TREND NOW

create Trending Topics

Found 50 trending topics

Showing 22 - 42 of 50 topics about create

Create A Freaky Possessed Computer With Windows Script For Halloween

Create A Freaky Possessed Computer With Windows Script For Halloween

Create A Freaky Possessed Computer With Windows Script For Halloween <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create A Freaky Possessed Computer With Windows Script For Halloween</h1> There are a lot of fun pranks you can play on your friends with a computer. You've probably seen all of those creepy YouTube videos that people forward to each other for a good scare. Not long ago, Justin covered a few really funny ways to prank your parents with a computer too. All of those ideas are fun, but this year, how about creeping out your friends a bit with your very own programming skill? There are a lot of fun pranks you can play on your friends with a computer. You've probably seen all of those creepy that people forward to each other for a good scare. Not long ago, Justin covered a few really funny ways to with a computer too. All of those ideas are fun, but this year, how about creeping out your friends a bit with your very own programming skill? In this article, I'm going to show you how you can create your own little Windows script that will run on just about any modern Windows computer. All you have to do is open up Notepad, type up this script, save it as a .wsf file and then have your friends open up the file. The script will automatically open up Notepad and then start typing - complete with typewriter sound effects - just like the computer itself is possessed by a typing ghost. The real beauty of this little script is how creative you are with launching it. Insert it into the computer's startup folder so it launches when the computer starts, or replace one of their favorite desktop shortcuts to link to your file instead of their application! <h2> Scripting A Possessed Typing Computer</h2> The idea for this came from an experience at college, when I walked past a professor's office and saw that he had an old DOS computer that was typing all by itself. He was a Computer Science professor, and he'd clearly written a DOS program that could type all by itself, complete with sound effects, pauses and everything. Very authentic. In this article, you're going to do the same thing, just with Windows and using VB Script to accomplish the job. I'll walk you through the process. First step - download a typewriter WAV file from any of your favorite . Preferably download one that lasts from 30 seconds to a minute, depending on how much text you want your phantom app to type on the screen by itself. Save the file to c:/windows/Media/ with the rest of the Windows sound files so it'll be easy to find later. Next, open up a text file and save it as a .wsf file. In my case I called it "phantomtype.wsf". Declare all of the required variables, set up your text file link and then type the text that you want your typing ghost app to type on the screen. &nbsp; &lt;job&gt; &lt;script language="VBScript"&gt; Option Explicit On Error Resume Next Dim NoteShell Dim SoundShell Dim strText Dim intTextLen Dim x Dim intPause Dim strTempText strSoundFile = "C:\Windows\Media\typewriter1.wav" strText = "Hello. My name is Ryan. I have possessed your computer and there is nothing you can do about it. Of course, I suppose you can always close the window if you want to, but that wouldn't be any fun!" &nbsp; Pretty simple so far right? The two "Shell" variables are basically the shell commands that are going to launch Notepad and your sound file. The phantom typing will come from your script sending keystrokes to the Notepad app behind the scenes. Accomplishing that is easy - you just use "CreateObject" to set up your two application objects, and then launch each app, waiting a tiny bit between each launch. &nbsp; Set NoteShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell") Set SoundShell = CreateObject("Wscript.Shell") NoteShell.Run "notepad" WScript.Sleep 1000 SoundShell.Run "C:\Windows\Media\typewriter1.wav", 0, True WScript.Sleep 500 Now, the victim will see Notepad pop up on the screen, and after a second, the typewriter typing sound will start. At that moment, you will start sending ghostly text to the screen, just like someone is sitting there typing. Here's how that part works. &nbsp; intTextLen = Len(strText) intPause = 100 For x = 1 to intTextLen strTempText = Mid(strText,x,1) NoteShell.SendKeys strTempText WScript.Sleep intPause If intPause &lt;= 500 Then intPause = intPause + 100 Else intPause = 100 End If Next This may look complicated, but don't worry, it's not at all. The first line checks the length of the long string of text that you typed up at the start of this program. That's the text that you want to magically appear - one letter at a time - on the screen. The next line creates a starting pause (a tenth of a second) between each typed letter. The For loop that you see below that basically starts at position 1, extracts a single letter from your text, sends that letter to Notepad, and then waits a little bit before moving forward to the next letter in your text. Pretty cool huh? And to keep things authentic, the little "IF" statement keeps adding and subtracting pause time between typed letters to make the whole thing look really authentic, like someone is sitting right there typing. Now close up the script. WScript.Quit &lt;/script&gt; &lt;/job&gt; Save the file again - making sure you've got the "wsf" extension - and you're done. Double click the file and check out your haunted computer! Here's my script in action (I wish you could hear the typing sounds, it's a riot!) Like most programs, it could use a little perfecting if you're up to it. The sound file needs to match the amount of time it takes for the typing to finish. Or, you could loop both the typing and the sound, but you'll need to come up with a way to let the person close the typing ghost application. If you don't, the "sendkeys" will just continue typing no matter what window they open...which, is actually a pretty funny virus-like behavior, but not something that I would recommend you do to your friends. So give this creepy little script a try and let us know what your friends thought about it. Did you come up with any other ways to perfect it? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. Image Credit : <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Webpages Five Times Faster Using the Bluefish Editor Cross Platform

Create Webpages Five Times Faster Using the Bluefish Editor Cross Platform

Create Webpages Five Times Faster Using the Bluefish Editor [Cross-Platform] <h1>MUO</h1> Websites are now powered by blog platforms like WordPress, or WYSIWYG editors like Kompozer, but the bottom line is that most hardcore web designers will always find it necessary to pop open a text editor to tweak the style a little bit here, or to realign the template a bit more there. I think that text editors are going to be around for a very long time. Although it has been decades since the first web designer opened up a text editor to create the very first HTML document, the tools of the trade haven't really changed a whole lot. Sure, websites are now powered by blog platforms like WordPress, or WYSIWYG editors like Kompozer, but the bottom line is that most hard core web designers will always find it necessary to pop open a text editor to tweak the style a little bit here, or to realign the template a bit more there. I think that text editors are going to be around in the world of web design for a very long time, at least for those web programmers that are always neck-deep into improving and optimizing professional websites. So, it stands to reason that text editing tools would evolve that are more powerful and smarter; Tools created specifically for the needs of those hard-core web designers and web programmers. <h2> Bluefish - The Text Editor for Programmers</h2> For years, I was very adamant about sticking with Notepad, no matter what everyone else started using. In my opinion, WYSIWYG editors just padding way too much garbage into the code (particularly MS Word's silly save-as-HTML feature). I was very tempted to try Notepad++ when I first heard about it. Then, after reading Simon's article on , I was tempted yet again. I've always been hesitant to jump on any bandwagon until a good, solid winner takes root. This year, I have to confess that I've finally found a code editor that I can't resist - it's called . When you first setup Bluefish, you'll see the first reason I like it so much - it is designed to handle a huge assortment of programming languages, from straight HTML and PHP to Java, VB and even ASP. The kind of flexibility is a nice thing to have in a code editor, especially if you often have your hands into many different programming languages. And Bluefish does programming well. But before we get to that, I wanted to just show you how cool this program looks. Up to this point I haven't found a coder's editor with this kind of aesthetic coolness on the front end - with the most important, easy-to-find tools and tabs right at your fingertips on the main screen, depending what code you're focused on at the moment. As you can see, file navigation is right there on the left - no need to flip back and forth between Windows Explorer and your editor. Do all of your file exploring from right within the application itself. That includes all of the usual things you can do with a file explorer, like moving or renaming folders and files. When you launch a new document from the file menu, if you choose template you'll see that Bluefish has a few pre-built program templates available. This is especially useful if you write a lot of web pages, for example, and don't want to recreate the same generic XHTML or PHP structure. Instead, just launch Bluefish's template and you can immediately get into creating the content. The pic below is the standard HTML template with the header, title and body tags pre-built for you. As you can see, lines are numbered, and while you're typing the application has a feature where it will auto-complete tags for you. As you can see in the menu bar, there are also pre-built code snippets available under each program language. For example, HTML has standard code for web forms, and PHP has standard code snippets for how to connect to an ODBC or MySQL database. This can save a lot of time if you're the kind of person (like me) that often forgets the exact syntax to do some of the most basic things. To complete the code snippet for you, the program will ask you for the details. In the case of making database connections, it'll ask you for the data source and the login details. Then it'll basically write the code for you. The same is true for a whole list of HTML tasks - making this app a web designers dream. You can code the same web page in half the time using Bluefish. Just tap the element that you want, provide the dialog box with a few details, and the code gets typed up and inserted for you. It isn't WYSIWYG, but in my opinion it's ten times better. You know what you want to do in the code, you just don't have time to keep checking your reference book for the right syntax - so Bluefish lets you cut the headache. More programming aids are available from the top menu as well. If you have an HTML file open, click the "Tags" menu and you'll see dozens of quick code functions available to choose from. Create a web form with a fraction of the effort. As though the programming aids and tools weren't enough, don't forget to check out the "Tools" menu where you'll find the ability to organize your code by joining/splitting lines, indenting, or using a filter to strip all empty lines from your code. At the bottom of the main window, you'll also find an output variable area for coding in languages like PHP or C++, useful to see whether your code is really doing what you want it to do. I think it's safe to say that Bluefish has won over my heart when it comes to "intelligent coding" rather than just hacking away in Notepad. So, give Bluefish a try and let us know whether it simplified your programming experience at all. what do you like about it? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Step By Step Instructional Documents With Screenshots Annotations Using Clarify Mac

Create Step By Step Instructional Documents With Screenshots Annotations Using Clarify Mac

