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other resources
We have put together some shortcuts which we hope you will find useful. Descriptions come from each site's "About" page, Facebook Overview or Wikipedia entry. Our own comments appear in blue type.
If you have a suggested listing or correction, please contact us. This is an ongoing effort that can greatly benefit from your contributions.
APPLICATIONS / SOFTWARE
Adobe Systems
adobe.com
Adobe is the global leader in digital marketing and digital media solutions. Our tools and services allow
our customers to create ground breaking digital content, deploy it across media and devices, measure and
optimize it over time, and achieve greater business success. We help our customers make, manage, measure,
and monetize their content across every channel and screen.
autodesk
autodesk.com
Autodesk, Inc. is an American multinational software corporation and is a pioneer in software - 3ds Max, Maya, AutoCAD, Revit, Smoke, Alias, Softimage - for use
in the architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing, media, and entertainment industries.
Blackmagicdesign
blackmagicdesign.com
DaVinci Resolve 11 combines the world's most advanced color corrector with professional multi track editing, so now you can edit, color correct, finish and deliver all
from one system! Davinci Resolve is completely scalable and resolution independent so it can be used on set, in a small studio or integrated into the largest Hollywood production
pipeline! Only DaVinci Resolve features the creative tools, compatibility, speed and legendary image quality you need to manage your entire workflow, which is why it is the number
one solution used on Hollywood feature films.
blender
blender.org
Blender is being made by hundreds of active volunteers from around the world; by studios and individual artists, professionals and hobbyists, scientists and students, VFX experts
and animators, game artists and modders, and so on. All of them are united by the desire to have access to a fully free/open source 3D creation pipeline.
e-on software
e-onsoftware.com
iVue xStream and Vue Infinite offer CG professionals the premiere solutions for creating exceptionally rich and realistic Digital Nature environments with seamless integration into any production workflow.
The Foundry
thefoundry.co.uk
Our software solutions - NUKE, MODO, MARI, HIERo, OCULA, KATANA, FLIX, COLORWAY - are anything but ordinary. The workflows they create serve multiple industries and generally make doing creative things a walk in the park.
We know that tools in VFX are also relevant to designers and vice versa. It's that understanding that helps us to develop flexible, open products that solve problems.
The portfolio is as creative as it is technical, packed full of groundbreaking award-winning techy goodness that will have even the most demanding organization or one-man-show salivating.
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LightWorks
lwks.com
Our mission is to give everybody access to the most affordable professional non-linear video editor available.
Offering the same tools that professionals around the world have been using every day for the last 20 years to edit feature films, dramas, news and sports. Lightworks gives you everything you need to make your next movie look great!
Maxon
maxon.net
MAXON Computer is a leading developer of 3D software for the creative industries, best known for Its flagship 3D
modeling, painting, rendering, and animation software, CINEMA 4D. Today, thousands of users across the world
rely on CINEMA 4D to create cutting-edge 3D motion graphics, architectural and product visualizations, video game graphics,
illustrations, and much more.
NewTek LightWave
lightwave3d.com
LightWave 3D is a complete end-to-end modeling, rendering and animation pipeline created by artists for artists.
The LightWave 3D Group, a division of NewTek, Inc., has created the perfect combination of power,
speed and value in LightWave, providing the ability to get your projects finished on time and on budget.
Pixologic
pixologic.com
Founded in 1997, Pixologic Incorporated develops and markets innovative software tools for the film and video, games, graphic design and illustration markets.
ZBrush is a graphic application aimed at simplifying the science behind generating computer graphics. ZBrush appeals to a wide audience by providing empowering
tools that give users intuitive and visual control over the digital images they create with a unique synthesis of 2D and 3D capabilities in a single stand-alone too.
Sony Creative Software
sonycreativesoftware.com
Sony Creative Software inspires artistic expression with its award-winning line of products for digital video,
audio, and music production, as well as industry-leading technology for DVD production and Blu-ray
Disc authoring. Sound Forge Pro, ACID Pro, and Vegas Pro software have defined digital content creation for a generation of creative professionals.
These signature product lines continue to advance media production by providing powerful, accessible tools.
SmithMicro
my.smithmicro.com/poser-3d-animation-software.html
Poser delivers powerful 3D character animation tools and ready to use content for graphics professionals, illustrators, animators and designers.
