There is no shortage of transcoders out there, which is, of course, software that converts media files from one format to another by essentially playing each frame and resaving it in sequence. That said, there is a shortage of free transcoders that work well and do their job quickly. MediaCoder, however, is just such a program.

Most transcoders require a great deal of tweaking and codec installation, but MC reduces this nonsense to a minimum. The base installer includes almost all the codecs (such as DivX) and utilities (such as LAME) you will need to convert almost any audio or video file into a different format and copies the files into their correct locations automatically. There are auxiliary installers for ripping DVDs with DeCSS and an ancient codec pack for dealing with, well, ancient multimedia files. There are extra plug-ins for specific CPU optimizations, but that is basically it.

The interface is at once straightforward and confusing. Selecting files or folders of files to convert is easy, but selecting different transcoding options involves two tabbed subsections of the main dialog box that make it easy to miss a key setting. Options for transcoding to portable devices such as the iPod, the PSP, the Zune, and several mobile phones are within the dialog box that appears after clicking the Extensions button in the toolbar. The documentation is sparse, requiring regular visits to the MediaCoder user forums for tips.

Still, there is no arguing with results. Directories filled with dozens of MOVs and AVIs were relatively quickly converted to DivXes with outstanding video and audio quality and with minimal intervention once the process was started.

The beta is a bit rough around the edges, crashing once or twice during my evaluation, but there is potential for MediaCoder, especially at its price of “free”

URL: mediacoder.sourceforge.net

In what appears to be a move toward combating Google Docs, Microsoft is expected to deliver a free but ad-funded version of Works known as SE 9 in coming months. As part of a small pilot program, MS will make the suite available in small numbers as an OEM preinstall and not as a download. Ads will reportedly appear whether a user is offline or online. An upgrade option to an ad-free Works version will run $39.95. Melissa Stern, senior Microsoft product manager, was quoted, the evaluating this business model to determine if it is viable for our customers and partners. As for the ads, Stern said they will be geared toward what users are doing with a given Works app (think budgeting or vacation planning) and not at the content they are generating.

Click here to learn the skill

Read more »

If you are applying to the University of Chicago, you better bone up on your PowerPoint skills due to a new requirement that would-be students must present a four-page slide presentation. The good news is that school officials will apparently let you select any topic or approach you want to take. To me this is just four pieces of blank paper. You do what you want. It can be a presentation. It can be poetry. It can be anything, Rose Martinelli, associate dean for student recruitment and admissions was quoted. The bad news is that it is still PowerPoint.

Learn the PowerPoint presentation skill.

Read more »

The face of most businesses today isn’t the CEO or the founder or a spokesperson; it’s the company Web site. Given that, one would think that businesses would spend a lot of time and effort putting their best face forward, but that often isn’t the case. Many company Web sites, and the Web applications offered to customers, are riddled with bugs, flaws and outright errors that can make a top-flight business look like a cheap amateur. Here, I’ve compiled a list of the worst mistakes being made by Web developers today. Don’t let this happen to you.

Too Many Click
This is great that someone is at your site, and he’s ready to make a purchase. Here he goes: One click, two clicks, three clicks and just one more! And he’s gone. Maybe if he could have gotten to where he wanted to go right away, you would have made a sale.

Hide Behind Graphics
It’s great that new Web technologies make it possible to add lots of cool new navigation and interaction techniques. But don’t hide access to important features and content behind an unintuitive graphic or icon

Overly Graphics Intensive
Filling your site with Web content that contains massive image files and graphics will put off everyone but those with the fastest possible Internet connections.

Just Plain HTML Link
Scripting languages make it possible to do lots of cool things in Web design. But don’t use it when an HTML link will work just fine and more reliably.

Read more »

Software developer Thinkfree has launched a free online office package. The ThinkFree Online software includes a word processor,spreadsheet and a presentation program. Each is compatible with its Microsoft Office equivalent, but with no cost to access. Because it uses Java,it is compatible with Internet Explorer and Firefox web browsers.

Registration and basic use is free,but accessing some features work on a points system.All new users receive 100 points on registration, and extra points can either be bought or earned by getting other users to sign up. Points can be spent on clip art or templates,to remove banner ads or to increase the 1Gb of storage space included at registration.An offline version is available for £35.

www.thinkfree.com

Read more »

Clipmarks
A must for any Web freak. Available for IE, Firefox, and Flock, this browser plugin lets you grab snippets from any Web page and save them to your own private library (or serve them up to the Net at large, Web 2.0–style). You can easily e-mail or print your captures, and with the latest version you can even clip videos from YouTube and post them straight to your blog.

Download free from www.clipmarks.com

Myaboo
Just need a way of sharing Web links from your browser? And you wouldn’t be caught dead using something called del.icio.us? This free Firefox extension fits the bill. You can freely swap URLs with friends, family, and, yes, the general public. There’s also quick access to the major Web services and a built-in search box that instantly queries everything from Google to IMDb.
Get it free from www.myaboo.com

Send Page By Email
This clever Firefox add-on (with the less-than-clever name) lets you instantly capture images of Web pages and share them via e-mail. Rather than sharing links, you share screen shots. It’s the perfect way to grab and send a page that’s sure to change in the next few minutes. It’s even better if
you’ve got lazy friends. You can send them all the latest Web info, and they never have to click through.
Get free from addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/2343

Auto Copy
Chances are, if you select some text on a Web page, you’re going to copy it to the Windows Clipboard. Microsoft hasn’t figured this out, but developer Michael Lidman has. Compatible with Mozilla’s Firefox browser, his Auto Copy add-on automatically copies selected text, so there’s no need to mess with the Edit menu or additional keystrokes. To paste, simply press a mouse button. Or you can do it the old-fashioned, convoluted way. Your choice.

Download free from addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/user/229

AllPeers
Fed up with e-mail attachments? With this Firefox extension, swapping massive multimedia files is actually easy. Click on the AllPeers icon and up pops a list of files sent by friends, family, and colleagues, right there inside your browser. Then, with another click, you can download each one to your hard drive. To share your own files, simply drag them onto a friend’s name and off they go. (Should someone tell the major record labels?)
Download free from www.allpeers.com

Forecastfox
If you’re like most hard-core Web surfers, you don’t even know what time of day it is, let alone what the weather’s like outside. Fortunately for you, Windows has a little clock down in the lower right-hand corner and Mozdev.org gives you Fore-castfox. This nifty add-on grabs weather info from AccuWeather.com and displays it right there on your browser toolbar. You can adjust the number of days being forecast, and if you mouse-click on a particular day, up pops a new window with all sorts of additional weather info.
Download free from forecastfox.mozdev.org