Use a Red Bull can as a radio interference shield

Posted Jun 26th 2008 9:00AM by Mike Schramm

I love the iPhone, save for one thing. It sits on my desk every night, right near my computer, and the speakers I've got hooked up to it. And every 15 minutes, when the iPhone checks email for me, I get that buzzing -- the sound of radio interference flying across my speaker wires.

And almost every night, I have to jump out of bed angrily just to shut off the speakers and stop the buzzing. Little did I know, all I've ever needed was an empty can of Red Bull.Yes, someone has fashioned a "shield" out of an emptied and carved up Red Bull can, and supposedly it works like a charm -- just fashion it around the dock that came with the iPhone, use a little doublestick tape to make sure it stays on there (and I would maybe put some around the edges, too, so you don't slice your fingers open every time you pull the iPhone off the dock), and no more buzzing sound.The maker does wonder if it would affect the actual signal of the iPhone at all, but it hasn't so far. If you've got a Red Bull can around to cut up and are driven as nuts as I am by that buzzing noise, here's your makeshift solution. The other option is to buy speakers that don't buzz, of course, but this seems a lot cheaper.

Read More...

How to send free text messages from an iPhone

Posted by Dave Merten Jun 28, 2008 at 2:32pm

With current AT&T iPhone contracts, you get 200 free text messages a month. With the new 3G iPhones, this will change. You will need to pay $5.00 a month extra for these 200 messages. Today, I’m going to show you how to send an unlimited number of messages in US and Canada, for free.

How to send free text messages.

1. Create a new email message.

2. In the To: box, type 10digitnumber@teleflip.com. (1235551234@teleflip.com)

3. Type a message and click send.

4. The message will be sent to the cell phone with the number in the To: box

5. All recieved text messages will be sent to you as an email.
Note: This only works for US and Canadian numbers.
Also, there is a Web app that you can send free text messages with. It’s called TxtDrop and you can access it by typing “http://txtdrop.com/iphone/” in your iPhone’s Safari app. They also have a OS X widget here. Enjoy!

Read More...

XP Game Compatibility

You want to know if all your favorite games are still going to run under Windows XP. Remember what happened when we tried to run games on our Windows 2000 machines? Sometimes we were a little disappointed. Windows 2000 was made more for corporate applications than "Quake," but true techno-geeks know they don't have to sacrifice death matches for a robust business environment -- at least not anymore.
Windows XP has shown an impressive track record of game compatibility. We ran a number of standard games, such as "Tiger Woods Golf," "NHL 2001," "Max Payne," and "Unreal" on our Windows XP Professional machine. Some of these games were specifically slated for Windows 95 and 98, and were shown not to work in Windows 2000. The installation in XP was as smooth as silk. The games ran quickly and beautifully -- not a problem in sight (except for my bad chip shot -- Tiger was hanging his head in shame).

Some less-sophisticated programs may not run as smoothly, and we found that some older applications, such as the Atari 2600 Classic Game Collection, did not appreciate the Windows XP environment. In this case you can use the Application Compatibility Wizard, found in the accessories menu. XP includes integrated compatibility layers to mimic older versions of Windows, so if your program does not work in Windows XP, the compatibility wizard will walk you through the process of getting even your favorite DOS games up and running. In this case, we ran the Atari Classic Game Collection in the Windows 95 environment, at 256 colors and 640x480 screen resolution. Then we set XP to always run our Atari application in this environment, and everything was smooth sailing after that.One final tip about compatibility: Don't run the compatibility wizard if your program appears to be running well in the normal environment, as the wizard will give you an error message. In general, XP has great program compatibility, so you can upgrade your operating system without giving up all your old favorites.

Read More...

Man Dies After Downing 23 Shots of Vodka In Topless Bar

June 29, 2008 9:17 p.m. EST

Catherine Mariano-Gaces - AHN

Seffner, FL (AHN) - A man died here Tuesday evening after drinking 23 shots of vodka in 30 minutes, Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies said.
Eric Morris, 26, was with a friend at the Angels Show Bar, a topless bar on U.S. Hwy. 92. He and his friend ordered shots of Burnett's Cherry Vodka and started playing a drinking game, according to sheriff's spokesman J.D. Callaway.
Callaway added that Morris continued to drink shots even when his friend had already stopped. When the bartender refused to give him more shots, Morris got up, wobbled a little and fell on the floor.

Morris was taken to Brandon Regional Hospital and declared dead at around 7 p.m.
The cause of death is still unknown as investigators wait for the result of the autopsy. The medical examiner's office says that it may take four to six weeks before blood test results are released.

Source: www.allheadlinenews.com

Read More...

