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Week
of April 12
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Fri
16
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NewTek will preview its next
generation LightWave 6 software at
NAB next week. Major changes in LightWave
6 include:
- New
hybrid forward/inverse kinematics
animation engine
- Extensive
Character animation tools
- New
floating point accurate rendering
engine with distributive ray tracer,
integrated volumetric rendering
(Hypervoxels) for lights and objects,
caustics and other real world rendering
effects
- Enhanced
visual work environment using custom
OpenGL features to give the user an
unmatched level of real-time scene
display
- Extensive
UV mapping control
- Radically
Enhanced plug-in architecture
LightWave
3D 6 will be available later in 1999 for
$2495.00.
<www.newtek.com>
Intel Corporation and
MetaCreations Corporation have
announced the availability of the
MetaStream 3-D file format
specification. The companies intends to
jointly continue to develop the
capabilities of the MetaStream 3-D file
format and companion tools, such as the
MetaFlash 3-D camera being brought to
market later this year by Kodak and
Minolta and MetaCreations newly announced
Canoma software. MetaFlash technology
employs a specially developed flash and
software that converts digital photos into
texture-mapped 3-D wireframe models that
can be output to the MetaStream 3-D file
format. The MetaFlash technology has been
licensed by Minolta and Kodak and will be
brought to market with their cameras later
this year.
The
specification is available at:
<www.metastream/developer>
The
MetaStream viewer plug-in is available for
Windows only at:
<www.metastream.com>
EditDV, the DV editing application
from Digital Origin will debut for
the Windows platform at NAB next
week. Orders for EditDV for Windows are
being accepted now; product shipment is
scheduled for Spring 1999. The product
includes the EditDV software application,
Digital Origin IEEE 1394 card and cable
for a suggested retail price of $999, with
an estimated street price of $799.
A
software-only version of EditDV for
Windows is also available for a suggested
retail price of $899, with an estimated
street price of $599. Digital Origin is
offering a special introductory price of
$499 for the first 299 units purchased
direct from our Web site. The
software-only version supports Digital
Origin's IEEE1394 card bundled in Digital
Origin's MotoDV and PhotoDV products, as
well as the Truevision Bravado DV2000.
<www.digitalorigin.com>
Alias|Wavefront plans to deliver
new Interactive Photorealistic
Render software called Maya IPR
as a standard component of Maya(TM) 2
software. Integrated into the Maya user
environment, the new IPR is designed to
allow for near instantaneous editing of
lighting, textures, shaders, lens and glow
effects. Alias|Wavefront plans to preview
IPR as part of its launch of Maya 2 at
NAB.
Maya
2 IPR Features include:
- Continuous
Rendering Feedback
- HyperShade
-- interactive and graphical editing of
shaders
- Visor
-- visual outliner for pictorial
representation of textures and
shaders
- Drag-and-Drop
Workflow
- Wide
Range of Auxiliary Effects
The
company plans to deliver Maya IPR as a
standard component in Maya Complete 2 and
Maya Unlimited 2 applications.
Maya
Complete 2 will be available on Microsoft
Windows NT and Silicon Graphics IRIX, and
has an anticipated SRP of $7,500. Maya
Complete 2 and Maya Unlimited 2 are
scheduled to begin shipping by the end of
June 1999.
<www.aw.sgi.com>
Discreet, a division of Autodesk,
has announced version 5.0 of edit*,
its Windows NT video editing system. The
new version provides an integrated audio
and video finishing toolset capable of
supporting uncompressed image quality and
a wide range of compressed resolutions;
multicam support for creative editorial;
Apple QuickTime 3.0 support; and workgroup
editing using Number One GM's Job Net
software. edit* v5.0 also provides
integration with Discreet's desktop
vector-based paint and 3D visual effects
software, paint* and effect*.
Discreet
will debut edit* v5.0 at the NAB and will
ship the product in Q2 1999. The edit*
product line has been simplified into two
core products based on editorial and
finishing features and on-board solutions
from Matrox and Truevision, each with two
options: edit* at US$7,995, and edit* plus
at $11,995. Prices are for software
only.
