It can be such a pain if you really need to send a large file by email and you are just not able to because of restrictions placed on the size of your email by your service provider. It has happened to me numerous times where a file is just a little bit bigger than what was allowed and then I would have to write a disc and drive all the way to deliver the file to the person I wanted to mail it to.

This can be very frustrating. As I write this I just got an email telling me that the mailbox that I have mailed a file to cannot accept the file as it is just too big.

I have found the solution! And it is free! I love free stuff! Dropbox is a service which allows you to share files with anybody who joins the service. All you do is go to the website, register for the service and you immediately have 2 Gigabytes of space that you can now make use of. What happens is, is that the programme that you download will create folders on your computer just for Dropbox. You then copy files that you want to share with colleagues or friends to these folders and the service will syncronise these files with their computers. They will also need to install the service and you will have to give them access to that folder.

It is very easy to install and I think that if you need to send media to companies and friends this is the perfect solution for you. you can also install the software on multiple computers, maybe at home and at work. The files that you save in the Dropbox folder at work will automatically syncronise with the files you have at home. Now when you get home the files will be there waiting for you. What a great service!
Click here to get your own FREE Dropbox account!

EK klink al soos ’n plaat wat vashaak, want ek sê gereeld meer mense moet inligting in Afrikaans op die internet sit. Dit is nie net belangrik vir Afrikaans nie, maar ook vir al die ander tale in Suid-Afrika. Elke taal het verseker ’n plekkie op die internet en dit help nie om net agteroor te sit en te kla oor hoe daar niks in Afrikaans op die internet is nie.

Uitsaaines.co.za is ’n Afrikaanse radiostasie wat op die internet uitsaai. Ek het al ’n jaar of twee gelede daaroor geskryf. Soos verwag kan word, is hier- die eg Afrikaanse stasie nog al die pad op die inter- net en sy luistertal verhoog maandeliks. Die kanaal het daagliks ’n paar programme, maar vir die grootste deel van die dag speel daar lekker Afrikaanse musiek vir almal om na te luister.

Die hoofrede dat ek vandag weer oor Uitsaaines wil skryf, is omdat ek nou op Maandae en Donderdae ’n program op hierdie kanaal het. In dié program gesels ek oor dinge wat op die internet gebeur, ons gesels oor ’n paar nuwe webbladsye en dan speel ek natuurlik ook ’n hele klomp lekker liedjies. Ek speel maar heelwat musiek, want wie wil nou ’n uur lank net na my gebabbel luister? Wanneer jy na www.uitsaaines.co.za gaan, sal jy die skakels sien waarop jy kan kliek om te begin luister.

Ek dink die program is ’n wonderlike platform om almal wat vir my vrae stuur te antwoord. Dus wil ek julle aanmoedig om vir my al jul vrae te stuur en dan sal ek almal wat ek nie in die rubriek kan antwoord nie, daar antwoord. Dit gaan wonderlik wees om op die Net oor die Net te kan gesels.

Ek hoop dat jy ook van- dag deur my bydrae nog jou deel sal doen. Kom ons gee Afrikaans en al die ander tale in Suid-Afrika hul plek op die internet.

Www.uitsaaines.co.za

Nico Baird

EK haat dit dat mense so maklik na tegnologie en die internet vinger wys en dan maak asof dit die bron van alle onheilighede is.

Daar is mense wat glo dit is die plek waar al die misdadigers bymekaarkom en waar jou kinders met al die verkeerde mense gesels en dan die verkeerde dinge in die lewe begin doen.

’n Paar jaar gelede was boeke die bron van onheilighede en mense het hope boeke verbrand, ’n paar jaar later was rockmusiek uit die bose en dit het kinders laat handuit ruk.

Nou is dit die internet se beurt om deur te loop en meer spesifiek die sosiale netwerke.

Elke keer wanneer iemand iets oorkom, kry netwerke soos Facebook of Mxit die skuld vir alles.

Ek dink net werklik dit is eerder die gemeenskap en ouers se plig om kinders te leer om versigtig te wees.
Indien jy bang is jou kind doen verkeerde dinge op die internet, hou dan toesig.

Om jou kind toegang tot die internet te gee in sy kamer en dan geen perke te stel nie is moeilikheid soek.
Sal jy jou kind in die middestad alleen laat rondloop? As jy dit toelaat en jou kind kom iets oor in Wes-Burgerstraat, beskuldig jy dan die straat? Beskuldig jy die boewe wat jou kind iets aangedoen het of is die fout by jou wat dit toegelaat het?

Net soos jy jou kind sou leer om nie in die strate alleen rond te loop of lekkers van ’n vreemdeling te aanvaar nie, net so moet jy jou kind lewensvaardighede op die internet leer.

