#check printing software

[anushnaganesh]

Print Payroll Checks the Easy Way: Save Time, Money, and Stress

Payroll is one of those tasks that every business owner knows can get complicated fast. Getting your employees paid on time is critical. But did you know that nearly 65% of workers live paycheck to paycheck? That means even a small payroll delay or error can cause serious problems—not just for your team, but for your business reputation too.

If you’re still ordering preprinted payroll checks in bulk or relying on manual processes, you’re probably paying too much and dealing with avoidable hassles. The good news? Modern solutions like Zil Money let you print payroll checks on blank stock paper whenever you want, wherever you want. This can cut costs, speed up payroll, and give you peace of mind.

Payroll Problems That Cost Time and Money

Traditional payroll check printing comes with hidden headaches. You order checks months in advance, pay for shipping and storage, and face delays if you suddenly need extra checks. Mistakes in manual payroll entry can cause reprints, missing payments, or worse — unhappy employees.

Payroll errors aren’t just annoying — they’re expensive. According to recent studies, 54% of Americans have experienced pay problems, and 72% would struggle financially if their paycheck was delayed by just a week. That’s why businesses need a reliable, flexible way to handle payroll.

Print Payroll Checks Anytime, Anywhere, and Save Big

Zil Money helps you print payroll checks instantly using blank check stock paper. This means no waiting for shipments or buying checks you may never use. Just buy blank check stock locally, print payroll checks with your office printer, and save up to 80% compared to traditional check printing.

This method gives you flexibility. If you hire new staff mid-cycle or need to make a last-minute payment, you can print checks right away. It’s especially useful for businesses with fluctuating payroll needs.

Custom Checks That Represent Your Brand

Payroll checks are more than just payment—they’re part of your company’s image. Zil Money allows you to customize your payroll checks with your business logo, colors, and fonts. This professional branding helps build trust and shows employees you care about quality.

Secure and Integrated Payroll Processing

One of the biggest risks in payroll is errors. Manually typing employee details or exporting payroll data from one system to another causes errors and delays.

Zil Money seamlessly integrates with well-known payroll and accounting programs, allowing you to directly import employee pay data. This eliminates mistakes, enhancing accuracy and compliance.

Plus, the cloud-based platform uses industry-leading security to keep your payroll data safe. Features like instant check cancellation and automated positive pay reduce fraud risk and give you confidence.

Instant or Mailed – You Decide!

Zil Money makes it easy to handle payroll checks your way. You can quickly send out printable eChecks via email, and employees will get an SMS alert as soon as their payment is ready. If you or your team prefer traditional paper checks, the platform also offers secure mailing options through trusted carriers like USPS or FedEx. This way, your checks arrive safely and on time, all without you having to leave your desk. This way, you decide how payroll checks reach your team—fast, secure, and hassle-free.

Why More Businesses Are Switching to the Cloud-based Platform?

Cut payroll check printing costs by up to 80%

Print checks on demand, eliminating waste

Customize checks easily to reflect your brand

Print from anywhere with any standard printer

Mail or email payroll checks with built-in notifications

Integrate payroll data from popular software to reduce errors

Protect your business with secure, encrypted payroll processing

Printing Payroll Checks Made Simple and Affordable

Knowing how to print payroll checks efficiently is essential for small business owners looking to save money and avoid payroll headaches. Traditional bulk check ordering is costly and slow.

With Zil Money, you can print payroll checks instantly on blank paper, customize them to look professional, and connect directly with your payroll software. This saves you money and also helps keep your employees happy by making sure they get their pay on time and it’s accurate.

If you want to simplify your payroll process, save money, and eliminate the stress of check printing, it’s time to explore how Zil Money can help you print payroll checks smarter and faster.

[seyedblogs]

Digital Check Templates: A Time-Saving Tool for Small Businesses

The saying ‘time is money’ should be taken seriously by every small business enterprise. In the digital age, companies must identify methods to make their operations cost-effective and systematic. With the arrival of online check printing platforms, organizations have a great tool at their disposal to improve financial operations. Check designing and printing are simplified with these platforms and this gives firms a lot of flexibility. But, before buying check printing software, companies must ensure that they have free check templates as it is a very important feature. Let us take a look at why having pre-designed digital check templates is good for a small business. 

Efficiency: Having access to different check templates makes your check printing operations easier. You don’t have to spend time designing the checks or hire a professional graphic designer to meet your designing requirements. You can choose a template that is suitable for your business needs and fill out the information. Having check templates will allow you to save a lot of time and if the service is available for free, you are saving money too. 

Professional Look: Sometimes banks don’t accept checks that look plain and it is very important to ensure that they look a certain way. With check templates, you can ensure that the appearance of your checks is professional with specific layouts and branding elements. When you are handing out checks to clients or your employees, the way they look will certainly improve the reputation of your business. 

Better Branding: Checks can be used as a great marketing and branding tool and that is exactly why you should make sure that it looks fantastic. Check templates will give you multiple options on how to design your checks and some check printing software also offers customization options that users can take advantage of. You can add your company logo or images to a specific check template to make it more special. The branding features have to be consistent to improve brand recognition and using digital check templates will make this easier. 

Adaptability: The business landscape is highly unstable and at times firms will have to change their branding or image within a very short period of time. The way you do business with a professional organization might be different from the way you handle non-profits. So check designs might need to be changed depending on the situation. If you have different check templates in stock, the whole process of creating a makeover becomes simpler and easier. 

Scalability: As a business organization grows, their check printing needs will also change. Printing 50 checks a month is totally different from printing 500 checks. So, firms should always choose  a check printing platform that offers scalable solutions. Free check templates is certainly a feature that will allow you to meet different check printing needs. 

