Thursday, July 30, 2009

10 reasons you should join Central Penn Adobe User Group (CPAUG)

1. It's free and easy to join
2. Meet people like you who use Adobe software.
3. You could win free Adobe software worth over $1000.00 and other great prizes
4. Discounts on software and books from many popular technical book publishers such as Focal Press, Pearson, Peachpit, O'Reilly and more!
5. Learn new marketable skills
6. Keep up to date on new and exciting technology
7. Network
8. Find a job or hire an employee
9. Share your knowledge and experiences with others
10. Live presentations from area professionals

Central Penn Adobe User Group (CPAUG) provides a forum of support and technology to Web and print professionals of all levels and professions. Whether you're a designer, seasoned developer, or just starting out, Adobe User Groups strengthen community, increase networking, unveil the latest technology innovations, and reveal the techniques that turn novices into experts, and experts into gurus. We use Adobe software such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, Flash and more. ALL SKILL LEVELS WELCOME!

To join CPAUG please sign up by clicking the red "Join Group" button on the right side of the page at: http://groups.adobe.com/groups/11e8f51bb7/summary

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Reminder: July 2009 Meeting tonight!

July Meeting: Casual Meeting at Panera Bread (Union Deposit)

July 29, 2009 from 6:30pm - 8:00pm

Panera Bread
4263 Union Deposit Road, Harrisburg, 17111

Agenda:
Relax and share your tips and tricks!

Share tips and tricks that we've learned at this casual meeting. Show a cool website with Panera's free WiFi, talk about project concerns, receive some inspiration from others, show off some favorite websites, and get to know your CPAUG members. Got a laptop? Bring it and take advantage of Panera's free WiFi.

*** NOTE THE NEW, LATER TIME! ***

Note: You are responsible for your own refreshments.

Meetings are always free of charge and open to the public.

Flash Website Flowchart


I found this on my hard drive today and thought it was worth sharing. I love Flash but...well, sometimes it's just too much!
:-)


Monday, July 27, 2009

Free Webinar - CS4: Shortcut to Brilliant eSeminar Series for Professional Photographers - July 30, 2009 - August 20, 2009

July 30, 2009 - August 20, 2009

FREE registration:
http://www.adobe.com/cfusion/event/index.cfm?event=detail&id=851960&loc=en_us&sdid=EMTXN

Additional CS4 Topics:
Designers - Utilize a dream toolkit
Web Publishing - Redefine the extraordinary
Digital Video - Put ideas in motion


Join one of these complimentary eSeminars. Adobe software experts, Bryan O'Neil Hughes, Julieanne Kost, and Tom Hogarty will demonstrate and explore the new Adobe® Photoshop® CS4 and Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® 2 in these informative sessions. This series is specifically designed to help professional photographers and photography enthusiasts who use photography and digital imaging in their work. Register today.


Accelerate your Workflow with the Combined Power of Adobe®Photoshop® Lightroom® 2 and Adobe®Photoshop® CS4
Thursday, July 30, 2009 10:00 A.M. PDT

See the unrivaled power and productivity of using Adobe Lightroom 2 for developing images together with Adobe Photoshop CS4 for detailed retouching. You will learn how to use Lightroom2 as your efficient digital photography workflow and how edits made in Photoshop CS4 are automatically updated in Lightroom 2. See live examples of the tight integration when you import, organize, edit, and outputs photograph.


Expand Your Creative Possibilities with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2
Thursday, August 13, 2009 10:00 A.M. PDT

Explore the creative processing tools in Lightroom. Learn to transform your initial captures from good to amazing with global edits, white balance, contrast, sharpening, and color enhancements. Delve into selective adjustments to dodge and burn, sharpen, and apply gradient filters to take your images to the next level. Learn how you can create professional and consistent presentations across multiple media including print, web and slideshows.


