As Tiger's scandal winds to a middle, we're hearing more about what actually happened, and all the sad mis-uses of technology that led the man-of-many-races to this point. Here are the mistakes he made, and how you can avoid them to better cheat on your spouse.

Come on El Tigre, this is the most obvious one. Never use your own cellphone to call your mistress! Seriously, how hard is this concept? Your wife can check your cellphone bills, check your account status or even check your phone for weird calls. Just buy a new pre-paid phone and use that instead. You'll want to always keep that on vibrate, so your spouse doesn't question why there's a weird ringtone going off.

As Mark Wilson suggested, if you're going to be dumb enough to keep keep your cheat-pal on your phone, save her as "Mom". Or "Grandma". Or "Chiropractor".

Make sure your spouse doesn't have any kind of tracking device on you. This means turning off AT&T's FamilyMap, or any similar services from other providers. Hell, you probably just want to shut off your main phone entirely and claim you were somewhere without reception.

As we saw in the Taiwanese recreation, Tiger was driving away from his wife when he turned around to inspect a) what the hell club she was using to smack his car with, and b) how much damage the crazy woman was doing to his ride. Bad move. You turn your head at 2:30 in the morning, all goosed up on pills, and you're going to smack into a tree.

What he should have done was install a backup camera in his car so he could keep his eyes on the road, yet still see what his wife was swinging at. [Amazon]

And this one is just sad AND dumb. Mr. 1 billion left his own name on the voicemail of his mistress, begging her to change her greeting so that when his wife calls, he could have some deniability as to who he was calling.

First, never leave your name. "It's me" works just fine. She'll know who you are. I mean, you've slept with her a number of times. And your voice is all over TV. It's likely that she can recognize you without you having to identify yourself. And even then, it's a good idea to use a voice modulator when you leave voicemails, so that people can never trace them back to you. "Hey, that wasn't my voice," you claim, before following up with a denial about even knowing how voice modulators work.

"This is Optimus Prime. The Earth is in danger unless you meet me at the Motel 6 off route 57 at 10 PM tonight." (Don't pick that one.) [US Magazine voicemail and Voice Modulators]

As the father of two kids, Tiger should have prepared himself for the possibility—however slim—that he was going to get caught. And when you're super rich and you get caught cheating, that's reason enough for your wife to divorce you and try and get half of your stuff.

What should he have done? Set up a spy camera in his living room. Not only would it have documented the supposed domestic abuse (face slapping) generously given by his wife, it might have captured HER cheating on him as well; both things very handy in a divorce hearing.

Lifehacker, doing what they do best, has put together an incredibly helpful list of Windows 7 keyboard shortcuts, as well as a few new mouse tricks for good measure. Discovering a single new keyboard shortcut is enough to make a desk drone's day—I rank the time I happened across the Windows+M shortcut as one of the best moments of Junior high, right above not getting acne scars and right below that one time I touched a boob with my elbow—but this list, which is full of stuff like that, including fresh Windows 7 goodies, is a revelation. My favorite?

[O]ne of the best new hotkeys in Windows 7 is the fact that you can create a new folder with a hotkey. Just open up any Windows Explorer window, hit the Ctrl+Shift+N shortcut key sequence, and you'll be rewarded with a shiny "New Folder" ready for you to rename.

Oh, yes. [Lifehacker]

That mango video actually saved me a ton of time, since I used to just slice willy-nilly and end up with mismatched pieces and/or a dulled knife from trying to slice through the stone.

This one's great: Mario Batali discusses the sauce-to-pasta ratio, reminding us that the sauce should never get in the way of the natural flavor and texture of the pasta.

And for those who doubt—I loathe Gordon Ramsay's cooking shows, but his scrambled eggs are excellent (even if they take a freaking hour to cook). For seven more, head over to Lifehacker. [Lifehacker]

Those who don't have money for two GPSes in the same car will need a map. Yes, a map. The kind you get from AAA for free (if you're a member). Jalopnik's got a set of instructions to teach (or refresh) your map reading skills so you can get back on the road like a pro. Like a boss. [Jalopnik]

After reporting some issues with their internet connection, technicians advised the folks over at Unplggd to wipe the tips of their ethernet cord with a coffee filter. Apparently the filters are excellent at catching loose impediments like lint, plus the technician reported witnessing more than on instance where installers had left cheeseburger grease on cords. Gross.

A bit anticlimactically, this coffee filter tip didn't solve the problem for Unplggd, but it might still help you. Well, that, or you'll just start licking those cords clean like we do. [Unplggd]

The customization still hasn't been designed for the mainstream consumer—probably intended for OEMs like Dell, you'll need to poke around a bit with regedit to change the background screen (full tutorial here). But compared to downloading/installing an entire separate program just to manage this one tiny function (as is necessary with XP and Vista), we'll take it. [WithinWindows via Lifehacker]

There are some good (if old) tips like calling up your cable company to threaten to cancel your service, then reaping the retention bonuses they shoot your way. There are also some lousy, not useful ones like "stop smoking" and "don't eat at McDonald's." [TipJar via NYT]

The NYT quotes the editor of Battery University as saying cellphone batteries last longer if they're kept cooler. Cooler, as in not at your body temperature. So, if you're really running low on juice during the day, get a holster or a purse. Plus, you should probably keep your junk cool and away from your cellphone if you ever want to have kids either. It's win/win.

