Readaloo

A Quick Response (QR) code is a two-dimensional code that can be scanned by smartphone cameras to automatically pull up text, photos, videos, music and URLs.

These codes have become mobile-friendly ways to point people in the offline space to online resources.

While already popular in Japan, consumers in the United States are just now becoming more familiar with QR codes and what to do with them. If you’re unfamiliar with the business potential of QR codes, use this post as a crash course in how to get started.

QR Code Generators and Scanners

A quick Google search for “QR code generator” is all it takes to find a plethora of places you can go to generate your own barcodes. Consider starting first with Kaywa, iCandy or Stickybits.

Kaywa’s QR code generator is the simplest way to generate a QR code for a URL, text, phone number or SMS. Simply select your preference, enter the content, specify size and click “Generate.” Then, save the code to use elsewhere or grab the HTML to embed it online.

iCandy is a bit more robust and helps you track scans and look at analytics around generated QR codes. You can also print codes through partner services.

Stickybits is slightly different in purpose, but the service also makes it simple to create stickers for your codes, as well as inspire collective content creation from people who scan your codes.

On the scanner side of things, apps that can scan codes are available for most smartphones. Simply search your app store for “barcode reader,” or “QR code scanner,” and you’ll find several to choose from.

On the iPhone, options include QuickMark and Optiscan. On Android, Barcode Scanner is a popular QR code reader.

Put QR Codes to Work

Here are a few ways that you can use QR codes to spruce up your small business marketing strategies.

• On business cards: A fast and simple way to use QR codes for your own professional purposes is to place them on business cards. Generate a barcode that directs scanners to your online resume, small business Facebook Page or your website to help new contacts find you or your business faster.
• On marketing materials: You’ve got fliers, brochures, programs, handouts, whitepapers and a myriad of other materials in your media kit. Add QR codes to direct viewers to a particular how-to video, send them to a Flickr photo set, get them to follow you on Twitter, or point them to a mobile-friendly landing page that promotes a new campaign. For inspiration, check out what the Detroid Red Wings did with QR codes in their arena programs.
• In storefront windows: Google is sending out QR code window decals to top local businesses with Google Place Pages. If they don’t send you one, steal the idea and generate your own QR code to place in your window. You can use this code to encourage Fousquare checkins, point scanners to your Yelp profile, or simply invite customers to share memories in photo, video or text form via Stickybits.
• For freebies: If you really want people to pay attention to your QR codes, make them good for something fun. Say you’ve placed a QR code decal in your storefront window, why not reward those who scan it with 10% off their purchase or a free pastry? Give them something small to thank them for their patronage. Simply create a custom QR code for the freebie you want to offer. You could even get creative and hide the QR code offers online, like on your Facebook page or website, or somewhere inside your store.

Things to Remember

If you’re going to use QR codes for small business marketing, you’ll want to keep in mind that QR codes — and the apps that scan them — are still foreign to most people.

Yes, more and more people are starting to associate the codes with action, but never assume your customers will know what to do. Make it a point to spell out how to scan the QR code, and help instruct customers on where they can grab scanner apps.

Also, remember that QR codes should provide some kind of value to the scanner. It may be easiest to direct QR code scanners to your website, but that’s likely not the most engaging place to send people.

Does your small business use QR codes? If so, how are you using them? And if not, which types of uses might fit your marketing efforts?

Via:Mashable

As dumpster diving and extreme anti-consumerism edge their way into the mainstream, more and more renting seems like an easier way to “go green” while cutting costs.

While not everything should be rented, (toothbrushes, underwear, I can go on) most things can be, and it shouldn’t come as a surprise that you can borrow just about anything without having to leave your home, or office, or coffee shop – basically anywhere you use your computer. Log on to these sites and let the wonder of temporary ownership begin.

Books

People have been renting books since as early as fourth century BCE, but only recently have they been able get their lit fix without logging off the Internet () or succumbing to the annoyance of a due date.

There are a number of “Netflix for books” businesses that allow bookworms to read and return books at their own pace. Book Swim prices its plans depending on the number of books taken out at one time (a “devout reader,” with 11 books rented at a time, pays about $60 per month). Books Free, which isn’t actually free, offers similar plans but restricts the type of content you can order based on which plan you sign up for (starting at $10.99 per month for two-at-a-time paperbacks).

Since the average college student spends about $1,100 on textbooks a year, it is not shocking that textbook rentals are becoming an increasingly booming business. Deciding between the myriad of sites that offer the service might come down where you’d rather direct your goodwill. Rent a book from Chegg and they’ll plant a tree; rent a book from Book Renter and they’ll donate a book to a low-income child.

Movies

Gone are the days of going all the way to a rental store to rent a DVD, then having to deal with late fees if you kept it for more than a specifically allotted amount of time. Thanks to Netflix, anyone can rent movies by mail with no late fees or due dates. Plans starting at $8.99/month also come with unlimited streaming of tens of thousands of movies and TV shows over the web.

Netflix users can stream movies over their computer or to their televisions via a connected device like the Wii, Xbox, PlayStation, Roku or any number of televisions and Blu-ray disc players. Many connected devices can also stream movies from Amazon Video on Demand, which offers 24-hour movie rentals starting at $0.99/per movie.

Another option for streaming video rentals is Apple’s iTunes, which offers thousands of movies and television shows for rent starting at $1.99 ($3.99 for HD). iTunes rentals can be streamed via computer or via the Apple
TV device.

Soon, other media center devices and software like the forthcoming Boxee Box and Google TV should offer additional home streaming media rental options.

