Tag: Productivity

Topics

How to: Burn an audio CD with ImgBurn

Most of us enjoy our favorite music on mobile phones and MP3 players. But every now and then I still need CDs to listen to music – for example, when I’m in my car. Ands this is when ImgBurn comes in handy: a free, easy CD and DVD burning tool that lets you perform all sort of disk burning related tasks. Here’s a short tutorial on how to use ImgBurn to create custom audio CD:

1. Open ImgBurn, go to Mode and select Write.

Burn an audio CD with ImgBurn

2. On the next window, click the icon with a CD and a musical note, so that ImgBurn knows you’re creating an audio CD.

Burn an audio CD with ImgBurn

3. Click on the top right button to browse files in your hard drive and add them to the recording queue for the CUE file. Continue reading “How to: Burn an audio CD with ImgBurn”

3 free ways to open Word documents without Office

Yesterday my father rang me wanting some help with opening a Microsoft Word document. He didn’t have Microsoft Office installed, there was no way he was going to pay up to $229 to buy it and to cap it all, he’d never even used a word processor before. I shuddered at the challenge that lay ahead of me but to my pleasant surprise, within 10 minutes I’d taught him how to open, edit, save and even send the document by e-mail – and all without having to have Microsoft Office or Word installed on his computer. If my dad can do it, anyone can and so here’s 3 ways that you can do the same:

1. Google Docs

If you’ve received the document by e-mail, download it, go to Google Docs and upload it. Note that you’ll need to sign-up for a Google Account first.

google-docs-upload.png

Simply browse to the file you want to upload and it will open automatically in Google Docs.

google-docs-upload-2.png

From there you can edit it in much the same way as you can in Word and send it by e-mail directly from your Gmail account. Continue reading “3 free ways to open Word documents without Office”

Top drawing applications for PC

743218_78506501.pngDrawing applications are a dime a dozen and can go from the professional 3D drawing tool to just fun brush and pencil sketching programs. More serious users will go for advanced solutions with animations, layers and advanced drawing tools while normal users will look to a simple solution to scribble around. Let’s take a look at the some of the top drawing software and what you can do with them:

  • Toon Boom Studio – Aimed at people in the animation industry, this program lets you create cartoons in the cut-out way by using motion paths.
  • OpenCanvas – This is more of a sketching app, with lots of highly realistic brushes. The program is very similar to Photoshop, uses layers and offers a friendly interface easy for newcomers to handle.
  • Manga Studio – Ever wanted to recreate Ranma 1/2, Dragonball Z or Astro Boy? Create your own anime with Manga Studio, which has more than 3,000 screen tones and 80 different templates.
  • Google Sketchup Pro – Easy to use yet very powerful, it lets you create realistic 3d models. Good for architects and field planners.
  • Facial Studio – You can use this tool to quickly draw up anybody’s face. Just scan a portrait, let Facial Studio analyze it and you’ll then be able to change anything from the skin texture to chin, nose or hair.
  • Artweaver – A free drawing tool that offers a wide range of brushes and layers and can load up plugins. Accessible to beginners.
  • Paint.NET – One of the best free apps you’ll ever find, Paint.NET offers you loads of powerful tools and special effects in an intuitive interface.
  • Sketch Master – One of my personal favorites. Create sketches out of any photo. Use one of the many brushes provided or just let the random settings generator come up with a sketch for you.
Image via: Unsplash

Top 10 internet accelerators

 

Image via: Pexels

With broadband now commonplace, internet accelerators have gone out of fashion somewhat with creaky old modems consigned to the bin. However, as broadband speed is often subject to wild variations depending on where you live, who your ISP is, how far you are from the telephone exchange etc, some people might find that there’s still a place for internet accelerators in their lives. Here’s a selection of the top 10 that cover broadband modems, dial-ups and network connections. None of these can guarantee to speed-up your connection and you should contact your ISP if you’ve got serious problems.

  • Throttle – Boost your internet speed by 200%
  • FastNet99 – Tweak DNS settings to increase your browsing speed
  • BeFaster – Optimise your speed online and offline
  • Modem Booster – If you’re still on a modem, this could increase speed by 300%
  • TweakMASTER Pro – Tweaks everything from DNS settings to dial-up modems
  • NetSpeeder – Optimises your TCP/UDP port settings