Create Step-By-Step Instructional Documents With Screenshots & Annotations Using Clarify [Mac] <h1>MUO</h1> There will never be a shortage of screen capturing applications, but Blue Mango has produced an app that stands out amongst the rest. Similar to its flagship professional application ScreenSteps, it has released the beta version of an application called Clarify, for when you want to produce step-by-step instructional documents. Next to text editing applications, screen capturing programs are de rigueur for us writers here at MakeUseOf - as you can easily see from reading any of our articles. I have tried and used numerous screenshot tools, from Apple's default Grab app to popular third-party programs like , and the recently reviewed . I typically use at least three different screenshot programs on a regular basis, each including unique features for the type of shots I need to get. There will never be a shortage of these type of applications, but Blue Mango has produced an app that stands out amongst the rest. Similar to its flagship professional application , it has released the beta version of an application called . Clarify is for when you want to produce step-by-step instructional documents that include screenshots and annotations for quick online sharing. <h2> Clarify s Purpose</h2> Advanced screenshot applications like Jing and Skitch include annotation tools which can be applied after a screenshot is taken. You can see how such tools are used in the screenshot below. Clarify also includes annotation tools, but it goes a step further. If you are a writer, developer, on-site computer technician, or the go-to tech person in your family who needs to provide step-by-step instructions for using a piece of software, or to explain a complex website, Clarify helps you develop and communicate your instructions easily and clearly. <h2> Main Features</h2> Clarify is both a screenshot program and a text editor. You create your documents within the application, and then export them via e-mail, PDF, or your free online Clarify account. You start a new topic or subject in Clarify, provide a brief description, and then add a series of screenshots which will help communicate what you're trying to explain. Similar to other screenshot tools, Clarify provides three different ways to initiate a screenshot. The most common method is to use the default keyboard shortcut (which can be changed in its Preferences) or click the camera icon in the toolbar. You can also access Clarify from your menu bar, which includes options for delayed screen capture and the ability to automatically upload screenshots to your Clarify account. In terms of screen capture tools, Jing and Clarify mirror one another. However, if you try to capture say a dropdown menu item, Clarify will automatically hide that action, which means you can can't capture it. That is one of reasons why I use Jing. The shot below could not be taken with Clarify; I had to use Jing. <h2> Annotation Tools</h2> Each time you make a screenshot using Clarify, the image file automatically gets added and displayed in your document, saving you the necessary steps of dragging it from your desktop. So essentially, each step in your document can be represented by a corresponding screenshot. The annotation tools in Clarify include shapes and arrows, and text boxes. The annotation toolbar includes features for changing the font style and colors of annotations. Clarify also has a Number Sequence tool that enables you to quickly add bulleted numbers to screenshots in your document. This is ten times faster than creating them in applications like Word. Another cool related feature is the ability to add a "Create Lists From Sequence" that you can add in the text part of your document, again another useful timesaver. Annotations, screenshots, and entire steps can be moved around, replaced, or cut even after the document is saved. <h2> Exporting Documents</h2> While you could use Clarify to create a multi-page document or guide, the program is geared more towards quickly sharing your instructions via e-mail, Twitter, or anywhere else online. You can also export documents as PDFs. Clarify contains nearly all of the basic features of the more professional program, ScreenSteps, except Clarify cannot export documents to Word or blog sites. Not everyone needs an advanced screen capture program like Clarify, but if you communicate how-to instructions on a regular basis, you will find this program to be a huge timesaver. The beta version of Clarify is currently free and available for download for Mac OS X Snow Leopard and Lion. Give it a try, and let us and the developers know what you think. <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Stunning Panoramic Images With Pano Android

Create Stunning Panoramic Images With Pano Android

Create Stunning Panoramic Images With Pano Android <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create Stunning Panoramic Images With Pano Android </h1> Today we’re going to be looking at Pano, a camera app that currently goes for $2 on the Android Market. Pano has no built-in effects; it doesn’t have advanced shutter controls or a built-in timer. It doesn’t do Lomo, and you can’t say "cheese" to have it take a picture. It does just one thing, but something no other camera app I reviewed so far can do - it helps you take large, beautiful panoramic images. Today we’re going to be looking at Pano [No Longer Available], a camera app that currently goes for $2 on the Android Market. Pano has no built-in effects; it doesn’t have advanced shutter controls or a built-in timer. It doesn’t do Lomo, and you can’t say "cheese" to have it take a picture. It does just one thing, but something no other camera app I reviewed so far can do - it helps you take large, beautiful panoramic images. <h2> How Pano Works</h2> If you have a point-and-shoot camera with a panorama mode, Pano will probably feel familiar. The app guides you through taking a series of pictures - you take the first shot, and then Pano takes a bit of its right edge, and shows it on the left side of the screen, semi-transparent. This sounds complex, so here’s a screenshot: The strip you see on the left was on the right of the original image I took. The black part in the screenshot contains the "live view" from the camera (can’t really make screenshots of the live view in most camera apps). You then gently rotate the phone to line up the image you’ve already taken with the new image – jut try to overlay them one on top of the other, as best as you can. Then tap the shutter button. Lather, rinse, repeat. The direction, by the way, is always left-to-right. If you mess up, you can always tap Undo. <h2> Making The Final Image</h2> Once you’re done taking your screenshots, tap the inviting-looking checkmark button, and Pano will set to work crunching your data and making it into a (hopefully) breathtaking vista of natural beauty and awe. This actually takes a few moments, especially if your panorama contains five or six images. <h2> Pitfalls</h2> Pano works best for taking scenic images of distant views. Here’s what happened when I tried making a panorama of my workspace: I do have two 24” monitors, but I can assure you the one on the right does not look that warped in real life. On the other hand, here’s what Pano created when I tested it with the view out of my balcony: In fact, this screenshot doesn’t the the panorama justice. Here’s the panorama image in full width. You get extra-creepy points if you use it to figure out where I live. For something that came out of a smartphone, this is very impressive. That is not to say it’s perfect; obviously the shot was handheld, and I was unable to match each image perfectly to the previous one. This results in artifacts like this one: See that blurry-looking satellite dish in the middle? The one that looks like it has a halo. That’s what happens when Pano can’t stitch the images perfectly together. But other than that artifact, the full-scale version of the image doesn’t show any other noticeable defects. I wouldn’t necessarily make a poster out of it, but it does give a very good sense of what this particular view looks like (scary, and with lots of cranes, yes). One last thing you should know is that Pano doesn’t export full-resolution images. My panorama was 645px tall, and the phone is capable of taking images that are at least 1400px tall (more than twice as much). <h2> Bottom Line</h2> Pano is not just another camera app. It is very task-specific, and it does what it say on the tin. If you want to preserve a beautiful view, Pano provides one great way to do so. Let us know if you prefer another Android camera app for taking your panoramic views. <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create A Standard Background Image For Your YouTube User Page With Photoshop

Create A Standard Background Image For Your YouTube User Page With Photoshop

Create A Standard Background Image For Your YouTube User Page With Photoshop <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create A Standard Background Image For Your YouTube User Page With Photoshop</h1> Basic graphic design tutorials are all pretty universal whether you are using , the , or even Pixelmator. For instance, the ability to adapt to your image editor is going to be very flexible in this particular tutorial on YouTube, so aspiring graphic designers, have no fear if you do not own a full-blown image editor. In this article, you will learn how to create a standard channel background. Granted, your image editor should have layering capabilities in order to be compatible with the tutorial (so don't use ), and it really is what you make it. Creativity isn't included, so make sure to bring your own. <h2> Preparing The Canvas</h2> It doesn't really matter if you have updated to the Cosmic Panda YouTube interface or if you have just stuck with the original. This background should work with whatever you are using, but if you find something wrong with it, then just crop and alter as you see fit. I will be using for this tutorial, but like I said, you should be able to follow along, and I will try to write as generally as possible. First, you should open up a new file with dimensions that have a width of 1800 pixels and a height of 1298 pixels. This will serve as your main background, so if you plan on adding any artwork to this layer, then you will end up only seeing part of it. As mentioned in the MakeUseOf article about , you should limit all artwork on this layer. As a note, you should know that if you are using Cosmic Panda, then it is likely that only the top half of this graphic will be viewable (up to a rough estimate of 650 pixels). However, for those that are using the original YouTube theme, you should go into your YouTube settings and make the background color match the background graphic that you are creating. <h2> Setting Up The Dividers</h2> YouTube backgrounds are a little difficult to work with because instead of aligning left, they happen to align right. That is why you should set up a couple of dividers as visual reminders that let you know just how much space you have to work in. To help solve this, you should open up a new file that has a width of 416 pixels and a height of 1298 pixels. After you have opened this one, make another one that has a width of 976 pixels and 1298 pixels. When you have created them both, use the paint bucket to fill them with two bright contrasting colors. After you have completed this task, copy and paste the smaller divider as a new layer onto your main background. Line it up perfectly against the right side of the project window. You should do the same with the second larger image, except line it up against the side of its smaller counterpart. As you might be able to guess, the larger one serves as a place holder for where most of your channel content will be shown, and with that being said, if you feel like adding content in the same area as the smaller divider, then this is your chance. Just know that all content in this divider area can be hidden if the browser window is resized. <h2> Creating A Side Banner</h2> As you may know, YouTube only allows its affiliates to have fully-fledged banners at the top of their channels. However, as a standard user, you can get around this by placing an image on the left side of your channel's content. That being said, since it is merely a background, the image could be covered due to window resizing in some browser displays. To create this banner, you should open a new file that has a width of 226 pixels and a height of 622 pixels. Try to use either a transparent background or a background that matches your main canvas' color, and then place whatever artwork you desire within this box. After you have completed doing so, you should copy and paste the entire image onto your main canvas, placing it just next to the larger divider and touching the very top border. I used a simple color for the sake of the tutorial, but what you put in this box is completely up to you. If you are satisfied with how your background will appear, you are now free to delete both dividers. I recommend saving as a JPEG file when it comes to YouTube, but if you can manage to save your background as a different file under the required size limits, then by all means do so. Furthermore, do not select the option to repeat your image vertically or horizontally after uploading it to YouTube. After all is said and done, you could very well end up with an image like the one below. Don't mind the extra space to the left and to the bottom, for these voids will be unseen when viewed in a browser. <h2> Conclusion</h2> Hopefully, this tutorial has helped you with making your own YouTube background. As an endnote, I want to remind you that each of the elements are fully customizable, so bend and tweak them however you see fit. What other methods do you use to create YouTube backgrounds, and which editing software did you use to make yours? Also, where can we find your YouTube backgrounds? <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create An Automatic Email Response With Gmail s New Filter

