Lifehacker readers show us how to help those less computer literate avoid bogus spam alerts, suggest a good time to shop for cars in order to get the best deal, and offer a tip for tracking our lost pups in the dark.
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About the Tips Box: Every day we receive boatloads of great reader tips in our inbox (tips at lifehacker.com), but for various reasons—maybe they're a bit too niche, maybe we couldn't find a good way to present it, or maybe we just couldn't fit it in—the tip didn't make the front page. From the Tips Box is where we round up some of our favorites for your buffet-style consumption.
Recognize Fake Warnings with a Theme Change
Photo by avlxyz
Vsack has a way of helping those new to the internet recognize fake warnings:
Shop Late for the Best Car Deals
Photo by Casey Serin
Reid tells us about the best time for car shopping:
Keep Track of Runaway Dogs with Glow Stick Necklaces
Photo by JPix Photography via cloneofsnake
Elisa has a clever way of keeping track of pups in the dark:
Clean Your iPhone Speaker with a Paint Brush
Photo by rok1966
Nathan shares how he cleans his iPhone speakers:
Obsessively Replay YouTube Clips with TubeReplay
Reader SDC has a fun, albeit somewhat unnecessary, site for those times when you just want to watch a YouTube clip over and over and over again:
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Don't like the gallery layout? Click here to view everything on one page.
About the Tips Box: Every day we receive boatloads of great reader tips in our inbox (tips at lifehacker.com), but for various reasons—maybe they're a bit too niche, maybe we couldn't find a good way to present it, or maybe we just couldn't fit it in—the tip didn't make the front page. From the Tips Box is where we round up some of our favorites for your buffet-style consumption.
Recognize Fake Warnings with a Theme Change
Photo by avlxyz
Vsack has a way of helping those new to the internet recognize fake warnings:
This came to me a few nights ago and I've shared it with a few people who were stunned at how simple this is.
To stop grandma and/or your coworkers from clicking on those stupid fake anti-virus links, just change the theme in XP to Silver or Olive!
Most of those pop-ups tend to go with what is most common on every machine, and the most common theme is XP's Luna (blue) theme.
Now when Grandma sees that window, she'll know its not part of her computer, and she won't click it!
To stop grandma and/or your coworkers from clicking on those stupid fake anti-virus links, just change the theme in XP to Silver or Olive!
Most of those pop-ups tend to go with what is most common on every machine, and the most common theme is XP's Luna (blue) theme.
Now when Grandma sees that window, she'll know its not part of her computer, and she won't click it!
Shop Late for the Best Car Deals
Photo by Casey Serin
Reid tells us about the best time for car shopping:
When you go to a dealership to buy a car, haggling can make a big difference on the price you pay. It is best to go to the dealership right before they close. The salesman will want to make a sale so he'll stay late, but he also wants to go home. This means he's more likely to agree on a lower price, because he doesn't want to argue about it when he could be at home.
Keep Track of Runaway Dogs with Glow Stick Necklaces
Photo by JPix Photography via cloneofsnake
Elisa has a clever way of keeping track of pups in the dark:
Recently, I ran across an acquaintance walking his dog at night. He had attached two glow stick necklaces to his dogs' collar, enabling him to find her quickly if she got off the leash and ran away. This seems like a great idea.
Clean Your iPhone Speaker with a Paint Brush
Photo by rok1966
Nathan shares how he cleans his iPhone speakers:
Clean out lint, hair, and other debris from the iPhone speakers using a dry paint brush (I use a $1, 2 inch brush from Home Depot, but really any paint brush should work), also works on laptop speaker grills and keyboards. You can use a regular painting motion, but "stabbing" at the speakers with the brush seems to be the most effective.
We'd be careful about poking to far into those sensitive speakers, but this could be a quick way of getting some dirt out.
Obsessively Replay YouTube Clips with TubeReplay
Reader SDC has a fun, albeit somewhat unnecessary, site for those times when you just want to watch a YouTube clip over and over and over again:
Check out TubeReplay! I figured there are Lifehacker readers out there who love replaying songs but hate hitting the replay button every time (like me!)