Toombs County History & Genealogy

Toombs County History & Genealogy
Vidalia - The Sweet Onion City

Friday, February 29, 2008

WinWatermark Giveaway of the Day - WinWatermark

WinWatermark is a professional all in one image editing software. It helps you add text and image watermark to any pictures to protect them from unauthorized distribution. WinWatermark is not only watermarking tool, but rather useful and simple photos processor. You can personalize your photos using attractive frames, crop image size to meet you need, resize images with high quality, rotate and rename your pictures, and convert your images to other image formats.

Features:

High speed and high image quality (including powerful Image Processing Engine, which based on MMX- SSE & 3DNow! Technology)

Support almost popular image file formats (including Image Decode/Encode Engine, which can read and write many image formats)

Easy to use software (create your artwork in visual mode, what you see is what you get)

Batch convert mode.

Installation

Unzip the package you`ve downloaded and install the software,

then register the software ((start WinWatermark -> click om the "?'

(right top corner of the programs window)-> click Register) using the registration name

and registration code provided.

You have to install it before the Giveaway offer for the software is over.

-------------------------------------

Registration name:

Giveawayoftheday

Registration code:

Giveawayoftheday

-------------------------------------

Terms and conditions

Please note that the software you download and install

during the Giveaway period comes with the following important limitations:

1) No free technical support

2) No free upgrades to future versions

3) Strictly non-commercial usage

http://www.GiveawayOfTheDay.com/winwatermark/

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/category/winwatermarkcom/

User Rating: Rate It!

143 (59%)

99 (41%)

44 comments

System Requirements:

Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP/2003 Server/Vista

Publisher:

WinWatermark.com

Homepage:

http://www.winwatermark.com/

File Size:

4.68 MB

Price:

The program is available for $29.90, but it will be free for our visitors as a time-limited offer.

Excellent, just what I was looking for. Wonderful program with many options. Better than any other Watermark Program I tried before. 10/10 points rating.

Comment by Wordbird — February 29th, 2008 at 3:13 am

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-29)

As usual,
The program just runs for couple minutes and several people already thrusting their thumbs without trying this progam first.

Comments on this program:
->watermark… can be done even by Ms paint.
->frames…. well for this one, you can find a lot of free software that have these feature, GIMP is one of them
->Resize, Crop, Rotate digital pictures ….. once again, lots of free software can do this.
->Rename picture…. Oh come on! Almost everyone can do this manually
->Save to another format… Again, lots of free software are more than enough for this job

The only feature that I see as a plus from this software is:
Display EXIF and IPTC information on photos
as quoted from the developer’s website:
“It is very useful to see EXIF or IPTC information from your digital photos. WinWatermark provides main information about pictures such as “Exposure Time”, “Camera Name”, etc. Some information can be used as text watermarks and renaming template.”
which not yet available.

Conclusion: $30 for this software if you can find another free software that have more feature? You decide it.

Comment by someone — February 29th, 2008 at 3:21 am

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+46)

Good looking software and I’ll enjoy exploring its features.

One tip for others who might end up as perplexed as I was about
where to put the rego info : Go to the question mark on the right
hand corner of the program….once done, it will confirm success.

Comment by oliviabFebruary 29th, 2008 at 3:27 am

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+29)

It does not seem to need a registration, but to be on the safe side, register clicking on the help button on the right corner.

Comment by Tenaz — February 29th, 2008 at 3:31 am

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+23)

Some people may have a difficult time registering this, so: After install, run program and then in the upper right-hand corner click on “?” and a window will pop up with the registration option. (You will find the proper reg info in the ReadMe.txt file.)