<www.discreet.com>
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Thu
15
|
The coolest program I've seen in the last
few weeks is MetaCreations just
announced Canoma, a program which
allows you to create 3-D models from
2-D photos or scanned images. To use
the program you use a 2D picture as a base
then add 3D primitives on top of the
image. If the picture was of a building, a
3D block is placed "on top" of the
building. You have to define the
horizontal plane, and complicated shapes
will take a bit of work, but once you're
finished the program will map the surfaces
to the shapes and you can start
manipulating the 3D scene. You can also
add other surfaces to fill out the
scene.
Though
I haven't seen the program in action, the
promo shots on the website look very cool
(of course!) Canoma is based on technology
MetaCreations acquired in December of 1998
when it purchased Canoma Inc.
You
can retouch surface textures using
existing image-editing tools and plug-in
filters; generate distortion-free textures
so they can work in "head-on'' view; and
add text and apply effects without
worrying about perspective.
Single
or multiple images can be fused together
to form 3-D models. Incremental modeling
make it possible to add geometry or detail
at a later time. Built-in animation tool
generates fly-through animations and
outputs to QuickTime movie
files.
Canoma
is expected to be available later this
month for Windows 95/98/NT and Power
Macintosh on CD-ROM for a suggested retail
price of $499.
<www.metacreations.com
web page "Canoma">
RealNetworks is shipping
RealProducer G2 and RealProducer
Plus G2 for the Linux, Macintosh and
Windows platforms, as well as the
RealProducer SDK for the Macintosh and
Windows platforms. RealProducer and
RealProducer Plus are the primary tools
for producing streaming media content for
RealSystem G2. RealProducer SDK enables
ISVs to
develop authoring applications that take
advantage of RealSystem G2 capabilities,
such as SureStream, RealAudio G2 and
RealVideo G2.
RealProducer
Plus supports:
- Creation
of RealAudio G2 and RealVideo G2 from
multimedia formats such as
- AVI,
QuickTime, WAV, AU, AIFF, MPEG and
MP3
- Live
broadcasting of RealAudio G2, RealVideo
G2
- Smooth
streaming media playback even over
variable Internet connections with
SureStream
- Publish
streaming media directly to Web pages
and RealServers
- Developed
for the Linux, Macintosh, and Windows
authoring platforms
RealProducer
SDK is available immediately for license
from RealNetworks. The RealProducer SDK is
available for the Macintosh and Windows
platforms and is available for download
from <www.real.com/devzone/>
RealProducer
G2 for the Linux, Macintosh and Windows
platforms is immediately available for a
free download. RealProducer Plus G2 for
the Linux, Macintosh and Windows platforms
is immediately available for purchase and
download for $149.95.
<www.real.com>
GRAPHICS
Macromedia has announced new
customizable HTML templates for
Fireworks 2. With the new templates
Fireworks 2 users can export clean,
compact HTML code preformatted for Adobe
GoLive. The new templates also address
customer requests for specific HTML and
JavaScript coding styles. The templates
are now available as a free download
from:
<www.macromedia.com
web page "templates">
With
the new GoLive templates, Fireworks
rollovers display as buttons and can be
previewed in the GoLive interface.
Fireworks Hot Spot behaviors display as
GoLive actions on image maps, and can be
viewed and edited in the GoLive inspector.
Fireworks disjoint rollovers display as
GoLive actions and can be edited in the
GoLive inspector.
<www.getfireworks.com>
<www.m2w.net
review "Fireworks
2">
Sonic Foundry has announced a free
Beta download of its new streaming
media authoring tool, Stream
Anywhere. This all-in-one streaming
media authoring solution allows Web
developers to prepare audio, video, and
synchronized metadata for distribution
over the Internet.
Stream
Anywhere encodes multimedia content in
either Microsoft Windows Media
Technologies version 4.0, or RealNetworks
RealSystem G2 format, and offers
repurposing of Apple QuickTime, MPEG-1,
and MP3 content into these streaming media
formats. It supports all aspects of the
authoring process, from media capture
through the generation of Web page
layout.
Stream
Anywhere features a visual timeline for
synchronizing audio, video, and metadata
events, and offers pre-processing
functions that allow the user to enhance
the source media prior to encoding for an
optimum viewing and listening experience.
