News Archive for 03/06/18

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Sony fingerprint device supports Mac OS X

06/18, 7:15pm

Sony fingerprint device supports Mac OS X

As noted earlier this year, Sony's FIU-600 Puppy fingerprint identity device now ships with Puppy Suite authentication software for Mac OS X. The package provides easy-to-use solutions for securing access to desktops, web sites and other critical applications, replacing the need to use passwords in the home or a small office environment. The FIU-600 unit connects via a USB port and authenticates users based on their fingertip. Its capacitance-sensing technology electronically reads a fingerprint. The consumer device is available now for $160, $20 more than its Windows counterpart. (The FIU-710, is designed for large-scale enterprises for securing applications and other corporate information.)

Final Cut Pro 4 'KeyGuide' released

06/18, 7:15pm

Final Cut Pro 4 'KeyGuide' released

NeoTron Design has released a Final Cut Pro 4 KeyGuide ($13), the newest of several unique visual application key command roadmaps. KeyGuides are different because they are laminated "placemats" which reveal an application's "entire keyboard shortcuts" at a glance. The newest KeyGuide premiered at the Boston Final Cut Pro User Group Tuesday evening. Other KeyGuides are available for After Effects 5.5, Photoshop 7 (Mac and Windows) ProTools 5, Premiere 6 (Mac and Windows), with upcoming models for Digital Performer, Illustrator, and ProTools 6. Also updated is NeoTron's ScanGuide Pro, a compact reference offering effective photo 'scanrates' for video.

Site offers guide to Mac OS 7.5 on iPaq

06/18, 7:10pm

Site offers guide to Mac OS 7.5 on iPaq

A Japanese Web site has published guide to running Mac OS 7.5.3 on a Compaq iPaq [translated], as noted by MacNN reader Grant Hamilton. (Also see original Japanese version).

Casio showcases Exilim compact cameras

06/18, 7:00pm

Casio showcases Exilim compact cameras

Casio today showcased its Exilim EX-S3, EX-Z3, EX-S2 and EX-M2 digital cameras at the CeBIT America expo at New York’s Jacob K. Javits Center.

Digital Media Academy offers FCP4 course

06/18, 5:25pm

Digital Media Academy offers FCP4 course

The Digital Media Academy said today that it is among the first organizations to provide training for Apple’s new Final Cut Pro 4 video/film editing software. DMA’s 5-day immersion courses will be held June 23 through August 15, 2003 at Stanford University. DMA course topics include Desktop Movies with Final Cut Pro, Advanced Editing with Final Cut Pro, Photoshop for Video & Web, Web Design, Flash Authoring, 3D Animation & Game Design, and Video Compression.

Belkin debuts FireWire Hub with Repeater

06/18, 5:20pm

Belkin debuts FireWire Hub with Repeater

Belkin last week introduced a compact FireWire 6-Port Hub, offering 6 peer-to-peer FireWire ports to connect FireWire devices while also acting as a FireWire repeater. As a FireWire repeater, users can place devices up to an additional 15 feet from other connected FireWire peripherals to extend the distance from the computer to the device. It operates in both self- or bus-powered modes. The hub will be available in North America on June 27, 2003 for $50. (Belkin's Website currently displays a more stylish FireWire 6-Port Hub with a similar part number in both graphite and white for $100).

Canon debuts CanoScan LiDE 50 scanner

06/18, 4:15pm

Canon debuts CanoScan LiDE 50 scanner

Canon this week launched the USB 2.0 Hi-Speed CanoScan LiDE 50 Color Image Scanner. The flatbed scanner offers up to 1200x2400 dpi optical resolution and 48-bit color (both input and output) as well as Canon's exclusive Z-Lid expansion top, automatic dust/scratch removal, multiple image scanning, and multipage page-to-single PDF options. It includes Photoshop Elements 2.0, ArcSoft PhotoStudio, ArcSoft PhotoBase, ScanSoft OmniPage SE OCR, and ScanGear CS and CanoScan Toolbox, which "will turn the scanner into a multifunction workstation that is capable of scanning images and documents to send to a fax, e-mail, printer or archive file." It is compatible with both Mac OS 9/X and is expected to ship in July for $100. A 3-year extended warranty is $50.

MOTU ships two new USB MIDI interfaces

06/18, 3:15pm

MOTU ships two new USB MIDI interfaces

MOTU is now shipping two new bus-powered USB MIDI interfaces: the rack-mountable MIDI Express 128 ($250) is a professional MIDI interface that provides plug-and-play connectivity to any USB-equipped computer. The MIDI Express 128 provides 8 MIDI IN, 9 MIDI OUT, 128 MIDI channels and compatibility with all Mac OS 9/X and Windows software. MOTU is also shipping its "affordable" micro lite ($150), which shares all of the same features as the MIDI Express 128 in a more compact and portable half-rack format. The micro lite provides 5 MIDI IN, 5 MIDI OUT and delivers 80 MIDI channels via a high-speed USB connection. The "attractive yet rugged" metal casing fits easily into a shoulder bag or briefcase for ultra-compact portability; it features removable rack attachments, as well as a custom center-joint fastener.

