Best of 2011

           So here's a look at the most memorable moments of 2011.

1. The Death of Osama - President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and members of the national security team receive an update on the mission against Osama bin Laden in the Situation Room of the White House May 1, 2011 in Washington, DC. Obama later announced that the United States had killed Bin Laden in an operation led by U.S. Special Forces at a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

2. The Royal Wedding - An elegant, tiara-bedecked Kate Middleton swept down the aisle to marry Prince William at Westminster Abbey as fans packed the streets of London, hoping to snatch a glimpse of a historic Royal Wedding expected to revitalize the British monarchy. William and Kate received their first wedding present from the Queen: the titles Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

3. World Cup - It was a script, 28 years in the making. Skipper MS Dhoni and his team executed plans to perfection as 2011 began with a bang for Indian sports. The cricket team conquered the world and delighted a billion to lift the trophy of the biggest event in 50-over cricket.

4. Viru slams 219 - India's Virender Sehwag blasted past records as he tormented West Indies like never before. He slapped boundaries and sixes galore in Indore to race past Sachin Tendulkar's record and become the highest scorer in ODIs

5. The year of Steve Jobs - When Jobs unveiled the second iteration of the iPad in March, he predicted that 2011 would be remembered as the year of the iPad 2. He was wrong. 2011 was to prove the year of Steve Jobs, beginning with his frail appearance at the Apple keynote on March 2 2011, to his sudden and shocking resignation as CEO in 24 August 2011 and then his death on October 5, just a day after the launch of the iPhone 4S. He leaves a gaping hole in the ranks tech titans, but also a rich legacy of innovative products to remember him by.

6. Google+ takes on Facebook - The launch of Google+ was a shock, coming, as it did, out of nowhere. Perhaps that was Google's intention. Initially met with scepticism, given Google's track record with social networking (ahem, Orkut!), Google+ quickly proved itself a worthy Facebook competitor. Launched on 28th June 2011, it featured an unique sharing interface called Circles and it introduced a 10 person video chat called Hangouts. Unlike its predecessors Buzz, Wave and Orkut, Google + featured a sharing interface called Circles which was designed by former Macintosh guru Andy Hertzfeld, this in-particular enabled the social network to take-off at the speed of light. Over the months, there is no doubt that its appeal has diminished, especially as Facebook rises to battle with new features, but if there is going to be a social network that will take on Facebook, then Google + is it.

7. Apple iPhone 4S – The much anticipated iPhone 5 proved elusive this year, but Apple did come up with the iPhone 4S. This iteration retained the original design of the iPhone but bumped up dual core specs and introduced a revolutionary voice recognition based artificial intelligence called Siri. Siri pretty much does everything a virtual personal assistant could be expected to do. The iPhone 4S was announced on October 4, a day before the passing of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. It started selling in India from November 25th

 8. Why this Kolaveri Di?? - The song was officially released on 16 November 2011, and it instantly became viral on social networking sites for its quirky "Tanglish" (portmanteau word of Tamil and English) lyrics. Soon, the song became the most searched YouTube video in India and an internet phenomenon across Asia. Within a few weeks, YouTube honored the video with a Recently Most Popular Gold Medal Award for receiving a large number of hits in a short time.The song was named the Best Song of 2011 by CNN 

The Most Amazing iPhone Yet!!!

                     The iPhone 4S caught many by surprise, with Apple expected to release the iPhone 5 - but instead we got an iPhone 4 with overhauled innards. While the masses were initially disappointed, the iPhone 4S features a glut of top-end tech that is designed to put it on a par with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S2 - but does it manage to do that? The changes to the iPhone 4S are easy to document - the camera has been upgraded to 8MP (with an improved aperture ratio), the CPU is now the same dual-core A5 processor as seen in the iPad 2, and a seven time increase in graphical processing power. 

Check out the video of the iPhone 4S in action - is it the phone for you?

     Also we've got Siri, Apple's voice recognition service - will this be a game changer for mobile phones or will it be nothing more than a gimmick?

        As we've mentioned, the iPhone 4S is almost identical in outward design to the iPhone 4, which might irk those that like to show that they've got the most up to date device from Apple when out and about with friends. However, the flip side of this is that things like the plethora of iPhone 4 covers on the market at the moment will still fit.

               Apple has slightly changed the design of the iPhone 4S somewhat though, by changing to a dual-band aerial design, making sure it doesn't encounter an embarrassing repeat of antenna-gate we had to endure with the iPhone 4. For all those that haven't seen the older version of the phone, we'll take you on a tour of the new handset: the top of the iPhone 4S houses the power/lock button, as well as the headphone jack, plus a microphone for noise cancellation. The right-hand side of the phone is devoid of any buttons, but holds the slot for the micro SIM card, which pops out using the included tool (or a paperclip).