Having access to free check templates is a necessity  for small businesses these days. It allows them to save money and makes their check printing operations more efficient and adaptable. So when choosing a check printing software, make sure that it offers free check templates that can be easily customized. 

[websitemarketing2025]

Check Printing Software Free

[printsaddressonline]

Address Verification Solutions

A successful logistics, ecommerce or research business requires accurate and valid address information. Manual checks are time-consuming and prone to errors, so leveraging an automated solution is highly recommended. Address verification software helps capture, maintain and validate customer addresses to prevent failed product deliveries, improve marketing communications, and increase sales strategies.

Address verification services validate that a given address is shippable, matches records in authoritative data sources, and is formatted correctly for use on a map. These tools also help identify duplicate addresses and flag suspicious behavior for fraud prevention purposes. They can also reduce data entry costs by suggesting correct addresses as users type to cut down on keystrokes and errors.

The best address verification solutions offer real-time validation and geocoding technology that automatically identifies the most relevant address options as users enter their information, while keeping their personal data private. These features can significantly lower the risk of false positives. Some address verification tools also incorporate predictive typing ahead, using device fingerprints and other location data to predict what the end user is trying to type and offer helpful suggestions.

Other key feature to look out for is the ability to process large volumes of addresses at once. This saves on data entry and storage costs, and speeds up the process of identifying bad actors or validating good customers. Some tools offer utility data lookups that compare a user's address against records from their power company, phone provider or other utility providers, eliminating the need for high-friction document verification processes like uploading and scanning documents. Others offer an integrated API that allows businesses to verify addresses directly from their own application.

SITES WE SUPPORT

Print Address Online – Blogger

[the960writers]

printers can sense your fear

Why are modern printers like this? I'm trying to print a hard copy of the story I'm working on and the printer is making me complete the damn 12 labors of Hercules to prove myself worthy of my hard copy

[reality-detective]

BREAKING: Voters in Tarrant County, Texas are reporting that the voting machines are flipping their votes from Trump to Kamala Harris

The voters are urging everyone else to check their printed ballots before submitting them.

"Reports were that people who selected Trump on the screen were seeing Harris on the printed ballot." - This is according to Tarrant GOP Chair

This stuff boils my blood. Why does Tarrant County utilize such an obviously vulnerable system? This also shows that it's not just Dominion machines that are corrupt. ALL voting machines are intrinsically evil. We need to go back to voting in person on election day, with human hands as the counting method. So far, we have seen reports of flips like this happening in Tennesee, Georgia, and now Texas. This sets a precedent for us to demand the publicizing of all the machine data and the proprietary software.

It's a good thing we're catching it before the election and NOT after. 🤔

[what-even-is-thiss]

Free or Cheap German Learning Resources for all your Hochdeutsch Needs

I will update this list as I learn of any more useful ones. If you want general language learning resources check out this other post. This list is German specific. Find lists for other specific languages here.

For the purposes of this list "free" means something that is either totally free or has a useful free tier. "Cheap" is a subscription under $10USD a month, a software license or lifetime membership purchase under $100USD, or a book under $30USD. If you want to suggest something to add to this list, include things in this price range that are of good quality and not AI generated.

WEBSITES

DW - A public broadcasting service from Germany that also has a German learning section. They have videos, tv series, and lessons from beginner to advanced. The website is free to use with an account.

Gothe Institut - An organization affiliated with the German government that administers language level tests and promotes German culture abroad. They have a lot of free exercises and test questions. If you're willing to pay they may also have classes available in your region.

thegermanproject.com - A free website with explanations of beginner German concepts and stories to read for people at the beginner level.

germancorrector.com - A free website that will correct your spelling and grammar. You can also set the dialect to Switzerland or Austria.

Your Daily German - A blog in English by a native German speaker named Emanuel who makes posts about grammar, vocabulary, tips, and suggestions for reading.

YOUTUBE CHANNELS

Comprehensible Germani - A comprehensible input channel with German lessons in German using visual aids. Has content from beginner through upper intermediate.

Learn German - A channel that explains certain concepts and provides listening practice. The channel uses a mix of German and English.

Chill German - A channel that makes vlogs in slow German. They have videos from beginner to lower advanced levels.

Natürlich German - A comprehensible input channel that talks about different aspects of German culture and other topics as well. Has videos for complete beginner to lower advanced. This channel hasn't updated in a while but there's a large archive to watch through.

Easy German - A channel that has a combination of videos about basic German phrases for beginners and videos with interviews on the street in German speaking regions. The channel has dual language German/English subtitles on screen. The hosts of this channel also have a podcast for intermediate to advanced learners.

Expertly German - A channel about learning German with discussion of grammar, vocab, and business German. The channel is entirely in German.

Deutsch Mit Lari - A channel with a mix of German Lessons and vlogs in slow German. Content ranges from beginner to intermediate. All content and explanations are in German.

Learn German With Anja - A channel with a mix of lessons and videos on culture and living in Germany. Videos are in a mix of both English and German and often have dual language subtitles on screen.

READING PRACTICE

German graded readers by Olly Richards Short Stories in German, Intermediate Short Stories in German, Conversations in Simple German, Western Philosophy in Simple German, World War 2 in Simple German. Books tend to range from $4-$20 depending if you buy the digital or print versions. The books can also generally be found easily at used book stores or used on Amazon for cheaper.

Dino Lernt Deutsch - A series of short stories for beginners about a man named Dino lost in various German speaking countries. The full series new in print costs about $25 but it can be bought used or as a digital edition. Each individual story can also be bought separately

Nachrichtenleight - A website with news articles in simple German. The website is entirely in German.

AlumniPortal - Website with articles about business, academics, and other related topics organized by difficulty level. Has articles from upper beginner to upper intermediate. The website is entirely in German.

