Tethering for the holiday traveler

Tethering for the holiday traveler: "

Filed under: Hacks, How-tos, Internet, iPhone, Jailbreak/pwnage

I know that many of our readers will be traveling during the holiday season, so I wanted to share a walk-through that will help keep your MacBook of choice connected on the go. This is an article intended for those using iPhones on carriers that do not officially support tethering. TUAW would like to remind you that this is unsupported and is enabled at the user's own risk. This does require jailbreaking your iPhone, so the unadventurous in the audience may want to pass this up. If you're not already jailbroken, you can download the necessary software, like blackra1n from George Hotz or Pwnage from the iPhone Dev Team.



Once you've jailbroken your iPhone, install or open Cydia and navigate to the 'Featured Packages' section. Find and install the package named 'Modem.' That's it on the iPhone side of things, on your computer, navigate to iphonemodem.com and download the helper application or register the application for $9.99 to disable the registration reminder in the iPhone app (As far as we know, the free version is fully functional). Drag iPhoneModem to your Applications folder.



The setup is really that simple. Now all you have to do is open the application on your computer, click connect, then launch the companion app on your iPhone. The iPhone application will find the network your computer creates and share the Wi-Fi connection between the two devices so you can use your iPhone data plan on your laptop for better browsing. Here's how the developers say it works:

On the computer, the helper application creates a new computer-to-computer (or ad-hoc) Wi-Fi network and configures the system preferences to use the iPhone as an Internet gateway and proxy. On the iPhone, the application opens a routing engine, DHCP, DNS, HTTP, HTTPS and SOCKS proxies and connects to the helper on the computer.

I've had pretty good success with this application in my time with it. I've been using it on and off for over a year -- it's been a great app in clutch situations. I'd recommend it as a virtual stocking stuffer if you have a friend or family member who's jailbroken their iPhone. Let us know your thoughts or your experiences with the app in the comments.

TUAWTethering for the holiday traveler originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 22 Dec 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Codes to Grab Free In-Flight Wi-Fi This Holiday Season [Free]

Codes to Grab Free In-Flight Wi-Fi This Holiday Season [Free]: "

If you're on a decently long flight and want to connect to the net, there are more options than ever this year. If you're not flying Virgin America, however, they're not free. Unless you have these coupon codes, that is.

Our connectivity-loving sibling blog Gizmodo found a few codes for free in-flight Wi-Fi sitting on the FlyerTalk and MyMoneyBlog.com sites, good for one free in-flight hook-up per email address. As Giz notes, however, if you've got a Gmail address or another email that supports period separation (kevin.purdy instead of kevinpurdy) or + sign demarcations (kevinpurdy+freewifi), you can create an unlimited number of email activations.

Here are the relevant codes for the three U.S. airlines using GoGo's service:

• Delta: DELTATRYGOGO
• AirTran: AIRTRANTRYGOGO
• American Airlines: AATRYGOGO

There are other codes to enter if these don't do anything for you, listed at the links below. Wondering whether your flight will have decent in-flight wireless service, free or otherwise? Check out Jaunted's In-Flight WiFi Status Update, which also features mini-reviews of the services themselves.

Gogo Inflight Free WiFi Coupon Codes [My Money Blog via Gizmodo]
Free Gogo Internet. Pass It On [FlyerTalk Forums]

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Top 10 Essential Tools for Your Wallet, Keychain, or Pocket [Lifehacker Top 10]

Top 10 Essential Tools for Your Wallet, Keychain, or Pocket [Lifehacker Top 10]: "

You want to be organized and prepared when you're walking around, but you don't want to lug around 10 pounds of gear and ruin your back with a mega-wallet. These essential carry-around tools are discrete, super-handy, and oh so brag-worthy.

Photo by joelogon.

We've previously covered the gear our editors and readers find handy to carry in their 'Go bags' and laptop bags, and some of those tools (like a certain USB key) cross into the pocket-worthy realm. Otherwise, we tried to stick to very small tools and printables that do a really good job for this roundup.

10. Foldable Organizer

The PocketMod webapp is more than a simple printout maker. It's an expandable, customizable system for creating an 8-page, super-slim booklet with anything you want on any side. You can track your business mileage on one side while keeping your calendar and important contacts on another, or print out an entirely new pocket stuffed with travel maps and local attractions. Cool stuff, and definitely worth the wallet space. (Original post).

9. Compact keychain

If you've only got a few keys, and an eye for something different, you don't have to go with the typical ring-shaped chain. You really only need washers and a rivet to create a minimalist, quiet keychain. You can take it further by shaping those keys into a mini-Leatherman with a few tools kept in, attaching the rivets onto a money clip, or crafting your own compact key device. (Original posts: compact keychain, mini-Leatherman)

8. Universal club card

Some stores require them, some stores provide discounts with them, and others offer passive rewards and points for using club/membership cards and bar codes. Combine all of your codes onto a single card with Just One Club Card, or choose between a card and keyring tab at KeyRingThing. Actually, the two sites seem to have gotten together, and now offer combination cards with a nice laminate finish and firm back, so you won't have to worry about wear, tear, and faint barcodes. We love it when great webapps find each other. (Original post: Just One Club Card, KeyRingThing)

7. Indestructible, keychain-friendly USB drive

Maybe you don't need this exact model, but having a nearly-indestructible USB drive that fits on your keychain is convenient in ways you can't quite fathom until you've added it. You're almost never without a bit of storage for transferring or grabbing files. If you're the PortableApps type, you've always got a working Firefox/Pidgin/Thunderbird setup handy for being productive on someone else's system. At the moment, the 4 GB IamaKey sells for $22 directly, so it—or something like it—might make a great recommendation as a last-minute stocking stuffer. (Original post)

6. Compact calendar

Designer David Seah has been making 'candy bar calendars' for some time now, and his 2010 compact calendar is just as beautifully efficient as ever. His are monthly calendars you line up and customize in Excel. If you're looking for more of an all-in-one solution, try The Small Calendar 2010 from Grafish Designs, or the Thumb Calendar 2010 design, both of which offer clever ways of peeking at today, tomorrow, and the future from a wallet-sized slip of paper. (Original posts: The Small Calendar, Thumb Calendar).

