app blog

While the iPhone ‘sans cover’ feels much better in your hand, it’s not worth getting a few scratches on the back of your sleek phone. Rather than buy a standard case that looks the same as everyone else’s, with CaseApp, a free download in the iTunes App Store, you can design your own personalized cover, in a matter of minutes.

To save money or avoid a trip to the store you can make your own reusable dryer sheets by dipping white wash cloths or rags into a little liquid fabric softener until they're completely saturated and allow them to dry completely—you'll be able to use each rag around a dozen times until you need to repeat the process. More »

Pinoy software developer bags top spot in New York apps contest GMA News Filipino Joel Natividad and Indian Sami Baig, creators of a software application called "NYCFacets," recently won the top spot in "NYC BigApps 3.0," an annual contest to create mobile and web apps using official New York City data. and more »

Ever been told that you should fully discharge your battery to prolong its life? Or that jailbreaking your phone is illegal? Or that you should wait for the newest Intel processor because it's going to be "so much faster"? These are tech myths we hear all the time, and likely spread to our friends—but most are just a waste of your time (and in some cases, they can actually harm your gadgets). Here are some of the worst offenders. More »

Tablets are going to replace computers — or so we’re told. Despite divided opinions over tablet use in corporations, they’re coming… fast. While the screen of a smartphone may be too small for books, documents and articles, tablets bring the best features of a full-size computer to our fingertips. Free of bulk and excessive cords and filled with apps for everything we need, it’s hard to imagine a future in which the tablet isn’t a standard gadget.

We've covered many mouse traps over the years, but they all need to be reset once you've caught a mouse. This means if you have lots of furry intruders you'll need to have several traps or just build this version using a 5-gallon bucket, an aluminum beverage can, a small piece of wood, and a wooden dowel. More »

While alcohol may release your sadness for a moment, it may also be harmful for your health, and drinking too much is suicide.

It is hard to say how much alcohol consumption is excessive, but it will be funny to calculate how much alcohol you have consumed when drinking beer, red wine, whiskey or something else.

The human body and its brain are pretty incredible. They're also fragile and dumb. Realizing this can make your life miserable, or you can look at it as an opportunity and take control. This weekend, learn a few built-in superpowers you may not have known you had. All they take is a little practice. More »

Verizon relents a little on unlimited data, Congress considers fighting for some "hearts and minds" at home, and Mac folks can relax about lost hotkeys. More »

As we inch closer to summer, you're more likely to run into poison ivy, bug bites, and the other itchy ailments that come with being outside. Redditor xume points out that banana peels are a great homemade remedy for itchy skin. More »

Windows: AniExplorer enables hidden animations in the Windows Explorer interface, letting you customize your file manager and give it a little pizazz. More »

The Daily App Deals post is a round-up of the best app discounts of the day, as well as some notable mentions for ones that are on sale. More »

By nature, we're optimistic. We think we're better than most people at virtually everything we do. We believe we'll beat the odds of getting cancer even when we smoke a pack of cigarettes a week. This is the result of our optimism bias, and it both helps us succeed and make some of the dumbest decisions of our lives. Here's how it works, and how you can make it work for you. More »

This week we squeezed our workout routine into 20 minutes, ordered tailor-made clothing on the cheap, cured our router's constant need for a reset, and more. Here's a look back. More »

Bandits are very simple to understand: they're a rubber band with a hook. This may not seem extremely compelling at first glance, but there's actually a lot you can do with them. They can be used to hang a water bottle on your bike, your sunglasses from your car's rearview mirror, tools on a ladder when you need to set them somewhere, and virtually anything you can think of. More »

Getting new Facebook notifications is always fun, but that red number gets a lot more annoying when your notifications are just filled with apps you don't want and comment threads you no longer care about. Today, Facebook added new controls to the notification dropdown so you can unsubscribe from certain threads and apps right away. More »

According to a report by AdAge, location-based check-in service foursquare is starting to get serious about making money. It has hired former Apple iAd exec Steven Rosenblatt as Revenue Chief, the first such role the company has had in its history.

Foursquare has shown that its serious about getting more companies to join its platform by way of claiming their venues with a new simple verification process that will run them $10. The company recently announced that the new feature is available to companies worldwide.

Ever found a beautiful bird dead outside your home? Chances are it smashed into your window and never recovered. For every dead bird you find, just imagine how many were snatched up by a cat or pulled into the brush by some other critter. Worldwide, window collisions kill close to a billion(!) birds every year. With spring migration currently underway in the northern hemisphere, now is as good as ever to make your home bird safe. The DIY experts at Stack Exchange tell you how. More »

Many more people than ever before are getting the pink slip, thanks to massive layoffs happening everywhere. If there's a chance you could be the next layoff, find out what you can get from your company before you're rushed out the door. More »

Linux users have more text editors, IDEs, and command-line tools than a programmer can shake a stick at. If you're looking for a good programming text editor, we recommend Kate. It's super easy to get started with, but is quite powerful and has lots of great plugins to beef it up. More »

I recently jailbroke my iPhone and now that it's done I'm very overwhelmed by Cydia. I've downloaded a couple apps, but I don't understand most of what I'm looking at. The descriptions and explanation in Cydia don't help much, so I'm wondering: can you help me wrap my head all this stuff? More »

ReadWriteWeb

How Facebook's Mobile Strategy Might Create Future Revenue Streams ReadWriteWeb The center can sell mobile Web apps and bolster Facebook's Credits program, but it also can extend Facebook's presence in both the Apple App Store and Android Google Play. There is an interesting advertising opportunity here, as well. Facebook vs. the Wireless IndustryNew York Times (blog) Facebook IPO: the public network's opening dayFT.com (blog) Facebook IPO Details: 50 Million Extra Shares, $34-$38 Launch PriceCMSWire all 14,220 news articles »

Here's an easy fix for those gadget cords and plug-in tips that never seem to stay connected: Slide the plugs through a cheap pencil gripper for a tighter connection. You can also use these pencil grippers to color-code other cords around the house. More »

Chrome: Prefer Google's search but wish you had Bing's beautiful daily images? With the "Bing wallpaper for Google homepage" Chrome extension, you can set Bing's wallpaper to automatically load on your Google homepage. The extension offers different themes and loading settings. More »

Long week? Take a quick breather in this week's open thread. More »