How To Watch Online Streaming Videos With Subtitles

April 17, 2013 By Abhishek Prakash 14 Comments

Subtitles help a lot of people to watch movies or videos in foreign language. Many people practice a new language by watching videos with subtitles. Using subtitles with a video file stored on your hard disk or removable disk is not a big issue. In fact you can even watch movies with subtitles on your TV, but watching online streaming videos with subtitles can be tricky, or is it?

You Tube has tons of videos in almost all the possible languages. Growing demand for subtitles led Google to implement the automatic subtitle generator in You Tube videos but these are of very poor quality. In this tutorial, I’ll show how can you watch movies and videos from sites like You Tube, Vimeo, Daily Motion or any such streaming video site:

How to watch online streaming videos with subtitles:

To watch an online video with subtitle, you’ll need two things:

VLC Media Player
Appropriate subtitle for the video

This tutorial was performed on Ubuntu 13.04 but the steps should be valid for any operating system that can run VLC player.

Step 1:

Go to the streaming video and copy its URL.

Step 2:

Start VLC media player. If you don’t have it installed, download it from here. VLC media player is one of the must have software for any operating system. Once you have started VLC, go to Media tab and choose Open Network Stream from the options:

Step 3:

In the windows opened by Open Network Stream, paste the URL of streaming video, and click on play to start playing the video.

Step 4:

Once it starts playing the video, you can add the subtitles to it in the regular manner. Which means you can download the subtitles from a website like subscene.com and then add it in VLC player by right clicking and choosing Subtitles and then Open File. For more details follow this article on how to add subtitles in VLC player.

More tips:

Try to view videos which does not have many parts. Subtitles for those will be available easily. One of the many benefits of watching the streaming video in VLC is that you can choose the aspect ratio to suite your computer screen. Also, you can sync subtitles easily in VLC.

I hope that this tutorial would have helped you. Questions, suggestions and feedback are always welcomed. Cheers

Send Free Fax Anywhere In The World Without A Fax Machine

December 14, 2012 By Abhishek Prakash Leave a Comment

Worried about the cost of sending an international fax? To send a fax anywhere across the world all it needs is, hold your breath, a web browser and a Gmail or Hotmail account. Surprised? Be no more. HelloFax, an online fax company, has this wonderful offer where you can send up to 50 fax online (in six months) for free anywhere in the world. You can sign up for this service with your Microsoft (Hotmail/Outlook) or Google (Gmail) account.

Integrates with different cloud services:

Not only that you can sign-up free with your Microsoft and Google account, you can also integrate HelloFax with Google Drive, Sky Drive, Dropbox, Box, Evernote for easily accessing your document. It means you can send a document directly from these services or if you receive a fax, it will be automatically saved to the linked service.

Invite more, get more:

With the referral bonus, similar to Ubuntu One, in place, you will get 5 extra fax for each friend that joins HelloFax on your invite. In fact you will get 5 extra fax for filling up your profile with the tasks mentioned.

Not just .docs:

You can send documents in many popular format such as .doc, .pdf, text file, image file etc. You can also sign your documents for free.

Oops! Incoming is not free

Well! Enough of freebies. Its time to pay something. If you want to receive fax but you don’t have a fax machine, no need to buy a fax machine. You can buy an incoming fax number that costs around $7.99 per month. Which will still be cheaper than buying a machine.

If you need to send some fax for sometimes only, trust me, you can save your money by using HelloFax. Give it a try for sure.

OLX.in: Changing The Way India Sells Used Item

December 4, 2012 By Abhishek Prakash 1 Comment

Online “buy and sell” portals are not new to the first world countries but in developing countries like India, people prefer the traditional ways to sell their used stuff. With the steep rise in number of Internet users in last few years, the traditional way India classifieds its micro advertisement was bound to be changed like so many other aspects of life.

