xxxterm

As a first example, xxxterm is a very powerful browser entirely written in C and enhanced for security. You can control by default the saved cookies, scripts, and certificates of the webpages that you visit. What makes xxxterm really interesting is that it adopts vi-like shortcuts for the navigation. If you are not familiar with vi, I invite you to take a look at one of my previous articles about its basics.

On Ubuntu, you can install xxxterm with a simple command:

 sudo apt-get install xxxterm

Again, if you have little experience in vi, you will not be lost here. A good example: the command “:w” will save the current session while “:wq” will save and quit for a future restoration of the tabs. The main issue with surfing without a mouse is the need to select links. When you are on a web page, how can you click on “Home” or go to the website’s search engine if you don’t have a mouse? The answer lies in the command “.” (dot) or “f” which will highlight all of the links on a page and attribute each one to a number. You can then type the number corresponding to the link and navigate; or type the first letter of the link to reduce the number of links highlighted. Be careful with the last technique because xxxterm is case sensitive: “m” is different from “M“.

For a better navigation experience, I invite you to visit the wiki page of the project where all the shortcuts are explained. However, if you just want to test it now, here are a few commands to start with right away:

• “/” for searching within a page
• “Ctrl+r” to refresh
• Backspace to go to the previous page
• Up and down arrows to scroll
• “Shift+f” for the favorites
• “Ctrl+t” for a new tab
• “Ctrl+w” to close a tab
• “Ctrl+arrow key” to switch the view between tabs
• “p” to paste
• “.” to highlight links
• “i” to focus on the page input
• Escape to remove focus (just like Vi)

uzbl-browser

“Uzbl” means “usable” in lolspeak. Also written in C, the development of this browser is incomplete, yet it is already one of the best minimalist navigators. It has everything: scripts, downloads, history, form filling, etc. Except for tab navigation: one instance per window or nothing. However, the uzbl-tabbed browser will soon correct that.

On Ubuntu, start with

sudo apt-get install uzbl

The shortcuts are a bit different from xxxterm’s, but again, some of them are very similar to Vi, so you should not be too lost.

• “o” to open a URL
• “b” to go back
• “fl” to highlight links

• “Fl” to highlight links and open one of them in a new window
• “w” for a new window
• “c” to close a window
• The traditional set j, k, h, l to move within a page
• “Ctrl+i” to focus on the page input
• Escape to remove focus

For a more exhaustive list of shortcuts and commands, I invite you to go on the official wiki, or the Archlinux wiki which is also pretty complete.

Conclusion

Personally, I really like Uzbl. Even if it is not complete yet, it seems very promising, and perfect for small or old computers. Xxxterm is not bad either, and the vi-like behavior is very attractive. For more keyboard-based browsers, you might also want to try out Vimperator – a fork of Firefox with the same shortcuts as Vim. There is no doubt about it: if you really want to look like a cool (’90s) geek while surfing, these browsers are made for you.

Which one do you prefer? Do you stick with the mouse? Are there any other shortcuts that you would like to share? Please let us know in the comments.

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1. Hacker Keyboard

Hacker Keyboard is my personal favorite because it completely mimics the physical keyboard so you don’t have to learn a new keyboard layout and get confuse over the position of each character.

Hacker Keyboard uses a qwerty layout and comes with Ctrl, Tab, Alt, Esc and even the Fn button. This is particularly useful if you are using the Connectbot or Terminal emulator for SSH access. What I love most is the up/down/left/right arrow keys. I have switched to other keyboard, and come back to this mainly for this feature alone.

One thing it doesn’t come with is the auto-correct feature. If you rely a lot on this feature, then this keyboard is not for you.

Hacker Keyboard (Market link)

2. Swype

Instead of typing individual character on the keyboard, Swype allows you to form words by swiping your fingers across the keyboard. It is fast, intuitive and accurate. For those who love to type faster with just one finger, Swype is the one for you.

