iPod - iTunes

One can only import audio and video of certain format to iTunes. e.g. wma, wmc

A .avi movie cannot be imported into iTunes. To do that, one needs to convert the format of the input file. A possible media converter, like Videora iPod Converter ( search in http://www.download.com/ ) is free and easy to use.

Videora iPod Converter converted video's location (C:\Documents and Settings\"username"\My Documents\Converted Videos)

Immediately after conversion, Videora automatically places the video into the movie folder for sync to iPod.


iSquint = QuickTime

iPod - accessories

Today I bought another set of screen protectors from epicentre @ suntec city. I also managed to get the shop assistant to stick the protectors ( front and back ) for me. In the end, it took them about 30 mins. The cost of the screen protectors are $25.00

I also bought a casing bag for my ipod-touch. It is kind of like a handphone casing. It costs $5.90.

ipod - headset

Today i bought a Philips SBC HM3400 Headphone @ Audio house at Liang Court Shopping Centre. It costs $29.90.

iPod accessories

Today I bought a Sennheiser earphone and Cord Managment unit @ ishop @ Orchard Cineleisure.

Earphone = $30.90
Cord Management unit = $11.60

iPod

The following link gives a good idea of the different models of ipod.

This also, wikipedia link.

iPod casing

Today I bought a casing for the ipod touch a Plaza Singapore. It costs $18.00 and comes with 2 screen protectors. But the screen protectors were lousy.

Another Mini Notebook

Saw this advertisement in the papers, U1000.

Home - internet wireless broadband

I have singnet broadband 3Mbps plan as my internet broadband access.

I bought a Linksys Internet wireless router to serve as the gateway to the internet world from anywhere in my house.

Setting up the wired internet access from the pc to the router to the cable modem was an issue.
It was found to be because the ip address of the router and the cable modem from singtel share the same range, i.e. both are 192.168.1.1 So to solve the problem, I changed the local ip address of the router. This is done through the web interface of the router.

When one type http://192.168.1.1/ into a web browser, a login prompt will request login to the router, key in both inputs, and one will be brought to the setup page. Change the Local ip address of the router, the starting ip address will change accordingly after saving and reseting. The rest of the procedure follows the cd sequence. My selections are "PPPOE", xxx@singnet.
Of course, after changing the Local ip address of the router, subsequently one needs to key in http://192.168.2.1/ into the web browser to access the router setup.

Setting up the wireless within the house was equally problematic. It seems like this model cannot handle WEP. The setup works for WPA and WPA2. The generated keys are to be used for client to join up to the wireless LAN.
To setup SES ( Secure Easy Setup ). At the router end , select the button "SES inactive", then using the Linksys UI at the client, choose connect. The system will automatically create a LAN for the server and client to join up.

A forum that seems to say WEP is not supported, here.

Web - photoshop - part 1

Photoshop is not an image-creation program, which means that it is not set up to create images from scratch. Instead, Photoshop is designed to alter and improve existing images that have been acquired through digital photography, scanners, or other means.

photo editor = photoshop ( raster images, bitmaps, pixels )
illustrator = illustrator, AutoCAD, Flash ( vector images )

New file, defaults are
Width = 7 inches
Height = 5 inches
Resolution = 72 pixels/inch
Color Mode = RGB Color, 8 Bit
Background Contents = White

screen color = RGB
printing color = CMYK

gif = 256 colors, animation, transparent background
jpg = 16.7 millions colors, compression
tiff = 16.7 millions colors

jpg smaller size than tiff because of compression.

Selection Tools
"shift" + left click - while drawing circle to maintain the aspect ratio. ( elliptical marquee becomes circular )
"space bar" + left click - to move the origin of the selecti0n.

whenever one selection tool is made, one needs to decide whether it is a "new", "add", "deletion" to selection.

One technique is to use Lasso to make a selection, then use magic wand to do substract from selection (e.g. butterfly )

To rotate - select Edit->Transform->Rotate
To invert - select Select->Inverse
To scale - select Edit->Transform->Scale
To skew - select Edit->Transform->Skew

Magic wand has tolerance setting.

How to make a transparent gif in photoshop

The following are some links that describe how one can make a transparent gif in photoshop.

1. mediacollege
2. link1
3. link2

Colour of Hyperlinks

This link gives a very clear instructions on how to change the colour of web links.

Web - Frontpage

Paragraph

One can apply separate paragraph formatting to indivdual paragraphs. Paragraphs have space between them. Press "Enter" to start a new paragraph.

Line Break

Line breaks let you add a new line of text to the current paragraph. You cannot apply paragraph formatting to individual lines separated by line breaks. Lines that are separted by line breaks do not have any space between them. Press "Shift" + "Enter" to insert a line break.

Undo
The undo function can undo almost all of your actions.

Theme
Select Format->Theme from the menu.

Background color
Select Format->Background or
Right-click the page and select Page Properties -> Background tab, and select a background colour.

Cascading style sheets
Cascading style sheets are easier to customize to your own needs than themes are. Also, cascading style sheets change the formatting in a page by applying its HTML code to the page.

Adding a Border to an Image
Click on the image you want to display with a border. Click Format->Properties->Apperance tab, or click the right mouse button, select Picture Properties from the shortcut list and click the Appearance tab, or press + .

Aligning an Image with Text
Click on the image you want to align. Click Format->Properties->Appearance tab, or click the right mouse button, select Picture Properties from the shortcut list and click the Appearance tab, or press +. Select the alignment for the picture, and click ok.

Position an Image
Click on the image to select it. Click the Position Absolutely button on the Pictures toolbar. Click the Send Backward button on the Pictures toolbar to allow text to flow over the object, or click the Send Forward button to make the image float on top of text. Drage the image to where you want it on the screen.

