How to Create 3D Buttons Using Adobe Photoshop

There are a lot of amazing things you can create in Adobe Photoshop that are useful online, ranging from simple picture frames to complex UIs. One of the most useful things you can create in Photoshop are 3D buttons, which will come in handy if you run a blog or website with a custom interface.

In this article we will show you how to create 3D buttons using Photoshop, along with visual “up” and “down” states, so you can animate them. (We won’t be covering animation itself in this article.)

Step 1: Prepare Your Document

While 3D buttons pop up most frequently on websites, it’s important to note that there are other applications for them, such as animated GIFs, mock-up product displays, and mobile games. Depending on what you’re creating this button for, your final file format and the dimensions of it may vary.

To create a 3D button in Photoshop, you’ll need to create a custom document for it. To do this, open Photoshop, and click on Create New > Custom. Start typing in your values.

To create a 3D button, you’re going to want a horizontal document. For ours, we used:

• 900 x 300 pixels high
• 300 Pixels/Inch
• RGB Color Mode

While these specs are definitely not a hard and fast rule, this will ensure that you have more than enough room to work with, and the ability to scale your button size up and down as needed.

Step 2: Set Up Your Rectangle for Your 3D Button

After you set up the specs for your file, you’ll be brought into your workspace. You’re going to have a horizontal white canvas in a single layer, and this is where you’ll start building your button.

To build your 3D button, click on the Rounded Rectangle Tool on the left-hand side of your screen, seen here in red. You can also use the shortcut U to access it.

Click once on your white layer: this will automatically bring up your Create Rounded Rectangle box. You will be using this box to specify the dimensions of your rectangle.

For our button, we went with:

• 300 pixels wide
• 75 pixels high

We also made sure that the corners were rounded by 10 pixels. Not too high, and not too low, either. Then we pressed OK.

Note: Buttons vary by size and shape, so don’t feel like you have to use these exact dimensions. Additionally, if you’re looking for more info on shortcuts, here are some of the most useful Photoshop keyboard commands.

When you press OK, Photoshop will create a rounded rectangle with these dimensions inside your layer. You can change its Fill and Stroke colors by using the dropdown menus in the top left-hand corner of your screen.

For the purpose of this tutorial—and to illustrate what an “up” and “down” button might look like—we’re going to make our “down” button red.

Step 3: Make Your Button 3D

After you create your basic button and choose its color, you’re going to want to adjust it in the Layer Style dialog box. This is to make it look more 3D.

To access your Layer Style dialog box, you can go Layer > Layer Style from the top menu. You can also double-click on the layer that contains your button, to bring it up automatically. This way is much quicker and we personally prefer it.

Once your Layer Style box is up, go to the option Bevel & Emboss. Turn it on.

This is a quick and easy way to give the edges of your button a more raised, “3D” look. For this tutorial, these are the settings we used:

Structure

• Style: Inner Bevel
• Technique: Chisel Soft
• Depth: 605
• Direction: Up
• Size: 5
• Soften: 1

Shading

• Angle: 90
• Altitude: 37
• Highlight Mode: Color Dodge, 55% Opacity
• Shadow Mode: Multiple, 25% Opacity

The trick is to make the settings high enough that you can see some difference, but not so strong that it’s overwhelming.

After we finished with Bevel & Emboss, we went to Contour and turned that on, too. Contour makes the definition of Bevel & Emboss a little bit stronger, and for this tutorial we chose the setting Cone – Inverted.

Next, turn on Gradient overlay. This is what gives a button that rounded, slightly “glossy” look. The settings are as follows:

• Blend Mode: Overlay
• Opacity: 90
• Style: Linear
• Angle: 90
• Scale: 100

Finally, we turned on Drop Shadow, to make the button look a bit “raised” from the white background of a website or blog. Again, here are the settings:

Structure

• Blend Mode: Multiple
• Opacity: 35
• Angle: 90
• Distance: 2
• Spread: 6
• Size: 8

Quality

• Contour: Linear
• Noise: 0
• Layer Knocks Out Drop Shadow: On

Now it’s time to save these specs as a Layer Style.

Step 4: Save as a Layer Style

Once you finish with your button’s settings, it will begin to look 3D. Because the chances are high that you’ll be creating more than one 3D button, we need to find a quick and easy way to do this.

Here’s how.

Before clicking OK in the Layer Style dialog box, click on New Style. When you do, Photoshop will save this layer style that you’ve made for your button.

If you’re using Photoshop CC, this new style will be saved to your Libraries section, as you can see above. It’s very quick and easy to access.

Step 5: How to Use a Saved Layer Style

Now that you’ve designed your button and you’ve saved it as a Layer Style, let’s see it in action for your “up” state. No word of a lie, this will cut your working time in half.

First, let’s create another button directly above the red button layer, like so. Let’s make it green, for emphasis.

Next—instead of double-clicking on the layer itself to bring up the Layer Styles dialog box—double-click on the layer style in your Libraries panel.

