Image via Flower Luza

Christmas is just a couple of days away and New Year’s Eve is just around the corner. The holidays are a time of gift giving, but what about those computer geeks on your list?

Well, there’s lots of gadgets and gizmos to keep any geek happy all through the holidays. Here’s what I’d like to unwrap this year.

Oh, and I’m a geek, so I know these are sure to be winners this holiday

1. PS3

The third edition of Playstation is much more than a gamer console. It comes with a built in Blu Ray player, a 250 gig hard drive and a WiFi chip to keep your geek gaming even when not plugged in.

This time waster is a guaranteed winner under your Christmas tree and, unlike years past, you can still buy a Play Station even at this late date, i.e. no people lining up at 4:00 AM for the big door buster sale at the local big box store.

Price: $349.99 USD

2. Powermat

Is your friend always complaining about recharging her cell or refueling his Smartphone? Well, the Powermat simplifies recharging while freeing up some outlets in your home.

This wireless charging device will power up any wireless device simply by placing the cell phone or other gizmo on the mat. Wireless recharging!

Great for the home or office (where everybody’s connected by cell), Powermat is portable so you can take it with you everywhere for a quick power boost on the go, and it works with any wireless device that requires a charge.

One word of caution: most chargeable gadgets will require a reconfiguration to accept a wireless charge but the geeks on your list won’t have any trouble. Takes about five minutes per device, but this toy will charge up to three wireless PDAs in a couple of hours.

Price: $99.99 USD

3. Kindle

Download your favorite books and read them on the go. Kindle is lightweight (10 ounces), thin, portable and convenient. It’s also adjustable to meet your vision needs.

The device is totally wireless and works in countries around the world, no matter what wireless protocol is used. And if you are a REAL bookworm, Kindle holds up to 1,500 books, with new apps coming on line every day.

Price: $259.00 USD

4. Garmin Nuvi GPS

Check out this cool GPS from Garmin. It’s got a 4.3 inch touch screen for easy navigation while cruising, a text to speech function, 2-D and 3-D mapping options, it’s rechargeable, and the Nuvi also comes loaded with other useful goodies including a JPEG picture viewer, a world travel clock (if you can pry yourself away from the desktop), a currency converter, calculator and a bunch of other useful apps that’ll keep you moving in the right direction.

Price: $129.99 USD

5. JaredCo’s Blackberry Flashlight

You never know when you’ll need a flashlight. It’s usually in an emergency. That’s why this Blackberry app is such a cool tool.

Unlike other BB apps that use the LED screen to generate light, JaredCo’s top ranked Flashlight uses your geek’s Blackberry Video light. That’s more light when he needs it. It’s also juice-friendly, meaning you won’t run out of light when you need it most.

It’s simple to configure and it runs in the background until you fire it up. There’s never a flashlight around when you need one – until now. One of the best Blackberry apps. One of the smartest, too.

Price: $1.99 per download USD.

6. Olympus X-905 Digital Camera

This low cost, digital shooter is the perfect tool for everyday picture taking

The X-905 comes with a 10 megapixel grid, automated image stabilization, a simplified face detection feature and a 5X zoom. Not bad for the low price, but like all things electronic, each year you get more for less thanks to a highly competitive market.

This is one gadget guaranteed to make you smile.

Price: $99.99 USD

7. iPod nano

The folks at Apple got this edition of the iPod nano right.

There’s like a million apps, you can download, all the tunes you can handle from the iTunes store, play games while waiting for the bus. This gadget has everything a gadget freak could ask for. And the nano comes in a full spectrum of cool colors.

Price: $139.98 USD, but shop around. Prices vary.

Hey, it’s the gift giving season, friends. So make everyone in your house a happy camper with these gadgets.

All guaranteed to be 100% geek friendly. I know. I am one.

Happy holidays, one and all.

Image via Lai Hu

Mozilla’s Firefox browser burst onto the web landscape a few years ago, and unlike IE, Firefox is doing it right.

In fact, the popularity of Firefox has grown significantly, and when you consider that this browser competes with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and Google’s Chrome, the success of Firefox is proof that Mozilla got it right by introducing a blank-slate browser that you customize to make your own.

