USB

The last time I ran a hardware tips article, readers just ate it up. So this week I've got another one, with a cool USB accessory that lets you move cords and devices out of the way and instructions on how to get an HDMI second monitor to display full screen (if your laptop has an ATI graphics card, that is).

"Live" distributions of Linux offer a wonderful convenience for those not quite ready to commit to the open-source operating system. By booting Linux directly from a CD (which you burn from a downloaded .iso file), you can try it out without first installing it onto your hard drive. But live Linux CDs have their problems. Optical media is slow. It's also read-only, limiting your ability to configure the operating system. Finally, many of today's netbooks and ultraportable laptops don't have an optical drive. The Universal USB Installer (free) offers a simple and elegant solution to those problems.

We can access the Internet virtually anywhere, but we can't always find a power outlet to keep our mobile devices going. Fortunately, there are a range of small and lightweight reserve battery packs that you can keep with you to use in a pinch.

Some would say that Halloween is not a techie-type holiday. To those people I, and the creative (read: demented) makers of these gadgets, say "Boo!"

IronKey rolled out its Trusted Access for Banking USB drive on Monday.

Take a walk on tech's wild side with some of the strangest, most original, and most bizarre gadgets you've ever seen. We've got vacuums for your lawn, swimwear that can charge your iPod, and grenades that don't explode but still go boom.

The BlackArmor PS 110 USB 3.0 Performance Kit lets -notebook users with ExpressCard slots to connect the portable external hard drive to their notebook to achieve faster USB speeds.

This tutorial shows how to set up a USB-over-IP server with OpenSUSE 11.2 as well as a USB-over-IP client (also running OpenSUSE 11.2). The USB/IP Project aims to develop a general USB device sharing system over IP network.

We scoured the Web for the world's wackiest USB-powered gadgets to dress up and differentiate your desktop or cubicle - and annoy coworkers. These 20 gizmos, from cubicle stink-busters to toasters that print the morning news on your breakfast, could lower the stress quotient at even the highest-pressure offices.

The Leatherman

There's no time like the present to get those special, hard-to-find geeky gifts.

I love the Universal Serial Bus. It lets me connect, power and charge my gadgets. But laptop makers, peripheral makers and even car companies could make it much better by doing four simple things.