Gustloff Page featured in Local Newspaper (1 Feb 99) Over 1400 visitors in two days! Indeed, as a result of an article published by the The Victoria's Times Colonist on Feb 1st, featuring our Gustloff page, 1400 surfers logged in and, they keep coming. New features have been added and many pages were recently updated . Check it out right here

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Get the Past Issues Past issues of the Compuflash Bulletins are also available. They are listed in reversed chronological order. This will allow you to find any topic using the search function of your browser. Most of the topics are still very much current!

Current issues in HTML format

What's New at Omega?

Omega goes 'Frames'

Graphics Apps

Web Graphics Optimizer

Forget the pain of repeatedly making changes on your graphics, saving them, loading and seeing the results and then undoing until you find the best settings. Now you can instantly see the changes in realtime, with up to 5 variations to compare! Check file sizes without saving your images! WebGraphics Optimizer can also be used for the entire process of image handling: Starting with scanning an image, manipulating it in several ways, and finally saving it in the desired graphics file format. Get all the details at the author's homepage.

PhotoVista

PhotoVista is for Web designers who want to enhance visual communication on their Web sites with zoomable 360º panoramic images that visitors can experience, not just look at. PhotoVista turns a series of snapshots into a eamless panorama in minutes. Panoramic files are high-resolution and bandwidth-friendly -- so your images burst onto the screen. Now your site visitors can interact with high resolution panoramas in real time without a plug-in!

The Trial and Update Version functions as an update to PhotoVista 1.0 for customers who enter their serial number and activation key from PhotoVista 1.0 on first launch. If a serial number and activation key are not entered on first launch, the Trial and Update Version will serve as a fully functional PhotoVista program but will add a watermark to all panoramas created. Upon entering a valid activation key, the program will no longer add the Live Picture Watermark. There is no time-out when the Trial and Update Version is used as a Trial program. Check the details at the author's homepage or here The Homepage also includes lik to a 2.5 MegB Manual and a 16 MB Demo

Even if you are not planning to use this program, I recommend you check out their homepage if only to learn how to make 'panoramic' shots! Most interesting.

Educational Software/Homesites

Newtown Bee

If you are new to the Internet and are wondering just what it's all about then search no more. The Newtown Bee will answer all of your 'newbie' questions and then more! Since I discovered this little gem, I have spent hours exploring the hundreds of articles and chasing their recommended links all over the map. And I expect to spend much more time doing the same in the near future.

This site is incredible! For example, a visit to the Victor Borge's info page will lead you to a wealth of information on what Seniors can do on the Net. And every 'info page', as the author calls it, is a gold mine of data of interest to any serious surfer.

What really got me all fired up about this site is the incredible amount of useful information it, and the links provided, contain. The site covers subjects which, at first sight, have little to do with 'surfing the Net' yet, in a way, have everything to do with it. For example, I found an article about 'heart attack'. In turn, this article led me to the best sources one could find on the subject on the Net. And I could go on, and on... An Omega's Latest Jewel Award winner! Check it out folks!

Registry F.A.Q.

If you always wanted to 'play' with your registry but were afraid to mess it up, this 134 page Adobe document might be of help before you take the big plunge. It contains much more than topics on the Registry. In fact it has over 250 topics! At the very least, it makes for interesting reading. < /a>

Music - On and Off the Net

Record your favorite CDs.

