My Software Update (in the Apple menu) is no longer finding software updates. When I start up an iLife or iWork application, it tells me updates are available. If I try to manually download the updates from Apple’s website, it won’t install them because it says I don’t have the current version on my system. Is there a way to reset or fix this problem?
Resetting Software Update will display any updates you’ve ignored in the past.
With the iLife and iWork applications, Apple often advertises new upgrades to the suite of applications when you launch an older version of those iLife and iWork apps. These messages can be confusing, because they understandably lead you to believe there’s a free update. However, Apple is only advertising their new paid upgrades.
These messages are advertising Apple’s new, paid versions of iLife.
If this is not the case, you may have accidentally ignored an iWork or iLife update from within the Software Update application. To reset ignored updates, launch Software Update from the Apple menu, and then select Software Update > Reset Ignored Updates. After doing this, check for new updates again. Any updates you may have ignored in the past will show up as available for installation.
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Saturday, November 26, 2011
How to Reset Software Update | Mac|Life
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
The Best Disc Burning App for Windows via lifehacker.com
Windows has more disc burning apps than we can count, but a few notable programs stand out from the pack. Our favorite is CDBurnerXP for its long list of features and easy-to-use interface.
- Burn discs by dragging files or burning an ISO image
- Burn audio CDs using multiple audio formats with ReplayGain, CD text, and gapless playback
- Burn video CDs, DVDs, HD-DVDs, and Blu-Rays with video files
- Spread data over multiple discs with disc spanning
- Drag and drop files using the integrated explorer or from any Windows Explorer window
- Support for multisession CDs
- Simple cover printing for data and audio discs, as well as LightScribe integration
Check out CDBurnerXP's web site for the full list of features.
CDBurnerXP (which, despite its name, is regularly updated and works on current versions of Windows) can burn nearly any type of disc you can imagine, whether it's a simple image burn or you're creating an audio or video CD. Not only is it powerful, it also has a very easy-to-understand interface. As soon as you start it up, you can choose what type of disc you want to create and start dragging files. Plus, it's completely free, and far more lightweight than many of the popular commercial options.
CDBurnerXP is more than powerful enough for most users, but if you're a very advanced user, you might find it lacking in a few tiny features (which you can find in other, less user-friendly programs like ImgBurn). Also, CDBurnerXP is adware, meaning you have to pay attention when you install it to make sure it doesn't install any other bundled programs on your machine. Other than that, though, it's a pretty fantastic program, and will suit nearly anyone's burning needs.
ImgBurn is the most obvious competition to CDBurnerXP. It can do almost everything CDBurnerXP can do (not to mention a few other things CDBurnerXP can't do—mainly in the realm of setting file attributes on data discs), but it's a lot less user-friendly. If you're burning ISOs, it's actually a bit easier—it only takes a few clicks to burn an ISO to a CD—but other disc types can be a bit more confusing. It also doesn't support multisession discs, which is a deal killer for some. Like CDBurnerXP, it also contains some adware. If all you do is burn ISO images to disc, ImgBurn might be a better choice, but otherwise, CDBurnerXP is our favorite.
Ashampoo Burning Studio Free is another great, user-friendly option, and is comparable to CDBurnerXP. It doesn't have as many features when it comes to burning video discs, but it does have a neat focus on backup and restore, if you use CDs or DVDs to back up certain files. Many people prefer it to CDBurnerXP, though it is a bit outdated as the newer versions of Ashampoo are all commercial.
That said, if you're willing to pay $40, Ashampoo Burning Studio 10 has a lot of cool features for burning discs (like menus for DVDs, autoplay options for data discs, and so on). If you need more flashy features than the above free programs can offer, Ashampoo is a heck of a lot better than most of the commercial options out there (I'm looking at you, Nero).
Again, there are a ton of other disc burning programs out there for Windows, but the above choices should fit your needs in nearly any conceivable situation. If you have a favorite program we didn't mention, let us know what it is and why you love it in the comments.
Lifehacker's App Directory is a new and growing directory of recommendations for the best applications and tools in a number of given categories.
