Google Earth is a program that requires alot of graphical calculating power, but people say the program still runs fine on the Iphone. This mobile version of Google Earth misses a few advanced features that are included in the normal PC-version, but this version focuses on the basis. Named "Earth in your pocket", this function makes it possible to spin the globe or zoom in with one easy movement over the touch screen of your Iphone.

By using the GPS-hardware that ships with every Iphone, the program can find out the exact location of where you currently are. The accelerometer makes Google Earth adjust its view when you tilt your Iphone. In this Google Earth version, you can also search places or companies from all over the world.

Also, there's a fully functional browser integrated in Google Earth to show this content directly in the browser without starting Safari. Features that aren't included in this version but are included in the PC-version, are the overlays that you can lay over maps and read the street names and other geographical information. Also, some people might find the intro annoying where the program zooms in to your current location.

This application is freely available for the Iphone aswell as for the Ipod Touch. Get it now for free in the iTunes Application Store. It's available in 18 different languages and in 22 different countries.

What does it do?

It does allot but what I use it for is to convert all my music media to one format. (mp3) so thatItunes will accept it and make It all work as it should.
It is super lightweight. Very basic but very powerful. You can select a whole folder pick what you want it to convert to and walk away. It's very fast and you loose 0% quality they really sound great!
Once its all said and done Itunes accepts your files with ease! It will even keep your old files but make a uniformed version for use elsewhere.
It has a trial version, and as far as I have seen its free forever, and converts music fine. Not sure what features the paid version offers. I can say that this thing is made well so there probably great!
To get a copy of this awesome little tool head on over to dBpoweramp.

iPod nano now comes in nine amazing colors. From the classic silver, black, blue, red, green, new colors like yellow were added. The screen is 2”, and has more pixels per square inch than any other iPod/Phone. One the new hot features is the introduction of the accelerator. Accelerator is the machine that allows the machine to know when you have flipped or turned it. Like the iPhone/Touch, this new capability allows you to play games that you tilt and twist the iPod. The Maze game is added onto the iPod, so you can begin your fun right away. Another new feature that everyone is crazy about is the “shake-to-shuffle” feature. Just give your iPod a shake, and then it shuffles! It's a totally different, fun way to listen to your music. iPod has some new and exciting features!

Microsoft has recently released a new version of Windows, Vista, (released on January 30, 2007) that has been making people rethink whether they should stay with the Windows operating system. Although there are many pros and cons to Vista, there seems to be more pros than cons this time around. The first con is, the operating system itself takes up a large amount RAM, which means that programs won't be able run as quickly or efficiently. The second con is, Vista crashes a lot and there are incredibly slow loading times, especially during the startup. One pro, is that there is a completely new interface that is more attractive and easier to use. Although this is clearly a just an aesthetic change, it is number one on the list because it is always great to have something prettier to look at. The second pro is… well there really isn't one. There aren't very many pros to Vista and the cons far out weigh the pros.

Apple may be most famous for there iPod and most recently the iPhone, but what most people don't realize is that they have an awesome computer line as well. The current Apple operating system OS X, has many good things and many bad, but it may be just what you are looking for. First, there is the entertainment aspect of computing. If you have a large amount of videos, music, or any other media, OS X makes it very easy to organize it and use in the way that you want. Then you can play them all in iTunes very easily. Second, there is the lack of third-party software. Although there are very good applications made by Apple, not as many companies are programing for Apple. Since Microsoft has been more widely accepted by the work and home community, more programs are available for the Windows operating system. More developers are slowly making software cross-platform for both Mac and PC. Finally, there is that fact that there are absolutely no viruses in OS X. I am not sure how Apple has been able to keep viruses out of there systems, but there is no way at all to get a virus. Unless you use Boot Camp to install Windows on your system, then it is possible. (but why would you want to do that?)

Windows may have been on top for a while, but as time goes on it seems that Apple has begun to move its way up. Apple has a great way of arranging your various media and there are no viruses. Yet, all the Microsoft has is a new GUI. Microsoft may still be better in the workplace, as it has always been, but as a home entertainment system, many people should consider switching.

Developers, too, are irked by Apple's secrecy and limits on the kind of programs they can design. An unusually restrictive agreement they must sign keeps them from comparing notes even with fellow programmers. They also complain that Apple has limited their access to the iPhone's inner workings.

For example, non-Apple programmers can't reach into a user's iTunes library and play a song or display cover art. Apple has kept developers in the dark as to why some applications are rejected or, in rare cases, removed from the iTunes store without warning or explanation. From my personal knowledge, if you have paid for an app, and it gets removed, next time you sync, you won't be seeing that app again.