Spend More Time Shooting and Less Time Computing with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2
Thursday, August 20, 2009 10:00 A.M. PDT

See how Lightroom simplifies commonly repeated tasks. Learn how to organize your editing efforts with presets, snapshots and virtual copies as well as make effective use of Lightroom's powerful before and after views. You can expertly import, organize, keyword and locate your images. You will understand how to efficiently address your current workflow challenges, and give yourself more time for shooting.



What Do You Need to Participate?
Online live seminars are scheduled events simulcast over the web via Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro. You'll need a computer with a browser, Adobe Flash player and Internet connection. Voice-Over IP will broadcast over your computer if you have audio. Alternatively, audio is available via telephone. Access details will be provided once you register.

To register you need your Adobe.com membership login and password. If you need to create a membership, or do not remember your login and password, please go to the Adobe.com membership page.

Time Zone Conversion
Not located in US/Pacific time zone? See what time it is in your local time zone.
Seats are limited and eSeminars are scheduled to change without advanced notice.

Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 - Newegg - $49.99 - Today Only!

This is the lowest price I've seen for this yet. It's a great product for those who want Photoshop but may be leery of the price point or those intimidated by the billion features in the full verson.

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Security advisory for Adobe Reader, Acrobat and Flash Player


Release date: July 22, 2009

Last Updated: July 23, 2009

Vulnerability identifier: APSA09-03

CVE number: CVE-2009-1862

Platform: All Platforms

SUMMARY

A critical vulnerability exists in the current versions of Flash Player (v9.0.159.0 and v10.0.22.87) for Windows, Macintosh and Linux operating systems, and the authplay.dll component that ships with Adobe Reader and Acrobat v9.x for Windows, Macintosh and UNIX operating systems. This vulnerability (CVE-2009-1862) could cause a crash and potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system. There are reports that this vulnerability is being actively exploited in the wild via limited, targeted attacks against Adobe Reader v9 on Windows.

We are in the process of developing a fix for the issue, and expect to provide an update for Flash Player v9 and v10 for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux by July 30, 2009 (the date for Flash Player v9 and v10 for Solaris is still pending). We expect to provide an update for Adobe Reader and Acrobat v9.1.2 for Windows, Macintosh and UNIX by July 31, 2009.

Deleting, renaming, or removing access to the authplay.dll file that ships with Adobe Reader and Acrobat v9.x mitigates the threat for those products, but users will experience a non-exploitable crash or error message when opening a PDF that contains SWF content. Depending on the product, the authplay.dll that ships with Adobe Reader and Acrobat 9.x for Windows is typically located at C:\Program Files\Adobe\Reader 9.0\Reader\authplay.dll or C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 9.0]\Acrobat\authplay.dll. Windows Vista users should consider enabling UAC (User Access Control) to mitigate the impact of a potential exploit. Flash Player users should exercise caution in browsing untrusted websites. Adobe is in contact with Antivirus and Security vendors regarding the issue and recommend users keep their anti-virus definitions up to date.

Users may monitor the latest information on the Adobe Product Security Incident Response Team blog at the following URL: http://blogs.adobe.com/psirt or by subscribing to the RSS feed here: http://blogs.adobe.com/psirt/atom.xlm.
AFFECTED SOFTWARE VERSIONS

Adobe Reader and Acrobat 9.1.2 and earlier 9.x versions
Adobe Flash Player 9.0.159.0 and 10.0.22.87 and earlier 9.x and 10.x versions

SEVERITY RATING

Adobe categorizes this as a critical update.

REVISIONS

July 23, 2009 - Advisory updated with date of Adobe Reader for UNIX update
July 22, 2009 - Advisory first created

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

JobOp: Web Developer (Country Meadows)

Country Meadows Retirement Communities is seeking a ColdFusion web developer to develop a new product for public offering.

The ideal candidate will:
•use a simple Fusebox development framework
•be skilled in an IDE such as Dreamweaver or CFEclipse
•have experience developing or adopting Javascript and CSS

In addition these skills would be a plus:
Photoshop, db design, Adobe Flash, PDF programming, MS SQL reporting services.