Friends

Your mother may have told you that money won’t buy you friends, but your mama lied. There actually are firms that provide stand-in relatives, friends, boyfriends, and even groomsmen (complete with cheesy speeches about why you’ll always be “bros”). It may sound like the gimmick in a less than stellar rom-com (ahem The Wedding Date), but it’s a modest yet growing industry in places like Japan. So while renting your buds may be a less-established practice in the United States, there are still plenty of resources for those willing to admit their social circle is lacking and don’t mind shelling out a few bucks for some company (not that kind of company, get your mind out of the gutter.)

The website aptly named Rent A Friend charges a small fee to browse profiles by zip code. Would-be friends list what they’re up for –- which could everything from being your date to prom, to spending a Sunday afternoon taking a hot air balloon ride (weirdly specific, no?). So just who are these people eager to be your pal-for-pay? Profiles include anyone who the site’s “Party! Enjoy Life! Make Friends! Get Paid!” job description appeals to. Contact them to negotiate what your friendship is worth in an hourly rate.

Rent a Local Friend is another friend rental option that is great for those traveling on their own. The site sets up travelers with locals who either join them for a day as guides, or offer a list of insider tips so you can get the most out of the city. It’s a good way to get off the beaten path while traveling and the prices, which vary throughout the 15 available cities, are comparable to professional tours.

Dresses

Few women have $3,000 to spend on a dress, so many spend Monday nights coveting the wardrobe on Gossip Girl and wishing they could somehow afford a closet full of designer labels. All that wishing appears to have worked, and thanks to a slew of dress-rental sites, you don’t have choose between paying your Internet bill and investing in a seriously amazing wardrobe.

Typically these sites allow users to rent dresses for the price of about 10 percent their retail value. The dresses are delivered on a scheduled date, worn, and returned with minimal denting to the wearer’s wallet. Some sites, like Rent the Runway, which has a wait-list to become a member, and Wear Today, Gone Tomorrow, only allow members to browse and rent. Other sites, like Girl Meets Dress, allow browsing before membership.

Women’s bodies are unique and it’s frustrating because designer sizing is not. The sites have different strategies for dealing with fit. Rent the Runway allows renters to choose two sizes of the same dress so you can decide what fits best, while Wear Today, Gone Tomorrow has created a standardized sizing chart to guesstimate the right size. Girl Meets Dress actually allows its customers to schedule a date to try-on a dress before the big event. Renters ship the dress back the same day. If it fits, it’s redelivered. If not, more try-on dates are scheduled. Keep in mind, if you are all about saving money while getting the best fit, for all of these sites you can hit up your local Bloomingdales and try on the fashions before you rent.

Every woman knows that a dress alone is not enough. You need the shoes and the bag, and probably some jewelry too. Snag that Channel clutch you really can’t afford but really want from sites like Bag, Borrow, or Steal — which will also loan you designer sunglasses, jewelry and watches, Rent Me A Handbag, which is more than happy to lend out some Prada pumps, or Hand Bag Club, which has a nice selection of arm candy, as well.

Kid stuff

The number of children per family in the U.S. is averaging at about two, so it doesn’t make much sense for most people to buy kid things under the premise that they’ll be reused several times by future spawn. Fortunately the birthrate and the number of kid-related rental sites seem to be inversely related.

Cash-strapped parents will appreciate the rental packages at Rent Baby Toys, or Rent That Toy, a site that lets you rent specific toys, like the Kawasaki Ninja Tough Trike at $20 per month. New parents already dealing with maneuvering a stroller, and want to live as light as possible, may enjoy the Traveling Baby Company or Baby’s Away for temporary baby supplies while traveling. More savings and recycling can be had at Wear and Share, to avoid having to buy new baby clothes as fast as your child outgrows them.

Pets

Did you have a dog growing up, and miss throwing around a ball with old Fido? Do you live a busy life and don’t know if you can handle the responsibility of a full-time pet? Then maybe Borrow a Pet, is something to try. The organization facilitates pet lending in the name of “reducing the number of abandoned pets.” The idea is that by doing the good deed of putting their pet up for lease, pet owners can give pet seekers a better idea of what they’re getting into before it’s too late. The number of participants is still pretty slim, but the site launched less than a year ago.

Following a similar try-before-you-buy theory, many branches of the Humane Society, such as Marin in California, also have trial adoption programs that allow potential adoptive parents to take pets home for an extended period of time before committing to a full adoption.

On a less altruistic note, a growing number of hotels, including select locations of the Ritz Carlton and Fairmont, FlexPetz, in New York, L.A. and London provides members with local access to dogs who were rescued or re-homed, but are fully trained.

Members can choose to spend just a few hours or a number of days with each dog. After new members have completed an introduction session with a trainer, they can use the online reservation system to book “doggy time” for fun with their temporary canine pal. The company has plans to expand to San Francisco, D.C., Paris and Boston, if they get the Massachusetts 2008 ban on renting pets overturned.

[What do you think of the concept of renting pets? Good idea or twisted? Sound off in the comments. -- Ed.]

Everything Else

Non-virtual rental shops are increasingly accessible on the web. Rentcycle makes it easy to find stores and search their inventory. All the rental shops listed are browsable by location and specialty, but if a rental shop nearby has chosen to sign up for Rentcycle, you’ll also be able to browse their inventory and check availability online.

For items like doughnut fryers, lecterns or Santa hats, there are several sites that allow you to target your neighbors for these less mainstream items.

Zilok lists more than 100,000 searchable items from both rental businesses and individuals. Renters set a price per day, week, or month as well as a deposit amount. Browsers can book items online and contact the owner to set-up an exchange.

Rent Instead and Rentoid are similar concepts with slight variations. Rent Instead offers a shipping option for out-of-area items, and Rentoid avoids bogus items by charging $4.00 per posting.

If you can’t find what you’re looking for — say a competition figure skating dress — Zilok has a function that allows you to send a rental request to registered renters in your area, while Rentoid similarly hosts a “wanted” board for posting requests.

