How To Turn A Movie Into An Animated GIF

How To Turn A Movie Into An Animated GIF: "

The animated .GIF is a strange form of expression. It is only twenty or thirty frames, completely devoid of sound, repeating in an endless loop. Yet there is something intoxicating about an animated .GIF, like staring into the eyes of a hypnotist.

Creating your own animated .GIF from a movie can be a lot of fun. Animated .GIF images can be used as an avatar on a website or can be distributed among your friends. And while there are many animated .GIF images already made, creating your own will give you a distinct, unique image.

The weapon of choice in this tutorial is Windows Movie Maker. We won’t be using Windows Movie Maker to turn the file into a .GIF image, but we’ll be using it to edit the movie file so it can be easily turned into an animated movie .GIF image.

Step 1: Loading The Movie

First, we need to load the movie file. In this example I am going to use an episode of Top Gear, the famous British car show. In this episode Jeremy Clarkson tests the Ford Fiesta by driving it through a shopping mall with a Corvette in hot pursuit.

First we need to drop the movie file into Windows Movie Maker so that we can begin editing. You can do this by dragging and dropping the movie file into Windows Movie Maker. Alternative, you can go to File > Import Into Collections. Once you find the file you can select it to import the file. It will appear in the Collection area.

Now that we have the file in the Collection area, we also need to place it into the timeline below so that we can edit the file. Simpy drag-and-drop the file from the Collection area to the timeline at the bottom of the Windows Movie Maker window. This will allow us to begin editing the file down.

Step 2: Editing The Movie

An animated .GIF is only a tiny fraction of a movie. The loop on an animated .GIF usually lasts from a couple seconds to ten seconds. The reason for this is that animated movie .GIF files actually can become very large very quickly. Each frame is like a separate image. Animated .GIF images above twenty or thirty frames in size can exceed one megabyte in file size. This isn’t ideal, so you’ll need to trim down the movie to the specific part you want to make an animation of.

To do this you’ll need to crop the movie file. First, you’ll probably need to zoom out on the timeline. You can do this using the magnifying glass icons just above the timeline. Now, click on left edge of the timeline and drag to just before the part of the film you want to turn into an animated .GIF.

You will know that you are cropping the image when the cursor turn into a red double-sided arrow. Now go to the right side of the timeline and do the same thing, cropping the movie file until just after the part of the film you want to animate.

Now that we have this smaller clip, we’ll want to use the magnifying tool to zoom in. Now you simply need to start cropping the movie further until you’ve found the exact part of the movie that you want to animate. Remember, if you crop too much you can just undo your crop by pressing Ctrl+Z. Your finished, cropped video shouldn’t be much more than ten seconds in length in order to keep the file size down.

Step 3: Exporting The File & Making The Animated .GIF

Now that we have the video cropped down to a manageable size we need to export it.

On the left of Windows Movie Maker you will see the Save to my computer option under the Finish Movie section. Click on that option. You will be asked to name your file on the first screen – do so and click Next. Now you need to decide what type of movie you want to create.

In order to keep file size down our animated movie .GIF can’t be a very large image. To achieve this I recommend using the Video for Pocket PC setting. This creates a video file with a size of 208 x 160 pixels, which is small enough to work as an animated .GIF.

Now that we have the video, we need to convert the file into a .GIF. This is one thing which Windows Movie Maker doesn’t do for us, but there are websites which will. Using the instruction in the Makeuseof GIF Ninja tutorial, you’ll easily be able to convert the video file into an animated .GIF.

The results? Well, here is what I ended up with.

Cool? Now you can make your own animated .GIF from any movie you want! Share your productions in the comments.

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The 2 Best Non-Techie Ways To Backup Wordpress Blog

The 2 Best Non-Techie Ways To Backup Wordpress Blog: "

If you run a blog and you care about your data, you probably keep backups of your blog, right? What’s that? You don’t? Well, you should. If nothing has happened to your blog yet, you may be one of the lucky ones. What if your site crashes or is hacked? Your webhost keeps backups? That’s good, but what if something goes wrong on their end? It has happened.

Here at MakeUseOf we have covered the topic of how to backup a Wordpress blog before. In fact, I plan on referencing a couple of the articles in this article. What I have found through reading and experience is that there are multiple methods of storing your site files once you have backed them up.

I would like to share some of those methods to backup a Wordpress blog, some orthodox and some unorthodox, and share some of the pluses and minuses of each. Then I would like to share a few quick tips in order to have the safest backup possible.

First let me mention that there are several different parts to your blog that you will want to back up:

• The database tables.


• The files such as pictures.

Each part of your blog is able to be stored in the 2 methods I am about to share.

1. Back Up Your Wordpress Blog Locally

One of the possibilities when it comes to storing backed up website files is to back them up locally on your own computer.

Files:

In order to back up the files, you can use tools such as FTP clients FileZilla or Cobian Backup. Just access your site via FTP and copy over everything to your local machine.

