Flash Passes Quicktime gaining on WMP

Flash is quickly becoming the top media player of choice for many important companies such as the New York Times. The adavatages include speed of loading, and cross platform compatibility which is a growing concern. By putting something WMV file you are limiting the amount of people who can view that file and if you are a business that relies on reaching as many people as possible this becomes an issue. To quote the article "Part of the appeal of Flash has been its cross-platform availability. Although it is a proprietary product, the Flash Player can be found for Windows, Mac, and Linux users. It got a head start on QuickTime, which works on Macs and Windows PCs, and Real, which runs on all three operating systems."

Personally I think with the growing useability of flash and ease of uploading we will see a major shift from traditional media players to flash based ones. However I don't think that we will limit the cross platform issues completely because companies like microsoft want people to solely use their products so I'm sure they will find a way to use flash technology and still make it so you have to use windows media.

Mac fans clamor for 'iPhone'

Original Article


Since the introduction of the iPod, Apple has sold over 67 million units world wide and dominated the market for portable media devices. And now Apple may be setting up for a release of the long rumored Apple cellular phone iPhone next year.

However when asked about the rumored product, Apple did not comment.

If Apple does release a cell phone with the features of an ipod and cell phone, they may be the first company to successfully create and sell the idea. Motorola released a cell phone with a simplified version of itunes but was quickly dismissed as consumers found that the phone could only hold 100 songs.

With a strong base of iPod dedicated consumers Apple should be able to create a realistic hype for their phone and easily market it. The future does indeed look bright for the Californian company.

PS3

http://www.wired.com/news/culture/games/0,72137-0.html?tw=wn_technology_10



All day we have been posting stories, rehashes, articles and news on Sony PlayStation 3 pre-launch in america, well it is officially 12 midnight on the east coast and Playstation 3 is officially out.
What does this mean, this means many things it is a day to be remembered. PlayStation 3 has joined the ranks of XBox 360 in the next generation race, leaving only one system to launch Wii on sunday. On sunday Playstation 2, XBox, and Gamecube all officially become past generation and what we have been calling "next gen" becomes current gen.
Long lines, preorder chaos, endless waiting, mouth watering graphics, gentle let downs, huge pickme ups, and happy buyers is what this day is all about. This is the beginning of a new chapter in the PlayStation book all across America those who lay there hand on the scarce 200,000 PlayStation 3’s let out a sigh of relief. This however my friends is only the beginning, set before us is a road.
This road may lead to one of the worst crashes in console history leaving PlayStation 3 as a mistake, or lead to the continuing dominance of PlayStation 3. Sony has officially entered the fray and taking there gamers with it. The lines are beginning to move, midnight launch doors flying open, and some stores prepping for morning chaos. This is what Sony fans have been eagerly awaiting.
The future is unsure for PS3, and Wii and PS3 alike seem to be such a coin toss that 360 has momentarily been out of the picture in this battle. From prototype to final completion PlayStation 3 has launched. Enjoy SixAxis, enjoy PlayStation 3 here’s to a another prosperous generation for the PlayStation line. What will come from Sony this gen only father time knows

Zune MP3 player is a dud

On Tuesday, November 14, 2006 Microsoft released the Zune player… its answer to the iPod. Sales were less than spectacular. Stores were stocked but nobody was buying. The all-mighty Zune, Microsoft’s “iPod Killer” came onto the scene with a whimper. People passed it over. Walked right by the flashy colorful displays that welcomed them to join the ‘Social’. Why did the Zune fail? Simple.
The Zune’s target is the iPod market. Twenty-something year olds… teens… people interested in music and good times. People who want to go to a party. A PARTY. When was the last time someone used the term ‘social’ to describe a ‘party’? I’ll tell you when… 1953. Who does the market research for Microsoft… Ward Cleaver?? No self-respecting young person is going to attend a social. And another thing… what’s the deal with the colors?
Brown. What fun and exciting things are brown? None, that’s what. Man oh man, I can’t wait to attend the social with my brown MP3 player in hand. I would certainly be the cat’s meow if that were the case.
Microsoft’s answer to this sounds more like an excuse than a rational and believable explanation. They say that they never intended on becoming a major market leader in the MP3 player market, but merely a small competitor… someone who can offer an alternative to the iPod. I call bullshit. They wanted to dominate the market with their iPod killer and they failed miserably.
Basically what we have here is Microsoft trying to tackle a market where they had no hope of succeeding. They tried. They failed. Now they are scrambling to recover from their colossal mistake.

