iPod nominated for BIMA award

Apple's iPod has been nominated for an award by the British Interactive Media Association (BIMA), in association with Revolution magazine, notes Macworld UK.

Steve Jobs back at Apple

After undergoing successful surgery in July for a rare form of pancreatic cancer, Apple CEO Steve Jobs is now attending some company meetings and plans to return to work full-time later this month.

iMac look-alike shown at Intel conference

At this week's Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco, Ina Fried of CNET News.com spotted a new all-in-one PC from Korea's Lluon that bears a striking resemblance to Apple's iMac G5...

Intuos3 tablet features Expresskeys,& more

Wacom announced on Wednesday its latest pen tablet, the Intuos3, which features finger-sensitive touch strips that allow you to zoom in or scroll with your non-drawing hand and ExpressKeys that can be programmed for shortcuts, modifiers and other oft-used operations. In addition, the Intuos3 offers 5080 lines of resolution per inch (double that of the Intuos2), a new industrial design, an improved Grip Pen with a larger rubber barrel, a battery-free mouse with five programmable buttons and a scroll wheel and a new software bundle that includes Adobe Photoshop Elements 2, Corel Painter Essentials 2 and nik Color Efex Pro 2 IE, a Photoshop plug-in with eight photo filters. All three applications take advantage of the Intuos3's pressure-sensitive capability.

Mini hard drive featured in new Samsung phone

Samsung on Tuesday announced the launch of the first cellular phone with a one-inch diagonal, 1.5 GB hard disk, according to Reuters. The phone expands the memory to 15 times the conventional 100 megabyte capacity. Also featuring a digital camera, a 2.2-inch liquid crystal display, MP3 player and dictionary, the phone has an enhanced microphone that boosts the phone's camcorder function and dual speakers for a three dimensional sound effect. The phone will be available later this month in Korea, but the company did not release the device's price at press time.

TIME: iMac G5 is coolest computer ever

Chris Taylor of TIME magazine says Apple's new iMac G5 is "quite possibly the coolest personal computer yet created.

iMac G5 announced

iMac G5 announced

Apple last week (in case you have been living on another planet) announced the long-awaited iMac G5, scheduled to ship in mid-September. The new all-in-one design integrates the entire computer within a 17" or 20" flat panel display. Pricing starts at $1299 for a 17" 1.6 GHz model.

Apple Expo: Tunewear offers Prie Podwallet

Hfo:Design subsidiary Tunewear has introduced its Prie Podwallet, a new iPod carrying case that also contains room for cables, headphones, iPod peripherals, six slots for credit cards and ID, cash and more. It's also got space for Tunewear's own forthcoming Tunemax 20 battery life extender for iPod. A transparent vinyl window on its front enables you to view the iPod, while a side accessory and headphone hole lets you connect and access the hold switch. A multi-belt loop on the back side of the Podwallet lets you hook it to straps or belts, and it's adjustable using a push-button attachment. The Prie Podwallet is available in Ruby Pink and Jet Black finishes. Tunewear said it's looking for distributors and retailers now; pricing was not announced.

Virtual PC 7 released to manufacturing

Microsoft Corp.'s Macintosh Business Unit (MacBU) has announced the release of Virtual PC for Mac Version 7 to manufacturing. As has been previously noted, the company plans for Virtual PC 7 to reach store shelves in October. Additionally, the company has released Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac Professional Edition to manufacturing -- it bundles Virtual PC 7 as well.

Adobe updates Photoshop plug-in for DP 2.5GHz G5

Adobe has released an updated version of its plug-in that enables Photoshop to fully utilize Apple's G5 processor and replaces the Adobe Color Engine with a new one designed specifically for the G5. Originally released in August 2003, this updated plug-in adds support for the Dual Processor 2.5GHz Power Mac G5; Adobe notes that this is the only change from the first version. This free download requires Photoshop 7.0.1.

