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I should have written about this earlier this month but I still believe that getting the word across still matters and I’m sure there are still a lot out there who haven’t given their share of fortune to lend a hand to those who were devastated by the magnitude 7.0 earthquake that hit Haiti a couple of months ago.

Posts of these kind isn’t new here in Software Critics since it has become a part of my public service efforts to give a lift to those who are in need. The same kind of post debuted on this site when Typhoon Ondoy hit the Philippines in September 2009.

It was during the Vancouver Winter Olympics local coverage that I became aware of this online endeavor that was put up to help Haiti through a collaboration of artists and musicians singing “We Are The World” which was popularized by the late Michael Jackson was aired on TV in between commercial breaks.

“We Are The World 25 for Haiti” was recorded as inspired by the same idealism 25 years ago which embodies the true spirit of giving thus the We Are The World Foundation, a non-profit organization, was founded by Quincy Jones and Lionel Richie who then invited Wyclef Jean, Paul Haggis, Randy Phillips, Peter Tortorici and Ambassador Luis Moreno of the Inter-American Development Bank to join them on their endeavor.

Share of the proceeds for the download of the song on iTunes are waived on the first months of the campaign for the greater benefit of the foundation’s recipients.

If you haven’t done your share, now is the right time to do so. Nothing is too late. You can still help.

I also hope that something like this would come up for the benefit of the Chilean people following their catastrophic earthquake experience recently.

If you’d like to extend your help and support to this online endeavor, you can place the same widget below on your sites or blogs.

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Chitika’s Publisher Ad Network has added a boost on this site’s revenue since its inception in October 30, 2009. It was only recently though that I have finally confirmed that search engine traffic combined with Chitika ad placement based on a US demographic does work best.

With Software Critics’ 60% search engine traffic, monetizing using Chitika has been a challenge at the beginning however, with the right ad placement, positive results could be achieved.

Chitika Ads does not violate Google Adsense ToS so basically both can be integrated on a page without any issues.

The 14.5% revenue share of Chitika for the month of February is indispensable thus it’s definitely staying for good and with the most recent addition of Chitika Select Ads which promises a 5-10% boost in additional revenue for publishers aside from search revenues, this only means that they are really into finding bigger avenues for income generation for small and medium sized online publishers.

If you haven’t joined the Chitika bandwagon, I must say that you’re really missing out on a bigger opportunity for income generation.

Chitika Premium publisher accounts will get an automatic upgrade into Select Ads starting March 8, 2010. Using click-prediction technology, Chitika Select Ads will be shown on your site whenever there’s a higher chance for an ad to be clicked.

Although there are doubts about how the ads would look like compared to the regular search driven ads, publishers still have a way to disable Select Ads from showing up on their site which is pretty much giving its users a choice so there’s no need to panic in case you don’t want additional graphic ads to show up on your pages.

Overall, Chitika has been a great addition to my online revenue generating efforts and will definitely be using it and promoting it to fellow online publishers who haven’t tapped its potential.

I can only look back on those days I have wasted when I was still not using it, I’m glad I joined.

Don’t miss it. Chitika pays out as little as US$10 compared to Adsense’s one hundred. What’s your Chitika story?

Sign up with Chitika now!

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The past few days had been a hustle because my time became so dedicated on my new online venture which wasn’t about tech blogging but is somewhat technical to say the least. Managing a web hosting start-up requires that much time and effort to even complete certain tasks and technical requirements especially at the backend.

Eagerness to learn as well as passion brought me into realizing this project which I’ve thought about since earlier this year. Finally, it became operational just a couple of days ago.

Conversion Hosting is officially open for business and is currently offering shared web hosting space at very affordable rates. Yours truly will be serving as one of the support administrators while being based in the Philippines. Our servers are based in Houston, Texas and is completely Green powered which means it’s environmentally-friendly.

This web hosting investment is truly a big risk on my end however being a Tech blogger, I know that I could certainly deliver a good technical support especially with the many web hosting experiences I’ve gained as a consumer and webmaster.

Understanding web hosting customers’ needs in the perspective of a consumer’s viewpoint definitely gives me an edge to understand the needs of every webmaster who are trying to build their online presence one step at a time.

I would always see my self on every prospective consumer that will come and use the service of Conversion Hosting and from there I would know how web hosting should be done and how it should work for the consumer’s advantage.

Software Critics started out small but then grew gradually. Blogging profit is something I don’t disclose on this site but this is what I envision every domain that will be hosted on Conversion Hosting. However small a website is, as long as it could start on a decent hosting, it eventually can become profitable in the long haul.

