Archive for Digital Imaging
Best Online Collaboration Tools 2008 – The Collaborative Map
Posted by: | CommentsThe Best Online Collaboration Tools 2008, Collaborative Map is a live editable map of over 150 of the best free and low-cost online collaboration tools available, picked and selected by passionate users like you and me.
Click the map to see the full, public, editable version
That’s right. This collaborative map has been created with the live help of over 100 individuals who have participated with me on November 17th in a unique event: This collaborative map has been created with the live help of over 100 individuals who have participated with me on November 17th in a unique event: Corporate Learning Trends and Innovations 2008. During my session at the conference, which took place fully online…. During my session at the conference, which took place fully online, I decided not to leverage my personal knowledge with collaboration tools to show the best and most useful ones, as I have done so many times in the last two years, but to actually involve the participants (over 150 at the time) into creating a visual map of what THEY thought were the best online collaboration tools out there.
And so I kind of played the visual moderator, by providing them first with a basic set of categories that they could attach tools too, and then by helping in moving tools to their best matching categories and removing technologies and services that were either inappropriate or not belonging to any of the listed groups.
Within a week the map has cleaned itself up while growing considerably. It now lists over 150 live online collaboration tools in 13 different categories. All the tools listed are either free or have affordable rates (included only those who have clearly published such prices on their site).
Now it is here ready for you to use.
Whenever you have a collaboration need you may glance at this map and remember in a second which tools are available which could service your specific need.
Note: A special thank you to Jay Cross, Tony Karrer and George Siemens who have trusted my explorative spirit and have gently allowed me to take a live group into a new real-time learning territory. Seeing a mind-map growing under your very eyes, node by node, thanks to the input of a multitude of many passionate individuals is a mind-opening experience.
What This Map Contains
This collaboration tools map has the objective of bringing together the most useful, free or low-cost technologies available today online. Originally the types of tools included by the participants in this experiment, ranged from real-time instant messaging and video conferencing tools to the main social bookmarking resources and microblogging tools as several participants felt that these too were relevant collaboration technologies.
To limit its breadth and provide more specific usefulness to those who are looking for real-time collaboration solutions, I have later decided to sacrifice microblogging and social bookmarking tools, as I would prefer to gather those together in a separate social media and collaborative publishing group.
The official focus is therefore on real-time or near real-time collaborative technologies in the groups that have been already defined.
The Key Categories
These the online collaboration categories covered in the map with over 150 technologies:
- VoIP – Instant Messaging Tools
- Video Conferencing
- Screen-Sharing, Remote-Control
- Web Conferencing
- Co-browsing
- Web Presenting
- Workgrouping
- File Sharing
- Document Sharing and Wikis
- Collaborative Document Reviewing
- Collaborative Event Scheduling
- Mind-Mapping
- Project Management
How You Can Contribute
You can personally contribute to this collaborative effort by accessing the “public” and open version of the map, and by adding new tools or specific information to the existing nodes. (To edit the map you will need to freely register at www.mindmeister.com, which will take only a few seconds.)
What You Can Add
The best thing you can do is to add relevant new tools to the map. The collaboration tools that fit this map are those that can match the following criteria:
- live collaboration and team-work oriented tools
- free or low-cost solutions only
If you are logged into MindMeister, you can add a URL, or some notes to any “node” appearing on the map. Simply select the node and then click on the relevant icon inside the right column dashboard to edit and add more info.
The Live Map Present Version and Future Updates
Click and drag inside the above map to move and see its different parts and / or use the zoom icons on the bottom left part of the map
This above is the live collaboration tools map as of November 25th 2008. You can still go up and update it and in the future I will be releasing new updates to it.
To be able to edit, add and contribute additional information, you need to freely register and login inside MindMeister.
The map integrates a full revisions history feature and therefore it is easy to spot and remove spammy additions or incorrect information just like you would do in Wikipedia.
Disclosure: I am in no way associated or affiliated to MindMeister.com. I have selected their tool and service among others because it is the one that I feel most comfortable with and the one I find easiest to use for novices.
