Friday 16 December 2011

12 Great Tips to Scan Your Family Pictures


In the age of digital photos, photo scanners are still around largely because most of us—or our parents and grandparents—have collections of old film-based photos. Most people would like to get those photos scanned, if they could only figure out how. If that's the boat you're in, here are some tips that can help. 

1. Face Reality. Scanning photos is a time-intensive operation. Almost anything that speeds it up (other than buying a faster scanner) lowers scan quality. So pick the level of quality you want, and then accept the amount of work that comes with it.

2. Know Your Classes of Scanners. If you're still looking for a scanner, the balance of scan quality and ease of use should be your key concern. Unfortunately, the scanners that are easiest to use tend to have the lowest quality. That said, if you'll be satisfied with scans that are suitable for viewing onscreen or reprinting at the same size—although with noticeable color shifts and loss of resolution—consider using an inexpensive sheet fed scanner like the Kodak P461 Personal Photo Scanner ($139.99 direct, 4 stars). These scanners make all the settings decisions for you so all you have to do is feed the photos through a slot.

For quality suitable for just about anyone but a pro or prosumer, consider an inexpensive flatbed scanner, like the Editors' Choice Epson Perfection V300 Photo ($99.99 direct, 4 stars). For still better quality, consider a more expensive flatbed, like the Epson Perfection V700 Photo ($550 street, 4 stars). Also keep in mind that for the best quality, you should skip the printed photo, and scan the original negative instead, if it's available, preferably with a scanner like the V700, which can scan 12 slides at once.

3. Scanners on MFPs Aren't Great. Most MFPs are aimed at scanning documents and are best avoided for photo scanning. You can recognize the few exceptions by options in their scan utilities that are clearly meant for photos, like a color restore feature. Even for those, however, don't expect great quality. The best MFPs we've seen at PC Labs are in the same class as an inexpensive flatbed.

4. Choose a WIA or TWAIN Scan Drivers. Many scanners give you the choice of scanning with a separate scan utility or by calling up a driver from a program -- using PhotoShop's File | Import command, for example. In most cases the interface and setting options are the same either way, so it doesn't matter which approach you take. However, you may also have the choice between using a WIA driver or a Twain driver. If so, the Twain driver will almost always give you far more control over the scan settings and better results even with the default settings.


5. Auto Mode Can Be Your Friend. Most scan utilities include an automatic or nearly automatic mode, the scanner equivalent of using a point and shoot camera. If you're in hurry or know nothing about scanning, the auto mode will usually provide reasonably good quality and may be all you need.

6. Finetune with Advanced Modes. If you want the best possible quality from your scanner, explore the advanced modes in your scan utility. The best way to get a feel for any given option is to scan the same image with different settings and compare results. For many settings, you won't even have to scan repeatedly. Simply do a preview scan, change the settings, and you'll see the effect on the preview image.

7. Use Restore for Scanning Faded Photos. Most scan utilities offer a color restore option for restoring color to faded photos. Most often, there's more than one setting, so you can pick the one that matches the level of fading. If your scan utility doesn't offer color restore, you'll have to fix the color in a photo editing program instead, which is usually much harder to do.

8. Clean Up Dust and Scratches. Many scanners offer digital dust and scratch removal features. Software based versions typically do some good for removing dust specks, but don't do much for scratches. Hardware-based features, like Digital ICE, do a much better job, but add to the price of the scanner. If your scanner doesn't offer a good quality dust removal feature, blowing the dust off your photos before scanning with canned air takes a lot less time than manually removing dust specks in a photo editing program later.

9. Fix the Lighting with Backlight Correction. Some scan utilities offer backlight correction. This can automatically improve photos that were shot with a bright light behind the subject, like someone standing in front of a window or with the sun over his or her shoulder. If your scan utility has the feature, it's well worth using for badly lit photos. Keep in mind, though, that some photos may be intentionally shot with backlighting for effect—to get a silhouette for example. So don't use the feature unless there's a reason to. 