For 20 years Poser has been the preferred 3D character system for rendering static or animated digital content and now game development.
Planetside Software
planetside.co.uk
Planetside Software is a registered sole tradership in England, owned by Matthew P Fairclough. We are a team of three individuals from the UK,
New Zealand and the USA working together to produce Terragen, high quality software for professional landscape visualisation, visual effects and artistic expression.
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COMMUNITIES
/ NEWS
AE Tutes
ae.tutsplus.com
Aetuts+ is a site made to house and showcase some of the best After Effects tutorials around and publishes tutorials that
not only produce great effects, but explain them in a friendly, approachable manner.
Computer Graphics World
cgw.com/
For 36 years, Computer Graphics World has been covering innovation in computer graphics Technology across various industries. Film effects animators, game developers, graphic artists,
scientists, industrial designers, and others whose work covers the breadth of high-end visual computing turn to CGW to stay abreast of the latest developments in the computer graphics
industry and to discover opportunities for applying state-of-the-art computer graphics tools and techniques in their work, across all genres.
Creative Cow
creativecow.net
The guiding principle of discourse within Creative COW is maintaining a high signal-to-noise ratio: focusing discussion on
solving specific problems related to software, hardware, and other issues surrounding professional media production.
GreyscaleGorilla
greyscalegorilla.com/
Nick Campbell's Greyscalegorilla is an active community and resource for training and tools for creative types.
They want to make learning more accessible and effective by creating easy-to-follow tutorials and training that show you way more than just what buttons to push.
Pro Video Coalition
creativecow.net
ProVideo Coalition brings together the industry's best writers, bloggers and video gurus under one url.
Each writer maintains their own blog, with the site's content management system dynamically sharing articles, tutorials,
reviews, video clips and other media across the individual channels or sites. PVC has become the leading resource for video professionals,
including studios and independent filmmakers. This award-winning site provides comprehensive
information on both production and post-production in multi-distribution film, online, mobile, and broadcast environments.
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National Association of Broadcasters
nab.org/events/
The NAB Show® is the world's largest event covering filmed entertainment and the development,
management and delivery of content across all mediums. From creation to consumption, across multiple
platforms and countless nationalities, the NAB Show is the home to the solutions that transcend traditional
broadcasting and embrace content delivery to new screens in new ways.
SIGGRAPH(ACM SIGGRAPH)
siggraph.org
Since its beginning in 1974 as a small group of specialists in a previously unknown discipline, ACM SIGGRAPH has evolved to
become an international community of researchers, artists, developers, filmmakers, scientists, and business professionals
who share an interest in computer graphics and interactive techniques.
Red Giant
redgiant.com
Founded in 2002, Red Giant creates an ever-expanding universe of effects tools ranging from plug-in suites, applications
and mobile apps to Guru Presets, free products and sharing communities.
Red Shark
redsharknews.com
RedShark is a multiplatform online publication for anyone with an interest in moving image technology and craft. With over 50 contributors worldwide, full-time developers,
editorial, sales and marketing staff, it is the go-to site for informed opinion and know-how for the quickly changing video, film and content creation industries.
Studio Daily
studiodaily.com
StudioDaily is built on a foundation of video, rich media tutorials and daily news. Combining top content from anchor sites Film & Video and
Studio/monthly with daily news, blog posts and a link to a user-generated film festival community site, Studio's Film Fest,
StudioDaily keeps readers up-to-date on critical workflow developments, product releases and emerging projects.
Toolfarm
toolfarm.com
Toolfarm, based in San Francisco since 1999, is a leading reseller and distributor of video software
products and third-party plug-ins, with an emphasis on After Effects plug-ins, as well as 3D Animation plug-ins and software.
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PLUG-INS
/ SCRIPTS
Aescripts + Aeplugins
aescripts.com/learn/cat/tutorials/
aescripts + aeplugins is a repository and marketplace of high-end tools for many leading 2D and 3D software
packages such as Adobe After Effects and Maxon Cinema 4D. Scripts and plugins help enhance and
automate otherwise tedious functions and create results not possible any other way.
You will find scripts and plugins from the top authors from around the globe.
