02/09, 11:40pm
Eolas sees web patent lawsuit claim tossed
Eolas' attempt to patent the "interactive web" may have been dealt a permanent blow after a jury in the normally patent lawsuit-friendly town of Tyler, Texas ruled that the patent was invalid. The decision negated both any attempts at claiming damages and also negated three future trials. The rejection came in part after testimony from the spiritual creator of the web, Tim Berners-Lee, as well as individual creators whose work predated that of Eolas owner Michael Doyle.
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02/07, 9:45am
Should allow access to Creative Suite apps
Adobe has uncovered more details of Creative Cloud, its upcoming online service. The service was originally announced in October, but until now has been largely kept under wraps. Access will cost at least $50 a month under a one-year contract, but grant users access to the apps in Creative Suite 6; by comparison, current CS5.5 bundles start at $1,299 up-front, and can cost as much as $2,599 for the complete collection.
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02/03, 7:00pm
Offers reviews as well as link to download
Yahoo has launched an app filtering tool to its search engine. Yahoo's main page now gives a user a tab for Apps as well as the traditional Web, Images, Video, Local and More. With it, users can get app only search results and filter them for either iOS or Android apps.
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01/31, 10:00pm
Intended for portfolios, galleries, presentations
Appafolio is a new app for the iPad and iPhone that enables users to create gallery-type portfolio apps in order to share photos, videos, artwork, catalog or product images or other presentations with other iOS users. Developer Treemo Labs has used the same tools found in Appafolio to develop apps for Beyoncé, The Roots and other clients. The resulting apps are not sold on the App Store but are available via the free Appafolio app itself or through the Appafolio web site.
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01/27, 4:20pm
Scosche reVOLT c2 available for purchase
Enfocus has released Instant PDF 10, an update to its PDF creation tool. Version 10 includes one of the most frequently requested features, annotated error reporting, as well as support for OS X Lion and Adobe CS 5.5. In addition, the update uses Enfocus PitStop Library 10, which provides users with the same level of error identification and correction as the highest-end Enfocus application suites. A fully-functional trial version can be downloaded online, while single user licenses start at $300.
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01/26, 6:35pm
Less patchy, more natural images from on high
Google has released its latest version Google Earth. The 6.2 update improves the presentation of satellite imagery so high altitude views appears almost seamless and less of a patchwork. Google has also added a new search interface and an easier way to share imagery using Google+.
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01/24, 6:15pm
Consolidates 70 different policy documents to one
Google has advised customers that it is revising its privacy policies and terms of service. The company claims it is doing so to unify and simplify its terms across most of its product offerings. Starting March 1, Google will be creating a single terms and policy document to replace the 60 it now has to cover its online services and products.
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01/20, 3:00pm
Gives Gmail address & signs user up for Google+
Google is now steering users into extra services when they register a new Google account on the sign-up page. Now, a new subscriber must provide more information then in the past to create an account, which in turn is automatically used to enroll them in Google+ and create a Gmail account. Although it's not explicitly stated, users can opt out, but the move counts on them accepting the extra features by default.
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01/17, 7:00pm
Launch could come as early as tomorrow
Amazon may soon be launching a cloud search service. PandoDaily reports through sources that the product may already be in the hands of early customers for testing. Amazon has sent out e-mail announcing a big event tomorrow morning, and there is speculation it could be about this new service.
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01/09, 4:45pm
Joins Apple, Adobe in workflow tools
Corel has launched AfterShot Pro, a new photo utility. Much like Adobe's Lightroom or Apple's Aperture, AfterShot Pro is a RAW/JPEG workflow tool meant mainly for professional photographers. Users can organize photos into catalogs or folders, tag them, and perform a number of non-destructive edits without having to open images in a dedicated editor like Photoshop.
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01/05, 3:15pm
ePUB 3 compatibility allows audio, video
Quark has posted QuarkXPress 9.2, an update of the developer's flagship publishing suite. A central focus of the upgrade is on the ePUB format; new projects can now be created specifically for ePUB export, and the software supports ePUB 3, a new standard which allows audio, video, and links. Apple may soon be adding ePUB 3 compatibility to iBooks.
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12/30, 12:00am
Makes plug-ins for Adobe CS, PDF products
Canadian software maker Zevrix Solutions, which offers several Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, Microsoft Office and print or PDF workflow utilities, is extended its holiday half-off sale until January 5th, allowing users to take advantage of a 50 percent reduction in the prices of all its products, including product bundles. The offer is good only through the Zevrix online store, and include titles like LinkOptimizer, InPreflight, BatchOutput Office and Deliver.
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12/22, 11:15pm
Previous version also honors sale price
The venerable graphic text-manipulation app TypeStyler has made its way to the Mac App Store with new version 11, and the company is celebrating the release by putting the program on sale for its lowest-ever price ($60). The new version adds a range of "grunge" effects to the program, allowing designers to create weathered or distressed looks. Graphics can also now be posted directly onto Facebook or Twitter, and the app has new Object positioning abilities.
