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Issue 478 - December 12, 2007

ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2007
==== 1417 Subscribers in 46 Countries ====

Welcome to the 478th issue of the PC Improvement News. PCIN consists mainly of news highlights and tips. There is something for everyone, and if this is your first issue, I'm sure there will be something for you. If you give me two or three issues, I know that you will come back for more!

You can reach me at editor@pcin.net with any suggestions or comments.

Support PCIN at http://PCIN.net/donate.php

Contents

Opening Thoughts

As I mentioned last week, I'm on vacation this week. We've spent the week so far working on our bathroom. We've replaced the bathtub and had to deal with all of the unexpected things that go along with that. Actually, it's been easier than I thought and it looks good.

Tomorrow we are going to stay at a hotel in Niagara Falls. We've never stayed there before, but it is a nice-looking hotel, so hopefully it meets our expectations. The kids are going with us, so Andrew gets Friday off school.

Speaking of school, after this week there is only 1 week left of school, and then the Christmas break starts. We still have a lot of presents to get. We'd better get a move on!

Graham editor@pcin.net and Chris chris@pcin.net

News Highlights

Commodore 64 still loved after all these years

Like a first love or a first car, a first computer can hold a special place in people's hearts. For millions of kids who grew up in the 1980s, that first computer was the Commodore 64. Twenty-five years later, that first brush with computer addiction is as strong as ever.
"There was something magical about the C64," says Andreas Wallstrom of Stockholm, Sweden.
He remembers the day he first laid eyes on his machine back in 1984.
"My father brought it home together with a tape deck, a disk drive, a printer, and a couple of games... I used to sneak home during lunch to play [on it] with my friends." Learn about the components of the C64 system...
Wallstrom is the webmaster and designer for C64.com, a Web site dedicated to preserving the games, demos, pictures, magazines and memories of the Commodore 64.

Read the CNN article...
Leave a comment...

Students 'should use Wikipedia'

Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales has said teachers who refuse students access to the site are "bad educators".
Speaking at the Online Information conference at London's Olympia, he dismissed the long-running controversy over the site's authority.
He said he now thinks that students should be able to cite the online encyclopaedia in their work.
Previously, Mr Wales believed that the website, which is edited by users, lacked the authority for academic work.
As long as an article included accurate citations, he said he had "no problem" with it being used as a reference for students, although academics would "probably be better off doing their own research".
"You can ban kids from listening to rock 'n' roll music, but they're going to anyway," he added. "It's the same with information, and it's a bad educator that bans their students from reading Wikipedia."

Read the BBC News article...
Leave a comment...

Hi-Tech Tombstone Sales Are Slow Going

No one would set a scrapbook filled with pictures and memories on the tombstone of a loved one. But what about a high-tech, weatherproof version, with digital images powered by a solar cell?
That innovation is available now - but finding customers so far has proven slow going.
"haven't sold any," said Doug Ellis of Riverview Monuments, who has been offering the so-called "serenity panel" system for about $2,000 since February.

Read the CBS News article...
Leave a comment...

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Digital Photography Tip of the Week

Adding colour back into a Photograph

One of my co-workers, John, received a Christmas card this week and asked me how he could replicate the image on the card. The image was a black and white photo with a colour Christmas wreath hanging from a bridge and a river running under the bridge in a pastel blue. This is easy to do using a few tools I have talked about it the past, layers, opacity and layer masks.

In both Adobe Photoshop Elements and Adobe Photoshop, the process is almost identical, and very easy in both programs. Below are the instructions:

  1. Duplicate the background layer of your image. To do this, right click on the background layer in the layers palette and choose duplicate layer.
  2. In Photoshop - Create a channels adjustment layer and convert the image to black and white
    1. In Photoshop Elements - Convert the duplicate layer to black and white (CTRL-ALT-B) Create a layer mask on the black and white layer you created. You can install a utility to enable layer masks for Photoshop Elements here.
  3. With the layer mask selected, select a brush and pick the black colour from the colour selector.
  4. Next, set the opacity of the brush quite low, 10 or 15%. This will let you paint the colour back in to selected areas in small increments.
  5. Painting successively over the same area will paint the colour back into the image more and more with each successive stroke.
  6. If you restore colour to a selection of the image you still want to remain in colour, change your brush colour to white and paint back over the area you wish to remain in black and white.

The layer masks blocks the effect of the black and white layer, where you have painted black on the layer mask, the effect is blocked and as I already mentioned, setting the opacity of the brush lets you work in small increments for better control.

If you do not want to add the colour back in from the original image, but wish to paint your own colours in, then follow points 1 and 2 above then create a new layer and on that layer, again using a low opacity brush, paint the colours you want. One final step when painting this way is to change the blending mode of your layer to overlay which will make your colours transparent and let the image below show through your colour.

There are many ways in which you can uses these techniques. A little imagination and creativity can open up a new layer of your own photography.

Until next time, happy shooting.

Leave a comment on this week's Digital Photography Tip of the Week

The digital photography tip of the week is written by the PCIN Assistant Editor, Chris Empey. Chris is a long time photographer and is currently the President of the Niagara Falls Camera Club. You can see more of his photography at his Photo of the Day website.
If you have a tip to send Chris, or a question about digital photography he can address in the newsletter, send it to chris@pcin.net.

PCIN.net Site Update

Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:

Paragon Software Group Hard Disk Manager 2008
http://PCIN.net/help/software/paragonhdm2008.php

Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 and Adobe Premier Elements 3.0 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/photoshopEL5_Premiere3.php

ExpoDisc White Balance Filter Review
http://PCIN.net/help/hardware/expodisc.php

Paragon Software Group Partition Manager 8.0 Professional Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/ppm8.php

Update PCIN.net home page with "Top 10 Most Popular..." features
http://PCIN.net/

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Tips and Other Stuff

Spread Holiday Cheer With These Viral Sites

Wired recently had a posting with links to some fun sites that you can visit this holiday season:

Leave a comment...

Get DivX Pro for free

divx_logo.gif

Shortly after we found out about the free Camtasia software and the free SnagIt software, Download Squad informs us that the DivX Pro suite is currently available for free:

DivX is giving away copies of the DivX Pro 6 bundle again. Normally this package will cost you $20, but for the second time this year, DivX is offering up the Pro bundle at the low low price of nothing.

The package includes the DivX Pro codec, the DivX file converter, content upload, video player and web player. The free download comes in Mac and Windows flavors. You'll need to enter your email address to get a free registration code.

I've downloaded and registered my copies of all 3 titles... have you?

Leave a comment...

The Top 100 PC Tech Innovations of All Time

I heard about this Maximum PC article from TechRebublic:

Sure, we love iPods, TiVo, and fancy-schmancy digital cameras, just like everyone else. But let's talk about advances that make a difference where it really counts: in the PC.

While myriad best-of lists have ranked the greatest gadgets, software products, and videogames ever made, here we turn our attention to advances that have impacted the development, enjoyment, and raw power of the personal computer.

Leave a comment...

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PCIN.net Affiliated Sites

Both of us have other sites other than PCIN.net. These are all sites that we are actively involved in (they aren't client sites). Don't forget to check them out from time to time for updates:

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Disclaimer and Other Stuff

PCIN is brought to you by Graham Wing. The opinions expressed are those of the Editor, Graham Wing and the Assistant Editor, Chris Empey. Graham Wing and Chris Empey accept no responsibility for the results obtained from trying the tips in this newsletter.

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Graham Wing can be reached at editor@pcin.net
Chris Empey can be reached at chris@pcin.net

Copyright 1998-2007, Graham Wing. All rights reserved.

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