Do you have someone on your gifting list with particular taste in all things Geek? If so, the Geeks have your gifting playbook depending on your level of investment (how much money do you want to spend?). Below are some great gift ideas under $50, under $100, under $200 and over $200 but you can also check some geek-centric stores such as ThinkGeek, Hammacher Schlemmer and Sharper Image. Enjoy!
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Peter Gasston follows up his CSS3 book (“The Book of CSS3“) with this more encompassing subject on web development.
While I hardly need to restate a statistic that has been beaten to death in the past few years, mobile platforms are not only growing but outstripping traditional desktop computers in some parts of the world and in some industries. However, that doesn’t mean that all web development needs to be solely targeted at small screen devices. For that reason, adaptive and responsive web design has arisen to avoid the original method of building separate websites for desktops and mobile devices. And as the author opines (and I agree), with the increasing variety in screen sizes, trying to build a set of fixed-width pages, even adaptive ones is a “fool’s errand”.
So what is the “modern Web”? Is it HTML5? Is HTML5 merely HTML + CSS3 + JavaScript? Actually, no; the reality is even more amazing. Just take a look at the platform that is HTML5 to see the huge array of web browser technologies that exist today.
What does The Modern Web cover? Not every subject under the HTML5 umbrella, but it does hit all of the higher profile technologies. For example, new CSS3 layouts, device-responsive CSS, what modern JavaScript can do, SVG graphics and multimedia, web APIs and more.
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Password breaches are becoming more and more common on web sites as hacker groups seemingly obtain hashed (and sometimes clear) passwords almost on a weekly basis from various web providers. This past week alone had three high profile password leaks with LinkedIn, eHarmony and Last.FM.
LinkedIn, a professional networking site, may have leaked as many as 6.4 million passwords. The password hashes are one-way encrypted versions of passwords meaning the password cannot be derived from the password hash. Hackers use pre-computed tables called Rainbow Tables to run through a dictionary of hashes comparing against the password hashes to arrive at the cleartext password. By the time the passwords were leaked on the Internet, several password hashes had been altered as the hackers that originally obtained the password dump had compromised those passwords already.
eHarmony was the next victim with as many as 1.5 million passwords stolen. The signs lead to the leak being performed by the same hackers as LinkedIn.
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I’m sure you’ve heard about SOPA and PIPA by now, not to mention seeing the online protests in the form of blacked out websites, the most notable being Wikipedia. Here’s a cool infographic explaining what the bills are about and what their (unintended?) consequences are:
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The latest Google project to be discontinuing and shutting down is the Google Sidewiki. Google Sidewiki was a browser sidebar that enabled people to contribute and read helpful information alongside any web page available as a feature in Google Toolbar.
According to the announcement, Google Sidewiki will be shut down and all content deleted on December 5, 2011 and included a link so contributors can export their Sidewiki entries.
In my Top Daily-Use Products post, I listed Dropbox and it would still make the list if I revised that list, and that’s not even including the premium version; the free version is that good. Tech deal-of-the-day site, AppSumo is running a giveaway where 10 lucky winners will get a lifetime 50GB account, which normally run $9.99/mo.
It takes 10 seconds to enter – just hit this link. Good luck!
BTW, I totally recommend you sign up for a free account regardless of whether you enter the contest.
PS> Another cool syncing service to check out is SugarSync.
D-Link’s new wireless N dual band MediaBridge (product code DAP-1513) allows you to extend your wireless network by adding in up to 4 extra devices to its 4 Ethernet ports and taking them wireless.
This means you can expand your current network without running large lengths of cable around your house for those Ethernet-only devices.
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D-Link’s MediaBridge Turns Ethernet Devices WirelessRead More »
If you’re like most people, you have no idea what Usenet is. You’d probably be surprised to learn that Usenet is more than 30 Years old and more popular than ever.
On Usenet you can find everything from indie musicians who want to promote their bands to hobby photographers’ sharing some of their shots with the world. And you will even find GNU licensed software like the VLC Player or Winzip. But that’s not all. With more than 800 Terabytes (819,200 GB) you will find virtually anything you´re looking for on Usenet.
You need three things to start downloading from Usenet (server access, newsreader & search engine).
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Twitter has taken off in a larger way than perhaps even its founders ever imagined. Personally, when Twitter first appeared, I felt it had only limited appeal, at least in the way it was rolled out and marketed. Of course, Twitter has evolved and grown. And oh how it has grown.
But did you know that Twitter can be used for more than just reading tweets about “Winning!“, keeping track of trends or breaking news?
Here are just 10 unique, innovative and sometimes practical uses for Twitter that make great use of its popular API.
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Lulz Security (aka LulzSec) have been responsible for some notorious hacks in the past 6 weeks that have made headlines, including the attack on the Sony PSN (Playstation Network).
Thousands upon thousands of Facebook, GMail and PayPal accounts have been hacked and worse made public. Gizmodo has set up a tool to allow you to see if your account(s) has been compromised. Check it out here.
