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47 posts found.

NPS Image Editor: Now with Layers!

It happens almost every time. I mention NPS Image Editor to somebody who has never heard of it and the first words out of their mouth are "does it have layers?". After more than 3 years of rewriting everything to support multi-layer editing, NPS Image Editor has layers at last! And what a journey it has been.
Blog entry | Posted on Monday, September 2, 2019 at 5:04 PM | Permalink | Tags: NPS | 0 Comments »

Introducing NPS Image Editor and Color Picker 3.1

NPS Image Editor 3.1.0 has been released! This release has been long in the making due to a large number of internal improvements that were necessary to support some new features for this release (and new ones going forward) but it includes some significant improvements to the color picker, new color spaces, and new filters.
Blog entry | Posted on Sunday, November 20, 2016 at 10:20 PM | Permalink | Tags: nps | 0 Comments »

The new look of Nookkin.com

Introducing the new Material-inspired responsive design and a few new features.
Blog entry | Posted on Sunday, June 19, 2016 at 1:23 PM | Permalink | Tags: nookkin.com, material, mobile, NookkinCMS | 0 Comments »

Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro Review

The Yoga 2 Pro is a convertible ultrabook with a unique design that allows it to function as a laptop, tablet, and something in between. This is a refresh of the original Yoga which brings faster hardware and an insanely high-resolution 3200x1800-pixel screen to the product. I purchased one of these machines about a week ago, and here are my experiences with it so far.
Blog entry | Posted on Saturday, January 18, 2014 at 3:25 PM | Permalink | Tags: computers, windows, review, touch | 0 Comments »

NPS Image Editor, Beta 2

NPS Image Editor Beta 2 has been released! Head on over to http://nps.nookkin.com to grab it. But before you do, check out the sweet improvements you'll be getting!
Blog entry | Posted on Friday, July 19, 2013 at 10:34 AM | Permalink | Tags: nps | 0 Comments »

New Year, New Server!

The world hasn't ended and we are now well into 2013. Although nookkin.com has been fairly quiet recently, there has been a lot going on – the busiest semester of my life, a migration to a new server, and lots of programming.
Blog entry | Posted on Sunday, January 6, 2013 at 8:47 PM | Permalink | Tags: nookkin.com, nps, computers, windows, class | 2 Comments »

NPS Image Editor has gone Beta!

It's finally here! After a summer's worth of work, the NPS Image Editor Beta is now available for you to download and use. I'm amazed at how far NPS has come since the original never-publicly-released version nearly 7 years ago, and I hope to continue that original dream by making the application grow. Thanks to everyone who has helped me out in any way to make this a reality!
Blog entry | Posted on Wednesday, August 1, 2012 at 6:45 PM | Permalink | Tags: nps, | 2 Comments »

How I would fix Windows 8

Windows 8 has introduced some radical changes to the user interface, the likes of which have not been seen since Windows 95's introduction of the Start menu. The new "Metro" interface is sleek, elegant, and highly responsive, but unfortunately Microsoft seems to have missed their mark in a few small but nonetheless critical places. Here is my proposed solution to some of the common complaints about Windows 8.
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, June 28, 2012 at 7:14 PM | Permalink | Tags: Windows, opinion, beta, touch, upgrade | 2 Comments »

Summer 2012 Updates

Nookkin's plans for Summer 2012 include work on NPS, nookkin.com, and others. Read on for more details about each.
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 8:07 PM | Permalink | Tags: summer, NPS, NookkinCMS, nookkin.com | 0 Comments »

NPS Image Editor, Alpha 4

NPS Image Editor has been in alpha stage for a while, due to the fact that I've been busy with classes, work, and projects around the house. Nonetheless, the promised yearly release has been built, and while not as grand as some of the previous ones, it is almost universally an improvement in subtle but useful ways.
Blog entry | Posted on Saturday, January 14, 2012 at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Tags: NPS | 0 Comments »

Logitech MX 1100 Mouse Review

After using some of Logitech's higher-end mice for a few days at a time, I realized I needed more. The solution to my digital rodent needs manifested itself as a refurbished Logitech MX1100. I've been using my MX1100 for several weeks now, and I must say I enjoy it very much, despite a few quirks.
Blog entry | Posted on Friday, December 23, 2011 at 9:48 PM | Permalink | Tags: review, hardware, upgrade | 1 Comment »

Windows 8: First Thoughts

Just yesterday, Microsoft showed off some of the new features of "Windows 8" at the CES, including an all-new touch-friendly interface. Is this radical change a natural evolution of Windows, or is Microsoft pulling another Windows Phone 7? Here, I'll outline some of the major changesas well as my own thoughts about them.
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, June 2, 2011 at 10:25 PM | Permalink | Tags: computers, windows, upgrade, mobile | 2 Comments »

