Author: mike

F the police coming straight from the playground. Part Katamari Damacy, part V for Vendetta, Anarcute is about amassing masked rioters, who get more destructive as they grow in number. Coming to Xbox One, Windows, Mac and Linux.
via The Awesomer
Anarcute (Trailer)

So you want to create soft, beautiful light? One of the first light modifiers that comes to your mind is probably the tried and tested softbox. But, when it comes to versatility, are softboxes really worth the money? In this article, we are going to look at a viable contender to the age-old softbox – the […]

The post 10 Reasons to Ditch Your Softbox for a Light Panel by Joel Dryer appeared first on Digital Photography School.

via Digital Photography School
10 Reasons to Ditch Your Softbox for a Light Panel

It’s hard to believe that Spring is just around the corner, but there’s no better time than now to prepare your outdoor power equipment for the season. In an hour or two, you can tune up your mower yourself, ensuring it starts up immediately and performs to the best of it’s ability.

Treat your lawn mower like you would a vehicle. Regular maintenance based on hours used will go a long way towards owning a dependable mower. This helpful lawn mower maintenance schedule will keep you on track.

If your mower is cutting inconsistently or in patches you may need to replace the blade. You can also inspect the ends of the grass and look for torn not cut grass blades which indicates a dull blade. You can sharpen the blade yourself or take it to a lawn mower repair shop who will do it for around $10.

Next comes an engine tuneup, which begins with replacing the spark plug. Small engine spark plug removal tools are available at any hardware store. Make sure your new plug has the proper gap by using a spacer before installing it. Lastly, give your carburetor a full cleanout. The video above shows you how to remove the carburetor and replace the needle, as well as clean out all of the components and reinstall it.

It’s also good to check all cables, brakes and wheels for signs of wear and damage. If you buy a used lawn mower that’s in rough condition, go through this tuneup and you’ll bring it back to life in no time.

Repair Briggs and Stratton Lawn Mower Tuneup | The Ryker Dane (YouTube)

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Workshop is a new blog from Lifehacker all about DIY tips, techniques, and projects. Follow us on Twitter here.

via Lifehacker
Prepare for Spring with a DIY Lawn Mower Tuneup 

The perfect road trip across the US would take you to all the must-see landmarks and historical sites and minimize unnecessary driving, but figuring out the ideal path isn’t easy. CS graduate research assistant and data tinkerer Randal Olson created an algorithm to solve this problem and come up with the epic road trip.

You can read about the computing details in the link below, but here are the trip details for those itching to embark on this journey: You’ll be driving and stopping in all 48 continguous US states; visiting only National Natural Landmarks, Historic Sites, Parks, and Monuments; and never leaving the US (there’s an extra stop in Cleveland to avoid going through Canada, but you’d save time going through Canada).

All in all, it’s only 13,699 miles of driving—or about 9.33 days of driving time, assuming no traffic. The landmarks you’d visit include the Grand Canyon, the Alamo, Liberty Bell, Statue of Liberty, Mammoth Cave National Park, Taliesin, Lost World Caverns, and Mount Rushmore.

If you’re more cosmopolitan than outdoorsy, Olson also has a bonus road trip map that uses TripAdvisor’s Best City to Visit list, so you can drive your way across the US visiting the top city in each state. Except for North Dakota, Vermont, and West Virginia, that is. Because apparently out of 400 recommended cities to visit, those states do not have any worthwhile cities, according to TripAdvisor members.

Got summer plans?

Computing the optimal road trip across the U.S. | Randal S. Olson

via Lifehacker
Visit the Top City or Landmark in Every US State with These Maps

If you are a blogger, a journalist, or a web designer, you will appreciate the challenge of finding good quality free images that you can use for your project. Every photo has a copyright attached to it, and it is up to the copyright holder whether or not to waive that copyright, and let others use the image for free. The most well-known sources for free images is Creative Commons, and its motherlode in Wikimedia Commons among other Public Domain sources. But there are countless other sites focused on this subject. And we have covered a vast number of them. Why, it…

Read the full article: 5 Online Sources to Get Free Images for Your Blog or Project

via MakeUseOf
5 Online Sources to Get Free Images for Your Blog or Project

The MySQL Windows Experience Team is proud to announce the release of MySQL for Excel version 1.3.4. This is a maintenance release for 1.3.x. It can be used for production environments. MySQL for Excel is installed using the MySQL Installer for Windows which comes in 2 versions: Full (150 MB) which includes a complete set of MySQL products with their binaries included in the download Web (1.5 MB – a network install) which will just pull MySQL for Excel over the web and install it when run. You can download MySQL Installer from our official Downloads page at http://ift.tt/Qvnjg1. The MySQL for Excel product can also be downloaded by using the product standalone installer found at this link http://ift.tt/1rRtAIw Several new features were added the 1.3.x branch, for more information see What Is New In MySQL for Excel 1.3 (http://ift.tt/1uC8FWR).
via Planet MySQL
MySQL for Excel 1.3.4 has been released

There are few things worse than a home that’s falling apart at the seams. No one should have to dread going home, especially after a long day of hard work. Unfortunately, professional home repairs can be expensive and doing it yourself can be dangerous. Is there a middle line that can be walked here? Yes! While home renovation requires a lot of knowledge and experience — so much so that you’ll likely find it overwhelming — the truth is that anyone can learn how to do it. Given enough time and patience, even you can turn an unremarkable home into a…

Read the full article: Remodel Your Home: 6 Websites for Learning the Basics

via MakeUseOf
Remodel Your Home: 6 Websites for Learning the Basics

Make ASCII art, talk to your computer and play text adventures. Your Linux command line isn’t just for work: it can be weirdly entertaining, if you know the right commands. Joel showed you the basics of using the command line, and you should absolutely read that article. But part of the problem of learning the command line is that, at first, it’s boring. Changing directories and moving files around just doesn’t seem that interesting. Whether you’re looking to make things a little more interesting for yourself, or want to show off a few cool tricks to someone you’re trying to…

Read the full article: 9 Quirky Linux Commands You Need to Know (And Will Love)

via MakeUseOf
9 Quirky Linux Commands You Need to Know (And Will Love)

I have to say that last night’s Saturday Night Live with Chris Hemsworth was pretty awful. Only a couple of sketches were worth even mentioning – one of them involved a starship with a chicken as its…
via MightyMega
SNL: Avengers Defeat Ultron