March 12, 2008

The Difference Between Flash and Shockwave

You've probably heard of both Flash and Shockwave, but do you know the difference between them? Well, that's what I'm here to take care of today. Let's get started!

Flash and Shockwave allow Web sites to deliver the most engaging, compelling and interesting entertainment content on the Web. The Web utilizes technologies like Flash and Shockwave to enhance the entertainment experience you get when you use the Internet. There are certain Web sites that require either Shockwave or Flash to be installed in order to view their content. For example, many sites require Shockwave to be able to play free slot games, etc.

As you may be too, I have always been confused about the difference between Flash and Shockwave. I mean, they both:

1.) Are technologies developed by Macromedia, Inc.

2.) Are plug-ins for Web browsers.

3.) Make use of ActiveX in Web browsers.

4.) Enable Web pages to include multimedia objects, such as graphics, video and animations.

However, when I thoroughly researched both of them, I found quite a few differences. Most of them are minor, but I never knew about them, so I figured we could sort them out together. Let's go!

Macromedia Flash

1.) Macromedia Flash is widely spread, as many Web sites require Flash to be pre-installed. It allows designers to combine text, graphics, video and sound to create dynamic and immersive applications in a variety of fields, including interactive Web content and games.

2.) Flash loads comparatively faster than Shockwave.

3.) Flash allows designers and developers to integrate video, text, audio and graphics into their interactive presentations.

4.) Flash is also much cipla viagra cheaper than Shockwave, as it costs approximately $400.

5.) Flash works in the .SWF Flash format and it is part of the "SIMPLE" Scripting Level.

Macromedia Shockwave

1.) Macromedia claims that over 200 million Web users have installed the Macromedia Shockwave player. Some of the features supported by Shockwave are 3D games, product demos and online learning applications.

2.) Shockwave is mostly used for online games and areas that require programming (as opposed to simple video clips or animations). It has the ability to move objects around as well.

3.) Shockwave has a special built in feature where it can integrate Flash into its own format (Flash cannot do that with Shockwave).

4.) Shockwave can only be created using the Macromedia Director and it is part of the Advanced Scripting Language. Shockwave requires technical expertise as well.

5.) Shockwave is much more expensive than Flash, as it costs more than $1,000.

6.) Shockwave works in the .DCR Shockwave format, which is one that is much harder to decode/modify.

There you have it! Now you know all there is to know about Flash and Shockwave. Don't you feel special?!

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Alphabetize It!

Ever find yourself wanting to alphabetize a list in MS Word?

How did you accomplish that?

I know there are at least a couple of you who moved everything around manually, am I right? chewable viagra And I don't have to tell you twice that if the list was really long, it took you quite awhile to do. What a pain!

Well, how about letting Word alphabetize for you?

No problem! With just a highlight and a couple of clicks, you'll have the whole list sorted instantly.

  • Highlight the text/list to be alphabetized. (If you need to sort the whole document, you can skip this step. With nothing highlighted, Word will select everything once you complete the next step).

  • For Word 2007 users, you need to click the Sort button found in the Paragraph section on the Home ribbon.

  • If you're using older versions of MS Word, you need to select the Sort choice from the Table menu.

  • Everyone should find that when the Sort Text dialogue window opens, it should already be set for sorting paragraphs in ascending order.

  • Should you need to make any changes to that setting, go ahead and do so and then click OK.

Voila. Text in Word documents sorted in an instant!

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Easy Photoshop Tricks

Sometimes photography is as much about camera skills as it is about tweaking the pictures you’ve taken in Photoshop. However, the long drawn out ways of doing a simple task in Photoshop can be quite tiring. Luckily, there's a way out! All you need to do is follow the relatively simple tips found below to master Photoshop by keeping both your hands busy and minimizing the time spent on your computer. These tips are for Photoshop CS2 and CS3 users with a PC. So, without further ado, here are a few shortcuts that can make your life a lot easier!

As Simple As Can Be

  • H (Hand Tool) – This command brings up the Hand Tool, which allows for quick panning when you zoom in to a portion of your photo.

  • Z (Zoom Tool) – This command allows you to zoom in just by bringing up the Zoom Tool. If you want to temporarily switch to the Zoom Out mode, just hold down the Alt key.

  • Ctrl + 0 (Fit on Screen) – If you want to get your entire photo in front of your eyes in mere seconds, this tool is the one you're looking for. Note: This command is Ctrl + zero, not the letter O.

  • B (Brush Tool) – If you're into brushing up your images, this tool is the one you need. It's particularly useful if you're working with masks as well.

