SmartSound for FCP

SmartSound has released their plug-in for Final Cut Pro that allows Smartsound to see open FCP projects, including all the different sequences, and import markers from that timeline into SmartSound to make the process of adding music to your project a breeze.

The demo from Larry Jordan is up on the SmartSound web site and we’ve got it for you here as well.

AJA io -or- PMW-EX30 dilemma.

Do I buy:

  A 17″ laptop ($3,000), eSATA ExpressCard adaptor ($100),
external hard drives ($400), and an AJA ioHD ($2,800) to record
a live switch 1920x1080i60 SDI feed to ProRes 422…

or

A Sony PMW-EX30 XDCAM EX deck ($4,000) to record
a 30 Mbps 1920x1080i60 VBR stream to flash media?

NAB Marketing 102. Spaghetti

The urban myth is – you find out if spaghetti is done by taking  a piece and throwing it at the wall to see if it sticks.

However, one of the tips we shot for Healthy Flavors‘ “Mythbusters” show, explains this to be false, but it hasn’t stopped companies from trying the same tactic: when you don’t know what to make, make all kinds of things, throw it at the market, and see what sticks.

Is this a good idea?

Smaller, More Powerful Computers.

As computing becomes ever more powerful, and “Netbooks” offer mobile computing power on the road with low-power chips, diminutive boxes with powerhouse capabilities are not only inevitable- they’re already here. While home theatre machines may be a “hobby” to some electronics companies, others are taking it seriously and offering some horsepower under the hood…

ProRes – defined.

Gary Adcock has an excellent overview of Apple’s ProRes codec over at the Pro Video Coalition site.

Not only does he discuss concatenation tests where he runs the same clip through compression and re-compression some 10 or 100 times, he also uncovers a bit of interesting results about how the higher-compression ProRes is actually easier to work with than ProRes(HQ). 

Apple Delivers. Or maybe not.

Today, Apple has again demonstrated their incomparable ability to not listen to their customers– the customers that purchase their computing products.

Today was the day, for all those who have been clamoring for years for more choice and for more options in the number of desktop products, Today was the day that Apple delivered not one, but two models. Not new but the same models they already had, and have had for more than four long years. (equivalent to 20 human years)

Many expected, hoped, pleaded that Apple would finally add a mid-size machine into the center of their computer product line. 

Switching from Mac to PC. How?

As regular readers know, I use a Mac. But the lack of a midrange model really has me fuming and I need a machine that does the job, at a price that doesn’t kick the buyer in the face.

I received a brochure for Dell the other day which showed off a nice little quad-core machine for pittance compared to a quad core Mac Pro. I could upgrade the dual internal drives to 1 TB drives, drop in a Blu-ray burner and, with Adobe CS4, I could be editing and burning HD video with aplomb, compared to standing around with my thumb up my Mac ass waiting for Steve Jobs to get past his “bag of hurt” feelings and make Blu-ray authoring on the Mac a reality.

But what sort of machine should I get?

The “Pro” Laptop… Has Arrived.

It’s one thing for small boutique electronic shops to build “gaming” laptops that feature some serious horsepower (and usually some honkin’ big external power supplies to match.)

But now Lenovo has taken the ThinkPad to the next level with the W700. This is big in two ways- first, Lenovo already has an “in” with every major corporation that already uses ThinkPad laptops, secondly, the sheer mass of common parts makes this a cost-effective evolution for them.

This laptop is what any “Pro” laptop ought to be– built from the ground up to kick some computing arse.

Apple MobileMess

This week, Tech pundit David Pogue make some excellent points about Apple’s new endeavor to provide Microsoft “Exchange for the rest of us” with Apple’s new MobileMe service. Not only did they give former .Mac subscribers the option to NOT take part in this new service and keep other service that are no longer offered, but Apple has had interminable problems with the new service.

The worst part is, however, the cold shoulder that Apple gives to those who get screwed.

The Next HD Hurdle: Live Video Mixers

While HDV and the move to HD have produced some truly amazing cameras— even in the consumer arena— compared to what was available for many tens of thousands of dollars just 10 years ago, those of us who regularly produce live shows are facing a new hurdle: expensive HD switchers.