Asana is the shared task list for your team.

The weakest link in your security is generally your own password strategy. People choose really weak passwords out of laziness, or because they're easier to remember than good, hard-to-guess passwords. Sean and Andy show you some tips for making your passwords stronger, and talk about Last Pass and 1Password.

While the Boxee box is cool and has a unique shape, it might not be for everybody. If you'd rather

make your own Boxee box

so you can put one of your

old computers to good use

, you can do that too. Just download the appropriate Boxee software depending on whether you're using a Windows, Linux or Mac machine and follow along with this tutorial.

Ubuntu has a majority consumer mindshare of all the user friendly Linux distros out there. With good reason. Ubuntu Netbook demonstrates that this distro and its user community have a solid understanding of what computer users need and want in a portable PC. The interface is perfect for a netbook's smaller screen.

In order to properly

organize your photos on Picasa

you'll need to

create photos albums

to put them in. So in this episode we'll show you

how to create photo albums

as well as how to

add details and descriptions

so you'll be able to

find your photos on Picasa

easily.

In this episode we'll introduce you to Picasa Web Albums, a photo organizing program and online service offered by Google. We'll talk about some of the features of Picasa including the ability to upload photos, edit photos and create albums. We'll be showing you how to do all that and more in the following episodes.

Your netbook probably has some version of Windows on it, like XP or Windows 7 Starter. Since your netbook has limited resources to begin with you may want to run an operating system that give you the most horsepower. So, for the next three weeks we're going to look at three Linux distros that are perfect for your netbook. Doc starts off with a look at gOS, ideal for underpowered netbooks.

You may have seen some of our

Android phone tutorials

and wondered how we manage to

capture the screen

on our computers. Well in this episode we're going to show you how to

stream your Android phone screen

to your computer, whether it's a

PC, Mac or Linux

machine.

Doc finishes up his coverage of

the five best purpose-built Linux distros

. From the light weight and light on system requirements of Puppy Linux to the full featured and feature rich Ubuntu, Doc covered five great Linux distros. With so many options, one is right for you.

In this episode we explain

what the desktop is

in

computer terms

and explain how it got its name. We'll also show you some

common desktop uses

and give you some examples of items you'd find on your

digital desktop

.

Ubuntu is, for many computer users, the first name that comes to mind when thinking of Linux. This distro does it all and is a great bet for anyone looking to make a permanent switch to Linux, eschewing Windows and Mac OS X.

XBMC is the best Linux distro for media

. It lets you connect with other computers and NAS drives in your home to stream movies, music and pictures. You can also play video from discs or straight from your set top PC's hard drive. Ideal for living room applications, it bests MythTV in our opinion.

Doc continues his countdown of his

top five Linux distros

with a look at Linux Mint. This graphically gorgeous OS is as solid as a rock and is very user-friendly. In fact, it maybe the

best Linux distro for Windows switchers

.

You've heard of the

computer term

OS, or

operating system

, but you might not know

what an OS does

. That's why, in this episode, we'll explain

what operating systems do

for your computer and give you some examples of

popular operating systems

for

computers and smartphones

.

Next up in Doc's top five purpose built Linux distros is Slax. This nifty Linux distro comes with just about everything you need on your netbook. In fact, it maybe the

best Linux distro for netbooks

. On the Slax site you can assemble your own custom version of Slax.

Kicking off our five-part series on the top five Linux distros, Doc takes a look at Puppy Linux. This light weight distro is perfect for installing on an older or underpowered PC. Can't boot into your Windows PC? Use the live Puppy Linux CD to find out what ails. This great distro can run from a USB key or CD and can even run right in system RAM, making it fast and friendly.

Once you have

Ubuntu installed

, you'll probably want to get some software to try with it. By default, Ubuntu comes with several applications that you can use on a day to day basis, but there are many more

software packages

available for free. In this episode, we go over some

Ubuntu tips

and must-have apps.

Making the switch to Linux, even part-time, can feel like a bit of a shock to the system. Doc helps to ease the transition by rounding up his 10 favorite Linux apps that are free for the download. This week, we finish the series off with numbers six through 10. Check out last week's episode for apps one through five.

If you followed our last episode then you should have successfully

installed Ubuntu

to your machine. In this episode, we'll show you

how to customize your settings

and

tweak Ubuntu

to your liking so that you can get the most out of your experience.

If you've tried Ubuntu and want to do a more permanent

install on your hard drive

, we'll show you how in this episode. We show you

how to install Ubuntu

onto your PC over this episode and the next and show you

how to partition your hard drive

to get ready for your install.