Comment by Ela — February 29th, 2008 at 3:31 am

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+20)

I was looking for watermark software about a week ago. I couldn’t find any that could impress me with their results. In the search, I found GAOTD and since that day, I’ve always left one of my tabs open for GOATD (apart from the RSS subscription). Today, I couldn’t believe my eyes when GOATD was giving away this wonderful software. Yet, I doubted its credibility in watermarking images. But its nothing that I shouldn’t try, so I gave it a shot. And guess what? I LOVE THIS APPLICATION! As a designer, watermarking is very important for me and this application is what I’ve been looking for! Thanks a lot GOATD, and as for WinWatermark, two thumbs up for this software! GOATD edition will not be the end! I’ll buy your software soon! Great job!

Comment by TheLimeDesignFebruary 29th, 2008 at 3:34 am

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+15)

I tried it out of curiosity. It’s cumbersome and doesn’t provide anything new or useful. I can do everything this will do and a lot more with Paint Shop Pro using batch process. I just can’t see any use for this even for newbies because freeware is all over the place that will do the same thing and more. Sorry.

Comment by gms9810 — February 29th, 2008 at 3:39 am

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+6)

At first glance WinWatermark has a good set of features with a slick interface; until now I have been using Faststone Photo Resizer (for watermarks and borders, enable advanced options) which, though its full-featured, can’t be called slick
http://www.faststone.org/FSResizerDetail.htm

Comment by harryQ — February 29th, 2008 at 3:43 am

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+15)

Not worth paying for so if you want this then have a good time with it until it runs out. Everything it does is already in nearly all operating systems and their add ins. Free ware has all this as well and more.

Not a bad program but ot something that is not already there.

Comment by ken kellyFebruary 29th, 2008 at 3:48 am

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-4)

-The preview window is extremely small and can not be resized. This makes the program really hard to work with IMO. It makes manipulation of big pictures a real pain.
-No antialiasing (or very poor).
-No output support for popular image formats like Tiff.
-”Settings” are found under the “Help” question mark, for some reason. Next to registration and Help file.
-The default output folder is the original folder. However pictures are not saved with a new name and the only option is to overwrite the originals.
-English in their tutorials is even worse than mine ;)
-This is the “GOTD Special Version 2.2″.

Comment by J.D. — February 29th, 2008 at 3:58 am

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+31)

This may be breaking User Rules, since I haven’t installed WW yet, but it may be interesting.

First we had Daguerreotypes, then black and white snapshots, colour prints and photo albums, and now we have Flickr and digital photo frames. We’ve had PhotoStory, but that seems to have died a death. And now we have an opportunity to give a name to our electronic images. A narrative placed on the photos themselves, with transparency.

I’m picking up from the software’s description that certain parameters within the files can be written to the watermarks. Without the photographers always standing by to give a running commentary I’m thinking that a subtle text overlay could be next big thing.

Irfanview can write filenames onto photos, even in batch mode, but picking the right colour is tricky. Maybe there’s something in this package that takes the ‘photo experience’ the next evolutionary step. Stand by.

Comment by Ardwych — February 29th, 2008 at 4:01 am

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-29)

It seems to me that some people come here wanting a freebie that promises the world, and when it doesnt are prepared to just run it down and say its nothing new! Noone has ever siad these free programs will offer anything new, and so what if MS Paint can do what this can do. For a ton of programs you have to pay money for there are freebies. Just be grateful this website exists and limit your comments to the program itself, not whether you feel you have been cheated becuase it adds nothing new.

Comment by Julian — February 29th, 2008 at 4:59 am

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+22)

I failed to see the point in this one.

How hard is it to type some text in The GIMP and lower the opacity slider to, say, 20%? Being an actual photo-editing program, it’s a lot more versatile when it comes to post-editing, too.

Pointless. Really, really pointless.

Comment by Trape — February 29th, 2008 at 5:07 am

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-11)

It seems like “Someone” can’t grasp the nature of photo programs, and “Others” can’t understand that the cost hasn’t anything to do with it because it’s FREE”. I must have 15 different photo programs, some of which cost me hundreds of dollars and I still find that not any given one does it all. I find this program to be a great one for its simplicity of use, and its frame properties gives you a decent amount of options, along with no diffusion of the output file. True you can find “Freeware” that will do some of the things this program does, but DUH it’s freeware for the day right?
Thanks WinWatermark and GAOTD for one more to my collection.And thanks Ela #5 for pointing out how to register.