Pod2Go downloads news, more to iPod

On Friday, Kainjow Software released Pod2Go 1.0, a new utility that syncs with your iPod and downloads news, driving directions, weather forecasts, calendars, contacts and other information to the MP3 player. It turns text, whether it's driving directions from a Web site or messages stored in Apple's Mail application, into an iPod-compatible format -- contact files in older iPods with mechanical scroll wheels and notes in newer iPods with touch sensitive controls. You can also configure it to automatically sync data between your iPod and your Mac at certain times of the day or only when the device is connected to the computer. Pod2Go requires Mac OS X v10.2.7 or v10.3 and Safari and sells for US$12, with a 15-day trial available.

Macromedia looks to extend Web conferencing

Macromedia Inc. is looking to bring Web conferencing to the masses by making its Breeze Live hosted service available on a pay-as-you go basis instead of requiring a subscription. Users beginning on Tuesday will be able to access the Pay-Per-Use Breeze Live service for US$0.32 per minute per participant and use a credit card for payments, according to Macromedia. The company hopes to extend the application to small and midsize businesses through its new pricing plan.

Open sourcers revolt against Microsoft antispam plan

Two prominent open-source software groups have rejected a proposed technology standard backed by Microsoft Corp. that would close a loophole used to send unsolicited commercial ("spam") e-mail, citing unresolved patent and licensing issues with the standard known as Sender ID.

Rainbow Six 3: Athena Sword coming to the Mac

Aspyr Media announced on Tuesday that it will ship Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3: Athena Sword for Macintosh in October. Priced at US$29.99, the squad-based first-person shooter is an expansion pack for Rainbow Six 3: Raven Shield, which Aspyr shipped earlier this year. After traveling around the world to foil a doomsday plot in that game, the Rainbow Six team heads to the Mediterranean to continue the story in Athena Sword, which features eight new missions set in six levels, five new multi-player levels and three classic missions -- updated with the Unreal game engine -- from the previous Rainbow Six releases.

Apple releases Security Update 2004-09-07

Apple on Tuesday released Security Update 2004-09-07 delivering a number of security enhancements. The update, which is recommended for all users, updates the CoreFoundation; IPSec; Kerberos; libpcap; lukemftpd; NetworkConfig; OpenLDAP; OpenSSH; PPPDialer; rsync; Safari; and tcpdump. The update is available via the Software Update control panel; more information is available from Apple's Web site

Post.Office 3.6 & WEBmail 6 ready for prime time Two new mail packages for Mac OS X; Post Office 3.6 and WEBmail 6

Two new mail packages, Post.Office
3.6 and WEBmail 6, are now available from Tenon for Mac OS X. Both
Post.Office, the well-regarded mail server and list server widely used
around the world, and WEBmail, a web-based mail client developed by
EMUmail, have been significantly enhanced with feature updates.

Post.Office was recently extended with a plug-in architecture that makes
it easy to incorporate open source tools, such as SpamAssassin (a spam
detector). Now a new plug-in for virus scanning has been added. The
virus scanning plug-in uses the latest ClamAV, the popular,
muti-threaded virus scanner designed for mail attachment scanning, with
a virus database that is updated biweekly.

WEBmail 6 is an easy-to-use web mail client that can be hand-tailored
with your own logos, or even with your own look & feel. Like
Post.Office, it supports both POP and IMAP and multiple domains. It can
even be set up with multiple mail servers for failover support. And like
Post.Office, it also includes SPAM filtering and SMTP Authentication (to
ensure mail server open relay protection, while giving authorized users
world-wide access to the mail server).

The new WEBmail 6 has an integrated web calendar that lets you share
your calendar in a group environment to coordinate meetings. The
built-in calendar security lets you endow certain users with permission
to edit calendar events, while others have viewing privileges only.
Users can have multiple calendars, so you can keep your personal
calendar private and have public calendars for your various
organizations.

When Post.Office and WEBmail are used in conjunction with Tenon's iTools
(an Apache, DNS, and FTP management tool), both products have additional
features. iTools can generate graphical displays of the mail server
traffic patterns and the web-based mail client will run many times
faster by using FastCGI with iTools Apache 2.

