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Filecrate Remote File Backup

The backup system you have working — in this case automatic, off-site file backup — is the system which will save your business some day. This one is very good.

Read Mark Goldstein's full review!

Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 & Premiere Elements 8

A common organizer, auto-analyze, powerful JPG and RAW processing and wonderful video production make it a tough act to beat.

Read Howard Carson's full review!

Digital Photography Books to Kick Off 2010

Camera makers should dump their dense, boring user manuals in favor of Busch's guides. There's more including WordPress, photo tools, blogging.

Read Howard Carson's reviews!

Rolling, Medium Size, Carry-On Camera Cases

Carrying too many bodies and lenses? Probably. Something sturdy, secure and carry-on compatible is needed.

Read Howard Carson's full review!

Uniblue DriverScanner 2009

When the latest Windows update mangles a video card or network card driver, think about how nice it would be to have a really good driver updater.

Read Mark Goldstein's full review!

Think Tank Urban Disguise 35

Think Tank Photo seems bent on making itself the gold standard in pro camera bags. Is this shoulder bag one of the most versatile ever?

Read Howard Carson's full review!

Handy Folders v3.5

Productivity and organization fall flat when they run into the rather limited Windows file explorer. Fast access to regularly used folders is easier than you think.

Read Mark Goldstein's full review!

Think Tank Shape Shifter Photography Backpack

Medium size photo/laptop backpacks come and go. The best stay with us for years. This is one of the best we've seen.

Read Mark Goldstein's full review!

Think Tank Airport AirStream Rolling Camera Bag

If you travel with more than a shoulder bag full of gear, you need something that will protect the load and make it easy to go places.

Read Howard Carson's full review!

Think Tank Skin Set Modular Component Camera Gear Carry System

Pros know that if you don't get the shot, you're out of business. Tough, crowded, fast moving situations require special solutions.

Read Jack Reikel's full review!

Crumpler Six Million Dollar Home Camera Shoulder Bag

Crumpler is a bag maker which insists on being different. Care and attention to detail help create wonderful photography products.

Read Howard Carson's full review!

Think Tank Urban Disguise 40 Camera Bag

The mid-size entry in the Urban Disguise series provided us with enough incentive to physically beat it up and overstress it. The bag took it all.

Read Howard Carson's full review!

Think Tank Urban Disguise 30 Camera Bag

There are camera bags and then there are Think Tank camera bags. Lots of competition means better products. Think Tank is at the top of its game.

Read Howard Carson's full review!

Nik Color Efex Pro 3

The best Photoshop plug-ins get better because the developers listen to end users. Nik Software listens. Digital photographers are demanding sophisticated processing effects.

Read Mario Georgiou's full review!

ION Slide2PC Scanner

If you've got boxes full of old 35mm slides and negatives, it's probably time to start scanning before everything falls apart, gets lost, or gets soaked in a flood.

Read Mario Georgiou's full review!

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TetherBerry v1.0.7

Connect a laptop to the Internet, anywhere you've got cell phone service, through your BlackBerry's data connection and avoid some really crazy per-megabyte carrier charges

HTC Touch Diamond Smartphone

HTC has steadily grabbed more market share by regularly turning out superb smartphones offering slick designs wrapped around great features

The Ultimate HTML Reference

A concise desktop reference guide for all standard, W3C-compliant HTML, which uniquely also includes browser compatibility charts for each element

UpStrap Shoulder Strap for SLR & Prosumer Cameras

Superb quality, purpose-built SLR and prosumer camera shoulder strap that's made in the U.S. and made to last

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

PluggedIn Beta May Be A Waste Of Time For UK Users

Ars Technica have covered a new music video site called PluggedIn which offers HD and High Quality Music Videos. I was intrigued by this so I joined ... I found it a nice looking site, except for the fact that it is a complete waste of time for anyone in the UK as far as I can tell, because every video I click on tells me "oops, The content is not licensed for distribution outside the US and Canada." There might be content which works, but so far I haven't found it.

What kind of nonsense is that? Oh yeah, I forgot it probably has something to do territorial distribution rights or licensing agreements, I guess. I clicked on Amy Winehouse, (who is a British artist by the way), and was told the same thing.

The problem is that sites like this should be smart enough to filter out content by territory and only show that which is available in the territory from which the visitor comes. Not hard to do when they ask you to enter most of the relevant details in the membership page.

Companies like PluggedIn should be a lot smarter in their implementation of their concepts and also start thinking in a truly global fashion rather than territorially. Get with the times folks ... stop wasting my time with ill conceived and poorly implemented websites.

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posted by Mario Georgiou at 6:54 PM

Monday, April 30, 2007

BBC To Go On-Demand with iPlayer

The BBC is tio launch an on-demand media service which will allow viewers to catch up on TV programs for up to a week after airing, and to also be able to download some series for up to 30 days. The new iPlayer system went through a trail period during January of this year in which 10,500 individuals and organizations participated in a test of the service.
iPlayer users will be able to catch up with selected BBC programming from the previous seven days, and store programming on their computer for up to 30 days. As a fan of some of the bbc's programming I'm looking forward to what this has to offer...

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posted by Mario Georgiou at 3:59 PM

Monday, April 16, 2007

Yet Another Media Player...

Microsoft announce yet another browser plug-in for playing media. Silverlight promises all that Flash has and more . . . OK . . . I'm really not holding my breath on this one. When will these guys wake up and realize people don't need more confusion but simplification of the software and solutions they use for accessing the internet? I have one question — will Silverlight work on all platforms, including Mobile and PPC, or am I going to be pulling my hair out when I want to have media I can readily transport? And what about DRM? Is this yet another vehicle to annoy me and countless others when we try to use media we have paid for fairly, on more than one device?

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posted by Mario Georgiou at 3:15 PM



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