About Me
- Amber
- The Apple State, United States
- Visit me at ambermcleod.com where I display my wares...
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
iStock Weekly & Monthly Freebies
8:56 PM | 
Posted by
Amber
http://www.istockphoto.com/
It's nice when you design for other people, to have a few extras - just in case. iStockPhoto offers weekly freebies. Some of them are really good images too, so be sure to check them out. You'll need an account to download.
Free Vectors of the Month
It's nice when you design for other people, to have a few extras - just in case. iStockPhoto offers weekly freebies. Some of them are really good images too, so be sure to check them out. You'll need an account to download.
Quick Tip ~ Use GoogleChrome or Firefox because Internet Explorer has issues with this site.
This week:
Freebie Photo of the Week
This week:
Freebie Photo of the Week
Free Vectors of the Month
Check out the Weekly Archive for more freebies, including audio & video!
Labels:
Monday, November 2, 2009
Registry Cleaner & More!
Everyone has unwanted garbage in the registry, left over by old programs and who knows what. So part of maintenance is cleaning out your registry. Anyone who is anyone will tell you to BE CAREFUL and back up your registry first. Screwing up your registry is probably one of the least fun things you can do to your computer.
I found a really good gratis registry cleaner. It's very well written and was overall easy to use. You can remove all invalid entries, or you can pick and choose.
This program also cleans out any temporary files - not just internet files - but files from program backups as well. It will allow you to remove old programs from the uninstall list as well as your system startup entries (msconfig). Disabling an item from msconfig doesn't remove it, but this does.
Without further adieux....CCleaner. Have a look-see! http://www.ccleaner.com/
I found a really good gratis registry cleaner. It's very well written and was overall easy to use. You can remove all invalid entries, or you can pick and choose.
This program also cleans out any temporary files - not just internet files - but files from program backups as well. It will allow you to remove old programs from the uninstall list as well as your system startup entries (msconfig). Disabling an item from msconfig doesn't remove it, but this does.
Without further adieux....CCleaner. Have a look-see! http://www.ccleaner.com/
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Free Help Desk & Knowledgebase Solution
It's all about the gratis with me. I'm not a total tightwad, but WHY pay when you don't have to? Shelling out money just for show, not my gig! I happened to download this particular software when it was free, but now I see there's a small fee attached. $40 - totally worth the dough for what you're getting.
If you have a business that could benefit from having a Help Desk and/or Knowledgbase, then have I found the software for YOU! I use it on my own site.
The solution.......HESK! Found at http://www.hesk.com/ - this software is written in PHP and runs from a standard MySQL database. Easy to install if you know your way around FTP.
This help desk allows you to build up a knowledgbase of FAQs, as well as the provision of a support ticket system. You're able to add users in your admin area should you need others to help you answer tickets; categorize tickets, browse, archive, the full deal.
This really is an excellent software. I've shopped around and this is a winner!
WAIT! What if you don't need the support ticket system? ANOTHER fabulous solution, and totally free....68KB - found here: http://68kb.com/download/ . I've also used 68KB and it does a great job with simple FAQ management.
Two great products, worth every penny!
If you have a business that could benefit from having a Help Desk and/or Knowledgbase, then have I found the software for YOU! I use it on my own site.
The solution.......HESK! Found at http://www.hesk.com/ - this software is written in PHP and runs from a standard MySQL database. Easy to install if you know your way around FTP.
This help desk allows you to build up a knowledgbase of FAQs, as well as the provision of a support ticket system. You're able to add users in your admin area should you need others to help you answer tickets; categorize tickets, browse, archive, the full deal.
This really is an excellent software. I've shopped around and this is a winner!
WAIT! What if you don't need the support ticket system? ANOTHER fabulous solution, and totally free....68KB - found here: http://68kb.com/download/ . I've also used 68KB and it does a great job with simple FAQ management.
Two great products, worth every penny!
Friday, October 9, 2009
What to do with the Big Flash?
There is definitely a benefit to using Flash (swf) files on your web page. You can create some neat transitional effects, but mostly I use it because it consolidates several images into one spot. I don't recommend using flash for the majority of your site, or embedding too much text in your flash files. Reason being, you want to rank with with search engines and search engines can't extract text from your flash to read it properly.
I use Corel R.A.V.E. to create my flash files. It's not my specialty, but I know enough to get the job done. The problem I have is that the files I create are just absolutely MASSIVE. I'm all about gratis software to solve most problems, but this particular problem did not possess a freebie fix.
I tried the demo versions of several SWF Optimizers, and the one that I actually liked the most ended up being the least expensive. Sparkle SWF Optimizer comes affordable at $24.95 and this program really shaves the size down, up to 70%!