Have you ever rented anything online? What was your experience? Let us know in the comments.

There are many great tutorials on the web for using a Mac to install Mac OS X Snow Leopard on a PC. Unfortunately, you may be unable to follow such tutorials if you do not readily have access to a Mac to perform the preparation necessary for the installation.

Great progress has been made in hacking PCs to run OS X, and it is now possible to install Mac OS X without a Mac. Thanks to some great tools put together by some brilliant hackers, it is also much easier and does not involve nearly as much time and effort as was once required.

Step 1: Getting The Hardware Ready

I recently purchased the following set of hardware for the purposes of building a Hackintosh (often PCs running Mac OS X are referred to as such):

• Intel Core i3-530 Clarkdale 2.93GHz
• Gigabyte GA-H55M-USB3 Motherboard
• 4 GB DDR3 1333 RAM (2 x 2GB)
• DVD Burner
• MicroATX Computer Case
• 585 Watt Power Supply
• 4-pin to 8-pin Power Adapter

The motherboard has an 8-pin power connector on it, and although it is possible to connect a single 4-pin connector to it, you may encounter odd issues running with just a single 4-pin connector. To ensure that you provide sufficient power to the board, you should purchase the 4-pin to 8-pin power adapter. Alternatively, you could purchase a power supply with 3x 4-pin connectors (1 for the 20+4-pin main connector, and 2 for the 8-pin connection) or an 8-pin connector.

I did not purchase a hard drive or video card, as I used some I already had from another PC, but you will need those items as well. As of the time this article was written, you can get a 1TB drive shipped for $75 and an NVIDIA GeForce 9500 GT video card for $65.

I also purchased v10.6.3 of OS X Snow Leopard retail DVD for a mere $29 (was about $35 with shipping & handling).

All-in-all, the full system (without monitor) will run you around $600 (you could also add a 22″ monitor for $170). You could certainly try doing it even cheaper with different hardware, but you’ll need to figure out the appropriate changes to make in the BIOS and boot loader installation.

I did my best to put together a fairly modern system for a very reasonable price. Having used this set of hardware, I can affirm that it runs OS X Snow Leopard very well. Without a doubt, $600 – $800 is a far cry from what you would spend on an equivalent Mac from Apple. Granted it won’t be as compact or pretty as an iMac, but it will be just as functional.

Step 2: Putting The Hardware Together

If you purchase the hardware I used, along with a hard drive and NVIDIA GeForce video card, you should be able to follow the instructions exactly as I’ve laid them out. If you’ve never built a PC before but are willing to give it a try, you’ll definitely want to check out The Idiot’s Ultimate Guide to Build Your Own PC. It is a step-by-step guide to building your own PC, with plenty of photos to help you out.

You can try following this tutorial with existing hardware you have as well, although you may need to make adjustments when configuring the BIOS and installing the boot loader. The more modern your hardware is, the better the chances are it will work for you. It would be best if you have a 64-bit Intel dual-core (or quad-core) processor, although an older CPU might still work as well. I would recommend NVIDIA GeForce video card, but ATI cards should work too.

Step 3: Prepare The Boot Disk

In addition to the hardware and a retail copy of Mac OS X Snow Leopard, you’ll also need a blank CD. You may want to use a rewritable CD if you’re using a different hardware configuration, just in case the first one I recommend doesn’t work for you. There are two boot disk images that will allow you to install OS X directly from the installation DVD:

• iBoot (by tonymacx86)
• Empire EFI (by Prasys)

I successfully used both of them with my hardware setup. However I recommend you try iBoot first, as it is a bit leaner and doesn’t take as long to boot. If you’re using my hardware configuration, be sure to download the iBoot Supported disk image. If you use Empire EFI, download the Empire EFI v1.085 R2 image.

You can use one of many free programs to burn CDs if you don’t have one. Be sure to use the disk image burning mode in your CD burning software. Do not just simply copy the disk image file to a blank CD. I like InfraRecorder, because it makes this very easy. All you have to do is click the Write Image button, select the image, and burn it. Once again, you may wish to use rewritable media if you’re using a different hardware configuration than mine.

Step 4: Bios Configuration

Fortunately, the Gigabyte GA-H55M-USB3 does not require a lot of configuration to run Mac OS X. When you first turn on or reboot the machine, press the delete key to enter the BIOS setup. You can just load the Optimized Defaults, and just make a few changes within three sections of the bios: Advanced BIOS Features, Integrated Peripherals, and Power Management Setup.

4.1 – First, go to Advanced BIOS Features and set the First Boot Device to CDROM. I have my USB drive as the second drive and then Hard Disk as third – you can configure yours the same way if you wish to ever boot from a USB drive. Just be sure that Hard Disk is the Second Boot Device or Third Boot Device.

4.2 – Next, configure SATA to run in AHCI mode in the Integrated Peripherals menu. You’ll need to set both PCH SATA Control Mode and Onboard SATA/IDE Ctrl Mode to AHCI.

4.3 – Finally, go to Power Management Setup and set the HPET Mode to 64-bit mode.

Step 5: Installing Mac OS X

5.1 – Insert the iBoot (or Empire EFI) boot disk.

5.2 – When you see screen below, eject the disk.

5.3 – Insert the Retail Mac OS X Snow Leopard DVD, wait a few seconds, and press F5.

5.4 – When you see the screen below, select Mac OS X Install DVD (it should already be selected) and press Enter.

5.5 – If all goes well, you should eventually see the language selection screen for the installer. If all did not go well and you do not make it to the language selection screen, try downloading a different version of iBoot or Empire EFI.

5.6 – Select your language and click the arrow to proceed.