When you do, Photoshop will automatically apply your saved style to your new button layer, while keeping its new color and shape. You now have two buttons—one in an up state, and one in a down—and it’s so simple to do. I love this shortcut.

Step 6: Add Text to Your Button

Next, we’re going to add text to the button.

To add text, create a new layer above your two button layers. Click the Type tool to begin typing.

For this tutorial, we’re going to write the word “subscribe” because it’s something you see quite often on websites and social media platforms.

We’re also going to use a san serif web-safe font. The final choice of which one you use for your own button is up to you. Montserrat, Proxima Nova, Arial, and Verdana are all widely-used alternatives, and safe for the web.

After this is done, however, there’s still a few more subtle changes that you need to make in order to get this text to “pop.”

First, double-click on the layer that contains your text so you can bring it up in your Layer Style dialog box.

Next, click on Inner Shadow, to add a bit of a depression (or sunken area) to your text. This makes it look like the letters have been engraved into the button. The exact settings that we used for this tutorial are below.

Structure

• Blend Mode: Multiply
• Opacity: 35
• Angle: 90
• Distance: 2
• Choke: 4
• Size: 1

Quality

• Contour: Linear
• Noise: 0

Next, apply a Gradient Overlay to those letters, to make them blend more easily into the button without appearing flat. Again, the settings for ours are:

• Blend Mode: Color Burn
• Opacity: 90
• Style: Linear
• Angle: 90
• Scale: 100

Step 7: Finishing Up

After you create this text style—especially if you want to use it again—go to New Style and save it before you click OK.

With that wrapped up, you can quickly switch back and forth on the visibility between your two button layers, to see what the “up” and “down” states look like.

Pretty cool, huh? To save your file, go File > Save As, and save it as the proper file format for whatever project you may be working on.

Customize Your Blog With 3D Buttons and Widgets

Now that you know how to create 3D buttons in Photoshop, you can get creative with it, designing your own 3D buttons to suit your needs. And with these skills in your arsenal you can make a product that is not only professional, but personal-looking, too.

Want to know about other things that you can do with this program? Here’s how to remove a background in Photoshop.

Read the full article: How to Create 3D Buttons Using Adobe Photoshop

Read Full Article

13 ways to screw over your internet provider

Internet providers are real bastards: they have captive audiences whom they squeeze for every last penny while they fight against regulation like net neutrality and donate immense amounts of money to keep on lawmakers’ good sides. So why not turn the tables? Here are 13 ways to make sure your ISP has a hard time taking advantage of you (and may even put it on the defensive).

Disclosure: Verizon, an internet provider guilty of all these infractions, owns TechCrunch, and I don’t care.

1. Buy a modem and router instead of renting

The practice of renting a device to users rather than selling it or providing it as part of the service is one of the telecommunications industry’s oldest and worst. People pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars over years for equipment worth $40 or $50. ISPs do this with various items, but the most common item is probably the modem.

This is the gadget that connects to the cable coming out of your wall, and then connects in turn (or may also function as) your wireless and wired router. ISPs often provide this equipment at the time of install, and then charge you $5 to $10 per month forever. What they don’t tell you is you can probably buy the exact same item for somewhere between $30 and $100.

The exact model you need will depend on your service, but it will be listed somewhere, and they should tell you what they’d provide if you ask. Look online, buy a new or lightly used one, and it will have paid for itself before the year is out. Not only that, but you can do stuff like upgrade or change the software on it all you want, because it’s yours. Bonus: The ISP is limited in what it can do to the router (like letting other people connect — yes, it’s a thing).

2. Avoid service calls, or if you can’t, insist they’re free

I had an issue with my Comcast internet a while back that took them several visits from a service tech to resolve. It wasn’t an issue on my end, which was why I was surprised to find they’d charged me $30 or so every time the person came.

If your ISP wants to send someone out, ask whether it’s free, and if it isn’t, tell them to make it free or ask if you can do it yourself (sometimes it’s for really simple stuff like swapping a cable). If they charge you for a visit, call them and ask them to take it off your bill. Say you weren’t informed and you’ll inform the Better Business Bureau about it, or take your business elsewhere, or something. They’ll fold.

When someone does come…

3. Get deals from the installer

If you do end up having someone come out, talk to them to see whether there are any off the record deals they can offer you. I don’t mean anything shady like splitting cables with the neighbor, just offers they know about that aren’t publicized because they’re too good to advertise.

A lot of these service techs are semi-independent contractors paid by the call, and their pay has nothing to do with which service you have or choose. They have no reason to upsell you and every reason to make you happy and get a good review. Sometimes that means giving you the special desperation rates ISPs withhold until you say you’re going to leave.

And as long as you’re asking…

4. Complain, complain, complain

This sounds bad, but it’s just a consequence of how these companies work: The squeaky wheels get the grease. There’s plenty of grease to go around, so get squeaking.

