Disable Twitter’s New Video ‘Autoplay’ Feature For iOS and Web

In a bid to increase the already rapid pace of media consumption, Twitter has decided that all GIFs and video clips should autoplay whenever they’re encountered. That means anytime someone posts a clip or GIF, whether it’s someone you follow or just while browsing, that clip will play and loop automatically. Not only is that a possible drain on your mobile data and battery, it can be distracting and downright annoying. It seems like we’re slowly moving back to the stone ages of the internet when fledgling webpages were filled with dozens and hundreds of flashing animated GIFs just for the sake of novelty. Luckily you can disable autoplay on both iOS and web viewing and it is so far absent on Android versions of Twitter. Follow these steps to disable autoplay.

Disable Autoplay On The Web

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1. Click your Twitter account icon. Then click ‘Settings‘.

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2. Scroll down to ‘Content‘. Then, under ‘Video Tweets‘ uncheck ‘Video autoplay‘.

3. Click ‘Save‘ and videos should no longer autoplay when viewed through the web.

 

Disable Autoplay on iOS

1. Launch the Twitter app.

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2. Tap the ‘Me‘ tab, then the gear icon, and then ‘Settings‘.

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3. Under ‘General‘, tap ‘Video autoplay‘. You can now choose to disable it entirely by tapping ‘Never play videos automatically‘ or force it to only play using WiFi and not 3G/4G to save some data.

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4. Save and exit. Videos should no longer autoplay through the iOS Twitter app.

It’s a very simple process to remove a feature that is sure to annoy many users. There could be those who like the feature however, and it’s easy to enable it again if you want a constant stream of Twitter clips. Like many features or changes that seem annoying at first, the more you use it the more you may find you come to like it. If you do happen to like an endless supply of video tweets, rejoice, for this is truly the golden age of such things.

Enable Galaxy S6 Edge Lighting Feature on Any Android Device

The recently released Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge has a very distinctive feature that sets it apart from all other Android phones. The display is curved so that it runs over the sides of the phone and this extra real estate is used as a notification bar and for additional interactivity. With ‘Edge Lighting’ you can use your phone as a handy alarm clock or set it to display different colors depending on who is calling you. It’s a pretty clever way to make use of that unused space and make phones more useful while sitting on a flat surface.

Of course such a dramatic new feature is bound to induce envy from other Android users who don’t have a curved display. So, developer Golgorz has created the next best thing with Edge Color Notifications, an app that emulates the ‘Edge Lighting’ display. Edge Color Notifications allows you to set lighting based notifications that show up on the sides of the phone. It obviously won’t actually go down to the edge since there is no screen there, but it can be quite visible if it’s bright enough and does a commendable job of bringing the feature to other Android devices.

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The app has thoughtful settings that allow you to tweak the color, placement, and width of the notification lights. You can also choose whether to have the light on the left, right, or both edges of your phone. A few different animations for the lighting effect are available to choose from. A very useful feature is the ability to choose different color lighting for different contacts and apps. So if you can at a glance know which app the notification is for, or what type of call you’re receiving which makes the notifications infinitely more useful.

The app is still very new and has already received a few updates. The developer promises that it’s lightweight and won’t put much strain on the phone’s battery and memory. With more users giving it a try, it’s set to receive additional updates and tweaks. If you’re really itching to try out an Edge Lighting-esque feature, Edge Color Notifications might be for you.

Download Source: Edge Color Notifications for Android on the Play Store

How to transfer Your Flickr Photos to Google Photos

Flickr is a very popular image hosting and sharing platform. If you’ve been a user since the good old days when Flickr launched over a decade ago, you’ve likely built up quite a collection of photos. If you want to migrate your photos over to Google Photos, the process is relatively simple though there are a few extra steps involved. It can’t hurt to have an additional backup and Google Photos makes it easier to share and use your images with Google’s various services. Follow this procedure to transfer your Flickr library over to Google Photos.

1. Start by going to the Flickr website and logging into your account.

2. Go to ‘Camera Roll‘.

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3. Now select the photos you want to download. You can click the top photo, then shift click the last photo to select every single photo you have. Alternatively you can select individual albums or sets of photos. Depending on how many you have, it might not be a good idea to download everything at once.

4. Once you’ve got your selection, click ‘Download‘. This will download your selection as a large .zip archive.

5. Once the download is complete, unzip the .zip file and you’ll have the uncompressed photos back on your device.

Now that you have your Flickr photos back on your computer, it’s time to set up Google Photos to upload them. The most reliable way to do that is to use the Google Photos Backup desktop app. We are repeating the same process which we cover in our previous tutorial for Dropbox.

 

1. Download and install the Google Photos Backup desktop app if you don’t already have it.

2. Log in to the app with your Google account.

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3, Select the folders with images you want to upload to Google Photos. Uncheck all folders that you do not want to upload. For your Flickr photos, select the folder (or folders) you unzipped.

4. Choose ‘High quality‘ or ‘Original‘ for your photo uploads. ‘High quality‘ provides unlimited uploads but the image will be slightly compressed while ‘Original‘ will upload the uncompressed photo but will count towards your total data storage limit.

Now the Google Photos desktop app should begin uploading all the images you specified that were downloaded from your Flickr account. Once it’s complete, you should have a full backup of your Flickr photos if you’ve downloaded all of them. Then, they’ll be ready to use across all Google services. It’s always nice to have a backup of a backup and have your data available on multiple platforms.