RecordIt™ lets you easily record your favorite CDs to your computer, Jaz® or Zip® drives. Pretend you're a DJ or the program manager at a radio station recording the play list of the day. You'll get the most out of your disk space because using QDesign* Corporation's realtime compression, you can record music from one to two hours on a single 100MB Zip Disk, or ten to thirty hours on a 1GB Jaz disk! You can also record live audio from your computer's microphone or line in source with RecordIt. I strongly suggest you get all the details here first

Internet Tools & Apps

FlexSite

You'll find a gang of 'wize guy' wizards in FlexSite ready to help you code some of the more complex HTML Web page structures, including tables, forms, and frames. But they're only the frosting on the cake of this veteran Web editor (formerly called Web-It!), which includes a running split-screen view of editor preview windows, a project manager that can FTP a full site update online in a few mouse clicks, and an early-warning system that tracks your editing mode. FlexSite's editor has syntax highlighting, search/replace, undo/redo, and full color customization and is linked to a spelling checker for text material. There are dozens more work-saving features in this flexible authoring package, all functional from a crisp, fast-loading interface. FlexSite is well-documented and appropriate for both Internet and intranet usage. here

HTML Validator

CSE 3310 HTML Validator provides a useful toolkit for verifying syntax of HTML-formatted documents, especially those created with a 'dumb' editor. It lets you detect most errors, strip all HTML tags, and create new documents via user-defined templates. Another feature swaps cases of text enclosed in angle brackets -- < and >. You can create and save multiple configurations or use a default configuration file. The Validator will automatically hook into the HomeSite HTML editor for easy syntax checking. It also features support of Cold Fusion tags and proprietary Microsoft and Netscape extensions. The current version supports HTML up to version 3.2. You can validate up to 50 documents with the unregistered version. here

HTML Cat

TMLcat is a comprehensive (656KB), well-executed reference that covers HTML and other Web-authoring subjects such as JavaScript. It uses detailed graphical diagrams to both explain and enliven such topics as HTML, styles, and scripts. Click one of the attractive icons to reveal a pop-up list that leads you to related subject matter. Unlike the majority of reference applications, HTMLcat is actually well-written. Some topics are unavailable in this 7-day evaluation version. However, given the low-asking price for this fine utility, enough are included to help you decide if you should get it.

Frame Gang

FrameGang is an excellent way to create Netscape frames for HTML documents. Little to no knowledge of frame coding is required because creation of the frames is done visually and interactively. Just specify the number of frames you want and the target HTML file. The frames are displayed, and you can add or delete frames or resize them with your mouse. FrameGang previews the results using your browser and generates the required tags to insert into your HTML files. Excellent step-by-step tutorials are included for both novice and more-advanced HTML authors. This evaluation version expires after 14 days of use but, if you need a longer testing period, the author will supply a temporary registration number. here

HashInclude

HashInclude lets you quickly change information across multiple Web pages. By adding a new HTML tag (preprocess) to your HTML code and creating an HTML file with the new information and a simple ASCII control file, HashInclude will make the change to all files in a specified directory, or just those you designate. It's very handy for changing dates or other information that needs to be updated frequently, particularly if your HTML editor doesn't support global search-and-replace across multiple files. here

Text 2 Web

Text-to-Web is a 32-bit tool to convert text documents to html format. It now incorporates integrated clipboard support which provides an almost seamless operation for web authors who want to include snippets of text (formatted or unformatted) into their web pages. Get the details at the author's homepage or here

Browser Sizer

Ever wanted to see how your web pages look on screen resolutions of 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768 and WebTV. It controls Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator. This 'sit in your tray' application will do it. It also provides an interface to resize either browser to the standard screen resolutions. Get the details at the author's homepage.

Easy HTML Editor

A freeware HTML editor that contains numerous features such as free Javascript codes with the push of a button, color-coded tags, open multiple documents at once, built-in browser, custom toolbars and much more. (2.3Mb) here

Pretty HTML

Pretty HTML is an easy tool that formats your HTML code, making it easier to read and edit. It indents, comments, structures your HTML code according to the options you set and can even compress the size of HTML files by removing extra spaces, tabs, line breaks. (1.05Mb) Check it out.

Acquire - Bookmarks App

This is the best 'Bookmark' utility I have yet found, bar none. Easy to use and it gives you complete control over your bookmarks. What I like most about 'Acquire' is the fact you can use it as a 'stand-alone' utility. You can print your bookmarks or actually create an HTML page of all your bookmarks! Has many more features. You can even e-mail bookmarks from within the program. Definitely worth a try. Check the details at the author's homepage.