Link to Story

Nissan Expands Ad Deal with MSFT

http://www.imediaconnection.com/news/12544.asp

As more people are using the internet for resources, the demand for online advertising is increasing. Therefore, Nissan North America Inc. (NNA) has decided to expand their web advertising. Starting with their recent ad campaigns which feature interactive webisodes such as the "7 Days in a Nissan", Nissan is now working with Microsoft Digital Advertising Solutions to deliver to their target market through PCs, PDAs, mobile phones and even Xbox systems.

Web advertising is so big right now that it seems that many electronics are adapting to fit the needs of the internet and broader connections. We don't just see advertisements on billboards, magazines or the television anymore . . . not even just on our computers. Now we're able to get the latest news on new products sent right to our phones or video game systems. This doesn't just seem like a small trend that will die out early, for major companies are looking to these other options as a way to expand their business by reaching out across the world and drawing in new costumers. In order to stay in the competition, they must change to fit the consumers needs, and today, the consumers want it through the internet.

Advertising has become an exciting world for costumers and digital designers alike. Not only do we get to work with more and bigger companies/brands, but we get to publish fun and visually mindblowing media from video to interactive designs that get the consumer running back and thirsty for more. They want to see if we can top what we just did. With a field such as digital design where technology is advancing every day to fit our needs and give us new ideas, we almost always can top our designs shortly after each breakthrough.

Zune blows

The article that I decided to post about is titled “Zune Hits Stores, Nobody Notices” by Jeff Gamet. The article is short and sweet and to the point. Basically the article is about the introduction of Microsoft’s new “Ipod killer”, the Zune. The Zune was introduced to consumers a few days ago, and the sales were rather unimpressive. The article goes on to explain how consumers are not showing much interest in the new mp3 player. The state the Best Buy in Manhattan sold about 20 units in the first 3 hours. They also state that many stores do not even have to units but it’s not a big deal, because no one was asking for them. IDC Analyst Danielle Levitas commented, “Apple will not feel any bit of discomfort from Zune, certainly this holiday season and a good part of next year. According to the article, however, the Zune is not expected to stop production anytime soon. Microsoft is still firm in its position to try to dislodge Apple’s top-dog position with the IPod. Apparently Microsoft is going to put a lot of time and money into the Zune, much like they did the XBOX. She claims that it’s not about the first generation.
The article also mentions the fact that one buyer of the Zune simply wanted it because it was not an apple product. These are the kinds of people who are most likely going to buy the Zune. They are anti-Apple, want a nice mp3 player, and don’t care about other things. Since the number of people who like IPod's far outweigh the amount of people who simply dislike Apple, this shouldn’t be a problem.
I think that the Zune could not have come at a worse time. After viewing multiple websites featuring articles about the Zune, it appears as though no one is really interested in it. As of this time, Apple has such a firm position in the market that it would be hard for anyone to dethrone them from their position. If Microsoft would have released this mp3 player earlier when the IPod was just introduced, they may have had a chance. As for now, the IPod is just too popular and keeps getting better. Microsoft may have a few loyal users of the Zune, but in the end, the IPod will reign supreme.
If Ipod isn’t already ahead of the game, the best part is they soon will be. I believe that Apple will introduce a newer IPod that, unless someone makes a big mistake, will be that much better than all competition. Apple knows exactly what people want, and they know how to deliver in the mp3 marketplace.