Create An Automatic Email Response With Gmail s New Filter

Create An Automatic Email Response With Gmail's New Filter <h1>MUO</h1> Today, when I was creating a new email filter to get rid of a tiresome email marketer who won't take no for an answer, I came across two new filters in Gmail : "send canned response" and "never send it to spam". It is the first one that made me realise that I can now set up automatic email responses for specific email addresses. Let's say for example that you want to write for us here at MakeUseOf (and why wouldn't you want to? We'll pay you with all the money, beer and fast cars you can handle! Er, well....no, not really). So, as editor I go through approximately 7-10 applications a day so over the course of a week, that can stack up quite a bit. We don't like to keep people guessing over whether or not we've received their application so it's good to set up a "thank you we have your application, we'll get back to you soon" auto-responder email which is sent out as soon as their application hits our inbox. So here's how you would set it up, using Gmail's new filter. That is it. Now everytime someone emails an application to that email address, they will get an autoresponder message (or "canned response" as Gmail likes to call them). You can do the same too for your blog, your company, your club, your school and much more. If your inbox is overflowing and people are complaining that your email response times suck, then set up an autoresponder message to at least confirm that "you have received their message and that you'll get back to them as soon as possible". OK the email is automatic, it's impersonal and it's bland - but hey it's a response! You won't even know the email has gone out as it's all done in the background. What do you think? Is this something you might find useful to help with your email management or does this just add to the problem? <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Your Own Custom Linux Installation Disc With SUSE Studio

Create Your Own Custom Linux Installation Disc With SUSE Studio

Create Your Own Custom Linux Installation Disc With SUSE Studio <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create Your Own Custom Linux Installation Disc With SUSE Studio</h1> We all know that Linux is very flexible, and you can do so many things with it. One of its advantages is that it can run on virtually any hardware. Linux is also extremely modular, so parts can be added and removed as you please. In fact, it is this ability that makes Linux a great pick for many users, no matter what environment. It is also this principle of modularity that allows SUSE Studio to exist. &lt;firstimage="https://www.makeuseof.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/suse_studio_intro.png"&gt; We all know that Linux is very flexible, and you can do so many things with it. One of its advantages is that it can run on virtually any hardware. Linux is also extremely modular, so parts can be added and removed as you please. In fact, it is this ability that makes Linux a great pick for many users, no matter what environment. It is also this principle of modularity that allows to exist. <h2> About</h2> SUSE Studio is a website that takes the base of the latest versions of or (you can choose), and lets you customize a number of different aspects of your distro. It's a very easy process. Just go through the screens, clicking on whatever you would like to add, change, or remove. There are actually a handful of things you can do that you might not have expected from a web service. When you finish with all the configuration, the service will build your very own custom of openSUSE/SUSE Enterprise with all the settings that you chose. <h2> Getting Started</h2> To start off, you'll need to sign in or create an account. You can also sign in using a different service (like Google), and it will automatically create an account on their server for you. These accounts are important because you'll receive 4GB of free storage to be used for this service. <h2> Steps</h2> The next step is to choose what version of SUSE you would like to base your Linux installation disk off of. Currently the options are openSUSE 11.4, SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 SP1, and SUSE Linux Enterprise 10 SP4. If you do not have a specific need for either of the Enterprise versions, I suggest you select the openSUSE option. In no time at all, you'll be able to start customizing your distribution. First off is the software selection page, where you can choose to include certain software packages with your ISO so that you do not have to download and install it later. This is a handy feature to customize your experience right from the start. Simply search for the packages you want and add them. You can also add additional repositories if you so desire or upload your own files to include. The Configuration tab lets you tweak a large amount of system settings such as locale, time zone, network settings, firewall settings, and users. You can also choose different appearances and logos from the Personalize section, change the default run level and add EULAs in the Startup section, and edit other server, desktop, and virtual machine related settings. In the Files category, you can add any overlay files that you wish. These are applied after all packages are installed. <h2> Finish With a Build</h2> You can now build your "appliance" in the Build category and download when it is finished. Then simply burn the ISO onto a CD/DVD, USB stick, or try it out in a virtual machine. You can do whatever you want with that ISO file as you can with a more generic one. <h2> Conclusion</h2> SUSE Studio is an amazing tool for those who want to build custom ISOs for their own unique needs. I've heard a handful of people use this for everything from server setups to media centers and beyond. Only your imagination can come up with the perfect combination of packages and settings to make your Linux experience one of the best. Do you think SUSE Studio is a great idea? Will you maybe try it out for your own needs or just to get a better experience with Linux? What else would you use it for? Let us know in the comments! <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Your Own Mac Fixit Toolkit

Create Your Own Mac Fixit Toolkit

Create Your Own Mac Fixit Toolkit <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create Your Own Mac Fixit Toolkit</h1> If you depend upon your Mac hardware for job related purposes, you should know how important it is to be prepared for unexpected problems when they occur. The purpose of this article is to share some ideas for putting together a Mac Fixit/Troubleshooting Toolkit. Though Macs are well known for being reliable computers, a cursory look at the Apple support forum reveals that users of Mac software, mobile devices, and software experience all types of problems, which fortunately you can find solutions for in a matter of minutes or a few days. If you depend upon your Mac hardware for job related purposes, you should know how important it is to be prepared for unexpected problems when they occur. The purpose of this article is to share some ideas for putting together a Mac Fixit/Troubleshooting Toolkit. To get started with your toolkit, create a folder, titled "MacFixit" or whatever you prefer. Add saved copies of the resources below. When you come across other articles and documents addressing your particular user Mac setup just add them to your folder. Your toolkit should be accessible beyond your main Mac computer—a collection of bookmarked, or better yet web archived pages on an online bookmarking site and/or in a 3-ring paper binder. If you have an iPad you could save them there as well. The point is, just make sure they easily accessible. The following are some of my suggestions for a DIY troubleshooting kit. Please add your suggestions below. <h2> Info About My Mac</h2> One essential document you want to have in your toolkit is information about your Mac(s). Download this nifty on Apple's site and save it as a PDF file. Then open it in Skim or Preview and use the annotation tools to fill it out. Or print and fill out the document and put in your Mac Fixit paper binder. Another place I suggest keeping information about your Mac is in your Address Book. I keep information about all my Apple hardware purchases in the Note section of the Apple contact card. That contact also includes the number to Apple's technical support: 1 (800) 275-2273. <h2> Startup Key Combinations</h2> When your Mac crashes, knowing a few startup key combinations can get you access to what you need. OS X Daily's is a PDF you will want to have as part of your toolkit. The document includes shortcut keystrokes for starting up from a bootable Mac OS X Install disc or starting up in Single-User mode—both of which are very common troubleshooting procedures. <h2> Mac User Guide</h2> If you didn't keep the Mac User Guide information that you came with your Mac, head over to the Apple Website and download all the for your Apple hardware. Sometimes the information in these guides contain the basic troubleshooting information you need. <h2> Restoring from Bootable Backup</h2> If you use cloning software for your Mac, like (the basic software is free), you will want to make sure you have instructions for restoring from the bootable backup—that you should be running on a weekly basis on your Mac. A copy of these instructions in your fixit kit will definitely relieve some stress in the event you need to reboot from your clone drive. It's also a good idea to do a test run of your backup to see if it's working okay. <h2> Surviving 17 Worst Mac Disasters</h2> The classic MacLife Magazine provides a of very common problems associated Mac hardware failure. It includes survival tactics for dealing with a keyboard that has been doused with a cup of coffee or other liquid, how to use the "fsck" command for when your Mac is stuck on the startup screen, and what to do when your Safari web browser becomes sluggish. This three page article is well worth saving as a PDF and adding to your toolkit. <h2> OS X Flash Drive Installer</h2> Another classic Mac magazine recently published a very useful how-to for creating an for when you Mac goes into a total crash mode. This flash installer could be used as a backup or in place of the Mac OS X installer CD that came with your Mac. It's like the installer flash that now comes with MacBook Air computers. <h2> Reset Your Mac Password</h2> OsXDaily also has a useful how-to for how to . There are those occasions when you may forget your password after you have recently changed it, so this article will come in handy. For more sites and resources, check out my article, . You will see that taking a little time to put together your Mac Fixit toolkit will give you some peace of mind that in the event your Mac breaks down you have a place to start for troubleshooting the problem. Let us know of other resources that should be a part of such a DIY Mac troubleshooting kit. Image Credit: <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Better Online Shows With The Uprompt Teleprompter