5.7 – Next, you need to partition your drive. Click on Utilities > Disk Utility.

5.8 – Select your disk drive.

5.9 – Click Partition.

5.10 – Select 1 Partition for the partition scheme. Note: If you have a drive that is larger than 2 TB, do not create partitions larger than 1 TB. Split the drive into multiple partitions, and be sure the main installation partition is 1 TB or smaller.

5.11 – Enter a name for the partition (I used Hackintosh).

5.12 – Select Mac OS Extended (Journaled) as the Format.

5.13 – Click Options…, select GUID Partition Table, and then click OK.

5.14 – Click Apply.

5.15 – Quit Disk Utility and proceed with the installation. Install on the Hackintosh partition.

Step 6: Installing the Boot Loader

Do not fret when you reboot after the installation and get a boot error, as you will need to first boot the machine with iBoot (or Empire EFI). Eject the Mac OS X Snow Leopard install DVD, put your boot CD back into the drive, and reboot the machine. Now when you boot up, you should see a second choice for your installation partition (Hackintosh if you named it that way). Select the Hackintosh partition and press Enter to boot into OS X.

Once you’ve completed the first-run setup, open up Safari and download Multibeast. Multibeast is another superb tool by tonymacx86 that makes it stupid easy to install the boot loader, along with all the drivers necessary for your Hackintosh to function properly.

In addition to downloading Multibeast, you will need to download the DSDT for the Gigabyte GA-H55M-USB3 and copy it to the desktop. Launch Multibeast and make the following selections (your choices will differ if you have a different motherboard/hardware configuration):

• UserDSDT
• System Utilities
• Advanced Options > Kexts > Audio > VoodooHDA 0.2.56
• Advanced Options > Kexts > Graphics > NVEnabler
• Advanced Options > Kexts > Network > RealtekR1000SL
• Advanced Options > Patched Kernels > 10.3.0 Patched Kernel

After Multibeast finishes installing, there is one last very important change you will need to make. Launch Terminal (Applications > Utilities > Terminal) and at the command prompt type:

sudo nano /Extra/com.apple.Boot.plist

Type your password to edit the file. Look for the line that says:

<string>-v GraphicsEnabler=Yes</string>

You will need to change it so that it says:

<string>busratio=22 -v GraphicsEnabler=Yes</string>

After making the change, press ctrl-x and save the file.

Changing the busratio is very important! If you do not add the busratio=22 then your Hackintosh will end up in a continuous reboot loop. Please note that the busratio=22 setting is only for the Intel Core i3-530 CPU, so if you’re using a different modern Intel Core processor (i3/i5/i7), you will need to set the busratio differently.

You can use tonymacx86’s busratio list for the Intel Core i3/i5/i7 CPUs as a guide for setting the proper busratio for your CPU. If you’re using one of the older Core or Core 2 Duo chips, you won’t need to set the busratio, and you don’t have to use the patched kernel.

Step 7: Getting Started with Your New Mac

So what now? Most certainly you’ll want to check out 5 apps to get more out of your new Mac as well as 15 must-have apps for your Mac. In fact, you should probably just go ahead and browse the entire Mac section on MakeUseOf, as you’ll find a wealth of great free stuff for your new Mac in there. And most importantly make sure to download MakeUseOf’s getting started manual for Mac. Highly recommended for switchers.

If ever you encounter into problems with your new Mac, you can always seek help from MakeUseOf Answers.

If you have any problems installing Mac OS X on your PC, just post a comment right here and we’ll do what we can to help. Just be sure to provide as much information about the hardware you’re using:

• Motherboard make and model (i.e. Gigabyte GA-H55M-USB3)
• CPU model (i.e. Intel Core i3-530 )
• GPU model (i.e. NVIDIA GeForce 9900 GT)

I never managed to get sleep to work. When I try to put the computer to sleep, it sort of goes into a coma. The fans never shut down and the machine doesn’t wake up when you press the power button. If you manage to get sleep to work with my hardware configuration, please do feel free to share your solution in the comments on this article.

There are also many great forums and sites out there that provide a lot of information and assistance with running Mac OS X on PC. Here are just a few you may want to check out:

• tonymacx86 Forum
• InsanelyMac Forum
• Hackint0sh
• Prasys’ Blog
• OSx86 Project

If you do seek assistance from any of these or similar resources, be sure to search for your problem before posting it. You will be flamed to no end if you ask a question that has already been answered. Another tip for posting in these forums: never call it a MAC (in all caps) instead of a Mac, or you will solicit many abusive responses. Mac is an abbreviation not an acronym.

Here are a few more links that provide tools and files to help you set up a Hackintosh on hardware other than what I’ve mentioned here:

• myHack – Another bootloader/kext installer, similar to Multibeast
• Kexts.com – A good resource for downloading Kexts (device drivers)
• Kext Helper – A tool that makes it easy to install new Kexts
• Kext Utility – A tool to ensure proper kext installation
• Chamelon Boot Loader – The boot loader that pretty much all the boot disks out there use (including iBoot and Empire EFI).
• netkas PC EFI – Used in combination with Chameleon to provide maximum compatibility for booting OS X. Most boot disks use this as well.
• BootCDMaker (French) – Utility (for Mac) to create your own custom boot disks

A million thanks to tonymacx86 for developing iBoot and Multibeast to make installing Mac OS X Snow Leopard on PC a piece of cake. Enjoy your new Hackintosh and let us know what you think of it!

Facebook is now an essential unifying force in many people’s social lives — it helps friends arrange events, wish each other “happy birthday,” solidify communities and social bonds, and share recent memories with images.

All of that has been always possible by other, less convenient means, but Facebook helps us do one thing that’s unique to our time: Get daily updates on the lives of friends all over the world, in different walks of life.