Tenon sells Post.Office as a downloadable software package for
installation on Mac OS X desktops or as a turnkey server on a Panther
Xserve box. Post.Office is offered on a sliding scale, depending upon
how many mailboxes and mailing lists are needed. A starter package is
available for $295, supporting 100 mailboxes and 10 lists. Mailboxes or
lists can be purchased in blocks of 100 for $150 ($75 educational). For
thousands of mailboxes, a range of packages is available to cater to
Universities, corporate enterprises, and ISPs. WEBmail 6 is available
as add-on package starting at $500. For 10 accounts or less,
Post.Office is free! Post.Office customers on non-Mac platforms are
encouraged to call Tenon for analysis, support, and system upgrades.
Check the Tenon web site (http://www.tenon.com) for details, special
offers and upgrade pricing.

Prosoft Engineering Announces Availability of Data Recycler X v1.3

Data Recycler X, a software utility tool built for Mac OS X v10.x, is now shipping version 1.3, a new release that fixes compatibility issues with Mac OS X 10.3.3. The new version adds the following new features:

? Files in the cache are now renamed and kept in a flat hierarchy to prevent
\"smart\" installers from finding items in the cache.

? Changed method of notification posting to address the potential security problem of an application launching at the login screen.

? Path and Owner columns added to file browser.

? Fixed a problem where open-unlinked files could sometimes get shredded.

? Recovered files now have their owner changed to the user running Data Recycler, so that they can be deleted by that user.

? Support for users with relocated home directories.

About Data Recycler

Simply install Data Recycler, enable your protection preferences and go! Your system is now protected against accidental file deletion!

If you delete a file on accident, just find your file in the Data Recycler recovery window and undelete it. Your file is back - that simple.

Includes shredding option which follows the U.S. Department of Defense spec to ensure sensitive file deletion.
Powerful and Effective
? Three levels of protection ensure data remains safe
? Groundbreaking technology allows for constant monitoring with minimal impact to the operating system
? Protect files up to half the size of your drive
? Once protected, files remain protected even if the computer is turned off
? Search feature which allows searching through the deleted file list based on name, date and size new!
? Support for RAID drives new!
? Captures Apple iPhoto deletes new!
? Captures files overwritten by the Finder new!
? File shredder meets and exceedsUS DoD standards new!
? Desktop shredder icon new!

Flexible
? Data Recycler allows you to set the amount of protection you desire - levels of protection can be enabled or disabled independently.
? Protects every recently deleted file that will fit into the protection buffer and you can set the size of the protection buffer to suit your needs
? Data Recycler protects your internal drive as well as all the external read/write drives on your system including FireWire, SCSI, ATA, and USB drives
? You can have different preference settings for each of your drives
? You can clear the protection buffer at any time to maximize the free space on your drive

Data Recycler Protects Your System

E.W.S. Early Warning System for Drive Corruption - Data Recycler continually monitors your drive for signs of data corruption. If corruption exists, you will be notified to take steps to protect or recover your data.

Target Customers
? Home User - protection from you or a family member accidentally deleting important documents or pictures
? Corporate - protect your business from employees accidentally or maliciously deleting important files
? Educational Institutions - protect your classroom or computer lab from students accidentally or maliciously deleting important files


Availability

? Data Recycler is available for purchase online at www.prosofteng.com for $49 or at Apple Stores, Fry?s Electronics, ClubMac, MacMall, MacZone, MacConnection and Amazon.com

Diskology Partners with ForensicPC.com to Sell Disk Jockey Into Forensic Market

Diskology announced a strategic partnership with ForensicPC.com today that will help bring their portable hard disk cloning / backup product, the Disk Jockey, to the forensic market.

“We are constantly evaluating new products that have specific uses applicable to the computer forensics industry,” said Brett Jaffe, ForensicPC.com CEO. “The Disk Jockey fits perfectly into our lineup by providing a secure means to image a suspect hard drive without the use of a separate computer system.  We found numerous additional uses for the Disk Jockey including the ability to easily attach separate drives on the fly, evaluate disk health, and to securely erase drives maintaining information confidentiality.”