10. Scan Multiple Photos with Batch mode. Also look for a batch mode, which lets you place multiple photos on the flatbed at once and have the scan utility automatically put each one in its own file. In most cases, you can run a preview scan and adjust scan settings separately for each photo before giving the scan command.

11. Picking a Resolution Is Important. The basic rule for resolution is simple. For printers whose resolution is a multiple of 300 dots per inch (dpi) nothing over 300 pixels per inch for the photo will make any difference when you print, and even 200 ppi looks almost as good. So for anything you may print at the same size, set the scan resolution for at least 200 ppi and no higher than 300 ppi. For printers whose resolution is a multiple of 360 dpi, the equivalent scan resolutions are 360 ppi and 240 ppi.

If you think you might crop the image or print it at larger size, scan it at a resolution that will give you at least 200 (or 240) ppi after it's enlarged. For a 4 by 6 that you might print at 8 by 10, for example, 8 divided by 4 is 2. So if you want 200 ppi when you print at 8 inches, you need to scan at 400 ppi.

If you never expect to enlarge the image or even print it, 72 ppi is fine for viewing on screen.

12. Scanning Photos in an Album Can Be Done. If the photos you want to scan are already mounted in an album, it's best to take them out before scanning. It's hard to get book pages to lie flat on a flatbed, and it's hard to get a good scan if the photos aren't flat. If you can take individual pages out of the binder, use your scan utility's batch mode if it has one, so you can scan the whole page at once. Otherwise, it's best to take each photo out of the album, scan it, and then remount it.

If the photos are permanently mounted, and the pages won't come out, try scanning with the scanner close to the edge of the desk or table it's on. Put one page of the album as flat as possible on the flatbed, and let the facing page and cover hang straight down along the side of the desk or table.

Wednesday 14 December 2011

Make your own favorite iphone in 7 ways

Everyone represents themselves in their own way. Then why the iphone that we are using should be in the same single form??? Here are the seven ways to change your iphone according to your taste.

FOR: THE DJ

Bone Collection Horn Stand
Price: $9.99
Pump up the volume! This little portable amplifier may not look like much, but it's got some decent power. No batteries needed. 


FOR: THE PHOTOGRAPHER

iPhone Telephoto Lens and Tripod
Price: $31.99
Sometimes you actually do want to be in the picture. This setup will appeal to your inner photographer. The kit comes with a hard case for your phone, an 8X telephoto lens, mini tripod, and an attachment to fit the phone to the tripod. 


FOR: THE COUCH POTATO

I-Got-Control Apple iPad/iPhone/iPod Universal Remote Controller
Price: $39.99
How many times have you or someone you loved shouted that in disgust: "Too many remotes!"? Why not use the thing that's by your side at all times? The IRB1 accessory and the associated i-Got-Control app let you control your infrared-based devices—home theater components, lights, fans, etc. Thousands of remotes are pre-installed and if the device doesn't have the code initially, it can "learn" it. The device is small enough that you can even take it on the road with you. 


FOR: THE THROWBACK

'80s Retro iPhone Case
Price: $20
Can't get enough of the '80s? If you love retro then check out this iPhone case. Measuring 2.75 by 2.5 by 7.5 inches, this plastic case is big, bulky, and so not high tech. All you need now is your parachute pants and Members Only jacket. 


FOR: THE SCIENCE GEEK

Mini Microscope for iPhone
Price: $39.97
Are you a closet Marie Curie? Perhaps you're just naturally curious. This Mini Microscope should satisfy your inner science geek…at least a bit. The lightweight microscope provides 60X magnification and LEDs for viewing different objects. 


FOR: THE GAMBLER

Jackpot Slots
Price: $34.95
• Fits Apple iPhone 2G, 3G, 3GS, or 4 and all iPod touch models
• Requires iOS 3.0 (or higher)
Looking for a cheap alternative to Vegas? Get your own one-armed bandit courtesy of Jackpot Slots. The hardware accessory works in combination with the free Jackpot Slots app to bring you a realistic slot machine experience, including the spinning action. Just don't expect quarters to shoot out of your iPhone. 


