This blog gives you all the information about Science & Technology. You will find the basic things in science and Technology and know about latest technologies introduced in e-technologies like photography software’s, i.e. you can add graphics to your photos in online,
• faqs about .net problems, web tricks, different types of free games available on internet ,
• free to learn new languages like Spanish, French etc…through online in easiest ways, preventing your mobile from theft using mobile software’s, design your home in your own way through online with free registration, about online windows desktop,
• the Facts about online lottery and how to avoid cheatings in lottery, free software’s for video conversion(3gp,mpeg,mp4 etc),
• the deep description about Wi-Fi, WAP services,
• the advantages and disadvantages about above services, avoiding the hacking when the Wi-Fi, WAP services in active state, to know about the free services like videos and free applications on apple iphone’s,
• photo editing software’s(free of cost),complete description of new products launched in market using hi-fi technology,
• the tips about preventing the passwords from hacking on online accounts, the hidden facts about out science and technology, the facts about our ancient scientist’s( how they are invent),
• visiting famous cities in the world in online without any charges, download the ancient games(for free of cost),the free services providing by the Google,
• and the ways of earn money through online(internet connection) it is a lot of subject to understand ,because online business is ocean, if we have a compass we can go through that easily ,comfortably and confidently, like I can give lots of online information for those who are seeking step forward in this electronic age…….
I will give one by one above mentioned information and updates, but this is not a commercial purpose, I will every information only for my self satisfaction and information sake for my followers……
After a long research(nearly 9 months, 6 hours per day) i found some articles and practically i experienced some facts for earn money through online are giving for those who are looking for earn money through internet. I think it is the ultimate way to earn money without any doubt and fear of losing money. I will give pin to pin details to how to register and how to earn money day by day with updates.
If you are looking for a proven legitimate online home business there are a number of things you can do to try and establish whether the opportunity is legitimate or a scam. This is not always easy but it is to your advantage to invest some time in researching the opportunity before parting with any money.
There are thousands of scams on the Internet as well as legitimate online home businesses and for new visitors to the Internet the task of trying to distinguish between the two can be very overwhelming.
Often the scam sites look so attractive and offer such great incomes or rewards that it is hard to believe that it is not legitimate, hence the reason so many people fall prey to the scammers.
So one thing to be wary of is those sites that make huge income claims, like earn $10 000 in your first week or month with an online business. This really is totally unrealistic and if that amount is perhaps fives times your current salary, do you really think it is possible to earn such a huge income in such a short period of time with no prior experience with this type of Internet business?
If the online business opportunity is legitimate then it would not be unreasonable for somebody who has been in the business for a couple of years to be earning a huge income. But be warned that nearly all the business opportunities on the Internet advertise the income of their top earners who have been working hard for a couple of years. They rarely advertise the income of those just starting out in the business. An online business is like any other business; you will need to work hard at building it up over a period of time to produce a good income.
So then do not get carried away with excitement when you find a Website making such unrealistic income claims. The Internet does not have magical powers to enable us to earn magnificent incomes overnight.
One can get so caught up in all the hype that it is easy to sign up for an online business opportunity that does not live up to its promises and this can result in huge disappointment, so a Website that is not promising the Earth is probably a safer Internet business route to take.
When you find a Website offering an online business opportunity that appeals to you, spend some time going through it and do not jump in immediately and part with your money.
Have a look on the Website to see if there is any contact information, either an email address or a Contact icon like an envelope, and send a short message expressing your interest in the Internet business and see if you receive a response.
There may also be the opportunity to sign up for a free Newsletter, which will give you the opportunity to not only learn from what the newsletter offers but also enable you to get a general feel for the online business opportunity and put you in touch with your referrer.
At the end of the day, once you have researched the Internet business opportunity thoroughly, sleep on it and take heed of your gut feel and all being well you will learn how to use the Internet to generate an income with your own legitimate online business.
1) Get Paid To Websites:
One of the easiest ways to start earning more or less straight away is to take part in ‘get paid to’ sites and offers. This is basically completing surveys or offers online in exchange for money. This may sound too good to be true but most of these are completely legit. In fact some pay up to $40 per survey. All it requires is a small amount of time but you can spend as long as you like, there’s usually no limit. You have to be careful however when choosing these companies, its well worth joining up with PaidSurveys etc to insure you are supplied with the best possible and genuine surveys and offers online.
to be continued.....,
101 Ways to Make Money Online
Even though this site is about freebies, not "how to make money at home," I still get a lot of people asking me just that question. My usual answer to look for a service that people want or need and that you enjoy. I also tell them to avoid any offers that come by unsolicited email or that they see in advertisements. They are almost always scams.
A company in the UK called "Experienced People" has created a list of 101 suggestions for making money online and at home. Some are them are done tung-in-cheek, some may be impractical or even illegal, but then again there are some that may spark an idea for a real way to make money at home. There is no magic bullet here that will make you rich, but it is worth reading if you are on the lookout for money making ideas.
Even though this site is about freebies, not "how to make money at home," I still get a lot of people asking me just that question. My usual answer to look for a service that people want or need and that you enjoy. I also tell them to avoid any offers that come by unsolicited email or that they see in advertisements. They are almost always scams.
A company in the UK called "Experienced People" has created a list of 101 suggestions for making money online and at home. Some are them are done tung-in-cheek, some may be impractical or even illegal, but then again there are some that may spark an idea for a real way to make money at home. There is no magic bullet here that will make you rich, but it is worth reading if you are on the lookout for money making ideas.
Free AAA TripTik Travel Planner
If you have ever tried planning a trip using one of the online mapping services such as MapQuest or Google Maps, you are probably aware of how inaccurate they can be. With all the roads that no longer exist and mazes of turns, sometimes I think you are more likely to get lost with directions from those sites than with no directions at all.
On the other hand, AAA members have long been able to get very accurate directions from the AAA TripTik service, but you had to be a AAA member to use it. Well, my freebie loving friends -- AAA is now making the service free for everyone. Read this review by Susan Breslow Sardone, our Honeymoons and Romantic Getaways Guide for the details.
The Best Free Software
One of the best things about free software is also one of the worst things about free software -- there is lots and lots of it out there. Don't get me wrong -- I love good selection as much as the next guy, but sometimes you just can't decide which free software is the best for your particular needs.
The folks at PC Magazine polled their staff and have come up with what they consider the best free software available. It is of course, a subjective list, and some people will say they missed some good software and not agree with all their choices. However, for the most part, they have made selections that you can't go wrong using and they have listed them in eight convenient categories. Check out the PC Magazine list of The Best Free Software. I'm sure you will find some great software gems you didn't know about.
What You Can Do With a Wiki
Most of you have probably seen sites like Wikipedia. These are wikis and the cool thing about them is that they allow multiple people to contribute to and change the content. You may not be aware that you can setup your own wiki for free.
Linda Roeder, our Guide to Personal Web Pages, introduces you to one such service in her article on What You Can Do With a Wiki
Before you Get an Air Miles Credit Card
An air miles credit card can get you lots of free miles, but how do you know which card is best for you -- and how do you get the most "milage" out of the card?
Mark Kahler, or Budget Travel Guide helps you sort it all out in his article on what you need to know before you get an air miles credit card.
Free Dove Cream Oil Body Wash Sample
This may be just the ticket for those with dry skin. Dove claims their product will "moisturize your skin better than any regular body wash."
They are offering a free sample on the Dove promotions page. If you have problems navigating to the offer page here is a direct link to the Dove Cream Oil site. You will need to have a recent version of the Flash player to view the site and fill out the form.
op 10 Spam Fighting Tips
On average, almost 90% of all email is UCE (unsolicited commercial email), also known as spam or junk email. When your inbox is littered with this trash it is not only hard to find the real email, spam can be a real security threat.
Our Guide to Email, Heinz Tschabitscher, has assembled a list of the ten most popular spam fighting tips to help you regain control of your inbox.
The Top 10 Email Scams
There is an old saying that goes "Being fore-warned is being fore-armed," and like many old sayings, there is a lot of truth to it even in the Internet age. Paul Gil, our Internet for Beginners Guide details ten email scams that you should be aware of.
For each type of scam, Paul gives you an example so you can get a feel for what the scam looks like and an explanation of how the scammers are trying to bilk you. Be careful out there.
A Free Laptop for Forwarding Email?
We all like free stuff and the less effort required and the more valuable the offer the better. I suspect that is why otherwise intelligent people keep forwarding around these ridiculous hoaxes.
Our esteemed Urban Legends Guide, David Emery, analyzes one of these "free for forwarding" emails and explains why it is just a recycled hoax and should be deleted, not forwarded to your friends.
Top 12 Free Internet Downloads
There are thousands of free Windows based software packages available on the Internet, but there are a fairly limited number of truly great free software packages out there. Paul Gil presents his picks for the top twelve (+1) free downloads and, looking over the list, I would say that I'm almost in total agreement with his choices.
Check out Paul's list and see if there are any great free downloads that you should add to your arsenal of free software applications.
Sunsilk Sample Pack
If you ask me, you can never have enough free shampoo samples. Unilever is helping to fulfill those shampoo sample needs with a free sample pack which includes shampoo, conditioner, creme, and $2 in gift cards. You can choose your samples from a list five Sunsilk varieties.
This offer has not yet made it to the Unilever promotions page, but I have added a link on my Unilever profile page.
Free Downy Samples
Sometimes I think the corporate marketers just get bored and create new product varieties to amuse themselves. I can see the value in 39 different flavors of ice cream, but do we really need a dozen different "flavors" of laundry products?
At least Procter & Gamble is giving us a free "taste" of their ground-breaking new products. Visit the Procter & Gamble free offers site and find out how you can request a free sample of either Ultra Downy Experientials Tahitian Waterfall or Ultra Downy April Fresh.
Free Clip Art for your Web Site
So, you have a Web site or blog and have created page after page of great text. Text is good stuff -- you can communicate a lot of information with nothing but text. However, sometimes you want to get a little more "graphic" with your site. Sure, you can post pictures of yourself or your pet hermit crab, but you can only post so many of those before getting repetitive.
Linda Roeder, our Guide to Personal Web Pages, comes to the rescue with loads and loads of free clip art you can use to beat those all text blues. Have fun!
Top Grocery Store Coupon Tips
We have all seen the news stories about the couponing and refunding "fanatics" that can purchase hundreds of dollars of groceries for a fraction of that amount. Would you like to do the same? Donna Montaldo has put together her top grocery store coupon tips to help you work toward that goal.
You may not be able to walk out of the grocery store with $100 worth of groceries for five bucks, but if you follow Donna's tips you will save significant money on your grocery bil
Top Tips for Earning Money with your Blog
You can find many promises of making money on the Net, but few of them are for real. One of the legitimate means is through running a popular blog. Earning money with a blog is far from a sure thing, but it is possible to earn anywhere from pocket change to a comfortable salary. The latter is very rare, but nonetheless, possible.
Our Web Logs Guide, Deborah Ng, offers six tips for earning money with your blog.
Free Symptom Checker
I have been very fortunate to have had overall good health throughout my life. However, every now and then I do get some sort of symptom that tells me something is not quite right. Before I call the doctor I like to try to find out what might be going on myself. I usually do a search on Google or check the very fine Health section here on About.com, but it is not always easy to locate the most appropriate information.
Now About.com has added a very cool and free Symptom Checker that makes it very easy to narrow down the areas that are giving you problems.
Free Celine Dion Sensational Fragrance Sample
With the power of love, it's all coming back to me now and my heart will go on because you loved me. If you recognize the last sentence as being more than a totally out of place comment, then you must be a Celine Dion fan!
And, luckily for you, Celine Dion Beauty is offering a free sample of her Sensational fragrance.
By the way, for those of you not up on Celine Dion music, the first sentence of this post is made up from four popular Celine Dion songs. I only had to add three words to create a somewhat meaningful sentence.
If you want to have some fun, pick another artist and do something similar in a comment to this post, but don't tell us who it is. Other users can try to guess who it is and post thier answers in the comments.
Costco Free Sample Offers
It's not usually a good idea to go to a store that sells groceries when you are hungry, but I make an exception for Costco. I can usually make a meal of the free food samples that they offer. If you are already a member, that makes for a true free lunch.
Now even those who are not members of Costco can get in on Costco free samples. Not the in-store food samples, however. Costco has now started hosting free sample offers on their Web site just as Walmart and many other large retailers do. At this writing they had a free sample of Move Free and Dove self tanning lotion.
Free Dial Deodorant Soap Sample
I smell something awful! That's one of my favorite lines from The Three Stooges. Unfortunately, sometimes it's more than just a play on words -- it can be a reality. The Dial Corporation, makers of Dial Soap, have a secret weapon against that awful smell. It's a new formula antibacterial deodorant soap and you can get a free sample through the Walmart free offers site.
If you have trouble accessing the Walmart offers page, you can try this direct link to the offer.
Free Pain Reliever Samples
I have been told many times what a pain I am, but these free products won't get rid of me or other annoying people. However, they may provide some relief for headaches and other physical pains. The Walmart free offers site is offering free samples of two different pain relief products:
Tylenol Extra Strength Rapid Relsease Gels
Advil PM
By the way, I may have found another reason some people can't see the offers on the Walmart free offer page. I was experimenting with browser that had ad blocking built in and guess what -- the Walmart offer page appeared blank. Apparently some ad blocking software detects the offers as being ads. The simple solution is to turn off ad blocking software when viewing that site.
