This week we learned how to create Instagram style photo effects with GIMP or Photoshop, found out which dedicated todo list apps you prefer best, learned about the differences between various Linux Shells, announced that we are taking applications for a new writer here at How-To Geek, had fun customizing our desktops with classic alien goodness, and more.

Photo by Mehdi Drouillon – PhotoBlog.

Weekly News Links

• More wood behind fewer arrows
  Bill Coughran, Senior Vice President for Research and Systems Infrastructure at Google has announced that Google Labs will begin winding down its operations. Note: “In-product labs” for Gmail, Maps, etc. will remain intact.
• Google buys g.co domain
  Google+ is a strong statement that Google doesn’t like Twitter’s 140-character limits, but apparently the company still thinks there’s a strong need to shorten Web addresses as much as possible.
• Yahoo would reportedly buy Hulu under right terms
  Yahoo would pay up to $2 billion to acquire Hulu if the deal came with four or five years of exclusive access to current TV shows and older movies, according a story in this past Tuesday’s Business Insider.
• Microsoft offers transfer tool to Google Health users
  For the seeming handful of people who signed up to use the soon-to-be-shuttered Google Health online medical records service, Microsoft has an answer: join its service. Microsoft released a tool today that lets Google Health customers transfer their personal health information to a Microsoft HealthVault account.
• Firefox world loses Web dev guru to Chrome
  For years, an extension called Firebug has been a powerful tool that kept Web programmers loyal to Firefox. But now, as browser makers add their own tools geared to attract those who build Web sites and applications, the lead Firebug programmer has taken a job with Chrome, CNET has learned.
• Mono, open-source .NET for Android, Linux and iOS, lives on
  Xamarin has convinced SUSE–Attachmate’s Linux branch–to give it Mono’s intellectual property. In return, Xamarin will provide technical support to SUSE customers using Mono-based products, and assume stewardship of the Mono open source community project.
• Mozilla outlines goals for multiprocess browsing implementation
  Mozilla’s Chris Blizzard has published a blog entry that outlines the goals of Mozilla’s renewed effort to bring multiprocess browsing to the Firefox Web browser. The post highlights the key advantages that deeper process isolation will bring to Firefox and addresses some of the underlying requirements for Mozilla’s implementation.
• DOJ takes swipe at EFF over encryption passphrases
  The U.S. Department of Justice took a thinly veiled swipe at an online civil liberties group that’s arguing a Colorado woman can’t be forced to decrypt her laptop for police inspection.
• Microsoft offers $250,000 for information on Rustock botnet
  Microsoft has announced that it is offering a reward of $250,000 for information that results in the identification, arrest and criminal conviction of the individual(s) responsible for controlling the Rustock botnet.
• FBI arrests 16 in Anonymous hacking investigation
  Sixteen people were arrested in the United States this past Tuesday in connection with hacking attacks by the Anonymous group of online activists, as well as one person in the U.K. and four people in the Netherlands, the U.S. Department of Justice said.
• Anonymous still accessing, downloading NATO data
  The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is still under attack, a person claiming to be a member of Anonymous told CBS News in an interview published this past Friday.
• Targeted attacks on arms manufacturers continue
  Mikko Hypponen from F-Secure reports that professional hackers are continuing their targeted attacks on arms manufacturers. Last week, the researcher discovered a specially crafted PDF file that impressively demonstrates how the perpetrators carry out these targeted attacks.
• Malware, scams top Google+ security threats
  Malware, scams and over-sharing of personal information unknowingly are some of the top security and privacy threats associated with Google+, according to security experts.
• Google senses proxy requests to warn users of malware infestation
  Google’s search engine has started warning users that they’ve installed certain malware. “Your computer appears to be infected,” a banner will proclaim across the top of every Google search whenever the malware is detected.
• Researcher: Mac notebook batteries can be hacked
  The chip that helps control your Mac notebook’s battery could be the latest target for attackers. A report in Forbes today details the findings of Accuvant security researcher Charlie Miller, who claims to have found rather lackluster security guarding the firmware that controls various notebook battery functions and data stores.

Random TinyHacker Links

Photo courtesy of TechTalker34.

• Pinning Websites with Internet Explorer
  Believe it or not, some people do use Internet Explorer 9. Even some of our readers. For them, we found the most complete guide to pinning websites to the taskbar.
• Tweet from Google Talk
  Now this is geeky: post tweets from Google Talk. With automatic URL shortening.
• Interesting Infographic from Cisco, The Internet of Things
  An infographic with fun statistics regarding the connectivity of the Internet.
• Belief in Evolution vs. GDP per capita
  An interesting graph depicting belief in evolution versus national wealth across Europe, Asia, and the Americas.
• China’s Ghost Cities Suggest Huge Economic Bubble [Video]
  Phantom growth in China. We’ve heard of these stories and the fallout will have a global impact.

Super User Questions

Super User is the perfect place to get help with your tough computer questions. Here are some of this week’s most popular topics.

• Determining if a hard drive has been removed and data copied from it?
• Can some software physically damage hardware?
• Can you run one virtual machine inside another?
• Recovering OEM license information from HP notebook serial number
• Why does my PC continue to play music after freezing?

How-To Geek Weekly Article Recap

Settle in for a great afternoon of reading with our hottest HTG Main articles of the week.

• How To Secure Your Wi-Fi Network Against Intrusion
• Ask HTG: Setting Up a VPN, Running a PC 24/7 or Shutting Down, Reading Comics on the Computer
• From the Tips Box: Instantly Cool a Hot Car, Google Synonym Search, and Extended Android Keyboards
• Stupid Photoshop Tricks: How To Make an Invisibility Cloak
• How Secure Are Your Saved Internet Explorer Passwords?

Geeky Goodness from the ETC Side

Add some fun to your weekend with our most popular ETC posts of the week.

• Use Your Google+ Account Like a Pro with These Two Awesome Cheat Sheets
• A Very Clean Desktop [Humorous Wallpaper]
• How People see You when You Fix Their Computer versus Reality [Humorous Image]
• Windows on the Universe [Wallpaper]
• CSI: Modern Computer Technology at its Best [Humorous Image Comic]
• Deck Out Your Office with These Geeky Prints
• Green and Blue Glass [Double Wallpaper]
• Double Your Dropbox Referral Storage by Verifying Your .EDU Email Address
• Batman Monitors his Unread Messages with a Modified Batlight [Funny Image]
• Video Game Character Lifespans Over Time [Geek History]

One Year Ago on How-To Geek

Have fun tinkering on your Windows computer this weekend with these great articles from one year ago.

• Help Prevent Stutter in Video Streams in VLC & Windows Media Player
• Decrypt and Copy DVDs to Your Hard Drive Without Ripping
• Create Your Own Windows DreamScene with Windows Live Movie Maker
• How To Play Your Favorite Retro Video Games on Your Windows PC
• Beginner Geek: Do More With Windows 7 Sticky Notes

How-To Geek Comics Weekly Roundup

• Obituary
• Resolution