Comment by PhilFebruary 29th, 2008 at 6:02 am

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+11)

In case you want a a free alternative for watermarking I have found the following.

http://www.picture-shark.com/watermark_freeware_image_protect_gallery_step2.htm
http://www.digitalimagetool.com/

Of course for other photo needs try http://www.irfanview.com/ or my favorite http://www.gimp.org/

Comment by PaulFebruary 29th, 2008 at 6:34 am

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+20)

The fabulous, incredible FREE Irfanview ( here ) does all this and more. Crop, batch rotate, one of the largest selection of image fonts supported, and the list goes on.

And it does watermarks. from a single pic, it is a simple as selecting where you want the watermark, pressing Ctrl-T, and putting in what you want, including most if not all EXIT and IPTC tags.

One government department purchased several licenses to Irfanview (which is free for home and non-commercial use, but not to commercial or government) to work on very large map TIF files, such is its power.

Sorry, but I’d have to see a review where another product blows away Irfanview before I’d consider switching. For that reason I’ll neither click thumbs up nor thumbs down.

Comment by Cornyfleur — February 29th, 2008 at 6:35 am

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+12)

What I’m not hearing from this package that I would find useful as a photographer is a digital watermark. Visual watermarks are either easily cropped, or so aggressively large that they ruin the aesthetics of the image. Text watermarks are easily edited away - some older programs don’t even save exif information! Digital watermarks embed a digital signature within the image. Harder to detect without a watermark reader, and not generally something your casual image thief is even going to bother trying to find and remove.

Comment by Tricky LaughterFebruary 29th, 2008 at 6:58 am

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+7)

As of Feb 27th, the web-based photoeditor Picnik goes free. This mean that all the features, including the one previously accessible only in premium (paying) mode are now free of charge. Picnik offers all the options this software proposes, at no cost. I find it more convenient to watermark my pics online.
http://blog.picnik.com/2008/02/picnik-evolves/

Comment by Sask — February 29th, 2008 at 7:12 am

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+9)

#12 (Julian), It’s like this… There are very few programs that have NO strings attached.

(1) When I find a site where every program is FREE…FREE…FREE and there is no sign of how they earn money to support themselves, I run away fast. These programs are invariably loaded with malware.

(2) Some sites give away free programs to attract users to their other offerings, which require payment.

(3) Then, there’s GOTD where contributors hope to gain income from sales of other programs and through the registration of updates.

It’s like watching movies on TV. Some will pay for premium cable channels to see them uncut. Others are happen to “pay” for them by watching them with embedded commercials.

When a GOTD offering has some appeal, the FIRST thing I do is scan through the comments for type (2) alternatives because I never know when I might get a new computer or, more important, want to pass a free copy along to a family member or friend without violating anyone’s copyright. So, it is important to me if others can tell me that a program adds no new functionality beyond type (2) offerings.

Comment by Jerry D — February 29th, 2008 at 7:31 am

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+11)

Nice program, but no registration code came with the ReadMe.txt file, or the activation either.
Don’t know if others have the same problem?
But indeed this program looks great.
Thanks GAOTD

Comment by Brenda — February 29th, 2008 at 7:33 am

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-7)

I just thought it a little odd that the program description starts off by saying that it is “a professional all in one image editing software” but then later says it is a “useful and simple photos processor“. I’m not complaining about the software, I just wonder if anyone saw the irony in the description stating that the program is an all-in-one image editing utility and yet simultaneously simple and then goes on to describe the few additional things it can do besides create watermarks?

