So it’s the night before the big test, and you need to study. Here’s an effective way to study, SparkNotes.

SparkNotes books and SparkNotes.com exist to help students learn and practice basic skills, write a paper, study for a test and achieve their academic goals.

Created by Harvard students for students everywhere and geared to what today’s students need to know, SparkNotes study guides are the perfect aid for studying and writing papers. Each guide contains thorough summaries and insightful critical analysis of a nearly endless range of subjects including English literature, Shakespeare, History and Math and Science. We offer hundreds of study guides for free to read on the web, and many SparkNotes and SparkCharts as downloadable, printable PDFs.

Now, a word of warning: SparkNotes has study information on Novels. SparkNotes is not to serve as an alternative to reading books, but rather a supplement to reading. Most test teachers will give you will cover more than what SparkNotes will – SparkNotes is designed to help you.

But if you’re in a jam and need to study fast, SparkNotes is for you.

SparkNotes

Quick Note: Sorry I haven’t posted all week (*slaps hand*) I will try harder this next weekend and next week.

Do you have someone you want to add into your contacts in Gmail? Here’s a shortcut for you:

When sending a message, type the name of the recipient you want to appear in your Contacts and then place the email address inside <>. That will auto-add the name to your address book formatted.
For instance, rather than: jake@example.com in the To: box, use Jake Bechtold, Fearless Webmaster

If that weren’t cool enough, this works with some email clients (okay, Thunderbird anyway). This is a sure way to you some time when adding contacts.

Gmail Tip: Automatically add a contact name to your address book [Lifehacker]

So I stumbled upon this the other day. While I haven’t had much of an interest Writely (mainly because I have accounts to enough things already), Google may have just changed that. This was found in the Writely support center:

If anyone with a Google Account can sign in to Writely, does this mean I can sign in with my Gmail account? (Coming Soon)

Yes. Although not all Google Accounts are Gmail Accounts, all Gmail Accounts are Google Accounts, so your Gmail password and email address will work to access Writely.

So I tried it out and sure enough, I got into Writley. For those that don’t know, Writely (which was recently bought by Google) allows you to create and upload all kinds of text files (Word, OpenOffice, Rich-Text, etc.) for later access or to share with other people. As I said, I haven’t played around with it much, but from the sounds of it, this may be my new favorite upload tool. We’ll just have to see.

Writely
Writely Help Center [via Digg]

Say you’re a business person, and you need to deliver a presentation, and you want to make it flashy. One way is to deliver it from your iPod.

What I’m about to tell you about, will not allow you to use your iPod as a remote control – this has been done before, way too many times, in fact. What I’m showing you will physically put the presentation on your iPod, for use with a TV or (most likely) a projector- no laptop involved.

Convert and export to your iPod
There are many ways of doing this. First, there’s pay-for software. There’s three that basically do the same thing: ThinkFree Office 3 Show, iPod Edition ($20.95), iPresent It ($17.95), and iPodSync ($14.95). These programs convert your PowerPoint files into images for your iPod to display. But the best way, in my opinion, is the free way. In PowerPoint, just save the show as a .TIFF, .JPG, .PNG, and .BMP. Then you can import it and create a slide show. It’s time consuming, but free.

Show Time
So you’ve got it on there, but how do you show it? The best way is to buy the Apple iPod AV Cable ($19.99) from the Apple Store. If you’re wanting S-Video, then the Monster iTV Link for iPod ($59.95) is what you need.

So now that you know how to do it, show off that presentation. Enjoy!

Deliver PowerPoint from the gadget in your pocket [Computerworld]

Here’s a good way to kill some time this weekend. PhoneSpell allows you to enter your phone number (or any phone number for that reason) and find out what is spells, and much more.

Enter a 6 to 10 digit phone number and we’ll show you what words and phrases your phone number spells to help you decide if you want to keep it. Opening a business and need a new phone number? Pick a new 7 or 8 digit phone number by typing in an available exchange (first 3 to 5 digits) and see what one-word numbers you can choose from. Searching for just the right toll free number to advertise? Type in letters and we will show you the corresponding phone number.

The service also has a button to dial any number you come up with using it’s built in phone dialing service. So if you’re looking to kill some time, or look for a new phone number, PhoneSpell is the way to go.