Consider hosting your site at Conversion Hosting and we’ll try our best to help you convert your online efforts into profit through our reliable web hosting solutions. Discount coupons will be provided to the newsletter subscribers of this blog so if you haven’t signed up, here’s your chance to do so.

Take a tour at Conversion Hosting and let me know what you think. Cheers!

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Babies get to sleep with cradlesongs from their moms. Adults however have different ways of getting a sleep. Yours truly cannot actually sleep unlike others with a radio on or MP3 music playing in the head.

However, you’re the type of person who can actually relax with sound vibrations or is familiar with sound therapy then, a sound machine is for you. A typical white noise machine can enhance your sleeping patterns and reduce your sleep problems. White noise generators produce pleasant sounds that promote relaxation and calmness like the sound of a rushing air.

Sound machines are also used for sound masking and speech privacy in doctor’s offices, counseling centers and other businesses.

I wouldn’t be surprised about this technology as there are many sound waves and techniques using sound vibrations are being used nowadays for so many purposes other than getting sleep or curing sleep disorders.

Have you tried using them yourself? If so, what do you think of them? Are they really effective as advertised? I want to hear your story.

No related posts.

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SnapABug first debuted on this blog by participating as one of the sponsors on last year’s holiday giveaway wherein they provided a SnapABug Pro Account for one year (a $228 value) to one lucky reader and also gave yours truly, the same type of account. Readership feedback has been awesome since its integration as you can see on the left hand side the green “Help” widget.

SnapABug specializes in visual customer support solutions for websites wherein the ability to capture a screenshot of the page before submitting a support request, a query or a ticket is unprecedented. This feature makes SnapABug extra special considering that most of today’s customer support systems on sites are just focused on the traditional ticketing system and chat.

The service is typically not for free however a 15-day Business Account trial is provided for you to fully utilize its benefits which aren’t bad after all.

Among the most common features of the service which can be found on all account types are Live Support Agents which can be integrated on GTalk, Button Customization, Unlimited User Support Cases, Webpage Snapshot, Browser, OS and Plugins Version Reporting, IP Address or Geo. Location Tracking, Language Selection and integration with your preferred CRM or Help Desk solution and SSL Support.

Comments:

Integration of chat or live support outside of your GMail inbox and with other IM clients like Pidgin and Digsby is not yet possible but hopefully soon for added flexibility.

The “Help” button is at default green unless you customize by using your own image. The ability to change its color from green to any of the primary color would have been better so it could blend with your site’s colors however the green one still manages to attract anyway.

It can be a little pricy for some but if you’ll look at its benefits, you’re not just getting a simple chat support but a visual imagery of the page in question in case unwanted bugs are discovered.

If you’d like to give SnapABug a go, simply follow this link. To see SnapABug in action, watch the video below. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome.

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A smooth running computer is what everybody wants just like a well conditioned car. Nobody body wants hassles and as long as you have the right tools to keep your computer drivers at par, you don’t really have to look somewhere else and think about planning to buy a new PC no matter how old is the one you have.

All you need to do is keep your windows drivers healthy by keeping track of new driver updates because this will improve your PC’s performance exactly like you’ve first had them from the store.

Updating you computer drivers can be tedious but with the help of Driver Access, you can complete the task in less than a couple of minutes while at the same time getting the latest version for your drivers.

A variety of peripherals are supported by different types of drivers such mouse drivers, keyboard drivers, and USB drivers among others thus keeping them up-to-date will make sure these hardware from functioning properly.

A driver backup wizard that comes with the software makes certain that you have your own copy for safekeeping.

There are many driver updaters in the market today but those who can provide customer service is a much desirable aspect. Software developers cannot always assume that their users are technically savvy therefore providing a hand is a wise move.

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The demands of getting a highly secured internet browsing experience are increasing overtime that’s why the need for a VPN service (Virtual Private Network) is becoming necessary.

The purpose of securing a Virtual Private Network generally advocates privacy and as proven extension of a private network from an unsafe network such as the internet which ensure encryption of data between two points through a secured tunnel.

VPN also separates traffic of different user communities over a network with strong security features such as those sites that block access from certain geo-locations.

VPNs, therefore, allows you to surf the web invisibly and securely without a trace and without being tracked. It normally works with any of the programs installed on your PC such as chat clients, email and browsers for maximum protection.

With VPN service, you can access geo-restricted sites such as Hulu, Pandora, BBC iPlayer etc. using servers from US and UK even while traveling, hide yourself from internet monitoring or web filtering applications, protects your computer and network from hackers, streaming videos and downloading, unblock the web from anywhere and bypass internet censorship.

