Lock your Mac’s screen like in Windows

LockSystemAnyone who uses Windows at work is probably familiar with the old Ctrl-Alt-Del <return> trick to quickly lock your screen when you step away from your computer. This displays a “This computer is in use and has been locked.” message which instructs you to press Ctrl-Alt-Del again to unlock the computer. Doing so presents you with a username/password prompt, which looks very much like the login screen.

In Mac OS X, the closest thing we have is the “Require password to wake this computer from sleep or screen saver” check box in the Security system preference pane (in Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard). Then what a lot of people do is set a screen corner to activate the screen saver (via the Exposé system preference pane). Then just before they walk away, they move the mouse into the designated corner, wait for the screensaver to kick in, then walk away. Continue reading Lock your Mac’s screen like in Windows

WordPress for iPhone update fixes bugs, adds features

WordPress for iPhone 1.21A while back I wrote a review of the (then) new official iPhone blogging app from WordPress. Well, it’s been recently updated and from what I can see, they’ve resolved the limitations I identified back then, and added a bunch of new features to make it even more functional.

You can now edit your entire post, even if they contain the “more” tag. You still can’t add/edit optional excerpts though. The addition of a landscape keyboard will make this even easier. Previewing of blogs not hosted by WordPress.com works well, provided your theme supports this WordPress feature.

In my original review I mentioned that only wordpress.com hosted blogs supported mobile previewing, but I think it was simply my blogs theme which was the limitation. I’ve since moved to a theme which supports the latest WP features and I’m able to preview my posts as they will appear on my real blog. Very nice. Continue reading WordPress for iPhone update fixes bugs, adds features

Turn your iPhone into a wireless keyboard & mouse

controlpad_iconLike a lot of tech-savvy people out there, I’m using a Mac mini as the heart of my home theatre to play music, view photos, watch downloaded TV shows and movies as well as DVDs. I also do the occasional web surfing with it. For most of those uses, the tiny white Apple infrared remote control gets by just fine, since thanks to QuickTime’s extendability and a little plugin called Perian, I can play pretty much any video format I’m likely to come across in FrontRow. I can even use the same remote to command the most critical DVD Player functions when watching movies stored on my hard disk as Video TS folders or ISO images.

The Apple remote only handles so much unfortunately as we know all too well. Switching from Front Row to DVD Player or any other app can’t be done for instance. The little white device becomes nothing more than a poor paperweight in fact when trying to control any app that isn’t specifically a media or presentation tool. We normally get around this limitation by keeping a wireless keyboard and mouse handy, tucked away and out of sight until needed. Well I’m happy to report that our days of getting off the couch to reach for a keyboard or mouse are finally over because a handy little iPhone/iPod touch app has just rendered those battery sucking peripherals obsolete! Continue reading Turn your iPhone into a wireless keyboard & mouse

Resistance 2’s finale is EPIC, says I

resistance_2_screenshotI finished Resistance 2 for Playstation 3 a few days ago. Not a bad shooter at all, just as good as the first one in terms of overall enjoyment and gameplay, and on some levels much improved. The CG cutscenes are far and away much more immersive and exciting than the voiceover still image ones from Fall of Man. The graphics, animation and effects are improved as well, and the enemy and settings are much more epic.

The story really starts to pick up as you get closer to the end, really giving you a sense of urgency. I won’t go into any detail so as not to spoil it for any of you, but I have to say, the ending of this game rocks on such a high level. It makes the epic-ness of the settings and bosses seem utterly trivial. Continue reading Resistance 2’s finale is EPIC, says I

Geek Fashion: Etre Touchy geek glove review

etre-touchy-iphone-medAll the ease of use and intuitive control that was achieved with the latest capacitive touch screens comes a new problem: How do you use your iPhone or iPod touch with gloves on? Even the classic click-wheel iPods have used capacitive touch technology since the 2nd generation of iPod was released (for those that don’t remember, the 1st generation iPod had a physical scroll wheel that actually turned. How quaint!) Even those road warriors who still cling to physical keyboards on their mobile phones have to take their gloves off to punch out an email.

If this is a problem that plagues you, and getting your calling, internet, emailing, media or gaming fix is more important to you than avoiding frostbite, then maybe the Etre Touchy gloves by Etre Ltd. just might be the solution you’re looking for. These gloves, reminiscent of sniper’s gloves, are missing the tips of the index finger and thumb on both hands, allowing you to have full utilization of the two most needed digits to control pretty much any portable digital device, from iPhones, Blackberries, and iPods to PDAs and portable game systems like the Sony PSP and Nintendo DS.

Etre Ltd. was kind enough to send me a pair of Etre Touchy gloves to try out late last year, so I figured I’d put them through their paces and let my readers know what I think. Continue reading Geek Fashion: Etre Touchy geek glove review

Too many games, too little time (and money)

ps3-holiday-08-games-montageI got my PlayStation 3 during launch week back in November of 2006. There were a couple of good launch titles which kept me occupied well enough during the 2006 holidays (Resistance: Fall Of Man and Call of Duty 3 come to mind), but if it wasn’t for Rainbow Six Vegas and Oblivion, much of 2007 would have left me longing for more decent PS3 games.

Before the PS3, I gamed on my Mac, so I’m no stranger to game dry spells. Typically, when I found a game I really liked on the Mac, I’d play it to death, mainly because there wasn’t much else to grab my attention. This was the case for games like F/A-18 Hornet, Quake III, Unreal Tournament, Ghost Recon and the Rainbow Six series. So it didn’t bother me that much, and there were already far more titles I wanted to play on the PS3 in it’s first year than I was used to on the Mac platform. Continue reading Too many games, too little time (and money)