Archive for the ‘Free Software’ Category

How to Nab Deals with Your Student Email Address – WIRED

College isn't cheap, and we're not just talking about tuition. Between the cost of books, living expenses, food, and going out, your budgets probably pretty tight. Good news, though: All you need is your school-provided .edu email address to take advantage of plenty of sweet student discounts. We hunted down the best deals for you to study (or party) on. Use all that extra cash to treat yourself to something nice, like beer.

Even if you're an old-fashioned pen and paper kind of student, you're going to need a laptop. Apples back to school deals offer up to $300 off most Macs and now the iPad Pro , and theyll throw in a pair of Beats headphones to keep the tunes playing between classes. If youd rather work on a Windows machine, Lenovo gives students 10 percent off and Dell offers students $150 off qualifying laptops.

Want a more traditional desktop setup in your dorm? Invest in a good keyboard. Das Keyboard gives students a 20 percent discount on their keyboards. Just make sure you dont keep your roommates up with your clicking and clacking.

Getting a degree takes a lot of work. Make it easier with a good set of productivity tools. Microsoft will give you a freetotally free!subscription to Office 365 if you have a .edu email address, so you can tackle the bulk of your work in Word, Excel, Powerpoint, and OneNote. Should your .edu address use Gmail, its probably through Google for Education , which entitles you to unlimited cloud storage for all your essays, projects, selfies, whatever.

If your studies involve 3-D modeling or animation, try the free three-year license to Autodesks software suite . That includes Maya, software for 3-D animation, and AutoCAD, software for 3-D modeling. Adobe gives students its Creative Cloud subscription, which includes Photoshop, Lightroom, Premiere, and more for $20 per month. And if you're on the computer science track or just want to add coding to your list of skills, Githubs Student Developer Pack gives students a suite of text editors and web hosting credits to get you started on your coding journey.

No matter what you're studying, youll probably be writing a lot of papers. Endnote can alleviate some stress from your last-minute essay writing by helping you find scholarly articles and format your citations. Normally the software costs $250, but students can pick it up for $114. A good alternative is Papers $80 normally, $50 for studentswhich has a built-in reader to let you dive into your research from inside the app. Get the iOS app and you can sync across devices for on-the-go research.

On top of all the knowledge your professors will drop on you, its important to stay informed on whats going on in the world. Take advantage of your university email address by getting a discounted subscription to The New York Times ($6 per month for students), The Wall Street Journal (15 weeks for $15, or $50 per year), or The Economist (12 weeks for $12, or $115 per year). Those rates are on par with introductory offers but can last you all through school. Don't have a few dollars to spend on news? The Washington Post offers digital subscriptions to students totally gratis.

Of course, you're not going to spend all four years with your nose in a newspaper. Socializing is important too! Create the soundtrack to your college days or a playlist for your next party with a subscription to either Spotify Premium or Apple Music for $5 per month. And when you need to stock up on Solo cups for your next party, cut down on shopping time with Amazon Prime . Students get a six-month free trial, which gets you free shipping and access to its video streaming service. After your trial is up, you can hold onto your yearly subscription for $50.

Whether youre heading home for the holidays or just need a weekend getaway, AMTRAK offers 15 percent off tickets year-round as long as you have a valid student ID. You might find cheaper fares through Greyhound , which gives students a 10 percent discount; Zipcar also gives students $10 off membership fees. When it's time to move out, use FedEx's 20 percent discount to trim down shipping costswhether you're starting your first job or moving back in with your parents.

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How to Nab Deals with Your Student Email Address - WIRED

Converting Pictures Into Words You Can Process – New York Times

Q. With my iPhone I copied numerous documents, many of which are in typewritten Hebrew, and now I have JPG files. I want to convert these into text files and translate them. How do I accomplish this? Or is there another way to do this?

A. Optical-character recognition (O.C.R.) software is commonly used to convert pictures or scans of the original material into text files that you can edit, format and use with a word-processing program. O.C.R. software analyzes the shape of the letters on the page and converts the visual information into live text. To convert images of Hebrew characters, you need an O.C.R. program that can recognize the Hebrew alphabet.

There are a few commercial O.C.R. programs available that list Hebrew as a supported language, including Readiris ($100 for Mac, iOS and Windows; a free trial is available). Other options include the $50 Prizmo O.C.R. software for the Mac, as well as Abbyy FineReader Pro for Mac ($120) and Abbyy FineReader Standard for Windows ($200); a free trial is available. An online version of Abbyy FineReader works through the web browser and you can try a limited number of conversions in exchange for your email address.

