Readers offer their best tips for shoveling snow effectively, blocking social media content on other pages, and keeping your luggage safe (without expensive locks).
Don't like the gallery layout? Click here to view everything on one page.
About the Tips Box: Every day we receive boatloads of great reader tips in our inbox, but for various reasons—maybe they're a bit too niche, maybe we couldn't find a good way to present it, or maybe we just couldn't fit it in—the tip didn't make the front page. From the Tips Box is where we round up some of our favorites for your buffet-style consumption. Got a tip of your own to share? Add it in the comments, share it here, or email it to tips at lifehacker.com.
Use a Grain Shovel to Clear Driveway Snow
Andy lets us know of a better shovel than those specifically made for snow:
Where I live it is hilly and when the snow hits our city road crew doesn't make it to the secondary roads to clear them. After years of struggling with a typical snow shovel I saw the perfect solution in our local feed store:
a grain shovel.They have a large broad blade with a sharp end. The handle is large and sturdy and most have a handle at the end. Usually I use it like a small snowplow just pushing the snow and slush. The handle makes it easy to actually shovel and toss the snow.
Snow sticking to it? A little pan spray cures that.
Just watch your back, don't overdo, and hydrate with your favorite beverage when you are done.
Block Social Media Content with a New AdBlock Filter
The-soup points us to a new filter in AdBlock's preferences:
With Adblock and filters, you can block social integration. Go to this page, scroll down to the "Miscellaneous" section and subscribe to the "Antisocial" filter.
While you're there, there's also a Rickroll blacklist, for those who get Rickrolled too much.
We've featured a few ways to do this, and they still offer more customization, but those looking for a one-click solution will find this helpful.
Use Zip Ties to Lock Up Luggage
Photo by Betsy Weber.
KamWrex tells us how to lock your luggage without getting expensive locks cut by TSA:
Ever flown and locked your luggage only to land and see that your lock was cut off?
Instead of using locks try using zip ties. It's a quick way to secure your checked baggage from being opened by random people and if your bags get searched losing a few zip ties won't put a damper on your day. You can also keep a few zip ties in your carry on for the return trip. An added layer of protection is to buy neon-colored ties so you can tell if they were replaced since they aren't that common.
Seek Out Professors for Temporary Textbook Loans
Photo by Wohnai.
Aemon shares another example of where "just asking" works wonders:
For courses, particularly upper level courses that you think you may not want to keep, or perhaps don't own/want to buy the expensive new edition, try talking to the secretaries in that department or one of the professors in the department (not the one you're taking the class with usually, as they generally have one and need it for the course) assuming you know them well and asking if you can borrow the book for the semester, generally one of them will have the book and they're pretty good about lending to students if you ask (especially if it's a small department, like physics or math), and they think you're trustworthy, at any rate it never hurts to ask.