Swype for the tablet comes in two different mode: the full width mode and a compact mode. The full width mode is more suitable for two hands typing while the compact mode is more suitable for swiping. A good thing about the compact mode is that you can move it left, center, right or any where along the bottom to suit your swiping style.

Swype is good for quick typing, but if your work require you to use plenty of special characters, Swype might be too troublesome for you as all the special characters are not easily accessible.

Swype is not available in the Android market. To get it, go to Swype website and download the installer.

3. GO Keyboard

The GO Dev team has to be the most prolific and popular dev team in the Android community, having released the popular GO Launcher and many other useful GO apps. The GO Keyboard is another of their great product.

The GO Keyboard is a hybrid of Swype and Hacker Keyboard. You can swipe to form word, or type one character at a time. It also comes with auto-correction, text prediction and support for multiple languages (dictionary has to be separately downloaded).

The layout of the keyboard can be configured for both a phone and a tablet (known as Pad mode in the Settings). For the tablet, you can select either a basic layout or a split layout.

GO Keyboard is not all about functionality. It also has one of the biggest themes library in the market. Just search “GO Keyboard Themes” in the market and you can find almost all sort of themes and design that you can use. If that is not enough, you can even set your own keyboard background and transparency.

Go Keyboard (market link)

4. MultiLing Keyboard

MultiLing keyboard is particularly useful for those whose native language is not English. This keyboard allows you to switch keyboard language with a quick swipe on the space key.

MultiLing Keyboard supports a lot of languages, but they are not installed by default. Once you have installed the main keyboard app, you have to go to the Market and download the plug-in for the language you want.

Another thing about MultiLing Keyboard is that it supports gestures. You can swipe down (across the keyboard) to hide the keyboard, swipe right to change the mode to number layout, swipe diagonally to left bottom to clear the suggestions and so on. Best of all, you can configure the gestures and its respective actions.

One other thing that I like is the Autotext plugin for MultiLing Keyboard. Once installed, you can create your own shorthand and have it expands to the long text when the keyword is typed. For example, I can type “bb” and it will expand to “be right back”.

In short, if you need access to a whole wide range of languages, plenty of configuration options, and customization ability, MultiLing keyboard is the one for you.

MultiLing Keyboard (market link)

One thing for sure, the above list is not conclusive. Do let us know which keyboard you are using and why it is good for you.

Image credit: BigStockPhoto

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These new low-profile keyboards look great and have the benefit of no annoying noise, but there’s a minority of users who miss the physical feedback of a mechanical keyboard and some can even suffer RSI when typing heavily on the new style. For these users, Canadian keyboard manufacturer Matias offers the Tactile Pro 3 – a keyboard which promises to faithfully replicate the feel of classic keyboards like the original Apple Extended Keyboard, but with modern benefits, such as three USB ports.

Following In The Footsteps Of A Classic

The Apple Extended Keyboard was originally produced in the early 1990′s and is widely regarded as Apple’s finest ever keyboard. They are still in use by enthusiasts today and it’s possible to pick up an older model on the internet but this comes with complications as not only will you need a USB adaptor, but way the keyboard is designed means that it’ll also need its own power source.

Sourcing a mint condition Apple Extended Keyboard can be difficult and so many turn to the Tactile Pro 3 instead. The Tactile Pro 3 is a keyboard which is similarly styled but comes with modern benefits too – such as three USB ports and a great layout which includes all the lesser used symbols one could need, accessible at the press of an Option key, making typing out even obscure characters simple.

All this convenience and retro styling does come at significant cost however, the Matias Tactile Pro 3 is priced at an eyebrow raising $149.99.

First Impressions

The Tactile Pro 3 comes in well designed packaging and feels suitably heavy and expensive. It definitely does not follow Apple’s smooth aluminium minimalist look of recent years, rather harking back to a time when white plastic ruled supreme. Indeed, the keyboard looks great sat on my desk next to an iBook and eMac.