First of all, a few of my friends have become very mislead by the idea of Linux in general, and I don't blame them. In itself, Linux is a kernel, but let's not go into details. Linux is more than one OS, it's a lot more. What people use is actually called a Linux distribution, or a Linux distro. A distribution is an OS made with the Linux kernel, that's pretty much all you need to know to become confused. Basically, it's like a Toyota car. There are many kinds of Toyota's, like the Tundra, or the Prius. However, although the designs are entirely different, it's still a Toyota engine underneath. Every Linux distro is different, but underneath, they are all build around the Linux kernel.

You can find information regarding pretty much every distribution on a site called www.distrowatch.com, a nice site which also has a hit counter list displaying which Linux distro's site is most visited. However- this can be very confusing to the newcomer. My first observation while coming to this site was the the first distro listed on the hit counter. It was Ubuntu. Anyone who has gone online searching for "Operating Systems" on Google has probably stubled upon Ubuntu. Known to fellow Linux users as "The Behemoth," it's probably the most loved or hated distro on the planet. If you asked a random person what Linux was, they'd probably respond to it by saying, "Oh, you mean Ubuntu!" But that is not true at all. Ubuntu is just another distro that has gained world-wide popularity. Because of this popularity, many users only compare Ubuntu to Windows Vista and Mac OS 10.5 Leopard. In this article, we are not comparing a single distro, but what all the distros have to offer.

First of all, the main aspect of Linux is the fact that it is practically immune to viruses, malware, spyware, adware, and the like. I've known more people that switch to Linux because of the issue of viruses than I have people switch to Macs. Maybe it's just the advertising that Linux does, "No viruses!" but it seems to be working! Plus one point for Linux! However, Mac users will also argue that they get far less viruses than Windows users. This is true, although Mac computers are also easier to hack. There is no option in the installation of Leopard that allows an encrypted harddrive, which is more important than you think, but in the Ubuntu advanced install, there are numerous options for security. Plus 1/2 a point for Mac users! Now Windows- tsk tsk tsk! This is one thing that Windows users always get annoyed about. Although the advent of a virus checker on Internet Explorer 7 downloads does bring down the virus count down some, even with all the various virus and malware protecters, Windows computers are still the easiest to hack, and to get accidental viruses on. 0 points for Windows...

Mac- 1/2, Linux- 1, Windows- 0

Next up on the list of features- ease of use. This is the only part of Linux that always seems to break it down. Linux tends to be more difficult to use- I don't disagree with that part. But the paradox is that Linux also has the best documentation, better than Windows and Mac has put together. If you're smart enough to search your technological woes on Youtube, you will come to the greatest list of search results ever. This is especially true for Ubuntu users. The Ubuntu Forums has a reputation to be the most active forums page ever. If you post a question on the forums, it will be answered within 2 minutes. Trust me- I've tried it. Now Windows and Mac- they have no official forums to request help, so if you have a problem, Vista will give you this response- "Windows has not found any solution to this problem." If you have a Mac, you don't even get that little useless response- you get squat. Another plus for Linux!

Mac- 1/2, Linux- 1, Windows- 0

The next major feature of operating systems is drivers. The ability to use everyday technology with a computer is huge, especially with the advent of the iPod. Linux does pretty poorly on this section of the test. Windows is the main contender, with Mac trailing behind. Windows has the most drivers ever, just do a quick search on Google for any driver you need, and *poof,* it's there. Linux barely has any other support for drivers other than posting a request on the forums. For wireless drivers, however, Linux has a tool called NDis Wrapper, which uses Windows drivers to enable your wireless card. Macs have no such thing. On a Mac, you can ONLY use Mac software and equipement. Sorry, that's all, folks!

Mac- 1/2, Linux- 2, Windows- 1

This is the time that we talk about eye candy. Macs have been known for having the most eye candy, but I have to disagree. I believe the order is such- Linux > Windows > Mac. The newest Mac Leopard operating system has done little to look better, despite the dock. However, Linux has a fancy bit of software called Beryl, or Compiz-Fusion. This makes your desktop look amazing. I'm not just talking about regular amazing, I'm talking about italisized amazing. Take a look at this video, showing EVERYTHING in terms of eye candy you can do with Vista, and then comparing it with Linux.

