Designed to make cropping photos in Paint Shop Pro easier, this tool performs calculations to make sure you get accurate crops for standard photo sized prints. Both North American (4x6, 5x7, 8x10) and European( A4, A5, A6) sizes are supported, in addition to any custom sizes you set in the program's options pane. FotoCrop's selection constraints work with both the PSP selection and cropping tools, although setting the print area only works in conjunction with the selection tool. Tested for both Win2k and Windows XP, FotoCrop should work with most Windows operating systems. [Windows 2k/XP $0.00]
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Reduce pixilation when you magnify images or portions of images. The Bicubic and Bilinear Interpolations built into Photoshop and other similar imaging editors start blurring and pixilating images when they are magnified much beyond 150-200%. This plugin uses a proprietary Interpolation method that allows you to enlarge images by as much as 400% with marginal pixilation. Preview your magnification before you commit, making it easy to optimize your images to their maximum size before committing to the resize. [Windows 9x/2k/XP $49.95]
Given the opportunity, I'd spend all day doing nothing but watching DVDs and writing about them. I couldn't tell you where this year's Survivor is taking place (or if there is a Survivor this year), but the chances that I watched a movie released on DVD in the last week are very high. I'm always watching the new release listings on Web sites and directly from the various studios, hoping to find obscure stuff that tells a good story. digitally OBSESSED covers a wide range of genres, offering reviews and news, not to mentioning offering some downloads that are useful in improving the DVD experience for both Mac and PC movie fanatics.
Have you come up with a perfect configuration for making a particular effect? Share it with the world using FilterMeister, a tool for creating Photoshop compatible filters. Include things like mouseovers, gamma correction, sound effects, and tons of other features that will let you distribute your filters royalty free, without the challenge of programming your own effects completely from scratch. A selection of tips and tutorials is available on the Web to get you up and running quickly, as well as a user discussion list for getting assistance from other FilterMeister users. [W9x/2k/XP $24.95]
Not only will this application find files you accidentally overwrote during a reformat, or the ones you deleted "by accident," you'll also uncover photos you really did intentionally delete sometime in the past. I was amazed to discover some of the photos I took several months back, still completely intact. Another thing I like about this product is availability for both Windows and Mac OS X users - especially since I qualify as both. Essentially, this app allows you to recover files you thought were destroyed, from SmartMedia, CompactFlash, Memory Sticks, and Microdrives. In many cases, you'll also be able to recover files from other types of physical drives as well. A preview window allows you to decide which found images you want to keep, before you actually rescue them from your media. Geared more specifically toward JPEG and TIFF images, PhotoRescue will recover most common image file types. [9x/NT/W2k/XP $29]
Image Doctor, a set of image-retouching filters, removes blemishes and defects, repairs over-compressed JPEGs, and replaces unwanted details and objects. Professional and amateur photographers, photo editors, service bureaus, graphic designers, and Web designers can restore, retouch, repair and reclaim their images more quickly using Image Doctor. The interface is quite easy to navigate, and although this is quite a departure from the usual special effects stuff the Alien Skin crew puts out, the quality is outstanding as always. If you need professional quality retouching, this plugin will do the trick without wiping out your wallet. [Windows 9x/2k/XP Mac OS X 10.2.x $129]
Run Time: 131 minutes
Director: Chris Columbus
Starring: Robin Williams
DVD Release: May 6, 2003
Rating: PG
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Possibly one of Robin Williams more underrated performances, Bicentennial Man is a story of human understanding, as told through the eyes of an android. Based on the Isaac Asimov story of the same name, Bicentennial Man tracks the 200 years that make up the "life" of Andrew, a robot put into service to assist the Martin family. The Martins discover Andrew is "flawed," in that he exhibits characteristics that border on human. The movie traces Andrew's quest to foster his human qualities and search for other android beings like him. Through Andrew's own search for humanity, we are reminded what it means to be human. If you're a fan of Asimov's stories, or a looking for a more cerebral sci-fi story, compared to most of the genre, this is a definite must view movie.
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Three different sets of plugins are available here. Volume I assists in editing the transparency data of images, and could be a little more intuitive. Volume II features a variety of textures for your images, and is probably the best of the three offerings, with a slick looking 3D interface. Volume III has some image editing basics and a 3D creation tool that's worth some consideration. While I found Volume I to be quite confusing, the other two volumes are a worthy addition to any image editing arsenal. All three plugins are compatible with Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro and other Photoshop compatible photo editors. [Windows 9x/2k/XP $0.00]
Stereo echo that works the way you do - in beat divisions, not milliseconds. As a drummer, I can subdivide a beat into all kinds of phrases, but I've never think of rhythm in fractions of a second; I think of rhythm in terms of the way it subdivides the beat. This stereo echo lets you apply the same concept. Forget about guessing how many milliseconds will accomplish the phrasing you want and use a measure that makes sense. This plugin also includes high and low pass filtering. The plugin works in any VST compatible app, like Audacity, Adobe Audition, Cakewalk Sonar, etc.
Run Time: 229 minutes
Director: Sergio Leone
Starring: Robert De Niro, James Woods, Joe Pesci, Jennifer Connelly, Elizabeth McGovern
DVD Release: September 23, 2003
Rating: R
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You will either love this movie as a masterpiece of cinema, or hate it for the sheer length of the story. Originally released in US theaters at a mere 139 minutes, this epic 229 minute story of Jewish immigration to the United States, as told by an aging Jewish gangster, will test the water retention limits of even the most determined camel. All jokes about length aside, if you enjoy gangster movies, this uncut version of Once Upon a Time in America should be part of your home collection. The story (especially the flashbacks) is compelling, painting a different picture of New York than we've seen in other Hollywood epics. Commentary by Richard Schickel is also quite enlightening, but should definitely not be engaged the same day you watch the DVD for the first time.
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