Comment by Andrew — February 29th, 2008 at 7:47 am

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+1)

I cannot understand all the people that come here and winge and moan about these programs.
Do you not realise that no one is forcing you to download it or use it. If you do not need or like a particular program - simply do not download it.
This site is called Giveaway - not “download it or you will be shot”

Comment by Neil — February 29th, 2008 at 8:07 am

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-9)

The only time I ever have a need for watermarking my images is when uploading & posting them to my blog. Luckily I can do this with Windows Live Writer (freeware), as I am making my post by just clicking the image and setting the options. The copy of the image uploaded will be watermarked with my text on both the thumbnail in my post and the full size it is linked to, without altering the original on my hard drive in any way. I think I prefer this for convenience, ease, and preserving the original.

I’ll pass on this one today and stick with what I have.

Comment by appFebruary 29th, 2008 at 8:18 am

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+1)

i’ve found it useful.

But:
- Interface nice, but very very slow and unconvenient!
- program doesn’t save settings after restart. so i have to choose watermarking options every time i use it.

i’ll try to find more faster and free program.

Comment by Johnny — February 29th, 2008 at 8:35 am

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+3)

@22

I cannot understand you coming here and lecturing about these comments.
Do you not realise that this is a comments tab and not compliments ? If we like a particular program, compliments show up as comments; if another one is terrbily, critism will flood the comments tab.
This tab is called comments not “compliment or you will be shot”.

Comment by Louie — February 29th, 2008 at 8:42 am

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+1)

Hello all! Today’s 15-Minute Review is up! Check it out!

http://www.bladedthoth.com/reviews/15mrs/winwatermark-v2-2/

Comment by BladedThothFebruary 29th, 2008 at 8:42 am

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+13)

I don’t know why anyone would be foolish enough to buy this for 30.00 when one can do it for free with GIMP. I got a look at the program, and its not worth what they want for it.

Comment by xboxgamer — February 29th, 2008 at 8:49 am

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-2)

What a waste of time. If you don’t pay for the full version then this TRIAL version plasters WinWatermark on your photo thereby defeating the purpose of identifying the owner of the work.

Comment by Richard — February 29th, 2008 at 8:49 am

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-5)

@ # 10 J.D.
I agree with your first 4 points
but concerning #5
quoted :
-The default output folder is the original folder. However pictures are not saved with a new name and the only option is to overwrite the originals.
you should have another look at the tool :
http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg31/graylox/winwatermark/rename-destinationfolder1ab.jpg
#6 I don’t know, how good or bad your English is, but I know mine :(
#7 It is like it is, this is the version we get for FREEE today.
——————–
@ # 20 Brenda
Did you really read the readme.txt ???

Comment by graylox — February 29th, 2008 at 8:55 am

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-3)

For those of you that need the ability to add Watermarks to your images this program does the job. Very Simple interface, just try the options and you’ll see you can add multiple watermarks using images or text as your watermark. Opacity levels are easily set, positioning is also simple.

Open a folder or a single image, your choice. You can apply multiple watermarks per photo imported. You have a choice of where the images can be saved to, or you can overwrite the originals in the default directory they are pulled from.

I already have a watermark software package that does the very same thing so I have no need for it, however if you don’t have one and need to use one that’s effectively what it says, this is a good choice and the abilities to learn how to use it are minimal. I watermarked an entire folder in less than 5 minutes. Given I have done this before with similar software and interface, it was a quicker learn and process, but it really is useful and does what it says.

Comment by rc — February 29th, 2008 at 9:01 am

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+2)

#7 - Did you miss something? This IS free, today, so technically, it IS Freeware.

The program is simple, easy to work with, and for watermarking it’s a good little piece of software. It lacks a little on the frames as I have only been able to find one style that can be manipulated in size, but then, I only played with the program for ten minutes. It does a little more than the previous GOTD watermark program, uMark Professional. But it just depends on what you want, or need. I’m happy with uMark, and now will enjoy playing with WinWatermark. Thanks GOTD and the Watermark people.