A Computer Science degree or equivalent experience and good interpersonal skills are required.

This is a full-time, 6- month position, in Hershey, Pennsylvania, that has the possibility of becoming a permanent position. No telecommuters please. $30,000 to $40,000 with very competitive benefits package.

EOE

Submit resume to: blevenduski@countrymeadows.com

Adobe Unveils New Open Source Initiatives Targeted Towards Media Companies (Via TechCrunch)

"Adobe has rolled out two new open source initiatives aimed specifically towards developers for media companies and publishers. Adobe’s Open Source Media Framework lets developers build more robust, feature-rich media players optimized specifically for the Adobe Flash Platform. The second initiative, the Text Layout Framework (TLF), will help developers create sophisticated typography capabilities to Web applications.

OSMF basically lets developers easily build media players for the Adobe Flash Platform. Adobe says the structure of OSMF lets developers leverage plug-ins for advertising, reporting metrics and content delivery along with standard video player features such as playback controls, video navigation, buffering and Dynamic Streaming. The OSMF source code and software components are available under the Mozilla Public License. Adobe is also partnering with content delivery service Akamai to create a cohesive standard to support Adobe media players that support Flash."....

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Ask the Web Designer

Do you have a web design question about web standards, CSS, JavaScript, Ajax, interaction design, user experience, or Web typography?

Peachpit has launched a weekly feature called "Ask the Web Designer" where Jason Cranford Teague, author of the recently released Speaking in Styles: Fundamentals of CSS for Web Designers, will answer your questions. Each week, Jason will select a question and answer it via Peachpit's blog.

You can participate by submitting a question. If your question is selected, Jason will respond via his blog on Peachpit. Looking forward to your questions - have at it!

Read Jason's blog.

JobOp: Web Content Specialist (TEKsystems)

Company: TEKsystems
Location: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Category: Information Technology Jobs
Rate: Based on experience.
Job Type: Contract-to-Hire
Posting ID: 1952004
Posting Date: 7/15/2009

Web Content Specialist Job Description:
Our client, located in Harrisburg, is currently seeking an experienced Web Content Specialist to join their team on a six (6) month contract to hire basis.

This position will primarily be responsible for working with Website Portfolio Manager, Web Production Specialist, Web Production Assistant, and other staff to design and write web content for the company's public websites.

Day-to-day responsibilities and functions will include:

1. Creates, delivers and edits site content and collateral in a timely manner, consistent with the voice, brand and established standards of functionality, clarity and information quality.
2. Works closely with cross-functional groups to design and deliver compelling user interface messages.
3. Prepares content from knowledge of topic, supplemented by input from various lines of business and other constituencies.
4. Creates customer-centric web site information architectures that are experiential, scalable, intuitive and easy to use
5. Coordinates the content, navigation and design of web sites through collaboration with customer experience designers, analysts and UI developers.
6. Develops, refines and implements content patterns to promote content usability, uniformity and management.
7. Presents ideas and concepts to cross-functional teams for validation and buy-in and incorporates feedback appropriately.
8. Generates contextual help, error messages and other instructional text for web applications.
9. Assists in development of web-based standards, guidelines, and conventions.
10. Stays abreast of current trends and industry techniques to determine if they can enhance agency content.
11. Assists with web marketing campaigns to ensure effective messaging that will aid in successful conversions to meet the campaign’s goals.
12. Documents content requirements for all public web content projects and marketing initiatives.