http://www.ipodobserver.com/story/29236

The World Isn't Slowing Down

Do you know why they stopped making VHS cassettes? Because somebody at the company found out that I liked them that’s why. It was the same thing with audiocassettes. One day I walked into the music store and saw that I could have Metallica in two options: one was the beautiful way I have already been aquatinted with for years: a tiny rectangular case, or another then-unheard of way: a perfect flat square. I didn’t even know what the hell I was even looking at. It reminded me of a miniature version of the records my brother once had. I image that my feelings at the time were similar to ones my brother felt whenever he realized he would have to replace all his records with cassettes.
I stayed with my commitment of refusal when it came to the compact disc takeover until the day I had to concede. Eventually all of the cassettes were gone (with the exception of out-of-date country classics like Roger Miller’s King of the Road or expired collections of the best of Red Skeleton). It was suitable at first until I wanted to upgrade my listening pleasure to a larger stereo I was unable to listen to any of my existing cassettes due to the fact that it would not support tapes. So what I had to do was go out and purchase my entire collection again if I ever planned to listen to anything I liked.
This same problem would arise years later with the introduction of DVDs. I had to re-purchase all my VHS titles once again. After awhile, I began to accept the fact that CDs and DVDs were significantly better than VHS and audiocassettes. It seems almost laughable today with what we once considered acceptable quality. With old VHS tapes the threat of the tape being consumed, manually adjusting the tracking, and not being able to listen to the Terminator in anything less than golden THX surround is a bit of a laugh.
The reason any of this is relevant is with the oncoming battle between Blu-Ray and Hi-Def DVDs. This brings into consideration that I will once again have to purchase everything one more time. What I’m hoping for in this battle is for the technology to just go away, or be reduced to a lower standard. Does anybody remember SACD? I barely do. People were just so happy with Cds, they refused to pay five hundred dollars for a player that would heighten the experience by just a hair. Could this possibly be the new trend with Hi-Def, or are we going to have to empty our pockets to buy the same things again? I’m pulling for the latter, but then again I’ve purchased almost everything I own twice already, and some of them I’ve purchased more than once on DVD after the studios decide to release a special edition after I already bought it once.
So the progression of technology is a great thing that is if it’s adequate technology and is not filled with asinine ideas geared at money spending collectors by money collection big wigs. So companies I’m begging please: if it doesn’t revolutionize my life I probably don’t need it, and I’m sure nobody else does either.

My Space

Myspace is one of the most popular websites on the internet today. The site is visited even more than google. It is exciting to see that the market has recently grown to oversea countries such as Germany, Britain, Australia, Ireland and France and expecting more in the future. The expansion of Myspace featured in other languages, resulted in more competition for the company. Other companies such as Studivz.net in Germany and, orkut.com in Brazil are also sites of global communication, used often in those countries. Even though Myspace is growing it is still not the number 1 use of global communication. Cell phones and instant messaging are used everywhere, especially in the United States. Even though Myspace is expecting to be number 1, they know they are just getting started. Other countries have argued that Myspace is too well-known, and doesn’t have much of a local company feel. Some also say that it is bad design. The thing that most United State users prefer about Myspace is their use of music. Music is huge in the United States, and Myspace is a way to search for local bands, and concert events. It is a great way to personalize music for them selves.

Drag and Drop FLASH

Some site administrators where getting a little angry about having to rewrite code to put flash ads or documents into there site so they added this feature to Contribute. This feature will now make it much easier for site administers to update there site. They wont have to worry about the work involved for that and think more about the content then the work to put the content up. Contribute 4 now supports the dragging and dropping of many file formats flash is just one of those that they have now included. So now if you want to update the title bar that has been at the top of your site you don't have to code the flash design into it you just drop the file into that area and it works.

Contribute 4 now also is integrated with Microsoft office so that people can single click now to add Excel word and many other programs right into there website. Along with this Contribute 4 supports changes to multiple servers at one time so you can be changing what's on your home website and also your portfolio website at the same time this will easily clear up the time it takes to update websites.

even though the price is 149 dollars i think with this new integration of drag and drop features the price is rather reasonable and if I was a b ig user of contribute I would be willing to pay for the upgrade.

http://www.flashnewz.com/flashnewz-5-20061006AdobeIncludesDragandDropFlashSupportinNewContributeRelease.html

x-box offers video

Microsofts hit gaming plattform , x-box, is soon to be offering video through x-box live. Its said to have rentable movies and popular television shows that can be downloaded to your tv. Microsoft announced Monday that beginning Nov. 22, Xbox Live users with the latest console will be able to choose from shows such as "South Park," which airs on MTV Networks' Comedy Central, and CBS's "CSI"; and movies including Warner Bros.' "V for Vendetta" and Paramount Pictures' "Mission Impossible III." Pricing was not disclosed but, its said to be in terms with companys such as I-tunes, Movie Link, Amazon, etc. Microsoft hopes consumers will watch the shows on their TV sets rather than on computers or portable digital devices, the standards for most of the competing services. Microsoft does not think the new service will steal much business away from Sony Corp.'s market-leading PlayStation franchise, but the consensus seems to be that it will help Microsoft remain competitive. The service will begin a little less than a week after Sony's PlayStation 3 video-game console goes on sale in the United States.

