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DIGITAL TV TUNER ClearStream TV – Pause, Rewind and Watch Live TV

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ClearStream TV is a digital TV SET tuner with a style: It tunes in over-the-air television broadcasts,with the help of an antenna, but instead of transmitting the programming straight to your TV, it streams the video signal through your Wi-Fi network. Install the ClearStream TV companion application on your favorite streaming gadget, mobile phone, or tablet, and you can sit back and watch, pause, and rewind live TV.ClearStream TV looks just like an big USB stick. It houses an ATSC TV tuner for North American over-the-air broadcasts, and also an 802.11n Wi-Fi adapter. The tuner doesn’t support the QAM standard (encrypted or unencrypted) that the cable-TV sector uses, so you will require to provide a digital TV antenna to take in your local broadcasters signals.

The ClearStream TV’s output can be utilized solely on your home network, and you’ll need an application to watch it. ClearStream TV maker Antennas Direct has a totally free one accessible for products running Android 4.2 and above, iOS 8.4 and up, tvOS 10.2 and above, and Roku 7.5 and higher.

At first use, you should connect your client unit to the tuner itself over Wi-Fi and use the application to link it to your home Wi-Fi network. When that’s completed, you can reconnect through your Wi-Fi network and set it to scan for programs.To watch TV, you simply click on the Live TV menu button and a couple of seconds later the channel shows up. Both applications show live TV above a program indexing, but the iOS app enables you to scroll via the guideline for all channels. On Android, you only get to see what’s on the channel you are watching.
We definitely like the concept of the ClearStream TV. It’s an quick technique to get an over-the-air TV channel to any screen in your home without managing cables and wires. It may additionally help to wean cord cutters off their cable company’s live streaming application simply by placing TV on a tablet or mobile phone.

It really does its primary job effectively, but We found the frequent rebooting of the Chromecast stream and the failure to adequately channel surf to be an irritation.
If you are a far more casual viewer and you don’t about DVR-but you do want to watch TV on various units in your home-the ClearStream TV might be perfect for you.

photo:antennasdirect

Use SMS Backup & Restore on your Android Phone

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In case you are an Android user and need to erase the data on your mobile phone, then you know that there are a amount of very good choices for backing up your mobile phone first of all. A bunch of this may be done through the Cloud, so that the content can be brought back again simply, but backing up your SMS inbox needs the use of third-party applications. There are a lot of various options on Google Play, but the concern becomes which one have to you use. Many of the popular ones require access to your Gmail account to immediately create and restore the backups, but if you aren’t secure allowing this kind of access, we have a excellent alternative you can try.

Right here is everything you need to understand about backing up your phone’s SMS archive, which can be stored on the device, sent by mail to yourself, or saved to the cloud. This will be useful if you need to reset your mobile phone to factory settings, or if you’re turning to a new phone. We used SMS Backup & Restore, which was acquired by Carbonite (now SyncTech). Simply follow these ways to backup SMS on your Android phone.SMS Backup and Restore Creating a backup of your Android phone’s SMS messages
To create a backup of all your SMS messages, you will need to start by simply installing Carbonite SMS Backup & Restore on your mobile phone. Once that’s finished, follow all these steps:

On the welcome screen, tap on Get Started.
You will have to give access to files (to save the backup), contacts, SMS (definitely), and manage phone calls. Keep tapping Allow on all four pop-ups.
Tap Set up a backup.
Toggle phone calls off if you just want to back up your text messaging. You can also tap Advanced options if you want to back up MMS or chosen chats; leave this alone if you want to back up your entire text archive.
Tap Next.
Now, using the toggles, select where you want to make the backup. You can choose Google Drive or Dropbox, but if you don’t want to allow access then you can switch on the toggle for Your phone, and then copy the file manually.
If you’re okay with the default folder tap on OK, otherwise tap on Browse and find the folder you want to save the backup in.
Once that’s done, tap on Next, and then in the popup, tap on Yes.
You can either set a backup schedule from the toggles in front of you, or turn off the Schedule recurring backups toggle. Then, tap on Back Up Now.
That’s it, the backup will now be carried out. With about 9,000 messages on our phone, the process took under 3 minutes. When you have the backup file, you can copy it to your PERSONAL COMPUTER, or save it to the cloud manually, without linking your applications to a third-party program.