Eizo Nanao debuts ColorEdge LCD Series

06/18, 2:55pm

Eizo Nanao debuts ColorEdge LCD Series

Eizo Nanao Technologies introduced the ColorEdge Series of LCD monitors for graphics and publishing professionals. This new series of flat panels provides accurate and consistent color performance with Eizo's new ColorNavigator calibration software and compatibility with the GretagMacbeth Eye-One spectrophotometer. The first two models are the ColorEdge CG21 ($2900), a 21.3-inch monitor offering 1600x1200 resolution and the ColorEdge CG18 ($1860), an 18.1-inch monitor with 1280x1024 resolution. The Eizo-developed software is bundled with ColorEdge Series monitors and offers Mac OS 9/Mac OS X compatibility. The LCDs feature advanced IPS (In-Plane Switching) panels with 170 degree viewing angles, 250 cd/m2 brightness, and 400:1 contrast ratios.

Apps: PostView, Xenophaquinox, Cocoa 3D...

06/18, 2:45pm

Apps: PostView, Xenophaquinox, Cocoa 3D...

Version 1.2 of PostView ($22), the advanced document and image viewer for Mac OS X, is now available. The new release features an updated version (2.1) of the EGOS engine, vastly improving both fidelity and performance of Postscript rendering. In addition PDF loading times have been improved and various display settings are now settable as preferences. [1.6MB]
GoldfishSoft has released Xenophaquinox 2.0, a major update to its "unusual" puzzle-style game for OS X. Version 2.0 includes interface enhancements, improved computer intelligence, customizability improvements, and improved documentation. The $10 shareware requires Mac OS X. [607KB]
Directors NoteBook 1.5.3 is designed specifically for TV commercial directors and director/cameramen. New features included are: Job Notes for writing micsellaneous notes about crew, location, hotel, etc.; the ability to print notes; and other changes. Pricing starts at $170 with a 20% discount offered to students. It requires FileMaker Pro 5.0. [SA, Pro]
SpamSieve 1.3.1 brings Bayesian spam filtering to popular e-mail clients. It works with any number of mail accounts that are supported by the email client: "SpamSieve actually gets better over time as you train it with more messages. SpamSieve doesn’t delete any messages—it only marks them in your e-mail client—so you’ll never lose any mail." It adds integration with Mailsmith 2.0, offers faster regex substitutions, and other features. It is $20 and requires Mac OS X. [1.4MB]
The Cocoa 3D Tutorial Open Source framework, now at version 0.2, has been developed to build a very simple bridge from the Cocoa environment to OpenGL for the developers that are new to 3D programming, giving "an easier to handle base to start experimenting with OpenGL and building 3D apps themselves."

Tech: new Treos and Clies, MP3 economy...

06/18, 2:30pm

Tech: new Treos and Clies, MP3 economy...

Tech news: Handspring has posted a sneak peek at its new Treo 600, due out this fall, with a full QWERTY keyboard, Palm OS 5, new browser, and built-in digital camera; Music sites such as Apple take about 50% (40% + 10%) of the revenue for online music sales, while the Label gets 30% and the artists get 12%; and Sony is expected to release two new Clie devices in July, which feature a recent version of the Palm operating system, built-in cameras and digital audio players; and Iomega has has announced a "universal" rewritable DVD drive that supports the DVD+RW, DVD-RW, and DVD-RAM formats, dubbed the Iomega Super DVD All Format 4X.

Marathon debuts wallmounts for Cinema Display

06/18, 1:50pm

Marathon debuts wallmounts for Cinema Display

Marathon Computer today introduced new wallmount solutions for Apple 20" and 23" Cinema Displays. These wallmounts serve double duty as rackmounts for standard 19" equipment racks: "Mounting is very sturdy and stable, with the weight of the display resting in a cushioned saddle. Installation is quick and easy, following the illustrated instructions, and is completelyrevertible, to quickly return the display to desktop operation." Each is ad eof steel and brushed aluminum construction and accommodates either the 20", 22", and 23" Apple Cinema Display. They are available immediately for $125 each.

Bare Bones debuts MailSmith 2.0 email client

06/18, 1:45pm

Bare Bones debuts MailSmith 2.0 email client

Bare Bones Software today began shipping Mailsmith 2.0, an update to its email client. Version 2.0 offers integrated support for SpamSieve, PGP, Apple Address Book, and over a hundred and fifty other feature additions and refinements, including direct import and export of mail and addresses including vCard format, with a simple drag-and-drop. Users can import and export existing mail stores from Claris Emailer, Eudora, and Apple Mail, as well as from the standard "mbox" format. Mailsmith also incorporates the same text editing and transformation functions found in BBEdit and TextWrangler, and also offers unlimited filter terms and actions, unlimited search terms, AppleScript support and more. The $100 software is available as as cross-upgrade for $80 to owners of competitive products. New purchases through the of July are eligible for a free copy of SpamSieve. Upgrades from v1.0 are $50.

