Sites of the week

If there’s a video format out there, odds are VLC can play it. From DVD to MKV, VLC can just play it.

VLC also offers features such as transcoding and streaming support for the advanced user. I recently set up VLC as the default player on a computer for my friend’s five-year-old daughter. She can double-click a movie and VLC is set to open full-screen and start playing. No hassle.

If you don’t have VLC, just get it. It’s free, it runs on Macs, Windows, and Linux. It plays almost everything, and it just works. It has plenty of advanced settings if you want them, but mostly, double-click and start watching.

• Get VLC now

Microsoft has spent considerable time distancing themselves from the horrors of FrontPage. Part of that effort is Expression Web, the replacement and much-improved web design application. While I don’t use Expression Web, all of us at the office have recently installed SuperPreview for Windows Internet Explorer, a really nice tool in these days of multiple browser versions.

SuperPreview is all about comparison. Choose IE6, your current version of IE (If you are using IE8 you can opt for Compatibility Mode), or an image – even a Photoshop PSD file. Select any two and display them next to, above and below, even overlaid on each other. Simultaneously scroll both panes and zoom in to 500% for pixel-perfect analysis. Box Highliting will select the same item on both panes, and select it in the DOM if you choose to view it. You can change the rendered browser size, and more.

Expression Web has a more complete version, including the ability to add other installed browsers like Firefox or Safari. But, then, it’s $300, and SuperPreview is free. It doens’t work every time (on my machine msnbc.com will not render under IE6) but it’s better than wandering off to the computer with IE6 still installed.

• Pick up SuperPreview from Microsoft

Microsoft’s SyncToy is a great free way to copy or synchronize files in Windows. With both a convenient user interface and a command line, SyncToy can be set to copy files manually, on a schedule, or triggered to run during events. My girlfriend’s computer is set up so when she logs in, it will copy her USB stick on which she stores most of her files to a network share if it’s connected. I use it to duplicate my important data from my file server to a large drive in my desktop PC as an on-site backup.

SyncToy has three modes for all sorts of different needs. If you find yourself copying files, or wishing you had,  SyncToy might be for you.

• Download SyncToy from Microsoft 

Paparazzi! isn’t new, but it works, and works well. It takes pictures of websites using the WebKit (Safari) engine on your Macintosh. Last updated in 2006, but still just as useful, Paparazzi! lets you set a number of options including a delay, which can be useful for timing moving images or page dynamic effects. It’s not for everyone, but if you need website screenshots or captures, this is a great, free option.

• Learn more about Paparazzi!

If you’ve ever loaded your programs in order so they show up in the right order on your Taskbar, then you need Taskbar Shuffle. This simple, free little app for Windows (95/98/NT/2000/XP/Vista, 32-bit and 64-bit) lets you drag and drop your taskbar buttons around.

• Go Download Taskbar Shuffle

If you’ve got a netbook running Windows, then you need EeeRotate. This tiny program does one thing, lets you rotate your screen and trackpad 270 degrees (right side becomes top), so you can hold your laptop like a book and read.

You can use this same small program on any PC — I’ve tested it on a netbook running XP on an 8.9-inch screen and a desktop running Vista on a 30-inch screen. It’s handy if you need a temporary rotated view or want to confuse people.

As a special note for Synergy users, Synergy did not respond well when the server’s screen was rotated. The cursor, but not the ability to click, was on the server, the keyboard was on another.

• Get EeeRotate Now.

I have a shiny new iPod Touch 16GB, but to carry all my music around, I still rely on my 60GB iPod (Photo).  Now, I have five computers that I use regularly (two at home, two at work, and a laptop) and getting music from my home library to my work library is sometimes painful.

SharePod solves that by allowing me to manage my music from a free,  small program I keep on the iPod itself. It’s just a few megs, and you can add and remove songs, create and change playlists. When my hard drive failed in my home PC, SharePod exported all my music, playlists, ratings, playcounts… everything into a format iTunes could import.

SharePod is donation-supported, so take a look, and if you like it, shoot Jeff a couple of dollars using the donation link on the Download page.

• Get SharePod for free.

I have two computers on my desk at work, a PC and a Mac, and occasionally my laptop joins them. At home, I have two PCs next to each other. In both cases, I use the open source software Synergy to control all the computers with a single mouse and keyboard. Synergy allows the cursor to move from screen to screen as though they were one computer. Whichever computer has the cursor also has the keyboard focus. What’s more, Synergy brings the clipboard contents with it (only text between Macs and PCs last I checked).

Just choose one computer to be the server — the computer with the mouse and keyboard attached — and the rest connect as clients. Synergy runs inside the operating system, so don’t expect to modify BIOS settings or select startup options with a remote keyboard.

Installation is easy under Windows (works with Windows 95 through Vista). There is no installer or configuration tool for Macintosh, but the online documentation is quite extensive, and even includes step-by-step instructions to have to launch automatically.

Configuring Synergy  uses a somewhat confusing interface.  You have to identify each computer which will be connected (even the host) and how the different screens “touch” each other. You have to tell it how to get out from each screen, even if it is the opposite of the way you got on to it.  During initial setup you may find your cursor “stranded” on a screen with no way off. Exiting Synergy on that computer will return your cursor to the main screen.

I even leave the Synergy client running on my laptop, so when I open it at work, I can control it with the same keyboard and mouse I always use.

While it isn’t for everyone, there are plenty of multiple-computer users that could benefit from the simplicity of one keyboard, one mouse, and no hassled (well, after setup).

• Take a look at Syngery on SourceForge.

PDFs are an Internet standard format, but most of us don’t have the cash or the interest in spending three hundred dollars or more on a copy of Adobe Acrobat. Fortunately, we don’t have to.

CutePDF Writer is free software from Acro Software Inc. A single, simple installer for Windows 98, ME, 2000, XP, or Vista (32-bit or 64-bit supported on XP and Vista) — less than 2MB for current version 2.73 –  and you  have a virtual printer on your computer that creates PDFs.

Due to restrictions of certain free software license, the installer will ask you for permission to download an additional component from the web. This is a normal part of the installation, and required to make CutePDF Writer work.

It does a great job, and couldn’t be easier to use. They do offer a Pro version, which has a number of additional features, if you’re looking for something more capable.

• Check out the free CutePDF Writer from Acro Software Inc.

If you are a typical computer users, you probably have a few things running at once. If you are a multi-tasker, you may have a few more. Today, I have eleven windows in nine programs on my primary computer, and three more on my secondary. I have a large enough screen that working with maximized windows is impractical, so my workspace becomes cluttered pretty quickly.

This is where TopDesk by Otaku Software comes in. For $19.95, TopDesk gives you Mac OS X-style Expose features. After installing and selecting the “Scale” option, pressing F9 (by default, though TopDesk is highly configurable) all your windows will shrink to fit on the screen without overlapping, allowing you to see and select the window you need. TopDesk also offers a Mac-style Show Desktop feature which undoes better than Windows’ own Win-D command.

TopDesk doesn’t interrupt drag-and-drop operations, so you can select an item, switch windows and drop it. The web site has plenty of screenshots and video of the product in action, and they offer a 30-day trial version, so go take a look.

• Learn more about TopDesk by Otaku Software