Boris FX
borisfx.com
Boris FX is a leading developer of VFX, compositing, titling, and workflow tools for broadcast, post-production, and film professionals.
The company's success lies in its ability to tightly integrate and leverage technologies through strong partnerships with industry-leading developers of video editing
software and hardware including Adobe, Apple, Avid, Corel, Grass Valley, Nexidia, and Sony.
Digieffects
digieffects.com
Founded in 1996, Digieffects is a developer of plug-ins for Adobe After Effects, Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro, and Motion. Our customers include many of the best-known brands in the media and entertainment industry.
We also service a variety of other markets, including corporations, government agencies, universities, non-profit organizations, and independent freelancers.
Envato videohive
videohive.net
Envato is an Australia-based, privately held company that specializes in the start-up, promotion and operation of multiple online marketplaces which facilitate the exchange of digital goods from thousands of
independent sellers and digital authors to both amateur and professional web-designers, creative agencies and operators of web properties. Videohive focuses on stock videos and After Effects templates.
FxFactory
fxfactory.com
Hundreds of visual effects for Final Cut Pro, Motion and Adobe After Effects.
GenArts
genarts.com
In 1996, Karl Sims and Gary Oberbrunner combined the power of computer science with the art of visual effects to create GenArts' Sapphire technology and a vast portfolio of visual effects.
Since then, the world's most talented visual effects artists have been using Sapphire to create the looks you see on television, in ads, online and at the movies.
Today, thanks to our commitment to delivery the highest quality software and customer support, GenArts is the leading provider of specialized visual effects software to the media and advertising industries worldwide.
GreyscaleGorilla
store.greyscalegorilla.com/
Grayscalegorilla develops tools to streamline your creative workflow and to help remove tedious and repetitive tasks so you can spend time making great work.
Insydium Ltd.
3.x-particles.com
X-Particles is a full-featured particle and VFX system for CINEMA 4D. Using a unique system of Questions and Actions you get full control
over your particle simulations without the need for Xpresso or Cinema 4D's native particle system.
Particles, fluids, and gaseous simulations all in one place.
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Motion Boutique
motionboutique.com
Motion Boutique is a two-person, Paris-based company focused on the motion graphics industry. Valentin is a motion designer and Charles is a developer.
They co-founded Motion Boutique in 2009, and created their first After Effects plug-in, Newton, in 2011. Newton is a 2D, layer-based physics simulator.
NewBlueFX
newbluefx.com
NewBlue, Inc. is more than a plugin maker. We enable video enthusiasts and professionals alike to
customize media and stand out in a crowd. Our goal is simple: To develop intuitive, easy to use tools that unleash your creativity.
Noise Industries
newbluefx.com
NewBlue, Inc. is more than a plugin maker. We enable video enthusiasts and professionals alike to
customize media and stand out in a crowd. Our goal is simple: To develop intuitive, easy to use tools that unleash your creativity.
Pixel Studios
pixelfilmstudios.com
Final Cut Pro X Plugins, Transitions & Effects
Paper.js
paperjs.org
Paper.js is an open source vector graphics scripting framework that runs on top of the HTML5 Canvas.
It offers a clean Scene Graph / Document Object Model and a lot of powerful functionality to create and work with vector graphics and bezier curves, all neatly wrapped up in a well designed, consistent and clean programming interface.
Paper.js is based on and largely compatible with Scriptographer, a scripting environment for Adobe Illustrator with an active community of scripters and more than 10 years of development.
Toolfarm
toolfarm.com
Toolfarm, based in San Francisco since 1999, is a leading reseller and distributor of video software
products and third-party plug-ins, with an emphasis on After Effects plug-ins, as well as 3D Animation plug-ins and software.
Trapcode
tradcode.com
Trapcode is a computer technology research and development company based in Stockholm, Sweden.
The focus is on creating groundbreaking and robust software for graphics and audio.
Trapcode was started in 2001 by Peder Norrby. It still today is basically a one-man operation and
this is made possible by partnering with publisher Red Giant Software.
Wondertouch
wondertouch.com/index_2.asp
particleIllusion is a sprite-based particle effects application designed to provide the most comprehensive and efficient particle effects creation workflow.