FOR: THE OLD-SCHOOL GAMER

Pinball Magic
Price: $34.99
• Fits Apple iPhone 2G, 3G, 3GS, or 4 and all iPod touch models
• Requires iOS 3.0 (or higher)
Are you a pinball wizard? If so, check out this portable (and we mean super small) pinball accessory table. Simply install the free Pinball Magic Game app, slip the phone into the casing, and it's time to learn the angles. All the class game controls are here: ball-launching plunger, flipper buttons, and a backbox that lights up.

Sunday 11 December 2011

Nook Tablet Specifications and Features

 

Super-Light and Portable

1/3 lighter than the leading tablet with an easy-to-hold soft touch design 
 
Height: 8.1 inches
Width: 5.0 inches
Depth: 0.48 inches
Weight: 14.1 ounces1
 

World's Most Advanced VividView™ Touchscreen

Remarkable clarity and minimal glare 
 
  •  7-inch VividView™ Color Touchscreen
  • 16 million+ colors, IPS2 display
  • High resolution display—1024 X 600, 169 pixels per inch (PPI)
  • Fully laminated with no air gaps for remarkable clarity and reduced reflection & glare-read indoors or outside

Adjustable Fonts

Customize your reading experience 
 
  • 8 text sizes, 6 font styles, change background colors, line and margin spacing
  • Look-up words in the built-in Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, Eleventh Edition

Web and Email

Surf your favorite sites and check & send email 
 
  • Enhanced Web browsing with video via Adobe® Flash® Player3
  • Check & send email all from one inbox (i.e., POP and IMAP webmail, including Yahoo, Gmail, Hotmail, AOL and others)
  • Parental controls to easily disable the Web browser

Built-in Wi-Fi®

Connect wirelessly in seconds 
 
  • Wireless connectivity via Wi-Fi® (802.11b/g/n)
  • FREE Wi-Fi® in all Barnes & Noble stores

Microphone

 

Record narration for kids' Read and Record™ books


Supported File Types4

Borrow library books, listen to music, watch videos & more 
 
  • Load EPUB (including Adobe DRM or DRM free) or PDF file types from your computer or microSD card
  • Other documents: XLS, DOC, PPT, TXT, DOCM, XLSM, PPTM, PPSX, PPSM, DOCX, XLX, PPTX
  • Watch videos in MP4, or Adobe Flash Player format, 3GP, 3G2 MKV, WEBM (Video Codecs: H.264, MPEG-4, H.263, VP8)
  • Supports Netflix video up to 720p and sideloaded video up to 1080p; renders at 1024 x 600
  • Load photos and create personal wallpaper: JPG, GIF, PNG, BMP
  • Play audio on built-in mono speaker: MP3, MP4, AAC, AMR, WAV, OGG (Audio Codecs MP3, AAC, AMR, LPCM, OGG Vorbis)  

Built for Speed

 

1GHz TI OMAP4 (dual-core) processor with 1GB RAM

Extra-Long Battery Life

 

  • Up to 11.5 hours of reading or 9 hours of video without recharging5
  • Installed rechargeable battery
  • Charge from a wall outlet using the in-box Power Adapter and USB Cable (charging time: approximately 3 hours from wall outlet)

Memory

 

Hold thousands of books, songs, videos, photos, & more 
  • 16 GB6 (up to 10,000 books) built-in memory (13 GB for content; 12 GB reserved for B&N content)
  • Add up to 32GB with microSD™7 memory card 

Pre-Loaded NOOK Apps™

 

Netflix, Hulu Plus, Pandora® internet radio, Chess, Crossword, Sudoku, Media Gallery, NOOK Friends™, Email

In the Box

 

  • NOOK Tablet
  • USB Cable
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Power Adapter
  • Rechargeable Battery (installed) 

Connectors

 

  • Universal 3.5 mm stereo headphone jack
  • Charging port
  • Expandable microSD8 slot 

Friday 9 December 2011

Nook Tablet Covers















Most Powerful Tablet

Videos stream smoothly. Web browsing is lightning-fast. Get books instantly- usually in under 10 seconds. Built for speed- switch between books, movies and games effortlessly. All it takes is a touch. (And a dual core processor & 1 GB of RAM).