Firefox supports a large, diverse and active community of independent developers. Visit the add-ons page at Mozilla and you’ll discover hundreds of features you can add to Firefox, enabling you to customize Firefox to your business needs, web cruising practices and personal preferences.

Ever since Firefox launched, Mozilla has promoted the browser as user-centric – a lesson every site owner can take to the bank. Engage your users and they become a digital community.

I use a number of browsers for different purposes, but I always come back to Firefox for routine web-based activity. And, by downloading add-ons, I’ve created a browser that meets my needs so my Firefox search page looks different from your search page, thanks to the roster of add-ons offered by Firefox.

1. FastestFox 3.0.4

This productivity app is fairly new, but man, has it caught the attention of Firefox users. I can’t believe how this one app improves the performance of any computer from 5-year-old doorstops to today’s high-speed processors and a terabyte of RAM .

FastestFox simplifies repetitive tasks. Program the interface once and daily chores can be automated – everything from time cards to content management. Downloads are faster, even when I’m downloading two or three batches of digital data simultaneously.

This handy little tool can also run in the background if you don’t need all the bells and whistles by increasing speed as you move from one site to another. I’m still discovering new ways to use this app. It’s flexible, deep in features and it’s a simple add-on to the blank Firefox interface.

2. Google Shortcuts

With Google apps moving aggressively into the exclusive activities of the world wide “wealth” of Microsoft, there’s a lot of Google tools I want access to daily – everything from my Analytics account to Google Docs.

This handy download let’s me place all my critical Google tools on a single menu. Click once and I’m deep in my Google account, or conducting research with Google’s Keyword Generator.

It’s a simple navigation tool that takes a few clicks out of my work day and those clicks add up. So, it improves my productivity, too, providing faster access to the Google tools I use everyday. Hey, save a click here, a click there – it adds up to increased productivity.

3. Yoono 6.2.1

If you’re like me, social media takes up a big part of the day. Sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Flickr and other digital gathering and SMS sites are a great way to create web or blog buzz. And isn’t that what we’re all trying to do?

Yoono is in my arsenal of guerrilla marketing tools, enabling me to ping posts, add posts to a variety of sites and track return activity such as RTs and comments to posts – all from one dashboard. Think of Yoono as a blend of Ping.fm and Seesmic – only mashed together in functionality. Real simple interface, too.

4. Smart Bookmarks Bar 1.4.3

If you’re like me you’ve got a couple of hundred bookmarks in your favorites file. Well, if you’re tired of searching for your destination sites, Smart Bookmarks enables you to display more bookmarks on your navigation bar.

You can hide it and bring it up as needed, but it’s so convenient, I keep it on-screen all the time so I’m on any site with a click. That’s just how I want it.

5. MR Tech Toolkit 6.0.4

A simple download add-on that delivers all the tools I need to install, manage and change extensions and Firefox themes and other add-ons in a variety of formats and from a simple interface.

Makes download management more manageable. Another time saver for me.

6. AutoPager 0.5.5.6

Simple idea, simple add on. AutoPager automatically loads next pages based on your preferences and web use practices. It reads Google, Yahoo and interfaces with other Firefox add-ons like spam blockers so you can still skip the spam without having to manually load the next page into your Firefox browser. This little tool does it for you.

Think of AutoPager as an infinite scrolling tool and stop manually clicking to the next page. Scroll through an entire site in seconds.

7. RSS Ticker 3.0.4

I’ve got over 100 blogs and sites loaded into four different RSS readers so sometimes finding the news takes more time than I want to spend.

That’s why I added RSS Ticker – a convenience overlay that notifies me of changes in any of the live bookmarks I place in the tracker. Now, I don’t have to manually track RSS readers. This add-on does it for me.

8. FEBE 6.3.2

A security add on that automatically backs up all my Firefox activities – bookmarks, preferences, passwords and other stuff that I use everyday.

Sure, I have multiple, redundant back-up systems off-site and in-house. This Firefox add-on simply takes one more thing off my plate – one more thing I don’t even have to think about. Nice back up security for all your Firefox add-ons and settings.

9. View Source Chart 2.7

One of the most creative uses of Firefox’s OSS interface, View Source Chart provides the source code of any site in a very simple GUI. But it’s not just a click saver.

