New Floors In the Fall

We need to discuss a few flooring considerations that are fairly important right now. And by right now, I mean… well… right now. Because on one hand, I could try to convince you that the fall is the right time to think seriously about redoing, refinishing, revamping, or replacing any number of flooring spaces in your home. That should actually makes sense – it’s almost the holidays, kids are in school already for the construction time you’ll need, and you’ve been wanting a few new punches of beauty and comfort in your home anyway. Plus, as everybody starts showing up for the big family gatherings in the next few months, you’ll be proud to tell them all to leave their shoes at the door!

But on the OTHER hand, you need to consider flooring options right now, not just because of all those brilliant reasons, but because everybody else is already considering flooring, too. I am Not. Joking. Around. Two years ago at the end of October I sauntered on in to The Home Depot to discuss new upstairs carpeting, and new entry-way tile; both items I wanted to have installed within the month. As it turns out, pretty much everybody the whole town over wanted the same thing – and all of it HAD to be done before Thanksgiving!

Now, mind you, the friendly folks in Home Depot flooring were nothing short of miraculous, and they seriously worked to make it happen. But the scheduling was tiiiiight, and you do NOT want to miss out on showing off your new gorgeous under-foot amazingness to Aunt Meriweather.

Plus, fall is the time for new flooring, because so many new options are pouring in to the Home Depot. If you’re a bargain shopper, this means loads of great clearance pricing on wood and tile, but also the new innovative and modern products are stocking the shelves right now. Here’s a few to consider…

There are new thin tiles that display beautiful stone or wood, and simply require a click-together and lay-it-down kind of installation. It can go right smack on top of the floor you’ve already got! I fell so in love with this white marble, I had to order some up for my laundry room. And speaking of crazy easy instillation, were you also aware that the Home Depot now carries thin vinyl tiles that can be set down like stone or ceramic, and grouted?!

Of course, in order to make sure the colors and textures match my home and design intentions, I wanted to buy a few samples to take home. But not at The Home Depot! Oooooh no – they just want to GIVE you samples for free! Sitting right there with the products you’ll find exact small samples of all their gorgeous flooring products, or sample boards they’ll let you check out and take home with a smile. Of course, the boards ARE kind of like a library book you need to return, which is OK, since you won’t forget them in your school backpack. (I think I owe back school library fees upwards of about a million bucks.)

And don’t get me started on carpet, because I’m kind of a lover of all things soft under my tosies. At the Home Depot you’ll find an incredible selection of ready-to-install in stock carpets, several incredibly well priced quick-ship options, and any other variety you could possibly think up. They carry more colors than I would put in my surprisingly neutral house, but also enough variations on shades of taupe to make a picky little selector like me quite happy. Plus, their competitively priced high shag carpets (my absolute favorite and the pick I ultimately went with) can be installed this fall starting at $37. But only if you get on it NOW!

It’s the time people. Refurbish those floors. Get new freshness to walk on! Or for the simplest and fastest kick of all, dive into the very impressive and supremely competitively priced isle of rugs hanging up over in the flooring section. I picked up a soft but practical indoor/outdoor rug for under my table in the kitchen. Next up is finding the right spot for THIS fluffy wonder; my daughter informed me that this run was so nice she fell asleep standing next to it just hanging there. I’m not even making that up.

It’s the right time to do flooring improvements; they increase home value, and severely impact your complete sense of happiness as you tip toe around in these freshly brisk coming months.

What To Expect From The Software That’s Packaged In Your Camcorder

What To Expect From The Software That’s Packaged In Your Camcorder

If you just bought a camcorder, the manufacturer has put the default software in it to use video editing. Even though it is simple, it is enough to help you edit the video that you take.

These days, you’re just as likely to view your camcorder videos on a computer as on a TV (if not more so.) That’s why every camcorder is packaged with some basic video software that will let you perform some routine tasks with your camcorder video. Here’s what you can expect:

Basic Editing

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While you shouldn’t expect to edit your Hollywood blockbuster on the included software, the basic editing features are usually there – some color corrections, trimming, along with the ability to add titles and transition effects.

Sharing

Whether you want to post your videos to Facebook or YouTube or send them to friends and family via email, the software included in your camcorder usually contains tools for Web sharing.

Transcoding

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If you want to watch your home movies on DVD, smartphone, portable media players or even a PlayStation Portable, you may need to transcode your video – i.e. turn it into a file format that can be recognized by these devices. Most bundled software will have an option to output your video file for viewing on various platforms.

Organize

The more videos and photos you record with your camcorder, the harder it is to keep track of all your digital files. Included software will offer a basic organizer that will let you keep track of your ever-growing digital library.

DVD Burning:  One of the most routine tasks you’ll need to perform with your camcorder’s software is burning an archival disk of your footage (read about how to archive your camcorder videos here). If it does nothing else, your software should allow you to burn DVDs of your home movies.

Perform Specialized Tasks: Some high-end camcorder features can only be accessed through specialized software applications not found on off-the-shelf software.

Sony’s GPS camcorders are a case in point: you can only access map views and “geo-tagging” if you use the company’s included software to organize your files.

Built-in Software

There’s a growing trend among camcorders (particularly pocket camcorders) to ditch the CD-Rom and load their software directly into the camcorder itself. The software will typically install itself on your computer the first time you connect the camcorder to the computer. The virtue with the built-in approach is that you can upgrade computer (of suffer a hard drive wipe out) without worrying about losing your software.