Analyze Performance of Your WebSite Online with GTMetrix

Analyze Performance of Your WebSite Online with GTMetrix: "

One important thing about designing website is speed. There’re many tools that help you measure your site speed, but this tool is an online tool. I tried this tool and impressive.

GTMetrix is an online tool that measure your site performance and speed and grades of performance on your site. GtMetrix also gives you the info on what are the causes of your good and bad performance. My Site got D on YSlow and C on Page Speed, very very bad

GTmetrix uses Google Page Speed and Yahoo! YSlow to grade your site’s performance and provides actionable recommendations to fix these issues.

Link : gtmetrix.com

Extract Embedded Media From Office Documents by Changing the Extension [Microsoft Office]

Extract Embedded Media From Office Documents by Changing the Extension [Microsoft Office]: "

Lifehacker reader jont999 highlights a dead simple way to extract media from Microsoft Word, Powerpoint, or other Office documents—change the extension to .ZIP. More »

CodeTwo Outlook AutoConfig, Add Outlook Accounts Comfortably: "

Setting up new email accounts can be a tedious and complicated task. Many users do not like this initial configuration, as it requires quite some work to add the incoming and outgoing email servers, ports, security settings, and account login information.

That’s why several email programs have added features to automatically discover most of the settings, so that the user only needs to enter the email address and password to add an account to the client.

CodeTwo Outlook AutoConfig adds automatic configuration options to Microsoft Office Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Mail and Windows Live Mail.

To add an email account to one of the supported email programs launch CodeTwo Outlook AutoConfig and enter the email address of the new account and the mail client you want it to be added to (those are auto detected and only selectable if installed). It is furthermore possible to add a display name, which will be shown to contacts when sending emails.

The configuration is only compatible with a set of providers they have added to their database. That’s different to how Thunderbird handles the look up of email servers. The program will inform the user if the email provider is not known, which means that the account has to be configured manually in the email client.

If the email provider is identified correctly, the email account is created. and CodeTwo Outlook AutoConfig can be closed afterwards. The new email account is shown in the selected email program. A prompt is displayed at first account usage to enter the account password. Entering that completes the account setup, which can from that moment on be used just like any other account in Outlook or Windows Mail.

There is one exception to this process. The email program has to have been opened at least once before the account creation. Users who never have opened the email program before need to open it once, ignore all the notifications and close it again, before they can make use of CodeTwo Outlook AutoConfig to add email accounts.

The portable software works well with popular email providers such as Gmail, but not at all with custom hosted solutions. CodeTwo Outlook AutoConfig is compatible with all versions of Microsoft Windows from Windows 98 to the latest and greatest Windows 7.

Simures, Display Websites In Different Resolutions: "

As a web developer, you have to make sure that your website displays fine for the most widely used screen resolutions. Doing so ensures that site visitors have a good user experience on the website. We have already covered several programs, like the Computer Monitor Hotkey Resolution Changer or the Resolution Changer, to change the screen resolution on the fly.

Simures however offers a different approach than those third party programs. The online service can display any web page that is available online in any resolution available.

Users can either enter a web page and a desired resolution on the Simures website, or modify the url of the service to automatically display a website in a specific resolution.

Even better is the fact that the resolution can be adjusted in realtime on the page, so that the website is displayed in the new resolution immediately.

Urls use a naming convention, so that the service can be used directly without having to open its web page first. Just use the following syntax to display a website in a desired resolution:

http://www.simures.com/800×600/ghacks.net

The 800×600 part can be modified to any resolution, from 0×0 to 8000×6000 and more. The url can display any website, not just root domains. Just append the whole url without the http:// and the trailing / and it will be displayed by the service.

The best feature of Simures is the fact that it changes the resolution directly, that can save web developers some work. It would be nice if the developers of Simures would add presets to the page to load a specified web page in popular resolutions. (via Web Domination)

Joliprint.com�|�Print friendly & PDF your blogs and websites

Joliprint.com�|�Print friendly & PDF your blogs and websites: "2
Posted October 7th, 2010 in Feature by Benoit
Joliprint bookmark is far the easiest way to print a Google Reader post as a PDF.

Give your browser a Joliprint bookmark
Select a post in Google Reader
Click the Joliprint bookmark, it turns the activated post into a PDF
As simple as that!