Free O.C.R. software for Hebrew, mobile O.C.R. apps and online conversion sites can be found around the web, too. You may want to try uploading a few sample photos of your text or use one of the free (or free trial) programs to see if you are satisfied with the character-recognition results. Some O.C.R. programs may have trouble recognizing characters in stylized fonts or in photographs that are not in sharp focus. With Hebrew, the nikud diacritical marks used to represent vowels or alternate pronunciations may also cause some programs to incorrectly recognize certain characters.

Once you have created text files you can edit, you can translate them by hand or try computer translation from some of the various sites like Google Translate, or with a dedicated translation program. Depending on the software, the quality of the translation may vary. You should also note whether the program is designed to convert classical/biblical or modern Hebrew. It is important to get the right version for your source material because the dictionaries used by the translation software can differ.

For those interested in Hebrew texts from around the world, the National Library of Israel recently unveiled its Ktiv site, a huge collection of digitized manuscripts that can be freely searched and studied online.

Personal Tech invites questions about computer-based technology to techtip@nytimes.com. This column will answer questions of general interest, but letters cannot be answered individually.

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Converting Pictures Into Words You Can Process - New York Times

Free Software to Recover Data From Crashed or Damaged Hard Drive – Technuter (blog)

Now a days we are living in the technology era, where our important documents, photos, videos and other files are saved in our personal computer or laptop, but, due to some reasons, we lost some files or all files from our personal computer. It happens due to Deleted, Formatted, Hard drive damage, Virus attack, OS crash or error, Partition loss, RAW partition. In this time, we feel very frustrated and disappointed, because our important files were deleted. After this incident, we always think, how can we recover our lost files.

During my search, I found, one hard drive recovery software Disk Drill for Windows. It is one of the best free data recovery software to recover deleted, formatted or lost data from PC, laptop or removable device easily and quickly.

In this article we shall tell you, how to recover data from crashed or damaged hard drive by using free software.

Recovering your erased documents, photos or music files is so much easier with Disk Drill for Windows. And it doesnt matter if you emptied the Recycle Bin a long time or just moments ago. It has quite a collection of recovery tools for any situation.

If you accidentally deleted some files you start looking for their shadow copies. But if you find out Windows has never created those, your solution will be Disk Drill. With this best recovery app you can restore files deleted from Recycle Bin, because the way Windows deletes the files, in most cases, they are still somewhere on the hard drive even though you cant see their names anymore. Until they are overwritten by new data, you have great chances of recovering them.

Disk Drill is a free data recovery software for Windows users for up to 100MB of erased data. It offers powerful Quick and Deep Scans, Lost Partition Search, Catalog Rebuild and other file recovery algorithms.

Restore erased files

Start Disk Drill and let it list all available drives in your system. Choose the one you lost data on. Click the major Recover button to start the free scan. Wait for the scan to complete it usually takes a few minutes, depending on the drive size. The available scanning methods may vary depending on the type of drive you are working with.

Choose the files for free data recovery

You need to recover files that take less than 100MB space you can do it for free.

Conclusion

Disk Drill is a great app that can restore deleted pictures, and sometimes even those pictures you could not preview in the app. But its even better when you start using its Recovery Vault data protection and restoration mechanism. It works transparently and invisibly at the same time: Disk Drill runs in the background, tracks your deleted data, marks it in a specific way, and in case you need to recover it in the future, Disk Drill has you covered.

https://www.cleverfiles.com/hard-drive-data-recovery.html

https://www.cleverfiles.com/free-data-recovery.html

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Free Software to Recover Data From Crashed or Damaged Hard Drive - Technuter (blog)

Paragon Software releases Hard Disk Manager 16 Preview for free – BetaNews

We used to be a huge Paragon Software supporter, met the company a few times inLondon to discuss strategies, but in the past couple of years it has almost completely disappeared under the radar, despite having a fantastic range of products across its portfolio. Whilst Acronis and our friends at O&O Software have powered forward, Paragon appears to have taken a step back.

Whether this is because it is focusing on its core market, Germany, or it moved in to the corporate market, its unclear. Either way, wed still recommend its products and and wrote about the updated Paragon Backup & Recovery 16 Free the other week.

This week we were surprised to see a free public preview of Paragon Hard Disk Manager 16, available to download right now. Normally the v15 Suite alone retails for $49.95, so this featured-packed hard drive maintenance toolkit is worth a download whilst available for free, preview or otherwise.

