Boost your photography skills with Nikon's free iPhone app.
I've owned a dSLR camera for years, but it spends most of its time on Auto mode. That's because I can't wrap my brain around things like aperture priority, ISO, and f-stops.
Unsurprisingly, most of my shots bite. I've tried reading enlightening books like How to Do Everything with Your Digital Camera (nepotism alert: I know the author), but that doesn't help me when, say, I'm standing on the soccer-field sidelines trying to capture my daughter as she scores a goal.
What I need is a simple, informative how-to guide that fits in my pocket. Enter Nikon Learn & Explore, a new iPhone app that teaches photography fundamentals and offers shooting techniques for common situations.
Actually, that's just part of what you get from L&E. The app also offers a library of professional images you can browse, each with an accompanying Nikon World article that details shot composition, equipment, lighting, and all that.
The Learn section offers articles on image editing, shooting techniques, and fundamentals--many of which include both sample photos and how-to videos.
The Nikon World section provides features from the eponymous magazine, while the Glossary explains photography terms from A to Z. You can even mark individual articles and photos as Favorites for quick future access.
In short, this is a must-have app for novice shutterbugs and pro photographers alike (but more for the former). Best news of all: it's free.
These 10 videos from CNET TV cover a range of useful tips for Windows 7 users, including how to make a system repair disc, how to customize the Start menu, what some of the best hot keys for the operating system are, and more.
There's also advice on how to upgrade from either Windows XP or Vista to Windows 7, how to fix Ethernet driver problems in VMWare, how to burn an ISO directly from the newly enhanced Windows Explorer, and how to get to the jump list from your left mouse button.
Windows 7's calculator is packed with features. Who knew?
(Credit: Screenshot by Seth Rosenblatt/CNET)Some of my personal faves we haven't yet turned into videos. Desktop junkies will love that you can now set up a desktop wallpaper slideshow. From the desktop, right-click and choose Personalize, or go to Appearance and Personalization in the Control Panel. Click Desktop Background at the bottom, and change the picture location to the folder you want. Alternatively, you can choose images from across multiple photos. Unfortunately, the Aero Glass taskbar color won't change to complement each new slide, but you can set it to rotate images as often as every 10 seconds.
I can't vouch for its efficacy, but another trick is that Windows 7 includes a monitor color management tool which photographers and graphic designers are sure to appreciate. You can get to it either through the Screen Resolution window's Advanced options, then clicking Color Management, or going to Run and typing DCCW.
If you right-click on a program or a shortcut launcher, you can now pin it to either the Start menu or the Taskbar, which should save you from having to run the program to get it onto the taskbar. Another functional redo has been visited upon the Calculator. There are new views for Programmers and Statistics, and there are new features for quickly doing unit conversion, date differentials, and using templates to create customized finance calculations.
There are far more Windows 7 tips and tricks than these, of course. If you have a favorite, tell us in the comments below.
Mozilla has introduced a new pilot program for Firefox developers to make a little money off add-ons they've created. Developers now have the option to place a "contribution" button on their add-on page, which lets users donate any amount they wish via PayPal.
CNET News Poll
Contributions are optional, meaning users can continue to download and use add-ons without having to pay anything. Mozilla is also letting developers pick their own suggested price, although users can choose to pay whatever they wish.
For the pilot program, add-on creators get the entire amount of the contribution, minus PayPal's transaction fee. However, in the future that could change with Mozilla taking a small cut. Mozilla is also encouraging developers to set up special PayPal accounts for contributions under $12, since PayPal's fees are less if set up for micropayments.
Mozilla is running the pilot with a limited number of developers, and will likely open it up to all if it's a success. It's definitely a smart way to attract add-on developers to host their creations on Mozilla's site, since there's now a simpler way for them to get paid. However, it will be interesting to see if users are willing to part with their money when they don't really have to.
How much would you be willing to pay a developer for their add-on? Vote in the poll to the right.
Update: Here's an example of what it looks like live as seen on the Download Statusbar extension:
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CNET)
Many users laud iTunes for its easy-to-use interface and seamless integration with the iPod, but the digital-music jukebox isn't perfect. One of the chief complaints about the software is its inability to automatically monitor folders for new music. Not that adding new music in the program is difficult--simply open it up, click File, then select Add Folder to Library.
But going through this process each time you add music to a folder on your hard drive can be tedious, especially if you organize your digital media in various locations. Wouldn't it be much simpler if you could monitor exactly the folders you want (and none of the ones you don't) by just opening an app? Even better: let the software do it automatically in the background and you won't even need to lift a finger after the initial setup. This tutorial will help you do just that.
Cost: Free, but a one-time 7.50 Euro registration fee will be required for truly automatic monitoring
Level: Beginner
Time commitment: 5 to 10 minutes to set up folders
System requirements: Windows
Chrome has quickly earned a reputation for being lightweight and fast. It can't offer anything like Firefox's useful extensions—yet. Still, there are plenty of ways to tweak Chrome's default settings to make it work more like you do.
Open to your home page
I never could get used to Chrome's New Tab page, which is the browser's default start page. It shows big thumbnails of several of the sites you've recently visited. Some people will like starting with this minihistory, but I've grown accustomed to seeing my home page when the browser opens.
