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March 2018

LogMeIn to shut down Xmarks on May 1, 2018

LogMeIn, parent company of LastPass, announced today that it will shut down the cross-browser bookmark synchronization service Xmarks on May 1, 2018.

Xmarks launched its service at a time when browsers did not support native synchronization functionality, let alone syncing data between different browsers.

We reviewed the service back in 2009 for the first time and the rocky pass in the years that followed. The creators wanted to shut down the service back in 2010 but LastPass, makers of the password manager, stepped in and acquired Xmarks in the same year.

Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition released for GNU/Linux (and Windows)

I'm a gigantic fan of RPG games. I love a good gripping storyline, that draws you in with great character depth and a deep and intriguing plot. Neverwinter Nights was an absolutely stellar game in my opinion, and it boasted quite the awesome online community as well.

Thankfully, it’s just been released in an enhanced edition on Steam as well as all the expansion packs, by developer Beamdog, with complete support for penguin users!

List all Windows programs with compatibility settings with AppCompatibilityView

AppCompatibilityView is a new application by one of our favorite developers Nir Sofer of Nirsoft that lists all Windows programs in its interface that run with non-standard compatibility settings.

Windows users and administrators may use the compatibility mode of the operating system to run applications in a compatibility context. Designed for programs that are not (fully) compatible with newer versions of Windows, programs run with compatibility settings may work as intended.

Custom Search Engines in Google Chrome

Google Chrome comes with a small selection of search engines that users of the browser have access to by default. The default search engine is Google Search but Chrome users may switch to Bing, Yahoo or AOL Search in the preferences.

Chrome picks up search engines that use the open search format automatically when you open a website. These search engines become available as well, and you may make them the default search engine to add them to the list of permanent search engines of the browser.

Use personalDNSfilter to block advertisement on Android

Android device owners have a couple of options when it comes to blocking ads on their devices. One of the better options, as it is application independent and does not require root, is to use a DNS filter proxy.

The method works similarly to how hosts files work on computer systems. DNS is used to "translate" domain names to IP addresses that computers communicate with, and a hosts-based solution blocks access to known domain names by changing the information on the device.

How to check if sites use WebRTC

WebRTC is one of these new technologies that is on the one hand pretty useful and on the other a privacy nightmare as it can be abused.

WebRTC, the RTC stands for Real-Time Communications, is a set of APIs that all major web browsers support. Its primary use is to integrate better communications capabilities in the browser that websites and services may utilize for voice and video chat, and other communication forms.

WebRTC is enabled by default in Firefox, Chrome and other browsers, and websites and services may use it without user interaction.

Enhancing audio in GNU/Linux with PulseEffects in Linux Mint 18.3

I stated previously in my article about things to do after installing a new distro, that I love to make my sound as beautiful to my ears as I can. Sure, users can go out and spend thousands of dollars on amplifiers, headphones and other physical equipment, and it’ll do much better than an pure software solution... But PulseEffects is a really awesome second choice, for GNU/Linux users.