Originally conceived by Robin Good for LearningTrends2008 and first created in real-time with the participation of over 100 hundred different participating individuals on November 17th 2008.
Screen capture and screen recording tools allow anyone to record faithfully any visual activity taking place on your computer screen, generally for the purpose of creating a video tutorial, demo or showcase to be published online. Once a screen recording gets published online it is normally referred to as a “screencast” (a broadcast of a screen recording).
Photo credit: Mipan, Anatoly Tiplyashin
Screencasting and screen recording tools give you the possibility to capture videos of either the full area of your computer screen or alternatively of a specific area of your monitor. You can use all of your computer normal functions while screen recording and even record your own audio as you comment and highlight the tasks being carried out.
Screen recordings can be generally saved in one more standard video file formats for easy upload and republishing on any web site. Typically free, such screencasting applications are also really easy to use: to record a video, just decide whether to record a specific area or the full screen, hit the record button or key combination, and start doing your demo as if you were actually showing your computer screen to someone. Once you are done hit the Stop button and the recording gets saved for you automatically on your hard disk, ready to be exported / converted in any one of the major video file formats.
Here below a small set of screen capture features I have identified as critical when comparing these tools. Use it yourself to more easily find the screencasting tool that best suits your needs.
- Platform: Specifies which operating system is required to run the application
- Software – Web-Based: Determines whether the tool is a downloadable software or a web-based application
- Capture Region: Possibility of recording the entire screen or specific regions of your screen
- Record Audio: Allows to record the audio from a microphone along with the video
- Record Webcam: Allows to record and embed your webcam video inside your screencast
- Shortcut Key for Stop: Enables you to stop the recording by pressing a key combination
- Output Formats: Indicates the available output file formats in which you can save your screencast
Here all the details:
Screencasting Tools Comparison Table
go to the table!Record Videos Of Your Screen
- Camtasia
Camtasia is probably the most known screencasting solution that lets you record video from your screen easily. You can record any fixed or hand-drawn region of your screen, with the possibility of embedding your webcam or any other video source into your screencast. When finished recording, you can edit your video with a professional suite of video editing tools: cut parts, apply effect and transitions, add captions and audio. Then export your file in multiple formats to share it on the web. $299 to buy.
http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.asp - CamStudio
CamStudio is a screen recording software that allows you to record all screen and audio activity on your computer and create AVI video files to convert into Streaming Flash videos (SWF). CamStudio interface is really easy to use: just set the video and audio quality, and press the big red button to start recording. When done, you’ll be able to save the file locally on your machine. Free to download and use.
http://camstudio.org/ - uTipu
uTipu is a new screen recording software which allows you to record anything that is shown on your screen, in order to create software demos, tutorials or clip recording. uTipu can capture your full screen or any selected region you may want to define, letting you zoom and record your mouse movements. When finished, the video can be uploaded online directly to your account. Fully free, it works on Windows XP and Vista only.
http://www.utipu.com/app/ - I Show You
I Show You is a free software for Windows platforms that enables people to easily record a sequence of operations that are going on on their screen. After the recording session has ended, the recorder presentation can be edited by drawing on it, adding notes, and recording a voice over narration. When done, you can send it to your friends via email, messenger or any other application. You can download ISU by clicking here.
http://www.vapisoft.com/ISU.htm - oRipa Screen Recorder
oRipa Screen Recorder is a free software solution that records screen activities and saves them as video files. oRipa Screen Recorder can help you record presentation, web pages, tutorials, or anything that is happening on your screen. You can save your output video in multiple formats and codecs, and add a real time audio narration. oRipa is free to download and use.
http://www.ejoystudio.com/oripa-screen-recorder/index.htm - Jing
Jing is a downloadable application for taking screenshots and screencasts of your monitor (or any region of it). You can invoke Jing via keyboard shortcut, then select the area you want to capture, tell Jing whether you want a video or an image, and then let it do its work. Currently it is free to download for both Windows and Mac platforms.
http://www.jingproject.com/ - Debut
Debut is a free screen capturing software for Windows that anyone can use to capture video or still images from any device. The setup comes in just 400kb and, after you install it, you can capture any part of your screen, or even capture from a video device like a webcam. You can export the video in any format and save the screenshots in JPG format. Debut is completely free to download and use.