The inclusion of all the extra characters is welcome but gives the keyboard a slightly busy look which may not appeal to minimalists. Each key is placed in a very intuitive layout and the Caps Lock glows satisfyingly white when pressed. The three USB ports’ placement is well considered too and helps cut down on desktop clutter, powering a mouse and syncing an iPhone with ease, while the keyboard’s own USB lead is very long and heavy duty – it should prove up to the task of traversing even the most awkward desk layout.

Ghostbuster

Retro-styling only goes so far and so it’s probably the engineering behind the Matias Tactile Pro 3 which is its most compelling selling point. Matias have researched and designed the keyboard’s mechanism to work in the exact same way as the Apple Extended Keyboard which it emulates, making use of the same Alpine-style switches and it can read the signal from several keys at once, removing the possibility of ghosting when used by even the fastest touch typist. Unfortunately I’ve never had the opportunity to use the Apple Extended Keyboard so cannot compare the Tactile Pro 3 to the original, but opinion seems to agree that it’s as close as one can get to the real thing.

The action of the keys feels just perfect – typing requires some weight behind it but not so much as to need undue force and each key snaps with a satisfying sound. When compared to typical modern keyboards, the Tactile Pro 3 is definitely much louder and could drive some to distraction if used in a shared office environment.

Is The Matias Tactile Pro 3 Worth The Cost?

I write for a living and suffer from quite painful RSI as a result of my typing thousands of words a week. In the short time I’ve been using the Tactile Pro 3, I’ve found it significantly eases my wrist pain when typing and is more conducive to good typing technique – there’s a real and noticeable benefit in using the Tactile Pro 3 over my usual Apple keyboards and the ones on my MacBook Pro and iBook, so much so in fact, that I’m now loathe to use those built-in notebook keyboards.

Though expensive compared to even the most high-end Apple wireless keyboards, the Tactile Pro 3 feels like a quality product and seems built to last. If you would like a clicky keyboard or enjoy retro styling, or if you’re a heavy computer user and type many words as part of your job, then you may well find that the Tactile Pro 3 is good value for money.

The Matias Tactile Pro is configured for Mac, though I believe the company offers corresponding Windows keys and drivers as an option. Visit the Matias website for more information.

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Still, I have often wondered if a small iPhone keyboard would be useful, so when given the chance to try the iPhone 4 compatible Nuu MiniKeyboard, I seized the opportunity to take it for a spin.

First Impressions

When first unpacking the Nuu MiniKey, it’s fair to say I was impressed. Though constructed from plastic, the build quality is excellent. An iPhone 4 slots securely into the top of the MiniKey and once safely housed in the cradle, the whole mechanism snapped shut with a satisfying click, feeling solid and well designed. The keyboard acts as a case for the bottom half of your iPhone (at least for mild bumps and scratches anyway, I wouldn’t want to drop it) and all your iPhone’s buttons are accessible, as is the camera. To be sure, the MiniKey adds a significant size to your iPhone, making it roughly twice the depth, though this is to be expected due to the design of the device.

Holding the MiniKey is a little awkward compared to the compact elegance of the iPhone 4, but not overly so and the keys are well laid out. The only complaints I’ve got is that my unit’s keys seemed a little too stiff for comfort and the placement of the apostrophe was awkward. The MiniKey is powered by an internal rechargeable battery which is charged via a small USB lead, I found it to be excellent and it didn’t fully drain from a full charge in the five days I used it.

Using The Keyboard

The MiniKey works via a Bluetooth connection to the iPhone 4 and this is achieved simply enough with the usual technique of adding a Bluetooth device. The MiniKey has an intelligent method of sleeping and conserving battery and I didn’t notice too much of a drain on the phone. It also has an excellent backlit display, which is a nice touch and one which helps highlight its higher quality when compared to some cheaper competitors.