Multi-bit rate encoding is fully
supported, allowing the user to save a
single ASF or G2 file capable of adapting
to the bandwidth available on the client
side.
Stream
Anywhere is the upgrade version to the
Microsoft Windows Media 'On-Demand
Producer,' which has been released in an
electronic download form from the
Microsoft Windows Media Technologies Web
site. The free Beta of Stream Anywhere is
currently available at the Sonic Foundry
Web site.
<http://www.sonicfoundry.com>
Where oh where is QuickTime 4?
It may or may not make an appearance
at NAB. Certainly it will be shown there,
but no one is sure that it will actually
be released next week. There are reports
that it now features a completely worked
over interface, and can play MP3 files,
though it does not yet support variable
bit rate files. QuickTime 4 also plays
Macromedia Flash files, which makes me
even more inclined to spend some time
playing with Flash and use it for more
projects.
Final
Cut Pro is expected to be announced
next week (but we'll believe that when we
see it to.) All in all, next week could be
very exciting...or not.
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|
Wed
14
|
RealNetworks has signed a
definitive agreement to acquire
privately-held Xing Technology
Corporation, the developer and
provider of MP3 software. RealNetworks
will acquire Xing in exchange for common
stock in RealNetworks with a maximum value
of $75 million.
The
acquisition, which will be accounted for
as a pooling of interests and is subject
to certain customary conditions, is
expected to be completed in the third
quarter of 1999.
<www.real.com>
<www.xingtech.com>
RealNetworks and IBM have
announced an agreement to develop an
application that enables consumers to
receive and process music and related data
from the Internet using IBM security
features.
IBM
and RealNetworks will integrate
RealNetworks client technology and
encoding tools into IBM's Electronic
Music Management System (EMMS). The
IBM EMMS is being used by
BMG,
EMI, Sony Music, Universal Music and
Warner Music to conduct the first-ever
market trial of a system that combines
security features with distribution of
full-length, CD-quality albums to
consumers. The market trial will begin
this spring.
<www.real.com>
FOCUS Enhancements has
pre-announced the InVideo USB TV
Tuner which allows users to connect
camcorders, VCRs, DVD video players, and
other video devices for full-color,
full-motion video capture, or television
viewing on the desktop.
The
InVideo USB TV Tuner is a 151-channel,
cable-ready tuner with an FM radio tuner.
InVideo USB TV Tuner supports a resolution
of up to 640x480 VGA, includes S-Video
input for video capture, and supports NTSC
or PAL video standards. It offers the user
the ability to capture full-color,
full-motion video for use in
presentations, curriculum development,
Webcasting, and multimedia authoring. The
USB TV Tuner also lets users watch
television from a PC or Mac,
videoconference over the Internet, capture
still images, and send video e-mail.
Moreover, users can listen to FM stereo
broadcasts through their computer.
The
InVideo USB TV Tuner, shipping in June,
will with a suggested retail price of
$169.
<www.FOCUSinfo.com>
Diamond Multimedia Systems wholly
owned subsidiary, RioPort.com has
announced a strategic partnership with
Sonic Foundry, Inc. to provide a
solution for musicians to create, post and
playback new music via the Internet.
Through this partnership, a special trial
version of ACID Style, Sonic
Foundry's music creation software will be
offered with the Rio player.
Sonic
Foundry's ACID Style includes a library
with hundreds of loops; clips of sound
that can be strung together to make
continuous music. These loops feature an
array of instruments performing in a wide
variety of musical styles. Users can
combine these loops or "paint'' them into
a track. By combining a few tracks, users
can create full-length original songs.
ACID
Style
also offers a variety of audio features
that can give songs created with ACID a
professional, studio-quality sound.
<www.rioport.com>
<www.sonicfoundry.com>
Macromedia has released an update
to Dreamweaver, version
2.0.1, that includes bug fixes
related to the JavaScript extensibility
mechanism and a time zone issue that
effects some international users. You must
be a registered user to be able to
download it.
<www.macromedia.com>
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|
Tue
13
|
Macromedia has announced the
availability of its Shockwave Multiuser
Server licensing program, so that up
to 1,000 users can simultaneously connect
to the same Shockwave experience on the
Web. Multiplayer games, multiuser
presentations, shared whiteboards,
multimedia chat, connected entertainment,
auctions, and many other people-to-people
applications can now be shared by
interactive online communities.