  • Ctrl + Z (Undo) – This one is extremely handy and is used quite often. Why, you ask? Well, it can undo any mistake you may make to your images during the editing process.

  • Tab (Hide/Show Palettes) – If you want to minimize your need to pan and zoom while editing, this tool comes in rather handy. It hides the palettes and offers you a more unhindered view of the image you're working on.

  • [ (Decrease Brush Size) – The title of this one says it all. It's extensively used to quickly decrease the brush size so that you can get into the tighter spots of your image.

  • ] (Increase Brush Size) – This one is a follow up to the previous command tool. It quickly increases the brush size for the larger areas of your picture.

  • Shift + [ (Decrease Brush Softness) – This one decreases the softness of the brush by about 25 percent and it works beautifully with this shortcut.

  • Shift + ] (Increase Brush Softness) – This one does exactly the opposite of the one above. It increases the brush softness by 25 percent.

  • 1->0 (Tool Opacity) – Most times, photographers are happy with a brush opacity of five to 10 percent. However, you sometimes need to customize in order to suit the image. And that's where this tool command comes in handy. Simply press one of the numbers from one to 10 and your Tool Opacity can go up from 10 to 100 percent. For even finer control, press a second number quickly after the first. Doing that will get you any percentage you want. For example, pressing the number four will get you 40 percent opacity, while pressing six and then three will give you 63 percent opacity.

  • Shift + 1->0 (Tool Flow) – This one works exactly like the opacity tool, but you have to hold down the Shift key while you hit the numbers.

  • Ctrl + Tab (Next Point on Curves Adjustment) – When using the Curves cheapest viagra in uk Adjustment dialogue, you can place multiple points on the curve and adjust them accordingly. Sometimes you need to make very minor shifts in the points by nudging them with the keyboard, but clicking on the point to activate it usually moves it to an undesired location. Therefore, you can use this command to switch focus from point to point without moving them around.

And Finally…

Use the Ctrl + Alt + Shift + K (Show Keyboard Command) if you happen to forget any of the above mentioned commands. With it, you can bring up the Help dialogue window for keyboard shortcuts. There are a lot more shortcuts than what I went over today and you can use Ctrl + Alt + Shift + K for even more information about them.

Happy Photoshopping!

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eBay Feedback: Changes Coming Soon

So, tell me, are you an avid eBay user? Perhaps you do a lot of buying on eBay or maybe you just like to sell. Either way, eBay is a very popular organization and one of the things that makes it so likeable is its feedback system. Whether you're a buyer or seller, you can always leave feedback about your experience with eBay, which also leaves some guidelines for future buyers and sellers to follow. However, all of that will be changing within the next few months, so you might as well prepare yourself now. Keep reading for all the juicy details!

Up until now, eBay buyers and sellers were able to publicly voice their opinions about each other, whether it was good or bad. For example, if you bought something from a seller and they didn't ship it to you in a timely manner, you could let everyone know about it through your feedback. Or, if you sold something to a buyer and they didn't pay you on time, you could leave negative feedback about them as well. But, starting in May 2008, sellers will no longer be able to leave negative feedback about their buyers under any circumstance whatsoever. Buyers, on the other hand, will be able to post poor feedback about their sellers with no consequence.

Now, although this change may seem a little unfair to the sellers, it really does go both ways. For instance, sellers who charge too much for shipping or who send out broken items will be revealed, which will help cut down on sneaky business tactics. On the other hand, honest sellers will now have to deal with picky buyers who call them out on every little mistake they make. But, in time, all of that will help eBay to become a more honest and secure Web site. It may take some time, but the new feedback cheapest generic viagra system will help clean up eBay and make it a better place to do business. It's still going to be the same ol' eBay, but now it will be ten times better!

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All in One Tools – Fresh UI 8.02 Download

Publisher Description

Download here

Configure and optimize Windows XP / 2000 / NT / 98 / 95 / Me.

Fresh UI is a fresh solution for configuring and optimizing Windows. Loaded with hundreds of useful hidden settings in Windows XP/2000/NT/ 98/95/Me, this software covers the customizing and optimizing techniques that you'll be glad to know, such as:

– Customizing Windows User Interface (UI)
– Optimizing cheap viagra system settings
– Optimizing hardware settings
– Customizing Windows application settings
– Controlling user environment with policies

Fresh UI is organized by section for easy navigation and completed with detail descriptions for easy reference.

Supported Operating System:
Windows 95, Windows 95 OSR2, Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition, Windows Me, Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, Windows XP.
 

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