Restoring a backup of your Android phone’s SMS messages
After you’ve created a backup of your Android phone’s SMS messages, you can go ahead and reset the phone, either because you want to try and free up space, or simply because you’re moving to a new mobile phone. Now that you’ve made the backup though, what do you do next? Once again, you’ll need to install Carbonite SMS Backup & Restore either on your new phone, or your newly formatted phone. Once that’s done, follow these steps to restore SMS messages:

Ensure that the SMS backup is copied to your phone.
Start Carbonite SMS Backup and Restore and tap Get Started on the welcome screen.
Tap the menu icon on the top left, and tap on Restore.
Tap on Local backup location if you are using a local copy, or if you chose to use Google Drive or Dropbox, tap on the appropriate button.
It should locate the latest backup automatically, but if it does not, tap on Select another backup, and tap on the file you want to restore from. Select from the toggles to decide what you want to restore, messages, and phone calls.
Tap on Restore, and then OK, and Yes on the next two popups to get started.

That is all there is to it. The application restores all your messages, so you can pick up where you left off even if you’re switching to a new phone. And if you’re backing up your existing device, it is also checking for duplicates so as to not flood your inbox with copies. The procedure not quite as quick as backing up the messages. Restoring around 9,000 messages had taken around 5 minutes.

Once that is completed, you’re good to go and can uninstall the application if you want to, or if you want to schedule standard backups, that is also an solution available to you. Since the application requires to be the default SMS app for restoring messages, you’ll want to go to your SMS app and open it to make it the default again, but other than this, there is absolutely nothing else you need to do.

The popular app SMS Backup & Restore has changed ownership once again, with Carbonite selling it to SyncTech. This app is well-known among users who frequently swap devices and need to transfer their SMS and call log data. Carbonite had purchased the app last year and gave it a visual overhaul. However, the company has now decided to sell it to SyncTech, an Australian firm, even though it still lists SMS Backup & Restore as a product on its site – Carbonite.

Although the sale was just announced, it might take a few days to complete the transition due to the holiday weekend. Along with the purchase, an update to the app on the Play Store was released, which indicated that the new developers plan to integrate opt-out advertisements. However, it’s unclear what other changes SyncTech has planned for the app.

SMS Backup & Restore does exactly what its name suggests, allowing users to back up and restore their SMS, MMS, and call log data. It’s a simple and effective solution for users who frequently switch phones. The addition of optional advertisements is a good sign that SyncTech has no plans to ruin the app’s functionality. For any inquiries, users can reach out to support@synctech.com.au or visit http://synctech.com.au.

Photo! Editor – Enhance your photos with this fantastic software

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Photo! Editor offers you all the image editing capabilities of a premium plan, for absolutely free. The software includes tools that will enhance your photographs and bring all of them to life.
The User Interface is very easy to navigate and many of the tools will work in either automatic or in manual mode.

KEY SPECS INCLUDE :
The Fix Red Eye tool lets you to simply remove red eye from your photos. You can either correct your photo automatically or edit it in manual mode.The Enhance Color tool contains an variety of enhanced tools for modifying the color balance, contrast, brightness and saturation of an photo. You can do this automatically or manually.
The Denoise tool will allow you to successfully get rid of luminance and color noise from photos that were made under inadequate lighting conditions.
The Deblur tool helps you to sharpen blurry images. This tool uses a great advanced technique that makes it possible to enhance seriously blurred photos.

Create Caricature:This tool lets you make funny caricatures by transforming images with unique warping effects.The Make Up tool has a set of retouching filters that can be used for portrait improvement.
Lighting:This effects tool allows you apply aesthetic lighting effects to your images.