In a way, that’s what the service originally was. Its name and college origins conjure images of a yearbook, intended not to keep up on what’s new but to act as a record of past relationships, associations and accomplishments. Facebook hasn’t forgotten that, so it provides tools for reconnecting with friends from your past — past schools, past jobs and even past e-mail exchanges.

Here’s a list of ways to find long lost friends on Facebook.

Find Friends You E-mail

Look in Facebook’s right navigation panel and you’ll see an area labeled “Get Connected.” It’s easy to miss, but this is where you’ll start when looking for old friends. Click “Find your friends” underneath “Who’s on Facebook?” and you’ll be taken to the “Find people you know on Facebook” portal.

The first option you’ll see is “Find people you e-mail.” Just type in your e-mail address here, and if your e-mail service is a popular one (like Gmail or Yahoo), a window will pop up that will log into your account and import all your contacts.

You’ll get a list of people you’ve e-mailed who have registered on Facebook using the e-mail address from your contact list. Check the ones you know and click “Add as Friends” once you’ve found all the folks you want.

Follow Facebook’s Recommendations

Head back to that first page and look further down the options, below the e-mail one, and you’ll see a collage of profile pictures and names under the header “Suggestions.” These are people Facebook’s computers think you might know based on factors like whether or not you have lots of mutual friends.

If you don’t know someone on the list, click the “X” by that person’s name to make him or her disappear, and he or she will be replaced by a new possibility. If you do know the next one one, just click “Add as friend” and you’re set.

Find Friends By Name or E-mail Address

In the bottom left of the “Find people you know on Facebook” page, you’ll see a subsection labeled “search for people.” There’s a simple search field where you can type in a name or e-mail address. Facebook will look for any users with that name or e-mail address, then give you the option of adding whoever it finds as a friend.

Find Former or Current Classmates or Co-workers

When you don’t know your former contact’s e-mail address or if his or her name is so common that you can’t find him or her in the search, you can search based on school or workplace. You can only do this for schools or workplaces you’ve attended. Click on any of the links below the name and e-mail search field (such as “Find former college classmates”) to navigate to another friend-finding page.

You can type in the school name or the class year, then (optionally) a name to find a classmate. Alternatively, you can search by company and name to find co-workers and colleagues.

Find Friends You IM

Step back to the main portal and look in the bottom right corner to find the IM option. It works just like the e-mail one, except that you have to select a service. For example, click on AOL Instant Messenger and type in your screen name and password to import all your AIM contacts. If your AIM buddies have Facebook accounts that list their screen names, they’ll appear in the results and you’ll be able to add them.

Use Facebook Search

If none of the above options helped you find the person you’re looking for, you can really get your hands dirty by using Facebook’s more general search feature. The search field is always at the top of every Facebook page.

Type in a name, but don’t hit enter or return yet because you might get taken straight to a specific profile or page. Instead, click “See More Results…” at the bottom of the drop-down list that appears.

In the left navigation menu (the one that says “All Results,” “People,” etc.), click “People.” Now you can narrow your search by typing in location, school or workplace in addition to name.

If you’re using your social media profiles to promote your personal brand or business, chances are that pre-made themes and watermarked templates just won’t cut it. You need a custom design to make your profile stand apart from the rest and convey important information about who you are.

Some of our favorite social networks afford us this customization, but there are a few tricks that may save you some time and frustration when creating a custom profile background. While none of these can replace the eye of a great graphic designer, they should help you get a sense of the layout you’re after.

Choose an Image Editor

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To start, you’ll need an image editor. Photoshop is probably best suited for the task, but there are plenty of free alternatives on the web.

Gimp is a free, open source image editing and compositing tool that has many of the layering and filtering abilities of Photoshop.

Aviary’s Phoenix is another great free tool that is entirely web based. You can edit and layer images in a Photoshop-like environment right in your web browser, then save the finished product to your desktop.

Photoshop.com also offers a free, “lite,” web-based version of the popular editor.

Once you’ve chosen your tool, it’s time to get to work.

Twitter

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A great Twitter background makes an impression on potential followers. It should communicate who you are and what people should expect from your tweets. Here are some examples of great Twitter backgrounds:

Dimensions: The column that contains your tweets and profile information will always take up about 760 pixels of screen real estate. What’s left for the background will be determined by the user’s monitor. Everyone viewing your profile will see it a little differently, depending on the resolution of their screen. A safe bet to ensure that your background will not be cut off or tiled at most resolutions is a 1680 x 1200 pixel image. The image resolution should be web standard 72 dpi.

Maximum File Size: 800 KB

Layout: Accounting for the 760 pixel center column, the space left over on either side will depend on the visitor’s resolution. The space at the top for the Twitter logo will remain constant at about 65 pixels, and a good rule of thumb is to leave about 200 pixels at the left for your design. This will accommodate most monitor resolutions.

Twitter aligns the background image to the top left, so it is important to focus your main content in that area as shown. The further to the left an element appears, the least likely it will be cut off on a low resolution monitor.

There are a few tools that may help you determine what your layout will look like at different resolutions. To quickly determine your own resolutions as a reference point, jump over to whatismyscreenresolution.com.

For FireFox users, the Web Developer add-on will resize your browser to fit common monitor resolutions so you can see what your layout might look like for other users.

Screen-resolution.com is also a handy tool for popping URLs into resolution-specific browers windows.

Design Tip: Don’t clutter your background with too much information. Because URLs are not clickable in a background, this space is better suited for logos, photos, or other clean graphic elements that express who you are. If you’re encouraging people to connect with you outside of Twitter, make sure the one URL in your profile links to your contact information.

Also, be sure to choose text and link colors that compliment your background.

