Monday, August 30, 2010

Transform the Videos You've Been Recording into Amazing Home Movies



Are you using the videos you've been recording on your camcorder?

If you've been diligently recording special events, don't let all of that video simply sit on a memory card—turn your video footage into something memorable that you can share with friends and family for years to come. With VideoPad video editing software, you can quickly and easily transform your video footage into amazing home movies that will impress everyone you know. VideoPad is designed to be as intuitive to use as possible, so whether you're editing, adding effects or sharing with friends or online, after a quick installation, you’ll be making your own movie masterpiece within minutes.

Friday, August 27, 2010

Zulu DJ Mixing Software Gets the Gold

Zulu Gold TopTenReviews AwardWe are steadily collecting more Gold here at NCH—Michael Phelps might need to look out. The latest Gold is for the always fun Zulu DJ Mixing Software. The good people at TopTenReviews just gave it the number one spot in the DJ Mixing software category, going so far as to declare "You can't lose with Zulu DJ mixing software." And that is just the beginning of this very good review for Zulu. They went on to say:

"In an extremely competitive field of DJ mixing software, Zulu stands just a bit taller than all of the rest. The intuitive and advanced features of this program, including a user-friendly, simple and straightforward interface, help them rise to the top of our rankings. The software is compatible with most, if not all, audio formats, including wav, mp3 and wma."

TopTenReviews


You can read the complete review of Zulu DJ Mixing Software on the TopTenReviews website. Or, simply download and try it out for yourself, take your DJ skills to the next level and try being the DJ at your next party.

Thursday, August 26, 2010

What you need to know about copying or editing someone else’s music

You might find yourself editing music and wondering, am I allowed to do this? Whether you’re making your own music mashup with the MixPad multi-track mixer, adding a soundtrack to your home videos with VideoPad video editor, or making a new ringtone for your phone with WavePad audio editor, there are some rules you need to know about your music, and how you’re allowed to use it.

What’s mine isn’t yours and what’s yours isn’t mine
What you need to know about copying or editing someone else’s musicThat is the legal stance as far as copying or editing someone else’s music is concerned. With the increased popularity of the MP3 music format in the late 1990s, the sharing of copy written music without authorization became much more prevalent, causing an increase in concerns about copyright infringement. Today, copyright infringement isn’t something to take lightly. If you’re caught copying or editing someone else’s work you may be forced to pay heavy fines. Just ask former Boston University student Joel Tenenbaum - he had to pay $675,000 in fines for illegally downloading music.

Copying Music
According to The Copyright Act of 1976, you are allowed to copy someone else’s work if it falls under fair use. Fair use is described as using limited portions of a work, including quotes, comments, criticism, news reporting, and scholarly reports.

Editing Music
Since it is legal to create software to edit music, shouldn’t editing music be legal? There is a lot of talk about reselling and downloading copyrighted music, but not too much about edited music. The most important thing to know is you can edit music as long as you do not intend to use it for commercial use. Also, once you purchase music you inherit the rights to share that music with your friends, and you are also allowed to edit that music as long as you keep a copy of the original.

For more information see the following articles:
Using Edited Music on YouTube
For quite some time now, posting copyrighted or edited music to original videos on YouTube has been a problem. However, as of June anyone who wishes to put music behind their videos can, you just have to follow these simple rules. First, it is important to know that YouTube has signed a deal with Rumblefish, allowing users access to a library of music. Therefore, if you use music from this library you can edit it any way you like without worrying about YouTube removing your video. All you have to do is purchase the song for $1.99 and you will have a lifetime license to use and edit that song on YouTube.

Basic things to remember
  1. Always purchase music legally either at a music store or online
  2. If it’s not your original music, using it may be violating someone’s copyright
  3. If you aren't sure something is copy written, check with the US Copyright Office
  4. Selling or redistributing music without the copyright owners permission is a violation of the owner's rights
  5. If you edit or mix song you’ve purchased, you have to keep a copy of the original song
  6. Only the owner of copy written work has the right to prepare or authorize someone else to create a new version of that work
  7. When using someone else’s work, even just a portion of it for a video or any other project, it is always a good idea to credit the original artist(s)

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

New Express Zip File Compression Software

New Express Zip File Compression SoftwareThe .zip file format is one of the most widely used file compression formats when you have large files or groups of files that you want to send to others. Its cross-platform support makes it ideal for not only data compression but file sharing as well. With zipping files being such a common and useful a task, we are pleased to welcome Express Zip File Compression Software to our software library.

Express Zip is an archiving and file compression tool to create, manage, and extract zipped files and folders, for fast and efficient file zipping and unzipping. It's perfect for compressing files for email transmission, archiving data to save disk space on your hard drive, or increasing the amount of data you can burn to disc.

If you are looking for an easy solution for compressing files, be sure to give Express Zip a try. We hope you will find it useful as well as a great complement to some of our other software utilities including FileFort Backup Software, MEO File Encryption Software and Express Burn Disc Burning Software.

Saturday, August 21, 2010

Be The DJ At Your Next Party

Zulu d j software Whether you're planning an end-of-summer bash or are gearing up for parties back on campus, you should checkout Zulu DJ Software and consider playing your personal favorites for the best possible playlist at your next party.

Last week, Doug Bardwell, a technology writer for examiner.com posted an article, Become the DJ you always wanted to be, recommending Zulu and some high quality headphones for students whose "playlists are more important than [their] class schedules."

Zulu allows for a wide range of control over a playlist, from an AutoPlay mode for hands-off mixing, to powerful tools for more advanced disc jockeys including real-time pitch and tempo control, cue points, and an effects rack. Plus the automatic beat detection and cross-fading between decks give you smooth transitions between songs. With all of this in an easy to use interface and your extensive music collection, why not download Zulu and give your own playlists a spin at your next event?

Friday, August 20, 2010

Business Inventory Management Made Easy



Inventoria Stock Manager allows businesses of all sizes to efficiently track all their inventory processes, whether for one small retail outlet, or a chain of stores and warehouses across several locations. And Inventoria is only one piece of our business software suite, combine it with our other business applications for a low cost complete business management solution.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

IVR at the Museum

cell phone tour sign at the Smithsonian museumThis summer my dad and I both took some vacation time to go see my sister as a sort of mini family reunion. One of the things that we did on the trip was drive down from her place to Washington D.C. to see the sights. We went to about as much of the Smithsonian as you can fit in with only a few days of time, and while I was reading about all of the different exhibits, there was one thing I saw that stood out: cell phone audio tours.

Quite a few exhibits had signs or placards up with a phone number and "extension" that you could call from your cell phone to listen to more information about that particular display. We saw these signs everywhere from inside the different Smithsonian buildings to the National Botanic Garden. With my nerdy side shining through, I couldn't help but think, "What a wonderful application for an interactive voice response system!" Everyone these days carries a cell phone with them, and these call-in numbers give anyone who is interested the opportunity to hear more about the displays that interest them straight from the source, whether it is a recording made by the artist or the curator or gardener.

cell phone call to learn more sign at the national botanic garden
What IVR is and its Applications
Interactive voice response (IVR) has a way of sounding very complicated, and that is largely because it is such a powerful and dynamic technology that the possibilities alone can be a bit daunting. It is a little bit easier to grasp if we break it down to some of the unique applications that IVR can be used for. In this case, the museum is in essence putting together an information line. Visitors call the information line, input the number displayed for their current location, and the appropriate audio is played back to them. In other cases, it can be used as an answering attendant to direct incoming phone calls to different extensions, collecting data in an automated telephone survey, or a variety of other tasks.

So while part of me hates to admit that work followed me on my vacation in the form of IVM interactive voice response software, another part of me really got a kick out of seeing this great application for an IVR system at the museum. It's something to keep in mind if you are looking for a solution to help you share information or your expertise without having to always be available in person.

Monday, August 16, 2010

VoIP and Telephony Roundup

VoIP software blog posts Since NCH is a leader in telephony and VoIP software, we want to give you as much information about these topics as possible in one place. Whether you are Wondering if Your Phone Got Left Behind in the Digital Transition, or if you are working on putting together a complete phone system for your home or office, here are some articles we have compiled over the last few months that will help you along the way:
For more information about our different telephony software products that you can use to create a custom phone system solution, go to: www.nch.com.au/phone/index.html

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Transcription Made Easy: an Express Scribe Tutorial

You've heard us say it before, and we'll continue to say it until everyone knows: Express Scribe makes transcription easy. Why is that? Is it because it has variable speed playback? Yes. What about efficient file management? Of course. Can you use it with a foot pedal? Absolutely. Will it do all the typing for you while you run to the grocery store? Well...not quite, but there are many time-saving features built in so you can get to those errands (or plow through that long list of files quickly).

Express Scribe transcription made easy Thankfully, Express Scribe users out there are sharing their knowledge of the ins and outs of efficient Express Scribe transcription. The most recent example is a post at makeuseof.com entitled How to Transcribe Audio & Video Files Into Text with the Help of Express Scribe. With this blog-style tutorial, you'll learn how to:
  • use the basic features of Express Scribe such as loading and playing files
  • use the variable speed playback feature
  • set up hot-keys so you can use Express Scribe while in other programs
  • configure a default word processor to work with Express Scribe
  • and more
Download Express Scribe for free and use the tutorial to see how easy transcribing can be. You can practice using our free practice transcription files. Then, when you're ready to go pro, use our other typing utilities to save you even more time: FastFox text expander will insert frequently used words, phrases and paragraphs so you don't have to type them over and over; TexTally word counter will make billing and invoicing a breeze; and see our other Dictation and Transcription software for more valuable tools.

Friday, August 6, 2010

Do You Know What Open-Source Software Is?

At the end of July, WavePad Sound Editor was highlighted as the Download of the Day by the good people over at Think Digit. We are always thrilled when WavePad gets recognized, and they did a great job of highlighting the amazing features in their review while recommending you download and try the audio editor. But one of the things they said made me pause. The intro says, "There are a few very good reasons why we love WavePad – it’s simple, it's free, it's fast and it’s open-source." This is an absolutely wonderful quote except for one thing: WavePad isn't open-source. There is a lite version of WavePad that is available for free for non-commercial use in addition to the Master's edition, and I can't help but wonder if people equate free software with open-source, especially when there are technology writers out there who are falling into this trap?

What is Open-Source?
learn more about open source software The most basic definition of open-source is that the source code of an application is made freely available. This allows outside computer developers to make improvements or customizations to that source code and create new versions of the software. There are additional requirements for software to truly be open-source, and if you are interested in the topic a good place to learn more would be at the Open Source Initiative. So you can see that because NCH Software doesn't make any of the underlying code of our programs available, even though we have several free software applications, we don't meet the criteria of being open-source software.

So while it is true that we aren't open-source, we are still very proud of our WavePad audio editing software and we are open to suggestions if you have any ideas you want share with our development team. And in the mean time maybe today is a good day to download WavePad and find some of your own reasons to love this wonderful little audio editor.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Another Impressive Review for WavePad

WavePad Silver Audio Editing Software AwardTopTenReviews recently updated its top ten list for best audio editing software. We were pleased to see WavePad Master's Edition move up in the rankings from last year, winning a Silver award for 2010's best audio editing software. Here are some of our favorite quotes from the review:

"Whether you are a musician looking to refine and improve tracks, a journalist looking to trim or extract vocal clips or looking to add voice narration to a multimedia presentation, [WavePad] offers a unique range, making it accessible to users with audio editing software needs not related to music production."

"The great thing about this software is it has it all. You can download, edit and burn through one program. Not many other software packages that we tested had these capabilities, not to mention the quality that NCH Software has implemented."

"WavePad strikes an incredible balance between high-end and low-end, advanced and beginner level audio and sound editing software programs, giving users of various professions, skill-sets and program needs an incredible range with which to work. Best of all, it does so without over-simplifying its interface or limiting users to only a handful of tools."

The review correctly points out that whether you are an experienced audiophile, use audio editing in non-music related professions, or are just getting started in audio production, WavePad has something for everyone. You can read the entire review, and make sure you take advantage of WavePad's free trial to see how well it can work for you.

Monday, August 2, 2010

Do More with Audio - Blog Carnival August 2, 2010


Welcome to the August 2, 2010 edition of Do More with Audio.


Jack Josey presents How to Sound Like a Pro When Podcasting posted at Audio Production Advice.

How To Record Better Bass posted at podcomplex.

Mike Ross presents The 12 Greatest Costumed Rock Bands Ever posted at Star Costumes Blog, saying, "Rock and Roll has had its share of larger than life characters. Some were born with an innate charisma that just demanded attention. Other artists fully embraced rock and roll’s shared sense of rebellion and theater to create new personas through costume."

Phil Lopez presents Top 10 Christian Hymns of All-Time posted at Christian Colleges and Universities.

Collecting Vinyl Records posted at Recording Video.

peterselby7 presents Jun 30, Used Audio Cables, a great way to save. The Best Speaker Wire and Audio Cable posted at Home Speaker Blog.

You might also be interested in:That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Do More With Audio using our carnival submission form.