          

     The bottom of the phone is pretty standard, with the Apple connector and dual speakers which pump out the (actually quite decent) sound. The left-hand side of the phone sees the rounded volume keys, with the top one of these also acting as the camera shutter button to make it easy to snap with the new iPhone. We've also got the silencer switch too, which has been slightly moved upwards from the previous iteration. As you can see, Apple has altered its antenna band technology to move the gaps that plagued the iPhone 4's reception to a less-touchable location.

The iPhone 4S is the flagship model for the new iOS software from Apple, making it much snazzier once more. We'll walk you through the big changes to start with - and Notifications is up there with the best of them.

                  The new system apes Android by using a drop down menu from pretty much anywhere in the phone to let you see all manner of updates, weather news and messages, plus new notifications will now ping across the top of the screen rather than plopping straight into the middle of the screen like before and disrupting whatever you were doing. It's not revolutionary by any means, but it's well-integrated and makes the whole system feel a whole lot different to iOS 4. The lock screen is now called into more use than ever before too, with new notifications sitting on top to be easily accessed without needing to mess about inside the phone.

                                         We quickly got to grips with this new system and can see a lot of people really enjoying being able to open the camera quickly too, which you can do by simply double tapping the home button on the lock screen. The original system we're fans of is also back in full force, with swipable home screens filled with icons for apps, which you can easily sort into folders or edit by long pressing on the screen. Double tapping the home button will let you see all your open applications, making it easy to multitask on the go, and swiping to the left gets you to the iPod menu to quickly access the controls. It's the closest we get to widgets with this phone, and we're still hankering after more... but that's the choice Apple is making in the face of the widget-laden Android opposition. We would like to see contextual menus throughout the interface, for instance being able to change the settings for an app without having to jump out of the main menu - we're sure this has to be coming soon in a future release.

                    As we've mentioned before, the iPhone 4S now comes with the dual-core A5 processor, which means battery life is meant to be better and the rest of the phone should operate even more snappily.

                                In our tests, we barely noticed that much of a difference in speed with the iPhone 4, as there was never really a problem with opening and closing applications. With the animations still present, it still seems like the iPhone 4S is a little slower than other dual core handsets on the market (although we mean a tiny amount) but in general use it works perfectly. It's the most intuitive system on the market in our eyes - we're fans of the complexity of Android, but not everybody is a power user and for the person that wants a simple smartphone that's easy to pick up and start using, the iPhone 4S is one of the best.

 Final Verdict :

                               The iPhone 4S is a great piece of kit, and one of the best devices Apple has ever produced. It's easy to find things that will make you coo with excitement, and the way the phone is packaged makes it very easy to use from the beginner to the expert smartphone user. Every time we write a new iPhone review we wonder if it's enough of an upgrade to warrant being heralded as the next greatest phone (aside from the iPhone 4, which was a real step forward). We are left with the same feeling with the iPhone 4S - is an upgraded camera, new processor and voice recognition enough to encourage phone sales on a record breaking scale? In all likelihood, yes; Apple has never failed to create an update to a phone that just manages to sneak over the line of being desirable enough to update to, and the iPhone 4S is no exception.

We liked

                                What do we like about the iPhone 4S? Everything we loved about the iPhone 4 and more. The Retina Display is still one of the best on the market, and even in 16 months very few phones have managed to come close to the eye-popping quality. The new camera is fantastic, and as we said: a genuine alternative to a compact point and shoot. We know that's been said before, but we were mightily impressed for a day-to-day snapper. The upgraded processor is going to be a real winner in the future when more heavy-duty apps and games start coming to the market; right now there's not a lot going on that can really draw on the improved graphics and CPU, and the phone was already pretty snappy anyway. Siri is a fun tool - we're undecided about its use in day-to-day life, but there were enough useful options to play with to make it genuinely worthwhile.

We disliked

                              The gripes we have with the iPhone 4S are the same ones we've had for years with Apple's iPhones, and despite the record number of sales for the phones we still think they need to be addressed by Apple. Flash video. We know it's a tired thing to keep talking about, but if Apple isn't going to allow it to work on its phones then it needs some kind of strategy to rid us of the annoying 'You need to download the latest version of Flash player' notifications on websites. The price: it's still way too high in our opinion on contract, with the upfront cost for the iPhone 4S way in excess of anything else on the market on the same tariff. When you see that the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S and HTC Sensation can be bought off contract for the same cost, you have to question where that up front fee is coming from. The contacts list needs an overhaul too, as it's still too spartan for our tastes. Some sort of social networking integration, message history or album connectivity seems right up Apple's street, so we're still wondering why the firm has yet to improve this section.