Grimm Stories - A website with an archive of the original Grimm's fairy tales. Language may be a bit archaic. The website is available in multiple languages.

PODCASTS

Slow German Podcast - Advertises itself as being for beginner to lower intermediate. The host talks about everyday topics such as seasonal weather and describing your apartment.

Easy German Podcast - The hosts from the Easy German Youtube channel talk about different topics, news, and answer questions from listeners in clear and understandable German.

News in Slow German - It is a podcast with news in slow German, including international news and culture news. Only a small section of the program is available for free.

Top-Thema Mit Vokalbeln - A podcast from DW for lower intermediate learners that discusses news topics in simple German and provides vocabulary lists related to the episode topic.

German Stories - A podcast for beginners in a mix of English and German that gives lessons through dialogues and short stories.

Speaking of Berlin - A podcast by Babbel of Berliners telling personal stories in slow German.

SELF STUDY TEXTBOOKS AND DICTIONARIES

Complete German All-in-One from McGraw Hill - a textbook that also doubles as a workbook. It’s more expensive at about $30. It’s difficult to find intact used copies of this book because it’s also a workbook and people tend to write all over it and tear it up. However the sentence builder and grammar sections are sold separately for much cheaper if you just want one or the other.

German Made Easy - Individual books in this series tend to be about $10-$20. From what I’ve read it’s just fine but it’s cheap and has all the beginner concepts you need and used copies are fairly easy to find online.

Easy German Step By Step - This is McGraw Hill’s budget option at $12-$16 new. Though as this one isn’t a workbook, it’s easier to find used copies. It focuses hard on only the most frequently used vocabulary and grammar concepts to get someone started as quickly as possible. It’s also available in audiobook form.

German Grammar Complete - This book is a full comprehensive guide to all levels of grammar from absolute beginner to college level. However it’s on the more expensive side at $30 and the workbook is sold separately.

DK German to English illustrated dictionary - This dictionary is sorted by topic and includes pictures and English translations. This is a new edition and is slightly harder to find used as I’m writing this. The base price is about $20 but there are older editions of this dictionary that might be easier to find used.

Merriam-Webster’s German to English Dictionary - The OG. The legend. The menace. The classic bilingual dictionary. Simple. Many words. Decent explainations. Only $8 new. Easy to find used older editions.

SERIES FOR LEARNERS AND KIDS TV

Hallo Aus Berlin - A series infamous among German students everywhere. Made in the early 2000s for use in classrooms, it has ten episodes of kids talking about certain topics like numbers and going out to a restaurant. It also has a number of songs. It’s cringey but in a fun way in my opinion.

Löwenzahn - a kids tv series aimed at very young audiences that’s been on for several decades. Every episode discusses one topic like bridges or factories so you’ll hear certain words repeated a lot. Theres only been a couple of different hosts so the presentation style remains consistent and unlike some other shows for kindergarteners it’s not obnoxiously loud and can be enjoyable for adults.

Sesamstraße - Sesame Street in German and localized for the German market with different themes and characters. In their YouTube channel you can find clips from as far back as the 1970s.

[languid-bones]

Murderbot 3D Print Part 3 - FILES!!!

It's what many of you have been waiting for! THE 3D FILES!

The price??? It's free!

That's a lie, the price is actually that you send me pictures of the results so I can have the joy of seeing what you all make. (I mean it, this is a threat)

Based on comments so far, it seems like this will be the first dive into 3D printing and figure painting for some people so I'll go through some of my approach to give you an idea of how I got to this result.

This is actually my first time sculpting, printing and then painting something to completion, so I am not experienced and you can totally do it too. As you may see from my blog I am primarily a digital artist and I occasionally do gouache and ink work, I have literally never painted or sculpted a figure before. (This counts as foreshadowing if you run into any problems with my files lmao)

Sculpting:

I sculpted the model in Nomad Sculpt on my Ipad and tidied things up in blender. I am still a massive beginner with sculpting so I incorporated pieces from some other freely available models to assist me (these are credited in the listing with the model). You don't have to worry about this part!

Printing:

I printed this on my MARS ELEGOO 2 printer. The settings I used for my print are included on the model listing; with these settings the model took about 7.5 hours to print.

The Files

I have uploaded 3 different file formats, a .stl, a .chitubox and a .ctb. An stl is the basic 3D model on its own, it can be opened in most 3D software if you are looking to edit it and it can be imported into any slicing software (slicing is the process of cutting any model into layers for the printer). If you use this file you will have to add the supports to the model yourself (supports are very important in preventing catastrophic print failure).

The .chitubox and .ctb files are specifically from the slicing program I use which is chitubox. The .chitubox program is for the model with the supports for printing attached and the .ctb file is the sliced file that is ready for the printer. VERY IMPORTANT TO NOTE is that these two files are sized and prepared based on my 3D printer dimensions. If you want to use these files, I recommend checking either files in chitubox (and have it set up for the model printer you will be using) and checking the size before going ahead with printing. If the size is too big for your printer you will have to resize the model and add the supports again but you can use the files I have supplied as reference.

I specifically used Chitubox 64 for this as Chitubox basic hates me and won't slice the model so it is solid inside. Printing something solid is easier to print than printing it hollow and trying to cure the resin trapped inside/drain the model (uncured resin is nasty nasty and will also generate gas that builds up pressure and will crack your print).

I recommend using either the basic stl for printing or starting with the .chitubox file and setting up the slicing settings by yourself. The ctb is a good reference for how things should look but probably not the best starting point to guarantee a successful print. If you add supports yourself, I recommend looking up some youtube videos on how to properly support a model, and what parts of a model need the most support and avoiding visible marks on your models from supports.

