In this experiment I show how to take an URL of a regular image and then return a manipulated image with the looks of a polaroid picture. In other words, it requires retrieving and loading the image provided in the textbox into memory, convert the text provided in the textbox into a graphic, load a background image into memory and then putting it all together. Finally, rotate the finished image in memory and return to the browser as a binary stream.

All this on the fly...

Read more: http://www.miguelmoreno.net/...

World Wind allows any user to zoom from satellite altitude into any place on Earth, leveraging high resolution LandSat imagery and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) elevation data to experience Earth terrain (or any planet with the data) in visually rich 3D, just as if they were really there. Virtually visit anyplace in the world. Look across the Andes, into the Grand Canyon, over the Alps or along the African Sahara.

The download of this phenomenal software is free, but is quite large at around 250Mb. You will also need a fast computer with plenty of memory and compatible 3D graphics acceleration. If that wasn't enough, you must also have broadband (I would not try this with anything less than that). The software allows you to set the detail of resolution. The whole planet can bee seen with a resolution detail of 7 meters (1 pixel == 7 square meters), whereas all of the US can be seen with 1 meter resolution. Some urban areas like Washington D.C., Fort Worth, Seattle and Orlando have a (color) resolution of .25 meters! That means that you can pinpoint a person walking on a sidewalk.

Download here: http://learn.arc.nasa.gov/worldwind/ or check out the unofficial enthusiast website with user-submitted captures of interesting sites of our planet.

Not sure how I got to this page, but if you are stuck with ASP.NET or simply need to reference a particular topic, check out this large, large list of ASP.NET articles. There simply has GOT to be something to help you out.

The ASP.NET website is a large community site where you can find tons of information on anything regarding this popular technology.

There is also a page for quickstart tutorials that I keep bookmarked as well.

Read more: http://www.asp.net/Modules/MoreArticles.aspx

Have you ever thought about striking out on your own in consulting? This excellent, three-part article from Jonathan Goodyear outlines his experiences with going independent, and will hopefully help you get there too.

The first step is determining whether independent consulting is for you.

Read this three-part article to find out.

part I, Assessing Your Gumption...
part II, Marketing Yourself...
part III, Breaking Away...

Read more: AngryCoder.com

I rarely write about anything off-topic, but this requires a post...

"After reading a story in the NYT, Jim's wife Heidi came up with a method to fight back against the obnoxious cell phone users that we all have to deal with in stores, restaurants, trains and pretty much everywhere else.

That's right. We're tired of having to listen to your loud, obnoxious conversations. We don't care about your new haircut or what "he" might have said to you the night before. (We couldn't believe it either!) It doesn't interest us in the least whether or not you are going to attend the company Christmas party or when you need to pick up your ugly kids from soccer practice. No. We don't want to hear it.

We're fighting back..."

Read more: http://www.coudal.com/ or download the forms here

I thought I knew most of the keyboard shortcuts that my operating system provides me. What other shortcuts are there besides control-X (cut), control-C (copy) and control-V(paste)? Yes, there is control-Z (undo) and a few others, but that is pretty much it (so I thought...).

It appears there is a long, long list of quite useful keyboard shortcuts that I will now have to remember. This article describes them in detail.

Read more: http://support.microsoft.com/...

Secunia Research has reported a vulnerability, which affects most browsers. The vulnerability can be exploited by a malicious web site to hi-jack a named browser window, regardless of which web site is the true owner of the window.

The problem is that a website can inject content into another site's window if the target name of the window is known. This can e.g. be exploited by a malicious website to spoof the content of a pop-up window opened on a trusted website.

The site includes a live test with the Citibank.com and it works every time. The solution is not to browse untrusted sites while browsing trusted sites.

Read more: http://secunia.com/...

Writing a Web application with ASP.NET is relatively easy. So easy, many developers don't take the time to structure their applications for great performance.

This article presents 10 tips for writing high-performance Web apps. It is not the definitive guide for performance tuning Web applications; an entire book could easily be devoted to that. Instead, think of this as a good place to start.

read more: http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnmag/...

There are many sites that offer IQ tests for a fee. This one has decent tests and gives you a score right away. If you score higher than 126, you are allowed to subscribe to be a member of the club.

Update: I scored 127 and (barely) managed to go on to the members page. Well, it turns out that you have to pay $65 dollars to become a life-time member. I wonder the prestige it has to be a member of this society and if it will actually help with a job-hunt or something similar. I think I am going to pass for now...

read more: http://www.highiqsociety.org/

As a kid I had several Radio-Controlled models; a speedboat, an electric car, a gasoline powered car and an airplane that flew 50 meters and never flew again... I guess it is one of those toys that is neat for kids but really cool for adults. It has been a while since I picked up a new hobby, but this site made me seriously consider getting back into it.

Gravityshots.com makes photography and video of anything that needs to be shot from a different angle. With camera-mounted helicopters, the views and imagery is truly breath-taking. They have an archive of almost 3000 images (watermarked).

read more: http://www.gravityshots.com/...