 

 

The Straighten tool provides the easiest method to straighten tilted photos.
The Resample tool lets you resize images by enlarging or reducing them without image quality loss.
The Crop tool allows you to crop photos in a clear and sharp technique.
Batch processing allows you easily edit multiple photos with just minimum effort. You can process batches of photos by using the Windows explorer context list. Photo! Editor download

The new 24 MP Leica TL2 camera- perfect sharpness and brilliant pictures

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Leica has included brand new member to its TL system of digital cameras, called the TL2. One of the focus on functions here is that each camera is machined from a one block of aluminium. The camera is readily available in black and silver options. It has been costed at about $1,950 for only the body.

The actual Leica TL2 provides a brand-new 24-megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor, which is combined with a new Maestro II series image cpu. Together, the TL2 is reported to deliver enhanced dynamic range, contrast, colours and sharper details. An additional highlight here is the addition of 4K video support at 30fps, full-HD at 60fps and HD video at 60fps or 120fps. Leica is also offering the auto-focus speed of the camera, which is said to be around 165 ms. This is attributed to the new image processor, which also helps obtain a a lot shorter start-up time period. The electronic shutter speed has been upped to 1/40,000 secs and burst shooting ranges from 7fps to a optimum of 20fps.Other specs of the Leica TL2 include an ISO range of 100-50000; RAW (DNG) file support; multiple focus modes, such as face detection and tracking; external flash assistance USB 3.0, and HDMI connections.

Leica TL2 digital camera also has built-in Wi-Fi for transferring images and video to a mobile phone through the TL application, available for both Android and iOS. Leica claims the menus system is also much better organized, making it simpler to use. For navigating the menus, you get a 3.7-inch, fixed touchscreen LIQUID CRYSTAL DISPLAY on the Leica TL2 camera. The TL system has at the moment a total of 6 lenses, but the L-Bayonet mount makes it suitable with SL digital camera lenses as well.

Leica TL2 specs :
Camera TypeDigital APS-C system camera
Lens mountLeica L bayonet with contact strip for communication between lens and camera
Compatible lensesLenses with Leica L-Mount, Leica M/R lenses using the Leica M-Adapter L/R-Adapter L
SensorAPS-C sized CMOS sensor (23.6 x 15.7 mm) with 24.96/24.32 million pixels (total/effective), aspect ratio 3:2
Photo ResolutionDNG: 6016 x 4014 Pixels (24 Megapixels), JPEG: optional 6000 x 4000 Pixels (24 Megapixels), or 4272 x 2856 Pixels (12 Megapixels), or 3024 x 2016 Pixels (6 Megapixels)
Photo file formats/compression ratesOptional: JPG, DNG, or DNG + JPG, DNG optionally uncompressed or compressed (lossless)
Video recording formatMP4
Video resolution/frame rate3840 x 2160 p (4K) 30fps, 1920 x 1080 p (FHD) 60 fps or 1280 x 720 p (HD) fps or 1280 x 720 p (HD) 120 fps (SLOMO)
Video recording timeDepending on ambient or housing temperature video recordings are possible up to a maximum length of 29 minutes, maximum file size is 4 GB, if a recording exceeds this limit, the respective part is automatically stored in another file
Internal memory32 GB
Storage mediaSD/SDHC/SDXC memory cards, multimedia cards, UHS II-standard is supported
ISO rangeAutomatic, ISO 100 to ISO 50000
White balanceAutomatic, presets for daylight, cloudy, halogen lighting, shadow, electronic flash, two memory slots for manually metered settings, manual color temperature setting
Autofocus systemContrast-based
Autofocus metering methodsSingle point, multi-zone, spot, face detection, touch AF
Exposure modesAutomatic program, aperture priority, shutter speed priority, and manual setting, Fully automatic, sport, portrait, landscape, night portrait, snow/beach, fireworks, candlelight, sunset, digiscoping
Exposure Metering MethodsMulti-zone, center-weighted, spot
Exposure compensation±3 EV in 1⁄3 EV increments
Automatic exposure bracketingThree pictures in graduations up to ± 3EV, adjustable in 1⁄3 EV increments
Shutter speed range30 s to 1⁄40000 s (up to 1⁄4000 s with mechanical, beyond that with electronic shutter)
Picture sequenceApprox. 7 fps (with mechanical shutter) and 20 fps (with electronic shutter), 29 pictures at full speed, then depending on memory card properties
Flash modesAdjustable with attached, system compatible flash
Flash exposure compensation±3 EV in 1⁄3 EV increments
Flash synchronization1⁄180 s
Monitor3.7” TFT LCD, 1.3 million pixels, 854 x 480 per color channel
Self-TimerSelectable delay time 2 or 12 s
WLANComplies with IEEE 802.11b/g/n standard (standard WLAN protocol), channel 1-11, encryption method: WiFi-compatible WPA™/WPA2™
Power supplyLeica BP-DC13 lithium ion battery, rated voltage 7.2 V, capacity 985 mAh (min.) (based on CIPA standard): approx. 250 pictures, charging time (after total diwscharge): approx. 160 min Manufacturer: Panasonic Energy (Wuxi) Co, Ltd. Made in China
InterfacesMicro (type D) HDMI port, HDMI 1.4b standard is supported, USB type C port, USB 3.0 Super Speed standard is supported, battery charging via USB connection possible with max. 1 A, accessory shoe with Leica flash interface with integrated connection for optional accessories
ChargerLeica BC-DC13, input: AC 100-240V, 50/60Hz, 0.145 A (100 V)-0.08 A (240 V), automatic reversing, DC 8.4 V, 0.65 A, Weight: approx. 90 g/3.2 oz, Dimensions: approx. 96 x 68 x 28 mm, Manufacturer: Shenzen Eng Electronics Co., Ltd., Made in China
BodyLeica unibody aluminum design, attachment system for carrying straps and other accessories, ISO accessory shoe with center and control contacts for flash units or Leica Visoflex electronic viewfinders
Tripod threadA 1⁄4 DIN 4503 (1⁄4“)
Body dimensions (WxHxD)134 x 69 x 33 mm
WeightApprox. 399 g/355 g (with/without battery)
Scope of deliveryCamera body, carrying strap, 2 release keys for removing the dummy plugs or e.g. the carrying strap, battery (Leica BP-DC13), charger (Leica BC-DC13) with 6 adapter plugs, USB type C cord
SoftwareLeica TL-App (free download in Apple™ App Store™/Google™ Play Store™)