Optional accessories for the Disk Jockey (ForensicPC.com price $319) include: longer cables, laptop drive adapters and SATA (serial-ATA) adapters. More information on the Disk Jockey can be found at www.diskology.com or www.forensicpc.com.

“We’re excited about the relationship with ForensicPC.com,” said Diskology CEO Tony Overbay. “Up until this point the forensic market had to find us, and they have based on our feature set and price. But we know with that with ForensicPC.com behind us we’ll be able to get the product out to a larger audience.”

“It’s very rare to find a tool at this price point that performs so many tasks, we are pleased to offer it to our clients as part of our product line,” said Jaffe. The Disk Jockey works in stand-alone mode or attached to an Apple Macintosh or Microsoft Windows-based computer.

About ForensicPC.com
ForensicPC.com provides a wide variety of hardware and software to the computer forensics industry.  With tailored forensic workstations and a multitude of partnerships with other firms, ForensicPC.com has become a “one stop shop” enabling either a single purchase or an entire forensics laboratory setup from a sole source.  Experience ranges from corporate to law enforcement on a variety of scales and expert assistance for purchases is readily available. 

About Diskology
Diskology, Inc. with headquarters in Lincoln, California, is a leading manufacturer of mid-range to high-end hardware-based hard disk copy and diagnostic tools. Diskology’s product lineup includes the Disk Jockey™, the revolutionary new “Swiss Army Knife” of hard disk copy, backup and diagnostic products. More information on Diskology can be found on the Diskology web site, www.diskology.com.

New Apache Configuration Tool for Linux iTools 7.3 now available on RedHat & Fedora

iTools 7.3, heralded for its
simplicity and power, now, for the first time is available for Linux.
iTools 7.3 provides secure, domain-specific, remote Apache
administration, using a 5th generation suite of tools, carefully honed
and finely tuned for many years on Mac OS and Mac OS X, creating a
configuration and management framework that makes Apache under iTools,
the easiest Apache in the world to administer.

iTools provides secure administration, not only for Apache, but also for
DNS and multidomain FTP. The package uses protocol implementations as
delivered by the Linux vendor, automatically picking up your current
configuration and letting you add virtual hosts, realms, etc. via a
point and click GUI over the web. An automatic system updater provides
a continuum of free enhancements.

iTools includes built-in web logging analysis (via AWStats). Other
popular open source web technologies, such as PHP and MySQL, are
incorporated into iTools providing pre-configuration for phpMyAdmin,
collaborative web development with WebDAV, Java Servelet software with
Tomcat, a search engine with ht://Dig, tools for setting up community
discussion boards (phpBB), displaying photos on the web (Gallery),
starting your own blog (b2+++), and creating web portals (PHP-Nuke) to
enable organizations & communities to access information, share
calendars, and collaborate efficiently, all in the context of a
browser-based environment.

iTools 7.3 for RedHat 9 and Fedora Core 2 is only $99. The software is
downloadable with a built-in 14 day license. See the Tenon web site
(http://www.tenon.com) for details and purchasing.

RadTech Announces the 4G PodSleevz iPod Sleeve Case and OmniCleanz advanced screen cleaner

The revolutionary play-through-case design continues in RadTech’s new 4G PodSleevz. OmniCleanz provides breakthrough cleaning technology for computer screens, notebooks, LCD panels and more.

Apple Expo, Paris ­ RadTech™, producers of innovative solutions for today’s digital lifestyle, today announced immediate availability of their 4G PodSleevz, the next in its series of award-winning iPod protective sleeve cases and OmniCleanz, the ultimate cleaning solution for display screens and much more.

RadTech’s 4G PodSleevz are available in a full array of colors and feature the same play-through-case design unique to the distinctive line of RadTech iPod sleeve cases. The form-fitting sleeve case is made with super soft, ultra tough Optex™, RadTech’s exclusive optical-grade material that’s thin and lightweight for durable, long-lasting protection without the bulk ­ allowing it to be used with the Apple iPod clip case.

The 4G PodSleevz features an elegantly debossed control area that allows the iPod to be played directly through the case, providing perfect sensitivity for the controls and eliminating the need for any control cutouts. With full wrap-around protection, the sleeve case keeps the controls fully covered and clean. And, a super-clear protective window covers the display for scratch-free protection.