Comment by gbbcFebruary 29th, 2008 at 9:11 am

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-1)

Who cares what Gimp can do? Until the day comes when GAOTD is actually asking for comments on Gimp then save them ’till that day. Meanwhile you are just clogging this page with your useless comments.

Comment by Michael — February 29th, 2008 at 9:11 am

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-17)

#17 - I’m also a photographer, and embed digital watermark on my pro photos. I use Digimark ID for that. Yet, even that can be easily removed using a program such as Thumbs Plus. Watermarking is nothing more than keeping honest people honest.

Comment by gbbcFebruary 29th, 2008 at 9:20 am

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+1)

As with any giveaway, there are those who say, “But such-and-such program does the same job even better!” I’ve already read several comments pointing users to GIMP or Irfanview.

Then there are those who comment, “Enough with the comparisons! Comment on TODAY’S giveaway, not on alternatives!” This message is for you, my friends– Let it go! One of my favorite aspects of the GAOTD site is that I can investigate not only the free software offered, but also comparable programs suggested by the site’s knowledgeable and helpful users.

Sometimes I opt for the giveaway of the day, sometimes one of the alternatives is exactly what I’m looking for, and truly DOES the job better! Stop trying to be the message board police. Let Bubby handle that job– he does it spectacularly. Sit back, relax, and let it go!

Comment by Joe — February 29th, 2008 at 9:35 am

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+7)

10. do one of the two things listed below
1) Save in a deferent name you type (save as), or
2) Make a copy of the the originals, Rename it, and use the copy with the program.
Number 2) sound better for you still have the originals. untouched and in a deferent folder from the copy.

Comment by Jhon — February 29th, 2008 at 9:43 am

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0)

Ashampoo gives away a full version of their picture editing software Photo Commander 4:
http://www.pcmag.co.uk/vnunet/downloads/2165824/ashampoo-photo-commander

As far as I can tell it does everything this program does, and a lot more.

Comment by Paul — February 29th, 2008 at 10:02 am

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+6)

Thank you GOTD and today’s contributor,

For today’s lovely giveaway. Download and test using one of my pet’s picture. I agree with #10 J.D for mentioning some of the ‘disadvantage’ for the limitation. These are other ‘Pro’ and ‘Cons’ I notice after only trying out for ‘2 minutes’.

Con:
1)No ‘drag and drop’ function
2)couldn’t resize the “window” so is a big ‘pain’ for big photo (as J.D mentioned)

3)no ‘undo’ function so have to cancel and go back ’step 1' if make ‘mistake’

Pro:
1) The ‘opacity’ is quite interesting to create ‘transparency’ effect (I try the ‘water drops Frame’ and create like a ‘raining’ effect)

2) The ’scroll bars’ for opacity and rotating make it flexible and easy to ‘display’ watermark for image and text (which ‘kind’ of accommodate the ‘lack of’ drag and drop function.

As my point of view (simple user), I find this software for the nice interface, quite useful and easy to use. But not for more advance user as the features are too limited. The ‘Frames’ are in bitmap format, if it ‘allow’ us to place in any bitmap image to ‘enrich’ the ‘variety’ then this will be a ‘plus’ for sure as some software ‘restrict’ this. I yet to ‘explore’ the further possibilities of this software . Since I only ‘play’ for a very short time. just hope to let others to have brief ideas about this software. As usual I really appreciate GOTD Team to provide us lovely softwares and games for us daily. Thank you for your hard work.

Have a great day everyone :)

Comment by Jul — February 29th, 2008 at 10:51 am

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0)

I question whoever ‘-’ed #34.

Half of what makes GAOTD so good is the availability of freeware alternatives that the users post in comments such as these. I’d never have heard of Threatfire, for example, if people didn’t suggest alternatives. No one’s saying the programs GAOTD offers are bad; they’re saying there are other alternatives that you might want to check out, and a lot of the time, the alternatives are better.

