We use shortening URL services like TinyURL, Bit.ly, su.pr, etc on daily basis. These services are great, but have you thought of creating something similar your own? Setting up such service on your own is fairly easy, and if you are using WordPress it too comes with a plug-in that work seamlessly well.
YOURLS (Your Own URL Shortener) is what we’re talking about. It’s a free PHP script created by Lester Chan and Ozh Richard that allow you to create something similar to TinyURL and Bit.ly. We’ve installed and played around with it for a while, and here are our thoughts:
- Easy to install – If you’ve got no problem installing WordPress, then setting YOURLS is a piece of cake.
- Customizable links – You can customize the links instead of the random characters that make no sense.
- Statistics – An admin page that allows you to manage and keep track of details like date of creation, IP, clicks, etc.
- Public/Private links- You control whether this service is available for public to use or yourself only.
- Bookmarklet – Easy bookmarklet to create your own short URL on the fly.
YOURLS also comes with developer API as well as WordPress plugin. If you like the idea of owning a private url shortening services, please read on. We’ll cover a simple guide on how to setup YOURLS.
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In a nutshell, bookmarklets are small little applications you can place as browser’s bookmark bar and they each perform a specific function, depending on what they are coded for. Bookmarklets are usually written in Javascript and they are extremely easy to install/remove. Bookmarklets work in most common used browsers like Firefox, Opera and Safari but probably lesser support in Internet Explorer.
In this article, we’ll show you some of the most useful bookmarklets for designers, developers or even if you are a net surfer, they might just come in handy. Installing a bookmarklet is simple – all you need to do is drag them to your bookmark toolbar, that’s all.
Why bookmarklet are cool?
They are efficient! We figured you might compare it with add-ons and browser plug-ins. Here are some advantages of bookmarklets over plug-ins we can quickly come out with:
- Hassle-less installation – Installing a bookmarklet is simple. All you need to do is drag it up to the bookmark toolbar. To remove them, just right click on it and hit delete.
- Light – If you’ve installed more than 15 add-ons in your Firefox, you’ll probably find it slower to start. Bookmarklets are just couple of lines of Javascript codes. You can have 50 and Firefox doesn’t even lag a bit.
- No updates – Most plugins require update especially when there is a new version of the browser. Boomarklet on the other hand, are less likely to require an update.
- Cross Browser compatibility – Bookmarklets are written with Javascripts, they work in most browsers.
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When it comes to web design, creativity of design should not be hold back by the limited choices of supported web fonts we call the web-safe fonts. Designers should be having freedom to use any fonts they preferred on titles and contents.
In 2005, dynamic image replacement was made popular with a technique called Scalable Inman Flash Replacement (sIFR). Developed by Shaun Inman, sIFR take advantage of Javascript and Adobe Flash to allow web designers to use any custom fonts they like on the website and still maintain visibility to those who don’t have that font. And as the web continues to evolve, today we have more alternative solutions using various technologies, just in case you are not quite a fan of Flash.
Without further ado, let’s take a look at some of the techniques to achieve Dynamic Image Replacements.
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Having another designer’s PSD file is as good as owning a chef’s recipe book. The only difference is – we designers are willing share and sometimes we even distribute them ourselves so others can download and learn from our techniques.
Photoshop .PSD file reveals the techniques used on a specific design, it also tells us the style of the creator and most of the time there is something new we can learn from it. In today’s post, we want to bring to your attention some of the high quality and professionally designed Photoshop .PSD files that you can download. We suggest you consult the author before using them for commercial purposes. Full list after jump.
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We see a lot of Photoshop tutorials on the net, but most of what we come across are tutorials written in a step-by-step manner. In most cases, the instructions are clear-cut and easy to follow, but few would argue against an even more effective kind of tutorial: Video tutorials.
With the emergence of video sharing websites such as Youtube and Metacafe over the recent years, we see an ever-increasing number of user-generated videos from all over the net. Some of these videos came from avid Photoshop fans sharing their tips, while others originates from websites dedicated to Photoshop techniques sharing their video tutorials on a regular basis. These videos give the most direct demonstration of how to achieve certain image effects via Adobe Photoshop. With such boundless video resources on Photoshop tips and tricks, it will be quite a waste not to utilize them to sharpen our Photoshop skills. It is for this reason we combed the internet to find some of the most intriguing Photoshop manipulation techniques captured on video. Here are 50 plus video tutorials to inspire you.
More: Check out our collection of more Photoshop Tutorials.
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In Mac, we have this application call Automator where you can program repetitive tasks into a 1-click mini application. If you are familiar with Photoshop, think of it as the Photoshop Action. The reason we’re bringing this up is because we are going to giveaway something similar for Windows and its call WinAutomation.