Hemera launches The Big Box of Art 800,000

06/18, 10:00am

Hemera launches The Big Box of Art 800,000

Hemera today launched its new image collection: The Big Box of Art 800,000, which the company says is the world's largest Macintosh image collection on DVD. The collection of over 800,000 royalty-free images contains over 30GB of images on 8 DVDs and over 300,000 vector clip art objects. It also includes over 25,000 premium, pre-masked Hemera Photo-Objects images, plus stock photographs, raster illustrations, Web graphics and textured photos. It includes Hemera's Image Browser, which features a search engine and drag & drop support. The $150 collection also features 50 bonus high-resolution (28 MB) professional stock photos from AbleStock with up to 150 more AbleStock images through a 30-day free trial subscription.

AAPL upgraded to 'Buy'; $23 target

06/18, 10:00am

AAPL upgraded to 'Buy'; $23 target

Needham today upgraded Apple Stock from 'Hold' to 'Buy' based on "the strength of accelerating iPod sales, a possible rebound in PowerMac sales beginning this fall, and the fact that AAPL is abandoning its long-standing strategy of confining its software to the Mac platform, which will enable [it] to target its digital entertainment products and services at the entire market." The company set the target value of AAPL at $23.

Apps: Mozilla, SecuritySpy, KDX, ZebPhoto

06/18, 9:15am

Apps: Mozilla, SecuritySpy, KDX, ZebPhoto

Mozilla.org has posted a second release candidate of its open-source browser, Mozilla 1.4rc2. It features an overhauled bookmark system, smooth scrolling options, improved preferences, and thousands of additional bugfixes, including changes to improve performance, stability, web site compatability, standards support, and usability." [14.9MB]
Intaglio 1.4 is a $60 Mac drawing & illustration program designed for Mac OS X, supporting AppleScript, Apple Type Services, ColorSync, Quartz, QuickDraw, and QuickTime technologies. Version 1.4 adds improved graphic alignment controls, an image mask when exporting bitmap images, optional display page breaks in multi-page drawings, and other miscellaneous bug fixes. [1.4MB]
Ben Bird's SecuritySpy 1.0b25 is an update to his multi-camera video surveillance software that captures and displays live video from multiple cameras simultaneously, offering motion detection, remote image upload, email notification, pre-capture buffer, a built-in HTTP server, time-stamping, and other features. Pricing starts at $50. [750KB]
Haxial Software has released KDX 0.951, its client/server BBS system. The update has many enhancements, including improved support for multiple newsgroups as well as improved LAN file transfer speed (claiming up to 17MB/sec between Gigabit Ethernet computers). KDX can also transfer multi-terabyte files and offers secure file transfers. It is $25 and runs on Mac OS 9/X. [client, server]
Maxon is now shipping Shave and a Haircut v2 for CINEMA 4D, an upgrade to the popular hair generation system from Hollywood visual effects guru Joe Alter. It drastically reduces RAM usage, features an improved hair renderer, a new volumetric hair shader, a new combing tool, and improved integration with CINEMA 4D Release 8. It runs on both Mac OS 9/X. Updates are 43 Euros. Full licenses are 300 Euros.
ZeboPhoto 1.3 is an image viewer/editor program. New additions to this version include a movie player with full screen viewing options, improved slideshow options (including the ability to lighten, darken or resize and scroll an image during a slide show), more options for date display, and more text formating options. It is a free upgrade to the $8 utility. [Classic, OSX]
Web Validator 1.41 is a $12 shareware that can validate the HTML, XHTML and CSS code of any website: "enter the URL of the website, select the validation type, and which links to follow (you can limit by domains, link depth and directories), and then click validate." [615KB]

Shecom debuts FireWire 800/USB 2.0 enclosure

06/18, 8:55am

Shecom debuts FireWire 800/USB 2.0 enclosure

Shecom today released its Ikebana FireWire 800/USB 2.0 Combo external hard drive. The Ikebana ICE-800 Combo Drive, announced at CeBIT-America 2003 in New York City, features a FireWire 800 connectivity as well as a USB 2.0 port along with support for drvies up to 250GB. It is compatible with Mac OS X 10.2.3 or later. The retail package includes external AC adaptor, FireWire 800 interface cable, software, and comes with a 1-year limited warranty. It is available in 120GB ($290), 200GB ($450), and 250GB ($580) capacities. They will be available for shipping by the end of the month.