Create Better Online Shows With The Uprompt Teleprompter

Create Better Online Shows With The Uprompt Teleprompter <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create Better Online Shows With The Uprompt Teleprompter</h1> YouTube video bloggers and entertainers make reciting monologues on-screen look so easy! It actually is possible to come across on-screen in much the same professional way as these pros. The trick is to remove the need to memorize what you're going to say, and instead just focus on saying it as professionally as possible. You can remove that need for memorization with free teleprompting software called uPrompt. &lt;firstimage="https://www.makeuseof.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/teleprompter2.png"&gt; A few months ago, I was approached by a company to audition for the part of a host in a documentary. Even though I had no on-screen experience at all, I felt pretty confident that I could shoot a quick 15 minute audition tape, based on topics that I've researched and written about, with very little effort. Four hours later, I finally had a video audition, but the process was far more difficult than I ever imagined it would be. It was this experience that made me realize how talented all of those YouTube video bloggers and entertainers are. They make reciting monologues on-screen look so easy! Believe it or not, it actually is possible to come across on-screen in much the same professional way as these pros. What separates the expert video blogger from the amateur is the lack of mental pauses that distract the listener and take away from the message you're trying to convey. The trick is to remove the need to memorize what you're going to say, and instead just focus on saying it as professionally as possible. You can remove that need for memorization with free teleprompter software called uPrompt. We've offered other tools for making videos, like Israel's list of to make a home movie, and Travis' list of . But uPrompt is probably one of the most unique tools available. <h2> Let Teleprompting Turn You Into A Pro</h2> Even some of the best TV commentators turn to teleprompting to deliver on-screen statements and monologues. It isn't that they can't memorize what they need to say, or that they can't improvise - it's just that many people don't have the time to memorize everything they want to say. When you first install and run uPrompt, it looks like a fairly simple application. There is a center area where you'll see the uPrompt logo - this is where the scrolling text will display. There are three control areas that you can use to control the text movement and speed. There are clickable buttons on the lower left, keyboard shortcuts listed to the lower right, and then off to the right side of the window you'll see two scrollbars, one for speed and one for "course" movement. If you right click where it says "Right click for menu", you'll see the different options you have to bring in the teleprompting script that you want to use. If you don't have any existing text and you're starting from scratch with your scripts, go ahead and choose "Quick Edit Script." This opens the Quick Edit editor, which is essentially a glorified text editor. The free version of uPrompt allows for about 2,500 characters, which is around 25 full lines in Microsoft Word - a couple of large paragraphs. Once you're done writing, just click File -&gt; Save and it'll save the file in .upr (Uprompt) format, and then instantly open it in the uPrompter. If you used the default font size settings in the editor, the font in the teleprompter will also show up in that same font. As you can see, it would be pretty hard to quickly read the text off the screen when the font is this small. You can change this in the editor by clicking the "F" button in the menu and selection a larger font size. 36 usually works best if you're going to be sitting right in front of the computer screen, and using the webcam placed at the top of the screen. You can also modify the font from inside the teleprompter software itself by going to the right-click menu and choosing "Font". When you're ready for lights, camera and action, just click the "W" button on your keyboard, or click the button to increase the speed, and the teleprompter will start. The words will scroll up the screen at the speed that you select. Pause the scrolling by tapping "Q" (or clicking the mouse), and then restart it with the "W" (or clicking the mouse again). It only takes a little bit of getting used to, but once you get used to using the teleprompter, you'll be able to speak naturally while appearing to look at the camera - people will think that you're a trained pro! Also, keep in mind that you don't have to use the built-in editor. uPrompt is able to import script from text or rich text files as well. So, if you prefer writing your script in Word or Notepad, go for it. In the display below, I've imported an RTF file into uPrompt. The speed and course slidebars are on the right, and elapsed and remaining scroll time is displayed at the small bottom panes. The way to use the uPrompt teleprompter software when you have one of those laptop or computer screens with a webcam installed into the top of the screen is to place the uPrompt window at the very top center of the screen, closest to the webcam. This way, as the text scrolls across the teleprompter window and you read from it, it appears as though you're actually looking right at the webcam itself. Set the speed of the text just right, and everything will look entirely natural. If you struggle to create that YouTube monologue, or otherwise need to record yourself speaking on camera, give uPrompt a try and transform yourself from an amateur to an on-camera expert overnight. Give uPrompt a try and let us know if it improved your video quality. Do you know of other tools that work as well or better? Share your insight in the comments section below. Image credits: Jgclarke [Broken URL Removed] <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Stunning 3D Panoramas on Your iPhone With Microsoft Photosynth iOS

Create Stunning 3D Panoramas on Your iPhone With Microsoft Photosynth iOS

Create Stunning 3D Panoramas on Your iPhone With Microsoft Photosynth iOS <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create Stunning 3D Panoramas on Your iPhone With Microsoft Photosynth iOS </h1> Creating a panorama from multiple images is no longer the arduous, drawn out tweak-fest it used to be. Microsoft released a tool that could make a 3D panorama automatically, called Photosynth, and it really has to be played with to be believed. Luckily iOS users can now create panoramas on the fly. You don't need a tripod, existing images or money – the app is free and startlingly easy to use. Creating a is no longer the arduous, drawn out tweak-fest it used to be. If you've got access to professional software like or even basic freebies like Windows Photo Gallery then creating a panorama never takes more than a few clicks. Microsoft Photosynth is technology you've probably seen before, as it kicked up quite a storm when the company announced it. Taking multiple photos of differing size, orientation, quality and so on; Microsoft (with help from some clever chaps at the University of Washington) released a tool that could make a 3D panorama automatically. The technology is called Photosynth, and it really has to be played with to be believed. Luckily iOS users (iPhone 3GS &amp; 4, iPad 2 and iPod Touch 4G) can now create panoramas on the fly. You don't need a tripod, existing images or money – the iPhone panorama app is free and startlingly easy to use. <h2> Creating A Masterpiece</h2> Capturing the world around you in a 360-degree panorama is not as hard as it sounds, though there are a few things to remember in order to get the best results from Photosynth. The first screen you'll see upon launching the app is your camera image and a “Tap to Start” message, and 3 tabs at the bottom of the screen. The tab on the left takes you to your existing Photosynths, and the right hand tab allows you to connect sharing accounts and edit a few settings. One setting worth mentioning is Exposure Lock which will stop your camera adjusting for different light levels, delivering an evenly exposed shot (I'd recommend leaving it alone to begin with). On the centre tab (a camera icon), tapping the screen will initiate a new panorama. Photosynth will start taking photos straight away, and as you move your camera around you will notice the program automatically building up a panoramic image of the scene. It is important not to move from your starting position when you are creating your 360-degree image as this will cause inaccuracies within the panorama. If possible try to stand perfectly still and pivot your phone in its current position. This is undoubtedly the best method for capturing a panorama, and you'll see what I mean once you've messed a few up. As you pivot your phone new pictures will be added to the panorama. At times the green Photosynth capture box will turn yellow, and this indicates manual capture is required. At these points it is up to you to decide whether manual capture is going to add to or detract from the image. You can also overwrite existing photos by touching to take a new photo, or hit undo to remove your last shot. Each scene is different, but don't forget to capture what's above and below you! When you think you're finished, hit Done and the app will automatically stitch your images together for you. It can take about 5 minutes for a full 360-degree scene, not bad considering how long it would take by hand. A flat image of your panorama is also saved to the camera roll, like the one below. <h2> Photosynthing All Over The World</h2> So you've got your panorama, and it's awesome. You can pan around by swiping on the screen, pinch to zoom and there's an enticing Share button in the bottom left corner. Touching this will give you three options: share to Facebook, publish to and upload to Photosynth.net. To share to Facebook you'll need to link your account with Facebook Connect, and both Bing Maps and Photosynth.net upload options require a Windows Live ID. Here I'm going to upload to the Photosynth website as it's probably the easiest way of viewing your panorama on a bigger screen, from anywhere on the web. After you've selected Upload To Photosynth.net hit Sign In Now. Enter your usual Live ID and choose a public display name before finalising your decision with Create then Upload. To view the panorama on your PC sign in to Photosynth.net with your usual login. You'll be taken to the My Photosynths area where you can select your newly uploaded creation (). You'll need to view, though on my Ubuntu laptop the open source alternative Moonlight worked a treat. From the Photosynth website you can also , and this can be time consuming as there's so many great scenes on there. I wouldn't recommend browsing the website if you have work to do, put it that way. <h2> Download</h2> Photosynth is currently only available for iOS, so if you've got a supported device you're one of the lucky few. There is currently no evidence of an Android version in development, though we can always hope. Microsoft Photosynth (iOS 4.0+ required) @ AppStore <h2> Conclusion</h2> I absolutely love Photosynth. Not only is it free, but it's one of the most fun photography apps out there today. I've been using the app for weeks now and don't remember a single crash, stitching is quick and the ability to quickly upload and share rocks. Not every panorama will turn out perfect but the more you practice the better they'll get. I'm struggling to find a reason not to recommend this iPhone panorama app to everyone with an iPhone. Download it. Do it now. Have you played with Photosynth? Any awesome panoramas you want to share? Show us and discuss this top app in the comments below. <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create An Awesome Book Of Social Memories With Your Facebook Data