http://www.nchsoftware.com/capture/index.html - FreeScreencast
FreeScreencast is a free screencasting software that allows you to create high quality Flash encoded screencasts easily. Just register to the service, download the software and you will be ready to start recording your screen. When you finish your video, you can save the output flash file to your computer. Or if you prefer to share it, simply use the automatic upload service that will store your file online and will let you embed it in your website or blog. Free to use, registration needed.
http://freescreencast.com/ - Screencast-O-Matic
Screencast-O-Matic is a Java-based application that anyone can use to create screencasts of their screen with no additional software to download. Without even registering to the site, you can record anything that happens on your screen just by setting the capture size, choose if you want audio included, and click go. When done, you can publish the screencast online or download it in .mov format. Free to use.
http://www.screencast-o-matic.com/ - AviScreen
AviScreen is an application for capturing screen activity in AVI video format, or sequential images, but with no audio. You can specify any area of the screen to define what you want to capture, and also use the “follow the cursor” feature: using this mode you can produce a video or image of relatively small dimensions while covering all mouse activity over the whole screen area. When you are finished with your work, it will be automatically exported and saved in AVI format or sequence of BMP images. Free to download, available for Windows only.
http://www.bobyte.com/AviScreen/index.asp - ScreenToaster
ScreenToaster is a web-based screencasting software that lets you record screen activities without downloading any software. Working on any Windows, Mac, and Linux machine, it allows you to record your screen by pressing a key combination, which will also stop the recording and create a new video file that will be immediately saved into your account, so that you can whether share its link or embed it everywhere. Free.
http://www.screentoaster.com/
Please help me refine, edit, correct and extend this guide by suggesting other screen capture tools and screencasting web services that I have not included in the above list, by using the comments section here below.
Originally written by Nico Canali De Rossi for MasterNewMedia and first published on October 27th 2008 as “Screen Capture, Screen Recording, Screencasting: The Best Tools To Record Videos Of Your Screen – Sharewood Guide“
Do you need to capture your screen activities, test out color combinations, or join multiple videos into a single one? In this visual communication Sharewood Guide I have collected some cool new tools to help you prepare, organize and communicate your visual and video messages more clearly.
Photo credit: Avner Richard
Here the full set of visual communication tools I have chosen for you this week:
- PicPick: Capture regions of your screen, grab pixels colors and whiteboard on your desktop
- ColorCombos.com: Test out color combinations and grab a palette out of any site
- FlickrIn: Embed a set of Flickr photos, that you can generate by username or tags, on your website
- TimeRime: Build Flash-based visual timelines that you can share or embed on your blog or site
- ScreenToaster: Record screencasts and share them online
- Muveemix: Create mixes with videos and music, and publish them on the Web
- Foto2Avi: Arrange all of your videos and pictures into a new movie easily
- YouEmbedTube: Search for videos by tags, and get a Flash widget that points to them
Here all the details:
Visual Communication Tools
- PicPick
PicPick is an all-in-one software for developers, graphic designers and home users. It enables you to capture regions of your screen, that you can later edit into the integrated image editor. PicPick also integrates useful features such as pixel color picker, pixel ruler, screen whiteboard and more. PicPick is a portable application, which works only on Windows machines. Free.
http://picpick.wiziple.net/features - ColorCombos.com
ColorCombos is an online resource that people can use to test out color combinations easily. You can use the Combo Tester, which allows you to see how different color combinations work together on the screen, the Combo Library, to browse into a collection of pre-made combinations, but also grab a color scheme from a website by pasting its URL into a box. The service is free to use, no registration needed.
http://www.colorcombos.com/ - FlickrIn
FlickrIn is a free service that allows you to embed sets of Flickr photos on your website. You can type in tags or any Flickr username, select the number of pictures the widget will have, and click generate. A preview will be shown to you, along with the HTML and Javascript embedding code. The service is completely web-based and free to use.
