It has now been two years since Adobe last released a new version of Photoshop Elements for the Mac. The release PSE 6 at the end of March 2008, skipping an entire version number (5) marks the long awaited switch to an Intel-native version. So, did Adobe get it right?
Category: Macintosh
Another One Bites the Dust – Hard Drive Failure
EyeTV 3 – Review
For those that aren’t familiar with EyeTV it is software that turns your Mac into a DVR with the proper hardware (I use a Miglia MicroTV). At Macworld EyeTV 3 was released, with a bunch of new features. Are the new features worth the price to upgrade? This review might help you decide.
Fluid Mask 3 – Review
The true sign of Photoshop trickery is the use of the selection tools to cut objects out of a photo, place them on a separate layer and then isolate them from the background. Recognizing this, Vertus offers Fluid Mask as a way for ordinary mortals to achieve professional results.
Doozla – Review
There was a time when Kid Pix was the only good option for a kid’s paint program. Well, times are changing. In the past year I have had the chance to review several new options to the market, and 2008 brings another worthy choice. Doozla by Plasq (the makers of Comic Life and Skitch) is a fantastic new paint program for children.
Review – Carbon Copy Cloner & SuperDuper
Being short on coin is no longer a valid excuse for not backing up regularly. Carbon Copy Cloner from Bombich Software and SuperDuper from Shirt Pocket Software are two inexpensive but capable backup utilities that will help you keep more of your cash—and all of your data.
Canon Pixma iP4500 – Printer Review
Canon labels the Pixma iP4500 as a premium photo and document printer, and when I bought it in early January my main purchasing criteria was high quality photo prints and the ability to print on DVDs and CDs.
CrashPlan
Review
Let’s get this out of the way immediately: Using the word “crash” in the name of a backup solution for your critical data is bound to bring on a serious case of bad karma. So I salute the Code 42 folks for having the chutzpah to tell it like it is when it came to bestowing a name on their ingenious backup software.
Timeline 2.0
Review
Creating an illustrated timeline on your computer, or even by hand, can be a very time consuming process. Timeline, by Bee Documents is a program that aims to simplify this process and save you a lot of time. (No pun intended.)
StockLayouts Graphic Design Templates
Review
I’ve been a designer/art director for over 20 years. Having worked in more then a few advertising agencies and publishing companies, I think I know my way around the design world a bit. That said I was rather surprised at the quality of the graphic design templates offered at StockLayouts.com.
Bookendz Docking Station for 13†MacBook
Review
Today’s portable Macs are as fully featured and functional as any desktop machine – in fact, parts of the Mac desktop line-up have embraced the design and implementation of the portable systems – the Mac Mini is a MacBook in a desktop case! Accordingly, many people have a MacBook or a MacBook Pro as their only Mac. Enter the Bookendz Docking Station for 13†MacBook!
Hog Bay Software
Review
One of the things I rapidly grew to love about the Mac platform when I came to it from Windows was the vibrant software coding scene. Windows has a lot of shareware, but much of it is poorly written, poorly maintained and written in such a way that it all looks the same.
Image Doctor 2
Review
Adobe Photoshop is a standard for image editing. It has a lot of great tools for making a good picture great, or even a lousy picture a lot better. However, there are times when the tools in Photoshop are not enough, or are not fast enough. Image Doctor 2 by Allen Skin Software aims to help with those times when you need more than Photoshop can offer.
iMage USB Webcam
Review
I use a G4 PPC MDD 867 dual with 1.5 gigs of ram…and no iSight camera. I wanted one but figured that the price would come down fairly quick but the next thing I knew, gone! So there I’ve been, looking at the assortment of cameras that Window’s folks have but never seeing Mac compatible on the box. I know, I know, I could buy one and then purchase IOXperts Webcam Driver for Mac OS X but I thought that was just a bit much paying for a Windows webcam and then having to purchase a driver to let me use it.
Read MoreNeed for Speed Carbon
Game Review
A great racing game on the Macintosh? Am I dreaming? No, and thanks to EA, those with a Need, a Need For Speed, can now get it on an Intel Macintosh.
Flip Boom
Review
Are you looking for an inexpensive, traditional style, animation program for you? Are your kids interested in creating animated cartoons? Are you a teacher looking for a great animation program for your class? If so, Flip Boom, by Toon Boom Animation, Inc is worth looking into.
Klix
Review
Klix is a utility that recovers photos from digital cameras and memory cards. Klix can’t recover digital image files that have been partially or completely overwritten, but that caveat aside, Klix provides a quick and easy way to bring lost files back.
Create a Media Browser Using Automator
If you haven’t noticed yet, each of Apple’s main creative suite applications including iMovie, iDVD, Address Book, Keynote, Pages, Numbers, and now, Mail’s Stationery feature, includes a photo browser whereby you can access photos stored and managed in your iPhoto and Aperture libraries.
Painter Essentials 4
Review
Painter Essentials is to Painter what Photoshop Elements is to Photoshop. It is what I would call the “slimmed†down version of Painter, but still fully usable. Just like Painter, Essentials is a natural media painting program that allows the user to paint and draw on the computer with tools he/she might use in “real life.†Also, like Painter X (which I reviewed earlier this year), Painter Essentials 4 is packed with great new features.
Adobe Illustrator CS3
Review
Graphic Designers have very little choice today in vector drawing programs, but the undisputed champion is Adobe’s Illustrator. CS3 is the thirteenth version of the program. Does it move ahead in innovation, stability (a big problem with the CS2 version) or just the version number? Read Tim Robertson’s review to find out.