Required Skills for Web Content Specialist Job:
2 YRS ORGANIZING WRITING WEB CONTENT
EXPERT KNOWLEDGE OF WEB WRITING PRACTICES
KNOWLEDGE OF INFORMATION MAPPING TECHNIQUES
USER INTERFACE DESIGN EXPERIENCE
WORKING KNOWLEDGE OF MACROMEDIA DREAMWEAVER

About TEKsystems:
Join TEKsystems® and get your career on the fast track. As the leading technology staffing and services firm, we are passionate about deploying high-caliber IT and communications expertise. To satisfy our constant need for expertise, we actively seek talented Technical Professionals with all levels of information technology and communications skills. TEKsystems knows that every professional has different needs, so we'll work together to determine a suitable benefits package. We offer options to our Technical Professionals that could include: a health plan, 401k, provisions for vacation and holiday pay, and technical and professional training. With a foundation as the nation's largest IT staffing firm, we've become a billion-dollar services company by blending superior client service with an unrivaled ability to source and manage talent to precise specifications, resulting in successful technology executions. Allegis Group and its subsidiaries are equal opportunity employers. M/F/D/V

Contact Information
Darrell N Mudd
Apply Now! Begin by filling out the "Apply Online for this Job" section at the top of the page
Need Directions? Get office driving directions with Google Maps
dmudd@teksystems.com
TEKsystems - Harrisburg, PA
4392 Sturbridge Drive
Suite 102
Harrisburg, PA 17110
TEL: (717) 526-1944
TEL: (888) 768-3946 x1944
FAX: (717) 526-1988

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

July Meeting: Casual Meeting at Panera Bread (Union Deposit)

Date and Time:
July 29, 2009 from 6:30pm - 8:00pm
*** NOTE THE NEW, LATER TIME! ***

Address:
Panera Bread
4263 Union Deposit Road, Harrisburg, 17111

Agenda:
Relax and share your tips and tricks!

Share tips and tricks that we've learned at this casual meeting. Show a cool website with Panera's free WiFi, talk about project concerns, receive some inspiration from others, show off some favorite websites, and get to know your CPAUG members. Got a laptop? Bring it and take advantage of Panera's free WiFi.

Note: You are responsible for your own refreshments. Link: Panera Bread Menu

Meetings are always free of charge and open to the public.


The Periodic Table of Typefaces (Via www.behance.net)

"The Periodic Table of Typefaces is obviously in the style of all the thousands of over-sized Periodic Table of Elements posters hanging in schools and homes around the world. This particular table lists 100 of the most popular, influential and notorious typefaces today.

As with traditional periodic tables, this table presents the subject matter grouped categorically. The Table of Typefaces groups by families and classes of typefaces: sans-serif, serif, script, blackletter, glyphic, display, grotesque, realist, didone, garalde, geometric, humanist, slab-serif and mixed.

Each cell of the table lists the typeface and a one or two character "symbol" (made up by me simply based on logic), the designer, year designed and a ranking of 1 through 100."

View the Table:

35 Beautiful Photography Websites (via Smashing Magazine)

"

Interest in photography has exploded over the last 10 years, largely thanks to the developments in digital photography. Cameras and computers have become cheaper and more powerful, software more sophistocated and printers can now print photos that are as good (if not better) than anything produced in a chemical darkroom. Now, once you’ve acquired a digital setup, the economic restrictions of film and development costs have been removed and the cost of photography is virtually nil.

Along with these developments in photography has been the parallel development of the Web. Ten years ago websites were largely clumsy, HTML driven constructions. Today, contemporary photographers have powerful tools such as Flash, WordPress and DreamWeaverwith which to develop their websites. Photographers can also sell their work through companies such as PhotoShelter or ImageKind, and through photo libraries such as Alamy and iStockPhoto, opening up new revenue streams.

The result is that photographers are finding new and exciting ways to showcase their best work online. We took a look at some of the beautiful photography websites that we could find, analyzing the design trends and the reasons why these websites work."

Full article: http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/07/10/35-beautiful-photography-websites/

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Build a Web 2.0 Document Search Site (Via NETTUTS)

"In this article, we will create a document searching site with jQuery. This site will be used to search documents by specifying an extension (file type). The data is then filtered and sent to Google. We'll learn many jQuery tips and skills through the process. A gray box plugin called "ColorBox", and a toolTip plugin called "SimpleTip" will also be introduced in this article. Let's get started..."