Utilizing hardware-accelerated rendering, it is now used worldwide by creative professionals working in film post-production and pre-visualization,
standard and HD video, commercial broadcast, motion graphics, and game content creation.
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STOCK FOOTAGE / PRODUCTION ELEMENTS
123rf
123rf.com
123RF is a royalty-free digital media library that offers a wide variety of budget-friendly commercial and editorial images, video footage, audio clips, logo designs and
illustrations. From its humble beginnings in 2005, 123RF now ranks as the leading global provider of content.
Artbeats
artbeats.com
Artbeats offers a unique variety of royalty-free stock footage, at a quality that you won't find anywhere else. Our library encompasses an extensive array of NTSC, PAL,
Hi-Definition, and RED Hi-Res clips. Our footage is royalty-free with unlimited use and licensed for broadcast worldwide, in perpetuity.
Dissolve
dissolve.com
Dissolve provides high-quality footage on a wide variety of topics for use in professional television and web-based advertising work, corporate promotions and
training videos, editorial and documentary settings, interactive web sites, video games and mobile applications. With a story-driven focus, we seek out the freshest and most compelling
footage from the explosion of talented filmmakers today. You'll find more than 225,000 clips on Dissolve, and we're just getting started.
Envato
envato.com
Envato is an ecosystem of sites to help you get creative. It includes Envato Market, the leading marketplace for images, themes, project files and creative assets. Envato Studio connects clients
with hand-picked freelance talent, and Tuts+ is home to thousands of tutorials and video courses. Our sites and services help millions of people around the world.
Getty
gettyimages.com
Getty Images, Inc. is an American stock photo agency, based in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is a supplier of stock images for business and consumers with an archive of 80 million still images.
iStock
istockphoto.com
iStock is an online, royalty free, international microstock photography provider operating with the micropayment business model.
Images cost between 1 and 150 credits, depending on size and image collection (with credits ranging from $0.95 to $1.50 USD
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Pond5
pond5.com
Pond5 is the world's most vibrant marketplace for creativity. Media makers find the content they need, and make money doing what they love. All content is sold through a single,
simple royalty-free license, which provides the right to use the content worldwide, in perpetuity, in any type of media.
Rampant Design Tools
rampantdesigntools.com
Rampant creates stock elements for artists and editors and offers the highest resolution video elements in the industry. We create easy to use stock content for artists and editors of all skill levels.
Shutterstock
shutterstock.com
Shutterstock Footage offers a growing library of royalty free stock footage, stock clips, and stock video for use in film, television, commercials, interactive web sites, and other multimedia productions.
Stock Footage Inc.
stockfootage.com
Stock Footage, Inc. has gained the reputation of being masters of 4k/5k, high-speed, Astro-timelapses, HDR-videography, and Motion-controlled slide shots.
Stock Footage, Inc. has spent years developing proprietary workflows and techniques that allow for the creation of imagery that is unique to the industry.
This team now maintains a unique stock archive of over 50,000 digital assets that are being carefully color-corrected and meticulously metatagged.
T3 Media (ThoughtEquity)
t3media.com/licensing
Premium Footage for Picky Pros. T3Media is the leader in content management, delivery and monetization services for media and entertainment companies with more than more
than 67,000 customers, 4 million+ clips & expert research support.
VideoBlocks
videoblocks.com
VideoBlocks was founded in 2009, with one mission: to provide premium creative content that we can all afford. We have since become the
largest distributor of stock video with over 23 million downloads and are excited to continue building VideoBlocks into a truly amazing company
that makes a positive impact on the lives of our customers and employees. Our goal is to become the first place that content creators go to when working on a creative project.
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THEORY
/ BRAIN FOOD
Color Depth (Wikipedia)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_depth
Color depth, also known as bit depth, is either the number of bits used to indicate the color of a single pixel, in a bitmapped image or video frame buffer, or the number of bits used for each color component of a single pixel.
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What Is A Colorist?
http://vimeo.com/78788547
A perennial question: ‘"What does a colorist actually do?" Maestro Warren Eagles posted a film to his Vimeo channel that explains everything.
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TRAINING / TUTORIALS
Aescripts + Aeplugins
aescripts.com/learn/cat/tutorials/
aescripts + aeplugins is a repository and marketplace of high-end tools for many leading 2D and 3D software
packages such as Adobe After Effects and Maxon Cinema 4D. Scripts and plugins help enhance and
automate otherwise tedious functions and create results not possible any other way.