Free Eye Derma-Pod Sample
This sounds like something from a grade B science fiction movie to me, but it is actually one of Olay's anti-aging products designed to make your eyes look younger. Now, if someone would come up with a product that would make my eyes see as clearly as they did when I was younger, that's one I would buy.
If you want to see if this stuff will give you younger looking eyes, you can find a link to the free Regenerst Eye Derma-Pod sample on the Olay beauty samples page.
Free Home & Garden Videos
Do you have so many pending projects around the house that you don't know where to start? How would you like some free and entertaining instructions on how to tackle those projects and chores? The About.com Home and Garden videos may be just what you need.
You can learn everything from how to build a stone patio to how to make your own kitchen cleaners to how to sew on a button and all for free.
Light-Enhancing Hair Care Samples
I always thought the whole idea of shampooing your hair was to get it clean and remove residues from it, but John Frieda Custom Color Collection seems to have another idea. Apparently, this set of shampoos and conditioners leaves a residue in your hair that is designed to reflect more light. I guess I'm game as long as I don't start looking like a glow worm.
Walmart is offering a free sample of John Frieda light-enhancing hair care products in your choice of colors. If the link is not appearing on the Walmart site you can try this more direct link.
Free $30 in Coupons from Procter and Gamble
Oh! What is that smell? Wait a minute -- let me use some of this Fabreze to clear things up. That's better, now all I smell is big coupon savings from P&G. At the very bottom of the P&G offers page and all the way to the right in their scrolling bar is a link to Fabreze offers. Since it is a lot of work to get there that way, here is a direct link to the page.
You can choose to play their silly Freshness Challenge game or you just click on the "get great savings" link on the right to register for your $30 in free coupons.
The Best Free Reference Sites on the Web
The Internet has become so integrated in many of our lives it becomes hard to imagine how we found information before the Web existed and that was only been just over a decade ago. The sheer amount of information on the Web is both its greatest value and its greatest drawback. Our Web Search Guide, Wendy Boswell, has put together a great list of reference sites that will help you sort it all out.
Her pick of About.com at the top of the list is not just because she is part of About.com. For those of you who have not explored much beyond a few About.com sites, you have yet to discover well over 600 sites run by over 600 experts who cover thousands of topics in great detail. Along with About.com, the rest of Wendy's best reference sites list will lead you to just about anything you might want to know.
Save Time for Free with Bloglines
Are you an Internet junkie? Do you spend too much time visiting site after site every day to get your information fix? If so, Bloglines will save you lots of time by bringing information from your favorite sites to you and all in one place.
Wendy Boswell, our Web search expert tells you what you need to know to make use of this free time saving tool. Once you have your Bloglines account setup, you will want to add About Freebies to your list of feeds. Just click here, click subscribe, and choose Bloglines as your RSS reader.
Free Reverse Phone Number Lookup
Did you ever have a charge on your phone bill for a number you didn't remember calling? Wendy Boswell tells you how to find out who is at the other end of that number using Google's phonebook feature. Of course you can also use the phonebook search to look up numbers by name instead of paying for directory assistance.
How to use Google's Free Reverse Phone Number Lookup
New Free Offers from Dove
I love freebies, but I don't want to work too hard to get them. That's why I think it's great when I find one place to get a number of different offers. The Dove free offers page is one of those places. For a while they had not been updating it very often, but I found when I visited today, they have added a number of offers to the site.
Check out the Dove free offers profile to find out more about Dove offers. You will also notice that I have a link to Dove site (Love Your Hair) that is not listed on the main offers page yet. Please note the the Love Your Hair site requires Flash 8 or higher to view.
70+ Resources to Make Money Online
This
Get Paid To Write
Smorty pays you for writing your opinion about peoples products, services and websites on your blog. Get paid weekly. No advertising, just write your opinions. You are free to select the subjects that interest you. You can post in multiple blogs to earn more.
PayPerPost pays for blogging. With PayPerPost advertisers are willing to pay you for your opinion on various topics. Make a blog posting, get your content approved, and get paid.
Blogsvertise’s advertisers want you to mention and talk about their websites, products and services in your blogs and journals. They want the publicity, the exposure, the Buzz! that online bloggers and internet journals can generate for their web site products and services. In exchange blogsvertise pays you in paypal per task/blog entry, for writing / talking about / mentioning their website in your blog.
Review Me pays to review products and services on your site. You control what you review. Submit your site for inclusion into our ReviewMe publisher network. Begin by creating a free account. If approved, your site will enter our ReviewMe marketplace and clients will purchase reviews from you. You decide to accept the review or not. You will be paid $20.00 to $200.00 for each completed review that you post on your site.
Weblogs, Inc. offers you to apply to blog for one of 90 fine blogs — or suggest a blog topic and maybe we’ll start a new blog! WIN bloggers are paid to blog as little or as much as they like, are unfiltered, and can shift from blog to blog within the network. The only requirements are that you be totally honest with your audience and passionate about the subjects you cover.
LoudLaunch provides you with a matched list of relevant advertisers that are seeking influencers such as yourself to help create a buzz. If your blog and interests are aligned with an advertiser’s campaign then you can do your own research and write about them in exchange for pay—not in exchange for a pre-determined outcome but for a fair assessment.
Blogitive provides access to opportunities from companies to post about their news releases. You are paid per posting. All bloggers are paid weekly via Paypal.
BloggerWave is one of many places where you can make/ host a blog and it’s for free. Now you’re ready to air your opinions on the net. And to make money! Your opinions could quickly turn into gold.
InBlogAds system pays for each post request you fulfill. You can choose a post request to your liking.
BlogToProfit connects bloggers with advertisers who want to sponsor your blog. Since its ads are in your posts, the program does not interfere with space you set aside for other ad programs! You have an endless amount of space for posts.
Creative Weblogging is one of the largest blog networks, with over 135 blogs in five languages.
451 Press is always looking for bright, talented writers who want to have their voices heard. It is looking for writers with unique voices to contribute to the growing network of blogs. If you have a passion for a subject then 451 Press just might have a place for you.
Digital Journal is one of the most active news sites on the Internet! Share your thoughts, vote on newsworthy articles, engage in debates and even get paid to report news as a citizen journalist.
BlogBurner was designed to allow you to write content which BlogBurner will market.
Squidoo - Earn money by writing your new blog, or choose to donate your earnings to charity.
About.com is the Web’s leading provider of practical solutions to everyday problems. If you’re the passionate expert that other people turn to for advice, and you wouldn’t have it any other way. You enjoy telling people what computer to buy, explaining how to fix a broken ceiling fan, giving out cheesecake recipes, or helping total strangers plan their vacations, you can become About.com’s writer.
DayTipper If you have a tip that is insightful, helpful, and original, DayTipper will publish it and pay you $3 (US). You write the content. It shares it with the world.
Helium is a community of writers who are revolutionizing publishing. It is a vast resource of experience-based knowledge, wisdom and creativity. We welcome a variety of voices and opinions. If you want to break into freelancing but don’t have a body of clips to show yet, Helium’s Marketplace is for you.
CreamAid is a service that lets you meet other bloggers with similar interests, and make money while doing it. Anyone can start using CREAMaid by inserting a CREAMaid Conversation widget inside her post. Your post will most likely be selected as long as you abide by the rules. Once selected, your post will be syndicated to all the participating posts through their embedded Conversation widgets.When your post is selected, you will be able to instantly collect a royalty
for your contribution.
Mashable is always searching for writers passionate about new media, Web 2.0 and social sites. Many freelance positions are available, and you can devote as much time as you have available.
Advertising Programs
Google Adsense lets you earn money from relevant ads on your website. It matches ads to your site’s content, and you earn money whenever your visitors click on them.
Text-Link-Ads - Sell simple, relevant text ads on your website. Retain full editorial control over the advertisers that appear on your website. You can choose to be emailed every time a new ad is sold so you can approve it or deny it from being published. Text-Link-Ads uses its own pricing algorithm that factors in: the traffic of your website, theme of your website, and link popularity of your website.
BlogAds - The average blogger makes anywhere from $50 to $5000 dollars a month selling blog ads. To participate in this program you will need to get sponsored by someone in their network.
LinkWorth is constantly increasing its staff to help keep up with our increased business. Its products consist of text link ads, paid blog reviews, in-text links, in-content pay per click ads, rotating text ads, hosted content pages, article submission, directory submission and many more.
CrispAds provides the most suitable model for blog advertising. The CrispAds team believes that blog advertising is a unique issue that requires a solution that addresses the needs of both Advertisers and blog Authors.
Chitika is the “blog dollars” company, creator of the leading blogger-driven merchandising/ shopping network on the Web today. Chitika provides bloggers the opportunity to harness their independent original content and opinions to monetize the traffic to their site.
AzoogleAds lets you maximize revenue from your traffic by promoting offers from our vast network of quality Advertisers. is a performance-based online advertising network that delivers both amazing results for its Advertisers and easy to manage and highly profitable revenue stream for its Publishers. It delivers targeted and untargeted customers from a variety of websites, search portals, newsletters and contextual Publishers. AzoogleAds manages this marketplace of online Publishers eager to generate revenue by promoting products and Advertisers wishing to acquire new customers.
Vibrant In-Text Advertising campaigns will increase your advertising revenue without adding more clutter, allowing you to expand advertising real estate with relevant in-text placements.
MediaFed specialises in a range of products to publish, measure, read and generate revenue from RSS feeds.
Q-Ads is a unique way for you to embed ads anywhere you can place a picture – in your blog post, on your website, in your RSS feed. Because you choose the keywords for your post, you are in control of the ad your website visitors see – it is no longer bound to the content, but to your knowledge of your readers and what you are writing.
PeakClick If you are a webmaster, you can install PeakClick’s code into your pages. Every time your visitors load your pages, PeakClick’s search results appear. Your site visitors click on the PeakClick links. Your PeakClick account is credited and your accumulated balance is paid out to you every 15 days. Webmasters get paid 70% of all sales generated by their traffic. There is no minimum on the amount of traffic you can send. In addition, webmasters get paid bonuses whenever they refer any other qualifying webmasters to PeakClick (equal to 5% of the income of each new affiliate you refer, plus 2% of the income of the new affiliates they refer, and 1% of the income of new affiliates those new affiliates refer - month after month!). PeakClick pays in Euros! Dollar instability may hurt you. If you’d like to be paid in dollars, PeakClick allows you to choose that currency.
DoubleClick is a provider of digital marketing technology and services.
Tribal Fusion If you want to be Tribal Fusion’s publisher you must have a minimum of 2,000 unique users per day, highly targeted, relevant and regularly updated content, professional site design, and an active user base.
AdBrite enables you to approve or reject any ads purchased for your site. Never worry again about inappropriate content or competitor ads appearing on your ad placements.
ThankYouPages uses a revenue share model to compensate its affiliates. For all paid advertising options, each affiliate will earn a percentage of the revenue from the ThankYouPages system attributable to the affiliate’s users.
Clicksor’s contextual advertising technology allows online visitors to enjoy the content of the Web site and bring generous earnings to webmasters at the same time. Clicksor will pay webmasters up to 60% of the advertising revenue to place contextual ads on their Web sites or blogs. It can also offer the best rates compared to any network with our ClicksorControl feature. Payments are based on a net 15-term on a bi-weekly schedule. Webmasters can select from a wide range of media, such as text banners, graphical banners, pop-under advertisements, search boxes, contextual inline links, layer ads and XML feed to host on their Web sites or blogs.
TargetPoint’s Adpoint and Imagepoint are an optimal solution for displaying targeted textual and graphic ads for website publishers both large and small. Targetpoint delivers ads relevant to the content of your site and to your visitors’ interests, enabling you to both enhance your site, and capitalize on your valuable traffic.
IndustryBrains is successful in creating additional revenue streams for publishers. Our technology enables vertically-focused publishers to monetize their Web sites and deliver relevant contextual text listings and graphical ads.
BulletAds offers attractive benefits for its affiliates and rewards those who show promising results. BulletAds prioritize on the interest of its affiliates with the aim of maximizing your revenue.
ROIRocket is a unique pay-per-action network that connects the top advertisers on the Internet with publishers willing to promote their offers based on a pre-determined commission-able amount.
AdKnowledge provides the easiest way to monetize your existing inventory. Receive industry-leading eCPM´s by outsourcing your ad inventory, either in part or in its entirety. Its technologies work with email, web and search engine inventory.
Yes Advertising accepts and pays traffic from all countries. It offers bi-weekly payment via check or paypal. No volume contracts. High quality and innovative ads.
RevenuePilot provides you the way to monetize your traffic. The Pay For Performance (PFP) and the Pay Per Click (PPC) markets have created ample opportunity for the web publishing community to turn its traffic into pure profits. RevenuePilot offers its affiliates seamless entrance into this highly profitable arena through its Premiere Pay Per Click Network.
Bidvertiser pays for every visitor that clicks on an ad. Its goal is to enable you to make as much as possible from your advertising space, by letting advertisers bid on your ad space. It pays monthly, either by check, or instantly through PayPal with a minimum of only $10
Pheedo advertising platform converts your RSS feeds into rich, dynamically updating advertising that engages your audience. Leverage your existing RSS assets to extend your brand, drive traffic, and acquire new feed subscribers.
ValueClick media is an advertising network partner for publishers. It helps you earn the maximum yield for your display and registration path inventory by giving you expert tools to earn the highest payouts and effective CPMs possible.
OneMonkey gives any web site web ad hosting capabilities.”Ad Server” is a web-native, ad-server and payment-processing system that allows webmasters to easily outsource their text-based advertising needs. Using OneMonkey.com, webmasters can offer their advertisers the same advantages as sites like Google.com offer their advertisers.
