Saturday, January 30, 2016

Thursday, January 28, 2016

Just Released: PhotoStage Slideshow Producer for Windows

Download PhotoStage 3.37 now at www.nchsoftware.com/slideshow. Also available for Android, Mac OS X and iOS at the same page

New Release: Express Dictate for iOS

Download Express Dictate 5.92 now at www.nch.com.au/express. Also available for Windows, Android and Mac OS X at the same page

Thursday, January 21, 2016

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

Tuesday, January 19, 2016

How to Create Flowcharts to Improve Business Meetings

Make Your Meetings/Discussions More Effective by Using Flow Chart Diagrams

Using ClickCharts for Business by NCH Software

Meshing business processes with the nature of human interaction is an inherently difficult process and is a daunting task for any growing business. Meetings where nothing gets done or no resolution/actionable items result in the bane of owners, team leaders, and HR departments everywhere.

Taking the time to map out how those meetings should occur and how to refine the ideas that come from them into solutions will reduce frustrations and increase productivity; this is where flowchart software can help your business.

Here is an example of how a group works to create action points below:



First, let's go over the three types of shapes in this example and what they mean:

Rounded Rectangle = Start/Stop block
The only rounded rectangle in this example is at the top (Discussion) where we start with a discussion about how to handle a specific business goal or problem.

Rectangle = Action/Process
Rectangles represent a specific action or a part of the overall process - the (Proposal) rectangle immediately following the (Discussion) rounded rectangle means that after the initial discussion, the action of making a proposal is taken.

Diamond/Rhombus = Decision
Diamonds indicate that a choice must be made - the lines coming out of a diamond block represent the various decisions that can be made. The one diamond block in the chart (Test for Consensus) means that once a proposal is made, the group must decide if they agree or not.

Of course, there are many different symbols for different purposes, but these will do for now. For information on other standard shapes, visit the Wikipedia page here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flowchart#Common_Shapes

Now, let's review the potential paths the chart shows once the decision (Test for Consensus) is made

Decision (Test for Consensus)
  1. If Yes, then action (Consensus Achieved), then end (Action Points)
  2. If No, then action (Concerns Raised), one of 4 actions are taken after. Repeat the process until reaching an end block.
    1. Go back to start (Discussion)
    2. Action (Modification of Proposal), then back to the decision (Test for Consensus)
    3. Action (Stand Aside), then action (Consensus Achieved), then end (Action Points).
    4. End (Block).
You can use the chart above as a base for your own processor to start from scratch!

Things to consider when creating your own flowchart.
  • These are guidelines, not set rules. Remember, these are people, not computers.
  • Make it right for your business and the team. The flowchart should address if individual members have subprocesses or if non-team members/environmental factors have an influence.
  • Use the diagramming process to identify bottlenecks in the company - inevitably, as one thinks about the process as a whole and mentally maps everything out, the realization that there are points in the process that have been neglected will become apparent. Taking the time to chart these things may allow your company to undergo changes for the better.

To start making your own flowcharts, try ClickCharts, our simple but dynamic flowchart, mapping, and diagramming software program.


Thursday, January 14, 2016

How to Use the VirtualDub MSU Old Cinema Filter for VideoPad

The VirtualDub MSU Old Cinema Filter is a Free Plugin for VideoPad by MSU Graphics and Media Lab to Give Your Videos an Old Film Look


Download for free here: http://msu-old-cinema-2-0-virtualdub-plugin.soft112.com/

The MSU Old Cinema Effect Filter is an optional VirtualDub plugin for VideoPad similar to the Old Film effect already available in VideoPad but gives you more parameters to control. It works by adding the following to your video or movie:
  • Several color correction types
  • Vertical stripes
  • Adding small and large noise
  • Emulsion exfoliation effects
Editor's Note:
VideoPad comes with a built-in old cinema filter, however, for those who want additional controls, we support the Old Cinema plugin. 
Please note that due to the plugin being a 3rd party product and not maintained by us in any way, we cannot provide technical support if the plugin causes the program to crash. We recommend saving your project before applying the filter.

To install the Old Cinema plugin,

  1. Download the filter & specify a location on your computer to save them. We recommend creating a folder called "VirtualDub" to save this and any other VirtualDub effects.
  2. Once you have downloaded and saved the Old Cinema plugin, open a video project in VideoPad. Click the Effects button on the Home tab, and from the effects, drop-menu at the top, select Load/Unload VirtualDub Plugins. This will open the Video Effect Plugins window.
  3. Click the Load File(s) button and browse to your saved VirtualDub effects. Select the Old Cinema filter (look for .vdf format) and click Open. Click OK to close the Video Effects Plugins window.
  4. The filter will be added to the drop menu in the Video Effects window. Select the effect to open it and click the Configure Plugin button to view/adjust its parameters. You can edit the effect any time after it has been applied by clicking this same button from the Applied Effects list for the selected clip. 