Cheryl Poirier rediscovers the joys of Google Earth. As a virtual tourist, she travels from the CN Tower and Rogers Centre in downtown Toronto to the base of the Grand Canyon. 3D models in Google Earth make it possible to go from a bird's eye view to a view from the ground while the timeline tool lets you see how a place looks at morning, noon and night.

If you like

using Ubuntu

but want to have the option of using your other operating system, you can always

create a dual boot system

. This will involve

partitioning your hard drive

and you should probably back up your data, but once the process is complete, you'll be able to

boot into Ubuntu

or your other OS whenever you want.

A handy way for Windows users to

install Ubuntu

is by

using Wubi

, which is a

Windows-based Ubuntu installer

. Wubi gives your PC a

boot option

to

boot into Ubuntu

without formatting or creating a partition on your hard drive. It's also easy to uninstall, so you can go back to your old operating system.

You can

run Ubuntu using LiveCD

without taking up system resources but you can't save anything permanently. Unless, that is, you

create a persistent image

, which is most commonly made using a

USB key

. We'll show you how to use the

persistent image feature

with a USB key in this episode.

Making the switch to Linux, even part-time, can feel like a bit of a shock to the system. Doc helps to ease the transition by rounding up his 10 favorite Linux apps that are free for the download. This week, we look at one through five and in next week's show, Doc rounds it out with numbers six through 10.

While trying Ubuntu out

using a LiveCD

or DVD is one of the easiest and most risk-free

installation methods

, there are drawbacks. For one thing you can't install programs and the system will likely be much slower. We'll go through all of the

pros and cons of Ubuntu

in this episode.

If you followed along with us in episode two, you should have an

Ubuntu LiveCD

ready to install on your computer. Using this LiveCD is a great way to

try Ubuntu

to see if it's right for you without actually making any change to your computer. We'll show you

how to use a LiveCD

to try Ubuntu in this episode.

If you want to

try Ubuntu

without actually committing part of your hard drive to it, you can do so by

creating a LiveCD or DVD

. These discs act sort of like

boot discs

and allow you to run Ubuntu on your computer without using system resources. We'll show you

how to create a LiveCD

or DVD in this episode.

In this episode, we'll give you an introduction to Ubuntu, which is a

distribution of Linux

. It's a great

free operating system

that comes with a full office suite with utilities and games, all of which come packed in free of charge. Here, we'll show you your

installation options

for

installing Ubuntu

such as

Live CDs or DVDs

and

dual booting

.

Andy Walker previews new Lab Rats episodes and unveils the new butterscotch.com top 100 software feature on butterscotch and Tucows. This is the place to find the top of the top downloads from the Tucows, butterscotch and mobile.butterscotch libraries. You can also hit the butterscotch.com top 100 freeware software list.

If you've been looking at taking Linux for a spin, you're in good company. Many users are installing Ubuntu so that's what we've installed as well. If you're coming from Windows, there are a few applications you're going to want to get right away. This week, Doc takes a look at five must have applications for those moving to Linux.

Turn your humdrum daily computing into an Etch-a-Sketch-esque work of art that Mom will be proud to put up on the fridge. That'll make up for the years of disappointment and all the grey hairs now gracing her head. And when are you going to give her grandchildren already?

Andy and Sean take a look at the updated version of Parallels Desktop, which allows you to run Windows 7 on your Mac. That means you can actually

run Windows applications on a Mac

. The guys talk about the

differences between Parallels and Boot Camp

, and show off some of the display modes in Parallels.

You hear people talk about their root directory. You may also hear them talk about having root access to their Linux machine. So, what does root mean? Michael "Doctor File Finder" Callahan explains.

Linux is a free and open source operating system that was first created in 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Today there are many different variations of Linux which are called "distributions." Doc gives a brief introduction to Linux and tells you what you need to know.

Ubuntu Linux is very secure. If you want to keep it secure you should use good passwords. If at any time you want to

change your password or the password of another user on your system

, there's an easy way to do it. With this method, you can also

recover a lost Ubuntu password

.

Ubuntu supports a wide array of computer peripherals right off the bat. Getting most devices working on Ubuntu is a simple plug and play affair. In this tutorial, Michael "Doc" Callahan demonstrates

how to set up a printer in Ubuntu

. For many

first-time Ubuntu users

, it's amazing

how easy it is to set up peripherals in Ubuntu

One of the reasons that

Ubuntu

and other Linux distributions are so secure and safe is because problems are found and fixed so quickly. If there's a

security flaw

it's discovered and patched before anyone really has time to take advantage of it. That's a benefit of being lean and mean. With frequent updates you can

keep your software and your system running smoothly

.