http://www.flickrin.com/ - TimeRime
TimeRime is a timeline creator that allows you to build up a Flash timeline easily. Timelines can be filled with text, music, pictures and YouTube movies: each timeline has some controls such as in / out zoom button and date slider, as well as an embedding code and a sharing link. TimeRime is free to use, but registration is needed.
http://www.timerime.com/
Video Publishing Tools
- ScreenToaster
ScreenToaster is a web-based screencasting software that lets you record screen activities without downloading any software. Working on any Windows, Mac, and Linux machine, ScreenToaster allows you to start recording your screen by pressing and stop just pressing a key combination. When you’re finished recording your video, the output file will be immediately saved into your account, so that you can whether share its link or embed it everywhere. Free.
http://www.screentoaster.com/ - Muveemix
Muveemix is an online video mixer that lets you join multiple videos and add music to them. To create a mix, upload all of the videos you want to add, select an audio file from your hard disk, give it a name, and click on “Make Muvee“. You can then get a sharing link to send your video to other people, or simply embed it on your website or blog. Free.
http://muveemix.com/ - Foto2Avi
Foto2Avi is a free video editor for Windows that anyone can use to combine videos and pictures. You can import images (BMP, JPG and PNG), videos (AVI, MPEG, MOV, WMV and FLV) and music, and combine them into a new movie (AVI, FLV or MPEG): you can add transitions, apply basic effects, or add animations, subtitles and logos. Foto2Avi is free to download and use.
http://www.trustfm.net/divx/SoftwareFoto2Avi.php?b2=1 - YouEmbedTube
YouEmbedTube is a Flash widget creator you can use to embed a set of videos inside your webpage. To create a widget, just type some tags, select the number of random videos that will be embedded in your widget, and click preview. You can then get the code, and embed it on your webpage to let people see the videos you pointed at.
http://youembedtube.com/
Originally written by Nico Canali De Rossi for Master New Media and first published on October 26th 2008 as “Visual Communication And Video Publishing – Selected Tools And Web Services – Sharewood Guide Oct 26 08“
Need to convert your videos between major video file formats, create web-based charts, as well as editing or adding effects to your existing pictures?
Photo credit: Antonis Papantoniou
All this and more in this roundup of new cool visual communication and video publishing tools I have personally selected for you. This week:
- ActivePixels: Edit your images for free on Windows machines
- Cyclops: Search pictures on major stock photography engines
- iCharts: Create Flash-based charts from input data or Excel tables
- 1001FreeFonts: Browse and download free fonts for your Windows or Mac platform
- Smush It: Upload a picture and let the system optimize it by reducing its size
- Molv: Stream live images from your phone, and embed recordings anywhere
- CellSea Video Converter: Edit videos with basic features and convert them between various formats
- TubeMaster: Browse online videos on major sharing sites and download them in multiple formats
Here the details:
Visual Communication Tools
- ActivePixels
Active Pixels is a photo editor for Windows that lets you edit all of your pictures for free. Its interface reminds of Adobe Photoshop, and it has many features as layers, effects, freehand selection, and everything you would get in a professional editor. It supports more than 100 image formats, between which you can also find Photoshop’s native PSD. Active Pixels is free to download and use.
http://idea-systems.net/ - Cyclops
Cyclops is an image search engine that lets you make researches on BigStockPhoto, Flickr, Fotolia, iStockphoto, Photos.com, Shutterstock, stock.xchng and stockvault with one click. After you input your query and select where you want to search, results will gather divided by source, and you’ll be able to click any image you like and be instantly brought to its download page on the source site. Free to use.
http://cyclo.ps/ - iCharts
iCharts is an online service that you can use to create Flash-based charts easily. It allows everyone to upload Excel sheets or manually add data from which they can instantly create, share and embed interactive charts within minutes. Every chart can then be embedded anywhere on the web or printed. iCharts is completely free to use, registration is needed.
http://www.icharts.net/ - 1001FreeFonts
1001FreeFonts is a huge database of free fonts for Windows and Mac platforms. When you land on the home page, you can start browsing fonts by category, see the day’s featured ones, or even search for them. When you find one that suits your needs, you can simply download it for free, paying attention to the version you need (Win or Mac), and install it on your machine. Free.
