Many applications have this convenient feature where they automatically save the current window state (like size and position) when they shut down and then restore it the next time you run them. For example, all modern web browsers will automatically remember their window size and most IM clients/media players/gadget apps will obediently stay put in whatever corner of the desktop you’ve allocated for them. But what about those that don’t?
If you want make an unruly application remember its window size, check out AutoSizer. It’s a freeware tool that can keep any program at a specific size and/or position. In addition to the ability to set exact window dimensions and coordinates, you can also configure it to maximize or minimize the application, keep it on top of other windows, or even automatically center it on the desktop.
AutoSizer is also useful for dealing with extra-glitchy apps that crash every couple hours and lose their window settings as a result. I’m looking at you, TweetDeck 0.25.1b.
We all know the phrase “raised by wolves” – it’s as old as Rome. And it appears Internet users around the world have worked hard to come up with ever-stranger parental situations (you can’t just let our postmodern culture be outdone by some ancient fairy tale!). So here’s a chart of the results and their popularity according to Google :
Minecraft is a browser-based sandbox game where you can build enormous structures, explore underground caverns, play with lava and water… or just watch grass grow. The game world is very flexible, allowing you to completely reshape the terrain. If you register for a free account you can also do all of the aforementioned things in multiplayer mode.
To illustrate, here’s a time-lapse video of a castle I built today :
As you can see in the video, the graphics are rather basic. However, if you’re into this kind of games you will probably find that the blocky environment doesn’t really detract from the the gameplay experience. After all, a distant cousin of Minecraft – the relatively popular Dwarf Fortress – gets away with using ASCII-based graphics that look like they came from the 80s.
The current release is pretty low on features (there are only 9 building materials and one gametype), but that’s forgivable for an alpha release. It is still under active development and the author has stated the full version will include more variety and several different gamemodes, like “Survival” where you face hostile creatures, building takes time and resources, and you must grow/gather food to replenish your health.
The downside is that the full version will cost money. Personally, I’m still on the fence as to whether Minecraft is worth my hard-earned eurobucks – building giant towers and secret underground bunkers can be fun and even addictive, but that doesn’t quite qualify as a complete game. However, if the upcoming gametypes are at least 1/5th as flexible and deep as, say, the aforementioned Dwarf Fortress, Minecraft could certainly make me part with my €20.
I know, I know – it’s a stupid question. You can’t really download the Internet. It’s so ridiculously huge and messy that even Google hasn’t indexed all of it. But what if a clueless fool eccentric multibillionaire came by and asked you to do [...] Continue Reading…
Social proof is an easy way to bump your traffic figures a little bit and make yourself look more authoritative. Today I’ll show you five simple ways to apply it to your WordPress blog.
Preface
The essence of “social proof” is simple : when people don’t have a lot of information [...] Continue Reading…
Posted by White Shadow