Although there are many advantages of using VPN, you must be aware that VPNs may break terms of service because of access to restricted sites and can slow down direct access to network so responsible use is recommended.

ibVPN is one provider that approached this blog to promote their service and provide the readers of this site the wonderful opportunity of securing an account with them for FREE.

Ten (10) lucky readers will get the chance to experience ibVPN for three (3) months without having to pay $7.95 per month on a premium ibVPN account.

Here’s how to join:

1. Comment on this post.

2. Tweet this post. Make sure that you’re following @SoftwareCritics on Twitter. (1 entry)

3. Share this post on Facebook and become a Software Critics fan. (1 entry)

4. Subscribe to our weekly Newsletter. (1 entry)

5. Blog about this contest or post this on a forum. (3 entries)

Existing Twitter followers, Facebook fans and Newsletter subscribers are eligible to join simply by leaving a comment. (1 entry)

Bonus: The First blogger to promote this giveaway on their site automatically gets a free account also good for three (3) months.

Configuring ibVPN is easy. Follow these steps listed here to know how.

ibVPN is compatible with:

Windows XP and Windows Vista
Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/Windows 7
Mac OS X 10.2 and higher
Linux, iPhone, WM Smartphones
Any PPTP compatible device/software

Contest ends on the 28th and winners will be announced on March 1st 2010.

Experience secure and private browsing with ibVPN today!

The above giveaway has officially ended last 28th. Here are the names of the winners – James Moralde, Ching ya, Serene Talimar, Danniel Little, Francis Flor, Chalale Teboho, Rafael Capucci, Amir Aizudin, mohsen, and Ed. Congratulations to all the winners and thank you very much to everyone who participated.

Updated: 01March2010

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Starting the year right was always the priority of everyone regardless if you’re in business or just a regular home maker or employee.

Debt management should always be a top priority if the need for emergency funds came unexpectedly. But how can you manage your debts given the challenges of this economic downturn?

There are many ways though and one of which is securing IVA or an Individual Voluntary Arrangement with a financial company to manage your debts for you. Most of the time, these IVAs will cut the amount you owe (typically by 50% but in some cases by up to 70%), will freeze the interest you pay and will legally prevent creditors taking action against you when the things get worse. Of course, these services are there to prevent the latter case from happening.

IVAs are your best route to becoming debt free incase the equity in your property isn’t enough to consolidate debt via a re-mortgage. As you enter into such legally binding agreement with your creditors, licensed insolvency practitioners will oversee and supervise it for you thus providing greater security and much better terms compared with a debt management plan.

It’s inevitable for us not to have debts at least once in a while however staying out of it is still the best way to go most of the time. How about you? Do you always stay away from debt?

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A year go on this very day, Software Critics was registered at NameCheap and was self-hosted via a free host using the WordPress platform. This blog that was then a software download site which has turned into a full blown software review site and eventually evolved into more than just a regular technology site that also features the latest software and technology news, applications and constantly provides assistance and support to startups, and the open source community.

Software Critics turned one year today and it is of great gladness that this weblog have come this far. As we commence another fruitful year into tech blogging, allow me to take you into our journey of a year that was.

March 2009 marks one of the busiest months after the transition from blogger (then Freestuffzfanatico.blogspot.com) into WordPress and one of the most consistent traffic gainer on this blog was written on this month, Yahoo! Mail “Undisclosed Recipients” Made Easy, a post about setting your Yahoo Mail to sending email to bulk recipients without exposing each of your recipients’ email addresses to each other in order to avoid spam.

A tutorial about optimizing your PC speed, downloading free music from social music networks, and the release of our very own toolbar all happened on this month.

It was in April 2009 when the H1N1 scare blew the web with the presence of Swine Flu domains sprouting every second. In fact, yours truly even received an email from a scammer accusing me of maligning his online business.

The succeeding month inspired me to write about the effect of the Conficker virus on removable drives and how I was able to counter it productively using the right set of tools to recover damaged files.

The month of June was a sad moment because of the King of Pop’s untimely passing so I’ve put up a post to commemorate Michael Jackson through embed flash players. As part of my support to webmasters especially bloggers from blog hacking, an info about PHP script vulnerabilities was written along side some tips on when not to trust your webhost. This month marks my first attempt to join an online contest with my slideshare entry, To Be A Better Man.

July 2009 is when ZipRunner acquires Entrecard which left me in doubt if it would ever be the same again after the transition of ownership.

I embraced the Thesis Theme the following month while at the same time discovering Yahoo error 81003016 and Google Chrome personalization took center stage.