Yahoo Publisher Network use Yahoo to display ads that are relevant to the content of your site and earn money from qualified clicks. No investment is required and setup is quick and easy.
Affiliate Networks and Programs
Amazon Associates By linking to Amazon products and services you can add compelling content for your site visitors enjoyment and receive up to 10% in referral fees for doing so.
ClickBank is the Internet’s largest digital marketplace, where thousands of the web’s most popular products are sold every day. Whether you’re looking to buy, sell, or promote digital products, ClickBank is for you.
Commission Junction maximizes your revenue opportunities by developing sustainable relationships with top-tier advertisers. Perform and get paid for every sale and lead you generate. For qualifying publishers, take your program to the next level with our industry exclusive solution for top-performers.
LinkShare’s technology is not cookie-based, so it avoids the risks of tracking discrepancies that can result from cookies. It gives you the ability to use individual product links on your site and generate revenue from sales.
Affiliate Fuel is one of the world’s largest affiliate networks, with a record for performance and service second to none. It helps advertisers and publishers work together to create promotions that are exciting, enticing, well-managed, fair, and profitable for everyone involved.
LinkConnector marketing is an excellent way for affiliates to earn money with minimal start up costs. It gives website owners the opportunity to generate revenue by placing merchant promotions on their websites, in their email campaigns, on their blogs, or in search engine listings.
Forex-Affiliate is a world leading and highly paying Forex affiliate program. The Forex industry is the biggest market on earth today, with a daily turnover of 3 trillion dollars. Anyone today can trade Forex online. The participants in this market include central banks, organizations, commercial banks, institutional traders, and private individuals throughout the globe. This is a highly exciting market, though risky! Affiliating in the Forex market offers you a great earning potential, with online access to your traffic performance and your commission. The affiliates are provided with online support, marketing creatives and professional tools – free of charge.
IncentaClick Affiliate Network is a leader in performance based online marketing featuring CPA advertising (Cost Per Action). IncentaClick brings to the table the highest level of online marketing ethics coupled with aggressive execution. Our team of seasoned media veterans will take your online marketing initiatives to the next level. Whether you are looking for Sales, Lead Generation or Brand Development, through our various properties and media avenues we guarantee the largest reach and fastest ROI in the industry.
AdPlosion offers online marketers all they need in order to fully bask in the glow of success. Quality affiliate partners for our advertisers and exclusive offers for our publishers are just a few things we bring to the marketing table for you to feast on. You can earn revenue by selling leads, clicks and products from their advertisers. Also runs an incentive points program in addition to your commissions.
AffiliateFuture -If you are responsible for a website and want to increase its earning potential, join AffiliateFuture’s network to earn more revenue from your visitors. It works by allowing Merchants to advertise on your site, and AffiliateFuture pays you monthly when these adverts generate visits, leads or sales.
ClixGalore is an affiliate network consisting of 7500+ advertisers for you to choose from.
ThinkAction focuses is on maximizing revenue for each and every one of our partners through top offers and exclusive programs. It claims to have the top payouts and the possibility of earning over $100,000 dollars per month.
RocketProfit is an affiliate network, pays via check after your commissions reach $25 dollars.
With CafePress you can earn affiliate commissions by selling your personally branded merchandise.
Paid Social Media Programs
Dada.net is a social site with a revenue sharing program that pays you for referring friends and driving traffic.
Jyve is an online knowledge exchange where users worldwide share experience and expertise. A place for people to meet and professionals to market, Jyve is the place to go when you know–or need to know–right now. It pays you for answers, advice and peer support to people in need of some help.
Cruxy provides powerful marketing, monetization and performance tools for digital creators, whether filmmakers, musicians or artists of any kind. Cruxy’s tools give artists the power to share their work on Cruxy or across the web using the Cruxy Social Player. Cruxy also gives creators the ability to sell their work as digital downloads. Artists can sell just about any type of media file at the price they choose. It just takes a small fee (10% + $.15 per transaction) with the rest going to the creator. Fans can buy content using PayPal, Google Checkout or any major credit card.
BitWine pays for giving advice and answering questions for people, on subjects of your interests and choice. You just need to sign up for a BitWine Advisor account, downloading the BitWine Taskbar, and set up a payment method for your Clients.
Ether allows you to earn money. If you are a computer expert, a blogger, or a good gossiper, you can earn money selling what you say to others over the phone or through email. You set your rates and call availability.
JustAnswer If you are an expert in your field and you want to share your knowledge with others, just look through the question list, and find yourself answering the questions with ease, put your skills to work by applying to become a Just Answer expert.
MetaCafe is one of the world’s largest video sites, attracting more than 25 million unique viewers each month. You can upload your videos and earn money based on the number of views you receive.
ChaCha is the first search engine that uses the brainpower of really smart people to find anything you want on the Internet. If you are a motivated self-starter that shares our commitment to building a world-class organization, you might be the right person for ChaCha.
AssociatedContent is a platform that enables everyone to publish their content in any format on any topic and then distributes that content to engaged audiences through its website and content partners. Those who contribute to Associated Content’s ad-supported collection of original text, video, audio and images gain exposure and often earn cash for their participation.
myLot is a growing community of individuals from around the world who enjoy sharing information, meeting new people, and helping each other out. It pays you for posting, commenting and using their social network.
KnowBrainers Questions are asked by members of our community in a wide range of subject areas including entertainment, history, science, pet care, parenting, automotive, home contracting, computer help, health, and law. It pays you to get involved with the community and answer questions.
It's been a long process but let me try to summarise it. In November of 2002 I started my first blog - it was a personal and very general blog that covered everything from topics of culture, spirituality,politics, emerging church and life in Australia. I started it more as a diary than anything else and naively didn't expect it to be found by anyone.
I quickly discovered the power of blogging to give ordinary people like myself a voice on topics that they write about. I quickly grew a readership and became one of the 'go to' blogs within the Christian community -particularly the 'emerging church' sub community.
In September 2003 I accidentally started my second blog - a blog about digital cameras. I originally hoped that the blog would be a good place to show some of my digital photography - but when I posted a review of my camera there and it got 20 times more traffic than my photos I realised I could be onto something bigger and with commercial opportunities.
I also discovered Google's Adsense contextual ad system at this time and started to test it - hoping to cover my hosting and ISP costs. I quickly discovered that I could not only cover costs but make a little extra from my blogging with Adsense.
This began a journey of slowly adding content to my blogs, starting new blogs and learning how to use Adsense and other affiliate and advertising programs. I gradually spent more and more time on my blogging and cut back on my other work - to the point where I'm now virtually a full time blogger and have 20 blogs.
What is ProBlogger's mission?
ProBlogger is about helping bloggers to earn money from their blogs. I have learned a lot over the past three years about blogging and making money online and ProBlogger.net is a place where I talk about the lessons learned and how not to make the same mistakes I did in the early years.
What are some tips for newbies who would like to blog as a full-time gig?
• Don't expect overnight success. Blogging has great earning capacity - but it takes a lot of time and energy and a long term vision.
• Pick a niche topic to blog about. General multi-topic blogs are difficult to earn a living from. Pick a smaller niche topic and become THE "go-to" blogger on the topic.
• Experiment with different ad and affiliate options. Adsense doesn't work on every blog topic but that doesn't mean you can't earn an income online. In addition to trying new ad systems try new positions and designs for your ads also - and track your results so that you can tweak your blog for optimal results.
• Work on SEO (search engine optimisation) - I've found traffic from search engines can be better better paying than regular readers. Ideally you want a good mix of both loyal readers and SE traffic.
• Diversify. Don't put all your eggs in one blogging basket. Start multiple blogs on a variety of topics and domains, add a variety of income streams to your blogs (consider an e-book perhaps?) and have a back up plan of non-blogging work in case something terrible like disappearing from the SE's happens.
Read the rest of my interview with Darren Rowse on page two.
Most blogging platforms are pretty well set up for SEO these days - in fact blogs are well placed for ranking well in search engines due to their fresh content, site structures (with categories) and interlinking both within and between blogs.
Some of the things I recommend that can enhance this include:
• make your post title your page title
• interlink your posts
• consider a site map or at least link to your main pages from your side bar
• don't just link to your home page on every page with an image link-a text link with keywords that you're targeting is better for SEO
• write niche posts - keep each post to one particular topic. If you want to write on more than one topic per post consider breaking it up into a series.
When you first started out blogging, was going full-time as a blogger something you saw happening?
No - all I expected at the beginning was to have a single blog that kept a record of my life and perhaps created a space for my friends to get my updates. I never considered that I'd find a way of sustaining myself or my family financially through my blogging.
Do you think that this, blogging full-time, is something anyone could do?
Yes and no. If you think about any industry and how people go 'Pro' you see that there are always different levels that people can take things to. Pro-Golfers or Pro-Basketball players, etc. are a small percentage of those that aspire to be at the level that they achieve. They get to the pro-level because of a lot of hard work, luck, natural talent, etc. I suspect the same is true for bloggers. I think anyone can make some money from blogging - but the amount will vary on many factors and only a small number will probably be able to go full time.
How much time do you spend on this on a daily basis?
Too much! I treat it as a full time job - as a small business. At present I'm a sole entrepreneur with no one working for me so my hours are long. I've not added it up but I'm probably working 50-60 hour weeks at present. Having said that - I can take time off and have a very flexible work schedule - I work in the mornings and at night and have afternoons free for playing, other work etc. I enjoy it - a lot!
What do you see happening with your site in the next few years?
The next few years will be an interesting time. There is a massive influx of bloggers trying to blog professionally so things are getting a bit cluttered.
I'll continue to develop my current sites but am working on some new projects also. In the next few weeks I'll be launching a new blog network with a number of other bloggers. I'm also chatting to publishers about a book, am running a course called Six Figure Blogging with another blogger,and am planning a number of new blogs.
READ CAREFULLY:
he Main Types of Blog Advertising Opportunities:
Online advertising offers three primary types of ads bloggers can use to make money from their blogs.
• Pay-per-click: The advertiser pays the blogger each time someone clicks on the advertiser's ad.
• Pay-per-impression: The advertiser pays the blogger each time the ad appears on the blog's page.
• Pay-per-action: The advertiser pays the blogger each time someone clicks on the ad and performs an action such as making a purchase.
Contextual Ads:
Contextual ads are typically pay-per-click ads. The ads are delivered based on the content of the page on the blog where the ads will be displayed. In theory, the ads shown on the page should be relevant to the content of the page thereby increasing the chance that someone will click on them. Google AdSense and Kontera are examples of contextual advertising oppportunities.
Text Link Ads:
Ads that are not served based on the content of a blog's page but rather are placed based on specific text in the posts of a blog are called text link ads. Text Link Brokers and Text-Link-Ads are examples of text link advertising opportunities.
Impression-Based Ads:
Ads that pay bloggers based on the number of times the ad appears on the blog are called impression-based ads. FastClick and Tribal Fusion are examples of impression-based advertising opportunities.
Affiliate Ads:
Affiliate ads give bloggers a choice of programs to provide links to products. Bloggers are paid when someone purchases the advertised product. Amazon Associates and eBay Affiliates are examples of affiliate advertising programs.
Direct Ads:
Many bloggers offer an option for visitors to purchase advertising space on their blogs. Direct ads are typically shown in the form of banner ads or similar display ads provided directly to the blogger by the advertiser to be uploaded to the blog. Pricing and payment methods vary from blogger to blogger (often dependent on the amount of traffic the blog receives). Direct advertisers on blogs are sometimes called sponsors of that blog.
Reviews:
Reviews (often called sponsored reviews) are an indirect form of advertising on blogs. A company might contact a blogger directly asking them to write a review for a product, business, website, etc. If the blogger is paid to write the review, then it is a form of advertising revenue. Some companies offer forms of review advertising such as PayPerPost.
More from About Web Logs
5 Tips to Monetize Your BlogWhat is Affiliate Advertising?How to Start a Google AdSense Account to Earn Money from Your Blog
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Making Money from Your Website with Google AdSenseTop 10 Google AdSense Don'tsHow to Add Google AdSense to Blogger and Make Money from Your Blog
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You've probably heard before a lot of hype about how much money you can make with affiliate programs. Maybe you've even set up a site yourself, only to find that after buying the domain, a few bucks a month in hosting, software or a web designer to design your site, etc., that the piddly affiliate fees hardly even covered your cost. Well, here's the hype-free way to really make money with an Amazon.com affiliate site. And it'll only take a day to make the site. The secret? Low cost, low effort.
Difficulty: Hard
Time Required: One day
Here's How:
1. If you don't already know it, learn some basic HTML. You have to do this to keep your costs down and still get what you want. Even if the site is basically laid out for you, you're going to need to know how to insert images, create hyperlinks, and do some basic text formatting. Our HTML Guide offers a free 10-week HTML class and a great collection of beginning HTML tutorials. Get over any anxiety you have about this. Just do it. You'll thank me for it later.
2. Decide on your topic. You're going to be doing product reviews and recommendations, so pick a topic that you enjoy and know something about. If you can't stay passionate about the topic, that will show, and it also won't hold your interest. Choose a narrow enough niche to be distinctive, e.g., bands from your city, left-handed guitarists, music for a certain kind of dancing, authors of a certain religion, books about arts & crafts, etc.
