Cheese-O-Meter

Now you can tell if someone is not smiling hard enough, as there is software to tell how well you are smiling rating from 0 to 100%...

I'm sure to put in a suggestion to add an enhancement to include an appropriate emoticon smiley... :D


Smile Measurement Software [via Gizmodo]

LEGO Digital Designer

Now you can design your own LEGO using the LEGO Digital Designer software (Windows and Mac OS X) from LEGO! You can make up stuff with all the bricks and other weird pieces that they have in their catalogue... then check the price for the pieces required online, then even purchase it and build it in real life!

LEGO Digital Designer [via Antikewl Daily]

101 Ways To Know Your Software Project Is Doomed

This list is funny... cos it's true... unfortunately...

101 Ways To Know Your Software Project Is Doomed

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom review...

Haven't had a good look at this as I'm not into digital photography workflow (I'm a 'point, shoot, hope and pray for a few decent shots' kinda guy *grin*), but seeing that this may interest a number of people... and it's from Ars Technica...



In search of the perfect workflow [via /.]

Launchy

Have a Mac and love to use Quicksilver / Spotlight as your application launcher or document finder, but are forced to work in the windows world for food? Or if you secretly want a Mac. Then Launchy might be the application for you.

I don't know what I would do without Spotlight. Having to actually find documents / applications through all my directories is a major drag. But I've been trialling Launchy for a week now (requires some hacking to get it working in Win2k) and it looks like the Windows solution that I'm looking for.

Hit ALT + SPACE and a Quicksilver like window pops up like so:

Type in the first couple of characters of the app or document you're after and it finds it for you. It's ... unbelievable!

Increase your productivity by keeping your hands on your keyboard longer. :)

The Windows Vista Upgrade Flowchart

Not sure if you should upgrade to Vista?

This might help...



Windows Vista Upgrade Flowchart [via Gizmodo]

Running Vista on a Mac?

Okay, so you probably know about Parallels, the application which allows you to run virtual machines in OSX, works a treat running WinXP, but seems like it's not quite there yet with Vista...




Vista on Intel Mac With Parallels: Not Quite There

So the obvious question to all you OSX fanboys out there is... "Why the heck would you want to run Vista on OSX?" :)

Subverting AJAX

Interesting whitepaper about some potential vulnerabilities when using AJAX...

Since I don't develop using AJAX, I can't comment on the content, but thought others might be interested in the potential threats and the Slashdot article make mention of a possible Web Worm that "lives in the very fabric of Web 2.0 and could kill the Web as we know it."... Oh no... keep a look out for the 4 web horsemen riding on the back of this web worm...

Subverting Ajax [via /.]

Tubes

"It's like instant-messaging for your stuff,"...

Too hard to explain, and too late to try and go through the all the details...

The Magic of Tubes [via /.]

SMS Widget

Okay, just to balance out the posts today, here is an SMS widget that would allow you to send SMS's free (apparantly) around the world... Works with OSX and seems like there are equivalent ones for Google gadgets (which you can customise on your Google Homepage...)

SMS Widget [via Gizmodo]

Note: Apparantly the messages are public... SMS Peeping
Note 2: Found the website the widget uses... Callwave Free Text Messages

Flickr Screensaver!

Okay... this might not be news to everyone, but there is a Flickr screensaver (for Winblows only unfortunately) called Slickr...

Came across it whilst doing some research about trying to turn my old Pentium 200 laptop from 1998 (my first major computer purchase when I started working) into a DIY digital photoframe...

Slickr [via Popular Science]

Happy Snap your MacBook hax0rs

Take happy snaps of people trying to guess your password on your MacBook... :)

Take iSight snapshots during invalid login attempts [via engadget]

Thesis Game gets snapped up by Sony...

Some Grad school thesis project which involves a flash game got Sony attention and have now commissioned an enhanced version which will be sold through the PlayStation Network.

The game is called 'flOw' and is pretty interesting...

How a Grad-School Thesis Theory Evolved Into a PlayStation 3 Game [via /.]

Hack a PS3 and own it!

Ok...

So the story is that this website is running on Fedora Linux on the new PS3, and the challenge is to hax0r the website to replace the pic on the website with another pic hidden in the deep dark reaches of the Fedora filesystem...

Winner is the first person who successfully does this task...

Own a PS3 and own it!

P.S. Had to post the pic from the website sporting a cute little girl modeling the nice new PS3 box... she's cute as a button, and I'm hoping I can take a similar pic of Hannah... :)

PLAYSTATION®3 System Software User's Guide

Okay, so you don't have a spare AUD$1000-ish to spend on the new PS3 when it finally gets released here in Oz in March 2007, but you want to still sound knowledgeable when you post to forums frequented by the Sony fanboys and fangirls who has been lining up waiting for the launch of the PS3 in the US... :)

Check out the user manual that Sony released which details the new XMB menu interface that the PS3 has...

PLAYSTATION®3 System Software User's Guide

Automated Testing for Web Apps...

Okay, this is a semi-serious link...

Just got a demo at work from one of the guys looking at Selenium which is an automated test tool for web apps... Oh and it's open source and free so the price is right! :P

Currently there is only a plugin for Firefox which can record your tests, but it's not bad, and it's open source, and the advantage I see is that you can record your test, and it generates scripts (which is just a simple HTML table consisting of 'action', 'control name' and 'value') so you can add/remove/tweak stuff from your test, and replay it for good old automated regression testing.

Selenium

Oh, and you can play it back on other browsers like crappy IE etc.

Skype 3.0 Beta

"Skype 3.0 Beta for Windows is now available. We recommend it only for experienced users, as we continue to work on it."

So if you don't remember what old skool telephony conversations are like, or don't know what a non-VOIP telephone looks like, then I'd recommend you to check it out... :P

Introducing Skype 3.0 Beta for Windows

Virtual Earth 3D

This is Microsoft's contender to rival Google Earth... currently in beta and I'm just posting a link to a Slashdot post as it's got numerous links off that which may (or may not) interest you...

Virtual Earth 3D Beta Launched

Google's PigeonRank™

Wow! And I thought it was done with Monkeys!?!?

The technology behind Google's great results

Aperture 1.51 30 day trial!!!

Finally apple has a 30 day trial of aperture for people who:

a) have a mac capable of running aperture (I do not! until my MacBookPro is returned)

b) are willing to fill out a registration form online

The link:

Aperture 1.51 Trial Download