Adding a Background Image
Click Format->Background from the menu. Check the Background pictures box, and click the Browse button. Click the Browse button to navigate to the image you want to use. Click the Select a file on our computer button in the Select Background Picture dialog box. Select the image you want to use and click OK. Click OK in the Page Properties dialog box.

To Set Transparent Color
Select the image. Click the Set Transparent Colour button on the Pictures toolbar. Point to the part of the image you want to change with the "magic wand" and click.

Creating a Thumbnail Image
Select the image and click the Auto Thumbnails button on the Pictures toolbar.

Changing Image File Formats
Select Format->Properties->General from the menu and select the button of the file format you want the picture to be.

Inserting a Photo Gallery
Select Insert->Picture->New Photo Gallery from the menu. Click the Add button and Select Pictures from Files or Pictures from Scanner or Cameras. Navigate to the location of the pictures, select the pictures you want to include and click Open. Select a picture and type a caption or descriptive text in the Photo Gallery Properties dialog box. Click the Layout tab, select the layout type you ant to use for the photo gallery, and click OK.

Add Shared Borders
Select Format->Shared Borders.
Shared borders are actually a Microsoft meta tag. Meta tags tell browsers how to setup the Web page in teh browser window. The tag tells the browser to leave some space on the edge of a page for the shared border. The problem is that you don't have total control over the shared border space, and browsers may interpret the meta tag differently.

This use of tags and allocation of space is generally not an accepted practice in Web design. Web designers will usually use tables to designate space on a page because it is more reliable and precise.

Therefore, try not to use shared borders. Instead, use frames or tables to create a similar effect.
Inserting Link Bars
Select Insert->Navigation.

Changing Link Bar Properties
Right-click the link bar. Select Link Bar Properties from the shortcut menu.

Set Up a Form
Insert->Form->Form.
There's more to inserting a form than meets the eye, however. Forms require certain FrontPage Server Extensions on your Web server. To make sure these are available, call your Web server provider and ask if they use FrontPage Extensions.

Web Presence Provider Criteria
- FrontPage Server Extensions
This is an important question because some WPPs do not support FrontPage Server Extensions. These extensions allow advanced features of FrontPage to work, such as hit counters and other components.

- Security
A secure server encrypts data so unauthorized parties cannot read the information. This is especially important if Web users will be providing personal information to your Web site.

- Storage Space
WPPs will usually limit the amount of storage space you can use for your Web site. Choose a WPP that allows the storage of at least 5MB of information.

- Technical Support
A WPP should provide technical support in case you have problems with your Web pages. Try to get a sense of how good the service is, however. Will the technical support get back to your question in a day or week? When you call, will technical support answer the phone immediately, or will you be on hold for 15 minutes?

- Traffic Limit
Most WPPs limit the amount of informatino that is ftransfered from your Web site. You may even have to pay extra if the transfer amount goes over the limit. Choose a WPP that allows the transfer of at least 50MB of information in a day.

- Domain Name Registration
Your domain name is what users will type in the browser to access your Web pages. Most WPPs will register your domain name for a feee. Personalized domain names are especially good because they are easy to remember.

Change a Web Site's Page Options
Select Tools->Page Options.

Specify Keywords for a Web Page
Click File->Properties, and click the Custom tab.
"description", "keywords" for name

Web Components
Page 205


www.hostdepartment.com
www.buttongenerator.com

Web-graphics format

The following are the three common graphics format :

1. gif
These tpes of images are faster to download, but are not good for photographic images. The colors in the image are limited to 256.

2. jpeg
Pictures of this type are ideal for photographs, because they support thousands or millions of colors.

3 png
The PNG format is an alternative to GIF that supports transparency for pictures containing thousands or millions of colors. However, some Web browsers cannot display PNG pictures without a special plug-in.

Notebook RAM upgrade

Recently I upgraded the RAMs of both my notebook.

Dell Inspiron 6000
512MB -> 2 GB
( total cost of $70 )

IBM T41
512MB -> 1GB
( total cost $110 inclusive of $10 service charge )

The difference in cost for each notebook is because of the following
Dell RAM is DDR2, IBM RAM is DDR1.

DDR1 is no longer of much demand and this low demand has driven up the price. Whilst DDR is still very common and highly in demand, driving down the price.

Asus Eee PC

Came across this interesting PC ( subnotebook ) from Asustek. Saw on advertisement that it was sold at the recent SITEX 2007 @ S'pore Expo.

It is actually based on a Linux OS and uses Flash as storage ( h/d ).
The following are some reviews I gathered :

1. Asus Eee PC First Thoughts
2. Asus Eee PC Hands On Preview
3. Asus Eee PC - wikipedia

Tools and Utility

PC maintenance
CCleaner - useful for clearing orphaned installation files and clearing the Windows temporary directories.
http://ccollomb.free.fr/unlocker - unlock offending folder.

Instant Messaging
Meebo
Trillian
Velvetpuffin

Windows XP - screen background

Whenever one sees a nice picture in the Internet and decides to keep it as one's screen background, it can be saved as "Internet Explorer Wallpaper.bmp".

In Windows XP, this file is found in the following location,

C:\Documents and Settings\(Profile Name)\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Internet Explorer Wallpaper.bmp"

Application Data" is hidden and one may need to enable to show hidden files to locate it.

Menu generator

To have dynamic and interesting menu, one can use javascript menu generator to generate the code needed.

Available tools are :
1. Button-generator;
2. uMenu - download from http://www.download.com/ ( free )

Disable right click

The following link shows how one can disable the right mouse click for visitors so that they cannot save any materials from the web page.

Basically just follow the 2 steps in the link.
- step 1 copies to the "header" tag.
- step 2 copies to the "body" tag.

Image