Computer Chit Chat

Archive for the ‘Free’ Category

It’s great to include pictures on your blog, no matter if they’re personal or related to something you’re writing about. It’s not always possible to take the picture you need yourself, so it’s helpful to have a list of places that offer free photos. Here’s a list of some of the most popular free photo sites.

• StockXchng - my favorite
• EveryStockPhoto
• Free Foto
• Free Images UK
• Free Photos Bank
• Free Range Stock Photos
• Free-Stock Photos
• Free Stock Photos
• Image Blowout
• ImageAfter
• Morguefile
• Picture Perfect Digital
• Stockvault

• Spock
• 25 free magnets
• Need some free photo prints?

Have you heard about I Want Sandy? I only did recently. I Want Sandy is a personal productivity tool. On her website they call the service a personal assistant. To use the service all you need to do is sign up for a free account and then enter anything you want to be reminded of. That includes reminders, appointments, things to do, contacts, bookmarks, lists and notes. You’re then notified of all of the items in a daily email digest. Reminders can also be sent by text message and Twitter. You can also add items by emailing Sandy, so you don’t even have to be at the computer to update your schedule. I Want Sandy was voted as one of the finalists for the Webware 100 Awards. If you need to organize your life a little more, just say I Want Sandy.

• Wildfire email phishing scam
• 25 free magnets
• Places to find free pictures to use on your blog

Who doesn’t like free things? Who wouldn’t like some free postcards to help market their business? Would you like to get 25 free magnets? Continue reading and I’ll tell you where you can get them and what you need to do to get them.

Vistaprint is an online service that offers terrific deals on great quality products. This is where you can get the free magnets. Vistaprint is so confident in their stuff they’ll let you have some of it for free. I have personally tried their large postcards, large calendar magnets, business cards and address stickers. I have always been pleased with their products. Their site is easy to use, they have a huge selection and their products are easy to customize to best suit your own needs.

Here’s what you need to do to get them. Go to the Vistaprint site. Check out the small magnets. While you’re on the site be sure to check out their other products and special offers. (I signed up for their exclusive offers a couple of years ago and love it when they email me specials every month.) Decide which postcards you’d like, put them in your basket. When you check out just use coupon code “Blog25FreeMag” to get 25 Free small magnets. Finish checking out and that’s it. Let me know how you like your stuff when you receive it. Happy browsing!

• Any small business owners out there?
• Need some free photo prints?
• Places to find free pictures to use on your blog

I have a color picker on the computer, but I always have to open it because I don’t like to leave it running and sitting in the system tray. Today I found an alternative solution to use. I’ve installed the Firefox addon ColorZilla. This little addon sits in the status bar and is packed with features. Some (as in not all) of the features included are an eyedropper to obtain the color of any pixel, a color picker, zoom capability, the ability to choose which results appear in your status bar, history and favorites palettes, page pan and auto copy. There’s even a list of planned features for the future including predefined color sets and a color scheme generator. That’s a lot of stuff to pack into a handy little addon. I like it!

• Pixel Pick, a free color coding tool
• Firefox time tracking plugin
• Do you keep a calendar on your computer?

I came across a neat Firefox addon today that tracks the time you spend surfing with Firefox. The addon is called TimeTracker. It installs in one click (two if you count the restart). It runs in the bottom status bar. By right clicking on the clock or timer you can either reset the timer or access TimeTracker’s configuration options. Options include displaying time spent today or since last reset or install, an idle timeout (for when you aren’t using Firefox), and a filter to place sites that you don’t want time tracked in.

• Color picker Firefox addon
• SearchStatus Firefox add-on tells you more than rank
• Nice Firefox add-on for handling links

I got a message a new version of Firefox was available a couple of days ago and I did upgrade. I have noticed since then things seem to be loading more quickly then before. I like to keep up with browser updates because I know they’re working to keep things secure and running smoothly. Sure, you can visit the Firefox page to find out if an update is available. But why bother. Just follow these instructions and it will update automatically.

Go to the Tools menu and select Options.
Click on the Advanced icon and then the Update tab.
Check what you want updated automatically, and how you want the update done.
That’s it.
Try it, you’ll like it. It’s simple and easy.

• How to install Firefox
• Anyone at Mozilla listening?
• Firefox time tracking plugin

If anyone over there at Mozilla is listening, thank you! Two days ago I blogged that I had abandoned Outlook for Thunderbird for my email, and that I use the calendar addon called Lightning. The only thing I was missing from Outlook was my todo list. This morning I turned on the computer and opened Thunderbird. Before it opened it told me there was a new update. The update installed and Thunderbird opened. What did I see before my eyes? A column with a task list in it. I’m so happy now!

• Do you keep a calendar on your computer?
• How to switch from Outlook to Thunderbird
• How to update Firefox automatically.

I loved Outlook. I am Microsoft certified in Outlook, as well as other programs. I used most of the built in features quite a bit especially the calendar. But I was having so many problems running it I switched to Thunderbird. I missed my calendar for a short while, but then I discovered there’s a calendar addon for Thunderbird called Lightning. It installs easily and is very similar to the Outlook calendar. Even though I wish it had a to do list, I recommend it. It can be found at https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/addon/2313

• Anyone at Mozilla listening?
• How to switch from Outlook to Thunderbird
• Color picker Firefox addon

Did you ever want to use a certain color that you saw on your monitor but couldn’t figure out the color code? It’s happened to me more than a few times. What can you do about it? Get Pixel Pick. Pixel Pick is a simple free program that will tell you the color code of whatever is under your mouse. It will translate the color into seceral different formats including RGB, CMYK and HEX. It’s so simple it doesn’t even require installation. It minimizes to the system tray and is ready to use. Just click once and point your mouse over the color you want and you’ll see the code appear. It’s very neat and quite helpful. Pixel Pick can downloaded for free at http://www.design-lib.com/the_pixel-pick.php

• Color picker Firefox addon
• How to install Firefox
• Save and Restore back up software deal for under $1

More and more people use computers for every day things all of the time. Computer usage is growing in both the workplace and in the home. Many people work on things both at home and at work, thereby bring their files with them. People use flash drives and cds, among other methods, to transport their files. Now there is no further need for transporting a file. You don’t ever have to worry about forgetting a file again. Google Documents is a basic online office available to everyone for free. Many people are aware of Google’s email product Gmail. Besides Gmail, Google Docs also includes a word processor, a spreadsheet and a presentation area. Documents previously created in both Microsoft Office and Open Office can be imported. Newly created documents can be downloaded in a variety of formats. They can also be emailed out as attachments.
Google docs permits sharing. Online collaboration facilitates communication, particularly over a large distance.  It also saves time and money. under this system other people, by your invitation, can view and/ or edit your new files.
And here’s the best part of all. It’s free!

• How to insert random text in Office documents
• The cost of software
• How do you unzip?