View Source displays HTML tag boundaries, provides a GUI of tag nesting configurations and even identifies a page element’s ancestor tags – all on one screen and all with a click.

If site performance analysis is part of your profession (you’re an SEO, SEM, web copy writer, site designer, etc.) this little add-on, which I keep loaded on my main toolbar, will make your market analysis activities more productive and effective. Highest recommended for web professionals.

10. Greasemonkey 0.8.2

The Greasemonkey team’s main add-on, just called Greasemonkey, allows me to create web displays using snippets of JavaScript. You can grab Greasemonkey-compatible scripts here or create your own Greasemonkey scripts by mashing scripts to suit your needs. If you don’t know diddly about JavaScript, here’s everything you need to know to create a truly unique browser using this very sweet little time-saver.

With such an active community of developers, building literally thousands of Firefox add-ons, and new releases coming out daily, bookmark the Firefox add-ons site.

You’ll be back. A lot.

If you’re like most people who deal with spreadsheet-style data on a regular basis, you’ve found yourself in a situation where you have to manually copy a table from a PDF document into Microsoft Excel. This is a tremendously tedious process, requiring you to flip back and forth between windows again and again. In addition, this manual process is ripe for errors, creating the possibility that the data you copy will be useless anyways.

There is good news, however. You don’t have to struggle this way anymore. Able2Extract Professional provides you with a quick and easy way to transfer a scanned PDF document into a Microsoft Excel file which you can edit. Using Able2Extract can save you tons of time and headaches, and the process is a relatively simple one. Best of all, this software is actually able to save the table and row structure of your existing PDF document and import it into Microsoft Excel.

Here’s what you need to do to make it happen:

1. Start with a PDF that has clearly defined tables. If the image is fuzzy or if the file is corrupted, Able2Extract can’t do anything for you.
2. Install the Able2Extract Professional software. You can install a free trial version, which will expire after seven days of use, or you can purchase and install the full version of the software.
3. Open the document that you need to convert in Able2Extract.
4. Once the PDF is open, select the data that you’re interested in converting.
5. Choose your destination format (PDF to Microsoft Excel in this case).
6. Your data will now be transferred.

The PDF to Excel conversion gives you support for several languages, including English, French, Spanish and even German, as well as many others. The PDF to Excel conversion isn’t a plug-in, either. You don’t even have to have Acrobat reader installed for it to work. It also features customs templates that help make the conversion process much more effortless.

Able2Extract Professional also preserves your page layout. You can view all of your PDF pages in a single workbook, or you can create a workbook from each PDF page.

The ekrn.exe is a part of ESET NOD32 Antivirus and the ESET Smart Security Suite Kernel Service. It runs as a service and is the central component for both the NOD32 antivirus and Smart Security suite. Whenever you open, save, update or download a file, Ekrn.exe will help you to scan those files.

File Information

According to File.net, Ekrn.exe is a Verisign signed file where you can find within the C:\Program Files folder. The most common size of the file on Windows XP is 224 bytes. You may also find it in 472,320 and 455,936 bytes.

Common Ekrn.exe Errors / Problems

One of the common complaints from Windows users is that ekrn.exe uses a lot of CPU resources when running. This seriously affects the performance and speed of your computer and severely limits the system’s functionality.

Since ekrn.exe is the central component for both the NOD32 antivirus and Smart Security suite, if you stop or disable ekrn.exe, the application will disconnect you from the Internet. Any malware that’s on the computer may cause damage to your PC. So below are few methods that you can use to prevent or solve such problems :

Method 1: Update your ESET Product

Always visit ESET official website to check out for the latest updates and release. Outdated version is a common cause of making your computer performance slower.

Method 2: Disable Real-Time File System Protection in NOD32

1. Open the NOD32 window.
2. Press F5.
3. Look for Real-Time File System Protection.
4. Under Scan on, clear the following checkboxes:

* File Open
* File Creation
* Diskette Access.

Method 3: Update Older Versions of Comodo Firewall

If you are using Comodo 3.014, you might face problems with your ESET software. To resolve any issues in this case, update your Comodo firewall to version 3.015. Although this issue is more common on Windows Vista computers, many computers have faced issues on Windows XP also.

