Filed under: Utilities, Macintosh, Productivity

Dropzone is a utility described by its developers as "the Swiss Army knife of drag and drop for the Mac." That's definitely accurate, because with Dropzone in your Dock, you can quickly do just about anything you'd want to with a file. You can install apps, upload pics to Flickr, save text, open something in Skitch and more, all by dragging and dropping. Even better, it's got an API, and there are already some useful user-contributed actions you can install.

If you're a die-hard command line junkie, this app is probably not for you, but if you're the typical Mac user who gets a lot done with the mouse, it could be just what you're looking for to speed up your tasks. There have been individual apps for some of these actions (iike Flickr or FTP uploads) for a long time, and it's an even better deal when they're combined into one.

Dropzone adds tons of drag n' drop functionality to your OS X dock originally appeared on Download Squad on Sat, 04 Jul 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Internet, Security, Symantec

In a discussion with tech.blorge.com, David Hall, who is Symantec's Product Manager for Asia-Pacific Consumer Products and Solutions, voices his concerns over the popularity of free antivirus programs.

"People tell me, 'oh well look I use free antivirus because it is free and it protects me from everything in those areas,' but when you compare that with what's really going on in the threat landscape, there is a very, very big gap between what antivirus does and the threats that are being delivered today."

He later continues, "[...] attackers are not necessarily only targeting the web browser. Think about all the plug-ins you have installed on your machine - RealPlayer, Flash, QuickTime - all of these have vulnerabilities too."

Yes, the threats we face on the Internet have changed over the years and In some respects, Hall is correct.

Like many of you, I no longer rely only on AV software. It's a starting point in keeping my systems protected. I also use a firewall, OpenDNS or a hosts file blocker, and browser addons like NoScript and NoFlash. For added protection, I'll use Sandboxie (and sometimes Windows SteadyState). All of these tools are totally free, and they've been doing the job quite nicely on my home systems.

Hall's quotes do help explain why I've seen several machines on my workbench running only Symantec's own Norton Antivirus that have fallen victim to drive-by attacks. Yes, Symantec, even users running your AV protection aren't totally safe. And it's not free. They paid for it.

In fact, they're still paying for it.

See what I did there?

Symantec's Hall says free antivirus is for chumps originally appeared on Download Squad on Sat, 04 Jul 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Video, Browsers, Mobile

Mobile web browser Skyfire is one of the only browsers around that lets users watch movies from online video site Hulu. Or rather, it was. WMExperts reports that Hulu has begun blocking Skyfire users.

This development comes on a long, protracted battle between Hulu and Boxee, a media center application for OS X, Windows, and Ubuntu Linux that provides access to web video from dozens of sources.

After killing Boxee support, Hulu eventually launched its own desktop application, cleverly called Hulu Desktop. Does this mean that Hulu might be working on a mobile viewing device? I wouldn't be surprised if the company simply wanted more control over how users can interact with the media on its web site. On the other hand, since Boxee, Skyfire, and most other applications that allow users to watch Hulu video leave the advertising intact, I can't see how it should make much difference to Hulu and the company's content partners how you watch the videos.

[via AppScout]

Hulu blocks Skyfire mobile browser from accessing videos originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: OS Updates, Windows, Linux, Windows x64

StatCounter data shows Windows 7 pre-release use closing in on Linux originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Mozilla, Browsers

Ever try closing a series of tabs in Firefox by hitting Ctrl+W over and over until you were down to your last tab? Ever overshoot and accidentally wind up closing the whole browser and then having to wait (im)patiently to reload the browser?

There's a setting tucked away in the recesses of Firefox 3.5's configuration options that will keep the browser running after you close the last tab. Instead of closing, Firefox will simply display a single blank tab.

Here's how it works. Type "about:config" into the location bar (without the quotation marks), and then finding the setting labeled "browser.tabs.closeWindowWithLastTab" (again, without the quotes) and double click that setting to change the value to false. That's it. Now when you close all your browser tabs Firefox will stay open.

[via Lifehacker]

Tweak Firefox 3.5 to keep running when you close all tabs originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: OS Updates, Windows, Microsoft, Windows x64

Microsoft has activated the kill annoy-the-crap-out-of-you switch on Windows 7 Beta and urged us to install the RC, upgrade coupon plans have been announced, pre-orders are being taken, the Family Pack license has surfaced, and things appear to be on track for the RTM to release just ten days from now.

As mentioned a two weeks ago - and now been confirmed by an 'inside source' close to our chum Paul at Geeksmack - the final build is slated for July 10th and code sign-off will follow on the 13th.

General availability won't come until October, officially. However, since the RTM ISO downloads will be available to Technet and MSDN subscribers soon, they'll probably be available on every torrent tracker in the known universe within hours of the first successful download.