“People are passionate about keeping their iPods in pristine condition.” said John Greskowiak, chief engineer for RadTech. “We are passionate about making a protective case that allows them to do that, but one that doesn’t take away from the iPod’s sleek form or compromise the user experience. A lot of hard work went into developing an aesthetically pleasing case that not only protects, but is also unobtrusive. People can use their iPod just as they normally would, playing it right through the case, almost as if it wasn’t even there. I don’t know of another product that offers that. The response from the iPod community has been overwhelmingly enthusiastic.”

Also announced today, OmniCleanz, widely available beginning September 20th in individual 1, 4 and 8 oz sizes. Or, as a kit combined with RadTech’s exclusive Optex wipes ­ forming an unbeatable cleaning force. A limited number of 1 oz kits will be on hand at Apple Expo Paris for those who wish to get a preview of this amazing product.

OmniCleanz functions as a molecular release agent and pre-coating cleaner for high-end optical applications where critical, one-micron or finer cleaning is essential. OmniCleanz cleans at such a deep level, it actually cleans what other cleaners leave behind. Many computer cleaners contain polymers which leave streaking residues behind. OmniCleanz removes charged particulates, helping to control static and leaves behind an ultra-clean surface. OmniCleanz contains NO polymers, alcohol, ammonia, detergents, acetone or other harmful VOCs making it an environmentally responsible alternative to other cleaners. And, in addition to superior cleaning for display screens, it safely cleans all coated and non-coated lenses, CDs, DVDs and more.

“We constantly hear complaints about screen cleaning products that once used, leave hard to remove streaks and smears.” states Matthew Renda, director of Marketing for RadTech. “And true to form with our company’s mission, we are pleased to offer an alternative that is truly remarkable. This is the most amazing cleaning solution I’ve seen.”

new products make it easier to play your iPod music and audio books anywhere

Digital Age Products, a subsidiary of Digital Age Communications, Inc., announces three new audio products for Apple Computer, Inc’s iPod series that will let an iPod owner take and share their music anywhere they go.

The three new products include:

The iSoundz Portable Desktop Mini Speakers
The iSoundz Sound Wallet Mini Speakers and
The iSoundz CarCast FM Transmitter

 All three products are priced under $40 and can be found at the Digital Age Products web site (http://www.digitalageproducts.com ), and at a number of national resellers. Both the iSoundz Portable Desktop Mini Speakers and the iSoundz CarCast FM Transmitter will work with other audio devices such as MP3, CD and Mini Disk players.


The Digital Age Products are designed to combine a quality audio experience with unique product design that simplifies listening to your audio devices, like your iPod, that expand your listening options.

“We think we have come up with some unique approaches to expanding your iPod listening experience.” says Larry Reich, President of Digital Age Products. “We have combined functions and product attributes that were once separate into several low cost solutions. We are the first to offer desktop speakers so compact that they can actually fit on anyone’s desktop, no matter how limited the space. And we’re the first to deliver a quality leatherette case for the iPod with self-powered, built-in speakers at a price lower than most other stand-alone cases. Finally, we have taken the cost and complexity out of the FM transmitter and delivered a plug-and-play solution that lets you listen to music in seconds without the need for batteries or software.”

The iSoundz Portable Desktop Mini Speakers need less than 9 square inches of desk space to operate. These desktop stereo speakers deliver a clear, crisp sound powered by a built-in, rechargeable Ni-MH battery. The speakers cradle the iPod, without hogging your desktop (or your iPod’s battery charge). The speakers foldaway, making it simple to take them with you anywhere. The unit includes an AC adapter and an optional USB power cable, which also lets you charge the speakers by connecting them to your desktop or notebook computer. The speakers will also work with other MP3 or PDA devices that have a standard audio jack. The iSoundz Desktop Mini Speakers have an MSRP of $39.95.

