Brionglóid Media Blog

Here are three great Firefox add-ons which I use quite regularly, one for assistance in design and development of web pages, one for for checking search engine rankings and other SEO-related information and finally one for helping to keep my browsing more secure.

Web Developer
The Firefox Web Developer Toolbar is an indespensible tool for web designers or developers.
It boasts a broad range of options such as enabling or disabling Cookies, Java or Javascript, CSS elements, forms, images and various other page elements. You can also view and highlight various HTML and CSS elements, edit them or validate them, as well as your site’s feed and check whether your site meets W3C accessability standards. Other features include a small screen rendering function to help get an idea how your site might look on a mobile device. With a huge amount of tools and information at your fingertips its the ideal tool for studying pages, tweaking CMS or blog templates, checking for errors or indeed any other web design/development task one can concieve of.

The Web Developer toolbar runs on Windows, Mac and Linux versions of Firefox, in addition to other Gecko-based browsers such as Seamonkey and Flock. A version of the Web Developer Toolbar for Chrome is now also available.

Search Status
The Search Status toolbar is ideal for SEOs or indeed anyone with an interest in their website’s search engine ranking. Available for both Firefox and Seamonkey it shows both the Google page rank of each visited page and can also display the rankings of Alexa, Complete and mozRank. There are also options to view backlinks from Google and Yahoo site explorer, indexed pages on Google and Yahoo/Bing, check the site on Archive.org, view WhoIs information, meta tag information and more.

Noscript
Installing the Noscript add-on for Firefox (or Gecko-compatible browsers) is a great way to keep your browsing safe, secure and private. Noscript blocks various scripts which may be dangerous such as Java, Javascript and Flash and the security vunerabilities which might result from them. You can then easily disable the protection for trusted sites such as your email account or other regular sites.

This is an update, of sorts, to my earlier post on free Photoshop alternatives.

Pixlr is a free, online image editor that allows you to upload files for editing directly through your browser, make edits, apply filters and other Photoshop-type tasks before saving the file back down to your computer.

Though not quite as powerful as Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro, it’s well worth bookmarking, especially for emergencies, like when on the road and away from one’s computer, it’s the ideal app for quick edits.

Multi-network Instant Messengers

Not too long ago instant messenging (IM) programs, also known as chat clients, where text is typed and shared in real time (along with emoticons) were ubiquitous and all the big web companies had one.

Microsoft’s MSN Messenger, later renamed Live Messenger, was perhaps the most popular, with Yahoo Messenger (YIM) a close second. These services were linked to Hotmail and Yahoo Mail respectively, however with the advent of Gmail, which offered far more in the way of storage and options, Hotmail and Yahoo both lost a lot of market share. Google later integrated its own Google Talk instant messenger program into the Gmail interface so that one could chat with contacts direct from their browser.

Another one-time big player in the IM market (and indeed the web as a whole) was AOL. AOL’s instant messenger, AIM, whilst also quite popular, suffered from a lot of controversy regarding its installation of a component called Viewpoint Media Player which many considered to be spyware.

Other popular instant messenger programs included ICQ, which was also once the property of AOL, and IRC, one of the oldest and also most popular messenging systems, albeit more so with the “geeky” end of the spectrum than with regular users. It was (and still is) highly popular with members of online communities such as the online gaming community.

Over the last ten years, however, use of instant messengers has diminished with the advent of social networks like Facebook and microblogging sites like Twitter, which allow for real time status updates, as well as other Web 2.0 collaborative platforms such as the excellent Google Wave.

With the advent of VOIP programs like Skype IM programs are nowadays more like hybrids allowing old-style instant messenging in conjunction with free, or low cost, Skype-style calls.

Whilst some companies actively discourage staff from using IM programs, because they don’t want their employees chatting when they should be working, many more are unable to function without them. Obvious examples of such businesses include web design and graphic design firms such as ourselves as well as project managers, writers, transcribers or translation service providers where being able to type to a person or persons in real time without having to pick up the phone provides massive time and money savings. Other applications include inbuilt web applets on company websites which allow customers to chat directly with company representatives, for example, to provide real-time technical support.

So, depending on the company type, instant messenging can provide many advantages to one’s company, and that’s not even including the advantages provided by cheap or free calls with inbuilt VOIP telephony. The only real issue is that with so many different platforms from various different, competing companies, it’s all too possible that the person you want to talk to is using a different program than you are. Installing and running seven different IM platforms is not only impractical it would also slow down your computer, and your productivity, dramatically. Thankfully there are programs out there that allow you to use the one program to access all major chat networks simultaneously and best of all, these programs are also completely free.

