Readers offer their best tips for logging into the same site with two accounts at once, running multiple versions of Firefox on the same Mac, and threading wires through long electrical tubes.
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About the Tips Box: Every day we receive boatloads of great reader tips in our inbox, 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. Got a tip of your own to share? Add it in the comments or email it to tips at lifehacker.com.
Using Multiple Logins at Once
Marc lays out a workaround for logging into the same site more than once:
Running a Firefox Beta Alongside a Stable Mac Build
Brad shows us how to run multiple versions of Firefox on one Mac:
Easily Thread Cables Through an Electrical Tube
Photo by Rick Heath.
Joost shows us how he gets cables through long electrical tubes:
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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, 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. Got a tip of your own to share? Add it in the comments or email it to tips at lifehacker.com.
Using Multiple Logins at Once
Marc lays out a workaround for logging into the same site more than once:
Just a tip I like to use when managing multiple gmail accounts, flight check-ins, etc. simultaneously.
Instead of logging out of one account and into the other, I open an incognito window in chrome (don't know if this works in ff / ie) and login from there. Not a game-changer, but saves a hassle every now and then...
I tested this in Firefox and it did not work; starting a private browsing session gets rid of all your open windows.Instead of logging out of one account and into the other, I open an incognito window in chrome (don't know if this works in ff / ie) and login from there. Not a game-changer, but saves a hassle every now and then...
Running a Firefox Beta Alongside a Stable Mac Build
Brad shows us how to run multiple versions of Firefox on one Mac:
It seemed obvious to me, but apparently a lot of people don't know that you can run a release and beta versions of Firefox on the Mac without them overriding each other (a feature the Windows Firefox installer nicely provides).
On Windows, the Firefox installer (quite considerately) won't override existing non-beta versions of the browser with a beta version (like the recently released Firefox 3.6 betas). Though it doesn't explicitly say so, Mac OS X users can have a similar behavior, which by the surprised faces I see when I tell people this, many people don't know about.
It's simple:
1. Grab a Firefox beta download, then mount the disk image
2. Instead of dragging the Firefox app to your Applications folder, drag it to your desktop temporarily
3. Highlight the app on your desktop, hit the return key, and give it a new name (like "Firefox 3.6 Beta")
4. Drag the newly renamed app to your Applications folder
You can then run these two Firefox versions with little interaction between the two. I say ‘little' because they will share the same profile (where your bookmarks, extensions and the like are kept), and so cannot be run at the same time. This has the plus side of meaning you won't have to re-import bookmarks and such, but you will have to sit through a harmless extension compatibility check whenever you start a different version of Firefox than was last run.
You can find Brad's original blog post here.On Windows, the Firefox installer (quite considerately) won't override existing non-beta versions of the browser with a beta version (like the recently released Firefox 3.6 betas). Though it doesn't explicitly say so, Mac OS X users can have a similar behavior, which by the surprised faces I see when I tell people this, many people don't know about.
It's simple:
1. Grab a Firefox beta download, then mount the disk image
2. Instead of dragging the Firefox app to your Applications folder, drag it to your desktop temporarily
3. Highlight the app on your desktop, hit the return key, and give it a new name (like "Firefox 3.6 Beta")
4. Drag the newly renamed app to your Applications folder
You can then run these two Firefox versions with little interaction between the two. I say ‘little' because they will share the same profile (where your bookmarks, extensions and the like are kept), and so cannot be run at the same time. This has the plus side of meaning you won't have to re-import bookmarks and such, but you will have to sit through a harmless extension compatibility check whenever you start a different version of Firefox than was last run.
Easily Thread Cables Through an Electrical Tube
Photo by Rick Heath.
Joost shows us how he gets cables through long electrical tubes:
If you can't get a cable through an empty electricity tube:
Find an audio tape, break it and put an end of the tape in the tube. Put a vacuum cleaner at he other end of the tube, it will drag the tape through the the tube in seconds. Tie the tape to the cable you want to pull through, and pull it through. I've done it several times.
The main idea is to use something lighter than the cable that will actually be pulled by the vacuum—I imagine a piece of string would work just as well, if you're not the type to ruin your music collection.Find an audio tape, break it and put an end of the tape in the tube. Put a vacuum cleaner at he other end of the tube, it will drag the tape through the the tube in seconds. Tie the tape to the cable you want to pull through, and pull it through. I've done it several times.