The first “Ber Month” is a time of ups and downs. I’ve switched web hosting the fourth time within a year to settle with Bluehost.com. A public service announcement was posted on this site to help typhoon Ondoy victims.

I’ve first used Yahoo Meme to check if it could be a good Twitter rival. Among the many firsts that happened on this month are attending WordCamp Philippines and switching this blog to do follow.

Bouncing back after some downturns is definitely one of the things that I’ve learned out of blogging more than anything else. The value of fortitude reminds me of this so I’ve moved on after web hosting nightmares and started implementing a comment policy after a series of keywordluv abuse.

The month after the Yuletide season is when I started implementing the mobile version of this blog plus my revelation of the some of the most horrible web hosting services today that any new webmaster should avoid.

November is also the month when Google started informing the public that site speed will be a ranking factor come 2010 but not to mention personalized search while on the other hand Microsoft released Office 2010 Beta.

The last month of 2009 is when I gained some thoughts if a blogging mafia really exist and have shared some tips on how to recognize phishing emails, why image hosting on your server is not necessary and a series of giveaways here including my $US1500 giveaway.

December 2009 is when I’ve set up my Spokn ID which is 3463452 and Google dropping a notch off this blog’s pagerank.

Starting off the year right was announcing my giveaway winners and giving my thank you’s. The latter part was sharing another Yahoo hack if you can’t open your mails and a helpful trick to fix Tiny MCE or Visual Editor problem for self-hosted WordPress blogs.

This month showcases another giveaway so timely for the celebration of Software Critics’ first anniversary as PowerPivot Excelerators Quiz by Microsoft chose this blog to promote them and in return giving one lucky reader the chance to win a Dell ST2310 monitor.

More surprises await the readers of Software Critics and as this blog progresses, I’ll always try my best to provide valuable content that everyone could benefit. I personally would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to each and every reader of this blog for keeping me inspired to continue what I’ve started and love doing.

Once again, thank you. I’m just getting started so watch out for more great content and more giveaways to come. Your suggestions and comments are always welcome!

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Quitting your job and starting your own business is definitely a big decision to make and a Herculean task to undertake given all the challenges that you’ll face as reality starts to pour in however, you don’t have to be alone to wrestle the burden of managing your business because there are services like Mavenlink that helps clients run their businesses from networking to legal, accounting, IT and a whole lot more with their “Work Smarter Not Harder” philosophy.

Businesses, consultants, service firms and even non-profits can effectively manage their projects through Mavenlink’s enhanced collaboration features through effective communication mediums, project timeline and management capabilities, improved visibility offering for service providers and talent showcase including efficient tracking.

Having the right people and the right set of tools to back you up at all times is necessary in today’s ever changing economy. Working hard isn’t always enough because working smarter is the best way to manage your business.

Watch the entertaining video below and be informed of the benefits of having the good guys behind your back.

Tell me what you think of the video and how it best describes the nature of Mavelink’s business. We may have different opinions so I’d be glad to know yours.

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With only a few days before this software review blog’s first anniversary which will be on the 8th of February, a representative of PowerPivot for Excel, the new add-on for Microsoft Excel 2010, approached me to host PowerPivot’s Excelerator Quiz giveaway on this site as part of their promotional campaign since they’ve launched this fun quiz called “Are you an Excelerator?” in conjunction with the recent release of PowerPivot and Excel 2010 beta.

This comes in great timing with this site’s upcoming anniversary so I accepted their proposal without any form of compensation since it’s a win-win opportunity as well so as a result, one lucky reader of this blog will be rewarded a Dell ST2310 23-inch flat monitor and a wireless keyboard and mouse valued over US$250 courtesy of PowerPivot for Excel.

Here’s how to join:

For Twitter Users

1. Take the Powerpivot for Excel’s Excelerator Quiz at www.exceleratorsquiz.com. Share your results on Twitter and copy the status URL and paste it here as a comment.

How to copy status URL on Twitter:

Mouse over on time the tweet was sent and click it. See screenshot below:

Copy what’s on the address bar on your browser similar to the one below:
http://twitter.com/SoftwareCritics/status/8446612519 and include it with your comment. See below example.

2. Retweet this post using the retweet button below and make sure that you’re following @SoftwareCritics and @powerpivot on Twitter.

For Facebook users

You must have taken the quiz at www.exceleratorsquiz.com. Share your results on your Facebook profile from the results screen and Share this post on Facebook using the share button below and make sure that you’re a fan of SoftwareCritics and Powerpivot as this will validate your entry.

Participating via Twitter and Facebook count as two separate entry which means if you did both, you get two valid entries automatically.