At first I found it very difficult to type on the keyboard after being used to Apple’s on-screen virtual keyboard. However, after some time spent persisting using the MiniKey, I found that I eventually got the hang of it and began to type at a reasonable speed, albeit with significant!y more typos than I would usually expect. Though a completely unscientific and subjective test, I wanted to try the keyboard on some other people so asked a few tech-savvy friends to try the MiniKey for a few minutes: On average, these friends seemed to adapt to the small hardware keys much quicker than myself (though I do have very large hands).

A big plus point when using the MiniKey is that you reclaim a quite considerable area of screen real estate due to the virtual keyboard no longer popping up and this helped compel me to use it even when I felt the virtual keyboard would be quicker.

Compatibility

As one might expect, the MiniKey is fully compatible with iOS and works well with all your favourite apps like Simplenote, Writeroom and Taskpaper, etc – though bear in mind that Apple inexplicably does not allow Pages to be used in landscape mode so the MiniKey cannot yet be used effectively with that app, not through any fault of Nuu, it has to be said. Using the MiniKey does not feel like a ‘hack’ and it is really quite a slick experience overall. Features like a button which toggles the virtual keyboard on and off and small touches like the timed backlit keys all help to strengthen this impression.

Who Should Buy The MiniKey?

Despite being impressed with the MiniKey, I can’t quite bring myself to recommend most people rush out and buy it. It really is a testament to the iOS virtual keyboard design that it’s preferable to a well made hardware keyboard almost all of the time, but that is the case.

However, if you’re an iPhone 4 owner who has never quite gotten the hang of a virtual keyboard, or you just want a physical one for whatever reason, I feel it’s reasonable to state that the MiniKey appears to be the best currently on offer and probably as good as an attachable iPhone keyboard will get in the near future – at least unless Apple does the unlikely and makes its own.

Conclusion

After almost a week of using it at home and on the move, I can’t say that the MiniKey has enabled me to become very much more productive, though it certainly had made me see my iPhone from a different perspective and I’ve enjoyed the experience. Does the MiniKey grant my wish of making the iPhone into a real word processor capable of serious work? Not yet. Though the MiniKey is a product which I really like, it doesn’t quite beat the iPhone’s own virtual keyboard and thus is not all that useful, at least for myself. For those who struggle with a virtual keyboard however, it might be worth considering purchasing a MiniKey.

The Nuu Minikey can be purchased from a variety of online and offline stores, click here for more details.

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So what makes the Logitech case so great? Everything. It not only keeps the iPad safe, it turns it into a small laptop. The case is made of sturdy aluminum on the outside, and has a cushioned interior. It’s hard to really call it a case, however, as it’s really only one-sided. More than anything else, the part of an iPad you want to keep most protected is the screen. This design allows you to place the iPad face down inside it. While you would think it wouldn’t be safe, the case actually grabs onto the iPad and holds it tightly. You can turn it upside down and it doesn’t fall out. I still wouldn’t drop it intentionally, but I feel much better about its chances should it happen to fall.

Yet the protective aspects of the Logitech case are really a minor benefit. The case also doubles as a stand. It has a small easel at the back that allows the iPad to stand in either portrait or landscape mode. It’s great for listening to music and watching videos. It has a couple of different positions. The easel flips up when you’re using it, and when you’re done, you simply have to flip it down. When the iPad is placed face down to store it away, it automatically goes into sleep mode, and when you take it out, it automatically wakes up.

The best feature of the Logitech case, however, is the keyboard. Built into the base of it is a full keyboard. It’s slightly narrower than a standard keyboard on a laptop, but it doesn’t take that much to get used to it. If you do a lot of typing, it can be very hard to do that on an iPad. Not just because of the stand, but because of the virtual keyboard that makes it hard to tell if you’re hitting the right keys or not. 

