exporting

Copy lists and menus in Windows with NirSoft's SysExporter

NirSoft's SysExporter is a simple, free tool that does something seemingly simple very yet valuable, saving time and reducing errors. The program is made to grab and save the data in all sorts of views in Windows, including standard list views, tree views, list boxes, combo boxes, and other such displays, and save that data as a text, HTML, or XML file.

SysExporter's simple but effective user interface is split horizontally between an upper list view and a lower window for displaying selections. The program scanned our system, displaying a wide range of system messages by title, including … Read more

The semi-automatic way to manage multiple contact lists

Few business resources are as valuable as your list of contacts. It's no wonder companies such as Twitter and iPad app vendor Path are trying to get their hands on their customers' contacts--with or without their express permission.

Contacts are like rabbits: they tend to multiply whenever they get together.

In the past year my Gmail contact list has grown by 50 percent, not to mention the many updates and changes to existing entries. Contact-sync programs promise to keep the information in multiple address books up-to-date, but the programs I've tried create so many duplicate records they'… Read more

How to import Facebook birthdays to Google Calendar

Do you forget your Facebook friends' birthdays because you don't log in to Facebook enough or because you keep forgetting to take your ginkgo biloba? Consider using Google Calendar alerts and stop writing belated birthday wishes on your friends' Facebook walls.

Editors' note: This post was updated May 14, 2012. We initially showed you how to export a file from Facebook, which you could then import to Google Calendar. There's a better method, as noted in the comments section, using your Facebook calendar's URL. This allows you to keep a current calendar of Facebook birthdays, even as … Read more

How to export iPhoto slideshow as QuickTime movie

If you are regularly snapping photos, you are likely sharing them online via Facebook, Flickr, Picasa, and the like. If you want to punch up a photo presentation, however, you can create a slideshow in iPhoto and then export it as a QuickTime movie. This creates a package that contains your photos along with a template, transitions, and music. You can then upload this QuickTime movie to share online or sync with your iPod, iPhone, or iPad. Allow me to demonstrate after the break.

… Read more

Google wields data openness against Facebook

Google is accelerating efforts to make its new social network look like a more open and attractive alternative to Facebook.

The latest: Google will allow users to export a list of Web sites that they've recommended through the "+1" button.

While only a modest change, it highlights how Google is trying to use openness--the ability to extract your data from its servers with the click of a button--to differentiate itself from its far larger and more established rival.

"When your users can leave you you're going to work as hard as you can to keep … Read more

China to reform rare-earth exports after WTO ruling

China will reform its export of rare earths based in part on World Trade Organization rules, state media reported today, a day after the global trade governing body ruled against its curbs on exports.

The Ministry of Commerce will study and take steps forward in rare-earth export management, "according to relevant laws and World Trade Organization rules," the official Xinhua news agency quoted China's vice commerce minister, Zhong Shan, as saying.

The WTO ruled yesterday that China broke international law when it curbed exports of coveted raw materials such as bauxite, coke, and magnesium used in the production of steel, electronics, and medicines.

That ruling, initiated by a complaint filed by the United States, the European Union, and Mexico in 2009, was seen as a landmark that could have implications for the legality of China's rare-earth export quotas.

China produces 97 percent of the world's supplies of rare earths, a group of 17 minerals used in electronics and defense and renewable-energy industries. … Read more

Free movie database app

Duck Software's Organizer series of personal database applications share a common core that is then optimized for a specific use, such as keeping track of your movie collection. That's the job of Film Tracker v5.0, a free movie database. It can help you keep track of your far-flung video collection with more than 19 customizable data fields. Like all such databases, you must enter the information bit by bit, but Film Tracker's efficient entry form makes that job easy, and it can also import and export data in CSV files.

Like its stablemates, Film Tracker shares … Read more

How to solve Facebook import and export freezes in iPhoto '11

Uploading photos from iPhoto to Facebook via iPhoto's built-in exporter has taken a turn for the worse for some users, not allowing uploading or downloading and often freezing while trying to connect.

Several users have voiced their displeasure with the situation in one of the Apple Support Discussion forum threads. User ajrossnz writes:

Since I upgraded from iPhoto '09 to '11 I have been unable to upload to facebook, a feature that worked great in '09. I have done all the things that were suggested through various googling such as removing my facebook account in preferences and removing albums, … Read more

Google launching Chrome, Earth, Picasa in Iran

Google is for the first time launching Chrome, Google Earth, and Picasa for users in Iran, according to the company's official blog.

The U.S. government recently lifted some of the restrictions prohibiting software downloads to Iran. Now, the search giant is looking to get its downloadable products into the hands of Iranian citizens while at the same time blocking access to the Iranian government.

"We're committed to full compliance with U.S. export controls and sanctions programs and, as a condition of our export licenses from the Treasury Department, we will continue to block IP addresses … Read more