Acer Iconia Tab A500 Review

The Acer Iconia Tab A500 is a 10.1-inch Android-based tablet, designed to compete with the iPad 2 in terms of features. It's not mine to keep, but since I had several days to mess around with it, I decided to do a review.
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, June 2, 2011 at 10:04 PM | Permalink | Tags: android, mobile, review, hardware, touch | 1 Comment »

Android on the HD2

One of the reasons I bought my HTC HD2 was to try out operating systems besides the stock Windows Mobile, including Android and Windows Phone 7. Here's my take on Android running on this versatile device.
Blog entry | Posted on Wednesday, May 18, 2011 at 10:54 PM | Permalink | Tags: android, windows, cell phone, mobile | 0 Comments »

HTC HD2 Review

The HD2 may be a year old, but it's still an impressive, head-turning piece of hardware with specs that would have put my old desktop computer to shame. Despite its giant screen size, it is amazingly thin, light, and pocketable, and feels like a premium product in every way imaginable. I purchased it to replace my aging Samsung Epix and my iPod touch, and so far, it has held up extremely well.
Blog entry | Posted on Monday, February 28, 2011 at 4:18 PM | Permalink | Tags: hardware, review, cell phone, mobile | 1 Comment »

NPS Obsidian Alpha 3

Can you believe that Alpha 2 was released in March of 2010? Yes, it's really been that long. But Alpha 3 is a significant improvement, addressing many of the issues people had with Alpha 2. I will highlight a few key points that are sure to prompt an upgrade.
Blog entry | Posted on Friday, January 7, 2011 at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Tags: NPS | 0 Comments »

X-Fi Platinum Review

My Sound Blaster Audigy 4 was a great card, no doubt about that – however, its spotty driver support and lack of hardware acceleration on Windows Vista and 7 made it almost painful to use. After a long while of dealing with random driver reinstalls, distorted audio, and other similar issues, I decided that enough was enough and bought myself aused X-Fi Platinum.
Blog entry | Posted on Wednesday, December 29, 2010 at 4:11 PM | Permalink | Tags: review, hardware, audio | 2 Comments »

Radeon 5450: Triple Monitors on the Cheap

The ATI Radeon HD 5450 is the cheapest 5-series card, but it packs quite a punch for its low price. Namely, it is also the cheapest card to support three monitors and ATI Eyefinity.
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, November 25, 2010 at 11:43 PM | Permalink | Tags: review, hardware | 9 Comments »

Logitech G110 Keyboard Review

Well, my HP Multimedia Keyboard finally bit the dust when I broke the spacebar trying to put it back in. So which keyboard was the lucky replacement? The Logitech G110 Gaming Keyboard, of course.
Blog entry | Posted on Friday, November 5, 2010 at 11:31 PM | Permalink | Tags: review, hardware | 0 Comments »

"Login" or "Log In"?

Do you "login" to a website, or do you "log in" to a website?
Blog entry | Posted on Monday, September 6, 2010 at 1:20 PM | Permalink | Tags: grammar | 3 Comments »

New iPods in 2010

It's that time of year again when Apple updates their iPod models. And while I'm no Apple fanatic, I think Apple is a pretty good innovator that sets the standards for other items. Here is my opinion of Apple's latest gadgets.
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, September 2, 2010 at 3:28 PM | Permalink | Tags: apple, iPod, touch | 2 Comments »

iCandy FM Transmitter Review

Company policy at work does not allow us to listen to music through headphones, but they do allow us to use radios. Not willing to settle for the same boring radio programming every day, I decided to buy an FM transmitter for my iPod touch. Amazon had one for $10 and I decided to try it out.
Blog entry | Posted on Monday, August 9, 2010 at 2:01 PM | Permalink | Tags: review, iPod | 1 Comment »

NPS on Linux and Mac

Up until now, NPS has been a Windows-only application. But thanks to the Mono framework, this very well may change. I've known about Mono for a long time, but it wasn't until a few days ago that I seriously tried getting NPS to run on it. And it worked after several hours of "hacking" and rewriting code I hadn't touched since day 1.
Blog entry | Posted on Monday, June 28, 2010 at 2:00 PM | Permalink | Tags: NPS, mono, mac, linux | 2 Comments »

NookkinEFI Concept, Part 1

EFI replaces the aging BIOS and provides many new features, including rich mouse-based interfaces, modular extensibility, and support for OS-independent device drivers. NookkinEFI is a conceptual implementation of such a system.
Blog entry | Posted on Saturday, June 19, 2010 at 12:23 AM | Permalink | Tags: computers, efi, firmware | 0 Comments »

Bamboo Pen & Touch

I've had my Bamboo Pen & Touch tablet for only a day, but I am already starting to make use of it. I bought it for 3 reasons: as someone being interested in graphic design, I wanted to use a pen; as a programmer, I wanted to make use of the multi-touch gestures and eventually the Wacom-provided APIs; as a general computer user, I wanted a more ergonomic alternative – or complement – to my mouse.
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, June 3, 2010 at 2:17 PM | Permalink | Tags: windows 7, touch, pen | 0 Comments »

Windows Phone 7: A Step Backwards?

