Computer and Web Articles

It never hurts to keep a list of free texture websites handy. Images of textures can add visual interest to your print ads, websites, and brochures. They act as fantastic desktop wallpapers and can be worked into your videos, photography, digital artwork, miscellaneous promotional materials, and graphics (like, say, the one you might have on your Facebook landing page).

I’ve collected a list of great texture websites for you; keep your favorites bookmarked for when they might come in handy in the future.

• www.TextureLovers.com (wide variety)
• www.TextureLike.com (wide variety)
• www.StarTextures.com (wide variety)
• www.CGtextures.com (wide variety)
• www.TextureVault.com (wide variety)
• Water textures: http://tinyurl.com/2e4yx6h
• Nature, flower, and plant textures: http://tinyurl.com/ya3×9fs
• Wonderful fabric textures: http://tinyurl.com/233se84
• Some nice, grungy, dirty wood textures: http://tinyurl.com/bsvvrze
• Five concrete textures: http://tinyurl.com/brfpt6f
• Old leather textures: http://tinyurl.com/bq28clg
• Wrinkled paper textures: http://tinyurl.comyagwx53
• Metal textures: http://tinyurl.com/ccpx7rd

This isn’t technical. This isn’t complicated.

This is a 5 – 10 second secret distraction. (Well, it’s secret unless you’re a regular social media participant. If you are, you’re likely tired of hearing about this.)

Here are your instructions.

1. Go to www.Google.com
2. Type in “do a barrel roll”
3. Hit the Enter key on your keyboard or click the “Google Search” button using your mouse.

You CAN get an Amazon Gift Card quickly and easily. No joke, no catch, no scam here. Just take advantage of Amazon’s Trade In program.

Got a Texas Instruments 89TVSC/CBX/1L1/A calculator lying around? Amazon will give you $36.75 for it. Star Wars Trilogy DVD set? They’ll give you $22.75. Toy Story 2? They’ll give you $5.75.

It’s easy. It’s fast. You make money.

Here’s how it works:

1. Rummage through your drawers, closets, bookshelves, and piles of maybe-it’ll-get-donated-or-maybe-I’ll-toss-it stuff. Pull out any books, DVDs, video games, video game consoles, cameras, iPods, phones, camcorders, calculators, GPSs, etc. that you no longer use and/or would like to trade in for Amazon credit.
2. Make sure the items you’ve found are in very good (or better) condition. No books with highlighted pages. No DVDs with ripped packaging.
3. Visit www.Amazon.com/trade-in.
4. Choose one of your items to start with. Select its category in the drop down menu in the middle of the page, then type in its title or ISBN # in the next field.
5. Click the Go button.
6. On the following page, find your product. You’ll see the amount of trade Amazon is offering for it. If you’re happy with the amount, click the yellow “Trade In” button. (At this point you’ll need to login to Amazon or create an account if you don’t have one).
7. You’ll arrive at a screen displaying a summary of your trade ins and how much your Amazon Gift Card will be worth. Keep adding items to this list and you’ll keep bumping up the value of your Gift Card.
8. Click continue when you’ve added everything you’d like to trade in.
9. Choose either a FREE USPS shipping label or a FREE UPS shipping label. Select your last remaining options from the final questions Amazon asks you.
10. When you’re done, pack up your products in a box, slap on the printed label that Amazon generated for you, and drop the box off at the Post Office or nearest UPS drop-off location.
11. Sit back and wait for the email from Amazon that says “We got your stuff, you got your Amazon credit, thanks very much, send in more whenever you’d like!”

Keep in mind here: Amazon’s trade in program is similar to the trade in programs at car dealerships. Fast. Easy. Painless. You get your credit/money quickly. You don’t have to keep your fingers crossed that someone out there in the world will find, then buy, what you’re selling at the price you set. Accordingly, in exchange for this convenience and sure-money, Amazon offers some pretty low trade in prices. Every now and then you’ll score big, but it’s typical to get a buck or 2 for a good hardback book. Perhaps four dollars for a DVD.

Remember though, we’re talking easy money here. So if you don’t watch those DVDs, read those books, or use those gadgets anymore anyhow, you can clear them out of your home or office and receive a bit of Amazon credit for it as well. Good deal all around.

In fact, I have a stack of shiny new books right here on my desk, thanks to the boxes of trade ins I sent in to Amazon a while back. Now that I think about it, I can’t even recall what I traded in. But I am very excited to read these new books.

If you don’t use Twitter much (or at all), you’ll want to skip this tip. Trust me. It will bore you.

Easy reminders via Twitter? Yes, ridiculously easy!

Simply send a DM to @timer (for example: d timer 70 call Mr. Smithington) where “70” = the number of minutes after which you’d like your reminder and “call Mr. Smithington” = the reminder you’d like to receive.

When the minutes are up, @timer sends you a DM with your reminder message. In this case, in one hour and ten minutes, @timer will send you DM that says “Call Mr. Smithington”.

Of course, before you can use this service, you’ll need to follow @timer so they can DM you.

Not a Photoshop expert? No problem. You can still have a tremendous amount of fun with your digital photos, thanks to a seemingly limitless number of simple online photo manipulation tools. Here are just a few.