Using The Interface and Settings (Advanced Setting Shown)


  • 16. Color correction
    • No Changes - there is no color correction
    • Manual Linear - transform from color to black&white video
      1. Red - Correct red color
      2. Green - Correct green color
      3. Blue - Correct blue color
    • Yellow Shift - colors are faded to yellow
    • Blue Shift - colors are faded to blue
  • Fade effect
    • 4. True/False - activates transfer from "Color cinema" to "Old cinema"

      5. If 'Fade In' then we transfer from "Color cinema" to "Old cinema", if 'Fade Out' then transfer from "Old cinema" to "Color cinema"

      6. Start frame number

      7. Duration of transfer (in frames)
  • Roller`s track
    • 8. Number of tracks

      9. Clarity tracks
  • Scratch settings
    • 10. Number of scratches

      11. Probability of scratch

      12. How many frames scratch will be shown

      13. Clearness of scratch

      17. Scratch thickness
  • Border fade
    • 14. Shape of an ellipse. If this parameter is greater, the ellipse transforms into a rectangle

      15. Fade sharpness. If this parameter is greater, pixels outside the ellipse fadeless
  • Settings
    • Show noise - display large noise
    • Screen shivering
    • Effect light lamp - colors are faded at the image border
    • Random noise on-screen - display small noise
    • Flicking - light intensity changes randomly
    • Big noise - display large spots

New Release: Inventoria Stock Manager for Mac OS X

Download Inventoria 3.69 now at www.nchsoftware.com/inventory. Also available for Windows at the same page

Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Just Released: DreamPlan Home Design Software for Android

Download DreamPlan 1.62 now at www.nchsoftware.com/design. Also available for Windows and Mac OS X at the same page

New Release: ClickCharts Diagram Flowchart Software for Windows

Download ClickCharts 1.47 now at www.nchsoftware.com/chart. Also available for Mac OS X and Android at the same page

Just Released: DreamPlan Home Design Software for Android

Download DreamPlan 1.62 now at www.nchsoftware.com/design. Also available for Windows and Mac OS X at the same page

Monday, January 11, 2016

Wednesday, January 6, 2016

How to Use the VirtualDub MSU Cartoonizer Filter for VideoPad

The VirtualDub MSU Cartoonizer Filter is a Free Plugin for VideoPad by MSU Graphics and Media Lab to Animate Your Videos



Download For Free Here:
video-msu-cartoonizer-virtualdub-plugin.soft112.com

The Cartoonizer filter overlays strokes and edges onto your video to simulate animation and includes a variety of styles such as colored and non-colored pencil, watercolor and oil painting to convert movies into cartoons and also to transform images into artistic paintings.

Editor's Note:
VideoPad comes with a built-in cartoon filter, however, for those who want additional controls, we support the Cartoonizer plugin. 
Please note that due to the plugin being a 3rd party product and not maintained by us in any way, we cannot provide technical support if the plugin causes the program to crash. We recommend saving your project before applying the filter.


To install the Cartoonizer plugin,

  1. Download the filter & specify a location on your computer to save them. We recommend creating a folder called "VirtualDub" to save this and any other VirtualDub effects in.
  2. Once you have downloaded and saved the Cartoonizer plugin, open a video project in VideoPad. Click the Effects button on the Home tab, and from the effects, drop-menu at the top, select Load/Unload VirtualDub Plugins. This will open the Video Effect Plugins window.
  3. Click the Load File(s) button and browse to your saved VirtualDub effects. Select the Cartoonizer filter (look for .vdf format) and click Open. Click OK to close the Video Effects Plugins window.
  4. The filter will be added to the drop menu in the Video Effects window. Select the effect to open it and click the Configure Plugin button to view/adjust its parameters. You can edit the effect at any time after it has been applied by clicking this same button from the Applied Effects list for the selected clip. 

The Interface and Settings



"Painting" mode settings:

Brush Size
Controls the size of the brush. Small brushes make the image more detailed and are recommended to apply small brushes to the video with small resolution. Large brushes make the image more blurred to amplify the non-photorealistic effect.

Brush Wetness
Controls the simulated wetness of a brush, Higher settings reduce the accuracy of strokes.

Color Randomization
Adds variety to the color of strokes.

Color Saturation
Changes Saturation of the resulting image.

Show Edges
This setting allows to render edges and add a stroke to them. and can be modified in Pencil Edge Options.


"Filled Segments" mode settings:

Number of Segments
Controls the number of rendered segments.

Color Saturation
Changes Saturation of the resulting image.

Show Edges
This setting allows to render edges and add a stroke to them. and can be modified in Pencil Edge Options.

"Drawing" mode settings:

Pencil Type
Allows choosing the type of pencil, Black or Colored.

Number of Edges
Controls the number of rendered edges.

Edge Brightness
Controls the brightness of edges for non-colored pencil and saturation for colored pencil.

Edge Thickness
Controls edge thickness.

Edge Accuracy
Controls accuracy of edge rendering. The left side of the bar maximizes precise strokes.

Use Face Detection
If enabled, this setting allows improving the accuracy of rendering for Faces.

General Settings:


Process each N frame
Control the number of processed frames. Each N-th frame is processed, other frames are duplicated. This parameter can be used to reduce the realism of the processed video or decrease shaking. 


To see various examples of how the filter can be used, take a look at the MSU gallery here 


New Release: Express Scribe Transcription Software for Windows

Download Express Scribe 5.81 now at www.nch.com.au/scribe. Also available for Mac OS X at the same page

Monday, January 4, 2016

New Release: Express Invoice Invoicing Software for Windows

Download Express Invoice 4.48 now at www.nchsoftware.com/invoice. Also available for Mac OS X, iOS and Android at the same page