http://www.1001freefonts.com/ - Smush It
Smush It is an image optimizer that enables users to provide an image and it will automatically reduce its size with no quality loss. To use it, just choose if you want to use it as a Firefox extension, or whether you want to directly upload images from your PC or URL: after a matter of seconds your image will be ready for download, reduced in size but not in quality. Free to use, no registration needed.
http://smushit.com/
Video Publishing Tools
- Molv
Molv is a mobile video streaming service that enables any phone to stream live images on the web. If you own one of the supported phones, you can register to the service, download the software, and start broadcasting live images in your own channel. Shows are automatically recorded by default so that you can later embed them on any page, but this can be changed in the settings menu.
http://molv.com/ - CellSea Video Converter
CellSea is a web-based video convert and editor which allows you to add effects, change size, add sound or simply to convert your videos to other formats. Just upload a video from PC ur URL (from sharing websites like YouTube, GoogleVideo, DailyMotion): you can then set the start and end time to trim it, join one or more videos to it, resize and crop it, or simply convert it to AVI, MOV, MP4, FLV or 3GP file. Free to use, no registration needed.
http://www.cellsea.com/ - TubeMaster
TubeMaster is a freeware portable application which can download multimedia files (such as FLV, MP3, MP4 …) from major sharing sites like YouTube, and can save them on your computer. Using the integrated browser, you can make researches on these sites, and choose which videos to download as you watch them. All multimedia files can then be converted to other popular video or audio formats (AVI, MPEG, MP3, MP4, IPod, PSP …). Free to download and use.
http://tubemaster.free.fr/
Originally written by Nico Canali De Rossi for Master New Media and first published on October 12th 2008 as “Visual Communication And Video Publishing – Selected Tools And Web Services – Sharewood Guide Oct 12 08“
Best Web-Based Image And Photo Editors – Sharewood Guide
Posted by: | CommentsWeb-based image editors are online tools that anyone can use to easily modify, resize, edit and crop digital photographs or graphics files, without needing to download and install any software.
Photo credit: Pixlr Interface
Digital image editors, are typically free, and, in most cases, do not even require a registration in order to be used: just select an image or provide its URL, wait for the system to upload it and start editing it. No matter whether you need to rotate, resize, crop, or adjust the color tone of your images, these web-based image editors are designed to simplify your task when it comes to such operations.
Basic key features are pretty much the same for all of these web-based image editing tools. Among these, here are my selected top traits for a web-based digital image editor tool that you can use to more easily select the one that could be best for you:
- Layers: Let’s you have multiple layers on a single image, so that you can easily mix more objects together on the same canvas
- Registration Needed: Shows if you need to sign up to the service in order to start editing your images
- Advanced Selection Tools: Helps you select part of the image that you wouldn’t be able to extract with traditional instruments
Here a comparison table of all my selected web-based digital image editors and a full set of mini-reviews introducing each one of them:
Best Web-Based Image Editors – Comparison Table
Web-Based Image Editors Tool List
- Pixlr
Pixlr is an online image editing application that anyone can use to modify pictures online. Without any registration you can jump in, open any picture and start editing it: you can resize it, crop it, apply effects and filters, use layers, and every other thing you would do using a normal standalone software. Pixlr is free to use with no signup needed.
http://pixlr.com/ - Aviary
Aviary is a web-based suite of image editing software, that you can use to edit all of your pictures without having no software installed on your machine. You can edit and resize pictures, create color schemes, edit vectors, apply effects, create fonts, and more. Currently in private beta it is free to use after someone invites you or you get accepted in the beta.
http://a.viary.com/ - Adobe Photoshop Express
Adobe Photoshop Express is the web-based counterpart of the famous software based photo editing tool. This version, gives you 2GB of free space to upload all of your pictures and arrange them in galleries. But it obviously also lets you edit them: you can apply any kind of effect, resize, rotate, crop, adjust colors, saturation, brightness, and everything you would expect from a normal editing software. Free to use, registration needed.