How To Add It:

YouTube

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A branded YouTube channel is a great way to identify yourself to viewers when they land on your video pages. Here are some examples of great YouTube channel designs:

Dimensions: YouTube channel backgrounds work similarly to Twitter backgrounds in that they must account for the fixed width of the channel content. The area that displays your videos and profile information is 960 pixels wide. Note that the top area that displays the YouTube logo and search is not taken into account with regard to your background. Your background image will begin below the white YouTube bar, so all content should be started near the top of your image.

Like Twitter, screen real estate depends on monitor resolution. A good image size to work with is 2000 x 2200 pixels total.

Maximum File Size: 256 KB

Layout: It is important to understand that YouTube will center your background image behind your channel content. This means that your important image content should appear just to the left and right of the 960 pixel center column. It also means that people with large or widescreen monitors will see much more of your image stretching out to the right and left of their screen. This is why it’s good to use a very wide image (2000 pixels, in this example).

Whereas your Twitter background should be focused as far to the left as possible, the content in your YouTube background should be as close to the central 960 pixel column as possible without going behind it. Again, test different resolutions with the tools above to see where viewers might be cropping your image and adjust accordingly to account for variation.

Design Tip: Because widescreen monitors may view much more of your image on the left and right, it may be useful to incorporate a fade to a solid color on each end. Then, make the page background that same color to avoid an unsightly “break” in the design.

Also, be sure to implement complimentary box and text colors.

How To Add It:

MySpace

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Though MySpace has fallen out of vogue in recent years, it is still a viable platform for younger users and a destination for many bands and music sharers.

If you’re looking to make a statement with your MySpace page, a well-tailored background could do the trick.

Here are some impressive ones:

Dimensions: MySpace’s “Profile 2.0″ customization is actually very flexible and allows a few options. You can change your content size between 960 pixels, 750 pixels, or 100% (which wipes out the background entirely). Decide which layout you like best and build your background to match. The full size should account for large monitors, so something in the neighborhood of 2000 x 2200 pixels should work here as well.

Maximum File Size: Any, but best to keep it under 500K for quick load times.

File hosting: Unlike Twitter and YouTube, Myspace will not host your background file, but simply reference it from a URL. If you don’t own web space, there are plenty of places you can host an image for free, including PhotoBucket and ImageShack. Upload your image to one of these sites and paste the image URL into MySpace’s layout editor.

Layout: Again, MySpace is surprisingly flexible, and the advanced layout editor allows you to align your background against any quadrant of the screen, or center it. It’s up to you how you want to approach the layout. Simply account for your content column (750 or 960 pixels) and design around it. Then position your image accordingly. The best designs fit their graphic elements snugly against the content column so that they’ll be visible at any resolution.

How To Add It:

Others

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The two other big dogs of social networking, Facebook and LinkedIn, don’t offer background customization options. While this may be a disappointment to some, many would argue that the clean, uniform look of these sites has contributed to their success.

When logging in to Facebook Thursday, I, like millions of other people, got the directive to update my privacy settings to fit in to the new, "simplified," scheme.

But at their core, the Facebook privacy settings have not been simplified. Beyond the set-up page, Facebook's privacy controls are now more complex and more powerful. The new set-up page seems more designed to pry this privacy from you than give you access to the new, and excellent, controls that Facebook has put in place.

What gets me about the page is that it doesn't seem to be designed for the users of the service. I get the impression it's set up to get users to give Facebook more permission than they should, to put their private data in the public sphere.

It does this by organizing around its "recommended" privacy settings rather than by your previous settings, and by not giving you access to the fine-grained control that's under the hood.

Facebook's new simple privacy settings page wants you to make all your posts and photos visible to the whole Web by default.

If you accept the tacit recommendations on the page, items that you likely used to keep restricted to just people in your network or to your extended network will be visible to everyone on the Web. Data that will be exposed includes your wall posts and photos. That's what Facebook recommends, and apparently wants. Likewise, your political and religious views, per Facebook recommendation, will now be shared with your entire extended network, which, if you're reasonably connected in the world, will easily include people with whom you'd rather not share this information.

I understand why Facebook is attempting to expand the permissions it collects from users to share their information. The more information that is open, the more interesting Facebook is to people trying to get in to the system or to expand their own networks. And the more people use Facebook to define their social circles, the more potentially monetizable data Facebook has, and the more valuable and competitive its database is, compared to other social systems.

Moreover, the more public Facebook users' updates are, the better Facebook can fend off Twitter, which has a social system that is by default open. On Twitter, unless users specify otherwise, anyone can follow them, and all updates are public. Facebook's social graph has been historically closed: Friending has to be mutual, and updates, so far, have been limited to just friends.

With the new defaults, Facebook becomes more searchable, more Twitter-like, and gets more traffic from search engines.

In return for asking for this openness, though, Facebook is giving users something new and valuable: The capability to control who can see each individual post with incredible specificity. I especially like the feature that lets a user put up a post that's open to their entire network (friends of friends) except for a specific person or people. It's a great feature for gossips, or for someone who wants to communicate with everyone they know--except their mother.

But I'd like to propose to Facebook that it re-work its new initial privacy page with one designed to help users, not Facebook's Google rankings. Here it is:

By default, this maintains your current settings. It also gives you relevant, if simplified, options for each of the main content types. And, finally, it's not subtle about alerting you that "everyone," in Facebook parlance, means everyone on the whole Web.

Meanwhile, here's how to exercise full control over your Facebook privacy settings. First, blast past the new simple settings page. It doesn't matter what you put on it. Then go straight to the top menu, and under the Settings drop-down pick "Privacy Settings." From that screen you can select several privacy-related categories. The most important is the "Profile Information" page, which gives you very precise, fine-grained control over who can see what. This is the privacy screen you should spend time thinking about and working on. Skip the over-broad and poorly-designed new set-up screen that Facebook is now forcing on its users.

