You can trick Chrome into thinking that any super-long URL is a much shorter one by adding it to the list of "other search engines" in the browser's Preferences pane. One great use for this is to get to frequently-used Google Docs files, like in the image above.
There's no shame in admitting that you occasionally Google yourself; it's worth keeping an eye on what the internet has to say about you. But if you're manually searching your name on Google, revisiting blog posts you've commented on to see if anyone's replied to what you've said, and searching for (non-@)mentions of…
Windows/Mac OS X: Applist.me is a free app that scans the iTunes apps folder, creates a list of all your installed apps, and lets you share it with a simple short link. With this app, you don't have to cringe when friends or family get a new iPhone or iPad and ask the inevitable question, "what apps should I get?" You…
A group of Swiss scientists studied the effects of sleep in hammock-like conditions by hooking a dozen people up to EEG units while they fell asleep on gently rocking beds. The end result was basically Science confirming what hammock-enthusiasts have been saying for years—the gentle rocking motion not only puts you to…
Android: Maintaining a solid data connection eats up a lot of battery power, and turning it off to save juice usually means remembering to toggle it back on again. InterNETmittence is a free app that toggles Android's data connection for you, but also remembers to turn it back on later.
If you're tired of regular bath mats soaking through to the floor (and feeling nasty all day), you can always make your own out of wine corks—not only are they cheap (or free), but their entire purpose in life is to get splashed with liquid and dry off again.
If you don't like sticking shiny bits of glass and plastic in your potting soil, you can upgrade the pot itself to get some self-watering freedom. Just wrap a sponge in some wicking fabric (like a shredded t-shirt) and place it on a bed of rocks at the bottom of your pot. Refill the pot and go about your gardening as…
Chrome Sync is already pretty full-featured, but one of the few things that's been missing is its ability to sync URLs that users manually type into the Omnibar. Chrome Canary users can now activate that feature, by heading to their about:flags page and enabling it, then checking the box for "Typed URLs" in the…
It's been a few months since Hulu first mentioned their upcoming Android app, but it's finally beginning to show up in the Android Market. At the moment, only six devices are supported, including the Nexus One, Nexus S, HTC Inspire 4G, and Motorola's Droid 2, Droid X, and Atrix.
Best Buy seems to have just launched a cloud music service. Music Cloud, as it's called, has a free version and a premium version. The free version gives you access to a web player and storage, but the premium version (priced at $3.99/mo) also allows use of apps, which are available on Android, iOS, and Blackberry…
Mac OS X: You don't need to click through system settings or use a third-party app to hide and show the OS X dock, all you need is a quick keyboard shortcut. Just hit Command+Option+D at any time, and the dock will glide away (or back again).
The San Francisco Chronicle recently got confirmation from TSA officials that there are more items specifically allowed in carry-on luggage than you might expect. Among them are whips, chains, handcuffs, vibrators, and other personal "toys" that don't exceed certain measurements—in other words, they're OK to go as…
Sure, your friends might have some interesting things to say throughout the day, but why take chances? Lifehacker's on the big blue social network in the sky, and we're only a Like button away from adding useful nuggets of information to your feed—which could come in handy on those days when nobody's filling it up…
Changing a flat tire, especially while out on the road, is something that every driver should know how to do. Even if you've got the best roadside insurance coverage available, you could find yourself in a situation where you're just too far from civilization to rely on it. The good news is that changing a tire is…
If you take a gaming mouse and set its customizable buttons to things like copy, paste, delete, "next tab," or a window-switcher, you can seriously upgrade your own work-time productivity by allowing yourself to get more done with every click.
While everyone else is rushing to convert their wallets into data, one Instructables user was converting his wallet into data storage. By taking a cheap, $12 ultra-thin USB flash drive dongle and sewing one tiny piece of Velcro, Instructables user "Activist" was able to upgrade his leather wallet into the 21st century.
Sometimes you just have to know what people are saying about you on the internet. It may not be vain for you to want to know these things, but it can be pretty difficult to satisfy that curiosity. The problem isn't so much a lack of tools, since there's no shortage of search engines, but more an abundance of people…
Flickr user moQET customized this Windows 7 desktop to have such a minimal look, that it's hard to tell what OS it is anymore. Placing the play button front and center above a headphone-draped Yoda is a nice touch, too. If you want to recreate something similar to it, here are some pieces you'll need:
A whole chicken doesn't have to last one meal, only to become a day's worth of leftovers before making its way to the trash bin. Kerry Taylor managed to stretch one enormous chicken into 22 meals over a five-day period, and it's wasn't as insane (or meatless) as you might think.
If you've ever been stuck with a closet-less space and tried using a store-bought clothing rack to save space, you know they tend to be as flimsy as they are ugly. Ryan Plett fixed this problem at his place by building his own, out of heavy steel pipes. The whole rig cost him $71 and a few hours of his time, but the…