Monday, July 13, 2009

Evolution of 30 Popular Logos (Via 10steps.sg)

"There are plenty of creative logos around us. But what we are seeing now are the latest version of them due to design trends. I think it will be interesting for us to check out how some of the popular logos evolved into what we are all seeing today."

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Review: Adobe Creative Suite 4 (Via FreelanceSwitch)

"Every successful freelancer knows their productivity is closely tied to the tools they use and the workflow they implement. So when a company, like Adobe, releases new versions of their suite of applications, we each have to make the decision to purchase, upgrade, or wait for more. With Creative Suite 3 only a couple of years old, the question is: are the gains worth the upgrade price? Is it time to buy, or time to wait? In short, will the money you invest now increase your productivity into the future?"

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Build a Custom CMS Using PHP and MySQLi: New Plus Tutorial (via NETTUTS)

"In this video tutorial, we'll be building a custom Content Management System (CMS) using PHP and MySQLi. We'll start off by pulling our content from a MySQL database and then build a CMS admin panel to manage our content. For easy content management, we will be using TinyMCE as our editor. I hope you enjoy the screencast. "

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Answers to small Illustrator and Photoshop problems (via Veerle's blog)

"When using Photoshop or Illustrator on a regular basis, whether you are a beginner, intermediate or pro user, you often bump into small problems that you would associate with illogical behavior and where you wonder “Why does this happen? Why doesn’t it just do what I want it to do”. They become little annoyances if you don’t know the immediate answer to.

As soon as you know how to solve them, you see things clearer and differently. Today I though I share a solution to a few problems I encountered myself recently or in the past..."

Full article: http://veerle.duoh.com/blog/comments/answers_to_small_

Free Webinar 7-15-09: "What SEO Is, and Why It Matters."


Special Guest - Rebecca Lieb
Vice President, Econsultancy

July 15, 2009
1:00 - 2:00 EDT
Register here: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/829938521

Everyone's online. And everyone searches. How else could you possibly hope to navigate over 100 billion Web sites? Every searcher has a goal: to find information relevant to their query. And any business with a web presence, be it a retailer, service provider, publisher, or even a blogger, wants to be found for relevant search queries, both by the search engine and by that searcher.

Join Listrak in welcoming Rebecca Lieb, VP of Econsultancy, to its ongoing webinar series as she discusses how you can optimize your site for search engines.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) improves the volume and quality of traffic to a web site from search engines via "natural" or "organic"search results. It's the process of making a web site search engine friendly. The goal of optimizing a web site is to increase the likelihood it will appear at the top, or near the top, of search engine results when selected keyword phrases are queried. The goal isn't merely to attract traffic to the website in question, but to attract quality traffic.

SEO is an art and a science that can be applied to nearly all the elements of a Web site: the copy, its design, the type of coding used, links, and site architecture. Like most forms of online marketing, SEO exists between the right and left brain hemispheres. It spans marketing and IT, PR and analytics.

This presentation provides an overview of the fundamentals of SEO, and provides a roadmap for getting started -- and getting found -- in organic search results.

Note - this webinar will be recorded and a PDF of the slides will be available in Listrak's online resource center on 7/20.
About Rebecca Lieb

Rebecca Lieb is a vice president at Econsultancy, where she oversees the company's U.S. operations. She is opening a New York office and staffing up to get the same level of great content going on this side of the pond as is generated at London HQ.

Earlier, she was editorial consultant to The ClickZ Network, after serving as its editor-in-chief for over seven years. Rebecca spent part of that time running the redoubtable SearchEngineWatch.com, too. She continues to write a regular column for ClickZ. She also does a ton of public speaking on topics related to interactive marketing, advertising and digital media, as well as consulting on digital content strategy and search engine optimization.

Rebecca has just finished writing a book, The Truth About Search Engine Optimization. Pearson Publishing's Financial Times imprint published it in February, 2009 - and it instantly became a best seller on Amazon!