Post-Printing

Its important to clean and cure your print properly after its done, but if you are getting it done at the library or somewhere else you may not have to worry about this.

To remove the supports I used a heat gun to warm and soften the resin supports and little clippers my friends use for gundam to cut them as flush to the model as possible.

The next thing you want to do is sanding, sand down the marks from the supports, any lines or imperfections from the printing. Resin is relatively soft so this is not hard. I personally bought some cheap sandpaper that went from 400-1000 grit, glued it to icecream sticks, disposable knives and some flat toothpick things and used that to get into small crevices. Sand with wet paper to prevent resin dust going everywhere.

Painting

After sanding I sprayed the model with a primer, I specifically used Mr. Finishing Surfacer 1500 in white. This was my choice simply because its what my local gundam store had and I chose white because I didn't want to use a darker base coat that I had to lighten for the armor (simply put most of the model is white and white is a pain in the ass to paint opaquely)

After this I went in with my standard run-of-the-mill acrylic paints. The key to getting a smooth finish with no brush marks and lumps is to thin/smooth out the paint a little with water and build up the colour in layers.

I painted my base colours (white for the armor, black for the shoes and visor and a dark grey for the suit underneath the armor). To get a cool beaten-up effect I laid some light blue into areas on the armor where shadows would fall, after that I dabbed panel line accent colour which gets into the crevices and lines of the print and accents them (you can also just use really watered down black paint for this, I was lucky to borrow supplies from a warhammer 40k friend). I also covered parts of the armor with it and rubbed it off for a grimy effect and then dabbed some brown paint in for extra colour variation. I then came in and dry-brushed some lighter colours on the dark areas and fixed up the white where I wanted it brighter.

Then finally I coated the whole thing in a matte varnish to protect it and it was done!! My own Murderbot completed!!

Hopefully if you haven't done something like this before, this helps you get started There are dozens and dozens of great tutorials out there for more info or if you want to take your design in a different direction to mine.

Most importantly?? Have fun!!

If you have any issues or questions feel free to message me and we can work on it together!

[meanstepdad]

it's finally here! in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the sims series, i present my big, dumb labor of love.

"i really love the sims" is a 64-page love letter to the sims franchise, spanning all 4 mainline titles as well as a collection of my favorite sims spin-off games.

topics covered in the zine include:

the wild history of developing the sims 1 and how a rumored unscripted lesbian kiss saved the game from obscurity

the importance of a free and accessible modding scene for sims games and the necessity of archiving old sims content

how the sims games have always served as a tool for exploring gender and sexuality

a measured response to the sims 4

a celebration of my favorite sims handheld and console games

a bibliography with further reading, listening, and viewing recommendations

and much more!

the digital version of this zine is free/pwyw! part of what makes the sims series so special is the massive amount of work made available for free by passionate modders and custom content creators. from new hairstyles and clothing to entire gameplay expansions and custom software, their generosity has been foundational in fostering the creative community that surrounds these games and it's what has inspired me to release the full zine online for free. i spent dozens of hours writing, editing, and designing this zine, but it's nothing compared to the thousands of hours i've spent downloading custom content for the sims.

physical copies of the zine are also available for purchase! they've been gorgeously printed in black-and-white by a local printer and make a lovely, tangible token of affection for the series. the physical version of the zine is $10 and ships to anywhere in the united states (because i don't know how to ship/price for outside the US and i'm scared)

you can download the digital version here

or buy a physical copy here

and check out my other zines here

thank you so much for all your support and thank you to the amazing sims community online. the games wouldn't be the same without all your love and support ❤️

[anushnaganesh]

Side Hustle? Full-Time Biz? eChecks Keep Your Payments Professional

When you're juggling a small business or side hustle—whether it’s graphic design gigs, handmade candles, online tutoring, or reselling vintage clothes—there's one thing that separates you from the amateurs: how you handle money.

Sure, your product or service matters. But how you get paid (and pay others) says just as much about your professionalism.

Enter the eCheck.

You don’t need a massive operation to look legit. You just need smart tools—and OnlineCheckWriter.com – Powered by Zil Money delivers exactly that. With eChecks, you can ditch the awkward payment requests, stop writing paper checks, and send payments that look like they came from a Fortune 500 company.

Why eChecks Work for Modern Hustlers

Let’s face it—if you’re running a one-person shop, you wear a lot of hats. You're the CEO, the accountant, the customer service rep, and probably the delivery driver too.

The last thing you need is to be stuck ordering preprinted checks, running to the post office, or figuring out how to reimburse your supplier who doesn’t accept card payments.

That’s why eChecks are perfect.

They’re fast. Send payments or invoices in minutes.

They’re polished. Branded checks = professional image.

They’re easy. No special equipment, no technical hassle.

With OnlineCheckWriter.com – Powered by Zil Money, all you need is a phone or laptop. You log in, create the check, enter your payee’s email, and hit send. That’s it.

The Struggle Is Real: Old-School Payments Slow You Down

Picture this:

You finally made a sale—your biggest Etsy order yet. The customer is happy. You need to pay the supplier who helped you fulfill the order. But they only take checks.

You have two options:

Pull out the old checkbook, hope you have stamps, and cross your fingers it arrives on time.

Try to convince them to accept a different form of payment.

Both sound like a headache.

Now imagine just sending an eCheck straight to their inbox. No paper. No drama. That’s the reality with OnlineCheckWriter.com – Powered by Zil Money.

Show Up Like a Pro (Even if You’re Just Starting Out)

When you’re just starting or running a lean side business, how you look can make or break trust.

You may not have an office. Or a team. Or fancy systems.

But when you send a professionally designed eCheck with your business name, logo, and a clean layout—people take notice.