Select a post & click Joliprint button"

Google’s URL Shortener

Google’s URL Shortener: "

It’s called Goo.gl, and according to Google it has several advantages over competing services. Here is a quote from the announcement post:

There are many shorteners out there with great features, so some people may wonder whether the world really needs yet another. As we said late last year, we built goo.gl with a focus on quality. With goo.gl, every time you shorten a URL, you know it will work, it will work fast, and it will keep working. You also know that when you click a goo.gl shortened URL, you’re protected against malware, phishing and spam using the same industry-leading technology we use in search and other products.

I tested it briefly and I must say I really like it. The security aspect alone would be enough to make me switch, but the redirect also worked much faster when compared to other URL shorteners, and Goo.gl is connected to your Google account, so it will track clicks for you automatically.

PadiTrack – Free Conversion Funnel Tracking For Google Analytics

PadiTrack – Free Conversion Funnel Tracking For Google Analytics: "

While using an analytics application, ability to analyze the funnel users go through to reach an event is a very valuable way for understanding users and improving leads.

Using Google Analytics, it is possible to get a report like:

• users who browsed the product details page –>


• downloaded the brochure –>


• purchased the product –>


• used PayPal.

by using many segments, filters and exporting data.

PadiTrack, a totally free application that can do this very easily for you.

It connects to your Google Analytics account (no tracking code required) and pulls the data automatically + instantly.

The greatest part of it is that segments can be applied to the funnels so you get to see how people converted from different traffic sources

DropMocks Makes Drag-and-Drop Galleries in Any Modern Browser [Photo Sharing]

DropMocks Makes Drag-and-Drop Galleries in Any Modern Browser [Photo Sharing]: "

You've got a few photos to share with a friend or project partner. You don't much care about privacy or protocol—just getting the photos up now. Open DropMocks.com, drag photos into the frame, and you've got an instant, crisp-looking gallery. More »

FixPicture Is an Online Image Manipulation Tool [Image Manipulation]

FixPicture Is an Online Image Manipulation Tool [Image Manipulation]: "

FixPicture is both an HTML and Flash-based tool for quick image manipulation when all you've got is a web browser and an picture in need of some work. More »

XFiles Transfers Bulky Files from Browser to Browser [File Transfer]: "

Transferring large files to a friend is rife with hassles—cruddy IM file protocols, email size restrictions, overactive firewalls, etc.—xFiles turns the hassle of large file sharing into a simple two-click process. More »

JayCut Is a Great Web-Based Video Editor [Video Editing]

JayCut Is a Great Web-Based Video Editor [Video Editing]: "

If you need to edit some video away from your home, free web-based video editor JayCut will likely get your project going, whether you need simple cutting and pasting or text, transitions, and impromptu audio recording. More »

Awesome Open Source Disposable Chat Application: Anologue: "

Similar to the popular disposible chat websites (check 7 Free Disposable Chat Systems For Instant Communication), Anologue is an impressive one which is open source.

It works by simply clicking on a "new room" link and the application instantly creates a chat room with a unique URL where you can invite others.

The application is totally Ajaxed, built with PHP and uses the Lithium Framework, CouchDB and jQuery.

And, if you don't prefer to install your own, you can still use Anologue as the hosted version is free for everyone.

SuperFreeDraw.com

SuperFreeDraw.com: "

http://www.superfreedraw.com/

"

Identify A Font With “What Font Is”: "

What Font Is is a free web-based service that helps identifying and/or finding alternatives of a font.

It works by simply uploading (or mentioning the URL of) an image including the text.

The service offers the option to include only free and/or commercial fonts in the results.

And, you can browse a gallery of 70,000+ fonts inside the "All Fonts" menu.

Hard Drive Diagnostics Software GSmartControl

Hard Drive Diagnostics Software GSmartControl: "

Nothing is worse for a computer user than a hard drive that is nearing the end of its life cycle as hard drive crashes or unreadable sectors could lead to data loss if the user was not prepared for the worst case. But when is the right time to start preparations? Should you start feeling worried when the hard disk begins to make strange noises that seem to grow by the hour? What about the silent Solid State Drives then?

Hard drive diagnostics are essential in analyzing hard drives to have enough time to react when signals indicate a failing hard drive. The only viable option here is to backup all relevant data to other drives or storage devices and disconnect the failing hard drive from the computer.

GSmartControl is a free hard drive diagnostics program for Windows, Mac and Linux that is offered as a portable version, installer and Live CD to suite all work environments and scenarios.

The name implies that the software is only able to analyze hard drives that support S.M.A.R.T., the Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology, which most modern hard drives support. GSmartControl will automatically scan and display all connected hard drives on startup.

