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- Cool Websites and Tools [October 20]
- 10 Flickr Groups For Serious Shutterbugs
- Trillian Astra – Is It the Best Instant Messaging Client Now?
- Sublime Text: The Text Editor You’ll Fall In Love With
- How To Enable File Sharing On Vista Without Any Password
- 5 Online Resources To Help You Unclutter & Decorate your Home
- Make Items, Objects Or People Stand Out in Your Photos With Tintii
| Cool Websites and Tools [October 20] Posted: 20 Oct 2009 06:01 PM PDT
(1) IsItNormal? – Website that asks the question – how normal am I? We all have underlying insecurities and burning questions about ourselves that we wouldn't dare ask another soul face to face. So instead of heading to forums, why not use a site that deals specifically with your one question. Read more: IsItNormal? – Find Out How Normal You Really Are
(2) UpperCaseIt – Next time you need to uppercase, lowercase, flip, transform or reverse any of your text, head straight to UpperCaseIt.com. It is an online text manipulation tool where you can enter text, select required option and get it quickly converted. Read more: UpperCaseIt – Uppercase, Lowercase & Reverse Text Online (3) BlindTextGenerator – Handy tool for webdesigners and developers. It generates dummy text for various layout needs and purposes. It includes the popular "Lorem ipsum" text as well as other texts. Read more: BlindTextGenerator – Generate Dummy Text (4) ErrorNow – Online service that allows you to enter any URL and view possible typos that people can make while typing it. This can be quite useful for the owners of popular websites, they can find out possible misspellings for their domain name, and may consider registering some of those names to protect their brand and visitors. Read more: ErrorNow – Shows Domain Typos For Any URL (5) Codepad – Neat service for developers and programmers which allows them to quickly check code online. It is a web based compiler which acts as a pastebin that can execute code and point out the mistakes in it. Read more: Codepad – Quickly Check Your Code Online
These are just half of the websites that we discovered in the last couple of days. If you want us to send you daily round-ups of all cool websites we come across, leave your email here. Or follow us via RSS feed. Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/ Related posts
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| 10 Flickr Groups For Serious Shutterbugs Posted: 20 Oct 2009 03:01 PM PDT
Flickr offers both free and paid subscriptions, and after you open your account and start building your own photostream, you’ll want to sign up for several of the tens of thousands of groups on the popular photo sharing site. The following is a suggested list of the various types of Flickr discussion groups you might consider joining. 1. Your Camera Model Flickr GroupOne of the first groups you should search for and join is one based on the camera you use. Nearly all popular digital 35mm and compact cameras have at least one Flickr group dedicated to it. If you're a Canon user, for example, there's the Canon DSLR User Group. But more specifically there's groups based on different models of Canon cameras, such as the Canon Powershot G9 group with well over 3,000 members. There's groups for Nikon and Kodak camera users, as well as for Sonys and Panasonics.
2. Your Town or CityIf you're the kind of photographer who likes to get out and take photographs, search for a group based on the town or city you live in. If such a group doesn't exist, create one. These Flickr groups can be a great places for discovering nearby shutterbugs, as well public locations for photo shoots. For example there's one group called San Francisco Graffiti with 900 members. This niche groups shares some awesome finds. 3. Black-and-White PhotographyIf you like black-and-white photography, there are hundreds of groups on the subject that not only includes awesome monochromatic photographs, but also great discussions about lighting, post-processing, and film related issues related to black-and-white photography. One such Flickr group has nearly 85,000 members, and it’s name is simply, B&W.
4. iPhoneographyIf you're an iPhone camera shooter, you'll want to join one or more of the growing Flickr groups on this subject. One such group, iPhoneography has over 600 members, while another group, iPhone Camera Shots has well over 2,000 members. There are even smaller groups based on different and popular iPhone camera applications, such the Best Camera app group. There's not a lot of discussion in this group, but they share really awesome photos, and you can share yours as well. 5. Photography TipsBeginning photographers will want to find a newbie Flickr group. One such group is Your Photo Tips and another was created by author/photographer Derrick Story, and it is called The Digital Story Group . Derrick's group, of about 1,000 members, includes discussions about all kinds of camera features, accessories and photography strategies. Digital Photography School is also a group for both beginning and advanced photographers, as well as Amateurs which includes long discussion threads of favorite photos and camera tips.