What isHard Disk Manager 16, exactly?You receive four key modules designed to keep your drives in check. The Backup & Recovery module will backup your files and folders (or an entire drive) to a network drive or cloud. The Partition Manager enables you to keep your drive running smoothly by re-arranging your drive contents so they are accessed in a more logical manner.

If you want to dispose of your PC or an external drive, then the Disk Wiper module will safely and securely clear the drive using 10 different deletion algorithms to make sure your data cannot be recovered. The Drive Copy module is useful if you want to migrate your drive (or drive contents) to another computer or external drive. There is a full suite of recovery tools, including producing bootable media, if you need to get back in to your computer or find lost files in the future.

So, whats new in v16? You tell us. As weve mentioned in the past, software developers appear to be running out of ideas, especially since "Windows 10 support" has long since beenused to justify major paid-for updates. Seriously, you do get a completely brand new user-interface which, according to Paragon Software, required 100 meetings and 400 pages of UI mockups to get right. Good to see it wasnt time wasted then.

The good news is, the preview will never expire, so its worth downloading either the 32-bit or 64-bit version of Hard Disk Manager 16 right now.

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Paragon Software releases Hard Disk Manager 16 Preview for free - BetaNews

Newton Free Library announces August programs – Wicked Local Newton

330 Homer St., Newton, MA 02459. 617-796-1360

All programs are free and open to the public; parking is free. The Newton Free Library is handicapped accessible.

Visit newtonfreelibrary.net.

All programs take place in Druker Auditorium unless otherwise noted. In case of inclement weather, call 617-796-1360 or visit http://newtonfreelibrary.net to see if we have closed due to a storm.

The library is closed on Sundays in August.

Programs and events

The library offers Newton residents discounted passes to over 20 area museums including the Boston Harbor Islands, the Childrens Museum, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Garden in the Woods, the Museum of Science and more. To reserve passes: http://newtonfreelibrary.net; 617-796-1360.

Mayor Setti Warrens Summer Reading Challenge: June 21 through Sept. 1. Kids in preschool through grade 12, get involved in Mayor Setti Warrens Summer Reading Challenge as they explore the theme Build a Better World with programs throughout the summer. Works toward a goal for kids going into preschool through grade five to read 1,000,000 minutes and 400,000 minutes for teens and tweens going into grades 612. To sign up, log minutes, go on adventures, write book reviews and check out the summer reading lists: http://newtonma.gov/summerread.

Talk to Us!: Newton Talks is an oral history project that is being conducted through the collaborative efforts of the library, the Newton Senior Center, Historic Newton and Crossing Generations. The first phase of the project will be interviewing veterans who live or have lived in Newton. Info contact Ilana Levine at 617-796-1670 or ilevine@newtonma.gov. Pick up an information packet and the necessary forms at the librarys Circulation Desk or the Senior Center.

Ongoing Help for Area Small Business Owners: Every Thursday SCORE volunteers will provide area small business owners with free, one-hour counseling and advice sessions. SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives), Americas premier source of free and confidential small business advice for entrepreneurs and small businesses, is a nonprofit association dedicated to entrepreneur education and the formation, growth and success of small business nationwide. Register (required) at scoreboston.org or call 617-565-5591.

Lets Talk: 10 a.m. Aug. 16 and 23, and 12:30 Aug. 22, third floor Rear Arc. Free conversation group for all levels of adult English Language Learners. No registration necessary. Drop-in.

BLOOD DRIVE: 2-7 p.m. Aug. 16.

ECLIPSE HAPPENINGS: 4 p.m. Aug. 16. Hands on activities and crafts to explore what a solar eclipse is all about. For kids entering grades K-2. Space limited. Tickets available 15 minutes before the program.

TWEEN CRAFTERNIGHT: 7 p.m. Aug. 16, second floor Teen Area. This summer the Teen Crafternoons will be meeting at night. Those interested can check the librarys website to see what the group will be making. For grades five to seven.

Tech Time: 24 p.m. Aug. 17 and 24, Study Room 2H behind the second floor Computer Center. Each person gets 30 minutes for advice. The sessions are for educational and informational help only. No repairs. Patrons can sign up for one session every other week. Register online.

IRISH, SCOTTISH AND ENGLISH FOLK MUSIC: 7 p.m. Aug. 17. Colleen White (vocals, flute, tin whistle) and Sean Smith (vocals, guitar, bouzouki, bodhran) will perform vocal and instrumental music from the Irish, Scottish and English folk traditions. As a duo they incorporate modern influences into their arrangements of songs and tunes that have been handed down through generations, enhancing this old/new dynamic by including works from contemporary folk music songwriters such as Kate Rusby, Karine Polwart and Steve Tilston, among others.