THE iPad may just change the way we interact online and the way we consume content.

For the past few weeks I have been thinking quite a bit about the applications of this new device. I have also written about it in a previous column.

One use that I have realised would be a great life changing application, is the use of this device by the older generation. Those who are not really tech savvy and to whom the internet and email is something that is very scary. They often refer to themselves as being born “B.C.”, or “Before Computers.”

The older generation did not grow up knowing these technologies and it must be quite daunting to have to make such a shift in the way communication takes place. Even if the use of the computer is mastered the fear of viruses online can really deter them from using these wonderful tools. How will I fix it if I get a virus, etc.

The great thing about the iPad (and other products from Apple) is that there are almost no viruses to fear. The interface for sending and receiving email is very easy to understand and is quite intuitive to use.

Reading books, listening to podcasts, watching videos, reading magazines and checking your email will now be as easy as can be. You will even be able to subscribe to your favourite magazines and get them electronically each week or month.

This is not a device just for the kids. This device is for Grandma and Grandpa too. If you want to easily communicate with Grandpa and Grandma without having to buy them a computer and teach them, this is the answer.

After last weeks column I received a large number of emails and also some phone calls. I must say that I can see that the cost of bandwidth in South Africa is a serious issue for many users.

From the emails I received it was clear that most people are very excited about the new competitive prices becoming available to the public, I also realize how unhappy people are with the required ADSL line rental fee we all have to pay towards Telkom.

At the moment you are required to not only pay a high price for the ADSL line rental but you are also required to pay extra for a telephone line. If you are like me you never use that line. You have no choice in the matter. This bundling of services should not be allowed and I do hope that this will change soon.

As ADSL prices continue to fall I also hope that the ADSL line rental fee will come down. I heard today that Telkom will possibly upgrade the speed of all their ADSL lines soon, but I am sure that is just a way of keeping prices high. If they improve the service there is no need to lower the price, you now pay more because the service is better.

I think the speeds will go up each time it is time for a decrease in price. That way profits will stay the same.

It probably sounds as if I am just ranting today, but I do believe that access to the Internet should be a basic right, and this should be an affordable service for every South African.

Now that PayPal is available in South Africa and we are able to receive money online from a global market we can change the lives of many communities. (The next step would be to make it possible to receive money with any bank not just FNB. )

Dit wat ek al vir ‘n aantal jare voorspel is uiteindelik besig om te begin gebeur. Die Internet pryse is besig om te val. Toegang tot die Internet is nou besig om binne die bereik te kom van meer en meer Suid-Afrikaners.

Ek sou se dat ek dink die grootste veranderinge begin het toe Afrihost ‘n revulusie begin het deur die prys van Internet toegang se prys te verlaag na tot R14.50 per gig. Ek glo vas dat op die primere diensverskaffers in die land besef het dat hul dae van groot winste iets van die verlede is. Ek glo ook dat maatskappye soos MTN en Vodacom ook besef het dat hulle heel moontlik hulle pryse sal moet begin verlaag. Hoekom sou iemand tot R2000 per gig betaal indien R14,50 moontlik is.

Ek glo dat Afrihost op daardie stadium die eerste diensverskaffer was wat werklik hul gebruikers in ag geneem het. Ek het ook op daardie stadium dadelik van diensverskaffer verander. Nie net om hul te ondersteun in wat hulle doen nie, maar ook omdat dit finansieel baie sin gemaak het vir my.

Mweb het laasweek aangekondig dat hulle nou onbeperkte Internet beskikbaar maak teen ‘n ongelooflike goeie prys. Reg oor die web word daar nou nog gepraat oor hierdie stap. Mweb was vir ‘n baie lang ruk verseker een van die maagskappye wat nog die duurste was met hul aanbiedings en dit is wonderlik om te weet dat hulle nou in die regte rigting beweeg. Nie net in die regte rigting nie, maar al die kleiner ISP’s sal nou ook hul pryse moet laat val.

Dit is ‘n groot deurbraak vir die Internet verbruikers in Suid-Afrika. Afrihost het aangekondig dat hulle teen Dinsdag hul nuwe beter aanbiedings sal aankondig. Ek sien uit na hierdie aankondiging!

Die einigste deel van Internet toegang waarvan pryse nie afneem nie is Telkom. Telkom se pryse vir Internet toegang het die afgelope paar jaar eerder toegeneem. Jy as intekenaar is ook verplig om ‘n telefoonlyn by te neem wat dan ook nog ‘n hele paar rand by jou rekening sit elke maand. Telkom moet hierdie monopolistiese houding en gebruike afskaf. Jou telefoonlyn en Internetkonneksie behoort twee aparte opsies te wees. Ek wil nie ‘n Telkom telefoon he nie, maar ek moet vir een betaal omdat ek ADSL by my huis wil he. Dit is tyd dat hierdie pryse ook begin daal.