The traditional Indian way of selling/buying used items:

Growing in an Indian middle class family, I am pretty much aware of the way the business of ‘used items’ worked (still works). You have some item which you no longer need. What to do with it? You ask (read tell) your neighbors or your relatives about the ‘excess item’ in your home. The word of mouth is the way you advertise. The second option is to go to your local shopkeeper who deals with ‘second hand item’. And in case of electronic goods, it is mostly the local mechanic who you turn to. The local shopkeeper gives you a really low price which makes you heart sink deeper thinking about how much you had originally paid for the same stuff. The local shopkeeper then sells it to a new customer at almost double the price it had bought from you, taking a cut himself. If nothing works out, you may end up selling it to the junk dealer. By the way, for western readers, ‘Garage Sale’ are alien to Indian environment.

OLX.in breaking the digital barrier and changing India:

OLX a world renowned classified advertisement company founded in 2006. Operating in over 96 countries, OLX identified the vast number of Internet users in India and the lack of a proper online portals for common man. Online classifieds ads were rare and if existed, were mostly unreliable. OLX launched its Indian version OLX.in with the motto of “sab kuchh bikta hai” (loosely translated as Everything Is Being Sold Here). And in reality, it introduced Indian users to a world where they could sell everything, which was unthinkable in the traditional Indian market. While on the other hand buyers have now option of choosing from a vast selection of used items, under their budget, within their comfort zone, right from their computer/mobile screen.

The vast range of category actually justifies the “sab kuchh bikta hai” tagline:

How does OLX works:

Any user (both registered or unregistered) can put up his classified ad duly attached with a picture in the relevant category with the desired price tag. The buyers looking for the specific item then can contact the seller with the option provided on OLX or directly to the seller, if he has provided his contact information. Best of all, putting the ads are completely free. When you put a item for sale, you can also share it on various social media platform to reach a larger audience. Moreover, you also have option of ‘featured ad’ where you can highlight your ad in exchange for a small fee.

The ads are shown location wise so that users can choose if he can buy the item. Of course one would not prefer to buy a TV from other city as it will increase the cost of transportation.

Witty Ad campaign:

Though internet and mobile advertisement are on the rise, there is no alternate of TV advertising. OLX has started its TV campaign to let the people know there exists a platform that allows to sell (and buy) item online, in most comfortable way. Their sab kuchh bikta hai” campaign has gathered enough eyeballs but my personal favorite is the witty one below where the viewers are encouraged to sell the items which are gathering dust because no one is using them.

Using Google to Research Used Trailers Online

October 30, 2012 By Guest Author Leave a Comment

Are you looking for a good, used heavy-duty or livestock trailer? Finding these items can be a problem, but using search engines such as Google can help you if you know the right search terms to use and what to look for in trailer ads.

Useful Search Tips

Using Google can be very effective, but finding the right search terms can be difficult. Remember these handy tips:

The More Specific Your Search, the More Specific Your Results

Currently, “used trailers” generates about 232 million results, including double-wide mobile homes and boat trailers; however, specifying “used aluminum livestock trailers” takes the number down to 322,000.

Of course, that is still too many results for you to look at each one, but you can also specify a geographic area: “used aluminum livestock trailers in Iowa” will show you more localized results, and “used aluminum livestock trailers for sale in Des Moines, Iowa,” limits your search to just over 30,000 hits.

If you have a specific brand name you are looking for, include it in your search. Additionally, if you know dimensions, you can also include those.

Shopping Tips

As you shop for a used trailer, take note of the information given in the ad. Does the owner include a picture? Is relevant contact information, such as a phone number or email, included with the ad?

Are the dimensions and other important facts obvious from reading the ad? Does the seller have a problem with you inspecting the vehicle, or is it being sold “as is?” If you have doubts, move on to another ad.

How to Compare Prices

Everyone is attracted to a low price, but remember your grandmother’s sage advice: “You get what you pay for.” That does not mean that you cannot find a good deal or haggle with the seller. However, it does mean that if someone is selling a “brand-new” trailer for hundreds less than older used models, something is probably wrong.

Find at least five likely ads and compare prices. You should not see more than ten percent difference among the prices; anything lower or higher may indicate a problem.

Be sure you understand exactly what the ad is offering for the suggested price as well; measurements and accessories are important factors to consider when you are looking at price.

Safety Precautions

There are a few safety tips to consider when you are shopping online. Whether you are male or female, old or young, there are certain safety precautions you should always take when considering an online purchase.

– Remember that you do not know who is on the “other end” of the computer. No matter what someone says, you have no proof the person is who you think until you meet. Do not divulge any unnecessary personal information.