The
Shockwave Multiuser Server can connect
multiple users, and provide synchronous
communication of the various media types
supported by Shockwave. By linking to
standard databases, media exchanged
between clients can be managed, scores can
be tracked, and users' accounts can be
updated.
The
Shockwave Multiuser Server can be
purchased for $1,000 per 100 simultaneous
clients, and is available in 100-, 500-,
and up to 1,000-client configurations.
Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT and
MacOS servers are supported. A 50-client
version of the Shockwave Multiuser Server
is included in the Director 7 Shockwave
Internet Studio for no additional
charge.
<www.macromedia.com>
Digital Origin has announced
RotoDV and RotoWeb,
video-painting and special effects tools
for desktop digital filmmakers, web and
multimedia producers. The company will
preview the products at the National
Association of Broadcasters Conference
April 19 - 22 in Las Vegas.
RotoDV
offers painting and special effects for
video, while RotoWeb provides similar
capabilities at lower resolutions to
designers of web, multimedia and streaming
video content.
Based
on technology acquired from Post Digital,
the features of RotoDV and RotoWeb
include:
- Flexible
Painting Tools
- Unlimited,
Non-Destructive Layers
- Cloning
Tools
- Real-Time
Playback
- Native
QuickTime Format
- Web
Streaming
The
suggested retail price for RotoDV is $699,
with an introductory price of $399, and a
special promotional price of $299 for the
first 299 units ordered directly from
Digital Origin. RotoWeb has a suggested
retail price of $199, and a special
promotional price of $99 for the first 999
units ordered directly from Digital
Origin. Shipments are expected to begin in
Spring, 1999.
<www.digitalorigin.com>
Adobe Systems is shipping Adobe
Acrobat 4.0 software for Windows and
Macintosh. They also introduced a new Web
server companion tool that makes PDF files
more accessible on corporate Intranets,
the Web and-for the first time-to the
visually impaired. Available to Original
Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and
Independent Software Vendors (ISVs), the
Adobe Document Server allows users
to view documents in PDF within their Web
browsers without the Acrobat Reader
software installed on users' machines. It
converts PDF files to JPEG, GIF or HTML
text. Because it converts PDF files to
text, conventional screen reading programs
can now read PDF files, and PDF content
can now be fully indexed by Internet
search engines.
Adobe
Acrobat 4.0 software for Windows and
Macintosh has an expected street price of
US$249. The Web capture and digital
signature features are currently not
available for the Macintosh. Adobe expects
to make these features available for the
Macintosh later this year.
<http://www.adobe.com>
Puffin Designs has announced
Primatte Keyer for creating
chromakey mattes within Adobe After
Effects. Puffin Designs has signed an
exclusive agreement with Photron USA,
makers of the Primatte keying technology,
to publish the Primatte Keyer for After
Effects 3.0 and 4.0 (Macintosh and Windows
95, 98 and NT). The Primatte Keyer enables
artists to extract precise keys from any
color background for compositing.
The
Primatte Keyer lets users select
foreground/background areas of an image
and selectively reduce edge spill and
transparency problems directly in the
After Effects composite window. Primatte
Keyer is available for an MSRP of $695.00
(U.S).
<www.puffindesigns.com>
Puffin Designs has also released
two plug-in packages for Adobe After
Effects, Composite Wizard and
Image Lounge, as part of an
exclusive publishing and distribution
agreement with ISFX. Composite Wizard
(formerly ISFX Matte Wizard) offers
advanced compositing tools, while Image
Lounge (formerly ISFX Reality Check and
ISFX Style) offers a wide array of style
tools and image filters for infusing
images, text, or backgrounds with unique
graphic effects.
The
features in Composite Wizard allow users
to automate color correction, blur/feather
edge borders, clean up unwanted artifacts,
and improve the integration of
elements.
Image
Lounge combines over twenty filters
including particle systems for creating
natural elements like fire, water, and
smoke, perspective shadows, photorealistic
blurs, and a host of timesaving text
animation tools.