Create An Awesome Book Of Social Memories With Your Facebook Data

Create An Awesome Book Of Social Memories With Your Facebook Data <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create An Awesome Book Of Social Memories With Your Facebook Data</h1> Just think about what your time on Facebook could tell you about your likes and interests and the friends you communicate with. Imagine how cool it would be to visualize all of that information in an infographic of some kind. Well, now you can, with an app called Social Memories. Being a big proponent of infographics and social media data, I love the idea of viewing all of my 'social memories' in book form. &lt;firstimage="https://www.makeuseof.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/0_socialmemories.jpg"&gt; Did you ever stop and think about all of the data you have on ? Now I'm sure I've got you worried about privacy, but that wasn't my intention. No, I mean just think about what your time on Facebook could tell you about your likes and interests and the friends you communicate with. Imagine how cool it would be to visualize all of that information in an infographic of some kind. Well, now you can, with an app called Social Memories. Being a big proponent of infographics and social media data, I love the idea of viewing all of my Facebook 'social memories' in book form, and that's exactly what this app lets you do. <h2> What Is Social Memories </h2> is a Facebook app that lets you create a book of your social activity. The app will search through your Facebook history from a chosen period of time and create great looking, infographic-like pages in a book that you can physically order or share on your wall in the form of a photo album. To view Social Memories in action, just check out this short video: <h2> How Do I Use Social Memories </h2> In order to see what Social Memories is capable of, the first thing you're going to want to do is head over to the app's Facebook page. Once there, you can click on Go to application to get started. On the next screen, you will have to grant Social Memories permission to access your data so that it can gather information for your book. Being that the book is pretty in-depth, the app asks for a lot, so if you are uncomfortable with giving Social Memories that kind of permission, which you can always revoke later, then perhaps it's best you stop right here. After you click Allow, as I have just done, you will be taken to your bookshelf. If you've used the app previously, the books you've created would appear here. To start a new project, just click Create a new book. From here you'll be asked to select your timeline, so whether you would like to make your book about your previous year on Facebook or just a week or two you can make that designation. That's basically it. Social Memories will gather all the information from your chosen time period and assemble your book for you in a matter of seconds. Once it's done, you can browse your book to see all the data that's been put together for you. In the end, you'll have the option of sharing your book as an album on your profile for free, or if you want, you can opt to order a physical copy of your book (not free). As a heads up, if you would like to do neither of these things, you can just click on the Social Memories logo in the top left to go back to your bookshelf. <h2> Conclusion</h2> The one thing I don't really like about Social Memories is that it doesn't allow you to view your created book in full-screen, or download it for that matter. That's understandable though since you have the ability to get an actual book from Social Memories, and the ability to share your book in an album is nice, especially since you can . What do you think of Social Memories? Good idea? <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Your Own Hosted Auction Website With WeBid

Create Your Own Hosted Auction Website With WeBid

Create Your Own Hosted Auction Website With WeBid <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create Your Own Hosted Auction Website With WeBid</h1> There are many cases when non-profit organizations want to create their own online auction site with proceeds going to charity. Or maybe you'd like to host an auction site on your own website that's focused on niche items related to your site. Whatever your need, you can install a really useful script on your web server called WeBid that lets you host your own fully-functioning auction site. Mostly everyone has either used or heard of eBay. Although it may not be quite as popular as it used to be, it still remains the single largest online auction site in the world. It's still a great place to earn some income selling rare items, or to get a great deal on that hard to find gift. Here at MUO, we love auctions, and we love bringing you cool auction tools. For example, sniping tools like and . We also brought you SoLow for mobile auctions. Most of the auction tools are based on eBay of course. For all its value, eBay isn't much help when your needs are a little bit smaller. There are many cases when non-profit organizations want to create their own online hosted auction site where they can list items for auction - with proceeds going to charity. Or maybe you'd like to host an auction site on your own website that's focused on niche items related to your site. Whatever your need, you can install a really useful script on your web server called WeBid that lets you host your own fully-functioning auction site. You can download at SourceForge for free, and extract all folders and files to a sub-directory in your public hdocs folder. Configuring and installing WeBid is actually a whole lot like installing WordPress, and like Wordpress, the system is based on PHP and MySQL. <h2> Installing WeBid On Your Web Server</h2> After downloading everything to the auction folder (in my example I used /hdocs/WeBid/) locate "config.inc.php.new". Open this file and edit it with the name of the MySQL database you created for your auction site, as well as the userid and password you created with full privileges. Don't use "root" - this was run on my local test web server, so I'm not very concerned about security. In your case, you'll need to set up a secure user using PhpMyAdmin. Save the file and rename it "config.inc.php". Next, just open up your site and go to the directory where you placed the WeBid files. If your domain is "mysite" then it would be something like "http://www.mysite.com/WeBid". When you open this in your browser, you'll see the installer configuration. Fill in all of the fields according to where you placed your files, and the name you gave your database. If everything is correct, you'll see the following confirmations shown at the bottom of the install configuration page. If you've got everything green, then go ahead and click "Install". After the install script runs through its routine, you'll be prompted to delete the install folder. Once you do, the next time you visit the WebId folder with your web browser, you'll be logged into your admin account. The admin panel is where you will customize and manage your entire auction site. It's where you manage users, how auctions are set up and run, and everything else to do with what your auction site is like. The main admin page shows you all of the current settings for your auction site. As you can see from the tabs, there is a lot about this hosted auction site that you can customize to make it unique for your own use. You can change the fee structure, what the user interface looks like, and more. You can customize the user experience by enabling or disabling authentication, how accounts are activated (whether you want to be part of the process), and you can also customize the message the user sees when they first submit for a new user ID for your auction site. The fee structure can look however you like - from absolutely no fees, to fees for everything the user wants to do. Or, in the case of a charity, you may not even set up any fees at all. Once new users set up their accounts, adding a new auction is pretty simple. In the case where you are running a charity and most users are buyers, then you'll just set up one seller account and you'll be the only person in charge of entering auction details. In either case, the entry process is all on one page. First, you'll fill in all of the details about the item. At the bottom of the form, you submit pictures, add pricing and select features like highlighting, and then submit. The auction becomes active immediately (or whenever you've scheduled it to activate). The format of each auction is pretty slick, and not a whole lot unlike the eBay auction formats that you may be used to. There are plenty of auction sites out there where you can list your items for sale, but wouldn't it be pretty cool to have your own hosted auction website? All you need is a web hosting account and about 30 minutes to an hour, and you could set up this system and host your own auction site for your small group, or for the entire world. How you use it is completely up to you! Do you have any ideas for your own auction site? Give WeBid a try and let us know how easy it was for you to set up and what you used it for. Share your experiences in the comments section below! shared by <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Your Short Stories Novels With StoryBook

Create Your Short Stories Novels With StoryBook

Create Your Short Stories & Novels With StoryBook <h1>MUO</h1> Have you ever had the idea to finally sit down and write that great novel you've always wanted to create, but you kept putting it off because the whole process just felt too complicated? Some novels have dozens of main characters and several threads of storyline all going on at the same time. How does the author keep it all straight? Have you ever had the idea to finally sit down and write that great novel you've always wanted to create, but you kept putting it off because the whole process just felt too complicated? If you've ever read a Tom Clancy novel, you'll know what I'm talking about. Some novels have dozens of main characters and several threads of storyline all going on at the same time. How does the author keep it all straight? Here at MUO, we love writing and have always tried to bring you tools that will help with your writing, such as Nancy's guide to for writers, Jeffry's list of Firefox addons for writers, and Karl's review of VocabGrabber. Today I'd like to offer an impressive open source application called , which can automate the entire writing process for you. This way, you can focus on what you do best - writing stories. <h2> Writing A Novel With Storybook</h2> What impressed me the most about this organizational tool is that it is capable of helping you sort out and organize even the most complicated novel with multiple storylines. The software comes loaded with tools to create, sort and connect the chapters of your book with individual scenes, your list of developed characters, and you can even "strand" together your scenes into a sequence that forms individual storylines that you can link together. To get started, just click on New and name the novel or story that you're working on. The main screen is divided into a left panel for the development of your strands, and the right panel where you can explore your entire story by individual elements like characters, locations and more. To create a new scene (strand), just click the green plus icon, assign a date and title to the scene, and then write a quick summary of what you want that scene to entail. Don't worry about the strand you've assigned the scene to - you can change it at any point, and you can also link it to other strands later. You can create new characters and locations from the main screen, or from the individual strand creation window. Name your character and note all of the characteristics. The software will keep track of everything for you, so any time you need to remember how old your character is or what they do for a living, you can just go back to your explorer and click on the character. For each scene, you'll link together characters and fictional locations that are involved in the scene. This builds the storyline database that will help you keep everything organized. This way, later when you're trying to remember if a certain character ever interacted with another character or visited a certain location - you'll have a way to double check. As you build story strands and link them together, you're essentially building the outline of your larger story or novel. As the plot gets larger, this becomes an amazing tool that keeps everything organized for you so that you don't have to rack your brain trying to keep everything straight. No more risk of inadvertently creating an impossible plot - for example, like having a character accidentally meet another character for the "first time", multiple times in your story. Of course, Storybook does provide the basics. You can form a general outline of each chapter by clicking on "New Chapter" from the menu and quickly describing what the chapter is going to be about. This is a good first step before you start digging into the plot and building your individual strands. My favorite part of this software is the "Novel Explorer" bar where you can see every element of your entire story at a quick glance. Characters, locations, strands, chapters and even subsections of your chapters are all available from this one spot. This makes it a total breeze to research your planned storyline while you're in the midst of writing your current chapter. Another of my favorite parts of this software is the "idea" feature. Click on the lightbulb at the top of the main window and the "Ideas" tool will pop up. Here you can jot down a quick idea that you don't really know what to do with yet. You'll never forget a great idea again, and you can just come back later to figure out where you want to work it into your plot, and track the status of each of your ideas by moving them into the started, completed or abandoned categories. You can really see the power of the software when you check out the charts and tools section. The software lets you see every aspect of your story in a chart format that connects characters and strands by date or scene. It's an amazing thing. There's even a Gantt chart for your characters! If you've ever thought writing your own novel but were afraid the process would be far too complicated - you no longer have that excuse. Storybook takes all of the complexity out of character profiling, plot layout and creating your story outline. It's the easiest way to manage the technical aspect of writing while you focus more of your time on the more creative act of actually writing the story itself. Give Storybook a try and let us know if it simplified your writing process. How did you make use of Storybook for your project? Share your experiences in the comments section below. Image Credit : <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Virtual Pinboards Of Your Favourite Images With Pinterest 100 Invites