Photo:Leica

Making Money with Articles: How Much Can I Make?

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How much you can make from placing articles and affiliate links on your website differs from person to person.

How much you are able to make will depend mostly on how successful your website is. This means getting good search engine rankings through SEO efforts, making your website enjoyable and informative to read through engaging content, building your site around a great niche subject, how big your site is, and how many sites you have.

photo:pixabay

Some people claim to make as much as $10,000 per month ($120,000 per year) through building and promoting niche sites, however, most people should not expect this kind of success, especially if you are very new, as that kind of success usually only comes with experience and acquired skill. A reasonable income to expect from a niche site, after you have worked for months to gain traffic and are hooked up with good affiliates, may be $500-$1,000 per month. However this is recurring income, so you will make that much monthly off of the efforts you put into that one site, it is not a one shot deal.

After you have a successful website, most choose to continue to build niche sites. The more sites that you build, the better an income you can generate. Some also choose to build very fast and very short sites over sites that are slightly longer in length. It should be noted that the larger each of your sites are, the more income you will likely generate off of them.

When starting out, it is important to remember that your first site will always be your hardest, since you are just learning the ropes of the business, and that not everyone is cut out to market and promote niche sites. It may not work out for you and you may end up losing a little bit of money, but that is a risk that everyone in this business has to take.

The important thing is that you don’t give up without a good shot at it, if this is really what you want to do. Your first site may take a long time, the work may be tedious, and you may feel like throwing in the towel. However, if you give up too early, you will never know what could have been. And who knows, you may be the next great website marketing master!

Turbo engines on the Nissan Qashqai – 1,2 or 1,6 Turbo ?

