Digital Inspiration Technology Blog: The Easiest Way to Add Device Frames to your Mobile Screenshots

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog Digital Inspiration is an award-winning how-to tech blog around all things related to computer software, web applications, mobile and personal productivity.

The Easiest Way to Add Device Frames to your Mobile Screenshots Aug 30th 2012, 20:56 Try this. Capture a screenshot of your mobile phone or tablet screen and send the image as an email attachment to smartphones@mailchimp.com. → Alternatively, if your mobile or tablet device doesn’t support the screen capture function, like some of the older versions of Android, you can just snap a photograph using your phone’s camera and send it to the above email address. Within seconds, Mailchimp will send you a reply containing the same screenshot image but with a device frame added to the original image. Here’s an example: Fig A: Standard screenshot image captured on an iPad Fig B: The same iPad screenshot but with the iPad Frame The Mailchimp service automatically detects the mobile device on which the capture was made, probably using the image’s EXIF data, and adds the corresponding device frame to your capture. If you would like to add a different device frame to your mobile screenshot, simply write the target device name in the subject line of your email message (for example, iphone) and MailChimp will add the required skin to your screen capture. In the next example, the original screen capture was done on an Android Galaxy S phone but the final frame is that of an iPhone. The device screenshots look beautiful and you don’t really need Photoshop to illustrate your mobile captures anymore. Related: How to Screen Capture on iPhone or iPad Original Screen capture done on an Android Phone The converted screenshot has an iPhone frame This story, The Easiest Way to Add Device Frames to your Mobile Screenshots, was originally published at Digital Inspiration on 30/08/2012 under Convert, Email, Screen Capture, Internet.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog: How to use Google AdSense Ads on Responsive Websites

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog Digital Inspiration is an award-winning how-to tech blog around all things related to computer software, web applications, mobile and personal productivity.

How to use Google AdSense Ads on Responsive Websites Aug 30th 2012, 11:46 Responsive web design is a simple yet powerful technique that makes your website look good across all screen sizes be it mobile phones, tablets, desktop or even the TV. → Google also recommends the responsive design approach for improved indexing since “it keeps your desktop and mobile content on a single URL.” Responsive Google Ads If you been using Google AdSense Ads on your responsive website, you may have noticed that, unlike your content, the Google ads have a fixed width and they will not shrink or expand based on the device size. For instance, if you are using the standard 728×90 unit on your website, the ad unit may extend well beyond the screen if someone visits your website on a (320 pixels wide) mobile phone or one of the lower resolution tablets. Google AdSense Ads aren’t responsive by default but you can use a bit of JavaScript code to make them respond to the screen size. The logic is pretty simple. You create multiple ad units (say 768×90, 468×60 and 300×250) and based on the size (width) of the user’s device, the most appropriate format get  served. Here’s the relevant JavaScript code: <script type="text/javascript"> google_ad_client = "ca-publisher-id"; if (window.innerWidth >= 800) { google_ad_slot = "ad-unit-1"; google_ad_width = 728; google_ad_height = 60; } else if (window.innerWidth < 400) { google_ad_slot = "ad-unit-2"; google_ad_width = 300; google_ad_height = 250; } else { google_ad_slot = "ad-unit-3"; google_ad_width = 468; google_ad_height = 60; } </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> Remember to replace the google_ad_client and google_ad_slot identifiers with your own values (you can easily find them in your AdSense JavaScript code). Internally, it is the window.innerWidth property that is doing all the magic. This property contains the width (in pixels) of the user’s browser window and once you know that value, you can accordingly serve the larger or smaller AdSense ad units. While it is always a good idea to confirm with your account manager, this shouldn’t be against AdSense TOS in my opinion since we aren’t resizing the ads or modifying the JavaScript code – we are just serving a different ad unit based on the visitor’s browser size. AdSense publishers routinely perform split A/B testing to determine which colors schemes and banners sizes perform the best on their website – this is a similar technique. Also see: Google AdSense Sandbox This story, How to use Google AdSense Ads on Responsive Websites, was originally published at Digital Inspiration on 30/08/2012 under Google Adsense, Internet.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog: Does Bad Weather Affect Cloud Computing?

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog Digital Inspiration is an award-winning how-to tech blog around all things related to computer software, web applications, mobile and personal productivity.