Create Virtual Pinboards Of Your Favourite Images With Pinterest 100 Invites

Create Virtual Pinboards Of Your Favourite Images With Pinterest 100 Invites <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create Virtual Pinboards Of Your Favourite Images With Pinterest 100 Invites </h1> If you use primarily to share photographs, there's a new startup that could easily tear you away from your tumblelog in favour of an even easier platform. , labelled as a social catalog service, gives its users the opportunity to share photos from all over the web, or uploaded from their computers, on their personal Pinterest page. The site - set up as a series of virtual pinboards - will appeal to more than just Tumblr fans because of the different ways it can be used. Part bookmark sharing service, part photo sharing site, part personal online catalog, Pinterest makes it easy to create collections and share them with your friends. While Pinterest is still in private beta, they've been kind enough to share 100 invites with MakeUseOf readers. Jump to the end of the article to find out how to get in on the private beta. Signing up for an account is done by connecting with Facebook or Twitter, after which you will be prompted to create a few boards. To make life easier, they give a few suggestions you can start with including books worth reading and favourite places and spaces. The next step is finding people to follow. Pinterest makes some suggestions for you, and also gives you the opportunity to invite 5 friends to sign up. The last step before you get to pinning is saving the convenient bookmarklet to your bookmark bar, making it easy to share photos and links on your account. If you would rather upload an image yourself, this can be done directly on the website, which will come in handy if you want to share an interesting piece of writing or a song and there aren't any large images featured with the link. It's possible to add new boards whenever you choose, from the menu at the top of the page. Choose a name, a category and decide if you want to allow other users to add images to the collection as well. The collaborative touch of allowing anyone to add images to a board gives teams an interesting method to share links or images. Once you find an image online that you want to share on Pinterest, use your bookmarklet, or copy and paste the link and add it directly on the site. The image, or pin, is accompanied by a description and tags. You can choose which board you want to include it in, as well as add a price when sharing products. The link is automatically included with the pin, unless you upload the image from your computer. In fact, you can only add the link after you've uploaded and shared the image, by editing the pin. Like Tumblr, you can 'repin' someone else's post, comment on and like images. You can also email images to your account by using the address provided in your profile. When editing your profile, you can choose which specific board the pin will be added to. Pinterest is brand new, but we can always hope for a mobile app to enhance the on-the-go experience of the site. Connecting your account to Twitter or Facebook makes it easy to find friends from your social networks and follow their Pinterests, although it seems that the site automatically follows your Twitter or Facebook friends without giving you the option to choose at first. When it comes to following other people you can choose to follow everything they share, or just certain boards. If your friends have varied interests, not all of which appeal to you, this is a great way to get only the content that matters to you. When browsing images on Pinterest, you can browse the images shared by people you follow, those shared by everyone, and the most popular pins. You can also choose to narrow it down, and browse popular images by category - with almost 20 categories to choose from. Profile pages consist of a sidebar with a bio, links to your site, your Twitter or Facebook accounts, and to your Pinterest RSS feed, as well as displaying your latest activity. Your boards are displayed in a grid. Opening the board, the images or pins, in turn are displayed in a grid. Opening up any given image from the site allows you to easily share it on Facebook, Twitter, via email or on your blog. There's no end to the kinds of collections you can create - from product wishlists to your own personal stylebook. If you're redecorating your home or revamping your wardrobe, Pinterest is a great place to collect images, find inspiration and get yourself organised. It's also a great place to find ideas for gifts, with an entire section of images dedicated to precisely that, all shared in the category, 'Gift Guides.' Or it can just be a great place to share interesting images from around the web. The first 100 people to sign up using this will get access to Pinterest right away. How are you going to use Pinterest? Let us know in the comments. <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Share Cool Animated Messages With WonderSay

Create Share Cool Animated Messages With WonderSay

Create & Share Cool Animated Messages With WonderSay <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create & Share Cool Animated Messages With WonderSay</h1> If you're a fan of websites like Bit.ly or and the many other URL shorteners, then you will know the value of intermediate message services. Whether you're sending a friend a cool article or posting a blog update to Twitter, URL shorteners serve up that link to your friends for you. What if, instead of forwarding a website to a friend, you just wanted to forward a message in a creative way? Sending a free animated text message is a really cool way to draw attention to what you're trying to say. You can send a motivational quote to a friend, a birthday or holiday greeting to your family, or you can send your blog or website readers an eye-catching message. We've covered a few alternatives like this at MUO before, like or Text Anim, but these all let you create animated GIFs that you can host on your own site. What if you don't have a website, or just don't want to deal with the hassle? Well then head on over to Wondersay and get ready to start creating your Wondersayings. <h2> Creating A Wondersaying</h2> is a brand new service where you can create an entire webpage that's designed for the sole purpose of delivering your animated message. You don't need to sign up for an account, and you don't even need to offer your email. Like URL shorteners, all you have to do is use the service by typing your message into the "make a new wondersaying" box, and your animated message gets created instantly. One trick you can use to format your animated message right off the bat is by placing a "double space" between each pause in the message. This makes each segment appear and disappear onto the screen separately, timed according to whatever your current settings are. Once you create your message, you'll be at the customized link that's created just for your message. Bookmark this URL so that you can return here later to further customize the message or get the link or embed code. Sharing the message is as easy as just highlighting the entire link in the link box, copying it and sending it to friends via email. This is the fastest way to create and send fun, animated holiday messages to all of your friends. When you click on the settings tab, you can go through each element of the animated message and change everything about it - how each section appears and disappears, the speed of the message animation, and the general theme of the web page like the background, text colors and font. Each element has its own quick pop-up box where you can set the colors that you want in just a few simple clicks. The easiest way to change your message significantly is by playing around with the different built-in effects. If you do this right, you could basically put together a short presentation that delivers a message to any group of people that you send the link to. It's a great way to deliver some surprise or an inspirational message to a large group of people. In my case, I'm running a promotion on my website, so I wanted to create a high-impact message that I could deliver via Twitter and also place on my blog. When anyone clicks on the link in an email or in Twitter, all they see is the entire webpage filled with your animated text. The coolest part of this service, in my opinion, is the embed feature. By embedding the message, you can basically create a really cool animated ad on your website. This is exactly what I wanted to do on my site to advertise the upcoming promotion. Clicking on the embed tab, you just highlight the iframe code in the text box. Posting that code in your sidebar, you get a high-impact instant advertisement. The only drawback is that it only scrolls through the ad once and then ends on a static page - but at least your message still appears on that last page, and people can click on the "replay" button to see it again or the "fullscreen" button to see the message in fullscreen. It'll definitely catch the eye of your visitors. Another nice little feature of the service is that if you want to deliver your animated message in a Twitter update, it utilizes bit.ly to shorten the URL. This means that you can use the bit.ly monitoring feature to see how many people have clicked through your Twitter update to view your animated message. It's a nice feature and a good way to see how much traffic your Wondersaying page is generating from Twitter. Have you ever used Wondersay? Do you know of any other similar services? Share your insight in the comments section below. <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create a Budget in Minutes with Sprouty

Create a Budget in Minutes with Sprouty

Create a Budget in Minutes with Sprouty <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create a Budget in Minutes with Sprouty</h1> Do you find that when you try to use a budgeting system, the more complicated it is, the more overwhelmed you become; and eventually you stop using it? If that's the case, brings a simplified budgeting system that makes it easy to create a monthly budget, and more importantly, stick to it. Sometimes keeping it simple is a lot more useful and that's exactly what Sprouty aims to do. Unlike and other popular money management systems, your personal bank account information does not even come into play; making it a secure option that can be used no matter where in the world you live. After signing up for a free account, Sprouty will prompt you to enter your monthly income, and will attempt to create a budget for you, based on minimum recommended amounts for each budget item. Of course, the budget will most probably not reflect your own personal spending habits, and you can modify it to suit your lifestyle. You can add additional budget items by clicking on the 'Create a Budget' button, determine the amount allocated to that category, and add tags. Using the same method, you can add additional sources of income, which is particularly useful for a family in which there are several breadwinners. Existing budget items can also be edited or deleted by clicking on any given item, adding or removing tags of your choice, and adjusting the amount. This will be one of the very first steps you take when using Sprouty, in order to adjust the budget to suit your personal needs. Once you have your budget in place, you can begin to add the actual transactions as they occur. New transactions are accompanied by the date, tags or description, and the amount. As you add tags, Sprouty will also suggest tags that are commonly used. If you add a transaction by mistake, it can easily be edited or deleted by clicking on any part of the transaction's information. Sprouty's best feature is undoubtedly the overview it provides of your spending. Once you have your budget in place and have added your transactions, you can see a monthly overview of your budget, and see exactly where your money is being spent, and what remains. This is especially useful because you are able to visualise the areas in which you spend the most, and this could make for an easier way to understand where you need to cutback on your spending. Sprouty is as no-frills a budget system as they come, but sometimes that is all that you need. It is extremely user-friendly, with barely any learning curve at all. The website can be accessed from mobile browsers, making it possible to add transactions on the go. That said, it is not optimised for a mobile browser, and that would be one of the first welcome changes to the site. Adding transactions while you're out and about is an integral part of the success of any budget system, so that payments don't fall between the cracks. Whether it is a mobile website, adding transactions by email, or any other method, it will definitely improve Sprouty's user friendly service. How do you keep track of your spending habits? Let us know in the comments. <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Your Own Virtual Learning Environment Using SymbalooEDU