• Locate a photo of yourself (or better yet, a photo of a family member or friend) looking straight at the camera and head over to www.YearbookYourself.com. Choose to turn your photo into a 50s yearbook portrait, or perhaps a 70s student life shot, or maybe an 80s “Voted Most Likely To” photo.
• Like the idea of putting your face (or someone else’s) in a funny spot, but not excited about the yearbook concept? Try www.FaceInHole.com and choose from tons of photos with places to put your face. Put your face in the place of a model’s, a pirate’s, or Boticelli’s The Birth of Venus painting. You can even drop your face in place of a girl getting kissed on the cheek by Justin Bieber. I just made your day with the Bieber option, didn’t I?
• Create professional quality photo slideshows at www.PhotoSnack.com. Choose from pre-designed templates, upload as many photos as you want, add music (if you’d like), and easily share your slideshows with others. Free and Premium versions available.
• For some retro computer fun, visit www.Photo2Text.com and turn your images into ASCII text art. (I actually found a faded, real-life ASCII text artwork piece in my closet the other day of my dad and I when I was a baby; the text in the top left corner read “Computer Art”. I wonder how much it cost to have art like that made back in the day…)

1. http://tinyurl.com/3o4p4bq - Limited space for your laptop’s workstation? Take a look at these tiny/minimal laptop desks meant for the smallest of spaces.
2. http://tinyurl.com/3r7zgdd - The IntelliVocab app for iPhones improves your vocabulary and auto-adapts to your progress. Very nice!
3. http://strollometer.com – “Presenting the world’s first computer/speedometer designed to fit on any baby stroller.” For time-challenged mothers looking to get back into shape after having a baby, Strollometer suggests doing more of what you’re already doing: strolling (while using their tool, of course).
4. http://tinyurl.com/3cej6gb - In today’s News You Didn’t Want to Hear: research is showing that mobile use before bedtime wrecks your sleep.
5. http://tinyurl.com/3tlc9rc - The best free clock screensavers you’ve (probably) never seen. Definitely some cool ones here.

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I recently found myself reviewing articles I’d written for the Summit Daily way back in 2003. Some of them seemed extremely dated. Others are as relevant today as they were back then.
Here’s one of those still-relevant (and fun) reads…

July 20th, 2003:

In our world of emails and online chats, it’s not surprising that a plethora of abbreviations have become increasingly commonplace. That’s why today’s article may be something you cut out and tuck away in your desk drawer for those times you find yourself needing a quick abbreviation-translation.

Perhaps you already find yourself confused by the chat conversations and emails from your niece that are peppered with <g>’s and talk about her new “BF.” Well, with today’s abbreviation-translations, you’ll now know that the <g>’s are really grins and her new BF is a boyfriend, not a big frog.

Though more detailed lists exist online (just try a google search for “chat abbreviations”), I’ve compiled a list of some of the more common abbreviations out there (as well as a few silly ones thrown in for fun). Just for you. Here it is. FWIW & HTH:

<eg> - evil grin
<g> - grin (or giggle)
AAMOF – As a matter of fact
AFAIK – As far as I know
BC – because
BF – boyfriend
BFF – best friend forever
BFN – Bye for now
BTW – By the way
BION – Believe it or not
CADET – Can’t add, doesn’t even try
CULA – See you later, alligator
DK – Don’t know
DLTBBB – Don’t let the bed bugs bite
FTF – Face to face
FWIW – For what it’s worth
GF – Girlfriend
GG – Good game
HHOK – Ha ha only kidding
HSIK – How should I know?
HT – Hi there
HTH – Hope that (or this) helps
IAC – In any case
IDK – I don’t know
IMA – I might add
IMHO – In my humble opinion
IMO – In my opinion
J4F – Just for fun
JAS – Just a second
JK - just kidding
JMO – Just my opinion
K - Okay
KHYF – Know how you feel
KYFC – Keep your fingers crossed
L – laugh
LLTA – Lots and lots of thunderous applause
LOL – Laughing out loud
LMAO – Laughing my a** off
LTHTT – Laughing too hard to type
MRA – Moving right along
MYOB – Mind your own business
NP – No problem
NTIM – Not that it matters
NTW – Not to worry
OAUS – On an unrelated subject
OMG – Oh my god
OO – Over and Out (end of communication)
OTOH – On the other hand
POS – Parent over shoulder!
RL – Real life
ROTFL – Rolling on the floor, laughing
ROTFLAS Rolling on the floor, laughing and screaming
ROTFLMAO – Rolling on the floor, laughing my a** off
S – smile
SEC – Wait a second
SLM – See last mail
SOW – Speaking of which
SWIM – See what I mean?
SYS – See you soon.
TAFN – That’s all for now
TTBOMK – To the best of my knowledge
TTFN – Ta ta for now
TTYL – Talk to you later
TYCLO – Turn your Caps Lock off (Stop shouting!)
WDALYIC – Who died and left you in charge?
WDYT – What do you think?
WTH – What the hell?
WTTM – Without thinking too much
YGTBK – You’ve got to be kidding
YKWIM – You know what I mean

TTFN, everyone! Until next week…

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