Comment by Trape — February 29th, 2008 at 11:01 am

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+1)

Thank you all who post links to alternative free software programs. I appreciate the chance to compare from the ones that people have already tried and can recommend. And thank you GAOTD for offering us the chance to download these programs and providing us a place to learn more about them from real users!

Comment by Nonie — February 29th, 2008 at 11:14 am

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+2)

I had hopes for this from the description. It’s about to be deleted.
A minor point is the means by which you add text to the watermark. Maybe it’s not that at all.
But primrily: any program that fixes its window at 640 x 480 - no resizing/maximising - goes straight to the rubbish bin.
Incredible that people are still writing programs like this. :-/

Comment by Ardwych — February 29th, 2008 at 11:37 am

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0)

I’ve installed the free giveaway today. Frankly, I quite like the easy and quick fix of adding frame on my photos. I know PhotoShop quite well but this software saves me time from creating the frame from scratch. The program size is small which means less chance of getting my PC to suddenly freeze when I am editing large image like with Photoshop.

Many people mention Irfan View and Gimp. Can anyone tell me if these also has the option for adding background frame? Thanks.

Comment by roadrunner — February 29th, 2008 at 11:42 am

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0)

Just a heads up…

If you copy the program folder to a USB Flash drive (AFTER you have registered the programme btw) it appears to work fine.

Thanks GAOTD!

Comment by DamianFebruary 29th, 2008 at 11:46 am

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0)

Just going by previous offerings: ImageBadger and MediaRiserPro are better offerings. If you don’t have one this is ok but not very configureable: the renaming process is very simplistic, like http://www.faststone.org and not like flash renamer which seems to be par of what these batch converters do. A 3 — for mediocre on the hit parade.

Comment by nickFebruary 29th, 2008 at 12:27 pm

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0)

I tried out several of the links posted here and then tried this giveaway. I have to say that I found WinWatermark very easy and intuitive to use and had immediate success. The other programs looked great, but I found it difficult to accomplish what I wanted - a simple watermark of text over the picture.

In order to save the file as a different picture, you simply have to click *to folder* instead of *original folder*. Then click on the little bubble next to it to select where you want the new picture to go.
One disadvantage (I think it was mentioned in the 15 minute review) is that you have to re-enter your text each batch. So I’ll post a sticky with my favorite settings to make it easier.

Oh - and don’t forget to register it by clicking on the ?. It would be a shame to let this little gem get away!

Comment by Nonie — February 29th, 2008 at 12:48 pm

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0)

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/winwatermark/#comments

When do leap-day babies celebrate their birthdays?

The Straight Dope: When do leap-day babies celebrate their birthdays?

Dear Cecil:

I have always wondered what people do who are born on leap day, February 29. Obviously they age each year, but do they celebrate it on the 28th or the 1st? And when their actual birth date does come around, do they have a really huge bash to make up for lost time? --Kristin, Los Angeles

Dear Kristin:

My assistant Little Ed explained this in his book Know It All, so you know it can't be that complicated. What you celebrate on your birthday isn't the annual arrival of your birth date; it's the fact that you're one year older. One year = one complete revolution by the earth around the sun = 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds.

To figure the right day to celebrate your birthday, you add 365 and one-quarter days to the hour of your birth. Suppose you were born February 29, 1972 at 10 PM. Then 365 and one-quarter days went by and behold, the first anniversary of your birth hour came on March 1, 1973, at about 4 AM.

The second and third anniversaries also fell on March 1, at 10 AM and 4 PM respectively. Comes year four (1976), and your anniversary is back where it started, February 29 at 10 PM.

Things would have worked out differently if you'd been born at 4 AM on leap day. Your first, second, and third birth-hour anniversaries would have occurred on February 28 at 10 AM, 4 PM, and 10 PM, respectively. If you'd been born at 4 PM, your first anniversary would fall on February 28 but your second and third on March 1. What happens for leap-day babies born at other hours is left as an exercise for the student.