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12/22, 4:30am
Educational, business and creative apps
Three completely different new iPad apps help show off the platform's full range of capabilities with interactive educational content, serious business use and creative imagery. The magazine Science offers an app that features content aimed at the ongoing impact of our planet's human population and the issues that arise from that growth; ByteSquared takes your business mobile with Office2 HD, and Evernote debuts Skitch for the iPad.
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12/19, 2:05pm
No obvious motivation mentioned
Apple may be intentionally delaying the creation of a formal standard for how touchscreen devices interact with web content, claims Haavard, one of the developers behind the Opera web browser. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is currently at work on the standard, known as the Touch Events Specification. Apple, though, has allegedly submitted "invalid or irrelevant" patent claims in a way that is holding up the specification's progress.
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12/16, 7:00pm
Aimed at manga, comic artists, supports tablets
Software company Green and Slimy have introduced a new drawing-and-painting application for the Mac called Sketchoo that is aimed to help artists at all skill levels create distraction-free artwork using five basic tools: pencil, paintbrush, airbrush, calligraphy pen and an eraser. The program's full-screen interface allows artists to work without pallets, and it offers a "draw over" feature to create artwork based on a photo.
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12/15, 4:10pm
Experiment integrates social networking & search
Microsoft has gone public with details on its So.cl network service. The "research experiment" is an attempt to help people learn informally from their friends and colleagues by integrating more closely Internet search and social networking. Microsoft has been beta testing the project with about 150 students, but is planning on inviting up to 1,000 more students and academics to participate.
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12/14, 5:55pm
IE9 site features pinning and JumpLists
Microsoft has partnered with Internet music service Last.fm to create a website optimized for Internet Explorer 9. The Discover site leverages the browser's inbuilt functionality to provide pinning and JumpList features. Also, by building upon an HTML5 foundation, the companies claim the web-based service will have the look and feel of a native Windows app.
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12/13, 4:15pm
Special site provides before and after archive
In July, Google committed to digitally archive the devastation of earthquake and tsunami that hit northern Japan on March 11. Google has finished its efforts and has published the imagery on Google Maps using its Street View feature. Google has also created a special website, Memories for the Future, which offers both before and after photos.
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12/12, 7:00pm
Gains Lion full-screen, iPhoto browsing support
Chronos as released SOHO Labels 6, a new version the company describes as a major upgrade to its labelling software for Macs. Included in the new version is support for Layers with an integrated pane, changes to make it easier to find image files no matter where they are located, support for over 1,000 new label formats, custom page sizes for labels, customizable reflections, improved project wizards and full-screen support in Lion.
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12/09, 5:10pm
3 wireless models submitted to FCC for approval
Wacom may soon be introducing an updated family of wireless pen tablets. The maker of digital pen input devices has submitted to the FCC three new products for wireless radio certification. It is likely that these will update the Intuos4 tablet that the company introduced in February 2010.
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12/08, 5:45pm
Numerous bug fixes, improves gestures
Apple has quietly updated its pro-photography program Aperture to version 3.2.2, adding compatibility with iCloud and iOS 5 while also addressing a host of issues and bugs. In addition, the new version allows Microsoft Outlook to be used by Aperture for e-mailing photos, and allows new gestures to be used in conjunction with trackpads. The app now automatically remembers to open in Full Screen mode if it was exited in that state.
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12/06, 7:30pm
New version promises better UI, faster access
Opera has released a milestone upgrade for the Windows version of its browser. Release 11.60 incorporates several enhancements to the user interface and improves performance (free, Windows). Key among these are a new email client, quicker access to favorite sites, improved Web compatibility, and faster, more secure connectivity.
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12/06, 2:55pm
Tools, rendering also improved
Newtek has announced LightWave 3D 11, an upgrade of the developer's rendering and animation suite. A number of new features have been introduced, such as instancing, which can create mass copies of objects without crippling system resources. Each copy can be randomized in terms of attributes like scaling, position, and surface complexity.
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12/02, 1:15pm
BundleHunt outs Festivus Bundle
Starting December 16th, the Soho Gallery for Digital Art will feature nearly 200 pictures created with iPhones. The International iPhoneography gallery will showcase the work of more than 150 artists, both pro and amateur, from around the world. Anyone interested in submitting their own work must do so before December 10th by either filling out an online form or sending the image via e-mail. All of the top artists will be awarded with iPhoneography gear including Apple gift cards and photo software, as well as get featured on both iPhoneography.com and TheBeginnersLens.com.
