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Tip of the Day -
Speak Your Mind, and Your Clipboard
 Windows has a text to speech
facility built in but it’s buried away in the accessories section and not that
easy to get at (or switch off), so here’s a handy alternative. It’s called Speak Clipboard and if you haven’t already
worked it out, all you need to know is that if you copy and paste a chunk of
text into the Windows Clipboard, Speak Clipboard will read it back to you. It
uses the slightly mechanical Sam voice that comes with Windows, but it’s good
enough for writers who need to be able to hear how a piece of copy sounds, and
more importantly, those with visual impairments, who can benefit from an easy
to use text to speech facility.
08/03/10
Do
you have a tip or tweak for Windows that you would like to share with
other PC users? If so we would really like to see it, jot it down and
email it to us at: PCTopTips
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News Briefs
News Brief Archives 2006, 2007 2008 2009 2010
Protect Your Gadgets &
Goolies
 Hats and trousers off to wtfheans for their newest jeans. They’re
designed to protect that which men hold most dear, namely their gadgets, and
the family jewels. First the gadget features, and these include a pocket
specifically designed for an iPhone or iPod Touch (or similar device). It’s
positioned to stop your precious getting crunched when you sit down, and padded
with a microfibre material that promises to keep it safe, and even give it a
quick polish when you put it in or take it out. There’s also a hidden pocket
for a memory stick, to keep your data cost and safe. Lastly there’s added
padding around the nether regions, which the maker’s say is meant to keep a
chap’s undercarriage warm – though I seem to remember reading somewhere that
this wasn’t necessarily a good thing, but I suppose it beats popping a pair of socks
down there…
0803
Windows 7 RC Self-Destructs
 Just in case any of you are
still using the free release candidate (RC) version of the operating system,
you will start noticing strange goings-in. The trial period
has now ended and it begins with warning pop-ups, and unannounced twice-hourly
shutdowns; anything you are working on will not be saved. This will continue
until June 1st when it goes into ‘non-genuine’ mode, at which point a permanent
warning notice appears on the screen, the wallpaper disappears and it will no
longer be possible to download updates. Be warned, there are a number of fixes
on the Internet that claim to be able to fix Windows 7 Release Candidate’s
suicidal tendency but as far as I’m aware none of them work properly and some
of them contain viruses or malware.
0403
Black and Blue
 Can’t afford a Blackberry?
Well, you might just be able to run to a Blueberry @9500, just don’t expect it
to be compatible with Blackberry’s email service or apps. Yes, it’s a fake, and
a pretty shameless one at that, and it’s not the first time the Malaysian
company CSL has had a pop at Research in Motion, the Canadian manufacturer of
the genuine article. On paper the spec is quite impressive, it has dual SIM
slots, a Micro SD card reader, camera, optical trackpad, a number of ‘Islamic’
features, wi-fi and the cheeky beggars have even fitted it with an analogue TV tuner. It’s priced to sell, at around £120
but there’s not much danger of you getting hold of one in your local high
street, at least not above the counter…
01/03/10
News Brief Archives 2006, 2007 2008 2009 2010
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