When you minimize a window in Linux, you can select it to look like fire burns straight down it, or rain to fill it all up. With Vista and a Mac, it just minimizes in an animation. When you use the dock on Linux, when you drag an icon into it, it literally bounces using a physics engine. Linux also has this feature called "multiple desktops," which Mac has just recently shamelessly copied. It enables you to have more than one "screen" at a time, for example- you could have one screen with Firefox browsing the latest videos on Youtube, and another with iTunes up and running, playing your favorite tunes. You can seamlessly switch between these two "screens." When you do, a nice cube appears, and spins to your desired "screen." No such animation for Macs, just a simple screen displaying your "screens." I think Linux really deserves some points for this- it's pretty much alone in this field.

Mac- 1/2, Linux- 4, Windows- 2

That pretty much sums everything up! I do believe that Linux is a strong competitor, and many experts say that by 2020, Linux will have taken over Windows. Viva La Linux!

Checking iPod Touch / iPhone Firmware

To check if you have the correct Firmware to do this, simply plug your iPod Touch / iPhone into your computer and open up iTunes. You should see something like this:

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The part highlighted in red (on my screenshot, not your screen) entails your Firmware version. If it is not 2.0 this will not work.

Taking the Screenshot

Taking a screenshot on the iPod Touch / iPhone is very easy. Simply press the Home Button and the Sleep / Wake Button at the same time. You should see a flash when the screenshot it taken.

Note: Make sure you don't hold the buttons down, if you do for too long you could force shutdown your iPod Touch / iPhone.

Emailing the Screenshot

Now that you've taken the screenshot all that is left is emailing the picture to either yourself or your friends. It is a pretty simple thing to do, and I've got a lot of pictures to guide you.

Go to the Photos Application on your iPod Touch / iPhone. It should say “Photos” under it. When you get there you should see something like this:

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Click on the “Saved Photos” Album, you should now see something like this:

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If there is only one photo in the album just click on that image, if there are more, click on the image that looks like the screenshot that you took. You should see something like this now (a different screenshot though, of course):

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You'll want to push on the bottom in the lower left corner of the screen (the button is shown in the screenshot above). You should then see a menu; select the “Email Photo” option (shown below):

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You should be redirected to the Mail Application. Note: You must have an email account setup on your iPod Touch / iPhone, if you don't go here for a guide on how to set that up. This is what you should see if you have an account set up:

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Type in the email address(es) of the person(s) you want to email the screenshot to. If you have their email in your Address Book on your iPod Touch / iPhone then you can just type their name as I did (shown below):

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Hit send and you're done! Whoever you emailed the screenshot to should receive it in their email soon. Note: If you're on the iPod Touch you'll have to wait until you have WiFi to be able to email the photo. Here's my screenshot as I received it in my email:

(View Full)

I hope you enjoyed my guide! If you have any other friends curious about how to do this, make sure to refer them here.

Cover Flow is a feature that lets you browse the cover art (of the albums) of your iTunes library. You can flip through your albums by dragging the horizontal scroll bar with your mouse, spinning the mouse wheel up/down, or even your arrow keys. Heck, Cover Flow even has a full screen option; this option makes your computer screen look like a sophisticated audio player.

Search

Although I am sure most people have noticed the search box, some might not know its full capability. The search box is capable of locating results in your library for the songs name, artist, genre, album, and even the equalizer setting. And for those of you who are too lazy to click onto the search box, all you have to do is start typing the name of the song you are looking for, and iTunes will automatically highlight the closest result.

Visualizer

Unless you have looked fairly deep, you may not have noticed that iTunes has a Visualization feature. For those of you who like to look at visualizations, when you've selected your song, press Ctrl + T, and it will switch to the visualization screen. Press Ctrl + T again to exit to the normal display.

Cover Art

I am sure everyone knows that you can add cover art to albums in iTunes, however, it is a fairly long process that can take a lot of your time if you don't use the convenient shortcut that Apple has provided. In the bottom left corner of iTunes, there is a box that you can simple drag images onto, and, just that like, that image is now set as the cover art for that album.

Mini-Player

Like all media players, iTunes has a mini player. This nice thing about this one is that it is very "mini". Most mini players of media players are still big enough, defeating the purpose of a mini player. The amazing thing about the iTunes mini player is that it is very small, meaning you can have it in a top corner of your screen, control it, and not have to worry about it getting in the way of your other programs. So if you are too lazy to switch to your iTunes window to change your song, then the mini player is for you.

Song Options

If you've ever wanted to make a quiet song louder (or vice versa), or wanted to cut out a slow ending or into, song options are something you will want to check out. Highlight the song you wish to edit, then press Ctrl + I, and click the Options tab. Here you can increase/decrease the volume, set a starting/ending point, and much more features solely for the selected song. Highlight multiple songs, and press Ctrl + I, to set options for all the selected songs; this beats doing this to each song individually if you are looking to edit multiple songs with the exact same changes.