Ubuntu

has a lot to offer, but if you use

Windows

you probably have some favorite programs. It just so happens that you can

run your favorite Windows programs in Ubuntu

by using

emulators

.

In addition to having

software for work

,

Ubuntu

also comes with software to play. There are a range of

games

for children of all age. Aome are already installed and, as with everything Ubuntu, they're free.

We've looked at the fact that

Ubuntu

comes with tools for the Internet already installed. We've also looked at the fact that it has Evolution Mail, a full-featured email client, for handling all your mail. Ahh, but

Ubuntu

has lots of good, general

software

you can use for other things as well.

If you're thinking about trying out

Ubuntu

you may be worried that you won't have a good program for doing

email

, fear not!

Evolution Mail

comes with

Ubuntu

and it's full-featured and free software.

Ubuntu provides a very

secure working environment

and is not plagued with viruses like Windows. One reason for this is the way Ubuntu handles

file permissions

which makes it very difficult for any virus to spread.

Ubuntu Linux is a full-featured operating system. You can configure it in so many ways including the way it looks and acts.

Change the desktop background, add icons, use 3D effects

and lots more.

One of the many benefits of Ubuntu Linux is that it

requires far less system resources

than say Windows Vista. That means that Ubuntu can run even on computers that are much older. Ubuntu doesn't need as much RAM, doesn't need as fast a processor, and doesn't eat up as much disk space.

The world of Linux has been getting increasing attention. Versions of Linux, the "open-source" operating system, are being installed on computers from major makers like Dell and HP. Google's Android mobile phone operating system is also a variation of Linux. Of all the versions of Linux available, Ubuntu is among the most polished and

user-friendly Linux distros

. It's free and comes with an amazing amount of software. Join us as we take a look into the wonderful world of Linux with our

introduction to Ubuntu

.

Andy and Sean put on their rose-colored retrospective glasses for a look at Windows versions past. They take a look at the current versions of Windows -- Vista and XP -- and peer into the Lab Rats crystal ball to see what's in store for Windows 7, which has since been released in beta.

Andy and Sean show you how to run Windows (or Linux!) on your Apple computer.

Andy and Sean take a look at Ubuntu, a popular version of the Linux operating system.

FTP or File Transfer Protocol

is a quick and, once you understand the basics, easy way to

transfer files to your web site host

,

share large files

between co-workers and much more.

FileZilla

is an excellent and (perhaps best of all)

free FTP client available for Mac, PC and Linux.

With

Google Earth

installed on your Windows, Mac or Linux PC, you can circumnavigate the world in considerable less than 80 days. You can dive the the depths of the ocean or check out the constellations in the night sky at noon. All without leaving your desk.

Google Earth

has many practical applications too. Get driving directions, see what amenities are available in the neighborhood you're thinking of moving into and even see how said neighborhood has changed over the years. Perhaps best of all, Google Earth is free for home users.

There a great app out there for iPhone users who want to integrate their

iPhone with their desktop

. The

myPhoneDesktop app for iPhone

allows you to easily

send text, images and URLs

to your iPhone from your computer so you can

save time

typing on your iPhone. You can also use it from any computer running Windows, Linux or Mac OS X.

Your one-stop shop for everything relating to software on butterscotch and Tucows. Tips and tricks to working with your favorite programs, Video Cow Reviews, slick software trailers that highlight the latest and greatest and software recommendations that help you do more with the technology you already own.

If you've heard a little bit about Linux then you might have been curious to try a

Linux distribution

yourself. In this series we'll give you an

introduction to Ubuntu

, a free

Linux-based operating system

that gives you multiple installation options. We'll walk you through

how to install Ubuntu

using each of those, including using

LiveCD or DVDs

,

running a persistent image

, and

dual booting

.

What is Linux? You've probably heard of Ubuntu as it is the most widely adopted Linux distribution. But what is Ubuntu? Doc Callahan offers a video guided tour of Ubuntu. Doc covers everything from running Windows applications on Ubuntu, games in Ubuntu, applications in Ubuntu, Linux versus Windows and much more. If you've never tried Ubuntu, this is your beginner's guide. If you've already tried Ubuntu, you might still learn a thing or two.