There are other tips such as shoving a wet phone in rice, putting a car alarm fob up to your chin and freezing a broken hard drive we've seen before, but head on over if you need a refresher. [NYT]

Image credit

1. First, right-click on the taskbar and turn off "Lock the Taskbar."
2. Right-click the taskbar, hover over Toolbars, and select New Toolbar.
3. When it asks you to select a folder, enter this string: %userprofile%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch
4. Find Quick Launch (it may be on the right side of the taskbar), right-click the divider and disable "Show Text" and "Show Title." Make sure "Small Icons" is enabled.
5. Drag the divider to rearrange Quick Launch on your taskbar (using left-click).
6. Right-click and lock your toolbar again.

You're welcome. I love you too. [MaximumPC]

View our other Windows 7 tips and our continuing coverage here.

For those unaware, there are two ways you can stream media to your Xbox: through media center or through your windows media player library. Media Center gives you the advantage of a visually-oriented UI and some advanced features such as live TV and movie rentals. Streaming through the Media Player library, conversely, is an easy, no nonsense way of accessing music and videos.

The problem is, getting everything setup isn't such a breeze. Let's start with Media Center.

In theory, you should be able to start Media Center on the Xbox it will already have a prompt to initiate the setup process (If you already have another MC computer up and running, you can go into the Computer menu under System Settings) In theory, it should offer an eight digit number, which you then plug into the setup screen on the desktop Media Center client, and the rest is taken care of.

This worked the first time, but because the UI on the Xbox media center was painstakingly laggy, I attempted to unlink the Xbox and PC, and try the setup again. A handful of failed configurations took place, and I ultimately had to make sure no trace of previous MC setup attempts were present on either the Xbox or the PC, then clear the Xbox Cache.

After that, it managed to setup OK, but kept saying the bandwidth was extremely low, when it was actually fine. And even after setting it up again, the Xbox Media Center App is really, really slow to navigate over wi-fi. Apparently, according to Microsoft, the beta version of Media Center streams better with your computer hooked up to Ethernet. They say this will not be a problem in the final version, but for now, it is what it is.

Music playback is pretty smooth as it picks up anything in your library, and provides a bright quilt of album art to view in the background while a song plays. Videos show up in your video library, and playback, though there seems to be some freezing, and difficulty with playback controls. The new Play To feature, which uses Windows Media Player on your PC as a remote control also worked well inside Media Center (we'll have more on this feature soon).

As for accessing your files through the Windows Media Player Library, it's as easy to set up as it was on Vista. Except now, all you have to do is go into Windows Media Player, click the Share in the menu bar, and select the share media option up at the top. A box should pop up with a one-click option to enable media sharing, and all the music and videos in your Media Player library should be available to stream via the Video and Music library options in the Xbox interface.

The only problem is that video seems to be finicky. Windows friendly formats, such as WMV, seem to work best, while AVI files tend to have problems. The Media Center team at Microsoft says that the beta version of Media Center isn't handling third party video formats particularly well, especially DivX and Xvid, but they expect to work the kinks out on that soon. Wilson has been able to get a couple of AVI files streaming properly using the above steps, but Jason and I have not, and the video folder registering as empty.

In any case, it may not be perfect yet, but with a bit of tinkering, you can get Xbox streaming working with Win 7.

View our other Windows 7 tips and our continuing coverage here.

It's gone! If you've used Vista, you'd be familiar with the fact that Add/Remove Programs is now called Programs and Features, but if you're migrating up from Windows XP, you'd be super confused.

Luckily, if you left your Control Panel view on default (the one that doesn't list out all the icons), it's slightly easier to find.

Hopefully this saved you a few minutes of WTFing as you're playing around with Windows 7.

View our other Windows 7 tips and our continuing coverage here.

For decades, photographers have engineered little tricks to get the most out of their cameras, and most of them have carried just fine over the digital divide. Here are a few, with some newer additions collected by our friends at Lifehacker.

Build your own stabilizer out of string
Shooting long exposures without something to prop your camera on is a pain in the ass, not to mention a blurry mess. So is carrying a tripod. This video shows how to build a pretty effective foot-looping camera stabilizer out of some string, a bolt and a washer. The results are surprisingly good.

Build your own L-bracket, for serious stability, vertical mounting
If you're doing portrait photography, or have a dumpy old tripod that can't accommodate vertically oriented cameras, you can build a sturdy L-bracket for about $30. It's a bit more involved than the piece-o-string stabilizer, but it's also a lot better, and much cheaper than something you'd pick up at Wolf.

The "David Pogue Special": Use a lamp as a tripod
To round out the camera-steadying tools, here's what I call the David Pogue Special, and it's great: Many lampshade mounts share a diameter and thread size with the tripod mount screw on the bottom of your camcorder, point-and-shoot or DSLR, providing quick and dirty stabilization in a bind.