Lyrics

For those of you with iPod touch's and iPhones, you will really like this feature. To access this feature, press Ctrl + I, then press the Lyrics tab. The lyrics feature is a simple feature that lets you write or paste lyrics for a song. Then, when listening to the music on your touch or iPhone, you can tap the screen and it will display the lyrics on the screen, then all you need to do is scroll down and read it. For those of you who are unable to sync notes from your computer, you can paste any text you wish into the lyrics section of a song, and you can put on a song, and then read through whatever text you added.

Locate File

If you're ever listening to a song, and want to find the audio file on your computer, for whatever reason, it is as simple as pressing Ctrl + R. This will immediately open up the folder containing the song, which is a faster method than looking for file manually, or even resorting to trial and error.

Preferences

Known in most programs as "options", preferences are something to check out for sure. To access preferences, press Ctrl + , (comma). Through preferences you can edit playback options, such as cross fade and shuffle, and simple preferences such as parental control and syncing.

Diagnostics

Diagnostics is a feature that checks important things such as your CD/DVD drive, network, connection, and iPod/iPhone connections. To access this feature, go to Help - Run Diagnostics. This feature takes literally less than a minute, and lets you know if all your drivers, etc., are working. This is good for anyone who is experiencing problems, as it can solve it fast and efficiently.

And there you have it, 10 iTunes features that you may have not been aware of. I hope this article has helped to improve your iTunes experience.

iGadget

This powerful application literally transforms the iPod into something resembling a PDA. From Outlook you can transfer your mail, notes and appointments to your iPod with the help of iGadget. Add to that list - text files, RSS feeds, weather forecasts and daily horoscopes. Want to transfer back some songs from the iPod to your PC? This piece of work can do that too. But like all good things in life, iGadget comes with a small price tag. But $15 and the download from www.purpleghost.com will turn your iPod into a personal digital assistant.

iDump

Grab this from www.codershole.com/iDump.php and you get complete control over transfer of song files from the iPod to the PC. It's no fuss software; it lets you search for the songs to transfer and you also get to choose the output name format of the songs. But the coolest thing about this application is that it is free.

iDirectionz

Some of us are inveterate travelers and someone just did us a favor by releasing an application to help us find our way around. It's the next best thing to GPS. if you are still waiting for the first GPS kit for the iPod then take this app from Verstige out for a spin. (The download is also available from Cnet.com.) Download the software, enter your source location and your destination, you get your driving directions in a text file. Transfer them to your iPod's Notes folder. This is free to use and comes handy in case you plan to get lost.

Party Pro

From this site - www.helmesinnovations.com comes the Party Pro, your personal party guide. 800 drink recipes with photos, 55 drinking games, tips for the bartender, pick-up lines for the verbally challenged and a great global database on clubs and bars (only for US and Europe cities). As their are no free lunches, this software retails for $9.99 only.

Canto Pod

If you are as fastidious about the lyrics as you are about the songs then the Canto Pod is for you. A free software (at last), it gets the lyrics of your songs on your iPod and saves them in the Contacts menu. It takes a bit of a workaround because of the slightly complicated interface, but it is well worth for its utility. The slight dampener is that it understands only English songs.

Encyclopodia

An Open Source Project from www.encyclopodia.sourceforge.net, this neat bit of software is an information repository for the pocket. Users can access information sourced from Wikipedia using the scrollwheel. It is a bit of pain for the fingers but you can bet it is good for the brain. It might not work well with some of the newer iPods but their is no harm in giving it a try. It's free.

The world of the iPod is now big and you can bet that their are many more applications on the way. We can only complain about the wait.

First off, you have to understand that the files an iPod recognizes are called MPEG-4 files. The only way to get these are by using iTunes, but iTunes will not recognize the format that a DVD is in..

SO, you need a converter! These programs can be used to convert many type of video files to many other types. For Example, the program I use is called the #1 DVD Ripper.

Warning: this product requires one to purchase the full program or it will only convert the first 10 minutes of your DVD.

So, once you've got your full version of the program, open it up.

This will be the screen that you see.

Next, open the DVD file you want by clicking on the load DVD button.

Once you have the DVD you want, you'll need to select what type of file you want it converted to.

Look for the iPod version and settings that want, and select that.

If you want to change any settings, click on settings. Once your ready to go, click start, and you can watch your movie being converted, (you actually see where in the movie the program is, because of the preview setting)

And your done! Enjoy your movies on you iPod!