Tag Archives | best-of

10 Best Paint.NET Tutorials

Logo3I have been playing a lot more with Paint.NET lately, trying to get back in tune with my more creative side.  One thing I never realized was there are a lot of great tutorials out there for it, but it is hard to find the best ones.  Here are the top ten best Paint.NET tutorials I have run across so far.

It is amazing how advanced Paint.NET has gotten over the years. Also, if your used to the graphic editor layout – it is really easy to pick up and use too.  Know of any other great tutorials?

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Pixojo – Wallpaper Pushing Social Stream?

Desktop Backgrounds
In the search for some new desktop wallpaper? If your a fan of finding new wallpaper or you want to release your recent creation to the world, Pixojo is a great place to do both. This is a new (yet highly awesome) resource that has a lot of potential when it comes to finding and sharing the best wallpaper from around the Web.

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Top Picks for Screen & Capturing Gratification

Need a better way to capture the images on your desktop? Now anybody using Windows for more than five minutes can tell you that this is what the “Print Screen” button is for, right? Well true – that does get the job done but some of us need a little more. Here are my best suggestions for desktop image capturing and web site image capturing.

…for the Desktop

MWSnap – this is a powerful free tool that puts your screen capturing ways on steroids. If Microsoft ever released a power toy for screen captures, I have a feeling this is what it would look like.

MWSnapHere are five MWSnap features I like the most (in no specific order):

  • 5 snapping modes
  • Support for BMP, JPG, TIFF, PNG and GIF formats
  • System-wide hotkeys
  • Clipboard copy/paste
  • Auto-start with Windows and minimizes to system tray

…for the Web

WebShot – By far, WebShot is the best web site screen capture freeware package you can get. You can capture full size or thumbnail screenshots in a number of different image formats. Wish the documentation was a little better, but it really isn’t that hard to figure out.

Web ShotsHere are some of the features WebShot provides that I really enjoy a lot:

  • Automatic determination of page width and height that captures the whole page accurately. Does a great job every time.
  • Browser size specification allows you to capture the whole page or part of it.
  • Image encoding to JPG, GIF, PNG, and BMP with image quality control to save on disk space. Everybody should have a format to love.

There are a few other options out there too but these seem to far out weight their alternatives from head to toe. So next time you need to grab an screenshot of something on your desktop you should be more than prepaired to meet that chore head on with these freeware goodies.

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Feed Suggestions from D to F?

Continuing the trend of plugging those who either deserve to be plugged or don’t get the plugs they deserve from the public, here are a few more feeds directly from my feed reader to you. All of these selections totally deserve a look if you have not done so before.

David Airey – A great graphic designer and not that bad of a blogger I must say. His recent issues with his domain name are worth reading alone to find out how you yourself might be in harm’s reach.

Worthy Example Post: Collective effort restores David Airey.com

Download Squad – This is a page/feed and resource that I would suggest anybody check out and subscribe to. Sure it has already gotten tons of appreciation and praise, but you know – there is a reason for that. It is a top notch web site.

Worthy Example Post: Hoosgot – The return of LazyWeb (in spirit)

Drop the Mike – A web site just added to my feed reader, Mike’s blog is shaping up to be something awesome and a resource any hoster, domainer, or just about anybody else can get something from.

Worthy Example Post: Pass The Mike: Cotton Rohrscheib

Dueling Analogs – I already told you about one of my favorite online comics, bLaugh. Dueling Analogs would be my second (with both being equal in quality, of course). This one is for anybody who is a fan of video games and short – yet hilarious takes on them.

Worthy Example Post: No Funkin’ Way!

Firefox Extension Guru’s Blog – Another great Mozilla and Firefox resource, if you like that sort of thing. When looking for web sites like my own FirefoxFacts.com – the gurus work stuck out like a sore thumb that just reeked of awesomeness.

Worthy Example Post: Blog Year in Review: November 2007

Freelance Switch – I’ve been a freelance worker for almost 6 years now so I can appreciate a resource the helps make any freelancer’s job easier.

Worthy Example Post: Should You Sell Hosting?

Correction: In my last article, I forgot an entry for “C”. CyberNet News definitely belongs one my favorite feeds list. An alternative to some of the bigger blogging network out there, it definitely delivers a lot of content in a small package. Two thumbs up from me and once again, sorry about missing it on the last list.

Checkout the Entire Feed Suggestion Series!

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Ultimate List of Free Image Hosts

42 Free Photo HostsLooking for a for a free place to upload a few of your pictures? There is no shortage of places online, I can promise you that for sure. Over the past few weeks I’ve been gathering my own list up, checking it twice and have found for you 42 of the best photo or graphic hosts out there today.

I know that some people don’t like to register to get this type of service so the only requirement that I had for this list would be that you can upload without registering – with the exception of Flickr, Zooomr, Photobucket and some of the known and trusted photo hosting resources.