Bonus:
If you have a personal website or blog and is a US resident and have mentioned this giveaway on a separate post, you’ll get an automatic two entry points. Bloggers not in the US however, will get a “do follow” link if you mention this post.

So, if you will do all of the above, you’ll earn a maximum total of four (4) entries and a bigger chance of winning. See sample entry below.

Simple contest rules:

1. Only valid entries (completed and received on or by the closing date, 13th February 2010 at 11:59pm PST) are eligible for drawing. Incomplete entries will be disqualified. Only US residents are qualified to win the prize due to sponsor’s shipping requirements.

2. The prize is not redeemable in cash and must be accepted as awarded.

3. By claiming the prize, the winner authorizes the use, without additional compensation of his or her name and/or likeness and/or voice/photograph for promotion and/or advertising purposes in any manner and in any medium (including without limitation, publication on this site and distribution over the internet and picture data storage) which the sponsor PowerPivot for Excel team and Software Critics, may deem appropriate.

4. In accepting the prize, the winner, acknowledges that Software Critics may not be held liable for any loss, damages or injury associated with accepting or using this prize. The principal sponsor will be the one to ship the prize.

5. Software Critics reserves the right to change the contest rules at anytime during its duration without prior notice. Software Critics decision is final and irrevocable after its announcement of the winner on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2010 on this site.

On the sideline, take the Alpha Geek Challenge!

The PowerPivot Team invites you to put yourself to the test and prove if you’re the Excel Geek extraordinaire they were looking for as Donald Farmer issues Business Intelligence challenges for you to solve using the new add-on PowerPivot for Excel.

Three finalists will receive a $250 Microsoft Store shopping spree, and one lucky Grand Prize winner will receive an all-expense paid trip to the 2010 Microsoft BI Conference in New Orleans, LA from June 7-10th 2010. Click here for more details.

Questions about the PowerPivot Excelerators Quiz by Microsoft giveaway are encouraged in the comments section.

Update 14 February 2010:

The giveaway has officially ended.

Congratulations to Keith Bloemendaal for winning himself a Dell ST2310 23-inch flat monitor and a wireless keyboard and mouse valued over US$250 courtesy of PowerPivot for Excel!

Thank you all for joining!

If you want to get a Free VPN account visit ibVPN Giveaway.

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Converting image files into different formats have never been easier these days with the advent of so many robust tools coming from various software developers. However, having a lot of options can sometimes become confusing thus valuable recommendation from reputable sources leads users to have the right set of tools.

Images come in various formats and among the popular ones are JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP and TIFF although there are more than 100 graphic formats available in different applications.

The Concept of Image Formats

We use images for different purposes however, the effectiveness of each images may vary depending on its format and the way it was used. This means that certain types of image files may look better compared to another image file but could be more effective when used for same purpose.

For example, PNG or Portable Network Graphic files are aesthetically better compared to JPG/JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) or GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) images however the downside is they are more resource consuming when used on websites because their file sizes are normally larger.

Although JPEG image files’ quality is not as good as PNGs, they are more resource friendly because of their smaller size and are much suitable for use as banner with an image as a background. GIF, on the other hand, have the least quality and size, appears grainy and are much suitable for text-based banners.

Understanding the concept of image formats does a great deal in making us appreciate the reason why an image converter is necessary.

The Hunt for an Image Converter

Image format conversion can be accomplished using different mediums. Web-based conversion although efficient because of its universal accessibility through the internet could make the task impossible to complete due to dependency on the browser component unlike using an installed application, PC-based tools make it easier to accomplish the task with less the requirement in a fraction of the time.

There are many software out there that does image conversion however if we are after simplicity and specificity, we generally could go in to a whole lot of searching just to find the right program that would fit our needs.

I was scouring the web a couple of days ago and I came across this nifty software for image conversion known as Image Converter Plus by fCoder Group.

The concept is pretty simple. Convert an image file format into another type of image file e.g. a PNG image into a JPEG image.

Why use Image Converter Plus?

Image Converter Plus makes it easier to convert image files into another format in less time with image correction, application of various filters and effects, image editing operations like resizing and cropping, image effects rendering like embossing, sharpening, and image noise reduction among others can all be done as well in large batches.

Having used Image Converter Plus on web design projects allowed me to experience its high quality imaging capability since it doesn’t spoil your files’ quality instead it makes them even better while at the same time allotting you more time to focus on other things without sacrificing the value you put into your money and in your work.

Its intuitive user interface makes it easier to navigate and switch between features plus its handy right-click menu integration is easy to fall in love with like it’s almost close to perfection.