The iSoundz Sound Wallet Mini Speakers combine a handsome and protective leatherette carrying case with a set of built-in, self-powered stereo speakers. Like the iSoundz Portable Desktop Mini Speakers, they are powered by a rechargeable Ni-MH battery and also include the AC adapter and optional USB power cable. The iSoundz Sound Wallet Mini Speakers make it easy to take and share your music and audio books (from companies like Audible.com, a Digital Age Products partner) anywhere you go. The case is great for small group meetings or classroom use. Both the Sound Wallet and the Portable Desktop Mini Speakers work with all generations of iPods. It has an MSRP of $39.95.

The iSoundz CarCast FM Transmitter operates wirelessly via your car’s FM radio. Just set your car radio to station 107.7 FM, plug in the CarCast to your cigarette lighter and its mini-jack plug to your audio device. CarCast makes it simple. There is no fussing and fiddling with multiple stations trying to lock in a clear signal. Because the CarCast FM Transmitter uses power from your car’s cigarette lighter, there is no need to buy expensive batteries to power the transmitter. And the CarCast doesn’t drain battery power from your iPod or other audio devices. Your listening will never be interrupted by weak wireless signals due to low battery power again. Developed with frequency phase-lock loop technology, The CarCast delivers stable, practically interference free music and voice from your MP3 player, PDA, CD player or mini-disk. The iSoundz CarCast FM Transmitter has an MSRP of $24.95.

Prosoft Engineering Announces Availability of Picture Rescue v1.1.0 for Mac

Prosoft Engineering announces the availability of Picture Rescue v1.1.0. Picture Rescue is an easy to use software utility, which recovers pictures from corrupt or reformatted media cards or pictures that have simply been deleted from the media card.

New Features Include:
Thumbnail Preview of all recoverable images
Drag & Drop Recovery, simply select the picture in the Image Recovery Window and drag it directly to a destination folder or desktop.
Secure Card Erase, you can now securely erase all contents of your camera media card. Three levels of erase security, allow you to choose the best tradeoff between erase speed and security level.
Recovering digital pictures has never been this easy before,? said Greg Brewer, CEO of Prosoft Engineering.

Other Changes:
Also further improvements were made in reliability and speed.

Availability
Picture Rescue is available for purchase online at www.prosofteng.com for $59 or at Apple Stores, Fry?s Electronics, ClubMac, MacMall, MacZone, MacConnection and Amazon.com

SPRING CLEANING 7 FREE UPDATE AVAILABLE FOR MAC USERS

Maintenance Release Now Available At http://www.allume.com/updates

Allume Systems, Inc. (previously Aladdin Systems), an IMSI company (OTC BB: IMSI),
today released a free maintenance update for Spring Cleaning(r) 7.0 users.

Upgrade Pricing
Upgrades and competitive upgrades are available directly from Allume for
$19.99 for registered owners of Spring Cleaning or competitive Mac disk
utilities by Symantec, Micromat, Alsoft, and Webroot products. More
information is available at http://www.allume.com/store/upgrades.html.

Pricing, Availability and Requirements
Spring Cleaning 7.X sells for $49.99 and is available directly from Allume
http://www.allume.com/store/ and major retailers, Apple Stores, mail order
catalogs, and through Allume's international partner network. Spring
Cleaning is available from Ingram Micro, Navarre, Visco Entertainment and
The Douglas Stewart Company in the USA, EMJ Data Systems LTD in Canada, and
is also sold by Softline UK LTD in the United Kingdom, PICA Software in
Australia, and other Macintosh distributors worldwide.

O'Reilly Releases "XML Hacks"

By no means a panacea for all the ills of data interchange,
XML (Extensible Markup Language) is becoming an increasingly practical
option for packaging and moving data. You can find it everywhere, regarded
as a semi-magic technology that makes information readily accessible. And,
in part, it lives up to that claim, yet at its core it's a simple foundation
wrapped in a crush of specifications and APIs.

"By some grace, XML has enjoyed considerable popularity and has been
almost universally received as an interoperability solution for
heterogeneous computer systems," observes Michael Fitzgerald, author of
"XML Hacks" (O'Reilly, US $24.95). "Although not without shortcomings, XML
is probably the best thing we have going for us to deal with software
interoperability issues, mainly because of its wide acceptance and
presence." XML has something else going for it, as Fitzgerald points out:
it can be fun to use, as many of the hacks in his book demonstrate.