One of the best things about Twitter is the way that it allows content and information to spread quickly across the network from person-to-person. This happened for two reasons: 1. because Twitter is a one-to-many communications platform and 2. because it allows for content to be easily repeated. In fact, the latter led to what we call the “retweet.” It’s safe to say that the founders of Twitter did not initially envision this as a use for their platform, but the retweet convention organized itself organically and was embraced by third-party apps.

Unfortunately, retweets were messy for a couple of ways. First, because of the 140 character limit placed on tweets, retweeting someone else’s content sometimes meant editing their text in order to ensure that the customary “RT” and “@username” attributions fit. Second, because there’s often overlap in who we follow, retweets many times led to redundancy in your timeline as more than one of the people you followed retweeted the same content. So a couple of days ago, Twitter rolled out a solution in the form of a completely new retweet system.

Retweets: Old vs. New

Retweeting someone used to be a completely manual process. You had to copy and paste their tweet, add the “RT” designation, and the “@username” attribution, then click the “update” button. Some third party Twitter clients had built-in retweet buttons, which would automatically add the proper attribution and designation text. Many times you would need to edit the original retweeted text in order to make it fit within Twitter’s 140 character limit. (This was because adding the “RT” and “@username” text would often push the tweet over the limit.)

The old style of retweets also led to redundancy within your timeline. 

Twitter’s new official retweet feature fixes both of these issues. Now, instead of retweets being appended with the “RT” text designation, they have a special retweet icon. Further, they come directly from the original tweeter’s account — regardless of whether you are following that person. If one of your followers retweets User X, you’ll see that tweet in your timeline, with the icon designating it as a retweet and a message telling you which if your followers retweeted that tweet.

Further, Twitter has fixed the redundancy issue by grouping together identical retweets. You’ll only see that tweet appear in your timeline once, but the message telling you who retweeted it will let you know which two or more of your followers retweeted.

Is this good or bad? Twitter’s new retweets are undeniably cleaner and more organized than the original, manual method. Your timeline will be easier to read and less noisy as a result, and the new API means that third-party clients can build in native retweeting in a much cleaner way (some already have). Also, you no longer need to edit original tweet text, which means it is less likely you’ll anger someone by inadvertently changing the meaning of their original tweet or messing up the attribution.

However, it can also be somewhat jarring to see people you’re not following in your timeline, and the new retweets lack the ability to add commentary to retweets. In the past, when retweeting something, users would often add their own two cents before the “RT” text. Adding comments is not supported by the current implementation of retweets on Twitter (though there is a chance it will be in the future).

How To Retweet

Retweeting works a lot like replying to tweets from the web interface. If you hover your cursor over a tweet — in either your timeline or on any user’s profile page, a “Retweet” link will appear directly to the right of the “Reply” link that has always been there. To retweet the tweet, all you have to do is click on the link.

But then what happens? The tweet you just retweeted will appear in the timelines of your friends regardless of whether they follow the original tweeter. If you think twice about your retweet, you can undo it. To manage your retweets, click on the “Retweets” link in the right hand side navigation. That will bring you to a page with three tabs:

– Retweets by others – These are all the retweets by the people you follow. They’re arranged loosely by time, but the most retweeted posts tend to bubble to the top of the list. From here you can reply to or retweet any of the tweets listed

– Retweets by you – This tab shows all of the tweets that you have retweeted. From here you can reply to tweets or undo your retweet (simply hover over the tweet and click the “Undo” link that appears).

– Your tweets, retweeted – These are your original tweets that others have retweeted. From here you can delete your tweets. You can also see who retweeted you, and when.

While there is no way to turn retweets off completely, there are two ways to block retweets from from appearing your timeline on a user by user basis. If you block a user, you won’t see their retweets in your timeline, even if someone you’re following retweets that user. You can also block retweets that a user you are following makes from appearing your timeline.

To turn off retweets from a specific user, visit their profile page and click on the circular green retweet button that appears next to the “Following” message at the top of their page. Once you click on the button, it will turn grey, indicating that retweets from that user will no longer appear in your timeline. You can toggle this option on and off using this button.

What Twitter Hopes to Accomplish

Twitter co-founder Evan Williams wrote recently that he hopes the new retweet feature will solve the problems of attribution confusion, messy or broken messages, and will reduce timeline noise. Williams said that the new retweet feature should “make Twitter a more powerful system for helping people find out what’s happening now that they care about.”

If embraced by users and third-party Twitter clients, there is almost no way to imagine that wouldn’t be the case. However, the inability to add comments to retweets is an issue that Twitter may need to address, especially to appeal to the power users who often shape the use of the platform and evangelize it to others.

What do you think of Twitter’s new retweet feature so far? Let us know in the comments.

Ever had one of those moments when you really wished you knew how to do something specific? If only there were someone you could ask…

Thanks to the social web, particularly niche blogs and expert-driven communities, it’s easy to find knowledge, insights and guidance direct from the pros, no matter what the topic area. In fact, online tutorials and how-to sites have been around almost as long as the web itself.

Here’s a run-down of more than 60 great how-to sites and guides covering everything from building a mashup to being more productive, creating a website and more.

Have a great how-to site that will teach us something new? Add it to the comments and tell us more about it!

General How-to

wikiHow – A huge collection of how-to guides edited by the community.

eHow – One of the largest collections of tutorials on the web. eHow is a 2008 Open Web Awards Blogger’s Choice winner.

How To Do Things.com – Find articles from experienced contributors on how to do just about anything.

WonderHowTo – A human-edited collection of video tutorials from more than 1700 websites.

Instructables – A community that creates tutorials on an enormous variety of topics, some practical, some not-so.

