AdBlock+ With Google Chrome

First off, you’ll want to grab the Dev Channel edition of Google Chrome if you don’t have this already[here].  You want this version because as of about a month ago this version includes an extension manager that will make this entire process easier for you.  Plus, now you are on the bleeding edge of Chrome releases.

First you will want to install AdSweep.  When you head to the page, make sure to click on the Google Chrome Extension link and not the user script[here].  After clicking the link for the extension, Chrome will ask if you want to save the file.  Say yes, then a box will automatically pop up asking if you would like to install, click “Install” and you are done.  Adsweep is basically your meat and potatos ad blocking program.  It will remove just about everything that you dont want.

Another way to block ads in Google Chrome is to head to userscripts.org and get the AdBlock+ for Google Chrome [here].  Make sure to click on the link for the Chrome extension, save it, and click Install after it is done downloading.  This script will allow you to selectively block advertisements on an ad by ad basis.

The one two punch combination of these programs should give you what you need to have a very nice online experience with Google Chrome.

Tips:

-To disable or enable extensions on the fly, click the wrench(or settings icon) in Chrome, then scroll down to “Extensions”

-Ctrl+Alt+B – Turn off the new AdBlock+ toolbar that you now have

-You can also get to your extensions setup page by typing the following into the superbar “chrome://extensions/”

-DPollitt

Why you should be using Google Chrome

You may ask yourself, why should I switch from Internet Explorer, Firefox, or Safari to Google Chrome? Well, I think I have plenty of reasons for you to at least give it a try and maybe you’ll convince yourself.  One of the biggest reasons that I think Chrome rocks is the JavaScript engine behind it.  The JavaScript virtual machine that Chrome is based on, V8 – is one of the fastest on the block.  Give it a test for yourself on javascript heavy websites such as Gmail, Google Docs, or Facebook.

Some major features you’ll love-

• Automatic root URL highlighting
• Every tab runs independantly, so if one crashes, everything else will stay
• Drag any chrome tab out of the window and into a new one
• Drag and drop downloads out of Chrome’s status bar and onto your desktop to save them there, or into any Explorer window to save them there.
• Click and drag any textarea corner to resize it to your liking, such as in a comment box on a blog
• Extremely fast startup and loading of pages

If you are serious about testing out Chrome, I would strongly suggest trying the dev channel.  Google has three different versions of Chrome that you can try.  The first is the main public release(stable), then the beta, and finally the dev edition.  They are supposed to progressively become less stable as they push the newest features and test less as you go down the line.  I have been on the dev channel for a few months now and have had few issues.  So if you don’t mind being a bit risky with your browser, this is the way to go.

The Google Chrome Early Access Release Channels(beta/dev) can be found here:
http://dev.chromium.org/getting-involved/dev-channel

If you want to try out the stable current release just head over to http://www.google.com/chrome

-DPollitt

New Blackberry Storm Software

Over the past week Blackberry Storm users have seen some exciting new software appear.
-The first major release has been the software needed to create themes.  With this we have seen tons of new themes appear, some of which are pretty nice already. Link
-We also saw a new browser hit the market – Bolt Browser.  It has some new innovative features, and promises to be fast at it. Link
-Finally it isnt a new piece of software, but rather a much awaited feature.  Google Maps for Mobile has added GPS support to the newest version 3.0.2 – only for the Blackberry Storm.  I find it interesting that Verizon is allowing you to use third party software with the onboard GPS, considering that they try to charge you $10/month for their own similar software. Link

Anyways, a bit of excitement in the Blackberry Storm world, even if you aren’t looking to try out Beta OS software.

-DPollitt

MeetInBetween.us

MeetInBetween.us is an online resource that utilizes Google Maps to find the midpoint between two addressees inputted by the user.  After entering the two locations, the user can select a location to meet, which range from restaurants, bars,  coffee shops, hotels, or malls.  If David; who lives outside of Minneapolis; and I; who live outside of Duluth; wanted to meet for lunch, it might look like this:

After agreeing on a place to meet, directions to the location are made available to each person.  I can see this being potentially useful for users of Craiglist.

-A. Greeman

Gmail Adds ‘Always use https’ option

If you regularly use Gmail over public networks, or just like to know that you are being as secure as possible, you might want to enable this option.  Before you could simply type the Gmail url with https instead of the regular http, and it would force Gmail into a secure session over SSL.  Now, Google has added a feature in the settings to force the secure connection everytime, no matter which URL you type in.  This is a great feature that should always be an option with any email service.

To enable this feature in Gmail:

1. Sign in to Gmail.
2. Click Settings at the top of any Gmail page.
3. Set ‘Browser Connection’ to ‘Always use https.’
4. Click Save Changes.
5. Reload Gmail.

-DPollitt

Introducing Google Chrome

Google has surprised many by coming out with a new open-source browser named Chrome.  The browser is still in the beta stage, as many of Google’s products are, so expect a few hiccups if you want to give this a try.

Once you’ve downloaded the software and got situated, I’ve located a few tricks you can explore once you are inside.  Just type these phrases into the ‘omnibox’ or url box and see what you can play with:

• about:stats
• about:memory
• about:network
• about:histograms
• about:dns
• about:plugins
• about:version
• about:crash

There is one more about: that you can try, but it might give you a surprise if you aren’t ready for it.  Just type about:% or even just the “:%” part of it into the url box, and watch as the browser crashes.(edit:Google has released an update to fix this bug, so it might not work for you.)

Finally, if you are using Windows XP with Chrome, you’ll notice the standard Google blue window color.  It’s quite ugly if you ask me, so I searched and found a way to update it.

Just head over to Deviant Art and pick up the zip file containing the default.dll theme.  Copy this and paste it into the following folder(backup your original default.dll first).

Vista : C:\Users\Username\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\Application\0.2.149.27\Themes\

XP : C:\Documents and Settings\Username\Local Settings\Application Data\Google\Chrome\Application\0.2.149.27\Themes\

-DPollitt