"XML Hacks" is a roll-up-your-sleeves guide that distills years of
ingenious XML hacking into a complete set of practical tips, tricks, and
tools for web developers, system administrators, and programmers who want
to go far beyond basic tutorials to use the full power of XML. "This book's
mission is to give you a running start at doing many of the things that are
commonly--and sometimes uncommonly--done with XML," says Fitzgerald.

With plenty of useful real-world projects that illustrate how to define,
read, create, and manipulate XML documents, "XML Hacks" shows readers how
to put XML's power to work on the Internet and within productivity
applications. Whether they are creating content for web sites, managing
data for electronic interchange, munging legacy files, writing an article
or manual, or inventing their own projects, readers will find techniques
to help them get the job done. They'll learn how to:

-Create and edit XML documents using tools that range from Vim to Emacs to
Microsoft Word and OpenOffice.org Writer
-Transform application files, like the Apple iTunes collection data, into
accessible HTML
-Convert old comma-separated text files into XML and vice versa
-Generate PDF files and SVG graphics form XML documents
-View any XML document with a basic table structure as a table in a web
browser
-Subscribe to and create RSS and Atom feeds
-Turn HTML files into clean XHTML files
-Convert Wiki files from SGML to XML

With beginning, intermediate, and advanced hacks between the covers of
this book, "XML Hacks" offers a wealth of tools for anyone who has ever
wanted to explore, experiment, discover clever shortcuts--and maybe even
show off a little--with XML.

Additional Resources:

Several sample hacks, including "Use Character and Entity References,"
"Dither Scatterplots with XSLT and SVG," and "Create Well-Formed XML with
JavaScript," are available online at:
http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/xmlhks/chapter/index.html

Hamrick Software Updates VueScan 8.0

The update adds support for Epson 2480/2580 on Mac OS X and Linux, and includes support for 43 additional models of Hewlett-Packard OfficeJet/PSC multi-function printer/scanner/copiers. This update also adds support for the Plustek OpticFilm 7200 and Microtek i900 scanners, and improves automatic White Balance, making colors in images look more lifelike. Numerous other improvements and bug fixes have also been included in this release.

Hamrick Software, a leading developer of scanning software for consumers and professionals, has released VueScan 8.0.14, of its award-winning program that enables users to easily produce better looking digital images from color snapshots, negatives, slides, and documents.

The update adds support for Epson 2480/2580 on Mac OS X and Linux, and includes support for 43 additional models of Hewlett-Packard OfficeJet/PSC multi-function printer/scanner/copiers. This update also adds support for the Plustek OpticFilm 7200 and Microtek i900 scanners, and improves automatic White Balance, making colors in images look more lifelike. Numerous other improvements and bug fixes have also been included in this release.

Used extensively by professional photographers, film processing labs and consumers around the world, VueScan 8.0.14 now offers an enhanced, user-friendly interface, support for raw files for 109 digital cameras, and support for more than 330 scanners. The Standard Edition of VueScan costs $59.95 USD and the Professional Edition costs $79.95 for a single user license. Multi-user licenses are available. A fully functional, trial copy of VueScan can be downloaded from http://www.hamrick.com/ .

VueScan supports over 330 flatbed and film scanners and more than 110 digital camera raw file types, and is available for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux. It automatically adjusts images to optimum color balance, which reduces the need to manually do this in Photoshop. VueScan includes built-in color calibration of scanners, producing colors that look true to life. Supporting more than 100 brands of negative film, VueScan offers options for scanning faded slides and prints, batch scanning, IT8 color calibration and other advanced scanning features.

For a detailed listing of VueScan features see:
http://www.hamrick.com/abo.html

Based in Phoenix, AZ, Hamrick Software was founded in 1991. Its first product was VuePrint, an easy to use JPEG viewer for Windows that for many years was the recommended image viewer for AOL, with more than 100,000 users. In 1998, the company first released VueScan, a program for scanning with flatbed and film scanners with more than 50,000 users all over the world.