Or sooner, if the crew at Wzor.net is feeling generous.

Yes, Windows 7 really will RTM in ten days originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Design, Utilities, Browsers

So, you're a web designer, and you want to start taking advantage of new features in CSS 3 and HTML5. That's great, but you know that most of your users aren't running browsers that support these new standards. You could just wait for browsers to get with the times, or you could check out Modernizr.

Modernizr is a JavaScript library by Faruk Ates that detects which functionality a browser can support, and allows you to use if-statements to fine-tune your fallbacks for browsers that don't support the new hotness. Modernizr can't fix old browsers, but it can make it more practical to support newer ones. On top of all the CSS 3 styles it can detect support for, it also allows you to use and style HTML5 elements without breaking your site for IE users. Not too shabby for a little bit of JavaScript.

Modernizr: start implementing CSS 3 and HTML5 features now originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Google, VoIP

After what seems like an eternity in closed private testing, Google is starting to send out beta invitations for Google Voice (formerly GrandCentral). The company also reportedly snagged about a million US phone numbers to use for the service, which lets users give out a single phone number that will ring all their phones and record, transcribe, and email voicemail messages.

Those new phone numbers will come in handy for new customers. But what if you're an existing user looking to change your number? I signed up for GrandCentral when I lived in Brooklyn and got myself a number with a 718 area code. Now I live in Philadelphia and feel silly giving out that number.

Now Google is offering users like me a chance to change our numbers. You'll have to pony up $10 for the change, but since most of Google Voice's features are free, that seems like a pretty reasonable price.

When you change numbers, all calls made to your old number will continue coming to your new number for 90 days.

[via TechCrunch]

Google Voice will let you change your phone number for $10 originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Google, Open Source, Browsers

When I was looking over my news feeds yesterday morning, I though I had spied some exciting news. A few sites were reporting about a new Delicious extension for Chrome. Some of them trumpeted its arrival as proof that Chrome extensions were real.

I found that statement a little odd, because AdSweep has been around since early April. Didn't that pretty much prove the "reality" of Chrome extensions?

To make things even less exciting, the Delicious extension is about as un-noteworthy as they come. If you've got the 'Bookmark on Delicious' bookmarklet in Chrome already, guess what? The extension does the exact same thing. All it does is create a Delicious icon at the end of your address bar instead of on your bookmark toolbar.

I don't know about you, but that's nothing to get worked up about. Google's three example extensions? Equally yawn-worthy.

Heck, I'm still waiting for integration with Google services. Anyone else wondering where the support for things like Google Bookmarks is? It is their browser, after all.

Don't get me wrong - I love Chrome's speed and minimal UI, but after this long I thought we'd see some much more interesting extensions. If you know one, please share it in the comments. I'd love to see it!

Yahoo's Delicious proves Chrome extensions are....Boring. originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Fugly Friday

I didn't think it was possible to fall out of the ugly tree and actually hit every branch on the way down. I thought that was just a figure of speech. One of those idiomatic expressions we use to describe something without really describing it. The Solutions Network proved I have a thing or two to learn about metaphors.

Imagine a site so jumbled with affiliate links, so riddled with primary colors, so overbearing in its use of tables -- filling every last inch of visible space with something you could click on, NOW! -- that any pretense of goodwill towards your fellow man you've ever held evaporates like so much dew from the top layer of a landfill in the morning sun.

It's a trainwreck of html, a prank played entirely in font tags. It simply must be.

The only thing the designer failed to use is BLINK. I'm going to guess that failure was either an intentional oversight -- one tiny concession to good taste in a sea of disgust -- or that he was so overwhelmed by the site himself that he fell dead at the keyboard before adding that one last cardinal sin of bad web design.

But wait, there's more. Immediately after your browser loads the last site you'll ever want to visit, a voice comes booming from your speakers, proclaiming that you've reached "the busiest site on the internet!" The irony is nearly enough to kill a man.

The cherry on top? Even the favicon is animated. I'm not even sure how you'd go about animating a favicon. You know why I'm not sure? Because, even without seeing an example of an animated favicon, my brain attempts to suck my own eyeballs deep within the recesses of my skull upon the very mention -- a physiological response I can only imagine was developed through generations of evolutionary genius as a last-ditch defense mechanism to prevent serious brain damage from spreading among the population.

If The Solutions Network is your personal key to making money on the internets, I highly reccomend that you begin scouting for a sturdy cardboard box in which to live at your earliest opportunity.

[Thanks Andrew for the tip. My shrink will be sending you the bill for my next 3 visits]

Fugly Friday - The Solutions Network originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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