Does Bad Weather Affect Cloud Computing? Aug 30th 2012, 08:00 Can rains and thunder-storms affect cloud computing? → Last year, a retired high-ranking official of the Indian government managed to convince a TV reporter that bad weather can actually disrupt cloud based services. His argument was that your computer makes a connection to the cloud (the "physical cloud" that turns into rain) and thus cloud services won’t work as expected in the absence of clouds. The hilarious video recording quickly went viral on YouTube and here’s short version of the same but with English subtitles. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnxrJiS5uKU 51% says bad weather can interfere with cloud computing It turns out that the concept of “cloud computing” is indeed confusing to a majority of users. A recent survey commissioned by Citrix has found that most Americans associate the tech term “cloud” with the actual physical cloud. When asked what "the cloud" is, a majority responded it's either an actual cloud, the sky or something related to the weather. Only 16% said they think of a computer network to store, access and share data. Technically speaking, they have a valid point as extreme weather conditions can result in power outages, floods at data centers directly affecting the cloud services. And such things have happened in the past. Here’s a video  (via @Mikko) of Vodafone’s data center that was hit by torrential rains. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttcQy3bCiiU This story, Does Bad Weather Affect Cloud Computing?, was originally published at Digital Inspiration on 30/08/2012 under Tech Notes.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog: Microsoft’s New Logo Recreated in CSS

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog Digital Inspiration is an award-winning how-to tech blog around all things related to computer software, web applications, mobile and personal productivity.

Microsoft's New Logo Recreated in CSS Aug 28th 2012, 11:55 → Microsoft recently unveiled a new corporate logo where four colored squares represent Windows, Office, Xbox and Windows Phone family of products. The PDF document suggests that designers used Adobe Illustrator CS5 to create the original logo but @mohamedmansour shows us how to recreate the same logo using few lines of HTML and CSS3. If the live demo doesn’t look right in your screen, the Segoe font is probably missing on your computer though some have suggested replacing Segoe with Open Sans, a Google Font. Here’s the full code courtesy Mansour. <logo>Microsoft</logo> <style> logo { font: bold 60px "Segoe UI"; color: #747273; line-height: 1.5em; padding-left: 1.7em; } logo:before { content: '\2006'; position: absolute; height: 0.095em; left: 0; box-shadow: 0.35em 0.35em 0 0.25em #f8510c, 1.05em 0.35em 0 0.25em #7eba00, 0.35em 0.97em 0 0.25em #00a3f4, 1.05em 0.97em 0 0.25em #ffba00; } </style> Also see: Windows 8 Logo in CSS This story, Microsoft’s New Logo Recreated in CSS, was originally published at Digital Inspiration on 28/08/2012 under Css, Logo, Microsoft, Internet.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog: Quick Reference Posters for Google Web Fonts

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog Digital Inspiration is an award-winning how-to tech blog around all things related to computer software, web applications, mobile and personal productivity.

Quick Reference Posters for Google Web Fonts Aug 28th 2012, 17:27 This story, Quick Reference Posters for Google Web Fonts, was originally published at Digital Inspiration on 28/08/2012 under Fonts, Google, Internet.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog: Introducing Secure Passwords

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog Digital Inspiration is an award-winning how-to tech blog around all things related to computer software, web applications, mobile and personal productivity.

Introducing Secure Passwords Aug 28th 2012, 08:00 You want to create lengthy, complicated and unique passwords for every website that you use but that rarely happens in practice because complex passwords are impossible for anyone to remember. → Some people rely on password management software like LastPass or KeePass that store all your passwords in an encrypted database which is then protected by a single master password. You enter the master password and you instantly have access to all your stored user logins and passwords. Set unique passwords for all your web accounts but remember just one pass phrase A Unique Password for Every Website Here’s an alternate solution that I initially created for internal use. The tool is called Secure Passwords and it generate unique and strong passwords  for your various web accounts using using the secure bcrypt algorithm. The advantages are that your passwords aren’t stored anywhere, the passwords are hashed using bcrypt (irreversible) and all you have to do is remember is one master pass phrase.  The password generator works on both desktop and mobile screens. You can also download the tool from Github as a ZIP file and run it offline on a USB drive or upload it to Dropbox. To get started, enter your user name (or login id), the site’s domain name (e.g. google or facebook), your master password and hit the generate button. The tool will instantly create a unique password based on your input and it will always generate the same password for that set of parameters. How Secure are my Passwords? The passwords are impossible to guess as they are made of digits, special characters and letters in mixed-case. The passwords are generated using bcrypt which is still resistant to brute-force attacks and therefore it will be impossible for anyone to decrypt the master pass phrase should any of password ever gets leaked online. Also, the tool computes passwords in your web browser itself and not a single byte of data is transmitted elsewhere. You can browse the full source code at Github.com and, if you know a bit of programming, modify the code even further to suit your requirements. Related reading: Keep your Online Accounts Safe and Secure Here’s another password trick suggested by Mozilla that recommends picking a base password and then adding a different suffix and prefix based on the website. This story, Introducing Secure Passwords, was originally published at Digital Inspiration on 28/08/2012 under Password, Internet.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog: Don’t Hate Instagram but Embrace It

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog Digital Inspiration is an award-winning how-to tech blog around all things related to computer software, web applications, mobile and personal productivity.