Verdict

                                  Let's make no bones about it: the iPhone 4S is one of the best phones on the market at the moment, and the best thing Apple has ever created. It's got all the right bits right: good camera, slick web browser, quality screen - and made it all work together in the way we've come to expect. Some people might be disappointed not to have seen the fabled iPhone 5, with the larger screen and new design, but the iPhone 4S is more than enough to keep Apple fans happy. Simply put: if you've got an iPhone 4, you don't need to upgrade (as long as you update to iOS 5) but for anyone else on an older device, or hankering after finally making the jump to an iPhone, you should run down to the shops and pick one up now - you won't regret it.

Where Hackers and Security Experts Come to Train - Enigma Group

“ Since 2005, Enigma Group has been providing its members a legal and safe security resource where they can develop their pen-testing skills on various challenges provided by this site. These challenges teach members the many types of exploits that are found in todays code; thus, helping them to become better programmers in the mean time. By knowing your enemy, you can defeat your enemy. ”

This is the mission statement of the Enigma Group website.... 

And the statement says it all on what they do and who they are. They give out missions starting from basic skills to realtime scenarios and all of these are learnt in a controlled environment. For those who want to learn how to protect your computer from external hacking harm this is the best place to learn about them. And am proud to say am one of the members of this forum.

 http://www.enigmagroup.org/

Google+ hits 20 million mark in three weeks

Google's latest social-networking foray has reportedly hit the 20 million member mark in just three weeks.

Google+ has had 20 million unique visitors since its release late last month, including 5 million from the U.S., according to data released today by research firm ComScore. Google apparently reached that milestone just a week after Google CEO Larry Page reported that the social network had reached 10 million visitors and had received "a ton of activity" with more than 1 billion items shared and received each day.

"It is definitely the fastest ascent to 20 million visitors that I can think of," Andrew Lipsman, ComScore's vice president of industry analysis, told the Los Angeles Times. 

A Google spokesperson declined to address the report, saying the company does not comment on third-party metrics.

Google launched Google+ late last month not even in beta, letting in only a handful of users, who could later invite their friends and family. Page noted at the time that the service remains in a "field trial" mode, and with "a lot of barriers" to use it right now, but that the company is continuing to expand how many have access to it.

Despite its meteoric growth in its first three weeks, a population of 20 million pales in comparison with Facebook's 750 million, half of whom log in daily.

Google's first major foray into the social networking world came by way of Orkut, a service that has seen some success outside the States but has largely been ignored by U.S. users. Google tried its luck again with the launch of its Buzz social network, but the service came under fire from users who criticized the service for violating their privacy by automatically making some of their contacts public.

The End of a Saga

On July 15, Harry Potter and his friends from the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry will make their final appearance on the big screen with, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.” After the 1997 release of the first novel, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” and the debut of the film version of that novel in November 2001, an entire culture of Harry Potter enthusiasts have been glued to page and screen for more and more of the young wizard’s adventure. 

Associated Press photoBritish author J.K. Rowling talks about her latest project, Pottermore, a website extending the life and times of Harry Potter. With 10 years of history, many fans are still not ready for the saga to end. Even though author J.K. Rowling says there will be no more Harry Potter books or movies, she, along with at least one other author, will keep the magic alive. Rowling announced on June 23 that a new website, www.PotterMore.com, will launch in October and will give visitors of all ages a chance to be sorted into their Hogwarts houses, choose a wand and experience other magical moments that were previously only possible at Hogwarts itself.

“I wanted to give something back to the fans that have followed Harry so devotedly over the years, and to bring the stories to a new digital generation,” Rowling said in a press release.  “I hope fans and those new to Harry will have as much fun helping to shape Pottermore as I have.”

Rowling explained that, just as she has contributed to the website, everyone will be able to join in by submitting comments, drawings and other content in a safe and friendly environment.

“Pottermore has been designed as a place to share the stories with your friends as you journey through the site,” she said.