Create Your Own Virtual Learning Environment Using SymbalooEDU

Create Your Own Virtual Learning Environment Using SymbalooEDU <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create Your Own Virtual Learning Environment Using SymbalooEDU</h1> &lt;firstimage="https://www.makeuseof.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/00-SymbalooEDU1.jpg"&gt; The Internet is dubbed as the largest library in the world. And just like any other traditional library, it's a great place to find information and to learn about anything that interests you. Everything is just a few clicks - and a search engine - away, provided that you know how to find it. But the problem with the Internet is not about finding information. It's about managing those mountains of data that you find. There are many methods that you can use to manage the results of your quest for information. One of them is by creating your own "Virtual Learning Environment" using the help of . This is the educational version of a similar service called Symbaloo, which will help you to discover, manage and share your favorites sites from one elegant place. <h2> Let s Make It Personal</h2> From the academic point of view, SymbalooEdu is a perfect place to organize classroom resources and also to show off teachers' and students' works/projects by sharing their Symbaloo pages with classmates and friends - either within a small closed community or a larger scale group. This Edu version also lets users easily embed academic-related materials like TeacherTube, Slideshare, and Google Docs. Anybody can register to the service for free, and the company claims that there are already 50,000 SymbalooEDU-user teachers on their list. After the quick and easy registration process, you'll get instant access to SymbalooEdu. Then you'll land in a place called "Webmix" (more or less similar to the first page that you see every time you open a new tab on any modern browser - but on steroids). This is where you can arrange all of your learning materials for easy access. Your first Webmixes (EDU Teachers and EDU Tools) come with several default tiles that you can use right away. Clicking one of the tiles will open the related website in a new tab (or window). If you think two are not enough, you can create other Webmixes to group and collect materials from different genres. For example, you can use one Webmix for all materials related to learning classical guitar and another one to collect your regularly visited websites. There are two options that you can choose when adding a new Webmix. To create your own collections, choose "Add an empty webmix". Another possibility is searching and adding ready-made Webmixes that you can find in the Symbaloo Gallery. Adding tiles within one Webmix is also easy. You can use the search function to find tiles related to the topic that you are currently building. SymbalooEDU will present you with several results (or none). Browse and choose one from the results, or do another search. After you find what you are looking for, you can drag and drop the result tile to one of the empty slots on one Webmix. You can also create new tiles for websites that you can't find. This is a great way to add your own (or your friends') websites to your Webmix. Teachers can utilize this feature to create a Webmix which consists of the result of their students assignments and projects. I suggest you play with Webmixes and discover for yourself how fun the building process is. You could get some creative ideas to use them, either for your classroom or for your own personal life. <h2> Let s Make It Social</h2> Now is the time to show your tile collections off to the world (or just to friends, classmates, and/or colleagues). There's the share button on the top right part of the interface. The share page is quite self-explanatory. It lets you choose whether you want to add your Webmix to the Symbaloo gallery or to share it directly to your friends. If you choose the latter, you can choose what method you want to use to contact your friends. To summarize, SymbalooEDU gives you the ability to create Webmixes, put and organize useful tiles within them, then lets you share Webmixes to your friends and the world while discovering new collections from other Symbaloo users. I myself discovered many useful tools that I've never known before from the default collections that come with SymbalooEDU. I think this tool could be very useful, not only to enhance the teaching and learning process, but also to organize our Internet life. To optimize the use of this tool, Symbaloo's developer suggests that users use their personalized Symbaloo page as their default browser home page. I have barely scratched the surface here. You should try this tool yourself, and then share your thoughts and opinions using the comments below. <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create A Mobile Wi Fi Hotspot Using Connectify A Windows 7 Laptop

Create A Mobile Wi Fi Hotspot Using Connectify A Windows 7 Laptop

Create A Mobile Wi-Fi Hotspot Using Connectify & A Windows 7 Laptop <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create A Mobile Wi-Fi Hotspot Using Connectify & A Windows 7 Laptop</h1> The time when we carried one internet-enabled device on us is long past. Nowadays, nearly every portable device is outfitted with a wireless internet adapter, and yet logistics are lagging behind. Hotel rooms, university dorms and offices often offer just a single wired connector, and unless you carry a router on you at all times, it means neglecting much of your technological capacity. That is, unless you're using Connectify, a novel piece of Windows routing software that can instantly transform your laptop into a mobile WiFi hotspot. <h2> </h2> The prerequisites for using Connectify are simple; you need a Windows 7 laptop, with both a wired and a wireless network card. Connectify takes the internet connection from the wired input and uses the wireless technology in your laptop to create a hotspot. Once you've set up the hotspot, other devices can connect to the Internet through your laptop. At home, in a hotel or at your dorm; other computers, printers and gaming consoles can be connected wirelessly. When you're out, Connectify allows you to connect with the mobile phones, laptops and netbooks of coworkers and friends. When traveling, you can pay for a single internet connection and get all your devices online. <h2> How To Use It</h2> First, connect your laptop to the Internet via a wired connection. If you need to enter login credentials, or an internet access code, do this first and run Connectify when you've confirmed Internet access locally. It'll appear as a Wi-fi taskbar symbol. Use left-click to expand the application, or right-click to make some quick adjustments (shown below). Here you can configure the specifics of your mobile wi-fi hotspot. The three drop-down menus at the top are most important and allow us to specify the Internet input, output and output mode. You can use Connectify to create a wireless access point with WPA2 security, which will appear to other computers like a regular hotspot - optionally passworded, or an ad-hoc network. If you don't know what is what, press Easy Setup Wizard. Because your router laptop has an incoming wired connection, you can keep surfing as usual, albeit with shared bandwidth. At the bottom of the screen, Connectify also keeps track of the connected clients and client history, i.e. who's using your hotspot. If you see a computer that doesn't belong, you can call up more information and block the client by right-clicking on the device name. With friendly devices, this also allows you to call up the shared drives and printers. <h2> Verdict</h2> Far too often, I've outnumbered the available internet connections with my mobile devices. Connectify has proven its use in this, being one of the only applications of its kind. Contrary to other alternatives, Connectify is also fool-proof and almost ridiculously easy to use. There's no need to get in touch with your inner geek and you can get your own hotspot online in mere minutes. The application not only solves logistical problems, but also saves you the money of an expanded internet infrastructure or hotel access costs. In one instance, Connectify seemed unable to detect a working internet connection though; a repeating issue on that laptop. On the other devices tested, Connectify worked like a charm. If you have any problems like that, check out the [NO LONGER WORKS] help section on the Connectify website. What are your thoughts on Connectify? Do you know any other tools that enable you to share an internet connection with a score of other devices? Let us know in the comments section below! Image Credit: <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create a Virtual Tour Integrated With Google Maps Using YouVR

Create a Virtual Tour Integrated With Google Maps Using YouVR

Create a Virtual Tour Integrated With Google Maps Using YouVR <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create a Virtual Tour Integrated With Google Maps Using YouVR</h1> &lt;firstimage="https://www.makeuseof.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/citytour.jpg" /&gt; It isn't always easy to show people how amazing a location is. Maybe you've visited an awesome theme park or a zoo and you'd like to show them how cool it was. Or maybe you're trying to sell your home, but pictures or words just don't reveal the beauty of the land and the house itself. Sometimes, the best way to show people a location is through a real video tour. This lets people feel as though they, themselves, are walking through the area. Providing an online video of an area is like providing web visitors with a virtual tour. One of the best solutions I've found to offer virtual tours like this is . There are lots of ways that you can integrate photos into Google Maps, like Mark's approach of on Google Maps, or using apps like HistoryPin to pin photos to certain Google Maps locations. But if you want to attach an actual video tour of a location on Google Maps, then YouVR is the place to do it. <h2> Creating a Virtual Tour</h2> Once you sign up at YouVR, you'll find that creating your own location-based virtual tours are as easy as filling out forms. The process is a very simple three step procedure, and probably the part that requires the most work is actually shooting your digital video to upload. That's actually the first thing you should do - just shoot a 1 to 2 minute video capture, touring the area and showing everything that you'd like to highlight. Ideally, the video shouldn't be a huge file. For example, I shot a 2 minute video and saved it in windows media player format in a file that was under 3 MB. Once you've shot your video and have it ready on your computer, go to your YouVR admin panel and click on "Add New Tour." The first step is simple, just provide the title and search details that best describe the video. In my case I'm making it a public video, so search Meta Tags are important. Choose tags that are descriptive so that people will be able to find your video without much effort. If you want to keep your video tour private and only share it out to friends, that's an option as well. On the next window, you'll see the remainder of the tour creation process broken down into sections. The critical sections at the top of the screen include choosing an accurate category for your video, and of course selecting a spot on Google Maps where the video was shot. To add this, just click on "Use Google Maps". If you'd actually rather upload your own map that you drew or created on your computer, those are available options as well. To specify the area for your virtual tour, just zoom into the spot on the world map that identifies the general location of the video. Now, keep in mind that you can have several hotspots as part of one tour, so make sure you don't zoom in so close that some of the hotspots aren't in the map. For example, if you're shooting cool locations in a National Park, make sure you zoom the map out enough so the entire area fits in the map view. Next, click on the "Add Hotspot (HS) on Map" and click the "Add Hotspot" button to add important sites to that map that you'd like to include as part of your virtual tour. Once that's done, scroll down and click on the link to Upload a Movie/Video. YouVR also gives you the option of uploading pictures instead of video, but if you can take digital video, that's the best way to go. Video is the clearest way to show someone what it's like to explore a certain site. Just click "Choose File", browse to and select the digital video stored on your PC, and then click Submit. When the file is done uploading, the popup window will disappear. Now, I ran into an issue here where if the file is too big, it'll just disappear and go back to saying no file is selected. If this happens to you, it's a good indication that the video file is too big - so choose a different format and then try again. Finally, the next step in the process is just to add descriptions to each HotSpot that you selected. This is helpful for visitors who are viewing your tour, because it offers important information about each "stop" - sort of like you're a tour guide offering information about each location. Once you're done, you'll find yourself back at your admin page. If you want to see what your new video looks like, just go to the YouVR public area (click on Virtual Tours), and if you just created your virtual tour, you'll see it under "Most Recent." Here you can see mine titled "Ryan Dube Home". Every tour you create looks like the window above. The cool part is that you can create up to 4 hotspots in your list under the free account. Each hotspot can have an associated video, so that when your visitor clicks on a hotspot in your list, they can watch the video that you created for it. As you can see, I've only added one hotspot on the Google Map area I selected, a tour of the land around my house. Clicking play - the video immediately loads. I found that the upload speed was just as good or better than you'd experience on YouTube. Here's what my captured video looked like in action on the YouVR site. This is an awesome service for all kinds of uses. I could imaging real estate agents could make good use of such a service, providing a virtual video tour of properties that are for sale, including hotspot virtual tours of the house and the property. Field guides could use the service to advertise the outdoor adventures they offer, or colleges could use the service to provide students with virtual tours of certain locations on campus. Can you think of any cool uses for such a virtual tour service? Have you ever used this service, or any others similar to it? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. Image credit: <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create A Webshop Without Databases With SimpleCart js

