Software Tips Features

How To: Use the blur, smear & sharpen tools in SketchBook Pro

Learn how to use the blur, smear and sharpen tools in Autodesk SketchBook Pro 2010. Whether you're new to Autodesk's popular raster graphics editor or a seasoned graphic artist merely looking to better acquaint yourself with SketchBook Pro 2010, you're sure to be well served by this free video software lesson from the folks at Lynda. For more information, take a look.

How To: Eliminate the ads on Spotify

Spotify can be a really great music streaming program, but there's nothing like a loud, annoying ad to ruin your aural zen. With this video, you'll learn how to remove ads from Spotify in just a couple easy steps. When it comes to setting the Proxy, copy and paste the following:

How To: Convert Videos to Different Formats for Free with Format Factory

In my last article, I discussed how you could download almost any video from almost any video sharing site using the free NetVideoHunter add-on in Mozilla Firefox. Now in this article, I will discuss how to convert those videos you’ve downloaded to any format—also for free. Most of the time, the videos you download with NetVideoHunter are in FLV (Flash video) format, which is something that not all video players can play. That’s why I made this article.

How To: Make a bootable CD using Nero

This video uses Nero Burning ROM. First you must open Nero. Then choose Burning ROM. Scroll down to the CD-ROM(BOOT) icon. Click it. From there you choose you ISO image. To do this just browse and navigate to the correct directory where your ISO image is stored. From there be sure to set the emulations to No Emulations and change your available sectors to 4. Next change to the ISO tab. Be sure that it is set to run ISO+Juliet and that the max characters are set for Level 1. Next choose the La...

How To: Insert a YouTube movie into your Keynote presentation

Found a video on YouTube that's perfect for your Keynote presentation? It's easy to embed YouTube clips on websites, but how can you successfully insert them into something like a Keynote project? It's actually quite easy! This video, just over a minute long, shows you the basic process behind downloading and re uploading your chosen video. Make sure that you append the .flv file extension to your downloaded fire, and also take care that you have the right to use what you're incorporating.

How To: Erase a CD-RW & Reuse It to Save Money

We know, we know: How many people actually burn stuff onto CDs these days? Well, while external hard drives that hold several terrabytes of data and flash drives have kind of replaced our reliance on CDs, every now and then they're good for quickly compiling a "Pop Hits of the '80s" CD for your girlfriend or simply for storing your illegal version of Microsoft Office.

How To: Use the healing tool to remove spots in Lightroom

Kerry Garison demonstrates a quick tip of healing tool (Lightroom 2. 0), which is situated on the upper right hand corner of the screen, with the help of lady's image. Click on spot removal tool which can be used for cloning and healing. In order to change the brush size, scroll wheel mouse or left or right rapid keys can be used. Brush size, change in opacity can be changed also by clicking and dragging the bar; from there cloning or healing options can be selected also. After clicking the h...

How To: Digitally ink line art in Corel Painter

In this software tutorial you will learn how to digitally ink a manga/anime character in Corel Painter. Learn how to scan a drawing into Photoshop then import it into Corel Painter and ink the outline of the character for a more dramatic and artistic look. Usually, after inking the line art, you will go back over and digitally color the character. The tutorial assumes that you are using Corel Painter with a Wacom or Cintiq tablet and is more about the principles of inking than the Corel tools.

How To: Use the camera tools in SketchUp

If you've ever wondered how to get more precise views of your model, The Sketchup Show episode #12 is for you. Alex covers the three basic "camera" tools in SketchUp, and explains how you can manually adjust view settings for the height and field of view of your SketchUp camera.

How To: Monitor another computer screen with Real VNC

If you want to know how to monitor another computer screen with Real VNC, you must watch this video. Install Real VNC in your computer and computer that you're going to monitor. Remember the folder where you installed it and check the "Create a VNC Viewer desktop icon" checkbox. Write on a paper the IP address of the computer that you're going to monitor. On the VNC Server Status window, click Configure button. On the Authentication field, select VNC password and on the Encryption field, sele...

How To: Use interactive motion in Google SketchUp

George Maestri from Lynda shows how to add interactivity in Google SketchUp Pro using a variety of tools in the program. Adding interactivity allows for added dimension and interaction with an object. The example used in the tutorial was that of a fridge, which after adding interactivity, allowed for the doors and drawers of the fridge to be opened. To utilize this technique, the object's file (without interactivity) should be opened. By selecting the fridge and then going to component attrib...

How To: Create a splashscreen in Microsoft Office Access 2007

The Microsoft Office Access 2007 relational database manager enables information workers to quickly track and report information with ease thanks to its interactive design capabilities that do not require deep database knowledge. In this Microsoft Access video tutorial, you'll learn about using Access to add a splashscreen to your database that runs when the file is opened. For more on using custom splashscreens within Access, watch this MS Office how-to.

How To: Keep Hangs and Freezes at Bay in Windows 8

The problem of system freezes is not new to the world of Windows and this has come to light even in the latest Windows 8 release. In the event that your system freezes, you cannot open your desktop files, some controls stop functioning, or you are unable to launch the start screen applications either. You may experience this unusual behavior after updating Apps in the store or due to a driver issue. Sometimes, freezes occur because of video card problems too. In order to do away with these Wi...

How To: Rip 3-D character models from Nintendo 64 games

With paper crafting you can build intricate paper models of your favorite characters, from Jack Sparrow to Nintendo's own Toad. This video tutorial shows you how to rip 3-D characters from your favorite Nintendo 64 games for the purposes of paper crafting. It will take some editing to be able to get your favorite videogame characters into a workable papercraft format.

How To: Make a scary voice effect on Adobe Audition

In this video we learn how to make a scary voice effect on Adobe Audition. First, record an audio that you made and open up Adobe Audition. From here, open up any other audio that you want to hear for the beat. Then, go to "generate" and then "silence. Put this to 1.5 seconds, then go to the end of your sound and do the same thing. This will make a good effect when you are editing and adding in echo. First, reverse the audio by going to "effects" and then "reverse". This will make it a lot ea...

How To: Autotune your voice using Mixcraft 5.0

Autotune your voice using MixCraft 5MixCraft 5 is the latest version of the program. The program is an instrumental, video and voice editor. We will be using the audio track. Use your best mike and record a short voice recording. Add a songy tune to it to get the full effect. Go to effect, autotune bst. Use the preset. Input auto is soprano voice, auto correct, left select pitch reference, vibrato on 0 or .1. Format amplitude at 130. Set pitch to 0. Natural vibrato needs to be at a 90 degree ...