eventually, I swallowed Morpheus’s red pill and started writing something that actually made some money: search engine optimized copy.
At first, I kept it contained to my clients’ site, and a few niche sites I was developing. I didn’t let any SEO copy near the hallowed grounds of my home site.
My secret SEO life
I felt like a clergyman making bucks on the side by writing pornography. This SEO writing wasn’t art.
But it was starting to do something that my “art” wasn’t doing. Namely, paying some bills.
It wasn’t long before I found my utilitarian copy outperforming my “best work” at every level, other than the purrs pointed at my own ego.
I might have been rocking the comments on my primary blog, but the “dirty” copy I kept under my online mattress was garnering traffic, gathering links, and gaining major headway in search engine results.
All of which led me directly to what was probably the single best lesson I have learned in my first year online.
The best word isn’t necessarily the most elegant, intelligent, humorous, fitting, or rhythmic.
The right word is the one that generates the opt-in, sells the product, or invites the link.
Labels matter
Last August, Brian Clark and Sonia Simone released a course for freelance writers, called the Want more of the right words to support your business? Subscribe to the free Copyblogger email newsletter, Internet Marketing for Smart People. It will keep your business moving forward with marketing advice that doesn’t insult your intelligence.
About the Author: Sean Platt is a direct response copywriter who writes about creativity at Collective Inkwell and slings ink for hire at Ghostwriter Dad. Follow him on Twitter.
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16Dec
If you’re looking for a cheap HD pocket camcorder, Amazon.com has the Flip MinoHD for only $119.99 today, shipping included. That’s 40% off the device’s usual retail price. Please note that if you’re looking to purchase things from Amazon.com and don’t want to pay for shipping, today is one of the last days where you can take advantage of this and get your stuff in time for Christmas.The Flip MinoHD puts the power of HD video in your pocket. Flip MinoHD offers all the signature Flip Video features you love—sleek design, simple user interface, flip-out USB arm, rechargeable internal Li-ion battery, built-in editing and sharing software, instant uploads to Facebook, YouTube, and MySpace—plus stunningly crisp, clear 720P HD-quality video. Order now and get it in time for December 25.
[40% Off Flip MinoHD Camcorder - $119.99, Shipped]
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16Dec
How many can you recognize?
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