Daily Bits

8 Useful Accelerators Worth Adding to Your Internet Explorer 8

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So the final version of Internet Explorer 8 is finally out. This is an important release for Microsoft especially since the web browser competition is getting pretty intense right now. What used to be a niche that was dominated by Microsoft now belongs to other browser brands as well, particularly Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Apple’s Safari browser.  Microsoft came prepared when it released IE8 infusing the browser with cool features that adds to its interactivity and social aspects. One of these features are the accelerators.

There are many accelerators already available for activation in your IE8 installation.  We’ve selected 8 of them and all of which aim to make your IE8 browsing experience as great as possible.

1. Send with Live Search Hotmail – This accelerator is of course most useful if your webmail is Windows Live Hotmail, or if it’s one of your alternative webmail platform. It lets you send webpages, links or text directly to anyone using Live Search Hotmail.

2. Find on eBay – A simple tool that lets you find and preview eBay items anytime, on any website that you are browsing. Useful for those who are fond of acquiring items through eBay.

3. MySpace Toolbar – Ultimate Edition – MySpace users would find this accelerator useful as it lets you stay connected to your MySpace profile through persistent login. Its features include notifications with updating messages, simplify messy profile pages, and dual riot menus. It also comes with OneRiot Social Search.

4. Shop and Save with Live Search Products – In this economically challenging times consumerism doesn’t have to suffer that much.  Live Search Products might actually find you the best deals on online products as it gives you instant product prices, cashback offers, reviews and other relevant information and helps you save when shopping online.

5. CloubBerry Tweetie – Of course with the growing popularity of microblogging service Twitter, it’s no wonder that everyone would seem to jump into the bandwagon. This accelerator helps you post excerpts when you’re browsing the web to your Twitter timeline.

6. Share on Facebook – I wouldn’t be surprised if this accelerator gets the most number of activation by IE users. Facebook is the most popular social networking sites, where members just love sharing anything with their contacts. IE8 users who are avid Facebook fan should enable this accelerator.

7. Send with Gmail –  Yes I know Microsoft has Windows Live Mail or Outlook for email, but hey even if you use IE8, Gmail is still the best webmail, well at least in my personal opinion. So, it’s good to know the interplay between Gmail and IE8.

8. Find on Facebook – Another useful accelerator for Facebook users. It lets you search people or group from any webpage. So, while browsing and you find an interesting group, you can immediately check whether that group has a Facebook account and be a member quickly.

The Browser War Heats Up as Microsoft Prepares to Release IE8

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Now we could definitely say that the browser war is heating up again.  Right after Google released its Chrome browser in beta version again, here comes Microsoft announcing the release of the official version of Internet Explorer 8. And mind you just as Google promises a faster Chrome, so does Microsoft with IE8. To think that it was only a couple of weeks ago when Apple released a new version of  the Safari browser. [Read more…] about The Browser War Heats Up as Microsoft Prepares to Release IE8

Google Releases a Faster Chrome in Beta

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I will have to admit that when Google Chrome came out, I was really impressed by its features and looks. It was a refreshing respite from both Firefox and IE7 that I was both using then.  I was enjoyed using Google Chrome at first but noticed after awhile that it starting to run slow. Even when Google put it out of beta, Chrome’s speed was not commendable.  But finally, Google probably heard users’ complaints and so they decided to release a new Google Chrome and put the browser back to beta mode. [Read more…] about Google Releases a Faster Chrome in Beta

News Aggregator Alltop Launches a Personalized MyAlltop Page

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Anybody here using Alltop? Frankly, I used this before during its intiial launch but stopped using it since it practically mimics what Techmeme is doing. Although Alltop has a broader coverage topic-wise, I still find Techmeme enough for my daily dose of Technews. But since, Alltop has just announced a new personalization feature, I decided to re-visit the site again to check out MyAlltop. [Read more…] about News Aggregator Alltop Launches a Personalized MyAlltop Page

More People Are Using their Mobile Phones To Check Daily News

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If newspapers that are planning to put their operations online rather than closing them down would take note of a new comScore report, it would tell them how to perhaps drive more readers to their publication. According to a comScore report released today, the number of people using their mobile phones to access news has more than double from January 2008 to January of this year.

Of the 63.2 million people who used their mobile phones to access news and information in January 2009, 35% or 22.4 million of them have done it on a daily basis. This is twice the number of people who did the same thing in 2009.

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Aside from accessing news, the report also revealed that these people use their mobile phones to do their social networking activities, financial-related transactions, accessed business directories and entertainment news.

All these point out to one thing – that mobile phone usage is becoming part of people’s daily lives. Not only are mobile phones now being used only for calling or texting but also for other online activities.  

And like I said, newspaper publishers must take note of this fact.  Redirecting their publications online while stopping the printed media can be more successful if they will make their publications more mobile phone-friendly, regardless of mobile platform. 

A good example of this is the way websites are optimizing for the iPhone.  There are more and more iPhone optimized websites being created since the iPhone came out. These iPhone optimized websites tailor fit the design, usability and navigation of their sites on the iPhone’s display capability. Hence, providing users with an almost exact replica of the website on the iPhone.

New York Times Feels the Effect of the Economic Crisis

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Among the top online news dailies I really like New York Times for one simple reason – it’s free. While others offer the online editions of their newspapers on a subscription basis which is tied up to print subscriptions, the New York Times managed to provide free source of relevant news. But this might start to change, as Bloomberg reports that NYT is seriously revisiting the charging fees of some its content. [Read more…] about New York Times Feels the Effect of the Economic Crisis