Get a better Pandora experience right on your desktop with Elpis

Get a better Pandora experience right on your desktop with Elpis:

If you love Pandora, as we do here at Freewaregenius, then check out Elpis, a free, open source local Pandora client that can bring the Pandora experience to your desktop in a stylish, ad-free interface.

While other Pandora local clients (such as this one) stay close to the Pandora interface, Elpis makes a huge departure, opting for a very iPhone like interface instead. And it works, brilliantly, delivering simple, intuitive Pandora experience that is significantly better than Pandora in the browser. Familiar actions such as creating radio stations, voting a song up or down, etc. can be done quickly and easily (see the screenshots above and below).

Elpis can also be minimized to the tray (toggle in the options screen), and will display a balloon notification when a new song is being played (see below).

The verdict: if you like Pandora, get this one and you’ll like it even better. It even brings media key support to Pandora. The only criticism I have of Elpis is that it can take a long time to launch, initially, which may have more to do with the Pandora service than the desktop client.

Two words’; Simply brilliant!

[Thanks go to reader Panzer for the tip about this one]

Version Tested: 0.9.1

Compatibility: WinAll. Requires Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0.

Go to the program page or the Elpis page on Google Code to download (~ 1.09 megs). Note: if you live outside the US, you can use a free VPN service such as Tunnelbear to access Pandora.

Access a world of Torrent content packaged in a streamlined, secure user experience with Tribler

Access a world of Torrent content packaged in a streamlined, secure user experience with Tribler:

Tribler is a free desktop video sharing app for Windows, Mac, and Linux that is a sort of combination of a video player, torrent client, and a content searching and indexing engine designed to identify a user’s interests and recommend content. Tribler is perfect for those who want a more intuitive, secure, and streamlined torrent experience that includes customized content recommendations. It is also great for those who don’t use torrents but would like to access the world of content that they can provide in a single, simple package.

Tribler is unique in that it can index torrents in a truly decentralized way that makes it more secure and less easy to shut down, at least in theory.

Why Tribler is unique: although generally speaking torrents are decentralized and are downloaded from other users rather than a centralized server, there is still one centralized element that torrent clients rely on, the ‘tracker’ that enables clients to find the files to download, and which is typically stored in a centralized location that can be shut down. Tribler is unique in that it circumvents the need for centralized ‘trackers’, it can index content in a manner that does not rely on a single server, which means that it is “impossible to take down” and has gained Tribler a lot of attention and popularity (see this article for more on this subject).

Finding content: Tribler opens up to an inviting search page, but note that this does not provide a web based search and the content found here is that which is indexed by Tribler. This means that while you are less likely to find fake or insecure torrents, you are also less likely to find a lot of content that is out there on the web that you may be looking for.

However, you could get a sense of what it does index via the pre-packaged ‘Tribler Channels’, which is a very nice interface device in itself, and includes items such as “Top Tribler Downloads”, “HD Movies 2012”, “EZTV” and “The Pirate Bay – the entire collection”. The fact that you can access the last two (EZTV and Pirate Bay) in effect means that Tribler can access pretty much all the latest TV and movie content. I also like that you can turn the “family filter” on and off; although it does not seem to be a foolproof filter that blocks everything that it should.\

The Tribler experience: If you’re thinking that Tribler is a combination browser/ search engine/ player for torrents like Miro for example, you would only be partially right. Tribler is also a content recommendation engine that uses a so-called ‘gossip protocol’ and “collaborative filtering” to make recommendations, similar to sites such as Last.fm and Amazon (provided that you use it frequently enough. Tribler assigns ‘reputation’ to users, which I am guessing is based on the degree to which you participate in uploading content and giving something back vs. simply downloading and moving on. As a user, you could create your own channel, where you bunch together a number of torrents that you like and share, if you like.

It is also possible to stream content and view it while it is downloading, which used to be somewhat of a revolutionary concept but is now standard for most serious torrent clients such as uTorrent (and in any case isn’t really the ideal or most reliable viewing experience anyway).

The verdict: if you’re already an experienced torrent user, you likely already know where to find your content and what is real/secure and what’s not, and may not be too interested in this one. Although I will say this could change drastically if torrent sites start being shut down en masse, in which case we may all migrate to Tribler in a hurry.

However, Tribler seems like a perfect recommendation for the many folks out there who are either intimidated by torrents or have absolutely no clue how to access them and where to find them.

One thing I will say about recommendations: I am generally underwhelmed. My problem seems to be too much content on my plate, half of which I never actually view, rather than too little.

[Thanks go to ZoNi for the tip about this software]

Version Tested: 5.5.17

Compatibility: Windows, MacOSX, Linux.

Go to the program page to download (~41 megs). Note that the program page has been stripped down to a bare minimum due to the software’s popularity. For more info, check out the Tribler forums and the Tribler page on Wikipedia.