The television industry is changing internationally and eventhough we are far behind at least it looks like we are starting to move in the right direction.

In about 5-7 years time I strongly believe that a-la-carte television programming will be something that has become part of our daily lives. Being able to access content when we need it will be something that we are not able to live without and we will all wonder how on earth we ever survived without it. The thought of having to wait for a programme to show on a specific day at a specific time will seem ancient.

In South Africa it is still a few years away but in the US I am sure that we will see it becoming widely available in the next two to three years.

I am basing this on the fact that Google is in the process of launching a new video search feature and also the fact that regulators in the US is looking to make content on-demand a requirement of all broadcasters. The great thing is that you will pay for content that you want to see and not for all the other programming that is pushed out just to fill the day. This content is mostly subsidized by the popular content.

Another step in the right direction is the fact that we will soon see the launch of a brand now Satellite television service. On Digital Media will be launching their services before the end of May and we will start to see some competition in the digital satellite arena. Competition is important to improve services. I believe that the new content provider will struggle at first but at the price ranges that they will enter the market I will definitely sign up. Even if it is just to support the underdog and establishing choice I am in favour of this new service.

Photoshop and Photography Festival:

A workshop held in the Beautiful Eastern Free State

Summary:

Attention all Photography and Photoshop enthusiasts – (Beginners and Advanced)
On 27 March a workshop on Photography and Photoshop will be held in Bethlehem.
Speakers will include Mohammed Jogie, an internationally acclaimed design guru who will talk on Design Principles for Photographers and Special Effects, Miguel de Carvalho – a master in the field of advertising and glamour, who will talk on Retouching your photography and Igno van Niekerk, a photographic storyteller who will show how photographic principles are essential to digital workflow.
Cost: R550.00 per person (including lunch)
Venue: Witteberg High School, Bethlehem
When: Saturday – 27 March 2010 – 09:00 – 16:00
For more information: Visit www.fotofees.co.za or www.photofestival.co.za
Enquiries: Tel – 011 782 4297

Full Programme:

09:05 – 09:30 – 5 Principles of Creativity and the golden Mean – (Designthink for Photographers).
Speaker: Mohammed Jogie.
In this session Mohammed Jogie will take you through the “science” of design. Every photographer can benefit from understanding these principles, as they are underlying to the fundamentals of photographic composition.

09:30 – 10:30 Camerawork and Capturing with workflow in mind.
Speaker: Igno van Niekerk:
Igno shares the basics of digital capturing – the importance of understanding file formats, aperture, shutterspeed and ISO, as well as good camera skills to make sure that the best is made of every picture. He will also share the power of photographic workflow to save time by using Photoshop Ligthroom to show how a wedding photographer’s workflow can save hours of precious time.

10:30 – 11:00 Teatime

11:00 -12:00 Retouching in Photoshop.
Speaker – Miguel de Carvalho:
Miguel will take you through the power of Photoshop as a retouching tool. You will learn the skills of Photoshop insiders in terms of whitening teeth, brushing away blemishes, softening skin, treating tattoos etc. Photographers will walk away understanding that a great portrait is not finished until the Photoshopping is done.

12:00 – 13:00 Photoshop Special effects.
Speaker: Mohammed Jogie.
Mo will show photographers how to create elements like fire, lightning, fog, rainbows and rain to photographs. Not only will you learn some really cool stuff about some really hot stuff. You will also learn things about Photoshop that will astound you!

13:00 – 13:45 LUNCH

13:45 – 14:30 Photoshop, landscapes and storytelling. The fundamentals every Photographer should know.
Speaker: Igno van Niekerk.
In this session you will learn how to enhance the stories you tell with Photoshop by using Levels, curves, layers etc combined with an eye for the landscape and a “feel” for the light. A powertour on the fundamentals of Photoshop for unleashing the landscapes of stories and the stories of landscapes.

14:30 – 15:30 Ensemble –
Every speaker takes 10 minutes to show you some really cool things about Photoshop.

15:30 – 16:00 Showcase.
Attendees will be showing some of the things they have been doing with Photoshop. (More information on registration)

16:00 Close and Depart.

Thought process:
Because this is the first weekend of the holidays, we hope that photographers will make the most of the opportunity to spend the weekend or part thereof in the beautiful Eastern Free State. (Clarens, Rosendal, Paul Roux and Bethlehem). Others may drive through for the day…

Kind Regards/Vriendelike Groete,
Igno van Niekerk
083 376 1330

Ek het ‘n rukkie terug gehoor dat die Nasionale Museum Bloemfontein, hard besig is om aan hulle nuwe webblad te werk. Ek het toe vandag gehoor dat die nuwe webblad pas voltooi is. Ek het sommer dadelik gaan kyk.