To change this setting, click the Tools menu (the wrench icon in the top-right corner) and choose Options. Under the Basics tab, select Open this page and enter the URL of your preferred start page.
Set Chrome to open to your preferred start page rather than the New Tab page by changing this setting.
(Credit: Google)You can also set Chrome to start where it left off by choosing Restore the pages that were open last in the "On startup" section of this dialog box.
Put a Home shortcut on the toolbar
I return to my start page frequently during the day, so I like having a shortcut to that page on the toolbar. Chrome lacks this option by default, but you can return the familiar Home icon to the right of the address bar by selecting Show Home button on the toolbar under the Basics tab of the Toolbar Options dialog box.
Add bookmarks, history, passwords, and search settings from Firefox and IE
Some people have folders and subfolders full of bookmarks, many of which are gathering dust; I've got about a half dozen I return to all the time. Moving them from Firefox and Internet Explorer to Chrome took all of about a second and a half. You can also import your search-engine settings, saved passwords, and browsing history.
Move your bookmarks/favorites, search settings, passwords, and history from Firefox and IE to Chrome.
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Open certain downloaded file types automatically
It's probably safer not to let most types of the files you download to run automatically, especially when it comes to EXE files, PDFs, and nearly all media files. But I frequently download Word documents and Excel files from Google Docs and Spreadsheets, among other Web applications, and I prefer that they open without having to be double-clicked.
To set Chrome to open specific types of files automatically after they download, simply click the arrow to the right of the file in the download bar at the bottom of the screen and choose Always open files of this type.
Set specific file types to open automatically after you download them by selecting this option on Chrome's download bar.
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Bonus tip: Keep Chrome up-to-date
Chrome updates are pushed to your browser automatically, but there may be an update available that you can apply manually. Click the Tools icon and select About Google Chrome. If you see an Update button, click it to download the latest version. Restart the browser to apply the update.
"How do you tell the rogue antivirus Web sites from the good sites?" asks one Download.com reader.
Its answer is poised to help many people outsmart the rogue antivirus spyware that is trying to outsmart them. CNET TV's Molly Wood shares our suggestions in this Quick Tip video.
Go to Tools and select Manage Add-ons.
Then select Search providers.
You'll see Microsoft Live Search and whichever options you chose during install. If that was Live Search, that's all you'll see.
Now click Find more search providers.
You'll get a list of various options. Press "Add to Internet Explorer" to add the providers you want. Each time you'll get the option to make it a default search provider, and include terms in the suggested search terms. If you don't see your favorite. Scroll to the bottom and click "Create your own search provider."
Now open a new tab, and enter the URL of the search engine you want to include. Search for the word TEST in all capital letters. Copy the URL of the search results page by highlighting it and pressing the "Windows" and "C" keys at the same time.
Now click back to the tab that says "crate your own search provider." Use the "Windows" and "V" keys to paste the URL you copied earlier into the box marked URL. Then give the search engine a name. And press Install Search Provider. If you want to make this your default search provider, check that box. Then press Add one more time.
Now when you type a keyword in the search box, icons for all the search engines you selected will show up. Just click on one with your mouse to search the keywords you typed in that engine.
There's no shame in being too lazy to browse for files on your desktop if you've got a fast desktop search app like Copernic Desktop Search or Google Desktop.
Both free apps install a small search bar on your desktop, and both are good at rooting around in your enormously crowded file trees to pluck the fruit of your very minimal labor.
But there are differences between the Google and Copernic's search apps. Tune in to this Quick Tip video to see what they are.
Which gives you faster browsing in Firefox, the keyboard or the mouse?
The keyboard, of course. Every time you lift your fingers to open a new page or switch tabs, you lose seconds of productivity time.
Commit some of CNET Executive Editor Tom Merritt's tips to memory, however, and that precious time can become yours again.
Control Tab is my favorite shortcut. Which is yours?
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CNET)
Folks looking for free screen-recording applications may be well aware of Jing Project and CamStudio. TipCam is equally deserving, if not more so.
The freeware screen recorder loads a scosh more than the basics into an attractive and compact display, and throws in a few tricks all its own. We're talking about drawing on the screen with your mouse while you record, and recording remote desktops via a VNC server. Brilliantly, if you press the hot key to zoom in, the framing brackets will follow your mouse until or unless you lock them in place.
Unfortunately, the TipCam control panel isn't so intelligent. If you're not careful, it might inadvertently star in your screencast. After you become familiar with the icons, it's best two switch to mini mode to keep it out of the way.
TipCam's audio recording feature is more primitive-leaning--there's no post-production studio for editing audio if you mess up. Thankfully, you can rerecord with the voice-over tool. It's not a perfect method, but it's better than having to rerecord takes. Recording a separate audio track and tweaking it with a small editor would be the most ideal.
TipCam's developers have put good thought behind its delivery modes. In a click, you can upload to UtipU.com. There's also YouTube uploading you configure as the default, and the capability to make your recording a private link that's inserted into a new e-mail message for you to send to selected recipients.