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If you wanted a raised driving position to see the world around you, you had to buy an SUV. If you needed space, you had a choice of a station wagon or people mover. And for a bit of driving fun, you had to find yourself a hot hatch.
But Nissan changed all that with the creation of the fi rst-generation Qashqai. With this single model, you had a commanding driving position with good visibility, the driving dynamics of a hatch and more space than you thought possible in a compact body.

photo:Nissan

This unique design concept forced the world to create a new description and the term “crossover” was born. Today, many other car manufacturers offer crossovers,but with the successful Qashqai, Juke and X-Trail, Nissan remains the market leader.
For its next act, Nissan directed its attention to its range of engines and asked the same question: can you have it all?Nissan engineers found solutions for the old belief that power and fuel consumption are a trade-off, which means that if you wanted a car with power and drive ability,you had to sacrifice good fuel consumption.
Answer?The 1,2 Turbo and 1,6 Turbo petrol engines available in the Qashqai. These next-generation power-trains use advanced engine-management software and an adaptable turbocharger to deliver levels
of engine power previously only associated with much larger engines.
Consider the 1,2 Turbo that develops a stout 85 kW and 190 Nm of torque available from a mere 2 000 r/min. This puts older,non-turbo 1,6-litre petrol engines to shame.
In the same fashion, the 1,6 Turbo petrol engine has 120 kW and 240 Nm of torque, which is more power than what older generation 2,0-litre engines delivered.With so much engine power available at any speed, the Qashqai is a treat to drive.
The adaptable turbo means that your Qashqai has enough power at low speeds to make stop-and-start traffic a breeze,while the engine delivers some of its best performance at highway speeds.

The real magic is that these smaller turbocharged engines use less fuel than older, larger engines. With the boost from the turbo and clever engine design, both the 1,2 Turbo and 1,6 Turbo use an average of only 6,2 L/100 km in a combined usage cycle.And there’s another low figure to keep in mind. The 1,2 Turbo Qashqai is competitively priced.But the innovation does not stop there.Nissan’s engineers added another feature
to these next-generation Turbo engines:reliability. With intelligent engineering
solutions such as special motor oils and service-free timing chains, the new Turbo
engines in the Qashqai are as frugal with service costs as they are with fuel.
So why not visit Nissan to read more about the impressive Turbo engines on the Qashqai, or visit your nearest Nissan dealership and test drive the 1,2 Turbo or 1,6 Turbo models?

Nokia 8 – the first Premium Android phone from powerful brand

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The Nokia 8 is designed to create a assertion:the world’s once-dominant mobile phone brand name is back again. Not really that the 8 is the first brand-new Android smartphone by Nokia. There is the more affordable Nokia 3, and it has also launched mid-range Nokia 5 and 6 mobile phone models. But the Nokia 8 is the most crucial – the premium
phone that’s set to be competitive with the likes of the Apple iPhone and the Galaxy S8.

It’s beautifully slim, measuring 7.3mm,and mainly because it’s hewn from a single block of
aluminium it has a solid design just like couple of other mobile phones. Its fantastic edges and rounded sides guarantee that it sits comfortably in the hand,and make it very easy to access the front-mounted fingerprint reader without the need of adjusting your grip
or shuffling the cellphone about in your hand.It is definitely not an edge-to-edge design, like as the Samsung Galaxy S8’s or the LG G6’s, but at 5.3in all over the diagonal it’s a really good size,and its 2,560 x 1,440 image resolution converts to an impeccably sharp 554ppi. It’s super-bright also,striking a blinding 663cd/m2, so all the things looks brilliantly colored. A coating of Gorilla Glass 5 implies it also has a very good chance of surviving accidental drops with no shattering.

There is even much better news when it comes to battery “lifetime”. The marketing
has created a lot of the Nokia 8’s “innovative heat management solution” – an internal liquid cooling system that’s developed to draw heat aside from the chipset.The concept is to extend battery life by trying to keep temperature ranges to a minimum,
and we have to claim, it works very good!
Together with this in place, the Nokia 8 played back constant video for a 18hrs 46mins on a single charge. That puts it ahead of the greatest that Apple, Samsung and Sony have to give; in this specific class, just the OnePlus 5’s 20hrs 40mins could defeat Nokia 8.