(Note: to use these you will still need to set up accounts with the various companies, i.e. you will still need to set up an MSN account, a Yahoo account, a Google account and so forth. You just won’t need to download and install all their IM programs.)

Trillian is a lovely little program for Windows, Mac and mobiles, including the iPhone and Blackberry. It allows you to chat with all major clients, such as MSN, Google Talk, Yahoo and AIM, and, depending on your system, is also compatible with Skype as well as Twitter and the instant messenging features of Facebook and Myspace. This is a great all-rounder program, especially because it’s mobile. Plus, what other instant messenger out lets you send an animated octopus as an emoticon?

Pidgin, formerly known as GAIM, is an open source multi-platform instant messenging system available for Windows, Mac and Linux. It is compatible with all major IM platforms including MSN, Yahoo, Google Talk, AIM, ICQ, IRC and other programs such as the popular Polish chat client Gadu-Gadu. Because GAIM is open source it means that it’s constantly being developed and so a number of GAIM plugins exist that add compatibility with Skype, Facebook IM, Twitter and pretty much any other platform you can think of.

Free Alternative to Winzip and Winrar

Yes, technically, Winzip and Winrar are not free. They are what is often referred to as nagware. Software that nags you to upgrade to the pro version every time you use it, in the expectation that you will eventually do as you’re told – expect away, because…

7 Zip is an open source archiver program that’s free to download and use, with great superior compression and compatibility with other formats such as .zip and .rar files. Highly recommended.

Download older versions of software

Finally, to wrap this up, I thought I’d mention a favourite website of mine called Old Version.com.
This site, as it name suggests, allows you to download older versions of a large variety of different software programs, such media players, instant messengers, security programs, utilities, etc. This is a good idea for a number of reasons, perhaps because you upgraded to the latest software version before the bugs were sorted out and need to go back. (I find this tends to happen a lot when the makers of one of my favourite programs gets bought out by a larger company.)

Maybe there is some other compatibility issue, for example you are running an older operating system with which the latest version of the software is not compatible. Often, new software also means an increase in its footprint whereas older versions won’t use up so much system resources. Or perhaps, like me, you often don’t like the direction your favourite program has taken over the years and you don’t like all the extra options and superfluous capabilities. Instead you yearn for a simpler time before the bells and whistles and shiny new interface, when the program just done one thing and done it well and just shut up about it and let you get on with it. And I’m sure we’ve all come across a program which made us feel like that.

So, anyway, that’s it for now and that’s the end of this series, though I will, of course, continue to add new free software posts as time continues. If anyone would like to suggest any other free software programs or make suggestions for future post ideas feel free to comment below.

Free Windows Media Player Alternatives

The Klite Codec Pack is a collection of all major media codecs and also includes an excellent, standalone media player called Media Player Classic. As its name suggests Media Player Classic is designed to look like an older version of Windows Media Player. It is a very lightweight media player meaning it is quick to launch and takes up little in the way of system resources. MPC plays all major video and audio files and is also capable of playing DVD video files.

VLC Media Player is another free, high-quality media player. The player is available for Windows, Mac and Linux and many other operating systems besides. Like MPC, it is far more lightweight than Windows Media Player and can play all major audio and video files as well as the ability to directly play DVDs.

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In today’s world protecting your privacy, security and your confidential and financial data is paramount.

Many computers come off the shelf with trial periods of major brand anti-virus suites installed, usually McAffee or Norton. These software suites may offer a degree of protection however once the trial period expires they tend to not just merely nag you, but try to actively terrify you into buying the full version.

It’s enough to make you afraid to get out of bed in the morning.

Thing is there are many antivirus programs out there which don’t cost a thing and, in many cases, offer superior protection to boot. (more…)

Last time we talked about Free Alternatives to Microsoft Office. Following on from that we’re now going to take a look at two more productivity suites, Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Photoshop.

Free Alternatives to Adobe Acrobat

I’ve never much liked Acrobat Reader. I’ve found it slows systems to a crawl, especially on startup, nags you for endless updates and is constantly crashing browsers, printers and causing systems to freeze.

Imagine my delight when a friend of mine – who had previously been having a seemingly endless nightmare involving 20-odd XP machines running Acrobat 7 printing to a Canon copier and crashing on print each time – introduced me to the answer to all his, and my, prayers.