You can “feel” the keys, which puts you back in touch-typing mode and out of the thumb-typing texting method. Additionally, it has all the special keys that you miss from a regular computer keyboard, such as Caps Lock, Tab, Command, Option, Control, and iPod controls. It has some iPad-specific keys such as Lock, Home, Search, Photos, and a button to bring up the virtual keyboard should you want to work with that. There are also some additional function keys for editing with Cut, Copy, Paste, Undo, and Redo. But really the best addition is the arrow keys. That’s something I always miss when typing with my iPhone, the chance to move through the copy with the arrows.

With the keyboard on the case, it makes the iPad truly just like a laptop. It makes having an iPad the best of both worlds. Not only do you get the ease of using an iPad, you get it along with the parts of a laptop that are hard to do without. Although there are still one or two things I can’t do on the iPad, the Logitech case makes it so that I rarely have to use my laptop. I can do almost everything on the iPad. In fact, with a lot of help from the Logitech keyboard, I wrote this entire article.

Logitech Keyboard Case for iPad 2.

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However, there are times when you are typing and you forgot to change the keyboard layout to the language that you want to type in. What do you do? Do you delete all those you have typed, change the keyboard setting and restart all over again? What if you can press a hotkey to instantly change your keyboard setting and translate those words/sentences/paragraphs you have typed into the language you want? I am sure that will save you tons of time rewriting the paragraphs. LangOver is one such app.

LangOver is a freeware that helps you when you tried to type in one language but the result was in another. By using the hotkey F10, you’ll be able to convert your text quickly between languages.

Download and install LangOver.

By default, LangOver uses the F10 key to activate the language switch. You can also configure it to use the middle button of your mouse as well.

After the configuration, you can start using it. While typing in one language, you can quickly press F10 to translate the text and switch the keyboard setting. You can also press F6 to perform a reverse translation.

In addition to translating your text, LangOver also comes with text converting function. With the hotkey “Shift + F10″, you can toggle between upper and lowercase.

More hotkeys available in LangOver include “Ctrl + G” and “Ctrl + T” which would take the selected text and perform a search/translation in Google.

Conclusion

Obviously, LangOver is not meant for everyone. I used an English keyboard to type both English and Chinese words, so LangOver is not working for me. However, if you are using a non-English keyboard and need to switch between English and your native language, then LangOver could be useful. You won’t need it all the times, but when you do, it sure can save you from insanity.

LangOver

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LangOver Helps You Change Your Typing Language Easily originally published on Make Tech Easier (RSS)
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After installing the extension, the first thing to do is to press “g” to bring up the gleebox. This will be the main control center. There are several options you can do with the gleebox. You can type any phrase(s) and it will search the current page for links that match your query. You can then scroll through the links to find what you want. If no matching query is found, when you press Enter, it will perform a search with your phrase(s) or bring you to the page if the phrase is an URL.

You can also use the “?” prefix to perform a series of actions. For example, typing “?h” will highlight the H1, H2 and H3 headings and “?img” will highlight linked images. Available options include

• ?h: Select main (h1, h2 & h3) headings
• ?img: Select linked images
• ??: Select text input fields. Hit ENTER to give focus to the selected field.
• ?a: Select all links

More useful features

The best part about gleeBox is the ability to use the “!” prefix to access to plenty of external services. For example, at any page, you can press “g” to bring up the gleeBox and type “!read“. This will transform the existing page to reading mode.

A list of useful commands include:

• !read: Transform the page for a better reading experience using the Readability project
• !shorten: Shorten the URL of the current page using bit.ly
• !tweet: Redirect to twitter.com with the URL of the current page in the text field
• !rss: Open the current page’s RSS feed in Google Reader
• !snap: Take a screenshot of the current page in Chrome
• !share: Share the current page.
• and many more…

Running YubNub or a Quix command

Both YubNub and Quix are web tools that allow you to enter a command line and perform an action. These tools are built into gleeBox so you can work with command lines too. The command comes with a “:” prefix and a dollar sign ($) represents the current URL. Available commands include “:fbshare $” – Share the current page on Facebook, “:wp cricket” – Search Wikipedia for cricket etc. With Quix, you can even create your own command and use it in gleeBox.