Usually this means calling up and doing one of several things. You can complain that service has been bad — outages and such — and ask that they compensate you for that. You can say that a competing ISP started offering service at your location and it costs $20 less, so can they match that. Or you can say your friend just got a promotional rate and you’d like to take advantage of it… otherwise you’ll leave to that phantom competitor. (After all, we know there’s often little or no real competition.)

What ISPs, and, more importantly, what their customer service representatives care about is keeping you on as a customer. They can always raise rates or upsell you later, but having you as a subscriber is the important thing.

Note that some reps are more game than others. Some will give you the runaround, while others will bend over backwards to help you out. Feel free to call a few times and do a bit of window shopping. (By the way, if you get someone nice, give them a good review if you get the chance, usually right after the call or chat. It helps them out a lot.) Obviously you can’t call every week with new demands, so wait until you think you can actually save some money.

Which reminds me…

5. Choose your service level wisely

ISPs offer a ton of choices, and make it confusing on purpose so you end up picking an expensive one just to be sure you have what you need. The truth is most people can probably do pretty much everything they need on the lowest tier they offer.

A 1080p Netflix stream will work fine on a 25 Mbps connection, which is what I have. I also work entirely online, stream high-def videos at a dozen sites all day, play games, download movies and do lots of other stuff, sometimes all at the same time. I think I pay $45 a month. But rates like mine might not be advertised prominently or at all. I only found out when I literally asked what the cheapest possible option was.

That said, if you have three kids who like to watch videos simultaneously, or you have a 4K streaming setup that you use a lot, you’ll want to bump that up a bit. But you’d be surprised how seldom the speed limit actually comes into play.

To be clear, it’s still important that higher tiers are available, and that internet providers upgrade their infrastructure, because competition and reliability need to go up and prices need to come down. The full promise of broadband should be accessible to everyone for a reasonable fee, and that’s still not the case.

6. Stream everything because broadcast TV is a joke

Cord-cutting is fun. Broadcast TV is annoying, and getting around ads and air times using a DVR is very 2005. Most shows are available on streaming services of some kind or another, and while those services are multiplying, you could probably join all of them for well under what you’re paying for the 150 cable channels you never watch.

Unless you really need to watch certain games or news shows as they’re broadcast, you can get by streaming everything. This has the side effect of starving networks of viewers and accelerating the demise of these 20th-century relics. Good ones will survive as producers and distributors of quality programming, and you can support them individually on their own merits. It’s a weird transitional time for TV, but we need to drop-kick them into the future so they’ll stop charging us for a media structure established 50 years ago.

Something isn’t available on a streaming service? 100 percent chance it’s because of some dumb exclusivity deal or licensing SNAFU. Go pirate it for now, then happily pay for it as soon as it’s made available. This method is simple for you and instructive for media companies. (They always see piracy rates drop when they make things easy to find and purchase.)

This also lets you avoid certain fees ISPs love tacking onto your bill. I had a “broadcast TV fee” on my bill despite not having any kind of broadcast service, and I managed to get it taken off and retroactively paid back.

On that note…

7. Watch your bill like a hawk

Telecoms just love putting things on your bill with no warning. It’s amazing how much a bill can swell from the quoted amount once they’ve added all the little fees, taxes and service charges. What are they, anyway? Why not call and ask?

You might find out, as I did, that your ISP had “mistakenly” been charging you for something — like equipment — that you never had nor asked for. Amazing how these lucrative little fees tend to fall through the cracks!

Small charges often increase and new ones get added as well, so download your bill when you get it and keep it somewhere (or just keep the paper copies). These are really handy to have when you’re on the phone with a rep. “Why wasn’t I informed my bill would increase this month by $50?” “Why is this fee more now than it was in July?” “Why do I pay a broadcast fee if I don’t pay for TV?” These are the types of questions that get you discounts.

Staying on top of these fees also means you’ll be more aware when there are things like mass refunds or class action lawsuits about them. Usually these have to be opted into — your ISP isn’t going to call you, apologize and send a check.

As long as you’re looking closely at your bill…

8. Go to your account and opt out of everything

When you sign up for broadband service, you’re going to get opted into a whole heap of things. They don’t tell you about these, like the ads they can inject, the way they’re selling this or that data or that your router might be used as a public Wi-Fi hotspot.

You’ll only find this out if you go to your account page at your ISP’s website and look at everything. Beyond the usual settings like your address and choice of whether to receive a paper bill, you’ll probably find a few categories like “privacy” and “communications preferences.”

Click through all of these and look for any options to opt out of stuff. You may find that your ISP has reserved the right to let partners email you, use your data in ways you wouldn’t expect and so on. It only takes a few minutes to get out of all this, and it deprives the ISP of a source of income while also providing a data point that subscribers don’t like these practices.

9. Share your passwords

Your friend’s internet provider gets him streaming services A, B and C, while yours gives you X, Y and Z. Again, this is not about creators struggling to get their content online, but rather all about big media and internet corporations striking deals that make them money and harm consumers.

Share your (unique, not reused!) passwords widely and with a clean conscience. No company objects when you invite your friends over to watch “Fleabag” at your house. This just saves everyone a drive!