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11/29, 9:05am
BERG Little Printer provides social hard copies
BERG stirred attention Tuesday with a return to print tailored just for mobile. The Little Printer talks to an iPhone or Android phone to subscribe to "publications" that can print out multiple times a day. They include regular content like birthdays, Sudoku puzzles, and weather, but also pro content like news from The Guardian, to-do lists from Google, and even periodic Foursquare check-in updates.
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11/29, 2:00am
Media manager gets UI upgrade
Web blogging tool MarsEdit has been updated to v3.4, which offers a number of bug fixes as well as support for iPhoto's Faces feature, Lightroom Photo Collection Sets, a zoom control for browser thumbnail sizes and Flickr browser improvements. In addition, the company has made some external editing improvements and squashed a number of bugs, including a crashing issue with SVG images and other improvements.
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11/28, 7:05pm
Microsoft involvement in Yahoo said small at most
Microsoft's rumored new attempt at buying Yahoo might just be a minority, non-exclusive stake, insiders reportedly slipped out Monday night. The Windows developer would be just one of multiple companies, including financial backers at Silver Lake and Andreessen Horowitz, aiming to buy a 20 percent stake in Yahoo. The New York Times in leaking details understood that offers had to be in by the end of Monday and could be discussed this week.
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11/28, 5:30pm
A pro-level calibrator for photographers
One of the biggest headaches for photographers who need to make their own prints is getting a truly matching calibration between what they seen on the screen and what comes out of their printer. Aimed primarily at working professional photographers, the pro-grade $500 X-Rite ColorMunki Photo promises to deliver accurate color across devices where it counts. Is it really that much better than consumer-grade calibrators? Read our exclusive review to find out.
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11/22, 7:35pm
Reveals plans for dropping 7 initiatives
Google said Tuesday it was continuing its process of eliminating products that have not had the anticipated impact, have been integrated elsewhere, or weren't in step with its new . In all, Google has announced that it has pruned seven products in this, its third-round, of off-season "spring cleaning." Included on the list are Gears and Knol.
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11/21, 6:25pm
Adds native full screen support and captioning
YouTube has been improving its HTML5 player. The app has incorporated several new features, including support for 1080p video. The changes increasingly make it a viable replacement for Adobe's Flash player, which is so far still needed to get the entire feature set.
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11/18, 7:05pm
Can reduce web image sizes by 25 percent or more
Google today made improvements to its WebP image format that will provide better compression of all types of images on the web. The new features let it compress images losslessly and to support transparency in both the lossless and normal lossy modes. The new lossless mode improves compression density and simplifies image coding.
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11/04, 10:00pm
Now available in five other languages
An Adobe project codenamed Muse that allows graphic and print-oriented designers to easily translate their work into professional HTML websites without writing code or being limited to pre-designed templates has reached beta 4, according to the project's blog page. In addition to some 40 enhancements suggested by testers, the update also expands language support to French, German, Spanish, Swedish and Dutch.
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11/03, 4:50pm
Offers tighter integration between apps
Google has updated Google+ to more tightly integrate the app with two other web and desktop apps, YouTube and Chrome. For YouTube, the company has added a "slider" to make it easier for an individual to share personal videos with members of their circles. Google has also added a +1 button and notification button to Chrome to help users stay in touch with their circles as well.
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11/01, 12:45pm
Alien Skin outs Blow Up 3
FileMaker is currently running a special two for one promotion on all purchases of FileMaker Pro 11. The offer will remain available until December 15th and applies to Full, Education and Non-Profit versions of the software. The promotion is also being extended to retail purchases, allowing customers to receive a free second license by filling out a mail-in rebate. A free trial can be download through the company's website, while a full license retails for $300.
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10/28, 11:00pm
Updates support for ID CS5.5, more
Recosoft have updated their professional-level PDF-to-editable-InDesign file converter, PDF2ID Enterprise, to version 3 -- bringing complete support for Adobe InDesign CS 5 and 5.5, variable page size PDF conversion (to CS 5.x only), automatic layering of text, graphics and tables, a new Graphic Options panel and much more. The program's latest update fixes some issues related to font mapping, and generally improves stability and conversion.
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10/28, 10:15am
Software in early beta stages
The next version of Adobe Photoshop, CS6, should have a new look and a significant array of new tools, early betas are said to show. Builds compiled earlier this month are described by AppleInsider as having a darker-toned, more Aperture-like aesthetic, although Adobe is at least temporarily providing users with the option of reverting back to the style of Photoshop CS5. The CS6 software is also said to include new palette icons, although these should be still recognizable enough to avoid confusion.
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10/26, 4:55pm
Updated app due on Thursday
The next version of Pixelmator, 2.0, is due on Thursday, reports say. The image editing tool is often considered a Photoshop alternative, since it shares similar functions while costing substantially less. The v2.0 upgrade represents a substantial overhaul, for instance including a redesigned interface with a new look.