Windows Phone 7 aims to improve on the bad points of Windows Mobile. But in so doing, it introduces many of the shortcomings of the iPhone... 3 years behind the competition.
Blog entry | Posted on Wednesday, May 12, 2010 at 1:12 PM | Permalink | Tags: windows, mobile, cell phone | 5 Comments »

April Updates

I'm in the process of updating a few things on the site, which will make things better in the long run for both myself and for my readers. I'm also trying to figureout how to sort the menus for improving visibility of certain content.
Blog entry | Posted on Sunday, April 25, 2010 at 7:15 PM | Permalink | Tags: | 5 Comments »

Should I buy a Mac?

Everyone around me seems to be using a Mac. Some of my friends switched and are now die-hard Apple fanboys. But do Macs really never get viruses, never crash, always work beautifully, better for multimedia, and are they worth the premium? Do you even NEED a Mac to experience Mac OS?
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, April 8, 2010 at 5:11 PM | Permalink | Tags: computers, mac, apple | 8 Comments »

The Apple iPad

The iPad was announced on January 27, 2010, and arrived in Apple stores on April 3. Instantly, floods of people came clamoring for the latest Apple gadget, and the web is abuzz with "success stories" of new iPad users.. But is the iPad really as amazing as everyone claims it is? Or is it just a big iPod touch?
Blog entry | Posted on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 12:08 PM | Permalink | Tags: iPad, iPod, cell phone, mobile | 2 Comments »

NPS Obsidian Alpha 2

Well, it's finally here... NPS codename Obsidian, Alpha 2. This version should have been released months ago, but I ran into various problems and ended up not having enough time to complete it. But that's all in the past now. Alpha 2 is available, and it's just waiting for you to click that "download" button.
Blog entry | Posted on Friday, March 26, 2010 at 8:12 PM | Permalink | Tags: NPS | 1 Comment »

My New Samsung Epix

Ever since I saw someone using a Samsung BlackJack several years ago, I wanted a phone of the BlackBerry style but with Windows Mobile. Then in late 2008, Samsung released the Epix... a powerhouse phone that not only had the features of the BlackJack, but also added an optical mouse, touchscreen, and Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional. It became my dream phone.
Blog entry | Posted on Saturday, March 20, 2010 at 4:46 PM | Permalink | Tags: review, mobile, cell phone | 1 Comment »

Porting your number away from TracFone/Net10

The FCC mandates that carriers allow customers to port their numbers to another carrier. This usually works quite well; however, if you are a customer of an MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) such as Tracfone, you may run into a paradox of sorts: since Tracfone uses another major carrier's towers (T-Mobile in my location), the web-based number porting eligibility tool tells you that your number is ineligible because (in my case) it is already a T-Mobile number.
Blog entry | Posted on Friday, March 19, 2010 at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Tags: mobile, cell phone | 19 Comments »

LG 600G Review

I have been using my LG 600G phone from Net10 (Tracfone also carries this model) since July 2009; it was my first actual cell phone with service, although I have had a good deal of experience with old out-of-servicephones. Now that I've ordered my Samsung Epix, the LG will be going into my phone collection drawer, hopefullyfor good. But in tribute to it, I will write a nice review.
Blog entry | Posted on Sunday, March 7, 2010 at 7:20 PM | Permalink | Tags: review, mobile | 25 Comments »

Nookkin.com Mobile

If you've ever used a mobile internet device to access Nookkin.com, you probably have noticed that it is a sub-optimal experience. With the ever-increasing popularity of such devices, I decided to create a mobile variant of my site. As of today, Nookkin.com is available in mobile and desktop variants.
Blog entry | Posted on Saturday, March 6, 2010 at 5:36 PM | Permalink | Tags: nookkin.com, mobile | 3 Comments »

AGPTek Laptop Battery Review

My ThinkPad's original battery now lasts less than an hour, which is explainable due to its age. It was time for a replacement, but Lenovo charges a whopping $159 for their 7-cell battery (it's the only one they now carry for my model). Well, what did I do? I decided to take a shot at a non-OEM battery: the AGPTek Li9. Here is my review, after owning it for nearly two weeks.
Blog entry | Posted on Tuesday, February 23, 2010 at 10:32 PM | Permalink | Tags: review, thinkpad | 20 Comments »

Nookkin.com One Year Anniversary

Well, it has officially been over a year since nookkin.com launched, late at night on December 22. And while school and work have taken an unexpected toll on theamount of things I wanted to post, I still think that it has been a successful year.
Blog entry | Posted on Tuesday, December 29, 2009 at 12:15 PM | Permalink | Tags: nookkin.com | 4 Comments »

My new audio setup

I have been interested in audio equipment long before I even had a computer. My first audio system consisted of four old car speakers and a few others salvaged from old electronics, all of which were powered by a small red battery-powered radio which Ipartially disassembled in order to connect the speakers. I was around 8 years old at the time, and had no knowledge of proper impedance matching, yet this setup worked until I scrapped it.
Blog entry | Posted on Friday, December 18, 2009 at 12:53 PM | Permalink | Tags: audio, review | 3 Comments »

Goodbye, Sansa... Hello, iPod touch!

