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Vector ease

Vectorization sounds complex, but in fact it's the fairly simple process of converting raster images, which we'll call "pictures," into vector sets that can be used in CAD, GIS, CNC, and similar digital design, control, and automation environments. Simple, yes; but elaborate in methods and processes. That's where WinTopo Standard enters the picture. It's a free tool for extracting vectors from JPEG, GIF, PNG, and other images. It's essentially a pared-down version of a pro tool, but its results are more than good enough for millions of users, apparently.

WinTopo's interface resembles … Read more

Pic Shrinker

Uploading images is to Net newbies what parallel parking is to new drivers: it takes a lot of trial and error to get it right. And Megabyte-size snapshots hog Facebook bandwidth. Fileminimizer Pictures 3 from Balesio is a free tool that promises to help solve both issues. It resizes image files by up to 98 percent without zipping and without sacrificing quality. Its Facebook Uploader Module also makes it easy to post your pictures on Facebook.

Fileminimizer's interface is businesslike but attractive, with subtle but effective use of color and highlighting to differentiate the various icons and controls. Most … Read more

Total image viewer

Vallen Jpegger is a fast, free, efficient image viewing tool that is capable of displaying virtually any kind of image file (more than 40 file types) as well as music, sound, and other files. It supports lossless JPEG rotation, so you can orient your snapshots without losing any data or clarity. It has fully scalable print support, a command-line option, slideshow mode, and a screenshot tool. It runs in both 32-bit and 64-bit Windows versions, including Windows 7. It also offers a huge range of language options, with more added all the time. It's designed for quickly browsing and … Read more

Spotty performance

As its name would suggest, Konverter does indeed give users the ability to convert their files to a wide variety of different file formats, and it does so with ease. But its other included features didn't quite measure up.

The program's simple, self-explanatory main interface features drop-down menus lining the top of the window, as well as frequently used commands. We started by testing the Convert option. The program offers an impressive list of file format options, including PNG, PTIFF, SGI, and more. We selected a JPEG file and, using the Convert menu, opted to convert it to … Read more

Spiff for TIFFs

The Tagged Image File Format is a common graphics file extension in what was once called "desktop publishing." Creating and managing TIFFs usually calls for a powerful graphics editor such as those offered by Adobe, which owns the TIFF technology and other popular graphics technologies, including the Portable Document Format. However, such complex packages come with steep learning curves and breathtaking price tags. Fortunately, the need for simple tools to convert various file formats to and from PDFs is spawning a new class of PDF tools. One of them is PDFArea's TIF to PDF Converter, a standalone … Read more