July 3 - 8:45am EDT   Hasselblad took steps to drive more of its medium-format camera users to digital today by adding the CFV-39. The digital back adds a 39-megapixel sensor to any of the company's V System film cameras and brings them up to similar features found in the H3DII line. Upgraders can shoot either to CompactFlash or to a Mac or PC using FireWire tethering, and also have the same ISO 50-800 sensitivity as one of Hasselblad's fully integrated digital cameras. [full story]

June 30 - 12:30pm EDT   Bsquare today said it has developed a port of Adobe's Flash plugin for most Android phones. While officially coming first to the HTC Hero early next month, any Android device running Android 1.5 or later on an ARM-based processor should support the extra features. The addition should let those phones with enough performance play Flash videos in the browser rather than in a separate container like Google's YouTube app. It should also render websites much in the same way as desktop versions. [full story]

June 30 - 11:10am EDT   Adobe has temporarily shut down its North American operations, writes Mercury News. The company behind Photoshop, Illustrator and a number of key graphics applications says it will remain closed for only a week, in a bid to combat the effects of the ongoing global recession. Sales have declined in the past two quarters, although the company continues to post significant profits. In the May quarter Adobe accumulated $126.1 million, based off of $704.7 million in revenues. [full story]

June 24 - 1:35pm EDT   Adobe has released final versions of the Lightroom 2.4 and Camera Raw 5.4 updates. Both add a significant number of supported cameras to the company's software, such as the Nikon D5000, Pentax K-7, Panasonic Lumix GH1, Sigma DP2, Epson R-D1x and Kodak EasyShare Z980. Compatible Canon cameras now include the Rebel T1i and PowerShot SX1 IS, while Sony offerings include the A230, A330 and A380. Olympus owners can now use files from an E-450 or E-620. [full story]

June 24 - 8:25am EDT   HTC at a press event this morning launched its third-generation Android phone in less than a year. The Hero is designed as a web- and music-focused phone with a touchscreen-dependent design like the Magic but is even more compact. Its key, however, is a new interface known as Sense: like TouchFLO, it offers quicker access to calendars, contacts, the time and the weather as well as a quick launcher for the phone dialer. These are all accessible as Android-standard widgets. [full story]

June 23 - 4:10pm EDT   Adobe during its most recent fiscal results call narrowed the window for its plans to port desktop-grade Flash to mobile devices. Company chief Shantanu Naraye says it now expects a beta version of Flash 10 to arrive at the MAX conference in October and that it should initially be available for Android, Symbian, webOS and Windows Mobile. Web browsers on these devices will support both animations and video without having to leave for a separate app, such as the Flash Lite player on many Symbian or Windows Mobile phones. [full story]

June 23 - 2:30pm EDT   AKVIS Software as released v5.0 of its AKVIS ArtSuite, a program used to decorate and frame photographs for digital sharing purposes. The new version utilizes a new interface that features Italian language capabilities. The stand alone version of the application includes new Hand Painted Photo Frames. v5.0 also features improved compatibility with Adobe Photoshop CS3 and CS4 as well as improved texture generation options in the Texture effect. [full story]

June 22 - 8:10pm EDT   Boris FX has released the full version of Boris Continuum Complete 6 AVX. The plug-in adds nearly 200 filters to video and film editing programs such as Final Cut Pro, Motion, and Adobe After Effects. The software is based on the Avid video editing and finishing architecture, and as such supports Avid Media Composer, NewsCutter and Symphony. The upgrade provides 15 new filters including Extruded Text, Cartoon Look, Lightning, and Swish Pan. [full story]

June 17 - 7:30pm EDT   Teacup Software has added several new features to its TypeFitter Pro plug-in for Adobe InDesign and InCopy. The software is designed to fix problems when pasting text into an InDesign spread. The Gap-toothed columns feature automatically detects and fixes gaps at the bottom of a text column without affecting vertical spacing. The update also offers Stubby chapter ends, a utility that tightens or loosens document text to prevent small numbers of words from being pushed to the last page or column. [full story]

June 16 - 9:15pm EDT   Avenza Systems has released V8.1 of MAPublisher, its plug-in for Adobe Illustrator. The software is used to create maps from GIS data for both print and electronic distribution. The update includes a MAP Web Author tool that can export maps as interactive flash documents, along with a Vector MAP Crop tool eliminates information outside of the selected area for cleaner map edges. MAPublisher can also import data from GIS applications such as ArcGIS, MapInfo, MicroStation, and Google, while preserving the map's attributes and georeferencing. [full story]

June 10 - 9:15am EDT   In keeping with a scheduled plan, Adobe has released the first of its quarterly patch collections for Reader and Acrobat. Both programs have been upgraded to v9.1.2, addressing "critical vulnerabilities" which could trigger a crash and allow hackers to assume control of a computer. Mac and Windows editions are equally affected. [full story]

June 9 - 6:55pm EDT   Boris FX has released a beta version of its video and film effects software, Boris Continuum Complete 6 AVX. The plug-in is used to add a host of approximately 200 filters to a variety of video editing programs, such as Final Cut Pro and Adobe After Effects, while still preserving After Effects keyframes. Notable additions to the beta include 15 new filters, along with the ability to restore and enhance images or generate 3D text animations. [full story]

June 3 - 9:45pm EDT   Adobe has unveiled its newest application, BrowserLab, releasing it as a free downloadable preview. The program, originally code-named Meer Meer, is used to compare webpages in Safari, Internet Explorer, and Firefox to ensure designs remain consistent between each browser. The program uses virtualization technology hosted through a cloud-based application, eliminating the need to install all three browsers. [full story]

June 2 - 8:30pm EDT   Boris FX has released a new Boris Continuum unit, 3D Objects. The package is compatible with Adobe After Effects, Final Cut Pro, Motion, and Final Cut Express, and consists of 5 filters that generate 3D animations for video and film. The unit includes Extruded Text that uses AE masks for defining custom bevels, extrusion, and text on path, as well as a Type-On-Text feature that animates 3D text. 3D Objects also features Extruded EPS for importing Adobe Illustrator layered vector logos and graphics, retaining the original file's 3D material presets. [full story]

June 2 - 9:50am EDT   Adobe and NVIDIA on Tuesday said they would work together to enable GPU acceleration in Flash. The approach will let at least NVIDIA's hardware take on the rendering for both animations and video, including H.264 footage. The efforts should scale from handhelds using NVIDIA's Tegra line up through to full-size desktop cards. [full story]