At the backside of the Nokia 8 is located a 13-megapixel Zeiss-branded
camera. In simple fact, it’s a dual-camera arrangement: in addition to your typical RGB sensor,there is an f/2.0 monochrome sensor that’s used to handle fine detail.

The front side camera also uses a 13MP sensor, and it’s possible to switch on
both cameras at once, to shoot what Nokia is optimistically naming a “bothie”. The resultant image displays both the scene in front of you and, to the side, your reaction to it.
It’s a enjoyable tiny option, and it works with video as well as still images; We can notice it catching on for FB and YouTube live streams.

With Google Photos free unlimited high quality storage space.
A very first for smartphones, the unique Dual-Sight mode lets you use both front and back cameras simultaneously for split-screen photos and video.The Nokia 8 is an beautiful and powerful smartphone, no question about that. Everything about it high-quality, from the high-res display screen to the outstanding battery life – and,
gladly, Nokia has equipped it with stock Android. The selling price is competitive with other flagship mobile phones as well; it’s really worth saying that you get 64GB of onboard storage space, which can be enhanced by up to 256GB through a microSD slot.

Nokia 8 SPECS :
Octa-core 2.45GHz/1.9GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor l 4GB RAM l
Adreno 540 graphics l 5.3in IPS screen, 2,560 x 1,440 resolution l 64GB storage l microSD
slot l dual 13MP rear camera l 13MP front camera l 802.11ac Wi-Fi l Bluetooth 5 l NFC l
USB-C connector l 3,090mAh battery l Android 7.1 l 74 x 7.9 x 152mm (WDH) l 160g l
1year warranty.
Camera and flash
Primary camera 13 MP (Colour + OIS) + 13 MP (Mono), 1.12um, f/2.0, 76.9˚, PDAF, IR range finder, dual tone flash
Front-facing camera 13 MP PDAF, 1.12um, f/2.0, 78.4˚, display flash.
Display-Size and type 5.3” IPS QHD
Resolution 2560 x 1440
Material Corning® Gorilla® Glass 5, 2.5D Glass
Colors- Polished Blue, Tempered Blue, Steel, Polished Copper
Nokia 8 price: £499

Photo:Nokia

4 Easy to use free Software for home design-reviews and downloads

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4 great free software for those who wish to create virtual interior design top-quality images.

1-Sweet Home 3D version:5.2

Sweet Home 3D is an excellent solution for all those that daydream about redesigning their home.

Photo:Sweet Home 3D

Sweet Home 3D offers more than 50 different pieces of furniture, ranging from beds to lamps and desks tables, but you can import even more from the developer’s website. To create your rooms, all you need to do is drag and drop elements into the grid view and you’ll see them building up 3D in the viewing screen below. Once you’ve done this, use the virtual visit tool to get a 3D preview of what it looks like and talk a walk around.
Sweet Home 3D is a very useful software and it’s easy to use.
You may download Sweet Home 3D to install it on your PC
or use it online within your browser. Download Sweet Home 3D here  

2-IKEA Home Planner software

With software IKEA Home Planner, you can easily decorate a new home or rearrange your new IKEA furniture in any room.
With IKEA Home Planner you can plan furniture distribution on your new home before actually moving into it, or redecorate any room in your house with your favorite pieces of IKEA furniture. The program doesn’t include the complete IKEA catalog, but it helps you get an idea of how the new decoration will look like – without having to move heavy tables and shelves around.Rearrange and try different styles until you’re satisfied with the result. View it in 3-D and print with all the measurements, just like an architect. See how much it will cost and get the list of all products.IKEA Home Planner is very easy to use. You can switch between top perspective or a 3D render view, and also build the room itself before starting to add furniture.The program shows highly-detailed information about each item you add, including measurements, and all