Learn more about Rebecca on LinkedIn or Facebook or Spock or good old Google. Or follow her on Twitter tweets. Her handle is @lieblink.

Register here: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/829938521

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Chrome OS Partners: Adobe, Acer, ASUS, and more

Chrome OS Partners: Acer, Adobe, ASUS, Freescale, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments

by Michael Arrington on July 8, 2009

Google is starting to respond to questions about the just announced Chrome operating system. In a short FAQ today they talked about cost and initial partners.

First of all, the software will be free, which was an easy assumption to make since it will be open source. Like Android, Google will not charge users or device manufacturers to use the Chrome OS.

Yesterday Google said they were already working with device manufacturers to roll out Chrome OS devices late next year. Today they announced at least some of those partners: Acer, Adobe, ASUS, Freescale, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments.

Acer and ASUS are the no. 1 and no. 2 netbook manufacturers worldwide. HP and Lenovo are also large netbook manufacturers. Freescale, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments are chip companies that Google is likely working with to ensure a good user experience. What I’d really like to know is if Google is working with these or any other partners to release products off the ARM or Atom processors. A desktop or even dual core laptop running Chrome OS would be a compelling device too.

Google is clearly aiming Chrome at Windows, and focusing less on battery management (Android’s strength) to focus on robust driver support. Users will not be happy unless they can plug any printer, camera, or other peripheral device into these computers and have them work properly.

The other focus is on speed, which is why Google is working so closely with the chip guys. This isn’t going to just be Linux with a browser bolted on. It will be (or should be) a compelling user experience with super fast boot and web surfing times.

How To Photograph Your Product to Enhance Your Online Sales in 4 Easy Steps (via Digital Photography School)

"If a product had a bad photograph, we’re talking the little thumbnail preview image here, I would not even click through to see the product details.

I am convinced that a good image can be a make or break situation for an online vendor. I can say emphatically and with absolute conviction that I would be more likely to purchase a poorly crafted product that had been well photographed than I would a wonderfully made product that had been photographed poorly. I think online shoppers, admittedly on a subconscious level, are making similar judgments, though perhaps not as extremely, of our online products every day.
Here are some tips anyone with ANY camera can begin using today to improve the quality of their shots for online sales.

**Given the fact that few online vendors are also skilled photographers with fancy lighting set ups, we’re keeping things super simple by using natural light. **"

Full tutorial: http://digital-photography-school.com/how-to-photograph-your-product-to-enhance-your-online-sales-in-4-easy-steps

Chrome OS: But Will it Run Photoshop?

Chrome OS: But Will it Run Photoshop?

Google Chrome LogoWe’ve heard the news from every source out there – Google is launching an operating system. The details are scarce, but the reactions have been overwhelmingly positive (read our own Ben Parr’s recap here). After all, Google is the new Microsoft, right? Everything they touch turns to gold (*cough* Jaiku *cough*), so a Google OS must be to Windows what silver bullets are for Robert Pattinson.

Not so fast. Someone has to play the devil’s advocate here, and since the devil has a lot going in its favor this time, I’ll gladly lay out the case.

Before we start, let’s get something out of the way: I’m a fan of both Google and Microsoft – I don’t adore everything these two companies have done, but both have had many great moments. I’ve been using Windows since 1.0 (yes, you read that right), I’ve enjoyed my ride with Windows XP, but I’ve also been criticizing Vista for lack of innovation and not taking the huge upcoming netbook market into consideration.

On the other hand, I’ve expected Google to create an OS at some point and I definitely think that it’s a good idea. If it manages to be what Google promises – fast, secure, and simple – it’ll be a great addition to the somewhat stale OS market.