ALLUME LAUNCHES INTERACTIVE AQUARIUM AND SCREENSAVER

New Aquazone Desktop Garden Displays The Most On-Screen Fish,
Multiple Fish Species And Aquariums, Plus Unique Fish "Feeding" And Virtual
"Fish Cam" Features

Allume Systems, Inc. (previously Aladdin Systems), an IMSI company (OTC BB: IMSI),
today released Aquazone
Desktop Garden, an interactive aquarium application and screensaver, in
partnership with e-Frontier. Aquazone is the first virtual aquarium to bring
an interactive element to users' PCs. In addition to Aquazone Desktop
Garden's realistic fish, tanks, and lighting effects, users can now "feed"
their virtual fish or "tap" on the tank to see their fish react. Aquazone is
also unique in its ability to display virtually unlimited numbers of fish,
even whole schools of some species.

"Aquazone Desktop Garden is exciting because of the amazing realism," said
David Polzine, Product Manager at Allume Systems, Inc. "It is the only
virtual aquarium which allows interaction with your fish to "feed" them,
"tap" on the tank or even follow a favorite fish via a virtual "fish cam"."

Aquazone Features Include:
* 20 different kinds of fish, including Clown Fish (like Nemo(tm) with eight
different backgrounds, (salt water and fresh water scenes and fish to choose
from)
* Ability to have whole schools of fish with virtually unlimited numbers on
the screen
* Ability to interact with the fish by feeding or "tapping" on the tank
* Ability to buy additional types of backdrops and fish, including sharks
* Different lighting and sound effects
* A "follow" feature that allows users to highlight one particular fish
while it swims to track it throughout the tank.

Unique to the Aquazone Desktop Garden, users' screens can teem with virtual
schools of fish at the same time, with some species even exhibiting
authentic schooling behaviors.
Users can choose as many fish that will fit on their screen (and their
video card will allow).

Pricing, Availability and Requirements
Aquazone Desktop Garden is available directly from
Allume http://www.allume.com/store/

Extensis Announces Professional Services Group

Integration and Consulting Services helps clients establish best practices and enhance workflow.


Extensis Inc. today officially announced its new professional services and training group - Extensis Integration and Consulting Services (ICS). The ICS team offers customizable services to develop fast, affordable and seamless integration of Extensis' management solutions.

Businesses are increasingly burdened by the volume of digital files they must manage. They are seeking solutions to help them avoid the lost time spent searching for documents, images, fonts and other media files, as well as the cost associated with recreating files they are unable to locate. Through training and integration services, ICS helps organizations establish best practices and make the most of their investment in Extensis Portfolio, Suitcase and Font Reserve digital asset management (DAM) solutions.

 "Our products are intuitive enough that you can get a system up and running out of the box," said Davin Kluttz, manager of Extensis' Integration and Consulting Services. "However, our knowledge and experience from thousands of installations worldwide means we can also help integrate our solutions with an established database or workflow. Taking advantage of ICS services throughout the implementation and training process means clients can immediately start using their system to its fullest."

Extensis was honored for outstanding performance and achievements in industrial technologies at Frost & Sullivan's 2004 Excellence in Customer Value Enhancement Awards banquet. Frost & Sullivan specifically recognized Extensis for its commitment to customer service.

"Extensis' clear client focus has contributed to remarkable success in terms of revenue, community, and industry recognition," said Mukul Krishna, senior analyst at Frost & Sullivan. "Extensis listens to the needs of its customers and continually strives to help them by improving its solutions and sharing best practices."

China gets tough on internet porn

According to the BBC, China is done fooling around with the Internet porn industry. As the Internet becomes increasingly more popular over there, so does the demand for pornography. China has instituted penalties all the way up to life in prison for some violators

Lawsuit filed over CD antipiracy tech

In news that goes to show that current methods of copy protection may not be the best route to take, record label EMI is being sued by French consumer group, UFC-Que Choisir. They charge EMI with the accusation that copy protected CDs do not play in all CD players