10. Encrypt everything and block trackers

One of the internet companies’ many dirty little deals is collecting and selling information on their customers’ watching and browsing habits. Encrypting your internet traffic puts the kibosh on this creepy practice — as well as being good security.

This isn’t really something you can do too much to accomplish, since over the last few years encryption has become the rule rather than the exception, even at sites where you don’t log in or buy anything. If you want to be sure, download a browser plug-in like HTTPS everywhere, which opts you into a secure connection anywhere it’s available. You can tell it’s secure because the URL says “https://” instead of “http://” — and most browsers have other indicators or warnings as well.

You should also use an ad blocker, not necessarily to block ads that keep outlets like TechCrunch alive (please), but to block trackers seeded across the web by companies that use sophisticated techniques to record everything you do. ISPs are among these and/or do business with them, so everything you can do to hinder them is a little mud in their eye.

Incidentally there are lots of ways you can protect your privacy from those who would invade it — we’ve got a pretty thorough guide here.

11. Use a different DNS

Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch

On a similar note, most ISPs will usually be set up by default with their own “Domain Name Service,” which is the thing that your browser pings to convert a text web URL (like “techcrunch.com”) to its numerical IP address.

There are lots of these to choose from, and they all work, but if you use your ISP’s, it makes it much easier for them to track your internet activity. They also can block certain websites by refusing to provide the IP for content they don’t like.

TechCrunch doesn’t officially endorse one, but lots of companies offer free, fast DNS that’s easy to switch to. Here’s a good list; there are big ones (Google, Cloudflare), “open” ones (OpenDNS, OpenNIC) and others with some niche features. All you need to do is slot those two numbers into your internet configuration, following the instructions they provide. You can change it back at any time.

Setting up a VPN is another option for very privacy-conscious individuals, but it can be complicated. And speaking of complicated…

12. Run a home server

This is a bit advanced, but it’s definitely something ISPs hate. Setting up your home computer or a dedicated device to host a website, script or service seems like a natural use of an always-on internet connection, but just about everyone in the world would rather you sign up for their service, hosted on their hardware and their connection.

Well, you don’t have to! You can do it on your own. Of course, you’ll have to learn how to run and install a probably Unix-based server, handle registry stuff, install various packages and keep up to date so you don’t get owned by some worm or bot… but you’ll have defied the will of the ISP. That’s the important thing.

13. Talk to your local government

ISPs hate all the things above, but what they hate the most by far is regulation. And you, as a valued citizen of your state and municipality, are in a position to demand it. Senators, representatives, governors, mayors, city councils and everyone else actually love to hear from their constituency, not because they desire conversation but because they can use it to justify policy.

During the net neutrality fight, a constant refrain I heard from government officials was how much they’d heard from voters about the issue and how unanimous it was (in support, naturally). A call or email from you won’t sway national politics, but a few thousand calls or emails from people in your city just might sway a local law or election. These things add up, and they do matter. State net neutrality policies are now the subject of national attention, and local privacy laws like those in Illinois are the bane of many a shady company.

Tell your local government about your experience with ISPs — outages, fees, sneaky practices or even good stuff — and they’ll file it away for when that data is needed, such as renegotiating the contracts national companies sign with those governments in order to operate in their territories.

Internet providers only do what they do because they are permitted to, and even then they often step outside the bounds of what’s acceptable — which is why rules like net neutrality are needed. But first people have to speak out.

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Game Show

Game Show

13 ways to screw over your internet provider

Internet providers are real bastards: they have captive audiences whom they squeeze for every last penny while they fight against regulation like net neutrality and donate immense amounts of money to keep on lawmakers’ good sides. So why not turn the tables? Here are 13 ways to make sure your ISP has a hard time taking advantage of you (and may even put it on the defensive).

Disclosure: Verizon, an internet provider guilty of all these infractions, owns TechCrunch, and I don’t care.

1. Buy a modem and router instead of renting

The practice of renting a device to users rather than selling it or providing it as part of the service is one of the telecommunications industry’s oldest and worst. People pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars over years for equipment worth $40 or $50. ISPs do this with various items, but the most common item is probably the modem.

This is the gadget that connects to the cable coming out of your wall, and then connects in turn (or may also function as) your wireless and wired router. ISPs often provide this equipment at the time of install, and then charge you $5 to $10 per month forever. What they don’t tell you is you can probably buy the exact same item for somewhere between $30 and $100.

The exact model you need will depend on your service, but it will be listed somewhere, and they should tell you what they’d provide if you ask. Look online, buy a new or lightly used one, and it will have paid for itself before the year is out. Not only that, but you can do stuff like upgrade or change the software on it all you want, because it’s yours. Bonus: The ISP is limited in what it can do to the router (like letting other people connect — yes, it’s a thing).

2. Avoid service calls, or if you can’t, insist they’re free

I had an issue with my Comcast internet a while back that took them several visits from a service tech to resolve. It wasn’t an issue on my end, which was why I was surprised to find they’d charged me $30 or so every time the person came.

