FTP Server software for Windows

Over the course of several years, I have used numerous FTP Server applications, so I thought I would list them out here:

1. Serv-U FTP Server: http://www.serv-u.com/ftp-server
2. BulletProof FTP Server: http://www.bpftpserver.com/
3. WS_FTP Server: http://www.ipswitchft.com/ws-ftp-server
4. Globalscape EFT Server: https://www.globalscape.com/managed-file-transfer
5. FileZilla FTP Server: https://filezilla-project.org/download.php?type=server

Out of all of these FTP Server solutions, I definitely prefer Globalscape EFT Server for the greatest set of functionality including a very good API that can be used for automation.  Of course, Globalscape EFT Server is also one of the priciest solutions out there as well!

As a second choice, I choose WS_FTP Server, though, it lacks some of the ease-of-use features found in Globalscape EFT Server.

Lastly, of the solutions listed here, only FileZilla FTP Server is a free FTP software solution.

Convert M4A Audio Files to MP3 Format

Many smartphones will record in .m4a audio format, but usually .mp3 format is desired as a more universal audio format.

Therefore, if you want to convert from .m4a to .mp3, how do you accomplish that?

In many cases, you can use iTunes to convert .m4a files over to .mp3 files using the information found in this article: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204310

You simply have to add the .m4a file to your iTunes playlist and then right-click the file to "Create MP3 Version"

However, in some instances I have discovered that iTunes is unable to properly convert these .m4a files over to .mp3 format.  So what do you do in those cases?

Fortunately, there is a software application called MediaHuman Audio Converter which can accomplish that for you!

You can download MediaHuman Audio Converter from here: http://www.mediahuman.com/audio-converter/

You then simply drag and drop your .m4a file into the window and click on the "Convert" button to convert it over to .mp3 format!!

Playback FLV Video files

If you are looking for how to playback FLV Video files look no further than VLC Media Player!

http://www.videolan.org/vlc/index.html

Downloading and converting videos from YouTube and other video streaming sites

If you ever need to download and convert YouTube videos for offline viewing, there are a number of Firefox plug-ins to accomplish this!

Just search for YouTube on the Firefox add-ons site and you will immediately see a large number of results: https://addons.mozilla.org

Of course, if you are looking for some desktop software to accomplish the same thing, there are a large number of software vendors that provide this capability with varying degrees of functionality.

One such software application which I evaluated was WonderShare YouTube Downloader:

http://www.wondershare.com/pro/free-youtube-downloader.html

WonderShare actually has a FREE version as well as a PAID version called AllMyTube:

http://www.wondershare.com/pro/youtube-downloader.html

I went ahead and performed an evaluation of the AllMyTube version and I discovered that while it did a good job of downloading a large number of YouTube videos as well as converting them to MP4 for me, it could not convert a large number of the newer HTML5 format YouTube videos.  Therefore, it seemed largely restricted to the older-style Flash Videos available on YouTube.  While this certainly covers a large number of videos, it also makes a large number of YouTube videos unavailable for download for offline viewing as well.  This, therefore, makes it not much better than any of the available free Firefox plug-in downloaders (at least for YouTube videos).

However, for streaming sites such as CBS.com, AllMyTube did an excellent job of downloading the videos without all of the advertisements included normally in the video while streaming the video directly from the CBS.com site.  AllMyTube also has support for a large number of other streaming video sites as well which come in very handy if you view streaming videos from the list of other supported sites: http://www.wondershare.com/reference/youtube-downloader.html

Another software application I evaluated was WinX HD Video Converter Deluxe: http://www.winxdvd.com/hd-video-converter-deluxe/

However, as with AllMyTube, WinX HD Video Converter Deluxe was not able to handle HTML5 YouTube videos and therefore once again does not offer much benefit over the free Firefox plug-ins.

Finally, there is the option of YouTube Red: https://www.youtube.com/red

YouTube Red is a subscription-based service costing around $10/month and supposedly offers the ability to download any of its videos for offline viewing from your phone or tablet.  The videos will expire 30 days after they are downloaded, so you will not have a permanent copy for your viewing pleasure, but it may be sufficient for your needs. 

To read more about YouTube Red and if the service is right for you, you can check out this article: http://www.cnet.com/how-to/youtube-red-details/