Using OnlineCheckWriter.com – Powered by Zil Money, you can:

Add your business name and logo to every check.

Pick from professional templates or design your own.

Include notes, memos, or attachments with each payment.

Track when the recipient views or prints the check.

It's like giving your small business a designer suit. And it doesn’t cost a fortune.

Need to Pay or Get Paid? eChecks Cover Both

Not only can you send eChecks to vendors, freelancers, or partners—you can also receive them from clients and customers.

Send your eCheck to a customer and they can print and mail it.

Or, link your business bank account and deposit it directly online.

And the best part? You don’t need any special software or hardware. No checkbook. No fancy printer. No separate payment portal.

It’s all right there in one clean dashboard.

Bonus Perks from the Cloud-based Platform

When you use the platform, you’re not just getting eChecks. You’re unlocking a full financial toolkit.

🟢 Print checks on blank paper if needed (no pre-ordering).

🟢 Mail checks for $1.25—printing, postage, handling included.

🟢 Pay by ACH, wire, or credit card, even if your vendor doesn’t accept cards.

🟢 Import bills and invoices from accounting software.

🟢 Access on mobile, tablet, or laptop. Anywhere, anytime.

Whether you're side hustling after hours or building a full-time empire, you stay in control.

eChecks in a World That’s Going Digital

Let’s talk numbers for a second.

In 2024, paper check usage dropped 7.4% year-over-year. The total value of check transactions fell 8.1%. People are done with waiting, stressing, and mailing. Digital payments are now the norm.

But not everyone wants to jump to random payment apps or complicated banking setups. That’s where eChecks win—they offer a familiar format with all the modern benefits.

You still control the transaction. But it's faster, cheaper, and 10x more professional.

eCheck = Side Hustle Confidence

Your hustle might be small for now. But that doesn’t mean you can’t look and operate like a pro.

An eCheck is one of the easiest ways to send polished payments, impress your network, and avoid payment chaos—without breaking the bank.

So whether you're designing websites, selling handmade soap, or freelancing on weekends, OnlineCheckWriter.com – Powered by Zil Money has your back.

Make your payments look as good as your work.

👉 Try sending your first eCheck today and step up your game.

[seyedblogs]

Financial Transactions Made More Easy: How Check Printing Software Have Changed the Game

Digital technologies have made financial transactions easier and more convenient. Today, people have access to all kinds of payment software with specialized functions. Check printing software is one such tool that helps small businesses make their check management process much easier. Instead of depending on software like chax, with online check printing platforms, users can print checks on blank check paper and send it to concerned parties with ease. The features provided by these platforms will help you to simplify the check printing process and reduce your overall costs.

Check Making is Easy: If you are a small business owner who pays your employees and suppliers with checks or accepts payments as checks, you must certainly have access to a check printing software. With online check printing platforms you can design and print checks from your office with the basic resources like a printer and blank stock paper. You can even use specific templates and reduce the amount of errors that might happen while filling a check by hand. The check printing software will fill the financial details automatically and all you have to do is review the information before printing. 

Saves You Money: Buying pre-printed checks is expensive and less favorable for small businesses. If you are looking for cost-effective solutions, using check printing software is the right move as it will help you reduce costs by a high margin. This is because you can print checks on blank stock paper which is less expensive. Check printing software lowers costs related to mistakes and reprints in addition to saving money on check stock. Businesses can save money on thrown out checks because of errors made during human filling by using automated features. 

Integration with Accounting Software: A great benefit of check printing software is that it can work with accounting software to make your financial operations more systematic. If your firm uses digital ledgers, you can transfer data from it to the check printing platform and save a lot of time. This also allows you to reduce mistakes that might happen while manually inputting information. Your financial records will be easy to track and analyze without having to worry about mismatching data. 

Check Mailing is Faster with E-checks: Normally you have to mail your checks to payees after printing them out. But you may send them as e-checks with check printing software, which speeds up the delivery procedure considerably. As the recipient doesn't have to wait for the check to arrive in the mail or travel to the bank to deposit it, this is rather practical. Just a few clicks on their computer or smartphone will deposit the e-check. 

All things considered, transferring money to others and paying your bills is faster and more effective when done using check printing software. You can create usable checks at low costs and in less time with a check printing platform. So, if you are a small business looking to improve your financial activities, you should certainly consider a check printing software as it offers various useful features for better digital transactions. 

[antrylis]

✨More Clones Brickheadz !✨

Since I acquired the Small Cody (40675), I found that there was an untapped mine. Why would they only make one ? Well. I don't have an answer to that, but I decided to take matters into my own one; so behold : 11 more. I went mostly for commanders here, but then I went a bit astray and so I added some captains to the mix.

In order, row by row :

Tukk (Not cannon but the colours are so beautiful)/Vaungh (died too soon-)/Rex (obviously)/Fordo (I did Rex, so I had to)

Gree/Doom/Thorn/Neyo

Bly/Cody/Fox/Wolffe

It was a really fun project, and I hope to do more of them in the future - maybe even phase 1s, some day~); supposedly not commanders because I did most of them (except Bacara, I know...The helmet was too tough).

And because I really like challenges, if you want to see another clone turned into one of these (Be it cannon or one of your ocs) feel free to send requests in my aksbox !)

Anyway this post is already far too long for anyone's dashboard, so closeups and details will be under the cut !

Let's start with the easy ones : Cody, Doom, Fox, Thorn

Obviously, Cody was easy, I just rebuilt the original one virtually - Nothing too hard. The printed pieces here are not the right ones, because Cody's are not available on STUDio yet, but the storm trooper ones were relatively similar, so I used these for most of these models. Of course, it means I'm lacking the sun bands, and a few other distinctive elements, but it works well enough for now.