I use Corel R.A.V.E. to create my flash files. It's not my specialty, but I know enough to get the job done. The problem I have is that the files I create are just absolutely MASSIVE. I'm all about gratis software to solve most problems, but this particular problem did not possess a freebie fix.
I tried the demo versions of several SWF Optimizers, and the one that I actually liked the most ended up being the least expensive. Sparkle SWF Optimizer comes affordable at $24.95 and this program really shaves the size down, up to 70%!
You can try the free trial, which is fully functional for 30 days. It really makes flash file optimization a quick and easy job. There aren't a lot of options to set, you just open the file and optimize. And with each optimization, it backs up your original swf file so no worries!
Monday, September 28, 2009
Rave: Quick Text T-Bird Add-On
Everyone who is anyone has heard of Mozilla, specifically Firefox the alternate (and swiftly popular) browser. Mozilla of course offers a gratis email client, Thunderbird. I have been using Thunderbird for years. It has crashed a few times, but overall a great experience. And I LOVE having software that I can install add-ons and tweaks, Thunderbird is open source so the possibilities are endless.Thunderbird has several add-ons, a few I've used. Some I love, some are awful. But THIS one is fantabulous.
Often I have to send instructions to people on how to do something. And I have to send these instructions to different people at different times. So instead of typing them up each time, initially I had them saved in my knowledgebase and would either send people there, or copy & paste.
Thunderbird has solved my inconvenience problem! The add-on is called Quick Text and it allows you to create categories, then add blocks of text in either TEXT or HTML format. It adds a toolbar to the new email window, and makes adding text as easy as one click.
The mod was created by user WizKid and can be found here:
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/addon/640
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Cheap or Free Royalty Free Clipart - No Credit Required?
Since I'm on the topic of graphic design, I'm posting Meljen's Designs' link on the left. She does great work, her site is still in the works but will be fabulous!
Someone today asked, in a group setting, the best place to get graphics that don't require credits. I offered up my suggestion - iStockPhoto - that's where I get a lot of my royalty-free images that don't require credits.
The response of this person was that iStockPhoto was too expensive. I understand people are on a budget, I really do. We have ALL been there. And of course I left it at that, I'm not going to argue with someone over how much they want to spend somewhere else. No point.
I have dabbled in graphic design - I'm okay at it, but it's not my strong point. Because of my dabbling I know that graphic design isn't a talent that is just put into play at the mere suggestion. There is planning involved, there are layers that must be matched & placed accordingly - what may seem like a very simple graphic can take the artist hours to complete. That doesn't even take into account the artist creating the CONCEPT for the design. If you're so lucky to find quality graphics for FREE, excellent, but why would you want to deny the artist the credit, when you paid nothing for their skill and talent?
Because I utilize royalty art on a regular basis, I try to be very careful about reading the terms of use. It's important! If you misuse someone's idea, you could find yourself in a pickle. :) So before you buy, read the TOU and purchase the proper license. It may cost you upwards of $20 for a commercial license for a high quality vector (resizeble/recolor-able) image. But take into account that these graphics are the artists INCOME.
iStockPhoto, StockXpert, MyGrafico and Dreamstime are just a few sites that offer excellent graphics with commercial or standard licensing options. Standard licensing generally requires that you give credit to the artist, but it's not always the case. You just have to read the terms.
So...that's my rant for the day. Not the most interesting topic, but one I feel strongly about.
Someone today asked, in a group setting, the best place to get graphics that don't require credits. I offered up my suggestion - iStockPhoto - that's where I get a lot of my royalty-free images that don't require credits.
The response of this person was that iStockPhoto was too expensive. I understand people are on a budget, I really do. We have ALL been there. And of course I left it at that, I'm not going to argue with someone over how much they want to spend somewhere else. No point.
I have dabbled in graphic design - I'm okay at it, but it's not my strong point. Because of my dabbling I know that graphic design isn't a talent that is just put into play at the mere suggestion. There is planning involved, there are layers that must be matched & placed accordingly - what may seem like a very simple graphic can take the artist hours to complete. That doesn't even take into account the artist creating the CONCEPT for the design. If you're so lucky to find quality graphics for FREE, excellent, but why would you want to deny the artist the credit, when you paid nothing for their skill and talent?