Ons is geneig om te vergeet dat ‘n museum ‘n kritiese deel behoort te vorm van enige kind se opvoeding en dat ons werklik bevooregd is om in Bloemfontein sulke ongelooflike museums te he.

Voor ek die webblad besoek het, het ek nie besef hoeveel verskillende museums in Bloemfontein is nie. Van Florisbad tot die Eerste raadsaal. Hierdie is almal museums wat ek verseker binnekort gaan besoek.

Dit is so belangrik dat instansies soos die Nasionale Museum ‘n webblad moet he wat nie dood voorkom nie, die webblad moet gebruikersvriendelik wees. Teks op so ‘n blad moet ook nie te tegnies wees nie en moet met die gebruiker kommunikeer op ‘n vlak wat hy/sy verstaan. Ek dink werklik dat hierdie webblad daarin slaag om effektief te kommunikeer.

Die Nasionale Museum het ‘n groot taak en ek dink hulle neem nou ‘n stap in die regte rigting.

Die enigste ding op die webblad wat ek werklik mis is ‘n plek om in te teken op ‘n nuusbrief. Ek glo dit is ‘n baie belangrike deel van enige webblad en is krities om deurlopend met die gemeenskap te kommunikeer. Dit is ook handig om enige nuwe uitstallings of ander gebeurtenisse onder almal se aandag te bring. Ek is wel verseker dat daar binnekort wel ‘n plek wees waar jy op hul amptelike elektroniese nuusbrief sal kan inteken.

Ek het deur die webblad gewerk en is werklik beindruk deur die feit dat jy werklik alles wat jy oor die museum sou wou weet, kan uitvind. Die webblad kan besoek word by www.nasmus.co.za, maar maak seker dat jy nie net die webblad besoek nie, gaan besoek sommer dadelik die museum self ook!

Soos ek ‘n ruk terug op my blog genoem het is ek ‘n paar maande gelede met diabetes gediagnoseer. Die skok en aanpassings het my natuurlik nie so hard getref soos die mense rondom my nie, maar so met die tyd saam begin ek besef hoe ernstig my situasie was en hoe gelukkig ek myself moet ag dat ek nie in die hospital beland het nie.

My suikervlakke was bo 25 toe ek gediagnoseer was en wanneer ek my suiker getoets het was dit soms selfs bo 33.  Die meter het met tye nie ‘n lesing gegee nie, net ‘n “High” het op die skerm verskyn.

Ek spartel natuurlik nog al die pad om my suikers konstant laag te hou, maar dinge is darem aansienlik beter.

Die rede vir hierdie inskrywing is die feit dat ek vandag vir die eerste keer ‘n kopie van  ‘n tydskrif “Diabetes Focus” gekry het.  Dit is laasjaar se uitgawe en word deur die Diabete vereniging van Suid-Afrika gepubliseer.

Dit is ‘n wonderlike bron van inligting!!!  Ek het maar die eerste paar bladsye gelees en ek het dadelik besluit om ‘n artikel te skryf daaroor.  Die tydskrif is by Dischem of deur die vereniging beskikbaar en ek dink  elke diabeet of familie lid van ‘n diabeet behoort dit op ‘n  gereelde basis te bekom.

Indien jy onlangs gediagnoseer is en nog nie alles weet wat jy moet nie is dit belangrik dat jy dadelik die jongste uitgawe in die hande kry. Kry meer inligting by die Diabetevereniging se webblad by  http://www.diabetessa.co.za/.

Ek dink ook die Amerikaanse weergawe kan van belang wees. Jy kan inteken daarop of jy kan aanlyn die artikels lees by http://forecast.diabetes.org.

Ek sal in die volgende paar dae ook van die wonderlike inligting wat ek bekom met julle op my blog deel.

Ek doen deesdae baie huiswerk oor diabetes, oorsake van diabetes, wat jy mage eet as jy ‘n diabeet is en ook wat op die mark is om die lewe van diabete te vergemaklik, dus as jy ‘n vraag het stuur vir my ‘n epos, dalk kan ek jou in die regte rigting wys.  Ek is nie ‘n dokter nie dus sal ek jou nie antwoorde kan gee of wil gee nie, maar ek kan dalk vir jou in ‘n rigting op die Internet verwys waar jy kan gaan lees en jou eie besluite neem. Dalk kan jy dit dan met jou dokter bespreek en jou lewe verander.

Laat weet my gerus!  Selfs nog beter is as jy dalk ‘n gedagte het om met my ted eel sal ek dit hoog op prys stel!