So, And Thus...

New - Digital Performer 7

My favorite audio workstation software goes to version 7!

MOTU.com - New in DP 7.0

New Features (from Mac Music):

• Custom '59 - A meticulously detailed guitar amp emulator modeled after all-time classics from Fender® and Marshall®.
• Live Room | G - A superb physical modeling speaker cabinet emulator with four mixable mics (close, near and far) and 3-band EQ per mic.
• Guitar pedals - A new suite of stunningly accurate classic guitar pedals modeled after all-time favorites from Boss®, Ibanez® & others.
• Inline EQ & dynamics - Control DP's multi-band graphic EQ and vintage dynamics processing directly in each Mixing Board channel.
• Channel Strip - Gain instant access to all mixer channel settings for the track you are working on in any Editor window.
• Lead sheets - Create and print lead sheets, complete with lyrics and transposable chord symbols.
• Freely resizable Counter - Resize the Counter window to any size you wish, even the entire width of your screen.
• Marker Counter - Display markers in large type in the resizable Counter window. Use markers as a teleprompter for lyrics during live performance or recording sessions.
• Consolidated V-Racks - Display V-Rack virtual instruments and effects side by side with disk tracks in the Mixing Board.
• Lyrics - Type in lyrics directly below notes on the QuickScribe page. Or paste them into the Lyric window from your word processor and flow them into a track with one click.
• Transposable chord symbols - Add complex chord symbols directly on the page and transpose them at any time, together with or independently from notes.
• QuickScribe notation enhancements - Numerous enhancements give you even more control over the look of your score and help speed your notation workflow.
• Support for Pro Tools 8 - Industry-leading support for operation as a complete software front-end for Pro Tools | HD systems.
• Info Bar mixer controls - Get instant access to mixer channel settings in any editor window that follow the track you're working on.
• Next-generation sample rate conversion - A new ultra-fast, CPU-efficient sample rate conversion algorithm delivers increased precision, efficiency, and transparency, with an astonishing 138 dB signal-to-noise ratio.
• Real-time crossfades - All crossfades are now computed in real time for lightning fast edits.
• Wave64 support - Support for the industry standard Wave64 extension to the Broadcast WAVE file format lets you record and import audio files larger than 4GB.
• Range automation modes - Raise, lower or write automation moves within any selected range, preserving everything before and after.
• Audio Units instrument side chains - Route side chain inputs to all your favorite third-party Audio Units plug-ins.

AT&T - Free Calls To Your Top 5

"A-List" starts on September 20th.

AT&T debuts A-List free calling program on Sep. 20 | iPhone | iPhone Central | Macworld

Do you find yourself calling the same people over and over again, burning through your wireless minutes like a rock star trashing a hotel suite? In that case, you very well might be a prime candidate for AT&T’s forthcoming A-List plan (especially if you are a rock star). A free addition to qualifying AT&T wireless plans, A-List allows you to make free calls to five cell phone or landline numbers of your choice.

Similar in concept to T-Mobile’s myFaves, the A-List program means that any calls you make to the numbers you designate—which you’ll be able to control by visiting AT&T’s Web site—will not deplete your store of minutes. Since those minutes are unusued, they’ll roll over along with the rest of your unused minutes into your next month’s balance.

I find that I use my iPhone more for internet stuff than for making phone calls. Maybe this will change things?

Report Handicapped Parking Space Violations

This little iPhone application may just satisfy some of those "I wish I were a cop" moments I frequently have. I can't wait to use it!

An iPhone App to Report People Parked in Handicapped Parking Spaces « Art of the iPhone

HFOrg (free, iTunes link) is an iPhone app for reporting illegally parked cars in handicapped spaces. To report an incident, simply open the app and enter the date, time, license plate number, placard number (if applicable), and a photo. The info will be added to the HandicappedFraud.org website and database, which are accessed by law enforcement across the country.

Disney To Buy Marvel Entertainment

Does this mean we're going to see Spider-Mouse?!

AP News | Culpeper Star-Exponent

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The Walt Disney Co. said Monday it is buying Marvel Entertainment Inc. for $4 billion in cash and stock, bringing such characters as Iron Man and Spider-Man into the family of Mickey Mouse and WALL-E.

Under the deal, Disney will acquire ownership of 5,000 Marvel characters. Many of them, including the Fantastic Four and the X-Men, were co-created by the comic book legend Stan Lee.

Analyst David Joyce of Miller Tabak & Co. said the acquisition will help Disney appeal to young men who have flocked to theaters to see Marvel's superhero fare in recent years. That contrasts with Disney's recent successes among young women with such fare as "Hannah Montana" and the Jonas Brothers.

"It helps Disney add exposure to a young male demographic it had sort of lost some balance with," Joyce said, noting the $4 billion offer was at "full price."

Snow Leopard Out on August 28

I can't wait!

Apple to release Snow Leopard on August 28 | Mac OS X | Macworld

The wait for Snow Leopard is over: on Monday, Apple announced that the latest version of its Mac OS X operating system would be available starting Friday, August 28. The company had previously said that the update would ship in September, but speculation intensified that it would ship earlier than anticipated after a glitch on Apple’s Web site late last week.

