Topics

1

General Software Discussion / Batch Image Resizing Without Losing Quality

« on: June 11, 2017, 04:49 AM »

Hi guys,

I need some advice please.

I have ripped thousands of CD's over the years.  But the album booklets I have downloaded from various sources over a long period of time.

So basically I have image files in a multiple folder/subfolder heirarchy.  The size, quality & filetypes vary.

The size of some of these files is causing problems with some music software.  I need to optimise these files and there's too many to do manually.

Thanks for any suggestions.

PS I've always wondered if it's sometimes possible to reduce filesize without compromising quality.  I get the feeling some image creating programs didn't optimise the size upon creation (maybe older ones)?

2

Screenshot Captor / Incorrect Filenames

« on: July 15, 2013, 11:32 PM »

Hi Mouser.

Here you can see my naming pattern:
http://i.imm.io/1cBlE.png

If I choose Save but Hide, from the PopUp Choice Window, there is no problem.

But if I choose "Save Image As" the allocated filename will be, for example, Screenshot 13-07-16_14_26.png  So the filename has underscores instead of dots and there are no seconds.

3

Developer's Corner / What Language are Windows Programs Coded In?

« on: May 12, 2013, 05:15 AM »

Hi guys.

There seems to be a lot of coding languages.  I guess more than one of them is used for Windows programs?  Which ones?  How does Windows understand these different languages?

Thanx for looking.

4

Screenshot Captor / Strange Behavior With Picasa

« on: May 01, 2013, 11:25 PM »

Hi Mouser.

If I am running Picasa and I take a screenshot a file is created by Picasa: eg
C:\Users\username\Pictures\Picasa\Screen Captures\Fullscreen capture 2052013 11921 PM.bmp

If I delete that Picasa folder and take another screenshot the path will be recreated.

The file above is bmp but my preferences are set to png by default.  I'm also using a different naming structure.

Don't autosave captures is also enabled.

I am baffled as to why this is occurring.  Do you know why this is happening?

5

Developer's Corner / What's the Best Programming Language For...

« on: January 27, 2009, 08:17 AM »

Hi guys.

I know nothing about programming.  It's something I've always wanted to get into & at the moment I have 2 areas of interest.

For fun I'd like to get into modifying Windows, particularly Explorer.  Sort of like QTTabBar: http://qttabbar.wikidot.com/
I notice that this application requires the .NET Framework.  I'm not sure if that is a language itself.

But for a higher priority serious endeavour I'd like to create a website similar to eBay in a lot of ways.  But I don't know anything about webdesign.  I don't even have a blog!

It's getting the ball rolling that is usually the hard part for me.  I'd appreciate any kicks in the right direction.

Thanks for looking.

6

General Software Discussion / Move Drive Letter to Beginning of Drive Names in Windows Explorer

« on: October 29, 2007, 07:53 PM »

Hi guys.

A while ago I saw a tweak to move drive letters to the beginning of drive names in Windows Explorer.  I could have sworn I saw it in the Donation Coder forum but I can't find it for the life of me.

Does anybody know how to do this?

Thanx 4 looking.

7

General Software Discussion / Sumo: Software to Detect Updates to Your Installed Programs

« on: August 24, 2007, 02:55 PM »

I thought this was quite clever.
From: http://www.kcsoftwar...m/viewtopic.php?id=9

SUMo stands for Software Updates Monitor

It is a tiny application than checks if updates are available for the software you use.
It is based on social networking : its database is composed of data sent by other users.

Exemple :
If you are running Winamp 5.22 and another user is running Winamp 5.23, if you ask SUMo to check for updates for Winamp it will raise an "update is available".
Works with any executable that has "version info" set by its developper (almost all exacutable have this info)

the more people will use SUMo the more efficient and reactive it will get.

Mailing list : http://www.kcsoftwares.com/?ml

8

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Universal Hand Tool for Scrolling

« on: August 12, 2007, 06:17 AM »

Hi guys.