Spice Up Your Home Screen With Pattern Wallpapers [Android 1.6+]

Spice Up Your Home Screen With Pattern Wallpapers [Android 1.6+]:

Wallpapers can make all the difference in setting the right atmosphere. What is true for your home, also works on your phone. If you are bored with your present Android home screen background, try Pattern Wallpapers. This Android app comes with over a million different patterns and a few simple but neat features to mix them up.

The Basic Layout

Pattern Wallpapers has a simplistic two tab layout. One tab is your window to inspiring patterns, while your favorite patterns are stored in the saved hearts tab.

The Basic Functions

Does one of the previews look interesting? Click it for a full screen preview. Via the buttons at the bottom, you can set the pattern as your wallpaper, add it to your hearts or remove it, email it to a friend, or save it to your gallery.

Within the inspiring patterns tab, you can view five inspiring patterns at a time. To refresh the page and load five different patterns, click the respective button. Once enabled, you can also shake your device to view a new set of inspiring patterns.

Preferences

To enable shake sensitivity, open the app preferences and move the respective slider towards the right, depending on how sensitive you want it to be. Moving it to the far right will achieve maximum sensitivity.

Within the preferences you can also choose whether inspiring patterns will be sourced randomly or from the newest set of patterns. When you enable the wallpaper auto-changing interval, your home screen background will cycle through your saved hearts patterns, i.e. your favorites. The further you move the slider to the left, the more often the wallpaper will change.

The amount of patterns you can add to the saved hearts tab can also be determined with the position of the slider.

Search

Not satisfied with the results from random refreshes? Try to search for patterns based on your favorite user, a keyboard, or a hex color.

Pattern Wallpapers feeds on patterns posted to the COLOURlovers community. If you are looking for something special, you can browse patterns on the website, then search the respective pattern name or the user who uploaded it within the app. Unfortunately, it seems that not all COLOURlovers designs and users are represented within Pattern Wallpapers, at least I was not able to find all the patterns I searched for.

Widget

Finally, to always stay up to date with the latest and coolest, add the Pattern of the Day widget to your home screen.

Conclusion

Pattern Wallpapers serves a simple purpose – providing access to a seemingly endless collection of patterns that can be used as wallpapers for your Android home screen. The app’s layout is basic, the features few and easy, and yet skimming through more and more patterns is easily addictive. Don’t let it distract you too much, it’s just wallpapers.

Patterns can be quite cool. Here are a few alternatives in case Pattern Wallpapers doesn’t quite meet your taste:

• 7 Sources To Download Quality Android Homescreen Wallpapers
• 10 Best Sites To Get Free Backgrounds For Your Mobile Phone
• 3 Great Apps That Will Change Your Smartphone’s Wallpaper [Android]
• 11 Fascinating Android Live Wallpapers to Animate Your Home Screen

Image source: Frame on Retro Wallpaper Image Via Shutterstock

11 Online Sources To Find Legal Torrents

11 Online Sources To Find Legal Torrents:

Recent events have seen well-known torrent directories like BTJunkie closing their doors or being threatened with closure, leaving many people wondering about the legalities of torrents and which directories are still open to find them in anyway. The good news is that the process of torrenting is legal – BitTorrent is just a peer-to-peer method for downloading which happens to have many legal uses.

However, just knowing the process is legal doesn’t mean that all the torrents out there are. To find legal torrents, the best thing you can do is look for them in directories that specialise in legal material of some kind, like public domain or creative commons works. In order to help you find the best of these legal torrent directories, here’s a list of some of the best.

ClearBits

ClearBits, formerly known as LegalTorrents, specialises in Creative Commons digital media and artwork. It charges the content creators for hosting and distribution and then makes the process of sponsoring your favourite content creators easy for the users. There are also some perks for paying community members if you wish to participate further and support ClearBits.

Torrent Cat

Torrent Cat is actually a search engine based on Google search. It will only return results which are public domain, Creative Commons, open source or otherwise legal to obtain. They are also outspoken against any form of Digital Rights Management (DRM) and filter out results containing DRM.

Vuze

Vuze is a BitTorrent client which helps its users to find legal content by publishing the details in their torrent directory. This directory is available from within the client or online, so you don’t need to use Vuze in order to browse their torrents. Although, it is a great client so it’s worth trying out anyway.

Miro

Miro is both a BitTorrent client and a directory of free, legal torrents. It really makes it easy to find great content, so it’s well worth a look. Previously, we’ve also covered how and why you might be able to get your own video feeds into the Miro directory.

ETree

ETree is a directory of live concert recordings provided by trade friendly artists. There’s a lot of really interesting material here, so it’s well worth taking a look.

Game Updates

Game Updates is a legal directory of torrents for game lovers, featuring patches, demos and mods for all sorts of games.

Legal Torrent

The Legal Torrent directory front page features legal movie trailers and free software. To access features like their top 10 torrents you will need to become a member.

Jamendo

Jamendo is a music directory of works released under creative commons. There’s a lot of new material available by indie artists who just want to get heard and to make a name for themselves. To make it even easier to get the music, most of it is available to torrent.