What can Image Converter Plus do that other software cannot?

Image Converter Plus can convert huge files even several GBs larger and faster while supporting multiple image formats and dialects, HDRI for HDR photography, RAW formats for photos taken from known camera brands like Kodak, Nikon, Canon, etc., multi-core processors, 64-bit systems, 16 bit/channels, and works with EXIF and IPTC information.

Image Converter Plus also allows you to send your converted images by email or upload them via FTP without the need for a third-party FTP client/software.

How do I use Image Converter Plus?

It’s very simple to use so I’m sure that you wouldn’t have a hard time with it. You don’t need to be a pro in order to appreciate its usefulness. Watch this video here for a quick tutorial.

What is the system requirements needed for use with this software?

This software should work on computers with the following specifications:
CPU: Pentium 2.
RAM: 128 RAM.
HDD free space: 50 Mb.
OS: Windows NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista

Systems that exceed these requirements are highly favored for optimal performance. You may visit this page for installation instructions.

The Verdict

Image Converter Plus definitely out smarts any type of software of its kind. A masterpiece created for flawless and seamless image conversion solutions.

It’s not that bad for US$49 on a single license, a really good investment if you were to ask me. Conversion scripts are already available upon installation so everything is touch and go. Using conversion via command-line option can be a challenge for beginners as they are intended for more advanced users.

The software at the moment doesn’t have a zipped version which means portability is not yet supported but hopefully in time it will.
Over all, it’s worth the try. I’ve used it myself so if I were happy with it, and so can you.

You can download Image Converter Plus from here. If you haven’t tried this software, here’s your chance to do so and feel the difference. Let me know how it works on your end. Feel free to share your experience, give comments or ask questions in the comments section.

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This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Boost Mobile. All opinions are 100% mine.

Are you looking for a savvy EVDO capable phone with a full QWERTY keyboard at an affordable price without the hassle of any contract requirements? Your search is finally over because what you’ve been looking for is just a matter of clicks away.

Boost Mobile has taken their efforts a step higher with their recent launch of the QWERTY flip SANYO Incognito SCP6760 for the price of $129.99 (excluding taxes) under a $50 Monthly Unlimited plan which offers unlimited talk, text and web browsing without any contract requirement, an irresistible limited time offer you wouldn’t want to miss.

SANYO Incognito™ SCP6760 boasts a 2MP camera with VGA camcorder, a music and video player plus enhanced web browsing not to mention Multi-Media messaging (Picture & Video), Stereo Bluetooth® and GPS capabilities. Keeping up with friends and families on your favorite networking sites is a breeze with an added EVDO (Evolution-Data Optimized) enhancement.

The great news doesn’t end here because when you purchase this phone along the unlimited monthly plan with the required links on this post, you get free shipping as an added bonus.

This offer is a great way to start the year right so don’t miss this opportunity while it’s hot!

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I was doing some research on Google.com (US) and Google.com.ph (Philippines) using the term “favicon,” “favicons,” and “favicon generator” and even tried using a combination of phrases as suggested by the search box with the word “favicon” but none of the terms render a search result. Here’s a screen shot of what I got from Firefox 3:

and here’s another one from Google Chrome:

Based on the images you’ve seen, it seems that Google is having some trouble rendering results for “favicon” search terms. This error reminds me of last year’s Google mistake of tagging the entire web as malware. Very unlikely. This is strange and I have not much of an idea why these terms are not rendering any results.

At this time of writing, the error remains unresolved although for other search terms, results are showing up.

Notes:

Have tried on two separate browsers. The one on Firefox was logged-in to Google.com account. The one on Chrome isn’t. So I don’t see any relation related to personalized search for the former.

Completely cleared my browsers’ cookies and cache yet the error still persists.

Have you had the same result as mine? I’m not certain if it was a virus or a malware on my end but how could it happen if some search terms like “software” and “blogs” are rendering search results perfectly.

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It has been months since I’ve transferred hosting to Bluehost and I must say that the investment is really worth it. For almost three months, I haven’t seen any outages on this site nor have heard of any reports about this site being offline even for a short while.

I’m glad to have made the right choice but if you may ask why am I able to keep track of what’s going on with this blog, that’s because I’m using a third-party service provider to monitor this blog’s uptime every day. I’ve been using Internetseer.com’s free service option since I started self-hosting.

I could even recall those times when I normally send some screenshots of the weekly uptime report to my previous hosts just to let them know that I’m aware of what’s going on with my site. That way, they have no reason not to admit and keep their hands clean when it’s not.