Databases:

In order to back up your databases one of the best plugins to go with is WP DB Manager (makes both backing up and restoring a cinch). A local copy gives the best control and flexibility.

The downside about a local backup is that you’re also vulnerable to a computer crash. What are the odds of both your site crashing and your computer at the same time? I don’t know but it does happen. You may want to also back up your local files remotely with a service like Mozy.

2. Back Up Your Wordpress Site To A Third Party Service

Another option is to rely on a third party to host your backed up Wordpress files.

Files:

The tip at the end of the last method is a good example of using a third party to keep a backup of your website’s files using Mozy. You can also save your files using Google Docs now that they allow you to save and access any type of file.

Just zip all the files (keeping the directories the same) and save them there, depending on how much data you have. However, for an easier solution, keep reading past the database section.

Databases:

A good example is how Online Backup for Wordpress works when it backs up the Wordpress database to the service’s server instead of your own computer.

Both of the third party solutions for files and for the databases may work fine for you but if you want an easier solution that covers both, I have the plugin for you. Check out the Automatic WordPress Backup plugin. This plugin will backup both the files and the database(s) and upload them to Amazon S3 for you. Cheap storage plus an easy backup? Nothing to complain about.

The third party method has several pluses including not having to manage the files on your system, you don’t have to worry about your PC crashing, and a website restoration could possibly happen from any place if need be. The downside is that you may not want to rely on someone else to handle your precious data. What if they mess up? Like I said before, using multiple methods together is a better idea, just in case.

How To Restore Your Site From Backup

Knowing how to restore your site if something should go wrong is also important.

Files:

In order to restore the files, use an FTP program and upload the backup copy of the files keeping the same directory structure.

Database:

I mentioned the WP DB Manager plugin earlier. This plugin comes with a restore feature which does the database restoring for you. If you have just the database file, you can also use phpMyAdmin (the Wordpress site has a tutorial on this).

What type of Wordpress backup tips do you have? Are there any tools that I could have linked to in any of these methods? How do you backup your Wordpress blog?

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The Microwave Bday Cake

The Microwave Bday Cake: "I live in China (even though Im Italian) and here most apartments dont
have an oven but just a microwave, which reduce a lot the selection of
food I can cook. Anyways, it was my mom bf and I decided make him a cake
just using our microwave. Ingredients: 125 g sugar (2/3 cup) 125
g flour (1 c...
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Continue Reading »"

How To Set Up A Secure & Free Proxy Server

How To Set Up A Secure & Free Proxy Server: "

A proxy server is a kind of server/software that sits between a network and another client machine and handles communication between the two. That one function is the primary use of a free proxy server – to act as a proxy for a client machine.

Proxy servers can also be configured to store (cache) webpages which the client machines frequently request. So when a client requests a webpage for the first time, the proxy downloads and caches the webpage and when a second request comes for the same page,the proxy serves it up from its cache instead of downloading it from the Internet, thus saving the user a hefty download bill and the agonizing wait. Such servers are called caching proxies.

Proxy servers also serve another very important purpose – they act as the first line of defense between the bad guys on the other side and the client machines.

The threat becomes even greater when you replace the network on the other side with the Internet and the client machines with a couple of non-technical home users. Broadband connections and multiple computers accessing the Internet in every home have only increased the threat. Setting up a secure caching proxy server for free is an easy way to mitigate the threat and also save some money in the process.

I’ll be using a popular windows based software, Win Proxy, to tell you how you can setup your very own free caching proxy server.

Download Win Proxy to the computer that you want to act as a proxy and run the setup executable. The only question that you have to answer during the setup is to select the way you want to install Win Proxy as (as a normal application or as a service). Unless you’re using Windows NT, you should choose the option titled common application.

The setup program for Win Proxy is one of the simplest that I’ve seen and I’m sure you won’t have a problem getting Win Proxy installed on your computer. When the setup completes, run Win Proxy from the Programs menu and your server is all set.

Congratulations. You’ve just setup your first free proxy server.

Win Proxy comes, by default, all set up to start acting as a proxy for your network. To take advantage of its caching capabilities though, you’ll have to instruct your browser to use it as a proxy.

If you use Firefox, go to the Tools menu and click on the Options link. Now, Under the Advanced options, select the Network tab and click on Settings.

Enter the IP address or hostname of the machine where you installed Win Proxy in the HTTP Proxy text field and set the port to 3128. That’s all. Firefox is now set up to access the Internet through Win Proxy.

The default set of options that Win Proxy installs with are good enough for most users but if you want to tweak it for even more performance, launch your browser from any computer on the network and point it to http://PROXY_MACHINE:3129, where PROXY_MACHINE is the IP address of the machine running the proxy server. This will bring up the web based configuration panel for Win Proxy. Most users will never need to use it, but it’s there if you want to.