Expert Village – A collection of more than 130,000 video tutorials.

Howcast – Find how-to videos on a variety of topics. Howcast is the 2008 Open Web Awards Blogger’s Choice runner-up.

MindBites – Watch how-to videos or create your own to earn money.

VideoJug – How to videos for just about everything in life.

SuTree – A collection of how-to videos covering everything from beauty & fashion to language.

Technology How-To

Wired How-To Wiki – Get information on how to do technology-related things from linkbaiting your blog to surviving a nuclear blast.

The Java Tutorials – A collection of Java tutorials from Sun on using various components.

the How-To Geek – A collection of computer tutorials covering everything from protecting your children online to using different wallpapers on dual monitors.

How to Make Your Own Web Mashup – A short tutorial outlining the steps necessary to build a mashup.

How to Podcast – A complete, free tutorial that teaches you how to set up your own podcast.

HowtoForge – A huge collection of user-friendly Linux () tutorials.

PCWorld – A huge collection of tutorials for PC users.

HowToJoomla.net – A collection of Joomla () tutorials.

Screencasting: How To Start, Tools and Guidelines – A guide outlining why you should screencast and how to do it.

How to get traffic for your blog – A huge list of things to do to get traffic for your blog from marketing guru Seth Godin.

How to design a website layout in Photoshop – A complete tutorial showing you how to create your website layout in Photoshop.

Tutorialized – A collection of tutorials and how-to guides on a variety of tech-related topics.

How to design a website – A comprehensive tutorial on how to design using HTML and CSS.

How to Design a Website – A web design guide from About.com.

Good-Tutorials – A large collection of web-design tutorials covering Java, HTML, CSS, PHP (), Ruby, and more.

Video-Tutes.com – Free video tutorials for a variety of software programs including Photoshop, Dreamweaver, and MS Word.

A Beginner’s Guide on How to Install Linux Software – A basic guide to installing Ubuntu ().

PSDTuts – A huge collection of Photoshop tutorials and other resources.

PhotoshopStar – How to Photoshop articles and tutorials on a variety of different techniques.

Gimp-tutorials.net – A collection of tutorials on everything from photo manipulation to text effects in GIMP ().

Tutorial Blog – A blog filled with how-to guides and tutorials on design topics.

Blog Tutorials – A blog offering how-to advice for blogging.

Noupe Tutorials – A blog that focuses on web design and development and offers a large repository of great tutorials.

CBT Cafe – The Computer Based Training Cafe offers free tutorials and how-to guides on Flash, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, and more.

Niche Blogging Tutorials – How-to blog posts from DoshDosh covering niche blogging techniques.

Productivity and Efficiency How-To

How to be More Productive – A guide from the Blog Herald that focuses mostly on how to be a more productive blogger.

How to GTD – A small collection of blog posts covering how to get started with Getting Things Done.

How to Start with GTD – A basic 10-step guide to starting out with GTD.

How To Be More Productive – A very complete guide to becoming more productive, covering everything from technology to dietary changes.

Business and Career How-To

Inc. How To Guides – A collection of business guides for just about every topic.

How To Write A Resume.org – A complete resource for writing resumes and cover letters.

How to Blog Your Way to Small-Business Success – A short guide on using blogging to promote your business.

Startup How-To Guides – A collection of business how-to articles from Entrepreneur.com.

Score – Find how-to articles on a variety of business topics from advertising to management to starting a business.

How to Market in a Recession – A how-to guide from Harvard Business school.

How to Twitter your way to marketing success – A guide to using Twitter () as a marketing platform.

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Mashable How-Tos

HOW TO: Build Community on Twitter – Build a loyal following and engage those followers.

HOW TO: Market to Bloggers According to Timothy Ferriss – Techniques for marketing to bloggers from the New York Times bestselling author.

How to Track 500 Business Blogs in 10 Minutes a Day – A great guide for all of us who need to keep up with tons of incoming information.

How to Manage Your Social Profiles and Create Virtual Business Cards – A must-have guide for anyone who uses multiple social media sites.

How to Build Your Online Brand – Covers how to use social media and Web 2.0 tools to create a name for yourself online.

How to Know if You Should Fire Your Social Media Consultant – A guide to some tell-tale signs that your social media consultant isn’t all they’re cracked up to be.

How to Develop a Social Media Plan for Your Business in 5 Steps – A simple guide to creating an effective social media marketing campaign.

How to Live Blog a Conference – A guide to live blogging preparation and execution.

Miscellaneous How-To

How To Meditate – A complete online guide to teach you how to meditate in the Buddhist tradition.

How to Draw Manga – Manga University has a great collection of how-to articles on drawing different elements of manga characters.

Sushi Eating HOW TO – A complete guide outlining how to eat sushi and sushi bar etiquette.

How to Go Green – A collection of guides to green your life on topics ranging from investing and hybrid cars to workouts and weddings.

The Storque How-To – The how-to section of Etsy’s blog covers all sorts of topics from cooking to selling on Etsy.

How to Clean Stuff – Tutorials for cleaning everything from old photos to ballet flats.

Lowe’s How-To Library – A huge collection of home improvement how-tos.

PopPhoto HowTo Archive – A collection of photography how-to articles covering image editing, composition, lighting, and more.

How to Photograph… – A series of tutorials on photographing a variety of situations and subjects from weddings to urban landscapes to zoos.

Here’s how to do it.

1. Find a Windows PC.
2. Install iTunes.
3. Download purplera1n.
4. Run purplera1n.
5. Wait.
6. Run Freeze.
7. Reboot.

Now you’re jailbroken. To run OpenSSH simply install the OpenSSH package in Cydia and ssh to your iPhone with root/alpine login/pass combination.