31 July 2017

Save Yourself Time and Effort by Automating GIMP With Scripts


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Photo editing tends to involve a lot of repetitive processes, especially when you’re working with a large album of images. If you’re willing to dabble in scripting, you can use GIMP to automate some of these actions to save yourself time and effort. Scripting with Python in GIMP isn’t easy, but it’s very rewarding if you’re prepared to learn the ropes. Here’s how to get started with a couple of very basic scripts. Creating a Python Script Before we start start working on our project in earnest, we need to lay some foundations. First, open up a text editor, then copy and...

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5 Networking Commands for the Linux Terminal


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Working in the command line can have numerous advantages over working in the Graphical User Interface (GUI). It’s almost always faster, relative to the GUI. More advanced computer users often prefer command line for it’s scripting and concise process of working. Here are some of the Linux networking commands you can use and apply immediately. Some commands may require administrative privileges — so make sure you have sudo access! Image Credit: Julia Tim via Shutterstock 1. ping The go-to-command to quickly begin to diagnose network issues, find the IP address of a device on the network, or even monitor the reliability of your...

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How to Use (and Disable) Game Center on Mac & iOS


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In the old days, we used to get together with friends and family to play games. Now, with computer games and mobile devices, we have a much larger range of choices for games to play electronically. Apple’s Game Center strives to make playing mobile games a social activity again. Today we’ll look at what Game Center is, why you would use it, and how to sign make the most of it on your Mac and iOS devices. For those of you who used to use the default standalone Game Center app and are wondering where it went, we’ll also explain...

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After Dunkirk: 12 World War II Movies to Watch on Netflix


ww2-movies

Have you watched Chris Nolan’s Dunkirk yet? It tracks the story of the Allied evacuation off the beaches of Northern France in May 1940. Of course, the Dunkirk evacuation has passed into history as one of the most important episodes of World War II. Many historians argue that it’s the point Hitler lost the war. If he’d allowed his Panzer columns to continue rather than waiting for his infantry divisions to catch up, the Allied forces would have been almost wiped out. Instead, more than 330,000 British, French, Dutch, Polish, and Belgian troops managed to escape across the English Channel....

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How to Search Videos within a YouTube Channel on your Mobile Phone


YouTube, the second largest search engine after Google, offers extremely powerful search commands but there’s one important search functionality that YouTube is yet to include in its mobile app for both Android & iPhone.

You cannot search for videos within a specific YouTube channel while using YouTube on a mobile phone or tablet. For instance, if you would like to search for Tesla videos that were uploaded on the MKBHD channel, you simply can’t do that from your mobile phone.

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This search-within-channel feature has been available for long on YouTube’s desktop website – see screenshot – but none of the YouTube apps have it yet. This is surprising considering the fact that more than half of video views on YouTube now come from mobile devices.

That’s where our mini YouTube search engine can help. Sign-in with your YouTube account, enter a search query, select any YouTube channel that you are subscribed to and it will show a list of all matching videos within the selected channel.

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The app builds a list of all channels that you are currently subscribed to and prepares a nice drop-down with the channels sorted by name. The drop-down also features the channel icons so it is easier for you to find the channel you are looking for.

Also, if you have multiple YouTube accounts, you can click the “Logout” link to sign-out from the current account and log in to any other account. The app requests read-only access to your YouTube account and does not store any of your data anywhere.

If you are a desktop uses, you’ll probably never need this site but for mobile users, our mini YouTube search engine could be worth bookmarking until YouTube incorporates this missing feature to their native apps.

Related: How to Copy YouTube Playlists


Are Squeezable Smartphones a Gimmick or the Future?


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A couple of months ago, HTC launched the U11. Apart from high-end specifications, the smartphone’s marketing was centered around a unique feature called Edge Sense. The HTC U11 has grip sensors on both sides that recognize when the phone is squeezed. This gesture is used for launching apps and performing actions. Rumors now suggest that Google’s second-generation Pixel phone will have a similar feature too. So, is the squeeze feature a gimmick or is it actually a groundbreaking feature? Let’s find out. A History of Gesture-Based Features in Smartphones Ever since smartphones have had motion sensors like accelerometers and gyroscopes,...

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The 7 Best Windows File Explorer Replacements


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The best way to describe Windows File Explorer is “functional.” Sure, it’s got a few little settings you can tweak, and there are several tricks that’ll make it work more efficiently, but it’s still decidedly more “Volvo” than “Mercedes.” If you spend a lot of time in the app, it’s easy to become weary of its idiosyncrasies. Why can’t you integrate non-Microsoft cloud storage providers? Why can’t you reorder the main shortcuts in the left-hand panel? And why hasn’t Microsoft introduced tabbed browsing? Perhaps it’s time to dump File Explorer and use a third-party alternative? If you’ve never looked into...