PhoneSpelling

So here’s what Apple Released today:

New iPod Nano
First off is the new iPod Nano. Now available in Blue, Green and Pink in addition to the white and black, as well as new HD sizes.

A thinner design. Five stylish colors. A brighter display. Up to 24 hours of battery life. Just about the only thing that hasn’t changed is the name. In 2GB, 4GB, and 8GB models starting at $149, iPod nano puts up to 2,000 songs in your pocket.

New iPod Shuffle
Remember the remote clip they came out with awhile back? Now it’s an iPod.

The world’s smallest digital music player and just $79, the 1GB iPod shuffle lets you wear up to 240 songs(1) on your sleeve. Or your lapel. Or your belt. Clip on iPod shuffle and wear it as a badge of musical devotion.

iTunes 7
Also, a new version of iTunes.

Download iTunes 7 and make yourself at home. Buy music, movies, TV shows, and audiobooks, or download free podcasts from the iTunes Store 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Play everything on your Mac or PC. Then sync it to your iPod and bring it along. Anywhere.

Other Goodies
As a side note, they have silently (?) upgraded the iPod. It still has video, but has a slightly improved UI with search and a new game. You’ll Also notice that the 60GB has been replaced with a 80GB, and a price drop. Some improvements, but no 6th Generation like there was supposed to.

That’s all for now. Be sure to comment and tell me what you think.

iPod Nano
iPod Shuffle
iTunes 7
Apple Store

In light of today being the 5-year anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attacks, I’m featuring a download that is dedicated to the victims of this tragedy, DeskFlag.

DeskFlag places an animated United States flag on your screen. The flag waves in the lower-right corner as you use your computer. DeskFlag was created after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and is dedicated to the memory of the victims. DeskFlag should work with any Windows computer running Windows 95 or later.

Deskflag is freeware and, as mentioned, works with Windows 95 or later. Also, Deskflag is very small (123K). So if you are wanting to commemorate the September 11th, 2001 terror attacks, or you just want to be patriotic, DeskFlag is for you.

DeskFlag

Want a RAID setup on you new Mac Pro (or PowerMac G5)? Iomega has just rolled out a device that has a 640GB RAID in a Mac Pro like enclosure.

This new 640GB HDD rocks dual 320GB SATA drives in a RAID 0 or 1 array, and sports an enclosure that any Mac Pro (or PowerMac G5) owner can appreciate. It comes formatted for OS X use (HFS+), but can be reformatted for PC use, and Iomega apparently made cross-platform setup a breeze with the included “FAT32 format tools.”

What set this apart from other RAID boxes (besides the array of USB and Firewire 400 and 800 ports), is that this one has a switch turn RAID on (one drive) or off (each of the drive is by itself).

So if you’ve been looking for a RAID Drive with many features (or if you’re a fan of brushed metal), the UltraMax might just do the trick. UltraMax 640GB can get paired up with your Mac (or PC) for $449.95 later this month.

Iomega rolls out OS X-ready UltraMax 640GB RAID drive [Engadget]

Granted they came out on wednesday, but better late then never. Apple came out with an updated line of iMacs, including an all-new 24-inch iMac.

Cast your gaze on the ultimate eye-opening experience: the new faster, bigger, and brighter iMacs. Starting at just $999, the most personal of personal computers comes out packing a powerful punch. That’s thanks to the new 64-bit Intel Core 2 Duo processor, you’ll find in each and every new iMac.

As mentioned in the quote above, new specs include the new Intel Core 2 Duo processor (which is really the only big update), and some other smaller upgrades (including a entry level 160GB HD). Also (as mentioned), they’ve added a totally new 24-inch iMac.

The 17-inch iMac starts at $999, the 20-inch at $1499, and the 24-inch at $1999.

iMac [Apple]
Apple Store [Apple]

I do appologize for leaving you hanging with just a retro’d this week (between school, work and sleep, it’s been a rough week). As a side note, this week’s retro’d will appear today at Noon (US EDT).

Here’s this week’s 2nd edition of Retro’d:

The Week Of September 3rd:
Gmail Tip: Send Mail As (September 6th, 2005)
iPod Nano + iTunes 5 (September 7th, 2005)
Speed Up Your Shutdown Time (September 10th, 2005)

Enjoy!