If your computer lacks appropriate photo-editing software, never fear! We can recommend Ulead's "PhotoImpact 6" editing software for your PC (version 7 is now available, and it's probably as good or better). We're not saying that this software is the best or only software that is suitable to the task; however, it is inexpensive and it works.   Our Excursion to Staples We selected this software by driving to Staples (an office supplies store) and looking in their software section. We read the photo-editing software boxes until we found one that mentioned "image optimization for the web." Then we checked to make sure it was $50 or less. The Staples price was $49.95, which is actually low compared with the competition.

Then we purchased the software, drove home, installed it on our PC, and performed all the necessary editing tasks WITHOUT READING ANY INSTRUCTIONS. Wow. This means the software is easy to use. However, because we recognize that YOU may not be as adept with photo-editing software as we are, we decided to create this instruction page. If you follow the instructions here, you probably will be able to perform the required editing tasks without opening the software manual. Note: as of this writing, Version 5 (older) was available at www.CarbSoftware.com for only $13.95 (printed manual not included). We haven't tested it yet, but it probably has the important features. (As an aside, the PhotoImpact software has lots of other features that we don't mention. However, you may find them interesting to experiment with in your spare time... if you have any spare time.)

• under your "My Computer" icon (on your desktop), locate and open the CD-ROM drive
• double click "setup.exe".

When the installation is complete, a registration process will be initiated. To save time, don't bother registering.

Running the Program
To run the software program, double-click the "PhotoImpact" icon on your desktop. Then,

• Kill the registration window by checking "Don't Show Again" and clicking the "Register Later" button
• Close the 3 extraneous sub-windows that appear by clicking the little "x" in their upper right-hand corner. These sub-windows are titled "Fill Gallery," "Monochrome," and "Brush Panel."

Ignore (Simplify)
The home appears as shown to the right. You'll also notice a bunch of menus and icons. You can ignore most of these. Ignore all of the color blobs down the right side. Ignore all the icons on the left side except the little "box-arrow thingy" right above the "T". Along the top, ignore everything except the "File", "Edit", "Format", and "Effect" menus. Everything else you can ignore.

Crop
"Crop" the image to remove the extra stuff around the edges. In this photo there's foregound grass and "stuff" that really isn't needed.

Click the "box-arrow icon" right above the "T" to activate the area selection tool. Then, on the photo, click (down) and drag across the area you want to KEEP. Then release the mouse. The resulting "selection box" is shown to the right.

Now select PhotoImpact's "Edit" menu and then select and click "crop". Everything outside the selection box will immediately disappear.
 
Image Size
Here you can see the cropped image. In the title bar you can see the image size. The number in parenthesis (50%) is the "display" scaling. 100% would imply that the photo is being shown full-size. 50% implies that it is being shown smaller than actual; this reduction "fits" the photo within the PhotoImpact window. The actual photo size is shown as 995 pixels wide by 585 pixels high. Generally, 300 pixels is good width for use on your website. This means that we must reduce the image size.
 
To reduce the photo's size, select PhotoImpact's "Format" menu and then select and click "dimensions". The "dimensions" menu will then appear. The "Active Image" box shows the image's current size. The "New Image" box is used to resize the image.

• Be certain that "User Defined" is selected
• Be certain that the "Keep Aspect Ratio" box is checked
• From the "Unit" drop-down menu, select "pixels"
• In the width field enter 300
• Then click the "OK" button in the upper right.

• From PhotoImpact's "Effect" menu, highlight "blur and sharpen", and then select and click "sharpen"
• A "sharpen" window will appear. Five sharpening options are automatically presented within the window. Select the one in the upper left (least amount of sharpening)
• Click "OK"

• From PhotoImpact's "File" menu, select and click "Save As". The "Save As" menu will then appear.
• Select a location in "Save In"
• Enter a file name in "File Name". Use a file name that is distinctive. Preferrably, use only alphabetic characters and numbers in the file name (use NO "strange" punctuation characters like "+" or "%").
• In "Save As Type" select "JPG/JPEG/JPE.."
• Uncheck "Save To Album"
• Click the "Options" button

You can use the "Quality" field or the slider beside it to select a photo quality between 1 and 100. Low quality means smaller file size and quicker download (your customers will appreciate the speed); however, if the quality is too low, then the photo will be fuzzy. It is up to you to select a quality that balances these competing needs while keeping the file size below below 50,000 Bytes.

After you select the quality, click "OK". Then click "Save" in the "Save As" menu.

And that's all there is to it. You've just edited and sized, and saved your first photo using PhotoImpact.
 
Thumbnail
The next step is to save a thumbnail version of the photo. To do this, simply continue working with the photo that is currently open in PhotoImpact. The steps are similar to the preceeding steps.

• Size the photo to a width of 150 pixels (this width is recommended for thumbnails)
• Sharpen the photo as above.
• "Save As" the thumbnail using an appropriate quality; however, be aware that the tiny thumbnail is shown larger than actual, so it will look "funny" as shown here. Simply be aware that the photo will look fine at its actual small size. (Be certain to save the thumbnail to a DIFFERENT filename than the larger photo's filename. Otherwise you'll lose the larger photo.)