6. Project 365The best way to build and improve your photography skills is to take photos every day, or as often as you can. There are over 11,000 members of the popular Project 365 group that have or are attempting to complete a photo-per-day project. Even if you don't reach the goal, you'll improve your photography trying to. There are several other smaller and similar project groups that you should also query using the keyword, 365. 7. Strobist.comIf you're wanting to learn about using external flashes and lighting equipment, the must-join group is Strobist.com, started by 20 year-old veteran photographer, David Hobby. The group, with well over 62,000 members, is an outgrowth of his popular blog site of the same name. 8. Nature PhotographyIf nature photography is your hobby, check out this wild nature group of 22,000 members. The discussions are little sparse for a group of that size, but there's lots of great photos of plants, animals, fungi, landscapes and flowers. One popular thread in the group is "the best flower shot." These “best of” topics are common in groups where you simply share your own favorite photos based on a discussion topic.
9. Artistic Photo GroupIf you approach photography from a artistic perspective you might check out a popular and respected group called UTATA: Tribal Photography. Its 17,000+ members are made up of both professionals and serious shutterbugs. It has over 8,000 discussion threads with weekly photo projects for its members. 10. Photoshop Support GroupIf you're serious about photography, you'll no doubt spend lots of time in Photoshop. Flickr's Photoshop Support Group has over 92,000 members, with over 5,000 discussion threads about all aspects of the popular image processing program. When you join a group, look for the typical "introduce yourself" discussion thread and add a few sentences about you as a photographer and why you joined the group. From there, add your own photos to the group, being careful to follow the posting rules of the groups. If none of the above groups interest you, you might want to check out what Flickr staff members suggest. Each time you reload the Groups page you’ll get a list of three or four suggested groups. While writing this article and checking the Groups page, for example, a group called Cloudporn popped up. What a great idea. I love taking photos of clouds, so I immediately joined. There's currently no discussions in this group, but its 5,000+ members are sharing some great images of spectacular cloud formations and lighting. This list of groups is mainly based on my five years of being a Flickr member, and thus it’s partially subjective. So what groups do you suggest be on the list? Please include a URL to the group and maybe a line or two about why you think the group is worth joining. Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on Twitter ? Now you can follow MakeUseOf on Twitter too. Related posts
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| Trillian Astra – Is It the Best Instant Messaging Client Now? Posted: 20 Oct 2009 01:01 PM PDT
But that's just first impressions. To make that tall claim stick, I need to go deeper into the new Trillian and take it around the block a few times. A multi-protocol chat client will be judged by the services it supports. Using Trillian Astra you can connect to manage – Google, MySpace IM, Skype, AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo, and IRC. With that you get support for POP3 and IMAP email lookup for your email accounts with a single click logon. RSS feed updates add to the keeping track features of the multi-chat client. But the thick icing on the cake is that that the latest version has sunk its fangs into Facebook and Twitter. Two places where we are doing most of our social schmoozing these days. With the whole cluster of features, where do I start? Let's start at the beginning.
Quick and easy InstallSometimes the way a software installs itself says a lot about the work that has been put into the program. Trillian doesn't disappoint. The 14.6MB download is all in one go. The installer gives you the option of installing a bundled Ask.com toolbar. Uncheck to say no (if you want) and continue. The first active step involves the registration of a new Astra account. It's the first part of a three step process –
To configure the IM and web services, you have to put checks against the services you want to include followed by their log-in details.
That's more or less it…Trillian Astra launches in all of its thematic glory. The look does draw a ‘wow’.
I guess for now only Digsby comes close to the sleek skinnable interface of Trillian (are you looking at the Trillian Cordonata skin?). The interface can be designed on two default skins – the ultra modern one I mentioned and the other more sober and lighter Cobalt. Skins can be changed to different colors and without a restart. Support for Windows Vista Glass and Windows 7 effects is provided. Custom windows (like a new contact list) with a new look can also be done. Trillian comes with a huge emoticon pack and more can be added. Emoticons and other objects are also arranged around compatibility with Yahoo and MSN. There are two versions…is the free version a poor cousin?Just when you are starting to enjoy the goodies, you see the notice that the installed Pro features will go away after 29 days. The truth is the Pro version offers some extras but it does not in any way take away from the standalone appeal of the free version. The differences in brief can be glimpsed in this screenshot taken from the site –
Trillian Astra (Free) still offers a very rich set of features…most of us which I am sure the avid chatter would find more than adequate. Trillian Astra and features galore (400+ actually!)