Create A Webshop Without Databases With SimpleCart js

Create A Webshop Without Databases With SimpleCart(js) <h1>MUO</h1> &lt;firstimage="https://www.makeuseof.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/shutterstock_42706630.jpg" /&gt; Shopping systems are often slow, bulky systems that can be quite demanding. The exceptions are blog (i.e. Wordpress) plug-ins, but even these require advanced control over your webserver and database installs. In short, a lot of work, files and really tough to use with free (limited) webspace. Today, we'll discuss an alternative. It's free, super lightweight, and just needs a little different approach. That's to say, there's no graphical user interface for adding shop items with this web site shopping cart. Instead, you need to insert simple tags in your HTML code. Don't worry, we'll tell you how. <h2> </h2> The end-user interface is slick, simple and direct. Products are aligned in this web site shopping cart in a grid, with relatively large icons, product explanation and price. The webmaster can optionally add different options for a product, i.e. small, medium and large T-shirts. Because of the build-up, simpleCart is best used for displaying a smaller and relatively static product arrangement, perfectly suited for amateur sellers. The cart is usually shown at the bottom of the page, but you can pretty much put it wherever you want. Here the buyer can review the products already selected, change the quantity, or empty the card. When satisfied, pressing the Checkout button will take the buyer to Paypal or Google Checkout, starting a money transfer to your account. You'll receive a notification when you get the money, where after you can ship the products. As simple as that. <h2> Setting Up SimpleCart On Your Website</h2> First, make sure you've got a basic website capable of executing JavaScript (which most can) and some little web space for the rest of the files. You can download simpleCart(js) from the website. It's donation ware, so you can choose for yourself if you like it and how much you think it's worth. Unzip the file and upload simpleCart.js to your site directory. The set-up is completed by inserting some little code into your website's HTML files. Wherever those snippets of code are inserted, that's where the specific simpleCart components will show up. &nbsp; &lt;script type="text/javascript" src="simpleCart.js"&gt;&lt;/script&gt; &nbsp; Add this to every page, between the &lt;HEAD&gt; and &lt;/HEAD&gt; tags, wherever you want to use simpleCart. &nbsp; &lt;script type="text/javascript"&gt; simpleCart.checkoutTo = PayPal; simpleCart.email = ""; &lt;/script&gt; &nbsp; Add the above to make simpleCart check out using Paypal. You also need to specify your Paypal mail address. Change the elements in green, and paste the entire snippet between the &lt;HEAD&gt; and &lt;/HEAD&gt; tags, wherever you want to use the checkout. &nbsp; &lt;script type="text/javascript"&gt; simpleCart.checkoutTo = GoogleCheckout; simpleCart.merchantId = ""; &lt;/script&gt; &nbsp; If you instead want to use Google Checkout, paste the above snippet between the &lt;HEAD&gt; and &lt;/HEAD&gt; tags, wherever you want to use the checkout. Instead of your email address, swap the green element with your Google Checkout Merchant ID. &nbsp; &lt;div class="simpleCart_shelfItem"&gt; &lt;h2 class="item_name"&gt; &lt;/h2&gt; &nbsp; &lt;span class="item_price"&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &nbsp; &nbsp; &lt;input value="1" type="text"&gt; &nbsp; &lt;a href="javascript:;" class="item_add"&gt; Add to Cart &lt;/a&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &nbsp; The code snippet above is used to add an item to your shelf. Change the item name and price, show in green. The select class, shown in blue, is entirely optional. If there are no subclasses in your product, you can leave it out. Paste it between the &lt;BODY&gt; and &lt;/BODY&gt; tags, wherever you want to show it on your page. &nbsp; &lt;div class="simpleCart_items"&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &nbsp; Paste this between the &lt;BODY&gt; and &lt;/BODY&gt; tags, where you want to display the entire web site shopping cart. &nbsp; You have &lt;span class="simpleCart_quantity"&gt;&lt;/span&gt; items in your Cart. Cart total: &lt;div class="simpleCart_total"&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &nbsp; &lt;a href="javascript:;" class="simpleCart_checkout"&gt;Checkout&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="javascript:;" class="simpleCart_empty"&gt;Empty&lt;/a&gt; &nbsp; The above elements will respectively display the amount of items in your cart, the cart total, a checkout link and an empty cart link. Each element can exist independently. Take a look at the documentation for more advanced settings, including currency options, tax rates, shipping, and changing the cart formatting. What do you think about simpleCart(js)? Have you ever sold anything online on your own site, and how did it go? Let us know in the comments! Image credit: <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

Create Impressive Videos With Wax 2 0 Windows

Create Impressive Videos With Wax 2 0 Windows

Create Impressive Videos With Wax 2 0 Windows <h1>MUO</h1> <h1>Create Impressive Videos With Wax 2 0 Windows </h1> Ever since I saw my first video tutorial, I was hooked on the presentation style, which I wished professors would adopt. The creator of Tinkernut excels at making a myriad of educational tech-related videos (ranging from to ) mixed with awesome effects that are anything but boring. I first learned of and this is definitely an application that aspiring video creators should take a look at. is video creation software that comes from the creator of (which lets you ) who is dedicated to ensuring that anyone can start authoring their own videos. You can use Wax 2.0 to create video sequences with special effects or as a plugin for commercial video editors such as Sony Vegas and Adobe Premiere. <h2> Here Are The Files Wax Accepts</h2> Video footage: Must be in the AVI container format (which may hold video and audio), Audio: WAV files, Images: PNG, JPEG, BMP, TIFF, TGA files. Others: (ICO), Photoshop (PSD, which you should read more about in the ) and AviSynth files (AVS format used to ). You're most likely going to have to convert your videos or audio clips to use them in Wax, but fear not as there are abounding the net. Also note that the videos exported from Wax 2.0 can only be in AVI format, which can end up being ultra huge files, unless you have DivX or Xvid. Both of these have been discussed in the recent for publishing YouTube videos and on shrinking video file sizes for easier sharing. There are also codecs you can use in other popular open-source video editors such as and , so what makes Wax 2.0 different? <h2> What Makes Wax 2 0 Stand Out </h2> Besides the video-editing platforms we've discussed above, is also available for download plus, you can technically also upload videos to YouTube and so what's the big deal about Wax 2.0? There's a few pretty useful features you should consider Wax 2.0 for: <h3>Modifying Clip s Properties</h3> VirtualDub and Avidemux can do finish any video-splitting, -trimming or tasks in a jiffy when you use Direct Stream Copy mode. However, most filters you use (e.g. adding some blurring effect, or changing the perspective) have to apply to the whole video. Thus, you cannot have specific parts modified, unless you're using something like the which has a phase 2 you can adjust to revert back to the original settings. Meanwhile, Wax 2.0 has the Quick 3D video plugin which is a Godsend. You can basically enlarge, shrink, and modify the video or image around which I'm sure you've wished Windows Live Movie Maker could allow. First, right-click on the Media Bins area and select Add Media Files. After you've chosen your files, drag them to the timeline, go to the Video Plugins tab under the Media Bins area and under Video Plugins: 2D, drag Quick 3d to the items in the timeline (repeat as necessary for all items in the timeline you want to change). Click on the arrow next to Quick 3D and you'll see the ways you can edit the actual clip. If you're looking to have a property change over the course of the clip's appearance, right-click on the property and select Linear. You can move pictures from one point in the video to another (sort of like ), play a video alongside/inside another video (for a video effect), etc. <h3>Using A Green Screen</h3> In the same box where you found Quick 3D, you'll also see under Color, the green screen plugin Chroma Key. Drag it to the timeline item whose background is a solid color, use the eyedropper to select that background color, adjust the Tolerance level and you can 'get rid' of the boring background or use a different one. If you check the Invert box, you can roll your own homemade iPod ad! <h3>Obtaining Way More Effects</h3> So Chroma Key is probably the easiest to understand, but you can achieve much more if you shoot for more complex effects, such as these: Watching what each of the effects available in Wax can do might be easier than reading about them so here's a good video: Want to try the more any of the more advanced effects just described? Here's how to use the Rotomate plugin to clone yourself: And here is a video I made myself advertising MakeUseOf! What do you say? Do you have some suggestions for other free video creation software? Let us know in the comments! Image credit: <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

About create

Found 50 trending topics about create. These results include the latest viral content, popular news, and hot discussions related to create. Content is updated in real-time to bring you the most current trending topics.