July 20, 2005

Yak Shaving Razor #13


#110 Portable Hard Drive -- Xmail Hard Drive lets you turn your Gmail account into a portable, web-accessible, 2 MB hard drive. Because it requires logging in with your email password, you might want to set up a new account Gmail account to use specifically for this service. (HT: Lifehacker)

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#111 Laptop Hack -- Extend battery life by dimming the screen. The screen is the biggest drain on the battery, so dim it to the lowest setting for longest uptime sans outlet. (HT: Lifehacker)

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#112 XP Hack -- For a slight speed boost, try disabling Windows' Indexing, a feature that keeps a record of all files on your hard drive. Go to Control Panel > Performance and Maintenance > Administrative Tools, and double-click Services. Scroll down to Indexing Service, then double-click it. In the General tab, select Disabled from the "Startup type" pull-down menu, and click OK. (HT: Computer Shopper)

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#113 Know Your Fallacies -- Argumentum ad consequentiam - The author points to the disagreeable consequences of holding a particular belief in order to show that this belief is false. (Ex. You can't agree that evolution is true, because if it were, then we would be no better than monkeys and apes.)

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#114 Glue Tip -- Need to glue glass to vinyl, styrofoam to rubber, or some other odd combination of materials? This and That offers advice on the best types of glues to use for a wide range of surfaces and materials.

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#115 HowTo -- How to flirt

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#116 PDF Hack -- Need to convert a file (i.e., HTML, DOC, PPT) or picture (i.e., JPG, BMP, PNG) into a PDF? A free web-based service at PDF Online not only allows you to convert various file types into PDF but offers a way to convert PDF files to HTML. (HT: LifeHack)

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#117 SoYouWanna -- Learn About Classical Music

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#118 Math Hack -- With this trick, you will be able to multiply any two numbers from 11 to 19 in your head quickly, without the use of a calculator:

  • Take 15 x 13 for an example.

  • Always place the larger number of the two on top in your mind.

  • Then draw the shape of Africa mentally so it covers the 15 and the 3 from the 13 below. Those covered numbers are all you need.
  • First add 15 + 3 = 18

  • Add a zero behind it (multiply by 10) to get 180.

  • Multiply the covered lower 3 x the single digit above it the "5" (3x5= 15)

  • Add 180 + 15 = 195.

With a few minutes practice you should be able to multiply up to 20 x 20 in your head. (It's actually easier than it sounds.) (HT: Fantastic Math Tricks)

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#119 Writer's Toolkit -- #4: Period As a Stop Sign

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See also: The Yak Shaving Razor Archives

Have a useful recommendation for making life more pleasant? Send them to me at jpcarter[at]evangelicaloutpost.com.


comments
Matthew Goggins writes:

1

Great link to "This and That" -- it singlehandedly serves as a justification for the internet.

posted on 07.20.2005 7:01 AM