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Week of Aug 17 1998

 

Aug 21


We continue to remain in the dark about the status of CosmoSoftware (the division of SGI which was set up to sell VRML tools.) Our current understanding is that the division has been closed and employees let go or moved to other divisions.

Two different sources have reported that the software has been sold to another company (one report says that it is Platinum, who recently bought VRCreator.) Unfortunately, I can't confirm that, and there's no report on when an announcement will be made.

The status of the VRML browser plug-in CosmoPlayer itself is in question. One source said that SGI had wanted to keep CosmoPlayer and just sell the other software and that this was why the sale to Sony fell through. Yet the other source says that in the new deal the plug-in was also sold...We can only wait and see. I'm pretty sure it will resurface.

In the mean time, if you need a VRML plug-in you might want to try WorldView from Intervista.
<
www.intervista.com>

 


We've also been trying to figure out what the new DVD G3 kit Apple announced two weeks ago is all about. In a press release announcing new, faster G3 Macs, Apple announced a DVD kit for G3's which can now be ordered through the Apple Store. This is infact two parts; a DVD-ROM drive (which was orderable prior to this announcement) and a new personality card which includes a DVD card (MPEG 2 decoder) as well as audio and and video in/out capabilities.

Unresolved issues:

  • It appears that Apple has updated the G3 motherboards, and that the new personality card only works with the new motherboard.
  • The Apple Store describes the DVD video card as an Audio/Video & DVD-Video card. But does that mean it includes the same Audio/Video input/output capabilities of the Audio/Video card Apple also offers. An Apple PR person said that it did (but then didn't answer our followup questions) while a reader reports contacting Apple and being told that the DVD card did not include the video capture capabilities.

<www.apple.com>

 

PUBLISHING
Next Monday Mac Publishing (formerly the publisher of MacWeek) starts publication of eMediaWeekly, a multimedia news magazine.

We thought it was confusing because we were already familiar with at least one other publication with emedia in the title. Now it seems that Web consultancy and publishing firm known as E-Media is suing. They claim they have the trademark (though searching AltaVista turned up 10209 listings for emedia, and I don't think all of them were for that company...)
<
www.news.com news report "Firms battle over term "e-media">
<
www.eMediaWeekly.com>

 


The Macintosh version of AutoMasker, a plug-in for Adobe After Effects, will ship at the end of this month. It will be released at a special price of $595. The price will revert back to $995 at the end of the promotional period ending December 1998.

The Windows plug-in will be available for Adobe After Effects for Windows at the end of September 1998. Pricing for it will be the same. The North American distributor is Digital Marketing International.
<
www.dmi-njusa.com>

 


Squishy FX has announced the release of three plug-ins that will ship with Chromeffects; Groovius, Kemikal and GeomGroov and will provide content creators in-browser access to particle-based effects and interactive procedural imagery.

Groovius lets users add 3D, particle-based effects that allow for a wide range of non-repeating, fluid motion. Kemikal lets users add interactive, procedural imagery to web pages. GeomGroov mimics the features of Groovius but is used to deform arbitrary 3D models.
<
www.squishyfx.com>

 

Aug 20


Quicktime 3.02 is available at
<
ftp for QuickTime 3.02>

 


Radius
has posted an updater for MotoDV for Windows that upgrades MotoDV 1.1.2 and 1.1.3b1 to version 1.1.3. The most significant improvement is more reliable support for Canon and Panasonic devices. In addition to the updater, a complete list of the enhancements is available at the website.
<
www.radius.com/ftp/>

 


Canon
has announced the XL Extra Wide-Angle 3X Zoom Lens for the XL1 Digital Video camcorder. The new lens widens the angle of horizontal view to more than 70°, compared with that of the standard 16X lens supplied with the XL1 which provides 47°. This is the equivalent of a 24mm to 72mm 35mm photography lens. The lens features:

  • Six blade iris for minimal light flare
  • Manual zoom and focus ring on lens
  • 72mm lens diameter
  • Fully electronic interface for the XL1 DV camcorder
  • Minimum focusing distance of 3/4" at wide end
  • Built-in 1.5 Neutral Density Filter
  • Maximum aperture f/1.8

The Canon XL Extra Wide-Angle 3X Zoom Lens weighs 1lb. 8-1/4 oz. and measures 3-5/8 X 4-5/8 inches. The lens will come complete with a front lens cap, rear lens cap, soft case, lens hood and cleaning cloth. Available in late September 1998.
<
www.canon.com>
<"
A filmmaker reports on using the XL1">

 


ComputerWorld
has a backgrounder on VRML which talks about issues involved in using VRML. There's also an interview with TickerMaster's Alan Citron about using VRML to show seat positions.
<
www.computerworld.com> feature "VRML">

 


The Digital TV debacle continues. CNET reports on the latest non-developments.
<
www.news.com news page "Digital TV still not ready">

 

Aug 19


Macromedia
is shipping Macromedia Generator, server-based software that uses templates created in Flash to create Web graphics on the fly with dynamic data. The Generator product line includes the Developer's Studio for authoring graphic templates, and the Generator Graphics Server for delivering real-time Web graphics. Generator enables Web designers to create real-time headlines, mastheads, advertising, interactive maps, schedules, charts, graphs etc.