My Sansa e250 has served me well, but it is near the end of its useful life. The faceplate is cracked right above the screen, the mechanical scroll wheel is increasingly difficult to turn, and lately it has required several tries just toget it to recognize that it is connected to my computer. Thus, I decided that it was time to buy a new player, and chose one of the most popular and coveted players on the market: the iPod touch.
Blog entry | Posted on Saturday, September 19, 2009 at 10:30 PM | Permalink | Tags: iPod, review, audio | 2 Comments »

NPS Codename Obsidian, Alpha 1

NPS Obsidian Alpha 1 represents the culmination of several weeks of work on the existing Milestone 3 code. This release is not yet feature-complete, but it has most of the features used on an everyday basis– zoom, pencil and brush, resizing functionality, and filters.
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, June 18, 2009 at 5:13 PM | Permalink | Tags: computers, NPS | 0 Comments »

NPS codename Obsidian, Milestone 3

NPS codename Obsidian, Milestone 3, was released today. Milestone 3 shares the same UI appearance as Milestone 2, but also boasts more features. Most toolbox items are now at least partially functional, including rectangular selection, brushes, shapes, airbrush, zoom, and flood fill.
Blog entry | Posted on Monday, June 1, 2009 at 7:20 PM | Permalink | Tags: computers, NPS | 0 Comments »

NPS codename Obsidian, Milestone 1

NPS codename Obsidian, Milestone 1, was released today. The Milestone 1 release (version 3.0.15, build 253) is a fairly significant step in the history of NPS, as this is the first build from the Obsidian codebaseto be released to the public. The Obsidian codebase is written from scratch using VB.NET (VB 2008), and does not contain any code from the RatTamer-Lagoon codebase (which is written in VB6).
Blog entry | Posted on Friday, May 8, 2009 at 10:42 PM | Permalink | Tags: computers, NPS | 1 Comment »

Windows XP on a ThinkPad 560

About a week ago, I installed Windows XP on my old ThinkPad 560. This laptop was my first working computer, which I obtained about 4 years ago. It originally came with Windows 98, which ran fairly slow. The laptop has a 133mhz Pentium processor, 40MB of RAM, and a 2GB hard drive.
Blog entry | Posted on Tuesday, April 7, 2009 at 10:53 PM | Permalink | Tags: computers, thinkpad, windows | 5 Comments »

A Few Updates

For the past month, I have either been busy with school, or busy with something else, and I more or less neglected to post anything on my blog. But here it is... the long-awaited Februaryblog post.
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, February 26, 2009 at 9:35 PM | Permalink | Tags: NPS, computers, nookkin.com, NookkinCMS | 0 Comments »

Windows 7 Beta, part 2

A few days ago, I installed the Windows 7 Beta on my physical machine. I am impressed by the ease with which it installed, as well as the additional functionality added to it; however, it's still not perfect.
Blog entry | Posted on Thursday, January 15, 2009 at 9:40 PM | Permalink | Tags: windows, windows 7, computers, beta | 4 Comments »

Windows 7 Beta

The Windows 7 Beta is out, and I finally managed to get my hands on a copy. I installed it (unactivated) in a virtual machine, but plan to install it on my physical machineas well, in order to use all of its features. I will update my blog once I do that.
Blog entry | Posted on Saturday, January 10, 2009 at 10:50 PM | Permalink | Tags: windows, windows 7, computers, beta | 2 Comments »

Time for some upgrades

My 2-year-old computer was getting a bit slow, as I now run a lot of programs simultaneously. For Christmas, I received an AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ and 2GB of RAM, which was a welcome upgrade.
Blog entry | Posted on Tuesday, December 30, 2008 at 2:47 PM | Permalink | Tags: computers, upgrade | 1 Comment »

Hello World

Well, it's been a hectic week, preparing for the launch of my site. Writing code, debugging, and making last-minute improvements. Then, uploading everything to the server, only to find out that MySQL isn't working quite the way I expected... but the site is finally up and running. What a relief.
Blog entry | Posted on Monday, December 22, 2008 at 11:16 PM | Permalink | Tags: computers, nookkin.com | 9 Comments »