Webmasters really need to utilize third-party web monitoring services especially if they’re on the process of scrutinizing a new hosting company’s performance. A lot of cheap web hosting companies are sprouting nowadays every second, so it pays to be vigilant. Don’t be afraid to complain when there’s something wrong and always aim for value with the money you spent.

Site uptime can make or break your online business so make sure it’s always available when http requests are being sent to your site’s server. The best tip is to ask or consult those people who had the experience with hosting companies because they know who’s who in the industry, makes perfect sense right?

If you haven’t acquired a third-party website monitoring service, share your reasons why.

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Managing files can’t be that easy but having the right tools that could do the job can make it easier and fun. Efficient data burning software could work wonders in making backup copies of your precious DVD collections, MP3 repertoires, and important documents.

Having used Nero 7 for quite sometime, I must say that it’s a good product however as time goes by, it just stopped working. I’ve been scouring the internet to resolve executable errors while attempting to run the program but my efforts are left in vain until I decided to switch and find a better alternative. Although there is free software for burning CDs, my trust has never been on the freeware’s side after previous performance tests on burned CDs using a freeware.

Some if not most of the freeware I’ve tested produced low quality copies that are hardly even playable on most DVD players.

My search bear fruit thus I came to discover the benefits of using Power2Go Burning Software for a month on a trial version. The results are quite amazing and I must say that its one of the best multimedia disc burning software since Nero.

Power2Go makes data burning as easy as drag and drop for data, videos, photos, music and disc copying with support for Blu-ray, DVDs and CDs.

I have tried this software numerous times for MP3 burning (see image below) and the results as great. The audio normalization feature between tracks is what I liked the most since not all burning software has it. Who would want to hear a staggered audio playing at the background? Well, not me.

You might as well be interested in creating Mixed Media discs if you wanted to maximize disc space. Here, you can burn audio CDs and include data files on the same disc while at the same time making the audio playable on any consumer CD player. Sounds great, right?

If you’re also concerned about privacy, you can definitely get the job done with its 128-bit encryption protection for data discs, including Blu-ray in partial or in full.

A sleek user interface with an attractive design simply adds up to the robustness of this tool and you can never go wrong with it. Try it now and feel the difference.

Pros: Not bad for US$39.95. Produce high quality copies.
Cons: Not much to say but time difference between burning files isn’t any different from Nero although some free software could burn CDs a lot faster.

Notes: I have not tried burning DVDs using this software due to my hard drive’s memory limitations.

You can download Power2Go free evaluation copy from here.

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I joined Entrecard back in February 2009, that’s when this domain was half a month old. For a few months, I’ve been getting some traffic from the system and it was worth it. Being active on the network can provide benefits but not to the extent that you can rely on something consistent because if you don’t drop (that’s visiting another blog and clicking on their widget), you don’t get one in return. I should say it’s a give and take system of generating traffic.

Few months later, Entrecard was shaken up a bit thus resulting from Graham’s untimely exodus and ZipRunner taking over.

Transition has been smooth afterward but I’ve noticed that only a small portion of blogs on the network are continuously being updated while the rest are just abandoned as usual. Although my hopes are high when I last logged-in that somehow things may change for the better in terms of getting traffic from the network, I’ve finally proven that the system no longer works to my advantage.

Everything is just automated. Bloggers can just easily accept and reject ads into their account without the need to login. Widgets get replaced every now and then but there isn’t any click or visitors coming from the network itself. I wonder if there are still bloggers scheming through the network and visits blogs like it was sometime ago.

Google Analytics never lie in terms of stats and believe it or not, Entrecard hasn’t given me any visit for the last month or even earlier. Now, Entrecard is raving about accepting websites into the system based on its latest newsletter update. This is just going to be another move that’s not bringing much benefit to bloggers.

Entrecard is becoming less and less relevant with the advent of social media and its dynamism is dwindling. The fact that RSS feed profiles of blogs are not even clickable on its interface, it doesn’t even share some link juice. More or less, it’s becoming more of a blog directory now.

Lately, I’ve been thinking of giving up on Entrecard not ‘til I finally get an idea how to dispatch all the EC credits I have on my account. I know that there are a bunch of folks out there that can still make use of it somehow.

These days, if you’re someone whose really up to getting the most out of your marketing efforts and traffic is one of them, you wouldn’t settle for anything less. I don’t even get much from Twitter but compared to Entrecard, it’s better to have some than nothing. Other than not getting visits, the widget is making my page loading too slow. In fact, among the http requests that my site does each time, it’s always the least to show.

Will my future decision to leave Entrecard do me any good? What do you think? Are you getting the most out of Entrecard with less the effort? Share your story.