Because I utilize royalty art on a regular basis, I try to be very careful about reading the terms of use. It's important! If you misuse someone's idea, you could find yourself in a pickle. :) So before you buy, read the TOU and purchase the proper license. It may cost you upwards of $20 for a commercial license for a high quality vector (resizeble/recolor-able) image. But take into account that these graphics are the artists INCOME.
iStockPhoto, StockXpert, MyGrafico and Dreamstime are just a few sites that offer excellent graphics with commercial or standard licensing options. Standard licensing generally requires that you give credit to the artist, but it's not always the case. You just have to read the terms.
So...that's my rant for the day. Not the most interesting topic, but one I feel strongly about.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Moving Email from an Old Server to a New Server
Recently I ran into this problem. Today actually, that's really very recent I suppose. Client had transferred her websites to Hostgator. Hostgator did the transfer of the SITE, but not her email. Yipes! We need those emails. Her domain had already propped to the new hosting account.
You can do a full backup through cPanel and restore it to your new webhost, and that will do the trick. BUT what if you already transferred all of your files, things are working well, and doing the full backup/restore could screw up what you've done already? Really, all you want to do is transfer your emails - nothing else.
I've tried a few things before I found el solution.
First, create the identical email account in your new host (me@you.com > me@you.com) - I can't promise it will work if you choose a new email address. I can't promise it will work anyway actually. :)
Open the old host - probably using the IP address (i.e. ftp://12.345.678.910/) in Explorer. EXPLORER. NOT your FTP program - won't work.
- Start > Run > "explorer" > Enter
- Type your ftp:// thing (above) into the address bar > Enter
- Right click on the screen & "Login As"
- Enter your cPanel username/password, or you can use your FTP (probably the same), just be sure you have full permissions to the root directory.
Once you're in, click MAIL
Click the email address you want to restore.
Your current email will be stored in the folder called "cur", but you can COPY any of the folders in there. So do that - highlight > copy.
Save to your hard drive somewhere - desktop, zip, I don't care. Just paste it somewhere. Don't try to get fancy and put it on a CD or DVD. Just KISS....put it on your hard drive. It will take a LONG TIME to download. The more email you have, the longer it takes.
Upload these files to your new host in the MAIL directory that resides in the ROOT directory. This should restore your emails. You can do the upload via FTP client, it was the downloading that wasn't happenin' in the FTP client. I use FileZilla.
If you have no idea what I just typed up there, then maybe this isn't a good project for you. Or you can send me $50 to type out the instructions in layman's terms. :D
I only transferred the "cur" folder, I didn't try any others but I can't imagine it wuuld be any different.
You MUST have a normal host to do this. I'm betting it won't work on a big reseller host like GoDaddy because they like to restrict your access. Pppplllllltttt on them.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Mozy Gets the Score!
Offsite Online Backup that Supports External Hard Drives
Telling it like it is really. Short post. Carbonite doesn't support external hard drives. Mozy does. Google for Mozy promo codes and get 20% off of a one year subscription. ($45ish total).
With all the hype about Carbonite, and all of the celebrity (paid) endorsements you'd think they'd be top of the game...but no go. So Mozy has my business.
Telling it like it is really. Short post. Carbonite doesn't support external hard drives. Mozy does. Google for Mozy promo codes and get 20% off of a one year subscription. ($45ish total).
With all the hype about Carbonite, and all of the celebrity (paid) endorsements you'd think they'd be top of the game...but no go. So Mozy has my business.
Oh HD....wherefore art thou?
Lame, I know, but I was feeling really emotional at the time.
I bought a WD External Hard drive from Overstock - refurbished, but I'm frugal. My husband calls me cheap. Toe-MAE-toes....toe-MAW-toes.
I put EVERYTHING on this drive, all working files, graphics, you name it. I've been meaning to buy offsite backup for it, but haven't had a lot of luck finding something that supports external HDs. (see next post)
Yesterday I plug everything in, and my I:/ drive is just gone. When I plug it in, my system (Vista...of course) won't recognize it, it has no drivers, there are no drivers to be downloaded to make it work. I'm stuck. So I Google.
I went through several different troubleshootings posts along with their owners, and they all said the same thing. I don't like digging through what didn't work for others, instead I just post what did work for me.
Check the plug. Check the cable. Light coming on? Sounds normal? If that's the case, try this:
- Control Panel
- Administrative Tools
- Computer Mgmt
- Disk Mgmt
See your hard drive there? If not...sorry, not your solution. If yes (you may see it twice - ignore that for now)...then YAY!
Right click & explore. Then go check out your "My Computer" to see if it's there.
That did it for me!
I bought a WD External Hard drive from Overstock - refurbished, but I'm frugal. My husband calls me cheap. Toe-MAE-toes....toe-MAW-toes.