Wrapping up

The above mentioned features are not conclusive of what gleeBox is capable of doing. There are more things such as jQuery commands, ESP mode that I did not mention. Will gleeBox replace the mouse completely? No, it won’t. But its usefulness and versatility can indeed speed things up and make you more productive. Try it out and you will know. Don’t forget to check out the user manual too.

gleeBox | gleeBox for Google Chrome | gleeBox for Firefox | gleeBox for Safari

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Sometimes you are sitting some distance away from your computer and you want to open a new window or browse the internet. This is where the apps RemoteDroid and Gmote come in!

RemoteDroid

AppBrain | Market

Requirements:

• Java SE Runtime Environment 1.5 or higher. Get it here.
• Some sort of network connection (e.g. a Wireless connection is ideal)
• A device running the Android operating system.

RemoteDroid consists of two parts. First, you must download and install the companion server from the website on your computer (including Windows, Mac OSX and Linux). Next, there is the actual app on the phone which can be downloaded from the links provided.

After downloading the companion software package double-click RemoteDroidServer.jar to start the companion software server on your PC. This is an important step in ensuring your phone can communicate with your computer.

After starting the server you will have to allow the software to bypass your firewall. This is again an important step as the RemoteDroidServer package on your computer must be allowed to bypass your firewall for it to connect to your phone.

After granting access to RemoteDroid, you will see the RemoteDroid server windows. The most important information in this window is your computer’s IP address, take note of this address.

Once you have completed the setup of the RemoteDroid server package on your computer download and install the RemoteDroid app on your phone.

Launch the app and input your IP address:

This will launch the main window from where you can control your mouse.

To move the mouse on your computer, move your finger across the screen of your phone, inside the box with the red outline. You can left click by tapping your finger in the red box. You can also left and right click by clicking on the two green squares on the bottom of the screen. Finally, the green keyboard button launches your Android’ device’s keyboard allowing you to input keys on your computer.

Gmote

Free: AppBrain | Market

Paid (donation): AppBrain | Market

Gmote is very similar in set-up to RemoteDroid.

First, you must download the companion software from the Gmote website for your computer. There are different versions of the software for Windows, Mac OSX and Linux.

Next, install the Gmote server application on your computer.

Note: If you want to ensure that the Gmote server start’s up automatically when your computer is on, ensure you set this option while running the setup. However, this only works for Windows XP.

After installing the Gmote server application you must select a password for your computer.

Once you have created a new password for your server you will be given the option to choose where your movies and music are located on your computer. This is important if you want to start music and movie files directly from your phone. Click on “Add path” to select your media folder.

Next, select the location of your media.

This will add a new path to the “Media Path Selector”. You can add and remove whichever folders you want. When you have finished select “Done“.

This completes the setup of the Gmote server application on your computer. Now you must download and install the Gmote remote app on your Android device.

After installing launch the app and you should see your computer displayed in the app window on your Android device.

Select your computer and you will see the main Gmote window.

Interestingly, all the play/pause controls are non-functional until you start media playback. Select “Browse” to browse through your music and movie files. You will be asked to input your server password.

You can browse and play any media file on your computer. You can either have Gmote launch the file on your computer, or you can even stream the file to your phone. While I could stream music to my phone I was unable to get video files to work. I believe the issue was a lack of codec support.

Back on the main screen press your Menu key and select “Web (beta)“.

This will launch an unique feature which allows you to input the URL of a website on your phone and then this site is launched on your computer’s default web browser. This is a speedy way to navigate the internet from your phone.

Finally, to control your mouse select “Touchpad” from the main screen.

Unfortunately, unlike RemoteDroid, Gmote does not appear to have any right-click function.