Microsoft Ends Sales Of XP Software On Monday

June 27, 2008 7:51 p.m. EST

Mitchell Jaworski - AHN reporter

Redmond, WA (AHN) - Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) is pulling the XP operating system from its product line come Monday. The move comes 18 months after the company launched the Vista operating system.
Although Microsoft will not sell the XP program any longer, they will still generate revenue from providing support for the software as it will no longer be free. Microsoft will offer extended support packages for XP until at least 2014.
Demand for the support packages will most likely come from big corporate customers who are not ready to migrate to the Vista operating system, but still need support for their current XP-run networks.

Intel says it has no plans to migrate its 90,000 employees' computers to Vista from XP. "XP is our standard platform," an Intel spokesman said, according to Dow Jones Newswire "There have been no decisions on Vista and no timetable for a Vista decision."
It is estimated that only 14 percent of computers using the Windows operating system are using Vista. Based on those numbers, a large potential market exists for extended XP support.
Software support is one of Microsoft's higher margin revenue streams.

Read More...

North Pole Could be Ice-Free This Summer

Robert Roy Britt
LiveScience Managing Editor
LiveScience.com Thu Jun 26, 10:55 PM ET
Thu Jun 26, 10:55 PM ET

Arctic sea ice could break apart completely at the North Pole this year, allowing ships to sail over the normally frozen top of the world.

The potential landmark thaw - the first time in human history the pole would be ice-free - is a stark sign of global warming, according to an article Friday on the web site of the The Independent, a London newspaper.
"Symbolically it is hugely important," said Mark Serreze of the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center in Colorado. "There is supposed to be ice at the North Pole, not open water."

Last year, the fabled Northwest Passage opened as Arctic ice retreated more than ever before.
There is no land at the North Pole, but as long as anyone has looked, it has remained a giant block of ice year-round. Scientists have been watching Arctic sea ice melt more and more each year. But each summer in recent years, the amount of ice has gotten thinner and thinner. Each winter's freeze, therefore, results in a thinner pack that, this summer, could melt altogether.

"The issue is that, for the first time that I am aware of, the North Pole is covered with extensive first-year ice," Serreze is quoted by The Independent. "I'd say it's even-odds whether the North Pole melts out."

Russia and other countries, meanwhile, have been arguing over who has rights to the region's resources, including potential oil reserves. Last summer saw a record melt of Arctic sea ice, which shrank to more than 30 percent below its average. Around the peak of the melt, in September, air temperatures over land in the western Arctic from August to October were more than 4 degrees Fahrenheit (2 degrees Celsius) above the 1978-2006 average.
"The rapid loss of sea ice can trigger widespread changes that would be felt across the region," said Andrew Slater, also of the National Snow and Ice Data Center.
Video: Melting Sea Ice Seen From Orbit
Top 10 Surprising Results of Global Warming
North vs. South Poles: 10 Wild Differences
Original Story: North Pole Could be Ice-Free This Summer
Visit LiveScience.com for more daily news, views and scientific inquiry with an original, provocative point of view. LiveScience reports amazing, real world breakthroughs, made simple and stimulating for people on the go. Check out our collection of Science, Animal and Dinosaur Pictures, Science Videos, Hot Topics, Trivia, Top 10s, Voting, Amazing Images, Reader Favorites, and more. Get cool gadgets at the new LiveScience Store, sign up for our free daily email newsletter and check out our RSS feeds today!

Read More...

Marijuana may Have Potent Anti-inflammatory Compound

According to a new research by Swiss researchers, a compound in marijuana might be a potent anti-inflammatory agent, which won't get people high.
The finding could be a blessing for the sufferers of arthritis, cirrhosis, and other diseases. The drugs that are currently existing for the diseases can be less effective for some people and can carry side effects, from stomach ulcers to increased risk of heart attacks.

Marijuana supporters have long argued that the plant's active ingredients, known as cannabinoids, are safe and effective treatments for pain, nausea, and other ailments. The most active cannabinoid-delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC-is known to have anti-inflammatory properties. But it is also responsible for the plant's psychotropic effects. Now researchers say that another cannabinoid, called beta-caryophyllene, or (E)-BCP, helps combat inflammation without affecting the brain. The scientists note that (E)-BCP is already part of many people's daily diets. Foods that are particularly high in the compound include black pepper, oregano, basil, lime, cinnamon, carrots, and celery. Essential oils from cannabis plants-whose leaves and flowers are used to make the marijuana drug-contain up to 35 percent (E)-BCP. But even after decades of cannabis research, scientists hadn't previously known that the compound had anti-inflammatory properties. "This is because the focus was on the classical cannabinoids [rather than (E)-BCP]," National Geographic quoted lead study author Jurg Gertsch of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, as saying.

Read More...