What we do not want to admit is that we are horribly protective of the Harry Potter series. We tut and glare at the children who squeal at Nagini (Lord Voldemort's serpentine version of the white fluffy cat carried by Muggle supervillains) yet when Hermione utters a spell to remove herself from her parents' memories, or later when Dobby the House Elf makes his final heroic attempt to "save Harry Potter and his friends", we are totally silent. Not because the acting is awe-inspiring but because these are our characters, our films, based on the books and the craze that swept our generation.

Eleven-year-olds picking up the first Harry Potter book now will never understand the anticipation and yearning we felt as we waited three years for the release of the next instalment, or the sight of a silent playing field at school the next day when 300 children and most of the teachers spent lunch break hunched over their new hardback copies. They will read the books and picture Daniel, Emma and Rupert in their minds' eyes, while we shake our heads, knowing full well that Hermione isn't meant to be "fit" (at least not until the Yule Ball in Goblet of Fire) and there is much more to Ronald Weasley than arachnophobia and a comically British way of shouting "bloody hell!" When the latest film deviates from canon and Harry and Hermione share an all-too-romantic dance in their tent, the unruffled nine- and 10-year-olds don't bat an eyelid, while the cinema is filled with the outraged hisses of the young adult audience: "That is just wrong." Everybody knows Harry and Hermione are simply friends, just like everybody knows that the Weasleys' house did not burn down in the sixth book.

To say we "grew up" with Harry, Ron and Hermione might be cliched, but you'd be hard pushed to find an 18-, 19- or 20-year-old who did not feel a certain sense of shame knowing that when, at 13, they lit their first cigarette in a park after school, the corresponding character doing the same in Potterland was the repulsive Dudley Dursley. At the age of 11 it was comforting to know that untameable frizzy hair, teeth that needed a good spell of orthodontic magic and an irritating tendency to shout out the right answer at school didn't make me a freak.

The Potter films were never going to live up to the books, simply because it would be impossible to please an audience for whom the series is so deeply personal. It is unnerving to see the visual proof in the now mature cast that we have, sadly, grown up, and will probably watch Deathly Hallows Part One with our uni friends, not our English teachers, and follow it up with a pub trip, not Pizza Express. There is a "goodbye, childhood" feel to the latest film, aided by the fact that Hogwarts itself is left behind while Harry pursues Voldemort for the final time. At least defeating the Dark Lord will look good on his Ucas application.

Below is the Trailer of the Deathly Hallows part 2:

And now the Coun

How to Clean up your computer to its original state without reinstalling windows

But what if you don’t want to wipe your computer clean? If this is the case, you’ll need to use a few specific utilities if you’d like to clean up your computer to return it to a near-new state. This method isn’t always quicker than reinstalling Windows, but it’s often preferable if you don’t want to worry about losing files or you don’t have a Windows install disc handy. Let’s take a look at what you’ll need to finish the job.

Use Windows Backup and Restore

Recent versions of Windows, including Windows Vista and 7, include a Backup and Restore feature in the control panel. This feature lets you restore your computer to a previous state by using the Open System Restore option, which begins a simple process that basically rewinds your computer to an earlier state.
This is easy, but there is one critical issue – you actually need a restore point to restore from! It’s not uncommon for a computer to ship with one already configured, but if you or the manufacturer didn’t already do this, you’ll have to use the steps below.

Uninstall Unwanted Programs

The gradual accumulation of software on a computer often results in reduced performance, and uninstalling the programs that did not come with your PC often improve performance – or at least free up some hard drive space. Starting with the uninstallation of unwanted programs is recommended.
Most programs can be uninstalled using the Programs and Features tool in the Windows control panel, but some may be stubborn and refuse to uninstall correctly. I suggest using Revo Uninstaller, or a similar program, to take care of programs that refuse to leave quietly.

Clean Up The Windows Registry

Once you uninstall a program, it’s gone, right? Actually, that’s not always the case. Windows includes a database known as the registry that includes information about programs installed, and while uninstalling a program is theoretically meant to remove the program’s registry entries, that doesn’t always happen. A bloated registry can sometimes reduce performance, so it’s a good idea to try and make it like new.
There are a lot of registry cleaning tools, but Wise Registry Cleaner is the option that receives our top recommendation. Whatever tool you use, remember to create a Windows backup (remember the Backup and Restore feature) because there is always a very, very slight risk of registry damage, which can cripple your computer.

Disable Startup Programs

Even after you have uninstalled unwanted programs, you may still have some issues with slow boot times if you have too many programs trying to run when your computer starts.
To disable some programs, go to the Windows Search bar and then type in “msconfig.” Navigate to the Startup tab and review the programs listed. These are the programs that load when your computer boots. You can disable specific programs by de-selecting their checkbox and then clicking OK.
If you find that you’ve disabled a program that is truly useful, you can always return to msconfig and enable the program again.