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I have once discussed on this blog the nature of software development processes which includes Royce’s Waterfall Model, a sequential approach to software development attributed to the waterfall because of its steadily flowing progress.

This time, I’ll be talking about a rather different software development process derived from the agile manifesto which was a statement of principles that underpin agile software development.

Significant values are driven by agile software development methods including giving much weight on individuals and interactions over processes and tools on an agile team, creation of working software within weeks time against comprehensive documentation and longer time frame, high importance on customer collaboration compared to contract negotiation on other systems plus a rather responsive outlook to change than strictly following an organized plan.

One of the main important stages of software development is implementation or coding. Continuous integration being a core process during this stage encourages developers to effectively write tests with each piece of code aside from providing immediate feedback to developers and technical leads and teams. It’s vital that a consistent approach to issue tracking is implemented to quickly respond to bug issues and defects, and to all other demands of the project.

While agile software development is more focused on people and interactivity, development teams would not be functional without the use of some savvy agile tools such JIRA Studio or JIRA with GreenHopper plugin for project management, Confluence for agile collaboration, FishEye for code analysis, Bamboo for continuous integration, Clover and Crucible for code coverage and review, respectively alongside an appropriate Pyxis training program.

Although there are advantages and disadvantages on any process or methodology, what matters in the long run is for developers to come up with great software that will provide value to clients and users.

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Not all blogs have translation plugins and not most of them use Google Translate gadget. So what do you normally do if you run into sites with a generally different language other than what you know? Do you simply close it and move on? What if there’s information that you get curious about but doesn’t want to get any further going to Google Translate’s webpage?

Here comes the best workaround for you. Why not install the Google Translate Client for Windows to add to your convenience? I’m sure this would definitely answer all your foreign language encounters while online and translate those documents and files you have downloaded or forwarded to you by your clients.

The application runs at your system tray during use and is accessible via hot keys. To translate text from your browser, Windows Word documents, Excel sheets or Outlook emails, simply select the texts and translation will be done instantly. Of course, this uses Google’s Translation services so an internet connection is required.

Among the other features that you could find on Google Translate Client is support for more than 50 different languages with automatic language detection, auto checking for news and updates plus the ability to contribute your own translation ideas to make the service better. Wikipedia article and Free XDXF dictionary support is also available on the Pro version.

OS requirements: Win 98/2000/XP/Vista/7

Cons: The app is cool but if you’re looking at saving it on your thumb drive for use as you go then that’s not possible at the moment.

Price: Not at all bad for $12.50US for a Pro version inclusive of Fireflies Screensaver as a gift!

Webmaster bonus: You can get a license key absolutely free simply by placing a link on your blog or website. If a new user visits the download site and buys a key, you’ll get a license key. Similar to an affiliate link.

Watch the video below to get a glimpse on how this application works.

Client for Google Translate video tutorial

So guys, what are you waiting for? Download it now and let me know what you think of this app.

Download the app here.

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Support systems for websites are becoming mandatory these days. Commercial sites or even personal blogs need to have effective communication channels prominently displayed on their pages where readers or visitors can reach other than some plain old contact forms. Chat buttons or links work perfectly well but in some instances, emails or written communication complements the need of a more detailed inquiry thus, a Help Desk Software installation will suffice.

Websites using MySQL or PHP language can take advantage of today’s increasing demand for ticket supported sites where users have the ability to send inquiries relevant to the site such as technical issues, bug reporting, site functionality, written articles, and advertising among countless things.

Acquiring a Hosted Help Desk service nowadays can be costly. Although startup businesses may appreciate the use of a Help Desk Demo for a period of time, once the trial has ended, companies have to pay the recurring fees involved not including maintaining the service in case they decided not to seek third-party personnel to make it work.

Using free help desk software for PHP/MySQL powered sites however have a lot advantages primarily because it’s cost-effective, readily available and most of time they are easy to use or implement. Although dedicated support is not available compared to hosted ones, majority of free software have massive users wherein you can easily find support from countless forums and blogs.

There are drawbacks however on free software in terms of security however this issue is often times addressed through consistent script updates from developers which means that webmasters using free PHP software on a self-hosted site must always be prepared to handle minimal site backups during upgrades and are keen enough in terms of securing their sites.

In-house customer support via ticketing system works wonders but along with it comes the challenge of keeping it up if tons of questions start pouring in while at the same time maintaining the quality of the answers and consistently making the website work for what it’s for.

Not even Hesk’s Free PHP Help Desk software can resolve your business’ issues if you can’t even handle them yourself.

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