If your ISP wants to send someone out, ask whether it’s free, and if it isn’t, tell them to make it free or ask if you can do it yourself (sometimes it’s for really simple stuff like swapping a cable). If they charge you for a visit, call them and ask them to take it off your bill. Say you weren’t informed and you’ll inform the Better Business Bureau about it, or take your business elsewhere, or something. They’ll fold.

When someone does come…

3. Get deals from the installer

If you do end up having someone come out, talk to them to see whether there are any off the record deals they can offer you. I don’t mean anything shady like splitting cables with the neighbor, just offers they know about that aren’t publicized because they’re too good to advertise.

A lot of these service techs are semi-independent contractors paid by the call, and their pay has nothing to do with which service you have or choose. They have no reason to upsell you and every reason to make you happy and get a good review. Sometimes that means giving you the special desperation rates ISPs withhold until you say you’re going to leave.

And as long as you’re asking…

4. Complain, complain, complain

This sounds bad, but it’s just a consequence of how these companies work: The squeaky wheels get the grease. There’s plenty of grease to go around, so get squeaking.

Usually this means calling up and doing one of several things. You can complain that service has been bad — outages and such — and ask that they compensate you for that. You can say that a competing ISP started offering service at your location and it costs $20 less, so can they match that. Or you can say your friend just got a promotional rate and you’d like to take advantage of it… otherwise you’ll leave to that phantom competitor. (After all, we know there’s often little or no real competition.)

What ISPs, and, more importantly, what their customer service representatives care about is keeping you on as a customer. They can always raise rates or upsell you later, but having you as a subscriber is the important thing.

Note that some reps are more game than others. Some will give you the runaround, while others will bend over backwards to help you out. Feel free to call a few times and do a bit of window shopping. (By the way, if you get someone nice, give them a good review if you get the chance, usually right after the call or chat. It helps them out a lot.) Obviously you can’t call every week with new demands, so wait until you think you can actually save some money.

Which reminds me…

5. Choose your service level wisely

ISPs offer a ton of choices, and make it confusing on purpose so you end up picking an expensive one just to be sure you have what you need. The truth is most people can probably do pretty much everything they need on the lowest tier they offer.

A 1080p Netflix stream will work fine on a 25 Mbps connection, which is what I have. I also work entirely online, stream high-def videos at a dozen sites all day, play games, download movies and do lots of other stuff, sometimes all at the same time. I think I pay $45 a month. But rates like mine might not be advertised prominently or at all. I only found out when I literally asked what the cheapest possible option was.

That said, if you have three kids who like to watch videos simultaneously, or you have a 4K streaming setup that you use a lot, you’ll want to bump that up a bit. But you’d be surprised how seldom the speed limit actually comes into play.

To be clear, it’s still important that higher tiers are available, and that internet providers upgrade their infrastructure, because competition and reliability need to go up and prices need to come down. The full promise of broadband should be accessible to everyone for a reasonable fee, and that’s still not the case.

6. Stream everything because broadcast TV is a joke

Cord-cutting is fun. Broadcast TV is annoying, and getting around ads and air times using a DVR is very 2005. Most shows are available on streaming services of some kind or another, and while those services are multiplying, you could probably join all of them for well under what you’re paying for the 150 cable channels you never watch.

Unless you really need to watch certain games or news shows as they’re broadcast, you can get by streaming everything. This has the side effect of starving networks of viewers and accelerating the demise of these 20th-century relics. Good ones will survive as producers and distributors of quality programming, and you can support them individually on their own merits. It’s a weird transitional time for TV, but we need to drop-kick them into the future so they’ll stop charging us for a media structure established 50 years ago.

Something isn’t available on a streaming service? 100 percent chance it’s because of some dumb exclusivity deal or licensing SNAFU. Go pirate it for now, then happily pay for it as soon as it’s made available. This method is simple for you and instructive for media companies. (They always see piracy rates drop when they make things easy to find and purchase.)

This also lets you avoid certain fees ISPs love tacking onto your bill. I had a “broadcast TV fee” on my bill despite not having any kind of broadcast service, and I managed to get it taken off and retroactively paid back.

On that note…

7. Watch your bill like a hawk

Telecoms just love putting things on your bill with no warning. It’s amazing how much a bill can swell from the quoted amount once they’ve added all the little fees, taxes and service charges. What are they, anyway? Why not call and ask?

You might find out, as I did, that your ISP had “mistakenly” been charging you for something — like equipment — that you never had nor asked for. Amazing how these lucrative little fees tend to fall through the cracks!

Small charges often increase and new ones get added as well, so download your bill when you get it and keep it somewhere (or just keep the paper copies). These are really handy to have when you’re on the phone with a rep. “Why wasn’t I informed my bill would increase this month by $50?” “Why is this fee more now than it was in July?” “Why do I pay a broadcast fee if I don’t pay for TV?” These are the types of questions that get you discounts.

Staying on top of these fees also means you’ll be more aware when there are things like mass refunds or class action lawsuits about them. Usually these have to be opted into — your ISP isn’t going to call you, apologize and send a check.