Here is the list of free photo or graphic hosts:

  1. Flickr – 20 MB monthly upload limit / unlimited bandwidth
  2. Zooomr – 100 MB monthly upload limit / unlimited bandwidth
  3. Visadig – Max file size 1.6MB / unlimited bandwidth
  4. Photobucket – 1 GB disk space / 25 GB monthly bandwidth
  5. Image Vimage – Max file size 2 MB / bandwidth unknown
  6. TinyPic – Unlimited photo hosting and bandwidth
  7. PutPix – 2 GB of space / 10 GB bandwidth / 2 MB file size limits
  8. ImageShock.eu – no limits mentioned / cool bonus tools included
  9. IMGSpot – max file size 650 KB / bandwidth not mentioned
  10. ImageShack – max file size of 1.5 MB / unlimited bandwidth
  11. Supload – unlimited disk space and bandwidth
  12. PicHostOnline -max file size of 1.5 MB / hosted for 60 days
  13. UploadJPEG.com – max file size of 1.5 MB / bandwidth unknown
  14. ImageVenue – max file size of 3 MB / unlimited bandwidth
  15. Keep My File – max file size of 2.5 MB / bandwidth unknown
  16. ImageTitan – max file size 1536 KB / unlimited bandwidth
  17. ImageRush.com – max file size 50 MB / hosted 60 days
  18. Pikkisays unlimited file size and bandwidth
  19. PixHosting.info – max file size 10 MB / unlimited bandwidth
  20. ImagesFly.com – max file size 5 MB / unlimited bandwidth
  21. PostImage – max file size 4 Mb / unlimited bandwidth
  22. IMGBolt.com – max file size 1 MB / 1 GB bandwidth (1,000 max views)
  23. Slibe – unknown all around, very strange service
  24. Picshome – max file size 300 MB / bandwidth unknown
  25. ImagePile – max file size 5 MB / bandwidth unknown
  26. Uploadem – max file size 15 MB / bandwidth unknown
  27. ShareURPic.com -max file size 10 MB / hosted 90 days (or longer)
  28. YourUpload.com – max file size 50 MB / bandwidth unknown
  29. Upload and GO! – max file size 1 MB / bandwidth unknown
  30. Pictiger – max file size 1 MB / bandwidth unknown
  31. FreeImageHost -max file size 3 MB / unlimited bandwidth
  32. ImageBam – max file size 3 MB / unlimited bandwidth
  33. 2and2.net – max file size 3 MB /bandwidth unknown
  34. Picfu – no limits mentioned on web site
  35. Image Hosting Site – max file size 2 MB / bandwidth unknown
  36. Pic-Spot.com – no limits mentioned on web site
  37. 10pix.com – max file size 1.5 MB / bandwidth unknown
  38. Imagefilez.com -max file size 3 MB / bandwidth unknown
  39. DigitalUploader – max file size 256 KB / bandwidth unknown
  40. ImageCabin -max file size 25 MB / unlimited bandwidth
  41. WeImage – max file sie 2 MB / unlimited bandwidth
  42. xs.to – no real rules & limits defined on uploads

Have a perfect one for number 43? Don’t be shy! Drop in a comment or leave me an e-mail and let me know about it.  Need more?  Check out my other reviews of free web hosts.

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Top 12 Firefox Extensions for Regular Folks

Now I have seen top Firefox extensions lists for everybody and anybody out there. They have ones for Web developers, they have ones for tech-savvy mothers, they even have ones for your five year old brother. I have never seen a list of Firefox extensions for us regular people though. Here is a list of extensions no regular person can be without.

1. Nightly Tester Tools

Now the main reason I added this one onto the list, is it made all my older extensions I had (when jumping from Firefox 1.5 to Firefox 2) work again. Now since some extension authors haven’t gotten around to updating their work, Nightly Tester Tools will be an extension to keep around for the time being. By the time all my favorite extensions are update though, it might be time to roll out Firefox 2.5 or Firefox 3!

2. Download Statusbar

I do not really like the built in download manager that comes with Firefox. It just does not get the job done for me, because I really don’t need another box popping up at me. The folks at Mozilla should have turned to the Download Statusbar extension. This tool gives you progress bars and either a big toolbar across the bottom, or a tiny icon in the status bar. This is a must have extension if you do a lot of downloading.

3. Google Browser Sync

When I got my laptop, I needed a quick and easy way to keep Firefox in sync via both my desktop and laptop systems. Now there are a hundred and one different extensions that promise to do this, but Google’s Browser Sync does it the best. Plus, I think Google is the only place I would trust with all this information I am sending back and forth anyways. You can sync your bookmarks, cookies, saved passwords, history and tabs. This is a nice ability to have when you are using more than one machine.

4. Greasemonkey

I love Greasemonkey so much, I could do another top scripts list on it alone. It is alike a series of extensions inside of an extension. Once you install Greasemonkey – you can install any number of “user scripts” that add functionality to any number of Web sites. You easily control any aspect of a web page’s design or interaction.

