MediaGirl Toolbox

Disable Windows Restart Prompts

If you are tired of Windows XP's non-stop reminder to restart your computer after a Windows update, the following will help you disable the popup!

Start -> Run -> gpedit.msc -> Local Computer Policy -> Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Windows Update -> Re-prompt for restart with scheduled installations.

You can disable the reminder entirely, or adjust the frequency of the popup.

(This tip was found in a comment on CodeHorror.com)

Filed Under:

Groovy Music

Programmers get into a serious zone when coding. In the MediaGirl studio we have a little help staying in that zone from our favorite radio station.... Lounge Radio. Lounge Radio is a non-commercial web radio broadcast out of Switzerland. The station broadcasts 24 hours a day and plays mostly nujazz.

We also like Radio Paradise out of Paradise, CA. The station plays an eclectic mix of music that will keep you going for hours.

Pandora is another great option for online radio listening. Pandora lets you build your own radio station around music you like. Just plug the name of an artist or a song into Pandora and voila!

Slacker is a great stop for those looking for lots of variety. You can listen online or download a player that you control on your computer. Similar to Pandora, you can also build your own radio stations based on artists you like.

Check out SomaFM for 11 channels of independent, commercial-free internet radio. The stations include underground electronica, chillout, ambient groove, downtempo, lounge, space music, indie rock and alt.country/americana.

Leave a comment with your favorite online radio station!

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Here are some new additions added 5/30/2008

• The Sixtyone
• Songza
• Grooveshark
• Musicovery

Filed Under: Tools

Make My Logo Bigger Cream and More

Designers constantly have to balance a clients change requests with the overall concept and direction of a given design. This is probably the most difficult part of the design process in my opinion.

So were we ever pleased to come upon the Who Needs Designers website and their miraculous Make My Logo Bigger Cream.

This is a must watch for any designer out there... web or print.

Filed Under: For Laughs

EE Multiple Site Manager

With the launch of Expression Engine 1.6 comes a new module that allows you to manage multiple websites using one Expression Engine installation. Here's a video demonstation showing what the module can do:

Filed Under: Expression Engine

Expression Engine Templates

We've seen a number of people landing on the MediaGirl website while looking for Expression Engine templates. While we don't provide any templates on this site, we've taken a couple of minutes to put together a list of sites that do have free templates. There aren't a ton out there.

NOTE: This is old information...

Expression Engine
Check out the main Expression Engine website for a list of 27 templates that can quickly be downloaded.

SimplyGold
This site has 6 Expression Engine teplates to download. The "Fresh" Theme doesn't look half bad. Also check out their Expression Engine Photo Gallery template.

Vaya Design
Vaya Design offers up a Teal Template for Expression Engine.

Blog Studios
The Blog Studios Expression Engine templates aren't free but we are including them here anyway so folks can take a look.

Novacron
This site just has a couple of EE templates but they are worth checking out.

EE Templates - Added 10-16-2008
EE Templates has several Expression Engine templates for free or paid download.

EE Design - Added 10-16-2008
EE Design has a couple of EE templates which are listed under the "Templates Quicklist" header in the right navigation of the website.

Filed Under: Expression Engine