As long as you’re looking closely at your bill…

8. Go to your account and opt out of everything

When you sign up for broadband service, you’re going to get opted into a whole heap of things. They don’t tell you about these, like the ads they can inject, the way they’re selling this or that data or that your router might be used as a public Wi-Fi hotspot.

You’ll only find this out if you go to your account page at your ISP’s website and look at everything. Beyond the usual settings like your address and choice of whether to receive a paper bill, you’ll probably find a few categories like “privacy” and “communications preferences.”

Click through all of these and look for any options to opt out of stuff. You may find that your ISP has reserved the right to let partners email you, use your data in ways you wouldn’t expect and so on. It only takes a few minutes to get out of all this, and it deprives the ISP of a source of income while also providing a data point that subscribers don’t like these practices.

9. Share your passwords

Your friend’s internet provider gets him streaming services A, B and C, while yours gives you X, Y and Z. Again, this is not about creators struggling to get their content online, but rather all about big media and internet corporations striking deals that make them money and harm consumers.

Share your (unique, not reused!) passwords widely and with a clean conscience. No company objects when you invite your friends over to watch “Fleabag” at your house. This just saves everyone a drive!

10. Encrypt everything and block trackers

One of the internet companies’ many dirty little deals is collecting and selling information on their customers’ watching and browsing habits. Encrypting your internet traffic puts the kibosh on this creepy practice — as well as being good security.

This isn’t really something you can do too much to accomplish, since over the last few years encryption has become the rule rather than the exception, even at sites where you don’t log in or buy anything. If you want to be sure, download a browser plug-in like HTTPS everywhere, which opts you into a secure connection anywhere it’s available. You can tell it’s secure because the URL says “https://” instead of “http://” — and most browsers have other indicators or warnings as well.

You should also use an ad blocker, not necessarily to block ads that keep outlets like TechCrunch alive (please), but to block trackers seeded across the web by companies that use sophisticated techniques to record everything you do. ISPs are among these and/or do business with them, so everything you can do to hinder them is a little mud in their eye.

Incidentally there are lots of ways you can protect your privacy from those who would invade it — we’ve got a pretty thorough guide here.

11. Use a different DNS

Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch

On a similar note, most ISPs will usually be set up by default with their own “Domain Name Service,” which is the thing that your browser pings to convert a text web URL (like “techcrunch.com”) to its numerical IP address.

There are lots of these to choose from, and they all work, but if you use your ISP’s, it makes it much easier for them to track your internet activity. They also can block certain websites by refusing to provide the IP for content they don’t like.

TechCrunch doesn’t officially endorse one, but lots of companies offer free, fast DNS that’s easy to switch to. Here’s a good list; there are big ones (Google, Cloudflare), “open” ones (OpenDNS, OpenNIC) and others with some niche features. All you need to do is slot those two numbers into your internet configuration, following the instructions they provide. You can change it back at any time.

Setting up a VPN is another option for very privacy-conscious individuals, but it can be complicated. And speaking of complicated…

12. Run a home server

This is a bit advanced, but it’s definitely something ISPs hate. Setting up your home computer or a dedicated device to host a website, script or service seems like a natural use of an always-on internet connection, but just about everyone in the world would rather you sign up for their service, hosted on their hardware and their connection.

Well, you don’t have to! You can do it on your own. Of course, you’ll have to learn how to run and install a probably Unix-based server, handle registry stuff, install various packages and keep up to date so you don’t get owned by some worm or bot… but you’ll have defied the will of the ISP. That’s the important thing.

13. Talk to your local government

ISPs hate all the things above, but what they hate the most by far is regulation. And you, as a valued citizen of your state and municipality, are in a position to demand it. Senators, representatives, governors, mayors, city councils and everyone else actually love to hear from their constituency, not because they desire conversation but because they can use it to justify policy.

During the net neutrality fight, a constant refrain I heard from government officials was how much they’d heard from voters about the issue and how unanimous it was (in support, naturally). A call or email from you won’t sway national politics, but a few thousand calls or emails from people in your city just might sway a local law or election. These things add up, and they do matter. State net neutrality policies are now the subject of national attention, and local privacy laws like those in Illinois are the bane of many a shady company.

Tell your local government about your experience with ISPs — outages, fees, sneaky practices or even good stuff — and they’ll file it away for when that data is needed, such as renegotiating the contracts national companies sign with those governments in order to operate in their territories.

Internet providers only do what they do because they are permitted to, and even then they often step outside the bounds of what’s acceptable — which is why rules like net neutrality are needed. But first people have to speak out.

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Now Facebook says it may remove Like counts

Facebook could soon start hiding the Like counter on News Feed posts to protect users’ from envy and dissuade them from self-censorship. Instagram is already testing this in 7 countries including Canada and Brazil, showing a post’s audience just a few names of mutual friends who’ve Liked it instead of the total number. The idea is to prevent users from destructively comparing themselves to others and potentially feeing inadequate if their posts don’t get as many Likes. It could also stop users from deleting posts they think aren’t getting enough Likes or not sharing in the first place.

