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iOS 18 Tips, Tricks, How-Tos, News

How To: Add Emoticons to Emails and Texts with the Emoji Keyboard on Your iPhone, iPad, & iPod Touch

Emoji is the Japanese term for picture icon characters used in electronic messages. Like emoticons the icons have a wide range of characters. Though Emoji has been integrated since iOS 5 the keyboard is not visible. I'm going to show you how to add the Emoji character keyboard to your Apple iPhone, iTouch & iPad. Adding the Emoji keyboard in IOS will give you colorful character, smileys and emoticon keys to use in emails, iMessage messages and chat apps. Upon adding the new keyboard you will ...

How To: Get Windows 8 Metro-Style Live Tiles on Your Android Device

Love the look of Metro's live tiles, but can't see yourself ever owning a Windows Phone device? Then fear not—you don't have to subject yourself to Windows Phone in order to experience those sweet live tiles. You can simply use Tile Launcher, a new launcher app for Android devices that simulates the Metro interface pretty well. Tile Launcher, which is in beta for Android 4.0 and above, allows users to style their homescreen with customizable tiles à la the Metro user interface! Some of the fe...

How To: Auto-Change Keyboards on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Based on the S Pen's Position

Got a Samsung tablet with an S Pen stylus? Then you might be one of the many people irked about having to manually choose a different keyboard layout after pulling the S Pen out of the device. For instance, if you have a Samsung Galaxy Note I or Note II, when you pull the S Pen out, the keyboard layout stays the same. But if you'd like it to switch to a different keyboard, say, from the stock Samsung keyboard to something like SwiftKey, then you're out of luck.

How To: Get Unlimited Free Magazines from Google Play on Your Android Device

While the Google Play Store is filled with big name magazines like Time, Forbes, Sports Illustrated and Maxim, it also panders to smaller audiences, like with Coin Prices, Soap Opera Digest, Watch Journal and Quilter's World (which yes, is all about quilting). If you have a select few that you enjoy reading, prices aren't usually a problem; issues range from $1.99 to $4.99 for each one, or from $19.99 to $39.99 for yearly subscriptions. If you're someone that is a magazine connoisseur, prices...

How To: Increase Touch Responsiveness on Your Rooted Google Nexus 4

While the majority of reviews for the Google Nexus 4 have been positive, there are a few things that have irked customers. Two of the most common complaints are the lack of 4G LTE on the phone (which you can activate yourself) and the touchscreen's less than stellar responsiveness. Thankfully, XDA developer trter10 has come up with a solution for this issue by fixing the driver that improves the touch responsiveness of the Nexus 4. All you have to do is download and install an older version o...

How To: Monitor Your Drinking in Style with the Buzzed Buzzer—A DIY Breathalyzer Party Horn

Last week, the whole world ushered in the new year, celebrating the start of 2013 with family and friends, and of course, that little thing we like to call alcohol. But just because New Years Day is over doesn't mean the party is. And surely, there will be some assholes out there that will drink and drive this year. It happens. So, how can you make sure you're not one of those assholes?

How To: 8 Tricks for Fixing Your iPhone's Broken Home Button

When a phone has only one main button, it can be pretty frustrating when that one button doesn't really work anymore. If you have an iPhone 4 or 4S, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Yep, the Home button, which is prone to unresponsiveness and lag. Most users blame the Home button issues on either dirt, moisture, or misalignment. No matter what the reason, having a busted Home button sucks, especially for those of you no longer under warranty. But that's okay, because there are a few t...

How To: Build Your Own Internet Radio Player, AKA Pandora's Box

Growing up, my family would get together in the living room every Saturday night and gather around my mom's old boombox radio and listen to Disco Saturday Night on 104.3 FM from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. (the show ended in 2008 after 14 years of consecutive shows). The old ladies in the picture below are the best representation of these nights that I could find. Now, the radio is all but dead (just like the old ladies above) in this world of music streaming services and torrenting. All of our music is...

How To: Build a Radio Controlled Watermelon Air Boat

There are tons of remote controlled cars and boats out there that you can buy or build, and you can add remote control functionality to almost anything. But if you really want to stand out, there are few things more attention-grabbing than this radio-controlled watermelon boat by the folks over at Starting Electronics. The body, obviously, is made from a hollowed out watermelon with a propeller and the parts from a remote controlled airplane mounted on a wooden block. A servo allows the prope...

