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Miro, the open-source player that’s like a TiVo for internet video, has hit its 2.0 release, boosting the play-anything tool’s performance and adding some neat features, like streaming video from Hulu and other sites. More »

When you want to quickly compose and fire off a message with Gmail, you’ve got a lot of options. Chances are none of them are as fast as gCompose.

We’ve covered similar alternatives in the past, like our very own Supercharged GmailThis bookmarklet, but none of them offer the compose-and-return-to-work speed of gCompose. Instead of a regular Gmail compose window, gCompose speeds up the compose process by linking to the iGoogle Gmail gadget’s compose window, which strips what you don’t need (it doesn’t load Gmail chat or your inbox, for example) but still keeps the features you want (like contact autocomplete).

Created by blogger Andrew Kortina, gCompose comes in a variety of formats: a simple gCompose bookmark, a gCompose bookmarklet that opens a new window for your message, or a gCompose plugin for previously mentioned Ubiquity. The post offers instructions for setting up gCompose with your Gmail account, so follow the link below for details. If you’ve got a faster method of firing off an email with Gmail, let’s hear it in the comments.

If you’re sporting a modded Xbox with XBMC and you’re envious of its cousin Boxee’s native Hulu streaming, rejoice! A plug-in can bring The Office and other NBC/Fox shows to the Xbox Media Center.

If you’re not already the pleased owner of a modded and media-centered xbox, check out how to transform your classic Xbox More »

Deep Inside Windows 7 with Tech Guru Mark Russinovich 
If you’ve got 45 minutes and a real hankering to know all you can about the nitty gritty of Windows 7, Microsoft Technical fellow, software engineer, and developer of a number of excellent free Windows utilities  Mark Russinovich talks all about the intricacies of Windows 7. We’re talking high geek quotient here (kernel constructs, threading, CPUs, oh my!), so it may not be for everyong. Thanks Samir! via

It’s very similar to (and inspired by) the previously mentioned, just-the-pics-ma’am Flickr searcher Compfight. Once you’ve searched, the results can be sorted by relevance, views, user ratings, or date published. It looks like you only get one page of results, so if the clip is buried deep inside YouTube, only search term refinement will dig it up here.

All told, it looks like a powerful and quick way to gun through YouTube videos to find what you’re looking for.

Animoto is a free web application that lets you create animations online using your images and music. Even though, there are hundreds of software that allow you to create a video, Animoto stands out because it puts a “feel” in your video.

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Windows only: BitTorrent super-host The Pirate Bay claims its ViO MobileConverter tool reduces nearly any video’s size by 20 percent and converts it for mobile devices faster than anything else. Let’s see about that.

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