Foxit Reader is free to download and use, it’s as light as a feather and does exactly what it says on the tin, opens PDF files – no more, no less.

Maybe it’s just me, because I love this product so much, but it also seems to me that Foxit actually renders PDFs better and sharper than Acrobat does.

Cute PDF Writer, meanwhile, is a free PDF printer, very handy for if you want to convert files or documents of any sort to PDF.

Free Alternatives to Adobe Photoshop

The Gimp is a free, open source program for editing photos and images. Whilst being called “The Gimp” isn’t exactly a compliment where I come from, this program is actually quite cool. It might not be a Photoshop beater, but it certainly comes quite close. The inbuilt GIF animation function is also ideal for those seeking to create banners and animations in GIF format rather than Flash.

Aviary is free, web-based creative suite. The suite is an offshoot project of Worth 1000, a popular Photoshop contest website (with some amazing graphic work on show). Each of the different applications all have (somewhat Mozilla-like) bird-themed names, such as Phoenix, its own graphic editor, Raven, the online vector graphic editor and Myna, for editing audio tracks. Other projects include an upcoming Word Processor (could this be another Microsoft Office competitor?) and a video editor called Starling. The latter, in particular, intrigues me.

Coming next, some great free antivirus and anti-spyware programs.

Many people still don’t know that, for every paid software solution they might consider, there’s always an open source or freeware alternative that, in many cases, is far superior.

When the price is zero it’s always a great incentive to try something new but don’t think that the applications listed here are somehow inferior just because they’re free. In many cases these applications offer far more options, far more protection and far more freedom of use than their paid counterparts and take up far less system resources too.

So without further ado, let me kick off my free software series with…

Free Alternatives to Microsoft Office

Generally if you buy a new PC with Windows it will be bundled with a copy of Microsoft Works. Works, however, saves its files in a completely different format to Office and so can be a hassle when you want to share your documents with others. Frustrated by this drawback most people generally give up and buy Microsoft Office not knowing that there are other alternatives that can allow you to edit and save Office compatible files without handing out huge wads of cash to Microsoft.

Open Office is among the most commonly used alternatives to Microsoft Office with its own versions of Word, Excel, Access and PowerPoint. It is available for Windows, Mac and Linux systems, in a variety of languages, and even gives you the choice of having either a US or British English version, which I think is really spiffy. In addition, as of version 3.0, Open Office is also compatible with proprietary Office 2007 files (.docx, .xlsx, etc).

With the ability to be installed on all major operating systems and full compatibility with Office 2007 but no licence costs, Open Office is the ideal solution for multi-platform offices or any organisation looking to keep costs down.

Google Docs is operating system independent. It is not a program but a series of web-based services that perform the same functions as any standard office suite, except that instead of being installed on your hard drive, all the documents are hosted from Google’s data centres with all interaction through your browser.

Google Docs is therefore a perfect example of cloud computing, a term which has become something of an industry buzzword of late but is in reality a concept almost as old as computing itself, that of large servers or mainframes hosting all the files and software for so-called “dumb-terminals”.

The only real limitation with Google Docs is browser compatibility, though this isn’t really an issue with modern browsers like Firefox, Opera or Chrome, as well as Internet Explorer 7 and 8. As of March of this year, however, Google has dropped support for Internet Explorer 6 entirely so Docs won’t work on older systems such as Windows 2000. (more…)

One of the things that many Skype users don’t know about is how to use it with a touchtone voicemail system. If you encounter such a system – e.g. “for accounts press one, for sales press two…” – you can use Skype’s built-in Dial Pad to emulate DTMF dial tones just like on a regular touchtone phone.

To do this firstly ensure you are running the latest version of Skype then follow the steps below:

1. Enter the phone number you wish to call and press the Call button as normal.

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Vertex42 is a website business owners are sure to find handy.

They’ve got all manner of goodies including free calender templates for Excel or Open Office

The calenders have all American holidays, so those of us on the other side of the Atlantic will need to alter them slightly. I find the monthly calender particularly useful, I edit it accordingly, like put in upcoming appointments, personal dates and, of course, F1 grand prix dates.

When I’ve got the time I’m going to check out their free photo calender template. It’s only a personal use license, though, but, with some careful thought and the right photos, would make an ideal Christmas present for someone, or at least a nice stocking filler.

There’s lots more free stuff there too, such as invoice templates, weekly & monthly planners and a project management planner template.