You can contact Whitson Gordon, the author of this post, at whitson@lifehacker.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.
Windows has more disc burning apps than we can count, but a few notable programs stand out from the pack. Our favorite is CDBurnerXP for its long list of features and easy-to-use interface. 
Monday, October 17, 2011
Adobe Reader for iOS Now Available via lifehacker.com
iOS: Adobe has released an iOS version of its popular PDF reader for iOS as a universal app for both iPad and iPhone.
Like the desktop version, you can't edit files, but you can access encrypted ones, as well as search, bookmark and copy text to the clipboard. It also lets you share PDF files with other applications, email, and print via AirPrint. It's a free download.
Adobe Reader | iTunes App Store
Thursday, October 13, 2011
How To Upgrade Ubuntu 11.04 (Natty Narwhal) To 11.10 (Oneiric Ocelot) (Desktop & Server) | HowtoForge - Linux Howtos and Tutorials
How To Upgrade Ubuntu 11.04 (Natty Narwhal) To 11.10 (Oneiric Ocelot) (Desktop & Server)
Version 1.0
Author: Falko Timme <ft [at] falkotimme [dot] com>
Follow me on Twitter
Last edited 10/13/2011The new Ubuntu 11.10 (Oneiric Ocelot) has just been released. This guide shows how you can upgrade your Ubuntu 11.04 desktop and server installations to Ubuntu 11.10.
This document comes without warranty of any kind! I do not issue any guarantee that this will work for you!
1 Desktop
Start the Update Manager (System > Administration > Update Manager):
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The Update Manager should show that a new distribution release (11.10) is available. Click on the Upgrade button to start the distribution upgrade:
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A window with the release notes for 11.10 comes up. Click on Upgrade again:
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The upgrade tool is now being downloaded. Afterwards, type in your password:
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The upgrade is being prepared:
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Click on Start Upgrade to finally begin with the upgrade process:
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The upgrade packages are now being downloaded...
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... and installed. This can take some time, so please be patient.
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At the end of the upgrade process, you should remove obsolete packages:
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The system needs to be rebooted to complete the upgrade, therefore click on Restart Now:
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When you log in, Ubuntu 11.10 will by default start the new Unity desktop:
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Welcome to your new your new Ubuntu 11.10 desktop:
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If you want to use GNOME instead of Unity, you must install it first. Open the Ubuntu Software Center and search for gnome. Click on the Install button next to the GNOME package to install the GNOME desktop environment:
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Afterwards log out of your desktop session. Back at the login screen, you now have the option to choose GNOME:
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And this is how Ubuntu 11.10 looks with the GNOME desktop:
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How To Upgrade Ubuntu 11.04 (Natty Narwhal) To 11.10 (Oneiric Ocelot) (Desktop & Server) - Page 2Copyright © 2011 Falko Timme
All Rights Reserved.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Download.com Adds Opt-Out Bloatware to Software Installers - via Lifehacker
If you're in the habit of downloading software installers from CNET's Download.com, you may want to reconsider: The popular download site now wraps most of the software installers it hosts with opt-out bloatware.
A developer on Hacker News first noticed that Download.com had started wrapping his application installer in their own installer—one with a required opt-out that, if missed, installs a "StartNow" toolbar, sets Bing as your default search engine, and sets MSN as your browser homepage. As ExtremeTech's Lee Matthews points out, you can tell in advance if an installer includes Download.com's crappy wrapper by looking at the installer's name—if the file starts with
cnet_, it includes their bloatware installer.Like most Lifehacker readers, we're not keen on applications that try installing opt-out-required toolbars or those that hijack your browser's defaults. The somewhat forgivable aspect: Developers like to make money, and in a world with so much great freeware, those tricky toolbars can be an effective option. But it only seems appropriate for it to be the developer's choice, and if the developer so chooses, that she reaps the financial benefits.
So keep your eyes open, and if you do commonly grab apps from Download.com, you might want to consider a new destination.
If you're in the habit of downloading software installers from CNET's Download.com, you may want to reconsider: The popular download site now wraps most of the software installers it hosts with opt-out bloatware.
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