I don't think you are expecting me to discuss all the 400 plus features here. Especially when, the full features page does a neat job if listing them very systematically. You can sort the features by type or alphabetically. More importantly, you can filter the features by – All, Show Premium Features Only, or Show New or Better Only. All premium features on the page and in the software Preferences settings are marked out by a little gear icon. Also check out the page detailing all the screenshots for the chat client. What's really great about Trillian AstraStraight out, I would say the support for Facebook and Twitter. These two are the cool places to hang out these days and Trillian does a great job at integrating then within all the chat services. For Facebook – you get notification alerts with any new message, Facebook contacts become a part of your Trillian contact list and you can have real time chat conversations with them. Trillian also lets you update your status and access all Facebook feeds instantly.
For Twitter – follow and respond to tweets from Trillian. Re-tweet and follow Tweeter trends directly from your contact list. The TinyURL shortening service is an automatic service too. Put someone in your ignore list if they are Tweeting too much.
We shouldn't forget Skype. Trillian doesn't substitute Skype but becomes an integrated interface for Skype, if you have it installed. It includes your Skype contacts and receives incoming Skype calls through its own notification system. Thus, it acts like a call assistant to Skype.
Basic video support has been brought into Trillian. Though it's not full screen view in the free version, you get what Trillian calls the Movie View. The window dims when a call begins and text feeds in just like onscreen subtitles. A lot of widgets also add entertainment value (Flickr, Videogame console, My Sport etc) and functional help (World Time Clock, Business Card, Weather etc). The full features page is worth a dekko. You are sure to find a host of other features to like. Does it connect and deliver?The feature set is in place and as far as first impressions go, Trillian seems light on its feet. It's fast to start up and doesn't seem to hog much of memory. Trillian says a lot of memory and bandwidth improvements have gone into the latest version. For now, I believe them because it does feel slick. The only con could be that the bundle of features might be a bit too complex for a section of users. And like all multi-protocol services, how nimble would Trillian be when updates start rolling in. Trillian Astra (ver.4) is supported on Windows XP, Vista and 7. (The Mac OS X and iPhone versions are in the works.) So is Trillian Astra the best multi-protocol instant messaging client yet? My own vote is theirs…what about yours? Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on Twitter ? Now you can follow MakeUseOf on Twitter too. Related posts
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| Sublime Text: The Text Editor You’ll Fall In Love With Posted: 20 Oct 2009 11:01 AM PDT
Amongst all those experiences, few managed to really blow my socks off. This one did. To be quite honest, this application doesn’t fit in under freeware, nor any of the open source categories – but we’ll get back on that later on in the article. Sublime TextFor those of you who have come into contact with Notepad++, this application should look mighty familar. Rightly so, because Sublime Text is – in the first place – a text editor for code and other programming wizardry. Nevertheless, if you want a calm, undistracting place to jot down your words, data and prose alike, you won’t find anything more Zen than this text editor. A spell checker is integrated, but for more extensive, picture embedding and style embracing papers I still advise you to use Open Office or Microsoft Office. By the way, have I mentioned that it looks absolutely breathtaking?
Most programmers will find anything they need to be bundled into the application. There’s standard syntax highlighting for nearly all popular languages, including C, C++, C#, CSS, D, Erlang, HTML, Groovy, Haskell, HTML, Java, JavaScript, LaTeX, Lisp, Lua, Markdown, Matlab, OCaml, Perl, PHP, Python, R, Ruby, SQL, TCL, Textile and XML. Plan to be writing in plain text? There are several color schemes available that are easy on the eye. This is all pretty standard stuff, and (apart from the slick looks) can also be seen in other code editors like the previously mentioned Notepad++. It is the additional features that turns Sublime Text into a must have application. For a complete functionality overview, check the Sublime Text feature page. Below are a few of the features I liked best. MiniMapIf you’re often working with extremely large documents (and we all know both programmers and writers do), you should know how big a pain it can be to navigate. The numbering of lines can be a help, but you’re often still messing around with that excruciatingly tiny scrollbar.
Located in a side panel, utterly left on the screen, Sublime Text offers a MiniMap. The concept is very simple – it’s like having Google Maps embedded in your text editor, your entire document from a birds eye view with the fluorescent square indicating the visible portion of text. To navigate, just grab the square and pull it to wherever you want. When working with even larger documents, your birds eye document view will scroll underneath the square as well, keeping it accessible towards infinity. Nifty. Multiple DocumentsIncredibly useful, both for programming and writing with references, are Sublime Text’s split screen modes. I purchased a second monitor to get this functionality, Sublime Text spares you the trouble.
You can easily open multiple documents in the text editor, not only in different tabs, but side by side. There are a total of five alternative screen layouts, allowing you to stack up to four documents next, or below, each other. Freeware, Trialware – Whatware?