Restore Windows Defaults

Over time, you may make changes to a number of critical Windows features. It is difficult to cover every single feature in Windows that can be restored to default settings, but here are some that are commonly changed and easily restored. Note that the below instructions are for computers using Windows 7.

Restore Browser Defaults

If you’re using Internet Explorer, you can use the Internet Options menu in the Windows Control Panel. There are Default buttons in the Security, Privacy, Programs and Advanced tabs. Google Chrome and Firefox have similar buttons in their respective Options menus.

Restore Firewall Defaults

The Windows Firewall options can be found in the Windows Control Panel. There is a Restore Firewall Defaults option on the left hand options menu. Note that you may not want to restore this to default if you’ve made specific changes to the firewall’s rules.

Folders

The Folders Options window can be accessed from the Windows Control Panel. The Restore Defaults option is in the lower right hand corner.

Libraries

Right-click on Libraries icon and then click Restore Default Libraries. You can find the Libraries icon in the left-hand frame of Windows Explorer.

Restore Your Media Player

Most media players have an option that will let you dismantle your current media library and rebuild it from scratch. This isn’t a bad idea if your media files have turned into a mess.

Start Menu

The Start Menu can be returned to its default settings by right-clicking on Start (or the Start Icon), entering the Properties window, and then clicking the Customize button. The Use Default Settings button will appear at the bottom of the Customize Start Menu window.

Taskbar

Right-click the Taskbar, then click on Properties. Strangely, there is no default button. The default settings are as follows; all options under Taskbar Appearance unchecked, Taskbar location set to Bottom, Taskbar buttons set to Always combine, hide labels.

Remove Old Devices And Printers

The Devices and Printers section of the Windows Control Panel is the place to go if you need to remove peripheral hardware that is no longer in use. This usually doesn’t have an impact on performance, but has other benefits – for example, removing several old printers can making printing more intuitive.

Conclusion

Following these steps should restore your computer to a near-new state. This is not as complete as reinstalling Windows, and this process is not recommended if you’re trying to restore your computer after a malware attack. If you’re simply trying to speed up your computer, reduce clutter, or wipe it clean for a new user, the steps above should prove sufficient.

Windows 7 - GOD Mode

Windows 7 has changed Control Panel a little, but it's still too difficult to locate all the applets and options that you might need. God Mode, however, while not being particularly godlike, does offer an easier way to access everything you could want from a single folder.
To try this out, create a new folder and rename it to:

The first part, "Everything" will be the folder name, and can be whatever you want: "Super Control Panel", "Advanced", "God Mode" if you prefer.
The extension, ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C, must be entered exactly as it is here, though, including the curly brackets. When you press [Enter] this part of the name will disappear, and double-clicking the new folder will display shortcuts to functions in the Action Centre, the Network and Sharing Centre, Power options, troubleshooting tools, user accounts and others - more than 260 options in total.

Blue Screen of Death - ReBooted

Well, I’m here to walk you through a few steps you can take to troubleshoot your computer whenever you experience this blue screen error. Sometimes, the problem isn’t quite as serious or complicated as people think. It could be as simple as the fact that some hardware you installed created a conflict. Maybe a virus messed up the registry. Or maybe a driver file is corrupt. I’m going to show you how you can check for the most common issues that cause this error.

Boot In Safe Mode

The first thing to do when you get the blue screen is to power down the computer. When you boot it back up, press the F8 key before the Windows screen appears. This will boot the computer into the Advanced Options screen where you can choose advanced boot options. Press the down arrow until “Safe Mode with Networking” is enabled and press enter. If you believe that you’re dealing with a virus that instantly connects to the Internet when you boot your computer, then go with just “Safe Mode” instead.

Keep a close eye on the screen after you press enter. The screen will scroll through each driver as it loads each one individually into memory. Many times, you’ll see the screen pause for a very long time at one of the .sys files before the boot fails and returns an error. Make note of the last file it was trying to load before it failed. Do a Google search (on another computer obviously) to determine what driver is failing and try reinstalling that driver.

If there are no driver problems, then determine whether there are any hardware conflicts by going into the Control Panel, clicking on System, and then Device Manager. Go through each device category and scan all of the devices for the telltale yellow accent icon that indicates there’s a device conflict.
If you do see that icon, open up the driver and you’ll see a message box that reveals where the conflict is taking place. If you can’t find any device conflicts, move on to the next step – scanning your entire system.

