CreativeCOW: RSS Newsfeeds, Flash 10 Year Flashback, Multimedia 101

How would you like to get your morning news pulled from sources like Creative COW and others, and have it all easily aggregated so you can find pertinent news in minutes? You can do it a lot easier than you might think. No matter if you are on a Mac, a PC, or use Linux, there are RSS aggregator programs available that will allow you to have your morning newsfeed designed by you to pull from news sources that you find useful. Creative Cow serves up its news and articles in the RSS format and you can be appraised in realtime of the latest developments. There are a wide variety of sites that support the RSS format and you can combine them to build your own news channel. It's actually quite easy and if you want to find the aggregator program for your platform, there is a great site online at:

RSS INFO:
http://blogspace.com/rss/readers

Instructions are pretty simple:

First, you need an aggregator program that will track your news sources.
Second, you subscribe to your favorites by copy and pasting the RSS link into the subscribe function of your aggregator.
Third, you open your aggregator when you want to see what's happening and voila!, there are your news items, tracked to their sources as seen in this image below wherein a recent news item from the Cow's news page is showm. If you click the headline, it gives you the story and by clicking the various links, you can even go to your favorite news site(s). May we recommend Creative Cow? ;o)

To subscribe to the Creative COW RSS newsfeed, merely use this address:
http://forums.creativecow.net/index_rss.xml

This image shows the Creative COW RSS feed being viewed in NetNewsWire.

Create 3D Reflections
In this video tutorial, Creative Cow leader Andrew Kramer demonstrates how to create ray traced light reflections inside After Effects. While there are other ways to accomplish this effect, learning this method will give you a greater understanding of what's going on under the hood of After Effects.

Adobe shows off some of the best Flash animations of the past decade in their 10 Years of Flash anniversary celebration...

In 1996, Jonathan Gay (seen here) created FutureSplash and the FutureSplash Player. Macromedia acquired both products and launched them as Macromedia Flash and Flash Player. In 1996, Macromedia also owned a product code-named "KeyGrip" (which would later become Final Cut). When Macromedia sold off KeyGrip and all its audio and video programs and began concentrating on the web, many questioned why and wondered what Macromedia saw that would precipitate a move like that. Their foresight and vision paid off handsomely. Over the years hundreds of millions of Flash Players have been downloaded and Flash has become the most common video format on the net today. In this 10 year anniversary celebration, Adobe has rolled out many of the most popular animations and videos, as well as looks at some of the best Flash sites over the last 10 years. Check it out if you have some time to kill. You will find that you won't get away easily. There is some great stuff here...

Click here for more information.

Creative Cow's Aharon Rabinowitz is at it again. He's been getting together some of the Cow leaders to join in a new video podcast hosted by industry-leading experts exploring many of the basic fundamentals and principles that make up this industry. The Multimedia 101 podcast is a "What Is...?" repository of multimedia information, tips and knowledge. If you are just getting started or want to learn more about multimedia, design and production, tune into the Creative Cow Multimedia 101 podcast.

Sneak peek: Officially launching on September 1st, you can sign up now and watch episode one in a sneak peek at this latest addition to the Creative Cow line-up. Don't miss it, it's going to fill in many of the "What is..." questions that even industry professionals have.

Creative COW: Designed to Empower the Creative Mind™

Click here for more information.

HOT INDUSTRY NEWS:

IRIDAS to Unveil SpeedGrade HD at IBC
Video-based Grading and Conform for Mac and Windows
IRIDAS, the industry leader in non-destructive grading technologies, has announced the world-premier of SpeedGrade HD at IBC in Amsterdam, September 8 - 12, 2006. The new application offers real-time primary and secondary color grading capabilities along with EDL conform on the Mac and Windows platforms. MORE

Harris Corporation to Present Technology Seminars at IBC 2006 Training Zone
Harris Corporation today announced that it will be presenting 14 one-hour seminar sessions demonstrating Harris technology leadership in key areas such as Digital Radio, Mobile TV, IPTV and HD during the 2006 International Broadcasting Convention being held September 8-12 in Amsterdam. Aimed at industry professionals who work in all aspects of broadcast, production, post production, mobile and Internet environments, these seminars will be held across all five days of the show and will take place in the Training Zone in Hall 8 at the RAI Convention Centre. MORE

Media 100 Systems Support Apple Intel-based Macs
Media 100 product line to take advantage of the new Intel-based Macs' computing power
Media 100, a leading provider of advanced editing systems for the corporate, broadcast, postproduction, and multi-media industries, today announced that it plans to support the new Apple® Intel-based Macs. Media 100 HD Suite, Media 100 HDe, Media 100 SDe, and Media 100 sw will be qualified for Intel-based Mac systems in early Q1 2007. The Intel-based Mac development effort will increase the overall performance of the Media 100 systems; enhancing the editing and graphics creation process for Media 100 users. MORE

