HomeGraphics
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Free stuff! It’s everyone’s favorite phrase and the internet has plenty. When all you want is some simple graphic editing and effects, there’s no reason to spend $500 to $600 on software. You’ll find all you need on the web with absolutely no cost to you.
Transparent Gifs
- Transparent gifs are the graphics that appear to
float on the page. Most of the gifs you see on the web
are transparent but if you have downloaded one or have created one that isn’t, take it to TransWeb.Transparent Gifs at the click of a mouse button
This is an extremely simple site to use, but you must already have your graphic uploaded to cuok in order to use it.
On the first page, there is a place to type in the URL of your graphic. For example, say I want the white border on calendar.gif to be transparent so I can use the graphic on a different web page. I put in http://www.cameron.edu/~julie/shapeup/images/calendar.gif and press enter. The next page you see should be your image. If you get a broken puzzle box, you probably put in the wrong URL. Hit back and try again.
When you see your graphic, position the mouse on the color you want transparent and left click once. The next page is the resulting transparent gif. Just right click, save as, and upload your new graphic to cuok.
- Photo Effects
- Editor's Note: The Imaging Machine is no longer on the web and
I have yet to find anything like it. If you find something similar to the
program described here that is located on the web and isn't a program to
download, please email me.
You may have been looking at some graphic editing software and thought how neat it would be to have some
of the filters for your graphics like watercolor, charcoal, and twirl. Or maybe you’ve seen photos and graphics that have the beveled edges to look like buttons. Or maybe you’d like to turn some of your images into one animated gif.Don't pay money just to bevel a graphic! Bevel it on the web FREE!
The Imaging Machine offers all of that and more for free! Click on the user’s manual to learn what each component of the Imaging Machine does or try the "Examples" link for a pictorial index of the filters.
After a good look around, click on your browser’s back button and return to the first page. I’ll walk us through adding a bevel filter on a graphic and let you explore the many other filters and applications on your own.
First click on Filters. On the resulting page, enter the URL of your graphic and click "bevel" in the list of filters. Click on "run filter" to apply the filter. You are next asked for the amount to bevel on the sides, top, and bottom. The default is five pixels which is a good size for most things.
Scroll down the resulting page to see what your image looks like with the bevel. You can click on your browser’s back button and choose a different size bevel if you wish or choose another filter for your picture. If the picture looks the same after doing this, you may need to clear your cache or start back at the first page. When you have your graphic like you want it, right click, save as and upload the new graphic to cuok.
I encourage you to play around with the other filters and rejoice as you realize you’ve just saved a bundle in graphic editing tools! For some shareware tools, try http://desktopPublishing.com/graphutilmisc.html.
Page maintained by Julie A. Duncan, Information Designer.