Telus recruits Leonard Nimoy to vet your Facebook status updates

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Samuel Gibbs on April 8, 2011 at 03:40 AM

Have you ever thought your Facebook status updates lacked finesse? Ever regretted saying that to the whole of Facebook about 30 seconds after hitting send? Ever wished you had your own personal Leonard Nimoy to proof read your mind-dumps before you make a fool of yourself? Yes, me too, and now you can!

Brought to you by Telus, What Would Leonard Nimoy Say (WWLNS) is a Facebook app, which allows you to run your status updates past the legendary sci-fi actor before slapping them up on Facebook. To use the app you must 'Like' it, and sacrifice your https connection if you happen to have it enabled, but that's the price you pay to have Spock proof read your inane musings.

Check out Telus on Facebook to take the app for a whirl, and jump on over to Engadget to see more Nimoy-Telus combinations. Tags: apps, Facebook, Leonard Nimoy, LeonardNimoy, social networking, SocialNetworking, Telus, Web, WWLNS

View the original article here

Gmail Contacts auto-save can now be disabled plus myriad of small updates

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Samuel Gibbs on April 7, 2011 at 04:45 AM

The Gmail team has been busy behind the scenes of late addressing a plentiful supply of little niggles. First up on the chopping block is the annoying (or amazing, depending on how you look at it) auto-save contacts feature, which has been the bane of many-a-contact neat-freak (myself included) since its inception. Now Google has finally added an option to turn off the auto-save contacts feature. It's available in the 'General' tab of Gmail settings going forward, and should please anyone who syncs their phone contacts with Gmail contacts.

Gmail will also now point out any incorrectly entered email addresses visually, rather than simply telling you something was wrong. This will be handy for anyone addressing emails to a long list of recipients, as it'll be a lot easier to spot the typo. A few of Gmail's error messages have also migrated from pop-ups to in-window messages that allow you to action things more easily, while still getting on with the task in hand. Gmail will also now send you back to the message you were looking at if you happen to create a filter for 'messages like these,' a nice tweak that should save you some time.

If you're into your keyboard shortcuts, Gmail now has one turned on by default and that's the shortcut help key. Hit 'shift' and '?' together and you'll be presented with an overlay detailing all the keyboard shortcuts available to boost your productivity. Last but not least, the 'refresh' link is now a button on to match the rest of the buttons on the toolbar. Consistency in UI is important for a decent user experience, and now Gmail conforms just a little bit more.

To check out these little changes, all you have to do is head to your Gmail and have a look around the UI. Many people rely daily on Gmail in the browser, and these small, but important changes, can make the difference between a slick and productive experience, and a sluggish and frustrating one.

View the original article here

Telus recruits Leonard Nimoy to vet your Facebook status updates

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Samuel Gibbs on April 8, 2011 at 03:40 AM

Have you ever thought your Facebook status updates lacked finesse? Ever regretted saying that to the whole of Facebook about 30 seconds after hitting send? Ever wished you had your own personal Leonard Nimoy to proof read your mind-dumps before you make a fool of yourself? Yes, me too, and now you can!

Brought to you by Telus, What Would Leonard Nimoy Say (WWLNS) is a Facebook app, which allows you to run your status updates past the legendary sci-fi actor before slapping them up on Facebook. To use the app you must 'Like' it, and sacrifice your https connection if you happen to have it enabled, but that's the price you pay to have Spock proof read your inane musings.

Check out Telus on Facebook to take the app for a whirl, and jump on over to Engadget to see more Nimoy-Telus combinations. Tags: apps, Facebook, Leonard Nimoy, LeonardNimoy, social networking, SocialNetworking, Telus, Web, WWLNS

View the original article here

Gmail Contacts auto-save can now be disabled plus myriad of small updates

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Samuel Gibbs on April 7, 2011 at 04:45 AM

The Gmail team has been busy behind the scenes of late addressing a plentiful supply of little niggles. First up on the chopping block is the annoying (or amazing, depending on how you look at it) auto-save contacts feature, which has been the bane of many-a-contact neat-freak (myself included) since its inception. Now Google has finally added an option to turn off the auto-save contacts feature. It's available in the 'General' tab of Gmail settings going forward, and should please anyone who syncs their phone contacts with Gmail contacts.

Gmail will also now point out any incorrectly entered email addresses visually, rather than simply telling you something was wrong. This will be handy for anyone addressing emails to a long list of recipients, as it'll be a lot easier to spot the typo. A few of Gmail's error messages have also migrated from pop-ups to in-window messages that allow you to action things more easily, while still getting on with the task in hand. Gmail will also now send you back to the message you were looking at if you happen to create a filter for 'messages like these,' a nice tweak that should save you some time.

If you're into your keyboard shortcuts, Gmail now has one turned on by default and that's the shortcut help key. Hit 'shift' and '?' together and you'll be presented with an overlay detailing all the keyboard shortcuts available to boost your productivity. Last but not least, the 'refresh' link is now a button on to match the rest of the buttons on the toolbar. Consistency in UI is important for a decent user experience, and now Gmail conforms just a little bit more.

To check out these little changes, all you have to do is head to your Gmail and have a look around the UI. Many people rely daily on Gmail in the browser, and these small, but important changes, can make the difference between a slick and productive experience, and a sluggish and frustrating one.

View the original article here