WinAutomation allows you to record repetitive steps and allow you to execute all of them within one single click. This greatly helps to increase productivity in work. Whether it’s routine file backup, maintaining your PC or just trying to mass rename images, you can pre-program and have them done in seconds. WinAutomation come with more than 130 predefined actions to handle some generally used task. It’s just awesome. Click here to read more about the features.
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This article will come in handy for those of you who are interested in Flash, or perhaps have a basic idea and would like to learn more about Adobe Flash.
Before we get started:
The list below provides you valuable and useful short tips including sample FLA source files to help you understand better and apply faster in your Flash projects. You need to have Adobe Flash CS3 or CS4 Professional software installed in your computer to open the source files.
More Flash websites related articles we’ve previously published:
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Web optimization is a vital part of web development and maintenance but also something often overlooked by webmasters. Just think of the money you can save, and how it can potentially help increase your readership and traffic when they are properly done.
If you have not done any optimization to your website (or blog) so far or merely curious how it can help speed up your site, please take a look at this list of optimization tips we’ve put together.
We’ve split things up into 3 separate sections for better readability – respectively server-side optimization, assets optimization (which includes web components like CSS, Javascript, images, etc) and platform, where we’ll focus on WordPress optimization. At the last section, we throw in a couple of links we figured useful. Full list after jump.
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Have you ever feel that traditional fonts are a little too boring and plain for your designs and artworks? Ever wanted to use fonts that are funkier, stylish and fun to look at?
Cartoon and comic fonts are very popular and most people are only familiar with Comic Sans MS and that’s about it. We have now discovered 40 unique and refreshing cartoon and comic fonts for you to give your artwork and design that extra ummmppphhh. Here are a few for sneak preview and the full list is right after the jump.
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The joy about being a photographer is being able to capture life in a single image. Our eyes skim very briefly on facets of life but sometimes we fail to notice the intricacies that make the wonders of this world so remarkable. Simple things like looking at a bee settle onto a flower or looking at the rainbow spectrum in an insects eye, or even taking just a closer look at the human eye: the window to the soul. We walk around, not taking a moment to just enjoy this little bits of life.
Here we have collected a number of macro shots that hope to inspire and remind us of the little things that can just make you feel in awe. Have a great weekend ahead :-)
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From the carnivorous cat family to majestic killers like sharks and whales that dominates the sea, wildlife animals are in fact more important rather than just being part of the ecosystem. They greatly inspire almost every industry. One of the closest examples would be Apple’s cat-naming convention for their operating systems.
Let’s get our desktop wild, here are 50 Amazing Wildlife and Animals Wallpapers. Full list after jump. Check out our gallery for more wallpapers.
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The memories of yesteryears invoke in us a sense of nostalgia as we long for the days gone by when life seems so much simpler. Technology was not as advanced as it is today, and things were changing at a slower pace. Retro and vintage years usually refer to the decades before our present day, up to the last century. Images of the early 1900s to the 1980s comes into mind as we think about the designs of this era. Even though retro and vintage designs, as the names suggest, are technically outdated, many of us still turn to them for inspiration. These designs are still very much appreciated today due to its nostalgic value.
For this very reason, we have combed the web for a number of Photoshop tutorials on retro and vintage designs. Enjoy the list and be inspired!
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Today’s technology and machines (whether it’s PC or Mac) are certainly capable of processing large original files like .PSD (Photoshop) and .AI (Illustrator) but the bad news is the sharing part aren’t . These files are fairly large in size and cumbersome to share with peers and clients. Two ways we would generally used – e-mailing and sharing via hosting account. Not saying it’s bad but e-mail comes with attachment limitation and usually doesn’t allow anything more than 100Mb. On the other hand sharing via web hosting account allows you to upload as big as your account can take but it also means the file is exposed by anyone who knows its direct path.
File-sharing web services solve most of these problems. They are free (most of them and they allow large files to be sent securely. Here are some free file-sharing sites we come to know and if you share files with friends or peers via Internet frequently, you might want to consider getting them done this way.
Based in Stockholm, Streamfile is a better looking, easier to use and the fastest way to deliver data, wherever you are in the world.
Max filesize: 300Mb | Registration: No | Premium account: Yes | Password Protection: No | Visit Website
Pando is free P2P software that makes downloading, streaming and sharing large media files fast, easy and fun.
Max filesize: 1GB | Registration: Yes | Premium account: Yes | Password Protection: Yes | Visit Website
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As an experienced WordPress user, we keep ourselves updated with the development of the core, plugin releases and useful WordPress tips and tricks shared by developers and enthusiasts. In today’s post, we’d like to share with you updated WordPress tips and tricks and plugins that are interesting and useful. Without further ado, here’s another 30+ More Useful WordPress Tricks & Hacks.
Full list after jump.
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