You will find scripts and plugins from the top authors from around the globe.
AE Tutes
ae.tutsplus.com/
Aetuts+ is a site made to house and showcase some of the best After Effects tutorials around and not only publishes tutorials that
produce great effects, but explains them in a friendly, approachable manner.
All Bets Are Off
allbetsareoff.com/category/tutorials/
Aharon Rabinowitz is the Director of Communities for Red Giant, hosting Red Giant TV and working with the
artists in Red Giant's amazing community to help them create awesome.
ayato@web
ayatoweb.com/ae_tips_e.html
Name: Ayato Fujii. Birth date: 1974.01.10. Hometown: Tokoname-shi, Aichi, Japan.
Address: Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, Japan. Occupation: Designer.
C4D Training
c4dtraining.com/
C4DTraining offers the highest quality free Cinema 4D tutorials. Our goal is to always deliver informative and
entertaining tutorials to help you, the motion graphic designer, further your knowledge of Maxon's Cinema 4D.
Creative Bloq
creativebloq.com
Creative Bloq delivers a daily balance of creative tips and inspiration across web design, graphic design, 3D and more. Bringing the very best design work to our audience and
offering the insight that enables them to keep up to date with the latest trends and developments in global design and to create their best work.
Creative Cow
creativecow.com
The guiding principle of discourse within Creative COW is maintaining a high signal-to-noise ratio: focusing discussion on
solving specific problems related to software, hardware, and other issues surrounding professional media production.
Digital Tutors
digitaltutors.com/digital_tutors/
For over 14 years, we've been a dedicated team of artists, designers, professionals, and problem-solvers who are truly passionate about helping our members learn the skills they
need to create stunning work and pursue their creative careers.
Eran Stern
sternfx.com/tips_en.php/
Eran Stern is a recognized Adobe expert who regularly presents at worldwide media events, and trained editors and visual artists around the world.
Eran is the owner of sternfx.com and the author of video tutorials and training series for Lynda.com,
Adobe, Artbeats, Digital Juice, Video2Brain and Creative COW. He is a regular speaker at NAB Post|Production World.
and head of the Motion Graphics department at Shenkar College in Ramat Gan, Israel.
graymachine
graymachine.com
A widely recognized figure in motion design and motion graphics training, Harry Frank has authored a wide range of training titles
for the motion design community, including Complete Training for Trapcode Particular 1 & 2, After Effects Expressions 1 - 6 and more.
GreyscaleGorilla
greyscalegorilla.com/
Nick Campbell's Greyscalegorilla is an active community and resource for training and tools for creative types.
They want to make learning more accessible and effective by creating easy-to-follow tutorials and training that show you way more than just what buttons to push.
helloluxx
helloluxx.com/
Tim Clapham is the vision behind helloluxx, a project he has been nurturing for several years.
“It's all about the sharing of knowledge, inspiration and creativity.” he says. Often very animated in the studio, Tim has a reputation as a lover of fine art, great food and delicious ale.
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maltaannon.com
maltaannon.com/
Since 1997 Poland-based Jerzy Drozda Jr. (aka Maltaannon) has created graphics, software, flash applications, websites, videos and other things that involve creative thinking and approach.
His tutorials are meant to help other artists find their way around most commonly used applications, including Adobe After Effects, Adobe Audition (formerly Cool Edit Pro), Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere.
motioneers.net
motioneers.net/category/tutorials/
Cologne Germany-based Robert Leger is a Motion Designer working at Zitronella and is founder of c4dtools.net.
Co-Motioneer Rob Redman runs Pariah Studios in Wiltshire England, is also known as a 3D trainer and is the technical editor of 3D World magazine.
MotionScript
motionscript.com//
Dan Ebberts' MotionScript.com is a resource for folks that want to learn more about expressions and scripting in After Effects. He also
has experience with scripting for Photosh op, Illustrator, InDesign, and Flash and has worked for Adobe,
Showtime, CBS, NBA TV, MTV, The New Blank, Jugnoo, Ozone, Tendril, and Little Airplane.
motionworks
motionworks.com.au//category/tutorialsmain/
Based in Sydney Australia, John Dickinson is a cutting-edge motion graphics artist who is in demand.