How To: Save Snapchat and Facebook Poke Videos to Your Computer

The allure of Snapchat is that all pictures and videos sent through the app vanish a few seconds after being sent. They're completely obliterated not only from the phone, but from the Snapchat server, as well. The popularity of the application has even incited Facebook to release its own real-time picture and video messaging application, aptly titled Poke. One of the biggest criticisms (besides the wave of recent security issues) of Snapchat is that even though the messages self destruct and ...

How To: Donate to Charity by Just Surfing the Web as Usual with Tab for a Cause

When we surf the web, we tend to do it for selfish reasons. Whether it's on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest, or Wikipedia—we're trying to connect with people, voice our opinions, watch funny videos, or do research for that 12-page paper due tomorrow. Whatever it is, it's usually to benefit ourselves. Well, what if you could not only benefit yourself while surfing the web, but benefit others in need, without even having to alter your habits?

How To: Remove Facebook Ads from Internet Explorer 10 on Your Microsoft Surface

I think most people can agree that advertisements are just annoying. There is only one day out of the entire year when commercials and advertisements are actually welcomed, and that's the Super Bowl. But, since it can't be the Super Bowl every day (if only), those ads that float around on your Microsoft Surface's screen are just obnoxious. Luckily, there is a way to get rid of them, on Facebook at least. Facebook is one of the most visited sites in the world, so having the ability to hide ads...

How To: Access Your Android Apps from Anywhere with the GYF Sidebar Launcher

Google is constantly adding new ways to do things quicker on its devices. Everything from multi-screen capabilities to lock-screen widgets has been added to the new updates of the Android OS, making its devices very powerful and efficient. Something that Android hasn't paid much attention to, though, is the ability to access applications easily from places other than the home screen. So, XDA Developers member Cyansmoker decided to take matters into his own hands creating an application that a...

How To: Hack Someone's Cell Phone to Steal Their Pictures

Do you ever wonder how all these celebrities continue to have their private photos spread all over the internet? While celebrities' phones and computers are forever vulnerable to attacks, the common folk must also be wary. No matter how careful you think you were went you sent those "candid" photos to your ex, with a little effort and access to public information, your pictures can be snagged, too. Here's how.

How To: Hack a Skype Password

Skype is a great way to stay in contact with friends and family over the internet, and people tend to share a lot in their chats, so why not try and find a way to hack it! Once a Skype account is hacked, you can view all conversations within the last three months, see how long each video call was, and even access files that were shared through chat.

How To: Run Multiple Instances of the Same App in Mac OS X

With the use of Terminal, anyone can run multiple instances of the same application on a Mac. When you have multiple windows open in a web browser, the windows are all running under the same Process ID (PID). But, with multiple instances, each has its own unique PID. So why would you want to run multiple instances of the same app? There are several reasons a person may run clones of the same application, but the most popular would be so that the user could multitask. Some applications, like t...

How To: Invert the Colors on Your Apple or Android Device for Better Sleep

Inverting colors on your mobile device not only saves battery life, but also helps prevent straining your eyes, especially during the nighttime. Bright white screens interfere not only with your eyes, but with your sleeping patterns, as well. The bright lights greatly reduce your melatonin, a hormone secreted by the pineal gland in the brain that helps you go to sleep. Thus, the onset of sleep is delayed and the possibility of deep sleep is reduced greatly.

How To: Turn a Game Boy Advance into an Old-School Miniature Arcade Cabinet

No matter how advanced technology gets, there will always be room for classic video games in the hearts of nerds everywhere. Mini arcades became very popular, as they allowed users to take arcade games on the go. As Game Boys and other mobile gaming devices appeared, the mini arcade slowly disappeared. Well, believe it or not you can combine the best of both worlds! Metku user Japala wanted to make his old Game Boy Advance SP "look cool again," so he turned it into a mini arcade cabinet.

How To: Automate Tasks on Your Mac Whenever You Come or Leave Home via Bluetooth

As a multitasker, I've embraced the hustle and bustle that has filled my life. I'm constantly doing several things at a time, while looking for shortcuts to finish all of these things quicker than before. I brush my teeth with my cell phone in hand and drive to work with breakfast in mouth—I spare no time. Well, now there's an application for the Mac users among us that can help take some of the stress out of doing a thousand things at once.