Zune

Zune is a music and video player that Microsoft will launch in the U.S. on Nov. 14 for $249.99. Other countries will have to wait until next yearThe initial version will sport a 30GB hard drive, peer-to-peer Wi-Fi connectivity, a 3-in. screen (320-by-240-pixel QVGA viewable in either portrait or landscape mode), an FM tuner that will display song information from stations that broadcast a Radio Broadcast Data Standards signal and a built-in nonreplaceable lithium-ion rechargeable battery that will probably deliver about 12 hours of music or about 3.5 hours of video on a single charge. It won't last as long as the iPod, but it will charge faster.
Zune will connect to an iTunes-like music store called the Zune Marketplace, which will offer millions of songs, according to Microsoft. Music will be available for 99 cents per song," $14.99-per-month subscription package called a "Zune Pass." Movies and TV shows will become available on the site sometime next year. Marketplace will work with the Microsoft Point program, Xbox users can spend Points on Zune media and vice versa.
Best of all, Zunes will be able to connect to one another wirelessly, letting people share songs with up to four other simultaneous Zune users within Wi-Fi range. Recipients of these shared songs will be able to play them three times for up to three days free, after which they'll have to pay to listen. Songs received wirelessly can't be shared. At least in the initial release, Zune's Wi-Fi won't connect to a network. It's peer-to-peer only.
The Zune PC connection software requires Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or Windows Vista. No Mac-specific version has been announced. The Zune will also connect to TVs, home stereos and Microsoft Xbox game consoles and play music or videos through them. Zune software will import audio files in unprotected WMA, MP3, AAC formats; JPEG photos; and videos in WMV, MPEG-4, H.264 formats. Microsoft has hinted that it will support other media formats, but hasn't specified which ones. Zune will import songs from Apple's iTunes "as permitted by the online service from which it was purchased," according to Microsoft.
Users will be able to choose a "ZuneTag," which is a unique user name that others will see on a kind of "buddy list" when they connect via Wi-Fi. The device will have a "Community" menu from which users can select an item called "Nearby" to display all Zunes within range.
Microsoft will sell three Zune bundles: a $79.99 Zune Car Pack will ship with a car charger, a $99.99 Zune Home A/V Pack will come with cabling and wireless accessories for connecting to televisions and stereo systems, and a $99.99 Zune Travel Pack will feature high-quality earphones, a remote, a carrying case, and a cable for PC synchronization. The company will also sell separate output cables, chargers, docks, upgrade headphones and other accessories.

Flash AVM open sourced to mozilla

http://www.flashmagazine.com/1345.htm

The article I read was talking about the new adobe virtual actionscript machine being responsible for the major speed improvements in the recently released Flash 9. These are two press release quotes from the article "Adobe's work on the new virtual machine is the largest contribution to the Mozilla Foundation since its inception," said Brendan Eich, chief technology officer, Mozilla Corporation, and creator of JavaScript. "Now web developers have a high-performance, open source virtual machine for building and deploying interactive applications across both Adobe Flash Player and the Firefox web browser. We're excited about joining the Adobe and Mozilla communities to advance ECMAScript."

As a mozilla supporter I am very excited about this new venture on their part. mozilla is already a very well done browser and I am so excited to see how much this improves the browser as a whole and it's speed. I also think this is going to create a very interesting rivalry between other browser companies, I mean its obvious Mozilla is one of the most copied browsers so this is just another coal in the fire.

Windows Live Local Gets "Virtual Earth" 3-D Cities

Today, Microsoft goes head to head with Google Earth by releasing its new mapping application called “Windows Live”. Using multiple cameras, Microsoft has filmed and taped real people traversing the streets of major cities and collected that footage to create a 3D model of 15 major metropolitan cities in the United States. This number will grow as they continute to map other cities the nation and add them to their database. So, much like Google Earth, Windows Live will allow a user to zoom in and pan around locations on the map by putting in exact addresses and coordinates, but it will have the added feature of 3D. The combination of the multiple camera angles are built to create a real time view of a city and thus allowing a person to become immersed in a city as if he was really there.
Some other additions include real time traffic reporting in metropolitan areas and virtual billboards. The virtual billboards will be superimposed onto buildings and other structures and will actually be links that take the user to the website for the company advertising on the billboard. This linking concept will also be added to existing storefronts along the highways and byways the user sees during his virtual visit to a city. In other words, one could take a 3D tour down 5th Avenue in New York City, stop at Tiffany’s front door, click on it, and then be taken to the company website and shop away. This gives a whole new meaning to the world of shopping online. A user can actually see the store in 3D, and then with a simple mouse click he can actually shop at the store.
Just as Google Earth can be used for simple driving directions, Windows Live will have the ability to not only give directions, but there will be the added bonus of actually seeing landmarks on the virtual tour that actually translate to real landmarks on a person’s journey. Different camera angles allow the user to see his route from bird’s eye views to an actual view that one would see while walking or driving.
While this is a giant leap forward in convenience for some, it can also have a negative effect. Instead of just a top view of a residence like Google Earth, Windows Live will take you to a person’s front door. This could give someone with bad intentions an easy way to find someone’s home and give them an exact view of what the surroundings are in a much more feasible and practical scale. This may seem like a stretch in some people’s minds, but a plausible one nonetheless.
Overall, the concept and development of Windows Live is a huge leap forward and yet another example of how technology is being used to advance our everyday lives.


