Triple Monitor Plus TV Synergy [Featured Workspace]
Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/395095284/triple-monitor-plus-tv-synergy
University student tobywuk's dorm room triples as his living room, office, and bedroom—so he uses two monitors, one laptop, and one wall-mounted widescreen television to get work and play done. Plus he uses keyboard and mouse-sharing application Synergy between computers to save desk space. Tobywuk writes:
The TV is connected to my Xbox 360 and my MacBook pro to play movies. When the Mac is not using the TV it uses the 19" TFT. The other 19" TFT is connected to my server running Windows XP. Both systems/screens share the same mouse and keyboard using Synergy Virtual KVM.
Whether he's gaming, watching movies, or working, tobywuk's got the screen real estate to get it done. Here's how you can control multiple computers with a single keyboard and mouse using Synergy. For more workspace fun, check out the Backyard Shed Turned Home Office and more. Show off your swanky work or play space setup by adding it to the Lifehacker Workspace Show and Tell pool.
We've shown you how to 
The right mouse button—beloved by geeks for its power, theoretically unnecessary on a Mac, and generally under-utilized on the average desktop. Right-clicking can be a powerful tool for automating file actions and saving yourself time and arm effort, but only if you've put your own stamp on the offerings of that secondary button. Today we're rounding up some of the best tools for adding power and precision to your right-click menu on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems, so check out what can be done from the other side of the scroll wheel. Photo by 
The default file manager for GNOME-based Linux systems has a pretty sparse right-click menu when first installed. Install a few helper packages, however, and soon you're rotating and resizing images without an editor, popping open terminals for quick system work, and skipping the 
If you're new to Macs, or you just haven't dug deep into its configuration options, it's easy to miss this one. Mac laptops only have one button; instea! d of str etching your hands an octave-length to the Control key, put two fingers on the trackpad and click. To enable it, head to the Keyboard & Mouse section of System Preferences, under the Trackpad section, check this option: "For secondary clicks, place two fingers on the trackpad then click the button."
You can know where "that restaurant with the good burgers" is (a few blocks over from the big intersection) without knowing an actual street address. Find the general spot in Google Maps, right-click, and click for directions to or from that area. You might find it helpful, or you might not truly appreciate it until you're on a scarcely-there Wi-Fi connection, trying to find a way across town and furiously Google-ing for possible addresses.
Anyone with access to their own web space, or with a need to do a lot of FTP transfer, should add RightLoad to their file-swapping arsenal. Set up your FTP servers in RightLoad's preferences, and sending files to the server is as easy as right-clicking and choosing a server. After you're done, RightLoad creates HTML-formatted links for quick web writing or friend-linking, and automatically renames duplicate files. Your overworked FTP client thanks you for the downtime.
If you're not a fan of installing contextual applications or power toys on your system, Windows' built-in "Send to" menu on the right-click box can offer a lot of flexibility—you can create instant shortcuts, email ! or open a file, and much more. Lifehacker reader Howard Dickens explained the process for 
One of those apps that gives back the more that's put into it, FinderPop is a hugely customizable tool for cutting down the number of clicks needed to copy, move, or alias files between locations on your Mac. FinderPop can also launch applications or kill runaway processes, making the right-click (or Ctrl-click) menu a powerful launching pad.
Programs come and go from your computer, and even after they're thoroughly scrubbed, they can leave behind annoying traces in your context menu. ShellExView is where you get complete control over what shows up when you right-click a file, your desktop, or even Internet Explorer. You can add any program, delete useless links, and otherwise hook yourself up with time-saving shortcuts.
Let's face it—some of the work you do is creative, and some of it is just resizing a bunch of images to 400 pixels wide and converting them to JPEG. Automate those mand! atory ta sks with OnMyCommand, an AppleScript/command-line app that adds your own scripts or already-compiled offerings to Finder's right-click menu. Check out 
Many of the tools listed above make adding custom file-wrangling options to your right-click menu easy, but only for every file or folder you click. If you want to get specific with certain file types, adding custom for-this-file-type-only actions isn't as hard as it might seem. Adam has 
If you're a Windows user and only have time to try out one of the right-click tools we've gathered here, FileMenuTools is a safe bet for maximum utility. It doesn't get as in-depth as some of the utilities it rolls together, but it lets you create contextual file actions, improve your Send To menu, add super-helpful tweaks like "Run Command Line from Here" and "Copy Path," and generally geek out your right-click menu without touching the registry or hunting down obscure command line options.
Windows only: Free application SpeedFan monitors the fan speed, temperature, voltage, and more of the components inside your computer. That's all fine and dandy, but the marquee feature of SpeedFan is that you can actually adjust the speed of your fans by tweaking the desired temperatures on supported systems. Keep in mind that SpeedFan is a power-users tool, and the temp inside your computer isn't to be taken lightly. However, if you're comfortable tweaking hardware settings, an app like SpeedFan can help keep your computer running quieter and give you a little more control over what's happening with your computer's innards. If you've used SpeedFan in the past, share your experience in the comments. Mac users, check out 
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