The bumpy road ahead


With that out of the way, let’s look at some problems Google will inevitably face. Details aside, Microsoft’s domination of the OS market is due to two reasons:

1. It’s very hard to get all the hardware makers to create drivers (or create them yourself) for your OS.

2. It’s very hard to get all the software makers to create versions of their software that’ll work on your OS.

Say what you want about Windows, but between the previous version (Windows XP) and the current version (Vista), you can get all of your hardware to run. Eight year old plotters, pro sound cards, ancient el cheapo WiFi USB adapters – there’s a way to get them all to work on Windows. Now, I can hear the angry wail of a thousand Linux users coming this way (for the record: I occasionally use Linux myself for specific purposes), but there’s no denying it: you can’t do that on Linux. No matter what distribution you use, in many cases you will encounter hardware problems. And often, you won’t be able to solve them. I’ve seen many of my friends switching to Linux, sticking with it for as long as a year, and then simply switching back to Windows because some piece of hardware won’t work.

When it comes to software, there’s the ancient “Photoshop argument,” which can be summed up in this way: if you’re a long time Windows user, chances are you’ve got a favorite piece of software that won’t run on Linux. It can be a game, or it can be Photoshop (and no, GIMP is not that good), it can be something else, but there will always be something missing. I can live with that. I’ve always got at least three working computers at home; I can run many different OSs if necessary; many users don’t have the time or the will to do that. They want to have one computer that runs all of their stuff, period. Yes, I know Chrome OS is all about web apps. But not all apps can be web apps just yet; between the apps already supported on Linux, and all the wonderful web apps available out there, will it be enough for the average user? We’ll have to wait and see.


Can it be done?


So where does that leave Google Chrome OS? It’s a tough spot, but it’s not hopeless. First, Google has the advantage of being, well, Google. If they set their mind to do something, if the initial betas get good reception, the hardware and the software makers will want to work with them. It takes time to port software to other OSs, and it takes time to create drivers for hardware. When it comes to old hardware, it also takes too much money for most companies to bother, and with this regard, Google will always be at a disadvantage.

But Google can afford to look forward and wait it out. They’ve got the resources and the people to do it. What they need is the support of the open source community, and they’ve already got a big problem with that: Chrome isn’t available for Linux yet. That’s right, the browser that’ll be the center of the upcoming Chrome OS, which will be based on Linux, doesn’t work on Linux right now (well, if you don’t count the early developer beta.) Google needs to do better, because no amount of money and resources can replicate what a huge international community of volunteers can do.


The Firefox lesson


If they manage to do that, it’ll be entirely possible to pull it off. Want to know how I can be so sure? Firefox. When Firefox came to be, it faced a very steep uphill battle. Internet Explorer was the browser of choice – yes, it kinda sucked, but Vista also kinda sucks, too. Still, most IE users didn’t even think about switching to a new browser; just like most Windows users don’t even consider the possibility of switching to another OS – for now. But Firefox developers worked diligently, adding feature after feature, and gaining enormous support from the open source community and developers, which created thousands of great add-ons. The momentum was building fast, and now, although IE still has the biggest market share, Firefox has already won.

The same thing can happen with Chrome OS. The circumstances and the timing are a bit different, though; Windows 7 will come out before Google Chrome OS will; if it performs up to users’ expectations, it’ll be harder for Google to push through. By the time Chrome OS supports enough hardware and software to be deemed really usable by a significant portion of users, Microsoft will have a lot of time to fix things. On the other hand, Microsoft changes slowly; it took them years to bring IE up to speed.

It’ll be a long, excruciating battle, but I can already tell you who’s going to win. You. Us. Whatever happens, we – the users – will have a better, faster, simpler, more web-oriented operating system. Will it have a Microsoft or a Google tag on it? Ultimately, it’s not even that important.

Full article: http://mashable.com/2009/07/08/chrome-os-photoshop/

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

How to Create an Illustrative Web Design in Photoshop (Via Six Revisions)

In this web design tutorial, you’ll learn how to create a professional web design with an illustrated "vector" header in Photoshop. You’ll see many techniques here including how to draw using the Pen Tool and a excellent type treatment using layer styles.

