Reviews, tutorials and news (previously: IT Enquirer)
Roxio once again has upgraded their optical media burning app for the Mac, Toast, and added some nifty and useful features in version 17. Obsolete, I hear you say? Not in a million years, at least not when you’re using M-Discs to record your valuable data. Toast 17 is a 64-bit app and it heavily focuses on what still is a booming market: video.
Currently available for Final Cut Pro X, ColorSynth is an elaborate pre-wired network of colour processing nodes. The colour grading tool which is based on Final Cut Pro X’s Effect and Title Generator paradigm has more than 60 items arranged in an 8-layer stack with several sublayers. ColorSynth is touted as having all the features and the power of Da Vinci Resolve and FilmLight’s Baselight while the interface should be simpler than the one that comes with those tools.
iZotope’s VocalSynth is a plug-in that helps you improve vocal productions, but you can just as well use it to get Dr. Who’s Daleks sound a bit more human. Of course, you can also use it to create a signature sound like Cher’s and in tandem with the Neutron plug-in’s Visual Mixer, you can create sounds that are truly unique.
A light meter is an essential tool for serious photographers and filmmakers. The most useful ones not only measure the level of light and translate it into an f-stop, exposure time or ISO value, but also tell you colour characteristics. They will also measure the bursts of light emitted by a strobe or a speed-light. Light meter apps that integrate with a hardware add-on for your iOS or Android device are potentially as accurate as the most expensive light meters and just as flexible and feature-complete. In this category, about a year ago, the Lumu Power was released and it did not disappoint. Now, only a month or so ago, Illuminati Instruments released its Illuminati Light Meter and that one is a real winner.
Path Finder 8 is the new version of the Finder replacement Cocoatech first released many, many years ago. The major big new thing in version 8 is modules and the way they are organised and used. Everything else in this release is related to modules. Doesn’t that sound disappointing? Well, it did to me and if it did to you as well, read on, because it really doesn’t.
The sensitive information manager 1Password has been given an important upgrade. 1Password 7 now has even more powerful security features and together with an even more user-friendly interface, the app is nothing short of a winner. It’s one of only a very few must-have apps.
It’s been a while since the developers of Ulysses, one of the best text/markdown editors for the Mac, decided to migrate their owner-based licence to a subscription model. Since then, Ulysses has seen regular updates, but no upgrades. Ulysses 13 is the first upgrade, meaning its version number before the decimal point increases by one. The question is whether it’s an update or an upgrade.
The T4 Thunderbolt 3 is CalDigit’s newest RAID storage solution. Except for the Thunderbolt 3 interface, the new T4 comes with a DisplayPort that allows you to connect to any monitor with a resolution of up to 4K@60Hz. It also has the ability to charge an attached laptop through the Thunderbolt 3 port with up to 85W of power.
Media Asset Management application KeyFlow Pro 2 has been released. It has several new features, such as the capability to import transcript files as notes into Annotations, manual database backup and synchronisation support, and the ability to recreate a preview video with different resolutions and bitrates.
Animation for anything from presentations to games and goofy Youtube movies is possible with CrazyTalk Animator 3. This, the developer says, is the world's easiest 2D animation software that enables all levels of users to create professional animations with the least amount of effort, and I agree – up to a point.