Now, Doom is essentially a colour variation (minus a few antennas). I also used an old space piece, which has this big yellow arrow printed on it. I's not exactly what Doom has, but I feel like it's close enough for a first attempt.

Then, Fox is relatively similar to Doom, but with two DC-17s. I also moved the printed torso brick up to get that red line he has.

Thorn works in a similar way to Cody too, except I removed both accessories on the side of the helmet. I also added this tile with diagonal lines to figure the wings he has. One day I'll slap some real wings on there, but I haven't found the right image yet. I also gave him a Z-6, obviously. I really like it, so I might actually make that one physically, because the way it's build (with old binocular pieces) is pretty nice; although I doubt the pieces are available in black.

Moving on to two captains : Vaughn and Tukk !

Admittedly, not really that different either, except for one thing : I learnt to do custom prints now ! Yay ! Well, these are really basic : the blue line for Vaughn, and some trapezoids for Tukk's helmet (which are, indeed, not visible here - shame, I spent so long making these fit). The Ahsoka pattern was already in STUDio (because Ahsoka already has her own brickheadz, which I'll get my hands on someday~)

I must also add that having some cyan in this whole thing added some much needed colours in here, I'm grateful some people give their clones amazing colours (If somehow someone doesn't know who Tukk is, well just check High Ground Animation. Right now. It's really cool, trust me). Anyway.

As for design changes, I modified the faces slightly by adding 1x1 tiles, to allow for different colours variations on the face. It makes them look slightly blockier, but given the overall size of the head, it doesn't do much.

I also gave Vaughn a DC-15A. It's a bit messy, but it works out well enough. Past me forgot to render it, so here is a raw, in-software picture of it (from Fordo(s hand, but it's the same design for both) :

BARC helmets ? Wolffe, Fordo, Neyo

As I've been told, these look a bit wonky, and I'll admit its wasn't exactly easy, but in my defence, it's relatively hard to get such round shapes with bricks (lego cheated by adding the visor). Anyway, given that doing that with a printed piece was out of the question, I tried to replicate the filter's shape with actual bricks, and I used a printed piece which, technically, is Lando's moustache, but downward. I'd say it does the job relatively well.

I also added a rangefinder to Wolffe, which is a little big compared to everyone else's antennas, but It's still relatively to scale with the head itself. No custom prints for him (not sure where I would find the correct pattern images ?), but I've done it for Fordo and Neyo. Fordo obviously has his well deserved Jaig eyes (and who knew it would be that difficult to find a picture of that on internet ?), and Neyo has his symbol on the helmet, chest plate, and the shoulder not shown here.

The really tinkered ones : Gree, Bly, Rex :

Here, it was a matter of trials and errors to figure out just how to get the shapes right.

I actually started with Bly, by removing the previous visor and adding the macrobinoculars first, then I tried to shape the helmet around. Truth is, it doesn't make sense technically : the two separated parts of the helmet do not connected at all, if you remove the equipment. Luckily, no one has to know that.

Next is Gree. It took me some time to figure out how to properly get a round feel, but I feel like it's as good as I can make it like this. Colour-wise, it was surprisingly difficult to find how to balance the different shades of green, and equally hard was to figure out which silvery colour would render well in STUDio. The answer lied, as it always does, in Bionicle. Of course, none of these pieces exist in this colour, but it's not really my main problem (because none of the coloured printed pieces exist either).

Finally, Rex...He gave me some trouble, I have to admit. Firstly, the part-designing software decided to have some trouble with custom prints, which was problematic, because I simply couldn't do Rex without jaig eyes (and Fordo already had his). Then, I started with Gree's base and tried to go from there to fit Rex's custom helmet. I ended up using Boba Fett's printed visor piece for Rex, because these were all triangles. I also got rid of the printed chest piece and used some black plates to simulate the pouch he has; while also adding a a few more custom printed pieces for the arms and pauldron (barely visible, but they're here. I'm not entirely happy with it, but I don't see much other solutions than more and more custom prints, which isn't my goal, so it'll stay like that for now.

Anyway, that's way too much rambling for one post, so I'll just end by saying that next week I'll post an alt version of this whole build [here !], with some 'slight' colour alterations. Definitely nothing big.

[greaseonmymouth]

As you've asked for asks!:

Do you have any quick-and-dirty book/fic binding methods a terrified-of-failure novice could use to bang something out to get over the first collywobbling step of Actually Doing The Thing? (this may be something I've been meaning to ask for ages)

yes! I absolutely do! in my opinion the best quick-and-dirty bookbinding method is a no-glue pamphlet: you don't have to mess with glue or measuring or cutting anything, all you need is your text, some paper, a needle and thread. you can use the same needle to punch holes if you don't have an awl.

this is going to be a little long but that's because I'm going to write out some fairly detailed instructions for an A5 sized pamphlet. If you don't want detailed instructions and think you can glean the necessary info from photos, just skip to the photos! I've also linked tutorials.

for preparing the text to printing, in whatever software you use (word, libreoffice, gdocs, whatever) make sure your document is set to page size A5. make it look readable. then save as/export that document as a straight-paged PDF. now go to the bookbinder JS tool (https://momijizukamori.github.io/bookbinder-js/), and upload the PDF. source manipulation: none printer paper size: A4 display unit (you can ignore, or choose cm if it gives you anxiety that it automatically displays points) printer type: select single-sided or duplex accordingly* rotate paper: ignore flip on long side: check if you are printing duplex and if your duplex printer flips the paper on the long side page layout:  tick folio page scaling: original page positioning: centered ignore the rest flyfleaf: ignore signature format tick: standard signatures. in the length drop down, this depends on the type of pamphlet you are doing. for folio i generally find 4-5 pages per signature a comfortable thickness. if you have 6 whole A4 pages you can still do that as a single signature or you can split it into two signatures 3 pages each. wacky small layouts: ignore this signature info click the generate preview button to see what your PDF looks like imposed! I love this step especially when I'm doing quarto (A6) or octavo (A7) sized books generate output - click this to generate an imposed PDF

for A6 and A7 sized books the instructions are much the same, except for these you make sure the page size is A6 or A7 in your software, and then you choose quarto or octavo instead of folio. for signature length drop down I keep signature length to 1 for octavos typically and 2 for quartos, as this still refers to sheets of paper, and for octavo 1 sheet of A4 paper will turn into 4 smaller sheets in one signature once folded and cut.