Facebook prototypes hiding like counts [via Jane Manchun Wong]

Reverse engineering master Jane Manchun Wong spotted Facebook prototyping the hidden Like counts in its Android app. When we asked Facebook, the company confirmed to TechCrunch that it’s considering testing removal of Like counts. However it’s not live for users yet. Facebook declined to share results from the Instagram Like hiding tests, its exact motives, or any schedule for starting testing. If it does decide to go ahead with a test, Facebook would likely do so gradually and pull back if it significantly hurts usage or ad revenue.

Instagram will now hide likes in 6 more countries

Still, the prototype might indicate positive results from hiding Like tallies in Instagram, which we first reported in April after it was spotted by Wong there as well. After beginning testing in Canada later that month. Instagram added Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Ireland, and Japan to the test in July. There, a post’s author can still see the Like total, but everyone else can’t. The expansion of that Instagram test and Facebook potentially trying it in its own app signals that it might have positive or negligible impacts on sharing while aiding mental health, or at least be worth a slight drop in engagement.

Instagram is already testing hiding Like counts and Facebook may soon do the same.

Facebook has gradually been relegated to the place for sharing showy life events like marriages or new jobs while Instagram and Snapchat take over for day-to-day sharing. The problem is that people have so many fewer of those big moments, and the large Like counts they attract can make other users self-conscious of their of own lives and content. That’s all problematic for Facebook’s ad views. Facebook wants to avoid scenarios such as “Look how many Likes they get. My life is lame in comparison” or “why even share if it’s not going to get as many Likes as her post and people will think I’m unpopular”.

The difference between good and bad Facebooking

Removing Like counts could put less pressure on users and encourage them to share more freely and frequently, as I wrote in 2017. It could also obscure Facebook’s own potential decline in popularity as users switch to other apps. Posts not getting as many Likes as they used to could hasten the exodus.

Read Full Article

Now Facebook says it may remove Like counts

Facebook could soon start hiding the Like counter on News Feed posts to protect users’ from envy and dissuade them from self-censorship. Instagram is already testing this in 7 countries including Canada and Brazil, showing a post’s audience just a few names of mutual friends who’ve Liked it instead of the total number. The idea is to prevent users from destructively comparing themselves to others and potentially feeing inadequate if their posts don’t get as many Likes. It could also stop users from deleting posts they think aren’t getting enough Likes or not sharing in the first place.

Facebook prototypes hiding like counts [via Jane Manchun Wong]

Reverse engineering master Jane Manchun Wong spotted Facebook prototyping the hidden Like counts in its Android app. When we asked Facebook, the company confirmed to TechCrunch that it’s considering testing removal of Like counts. However it’s not live for users yet. Facebook declined to share results from the Instagram Like hiding tests, its exact motives, or any schedule for starting testing. If it does decide to go ahead with a test, Facebook would likely do so gradually and pull back if it significantly hurts usage or ad revenue.

Instagram will now hide likes in 6 more countries

Still, the prototype might indicate positive results from hiding Like tallies in Instagram, which we first reported in April after it was spotted by Wong there as well. After beginning testing in Canada later that month. Instagram added Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Ireland, and Japan to the test in July. There, a post’s author can still see the Like total, but everyone else can’t. The expansion of that Instagram test and Facebook potentially trying it in its own app signals that it might have positive or negligible impacts on sharing while aiding mental health, or at least be worth a slight drop in engagement.

Instagram is already testing hiding Like counts and Facebook may soon do the same.

Facebook has gradually been relegated to the place for sharing showy life events like marriages or new jobs while Instagram and Snapchat take over for day-to-day sharing. The problem is that people have so many fewer of those big moments, and the large Like counts they attract can make other users self-conscious of their of own lives and content. That’s all problematic for Facebook’s ad views. Facebook wants to avoid scenarios such as “Look how many Likes they get. My life is lame in comparison” or “why even share if it’s not going to get as many Likes as her post and people will think I’m unpopular”.

The difference between good and bad Facebooking

Removing Like counts could put less pressure on users and encourage them to share more freely and frequently, as I wrote in 2017. It could also obscure Facebook’s own potential decline in popularity as users switch to other apps. Posts not getting as many Likes as they used to could hasten the exodus.

Read Full Article

The 9 Best Baking Recipe Websites for Delicious Dessert Ideas

Do you have no idea what delicious treat you should bake next? Coming up with your own recipes is challenging and baking the same recipe over and over gets boring.

If you’ve run out of ideas, there are plenty of resources you can use to get some inspiration. End your baking dry spell and check out these websites for baking inspiration and recipes.

1. Baking Mad

When you need some new baking recipes to satisfy your sweet tooth, head to Baking Mad. The site features hundreds of easy-to-follow recipes for cakes, cookies, bread, pancakes, cupcakes, and pies.