3. Choose your domain name. Make it keyword-rich, not clever. Think how people will find your site in the search engines. Here are some ideas (all available when I first wrote this, though a cfew have been snatched up):
Music: BandsFromTexas.com, BandOutOfBoston.com, SouthpawGuitarists.com, ClassicPsychedelia.com, Non-Stop-Hip-Hop.com, Merengue-Music.com
Books: Mormon-Authors.com, Arts-and-Crafts-Books.com, Books-by-Stephen-King.com, ClassicBusinessBooks.com
Others: Best-Baby-Toys.com, MomsMags.com, FelliniMovies.com
4. Register your domain name. If you're not technically inclined at all, register your domain wherever you set up your hosting in step 5. Otherwise, you can save a few bucks by choosing a lower-cost provider. Not a big deal for one or two sites, but it can be for ten or twenty. I use GoDaddy, who have great domain management tools and are less than $10 a year. The least expensive I've found from a reputable source is 1&1, whose price is around $7 a year last I checked.
5. Set up your web hosting. This is where most people get burned. For this kind of site, you do not need $10 a month web hosting! Our Online Business Guide has a list of Cheap Web Hosting for Under $10. Some are as little as $4 a month, with unlimited domains, i.e., you can run several sites like this on the same hosting package.
6. Install blog software. "Blog, you say?" Yes. It will give your site all the structure you need, plus make it easy to quickly post new content. My pick is WordPress, which is open source (i.e., free), easy to install and use, and yet very powerful. Many hosts have a one-step installation process for it, or you can download it and follow their installation instructions.
7. Make it pretty. One of the great things about WordPress is the huge variety of templates available for it -- they can completely change the look-and-feel. Our Weblogs Guide has a list of 5 Sites for Free Wordpress Themes, where you can find hundreds of free WordPress themes.
8. Set up categories. Most blog software allows you to create sub-categories to help organize your entries. This will help visitors narrow in even more specifically on their interests. For example, BandsFromTexas.com might have one group of categories for genre — rock, country, blues, etc. — and another for city of origin — Austin, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, etc.
9. Sign up as an Amazon Associate. It's simple and free. Just visit Amazon and click on the Join Associates link at the bottom of the page (here's a direct link for your convenience). Your site should already have at least the basic setup done, even if you don't have any content there yet, as they'll review the site manually before approval.
10. Create your blog posting bookmarks/links. There are two links that are going to be essential for you to make this easy. First is the blog posting link. In your blog software, on the posting page (see their instructions), at the bottom of the page there should be a "bookmarklet". Click on the link (and hold the mouse) and drag it up to your Links toolbar in your browser (assuming Internet Explorer), or your Favorites menu. This will allow you to blog a product with one mouse click.
11. Create your Amazon Build-A-Link bookmark/link. This will make it easy to build the link with your affiliate ID built in. Log in to Associates Central, look in the left navigation sidebar, go to Build-A-Link, and under Static Links, find Individual Items. Click and drag this onto your Links toolbar or Favorites menu.
12. Build your first link. Go to Amazon and log in with your Associates account. Find the product you want to review and use the Site Stripe (gray stripe at the top of the screen that you'll see when logged in as an Associate) to get your personalized link to the item. They also offer a variety of other options for creating links and banners.
13. Blog your review. Now click on your blog posting link (Press It! by default in WordPress). If you're using WordPress, you should now see two pieces of link code in your posting form, the first one ending with "Associates Build-A-Link >< /a >". Delete through that point. The second part is a link to the product with your Amazon Associate ID built in. Now just write your product review, choose the appropriate categories for it, and hit Publish.
14. Build out your site. Before you promote your site, you want to have some substantial content there. Write several product reviews. Have at least 2-3 in each category you've created. You may also want to make a categories for articles, news, and commentary about your topic. The more content your site has, the better. And the great thing is that while you're writing all this, the search engines are getting notified automatically, assuming you turned on the notifications mentioned in step 6.
15. Promote your site. The best free way to do this is to communicate with other bloggers writing about similar topics, and to participate in online communities where your topic is discussed. See the Online Business Networking category for ideas, as well as the Internet Marketing category.
Tips:
1. You have to learn some basic HTML and basic concepts about running a web site. It's just not that hard. If you have to rely on purchased software, you won't be able to get exactly what you want, you won't know what to do when things go wrong, and you'll end up spending money you don't need to. Spend the time to learn it. It will be well worth the investment.
2. I slightly recommend music over books and other products, mainly because you can listen to the clips of an entire album in about 10 minutes and get a good enough feel for it (without buying it) to do a short review. If you have another topic that you're passionate about, great, but make sure you have a unique angle on the topic. People can get reviews about a lot of those consumer products anywhere. You need to give them a reason to come to your site.
3. To pick up some extra pennies, sign up for Google AdSense. It probably won't generate a lot of revenue, but it's free to sign up and completely effortless to maintain.
4. Set reasonable expectations for earnings. You've only invested $20. You're going to make 5% on most products. That means that you need to sell $400 worth of stuff to make back your investment. To make $20 an hour, what you write must generate $400 worth of purchases. You get credit for other purchases customers you send make while at Amazon besides just the product you linked to, so it's not as hard as it may sound. It won't make you rich, but it's not hard to be profitable, and it builds over time.
What You Need:
• A credit card with about $20 available
1. To make money online you must target your market and individualize your offer.
True
To be successful, you must become an expert in your niche targeted market by creating your unique selling proposition to stand out from the crowd. By determining what products or services are selling and selling to these markets, you will be moving in the right direction. Coming up with a strategy and talking to experienced people in the market can help you get started.
2. You need a website to be successful at making money online.
True
In order to make money online, you must first start with a website, a host and a domain name. There are many web design companies available that can create your website for you if you cannot create one on your own. This step is crucial to your success as you cannot get started without first having a website. Look at working with both local companies and Internet companies to get your site set up.
3. You do not need targeted traffic to make money online.
False
A crucial step to make money online is driving targeted and qualified paying traffic to your website. Your business thriving depends on how well you drive targeted traffic to your website, how quickly you can get it there, and how you can keep the traffic returning on an on going basis. Seek out books and tips from professionals on just how to do this.
4. Optimizing your website will help your Internet business boom.
True
It is a good idea to optimize your website on a regular basis to ensure it has a good placement in the web's top search engines. Google, Yahoo and MSN are the top search engines to date. However, the search engine industry is constantly changing and you need to know which of the major "players" is powering the smaller search engines so you will know where to focus your optimization efforts.
5. Seeking instruction for making money online is wise.
True
Proverbs 1:7 - the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but the fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
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The burning facts about astrology
The burning facts about astrology
A lunar peak in the sunny sign of Sagittarius is usually an exuberant time for travel, absorbing knowledge, mingling with new friends, taking in street food fairs or world music. There's optimism in the air, that anything is possible...what we can conceive, we can achieve. It will be uplifting, as long as we don't lose our grounding or our heads.
There are tensions to this full Moon that embed us in the denseness of the physical -- our bodies, our money, our homes....the earthy essentials of food, water, air and soil that sustain us. The full Moon is pulled taut with the tension of squares to sober Saturn in Virgo. The visions of Sadge may soar, but they won't find traction unless they're coming from "reality-based" plans. It's a chance to see where that bridge to what's realistic and enduring has yet to be built.
The major tough love teachers play big roles this full Moon. Saturn in Virgo is square to the Moon, as well as to the Sun in Gemini. It's mutable mania! Chaotic events, social chatter, nervous distraction, runaway thoughts...all these are heightened under this full Moon. Saturn in Virgo is wedged to the Sun-Moon polarity there. The energized, curious mind can be disciplined using the tools of Saturn in Virgo. A hair stylist friend of mine says "Yoga is my answer to everything." It's how she stays balanced running her own salon and keeping up with friends and her art. Yoga means union and as a purifying and healing path of the whole Self, is "very Virgo."
To deal with the modern madness that swirls around us all, Saturn is offering the rigorous path that begins with the body. Virgo needs "me time" to calm its nerves. The rich kind of solitude -- bathing, reading, walking in nature -- these help to get back to mental calm again. And we have to summon enormous discipline (Saturn) to make that part of our day. Tending to the whole Self is how we can synthesize and disperse (the gift of mutable signs), what we take in.
The quality of our lives is shaped by our field of perception, and how we make meaning out of it all. Gemini is the speedy absorber of all stimuli, drawn to bright gems that are each enough to hold the fascination. Sagittarius seeks to exalt the bits into an expansive big picture. It's the journey to knowledge and wisdom. It's the thrill of always learning more, and widening your world view. To see the serendipity and threads running through our lives. To know that there's a meaning to life and be guided by that.
In Australian astrologer Lynda Hill's post on the Full Moon, she writes about the sabian symbol of Sagittarius 18, which is Tiny Children Playing in Sunbonnets. The sunbonnet is an interesting metaphor, as a shield for the innocent, but also something that narrows the field of perception. Relating it to the Full Moon, she writes, "There can be a sense of having to keep some emotion or anger away, so as not to disturb or frighten others, or ourselves, but this may lead to having the 'blinkers' or 'blinders' on and not seeing life as it truly is."
It's a metaphor for what we're blind to, and what we allow ourselves to see. The fact that half of all Americans are taking mood altering medication shows that how we're living is making many of us crazy. It takes courage to stay present and that's where Saturn's structure comes to the rescue. Some limits and boundaries are good for the health. Like limiting how much news or violent images we see. But Hill points out, we are also often shielded from the true reality of what's going on...the devastation of war, for example. Each of us must find our own way of balancing all that's being perceived, to find the light of truth. Saturn in Virgo, the sign of the hermit, shows us a path to finding that kind of physical-mental-spiritual harmony through the devotion of a daily practice.
Mercury direct in reality-bound Taurus gives us eyes to see how to be grounded and effective. The square to Jupiter-Neptune-Chiron in Aquarius can show us what collective vibes keep us from tending our own garden. It's worth looking at this issue of frequencies (Aquarius), as the hidden noise that impacts our health and ability to see and know. What's making us ill and overwhelmed? In the oceans, whales beach themselves when the frequencies of sonar become too much. Many of us are just as distressed by the constant influx of noise and frequency pollution.
Along those lines, the well-known researcher David Icke often writes about the body as an electrochemical receiver. The e-smog around us Hurts Us, he writes, and keeps us from elevating our consciousness. It becomes critical to spiritual well-being, to attempt to "stay clear" or as clear as we can. Icke sees this as intentional, as a means of controlling the masses, and keeping us from our divine potential. He writes, "The electromagnetic ’soup’ is being created to produce an ever-thickening sea of frequency fields to hold the ‘human’ level in disconnection from its multi-dimensional self."
There's another major square from Pluto (Capricorn) to Uranus (Pisces). The collapse of the old structures meets the awakening of the heart in a moment of "somethings got to give." We may see a breakthrough, as more stand together for the values of oneness, compassion and empathy. Or we could see a purge of collective emotion through some shattering, transformative event that changes everything.
The trine from Pluto to Venus-Mars in Taurus opens the door for productive actions that shift the ground beneath you. You might find kindred spirits that are ready to build something sustainable. This favors local, rooted action from the ground up.
In closing, it's time to hone yourself as a divine receiver of messages. Our ancestors lived by their intuition, which told them where to find game and when to plant seeds. Use this cathartic full Moon to jumpstart your healing process. Reclaim some psychic space, so you can hear what's coming in to guide you. Look for ways to become more engaged with the natural physical earth right around you. Build your confidence to be able to hear the signals of both the earth and the cosmos. The time is now, and you can do it!
If any sign can thrive in a time of "Firsts," it's you Aries. Stay productive this year by shoring up your foundation. Beginning next year, the shocker Uranus has you in its sights. Use any precious calm to let go of self-destructive behaviors, and reach for optimal health. Read more about Aries in 2009.
Who's that cool character who seems in synch with the universe? It's Taurus in 2009. Make sure to keep it well-rounded, with both work and pleasure. Read more about Taurus in 2009.
You have no problem with paradox, Gemini. This makes it easier for you to accept things as they are, and roll with the changes. Read more about Gemini in 2009.
Don't cast pearls before swine in 09, Cancer. And don't fret over stuff that might happen. Go for the creative gold, and prove to yourself that you've been right all along -- you do have something valuable to share. Read more about Cancer in 2009.
It's a year to make friends with strange people. These authentic oddballs remind you to broadcast yourself in a unique way. It might be time to experiment with your public image, especially if you're changing careers. Read more about Leo in 2009.
Your instinct for wholeness can be your stabilizing anchor in this weird economy. make sure you keep to the daily schedule that keeps you sane. Healing yourself, and staying balanced is a key to growth in all areas. Read more about Virgo in 2009.
It's a year of going out on a limb, Libra, and testing your own courage in new experiences. When your passion is stirred and it is rooted in your values, you'll know you've hit on the right risks. Read more about Libra in 2009.
You're like a newborn babe, Scorpio, seeing life with fresh eyes. You don't have to carry the heavy load in 2009. Read more about Scorpio in 2009.
You've been through some stuff (expletive here!) in the last few years, and people sense that. You've been seasoned, and can move swiftly toward your goals. Read more about Sagittarius in 2009.
What's going on within you, Capricorn, is a mirror of what's happening to society at large. Pluto loves to break people down, so the explosive core can be released. Just knowing that it's a natural process, can help you plan your strategy. Read more about Capricorn in 2009.
Everything can change for you this year, Aquarius. You'd have to really be blind to miss the luck coming your way. You are in demand, whether it's starting a revolution or inventing some earth-saving technology. Share your brilliance widely in 2009. Read more about Aquarius in 2009.
Pisces, you're being tested in a cosmic vice, pulling you in two directions. The result is that you're maturing as a person who can turn your life into art. You can deal, and that's good to know. Read more about Pisces in 2009.