5. IE View

IE View allows you to open any link up in Internet Explorer. I used to use IE Tab, but once I moved up to Firefox 2 it seems like it broke an awful lot. That was about the time I figured it was time to go back to old reliable. IE View is really simple – just hit a button or click a menu option and your present Web page opens up in Internet Explorer. You can also set some links to always open up in Internet Explorer as well. I know it hurts you to think about it, but we all need to still use IE from time to time.

6. McAfee SiteAdvisor

SiteAdvisor was one of those extensions I was really excited about every since it’s release. Since being bought by McAfee – it is still good, but doesn’t have that same feeling. No matter who owns it though, it is still a nice tool to have. Think of it as a safety helper while searching randomly on the Web. For the most part, they are usually spot on with their warnings as well. A green icon means good, yellow is a warning and red means bad. They really couldn’t make it any easier.

7. Menu Editor

After you install a dozen or so extensions, your Firefox menus start running a little wild. The Menu Editor extension allows you to bring all these options and links back down to a list you can manage. There is nothing worse than right-clicking on a Web page and it taking 10 minutes for your right-click menu to load up. It might not be spring, but this extension is perfect for doing some spring cleaning around your browser.

8. Resizeable Form Fields

For anybody that spends a lot of time posting things Online or writing in any text box you find, the Resizeable Form Fields extension is a must to own. This extension allows you to drag and resize your text forms to any size you need. When you refresh the Web page – they will go back to normal. This is handy when writing long posts and you want to see everything you have typed thus far.

9. TinyMenu

You can never be saving enough space when it comes to your browser. The TinyMenu extensions allows you to shrink the “File, Edit, View, ect” options down to one drop down menu that says “Menu”. This will save you precious space when it comes to laying out your toolbars and icons inside of Firefox. I like to keep things nice and neat, and this extensions does the trick.

10. StumbleUpon

I am not a man of unlimited ideas, so when I need to find something to cover that I haven’t covered before, StumbleUpon is a great tool to use. StumbleUpon allows you to browse randomly through the Internet going to Web pages that other folks have marked via the StumbleUpon toolbar. The only thing I don’t like about StumbleUpon is that the toolbar for it is a little large. When not in use though – you can always hide it.

11. Video Download

This extensions allows you to download all those neat videos you find via the Web’s most popular services. Download content from Youtube, Google Video, iFilm, Metacafe, Dailymotion, Myspace, Angry Alien, AnimeEpisodes.Net, Badjojo, Blastro, Blennus, Blip.tv, Bofunk, Bolt, Break.com, Castpost, CollegeHumor, Current TV, Dachix, Danerd, DailySixer.com, DevilDucky, Double Agent, eVideoShare, EVTV1, FindVideos, Free Video Blog, Grinvi, Grouper, Hiphopdeal, Kontraband, Lulu TV, Midis.biz, Music.com, MusicVideoCodes.info, MySpace Video Code, Newgrounds, NothingToxic, PcPlanets, Pixparty, PlsThx, Putfile, Revver, Sharkle, SmitHappens, StreetFire, That Video Site, TotallyCrap, VideoCodes4U, VideoCodesWorld, VideoCodeZone, vidiLife, Vimeo, vSocial, Yikers, ZippyVideos, and any other Web page with embedded objects.

12. WebmailCompose

I like using Yahoo! Mail as my default E-mail application. I manage all my different E-mail account via them, so trouble comes when I click a “mailto” link on a Web page. I have no real “default mail client” to use. This WebmailCompose extension lets you use any number of Webmail applications to act as your default mail client. That means when you click one of these E-mail links, you will automatically be brought into your Webmail.

Have one I missed? Add a comment and let everybody else know what it is and why it should be here.

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Mitch’s Must Have WordPress Plugins

wpsite.gifNeed a few WordPress plugin suggestions? Well I might be able to say a few nice things about a few of them. To tell you the truth, these have been the icing on the cake when it comes to moving my Web site over from other services.

+ Askimet

Askimet has pretty much killed everything it should have and plays nice with all my other stuff. Comparing my old Blogware 100 or more trackback and comment spam (a day/per blog) I got with this is like comparing apples to oranges. Askimet has at least saved me 20 minutes or more a day from deleting trackback spam to doing more important things.

+ Audio Player WordPress plugin

This is the perfect addition to any podcast’s Web site. I used this most of all on the Web Hosting Show’s new layout, but it might have to make an appearance on some of my other projects as well. Adding a player is as easy as typing in a few keystrokes into a post.

+ WordPress FeedBurner Plugin

This Plugin really helped me when it came to moving my Web sites from Blogware to WordPress. I love using FeedBurner, and didn’t want to give it up. The FeedBurner Plugin just needs a little setup and then you don’t have to worry about it ever again. I like that.

+ PXS Mail Form

Want to add a contact form to your WordPress Web site? This is the tool for you. All you need to do is configure, then cut and paste a little code in, and you are done.

There are many more great WordPress plugins that I didn’t mention as well. All and all, I have to say I am becoming happier and happier with my new WordPress setups.

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