Using transparent images in websites make so much sense in many cases as they fit perfectly to any background.

However, there is sometimes a big empty space around images which can create confusion when clicking on them as users may not easily realize that the clicked part of the website is actually an image.

alphaPun.ch changes that by tracing the opaque part of PNG or GIF images and then punch through the alpha channel so the stuff behind it can be clicked.

Behind the scenes, it creates a mask for the opaque part of images along with masks for the clickable content behind them. The masks are positioned above the real image and users will actually be clicking to these masks.

It works by drag 'n' dropping an image to the loader and an HTML-CSS-JS (with jQuery) code is created automatically.

The project is definitely not a good fit for every image on websites but there will certainly be good cases of use.

P.S. alphaPun.ch is open source.

The increasing variety and usage of device/screen types (cell phone, smart phone, tablet, desktop..) urge the need for serving web content accordingly.

Adaptive Images is a solution for delivering browser-size-specific images for any device.. automatically.

It is JavaScript-PHP-powered where a lightweight JS file detects the browser size and the PHP file resizes the images on the web page. And, all this happens with the help of a .htaccess rule which redirects any requests for .JPG, .GIF or .PNG files to the PHP image processor file.

Adaptive Images is a plug 'n' play resource which can be easily integrated into any PHP website.

There is a built-in caching system for minimizing each image only once for each size.

Also, several options for customization exist including "array of browser-image sizes", .JPG quality and more.

WebDesignShock has recently released a high-quality set of interface icons that follow the style of the ones used in Google+.

There are 204 items in the set, they have gray and colored versions (great for hover effect) and come in 2 sizes: 18*18px and 128*128px.

That's not all, besides .PNG, the icons are also available in .PSD format.

It has almost every item that a web application can need from actions to charts or devices. Simply, a must-bookmark.

WP7 Icons is a growing collection of free icons that are mono colored (black and white versions are available).

They are in transparent PNG + vector .Design (for Expression Design) formats and the PNG version is sized as 48*48px (or 24*24px once the empty space is trimmed).

The set includes items from add or delete to media controls and social networking icons.

P.S. The designer also provides a tutorial on "how to create such icons using Expression Design.

If you are looking for a thematic and original set of social bookmarking icons, here comes an option for you.

Social Lego is a set of 20 icons, built exclusively for WRD readers by Iconshock (same creators of WordPressThemeShock), that has a lego-like texture and includes the items for the most popular social services like Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Youtube and much more.

The set comes as .PNG and .AI vector formats where you can create any size and modify the easily.

It is free to be used in both personal and commercial projects (and can not be redistributed).

P.S. If you share this icon set in your website/blog, please link to this post rather than the download link. Thanks very much for that.

Picons.me, an icon design company offering various icon sets, is sharing a set of 60 social icons for free.

The set has items for all the popular social networks and comes in multiple vector formats: .AI, .EPS, .PDF.

There are also .PSD + .CSH versions and .PNG in 8 different sizes (from 16*16px to 512*512px).

P.S. In order to prevent any confusions, the resource's website mentions that the Picons.me license doesn't apply to this social set.

InstantShift, a popular blog on web design and development, is sharing a set of 40+ good looking icons.

The icons are simple-yet-beautiful, have a chic texture over them + come in 2 formats:

• .PNG – which are sized 32x32px
• .PSD – which are layered and can be resized as you wish

P.S. They are free to use in both personal and commercial projects.

177DESIGNS, a talented web design and development company, is sharing a beautiful set of free hand-drawn icons.

The set consists of 247 items, all of them designed in the same style and comes as .PNG files.

There are 2 sizes in the download package: 32*32px and 128*128px.

This hand-drawn icon set has almost all the items a web app. can need from actions to media or devices.

It is also free to use them in both personal and commercial projects.

Seven Icon Pack is a set of 475 high-quality, vector and free icons that has items for actions, social networking, devices and more.

They come in .SVG + in transparent PNG with 32*32px, 48*48px and 100*100px sizes.

And, they are free to be used in both personal and commercial projects.

P.S. The download requires free sign-up.

IconShock, the well-known icon design company, is sharing a huge set of free credit card icons.

The set consists of 61 icons including almost every possible payment processor (MasterCard, Visa, AMEX, PayPal, Google Checkout, etc.).

They come in 3 formats:

• .AI
• .PSD (24*24px, 32*32px, 48*48px and 64*64px)
• .PNG (24*24px, 32*32px, 48*48px, 64*64px, 128*128px, 256*256px and 512*512px)

All items are pixel perfect and can be used in both personal + commercial projects.