Editor's Note: This article is from talks given by Mayan priest Carlos Barrios and was distributed by eceti.org. Barrios speaks with urgency from his perspective as part of a culture that studies time. He speaks on earth changes, the power of the dark magicians, and 2012 as a transition, not an end. He has simple words of wisdom to share, so be sure to read the end!
Carlos Barrios was born into a Spanish family on El Altiplano, the highlands of Guatemala. His home was in Huehuetenango, also the dwelling place of the Maya, Mam tribe. With other Maya and other indigenous tradition keepers, the Mam carry part of the 'old ways on Turtle Island (North America).They are keepers of time, authorities on remarkable calendars that are ancient, elegant and relevant.
Mr. Barrios is a historian, an anthropologist and investigator. After studying with traditional elders for 25 years since the age of 19, he has also became a Mayan Ajq'ij, a ceremonial priest and spiritual guide, Eagle Clan. Years ago, along with his brother, Gerardo, Carlos initiated an investigation into the different Mayan calendars. He studied with many teachers. He says his brother Gerardo interviewed nearly 600 traditional Mayan elders to widen their scope of knowledge.
"Anthropologists visit the temple sites," Mr. Barrios says, "and read the inscriptions and make up stories about the Maya, but they do not read the signs correctly. It's just their imagination. Other people write about prophecy in the name of the Maya. They say that the world will end in December 2012.The Mayan elders are angry with this. The world will not end. It will be transformed."
The indigenous have the calendars, and know how to accurately interpret it, not others. The Mayan Calendars comprehension of time, seasons, and cycles has proven itself to be vast and sophisticated. The Maya understand 17 different calendars, some of them charting time accurately over a span of more than ten million years. The calendar that has steadily drawn global attention since 1987 is called the Tzolk'in or Cholq'ij.
Devised ages ago and based on the cycle of the Pleiades, it is still held as sacred. With the indigenous calendars, native people have kept track of important turning points in history. For example, the day keepers who study the calendars identified an important day in the year One Reed, Ce Acatal, as it was called by the Mexicans. That was the day when an important ancestor was prophesied to return, "coming like a butterfly". In the Western Calendar, the One Reed date correlates to Easter Sunday, April 21,1519 the day that Hernando Cortez and his fleet of 11 Spanish galleons arrived from the East at what is today called Vera Cruz, Mexico.
When the Spanish ships came toward shore, native people were waiting and watching to see how it would go. The billowing sails of the ships did indeed remind the scouts of butterflies skimming the ocean surface. In this manner was a new era initiated, an era they had anticipated through their calendars.
The Maya termed the new era the Nine Bolomtikus, or nine Hells of 52 years each. As the nine cycles unfolded, land and freedom were taken from the native people. Disease and disrespect dominated. What began with the arrival of Cortez, lasted until August 16, 1987 - a date many people recall as Harmonic Convergence.
Millions of people took advantage of that date to make ceremony in sacred sites, praying for a smooth transition to a new era, the World of the Fifth Sun. From that 1987 date until now, Mr. Barrios says, we have been in a time when the right arm of the materialistic world is disappearing, slowly but inexorably. We are at the cusp of the era when peace begins, and people live in harmony with Mother Earth.
We are no longer in the World of the Fourth Sun, but we are not yet in the World of the Fifth Sun. This is the time in-between, the time of transition. As we pass through transition there is a colossal, global convergence of environmental destruction, social chaos, war, and ongoing Earth changes.
All this, Mr. Barrios says, was foreseen via the simple, spiral mathematics of the Mayan calendars. "It will change," Mr. Barrios observes. "Everything will change." He said Mayan Daykeepers view the Dec. 21, 2012 date as a rebirth, the start of the World of the Fifth Sun. It will be the start of a new era resulting from and signified by the solar meridian crossing the galactic equator, and the earth aligning itself with the center of the galaxy.
At sunrise on December 21, 2012 for the first time in 26,000 years the Sun rises to conjunct the intersection of the Milky Way and the plane of the ecliptic. This cosmic cross is considered to be an embodiment of the Sacred Tree, The Tree of Life, a tree remembered in all the world's spiritual traditions.
Some observers say this alignment with the heart of the galaxy in 2012 will open a channel for cosmic energy to flow through the earth, cleansing it and all that dwells upon it, raising all to a higher level of vibration. This process has already begun, Mr. Barrios suggested. "Change is accelerating now, and it will continue to accelerate. If the people of the earth can get to this 2012 date in good shape, without having destroyed too much of the Earth, Mr.Barrios said, we will rise to a new, higher level. But to get there we must transform enormously powerful forces that seek to block the way.
A lunar peak in the sunny sign of Sagittarius is usually an exuberant time for travel, absorbing knowledge, mingling with new friends, taking in street food fairs or world music. There's optimism in the air, that anything is possible...what we can conceive, we can achieve. It will be uplifting, as long as we don't lose our grounding or our heads.
There are tensions to this full Moon that embed us in the denseness of the physical -- our bodies, our money, our homes....the earthy essentials of food, water, air and soil that sustain us. The full Moon is pulled taut with the tension of squares to sober Saturn in Virgo. The visions of Sadge may soar, but they won't find traction unless they're coming from "reality-based" plans. It's a chance to see where that bridge to what's realistic and enduring has yet to be built.
The major tough love teachers play big roles this full Moon. Saturn in Virgo is square to the Moon, as well as to the Sun in Gemini. It's mutable mania! Chaotic events, social chatter, nervous distraction, runaway thoughts...all these are heightened under this full Moon. Saturn in Virgo is wedged to the Sun-Moon polarity there. The energized, curious mind can be disciplined using the tools of Saturn in Virgo. A hair stylist friend of mine says "Yoga is my answer to everything." It's how she stays balanced running her own salon and keeping up with friends and her art. Yoga means union and as a purifying and healing path of the whole Self, is "very Virgo."
To deal with the modern madness that swirls around us all, Saturn is offering the rigorous path that begins with the body. Virgo needs "me time" to calm its nerves. The rich kind of solitude -- bathing, reading, walking in nature -- these help to get back to mental calm again. And we have to summon enormous discipline (Saturn) to make that part of our day. Tending to the whole Self is how we can synthesize and disperse (the gift of mutable signs), what we take in.
The quality of our lives is shaped by our field of perception, and how we make meaning out of it all. Gemini is the speedy absorber of all stimuli, drawn to bright gems that are each enough to hold the fascination. Sagittarius seeks to exalt the bits into an expansive big picture. It's the journey to knowledge and wisdom. It's the thrill of always learning more, and widening your world view. To see the serendipity and threads running through our lives. To know that there's a meaning to life and be guided by that.
In Australian astrologer Lynda Hill's post on the Full Moon, she writes about the sabian symbol of Sagittarius 18, which is Tiny Children Playing in Sunbonnets. The sunbonnet is an interesting metaphor, as a shield for the innocent, but also something that narrows the field of perception. Relating it to the Full Moon, she writes, "There can be a sense of having to keep some emotion or anger away, so as not to disturb or frighten others, or ourselves, but this may lead to having the 'blinkers' or 'blinders' on and not seeing life as it truly is."
It's a metaphor for what we're blind to, and what we allow ourselves to see. The fact that half of all Americans are taking mood altering medication shows that how we're living is making many of us crazy. It takes courage to stay present and that's where Saturn's structure comes to the rescue. Some limits and boundaries are good for the health. Like limiting how much news or violent images we see. But Hill points out, we are also often shielded from the true reality of what's going on...the devastation of war, for example. Each of us must find our own way of balancing all that's being perceived, to find the light of truth. Saturn in Virgo, the sign of the hermit, shows us a path to finding that kind of physical-mental-spiritual harmony through the devotion of a daily practice.
Mercury direct in reality-bound Taurus gives us eyes to see how to be grounded and effective. The square to Jupiter-Neptune-Chiron in Aquarius can show us what collective vibes keep us from tending our own garden. It's worth looking at this issue of frequencies (Aquarius), as the hidden noise that impacts our health and ability to see and know. What's making us ill and overwhelmed? In the oceans, whales beach themselves when the frequencies of sonar become too much. Many of us are just as distressed by the constant influx of noise and frequency pollution.
Along those lines, the well-known researcher David Icke often writes about the body as an electrochemical receiver. The e-smog around us Hurts Us, he writes, and keeps us from elevating our consciousness. It becomes critical to spiritual well-being, to attempt to "stay clear" or as clear as we can. Icke sees this as intentional, as a means of controlling the masses, and keeping us from our divine potential. He writes, "The electromagnetic ’soup’ is being created to produce an ever-thickening sea of frequency fields to hold the ‘human’ level in disconnection from its multi-dimensional self."
There's another major square from Pluto (Capricorn) to Uranus (Pisces). The collapse of the old structures meets the awakening of the heart in a moment of "somethings got to give." We may see a breakthrough, as more stand together for the values of oneness, compassion and empathy. Or we could see a purge of collective emotion through some shattering, transformative event that changes everything.
The trine from Pluto to Venus-Mars in Taurus opens the door for productive actions that shift the ground beneath you. You might find kindred spirits that are ready to build something sustainable. This favors local, rooted action from the ground up.
In closing, it's time to hone yourself as a divine receiver of messages. Our ancestors lived by their intuition, which told them where to find game and when to plant seeds. Use this cathartic full Moon to jumpstart your healing process. Reclaim some psychic space, so you can hear what's coming in to guide you. Look for ways to become more engaged with the natural physical earth right around you. Build your confidence to be able to hear the signals of both the earth and the cosmos. The time is now, and you can do it!
If any sign can thrive in a time of "Firsts," it's you Aries. Stay productive this year by shoring up your foundation. Beginning next year, the shocker Uranus has you in its sights. Use any precious calm to let go of self-destructive behaviors, and reach for optimal health. Read more about Aries in 2009.
Who's that cool character who seems in synch with the universe? It's Taurus in 2009. Make sure to keep it well-rounded, with both work and pleasure. Read more about Taurus in 2009.
You have no problem with paradox, Gemini. This makes it easier for you to accept things as they are, and roll with the changes. Read more about Gemini in 2009.
Don't cast pearls before swine in 09, Cancer. And don't fret over stuff that might happen. Go for the creative gold, and prove to yourself that you've been right all along -- you do have something valuable to share. Read more about Cancer in 2009.
It's a year to make friends with strange people. These authentic oddballs remind you to broadcast yourself in a unique way. It might be time to experiment with your public image, especially if you're changing careers. Read more about Leo in 2009.
Your instinct for wholeness can be your stabilizing anchor in this weird economy. make sure you keep to the daily schedule that keeps you sane. Healing yourself, and staying balanced is a key to growth in all areas. Read more about Virgo in 2009.
It's a year of going out on a limb, Libra, and testing your own courage in new experiences. When your passion is stirred and it is rooted in your values, you'll know you've hit on the right risks. Read more about Libra in 2009.
You're like a newborn babe, Scorpio, seeing life with fresh eyes. You don't have to carry the heavy load in 2009. Read more about Scorpio in 2009.
You've been through some stuff (expletive here!) in the last few years, and people sense that. You've been seasoned, and can move swiftly toward your goals. Read more about Sagittarius in 2009.
What's going on within you, Capricorn, is a mirror of what's happening to society at large. Pluto loves to break people down, so the explosive core can be released. Just knowing that it's a natural process, can help you plan your strategy. Read more about Capricorn in 2009.
Everything can change for you this year, Aquarius. You'd have to really be blind to miss the luck coming your way. You are in demand, whether it's starting a revolution or inventing some earth-saving technology. Share your brilliance widely in 2009. Read more about Aquarius in 2009.
Pisces, you're being tested in a cosmic vice, pulling you in two directions. The result is that you're maturing as a person who can turn your life into art. You can deal, and that's good to know. Read more about Pisces in 2009.
Editor's Note: This article is from talks given by Mayan priest Carlos Barrios and was distributed by eceti.org. Barrios speaks with urgency from his perspective as part of a culture that studies time. He speaks on earth changes, the power of the dark magicians, and 2012 as a transition, not an end. He has simple words of wisdom to share, so be sure to read the end!
Carlos Barrios was born into a Spanish family on El Altiplano, the highlands of Guatemala. His home was in Huehuetenango, also the dwelling place of the Maya, Mam tribe. With other Maya and other indigenous tradition keepers, the Mam carry part of the 'old ways on Turtle Island (North America).They are keepers of time, authorities on remarkable calendars that are ancient, elegant and relevant.
Mr. Barrios is a historian, an anthropologist and investigator. After studying with traditional elders for 25 years since the age of 19, he has also became a Mayan Ajq'ij, a ceremonial priest and spiritual guide, Eagle Clan. Years ago, along with his brother, Gerardo, Carlos initiated an investigation into the different Mayan calendars. He studied with many teachers. He says his brother Gerardo interviewed nearly 600 traditional Mayan elders to widen their scope of knowledge.
"Anthropologists visit the temple sites," Mr. Barrios says, "and read the inscriptions and make up stories about the Maya, but they do not read the signs correctly. It's just their imagination. Other people write about prophecy in the name of the Maya. They say that the world will end in December 2012.The Mayan elders are angry with this. The world will not end. It will be transformed."
The indigenous have the calendars, and know how to accurately interpret it, not others. The Mayan Calendars comprehension of time, seasons, and cycles has proven itself to be vast and sophisticated. The Maya understand 17 different calendars, some of them charting time accurately over a span of more than ten million years. The calendar that has steadily drawn global attention since 1987 is called the Tzolk'in or Cholq'ij.