Autodesk Introduces New Versions of its Visual Effects and Editing Systems
Autodesk, Inc. today launched new versions of its visual effects and editing systems: Autodesk Inferno 2007, Autodesk Flame 2007, Autodesk Flint 2007, Autodesk Fire 2007 and Autodesk Smoke 2007. Focusing on connectivity and productivity, these latest versions streamline workflow and provide artists with more time for creativity. The products, which have been used to create breathtaking content for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, X-Men: The Last Stand and Lady in the Water, will be showcased in Amsterdam at the International Broadcasters Convention , Autodesk stand 7-420, from September 8 - 12, 2006. MORE

Canon Introduces Two Additional HDgc Portable High Definition Lenses At IBC 2006
KH16ex5.7 IRSE Lens for 1/2-Inch CCD Cameras and KT20x5B KRS Lens for 1/3-Inch CCD Cameras Expands the HDgc Product Line to Seven Lenses
As the worldwide transition to HDTV continues to accelerate, broadcasters, cable networks, and other video content creators are demanding cost-effective cameras and lenses to produce news and other programming in this new format. In response, leading camera manufacturers have introduced economical, mid-range portable HD cameras, and Canon Broadcast and Communications has developed its revolutionary HDgc line of affordable HD portable lenses. An established leader in high-end HD lens technology, Canon has leveraged the advanced image quality and superior operational capabilities of its eHDxs line of portable lenses to engineer its new line of HDgc lenses, five which were introduced at NAB 2006. MORE

Dolphin Stadium Modernized with Fujinon HD Lenses
Fujinon HD Lenses Produce HD Images For In-Stadium Scoreboard At Marlins, Dolphin, And Super Bowl Games
As part of an extensive upgrade designed to modernize Dolphin Stadium, the in-house video operation was converted from standard definition to high definition . Among the HD video equipment installed was a package of Fujinon HDTV lenses, including one XA101x8.9BESM HD zoom; two XA76x9.3BESM HD zooms; and three HA18x7.6BERM HD ENG-style lenses. MORE

Miraizon Releases Universal Binary Version of Cinematize 2 for Macintosh
Allows users to extract audio and video clips off of any unencrypted DVD and save to QuickTime, iPod and other uses
Miraizon®, a San Jose-based digital media software company, announced today that a Universal Binary version of Cinematize® 2 for Macintosh, the DVD Movie Clip Extractor, is now available. In addition to compatibility with Intel processors, this latest version, Cinematize 2.06, includes additional new features such as preservation of full DVD frame size for MPEG-4 files and the ability to save intermediate files, as well as a few fixes. MORE

Avid customers continue dominance of television's top honors at 58th Annual Emmy Awards
Avid-Edited Shows Garner More Than 60 Nominations across 12 Outstanding Picture Editing and Outstanding Program Categories
Avid Technology, Inc. today announced that customers using its industry-leading postproduction systems received more than 60 nominations across 12 Outstanding Picture Editing and Outstanding Program categories at the 58th Annual Primetime Emmy® Awards. Shows created with one or more Avid® systems were also winners in 11 of the 12 categories and represented a wide range of programming produced for cable and television networks. In addition, the majority of the Emmy-nominated productions deployed collaborative workflows that included a broad range of Avid's industry standard systems, including Media Composer®, Symphony® Nitris®, Avid DS Nitris, and Avid Unity® MediaNetwork. MORE

Zaza gets a NOTION!" to Compose
Award-winning guitarist melds creativity and technology
Award winning guitarist and composer Neil Zaza has just released a new instrumental album, "When Gravity Fails" and utilizes NOTION software as the orchestral backdrop to capture stunning performances with fellow musicians Jordan Rudess, Peter Frampton, Steve Smith, Michael Anthony, Roger Manning Jr., Bob Rock and many others. MORE

RED Microphones Widens Distribution
VintageMicrophone.com acquired by SEMA Capitol Group
RED Microphones announced today that they will begin to widen distribution of their products, making them available to brick and mortar retailers as well as other online music and pro audio dealers. This change in distribution strategy is a result of the acquisition of VintageMicrophone.com by California-based equity firm SEMA Capital Group, Inc. MORE

