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Source:Mashable!

There are tons of open source applications out there, from operating systems to word processors to graphics programs and more. But, it’s often hard to find manuals or other documentation beyond what the developers have written (which, while technically correct, doesn’t always cover the nuances of actually using the program). Here are more than 20 video tutorials to get you going with four of the most popular open source programs out there: Gimp, Linux, Open Office, and Nvu.

Which tutorials are most helpful for you?

Gimp Video Tutorials

Gimp Tutorial: Pop Art - This tutorial shows how to take a regular photograph and turn it into a graphic piece of pop art.

The User Interface - This tutorial will give you a basic overview of Gimp’s user interface.

How to Change Hair Color - Ever wanted to try out a new hair color without actually dying your hair? Well, just use this Gimp tutorial to change your hair color in a photo.

Creating a Sketch Effect Using the Gimp - This tutorial goes over the basics of making a photo look like a hand-drawn sketch.

Transparent Glass Lettering - It’s great to know how to create transparent glass letters for website headers and banners, and to give your creations a more web 2.0 look.

Creating a Graduated Neutral Density Filter - Neutral density filters are a great tool for photography, and this tutorial will show you how to create the same effect in Gimp after you’ve taken the photo.

Full Flare Control with The Gimp - Flares can often be annoying in a photo, but sometimes they add that little extra something. This tutorial shows you how to take full control of flare creation.

Creating Water Drops - Adding water droplets to a leaf or a flower can be a cool effect in a photo, but is tricky to do. This tutorial explains exactly how to create realistic water droplets.

How to Create a Web 2.0 Logo Using the Gimp - Everyone needs a good web 2.0 logo, and this video will show you how.

Preparing an Image for the Web - This tutorial is the first in a series, and covers rotating, cropping, downscaling, pushing the colors, and sharpening an image.

Linux Video Tutorials

Using Multiple Workspaces in Puppy Linux - This tutorial shows how to configure Puppy Linux to have multiple workspaces.

Run Linux Under Windows - This tutorial shows how to run Linux or another operating system as a virtual system under your Windows operating system.

Install Ubuntu Linux 7.10 - This tutorial spells out exactly how to install Ubuntu Linux on your PC.

Backup Linux Mandriva 2008 - Learn how to back up your users and system configuration with this video tutorial.

(Very) Basic CD Burning Linux Mint Tutorial - Here’s a really basic tutorial on how to burn CDs using Linux Mint.

Open Office Video Tutorials

OpenOffice Tutorial - This tutorial is very complete, and covers installing, configuring and using OpenOffice.

Hidden Star Wars Game - This tutorial shows you how to access the hidden Star Wars game in OpenOffice.

How to Create a PDF with Open Office - This video shows how to create a PDF file from an OpenOffice file.

Open Office on Ubuntu Linux - This tutorial shows how to use Open Office on an Ubuntu Linux platform.

Nvu Video Tutorials

How to Modify a Website Template Using Nvu - This video tutorial shows how to customize a website template to meet your needs.

Installing Free Editor Nvu - This tutorial shows you how to get Nvu up and running on your computer.

Getting Started with Nvu - This video covers the basics of using Nvu for designing web pages.

Using Tables in Nvu - This tutorial shows how to create tables using Nvu.

—Related Articles at Mashable! - The Social Networking Blog:Students: Code Open Source for Google this Summer20+ Great Resources For Video TutorialsNokia Dishes Out $153 Million for TrolltechMicrosoft’s .Net Source Code: Look But Don’t TouchUserplane Plug-Ins Now Support WordPress, Drupal, and More.20+ Photoshop Video Tutorials20+ Tools For XML

Source:Mashable!

Betaworks, a type of incubator program based in New York, has just released the public beta of a simply integrated chat tool for site owners, called Firefly. The simplicity comes by way of no download requirements for end users. If they happen to be on a Firefly-enabled site, then they can start the chat option and just start typing. Click anywhere on the webpage and you can type there. The result is a collaborative pop-up chat conversation that can get pretty overwhelming if there are too many people chatting at once.

There is color differentiation for different chat users, so you can better follow any conversations that are going on, but if you’d like to make yourself stand out, there is the ability to choose an avatar or upload an existing avatar from another website. There’s also Twitter integration, so if you’d like your chat comments to become part of your Twitter stream, Firefly has included the ability to sync the two accounts. For Firefly chatters that are more apt to hold conversations on multiple Firefly-enabled sites, the Twitter integration is probably an attractive option.

When you’re chatting with multiple people at one time, a chat history is absolutely vital. There are two ways in which to access a Firefly chat history–on the current website where the Firefly menu shows the progression of the ongoing chat (think a video-player time bar), and on Firefly’s site where the full chat history is archived.

Though the interaction for Firefly chats are rather limited and the shelf life of any shared content here is short-lived, the basic offerings for fleeting conversations that Firefly allows can be fun and entertaining. Given Firefly’s current support for things like semi-customization and Twitter integration, it’s also clear that the company is thinking of practical ways in which users can leverage their participation in a given conversation, moving beyond the mere act of chatting online.

—Related Articles at Mashable! - The Social Networking Blog:Alpha: When Beta Is Not Good EnoughStitcher Prepares To Go Public With Its BetaGoogle’s Urchin Software Released As Public BetaFlock Public Beta Now LivePownce To Launch Public APIMoFuse’s Public Beta Launches this WeekStixy’s Easy Whiteboard Tool Now Live to Public

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 30th, 2008 at 6:04 pm and is filed under News, new york, twitter, chat, Web apps, Firefly, web chat. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.