I've been using Adobe Reader a lot lately.  Now, when I am in any application that I need to scroll within (eg web browser) I find myself instinctively trying to use the handtool featured in Adobe Reader.  Problem is the hand tool is not universal.  And that's why I'm here.  Why can't the handtool be available whenever left-clicking is not going to perform any other function?

Thanx 4 looking.

9

General Software Discussion / "Open with Windows Media Player" for every folder. How?

« on: August 11, 2007, 07:41 AM »

Hi guys.

Windows is useless at detecting if a folder contains audio or visual
media so you can rarely right click a folder & have an "Open with
Windows Media Player" otion available. I created my own context menu/
registry entry trying "C:Program FilesWindows Media
Playerwmplayer.exe" "%1" because I noticed that is the entry Winamp
uses to do the same thing. This didn't work as WMP tried to open the
actual folder as a file.


Anybody know how to achieve this?


Thanx 4 looking.

10

General Software Discussion / Online Photo Hosting

« on: July 24, 2006, 11:13 AM »

Hi guys.

My sister has hundreds of wedding photos.  She wants to share them on the internet so that everybody who wants to view or have photos can.

I don't even own a digital camera so this is foreign territory for me.  Is there a free service that allows you to upload hundreds of photos all at once.  We don't want to have to do them 1 by 1.

Thanx 4 looking.

11

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Email Attachments Browser

« on: June 29, 2006, 10:44 PM »

Hi guys.

I use Outlook Express.  I was just trying to find a video file that was emailed to me years ago.  I don't remember the email title, who sent it or the filename.  Bottom line: I can't find it but I'm sure it's there somewhere.

I sometimes use TracesViewer http://www.bytescout.com/freeware.html to find files that have been downloaded to my PC but not saved by me.  I was thinking there should be a similar program to view all attachments of emails.  Maybe it can sort the attachments by type?

Thanx 4 looking.

12

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Avatar Resizer

« on: May 25, 2006, 03:13 PM »

Hi guys.

Forums usually only allow avatars that are of a certain size.  The size can be dependent on the height x width and/or the filesize.  Sometimes a forum will accept whichever constraint is larger & sometimes whichever is smaller.

A program that would allow you to enter the constraints & have the best size picture file outputted would be handy.  It could have presets for commonly accepted sizes.

Thanx 4 looking.

13

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Customizable Video Thumbnails

« on: May 11, 2006, 11:24 AM »

Hi guys.

Windows displays the first frame of a video as that file's thumbnail.  I reckon 9 times outta 10 it's just a plain old black frame.  This kinda defeats the purpose of the functionality.

ACDSee displays 4 frames in 1 thumbnail.  This gives a much better representation of the video's content but sacrifices size.

Since the thumbnails are stored in a database file, wouldn't it be possible to manually allocate the frame to be used as the file's thumbnail?

Thanx for looking.

14

General Software Discussion / Video File Thumbnails

« on: May 08, 2006, 10:04 AM »

I read on the internet that you can rename *.m2v files to *.mpg so that Windows creates thumbnails for them.

I use Real Alternative & QuickTime Alternative.  If I rename a *.mov file to *.avi or *.mpg Windows will now display a thumbnail for the file instead of an icon.  This means Windows can display these files as thumbnails.  How can I get Windows to display these filetypes as thumbnails without changing the extension?

The same goes with other picture filetypes.  You can rename them to *.jpg etc. or just install this: http://thumbview.sourceforge.net/

I've also posted this question on Thumbview's forum but maybe somebody here knows about it.

15

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Prevent Mouse Cursor Crossing Dual Display.

« on: May 08, 2006, 09:21 AM »

Hi guys.

I have a dual display setup so that each monitor is part of the desktop.  To get from 1 monitor to the other all I have to do is move the mouse to the far right of the main monitor's desktop & beyond.  The mouse will now be on the other monitor.  This is a convenient & simple way to get from one monitor to the other.