As Senior Broadcast Designer at Foxtel (foxtel.tv), ambassador and presenter for Adobe Australia,
John delivers highly creative yet commercially relevant motion graphics solutions.
With Motionworks, John combines 15 years of industry experience with a proven teaching ability to
provide high quality learning resources that encourage and challenge participants to break
through to new levels of excellence and impact in their work.
Red Giant
redgiant.com
Founded in 2002, Red Giant creates an ever-expanding universe of effects tools ranging from plug-in suites, applications
and mobile apps to Guru Presets, free products and sharing communities.
School of Motion
schoolofmotion.com/
Joey Korenman teaches full-time at the Ringling College of Art & Design. He was recently a Creative Director at Toil in Boston, MA.
Before that he was a very busy freelance After Effects / Cinema 4D artist and before THAT he was an editor / animator at a post house.
School of Motion is his resource for content, tutorials, and feedback.
Stephen Schleicher
stephenschleicher.com/?cat=5
Stephen Schleicheris a regular contributor to Digital Producer, Creative Mac, Digital Webcast, Digital Animators,
and the DV Format websites, part of the Digital Media Online network of communities (www.digitalmedianet.com),
where he writes about the latest technologies, and gives tips and tricks on everything from Adobe After Effects, to Apple's Final Cut Pro, LightWave 3D, to shooting and lighting video.
Toolfarm
toolfarm.com/tutorials
Toolfarm's tutorials deliver helpful guides, break down professional techniques and share Toolfarm's secrets to creative video content.
Tuts+
http://tutsplus.com/
Tuts+ offers video courses and free written tutorials to help you learn skills in code, design & illustration, photography, video, music, web design, game development, craft, and more.
Take that photo. Build that app. Write that song. Draw that picture. Invest some time in learning new skills and then go create something wonderful!
Video Copilot
videocopilot.net
Video Copilot is a collaborative resource for training, design tools and artists. Our goal is to show you what is possible and how effects can be created so that you can apply these
techniques on your own creative adventures. We strive to develop distinctive and innovative tools that improve the quality and speed of your production while offering freedom and flexibility.
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UTILITIES
Paletton Color Theme Generator Tool
paletton.com
Experienced designers choose colors intuitively and many of them can smell which colors go together well and which don't.
For the rest of us, the Paletteon Color Scheme Designer application, available since 2002, generates color schemes of several types, including Monochromatic, Triad, Tetrad and Freestyle, based on one (base) color.
Bulk Rename Utility
bulkrenameutility.co.uk
Bulk Rename Utility is a free file renaming software for Windowand allows you to easily rename files and entire folders based upon extremely flexible criteria.
Add date/time stamps, replace numbers, insert text, convert case, add auto-numbers, process folders and sub-folders....plus a whole lot more! Self-contained
.exe file can travel wsith you on a USB drive. Be a hero wherever you go. We love this tool.
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GCD and LCM Calculator
http://www.mathportal.org/calculators/numbers-calculators/gcd-lcm-calculator.php
This calculator will find Greatest Common Divisor (GCD) and Least Common Multiple (LCM) of two or more numbers and displays all factors for the set of integers provided.
Extremely handy when trying to determine a grid spacing that will work with multiple dimensions.
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AREA 6 FAVORITES
PC Gone Bad
http://www.auntcalamity.com/rumpusroom_pcgonebad.htm
Exacting sweet, photorealistic revenge on that miscreant PC is as easy as clicking Anvil Drop, Cherry Bomb, C4 or Plasma Torpedo. Safe! Fun! Satisfying!
Red Shark
redsharknews.com
Editor David Shapton serves up an always-entertaining dose of news, education and critical thinking from the other side of the pond.
We've been known to go for a hit of Red Shark even before we get our first cuppa.
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Wolfram Mathworld
MathWorld
MathWorld is the web's most extensive mathematical resource, provided as a free service to the world's mathematics and internet communities as part of a commitment to education
and educational outreach by Wolfram Research, makers of Mathematica.
Wooden Books
woodenbooks.com
THE most beautiful, compact, hardback Liberal Arts books anywhere. Have something handy to wipe up the drool.
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