Create Your Own Smartphone App With Infinite Monkeys – No Coding Knowledge Required

would be great if we all had the time, skills, and patience to learn computer coding, especially since technology pervades so many areas of our life. But thankfully, there are applications and web developers out there who provide ways for the rest of us to produce apps with little or no coding skills.
Back in June, I reviewed one such web application called Buzztouch, which is designed to allow anyone to create their own smartphone application. Now a similar program has just been released called Infinite Monkeys, a web-based tool geared toward niche communities who want to share content on the iPhone and Android platforms. Infinite Monkeys is not as polished theme wise as Buzztouch, but unlike the latter, Infinite Monkeys, says the developers, “Is completely web-based, and works on any computer or tablet device. You never touch the source code and don’t have to know what it is or how it works.” There are several other differences that also might make Infinite Monkey more accessible to non-programmers than Buzztouch. But you’re free to explore both and see which fits your needs.

Web-based GUI

Infinite Monkeys’ web-based graphic user interface allows users to incorporate existing web content from social networking sites like Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, and blogging sites.

These web-based apps of course don’t compare to more advanced apps like Angry Birds, but they are great for small niche communities and businesses, such as school associations, sports teams, churches, musicians and restaurants, who want to share content privately or publicly.

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Infinite Monkeys provides three different app platform models, ranging from free to the pro level version of $499. But for many users, the free HTML 5 web-based, and ad-supported model should suffice.

Building An App

Infinite Monkey provides a seriously easy step-by-step process for creating a smartphone app in less than an hour; that is if you have an ample amount of content already posted on the web.

The great thing about using a web-based platform is that you can constantly add content and updates to your app via your blog site, YouTube channel, photo sharing site, etc.
The Infinite Monkey web application uses a familiar drag-and-drop process. You start off by giving your app a title, followed by choosing a privacy setting. You can make the app public, or private for closed community access which will prompt users to enter a password to view content.

You can of course customize the background image and splash screen, as well as the font colors for the title and other text.

Core Content

The core content of your app consists of primarily news and third-party feeds such as your blog site(s) and specific URLs.

Infinite Monkeys includes additional content models for music and books, food and beverages, events, sports, reference materials, and location services such as a map and directions.
With the click of a button you can easily preview your app at any point in the development process. The online app also includes an embedded short video tutorial for each of the three part steps and multifunction tools.
You have poor control over the content of your app, including links to streaming videos, live chatrooms, shared calendars for upcoming events, shopping links to recommended products, and tap–t0–call phone contact information.

Publishing App

The free version of Infinite Monkeys allows you to instantly post your HTML 5 version immediately to the web so that anyone with a web-enabled smartphone can access it through the assigned URL.

Since your app is ad-supported, Infinite Monkeys will host it for free on their server. While it is not nearly as polished as professional apps that you will find in say the iTunes App Store, it does provide a way for anyone to get their content into this space.
For other mobile app creation ideas, check out these articles:

• How To Create An iPhone Or Android App Without Any Coding Skills
• Easily Create Mobile Websites with MoFuse
• Moably: Create A Mobile Friendly Website/Blog Without Any Coding

 http://www.maximumpc.com

12 Tips and Tricks for Microsoft Excel

Excel isn't the sexiest application in the world--it has an unfortunate association with the type of Milton-esque office drones we all wish we weren't. All the same, it's a program that most people will end up having to use at some point in their life, and it's one with a lot of arcane secrets. Read on for 10 quick Microsoft Excel tips and tricks that will get you accounting like a pro in no time flat.

Time to Pivot

Pivot Tables are one of Excel’s most useful—and misunderstood—features. Here’s a quick lesson: Click within a chunk of data, click Insert, and select “Pivot Table.” Excel should automatically pick the entire range of said data (provided you don’t have any blank columns interrupting your dataset), and convert this into an editable, table-as-you-go kind of setup.  You can use the various “fields” on Excel’s new sidebar to basically create new tables of information (and calculations) on-the-fly.

Let’s Lookup!

