Hasta La Gadget!

An update to the Shazam app for iPhone this week adds a bit more content-led action to the ecosystem while the entire layout earns a much more simplified look. This … Continue reading

This article was written on October 25, 2007 by CyberNet.

Tutorial Thursday

One of the hot new ways for viewing photos is using a JavaScript technique called LightBox. I’m sure you’ve seen it before on sites where you click on a thumbnail, and a fullsize version of the image is superimposed on the page that your viewing. It then grays out the background so that it’s easy for the viewer to focus on the image. Here’s a working example of LightBox that demonstrates the feature.

Personally I’ve never been a big fan of LightBox, but there are a lot of people who swear by it. When I came across a free program called LightBox Web Gallery Generator, I knew it would be an extremely handy tool for many of you.

What’s so great about it? Not only is it open source, but you also don’t have a thing to install. Once you download the LightBox Gallery Generator you can start working with it immediately!

–Basic Settings–

When you launch the app for the first time, you’ll notice that it’s extremely simple, and there isn’t much you can configure. It’s important to know that the LightBox Gallery Generator will only work with JPG images, but that’s the format that most cameras use so you shouldn’t have any problems.

You’ll want to select the folder with the images, and the folder that you want to output the gallery to. The program will generate thumbnails for all of the images and align them to a grid with however many columns and rows you specify. If you have more photos than can fit on the page it will show next/previous buttons on the generated site as well as page numbers.

The “Image” section in the program is used to specify what the dimensions are of the photos that are shown when the thumbnails are clicked on. By having them resized it helps cut back on the bandwidth needed especially when the original image is gigantic! You can always provide a link to the original image by checking the “Add link to hi-res image” option.

–Advanced Settings–

At first I didn’t really realize that the program had any advanced settings because the text links at the bottom looked like they were hyperlinks for a website. When I clicked on one of them it actually expanded the program’s window to show more settings that you can change to truly customize the look and feel of the gallery that is generated.

The “CSS” option is used to specify your own custom styles to the site. This is where you can customize border, background colors, font types, and more:

At the top of the gallery is a breadcrumb trail that visitors can use to navigate to other pages on your site. This is where you can specify your own custom homepage link or turn it off all together:

The “Master Page” option is truly the heart and soul of the LightBox Gallery Generator. You can create your own custom HTML template to be used with the galleries that you generate. How’s that useful? It means you can put your own header, footer, and sidebars on the site with the gallery being placed in the center of it all.

–The Result–

**drum roll** The end result is what you’ve worked so hard for, well, I use the term “work” loosely. The screenshots below are from a gallery that I generated in under a minute after starting the program up for the first time. The one on the left shows what the thumbnail gallery looks like complete with navigation links, and the one on the right is the “fullsize” image that visitors are shown when a thumbnail is clicked.

If you chose to include a link to the high resolution images you’ll see that next to the title of each photo:

This program doesn’t quite stack up to the JAlbum software in terms of configuration options, but this is definitely the simplest gallery generator that I’ve ever used. If you need to quickly create a photo gallery with some pizzazz I don’t think there is a better option.

LightBox Web Gallery Generator

Copyright © 2014 CyberNetNews.com

What do you do to pass the time when you’re on a 16-hour flight? Most people sleep, while others read books or magazines. Some watch movies or TV shows, and there are those who spend their time chatting up the passenger beside them or trying to make eye contact with someone a few aisles down.

For the latter group, there’s Wingman.

It’s an app that’s currently in development. It was thought up by BuzzFeed copywriter Gabe Whaley, who explains what inspired him to create the app: “I’m pretty sure that at some point, anyone who’s flown has had a thought, like, ‘I wonder what it would be like to talk to that person. Too bad it’s never going to happen, because the seating arrangement didn’t provide for that.’ And of course, most people have at least some sort of exposure to what the mile high club is.”

The software is designed to work via Bluetooth in case Wi-Fi isn’t available on board your airplane. You can stay in the loop and sign up to receive updated on their website.

[via Geekosystem]

This article was written on April 24, 2008 by CyberNet.

(Click to Enlarge)

Stardock has released a new application called MyColors that will really appeal to college students/alumni and sports fanatics. The program itself is a free download, and it’s goal is to completely skin your Windows XP or Vista operating system. It changes the theme, background, icons, gadgets, media player, and more.

There are two themes that that you can get for free with MyColors: Diamond and Quest. Diamond appears to be their signature theme as it’s also bundled with WindowBlinds, and Quest is pretty sleek despite the overwhelming amount of gold. Since the program is also free those are the two themes that you can get without dropping a dime.

The really cool themes, however, will run you about $20 each. From the looks of it MyColors is really focused on themes for the NBA, NHL, and college teams. I was extremely pleased to see the university I attended, Iowa State, was in the list. A screenshot of what it looks like running on Vista can be seen above, and Stardock does a terrific job of providing high-quality screenshots of each theme so that you know what you’re getting.

A video demonstration of MyColors is available, but I recommend just diving in and start checking out all of the themes available. There are over 50 that are college-specific, 30 NBA, 30 NHL, and dozens more. Also, you’ll notice that some are easier on the eyes than others. 😉

Copyright © 2014 CyberNetNews.com

This article was written on December 28, 2007 by CyberNet.

Here’s yet another opportunity to get more free software! For a limited time, you can get your hands on a copy of Webroot Spy Sweeper which will be good for a year. It’s a $29.95 value and will keep you protected from Spyware. It’s their latest version, 5.5, which PC Magazine has said is “easily the best choice for protecting PCs from spyware and for cleaning infected machines.”

As with the AVG offer the other day, we haven’t installed this software ourselves because we have a subscription to ESET Smart Security suite. From what I’ve read though, the process is simple.  Here’s what you need to do:

1. Click here to sign-up to receive your unique registration number (all that’s needed is a name and email address)
2. Click here to download Spy Sweeper
3. Install the app using the registration information you received in step 1

Note: You’ll want to do the custom install otherwise you’ll get an unwanted toolbar installed.

The only other thing you need to note is that the software is for personal use only… not for use on business computers.

Source: Slick Deals

Copyright © 2014 CyberNetNews.com