The Java Hermit

The place to go if you are looking for good Java applets complete with good instructions on how to use.

Webford HTML Editor

Superb HTML editor suitable for beginners and old-pros. You can also get it here

Ask Jeeves

I first featured this site eons ago. It was great then and is now even better.

Font Colorizer

This little app does only one thing but it does it extremely well. Add pizzazz to your homepages. Check out the details.

1 JUMP

Here's an application which should ease your Net surfing. At any time, you can enter an everyday word or phrase (like a company name, product/brand name, stock ticker, or your own defined nicknames and "one jump" directly to a site -- there's no need to check a search engine to see what the URL for a site is, because 1Jump does that job for you. What I like about 1Jump, beside the fact it is freeware, is that it comes will not add DLLs or other baggage files to your Windows/System directory and comes with an UnInstaller. The main file size is only 304Kb! If in a hurry, you can get it here

HOW TO WRITE HTML - BEST LINKS

Looking for some help in writing HTML? This site provides hundreds of links to the best help available on the subject. Ideal for the beginner and the 'very' experienced author.

Astronomy

Incredible!

Ever wanted to see what it felt like to be sitting in the Pilot's seat of the space Shuttle? If you already have QuickTime Ver 3 installed, you can check it out right now by clicking HERE. At the same site you can also visit the old and the new Johnson Space Center Control Rooms and go inside the new Space Station. Simply incredible what you can do these days on the Net. If you don't have the QuickTime plug-in installed you can also get it HERE.You can find out more about this new technology stuff right HERE.Here is another superb plug-in video player you can add to your arsenal. It is called the VivoActive Player and can be used to enjoy several super views of the space program listed HERE

COSMO PLAYER

The COSMO PLAYER is another nice multimedia plug-in you can install in order to view superb space-related shots available from the CNN Interactive media Center This plug-in is rather large (3.1 MegB) but worth it! Once you have the plug-in installed, try this International Space Station animation for a start. It may take up to 5 minutes to load but is well worth the wait. Another worthy multimedia plug-in is the World View. I have used both and recommend them.

Stella 2000 3.0

Interactive astronomy at its best. A Virtual Observatory in which to explore realistic skies in real time, complete with observing log and list builder, telescope optics, customizable reports, live ephemeris, location browser, and a sophisticated search embracing planets, comets, DSOs, and over 15500 stars.

Visual Planets - Solar System

Visual Planets is a multimedia excursion around our Solar System. The program, already a classic, extends and deepens our acquaintance with the Sun and its nine Planets, using the power of hypertext to connect images to information about each body's moons, atmosphere, structure, rings, statistics, mythology, and the spacecraft that have done more than anything else to probe their secrets. Unfamiliar astronomical terms are equipped with yet further hyperlinks to more definitions. Underpinning Visual Planets are more than 100 direct links to some of the more unusual definitions taken from its companion reference work the New Windows Dictionary of Astronomy. A revolution in planetary science has been brought about by the use of interplanetary spacecraft. Visual Planets has been created in the light of new knowledge and contains over 150 of the best images from NASA's planetary exploration program.

Misc Apps

Clean System Directory

This program scans your system looking for all references to DLL files in your Windows system directory. You can move .dll files that have no programs calling on them out of the system directory and delete them, saving disk space and improving system performance.

Find Dead Files

FDFiles uses the "last access date" date stamp available under Win95 and WinNT to help you "find dead files" on your system. Over time, unused files can accumulate from old applications you've upgraded or no longer use, or undeleted temporary files. FDFiles lets you find these files and remove them from your system.

Software Galore

Check this site out. These Shareware programs are complete, fully functioning programs. They are not crippled in any way, nor do they incorporate nag screens.

Parting Remarks

Here's hoping you enjoy this first issue of the year.

Enjoy!

John

This page has been accessed times since 2 Feb 99

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