Devised ages ago and based on the cycle of the Pleiades, it is still held as sacred. With the indigenous calendars, native people have kept track of important turning points in history. For example, the day keepers who study the calendars identified an important day in the year One Reed, Ce Acatal, as it was called by the Mexicans. That was the day when an important ancestor was prophesied to return, "coming like a butterfly". In the Western Calendar, the One Reed date correlates to Easter Sunday, April 21,1519 the day that Hernando Cortez and his fleet of 11 Spanish galleons arrived from the East at what is today called Vera Cruz, Mexico.
When the Spanish ships came toward shore, native people were waiting and watching to see how it would go. The billowing sails of the ships did indeed remind the scouts of butterflies skimming the ocean surface. In this manner was a new era initiated, an era they had anticipated through their calendars.
The Maya termed the new era the Nine Bolomtikus, or nine Hells of 52 years each. As the nine cycles unfolded, land and freedom were taken from the native people. Disease and disrespect dominated. What began with the arrival of Cortez, lasted until August 16, 1987 - a date many people recall as Harmonic Convergence.
Millions of people took advantage of that date to make ceremony in sacred sites, praying for a smooth transition to a new era, the World of the Fifth Sun. From that 1987 date until now, Mr. Barrios says, we have been in a time when the right arm of the materialistic world is disappearing, slowly but inexorably. We are at the cusp of the era when peace begins, and people live in harmony with Mother Earth.
We are no longer in the World of the Fourth Sun, but we are not yet in the World of the Fifth Sun. This is the time in-between, the time of transition. As we pass through transition there is a colossal, global convergence of environmental destruction, social chaos, war, and ongoing Earth changes.
All this, Mr. Barrios says, was foreseen via the simple, spiral mathematics of the Mayan calendars. "It will change," Mr. Barrios observes. "Everything will change." He said Mayan Daykeepers view the Dec. 21, 2012 date as a rebirth, the start of the World of the Fifth Sun. It will be the start of a new era resulting from and signified by the solar meridian crossing the galactic equator, and the earth aligning itself with the center of the galaxy.
At sunrise on December 21, 2012 for the first time in 26,000 years the Sun rises to conjunct the intersection of the Milky Way and the plane of the ecliptic. This cosmic cross is considered to be an embodiment of the Sacred Tree, The Tree of Life, a tree remembered in all the world's spiritual traditions.
Some observers say this alignment with the heart of the galaxy in 2012 will open a channel for cosmic energy to flow through the earth, cleansing it and all that dwells upon it, raising all to a higher level of vibration. This process has already begun, Mr. Barrios suggested. "Change is accelerating now, and it will continue to accelerate. If the people of the earth can get to this 2012 date in good shape, without having destroyed too much of the Earth, Mr.Barrios said, we will rise to a new, higher level. But to get there we must transform enormously powerful forces that seek to block the way.
The complete info of animation(must read)
The complete info of animation(must read)
Computer animation can be be fun, but it can also be quite costly. Every year animation studios and independent animators spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on licensed software, properly-equipped computers, and many other tools necessary to compete in the animation industry. But it's not always necessary to spend that kind of money; for the curious, the studious, or even the aspiring professional, there are much more cost-effecitve ways to get your feet wet. If you know where to look and how to shop, it's not that hard to compete with the big boys without spending the big bucks.
First, Know What You Need.
What is it exactly that you want to do? Are you interested in creating interactive multimedia presentations for the web, designing animated user interfaces, creating animated CGI videos, or any of the many other applications of 2D-and-3D-animation technology? Before you decide on which software package to invest in, do a little research; check out the developer's website, and the product specifications. Make sure that the software will meet your needs, so that you won't find yourself toting the box and your receipt back to the store to exchange it for something with the features that you require.
Try Before You Buy.
Many companies, such as Macromedia, offer functionality-limited or time-limited trials of their products to allow you to give it a test-drive before you buy it. Websites like CNet's Download.com offer comprehensive listings of downloadable trial versions of thousands of software packages, searchable either by category or keyword. Downloading a trial version can let you work with the user interface to test its user-friendliness, and insure that not only does the program meet your requirements, but it can also run on your system.
Don't Be Afraid to Turn to a Lower-Priced Alternative.
Just because an animation software package carries a big name doesn't mean that you have to invest in a second mortgage in order to buy it. While giants like Discreet and Macromedia are premiers of the industry for a reason, you may not necessarily need all of the extra features or cool add-ons that come packed into their software. Lower-priced alternatives like Reinhard Epp Software's CyberMotion 3D-Designer may suit your needs just as well.
But this doesn't apply only to software. Many animators use hardware peripherals like graphics tablets to help with their animation tasks; some tablets, like Wacom's Cintiq, can have price ranges reaching into the thousands of dollars, and even their smaller tablets can be priced in the hundreds. Wacom tablets are reliable, fully-featured, sturdy, and highly advanced; however, you're just looking to dabble, there's nothing wrong with experimenting with other brands. For example, the SuperPen Graphics Tablet (available at ThinkGeek) is a great small tablet for the beginner, priced only at $49.99.
Last, Know Your Capabilities.
It's always a disappointment to bring home that shiny new software CD, only to slide it into the drive and be informed that you have insufficient system resources to install the application. It's important to know your system specs before you spend the money on new software, and equally important to check the hardware and OS requirements on the side of the box before you take it up to the register.
But even if that decal-decorated box says "512 MB RAM required" and you know that your home PC is only sporting 256, don't despair; more than likely, there's no need to shell out the cash for a new computer. Depending on the brand, model, and year of your PC, upgrading your hardware can be exceedingly simple, and can save you a great deal of money, time, and headaches.
With these ideas in mind, you can take the hassle out of shopping for computer animation software, and take the weight off your checkbook. Whether you'd like to start off slow or dive right on into the heavy artillery, you'll be ready to start animating with the pros--so good luck, and happy shopping.
The Animation Showcase is a place for you to feature your animations to gain more exposure, or just because you feel like sharing, showing off, and otherwise displaying your work to the world at large. So if you've got an animation short that you've just been itching to air to the general public, take a look at the Q&A below regarding submission criteria and guidelines, and then send it on in!
How does one have their work featured in the Animation Showcase?
E-mail it as an attachment, in either .wmv, .avi, .mov, or .swf format, to animation@about.com with the subject "Animation Showcase Submission." Anything with attachments in any format other than that with any subject other than that will be deleted to avoid risk of viral e-mails. Please do not zip your submissions.
Works accepted into the Showcase will be added to a growing gallery of animations made publicly available to viewers of the Animation@About.com site.
Are there any other criteria to meet?
Yes. Your work must:
* Be no larger than 400x300px and no smaller than 320x240px in dimensions.
* Be submitted in either .wmv or .swf format, and of acceptable video and audio quality.
* Consist of some form of animation - be it cel animation, digital 2D, 3D, stop-motion, or some other form. Live-action video will not be considered.
* Be no longer than 5:00m (five minutes). Longer pieces may be accepted in installments.
* Be rated no higher than R (on a rating scale of G, PG, PG-13, R, NC-17, and MA). NC-17 and MA works will not be accepted. R-rated works will be taken into consideration on an individual basis, and accepted conditionally based on content. Please include your estimate of your content's rating in your submission.
* Not contain any materials copyright to anyone other than yourself unless used with the permission of the copyright holders.
In your e-mail, please include your name and/or the names of all who should be credited on the project, a link to your animation website if you have one, a brief (no more than three sentences) description of your animation, and a brief (no more than one paragraph) animation biography.
Why was an animation not accepted?
Most likely, for one of the following reasons:
* The video or audio quality was too poor for web viewing.
* The submission didn't fit the size or length criteria and could not be easily resized or trimmed.
* The animation was in poor taste or contained excessive profanity, vulgarity, nudity, or violence, beyond acceptable limits within an R rating.
* The submission was clearly plagiarized or contained recognizable copyrighted material used without permission.
* The work was not of suitable quality, allowing for variations in style outside of cinema-quality animation (such as stick-figure animations that may still warrant consideration if the overall animation has merit - whether it tells a story or simply sets out to amuse; as long as it has a purpose beyond wiggling sticks on a screen).
Must an animation fit a certain genre?
No. As long as it doesn't fall under the "adult film" rating, just about any genre is acceptable.
Does submitting an animation mean relinquishing copyright of said animation?
Absolutely not, and if your work is featured in the showcase it will include full credit with your name and any personal website URL that you choose to include.
Will accepted animations be edited in any way?
If they don't already include playback controls, small translucent "play" and "stop" buttons will be added in the lower-right corner. A small tag bar will also be added at the bottom, stating the name of the piece and its creator (you) as well as that it's hosted on Animation@About.com, to prevent anyone from taking the animation from the site without giving you proper credit.
LIST OF FREE ANIMATION SOFTWARES
Want to try before you buy, or looking for something simple but functional with no strings attached? Here's a list of various animation software packages available for download, and reviews of several applications. Some are entirely free, some are shareware, some are free with limited functions (with more available after paying), and some are free trials that either expire after time or come with certain critical options disabled.
2D Animation Software
Software: Adobe AfterEffects
Publisher: Adobe
License: Free Trial
Comments: Motion graphics and visual effects for film and media.
Software: Animator-9 3.6
Publisher: Key Technology
License: Free
Comments: Make animated GIFs from your digital camera.
Software: Animator-DV (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: AnimatorHD
License: Free Trial
Comments: Stop-motion animation on your computer.
Software: Anime Studio Pro 5 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: MySmithMicro
License: Free Trial
Comments: Studio-style animation program.
Software: AniS 1.0
Publisher: Tom Whittaker
License: Free
Comments: Simple image manipulation for the web.
Software: Beneton Movie GIF (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Beneton Software
License: Free
Comments: Basic GIF animation software.
Software: Cylekx 2.9 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Cylekx
License: Free
Comments: Graphics and animation program.
Software: DigiCel Flipbook 6 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: DigiCel, Inc.
License: Free Trial
Comments: Industry standard studio animation program.
Software: Flash Effect Site Builder (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Go2Share.net (Warning: website not safe for work)
License: Free Trial
Comments: More of a website builder, but still uses Flash animation.
Software: Flash Media Show (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: SourceTec Software
License: Free (Standard Edition)
Comments: Flash slideshow builder and exporter.
Software: GifSplitter 2 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: XoYo Software
License: Free
Comments: Simple GIF animation and splitting program.
Software: Jumpwel
Publisher: Phildes
License: Free
Comments: Basic object manipulator for use in HTML; uses Java applets.
Software: KoolMoves 7.0 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: KoolMoves
License: Free Trial
Comments: Alternative Flash animation program.
Software: Adobe Flash
Publisher: Adobe
License: Free Trial
Comments: The leading name in 2D vector animation.
Software: Macromedia Director
Publisher: Macromedia
License: Free Trial
Comments: Create interactive ShockWave content.
Software: Sqirlz Lite 1.1d
Publisher: xiberpix
License: Free
Comments: Animated image distorter that exports in AVI format.
Software: Sqirlz Morph 2.1 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: xiberpix
License: Free
Comments: Animated image morpher and blender. Capable of outputting in Flash format.
Software: The TAB Manga (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: The TAB
License: Free Trial
Comments: Children's animation program.
Software: Toon Boom Animate (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Toon Boom
License: Free Trial
Comments: Industry-leading professional studio animation program.
Software: Ulead GIF Animator 5 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Corel
License: Free Trial
Comments: Full-featured GIF animation software.
3D Animation Software
Software: 3D Studio Max 7.0
Publisher: Discreet
License: Free Trial
Comments: Version 7.0 of the award-winning 3D modeling and animation software package. Also comes with trials of Character Studio and Mental Ray.
Software: Cyberdelia (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Askoh.com
License: Free
Comments: 3D Animation with support for exporting into Macromedia Shockwave.
Software: FreeCAD 8.0
Publisher: Askoh.com
License: Free
Comments: Bit of a beginner’s 3D CAD and simulation program.
Software: Gmax
Publisher: Discreet
License: Free
Comments: Oh, man. It’s every gamer’s dream: a free 3D program that lets you make your own modifications, customizations, and models for Gmax-ready video games. Based on 3D Studio Max.
Software: Maya 6.5
Publisher: Alias WaveFront
License: Free Trial
Comments: The latest version of an industry leader in 3D modeling and animation.
Software: Serif 3D Plus
Publisher: Serif
License: Free
Comments: Allows animated shapes and landscapes.
Software: Special Effects 3.2
Publisher: Mathematically Beautiful ScreenSavers
License: Free
Comments: Very limited range of pre-set animations controlled by user preferences.
Software: Touch Art Sampler 017
Publisher: Derivative
License: Free
Comments: More of a VJ/synthesizer studio than anything else, but still lets you play with animations. Looks rather fun.
Software: TrueSpace 3.2
Publisher: Caligari
License: Free
Comments: Full 3D rendering and output. Seems completely free, though you have to register to get an unlock code on the website. Cross-compatible with many programs.
Animating speech can be one of the most difficult tasks in animation; the process of matching the mouth-movements of your animation to the phonemes of your audio track is most commonly known as lip-synching. For a quick fix, it's no problem to just animate the mouth opening and closing, and it's a simple shortcut, especially when animating for the web. But if you want to add actual expression and realistic mouth-movements, it helps to study how the shape of the mouth changes with each sound. There are dozens upon dozens of variations, but my sketches are renderings from the basic ten shapes of the Preston Blair phoneme series. (They're also an example of what happens when Adri dashes off ten-minute sketches from memory rather than detailed artwork.)