Stealth Aerial Cameras Equips Its Airborne System With Panasonic's AK-HC1500G Switchable HD POV Camera For Network Coverage Of Premiere Live Events
Stealth Aerial Cameras, LLC , a leader in state-of-the-art aerial HD broadcast coverage, has recently equipped its unique flying camera system with Panasonic's AK-HC1500G 1080i/720p switchable HD point-of-view camera. Having recently debuted the industry's only eight-line, completely redundant aerial camera system, Stealth Aerial Cameras exclusively flies with the HC1500G, and has already used the camera for coverage of pre-season NFL Games. MORE

Apple & Creative Announce Broad Settlement Ending Legal Disputes Between the Companies
Apple® and Creative Technology, Ltd. today announced a broad settlement ending all legal disputes between the two companies. Apple will pay Creative $100 million for a paid-up license to use Creative's recently awarded patent in all Apple products. MORE

Plextor Announces Blu-ray Disc Drive for North American Market
Burner Records 25GB to 50GB Discs for Removable Data Storage, Computer Backup, and High-Definition Video
Plextor® Corp., a leading developer and manufacturer of high-performance digital media equipment, today announced the October 2006 release of the PX-B900A Blu-ray Disc drive, the first Plextor burner to support the next generation of optical data storage technology. The new multi-function drive, which carries an MSRP of $999.99 USD, comes bundled with a rewritable 25GB BD-RE media disc and a complete software package, including Ulead VideoStudio 10 and InterVideo WinDVD BD. MORE

LifeSize!" Enables Artist Peter Max to Conduct First Virtual Art Exhibition
High Definition Video Communications to Connect Renowned American Artist From Studio in New York City With The Art of Peter Max Gallery in Las Vegas Forum Shops
LifeSize, the high definition video communications company, today announced that LifeSize Room!" is enabling renowned American artist Peter Max to conduct his first-ever virtual exhibition between Max's New York studio and The Art of Peter Max Gallery in The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace Las Vegas. MORE

Artbeats Participates in Avid Back to School 2006 Campaign
Qualified Participants Receive 30% Discount on any Artbeats Collection and a Free Royalty-free Broadcast Quality Clip
Artbeats, a renowned leader in high-quality royalty-free stock footage, today announced its participation in the Avid® 2006 Back to School Industry All-Access campaign. All qualified students who purchase Avid Xpress® Pro Academic, SOFTIMAGE®|XSI® Academic, or Pro Tools® Academic before Sept. 30, 2006, will receive a 30% discount on any Artbeats collection priced USD $399 or higher, and a free broadcast quality clip worth USD $199, both of which will be available for immediate download from Artbeats website. Artbeats extensive library of pristine imagery and high-quality footage is widely used for broadcast, feature films, commercial, multimedia, game development, independent production and more. MORE

Digital Rapids Encodes Content for IBC TV News for Third Year Running
Digital Rapids - a leading developer of scalable solutions for content ingest, encoding, transcoding, protection and delivery - has been chosen to provide encoding and webstreaming services for the IBC TV News web presence for the third consecutive year. Along with partners Datmedia , Digital Rapids will be responsible for the timely encoding and delivery of news stories to the site, both as daily packages and up-to-the-minute web exclusives.In association with the IBC Mobile Zone, now in its second year, Digital Rapids will also be responsible for the encoding of selected stories to 3GPP and MPEG4 formats for download to mobile devices such as 3G cell phones. MORE

Avid Announces Back-to-School Promotional Offer For Students
Avid connects students with industry pros, provides chance for red carpet treatment at high-profile events, and offers deals on third-party products
Avid Technology, Inc., today announced the launch of its Back-to-School promotion - a campaign designed to give students access to the professional video, audio, and 3D character animation tools used by industry pros, at student-friendly prices. Through September 30, 2006, students who purchase Avid Xpress® Pro Academic, Pro Tools® Academic or SOFTIMAGE®|XSI® Academic software and register their product online, will automatically receive Avid's "Industry All-Access Pass." MORE

GenArts Releases Sapphire Plug-ins Version 1.08 For After Effects And Compatible Products
New version features Mac Universal Binary, including FCP 5.1 support
GenArts, Inc., a leading provider of visual effects plug-ins for the film, broadcast and video industries, today announced the immediate availability of Sapphire Plug-ins version 1.08 for After Effects and compatible products. The new version features enhancements for both Mac and Windows platforms. Version 1.08 for Mac adds Universal Binary support for FCP 5.1 and all After Effects compatible host products. The new release will also run under Rosetta and on Power PC Macs for use with applications such as Adobe After Effects that have not yet been compiled specifically for Intel-based Macs. MORE