However, there doesn’t seem to be a time restriction on the trial. In other words, you can use the trial as long as you like, without any inconvenience or even stripped functionality. You could consider it as a very peculiar kind of freeware. That aside, I must admit that the developers of Sublime Text did one hell of a job. If you can spare the money, and thereby support the people that made this possible, I urge you to do so. Licenses can be used on as many machines as you want, and you’ll automatically receive licenses to all future upgrades. What text editor do you currently use? Don’t be shy, tell us in the comments below! Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/ Related posts
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| How To Enable File Sharing On Vista Without Any Password Posted: 20 Oct 2009 09:01 AM PDT
So hopefully this tutorial will allow you to share files and folders to other computers on your network without a password. This tutorial is assuming that you do not have or use any type of user account password on your computer. Since we will not be using a password to share our files and folders, other network users will be able to access, read or modify the contents of the files you choose to share. Only do this if you trust all computers and users that have access to your network. The first thing to do to enable this kind of file sharing on Vista is to head over to the Network and Sharing Center. To do this, go to 'Control Panel\Network and Internet\Network and Sharing Center' (you can simply paste this into a folder URL bar).
This simply means that any files and folders in the Public account on your computer will be accessible. If you only want to share certain files with all networked users, this is simply your easiest option to choose. However, if you want to share certain folders on your computer, continue reading. The next thing is to ensure you select 'Turn off password protected sharing'. When I was testing this setting, when I had Password Protected Sharing on, I could not access my computer on another computer. When I had it set to Off, I could. With the above settings set, you may already be able to access shared files on other computers. If you can't, or you want to share individual folders, keep reading. There is a folder on my hard drive that I want all users of my home network to be able to access. To share this folder, simply right click and choose Share.
If you do not see something similar to this, you must have 'Use Sharing Wizard' disabled. To enable it, type in 'Folder Options' in the Start Menu search bar, select view and tick Use Sharing Wizard.
Now to share files with every computer on the network without a password, you have to add Everyone to be allowed access to the folder. So what you have to do is type the word 'Everyone' in the text bar and click add. Click on the Permission Level and choose Co-owner, then click share. Everyone on the network should now be able to access and change files in that folder. If you only want to allow read access, simply choose 'Reader'. If Sharing Wizard is switched off, pretty much follow the same principles. Right click on folder you want to share, and choose Share. Then click on Advance Sharing, then click on Permission, Click on Add, type in Everyone and click OK. Then set the appropriate access controls, and click OK to all the open dialog boxes.
You should now be able to access the folders on network computers without using a password. But remember, not using a password enables all networked computers to access your files, so be careful about the files you share. If you are still having problems with file sharing on Vista, make sure you ask for help in the comments. Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on Twitter ? Now you can follow MakeUseOf on Twitter too. Related posts
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| 5 Online Resources To Help You Unclutter & Decorate your Home Posted: 20 Oct 2009 07:01 AM PDT
If not, help is underway. How about surprising friends and family with a freshly overhauled apartment? I’m sure it’s something they didn’t quite expect when they invited themselves. Uncluttering and nicely reworking your home and patio decor is also one of the best gifts you can make to yourself. After all, your work and your home are the places where you spent most of your lifetime. Why not make at least one of these places worthwhile? 1. Unclutterer
One of the best categories to look for hands on advice is Ask Unclutterer. For those that are fairly organized already, Unclutterer provides tons of helpful Tips to be prepared for the unexpected. Also check out Weekend Projects for tips on how to address small clutter spots. My recent favorite was categorized into Home Organization and Parties and Celebrations. The article recommends to create a party pantry for spontaneous get togethers and provides a list of items to consider.
2. Instructables – Home Decorating
Check out the home category for more great home and patio decor ideas from the incredibly creative user base of Instructables. Here is one of my favorite examples: Invisible Book ShelfIf you’re short on shelf space and have book clutter all over your place, go ahead and create some ultra unique magic shelves yourself.
3. About.com – Interior Decorating
Your first stop should be the Decorating 101 guide, which thoroughly introduces you to the ideas and principles of decoration, design, and style.
A great resource for practical advice is the HowTos Index. Articles include “How To Plan Your Christmas Party Decor”, How To Find a Focal Point in a Room or How To Quick Clean Any Room in the House. The Holidays & Seasons section contains plenty of inspiration and material for your seasonal home decoration projects. Halloween is almost here and isn’t it time to Countdown to a Perfect Thanksgiving, yet? 4. Rental Decorating Digest
That’s where Rental Decorating Digest comes in. All tips and guides are compatible with rented space. Below is an overview of the available categories.