Each hard disk is displayed with a drive icon and name which usually is enough to identify it. Basic drive information are displayed at the top of the screen after a drive has been selected with the mouse. Information displayed there include the drive’s capacity and if it did pass the basic health check.

Some users might not see the basic health check information after selecting a drive. This usually means that SMART is either not activated or that the drive is not supporting SMART at all. SMART can be activated by right-clicking a drive and selecting Enable SMART. This will not work if the hard drive is not supporting the SMART technology or if SMART is disabled in the computer bios.

The best option in this case is to reboot the computer and check the BIOS to make sure that SMART is enabled there. If SMART cannot be activated after this it is not supported by the hard drive.

A double-click on any drive will open the Device information, a tabbed window with extensive information about the selected hard drive.

The Identity tab displays important information about the drive. It will list the device model, serial number, firmware, capacity, ATA version, if SMART is supported and enabled and if the overall health self-assessment test has been passed.

The attributes tab displays SMART attributes data. The important information are listed in the failed column which should show never to indicate a good drive health. Another indicator are the norm-ed value and worst which should not diverge at all for best results.

The Error log tab displays the five most recent errors that the hard drive has encountered. No errors are another indicator of a good drive health.

The Perform Tests tab lists various tests that can be performed. This includes a short self-text, extended self-test and conveyance self-test. It is usually a good idea to begin with the short self-test and execute the extended self-test afterwards.

• Short self-test consists of a collection of test routines that have the highest chance of detecting drive problems. Its result is reported in the Self-test Log. Note that this test is in no way comprehensive. Its main purpose is to detect totally damaged drives without running the full surface scan.
  Note: On some drives this actually runs several consequent tests, which may cause the program to display the test progress incorrectly.
• Extended self-test examines complete disk surface and performs various test routines built into the drive. Its result is reported in the Self-test Log.
• Conveyance self-test is intended to identify damage incurred during transporting of the drive.

A log file is generated for every test that can be viewed by clicking on the View Output button. The log file contains detailed information about the hard drive and a final assessment. Completed without error indicates that the drive is in good health.

GSmartControl comes with an option to perform a self test every few hours. This test is not affecting the performance of the drive or computer system and can be helpful in monitoring a drive’s health over time.

The hard drive diagnostics tool can also be executed from the command line. All command line options are explained in the program’s help file or by adding -? to the executable.

GSmartControl is a invaluable diagnostics software for hard drives. It’s tests and automatic options make it a recommended tool for every system administrator and end user.

Versions for all operating systems are available at the developer’s website.

Microsoft Outlook Tools

Microsoft Outlook Tools: "

Outlook Tools is a third party software for Microsoft Outlook that provides support and advanced settings for users working with the email client on a regular basis.

The free software program will automatically scan the PC on startup for an installed version of Microsoft Outlook. The relevant file paths and information are displayed in the first window that is displayed to the user. It is here possible to change the paths (outlook path, roaming Outlook data, local Outlook data and temporary folder to open attachments) if necessary.

The very same menu links to tools like the Outlook inbox repair tool, account settings and the Windows Event Viewer. A Microsoft Update can also be initiated right from that window.

Lastly it is possible to minimize Outlook to the notification area and to configure Outlook to display all emails in plain text.

But that window was just the startup page. Outlook Tools comes with four additional tabs that can be used to configure startup switches, clear the MRU, configure new mail alerts and blocked attachments.

All known Microsoft Outlook startup switches are displayed on the second page. Here it is possible to select one of more than 40 different startup switches. They are all explained on the developer’s homepage and it is probably a good idea to take a look at the descriptions before tinkering with those settings.

Clear MRU will creal the most recently used lists of Outlook. This is an automatic process that can be initiated manually as well. Outlook Tools offer options to clear individual lists from selected profiles easily.

The new mail alerts page can be used to configure the desktop notifications that appear when new emails have been received. The Outlook user can change the interval from seven seconds to another value to better suite the needs of the user. The transparency of the notifications can also be changed on this page.

The last page lists the blocked attachment types in Outlook with the option to enable them individually again.

Outlook Tools is a free software program for Windows that requires the Microsoft .net Framework. It is compatible with the following systems:

Outlook 2000, Outlook 2002/XP, Outlook 2003, Outlook 2007 or Outlook 2010
Microsoft Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows 2003 Server (+R2), Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008 (+R2) or Windows 7

The software program can be downloaded from the developer’s website over at How-To Outlook.

