My favourite InDesign shortcuts: Image placing
June 12, 2009
One of the things I love about Adobe InDesign is that there's usually more than one way to accomplish virtually any task. Take placing images in your document. InDesign offers a plethora of options to improve productivity in this area, thanks to keyboard shortcuts.
Placing a Single Image
Digital Arts | James Dempsey | Read more...
Why the 13-inch MacBook is truly a Pro laptop
June 10, 2009
When Apple quietly updated the 13-inch MacBook a couple weeks ago, giving the company's least-expensive -- and previous-generation-design -- laptop better performance than the more-expensive aluminum unibody models, it was a good hint that the aluminum models were due for a refresh. After all, what company wants to undercut its 'premium' models by selling a better-performing product for less money?
Sure enough, just 12 days later, Apple announced updates to nearly the entire MacBook line. The MacBook Air gains faster processors; the 17-inch MacBook Pro gets a faster processor and a larger hard drive; and the 15-inch MacBook Pro sports faster processors, higher RAM capacity, a solid-state drive option, a longer-life battery, an improved display, and an SD memory-card slot (in lieu of the ExpressCard slot found on the previous version). All of these changes are accompanied by lower prices.
Digital Arts | Dan Frakes | Read more...
E3: Microsoft shows off next-gen interactive gaming
June 3, 2009
"You are the controller," teased Microsoft at their E3 conference Monday, firing the shot heard round the blogosphere: a no-controls-whatsoever motion-sensing device.
"Can we make you the controller?" they asked, before answering with an Obama-like "Yes we can." Forget Steve Austin, it's The Six Million Dollar Design Grail: Gentlemen, we can rebuild you...we have the technology...better, stronger, faster...and did we mention without an external controller?
Digital Arts | Matt Peckham | Read more...
How to cash in on Internet memes
May 29, 2009
Gone are the days of hamster dance and Star Wars kid, of Leeroy Jenkins and Peanut Butter Jelly Time. In their place is emerging a new generation of Internet memes. Are they just as fun? Sure. But they're also smarter, more respected, and making a heck of a lot more money than their predecessors.
That's right: from their origins as mere anonymously authored distractions, the Internet phenomenon we know and love as the meme has become a bona fide business model. LOLcats have invaded our bookstores. Cute Overload bunnies adorn our day-by-day calendars for US$12.99 a pop. Remember that blogger who mocked yuppies at StuffWhitePeopleLike.com? He was not only offered a book deal, but reportedly also a $350,000 advance.
Digital Arts | Bonnie Ruberg | Read more...
Is an Apple Tablet on the way next year?
May 26, 2009
Apple may have turned its nose up at the netbook market, but that doesn't mean it's ignoring the void between its $400 iPod touch (32GB) and $1,000 MacBook. Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster believes Cupertino will launch a touchscreen tablet, priced in the $500 to $700 range, in the first half of 2010.
Rumors of an iPod-like tablet have been swirling for months, with some speculating that Apple is developing a large-screen iPod touch--say, a 7- to 9-inch touchscreen device--that would be large enough for HD movies and maybe a few desktop-style apps. Such a device would provide a better gaming experience than the iPod touch too.
Digital Arts | Jeff Bertolucci | Read more...
First impressions of Google Chrome 2.0
May 26, 2009
Google Chrome is a browser whose only claim to fame (aside from being a Google product) is its speed and simplicity. In fact, some would claim that Chrome is simple to a fault, with version 1 of the browser lacking features that seem almost fundamental for a Web browser in 2009, such as form auto-fill, a full-screen mode, and extensions.
With Chrome 2.0, Google has closed the gap a little bit, adding a full-screen mode, form auto-fill, and the ability to remove thumbnails from the "New Tab" page, along with a whole host of bug fixes and overall performance improvements.
Digital Arts | Uchendu Nwachuku | Read more...
'Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard' videos appear on YouTube
May 19, 2009
We’ve had ourselves a sneak peek at iPhone 3.0 for a while now, but what about the other main event at this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference: Mac OS X 10.6, known to you and me as Snow Leopard?
News about Snow Leopard has been thin, with the little that Apple has told us focussed on the under-the-hood features: 64-bit technology, OpenCL, and the multicore-optimised Grand Central technology.
Digital Arts | Dan Moren | Read more...
How to create interactive YouTube videos
April 21, 2009
Interacting with YouTube? That's easy: Type a brief description of what you want to watch into the site's search box, pick from one of hundreds of selections, and sit back to enjoy yet another brief glimpse into the musical life of Tay Zonday -- or whatever suits your online video fancy. But watching a YouTube video has always been just that, watching. Until now.
YouTube has bundled a new set of tools into its video authoring system that gives you the ability to hack a small degree of interactivity into videos. The additions won't be interactive in the style of a traditional Flash game or application, which let you do whatever you'd like within a single content window, but they will give you the power to do more with YouTube than you ever thought possible. And in our case, it helped us create a choose-your-own-adventure guide for building a PC.
Digital Arts | David Murphy | Read more...
How Adobe Air brings Flash to your desktop
April 20, 2009
Most computer users are familiar with Adobe Flash, the browser plug-in responsible for powering much of the Internet's multimedia content -- from YouTube videos and Flickr slideshows to addictive Web-based video games. Flash is popular because it works on any operating system and on many mobile devices, and because it handles media and graphics with aplomb.