One of my favorites is Budget Decorating. Even if you don’t have a lot of money to spend, there is a ton of things you can do to spruce up your home. 5. DoItYourself – Home Improvement and Repair How-To Information
For general tidying up and uncluttering, the Organizing Your Home and Cleaning and Stain Removal categories are a good start. The site has a separate category for Holidays and Celebrations, which contains an extensive list of articles, including home and patio decor ideas for Halloween Planning, Thanksgiving and Autumn Decorating, Christmas Preparation and Planning, and Christmas Decorating. For more advice on cleaning, check out my article Cleaning and Stain Removal for Bachelors. How do you go about uncluttering, cleaning and decorating your home? Helpful advice is always appreciated, the comments are open! Image credits: barunpatrol Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on Twitter ? Now you can follow MakeUseOf on Twitter too. Related posts
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| Make Items, Objects Or People Stand Out in Your Photos With Tintii Posted: 20 Oct 2009 05:01 AM PDT
Have you ever seen an image with only one portion or one object in color and everything else is in black and white? That is the effect we are going for here – to make an item, object or person stand out by black and whiting (is that a real phrase?) the rest of the image. You can see a good example of what I am talking about in the shot below or in the article's header graphic above:
The girl and her clothes are in color and everything else is not. What do your eyes fixate on?
Tintii is offered as a plugin for Photoshop and Corel's Photo application but it does also come with a standalone application to make your color manipulation a little easier (and free for those of us who cannot afford Photoshop!) Download and install the correct version for your PC, Mac or Linux box as you can see below:
Then select what you want to install:
The first object is un-uncheckable as it is the main application and the standalone application we are covering. The plugins for Photoshop and Corel Paint Shop Pro are able to be unchecked. When the application is fully installed, launch it from your start menu and you will see this screen:
From this screen you can open your image by hitting the open button on the top left hand portion of the screen. I choose a picture of me lying out in Aruba (before the baby). It takes me back to a calmer much more relaxing time…
The above shot is using the defaults just opening the image, Next up I will select each of the four images on the left side. They each activate another color or layer in your image. Click them and check it out. Here is the first item selected:
You can see I hit the greenish yellow button on the top and that activated the grass behind me. You can either uncheck the item after you use it or combine multiple effects. I will run through each of them unselecting the last.
The dark blue icon is selected and just my dark blue swim trunks are colorized.
The light blue icon activates the light blue color of the beach chair's cushions. You can see it activates the chair I am sitting on and the one to my left. It activates anything the same color.
That last icon makes my tanned body show up. This looks very cool with me colored and everything else being in black and white.
Here I selected the grass and both blues together effectively coloring everything except for my body. Now if these options are not enough for you feel free to tweak and tinker with the slides on the left. If you figure out how to use them effectively leave us a comment below. If you get the itch to register and install the plugins let us know how that goes as well! Do you know of any other similar apps that achieve the same thing? Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section! New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/ Related posts
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If you’re a serious shutterbug, there are few places on the Internet better than 
In my not-extraordinary-long lifetime, I’ve already worked with a reasonable number of text editors; ClarisWorks, Word 2003 through 2010, 
I mentioned it already at the top of this article – this application doesn’t fit in under freeware, or open source – so under what license does it operate? Technically, Sublime Text is trialware. The free version is to get a feel and get you warmed up for the big purchase of 59 USD.
If you use Windows Vista, you may notice that sharing files within your home network may be a little difficult. You get all these sorts of errors saying 'Access Denied' or 'You don't have the correct permission' and your thinking why? How hard is it to share a simple folder?
It’s the season again. One holiday haunts the next. It’s cold outside. Parties move from the lovely park into people’s interesting interiors. Are you prepared to welcome people into your home?
If most surfaces in your house, i.e. tables, cabinets or floors, are covered with stuff, chances are you have a clutter issue. Unclutterer can help you clear the mess.
This is probably the most comprehensive source for do-it-yourself instructions for anything you can imagine, including cheap and easy home decoration.
About.com provides an endless wealth of knowledge. If you want to learn about interior decorating, this is the right place to start.
Most of us don’t live in our very own house or apartment. The majority of people rent and there is only so much you can do in a rented apartment.
If you own a home, there is a lot you have to take care of. But you also have endless freedom. DoItYourself provides the necessary resources to make your design dreams a reality.
If you are into digital pictures this will be right up your alley.
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