Couple of days back, I was introduced to the much hated "Office 2007 Expired" window. It seems that time flies when you use Microsoft trial software. I should of paid more attention to the many warning pop-ups.

Most of the important files that I have are saved using the .docx format and so I was looking at major trouble.

Microsoft Word 2007 uses .docx as the default file extension. Essentially they are nothing but a bunch of zipped XML documents. You can even go as far as to rename the extension to .zip which would allow you to easily extract the content.

If you have earlier versions of Microsoft office, you can view, edit, save, and print .docx files with this free Microsoft Office compatibility Pack.

Now, if you are on a mac and wish to perform the same tasks mentioned above, then simply download the Microsoft Office Open XML File Format Converter for Mac.

Lets just say you are like me and do not have a full version of any Microsoft Office software. Here are some of the many online conversion sites available.

Zamzar is an excellent service which performs the essential duty of converting any file you have under the .docx extension to .doc format [there are several other formats to choose from] . Be aware that you need to provide an email address to receive the converted file. After receiving the file through email, you can always use Google Docs to open the file and edit it.

Just like ZamZar, docx2doc.com offers the same service but at a more straight forward manner. Meaning it is created just for this task and so you don’t have to worry about any third party software or any other confusing file format options.

Ultimately, you can download the Docx-converter Dashboard Widget which allows you to convert files right from your Desktop. Best of all, any updates or feature additions to the web site will automatically be reflected in the widget!

Internet can be an overwhelming technology for any new comer and so its very easy to become facinated or even addicted. Many of the youth currently undergoing therapy admit that porn, online games, and surfing the web are the top reasons behind the addicition. Also, given the rise of web 2.0 services like Myspace, Digg, Blogs and various other social networking websites, have contributed much to this issue.

In a recent article by CNN, the issue of internet addiction has become so severe that colleges in India are introducing internet usage limits upon students.

In China, net addiction has become so critical that those affected by the disorder may be in the millions. The Chinese government has decided to set up boot camps to deal with this growing problem. Combining sympathy with discipline, a military-style boot camp near Beijing is at the front-line of China’s battle against Internet addiction.

While attending a boot camp service may not be so practical for many of us, there are several minor techniques that may serve in combating your addiction.

»Setup alerts on your PC at various times of the day detailing tasks to be performed. This may create a feeling of responsibility while keeping you busy enough to avoid using the internet for long periods of time.

»Time your Net usage by installing a parental control software that will either shut down your PC/Internet at a given time.

»Participate in outdoor activities that will decrease your dependency on the internet. This may be the most valuable tip in combating this very serious disorder. Keeping yourself busy is always the best way to fight any kind of addiction whether it is drugs, sex, or the internet.

Thats the case in Turkey where YouTube was banned due to some material criticizing the founding father of the country was found. It’s only natural that YouTube would be banned since there is a law in Turkey prohibiting anyone to post material that may be insulting Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founding father of modern day Turkey.

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk is a revered figure whose image graces every denomination of currency and whose portrait hangs in nearly all government offices.

Originally the Istanbul Court had said it would lift the ban as soon as the suspected material insulting the founding father was removed by the YouTube adminstrators. YouTube did just that, and as promised the courts lifted the ban today followed by rejoice among the users of the video uploading website.

As you can see, Turkish people hold their national founding father high in their hearts, and so its not suprising such a decision would come from their courts. I hope YouTube will become efficient in detecting questionable content in the future, which would save them from unwanted press coverage.

Get yourself a “mouse” for those long boring work hours at the office. If you catch the wordplay in the sentence, you will notice that I have quoted the word mouse for a very interesting reason.

This new gadget will help you combat those long boring work days at the office. Not only does it record your typing speed, it pedals faster as your typing speed increases. While I’m sure most of you wont be interested in using the mouse to find out your actual typing speed but rather a source of entertainment.

If you are a strong believer in balancing work and fun, this should be a great find for you.

[via: Spluch] 

In fact, Google has always pledged to compete with all buisnesses in a fair manner. Its easy for a company holding the majority share of all online search to self-promote products of it’s own interest, but google has strieved to play it fair. Google fans often to refer to this type of buisness practice as being the “Anti-Evil” Policy.

However, some recent actions by Google point to a violation of their self-claimed “Anti-Evil” policy.

A few months ago, Google displayed small notes called Google Tips on top of organic search results, which promoted their own products like Blogger, Picasa, Google Calender, and several others. That decision produced an outrage in the tech world resulting in Google actually putting an end to Google Tips. 

Google is currently displaying Google Checkout icons next to their own products which is simply a tactic to promote their own software. In addition to icons/logos, Google is also adding other graphical components such as wide badges and text descriptions to ads displayed on Google Search results pages to “help shoppers identify Google Checkout merchants” more easily.

An icon, which can be classified as an image next to the given advertisement would naturally result in better exposure and a much higher rate of click through. This action can certainly be seen as a unfair method of self-promotion and has the potential to gain a large press coverage in the coming days as this topic gains heat.

[via:Digital Inspiration]

Let’s be honest now, we all make a mistake from time to time. But, would you      expect a large corporation like Google to ever make a mistake, especially when it comes to their own logo.

You may be aware of Google’s habbit of changing their logo design upon certain cultural celebrations like Christmas, Presidents Day, Lincoln’s Day, and ofcourse Valentines Day.

Well, Google decided to display a logo containing a rather confusing design to celebrate this year’s Valentines Day. The logo consisted of a strawberry with a large green stem, most likely representing the [L] in Google. There is no doubt in my mind that this logo can definitely be confusing at a first glance.

Many have gone to the extent of claiming Google has misspelled it’s own name as being “Googe”. The Google Blog did however react to the claims by clearing up the whole situation with a post stating that there was no mistake, but only a misinterpretation by the users.

Hopefully, Google will stick to designs that are not so vague in the future. Atleast that way they can avoid a whole lot of undeserved embarassment.

Then to everyones suprise, the page was pulled down for reasons unknown to anyone. It could’ve of been a mistake, like the many made by google blogger team last year.

Since the release date of 2004, Gmail was limited to those lucky few invited by email or registered through mobile phone. These were methods ensuring the quality of Gmail remains stardard and to prevent spam accounts from being created.

The long beta period does seem unusual for a google product as popular as Gmail. Google has become extremetly efficient at providing users with quality products and so this waiting period does seem legitimate.

Google being the generous company it is today decided to gift you this valentines day with a completely free registation process. By free, I mean without those hassles I’ve mentioned. Anyone can now sign up for a free Gmail account offering 2.8GB of storage space.

Some of the features you will find useful with gmail include advanced spam protection, integration with other google services, and ofcourse the much loved search feature. Additionally, you can even access your email on the go with complete mobile access.

Sign Up For GMail

[Source: Google Blog]

Sometimes it can be a pain just to open up your email client and paste text that you have selected. This all depends on your mood ofcourse.

Snip IT is a simple add-on for Microsoft Internet Explorer that can assist you in this situation. While making the whole process simple, it can also save you a good amount of time.

Using the add-on is a breeze. While Internet Explorer is open, just simply highlight text that you want to send by email. Then upon right click, You will be given choices at the bottom of the menu to send the highlighted text by means of various email services. You can click any of the clients provided in the menu, which will open up a new window enabling you to send it to anyone of your choice.

The add-on currently supports Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, Gmail and default installed MailTo client in Internet Explorer as e-mail client options. Yahoo Mail Beta is not currently supported.

[Download Add-On]      

[Thanks, Neowin]