YouTorrent

The YouTorrent directory contains all sorts of creative commons works and movie trailers. The interface is set up to make it easy and interesting to browse the torrents in the directory.

Public Domain Torrents

The Public Domain Torrents directory is a wealth of media and will only increase as more movies come into the public domain. They’ve also sorted these classics into top lists you can use to find the best films, including the top seeded torrents.

Legit Torrents

Legit Torrents is a directory of legal torrents covering all sorts of files: movies, music, freeware and more. It’s easy to search for things within specific categories, but not really designed for casual browsing.

More Free Media

For the fans of legal torrents and other free media, here’s some more articles to read:

• Top Torrent Search Engines for All Torrent Downloaders
• 7 Sites To Get Free Music (Legally!)
• Top 4 Sites To Download Free, Legal Concert Recordings
• Find That Rare Torrent Quickly & Easily With Omega Torrent Search

Do you use BitTorrent to download your favourite legal media? Which sources do you like the best?

6 Must-Listen Podcasts For Novelists, Screenwriters & Storytellers

6 Must-Listen Podcasts For Novelists, Screenwriters & Storytellers:

Are you stuck in a writing slump? Have you ran out of story ideas? Are you puzzled and confused over the publishing industry? Do you need guidance on becoming a professional wordsmith? There are lots of resources – good and bad – out on the web, and they all claim to improve your writing, improve your sales, etc. But who has the time to browse and keep up with dozens, if not hundreds, of writing-related websites, blogs, forums, and workshops?

That’s why I’ve compiled a list of the best creative writing-related podcasts for all you creative writers out there. The beauty of listening to podcasts is that you can listen to them while doing other things, like cleaning your house or doing the dishes. Or writing.

Writing Excuses

Writing Excuses is a fiction writing podcast run by Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn, The Wheel of Time, and The Stormlight Archive), Dan Wells (I Am Not a Serial Killer), and Howard Tayler (Schlock Mercenary). They live and die by their tagline:

Fifteen minutes long, because you’re in a hurry, and we’re not that smart.

This podcast is popular and garners over 10,000 downloads per episode. Every Monday, they come out with a new episode that covers a specific topic related to creative writing, whether it’s about literary techniques, idea farms, plotting, or the publishing industry.

On top of that, they’re just plain fun and funny. Definitely one of the best writing podcasts out there – period.

The Writing Show

The Writing Show has been around since 2005 and it’s still running strong today. Hosted by Paula Berinstein, this podcast is chocked full of information and inspiration for all kinds of writers – novelists, contract writers, copywriters, screenwriters, technical writers, and more!

Topics on the show range from interviews with authors to roundtable discussions on the state of the industry, from tips and tricks on writing to publishing and marketing your finished books. Each episode goes on for 30 to 60 minutes and there are over 180 episodes available in the archive. There’s literally a library full of great information here.

Dead Robots’ Society

The Dead Robots’ Society is a podcast/community that was started by Justin Macumber. The aim of the show is to offer advice and support for aspiring writers.

Interesting fact – Macumber was inspired by the next podcast series listed in this article, I Should Be Writing.

Topics covered include author interviews, writing tips, genre and book reviews, industry analysis, and discussions about writing in general.

I Should Be Writing

I Should Be Writing is an award-winning podcast about writing, hosted by the charming Mur Lafferty. Like most writing podcasts, the show’s central aim is to help and encourage aspiring writers to become better, even professional.

Lafferty’s credentials include freelance writing, podcast producing, and editing for Escape Pod magazine. She is also a self-professed geek and fangirl. For all of you readers looking for nerdy girls, chew on that!

There are over 200 episodes in the archives. If you have the time, definitely give this podcast a listen.

The Secrets

Michael A. Stackpole, the New York Times bestselling author, once ran a podcast series called The Secrets. What kind of secrets does he talk about? It seems he gives you the nitty gritty details – the secrets – on how to succeed as a fiction writer.

He covers everything from inspiration to planning to execution to querying to marketing. If you’re a new creative writer, you’ll learn pretty much anything you’ve ever wanted to know about the writing world in his podcast.

The Secrets was discontinued sometime between 2005 and 2006, but the audio files are still available for download and the information is still relevant today.

Scriptcast

If you’re thinking of specializing in screenwriting, Scriptcast is one podcast that you won’t want to miss. It’s hosted by a guy who calls himself Script Doctor Eric, a professional screenwriter and script reader. Screenwriters from all over the world have sent in their testimonials describing how much Scriptcast has helped them, so it’s hard to come up with a good reason why you shouldn’t listen to this.

As of December 2011, there have been 29 episodes. As far as I know, episodes are still being produced, even if they are released somewhat irregularly.

Do you know any great creative writing podcasts that were left off of this list? Share them with us in the comments. We’re always open to hearing about what’s still out there on the web.

Image Credits: Abizern, Writing Excuses, The Writing Show, I Should Be Writing, Stormwolf