Conclusion

I personally prefer Gmote for a number of reasons. Firstly, Gmote allows the server application to automatically start whenever your computer starts (limited to Windows XP). Having to manually launch the RemoteDroidServer package is quite an annoyance. Secondly, RemoteDroid’s server package leaves an annoying status window open, whereas Gmote has a more discreet notification icon. Finally, Gmote is able to remotely launch my music and movies.

Let us know which method of controlling your computer from your Android phone you prefer.

Image credit: laihiu

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I don’t know how many people will find this a welcome improvement in Ubuntu. Personally, this has caused me a lot of inconvenience as I always depend on it to get myself out of a nasty crash.

For those who wanted to restore back the Ctrl + Alt + Backspace combo, here’s the way:

Install dontzap

sudo apt-get install dontzap

Disable dontzap

sudo dontzap --disable

Restart your computer

That’s it. You can restart your X using Ctrl + Alt + Backspace now.

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This happened to me recently while trying out Gnome for the first time in a while. I attempted to set the key combo for “Switch workspace” to a combination of Super (aka Windows Key) and an arrow key for left or right. This would allow me to use the same key combo to switch workspaces in all my systems. I was shocked to find that in Gnome, as of the time of this writing, you cannot use Super as a combo key, it only works on its own. Every time I would try to enter “Super + Left Arrow” or “Super + Right Arrow”, it would stop right at Super and not let me create a combo.

Some searching online showed that many others have had this problem, it seems I’m not the only one who wants to use Super in combination with other keys. With that in mind, I decided to share my solution to this problem.

Remapping the Super Key

Chances are, your keyboard has two Super keys. They can be easily spotted, usually in the lower row, and bearing the Windows logo. What we’re going to do is tell Gnome to treat the Super key as something else, so that it doesn’t have to follow the rules Gnome has set for how that key should be used.

Open up your Keyboard options (NOT Keyboard Shortcuts) from the System -> Preferences menu. From that screen, choose the Layout tab. On the Layout page should be an icon for Layout Options.

From within the Layout Options page, choose Alt/Win Key Behavior. From there you can choose to map the Super key to “Meta”, allowing it to bypass normal Super key behavior.

Now that we’ve “tricked” Gnome into thinking the Super key is a different key, we can use it for combinations in the Keyboard Shortcuts screen. You can find Keyboard Shortcuts in the System -> Preferences menu. As I mentioned above, my reason for wanting to set this behavior was so that I could use the same key combo to switch workspaces that I use on all my other systems, which is Super + Left or Right.

Now that we’ve remapped the Super key, Gnome will let it be used in combination with other keys. Anytime we hit that key, Gnome treats it as “Mod4″, which it WILL allow to be used in combinations. Now I’m all set, I can use the same key combo on all the computers I use, no matter which operating system or desktop environment I happen to be running.

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If you are affected by the fact that your iPhone does not has the emoji function, don’t worry, here is a simple trick that you can use to activate the emoji iconset in your iPhone.

Go to the AppStore in your iPhone.

Tap on the Search and type in “spell number”

Install the application

From your Home screen, open the Spell Number application and  key in 9876543.21 (including the decimal point)

Exit the application.

Go to Settings. Navigate to General -> Keyboard -> International Keyboards.

Scroll down to Japanese. Tap on it.

Swipe the Emoji option to ON.

Back to your Home screen, turn on your Notepad (or any other application that requires keyboard) and create a new note. On the keyboard, you should see a globe beside the Space button. Tap on it and it will display the Emoji iconset.

I am not sure how long will Spell Number stays free. In the event that it charges you for the download, there is another way that you can activate the Emoji icon for free, but it requires you to jailbreak your iPhone.

- Jailbreak your iPhone.

- Load Cydia. Tap on the Section. Navigate to Tweak -> Emoji.

- Install it.

You can now activate the Emoji icon via the Settings page.

The above tricks will work for iPod Touch as well.

What other iPhone tricks do you want us to cover? Tell us in the comment.

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