Generator exports all standard Web graphic formats, such as GIF, JPEG and PNG, as well as vector-based Flash (.swf) files.

Generator Dynamic Graphics Server is available for Microsoft Internet Information Server on Windows NT, and Microsoft Personal Web Server for Windows, for US $2,999 per server processor. Generator Developer's Studio, Flash Edition is now available for Windows NT, Windows 95 and Macintosh for US $499 per user license. Flash 3 users can upgrade to the Generator Developer's Studio, Flash Edition for US $199 per user license.
<
www.macromedia.com> web page "Flash Generator">

 


Macromedia
and Allaire Corporation have announced integration between Macromedia Dreamweaver and Allaire Cold Fusion through a new set of Cold Fusion objects for Dreamweaver. The new objects allow Dreamweaver users to incorporate dynamic data into their Web sites. The new Cold Fusion objects for Dreamweaver will be available this month as a free download from the Dreamweaver Web site nd the Allaire Web site.
<
www.dreamweaver.com>
<
www.allaire.com>

 


A draft of a user manual has now been posted for VideoScript, along with the latest beta (1.1b3) [ VideoScript is a tool for analyzing video and images in real-time.]
<
www.videoscript.com>

 


Corel Corporation is shipping CorelDRAW 8 for Power Macintosh. Until October 31, 1998, all owners of any graphics, illustration or painting software can purchase CorelDRAW 8 for Power Macintosh from any Computer Superstore for a special introductory price of US $99 after mail-in rebate. In addition, customers who purchase an iMac or any other Apple system from CompUSA through September 30, 1998 can buy CorelDRAW 8 for Power Macintosh for US $49 after mail-in rebate (U.S. only)
<
www.corel.com>

 


[This item is primarily for a friend who's thinking of making a career change-Ed.]
Radius Inc will be featured in the Sony, Panasonic and Canon booths at the 8th Annual International Convention and Trade Show for Professional Wedding and Event Videographers (WEVA). The conference is scheduled Aug. 17-20 at the Fontainebleau Hilton Resort and Convention Center, Miami Beach, FL.

"Our participation here is timely given the increasing sophistication of wedding and event coverage by professional photographers and videographers," said Brady O. Bruce, vice president of marketing for Radius. "Radius products are a perfect fit for this community, which is seeking ways to improve the breadth and quality of its product offerings," Bruce said.
<
www.radius.com>

 


Canopus Corporation is previewing its newest product offerings at this week's WEVA conference. The company is giving the first public demonstration of major enhancements to its DVRex nonlinear editing solution including the RexEdit 2.0 with titles and transitions. Other enhancements to DVRex being shown include YUV (Component) video output, and the DAT Pack for direct connection to a DAT drive. Canopus is also previewing additions to its DV editing line of products including RexRack, a turnkey editing system based on DVRex-M1, and RexControl, a new jog and shuttle controller.
<
www.canopuscorp.com>

 

Aug 18

NOTE: THERE WILL BE NO POSTING FOR TUESDAY, AUG 18
We'll be back on Wednesday August 19

 

Aug 17

 

 


CNET
reports that Casio is going to release a new 1.3 megapixel camera, the QV-7000SX for $799. The source for the news report is an office products catalog(!)
<
www.news.com news report "Casio camera packs more features">

 


PC Magazines
reviewed megapixel cameras that cost less than $800. They reviewed the Casio QV-5000SX, Canon PowerShot A5, Epson PhotoPC 700, Fujifilm MX-700, Olympus D-340L, Panasonic PalmCam PV-DC1580. The Fujifilm MX-700 and Epson PhotoPC 700 were rated best.
<
www.zdnet.com/pcmag first look "All About Megapixels">

 


NewTek will shortly (in the next two weeks?) release a free update of Mac LightWave that will incorporate the just-licensed OpenGL from Conix. The update also fix numerous bugs including a fatal one in their Modeler; the "Orange Bar of Death".

NewTek's main in-house artist said that the only two differences now between MacGL LightWave and Intel LightWave were the one-button mouse and the reversed position of "OK" and "Cancel" in system dialogs.
<
www.newtek.com>

 

STORAGE
Pioneer is shipping a 100-disc DVD-ROM jukebox, the DRM-1004V40. The jukebox uses Pioneer DVD-ROM2 drives which are capable of reading any DVD and CD media and offers a possible 470 GB of total storage. The DRM-1004V40 features a disc load time of less than three seconds and can be configured with up to four DVD read drives allowing several users to access data simultaneously. It has an MSRP of $12,495

Interestingly, they were obviously in a hurry to post their press release to their website. The release included the following:
' "Pioneer's DVD Jukebox now gives resellers the opportunity to explore new markets that were previously limited by CD-ROM capacity or other applications requiring enhanced capabilities," said RESELLER of COMPANY NAME, STATE. '

<www.pioneerusa.com>

 

ANIMATION
HotWired is publishing a tutorial series on animation which covers tips, tricks, and workarounds for everything from GIF89 through dHTML and Flash, to design theory, incorporating sound and creating your own style.
<
www.hotwired.com tutorials "Animation Tutorial">

 

Canon XL1 review

DV codec tests

Get QuickTime 3.0

Edit DV unplugged

ImageReady trial

 

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