Dress up online - My virtual closet of Barbie-ready perfection

Want to put together outfits online?   That's right, you can even plan your wardrobe on the web.  The Fashion Assistant site lets you put together outfits, create a virtual closet, and share the results with your friends.

It's like playing Barbie and never having to pick up those tiny shoes out of the carpet again

How Sharing Computers is like Sharing a Toothbrush

Techmama's article on families needing a tablet and a computer got me thinking.  Is there really a need for a family computer any more, or has tech in the family progressed so that the shared computer is a dinosaur.

In my family, as the title suggests, I wouldn't share a computer with the other members any more often than I would share a toothbrush.   Computer settings and preferences can be a very personal thing, and I hate trying to figure out who has been messing with my stuff.

Conversely, if I don't touch the computers of the less technical members of my family (who shall remain nameless to reduce the threat of possible retaliation - to me)  they can't accuse me of doing "things" to their computers.   And I don't get frustrated having to use a computer that has issues.

It reminds me of getting in the car after my husband has been driving.   I have to raise the seat, straighten the back, move it forward - and then start driving.    Sometimes I am too lazy and just stretch and point my toe to accelerate.    What is the best time save is - he drives when it is his car, and I drive in mine.

Just like the computers.

App-Tastic - Wikihood

One of the challenges of travel is finding out local information.   Finding a guidebook for a major city like London, New York, or Berlin is easy.   But there are treasures in many cities that even a local might miss.

My new favorite is Wikihood - a smartphone app that finds wiki articles about points of interest near you.  It's like the lovechild of my Garmin and the AAA guidebook in tablet interface.  

You let the app find you, and you will get a map with those red dots that indicate a place to visit.   Tap on the dot brings up the wiki article.    Often it will give you times the attraction is open, or a link to the official site. 

And it's free.  Don't want to miss it

Facebook Turns Your Likes into Ads

Think it is harmless to push that "like" button on Facebook?   Well, your face and comments are being turned into ads for the products you like.  This article gives more detail on how Facebook has the right to do this.

Your friends will get ads for products with your face and comments formatted as an endorsement.   Many companies have been encouraging "likes" to get discounts, or as sign-ups for contests.   Personally, I found the begging someone to "like" you was a little demeaning.  I feel almost like a middle school mean girl, deciding whether I like something or not.  But turning my feeble like into an ad is like going to third base when I thought we were maybe shaking hands. 

So now along with an "un-friend" button, we really need an "un-like."

Mona's Friends Playlist

Mona picked out songs that all talk about friends. So here is her playlist of songs about friends.
Here are some links to the lyrics.
You've Got a Friend in Me by Randy Newman
Thank You for Being a Friend
Friend Like Me
You've got a Friend

I'll be Around
Why Can't We be Friends
I'll be there for you
Make New Friends

The cloud in your pocket

Every once in a while I browse Amazon and find things I didn't even know existed. Today I found a thumb drive that has Wi-fi. I thought to myself - who wants that?

Then I read the comments on the reviews. The wi-fi thumb drive is a way to add storage to devices that do not have SD card slots, or USB ports but DO have the ability to connect to wifi. And the answer to my question was - I want that. Now!!

Both my iPhone and Fire could play movies, except I have to keep downloading the media to the devices. (I hate downloading) I could stream from the Internet, but I am not always in free wifi. With these devices I can stream movies from my own local mass storage to these two devices that have no USB ports.

I have 64 gig iphone which is nifty except for the the fact I had to use iTunes to transfer. As I mentioned before, I find using iTunes as pleasant as sticking needles in my eyes. So now I can watch on the iPhone without transferring, and the Fire - at the same time.

Can't wait til it gets here.

Burn CDs and record music with your computer - from a thumb drive

Every few years the tools for burning CDs and recording get better and better. Since I seem to switch computers every few years whether I want to or not, I spend a lot of time re-installing software.

My new preference is to use "portable" apps that run from a thumb drive. These do not need to be installed, so you can carry them with you. You simply unzip the applications to individual folders on your drive, and then execute (run) them from the thumb drive. I carry an alternative to Acrobat Reader (PDF-Xchange), portable Skype, and a few music tools. Here are some of my favorite music tools.

• Cd burning Click here to down load Tinyburner.
• Record audio Click here to down load Streamosaur, to record anything playing from the Internet or coming through your soundcard.
• Tag and rename audio Click here to down load Tag Scan, which will help you rename your files and tag them with track and album information. The tag information helps you choose which songs to play on your portable device.
• Edit audio Click here to down load Wavosaur, which allow you edit audio. This can be used to combine tracks, shorten, or create clips.