Get the FREE 411

Announcement:  Google is great for helping you find a pub, mechanic, even a theater.

Very insightful, I know.  What I mean is using your regular telephone, not your computer to get business information for a consumer.  That's right, instead of dialing 411 and getting charged by your money eating telephone giant, you can get the same information free from Google.

1-800-GOOG-411 will take you to a voice operated search for businesses.  It will even connect your call.  If you have a web-enabled smart phone, it will even map it for you.

You may or may not be asking "Why would Google do this for free when the telecoms charge?"  The rumor is that Google is working on voice recognition software to integrate into other projects.  In order to make it great, they need tons of data to compare different voices in similar patterns, like "I want pizza."

Here is a video from Google about the 411 service.  A word of warning, it is a bit looney.

MAC Address for Non-Windows

As a follow-up to my last post on finding your MAC Address (for Windows), I now present without any fanfare:

How to find your MAC if using OS X

Choose "System Preferences..." from the Apple menu. Then select "Network." Double-click on "Airport" or "Built-in Ethernet" depending on how you access the Internet or your network.

Notice that your MAC Address is called an Airport ID or Ethernet ID.

How to find your MAC if using Linux

If you are using Linux, you already know how, because well...you are using Linux and therefore possess all computing knowledge.  Okay maybe not, but for the newbie, launch Terminal and type ifconfig for wired network cards or iwconfig for wireless.