Don't Hate Instagram but Embrace It Aug 26th 2012, 19:16 Recently, there has been a spate of articles declaring how Instagram is debasing real photography and how its only purpose is to feign talent we don't have. → Instagram makes all pictures look the same. They require no thought or creative input: one click and you’re done — Guardian Putting an artsy Instagram filter on a pretty photo can make the grossest slosh look like gourmet eats. It does not prove culinary or photographic skill, it proves that you can press a button — The Atlantic It has been close to two years since Instagram made its debut and you'd think that this kind of debate would have died its own death by now. Well, apparently not. And the Facebook-Instagram deal has only added fuel to the hate-fire that Instagram has been receiving. Captured using Instagram on iPhone – Image Credit: Ashu Mittal I joined Instagram exactly an year ago on being introduced to it by Pei Ketron, one of the most talented photographers I know of. I started out hesitantly, clicking and posting whatever caught my eye. And before I knew it, I was completely hooked on to Instagram. I loved the "ease" as I was always carrying my phone in my pocket when a photo opportunity presented itself and I loved the "challenge" of creating a somewhat interesting image given the limitations of a cellphone camera. The more I used the Instagram app, the more of a 'convert' I was (well ok, addicted). Did Instagram ruin “Traditional” Photography? I think all Instagram has done is made photography accessible. And saying that Instagram promotes shallow photography is like saying cheap utensils promote unhealthy eating. It is what you do with the equipment or platform is what matters. You could click photos with Instragram that end up in Sports Illustrated or you could click photos that end up, well, here (the rich kids of Instagram). Personally, Instagram has done more for me in terms of helping me improve my composition and framing skills than shooting with a pro-camera (DSLR) has. With Instagram, all you have is the view-finder (no fancy settings of the SLR) and then probably a couple of effects like tilt-shift and filters (not the infinite processing capability of desktop software!) to produce an awe-inspiring image. And there are a host of Instagram photographers doing exactly that; I urge you to look at some of the Instagram accounts recommended in this Huffington Post article. Instagram Photos – Fake or Authentic Instagrammed photos aren’t any less "authentic" than photos clicked with a digital camera or even a film camera. Even in the very early days, photographers would "dodge" and "burn" photos in the confines of the darkroom. Did that make the final photo any less "authentic"? Just the fact that it is now (probably) easier to do so using an image processing software, does not make the end result any less (or more) authentic. And if the technology is improving and making it easier for people to click and post-process the photos, the bar for what constitutes a good photo is also rising at the same time. So, while an Instagram filter may make bad photos look passable (yes, Cats and Starbucks coffees, I am looking at you), it certainly cannot result in a masterpiece. That will always take an expert eye. “Keep calm and Instagram.” I think some of the angry reactions to Instagram's success can be attributed to resistance to change or probably the insecurities of some professionals now that "the barrier to entry" in the field of photography has drastically reduced. Few years ago, the debate was around Digital vs. Film, now it has shifted to Mobile vs. DSLR Cameras and it will definitely be something else tomorrow. Mobile photography is here to stay, the sooner we embrace it and move forward, the better it is. Ashu Mittal is a program manager at Adobe and a self-confessed Instagram addict. Her work has been published in The Big Picture and The New Yorker Magazine. You can follow Ashu on Twitter, Flickr and Facebook. This story, Don’t Hate Instagram but Embrace It, was originally published at Digital Inspiration on 26/08/2012 under Instagram, Photography, Internet.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog: Secure your Dropbox Account with 2-Step Verification

Digital Inspiration Technology Blog Digital Inspiration is an award-winning how-to tech blog around all things related to computer software, web applications, mobile and personal productivity.

Secure your Dropbox Account with 2-Step Verification Aug 26th 2012, 09:55 Something everyone has been eagerly waiting for. You can now secure your Dropbox account using 2-step verification meaning an intruder would need more than just your password to access any of the confidential files stored in your Dropbox folders. → Enable 2-step verification to secure your Dropbox Account The 2-Step verification system of Dropbox is pretty similar to that of Google. You can either choose to receive the 6-digit security codes on your mobile phone via text messages (Dropbox supports international phone numbers too) or if you have a smartphone (Android, BlackBerry, iOS or Windows Phone), you can download the Authenticator app and generate time-sensitive codes locally on the phone itself. To get started, go to your Dropbox account’s security page and Enable two-step verification – the setting is available right at the bottom of the page. Now follow the wizard to associate your phone (or phone number) with the security option. Dropbox will also provide an emergency backup code that you should print and keep at a secure place – this will be required if you ever lose your mobile phone and need to get into Dropbox sidestepping the security settings. Once 2-step authentication is enabled, go to dropbox.com and download the latest installers for Dropbox (available for Windows, Mac and Linux). There aren’t any new features here except that these new software builds include support for signing-in through 2-step verification. Related tip: Is anyone else using my Dropbox Account Also, if you have setup Dropbox on your mobile phones and tablets, it maybe a good idea to unlink all these devices from your Dropbox account and relink – all these device will now require a 6-digit code that is only available on your mobile phone. And whenever a new computer, phone or tablet is used to log into your Dropbox account, you also get an instant email notification. Safely keep your emergency Dropbox Code because you never know when you may need it. Thank you Harmeet Singh for the tip. This story, Secure your Dropbox Account with 2-Step Verification, was originally published at Digital Inspiration on 26/08/2012 under Dropbox, Internet.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions