Filmator.net provides an interesting online solution for creating video slide shows.  Users can bring together an audio file in an MP3 format and bring in a series of images or slides and put them together online through Filmator’s solution producing an online presentation.

The images can be set to trigger at specific times throughout the audio file, with many advanced options like layering and fading the images in and out through transitions.

The service will even resize images to standardize them during the import phase.  I have looked for a service like this for some time and this appears to be a very easy way to go about it.  The process is very thorough and includes many steps along the way for setting up title pages and the appropriate tags.

Users could achieve a similar effect by purchasing software from Adobe and working in flash, but that can be very expensive.

Below is a video from filmator.net that walks a user through a tutorial for creating a video that I found very helpful in understanding their process.

In general the service is free to artists and charges commercial interests for the work they do utilizing the online service.  You can view the video on their site in a full page screen also.

This is one of the more comprehensive tools that I have found like this on the web.  It is very thorough and as such can deliver a very useful and complete presentation replete with the appropriate tags and descriptions and items that make these types of presentations extra useful.

Page Popularity for Site: 11% [?]

A new site called NinjaWords provides rapid definitions upon queries.  This is one of those sites that is very handy because of its simple user interface, but it is very fast.  Its built on the Ajax and is boosted with a tie in to Wiktionary (think wikipedia mixed with a dictionary).

NinjaWords provides a faster way to get at a quick definition, with the full depth of a Wiktionary just a click away after you receive the definition.  This site will not change your life, but can be a handy bookmark as opposed to Google Searching a word plus the word define or definition and hoping that the grab bag response is close.

One of the things I like about the site is that it creates a list of all the words and their definitions that you have searched for during your session.  It does not clear the page automatically after each search and this seems to be rather useful for keeping track of what you have done.  You can see a list of several random searches that I performed using the service.

quaternary

(adj) : of fourth rank or order; of a mathematical expression containing e.g. x⁴

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disingenuous

(adj) : not noble; unbecoming true honor or dignity; mean; unworthy; fake or deceptive; as, disingenuous conduct or schemes; not ingenuous; wanting in noble candor or frankness; not frank or open; uncandid; unworthily or meanly artful

“so disingenuous as not to confess them [faults]. - Alexander Pope”

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intimate

(adj) : Closely acquainted; familiar; of or involved in a sexual relationship

“she enjoyed some intimate time alone with her husband.”

(n) : a very close friend; (in plural intimates) Women’s underwear, sleepwear, or lingerie, especially offered for sale in a store

“only a couple of intimates had ever read his writing.”

(v) : to suggest or disclose discreetly

“he intimated that we should leave before the argument escalated.”

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surreptitious

(adj) : stealthy, furtive, well hidden, covert (especially movements)

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nutrient

(n) : a source of nourishment, such as food, that can be metabolized by an organism to give energy and build tissue

(adj) : providing nourishment

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recuperate

(v) : to recover, especially from an illness; to get better from an illness

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inarticulate

(adj) : (of speech) not articulated in normal words; speechless

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academic

(adj) : belonging to the school or philosophy of Plato; as, the academic sect or philosophy; belonging to an academy or other higher institution of learning; scholarly; literary or classical, in distinction from scientific

“academic courses - Warburton”

(n) : one holding the philosophy of Socrates and Plato; a Platonist; a member of an academy, college, or university; an academician

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arboretum

(n) : a place where many varieties of trees are grown for research, educational, and ornamental purposes

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muse

(n) : a source of inspiration

(v) : to become lost in thought, to ponder

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gerontology

(n) : the study of the elderly, and of the aging process itself; the branch of science that deals with the problems of aged people. It is to be distinguished from geriatrics, which is the study of the diseases of the elderly. Gerontology covers the social, psychological and biological aspects of aging

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indices

(n) : plural of index

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blurt

(v) : to utter suddenly and unadvisedly; to speak quickly or without thought; to divulge inconsiderately — commonly with out

“please think about your reply and don’t just blurt out the first thing that comes to mind.”

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ecliptic

(n) : the geometric plane that contains the sun and the orbit of the Earth. Thus, the apparent path of the sun in the sky

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incline

(v) : to bend or move (something) out of a given plane or direction, often the horizontal or vertical; to slope

“he had to incline his body against the gusts to avoid being blown down in the storm.”

(n) : a slope

“to reach the building, we had to climb a steep incline.”

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corrosive

(adj) : eating away; having the power of gradually wearing, hanging, or destroying the texture or substance of a body; as, the corrosive action of an acid; having the quality of fretting or vexing

(n) : that which has the quality of eating or wearing away gradually; any solid, liquid or gas capable of irreparably harming living tissues or damaging material on contact

Page Popularity for Site: 8% [?]

Sproose has launched a web search beta tool that enables users to vote for the quality of web search items.  The system is simple enough to understand.  A user goes to Sproose, establishes an account with an email address, performs searches anytime in the future, and can vote on any individual search result giving it a rating on a scale of 1 to 5.

This Social Search Engine takes the voting results and immediately adjusts its search engine ranking accordingly.  The concept and design is simple enough to be immediately understandable and potentially useful if the user base grows past the critical mass necessary to avoid skewed results.  Other social media sites like Digg.com have felt the impact of ‘digg’ gangs that attempt to manipulate results.  That has not caused a serious problem for Digg and I suspect it will ultimately not cause a serious problem for Sproose either.

You can try the tool at the Sproose home page.

The key to the success of this system will likely be a two fold combination consisting of 1.  Simplicity in design which they have and 2. General Awareness of their tool, which they are working on already in small part through their sponsorship of this article and Maven Mapper’s Information.

Page Popularity for Site: 9% [?]

The results of the internal Apple investigation have been released.  The end result is that Apple will incur an $84m loss resulting from improperly recorded options from 1997 through 2002.  There were a total of 6,428 options granted inappropriately over 42 different dates.

Steve Jobs did recommend or know about several of the options that were recommended to maximize gains for other individuals but not himself.  The option that has raised eyebrows that was incorrectly recorded was reviewed initially by the board in October of 2001, but terms were not finalized until two months later in December at which time someone (undisclosed) backdated the option to the original date in October.

Questions Remaining

The total amount found would not appear to be material if $84m is the correct amount.  This leaves questions as to whom if anyone the SEC may pursue in this affair.  As the report indicates that Steve Jobs did recommend several of the dates for others, this may make him culpable if its found that those individuals reciprocated in some manner.  The board has indicated that they are willing to look beyond this possible fiduciary indiscretion and will continue to support Jobs to the relief of investors.  Then there is finally the question of whether or not the SEC or external investigators that is will trust the findings of internal investigators or perform their own search.  Will these findings by Apple open the door on this scandal or lock it up tight?

Page Popularity for Site: 4% [?]