Scrounge up household flash diffusers
Shooting with flash indoors is often necessary, but can wash out your subjects, making them look sheet-white, greasy and demon-eyed. With a diffuser, the light is softened and the photos are dramatically improved. Commercial flash hoods and diffusers cost money, but aren't much more effective than what you can make yourself. A coffee filter held in front of a flash, a translucent film canister with a notch cut into it, a simple piece of A4 paper or even a piece of matte Scotch tape over the flash lens will measurably improve your drunk party photography.

Calibrate color temperature with free flooring samples
Shooting a piece of paper, gray notecard or painted wall can give you OK white balance calibration, but this guy has a better idea: snag some free floor laminate samples and built a proper calibration board.

Make flash deflection umbrellas from actual umbrellas
If you really want to go pro-hobo, you can repurpose old umbrellas into flash-directing photography umbrellas. After all, there are always plenty lying around. Here's how you do it. If you're feeling lazy, you can even get away with just an old sheet and some tape.

Build still-life photography studio for free(ish)
Ever wonder how that creepy old photographer got such a soft, vivid, dreamy picture of you and your prom date all those years ago? This is how. The project doesn't call for much more than large pieces of paper and tape—relying on indirect sunlight for the adequate lighting—but the results are impressive. It is just a small-scale testbed though, so you'll be limited to shooting Lego models, action figures and the like, but what else were you going to shoot anyway?

Snap magazine-style portraits, beautiful macros with a homemade ringlight
Flickr user jedrek has written out a detailed how-to guide for converting your external flash into a ringlighting rig, mostly using kitchen wares. If you've never heard of ringlighting, have a look at this. The technique is usually reserved for professional photographers, because real ringflashes are comically expensive. This one costs a few bucks.

Foam-fit an old bag to hold your gear
If you're packing a DSLR with lenses and accessories, carrying a full-fledged camera bag is usually ideal, but they're expensive and tend to draw attention to your cargo. With some foam, cardboard and a ratty old military-surplus bag, you can put together a stylish, stealthy and highly-functional camera bag that won't make you feel like a snap-happy father of four.

Top image of proto-pro-photo-hobo Miroslav Tichy.

Dealzmodo Hacks are intended to help you sustain your crippling gadget addiction through tighter times. If you come across any on your own that are particularly useful, send it to our tips line (Subject: Dealzmodo Hack). Check back every other Thursday for free DIY tricks to breathe new life into hardware that you already own.

All you need is a Fiat car with Microsoft's Blue&Me System, an onboard computer that's currently offered in some Fiats, Alfa Romeos and Ford cars. Download the Eco Drive software from the internet, load it onto any USB drive and plug it into the auto PC's port. The program will then measure your fuel consumption, speed, breaking style, and gear shifts to determine ways you can drive better. In case you don't have a Fiat car, but still want some tips to keep in mind, they have a couple on their website. [Cnet]

•Keep in mind that "we see first with our animal selves and then with our acculturated minds." In "bottom- up" seeing we may scan around an image before settling in on the main subject.

•After our animal selves are satisfied, the eye is naturally attracted to areas that generate a conditioned response—like an image involving beauty or sex or something unexpected (see above). This is called "top-down" seeing.

•The goal for any photographer is to appeal to both bottom-up and top-down ways of seeing. However, it may be beneficial to think primitively. In other words, skew towards bottom-up seeing because if the image lacks an instinctual stimulus, it may be difficult for the average viewer to fully comprehend.

•If you want to draw the eye to non-human aspects of an image, leave out (or obscure) faces. Humans tend to search for emotional significance in a face right off the bat.

•Know your eye facts. PopPhoto has presented a list of quick fun facts about the eye that can help you take better photographs. Among these tidbits of information we learn that you should avoid scenes with bright "pupil-contracting lights," taking advantage of the motion parallax can help viewers see in greater depth and if you illuminate from the above left, it will appeal to right-handed individuals. And don't forget that the eye is drawn to faces, lines, and the unexpected—so incorporate these elements wherever you can.

Despite all of this information, it seems that the key to taking good photographs is to shoot first and ask questions later. If you let your own eye guide you without your brain making too big a mess of things, you should be able to create more appealing images. Make sure to check out the PopPhoto article to get the full list of tips. [PopPhoto via NYT Image via Flickr]

Two caveats to this. One, you shouldn't interrupt a backup that's in place, because that results in a corrupt backup. It's fine if you perform another backup right after to make a correct one, but what if you forget and try and restore? It's phone corruption time. Two, using this method means you will not have a phone backup. Yeah, seriously. You won't have anything to restore from, so you'll have to go in naked the next time something's broken with your OS. Now that you know what the risks are, here's how you do it:

This command will change a hidden setting in the iTunes preferences that will force it to skip the backup process.

1. - Quit iTunes.

2. - Open Terminal.app

3. - Copy and paste this in, then hit return:

defaults write com.apple.iTunes DeviceBackupsDisabled -bool true

4. - Open iTunes

5. - Plug in your iPhone (2.0 or 3G) and sync.

It will take a few seconds, assuming you don't have a ton of music or podcasts.

Changing the 'true' in step 3 to 'false' will re-enable the backup feature.

[Zerologic]