abbreviations

ABCs of Car Tech: Back to basics

The vehicle above is an FWD PHEV with a DOHC ICE rated at 98BHP and 87MPGe. Some of you know exactly what all of that means, but many will need a translation.

Welcome to the first installment of a new feature that I like to call the ABCs of Car Tech. Here I will be explaining the whats, whys, and hows of car technology. This week, I'm starting by defining some basic and common abbreviations used when talking about cars.… Read more

Get rid of typos

TypeIt4Me is a text-expansion and autocorrection utility, an app that can save you tons of time (and wrist strain) by automatically expanding frequently used words, phrases, and even images with just a few quick keystrokes.

Users have several good apps to choose from in this category, and TypeIt4Me is one of the best and longest-lived (with a successful track record that stretches past two decades). As with similar apps, you just type in a few letters to access your "clippings"--or you can even choose an abbreviation from TypeIt4Me in the menubar. You can set abbreviations to work … Read more

Computer acronym dictionary

AcronymGenie provides a handy, easy-to-use reference database of those sometimes confusing computer acronyms. This program is a simple tool with simple definitions, and is therefore a success.

We were instantly looking up acronyms, thanks to the program's effective bare-bones interface. The program simply lists all the acronyms it defines in alphabetical order, with very few diversions. While it isn't pretty, it's functional, which felt more valuable to us. It gives you the option to simply scroll through the list of words, which contained hundreds and hundreds of computer, Internet, and basic digital and technological acronyms. From the … Read more

The 404 348: Where we need a Doctor's opinion

Aside from some technical difficulties today and a giant bug bite, we've got a great show featuring all three of your favorite Web celebrities. Before we get to the stories, we want to remind everyone of The 404 logo contest and of our appearance on our buddy Clayton Morris' FoxNews.com's Strategy Room to talk about all the good tech, video game-related goodness at 2 p.m. EST.

On today's show, find out ways that kids now are using abbreviations in text messages to hide things from their parents. Apparently, "RU/18" is something that kids these days are getting on their cell phones. Also, Pfizer is giving away free three-month supplies of Viagra and Lipitor because of the recession, but only if you were on the drugs before you got laid off. We hope Justin isn't itching to get fired for this deal.

In regard to a story about China shutting down a sex-themed park, Wilson gives us way too much information about "the talk" with his mom when he was 15. Justin and Jeff learned everything from "Sesame Street." Speaking of more things naughty, there is a new version of "Star Trek" called "Star Trix", and we can't really say much more about it other than it's totally NSFW.

Finally, showers make you more productive at work. Just be sure to watch out for peephole-size openings at work. Be sure to write in at the404 [at] cnet [dot] com. We'd love to see more of your submissions for our logo contest. See you on Tuesday after the Memorial Day break!

Episode 348 Download today's podcast Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS VideoRead more

New Review: Typinator

Do you make the same typing mistakes over and over? A lot of people have trouble with certain words, and even though they know the correct spelling, just can't seem to train themselves to type those words correctly.

Typinator for Mac automatically corrects your most often-made mistakes, and works system-wide so you'll never have to worry about those pesky words again. What's more, Typinator can autofill e-mail addresses and other frequently used phrases using user-designated abbreviations.

Check out our new review of Typinator to see why it just might be the time-saving typing tool you've been … Read more