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Speechable enters the speech bubble wars

Alan Silcott — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 16:30:00 EST

Speechable understands that a picture is worth a thousand words, and thus a picture with words must be worth exponentially more.

Speechable provides a simple method to adding speech bubbles to your photos. Just upload a photo, select one or more speech bubbles, and place them wherever you like. You can resize both the text and the bubble to better fit the picture. When you are done adding bubbles, you are given links to add the photo to your blog, website, or email it to a friend.

We could find few differences between Speechable and Kyolo: a similar service that we recently reviewed. Most notably the use of rectangular bubbles instead of elliptical. We can't help but think that the first service to add multiple bubble shapes will win the war.

Filed under: Design, Photo, Web services

Speechable enters the speech bubble wars originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 22 Jul 2008 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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5pm - Project management on time (so you don't have to be)

Alan Silcott — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 16:00:00 EST

The clock just turned 5pm, and if you are like us, everything you have worked on all day has instantly evaporated from your mind (yes, this just happens, we don't need alcohol). Luckily, we left all those papers on our desk, the scribbled whiteboard, and a monitor-o-sticky notes to help us figure out where we left off.

5pm by QG | Software is a web-based project management suite that provides us the tools needed to get back on track at 8am.

The underlying features of 5pm are fairly standard in the project management world. You create projects and assign them to one or more users or groups. The project can have a deadline, a client, and a priority level. Once you have created a project you can add items such as tasks and files. Tasks can be assigned to individual team members and emails can be sent to the group when tasks are completed. etc...

To help visualize your project over the course of its life, there is a timeline feature that shows your projects and tasks in a "Gantt" style chart. In addition, there is a reporting section that can help determine who is completing their projects on time and who isn't.

Continue reading 5pm - Project management on time (so you don't have to be)

Filed under: Business, Developer, Productivity, Web services, web 2.0

5pm - Project management on time (so you don't have to be) originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Jul 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HELP! Windows cannot open this file

Alan Silcott — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 19:00:00 EST

You've just downloaded that must have program only to realize that Windows has no idea what to do with it. After an hour of Google searching, forum posting, and being called n00b, you finally figure it out.

If only there was a guide that showed you how to get all those needed programs. We at Download Squad feel your pain and have put together a list of 10 free programs that will take care of those pesky "Windows cannot open this file" messages once and for all.

Note: See a blatant omission or oversight? Please add it to the comments. With your help, we hope to re-post a more complete list the future.

K-Lite codec pack

File Types: DivX, XviD, AVI, Mpeg 1-4, AC3, AAC, FLAC, WAV, FLV, OGG, VOB, and tons you've never heard of.

Description: Why there are 85,000,000 different audio and video types we have no idea. What we do know is trying to install codecs one at a time generally ends in a reformat.

Thankfully, the good people from K-Lite (Koors Lite?) have bundled all the software and codecs you need into one executable. Cheers!
Real Alternative and QuickTime Alternative

File Types: RM, RA, RAM, RPM, RMVB, RPX, SMI, SMIL, RT, RP, MOV, QT, 3GP

Description: Before the days of Youtube, the Real Player and QuickTime were kings of Internet multimedia. Sure you had to deal with popups, reminders, updates, and bloatware, but that 1" video was so worth it.

Fortunately, the Real and Quicktime Alternatives removed the real in Real Player and restored the quick to QuickTime. Enjoy your 1" video!

Continue reading HELP! Windows cannot open this file

Filed under: Internet, OS Updates, Utilities, Features, Windows, Office, Shareware, Freeware, Open Source, How-Tos

HELP! Windows cannot open this file originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 20 Jun 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kitten Cannon - Time Waster

Alan Silcott — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 13:00:00 EST

Kitten Cannon addresses one of mankind's most primal urges; firing small fluffy animals out of a cannon.

The goal is simple really; shoot the kitten out of the cannon as far as possible. You can adjust the aim and velocity of the cannon, but the real distance is obtained when poor fluffy lands on a pile of explosives, or is trampolined into a balloon-bomb. Watch out for the Venus Cat-traps and death spikes that will stop fluffy DEAD in her tracks.

Some may think that there is a trivial amount of strategy involved in firing a Kitten from a cannon. Obviously they haven't reached 2,164 ft!

Filed under: Fun, Games, Freeware, Time-Wasters

Kitten Cannon - Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 18 Jun 2008 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ind.ecisions: Help for life's important questions

Alan Silcott — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 15:00:00 EST

Should we eat that last donut? Are our Scott-e-vest cargo pants as stylish as the site says? Should we give our bank account numbers to a Nigerian businessman that came across a large inheritance?

Sure, common sense would definitely help here, but sometimes you need to leave these choices to a higher power. Ind.ecisions, along with Mother Nature's help, hopes to win over your, well, indecision.

Ind.ecisions gives you the option to pick 2, 3, or 6 different outcomes to your question. Then, based on radio noise generated by atmospheric conditions (don't ask), you are given a truly random outcome.

Take that magic eight ball!

Filed under: Fun, Internet, Web services

Ind.ecisions: Help for life's important questions originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 17 Jun 2008 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BackTrack: A penetration testers toolset

Alan Silcott — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 09:00:00 EST

There are few job titles as misleading as that of the "Penetration Tester." Sure, saying professional computer hacker would be more direct, but have you ever noticed how hackers seem to have a dirty mind? Why else would they want to go phreaking through backdoors?

Anyway, in order for hackers to umm...maximize their penetration; they need the right tools for the job. BackTrack is a bootable Linux CD that is the swiss-army knife of computer hacking tools. Need to crack a password or break into a wifi connection? Backtrack has the tools already configured and ready to go.

As a matter of fact, with over 250 tools to choose from, your problem will be finding the right tool for the job. We recommend a quick YouTube search for common hacking scenarios.

Backtrack is open-source, as are all the included tools. The program is completely free to download and use. Unfortunately, as with most open source software, it may be hard to find support should you experience any problems.

Now that you have the tools, be sure to use them wisely. We are sure your neighbors wouldn't appreciate being brute forced. I am talking about their WiFi, sheesh!

Filed under: Utilities, Linux, Open Source

BackTrack: A penetration testers toolset originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 17 Jun 2008 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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