*if you don't have a duplex printer you will have to manually turn the paper to print on the other side. I cannot be arsed with this so I bought a printer capable of duplex printing (I didn't have a printer anyway). if you already have a printer check what it can do as you might be surprised and go from there.

now to the pamphlets! you don't need a cover - I have one for the long stitch pamphlet but for the saddle stitch one I didn't bother and just made sure the first page had a title on it. you can always take a different piece of paper and print a cover on or or just use coloured cardstock and create a simple cover, but a cover is not necessary unless you're doing a long stitch pamphlet. all you need to do is to punch holes and start sewing. there are a few different stitch types below, I wouldn't say any of them are more difficult or easier than others, but they do look different so...pick one you like the look of and go from there?

pamphlet stitch (uneven number of holes) I haven't ever done a pamphlet stitch but here's a tutorial for how to do it: https://www.starpointestudio.com/simple-pamphlet-stitch-book-step-by-step/

saddle stitch (uneven number of holes) I realised that what I was thinking of as a pamphlet stitch is actually saddle stitch, as in this A7 pamphlet:

here's a tutorial for how to sew saddle stitch: https://www.bookbindingworkshopsg.com/saddle-stitch-bookbinding-tutorial/ here's a video tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWHkY5jOoqM (sealemon has a lot of bookbinding tutorials and I know many people who like her videos, I used her tutorial for coptic binding way back when I first made a book but I can't otherwise vouch for the quality as I haven't used her videos)

french link stitch (even number of holes) in this one I used french link stitch which I typically use for thicker textblocks that i'm not planning to use tapes with as the french link gives it some robustness, I used it here because I had never done it before and wanted to try it out. I am planning to take these stitches out and re-sew this pamphlet with a cover now that I've found a suitable piece of transformer fanart to use as a cover:

french link tutorial. it's quite long but it has a colour coded bit towards the end that shows how the thread is supposed to link which i find very helpful to visualise: https://www.handmadebooksandjournals.com/bindings/french-link-stitch-binding/

here's a video tutoral from DAS bookbinding (he is my go to for techniques and he has the most soothing Australian accent as well, though fair warning not all of his videos are for beginners): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4ZPdbaM-Ws

long stitch (even number of holes) for this one I used long stitch and I had a cover. this one is my favourite variation because I can make these pretty and simple covers and the stitch looks nice on the outside as well, so this one scratches the 'i want to make a book' itch for me.

here's a tutorial that also includes a how to on a cover that is different from my cover: https://lccprintmaking.myblog.arts.ac.uk/files/2020/06/Long-Stitch-Tutorial-A4.pdf DAS also has a video tutorial for long stitch but it's like three videos long, maybe watch it later :'D  here's one I haven't watched but seems decent: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnignTL_wDQ

you can use saddle stitch for this kind of pamphlet as well, that's what I did for dozens of ships and hundreds of souls (https://ashmouthbooks.tumblr.com/post/681587080267202560).

I hope this helped!!

[printsaddressonline]

How Email Address Verification Software Works

If you’re in the business of growing your email list through online sign ups, it’s essential to invest in an email verification tool. Email address verification tools help you clean up your mailing list by weeding out invalid addresses that are preventing your email messages from reaching their intended recipients. A high percentage of invalid email addresses will result in a poor email deliverability rating that can damage your brand and make it hard to gain new subscribers.

There are many types of invalid email addresses that can be found in your mailing list, including typos from visitors and purposeful misdirects from fraudulent users. A good email verification service will ping each email address to ensure that it exists on a live server. It should also verify that the email account can be accessed by the owner. It is also important to consider the reputation and ownership of an email address in order to assess its overall value.

The way an email address verification tool works varies from one vendor to the next, but most will include the following components:

Most of these services offer both batch and real-time verification. Real-time verification can be especially useful for online sign ups, as it can inform a user of common typos or misspellings before they submit their information. This can improve the signup process and reduce bounce rates. Batch verification is a more traditional process that removes bad email addresses from your database over time. This can be done on an ongoing basis and is a great way to keep your mailing list clean as it grows. This process can be particularly effective for businesses that have a high volume of email addresses, such as e-commerce companies or social media influencers.

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Print Address Online – Blogger

[booksinmythorax]

So, in the midst of... you know, everything, life at the library goes on and I wanted to talk about the difference between Libby and Hoopla.

For those not in the know, Libby and Hoopla are both apps/software that libraries can use to offer digital items to our patrons. Libby does ebooks (including graphic novels) and audiobooks.

Hoopla does ebooks, audiobooks, digital comics (weekly issues, not just trades or graphic novels), movies, TV shows, and music.

A little while back, my library system had to cut down on the number of Hoopla items patrons can check out per month. This caused a little bit of a stir - people like Hoopla! And they should! It's really cool! But the reason we had to cut back there and not with Libby was because the ways we pay for Libby and Hoopla are different.

