Editor

Pete Wood

Contact Us

We love to hear from all our voato readers. We especially look forward to recieving ideas and tips for simplifying life.

Suggest something using the contact page

Email us at coolstuff@voato.com

Tweet us at
@voato

Know expiry dates on basic foods and condiments

March 10th, 2010 No comments

condiments

Spring cleaning will soon be here, and that usually means going through the cupboards,  and pulling out those tins and jars with expiry dates long passed.   It’s not always easy knowing how long food really lasts once opened. When you’re at the shops it’s not always possible to know if that mayo you bought last week will last. With this simple and innovative guide to food expiry dates,  you’re sure to have fresh produce available all the time.

Read more…

[Party Tricks] – Learn basic magic tricks and entertain your mates and kids.

March 10th, 2010 No comments

magiccards

Having a few good basic magic tricks up your sleeve will always boost your street-cred and make you the life of soul of the party (meeting).  And with a good magic trick prepared,  you don’t need to struggle to remember the punch line to a naff joke after a few pints.

Read more…

6 classic dishes everyone should know how to make

March 9th, 2010 No comments

Here are 6 simple recipes everyone should have in their repertiore. Stylecaster.com 

Electronic note taking – from notepad to netbook in 4 easy steps

March 7th, 2010 No comments

penandpaper Casting aside that trusty A4 notepad after years of loyal service can be a difficult step in the move to electronic note taking.  The biggest hurdle to overcome is often simply making sure your netbook is always where where you are, and not left back the desk, and it’s always ready to take notes.  Moving to 100% electronic note taking is a work style change,  and can only be fully appreciated when you’ve been doing it for a while. Read more…

Bluff your way in Wine Tasting – 5 great sites.

March 7th, 2010 No comments

wineglasses So we all think we know a thing or two about wine tasting, and indeed many of us are vastly experienced in this past-time. But do you know your Bordeaux from your Chianti? Wine tasting is a fine art. 

Read more…

Create desktop links to OneNote pages and paragraphs

March 5th, 2010 No comments

onenote

Having a large electronic notepad using OneNote has many advantages,  but one of the key challenges is finding that all important page or paragraph.  However,  other than relying on the search features, there is a little known feature which allows you to bookmark a page or paragraph, so you can quickly get back to it.

Read more…

Free image and photo editing with Paint.NET

March 4th, 2010 No comments

paintdotnet2Photoshop and Paint Shop Pro can set you back a small fortune these days,   but if you’re looking for a free alternative,  then Paint.NET may be all you need. 

Read more…

The most powerful and lightweight screen capture tool.

March 4th, 2010 No comments

faststone1Whether you’re capturing a whole screen, a small window, or a scrolling document,  FastStone Capture is perhaps one of the best and most lightweight screen capture tools we’ve seen.  

Read more…

Backup to unlimited online storage using Mozy

February 14th, 2010 No comments

safe Backing up files is chore only appreciated when you really need it.   However, backing up to another USB disk or DVD isn’t 100% reliable. Unless your backup solution is fire safe and hidden from burglars, chances are you still might lose all those family photos and MP3s in the event of a disaster. 

Read more…

Save money on that morning Starbucks with SmartCafe

February 14th, 2010 No comments

smartcoffee1 Spending £2 a day on that morning coffee soon adds up over the year and you’ll soon find yourself over £300 out of pocket (that’s the price of a new Netbook).  This simple little gadget from Levene allows you to dispense with the mess and cleaning of a cafetiere,  whilst having the great taste of fresh coffee. 

Read more…