Category: Uncategorized

Bing Maps just get better and better! Larry Larsen of Channel 10 has reminded me of the new Map Apps feature that allows you to add customised overlays onto Bing maps. Head over to http://www.bing.com/maps/explore/ to discover a handy map overlay. I love the ‘What’s Nearby’ app that helps you find useful places like restaurants,…

If you run a 64-bit version of Windows and find that you are unable to preview Adobe Acrobat files you’ll be relieved to learn there’s now a fix available from pretentiousname.com. The tool also works for 64-bit versions of Microsoft Office 2010 and fixes some erroneous registry entries. So, stop waiting for Adobe to fix…

This is a nice bit of fun from the Windows Live team. Check out the brand new Experience Pack that allows you to customise Windows 7 and Windows Live Messenger with some quirky (or should that be creepy?!) personalised avatar images based on a photo you upload or take on your webcam. Installation is a…

Fed up with all those Post-it notes cluttering your desk? Wondering why you’re spending more at the stationery store than ever before? Maybe you’ll be pleased to discover the Sticky Notes magic in Windows 7! To get started, just type Sticky Notes in the program launch bar under the Start button. A blank sticky note…

If you’ve seen the TV ad you’ll no doubt already know about the invaluable ‘Snap’ feature in Windows 7 that helps you arrange windows by simply dragging them to the edge of the screen. Once you’ve used this feature, you never want to go back. I accidentally discovered a new twist on Windows Snap today:…

I enjoyed this excellent article which first appeared in last week’s Marketing magazine in the UK. With social media channels changing the way we search for and interact with information of all types, it’s clear that marketers like me must now figure out how they’ll manage and segregate their personal and professional brands within online…

We don’t do political commentary on the UsefulTechnology blog, but we’re always happy to share tips to help you save money. And, with a general election on the UK horizon any time soon, our advice today would be “never donate money to a political party”. They’ll only wizzle your money up the wall doing moronic…

I guess it was only a matter of time. Yes, the oh-so-predictable fusion of “must-have gadgets” and “sex sells” has finally happened with the arrival of Swaxy.com. So now you can lust after that gorgeous new gadget with tiny buttons, while also admiring a fake-tanned dolly with enormous… Health and Safety Warning: Never store darts…

Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What it Says About Us) If you’ve ever wondered why other people are always such bad drivers, this book could help. And perhaps it’s you who’s the problem, not them. Having read this book I have a much better appreciation of why we drive the way…

Just launched by my chums in the Microsoft online team, a new site to showcase some of the interesting things that Microsoft gets up to. And no, we’re not trying to sell you anything here; we just thought it would be neat to package up some of our more funky stuff into one place. See…