Libby uses a pay-per-license model. This means that when we buy an ebook or audiobook on Libby, it's like we're buying one copy of a physical item. Except, because publishers are vultures, it's often much more expensive than buying one copy of the physical book - unless it's an audiobook, in which case buying the CDs might very well be more expensive than buying the digital license on Libby. That's why you might have to wait on a list for a Libby title that's really popular: we only have licenses for so many "copies". These licenses can be in perpetuity (i.e. you pay once and you can use that copy forever) or, more commonly, for a limited length of time like a year. Once that time is up, we decide whether to pay for the license for each copy again.

Hoopla uses a pay-per-circulation model. There's no waiting: once you, the patron, decide you'd like to check something out, you can do so immediately and we pay Hoopla a smaller amount of money to essentially "rent" the license from them. Cool, right?

Except that the pay-per-circ model adds up. If we have access to a brand new or popular title on Libby and Hoopla, and the Libby copy has a long waiting list, patrons might hop over to Hoopla to check it out immediately. If enough people do this, we might end up paying more overall for the Hoopla item on a per-circulation basis than we did for the license on the Libby item. That's why libraries typically limit the number of Hoopla checkouts patrons can use per month: because otherwise, we can't predict the amount we'll be paying Hoopla in the same way we can predict the amount we'll pay Libby.

Let me be clear: If a library offers a digital service and it would be helpful to you, please use it. Don't deny yourself a service you need or would enjoy in some misguided attempt to save your library some cash. We want to offer digital services, not least because ebooks and audiobooks have accessibility features that print books often don't. If your library has Libby and Hoopla and you get utility out of both, use both!

That said, if you're upset with the lower number of checkouts on Hoopla or the limited number of titles or copies available to you on Libby, you know who you should talk to? Your elected officials. Local, state, and federal. Because those folks are the ones who decide how much money we get, and what we can spend it on.

Don't go to them angry, either, because then we'll get scolded for not using the funds they "gave" us appropriately. (If you're a frequent library user, you might be shocked at how anti-library many local government officials already are.) Write your officials an email, call them, or show up at a board meeting and say you like the services the library offers, but you'd love it if we had enough money to buy more books on Libby or offer more checkouts on Hoopla. Tell them directly that this is how you would like your tax dollars to be spent.

If anybody has questions about how Hoopla or Libby work, I'm happy to answer them! Just wanted to make sure we had a baseline understanding.

[rad-roche]

Pulp Covers And How To Paint Them

With the rise of cheap printing in the early twentieth century, mass-marked paperbacks swept the world, each offering lurid thrills for obscenely low prices. Sex, sadism, and incredible violence for as little as ten cents. An easy purchase to slot in between fifty cigarettes a day and enough bourbon slugs to kill a small garden.

Pulp fiction is where some of the greats of American literature cut their teeth, including the big three, Raymond Chandler, Ross MacDonald and Dashiell Hammett. The contents of these stories, both the dizzyingly good and astoundingly terrible, have been absorbed and digested and remixed and regurgitated in nearly every permutation imaginable, fuelling pop culture some one hundred years on. This isn't an essay on that. Nobody likes to open a tutorial and be greeted with a wall of text. The history is for another time.

But it is about how to paint it.

Don't let the pre-amble intimidate you, it's not as hard as it sounds. You will need:

Painting software with some image editing capabilities. You don't need all the bells and whistles of Photoshop, but I wouldn't recommend something like MSPaint, at least not to start with. I'm using Clip Studio Paint.

A really beat-up paper texture. The grungier, the better.

A lightly-textured brush. Here are the specific brushes I use, 99% of which is the well-named rough brush. Try and avoid anything with any impasto elements.

Go to your colour-picking tool and use the 'select from layer' option. Doing all the painting on a single layer is going to make your life easier.

A complete willingness to make mistakes and, instead of erasing, painting over them. It generates much more colour variation and interest! Keep your finger off the E key.

Good reference! That painting is a master copy of Mitchel Hooks' art for Day of the Ram. Find a style you really love and want to learn? Have no clue where to begin? Do direct studies!

Let's not worry about whatever is happening in the background. It's probably fine. Let's get started! Pulp magazine art is a lot more varied than you might first think, so don't agonize over having a style that 'fits' or not. I'm also specifically aiming for something you'd see on the cover after printing, not the initial painting they would use for printing. The stuff I'll show here is a pretty narrow band of it, but here are some general commonalities. This is a painting by Tom Lovell.

Let's dig into this.

The colours are very bright and saturated, but the actual values, the relative lightness and darkness of them, are actually grouped very simply! You can check this by filling a layer full of black, putting it on top and setting its mode to colour. If the value of a painting looks good, you actually get a lot of leeway with colour. But here's what I think is the most important thing to keep in mind.

The darks aren't that dark, and the lights aren't all that light! Covers are paintings reproduced on cheap paper. Anything you wouldn't want to happen in the printing process, you lean into. Value wash-outs, lower contrast, colours getting a weird wash to them, really gritty texturing. So let's get painting! Here's my typical setup.

That bottom folder is the painting itself. The screen layer is the grungy paper texture. To get the effect you want, put it down, invert its colour, then set it to screen. That washes out your painting far, far too much, so to compensate, I put a contrast layer up on top. Fiddle around with the settings, but this is where mine ended up sitting.

Note I'm saying this before even starting the painting: you want to do this as early as possible. This is where the 'select from layer' colour picker comes in handy. You can paint without worrying about the screen or contrast layer. Something not looking right? Enable your value check layer and keep painting. When you turn it off, it'll still be in colour. Here's a timelapse so you can see what that looks like.

And when you check the values...

They're pretty simple! This isn't a be all and end all, but I hope it serves as a decent primer. I want thirty dames on my desk by Monday!