Each recipe displays a difficulty level and lets you know if it satisfies special dietary requirements. This makes it perfect for those living a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle.

If you need a more hands-on approach, Baking Mad also has baking videos you can watch as you create your treat. For even more baking help, you can check out Baking Mad’s tips and tricks section—it features advice on everything from substituting eggs to making self-rising flour.

Baking Mad is your all-in-one source for baking needs, and the site even includes its own bakeware shop.

2. My Baking Addiction

My Baking Addiction was created by baking hobbyist, Jamie. The website includes a collection of her own recipes, a personal blog, as well as dessert inspiration from her travels.

You won’t have trouble figuring out your next baking project on My Baking Addiction. Head to the main menu, and click Recipe Index under the Recipes tab. From here, you can filter and find recipes based on easiness, type of dessert, and whether it requires baking in the oven.

3. Sally’s Baking Addiction

Sally’s Baking Addiction is run by self-taught baker and cookbook author, Sally McKenney. You can find several recipes on just about any sweet treat that you can think of—candy, donuts, frosting, and ice cream are just some of the recipes you’ll come across.

Additionally, you can find recipes based on the type of treat, the season, or a specific ingredient.

Every month, Sally posts baking challenges for those who want to put their skills to the test. Sally walks you through an expert-level recipe, and you’ll feel proud once you successfully complete it!

In case you’re tired of baking desserts, Sally’s Baking Addiction has plenty of dinner ideas as well.

4. Joy of Baking

Although the Joy of Baking website isn’t the most attractive and has its fair share of ads, it’s still a reliable resource for unique and tasty recipes. Stephanie Jaworski created Joy of Baking way back in 1997 as a way to interact with other bakers. While Stephanie handles the recipes, her husband tackles all the photos and videography for the site.

In fact, her YouTube channel is one of the best cooking channels on the web.

As soon as you open the site, you’ll probably get overwhelmed by the number of options. The leftmost and top sidebars house several recipe categories like eggless recipes, apple recipes, cakes, and healthy baking.

Each recipe comes with high-quality videos that show you exactly how to get the decadent results you want.

5. Brown Eyed Baker

If you want recipes with a personal touch, check out Brown Eyed Baker. Clicking on the Start Here button at the top of the screen introduces you to the site. The mind behind Brown Eyed Baker, Michelle, prides herself on providing recipes that are uncomplicated, yet delicious.

To browse the entire site for recipes, navigate to the Recipe Index. Here, you can select the category of dessert you want to bake, as well as search by ingredient. Brown Eyed Baker gives recommendations on ingredients and baking equipment as well.

6. Bakerella

Bakerella offers a clean and organized website for several types of desserts. The owner of the site, Angie, focuses on simple and fun recipes. On the home screen, you’ll find the most recently added recipe, along with instructions.

The Sweet Stuff category on the top menu bar contains all Bakerella’s recipes, such as cakes, cookies, pies, brownies, and more. You’ll also find cake pop recipes, holiday recipes, and links to Angie’s own cookbooks.

7. Passion for Baking

Once you head to Passion for Baking, you’ll immediately get inspired (and hungry) by the collection of amazing dessert photos—the treats almost look too good to eat!

Manuela Kjeilen created the site with the goal to spark creativity in other bakers, and her unique recipes do just that.

When you click on one of the recipes, you’ll see a short introduction that shows pictures of the completed dessert. The mouthwatering photos are followed by an ingredient list, along with detailed step-by-step instructions. Better yet, you can scroll down and see photos of the dessert’s entire baking process.

8. Amy’s Healthy Baking

If you’re looking for sites with healthy food recipes, Amy’s Healthy Baking is a great place to start. The words “healthy” and “baking” don’t seem to go together, but Amy makes it work. It’s hard to bake desserts that are healthy and tasty, so it’s impressive to see so many dessert recipes that won’t ruin your diet.

Each recipe has a low-calorie count that Amy will mention in the description of each recipe. When you want to indulge without all the extra sugar and fat, one of these recipes is the perfect healthy solution.

On this site, you’ll also find advice on how to start your own cooking blog and even some recommendations for kitchen supplies.

9. The Cake Blog

The Cake Blog has some of the most extravagant and creative cake recipes. If you have a special event coming up, try your hand at making one of these recipes, and you won’t fail to impress all your guests.

You might not have expert cake creation skills, and that’s okay. Navigate to the Tutorials tab on the top menu bar, and you’ll see a collection of unique cakes that you can bake. They look intimidating, but the provided step-by-step tutorials break down the entire process.

Experiment With Baking Recipes

You don’t have to keep baking the same apple pie or generic chocolate cake at your family’s get-togethers. Instead, you should expand your cookbook by checking out the desserts on one of the above websites. There’s nothing more satisfying than successfully baking a new recipe, and seeing others enjoy it.

When you find multiple recipes you want to try, you’ll need a way to manage them. Luckily, these recipe management apps can help you organize and keep track of all your recipes.

Read the full article: The 9 Best Baking Recipe Websites for Delicious Dessert Ideas

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