Yak Shaving -- [MIT AI Lab, after 2000: orig. probably from a Ren & Stimpy episode.] Any seemingly pointless activity which is actually necessary to solve a problem which solves a problem which, several levels of recursion later, solves the real problem you're working on.

#760 Home Hack -- Vinegar will help fresh cut flowers last longer. Add 2 tablespoons of vinegar and 1 teaspoon sugar for each quart of water. (HT: Frugal Gardening)

#761 Gmail Hack -- Gmail Manager allows you to manage multiple Gmail accounts and receive new mail notifications. Displays your account details including unread messages, saved drafts, spam messages, labels with new mail, space used, and new mail snippets. (HT: MakeUseOf.com)

#762 Online Tool -- Quintura for Kids is a tag-based search engine that specializes in searching for content about a particular topic. Quintura for Kids is intuitive enough that youngsters can search on their own while safe enough that parents won't have to worry what they'll find. (Lifehack)

#763 HowTo -- How to reset a frozen iPod

#764 Download of the Week -- Freeware app Tooler lets you create lots of useful shortcuts to perform tasks like shutting off your monitor, running your screensaver, and ejecting your optical drive. (HT: Lifehacker)

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.