Composite
Wizard is available at an MSRP of $695.00
(U.S.) and Image Lounge is available at an
MSRP of $695.00 (U.S.). Both products are
compatible with Adobe After Effects
(Macintosh only)
<www.puffindesigns.com>
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|
Mon
12
|
MULTIMEDIA
MUSINGS
E-Commerce: Great prices, little
trust.
As
I've semi-documented over the last few
weeks, I'm interested in buying a USB
based CDR drive. Unfortunately, they
aren't yet available.
It
looks like Sony will be the first to
market; their site says their model is
expected on April 15. Last week Buy.com
started listing the item as "In Stock" and
it was listed that way for about three
days. The same day I became aware of this
I checked Onsale.com and discovered
they were also listing the drive as being
in stock.
So
I ordered the item from Onsale because the
last time I ordered from Buy.com it was
over three weeks before I got the item.
The next day Onsale.com listed the item as
being "Out of Stock," and when I checked
the status of my order it only told me
that they'd charged my credit card and
sent the order to the wharehouse "for
processing."
I
sent a query to Customer Service asking
what was up on thursday afternoon and it's
now Sunday and I haven't had any reply;
no, I don't expect responses on the
weekend, but I did expect some kind of
acknowledgement on Firday. I'm now
starting to suspect that they sold me an
item they don't have.
Worse
yet, I'm now wondering whether they ever
had it in stock; as I said, Sony's own
online store says they won't have them
until the 15th. Both Onsale and Buy.com
charge credit cards immediately; you can't
help think that if they have enough orders
for long enough the interest earned could
start to add up. Either company might list
an item in stock days before it was
available just so they can get orders and
bank the money. And maybe if one lists an
item in stock the other decides to do so
too.
Or
maybe I'm just being paranoid.
I
do know that any e-commerce system that
doesn't accurately keep track of orders
versus stock is a very poor system. Sure,
there's no way to absolutely ensure that
you don't sell a few more items than you
have, but in most cases, if you have 10
items, the system should know when it's
sold that many. And you'd think such a
system could let the customer know what's
up if they are out of the item, rather
than leaving them hanging wondering if
there is a unit in the wharehouse or
not.
I
guess I could call their Customer Service
(non-800) line on Monday and try talking
to a real person.
"We've
harnessed the power of the Internet to
provide low cost, efficient,
personalized service through
automation. Take advantage of this
innovative approach to purchasing to
spare your budget, conserve your time,
and simplify your life." From
OnSale's web site
Credo Interactive has launched a
series of downloadable, ready-to-use 3D
content containing keyframed character
motion, motion capture data, and
pre-linked character models.
The
PowerMoves Online series will
feature regular releases of character
motion and model collections. The series'
first module, PowerPak 1 features an
assortment of moves -- from break dancing
to kidsplay, fights and gymnastics, and
debuts with an introductory price of $49
per download.
File
Formats: Life Forms, LightWave 3D, 3D
Studio Max, 3DS, PowerAnimator, Maya,
Biovision, Acclaim, StudioPro, Cinema 4D,
trueSpace
Pricing:
$49 / download, or $129 / CD (introductory
price)$99 / download, or $249 / CD
(SRP)
<www.credo-interactive.com>
At NAB HEURIS will announce
Cyclone, its MPEG-1 and
MPEG-2 encoding software technology
designed to work with popular hardware
accelerator cards and multiprocessor
computer systems to provide real-time
encoding. Cyclone allows the user to view
the video as it is being encoded and
continually compare it to the original
source material on a split screen. Cyclone
accepts digital video files directly from
professional video editing systems such as
Avid and Media 100, and outputs files
directly to DVD authoring
systems.
Cyclone
is available for OEM partners and other
licensing arrangements. Cyclone is
currently designed to run in Macintosh and
Windows NT environments.
HEURIS
will also demonstrate MPEG encoding for
HDTV at NAB. This demonstration will
show software technology developed by
HEURIS running on an NT system. The system
will perform the High Profile at High
Level (HP@HL) MPEG encoding required for
High Definition Television.
<www.heuris.com>
ZDTV has a very positive review of
Play's Amorphium, a low-priced but
powerful and easy-to-use 3D program.
<http://www.zdnet.com
first look "Amorphium">
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