First announced at Apple’s 2008 Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple later confirmed that the update would bring performance enhancements, under-the-hood improvements, and feature refinements instead of focusing on brand new capabilities.

Spider-Woman

I have been obsessed with Spider-Woman ever since I was a kid. She is one of my all-time favorite comic book characters, probably because she looks so sassy in her costume.

Her new series will start in September! Here's a look at the Alex Ross' artwork for the cover of the first issue.



Yes, I have already ordered the series (and Marvel, PLEASE don't do a lot of cross-over stories!).

To help kick-off the new series, Marvel is presenting Spider-Woman as their first Motion Comic. You can find it on iTunes.

Marvel Motion Comics | Spider-Woman

Spider-woman Trailer

Jessica Drew is back on Earth. But what's left of her life? Take a peek at what's in store for the SPIDER-WOMAN Marvel Motion Comics series right here. One of the most highly anticipated series in Marvel history, the SPIDER-WOMAN Motion Comic by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev will make its world premiere at San Diego Comic-Con.

I'm so glad they kept her costume from the 70s!

TomTom for iPhone

Arriving at destination, on left:

TomTom releases turn-by-turn navigation app for US and Canada | Software | iPhone Central | Macworld

TomTom's long-awaited turn-by-turn navigation app for the iPhone, TomTom U.S. & Canada (iTunes link), is now available on the US iTunes App Store.

The $100 app, first announced during June's WWDC keynote, uses the iPhone's built-in GPS circuitry to provide real-time, turn-by-turn navigation. The app is based on the same software used by TomTom's standalone GPS units and includes features such as IQ Routes and points of interest. Unlike AT&T's Navigator app, which requires a monthly service fee, TomTom's app is a one-time purchase, although you'll presumably be able to purchase updated maps in the future. (Macworld covered TomTom for iPhone in depth last month.)

I don't need TomTom since I already have a GPS unit in my car, but I love the idea of having this on my iPhone.

New Apple Final Cut Studio

New software for my holiday video! Of course, I could use a new camera too.

Apple releases new Final Cut Studio | Apple - CNET News

Apple introduced on Thursday a new version of Final Cut Studio, the company's high-end video production suite.

The suite comes with six applications in all, including Final Cut Pro 7, Motion 4, Soundtrack Pro 3, Color 1.5, Compressor 3.5 and DVD Studio Pro 4. Most of the work in this release was spent on the flagship app of the suite, Final Cut Pro.

In Final Cut Pro 7, editors have the ability to edit faster with the help of three new ProRes versions. Users can now choose ProRes 422 (Proxy) for offline editing; ProRes 422 (LT) for projects that require reduced file sizes at broadcast quality; and ProRes 4444 for compositing and digital workflows that require the highest-possible quality.
...

A redesigned Change Speed window lets you make speed changes without rippling the sequence and a new Share window gives you more control over exporting your content for Apple devices, the Web, a Blu-ray disc, or a DVD.

Apple's 3D application, Motion 4 allows you to add reflections and shadows that respond to lights and objects as they pass through the 3D space, according to Apple. Motion also includes new text and titling tools, including an Adjust Glyph tool that lets you distort a single character.
...

Final Cut Studio is available for $999 and requires an Intel Mac. Current Final Cut Studio owners can purchase an upgrade for $299.

I love this suite. I just used 3 of these programs last night for a project. Apple really knows how to make powerful programs with simple interfaces. The only program of the suite that doesn't look "simple" is Color (I believe Apple purchased this from another developer) . I was hoping this version would have made Color a little more "Apple" but it doesn't look that way.

Finally...What we've all been waiting for!

A chair that photocopies your butt!  As long as it comes with a reduction setting - I'll take one!

h/t The Daily What

Margaret And Helen

I love their blog!

They have been friends for 60 years. Helen's grandson put together this blog so both Margaret and Helen could keep in touch (one lives in Texas, the other in Maine). 80 year old bloggers!

Here's an excerpt from one of their recent posts regarding the death of Michael Jackson:

The Appreciation or Depreciation of Michael Jackson « Margaret and Helen

Watching all this mad-dash coverage, it occurs to me that if you tore him down in life then it’s a tad bit hypocritical for you to now prop him up in death. Did I mention Joe Jackson was a piece of work? But we seem to be evolving into a nation of hypocrites. And as someone who believes evolution should be taught in school, I am more than a little worried about this evolutionary cycle.

If it were up to me, I would establish a few rules right about now regarding hypocrisy. Something along the lines of:

• If you’re Michael Jackson’s father now is not the time to be enjoying the limelight.
• You can’t be Pro-Life and Pro-War at the same time. If one of these dispositions has to be in your cadre, then pick one and live with the consequences.
• You can’t deny the right to marry to some and then cheat on your spouse. The right to happily marry belongs to all no mater how unhappy it makes you.
• You can’t tolerate the atrocities of one President for eight years and then assign the consequences to one who follows. From this day forward everything was Reagan’s fault.
• The Christian Right should be forced to spend a week in Iran. May the best radicals win.
• The Real Housewives should actually be housewives.