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Buzz Out Loud 875: Jazz fingers

On today's show, we have a couple of awkward moments discussing the latest Andy Samberg clip on YouTube. There are giggles. We also attempt to spread some rumors about BlackBerry Storm returns that are quickly debunked by actual fact; we learn which Netbooks can handle OS X (and Brian Tong); and intrepid researchers are playing Christmas music for sharks, just to see if they like it. Yes. Really. Listen now: Download today's podcast Episode 875

Personalized spam rising sharply, study finds http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08%2F12%2F18%2F1417232

Cable to temporarily pause digital switch … Read more

Emoticons Come to the iPhone

Big Keyboard Email is one of the many applications for the iPhone that allows users to send email messages with a keyboard displayed in landscape mode--a feature Apple inexplicably left out. The program has gained a new function, however, that sets it apart: the ability to send emails with emoticons.

Like other landscape email applications, Big Keyboard Email works by intercepting input then sending it back to the iPhone's native mail client. See how it works in the screenshots below:

Big Keyboard Email is priced at $0.99 and available through the iTunes App Store.

Programmer's pal

When Word is too much and Notepad isn't enough, you might want to give TextPad a look. The text tool requires little drive space, but comes with a surprising array of unique features that are especially useful for programming tasks. A group of simple formatting tools such as indenting, line numbering, character transposing, and condition-based word wrapping help keep code in order. It offers excellent customization features, letting you create formatting and code coloring specific to whatever language you're programming in. Those looking for a robust tool for low-end desktop publishing will be disappointed, however. TextPad works best … Read more

The 404 242: Where we turn the show into an unnecessary musical

Thanks to Dan the Mantern's two-week-long extended vacation, we're left helpless and alone. Luckily for us, the Intern Formerly Known as Mark (IFKM is a bad acronym) saves the day, helping us scrutinize stories like Microsoft entering the T-shirt market, the Knight Rider show cancellation, the first Vietnamese House Representative, and other kooky, borderline-tabloid stories we found on the World Wide Den of Filth.

In today's episode of What's Happening With Those Asians, we discuss an important milestone in Asian American history: Louisiana has elected the United States' very first Vietnamese-American House Representative. It's an … Read more

TextFlow makes multiple author edits less painful

TextFlow, a new way to collaboratively edit documents, is opening up to everyone Monday morning. Instead of going the real-time route like Zoho and Google Docs, the service opts to let a master editor corral multiple versions of the same Microsoft Word document inside of one file.

Each editor sends in a copy of the file (presumably via e-mail), and the master editor drags and drops all of them into a single bucket. The application then divides the edits into sections, letting the master editor pick whichever revisions make the most sense. When finished, he or she can convert it … Read more

Mobile messaging grows globally

Worldwide mobile messaging grew nearly 10 percent in the third quarter compared to the second quarter of the year, fueled by new trends in the messaging market, according to VeriSign, which provides Internet infrastructure services and delivers messages on behalf of carriers and content providers.

The company reported Tuesday that VeriSign enabled more than 58.3 billion messages per day during the third quarter of 2008. This was up from about 52 billion messages sent during the second quarter of 2008.

On average, this means that VeriSign facilitated the delivery of about 634 million messages per day during the third … Read more

Four essential tweaks keep Outlook simple and safe

You can't expect any application as complicated and full-featured as Microsoft Outlook to suit you perfectly right out of the box. Here are the Outlook adjustments I rely on to make the program safer and easier to use.

Send and receive mail in plain text In a previous post, I described how to make sure Outlook shows all incoming mail as plain text. Quick recap: in Outlook 2003, click Tools > Options > Preferences > E-mail Options, and in the Message Handling area, check "Read all standard mail in plain text." To do the same in Outlook … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 850: Cooley hates space

We try to get all sentimental about the demise of the Mars Phoenix lander, but Brian Cooley ruins it with his outlandish assertions about the uselessness of space. Plus, he loses his mind about the crappiness of the BlackBerry Curve. In sum, a good time is had by all.

Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 850

Mars Phoenix Lander completes its mission http://news.cnet.com/8301-13772_3-10092897-52.html http://www.urbanhonking.com/universe/2008/11/interview_marsphoenix.html http://gizmodo.com/5082385/this-is-my-farewell-transmission-from-mars

Flat-panel TV shipments begin their decline http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10093153-1.html

FCC OKs digital workaround for … Read more

Macrotabular

EmEditor Professional has the kind of hybridization we find irresistible and oh-so-advantageous in a text-editing program. This versatile editor combines a macro creator worthy of programming pundits with full-fledged, feature-rich text-editing capabilities clothed in a clean, color-coded interface.

Developers and power users will love the wealth of languages and syntaxes, including C#, C , Java, PERL, PHP, Python, SQL, and XML. The macro creator has been boosted in in previous versions to record PerlScript, PHPScript, Python, and Ruby keystrokes, and now it also supports users who need to record mouse movements.

We appreciate the stackable tabs, the multithreading windows, and the … Read more