However it is a problem when trying to use scrollbars in Explorer, a web browser or any other application.  To get to the scrollbar the habit of quickly moving the mouse to the scrollbar side of the screen has developed because we know that Windows won't let the mouse leave the screen.  But, with multiple monitors you can, now, leave the screen to appear on another.  If you are playing fullscreen video on the other monitor, once you have overshot the primary screen's border you don't know how far from the border you are.  Now that you realise you are on the other screen you will tend to blindly & slowly bring the mouse back to the border trying to find the scrollbar on the original monitor, trying to not waste any more time but trying not to overshoot again in the opposite direction.

I got an idea from AllSnap: https://www.donation...?topic=2455.0?ref=nl   Instead of "snapping" the mouse cursor towards the edge (like a window), you will only "snap" when you have significantly surpassed the edge & end up on the other screen, away from the edge.

Can a program be designed to keep the mouse on a monitor until you well & truly overshoot it.  So you can't slightly encroach upon the adjoining desktop.

Another way to think about it is comparing it to using the scrollbar itself.  When you scroll the mouse can appear to drift away from the scrollbar but the mouse is still controlling the scrollbar so it is as though the mouse isn't where it appears to be.  That is, until you get a significant distance from the scrollbar, the mouse functionality leaves the scrollbar to match the cursor's actual location.  The suggestion I am making will do the opposite.  The mouse cursor won't leave the screen unless the mouse's invisible location is far across the screen border.

Whew!  I think I may have confused myself!

Thanx for looking.

16

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Display Volume Level in TaskBar

« on: May 08, 2006, 08:00 AM »

Hi guys.

Have you ever listened to an mp3 or video that sounded like the volume was turned down.  So you opened the Windows taskbar volume control only to find the volume isn't turned down.

How much easier would it be to just glance at your volume icon & see if the level is at maximum or another level.  If the volume is muted this is reflected in the icon.  Why not for all volumes?

Thanx for looking.

Edit by brotherS: Please don't forget to start subjects in here with "IDEA: ...", thanks.

17

DC Website Help and Extras / No eMail Notification When Using QuickReply

« on: April 24, 2006, 01:37 AM »

There doesn't seem to be an option on the forum to make subscription to threads when replying the default.  This is a bit annoying but the real problem occurs if you use the Quick Reply option to a thread because you are not even given the subscription option via a checkbox.

Forums on other websites will subscribe via Quick Reply so there is a habit of using that functionality.  I often find myself returning to the forum, trying to remember where I have left replies & manually searching for them.

18

General Software Discussion / Microsoft Office Alternative

« on: April 13, 2006, 12:09 AM »

Hi guys.

I'm really over bloated programs.  I can't believe how much junk they store in the registry.  So I'm gonna do something about it!

I was thinking  the only things I personally use Microsoft Office for is 1 or 2 personal spreadsheets (Excel).  I might open the occasional Word document.  Anything else I open is generally just from joke email attachments (PowerPoint slideshows etc).

So I need Office functionality for a minor number of uses but Office is easily the largest program on my PC.

I did a search for an alternative & found http://www.openoffice.org/

Has anybody tried this program or something better?

Thanx 4 looking.

19

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Volume Mixer for programs (for annoying web pages!?)

« on: April 10, 2006, 11:41 AM »

Hi guys.

I visited a website recently which had annoying music on every page.  Even more annoying was when I had multiple pages of this site open by using Maxthon's tabs.  I know that sound can be disabled by IE but I don't want to lose the sound of every page I visit.

This got me thinking.  Why isn't a web browser volume control available in the Windows Volume Control?  Then I thought why isn't there a Volume Control that allows you to control the volume of any program on the computer?

Maybe this is possible?

20

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Automate Maintenance Tasks with ScreenSaver

« on: April 10, 2006, 12:37 AM »

Hi guys.