Another widely used, but often confusing feature of Excel is Vlookup—the function by which one looks at data A, finds data A and data B in another spreadsheet, and slaps data B somewhere into the original spreadsheet. It’s tricky to explain, but easy to use: You’re basically using the contents of a single cell as an anchor for referencing information from one location to another. Master the command, and you’ll find a new use for it every day!

Conditional Formatting is your Friend

If formulas aren’t your thing, here’s an easy way to duplicate data between two columns. Highlight the columns and select Excel’s Conditional Formatting feature on the Home tab. Then, select the “Highlight Cells Rules” listing and pick whatever option fits your style. Duplicate values, for example, would highlight all repeated instances with a given color.

Insta-Jump to a Cell

Did you ever stop and wonder if you can actually modify the cell listing that appears to the left of the Excel’s formula bar?  You know, the one that automatically changes to tell you exactly row and cell you’re on at any given moment?  Guess what: You can.  Click on it, and then type in a given row name and column number—you’ll jump right to that cell as if you just hopped through a magical portal.  Really, it’s that fun.

Get Set for Macros

Trying to discuss Excel macros in a tiny paragraph is like trying to stuff an elephant into a car.  However, the first step toward being able to use Macros is an easy one: Open up Excel’s options (Jewel button > Excel Options) and select “Customize Ribbon.”  Click on the unchecked “Developer” box that’s on the right-side of the options window, and you’ll gain access to the “hidden” section of Excel that’s a quick shortcut to the almighty macro.

Why Not Numbers?

From time to time, Excel will foolishly store numbers like a “0” as text instead of a numeral, which can be a real pain if you’re trying to do anything with said information. So how do you fix 23,414 rows of the same error? Insert a new column and type a “1” into an empty cell. Select it, copy it to your clipboard, then select the range of numbers you’re looking to fix. Click on the drop-down menu under the Paste icon, click “Paste Special,” and select the options “Values” and “Multiply.”

Why Not Empties?

Dovetailing off the previous tip, Excel also has a nasty habit whereby information you’ve modified such that a cell should be empty… isn’t.  The cell has no values in it per se, but it still doesn’t register as empty for uses of the Count command or things like that. The easy way to fix this is to simply sort your affected columns in A-to-Z order, then manually select the range of “blank” cells starting at the bottom of the listing all the way down to Excel’s final row. Now, hit “Delete.”

Delete Blank Rows

If you have a bunch of data that’s separated out by blank rows of cells for whatever reason, it’s easy to just nuke these out of your dataset forever without having to do any kind of crazy sorting. Select a column, hit F5, click on Special, then select the “Blanks” option. With said blank rows now targeted, click over to Excel’s Home tab, select “Delete,” and choose the option for eliminating said rows.

Show Thy Formulas

This one’s quick, but super-effective: If you have a spreadsheet full of formulas and you want to see exactly how you’ve built all of your constructions, you can do this by hitting CTRL+~, which will instantly transform your spreadsheet from values to the formulas that constructed them.

Double-Click to Freedom!

Double-clicking various parts of the Excel interface can automate a number of functions, including: double-clicking on the Jewel to close Excel, selecting multiple columns and double-clicking on the separators to auto-adjust the widths of all, double-clicking on the tabs of Excel’s ribbon menu to minimize the whole thing, double-clicking the lower-right corner of a cell to Fill Down its contents based on the contents of the column to its left… the list goes on!  When in doubt, double-click.

Adding Multiple Lines of Text

It’s frustrating to try to add multiple lines of text to a given cell. How the hell do you do it? The answer is so easy, it’s almost shocking. When you want to insert a line break in a cell to split your text up in a more readable fashion, just hold down Alt and hit Enter. Technically, you’re also turning on “Wrap Text” for the affected cell as well.

Email… Anything!