Run Spyware, Adware, Virus & Registry Scans

While you’re in safe mode, perform all of your spyware, adware and virus scans. This is the best time to run these apps because any viruses that try to disable them in normal mode will likely be disabled at this point. I love Malwarebytes, which Jimmy reviewed here at MUO before. Also run your virus scan software. If you don’t have one, you really should get one. Check out Justin’s list of the top 10 free anti-virus software apps available. Install one and do a full scan.

Another very useful scan to run is to check for any odd Registry entries or problems. A great open source app that can check your registry for any known problems is the Little Registry Cleaner which comes highly recommended by most users.

If you’ve tried everything up to this point and can’t seem to find any problems, don’t despair. We’ve got a couple more tricks up our sleeve.

Things To Try As A Last Resort

Go ahead and reboot your computer and press the F8 key again. This time, instead of booting into safe mode, select “Last Known Good Configuration“. This will revert to booting Windows using the last configuration where a successful boot took place. Many times this will resolve the issue without any further troubleshooting.

If that doesn’t work, reboot again into F8 mode and try selecting “Enable Boot Logging“. This boots Windows and logs every little detail of the boot-up into a file called “ntbtlog.txt” in the root directory, usually c:/Windows.

Open up the text file and scan through it to see exactly what’s loading and when it’s loading. It’s quite possible that something obvious will jump right out at you. If you identify anything loading that you didn’t want to load, try uninstalling and see if it fixes the problem.

Last but not least, you always have the option to do a system restore. Just go to the Control Panel, System and Security, Backup and Restore, and select “Recover System Settings for your Computer“.

Choose a valid restore point from the list and follow the instructions. Usually doing a system restore back to a date where your computer was running fine will resolve the blue screen error.
Finally, if even a restore doesn’t seem to resolve the issue, you could be looking at a bad hard disk. If that’s the case, follow Guy’s instructions to do a Check Disk. The solution may be to buy a new hard drive.
Have you ever had the blue screen of death? Were you able to figure your way out of it? Share your own experiences in the comments section below.

Adobe Photoshop CS5 Tips to Make a Twitter Client for Photoshop CS5

We spent some time in another post talking about how cool it is that Adobe® Photoshop® CS5 allows you to create Flash Panels to launch from inside of the application. These panels can be made with Configurator 2, available at the Adobe website.  In an earlier post we made a panel that allowed us to use specific tools for a retouching workflow. One of the best changes that they have made with this is the inclusion of WebKit – allowing you to embed HTML pages with ease inside of the panels. Let’s go ahead and do something fun now, creating a mobile Twitter client that will run inside of Photoshop CS5. 
Go to the labs.adobe.com website and download the latest release of Configurator 2 if you haven’t already done so. This will allow you to make the panels that will run inside of Photoshop CS5 and InDesign CS5.  (Note: You will need to have Adobe AIR installed.)
Once you’ve installed Adobe Configurator, launch it from the your Applications (on PC: Start>Programs).
Create a new panel by clicking on File>New Panel.



Make sure you select Photoshop CS5 as the application that you’re creating the panel for.



Once you are in the main panel window, enter in “Twitter” in the Panel>Name field, as well as a size for how big you would like this panel to be when you expand it in Photoshop CS5.



Along the left panel, expand the Widgets section, and you’ll see that there is an HTML widget available to you there.



Drag the HTML widget to the panel area, using the built in guides to resize the panel as necessary.




Select the HTML widget on your panel, and in the Object Properties on the right hand side fill in the Starting Location URL and Home Location URL as http://mobile.twitter.com.  This will use Twitter’s mobile page that’s reserved for cell phones, and therefore is better for smaller screen sizes.



Once that’s complete, click on File>Export Panel to take what you have done and export it for use in Photoshop CS5.  Navigate to your desktop and save it there.



Once you have the folder on your desktop, move it into the Photoshop CS5>Plugins>Panels folder.



Once the panel is in place, it will require you to restart Photoshop CS5.  After you restart, you will be able to access the panel by going into Window>Extensions.  This is where any panels that extend Photoshop CS5 are held.  In Photoshop CS4, this panel would need to initialize and close, prompting you to reopen the panel a second time.  I’m happy to say that this is not the case anymore.



The great part about having webkit inside of Photoshop CS5 is that this will also save your browser state.  Once you log into Twitter here, you won't have to do it again.  Now you have the ability to monitor all of your social media communications without having to leave your application.