It's important to perform certain maintenance tasks on the computer.  eg:
Malware scan
AntiVirus scan
Defraging drives
ACDSee database scan
Double Killer scan http://www.bigbangen....de/en/doublekiller/
Winamp database scan
other scans

The sheduled can be found via the programs GUI or sometimes Windows' Scheduled Tasks while others.  Sometimes the responsibility to scheduled tasks is on the user.

It is annoying if you are using the computer & a scheduled task commences.  It often interferes so the tendency is to stop or pause it (if possible).  If you stop the task it doesn't get done.  If you are able to pause it you have to remember to resume it (something I forget to do) so I end up canceling it anyway.  I don't want tasks like this overlapping.  My harddrive wouldn't enjoy being scanned & fragged at the same time.

But you can run programs (ie tasks) when the computer is idle.  The problem is you can only setup 1 program at a time to run when the computer is idle on the programs I have found:
xCAT - Program Saver v1.10 http://www.xcat-indu...l/software.php?cat=3
Screen Launcher http://www.bartdart.com/
It would be just as easy to run a program manually than constantly change these programs' settings.

A program to manage these settings would be optimum.  It would run a maintenance task when the computer becomes idle.  It would pause the task if the computer is used again & then resume when the computer becomes idle again.  When 1 task has completed it will do another task from the list.

Am I dreaming?  Does this require some heavy duty cross-program integration?  I would have thought this has been tried before.

Thanx 4 looking.

21

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Disable ScreenSaver When Monitor is Off

« on: April 09, 2006, 11:17 PM »

Hi guys.

Some of the screensavers I have use a lot of memory &/or CPU &/or GPU etc.  I'd like to reduce the strain on my system by stopping & preventing the screensaver from running if the monitor is off.

Also, can Windows tell if a monitor is off at the switch?

Thanx 4 looking.

22

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Select Text Using Arrow Keys

« on: January 03, 2006, 09:18 PM »

Hi guys.

Try this.

Select some text by clicking the mouse in the middle of a word then drag to the right.  When your selection gets to the second letter of the next word Windows will automatically select the whole of the first 2 words.  So this "assistance" is of no benefit if you wish to select only the first word, because you must tediously select exactly from the first letter to the last letter of that word.

But, you can double click a word & select that whole word, but this method also selects the space following that word.  Maybe the best method would have been 2 clicks for a word, 3 to include the following period, 4 for a sentence, 5 for a paragraph, 6 for everything?

Anyway I was thinking maybe text could be selected by holding shift & using the left & right arrow keys to select the beginning of the text & selecting the end of the text by holding the control key?

Maybe someone has a better suggestion than me?

23

Finished Programs / DONE: Transparent TaskBar When No Window is Maximized.

« on: November 29, 2005, 03:14 PM »

I've used programs before to make my TaskBar transparent.  It looks great when viewing the desktop but is inonsistent with a maximized window.

How about making the TaskBar transparent only when a window is not maximized.

Thanx 4 looking.

24

Post New Requests Here / IDEA! Detect superfluous text & truncate filenames

« on: November 21, 2005, 07:32 AM »

If files have their containing folders name as part of their filename is there a program to remove that duplicated text?
 
eg.  I would like the file Alma-Tadema_Lady_Laura_Teresa_Gathering_Pansies.jpg in the folder Alma-Tadema_Lady_Laura_Teresa to be renamed to Gathering_Pansies.
 
Is it possible to detect superfluous text & truncate the filenames?

25

Unfinished Requests / Folder Note in a Thumbnail

« on: October 22, 2005, 07:44 AM »

I use the thumbnail view in Windows.  Sometimes I need to leave a small bit of information or a reminder in a particular folder.  It would be more efficient to have this info in a thumbnail that can instantly be read instead of a text file that needs to be manually opened.

Thanx 4 looking.