Check out the Excel plugin RDBMail if you want to super-charge your ability to quickly email portions of a worksheet to an Outlook recipient. It adds a new tab to your Ribbon that you can use as a single-click utility for emailing your entire worksheet to a person or the pertinent parts that you’ve selected. You can also toggle between sending the worksheet as-is—formulas included—or sending off only the values of what you’ve been working on.
http://www.maximumpc.com

The Best Graphics Card for Gaming: 2013's Top Cards Tested

AMD Radeon HD 7850 Read Our Review

Our Verdict: This $249 video card is a price-vs.-performance winner. Its frame rates approach or top much pricier Nvidia GeForce GTX 500-series cards while using much less power. Unless you need more speed for extreme resolutions or multiple LCDs, this card is an excellent value.

Rated 4.5 / 5 Stars

EVGA GeForce GTX 660 Ti Superclocked Read Our Review

Our Verdict: Nvidia’s mid-tier, Kepler-based graphics card was worth the wait, delivering excellent performance for the price while sipping less power than its predecessors and its direct competition.

Rated 4.5 / 5 Stars

AMD Radeon HD 7950 Read Our Review

Our Verdict: AMD’s Radeon HD 7970 may be the new single-GPU video-card performance leader, but at $100 less and nearly as fast, the HD 7950 is the smarter buy if you’re looking for both power and value. (Like its sibling, however, some of its future-looking features look a bit far over the horizon.)

Rated 4.5 / 5 Stars

from: $352.94

Nvidia GeForce GTX 670 Read Our Review

Our Verdict: Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 670 performs nearly as well, in some cases, as the pricier GTX 680, and it bests AMD’s similarly priced Radeon HD 7950. It’s a good fit for demanding gamers who want serious performance at high resolutions, but don’t want to pay more.

Rated 4.5 / 5 Stars

Nvidia GeForce GTX 680 Read Our Review

Our Verdict: Nvidia's 2012 flagship card may not top AMD's HD 7970 in every game or benchmark test, but it won or came close in every one we ran. It's also priced $50 less than AMD's competing card and uses much less power under load. It's more muscle than most gamers need, but it's hard to discount this card's abilities.

Rated 4.5 / 5 Stars

EVGA GeForce GTX 660 Superclocked Read Our Review

Our Verdict: The GTX 660 offers excellent performance on 1080p monitors and gives AMD serious competition. With speeds approaching those of last year’s high-end cards, it packs a wallop for a card its price.

Rated 4.5 / 5 Stars

AMD Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition Read Our Review

Our Verdict: At $349, the Radeon HD 7870 is pricey. But overall, it manages impressive performance, outpacing Nvidia's similarly priced GeForce GTX 570 on most tests, even besting the step-up GTX 580 on a few. It's a safe choice for those who need this level of performance now, but cautious gamers might wait to see what Nvidia offers later this year.

Rated 4 / 5 Stars

AMD Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition Read Our Review

Our Verdict: The Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition offers the best overall gaming frame rates we've seen at or near its $159 price, plus the same future-looking features of AMD's much pricier cards. Its main limitation: At 1080p resolutions, you may have to dial back some settings in today's most-demanding titles.

Rated 4 / 5 Stars

 

 http://www.computershopper.com

How to Choose a Video Card

The following article is based on years of experience. It is provided as a free service to our customers and visitors. However, Directron.com is not responsible for any damage as a result of following any of this advice.

Copying the contents for commercial purposes is strictly prohibited without Directron.com's written consent. However, you are welcome to distribute these computer support tips free to your friends and associates as long as it's not for commercial purposes and you acknowledge the source. You are permitted and encouraged to create links to this page from your own web site.

        There is a great variety of Video Cards, or Graphic Processing Units (GPUs), available for the average PC user or computer enthusiast. It’s often difficult for those who aren’t well versed in the technological terms to determine just what features they might need or desire. Sometimes the prices of the cards can be daunting, and it’s hard to see what really differentiates one brand or iteration of a model from another. This article was written to help answer some of the key questions consumers might have about video cards and to help determine what will give them the biggest bang for their buck.

