Tip Tuesday: Manipulating Graphics files for your blog

When working with graphics files on your blog, it is always smart to optimize their size for their targetted use. A simple corner picture does not need an original size of 8.1 mega pixels. On a windows machine, MS Paint can handle that sort of transformations, with a little pain and bloodshed. I’ve also written and posted here a console app to do the dynamic resizing. Gimp is awesome, but it is over kill.

I strongly encourage Windows users to check out Infranview. You might look at the site and say “Oh it is just a viewer”, but it is soooooo much more than that. Though it is the one of the best picture viewers out there, it also handles basic graphic manipulation better than most other software out there, even the pro stuff.

File resizing is very simple. However following their “It is trying to be simple for beginners and powerful for professionals.” goal, it allows you to, in the advanced menu, choose from various resampling methods in case the image just looks wrong when you resize it. Most programs use the 1 method the programmer preferred and you are stuck with it.

You can get it here:
http://www.irfanview.com/

and once you load the plugins from here:
http://www.irfanview.com/plugins.htm

(I prefer this mirror for downloads.)

You’ve got a powerful graphics manipulation tool that can even accept any photo shop 8bf plugins that you have lying around.

(BTW xnview is a infranview knock off, but it does have pocketPC and Smartphone support and works nicely as a viewer on those platforms)