– If possible, agree to meet in a public place to inspect the trailer. If the seller cannot bring the trailer to a meeting, take someone with you to the person’s home or business in order to inspect it.

If you must go alone, leave the name and address of the place you are going with a trusted person who can call you if you do not return when planned.

– Trading in cash allows you to haggle, but it also means that you must carry a relatively large amount of money with you.

If you already know that you are probably going to buy the item, ask the seller if he or she will take a check; if not, get a money order for the exact amount. If you must carry cash, leave it in an inconspicuous place, such as locked in your glove compartment, until the time to pay has come.

Following these simple tips will help you successfully shop for your trailer online and find just what you are looking for safely and effectively.

About the Author: James Whitney is an online researcher and tech blog author – he loves discussing strategic search research queries for researching purchases online, like used trailers you can purchase locally.

Easily Create SVG Animated Images With Pac-n-Zoom

August 27, 2012 By Abhishek Prakash 1 Comment

Have you noticed the advertisements on various websites lately? Mostly they are still images but some of them are animated and gives you a notion as those are videos which they actually are not. Those are SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) images, deemed as sort of revolution in imaging and animation industry. SVG images have become extremely popular for creating high end 2D or 3D graphic animated images.

Creating animation is like chewing nuts or is it?

If you (like me) are not very friendly with Photoshop or Coral Draw or Gimp, then you might think that it is impossible to create such animated image your self. And even if you are good at Photoshop how comfortable are you with creating animations with it? Creating animated images does sound like a herculean task until you get a handy tool that can let you create /convert SVG photos?

Behold Pac-n-Zoom:

Pac-n-Zoom is an online tool that lets you create/convert ordinary photos in animated SVG graphics, easily. Best part, you don’t need to be an expert do so. Launched by Accelerated I/O, Inc which claims that it has created first photo animation application where users can upload photographs, convert them in SVG and can create animation that will run on most modern browsers (which means Internet Explorer needs special treatment). If you want to know how easy it is to create an animation with Pac-n-Zoom, take a look at the pictures below:

Now you wondering how the animation actually look like? You can see the animation created in example here. For more information on creating SVG animation with Pac-n-Zoom, try their .

Features of Pac-n-Zoom

Accepts upload of JPEG and PNG file formats
Background image can be left as JPEG or PNG and SVG animations run in front of it
Animations can be viewed in all major browsers, although IE will need Adobe’s SVG Viewer plug-in
File format is SVG which is an open standard developed and recommended by the W3C
Animations can be zoomed in or out
Animations can be timed
Animations can moved up to 100 places in the photo
The SVG standards allow many other animation options which Accelerated I/O intends to incorporate into their app

To use the tool create an account on Pac-n-Zoom. You can refer to the user manual for a quick starting guide. Support is also available.

Verdict:

Pac-n-Zoom is still in beta, so you might find some glitches at the moment for e.g., animation can only be created on Mozilla Firefox presently. Pac-n-Zoom charges a penny per 10000 pixels which means that an average SVG animation conversion may cost you somewhere between 5-10 cents. I would suggest Pac-n-Zoom to opt for the freemium model in which premium users enjoy more functionality than the free users. If you are a professional and regularly deals with animation you must consider trying Pac-n-Zoom.

Box is offering 50 GB Cloud Storage free for Android Users

February 25, 2012 By Abhishek Prakash 2 Comments

No, it is not a hoax but true. The popular cloud storage service Box (earlier known as Box.Net) which generally offers 5 GB of free cloud space is now offering 50 GB for free in a limited period offer.

What you need to do:

Register for an account on Box if you do not have one already
Get the Android app for Box.
Log in to your Box account from your Android phone
You should see a message as in the pic below

Remember, it is a limited time offer. So hurry up!

eCrypt Me: The easy way to secure emailing

October 30, 2011 By Abhishek Prakash 1 Comment

There are a number of people who are not satisfied with the security provided by popular web-based email service providers like Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail etc. List is growing as the fear is not imaginary keeping the recent events of hacking. Though these hacking events are not frequent but what about the constant monitoring and unauthorized scanning of your mails by the service provider itself? [Read more…]

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