Mac users with multiple Finder windows littering your desktop: hold down the Option key when you click on the close button on one to close them all in one shot. This works for any multi-window Mac app (though normally you'd just hit Cmd+Q to quit entirely). Here are a few more things you didn't know you can do on your Mac.

When you absolutely have to commit your presentation notes, interview points, or other words to memory, a Tachistoscope, which rotates images at varying speeds, can be the next best thing to a neural FireWire port. Free Windows utility Swiftscope puts that subliminal power on your desktop. Create a simple text file with the lines you need to know, open it in Swiftscope, and set the background and font colors, the timing of the slide changes, and set the app to full-screen mode for total text immersion. Swiftscope is a free download for Windows XP and Vista, and requires Microsoft .NET 2.0 to run.

The good news? Visual Basic scripting, which took a much-lamented leave from Office 2008 for Macs, is coming back in the next Office release.The bad news? That's probably two or three years away. [via]

The Tombuntu blog points out that the latest Hardy Heron release of Ubuntu Linux doesn't play nice with multi-platform video/DVD converter HandBrake—at least not the version with a nice graphical interface. For those syncing their iPhone or iPod touch with Linux, or just wanting to get the job done, the author runs through using the command-line-controlled HandBrake CLI. There's one very simple command to modify and paste that should work for most systems, with options to scale the quality and add markers. Still want a GUI for this job? Try WinFF, which is also available for Windows.

Google Documents rolls out two features that make collaboration easy, even amongst friends and co-workers that don't have Google accounts. Spreadsheets now have an "Anyone can edit this document without logging in" option in their share tab, turning your document into a wiki that tracks changes in real time and can email you a summary. Also, those who dig the custom input forms can now embed them on any web page, and users who don't like your choices can submit their own answers with a new option. Great tools for those who want to collect opinions and data, but don't want to spend a lot of time setting up the web pages to do so.