Move Your Dropbox Photos To Google Photos

Dropbox is one of the most popular cloud storage apps and is amazing for keeping your data synced across multiple desktops and devices. It’s also excellent for data backup of photos and documents. If a file gets corrupted or deleted locally on a device, if the original is intact on the Dropbox servers, you’ll always have access to it. Google Photos is also great for nearly unlimited storage of your digital memories and data. If you have a large number of photos saved in Dropbox that you’d also like to backup to Google Photos, it’s a simple process. Just follow these steps to sync and move your photos to Google Photos.

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1. Download and install the Dropbox desktop app.

2. Start the desktop app and log in with your Dropbox account.

3. Go to app preferences, then ‘Account‘ and then ‘Selective Sync‘.

4. Now select those folders that have photos in them, uncheck folders that don’t contain any images. (This is assuming you only want to transfer your photos and will save time downloading data to the desktop.)

5. The photos will begin downloading to your desktop.

Now you’ll also need to set up the desktop version of Google Photos to forward the Dropbox photos.

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1. Download and install the Google Photos Backup desktop app.

2. Start the app and log in with your account.

3. Go to ‘Settings‘, then ‘Desktop folders‘, then ‘Add‘.

4. You can choose the top ‘Dropbox‘ folder to upload every photo or you can choose individual folders whose photos you want to upload.

5. Select the image quality to upload. ‘High Quality‘ allows for unlimited images up to 16MP with compression while ‘Original‘ will store the uncompressed version but count towards your total Google Drive storage.

6. Click ‘Ok‘ to begin uploading to Google Photos.

With that set up, your desktop should be downloading all specified photos stored on Dropbox while Google Photos uploads them to Google’s servers. It’s a pretty convenient relay system with minimal effort. You just need to wait and depending on the number of photos and your internet speed, everything should be synced fairly quickly. Once you verify that all the images have been uploaded, you’re free to remove either app if you don’t want to continue syncing or you can continue to use them for future downloads and uploads.

-> How to transfer Your Flickr Photos to Google Photos

Improve Math Skills with 6 Best mathematical Games For Android

Love it or hate it, math is a big part of our world. Whether you were a math whiz in school, or never really fell in love with numbers, it never hurts to keep that part of your brain sharp. Thanks to smartphones and apps, you can now carry convenient math games right in your pocket and play them when you have a spare moment. Your mind will thank you later in life if you keep challenging it to stay agile when it comes to calculation. Here are a 6 best mathematical games that are both entertaining and helpful in building (and keeping) your math skills.

1. Countdown Maths Game

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This game is based on a popular UK game show called ‘Countdown’. You are given a three digit number along with a set of six separate numbers. The goal is to use only addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division using each number once, to create the original three digit number. There can be multiple solutions and it’s a fantastic way to think creatively and hone the most basic everyday math skills.

2. 2Vars

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This is a very simple game but also great for maintaining strong basic math abilities. You’re given an equation with parts missing and you simply need to fill in the missing terms. You’ll need to glance at all of the possibilities and run them through your head so it’s quick mental calisthenics.

3. Simply Sudoku

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If you weren’t aware of the Sudoku craze of the past decade or so, it’s an addictive puzzle game where 9 grids of 9 spaces must each contain the numbers 1 through 9 as well as having the larger grid have all rows and columns being 1 through 9 with no repeats. You’ll have to use inductive reasoning and quick calculation and it’s a lot of fun if you’ve never tried it.

4. Threes!

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This popular app allows you to swipe rows and columns of numbers to create multiples of three as you attempt to reach a high score. It’s addictive because of how simple the controls are and getting a high score is quite rewarding.

5. Algebra Tutor

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If you want to learn a bit more serious math, Algebra Tutor acts both as a game and a real learning device. You’ll be guided through basic algebra to linear equations with fun exercises throughout. It’s great for students currently learning the subject or for anyone with an interest in algebra.

6. Math Effect

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Here you are given an equation that has already been solved, you simply need to tell if it’s correct or not. It’s a fun change from actively solving equations and is definitely a challenge. However, if you give a wrong answer, it’s game over immediately which adds to the pressure.

Record Your iPhone Screen With Audio, No Jailbreak Necessary

People have long clamored for the ability to record their iPhone screens with audio. It has many applications from sharing app reviews, tutorials, gameplays, etc. and is a much better choice than trying to awkwardly record the screen using a camera. The latest version of OS X Yosemite does allow iPhone screen capture and recording but the iPhone needs to be connected to a Mac which can be a hassle. There are also methods for recording the screen if you have a jailbroken iPhone. Luckily, there is also an option that doesn’t require connecting the iPhone to a Mac or having a jailbroken device. A streaming app called Shou will allow you to record your iPhone’s screen and save the video locally.

1. Open the Safari browser and go to shou.tv/i

2. A pop-up window will ask if you want to install Shou. Tap Install

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3. A Shou icon will appear on your Home Screen. Tap it and then tap Trust to allow it to run.

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4. Next tap Continue which will take you to the App Store link to download Shou.TV.

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5. Launch the Shou.TV app, create an account, then close it.

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6. Now, launch the Shou app (the first one downloaded).

7. Tap Record Screen to begin recording.

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8. Tap the Home button. A red bar on the top with Shou on it indicates that recording is ongoing. You can now proceed to do whatever you want that needs to be recorded.

9. When you’re done, launch the Shou app again and tap Stop.

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10. To review a recording, launch the Shou app and tap the film icon in the top right.

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That’s all there is to it. You’ll of course need to do some minor editing with the video file but it should be great for tutorials or sharing anything you can view on the iPhone. Plus you don’t need a jailbroken device or a Mac nearby.