Roomle Brings Your Room Designs to Life; Furnishings and All [Design]

Roomle Brings Your Room Designs to Life; Furnishings and All [Design]: "

If you're thinking about doing some remodeling, room rearranging, or you just want to daydream about it in 3D glory, Roomle is a polished, free web tool for designing in three dimensions. More »






"

Free Printable Sketching, Wireframing and Note-Taking PDF Templates

Free Printable Sketching, Wireframing and Note-Taking PDF Templates: "

Sketching and wireframing are a specialized style of drawing, used for fleshing out preliminary complex ideas, group brain-storming, a lo-fi method for evaluating interaction concepts, and as a way of roughly perfecting a design technique.

Sketch and wireframe paper is essentially drawing paper that is designed specifically for this purpose. You could use it for web page design, web app design, architectural or structural design, graphic design, movie direction, animation… basically any type of design that needs a physical creative outlet or group collaboration.

Not all sketch and wireframe sheets are universal, most are specialized for a particular medium, such as storyboards and specialized grid paper (axonometric perspective templates).

Below you will find a concise collection of ready to print sketching, wireframing and note-taking templates. Most, as expected, are geared towards the design community, but there are also templates that could be used within any industry and for any purpose.

You may be interested in the following related posts:

• 35 Excellent Wireframing Resources
• 50 Free UI and Web Design Wireframing Kits, Resources and Source Files

[Offtopic: by the way, did you know that Smashing Magazine has one of the most influential and popular Twitter accounts? Join our discussions and get updates about useful tools and resources — follow us on Twitter!]

Wireframing and Sketching Paper

Paper Browser – It's a browser, only in paper
This PDF can be used for creating a website’s wireframe. The entire PDF is proportionally scaled at a 1024×768 screen resolution, with guides for designs that use a 960px or 800px layout and with each grid sized at 32×32px. The PDFs are available in both A4 and A3.

Web Sketching Template – Single Page
This A4 template has been designed for sketching a website with a resolution of 1024×768.

iPhone Wireframe Templates for Sketching
These iPhone paper prototyping and design templates are available to download in two different styles: the basic iPhone design template and a more advanced one that also has the iPhone sketch template but leaves space for making notes. Both can be downloaded in a .zip-file which also contains the templates in Viso (VSD) format.

iPad Idea Sheet
This template has been designed for wireframing iPad apps. There are three templates within the zip-archive: The first template allows for full size iPad sketching (100%), the second has two iPad templates (at 70% of the normal size) and the last has four iPads sized at 50% of the regular size.

iPhone Idea Sheet
This iPhone idea sheet has been designed by the same people that released the iPad Idea Sheet above. The .zip-file contains 4 different printable templates: two templates are sized at 100% of the actual iPhone with a choice of horizontally or vertically aligned sheets and the other two sketching templates each have 9 iPhone designs (sized at 75% of the actual iPhone) and again with a choice of either horizontal or vertical orientation.

iPhone Application Sketch Template
This iPhone template has a grid with the grid squares sized at 10px; it is designed with tick marks to indicate the heights of the status bar, nav bar, keyboard, tab bar and toolbar. The download is a 300dpi A4 JPEG.

Android Wireframe Templates
This sketching set for Android contains templates for Nexus One, HTC Dream, HTC Hero, HTC Magic, HTC Tattoo and Motorola Droid.

Wireframe Print and Sketch Template

A4 & A3 Sketching Paper
This printable grid sketching paper can be useful for the initial stages of web design, concept designing. You can choose between the A4 size or A3.

Basic Wireframing Paper
This is a basic grid box which you can use for concept diagrams, sitemaps, spectrums, tables, and whatever else you may need to sketch.

Wireframe and Notes Paper
This is a wireframe grid divided into 24 columns with gutters between each column. The column units are numbered along the top of the grid. To the right of the grid there is a ruled column for adding labels and annotations.

Two-by-Two Wireframe Paper
This template is a two by two grid with 4 cells divided by an x-y axis.

Blank Grid and Graph Paper

ZURB Grid Paper
With this grid paper you can connect the dots to give your sketches a little more structure while exploring refined concepts on paper.

Graph Paper with Two Lines Per Inch – Letter-Sized
This basic letter-sized graph paper has two aqua blue lines per inch.

Four Dots Per Inch A4 Paper
This printable dot paper has four dots per inch and is in portrait (vertical) orientation on letter-sized paper.

Storyboard Templates

4 Cell Storyboard Paper
This is a basic storyboard sketching template with 4 cells with each cell having a simple grid.

MBTI Sketching Paper for Ideation
With this MBTI sketching paper for ideation sessions, you can describe a design challenge on every piece of sketching paper which represents the problem you want to solve. There’s also some space for annotations. You can download the PDF in A4 and A3.

