Skip Ads on YouTube

Posted on February 2, 2012 - Filed Under Cool Websites, Google Software/Tips | Leave a Comment

YouTube was once a place where we could peacefully watch videos starring skateboarding cats and nasty honey badgers. We could bounce from video to video, never encountering any resistance other than the occasional slow Internet connection or rogue flaming comment from disgruntled video watchers. It was a beautiful place to squander time—then Google decided to rain on our parade with video advertisements.

If you are a Chrome user and you are tired of the advertisements interrupting your YouTube time, a extension called Skip Ads on YouTube can give you back the peaceful YouTube experience from the good ol’ days.

Google 466453 Text Number Hacks and Commands

Posted on December 31, 2011 - Filed Under Google Software/Tips | Leave a Comment

Google’s SMS (text messaging) search function can be very useful, particularly for those people who don’t have smartphones or have a data plan for their cell phones. Most everyone has text messaging, but many mobile phone users simply prefer standard flip phones, or standard, “non-smart” phones. If you don’t have an iPhone, Android phone, BlackBerry, etc… you can still use any regular cell phone to get live Google search results.

Find YouTube Videos Based on Geolocation

Posted on December 29, 2011 - Filed Under Google Software/Tips | Leave a Comment

If you plan to visit a specific area, YouTube videos can help you see small glimpses of attractions, festivals and local culture. However, a search string to find the kind of videos related to a specific location is not always obvious.

MapsTube displays YouTube videos based on geolocation tags embedded in videos. This means you can simply search for a specific location and all videos shot in and around the location will appear in your search.

At the top of the screen, replace the words What’s on your mind? with a location, then click Search.

Opt Out of Google Advertising

Posted on December 23, 2011 - Filed Under Google Software/Tips | 2 Comments

Online advertising is a multi billion dollar industry that is ever growing and becoming more complex. In the earlier years of the web, online marketing was much more basic, and simply revolved around placing generic banners on websites for a fixed rate. These days, however, advertising is much more targeted. I recently ran across a quote that went something like “If a product is offered to you for free, then you’re not the customer, you’re the product being sold.”

Google Currents Editions Review

Posted on December 20, 2011 - Filed Under Google Software/Tips | Leave a Comment

Apple iPad owners who have used the popular Flipboard app know that it’s almost unbeatable in terms or reading experience and user interface. Flipboard is a customizable, yet very unique magazine style web reader app that pulls in articles from several different news sources.

As great of an app that Flipboard is, it is still extremely limited in many ways. For starters, Flipboard is only available on Apple devices for the time being, so Android tablet owners, Kindle Fire tablet owners, and even BlackBerry Playbook tablet owners are not offered the Flipboard app.

Add Gadgets to Gmail

Posted on December 16, 2011 - Filed Under Google Software/Tips | Leave a Comment

Third-party developers have created hundreds of Gadgets for iGoogle. These gadgets can do everything from calculating complex math problems to helping you waste time at work with a video game or virtual hamster.

If you are a Gmail user, you can add iGoogle’s plugins to your Gmail page.