I put EVERYTHING on this drive, all working files, graphics, you name it. I've been meaning to buy offsite backup for it, but haven't had a lot of luck finding something that supports external HDs. (see next post)
Yesterday I plug everything in, and my I:/ drive is just gone. When I plug it in, my system (Vista...of course) won't recognize it, it has no drivers, there are no drivers to be downloaded to make it work. I'm stuck. So I Google.
I went through several different troubleshootings posts along with their owners, and they all said the same thing. I don't like digging through what didn't work for others, instead I just post what did work for me.
Check the plug. Check the cable. Light coming on? Sounds normal? If that's the case, try this:
- Control Panel
- Administrative Tools
- Computer Mgmt
- Disk Mgmt
See your hard drive there? If not...sorry, not your solution. If yes (you may see it twice - ignore that for now)...then YAY!
Right click & explore. Then go check out your "My Computer" to see if it's there.
That did it for me!
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Dear Pearl, What do you mean, "Unable to reconnect to the device during a multi-stage load operation" ??
It's rare that I have something new and useful to say. Useful, yes, but new...not so much.
My husband got a new Blackberry and his software was better than mine. So I decided to upgrade my software from the BB site in a feelbe attempt to keep up with the Jones' (or my husband). I've never done this before, I've never really cared because I'm not one of those "must have my cell phone at all times" people -- in fact, I often lose it. But surely his can't be better than mine!
So I installed the desktop manager and plugged it in. (Go to your service provider to download the desktop manager for your BB) I have a Compaq Presario laptop, Windows Vista. Got everything up & rolling and it gets to the end of the installation and I get this error:
"Unable to reconnect to the device during a multi-stage load operation" -- and when I boot up the phone it gives me error #507 - in the language of Blackberry Pearl, that means there's no software installed.
So that was really nice. My $300 phone just became a child's toy. But like I tell my kids, we do not give up! :) Sometimes I do, but I don't tell them that. They can discover their parents are hypocrites in a few more years.
Anyway, I'm going through these BB forums only to learn that I'm up a creek minus paddle. I hardly think so.
So....if anyone else gets this error, I'll tell you what I did to fix it. And surely this won't work for everyone, but it will work for 24% of you. Give or take...
Before you begin, I pop the battery out of the Blackberry (that's not the fix, that's just part of what yo have to do). After that, I initiate the software on my PC. When it tries to find my Blackberry on a USB port, I notice that it doesn't recognize it. So, I unplug the USB cable and plug it back in. It recognizes it. Push button...commence.
After the software starts doing it's backup and load sequence, I put the battery back in. THIS was the key. For some reason the USB cable just wasn't providing enough juice to keep the Blackberry going.
Also, be sure your power options aren't set to turn off your USB ports. Probably not the problem but worth checking. Device Manager > USB Ports > Power Mgmt...you'll see the option.
Update Successful! So that did the trick, hopefully it helps someone else.
My husband got a new Blackberry and his software was better than mine. So I decided to upgrade my software from the BB site in a feelbe attempt to keep up with the Jones' (or my husband). I've never done this before, I've never really cared because I'm not one of those "must have my cell phone at all times" people -- in fact, I often lose it. But surely his can't be better than mine!
So I installed the desktop manager and plugged it in. (Go to your service provider to download the desktop manager for your BB) I have a Compaq Presario laptop, Windows Vista. Got everything up & rolling and it gets to the end of the installation and I get this error:
"Unable to reconnect to the device during a multi-stage load operation" -- and when I boot up the phone it gives me error #507 - in the language of Blackberry Pearl, that means there's no software installed.
So that was really nice. My $300 phone just became a child's toy. But like I tell my kids, we do not give up! :) Sometimes I do, but I don't tell them that. They can discover their parents are hypocrites in a few more years.
Anyway, I'm going through these BB forums only to learn that I'm up a creek minus paddle. I hardly think so.
So....if anyone else gets this error, I'll tell you what I did to fix it. And surely this won't work for everyone, but it will work for 24% of you. Give or take...
Before you begin, I pop the battery out of the Blackberry (that's not the fix, that's just part of what yo have to do). After that, I initiate the software on my PC. When it tries to find my Blackberry on a USB port, I notice that it doesn't recognize it. So, I unplug the USB cable and plug it back in. It recognizes it. Push button...commence.
After the software starts doing it's backup and load sequence, I put the battery back in. THIS was the key. For some reason the USB cable just wasn't providing enough juice to keep the Blackberry going.
Also, be sure your power options aren't set to turn off your USB ports. Probably not the problem but worth checking. Device Manager > USB Ports > Power Mgmt...you'll see the option.
Update Successful! So that did the trick, hopefully it helps someone else.
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