Photo:IKEA

available colors. One big drawback, however, is the fact that the program doesn’t include furniture for the living room.
System requirements:
1 gigahertz (GHz) equivalent or faster
32MB Graphic card
1024 x 768 Display resolution
Broadband Internet connection
Mac Browsers:
– Safari 5.0.3 or higher
– Firefox 3.5.7 or higher
– Internet Explore 8.0.3 or higher
Windows Browsers:
– Internet Explorer 8.0 or higher
– Firefox 3.5.7 or higher
– Google Chrome 13.0, beta version
Download IKEA Home Planner here 

3-Planner 5D software-Home & Interior Design

Planner 5D is a great software for those who wish to create intricate virtual interior design images. As this program is absolutely free, it is a welcome alternative to costly and more complicated software platforms.You can choose from over 150 preselected interior design themes. The size and texture of these items can also be changed in order to meet certain specifications.One interesting benefit of Planner 5D is that the designs do not have to be built from scratch. The program contains a comprehensive built-in catalogue which provides different items to choose from

Photo:Planner 5D

such as upholstery and furniture. It is possible to view any designs from both two- and three-dimensional perspectives. Download Planner 5D here

4-PCon Planner

PCon Planner software is one of the most professional.The native DWG format allows users the flexibility to open files and work in this file format which is one of the most common ones for this type of activities. Users can also start the project by using a scanned floor plan or by creating the architectural space using a range of powerful commands (walls, doors etc.)The application allows you to create high quality renders and animations.
pCon.planner is a 3d room planning software tool,and also,you don’t have to be an expert to generate impressive renderings – with this software, even beginners can produce top-quality images.What to say,really good choice-PCon Planner. Download this free software here

Photo:PCon Planner

 

Types of external storage devices for your laptop-review

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In addition to your laptop’s internal hard drive, you can use external storage devices to store data. For example, you may want to use an external storage device to back up important files,house large digital libraries, or run programs. In the past, floppy disks and Zip disks were used to store backup data. Today, external storage devices range in size and storage capacity, and adding portable, affordable storage to your laptop is easier than ever.

Photo:pixabay

External Hard Drives
External hard drives are just like your laptop’s internal hard drive, but operate outside of your computer through a cable, typically plugged into a USB port. Generally compact in size and box-like in appearance, you can find external hard drives that offer up to several terabytes of storage. Some even have their own cooling fans.Most external hard drives can use used with laptop or desktop computers. Memory Cards
Memory cards, also called smart cards, are another way to store and transfer data. Flatter
and smaller than flash drives, memory cards are commonly used with digital cameras, printers,mobile phones, and laptops. Memory cards store 2GB or more of data, depending on the card.Memory cards measure about 2
× 3 inches in size.

Flash Drives 

photo:pixabay

Also called thumb drives or key drives because of the small size, flash drives plug into your
laptop’s USB port and offer a compact way to store data in a portable fashion. Small enough to hook onto a keychain, flash drives are also called
jump or stick drives, and you can use them to transfer data from one computer to another or back up files, even software. You can find flash drives in a wide variety of shapes and colors. They also offer a range of storage capacity, from just a few gigabytes to a terabyte.

Writable CD and DVDs
If your laptop has an optical CD or DVD drive, you can use discs to store data. Using the laptop’s software, you can burn data to a disc, but only if the optical drive supports recordable (CD-R or DVD-R) or re-recordable (CD-RW or DVD-RW) formats. Most laptops sold today have a DVD combo drive, which means it can read, write, and rewrite CD and DVD media. Optical discs are perfect for storing digital media, files, and programs.

Online Storage
Another option is to store your data online. You can find numerous services that let you back up your data online, usually for a fee. Online data can be accessed anywhere using an Internet connection and any computer. With the advance of cloud computing — a general term for delivering hosted services over the Internet —you can also use the Internet to perform other computer tasks, such as accessing software, e-mail, photos, and videos.

PC Cards
Before the popularity of smaller memory cards, PC cards were common among laptops. Also called PCMCIA cards, PC cards are the size of a credit card and fit into a PC card slot on the laptop. PC cards were used to insert added memory, sound,or modem functionality. PC cards come in three types. Type I cards are used for memory devices,type II cards are used for input/output devices,such as data/fax components. Type III cards are used for mass storage devices. Some laptops still offer the larger slot for such cards.