5. A baby (or really cute pet) photo

Wallets get lost, left behind, and lifted more often than you'd like to think. If your wallet is more misplaced than stolen, having a very cute baby photo in your wallet, even if it's not necessarily yours, seems to seriously boost your chances of getting it back. A not-too-close backup is having a cute pet picture. As they say in journalism school, every story (and wallet, maybe) needs a dog—or at least a really interesting human. Photo by °Eli. (Original post).

4. Earbud de-tangler

Ever pull out your tangled, knotted headphones and wonder if they're secretly holding gymnastics practice when they're tucked away? Keep your earbuds, cords, and plugs in place with a de-tangling tool. Our inner stylist loves this laser-cut earbud owl and its old-time-y wooden look, but you can also cut something similar from plastic. In fact, you can fashion an earbud holder out of a junk or expired credit card. If you've got no room for a single-purpose flat piece, at least train yourself in manual de-tangling methods like the devil horn wrap, the around-the-player wrap, or get fancy with a daisy chain or chain sinnet style. (Original earbud owl post)

3. A darned good pen

Yeah, you still need to write now and again. Whether it's a credit card receipt scrawl or a note you really want to be able to read later, having a pen that actually makes you want to write is always worth the price. We asked our script-friendly readers what pens they liked, and they came back with impressive results. In describing his trusted PenAgain, for example, Cowboy Bill wrote: 'Helps my horrible handwriting. Busted knuckles from nuns' rulers.' That's an endorsement from the heart, or at least the memory of hands.

2. Multi-tool, credit-card or standard

We agree with Steve Sussex's assessment of the Leatherman Micra—it's just as useful to computer geeks as to outdoor types. If carrying an actual knife on your keychain won't fly with security at work, or you don't want to clutter it, consider the 11-function, credit-card-sized survival tool, also recommended by Cool Tools. You get a ruler, a knife and screwdriver plane that can work in a pinch, and, perhaps most helpfully, a bottle opener you never forget at home. Even if you forget to pull it from your wallet before a flight, it's only around $5, and a fairly clever conversation starter. (Original posts: Leatherman Micra, credit card tool).

1. A backup system

The wallet is where you should keep all your essential IDs and cards, but it's good to have a fallback plan for when you leave it at home, or in the cab. Inspired by a Real Simple article (now dead-linked) on using clear pockets and cords to separate ID badgets, Gina wrote up a diet plan and backup system for your wallet, based on her own use of a Slimmy minimalist wallet and just the bare essentials. If you find yourself holding up the line to dig through a virtual filing cabinet of receipts and cards, consider putting your own money holder through boot camp.

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What's the most essential item on your own keychain, in your wallet, or loose in your jacket pocket these days? Share your stuff in the comments.

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AT&T Has Spent Less on Network Construction Every Quarter Since the iPhone's Launch [Attfail]

AT&T Has Spent Less on Network Construction Every Quarter Since the iPhone's Launch [Attfail]: "

If you like your links hyper, here is that AP story, AT&T's financial sheet [PDF], and the post in which Fake Steve Jobs originally pointed out this disparity. Namaste.

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PlayStation Digital Comics Now Available For PSP [PSP]

PlayStation Digital Comics Now Available For PSP [PSP]: "

Coming good on its promise, Sony's PlayStation Network Digital Comics service has launched, with PSP owners in the US, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa able to download Marvel classics for as little as 99 cents.

Along with Marvel Entertainment comics, Disney, IDW Publishing, iVerse Media and several other publishers have supplied Sony with their wares, with 550 available today, including Iron Man, Spiderman, X-Men, Transformers and Archie.

Download them on your PSP over Wi-Fi, or on your PC and transfer over, with titles starting at 99 cents. Comic Book Guy is currently voicing his disgust all over the internet at the sacrilege of his prized Marvels. [PlayStation Comics]

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QuickBoot Adds Easy Access for Rebooting to Other Volumes [Downloads]

QuickBoot Adds Easy Access for Rebooting to Other Volumes [Downloads]: "

Mac only: If you have more than one startup volume on your Mac (say, if you're using Boot Camp), free utility QuickBoot lets you reboot from one of those volumes straight from the menu bar, with just a few clicks.

Ordinarily it's a bit of a pain to start up from another volume—you either have to go through System Preferences or hold Option when you restart your computer (and no one likes to sit around and stare at a rebooting computer). QuickBoot sits in your menu bar (although you can also run it as a standard application to save menu bar space) and gives a list of all your bootable volumes and the OS installed on each—including, in the case of OS X volumes, version numbers. If you run it as a standalone application, you can even choose to reboot to that volume immediately or next time you restart.

The app isn't perfect; it doesn't work on some computers (such as the MacBook Air), and at the moment, it only recognizes Mac and Windows partitions—it didn't recognize my Linux partition (although when I chose to boot from my Windows partition, it booted into my Linux partition—which is fine, because GRUB recognizes Windows; it was just weird). Regardless of these drawbacks, if it works on your machine, this app should make life a bit easier.

QuickBoot is a free download, Mac OS X only.

QuickBoot [via Macworld]

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