Flash has some limitations, though. In order to run, its applications require a host application -- most often, your Web browser. That's where AIR, introduced last year, comes in. The primary reason to install AIR is to gain access to its framework and its powerful tool set that enables developers to create and deploy applications quickly to any platform.
Digital Arts | Adam Pash | Read more...
How to choose the perfect low-cost HD camcorder
April 17, 2009
There's now a wide variety of affordable HD camcorders on the market, with many fantastic features. But what would the perfect camcorder look like, good for quickly capturing footage to be used in your projects? A composite of what's already out there (but rarely in one place). Here are some ideas.
Must Haves
The art of problem solving
April 6, 2009
The true test of a good Producer lies not in the attention to detail during planning. Nor is it in the efficient and effective project management throughout a project’s development. In fact, it’s easy to run a project that’s going well, where everyone knows what they’re doing and there’s enough time and money to do it.
But it’s when things go wrong that the strongest producers emerge. Able to look beyond process, and instead at the bigger picture, they get under the bonnet and help their teams problem solve.
The Engine Room | Huey Nhan | Read more...
iTunes discovery download features the sound of silence
April 1, 2009
Have you ever listened to music? I mean, really listened. The subtle sounds of melody, harmony and, arguably just as important, the use of silence--or, if you prefer the technical term, "not music." If you've always taken the absence of music for granted, then today is your lucky day to see what a true master can do without playing a note.
This week, iTunes is presenting the first movement of John Cage's seminal 4'33" as a free Discovery Download (iTunes link). The work takes the idea of "not music" and elevates it to a previously unheard of level. Just ask yourself--without Cage's work, would Simon & Garfunkel have ever felt it necessary to explore the sound of silence?
Digital Arts | Dan Moren | Read more...
About Sony's "Big PS3 Announcement" Tomorrow
March 31, 2009
You don't have to know that two plus two equals "price relief" when you ask game publishers where Sony needs to bleed to lure new sales. And you don't need me to tell you the finest razor blades in the world won't move a $400 razor.
Enter Australia-based trade mag Smarthouse, teasing Tuesday for what it calls a "big PS3 announcement," and fingering analysts who apparently say it'll be "either a massive price drop for the PS3 or the launch of a brand new browser and online content."
Digital Arts | Matt Peckham | Read more...
NASA pics of Mars, Moon going on Microsoft virtual telescope
March 25, 2009
Wishing you could explore the ocean of images that NASA has taken of the Moon and Mars?
That treasure chest won't be out of reach much longer.
Digital Arts | Sharon Gaudin | Read more...
GDC 09: My top 5 Game Developer's Conference wishlist
March 24, 2009
Warning, I've compiled a slightly philippic list of Game Developers Conference 2009 requests just below. This is me being intentionally surly, selfish, and entirely self-indulgent as the hype engine spools up quicker than one of Galactica's FTL drives in the series opener 33.
So without further ado, the five things I'd most like to see at GDC 2009:
Digital Arts | Matt Peckham | Read more...
Why I'm lovesick for newsprint
March 18, 2009
On Sunday morning, as I plopped down the Miami Herald on our kitchen table and sat down to read it, I felt engaged in an outmoded practice, like listening to an LP, saving data to a floppy disk or using a VCR to tape a TV program.
I realize many people experienced this moment years ago, as the declining circulation of daily newspapers in the U.S. clearly attests, but in this instance, I'm not an average reader.
Digital Arts | Juan Carlos Perez | Read more...
Google Earth now shows latest images of Mars
March 16, 2009
Google Earth 5.0 is a fun and free way to waste time, and now it's even better with the updated Mars in Google Earth, a 3D mapping tool that lets astronomy buffs and armchair astronauts roam the Red Planet.
You now can view antique maps of Mars from over a century ago, as well as the latest images from today's Mars spacecraft. In addition, you can go on virtual flybys with NASA's Mars Odyssey and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, and get guided tours of the planet from Public Radio's Ira Flatow and Bill Nye, the Science Guy.
Digital Arts | Jeff Bertolucci | Read more...
Apple's iPhone 3.0: 10 Features That Might Make the Cut
March 13, 2009
The iPhone 3.0 countdown is officially on: Apple has announced plans to reveal the next generation of its iPhone operating system at a media event next Tuesday. While the company's keeping up its usual wall of mystique, we've compiled a list of some of the most discussed features users want to see. I'm no psychic, but some of these seem to be shoo-ins for inclusion -- and maybe the St. Patrick's Day unveiling will bring a little Irish-style luck for your favorite feature.
1. Push Notification
Digital Arts | JR Raphael | Read more...
Deep Blu-ray discounts add to high-def momentum
March 11, 2009
Blu-ray Disc titles are now selling for less than the cost of a single movie ticket. Amazon is offering hundreds of Blu-ray titles at half their normal prices for the next two weeks, with some going for as little as US$10. With Blu-ray adoption expected to explode in 2009, the discounts on discs can only be seen as adding to the already powerful momentum driving the high-def home theater segment.
Blu-ray attention
Digital Arts | JR Raphael | Read more...
3D TV Service Could Debut This Year
March 11, 2009
Consider this your warning: Ryan Seacrest could be jumping out of your television sooner than you think. Three-dimensional television service, typically discussed as a "sometime in the future" type of technology, is now being targeted for a 2009 rollout in the United Kingdom. A British communications provider says it's already testing a 3D TV delivery system and could be ready to offer the protocol to the public within a matter of months. Could the US be far behind?
3D TV goal
Digital Arts | JR Raphael | Read more...