Cine-tal unveils an Open Architecture Visual Display Processor: eLumaHD!"
Revolutionary system integrates into HD workflow for display and projector calibration, color processing and color system matching.
Cine-tal, a leading developer in image processing, display and collaboration solutions, announces the eLumaHD visual display processor. eLumaHD delivers precision HD monitoring and color management in the digital workflow process for both production and post production environments. MORE

Revolution Stock Media users contribute over 2500 footage files and motion backgrounds in under 3 months
Revolution Stock Media , "the world's first stock footage community," is now being labeled "the fastest growing stock footage community." Since their grand opening in late May, the website's "Producers" have added over 2,500 royalty-free HD and SD footage files, motion backgrounds and 3d animations, and their inventory is growing daily. The website's uploading and approval system has made it possible for video and animation professionals from all over the world to quickly and easily sell their footage and digital creations. MORE

RawFlow Introduces QuickStart P2P Broadcasting Solution; Dramatically Reduces Costs Typical of Live Streaming and Improves Media Quality
RawFlow, a leading provider of live peer-to-peer streaming technology, today announced the release of its QuickStart streaming tool for small and medium sized broadcasters. QuickStart enables anyone who is already streaming live audio or video content online to set up a P2P streaming network in three simple steps, helping to cut bandwidth costs by up to 90 percent. MORE

AlwaysHD is seeking to rapidly expand its High Definition Stock Footage Library and is now paying a submission bonus to any contributor whose footage is approved for sale at AlwaysHD.com
Contributors continue to receive commissions in the amount of 50% of the clip sale price in addition to a $10 per clip bonus for every HD clip submitted and accepted for sale at AlwaysHD.com
AlwaysHD, a stock footage firm that specializes in the sale of High Definition video via its website www.AlwaysHD.com, today announces a promotional incentive to independent producers of HD content. For a limited time, all High Definition Video and CG Animation submissions will be eligible for a one time bonus of $10 per clip should that clip be accepted by AlwaysHD and uploaded to the website for sale. Anyone can register as a video contributor by following the link on the homepage to http://alwayshd.com/shooter_register.php. In addition, each contributor will continue to receive commissions in the amount of 50% of the sales price of their footage every time a clip sells, pursuant to AlwaysHD's standard license agreement. MORE

Avid to Expand Delivery of Content Creation Tools for Apple s Intel-based Macs
Avid Technology, Inc. , today announced its plans to expand the wide range of video and audio content creation solutions that will be available for Intel-based Mac systems, including the new Mac Pro workstation introduced last week at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference . The Avid® Video division expects to deliver new versions of its industry-standard Avid Xpress® Pro and Media Composer® systems for all Intel-based Macs by December. Following the arrival of the new Mac Pro workstation, Avid s Audio Division, Digidesign, expects to release a compatible update to its acclaimed Pro Tools | HD® 7.2 software in September. MORE

Autodesk Introduces Lustre 2007 for Digital Color Grading of Film and Television Content
GPU-accelerated Performance Enables Colors and Lighting to be Shaped in Real Time
Autodesk, Inc. today launched the Autodesk Lustre 2007 digital color grading solution. Lustre has shaped hundreds of films, including King Kong, Clerks II and the upcoming films Macbeth and The Black Dahlia. There is also growing demand for specialized digital grading tools like Lustre in the TV industry and for films shot in high definition . MORE

Sonic Enables New High Definition Capable Computers
Roxio Digital Media Software Brings Blu-ray Disc Recording to the PC Market
Sonic Solutions® , the leader in digital media software, today announced that its Roxio® digital media software for Blu-ray Disc has been selected by Sony to power BD data-burning capabilities for two new VAIO® computers -- the AR notebook and RC desktop. MORE

For more industry news, visit the COW News & Press Releases forum at:
http://forums.creativecow.net/cgi-bin/new_view_posts.cgi?forumid=105

Creative Cow Magazine is drawing high praise from Creative Cow members around the world. It's free to qualified subscribers and takes just a minute or two to sign up. There's even a PDF edition for those international members who would ordinarily be left out in the cold. So join the tens of thousands of Creative Cow members who have already signed up for Creative Cow Magazine. It's filled with content that is exclusive to the magazine and you won't find these stories and articles in the Cow until months after they appear in the magazine. Join the cutting edge of the Cow and sign up today.

PS: Yes, due to doctor's orders, the new issue is behind schedule but is about done. The doctor insisted I take a vacation and so I did. To avoid delays in the future, we are bringing aboard a new co-publisher who will shortly be announced. He will join us for the third issue that is slated foir year's end. Sorry for the delay and thank you for your understanding.

Click here for more information.