ZURB Sketchsheets
A set of editable PDF sketchsheets ideal for rough ideas and presentation to clients. There are five slightly different templates in the .zip-download package.

Storyboard Template

Storyboard with Notes
A storyboard template with 4 cells, with the area space beneath each cell for notes.

Web Sketching Template – 6 Pages
An A4 web design sketching template with space for notes.

Scenario, Taskflow and Grid Sketchsheets
This all-in-one PDF download package contains scenario, task-flow and grid templates. All can be useful during the early stages of web development process. Here are the three templates:

Lined and Notepad Paper

A4 Narrow-Ruled
This letter-sized lined paper is narrow ruled in portrait (vertical) orientation.

8.25" x 11" Lined and Squared Paper
This lined and squared paper template is sized 8.25"x11", and available in both PDF and JPEG.

Speciality Paper

Printable Cornell Note Paper
This Cornell Notes paper is lined and additionally formatted with two large blank areas for a summary and a cue (on which to later note and review main ideas, ask questions, or draw diagrams).

Moleskine Writing Template by Rod Graves
This template is based on a medieval page layout principle described in Robert Bringhurst’s classic book on typography, The Elements of Typographic Style. The Large sized notebook’s dimensions are nearly equivalent to a Golden Section rectangle (1:1.61803…). The design of the template is related to the golden section / the Fibonacci sequence.

Penmanship Paper
You can use this dashed paper to practice penmanship. The PDF is in the size A4 and has twelve lines per page, in portrait (vertical) orientation.

Calendars

Weekly Printable Calendar
This calendar's overview format lets you prioritize tasks, schedule appointments, and jot down notes all on one page. Custom options include Letter and A4 printing sizes, start day of the week, time range, and multiple languages.

Monthly Printable Calendar
This template lets you create printable monthly calendars for letter and A4 paper sizes.

5-Day Monthly Calendar
Create and print a 5-day calendar with holidays and your choice of start day by using the generator.

Lined Weekly Printable Calendar
Create and print lined weekly calendars in horizontal or vertical format with your choice of start day.

Index card sized Printable Calendars
Choose from 4 different compact templates for printing directly to3×5 and 4×6 index cards (with the dates already filled in). Here are the download links: Monthly Calendar, Split Month Calendar, Yearly Calendar and 2-Year Calendar.

Music Sheets

Music Paper from the University of Virginia
There are many sites where you can download blank music sheets, but none are as a comprehensive and detailed as this resource. You can select PostScript or PDF formats for your templates; they are all sized 8^1/2 x 11 (portrait orientation). Overall, there are 37 templates available and they are split into the following categories: General (9 templates), Solo (3 templates), Ensemble (8 templates), Band (4 templates), Orchestra (4 templates) and finally templates for Choral (8 templates). Below you can see examples of the Basic template and the Full Orchestra templates:

Generators and Tools

Incompetech Grid and Graph Paper Generator
On this site you can generate basic graph templates in any size, color and even by grid spacing, you can also choose from the scores of different graph variations: Axonometric Perspective, Cross Grid, Inverted, Equilateral Triangle, Octagonal, Hexagonal, Semi-bisected Trapezoid and Tumbling Block – Trapezoid.

Notepad Generator
This tool allows you to customize a PDF notepad which you can then print it out on standard 8 1/2 x 11 paper.

Print Free Graph Paper
Here you can choose the size (Letter or A4), paper type (Cartesian, Polar, Isometric…), measuring units (Millimetres or Inches) and finally whether you want the paper formatted or un-formatted.

All work and no play PDFs

Downloadable Origami Templates
You know the saying “all work and no play…”. Well, not all printable PDFs are geared towards work. How about a fun stress reliever? This site offers a huge database of printable origami models that will keep you amused for hours. Best not to make these during collaboration and brainstorming meetings though!

Design Police – Bring bad design to justice
Fed up with the bad design choices of your colleagues? Design-Police.org has created, as they call it, “visual enforcement kit” for designers. Help bring bad design to justice!

Related Posts

You may be interested in the following related posts:

• 35 Excellent Wireframing Resources
• 50 Free UI and Web Design Wireframing Kits, Resources and Source Files

What other goodies would you like us to collect?

Would you like us to collect other PDFs, files, download kits? Let us know what you need in the comments below and we will collect them and present them in one of our upcoming posts!