These ten basic phoneme shapes (click the image thumbnail in the right-hand column of this page, or click here for a full-size version) can match almost any sound of speech, in varying degrees of expression--and with the in-between frames moving from one to the other, are remarkably accurate. You may want to keep this for reference.
* A and I: For the A and I vowel sounds, the lips are generally pulled a bit wider, teeth open, tongue visible and flat against the floor of the mouth.
* E: The E phoneme is similar to the A and I, but the lips are stretched a bit wider, the corners uplifted more, and the mouth and teeth closed a bit more.
* U: For the U sound, the lips are pursed outwards, drawn into a pucker but still somewhat open; the teeth open, and the tongue somewhat lifted.
* O: Again the mouth is drawn to a pucker, but the lips don't purse outwards, and the mouth is rounder, the tongue flat against the floor of the mouth.
* C, D, G, K, N, R, S, Th, Y, and Z: Long list, wasn't it? This configuration pretty much covers all the major hard consonants: lips mostly closed, stretched wide, teeth closed or nearly closed.
* F and V: Mouth at about standard width, but teeth pressed down into the lower lip. At times there can be variations closer to the D/Th configuration.
* L: The mouth is open and stretched apart much like the A/I configuration, but
* M, B, and P: These sounds are made with the lips pressed together; it's the duration that matters. "M" is a long hold, "mmm"; "B" is a shorter hold then part, almost a "buh" sound; P is a quick hold, puff of air.
* W and Q: These two sounds purse the mouth the most, almost closing it over the teeth, with just the bottoms of the upper teeth visible, sometimes not even that. Think of a "rosebud mouth".
* Rest Position: Think of this as the "slack" position, when the mouth is at rest--only with the thread of drool distinctly absent.
When you're drawing or modeling your animation, by listening to each word and the syllable combinations inherent you can usually break them down into a variation of these ten phoneme sets. Note that my drawings aren't perfectly symmetrical; that wasn't just shoddy sketching. No two people express themselves in an identical fashion, and each has individual facial quirks that make their speech and expressions asymmetrical.
You may be an amazing detail artist, but how good are you at creating effective animation-ready art? Cartoon art is different from illustration in that it focuses not only on style, but on efficiency. When you’re drawing a character fifteen times for one second of motion, every additional level of unnecessary detail can add hours of work and more than double the level of difficulty. While that’s fine for a team of animators splitting the work on a feature-length film, what about independent animators or studios that have to produce an entire season’s worth of 20-60 minute episodes in a very short period of time?
Once you have your character concept in mind, it can be hard to break it down to the necessary minimum – especially when working in reverse from complex art. Instead let’s look at how to build an animation-ready character from the ground up, starting at the simplest level and working with basic shapes to construct the body. Whether you’re fully traditional or combine in traditional with 2D computer animation, this tutorial should still be of use to you.
I like to start off with a stick-figure to capture the pose and flow. The important thing to look at here is the central line of the body, the arc and flow of it, and the positioning of the lines marking the shoulders and hips. The body counterbalances its planes to maintain equilibrium, so if one plane of the body tilts in one direction, another plane will tilt in the opposite direction to maintain balance.
From the stick sketch, add bulk using plain shapes. Visualize the body, and try to break it down into rectangles, triangles, cylinders, and circles. Try to think in three dimensions; for instance, my head isn’t just a circle with a triangle tacked on to it. It’s a curving sphere with a pyramid appended to the bottom, which means that I need to think about the dimensions that aren’t visible as well as the dimensions that are. The neck is a cylinder, set atop a pyramid for the slope down to the circles of the shoulders and then perched atop the tapering box of the chest.
Don’t get too detailed here; you’re not trying to capture accuracy. You just want to get a basic idea of bulk and form, captured in simple shapes. Look at it as building an old-style wooden marionette, before they’re carved in detail.
So far the body form is very generic; start adding in other small details, like a few rectangular blocks to represent the connected mass of the fingers, a solid and generic shape for the hair, and any other body features that are necessary to the character.
Remember – shapes only. The only thing that I tend to use an amorphous shape for from the start is the hair, but some people prefer to break even that down to interconnected blocks and circles.
Let’s get to the actual detail work. Start drawing on top of your sketched forms – you can’t see my block forms underneath because I retraced on a separate sheet, layering using a light table. Try to see how much you can add proper shape and form without deviating too far from your base shapes. Add in a few more details – individual fingers and more individual sections on the hair, but not too many, as hair is a pain to animate and the more complicated that you make it, the more you’ll be kicking yourself later.
This is a good time to correct any issues with proportions and positions, as once you start drawing the actual defined shapes of the body you’ll notice where things don’t work. You can see that I had to correct the right leg, because I placed the knee lower than that of the leg on the left, when it should have been higher due to the angle of her hips.
The important thing to remember as you’re working on this is that you aren’t illustrating, and everything that you’re sketching now, you’ll be sketching hundreds of times over in the future. If you find yourself spending too much time focusing on any one area, then you’re putting too much detail into it. Try to think of what’s effective to capture the body flow – challenge yourself to convey the most with the fewest lines.
Animation generally stays within enclosed shapes for each color, so that the cel painters (or digital colorists) have guidelines for where solid fills go and don’t have to estimate.
5# Here’s where I usually stop to draw in the features, starting with the eyes. I’ll usually draw a perfectly round pupil, then draw the shape of the eye around it, using sharply angled lines that I’ll soften and round out later. Those extra sketched lines are guidelines: First, draw a vertical line bisecting the head from the point of the chin to the crown of the head; it’s going to arc a little, but it’s supposed to. If the head is tilted instead of looking straight forward, you’ll have to estimate a little – but it won’t take you long to develop an eye for it.
# The head is basically composed of a circle with a triangle appended to the lower half; in order to draw the guideline for the eyes, look at the circle composing the upper half of the head, and sketch a line that would divide the circle into equal hemispheres, following the circle’s arc. Your eyes should be centered so that the arc bisects them.
# The generic way to position the nose is to draw another arcing horizontal guideline at a point halfway between the guideline for the eyes, and the point of the chin. Where the horizontal guideline bisects the vertical guideline is where the center point of the nose will rest.
# The positioning of the mouth is similar: draw another bisecting line halfway between the nose’s guideline and the chin. This line is the crease/part of the lips, with upper lip above, lower lip below, while the vertical line neatly divides the mouth into two halves.
6 After retracing with clean lines, you have a basic body form with minimal lines, detailing only the what’s absolutely necessary while still maintaining proportion, balance, and style. As you’re retracing, choose which lines you do or don’t need carefully. The fewer, the better.
The only problem is…she’s naked. Some people prefer to draw everything all at once - body, clothing, etc. I prefer to start with the base body – for the sake of decency we’ll say she’s a mannequin, or wearing a body stocking – as a reference; drawing a clothed body freehand can often result in incorrect proportions and awkward drapery, even if you’re drawing simplified cartoon clothing that almost directly follows the lines of the body. It’s rather like buying new clothing; even though you know your sizes (as long as you haven’t gone off your diet), you don’t know how an outfit is going to look on you until you actually try it on, and while you may have imagined that the blue shirt you’ve been eyeing would drape one way, the image in the mirror tells you something entirely different once you’ve got it on.
All right, that analogy deviated a bit far off the beaten path. To sum it up, you need the base body underneath as a guideline so that you can draw clothing to follow the position and angle of each portion of the body. So, let’s move on to give her a little cover.
8.Retraced, this is the finished result: clean artwork with simple lines and easily identifiable key points that can be used to estimate from one frame to the next. It’s not fine art, but it’s a valued one nonetheless; simplicity in design doesn’t always have to be childish or bland, and some of the best cartoons use extremely simple lines in a very effective style to create unique characters with more implied detail than actual visibly drawn detail. Varied line width has a great deal to do with that, and it’s something that I try to use often once I get to the final line stages of a piece. If you’d like to learn more about actual art techniques such as line weight, Guide Helen South has a plethora of articles and lessons on drawing and sketching.
Creating a character this way also makes adding color very easy, whether you’re painting cels or coloring digitally. I filled in plain, solid color without highlights – you’ll find that your average Saturday morning cartoon still doesn’t use many highlights and shadows save for in exceptional situations – for this in Photoshop in less than ten minutes using nothing but bucket fills, if you’d like to take a look.
Computer animation can be be fun, but it can also be quite costly. Every year animation studios and independent animators spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on licensed software, properly-equipped computers, and many other tools necessary to compete in the animation industry. But it's not always necessary to spend that kind of money; for the curious, the studious, or even the aspiring professional, there are much more cost-effecitve ways to get your feet wet. If you know where to look and how to shop, it's not that hard to compete with the big boys without spending the big bucks.
First, Know What You Need.
What is it exactly that you want to do? Are you interested in creating interactive multimedia presentations for the web, designing animated user interfaces, creating animated CGI videos, or any of the many other applications of 2D-and-3D-animation technology? Before you decide on which software package to invest in, do a little research; check out the developer's website, and the product specifications. Make sure that the software will meet your needs, so that you won't find yourself toting the box and your receipt back to the store to exchange it for something with the features that you require.
Try Before You Buy.
Many companies, such as Macromedia, offer functionality-limited or time-limited trials of their products to allow you to give it a test-drive before you buy it. Websites like CNet's Download.com offer comprehensive listings of downloadable trial versions of thousands of software packages, searchable either by category or keyword. Downloading a trial version can let you work with the user interface to test its user-friendliness, and insure that not only does the program meet your requirements, but it can also run on your system.
Don't Be Afraid to Turn to a Lower-Priced Alternative.
Just because an animation software package carries a big name doesn't mean that you have to invest in a second mortgage in order to buy it. While giants like Discreet and Macromedia are premiers of the industry for a reason, you may not necessarily need all of the extra features or cool add-ons that come packed into their software. Lower-priced alternatives like Reinhard Epp Software's CyberMotion 3D-Designer may suit your needs just as well.
But this doesn't apply only to software. Many animators use hardware peripherals like graphics tablets to help with their animation tasks; some tablets, like Wacom's Cintiq, can have price ranges reaching into the thousands of dollars, and even their smaller tablets can be priced in the hundreds. Wacom tablets are reliable, fully-featured, sturdy, and highly advanced; however, you're just looking to dabble, there's nothing wrong with experimenting with other brands. For example, the SuperPen Graphics Tablet (available at ThinkGeek) is a great small tablet for the beginner, priced only at $49.99.
Last, Know Your Capabilities.
It's always a disappointment to bring home that shiny new software CD, only to slide it into the drive and be informed that you have insufficient system resources to install the application. It's important to know your system specs before you spend the money on new software, and equally important to check the hardware and OS requirements on the side of the box before you take it up to the register.
But even if that decal-decorated box says "512 MB RAM required" and you know that your home PC is only sporting 256, don't despair; more than likely, there's no need to shell out the cash for a new computer. Depending on the brand, model, and year of your PC, upgrading your hardware can be exceedingly simple, and can save you a great deal of money, time, and headaches.
With these ideas in mind, you can take the hassle out of shopping for computer animation software, and take the weight off your checkbook. Whether you'd like to start off slow or dive right on into the heavy artillery, you'll be ready to start animating with the pros--so good luck, and happy shopping.
The Animation Showcase is a place for you to feature your animations to gain more exposure, or just because you feel like sharing, showing off, and otherwise displaying your work to the world at large. So if you've got an animation short that you've just been itching to air to the general public, take a look at the Q&A below regarding submission criteria and guidelines, and then send it on in!
How does one have their work featured in the Animation Showcase?
E-mail it as an attachment, in either .wmv, .avi, .mov, or .swf format, to animation@about.com with the subject "Animation Showcase Submission." Anything with attachments in any format other than that with any subject other than that will be deleted to avoid risk of viral e-mails. Please do not zip your submissions.
Works accepted into the Showcase will be added to a growing gallery of animations made publicly available to viewers of the Animation@About.com site.
Are there any other criteria to meet?
Yes. Your work must:
* Be no larger than 400x300px and no smaller than 320x240px in dimensions.
* Be submitted in either .wmv or .swf format, and of acceptable video and audio quality.
* Consist of some form of animation - be it cel animation, digital 2D, 3D, stop-motion, or some other form. Live-action video will not be considered.
* Be no longer than 5:00m (five minutes). Longer pieces may be accepted in installments.
* Be rated no higher than R (on a rating scale of G, PG, PG-13, R, NC-17, and MA). NC-17 and MA works will not be accepted. R-rated works will be taken into consideration on an individual basis, and accepted conditionally based on content. Please include your estimate of your content's rating in your submission.
* Not contain any materials copyright to anyone other than yourself unless used with the permission of the copyright holders.
In your e-mail, please include your name and/or the names of all who should be credited on the project, a link to your animation website if you have one, a brief (no more than three sentences) description of your animation, and a brief (no more than one paragraph) animation biography.
Why was an animation not accepted?
Most likely, for one of the following reasons:
* The video or audio quality was too poor for web viewing.
* The submission didn't fit the size or length criteria and could not be easily resized or trimmed.
* The animation was in poor taste or contained excessive profanity, vulgarity, nudity, or violence, beyond acceptable limits within an R rating.
* The submission was clearly plagiarized or contained recognizable copyrighted material used without permission.
* The work was not of suitable quality, allowing for variations in style outside of cinema-quality animation (such as stick-figure animations that may still warrant consideration if the overall animation has merit - whether it tells a story or simply sets out to amuse; as long as it has a purpose beyond wiggling sticks on a screen).
Must an animation fit a certain genre?
No. As long as it doesn't fall under the "adult film" rating, just about any genre is acceptable.
Does submitting an animation mean relinquishing copyright of said animation?