The real problem isn't leap-day people, it's those smug non-leap-day babies who think all they've got to do to be in synch with the cosmos is celebrate their birthdays on the same date every year. Not a chance, Lance.

If you were born February 28, 1972, at 4 AM, you were supposed to celebrate all your non-leap-year birthdays on February 27. Did you? Of course not. Before you were out of diapers you were shaking down the 'rents for gifts under false pretenses. Considering how today's youth start out, it's no wonder so many come to no good.

But look on the bright side. The year 2000, thank Jah, will be a normal leap year. Years divisible by 100 usually aren't. (The rule is: year divisible by 100, no leap year unless also divisible by 400, in which case leap year. It's to keep the calendar lined up with the solar system. Trust Uncle Cecil.)

Were we to skip a leap year in 2000, the awful consequence would be that everybody in the world would celebrate his or her birthday on the wrong day. (At least in some years. If you must get technical, on average we'd be 66 percent more wrong than previously.) Talk about dodging a bullet.

In leap-day-less 1900 they weren't so lucky. Take my late grandmother, born in 1887. Commencing in 1900 she began celebrating her birthday a day before it actually occurred. For the next 81 years, in short, she was living a lie. She was a dour woman; now I know why:

--CECIL ADAMS

A Straight Dope Classic from Cecil's storehouse of human knowledge

http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a960209.html

Birthdays

A person born on February 29 may be called a "leapling" or "leaper"[10]. In common years they usually celebrate their birthdays on 28 February or 1 March.

For legal purposes, their legal birthdays depend on how different laws count time intervals. In Taiwan, for example, the legal birthday of a leapling is 28 February in common years, so a Taiwanese leapling born on February 29, 1980 would have legally reached 18 years old on February 28, 1998.

If a period fixed by weeks, months, and years does not commence from the beginning of a week, month, or year, it ends with the ending of the day which proceeds the day of the last week, month, or year which corresponds to that on which it began to commence.  But if there is no corresponding day in the last month, the period ends with the ending of the last day of the last month.[11]

In some situations, March 1 is used as the birthday in a non-leap year since it then is the day just after February 28.

There are many instances in children's literature where a person's claim to be only a quarter of their actual age turns out to be based on counting their leap-year birthdays. A similar device is used in the plot of Gilbert and Sullivan's 1879 comic opera The Pirates of Penzance: As a child, Frederic was apprenticed to a band of pirates until the the age of 21. Now, having passed his 21st year, he leaves the pirate band and falls in love. However, it turns out that the pirate indenture says that his apprenticeship does not end until his 21st birthday, and since he was born on February 29, that day will not arrive until he is in his eighties, and so he must leave his fiancée and return to the pirates. Of course, it all turns out happily in the end.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leap_year#Birthdays

Folk traditions

In the English speaking world, it is a tradition that women may propose marriage only on leap years. While it has been argued that the tradition was initiated by Saint Patrick or Brigid of Kildare in 5th century Ireland, it is dubious as the tradition has not been attested before the 19th century.[7] Supposedly, a 1288 law by Queen Margaret of Scotland (then age five and living in Norway), required that fines be levied if a marriage proposal was refused by the man; compensation ranged from a kiss to £1 to a silk gown, in order to soften the blow.[8] Because men felt that put them at too great a risk, the tradition was in some places tightened to restricting female proposals to the modern leap day, 29 February, or to the medieval leap day, 24 February. According to Felten: "A play from the turn of the 17th century, 'The Maydes Metamorphosis,' has it that 'this is leape year/women wear breeches.' A few hundred years later, breeches wouldn't do at all: Women looking to take advantage of their opportunity to pitch woo were expected to wear a scarlet petticoat -- fair warning, if you will."[9]

In Denmark, the tradition is that women may propose on leap day 24 February and that refusal must be compensated with 12 pairs of gloves.