Sherry Kinkoph Gunter

Install Kodi on Windows, macOS, iOS or Android – How?

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Kodi is a versatile platform that allows you to stream media on most major operating systems and various devices. It provides access to your videos and music, enabling you to enjoy content anywhere in your home.

If you’re familiar with Kodi but unsure how to install it on your specific device or system, don’t worry. This guide is here to help you through the installation process for macOS, Windows, Android, and iOS devices.

WINDOWS
Installing Kodi on a Windows 10 machine is similarly easy: head to kodi.tv/download
and click on the Windows icon. This time,the pop-up will offer an option to download
either the Windows Store app or run the 32-bit installer. Clicking on the former option
is by far the simpler route as it automatically brings up the Windows Store download page.
Once in the store, you’ll soon notice that all of the user ratings are either one or five stars, suggesting that, while the Kodi app works smoothly on certain systems, it promptly crashes on others. To try for yourself, click “Get” and the latest version of Kodi will be downloaded.

If you’d rather not go through the store,select “Installer (32-bit)” on the website’s download page and run the EXE file. Follow the setup instructions that follow, choose
from a list of bundled add-ons and begin the
installation. You may find that, when you
run Kodi for the first time, a pop-up appears saying that some features of the app have
been blocked. To continue, click “Allow access” and start watching.
macOS
Unlike with iOS (see opposite), installing Kodi on your Mac is a piece of cake – but there are still issues to guard against.
First, head to kodi.tv and click on the blue “Download” button in the top-right corner of the page. On the subsequent page, scroll down to the ominous “Choose your weapon” subheading and select macOS, which will trigger a pop-up asking whether you want
to download the general or nightly release.We’d always recommend going with the
former as the latter are beta builds and could, therefore, be unstable.Run the generated DMG file, drag Kodi across to applications and, hey presto, you can start enjoying your films, TV, radio and so on through the familiar interface. If your Mac is still dragging its heels because Kodi is
an “unknown developer”, navigate to System Preferences | Security & Privacy | General and select the “Open anyway” option.
ANDROID
While Android users were previously forced to laboriously sideload Kodi on their
smartphone or tablet, the process is now a cinch: simply head to the relevant Google
Play Store page to download and install the app (tinyurl.com/y7qmhust).
Before the download begins, a pop-up will tell you that Kodi needs access to both
your device and app history, as well as your media files. That’s a given so click “Agree” to
continue. Once installed, you’ll be greeted with the same user interface as every
other version of Kodi, meaning you can immediately jump in to start watching your
fav series archive on the go.

IOS
Installing Kodi on your iPhone or iPad, however, is a very different kettle of fish. One method involves jailbreaking your device to allow the installation of unauthorised software that isn’t in the App Store. This isn’t something we’d recommend as, apart from being in a legal grey area, you would be invalidating the warranty of your device and potentially opening yourself up to malware. Moreover, there are other associated problems such as reduced battery life and not being able to update iOS. It’s rarely worth it.
Fret not – there’s another, albeit fiddly, option. To start, you will need to download
a tool called Cydia Impactor (cydiaimpactor.com) onto your PC or Mac. This tool allows
you to install apps that aren’t in Apple’s store on your device. You then need to
download the Kodi IPA file, which is easier
said than done as there are only DEB files
on Kodi’s website. This means you will have to use a free un-archiver tool such as 7-Zip
(7-zip.org) to convert the file so it can be used on an iOS device. Luckily, there are plenty of step-by-step guides online.
When you eventually have the Kodi IPA,plug your iPhone or iPad into your computer
via a USB cable, open Cydia Impactor and drag-and-drop the IPA file into it. You will
then be prompted to enter your Apple ID and password, which will generate a signing
certificate for the file. After that’s done, Kodi will, finally, be installed on your device – but
you’re not finished yet. Navigate through to Settings | General | Profiles & Device
Management, select your Apple ID and tap “Trust” to finish the process and start
absorbing media on your iPhone or iPad.

pcandtechauthority, photo: Kodi