LEARN TO PRACTICE MEDITATION AND YOGA: 7 p.m. Aug. 17, third floor Rear Arc. Sitting meditation and yoga sessions offered every other week. Breathing and meditation practice helps cleanse the body mind complex enhancing the feeling of well-being, bringing clarity and calmness within. Attendees participate in gentle yoga poses, breathing practices and guided meditation. Participants can use a chair or sit on the floor. No previous experience required.

SAT AND ACT PRACTICE TESTS: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Aug. 19, Druker Auditorium. Students take full-length SAT and ACT practice tests under realistic testing conditions proctored by the Princeton Review. They can try their hand at the types of questions they will see on the real tests and get a personalized score report highlighting your strengths and areas of improvement. Offered two Saturdays in a row, so students can have the chance to take both tests, or take one test twice. Online registration.

GAME NIGHT: 6-8:30 p.m. Aug. 21, third floor Language Center desk area. Participants drop in and play board games. They can bring their own or use the librarys. Lots of games will be available, like Settlers of Catan, King of Tokyo and more. For ages 16 and older. No registration required.

END OF SUMMER GLOW-IN-THE-DARK PARTY: 7 p.m. Aug. 21, Druker Auditorium. Attendees celebrate the end of summer with glow-in-the-dark activities, food, crafts and more. For teens, tweens and kids.

MANAGING YOUR MEMORY: 7 p.m. Aug. 22. Dr. Andrew Budson discusses: How brains work to store and retrieve memories; normal versus abnormal age-related memory loss; new treatments and diagnostic tools for memory loss; and how to use exercise, diet and other strategies to strengthen memory. Budson is the author of Seven Steps to Managing Your Memory: Whats Normal, Whats Not and What to Do About It. He is a researcher, clinician and educator. A book signing will follow with books provided by New England Mobile Book Fair.

3-D PRINTING FOR ADULTS: 10-11:30 a.m. Aug. 23, second floor Computer Center. Participants learn how to design 3-D objects using free computer aided design software and then print them on the librarys 3-D printer. For ages 18 and older. Register online.

BEST APP CLASS PRODUCTIVITY: 3-4 p.m. Aug. 23, second floor Computer Center. Attendees learn how to improve their productivity and get organized for school, work or life in general. Participants will start by cleaning up and streamlining their inbox. Then they will review Google Drive, Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides, Google Forms and more. Register online.

August art shows and displays

GalleryCampfire by Julianne Martin: On view Aug. 230. Martin hopes her viewers will experience her paintings in a way that is similar to looking at the surface of water. From emptiness and depth rushes a true focus. She constructs her paintings on canvas with water and acrylic paint placing value in the unpredictability and purity of water as a tool and material. Ms. Martin teaches at Brookline Art Center, Arlington Center for the Arts and Boston preschools.

Main HallWithin the Landscape by Janet Shalstrom: On view Aug. 230. Shalstroms drawings reflect her origins in the countryside. An exploration of landscapes, they express the experience of looking within that landscape and finding that we can begin to see yet more worlds within one small sector of the larger world. Her media include common varieties of charcoal: compressed, vine and pencil. Shalstroms work has been exhibited in galleries and museums along the East Coast ranging from Maine to Virginia.

Atrium Case One: On view through Aug. 30. Visitors learn about Mayor Warrens Summer Reading Challenge for kids and teens. For information or to register: http://newtonma.gov/summerread.

Atrium Case 2: On view through Aug. 30. Celebrating 200 years of Henry David Thoreau, a prolific American writer. Explore the many ways that Thoreaus words and actions still hold relevance today. I love nature, I love the landscape, because it is so sincere.Journal, Nov. 16, 1850.

Three Main Hall cases: On view Aug. 230. Visitors see how Newton contributed to the American effort in World War Ithe men and women, the battles, the casualties, the artifacts. Here is your chance to transform the Great War from mere black-and-white shadows on television to a local affair. Related program at 7 p.m. Aug. 31.

Teen Gallery and second floor display cases: A Snapshot of Newton South Arts. The show will be on view through fall 2017 and includes a representative selection of work from Newton South High School Students. Frames donated by Eric Blomster of Abraxis Framing Company in Auburndale.

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Newton Free Library announces August programs - Wicked Local Newton