        First, let’s explore what a video card does. A GPU will process and interpret graphic data on behalf of your computer. It exports this data to your display in a user defined pixel resolution, such as 1920x1080 (HD). The function of the video card is to expedite the rendering of graphics with its onboard processor and memory, which shifts that burden away from the CPU. This creates a better user experience when the PC is working with graphic intensive data. This includes running Windows Aero, decoding video on YouTube, inputting TV signals, rendering 3D models, playing video games, and using multiple displays.

        Motherboards and some newer CPUs (Ivy Bridge) have integrated, or built-in, graphic chipsets. With these integrated chipsets a webpage might not load as fast, and images might take a few seconds to cache in. Comparatively, most people don’t know what they’re missing out on in terms of the performance and speed increases that a dedicated graphics card can provide. For the light to average PC user, integrated graphics can provide a satisfying experience. However, for above average PC users a motherboard includes an expansion slot in which a dedicated graphics card can be utilized, consequently increasing performance and creating a superior experience for the user.

        Conventional wisdom usually portrays video cards as something that professionals or gaming enthusiasts procure to increase their productivity or performance. A video card would have many benefits for professionals that specialize in graphic design, video editing, photo manipulation, and the rendering of 3D objects. It would increase the speed of their production and the performance of their computer under graphic stress. But let’s not play down the significance that a video card could have on the average users’ experience. As integrated graphics usually preoccupy a given amount of CPU bandwidth and memory storage, they can suppress your computers true potential.

        There have been several breakthroughs in speed over the past decade. The main difference would be the transition away from the parallel AGP bus (dedicated to graphics) to the serial PCI express bus. PCI express in itself has progressed through the years and is currently on its third iteration, with more bandwidth now than ever before. Generally speaking, PCI Express 3.0 has the potential to transfer data up to 16 times faster than AGP.

        Video card speed is generally determined by three factors: chipset speed, amount of memory, and the speed of the memory. There are two main chipset brands, Radeon and GeForce, produced by AMD and Nvidia respectively. AMD uses the GCN architecture, codenamed Tahiti, on a 28nm chip which is optimized for gaming and computing. With 28 compute units, each with 64 vector units, that makes for up to 1792 stream processors backed by 3GBs GDDR5 of 384-bit memory. Nvidia uses a Kepler GPU architecture which they designed from the ground up to maximize performance not only in DirectX 11 games, but in performance per watt as well. Their SMX streaming multiprocessor is twice as efficient as prior generations. With some of their more popular GeForce cards, Nvidia has achieved 1344 CUDA cores on 2GBs of 256-bit GDDR5. It should be noted that AMD’s stream processors and Nvidia’s CUDA cores are not directly comparable, so the difference in number of cores does not necessarily correlate to a disparity in performance.

        Having an ample amount of memory for your GPU is often a major consideration when purchasing a newer generation card. But keep in mind that speed matters as well. For example, let’s say that you have two cards to compare. The first card has 1GB of 256-bit GDDR5 and the second card has 2GBs of 128-bit GDDR5. While having an extra gigabyte of memory on the second card may seem like an immediate advantage, the speed of the memory is critical in performance. That is to say, the 1GB of 256-bit GDDR5 will run faster than your 2GBs of 128-bit GDDR5, while also giving greater performance (in most circumstances).

        For those who are looking for a great HD experience (1080p), than they should note that certain video cards have been designed with this is mind. An example of this would be Nvidia’s 600 series. Their GeForce 660ti or 670 would allow users to maximize most, if not all, of their video settings when playing any game in HD. Another example would be AMD’s Radeon 7700 series (or above). These Radeon cards would also allow users to generate the maximum amount of performance when running HD resolutions on graphic intensive applications.

        It would behoove of me to mention that your monitor may need to be upgraded in order for you to fully utilize the true potential of newer generation GPUs. Playing a game in 1920x1080 is only possible if your monitor allows for or supports it. If you desire this experience for gaming and computing, be sure you have the proper hardware to make that happen. This means that if you’re still using an old CRT monitor, then you’re really not pushing the envelope of your video output. Upgrade to a new widescreen LCD or LED monitor with 16:9 ratio capability and 1080p support. Also, you should determine if your current motherboard has a PCI express slot that supports newer video cards. If not, it may be time to upgrade your board as well.

