Google This Week (26/11/2008)

Gmail now has themes.

Google Chrome gains a bookmark manager.

Google SearchWiki Launched

Google Maps Has a New Interface

Google SketchUp 7 Released

Lively Will Be Discontinued

YouTube Experimenting With 720p HD Video and Now At 16:9 Aspect Ratio

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Google Chrome – A New Web Browser

Google Chrome is a browser that combines a minimal design with sophisticated technology to make the web faster, safer, and easier.

The browser uses WebKit as the rendering engine and has Gears integrated into it.

A word of advice, it looks much better on Windows Vista and when it is maximised. You might also want to enable the Home button and keep the bookmarks toolbar visible at all times.

Like this:

One thing I absolutely hate is when you install the product, it adds a startup entry of GoogleUpdate.exe. So each time your computer starts it runs the exe and it never shuts down. It also does not install in the Programs Folder like normal software programs, but instead at C:\Users\[User]\AppData\Local on Windows Vista.

I know that this is beta software, so this may change when the final product is out, but Google don’t add files or services to our startup list, no matter how small. You don’t see Mozilla Firefox doing that.

Overall, it is a very good web browser, but too simple for my liking. It’s hard to keep lots of bookmarks and it doesn’t support RSS yet, but it is very fast. It is also supposed to be more efficient then other web browsers in the way it handles processes and threads. I would not recommend it for daily use just yet. A lot of sites that use advanced JavaScript functions have problems e.g. the new Facebook, so many features to do work, like joining a new group or deleting a comment.

Read the Comic Book to get a better insight into the ideas and features behind Google Chrome.

View: Comic Book about Google Chrome
Download: Google Chrome (BETA)

Mozilla Firefox 3 Out Today

Mozilla has announced that the final version of Firefox 3 will go public today, Tuesday, June 17, 2008:

After more than 34 months of active development, and with the contributions of thousands, we’re proud to announce that we’re ready. Put on your party hats and get ready to download Firefox 3 — the best web browser, period.

As part of the celebration, design firm Nobox has created a cool new poster that summarizes the robot series headed with the word Victory. You can get a large version of it at Flickr.

For the full details of Firefox 3, check the full review.

Download Day starts at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time for other times see: http://tinyurl.com/4e7fv5. This is 6 p.m. GMT.

Download: Firefox 3

Microsoft Pro Photo Tools (v2), Windows Search 4.0 and Windows Installer 4.5 Released!

The Pro Photo Tools allow you to add, change, and delete common metadata properties for digital photographs. You can place photos on the Live Earth map and then drag them to the right location. The GPS information will be stored back into the photos. If you have a GPS device, can load track route files from the most popular formats (NMEA, GPX, and KML) and see them on the map. Then you can place your photos on the track route. Again, the GPS info will be stored into your file. When you have the right GPS location for your photos, you can automatically generate location info like country, state, city and even street names. Or if you know the location where a picture was taken, you can type it in and get the GPS location information automatically.

More Information: Microsoft Pro Photo Tools
Download: Microsoft Pro Photo Tools version 2 [Validation Required]
Homepage: Microsoft Professional Photography

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Windows Search 4.0 lets you perform an instant search of your computer. Windows Search 4.0 helps you find and preview documents, e-mail messages, music files, photos, and other items on the computer.

Adobe Flash Player and Shockwave Player Downloads

Latest versions of Flash Player: http://www.adobe.com/products/flashplayer/distribution3.html

Latest versions of Shockwave Player: http://www.adobe.com/products/shockwaveplayer/distribution3.html

Windows XP Service Pack 3 Build 5512 Final Download

Windows® XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) includes all previously released updates for the operating system, in addition to a small number of new functionalities that will not significantly change customers’ experience with the operating system. This white paper summarizes what is new in Windows XP SP3, and how to deploy the service pack.

File Size: 316.43 MB
MD5 Hash: BB25707C919DD835A9D9706B5725AF58
SHA1 Hash: C81472F7EEEA2ECA421E116CD4C03E2300EBFDE4

Windows Vista SP1 (Service Pack 1) Officially Released to Consumers

Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) is an update to Windows Vista that addresses feedback from our customers. In addition to previously released updates, SP1 will contain changes focused on addressing specific reliability, performance, and compatibility issues; supporting new types of hardware; and adding support for several emerging standards. SP1 also will continue to make it easier for IT administrators to deploy and manage Windows Vista. Windows Vista Service Pack 1 Five Language Standalone version can be installed on systems with any of the following language versions: English (US), French, German, Japanese, or Spanish (Traditional).

Download: Service Pack 1 for Windows Vista 32 Bit [434.5 MB]
Download: Service Pack 1 for Windows Vista 64 Bit [726.5 MB]
View: Windows Vista SP1 Overview
View: Notable Changes in Windows Vista SP1
View: Hotfixes and Security Updates included in Windows Vista SP1

Completly Uninstall and Remove Bonjour Service and Files (mDNSResponder.exe, mdnsNSP.dll) for Windows

Bonjour, also known as zero-configuration networking, enables automatic discovery of computers, devices, and services on IP networks. Bonjour uses industry standard IP protocols to allow devices to automatically discover each other without the need to enter IP addresses or configure DNS servers.

If you’ve installed software such as iTunes by Apple, the chances are there’s already a Bonjour folder in your Program Files. This service starts automatically and runs a process named mDNSResponder.exe which cannot be killed by Windows Task Manager. If you do not want Bonjour to be on your computer and want to uninstall it, sometimes you can’t find any uninstaller for it! Even if you go to Control Panel’s Add or Remove Program, you can’t find the uninstaller there as well.

Here’s how to safely uninstall and remove the Bonjour service and files (mDNSResponder.exe and mdnsNSP.dll). Just follow the few simple steps below to remove Bonjour from your computer.

Update 2013/12/31: Newer versions of Bonjour can just be uninstalled from “Programs and Features” (Add/remove programs). However, each time you update iTunes you have to remove it again.

foobar2000 0.9.5

foobar2000 is an advanced audio player for the Windows platform. Some of the basic features include full unicode support, ReplayGain support and native support for several popular audio formats.

• Audio formats supported natively: MP1,
  MP2, MP3, MP4, MPC, AAC, Ogg Vorbis, FLAC / Ogg FLAC, WavPack, WAV,
  AIFF, AU, SND, CDDA, WMA.
• More audio formats supported through optional components, official or third-party.
• Full unicode support.
• Customizable user interface layout (new in version 0.9.5). View screenshots…
• Advanced tagging capabilities.
• Support for ripping Audio CDs as well as transcoding all supported audio formats using the Converter component. Read more…
• ReplayGain support – both playback and calculation.
• Customizable keyboard shortcuts.
• Open component architecture allowing third-party developers to extend functionality of the player.

Download: foobar2000 0.9.5
View: Release notes
Homepage: foobar2000.org

Sony Walkman NWZ-A818 (8GB A810 Series) Review

The NWZ-A818 is Sony’s new Walkman that is a potential iPod killer. The version I am reviewing is the 8GB black version, but it is also available in pink or white, with 2GB (no pink), 4GB and 8GB versions. What’s particularly special about this Walkman unlike the previous A800 series is that it does not use the SonicStage software to transfer files. Instead it uses drag-and-drop which can be done with Windows Explorer.

The sound quality is breathtaking, I have never listened to an mp3 player that has sounded this good. No seriously, it is unbelievable. This possibly the MDR-EX082 earbud earphones at work.