In Greece, it is believed that getting married in a leap year is bad luck for the couple[citation needed]. Thus, mainly in the middle of the past century, couples avoided setting a marriage date in a leap year.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leap_year#Folk_traditions

Leap year babies hop through hoops of joy, pain of novelty birthday

BY CHRISTINA HALL • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • February 29, 2008

Raul Perera wanted his newborn, Lorelei, to be a leapling.

"I think it would be pretty neat. A pretty unique thing," the Warren resident said of having a child with a birth date that comes every four years.

But his wife, Tabitha, wasn't jumping for joy at the prospect of their daughter being born today, leap year day.

"For a little kid, not to have a birthday" every "year would be kind of devastating," she said.

Lorelei wasn't due until April, but was delivered Wednesday.

Though the chance of being born on leap year day is about 1 in 1,500, there are about 4 million leapers worldwide, including many in metro Detroit.

Being a leaper, as adults are called, brings with it the novelty of staying young because the person's birth date occurs once every four years. But it also brings some frustration -- from trouble registering for services online with computer programs that don't recognize Feb. 29 as a valid date, to getting arrested for having a driver's license where the birth date and expiration date don't match.

Raenell Dawn, cofounder of the Honor Society of Leap Year Day Babies, an online birthday club, is a leaper who is an activist and educator.

Dawn supports leaper birth certificates bearing the Feb. 29 date. She also supports driver's licenses having a Feb. 29 expiration date because that's the date on which they were born.

In Michigan, leapers' licenses expire March 1. Dawn, who turns 48 -- or 12 -- today, said she would like calendar companies to mark the extra day in the year on their products.

A special day to enjoy

Despite a few frustrations with their actual birth date, area leapers say they enjoy their quadrennial event.

"I will be 13," Cindy Gorecki of Davisburg said proudly when she was asked her age. But the preschool teacher has lived for 52 years.

Growing up, Gorecki said her mother picked the day that was most convenient for her to celebrate Gorecki's birthday during a non-leap year. Now, Gorecki makes her husband celebrate two days -- Feb. 28 and March 1.

"That's only fair," she said with a laugh.

And she's not the only one reveling in her youth.

Deirdre Thompson, born leap year 1944, is celebrating her Sweet 16 with a bash complete with dance and hula hoop contests and lots of decorative frogs.

As a child, she didn't fully comprehend why her birthday was not on the calendar. Now, the 64-year-old retired teacher from Detroit gets few presents Feb. 28, mostly from her husband. Even her mom sends her gifts late.

But when Feb. 29 rolls around, "I get cards from people I haven't heard from in years. ... I get a lot of phone calls."

Not everyone's top pick

Those who probably won't be getting a lot of calls today are doctors, nurses and midwives who deliver babies.

Obstetricians and gynecologists in metro Detroit said most parents-to-be who have some choice on the day their child will be born -- such as a scheduled cesarean section -- elect not to have the baby on leap year day.

But there are a few who jump at the chance.

"We have two patients who are doing everything in their heavenly, womanly power to deliver that day," said Dr. Mark Dykowski of Generations OB-GYN Centers in Birmingham.

One woman is pulling from folklore and a baker's dozen list of things to do or eat to go into labor. The lists include walking, eating spicy food and being on bumpy roads. Dykowski said he thought she was trying "any and all of those things."

He and other doctors said they would not do something medically unsafe to ensure a woman delivers on a specific date. But requests to strive for or avoid certain days do come.

Being a leaper has been fun for bus driver Randy Hendrix, 48, despite being teased as a child by classmates because he technically was younger than them.

Later in life, the Holly man and his three children always joked about how they were older than him.

Karen Tinkis, 60, of Clarkston wants others to join the Feb. 29 birthday club.

She was to be born March 1, but arrived a day early during a leap year.

"Everybody thinks you're special ... because it's something out of the ordinary," the retired business owner said.

Contact CHRISTINA HALL at 586-469-4683 or chall@freepress.com. Staff writer Georgea Kovanis contributed to this report.

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080229/NEWS05/802290352