https://www.photoshop.com/express/ - Splashup
Splashup is a powerful photo editing online software that allows you to edit your pictures online without even registering to the service. You can edit any type of image, and you can resize it, crop it, select different regions, use layers, add captions and effects, and more. When you are finished with a picture, you can save it in a different format to your PC, or simply upload it your favorite photo sharing system (like Picasa, Flickr…). Free.
http://www.splashup.com/ - Flauntr
Flauntr is a free online photo editor that you can use toedit your images easily and apply effects with one click. You can get photos from Flickr, your PC or online photo storage service, and edit it with basic and advanced features (resize, rotate, crop, captions, and many effects). Then, you can save them online on flauntR’s free photo storage, Flickr, or share them by email. Registration needed.
http://www.flauntr.com/ - FotoFlexer
FotoFlexer is a Flash-based image editing tool, that you can use to edit your pictures online. After register for free, you can start creating as many photo albums as you want, in which you upload pictures that you can further edit by cropping, resizing, removing blemishes and wrinkles, changing eye color, adding captions, and more. It is completely web-based and free to use.
http://fotoflexer.com/ - Picnik
Picnik is an image editor that lets you quickly edit all your photos online. It helps you resize, rotate and crop pictures, but also fix underexposed photos, remove red-eye, or apply many special effects. When done, you can save your image locally in various formats, but also upload it directly on all major image sharing sites. Picnik is completely free to use.
http://www.picnik.com/ - Sumopaint
Sumopaint is an online Flash-based image editor, that lets you modify all of your images online with lots of features. Reminding Photoshop with its interface, Sumopaint supports layers, lets you apply filters, effects, create shapes, and edit your images just as if you were using a professional software-based editor. Free to use, no registration needed.
http://sumopaint.com/ - PikiFX
Pikifx is a web-based image editor that you can use to edit your images with no additional software. You can decide whether to use a picture from your PC or to provide a URL, and immediately start editing it. You can rezise it, crop it, add effects, borders and captions. When you’re done, you can save your image in JPG, BPM, PNG, TIFF and GIF, email it, and get the HTML embedding code. Free to use with no need to register.
http://www.pikifx.com/ - FixPicture
FixPicture is a web-based image editor that you can use to edit and convert pictures online. Just pick whether you want to use the Flash or HTML version, upload a picture from your PC or provide the URL, edit your picture(resize, crop, rotate, mirrorand adjust levels), apply basic effects, and choose the output format(jpg, png, bmp, gif, tiff, pdf). Free to use.
http://www.fixpicture.org/ - PikiPimp
PikiPimp is a browser-based image editor, that enables you to edit your pictures with some basic editing tools. After you upload an image or type its URL, you are able to crop it, rotate it, set brightness, saturation, contrast, black&white, and more. It also offers many effects and tools, like sepia tone and captioning. When done, you can download the final image, and save it if you’re a registered user. Free.
http://www.pikipimp.com/ - Dr. Pic
Dr. Pic is a Javascript-based online image editor that offers you some basic editing tools to modify your pictures. After you load an image, you can resize, crop rotate, add text, and even apply some basic effects to it. When done, you can export your image in different formats (JPG, PNG, GIF, BMP) with different quality settings. Free to use, no registration required.
http://www.drpic.com/ - LunaPic
LunaPic is a simple online image editor. Simply upload your photo or paste the URL, and you can start editing your picture. You can crop, resize, rotate, apply filters, add text, draw…but also add as many animations and effects as you want. If you like what you created you can save it or send it and, if you have an account, you can save your photos in your own gallery. Its is completely web-based and free to use.
http://www.lunapic.com/editor/ - Picjuice
Picjuice is an easy-to-use web-based image editor that allows you to modify any image online. Just upload the picture you want to edit, and it’ll let you resize, crop, flip, rotate and adjust all of your images without installing any software. After all of the changes have been made, you can save the new picture in JPG or PNG format. Free to use, no registration needed.
http://www.picjuice.com/ - SnipShot
SnipShot is a browser-based image editor that lets you open any file from URL or PC, and to apply basic editing to it: you can resize, crop, rotate, enhance, adjust exposure and contrast, and apply effects. The result can be saved in multiple formats and shared with other people via email. Free, no signup needed.
http://snipshot.com/
Originally written by Nico Canali De Rossi for Master New Media and first published on September 29th 2008 as “Best Web-Based Image And Photo Editors – Sharewood Guide“
If you want to convert your videos file formats, arrange your digital images inside an online photo albums, or be able to browse a huge database of free fonts and typefaces, I have gotten some tools for you.