As you can see, Win Proxy has a number of advanced features built in that you can configure through the admin panel. For example, if you connect to the Internet using a dial-up account, you can configure Win Proxy to dial up your ISP automatically every time it receives a request from a client for a webpage which is not present in its cache.

You can also configure Win Proxy to give access to only a few websites and/or restrict access to a couple of individuals by creating accounts for each user.

The MUO Network manual also talks about Internet connection sharing which is the name given to the simple proxy functionality built in to Windows.

Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!

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6 Most Hilarious & Fun Science Websites

6 Most Hilarious & Fun Science Websites: "

Are you still searching for the fun in science? Maybe you need to take a look at its other side, the less serious and factual one. Let me tell you it exists, after all science is made by humans.

Like anywhere else, you will find all sorts of characters among scientists. Think about this: everything humans have created is so complex and diverse because it reflects the minds behind it. Just think of relationships or laws. And basically, that’s the same in science.

So let’s inspect the surprising, puzzling and fun side of science, the one you may not have expected or the one you never really took seriously. You may find that at a few of these fun science websites, there are some odd things going on. Seriously.

PhD Comics

In this case PhD stands for Piled Higher and Deeper and it’s “a comic strip about life (or the lack thereof) in academia.” The mind behind the comic is Jorge Cham, who holds a real PhD in Mechanical Engineering.

Most comic strips are actual cartoons, giving you a glimpse into the crazy life of a PhD student or PostDoc. Some comics, however, reveal the frustrating reality of life in academia.

Science Tattoo Emporium

The science tattoo emporium is a fun science website project hosted by Discover Magazine. As you may have guessed it features scientists with their scientific tattoos. Today, tattoos are quite average, aren’t they? It’s not all about analysis in science and this projects reveals the creative and playful side of scientists. Of course it’s also crazy to have the main subject of your job tattooed onto your body. But it’s not surprising because it takes a lot of passion to do science.

The image below shows “The Tree of Life – carbon, glucose, light, DNA, and the golden rectangle. A tattoo by Kevin Riley. On the chest of a PhD student in molecular biology.”

Neatorama

Neatorama is a blog that features interesting stories from the world of science in its broadest sense. It’s a very good read.

However, Neatorama is not your average blog, the creator had some ingenious ideas. The blog works a little like Digg. The difference is that you are required to submit your own work, rather than that by others. Literally anyone can write for Neatorama and add themselves to the site’s “upcoming Queue”. Readers vote on the posts in the queue and the best ones make it to the front page.

This awesome concept guarantees that you’ll only read about genuinely interesting stuff. Thankfully, the voters seem to have a healthy sense of humor and so most posts are hilarious. Isn’t the finding that drinking beer improves bone density one of the best news ever?

NCBI ROFL

NCBI is the National Center for Biotechnology Information and NCBI’s PubMed is a standard database where scientists across the globe search for research articles. ROFL is an internet acronym for Rolling On Floor Laughing.

NCBI ROFL presents funny articles found on NCBI’s PubMed. The blog is run by two Molecular and Cell Biology graduate students who procrastinate a lot. At least they remain productive and we can enjoy the result.

May I remind you that all this published research is or was officially funded? Someone decided we needed to find out about things such as the nature of injuries caused by falling coconuts, what type of people enjoy playing bingo in later life, whether accidental anal intercourse really happens, and whether garlic protects against vampires.

Before you start worrying about your tax money, calm down. The studies may not be as ridiculous as they sound. After all scientists know how to catch your attention, too.

Null Hypothesis

It’s The Journal of Unlikely Science and it’s all about the tough questions in science. The kind that drive scientists and parents crazy. You’ll find the most interesting, weird and ridiculous stories on this website.

One article deals with the question “What would happen, if we all dropped down dead?“, how would a world without men look like? Another addresses taste buds and how to trick them. In a recent story, the author recapitulates how people in the past predicted what would never be possible and how the future proved them wrong. And didn’t you ever want to know whether the early bird really catches worms?

Improbable Research

Improbable Research covers “research that makes people LAUGH and then THINK.” The organization publishes the magazine “Annals of Improbable Research” and they administer the infamous Ig Nobel Prizes. Each year the most incredible and imaginative research projects in the categories nutrition, peace, archaeology, biology, medicine, cognitive science, economics, physics, chemistry, and literature are awarded with this prize.

Year-round the blog features scientific studies that entertain, spark public interest, make people curious, and get them interested in science. Are you prepared for some mind boggling questions from the world of science?

If you would like to discover the scientist in yourself, how about trying some fun experiments at home? Sara has covered 6 fun science websites that will help to unleash the mad scientist within yourself.

Who would have thought that science can be fun? Did we change your mind? I hope I could give you a new perspective and make you laugh.

Image Credit: clix

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[video] Beyond Belief and Back (in 30 secs.): An Optical Illusion

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