See if you can find other creative ways to manage your  web experiences in Photoshop.  For example, create an app that goes to m.gmail.com.  Once you get there you may have to double click on the fields to enter in information, but hey... you don’t have to leave Photoshop to do so!

Yutham Sei - Dark Crime Thriller

 

The film deals with a CB-CID officer JK who is already in confusion about his missing sister. By the promise of his senior officer JK decides to open the case. Amputated Male arms are packed in cartons and displayed in public to attract public attention. JK thinks that they are done with the intention that police should trace the victims. Based on identification they found the arms belong to Raja Manikam ,Moorthy etc. By triangulating the co ordinates they find a lead in this case. The case goes in detail about how three sides exist who try to complete their own purpose, Cops, Bad Guys, Victims. A new outlook for Cheran though and a must watch movie.

Siruthai - Review

Rocket Raja (Karthi) is a small time thief who is talented enough to steal anything he comes across. In the company of Kaatupoochi (Santhanam), he enjoys life to its extent and even falls for the charm of a beautiful girl (Tamannah). The first half of the movie goes completely dedicated to Rocket Raja and how is life is with the up's and down's and the scene where he is in the police station and tries to steal the officers purse and acts as though he didnt is a big A+ for Karthi in terms of comedy. However, his life changes forever when a small girl comes to Raja calling him dad. As Raja finds out the girl's past, a flashback reveals that she is the daughter of an honest cop Rathanavel Pandian (Karthi), who is a nightmare to baddies.However, Pandian is now is on the run because his enemies are behind him and his daughter. Eventually, the villains find the whereabouts of Pandian and finishes him off. So steps in Rocket Raja (with the help of Pandian’s colleagues who are behind the girl reaching him) into his shoes and finishes the unfinished work of Pandian. He also takes care of his daughter. The combination of Karthi and Santhanam is a major plus in terms of comedy and the sense and timing of Santhanam proves to be good laugh. Overall a roller-coaster ride of fun, joy, camaraderie and romance is what 'Siruthai' is eventually. A must watch this Pongal.

Unstoppable - Nail biting Movie

                                      I thought this movie would suck. Denzel Washington back playing with trains so soon after The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3?Please. Well, mea culpa. Unstoppable, again directed by Tony Scott, is a choo-choo that takes off like a crazy-ass rocket.Your head will spin. Your palms will sweat. Your nerves will fry. What more do you want from a train movie? A layered plot and deep-dish profundity? As if. The selling points here are jolts. And this movie delivers so hard it shoots off sparks. Washington ignites as Frank Barnes, a veteran engineer with two college-age daughters (the sweeties work Hooters to help defray tuition costs) and an attitude toward his mouthy new conductor Will Colson (Chris Pine), also with temper issues at home. Washington and Pine go way beyond white-knuckle duty, goading each other with tasty humor and unexpected feeling. But the focus is on a freight train carrying toxic chemicals. The train is unmanned, on the loose and gaining speed. If it jumps the rails, the population of Stanton, Pennsylvania is roadkill, including cute little tykes. Does the script really stoop that low to build tension? Duh. Yardmaster Connie Hooper (a fierce, first-rate Rosario Dawson) must figure out what to do, just like Washington did in Pelham. Every movie junkie knows the answer. Get Washington and Pine on board the runaway train and let Scott run every trick in his stunt arsenal until they save the day. Unstoppable is a bang-up ride that means to wring you out. Mission accomplished.

Rating : 7/10

Source : IMDb

Sundays at Tiffany's - Bringing the Invisible friend to a New Level

As a little girl, Jane has no one. Her mother Vivienne Margaux, the powerful head of a major New York theater company has no time for her. But she does have one friend--Michael--and no one can see him but her. But Michael can't stay with Jane forever, and on her eighth birthday, her imaginary friend must leave her.

When Jane is in her thirties, working for her mother's company, she is just as alone as she was as a child. Her boyfriend hardly knows she's there and is more interested in what Vivienne can do for his career. Her mother practically treats her as a slave in the office, despite the great success of Jane's first play, "Thank Heaven." Then she finds Michael--handsome, and just the same as she remembers him, only now he's not imaginary. For once in her life, Jane is happy--and has someone who loves her back. But not even Michael knows the reason behind why they've really been reunited

Anything for You Ma'am - A Perfect Romantic Story

Tejas can’t help falling madly in love with his sister’s beautiful best friend Shreya even though she lives at the other end of the nation, in Chennai….and he would do anything for her….even jeopardize his career to travel the length of the country just to meet her.