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10/19, 2:00am
Previously-created books can now be e-books also
Both customers who have previous made books using Blurb's digital tools, and new clients who have always wanted to create a physical photo-book as a keepsake now also have the option of turning their works into full-fledged e-books, from the same file as was used to create the physical book. New authors have the option of choosing either format, and the resulting e-books work with the iBooks application for iOS, including two-page spreads and pinch/zoom capabilities.
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10/18, 9:55pm
Books arranged on infinite 3D helix
Google is currently previewing an "infinite digital bookcase" concept that attempts to organize vast libraries of digital titles. Rather than placing the books on a traditional bookcase, covers are placed on an infinite 3D helix and organized into 28 different subjects. Users can click on a title to view the title, author information and a short synopsis.
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10/13, 1:10pm
Beta now available to Chrome and Firefox browsers
Google has incorporated WebGL into Google Maps. The improved app,
Google MapsGL, leverages computer-based hardware 3D graphic acceleration to provide richer visuals and animations. The functionality, availabile as a beta, initially will be supported on Chrome 14+ or Firefox Beta.
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10/10, 10:30pm
Adobe MAX 2011 demo unblurs real photos
Adobe used one of its sessions at its MAX 2011 event to swing attention away from creative tablet apps towards a new technology that could reduce or sometimes eliminate the blur in photos. A "sneak" of an algorithm for Photoshop can determine what the movements of the camera were when the shutter was open, giving it a way to correct the shot. The test plugin lets users choose to sharpen just a small piece of the photo and optimize it for common needs like text.
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10/10, 7:45pm
Initial release snubs IE compatibility
Google is previewing Dart, a new programming language for building web apps. The language has been designed to be flexible, meeting the needs of a one-person project, without much structure, and scaling up to a large-scale project needing formal types in the code. Initially the code will support at least Chrome, Safari 5, and Firefox 4 browsers, but not Internet Explorer.
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10/10, 3:35pm
Editing tech already in two third-party iPad apps
Aviary has launched its first iPad SDK, as well as several new API extensions, according to All Things Digital. The developer specializes in an image editing platform which third-party developers can insert into web and native mobile apps. The initial iPad apps to use the technology are Pic Collage and Flickr Studio, the latter being an unofficial title based mainly on the Flickr API.
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10/04, 12:35am
Requires Intel-based Mac, 10.6 or later
As promised yesterday, Adobe has released Flash 11.0.1.152 for Mac OS X, Windows, Linux and Solaris along with version 3 of AIR, it's cross-platform development environment. Both products bring with them new support for Stage 3D, the overall name for hardware-accelerated 2D and 3D graphics that Adobe claims can result in up to 1,000 times faster rendering performance over Flash 10 and AIR 2. The updates also bring new mobile features for Android, Blackberry OS and -- in the case of AIR -- iOS.
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10/03, 9:25pm
WoodWing changing to DPS as sole table solution
As part of its earlier announcements regarding its group of new touch-based apps for Android and iOS, Adobe also made a number of other announcements, including the unveiling of its Creative Cloud file-transfer service; its acquisition of Nitobi Software, makers of the popular app-development tool PhoneGap; an agreement with WoodWing Software to integrate its own tablet publishing system with Adobe Digital Publishing Suite, and more.
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10/03, 4:05pm
Offers webbased font service for websites
Adobe has acquired TypeKit, a privately held provider of hosted fonts for use on websites. Available as a subscription-based cloud service, TypeKit offers a large font library to web designers and developers. TypeKit fonts will be offered as a standalone service and over time will become part of Adobe's Creative Cloud initiative.
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10/03, 3:50pm
Adobe to release AIR 3, Flash Player 11 tonight
At its MAX tech conference, Adobe promised that it will release Flash Player 11 and AIR 3 at 9PM Pacific Time (midnight) on Monday. At the same time, LG and TiVo have become the latest partners to bring Flash-based apps using AIR to connected TVs and digital home devices. The latest code from Adobe will allow hardware-accelerated 2D and 3D graphics rendering using Stage 3D.
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09/27, 10:15am
Wacom Bamboo Connect, Capture, Create remake touch
Wacom on Tuesday remade its tablets to get the whole range of possible touch input. The Bamboo Connect is its new entry level and is intended for those who just need a moderate amount of input. It relies solely on its wireless, battery-free, 1,024 pressure pen for control and, with a 5.8-by-3.6 inch area, is intended mostly for quick drawing using apps like Autodesk's Sketchbook Express (bundled) or handwritten notes.
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09/26, 11:15am
Trims size of HTML and CSS files
Adobe has posted a new beta release of Muse, its upcoming web design tool. The software is unusual in targeting graphic designers, allowing them craft websites without actually writing any code or operating within limited templates. Muse beta 3 is said to include over 40 bugfixes and other improvements.
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