        Criteria for an average user: If you’re an average computer user, than you might not find a dedicated graphics card as valuable as other power users. If you’re doing simple computer tasks like working with spread sheets, word processing, and e-mail, an inexpensive video card of an older series would do just fine. For these users, price may be the most important factor. You may even be able to get away with just using the integrated graphics of your current CPU, if it has this capability.

        Criteria for an above average user: If you’re an above average user and surf the web on a daily basis in addition to other common PC tasks, a video card is a must and may be optimal for your user experience. Modest speed and price should be the main factors of consideration. You don’t need the bleeding edge technology that computing enthusiasts often seek. You will notice that web pages load their graphics faster and YouTube videos should buffer quickly as well (this experience may vary depending on your internet speed).

        Criteria for a professional graphic user: If you’re a graphic designer, video editor, or CAD worker, speed and performance are the most critical factors for you. A video card with high-resolution capabilities and a large amount (3-6GBs) of fast memory (256-384 bit) is recommended. This will provide you with an excellent rendering time and keep you waiting less while working more. Keep in mind that HD (1080p) is also determined, or limited by, your monitor’s maximum resolution.

        Criteria for a gaming user: By definition, gamers love high speed, especially raw processing and memory speed. They often choose the most advanced chipset with the highest amount of memory. Although, there is often a budget buy available that gives them the middle ground among these two factors. The most advanced, and often most expensive, video cards are designed for gamers. Keep in mind that these higher-end gaming cards can add quite a bit of ambient heat to your case. It is advised that you buy a mid-tower or full-tower case with ample amounts of fans to keep your systems heat at an acceptable level. You may even consider getting a card with water cooling built in for maximum heat management.

We hope that this article has been of some aide for you in your process of determining what video card to buy. If you have any questions, comments, queries, or concerns, please don’t hesitate to leave a review at the bottom of the page or post on our forums

By Dr. Michael and David Bosshttp://www.directron.com .

Drivers

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3DMark03 3.6.0

Publisher's description

3DMark03 is a great benchmarking program for your gaming PC. By combining full DirectX 9.0a support with completely new tests and graphics, 3DMark03 continues the legacy of being the industry standard benchmark. The high quality game tests, image quality tests, sound tests and others give you an extremely accurate overview of your system's current gaming performance.

Screenshots

Technical

File Size:

178M

License:

Freeware

Released:

Jan 26, 2006

Downloads:

14868 (All versions: 14868)

OS Support:

Windows 9x/2000/XP/2003

Plugins:

None

Publisher:

Futuremark

Homepage:

http://www.futuremark.com/download/3dmark03/

DOWNLOAD FOR FREE

Latest Version

• 3DMark03 3.6.0

Fraps 3.5.99

Publisher's description

Fraps is a universal Windows application that can be used with all games using DirectX or OpenGL technology. In its current form Fraps performs many tasks and can best be described as:

• Benchmarking Software - See how many Frames Per Second (FPS) you are getting in a corner of your screen. Perform custom benchmarks and measure the frame rate between any two points. Save the statistics out to disk and use them for your own reviews and applications.
• Screen Capture Software - Take a screenshot with the press of a key! There's no need to paste into a paint program every time you want to capture the screen. Your screen captures are also automatically named and timestamped.
• Realtime Video Capture Software - Have you ever wanted to record video while playing your favourite game? Come join the Machinima revolution! Throw away the VCR, forget about using a DV cam, game recording has never been this easy! Fraps can capture audio and video up to 1152x864 and 100 frames per second!

Screenshots

Technical

File Size:

2.22M

License:

Shareware

Released:

Feb 27, 2013

Downloads:

385 (All versions: 28850)

OS Support:

Windows 2000/XP/2003/Vista/XP64/Vista64

Plugins:

None

Publisher:

beepa.com

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APPHIT