Free Web Conferencing

I did a quick search for free web conferencing solutions - because someone we know wants to spend $500 for another year of Go To Meeting - and we really don't use it enough to justify that. If we hosted larger meetings and more often, maybe, but for what we do one of these free options will work just fine.

• DimDim - So simple anyone can use it. Unlike other web conference products, Dimdim does not require users to install software on their computers to attend web meetings. Users can start or join meetings with just a few clicks. Dimdim is available for free so everyone - not just big companies with big budgets - can use it.
• Yugma - Yugma free web conferencing allows anyone, anywhere to instantly share their desktop and ideas online with others - up to 20 attendees. I'm thinking the Skype Edition looks really promising.
• Vyew - free for up to 10 attendees, has ads. Browser based with no download required.

All of these are upgradeable if you need additional features - and for less than $500/year.

For phone conferencing there's:

• FreeConferencing.com - up to 1000 callers with NO reservations, free recording and downloads.
• Free Conference Calling - up to 500 callers - on demand conference calling, free recording and MP3 playback, and conference call security.

Zemanta for Better Blogging

Image via CrunchBase

I think I've mentioned this before, but it just upgraded when I started my browser this morning, so I was reminded. I've been using Zemanta for a while now, and I really love it.

Zemanta is a free Firefox extension that helps enhance your blog posts. It's also available for other browsers and supports all popular blogging platforms.

As you type your post, Zemanta automatically suggests images, tags, links, and related articles. You can include any of the suggested items with a simple click of your mouse. Zemanta also gives you the option to open images and related articles in a new window or tab so you can get a closer look before inserting them. I've found some very interesting images and articles this way - even if I haven't inserted all of them.

Here's a short video on how Zemanta works:

Zemanta in 60 Seconds from zemanta on Vimeo.

It's not required, but if you create an account with Zemanta, you can add your social networks so Zemanta knows who your friends are and can suggest them and their content for your posts. And Zemanta can suggest your own images if you set your Flickr username.

There's more - here's a whole list of advantages of using Zemanta. If you're not quite ready to download and install the browser extension, you can try the demo on the site to get an idea of how Zemanta works.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Zemanta - Faster, better & uncut (zemanta.com)
• Just discovered Zemanta (ozwebhub.com)

bing cashback

If you do any shopping online, you'll want to check out bing. All you have to do is create a FREE account, and then whenever you do any online shopping, start with bing. You can search for what you're looking for right on the bing site, and bing will list prices at various stores and also show you the amount of cashback you can get, so you can pick the best price. Then just click through to go to the store and make your purchase.

You can also just choose a store from the list of cashback stores, click through and do your shopping on that site. Once you make a purchase, bing will send you an email to confirm your savings. There is a waiting period of about 60 days before you can claim your cashback, but then you can request it to be sent to your PayPal account or have it deposited into your bank account, as long as you have at least $5 in your account.

So far we've earned almost $75 in cashback, shopping at stores like Newegg.com, Buy.com, and Walmart.com. The savings really add up when you order big-ticket items like a laptop computer, but the little things add up, too.

And, through December 2, bing is offering extra cashback, so the savings are even better - 15% cashback at Walmart.com, 14% cashback at Barnes & Noble, and 25% cashback at Footlocker.com, just to name a few. I ordered a bunch of DVDs at Walmart.com this morning at really good prices, free shipping to my home, and that 15% cashback. Gotta love it!

So, if you're going to be doing any shopping, and who isn't? - you might as well get some money back for doing it, right? Claim your cashback from bing.

Free Video Downloaders

Cory likes to download videos once in a while and put them on his Zune. He had a couple programs he liked, but then suddenly they weren't free any more. Don't you hate when that happens? So, when I saw that today's Giveaway of the Day was a YouTube Music Downloader, I thought I'd check it out.

The reviews don't look too promising, but there were several suggestions for FREE video downloaders that he might be able to use:

1. Video Download Helper Firefox add-on - an easy way to download and convert Web videos from hundreds of YouTube-like sites. Also for audio and picture galleries.
2. MP4 YouTube Downloader - another Firefox add-on
3. YouTube Downloader from Biennesoft - allows you to download videos from YouTube, Google Video, Yahoo Video, and many others and convert them to other video formats. Just specify the URL of the video you want to download and click OK.
4. Orbit Downloader - download videos, Flash games, and large batches of files.
5. ClipNabber online downloader - allows you to download video from a bunch of different sites, and if you just want the audio, try TuneNabber.
6. KeepVid - another online downloader - enter the URL of a video you want or add the bookmarklet to easily 'Keep It'

I'm not completely sure if all of these convert the downloaded videos to the format you want or not. If you need something else, you can use the Free Video Converter to convert to the format you need.

Hopefully there will be something here that Cory can use to get those videos onto his Zune. Let me know if you've tried any of these and what you think or if there are some others that should be mentioned. Thanks.

Related articles by Zemanta

• How to Download Videos on Youtube (computer-realm.net)
• Clipfinder HD Finds Plays & Converts Internet Video Files (makeuseof.com)

Be sure to check out that second Zemanta-suggested article, because Clipfinder HD sounds like it just might be the best of them all.

The Yak for Java

I found this today (Actually, I found a magazine page I had ripped out of a magazine ages ago that mentioned this, so I looked it up.

The Yak Java applet - free kit that allows you to create buttons and animations. It supports sound and up to 100 images per animation. It's supposed to be pretty simple, fast and light-weight. I haven't tried it out, but it sounds like it might just come in handy. (And I'm linking to it here so I can find it again - and I tossed the magazine page out)

Have any of you used the Yak? What do you think?