Thus begins Tejas’s extremely eventful and humorous journey where Mr. Fate pits him, as only he can, against Professor Sidhu who would do anything to stop him; and conjures a host of interesting characters who travel some part of his journey with him weaving together extremely witty plots….and well, Mr. Fate, it seems, has more roles in his ingenious mind for "Biobull" than just remain a rocking bus…

And hence begins the book with Tejas flashback where he see's Shreya and it goes on how he falls in love and a train travel where he meets Shreya's brother all together a great romantic story to read...

Top 10 Gadgets of 2010

  1. i-Pad : It's not the first touchscreen tablet in the history of computing, but it's easily the most successful so far. With 3 million iPads sold in their first month alone and a market for interactive magazines and newspapers created almost overnight, Apple finally managed to make tablet computing cool. 

2. Samsung Galaxy S : In phones, 2010 was the year of the Android. Google's mobile software was installed on slightly more than 9 million smart phones in the third quarter of 2010, according to research firm Canalys. That means 44% of all new smart phones run on Android, up from about 5% a year ago. Among those Android phones, one of the best to be released in 2010 was the Samsung Galaxy S. Unlike the iPhone, the Galaxy S works with a number of carriers and comes in a number of models. The phone's best feature is its screen: it's astonishingly bright, even in daylight. It also is thinner and consumes less power than traditional LCDs, reducing the Galaxy's overall weight and thickness.

3. 11 - inch Mac Book Air : As the first mainstream notebook from a big company to feature flash storage over conventional hard drives, Apple's 11.6-inch (30 cm) MacBook Air justifies its relatively high starting price with lightning-quick boot times, razor-thin design and a weight of just 2.3 lb. (1 kg).

4. Google TV Via Logitech Revue : Tech geeks have been saying for years that you will soon be able to dump your cable subscription and get your shows over the Internet. Not quite — at least, not yet. Google TV's launch this year, though, made for a worthwhile interim step. The software is available on a number of different devices, but the best bet for most people is the Logitech Revue box, which works with an existing TV. It's the only TV box to sit between the cable box and the TV, which means no switching inputs to use it. When you want Google TV, the Revue box allows you to browse the Web and stream video on your TV. When you don't, you can surf your TV channels the old-school way, from your couch with a remote, one channel at a time. It's the best of both worlds. 

5. Nexus One : This year Google tried to capitalize on customer frustrations with wireless-phone manufactures and their multiyear contracts as well as the dominant tech company's brand. Nexus One is the first and only phone designed specifically by Google to take advantage of its Android software platform. Nexus One, which Google called a superphone, wasn't quite the runaway success the search company had hoped for. The phone was ahead of its time but by only months, and even though you could buy it without a contract, you could pick between only AT&T and T-Mobile — and you had to pay a premium to do so. Still, Nexus One owners get updates directly from Google and ahead of other Android phone users. 

 6. iPhone 4 : While sales of 1.7 million units in the first three days of availability are mighty impressive, the iPhone 4's 960-by-640-pixel screen resolution is even more impressive. No competitor has been able to stuff as many pixels into a 3.5-in. (9 cm) LCD. What's more, Apple's front-facing camera and FaceTime software have finally made mobile video chatting popular with regular people.

7. Apple TV : The Apple TV marks an attempt at a fundamental shift in content ownership: it's streaming-only. No downloads. No permanent ownership. Everything is a rental. The latest version of Apple TV shipped in late September. And unlike its earlier version, its users can connect to their Netflix accounts, giving the device a wider appeal. If this catches on with consumers, it could totally upend how people consume movies, television shows and other digital content. 

8. Toshiba Libretto Dual - Screen Laptop : Dreams of a dual-screen, keyboardless laptop were finally realized this summer with Toshiba's Libretto W100. With two 7-in. (18 cm) screens and a price tag of $1,100, Toshiba did the smart thing by labeling the product a "concept PC" and selling it as a limited-edition device. The computer can be used vertically like a book or horizontally like a standard laptop, and both screens can be customized for various uses.

9. Kinect : Microsoft's take on motion-controlled gaming doesn't require holding any physical controllers. Your body is the controller, which is about as intuitive as it gets. Over time, Kinect could end up being more popular than the Wii with nongamers.

10. Nook Color : If you thought the only color in novels was in the writing, you are now wrong. In 2010 a number of manufacturers came out with color e-readers. But most were cheap, with poor screens. Barnes & Noble's Nook Color has an IPS touchscreen similar to the iPad's, but it costs considerably less than Apple's hit product. Barnes & Noble is the first major e-book player to bet big on color. It could pay off.