Method 4: Change the UAC Configuration in Windows Vista

If you are running Windows Vista and have (Universal Access Control) UAC on, then do the following:

Assign Full Control to System and Administrators

Assign only Read and Execute, List folder contents and Read rights to other authenticated users.

Method 5: Ensure that ESET is Set to Start Automatically In Windows

1. Right-click on My Computer.
2. Go to Manage and then to Services.
3. Locate and double-click on ekrn.exe.
4. Ensure that the Startup type is set to Automatic-if not then change it to Automatic.

Worse Come To Worse: Change to another Antivirus software

If you are not satisfied with any of the solutions above, try changing to Kaspersky. It doesn’t affect your PC performance and it can do almost everything ESET does to your PC.

Viruses or Trojans are normally named identically together with other program files and operating system components to avoid detection. If the files are in a location where they don’t belong then YES there is a good chance that it is a malicious file.

Some malware camouflage themselves as jucheck.exe, particularly if they are located in c:\windows or c:\windows\system32 folder. Thus check the jucheck.exe process on your pc whether it is pest.

Just make sure to do some research before you do something, you could be deleting an important system file!

Source : File.net

Hate the new Facebook interface? You are not alone.

A lot of Facebook users are not satisfied with the change. According to Techcrunch, 94% of the Facebook users are not happy with the home page revamp. Haven’t they ever heard of the saying “If it ain’t broken why fix it?“

There are people who don’t like the current view and tried to fix it by posting up tutorials on how to switch back to old version of Facebook, however just few hous later Facebook has fixed the problem to make sure everyone is getting to the current version.

So far there is currently no appropriate way to revert to the good old version. The other methods are complicated and rely on past Facebook data, which will all be removed very soon. It’s obvious that Facebook doesn’t like them and they will always be stopped. Don’t even bother to make any changes.

If you are frustrated just as any other FB users, join the Facebook group now & hope that one day Mark Zuckerberg will make any amend to the Facebook page.

Love Facebook so much till you want to use their icons on your site/blog? No problem, here are some nice looking silky smooth Facebook icons waiting for you to download.

The folder contains 26 icons that are all related to Facebook. Files are available in both svg & png format.

It was inspired by lopagof from deviantART. I wouldn’t have done this if it weren’t him who designed all those vector icons.

Feel free to use it for your project, be it personal or commercial, as long as you provide a link back to my blog at EdwardKhoo.com

Hope you all like it

Download Facebook Icons here

Mobile Youtube allows users to stream Youtube videos via mobile devices. However, Windows Mobile doesn’t come with RTSP. Luckily folks at XDA Developers managed to develop HTC streaming media player together with cab files which allows you to play Youtube videos on Windows Mobile.

Instructions :
Install the files on your device and reboot it.
From now on every time when you tries to play a video on m.youtube.com , HTC Streaming Media Player will be the default program to let you play, pause and stop the video

Note # 1: Cab files that you might want to download first before installing the software

Note # 2: If you encounter this error “Alert: Can’t find ‘StreamingPlayer’ (or one of its components) Make sure the path and filename are correct and that all the required libraries are available”, you may required to download dll files which can be found here

Note # 3: Download the software right here

BuddyWay is a free GPS cell phone tracking service software that allows you to track your mobile devices with built-in GPS through their real-time online system.

Some of the features that you may be benefited by downloading the software :
* Track & save your trips
* Share them with friends
* View your trips in 3D in Google Earth
* Show friends your location

All you need is a cell phone or PDA with built in GPS / Bluetooth GPS receiver. Download the program to your device and get ready to share the world with your buddies!

This GPS navigation software for PSP which is known as Go Explorer has been on sale for quite some time in Japan & Sony has made it clear that they are trying to make a way out to US & Canada customers by next year.

According to Sony, this combination of TeleAtlas and the software of NavNGo will give a high quality graphic of your location in 2D/3D view. With an easy search function and customization ability, GPS on PSP is the easiest and fastest way to explore new places and new cities.”

Hmm… Perhaps there may be a possibility of coming out before this Christmas?