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13 Best Root Apps for Android in 2017


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Once you’ve rooted your phone, you gain access to tons of extra apps in — and sometimes beyond — the Play Store. The best root apps can extend your battery life, change fonts and emojis, recover deleted photos, and even boot a full version of Linux. Here’s our pick of the 13 best root apps you must install. 1. Root Essentials Root Essentials is a one-stop shop for numerous root tasks. It’s a great starting point if you’re new to rooting, since it contains important tools like a build.prop editor, a root explorer, and a flashing tool. It also enables...

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10+ Classic Games You Can Run on Raspberry Pi Without Emulators


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It isn’t just for DIY projects. You can use it as a desktop computer, or send it into space. It’ll run as an inspiring digital picture frame, and put your old style, non-network printer onto your home network. In short, the Raspberry Pi is incredibly useful and versatile. It will even run retro games in emulators for many classic platforms. But what if you don’t want to mess around with emulators? Retro gaming on the Raspberry Pi without an emulator… could it be possible? Yeah, of course it could — and it is! The developers of the following six games...

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Find Out How Much Traffic Twitter Is Sending to Your Website


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Tracking individual Twitter visitors to your websites isn’t possible, but you can at least tell how much traffic Twitter (or any other social network) is sending your way. All of that information is just a few clicks away when using an analytics tool like Google Analytics. To check overall social network traffic using Google Analytics, go to Acquisition > All Traffic > Channels. Here you’ll see how much social network traffic you’re getting, and how it ranks compared to organic search, direct traffic, referral, and email traffic. If you click on Social, you’ll see a breakdown of all the social networks that are...

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Free Games for PS Plus & Xbox Live in August 2017


Ready for some new games? We’ve got the skinny on August 2017’s free games for PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live Gold subscribers. PlayStation Plus On PS4, you’ve got a good selection coming. First is Just Cause 3, which offers a mega, 400-square-mile open-world to play around in. The second title is Assassin’s Creed: Freedom Cry, a standalone expansion for Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. It’s a great way to get more gameplay if you played Black Flag, or enjoy a diluted AC experience if you haven’t tried the series in a while. Coming on PS3 is Super Motherload, a couch...

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Really Private Browsing: An Unofficial User’s Guide to Tor


Privacy on the internet is a constantly evolving battleground. And for good reason. Revelations concerning government spying programs, almost daily data breaches, and less-than-transparent corporations are de rigueur. Tin foil hats abound; more and more citizens around the globe are taking note of their privacy… and where it is going. When Edward Snowden revealed the PRISM (NSA) and Tempora (GCHQ) global surveillance programs, shock was met with apathy. Those that suspected this level of surveillance found their suspicions vindicated. But the average man or woman on the street? Many didn’t even pause for thought. This sort of invasion of privacy makes...

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Share PDF Versions of Google Drive Files Without Converting by Hand


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You can do a lot with PDF documents on Google Drive, like converting any Google Drive document to a PDF. But did you know that you can also directly share PDF versions of your files? There is no need to convert each document to a PDF by hand every time. There are clear benefits to taking the direct-to-PDF approach when sharing: There is no need to store multiple PDF versions of the same file. You don’t have to re-download the PDF version and share it every time you make a small change to the source document. Anyone with the PDF...

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iOS and Mac Users: You Need to Update Right Now


Apple devices have a longstanding reputation for being more secure than their Windows-based counterparts. Of course, that’s no longer the case. The amount of malware found on Apple devices has been rising steadily for the last few years. Now there’s another security flaw Mac and iOS users need to worry about. Apple is so worried, in fact, it rolled out a near-instant software update for all users. What Happened? Known as Broadpwn, the vulnerability allows potential hackers to gain control of your phone or computer through its Wi-Fi chips. A security researcher at Exodus Intelligence discovered the problem, and he presented...

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July’s Most Popular Deals [UK]


It’s that time again where we take a look back to your favourite deals from the month. July’s highlights include SanDisk SSDs, robotic vacuum cleaners, and Audio-Technica headphones. All of this month’s best deals are available for Prime delivery. If you haven’t already, make sure to give Prime a spin using their 30 day free trial. There’s way more to Amazon’s subscription service than just next day delivery. SanDisk Extreme 900 – 960 GB Solid State Drive [15% Off] [US/CA] SanDisk Extreme 900 Portable SSD 960GB SDSSDEX2-960G-G25 SanDisk Extreme 900 Portable SSD 960GB SDSSDEX2-960G-G25 Up to 9X faster than external...

Read the full article: July’s Most Popular Deals [UK]