Photo credit: Mitar Gavric
Here my selected visual communication and video publishing tools for this week:
- Jalbum: Create and share photo albums with skins and music
- Microsoft Image Composite Editor: Mix a set of images together to make a full panorama
- DaFont: Browse a database hosting more than 8000 free fonts
- Graphics2PDF: Convert images in one or more PDF documents easily
- DryIcons: Search and download free sets of icons and vector graphics
- Outshouts: Add video/audio messages to online videos and share them with people
- Filsh: Convert any video from URL or PC to many formats with customizable settings
- Slicd: Extract parts of YouTube videos and share them with people on a dedicated page
Here all the details:
Visual Communication Tools
- Jalbum
Jalbum is an online project that people can use to create and share photo albums. After you install the Jalbum software on your PC, you are able to upload your pictures,add descriptions, select a skin and change its colors, add music and more. When done, you can publish your album and share it with other people. Free to use.
http://jalbum.net/ - Microsoft Image Composite Editor
Microsoft Image Composite Editor is an advanced panoramic image stitcher. If you have a set of overlapping photographs of a scene from a single location, Image Composite Editor will create a high-resolution panorama incorporating all your images at full resolution. Then, you can save your panorama in a wide variety of formats, like JPEG and TIFF. Free to download and use, Windows machines only.
http://research.microsoft.com/ivm/ice.html - DaFont
DaFont is a huge font database, hosting more than 8000 items, that lets you browse and download fonts. You can search for fonts, browsing them for style and name, see all the characters that compose a font, and also get a live preview of any word you type. When satisfied, you can download it in ZIP format and use it on Windows or MAC platforms. Free to use, no registration needed.
http://www.dafont.com/ - Graphics2PDF
Graphics2PDF is a free PDF file creator that lets you convert your images to PDF documents. You can loads as many images as you want (BMP, JPG, GIF, PNG, TIFF) just by drag&dropping then into the program, and then click “Save as PDF”, to create one or more PDF documents that will contain your images. The setup weights just 4.2 MB, and works on Windows machines only.
http://www.imposant.com/products/image2pdf.htm - DryIcons
DryIcons is a free service which provides sets of icons and vector graphics to the general public, with a specific target to designers, software and web developers. You can browse all the sets, comment them, and obviously download them in PNG format (16×16px; 24×24px; 32×32px; 48×48px and 128×128px) to use them as you wish. Free.
http://dryicons.com/
Video Publishing Tools
- Outshouts
Outshouts is a video messaging system, that lets you add video/audio messages to online videos. You can search any video from a number of sources and then, when you have found what you like, you can record your video message and then easily email it to anyone or embed it on your page. The service is free to use, no registration is needed.
http://www.outshouts.com/ - Filsh
Filsh is a Dutch website that lets you convert all of your videos online. You can start by providing a video URL (YouTube, Veoh, Metacafe, and more) or by uploading it directly from you PC (50MB max): then, after you select the output format from the available ones, you will be able to customize the settings, such as video/audio bitrate, proportions and volume, and click. Your file will then be ready for you to download. Free.
http://www.filsh.net/ - Slicd
Slicd is a free and easy service that lets you extract parts of YouTube videos. Just paste a video URL, insert the start and final timing of the video part you’re interested in, and click continue. A new page will be created, and you will be able to share its URL so that people will see a YouTube player with the video part you extracted before, being able to watch the new and the original video. Free.
http://www.splicd.com/
Originally written by Nico Canali De Rossi for Master New Media and first published on September 28th 2008 as “Visual Communication And Video Publishing – Selected Tools And Web Services – Sharewood Picnic Sep28 08“