Use Reddit on the Move with Diode Reddit Browser

Sep 28, 2012 GMT

I don't know about you, but I'm addicted to Reddit. I permanently keep Reddit's website opened in a separate tab in my browser. And when I'm on the move, I use the Diode Reddit Browser app. Diode is based on the last open source version of the Reddit is Fun app. When the latter went close source, developers created the Diode fork to keep the open source app alive. Diode is not the most feature-rich Reddit client in the Google Play store, but all essential functionality is implemented. You can search and browse sub-reddits, upvote posts, view and add comments, and submit posts. You can configure Diode to check your Reddit mail, too. This feature is disabled by default, so you have to...

Take and Sync Notes with nvPY

Sep 28, 2012 GMT

Notational Velocity is arguably one of the best open source note-taking applications. Sadly, it's available only on Mac OS X. But despair not: nvPY provides a viable alternative to Notational Velocity for Linux users. nvPY is not the prettiest application out there, but its interface is functional and it offers several useful creature comforts. The application sports a global search feature which lets you quickly find notes containing a specific search string. nvPY can handle Markdown and RST formatting, and you can convert formatted notes to the HTML format. Most users will also appreciate the built-in word count feature. nvPY also allows you to create internal links to other notes using...

View Your Raspberry Pi's Stats with the Raspberry Pi Sysinfo Script

Sep 27, 2012 GMT

Need a quick and dirty way to display your Raspberry Pi's essential stats? Consider Raspberry Pi Sysinfo script. The entire solution consists of a single PHP script and a couple of graphics files, so deploying it is rather straightforward. First of all, make sure that Apache and PHP are installed on your Raspberry Pi. Grab then the latest release of the scripts, unpack the downloaded archive, and move the resulting sysinfo folder to the /var/www directory on your Raspberry Pi. That's all there is to it. Point your browser to http://127.0.0.1/sysinfo (replace 127.0.0.1 with the actual IP address or domain name of your Raspberry Pi), and you should see the overview generated by the...

Fix "Improved" Saving Functionality in GIMP 2.8

Sep 27, 2012 GMT

GIMP 2.8 is a fine release, no doubt about that. But along with a plethora of improvements, the new version brought several changes that not all GIMP users appreciate. Chief among these changes is the modified save behavior. Previously the Save command saved the file in its original format. In version 2.8 the save feature saves images in GIMP's native XCF format. This means that if you open a PNG file and then hit Ctrl+S (or choose File | Save), GIMP prompts you to save the file in the XCF format. To save the file in its original format, you have to use the File | Overwrite or File | Export commands. If you find the new behavior annoying, the Save/export clean plugin is for you. To...

Productivity on the Move: Android Tablet vs Notebook

Sep 26, 2012 GMT

As an experiment, I've been traveling for three weeks with an ASUS Transformer Pad TF300 Android tablet instead of a regular notebook. I really, really wanted to like the tablet as a travel companion. After all, schlepping around a heavy shoulder bag most of the day is tedious, to say the least. However, next time I hit the road, I'll most likely take my trusty HP dm1-4000 machine with me. Here is why. A tablet is supposedly perfect for checking email, reading ebooks and RSS articles, posting updates to Google+, etc. Yet, I often found myself reaching for my Samsung Galaxy S III when I felt the urge to consume content. Being an amateur photographer, I take a lot of photos, and I rely...

Imgur Mushroom: imgur Uploader App for Android

Sep 25, 2012 GMT

If you happen to use imgur as your preferred image hosting and sharing service, you'll appreciate Imgur Mushroom. This little open source app allows you to tweak and upload images from your Android device to imgur with consummate ease. Imgur Mushroom can act as a standalone utility for uploading images, or as a helper tool accessible via other apps. When used in the standalone mode, Imgur Mushroom lets you pick an image stored on your Android device, or take a snap using the device's camera. The Edit button gives you access to the app's editing tools for rotating and resizing the image. Once you're done tweaking the image, tap Save and upload the file using the Upload button. The app also...

Using Raspberry Pi as a Photo Station

Sep 24, 2012 GMT

Although Raspberry Pi (RPi) is not powerful enough for heavy-duty image processing, you can still put it to some photography-related uses. For example, as an amateur photographer, I take a lot of photos when I travel, and I upload the photos to my Raspberry Pi at home which neatly organizes and keeps them safe till I get back home.To turn RPi into a photo station, I opted for the Debian Wheezy minimal image. The only thing I needed to install was the usbmount tool which automatically mounts and unmounts external USB storage devices. Although it's possible to save photos on the SD card, I decided to keep them on a dedicated 16GB USB stick which usbmount tool mounts at /media/usb0. Since...