Link to story

Today's Students Hooked on Sonics

http://www.gateway.ualberta.ca/view.php?aid=6540

This article is about how because technology has advanced, simple skills such as reading are declining. More tools are available for students that instead of buying and reading print publications, they can now download podcasts or buy audio books to listen as they go about their busy lives. Sales are down for newspapers and books because hardly anyone has time to sit down and read anymore. It's so much easier to listen To a book or article as you drive to work. We're now living in a digital era, whether we like it or not.

Because print media is a dying breed, this is a very exciting time for digital designers because the call for digital media is more in demand. Which means not only are jobs in high demand, but digital designers themselves are called to action. Why? Pretty animation for the web isn't the only thing being created. Now there are tons of new applications popping up everywhere that consist of digital media. As technology advances, more traditional tools will be digitalized.

This article is very exciting to me, but at the same time it also scares me. It's awesome how technology has grown and more options are available to use, like audio books. However, they shouldn't always take the place of more traditional methods. Audio books are great when traveling, but as it takes the place of a paperback book, children and adults alike are becoming much more lazy. So what does that say for our future? If we continue to read less, will we become a more dumb species? In ways, our knowledge will increase due to more available resources and the drive for technological advancement. In others, it will decrease, such as basic reading and writing skills. I'm not saying all this digital media is unbeneficial. For example, take the electronic voting machines which provide better accessibility for the handicapped. What I do believe is that we need to keep the balance between digital and traditional sources balanced. Then our options are truly unlimited.

Flash Anniversary

The article in which I chose to write about is titled, “Flash Marks Tenth Anniversary“ by David A. Utter. The article focuses on the August 8th anniversary of he Flash Program. On the August 8th, Flash celebrated its 10th year of production. The program started as an Illustrator program for tablet PC’s and has no become the most popular way to embed audio and video content on the World Wide Web.
The author basically states the facts of the anniversary, and a brief history of the Flash program. Figures from a NPD Online survey cited Adobe claim a penetration of almost 98 percent of the global personal computer market. The author also states how Flash has become a choice of developers and content providers in a very broad fashion. He says that the adoption of the program into a broader range of applications may be due to the fact that it has received various changed throughout the years.
The addition of the scripting engine is one of the greater improvements that can be linked to the increase in usage of the program. ActionScript and video support also play an important role in this. This is especially useful for websites such as youtube that need to embed video files. Also the increase in usage of broadband Internet helped the program take off as well.
Many professionals in the field have stated that they believe users of AJAX will all begin to ditch the old methodology for the Flash. I think that this is most likely true, since Flash is basically taking over the Internet. Sooner or later, Flash will be implemented in almost every aspect of the Internet.

http://www.flashnewz.com/flashnewz-5-20060810FlashMarksTenthAnniversary.html

Me no likey one use, me wanty more... MORE!!!

Window’s planning to Screw its buyers?

Obviously some people thought this was the case when Windows released the new licensing plan for the new operating system on the horizon Vista. The plan was to have your boxed copy of vista only able to run on one machine, not transferable. I don’t know how they thought they were going to slip that in there without anyone noticing.

As soon as word got out (not Microsoft Word you silly reader you) there was an out cry of complaints. Well, needless to say Microsoft backed off of it’s position and is now allowing you to put windows on multiple machines granted you remove it from the last one you used.

Microsoft says "We're trying to be really clear about our intention to prevent piracy," said Microsoft product manager Mike Burk. "At the same time, after listening to the feedback that came in, (we) felt that we needed to make this change."

I feel that sometimes we forget how much power we the consumer has to get things changed, even in “Big Bad Microsoft”. And if you want to read more on this you can find it on http://news.com.com/Microsoft+backtracks+on+Vista+transfer+limits/2100-1016_3-6131900.html?tag=nefd.lede