Absolutely not, and if your work is featured in the showcase it will include full credit with your name and any personal website URL that you choose to include.
Will accepted animations be edited in any way?
If they don't already include playback controls, small translucent "play" and "stop" buttons will be added in the lower-right corner. A small tag bar will also be added at the bottom, stating the name of the piece and its creator (you) as well as that it's hosted on Animation@About.com, to prevent anyone from taking the animation from the site without giving you proper credit.
LIST OF FREE ANIMATION SOFTWARES
Want to try before you buy, or looking for something simple but functional with no strings attached? Here's a list of various animation software packages available for download, and reviews of several applications. Some are entirely free, some are shareware, some are free with limited functions (with more available after paying), and some are free trials that either expire after time or come with certain critical options disabled.
2D Animation Software
Software: Adobe AfterEffects
Publisher: Adobe
License: Free Trial
Comments: Motion graphics and visual effects for film and media.
Software: Animator-9 3.6
Publisher: Key Technology
License: Free
Comments: Make animated GIFs from your digital camera.
Software: Animator-DV (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: AnimatorHD
License: Free Trial
Comments: Stop-motion animation on your computer.
Software: Anime Studio Pro 5 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: MySmithMicro
License: Free Trial
Comments: Studio-style animation program.
Software: AniS 1.0
Publisher: Tom Whittaker
License: Free
Comments: Simple image manipulation for the web.
Software: Beneton Movie GIF (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Beneton Software
License: Free
Comments: Basic GIF animation software.
Software: Cylekx 2.9 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Cylekx
License: Free
Comments: Graphics and animation program.
Software: DigiCel Flipbook 6 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: DigiCel, Inc.
License: Free Trial
Comments: Industry standard studio animation program.
Software: Flash Effect Site Builder (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Go2Share.net (Warning: website not safe for work)
License: Free Trial
Comments: More of a website builder, but still uses Flash animation.
Software: Flash Media Show (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: SourceTec Software
License: Free (Standard Edition)
Comments: Flash slideshow builder and exporter.
Software: GifSplitter 2 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: XoYo Software
License: Free
Comments: Simple GIF animation and splitting program.
Software: Jumpwel
Publisher: Phildes
License: Free
Comments: Basic object manipulator for use in HTML; uses Java applets.
Software: KoolMoves 7.0 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: KoolMoves
License: Free Trial
Comments: Alternative Flash animation program.
Software: Adobe Flash
Publisher: Adobe
License: Free Trial
Comments: The leading name in 2D vector animation.
Software: Macromedia Director
Publisher: Macromedia
License: Free Trial
Comments: Create interactive ShockWave content.
Software: Sqirlz Lite 1.1d
Publisher: xiberpix
License: Free
Comments: Animated image distorter that exports in AVI format.
Software: Sqirlz Morph 2.1 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: xiberpix
License: Free
Comments: Animated image morpher and blender. Capable of outputting in Flash format.
Software: The TAB Manga (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: The TAB
License: Free Trial
Comments: Children's animation program.
Software: Toon Boom Animate (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Toon Boom
License: Free Trial
Comments: Industry-leading professional studio animation program.
Software: Ulead GIF Animator 5 (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Corel
License: Free Trial
Comments: Full-featured GIF animation software.
3D Animation Software
Software: 3D Studio Max 7.0
Publisher: Discreet
License: Free Trial
Comments: Version 7.0 of the award-winning 3D modeling and animation software package. Also comes with trials of Character Studio and Mental Ray.
Software: Cyberdelia (Read a Review from Animation@About.com!)
Publisher: Askoh.com
License: Free
Comments: 3D Animation with support for exporting into Macromedia Shockwave.
Software: FreeCAD 8.0
Publisher: Askoh.com
License: Free
Comments: Bit of a beginner’s 3D CAD and simulation program.
Software: Gmax
Publisher: Discreet
License: Free
Comments: Oh, man. It’s every gamer’s dream: a free 3D program that lets you make your own modifications, customizations, and models for Gmax-ready video games. Based on 3D Studio Max.
Software: Maya 6.5
Publisher: Alias WaveFront
License: Free Trial
Comments: The latest version of an industry leader in 3D modeling and animation.
Software: Serif 3D Plus
Publisher: Serif
License: Free
Comments: Allows animated shapes and landscapes.
Software: Special Effects 3.2
Publisher: Mathematically Beautiful ScreenSavers
License: Free
Comments: Very limited range of pre-set animations controlled by user preferences.
Software: Touch Art Sampler 017
Publisher: Derivative
License: Free
Comments: More of a VJ/synthesizer studio than anything else, but still lets you play with animations. Looks rather fun.
Software: TrueSpace 3.2
Publisher: Caligari
License: Free
Comments: Full 3D rendering and output. Seems completely free, though you have to register to get an unlock code on the website. Cross-compatible with many programs.
Animating speech can be one of the most difficult tasks in animation; the process of matching the mouth-movements of your animation to the phonemes of your audio track is most commonly known as lip-synching. For a quick fix, it's no problem to just animate the mouth opening and closing, and it's a simple shortcut, especially when animating for the web. But if you want to add actual expression and realistic mouth-movements, it helps to study how the shape of the mouth changes with each sound. There are dozens upon dozens of variations, but my sketches are renderings from the basic ten shapes of the Preston Blair phoneme series. (They're also an example of what happens when Adri dashes off ten-minute sketches from memory rather than detailed artwork.)
These ten basic phoneme shapes (click the image thumbnail in the right-hand column of this page, or click here for a full-size version) can match almost any sound of speech, in varying degrees of expression--and with the in-between frames moving from one to the other, are remarkably accurate. You may want to keep this for reference.
* A and I: For the A and I vowel sounds, the lips are generally pulled a bit wider, teeth open, tongue visible and flat against the floor of the mouth.
* E: The E phoneme is similar to the A and I, but the lips are stretched a bit wider, the corners uplifted more, and the mouth and teeth closed a bit more.
* U: For the U sound, the lips are pursed outwards, drawn into a pucker but still somewhat open; the teeth open, and the tongue somewhat lifted.
* O: Again the mouth is drawn to a pucker, but the lips don't purse outwards, and the mouth is rounder, the tongue flat against the floor of the mouth.
* C, D, G, K, N, R, S, Th, Y, and Z: Long list, wasn't it? This configuration pretty much covers all the major hard consonants: lips mostly closed, stretched wide, teeth closed or nearly closed.
* F and V: Mouth at about standard width, but teeth pressed down into the lower lip. At times there can be variations closer to the D/Th configuration.
* L: The mouth is open and stretched apart much like the A/I configuration, but
* M, B, and P: These sounds are made with the lips pressed together; it's the duration that matters. "M" is a long hold, "mmm"; "B" is a shorter hold then part, almost a "buh" sound; P is a quick hold, puff of air.
* W and Q: These two sounds purse the mouth the most, almost closing it over the teeth, with just the bottoms of the upper teeth visible, sometimes not even that. Think of a "rosebud mouth".
* Rest Position: Think of this as the "slack" position, when the mouth is at rest--only with the thread of drool distinctly absent.
When you're drawing or modeling your animation, by listening to each word and the syllable combinations inherent you can usually break them down into a variation of these ten phoneme sets. Note that my drawings aren't perfectly symmetrical; that wasn't just shoddy sketching. No two people express themselves in an identical fashion, and each has individual facial quirks that make their speech and expressions asymmetrical.
You may be an amazing detail artist, but how good are you at creating effective animation-ready art? Cartoon art is different from illustration in that it focuses not only on style, but on efficiency. When you’re drawing a character fifteen times for one second of motion, every additional level of unnecessary detail can add hours of work and more than double the level of difficulty. While that’s fine for a team of animators splitting the work on a feature-length film, what about independent animators or studios that have to produce an entire season’s worth of 20-60 minute episodes in a very short period of time?
Once you have your character concept in mind, it can be hard to break it down to the necessary minimum – especially when working in reverse from complex art. Instead let’s look at how to build an animation-ready character from the ground up, starting at the simplest level and working with basic shapes to construct the body. Whether you’re fully traditional or combine in traditional with 2D computer animation, this tutorial should still be of use to you.
I like to start off with a stick-figure to capture the pose and flow. The important thing to look at here is the central line of the body, the arc and flow of it, and the positioning of the lines marking the shoulders and hips. The body counterbalances its planes to maintain equilibrium, so if one plane of the body tilts in one direction, another plane will tilt in the opposite direction to maintain balance.
From the stick sketch, add bulk using plain shapes. Visualize the body, and try to break it down into rectangles, triangles, cylinders, and circles. Try to think in three dimensions; for instance, my head isn’t just a circle with a triangle tacked on to it. It’s a curving sphere with a pyramid appended to the bottom, which means that I need to think about the dimensions that aren’t visible as well as the dimensions that are. The neck is a cylinder, set atop a pyramid for the slope down to the circles of the shoulders and then perched atop the tapering box of the chest.
Don’t get too detailed here; you’re not trying to capture accuracy. You just want to get a basic idea of bulk and form, captured in simple shapes. Look at it as building an old-style wooden marionette, before they’re carved in detail.
So far the body form is very generic; start adding in other small details, like a few rectangular blocks to represent the connected mass of the fingers, a solid and generic shape for the hair, and any other body features that are necessary to the character.
Remember – shapes only. The only thing that I tend to use an amorphous shape for from the start is the hair, but some people prefer to break even that down to interconnected blocks and circles.
Let’s get to the actual detail work. Start drawing on top of your sketched forms – you can’t see my block forms underneath because I retraced on a separate sheet, layering using a light table. Try to see how much you can add proper shape and form without deviating too far from your base shapes. Add in a few more details – individual fingers and more individual sections on the hair, but not too many, as hair is a pain to animate and the more complicated that you make it, the more you’ll be kicking yourself later.
This is a good time to correct any issues with proportions and positions, as once you start drawing the actual defined shapes of the body you’ll notice where things don’t work. You can see that I had to correct the right leg, because I placed the knee lower than that of the leg on the left, when it should have been higher due to the angle of her hips.
The important thing to remember as you’re working on this is that you aren’t illustrating, and everything that you’re sketching now, you’ll be sketching hundreds of times over in the future. If you find yourself spending too much time focusing on any one area, then you’re putting too much detail into it. Try to think of what’s effective to capture the body flow – challenge yourself to convey the most with the fewest lines.
Animation generally stays within enclosed shapes for each color, so that the cel painters (or digital colorists) have guidelines for where solid fills go and don’t have to estimate.
5# Here’s where I usually stop to draw in the features, starting with the eyes. I’ll usually draw a perfectly round pupil, then draw the shape of the eye around it, using sharply angled lines that I’ll soften and round out later. Those extra sketched lines are guidelines: First, draw a vertical line bisecting the head from the point of the chin to the crown of the head; it’s going to arc a little, but it’s supposed to. If the head is tilted instead of looking straight forward, you’ll have to estimate a little – but it won’t take you long to develop an eye for it.
# The head is basically composed of a circle with a triangle appended to the lower half; in order to draw the guideline for the eyes, look at the circle composing the upper half of the head, and sketch a line that would divide the circle into equal hemispheres, following the circle’s arc. Your eyes should be centered so that the arc bisects them.
# The generic way to position the nose is to draw another arcing horizontal guideline at a point halfway between the guideline for the eyes, and the point of the chin. Where the horizontal guideline bisects the vertical guideline is where the center point of the nose will rest.
# The positioning of the mouth is similar: draw another bisecting line halfway between the nose’s guideline and the chin. This line is the crease/part of the lips, with upper lip above, lower lip below, while the vertical line neatly divides the mouth into two halves.
6 After retracing with clean lines, you have a basic body form with minimal lines, detailing only the what’s absolutely necessary while still maintaining proportion, balance, and style. As you’re retracing, choose which lines you do or don’t need carefully. The fewer, the better.
The only problem is…she’s naked. Some people prefer to draw everything all at once - body, clothing, etc. I prefer to start with the base body – for the sake of decency we’ll say she’s a mannequin, or wearing a body stocking – as a reference; drawing a clothed body freehand can often result in incorrect proportions and awkward drapery, even if you’re drawing simplified cartoon clothing that almost directly follows the lines of the body. It’s rather like buying new clothing; even though you know your sizes (as long as you haven’t gone off your diet), you don’t know how an outfit is going to look on you until you actually try it on, and while you may have imagined that the blue shirt you’ve been eyeing would drape one way, the image in the mirror tells you something entirely different once you’ve got it on.
All right, that analogy deviated a bit far off the beaten path. To sum it up, you need the base body underneath as a guideline so that you can draw clothing to follow the position and angle of each portion of the body. So, let’s move on to give her a little cover.
8.Retraced, this is the finished result: clean artwork with simple lines and easily identifiable key points that can be used to estimate from one frame to the next. It’s not fine art, but it’s a valued one nonetheless; simplicity in design doesn’t always have to be childish or bland, and some of the best cartoons use extremely simple lines in a very effective style to create unique characters with more implied detail than actual visibly drawn detail. Varied line width has a great deal to do with that, and it’s something that I try to use often once I get to the final line stages of a piece. If you’d like to learn more about actual art techniques such as line weight, Guide Helen South has a plethora of articles and lessons on drawing and sketching.
Creating a character this way also makes adding color very easy, whether you’re painting cels or coloring digitally. I filled in plain, solid color without highlights – you’ll find that your average Saturday morning cartoon still doesn’t use many highlights and shadows save for in exceptional situations – for this in Photoshop in less than ten minutes using nothing but bucket fills, if you’d like to take a look.
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