Monday, July 6, 2009

Handy Techniques for Cutting Out Hair in Photoshop (via www.blog.spoongraphics.co.uk)


"When trimming out images in Photoshop, human hair or animal fur always proves troublesome and can be tricky to achieve a realistic look. Here are two techniques I use on images with both plain backgrounds, and those with a varied background tones, each achieving pretty decent end results."

Friday, July 3, 2009

Looking for a Freelance Project Bonanza? Look No Further than DoNanza! (via TechCrunch)

"With 70,000 projects on offer, there’s a high chance there’s something for you as well so you should consider giving it a whirl if you’re looking to make some extra money on the side in these tough times.

The one thing you have to keep in mind about DoNanza is that it keeps clear of offline gigs, so if you’re looking for an office job, DoNanza isn’t for you. It does however have 70,000 projects available right now, with 30,000 new projects added each week, or about 4,000 a day. There are 12 main categories with more than 400 sub-categories. The most active in terms of user-interest are (in the following order): Writing, Web Development, Graphic Design, Virtual Admin. Support, Translation, Marketing, SEO, and Programming."

Photoshop Contest: Design a New iTunes Icon (Via Gizmodo)

"The iTunes icon is old and busted. I mean, didn't iPods kill CDs or something? And like, 7 million of the 8 million things iTunes does have nothing to do with tunes. So let's make a new icon!

Send your best design of a new icon that really represents iTunes to me at contests@gizmodo.com with "iTunes icon" in the subject line by next Tuesday morning. Save your entries as JPGs, PNGs or GIFs and use a FirstnameLastname.jpg naming convention using whatever name you want to be credited with. On Tuesday, I'll pick the three best/most awful entries as our winners and post the rest of the best in the Gallery of Champions. Get cracking, in case something comes along and slays the iPod."

Thursday, July 2, 2009

10 Common Mistakes In Logo Design (via Smashing Magazine)

"With the power of the Web, and more eyes watching than ever, it’s important for a business to communicate its unique message clearly. The easiest way to recognize a company and distinguish it from others is by its logo. Below, we go through 10 common logo design mistakes that you should avoid if you want to create a successful and professional logo."

CPAUG members receive discounted tickets to Harrisburg University FlashFilm and Digital Media Festival (HUFF-DA)

Central Penn Adobe User Group is happy to be able to offer you discounted tickets especially for CPAUG members to the 2009 Harrisburg University FlashFilm and Digital Media Festival (HUFF-DA)! CPAUG members will receive Premium Pass tickets for just $75. That's $10 off the early bird price and $120 off the door price!

About the event:

Event:
2009 Harrisburg University FlashFilm and Digital Media Festival (HUFF-DA)
Dates: October 22-25, 2009
Location:
Harrisburg University's New Academic Center, Harrisburg PA

(From the website) "We invite you to focus your talents, creativity and passion upon this year's theme: "Celebrating Science and Technology". If you know how, show us. Submit your work to be reviewed, judged, and hopefully, selected as a category winner! If you don't know how, learn it here. Register now for the conference and learn from experts in the field. Join us to fuel your talents and to learn from others."

Additionally, as an extra incentive, CPAUG is going to raffle our CS4 Suite software package during the FlashFilm Fest Meeting. CPAUG members who submit a work to HUFF-DA will receive 5 extra raffle tickets and CPAUG members who attend will receive 3 extra raffle tickets. You may have up to 10 extra raffle tickets and must be a CPAUG member, present to win, and have attended at least one other CPAUG meeting in 2009.

HUFF-DA Press Release: http://cenpennaug.blogspot.com/2009/06/hu-announces-flashfilm-and-digital-arts.html
Submit Your Work: http://www.harrisburgu.net/FlashFilmFestival/submityourwork.asp
Schedule: http://www.harrisburgu.net/FlashFilmFestival/schedule.asp
Tickets: **** To get your discounted ticket, please email "cpaugManager@gmail.com" to receive the discount code. http://www.harrisburgu.net/FlashFilmFestival/registration.asp
CPAUG Meeting at HUFF-DA: http://groups.adobe.com/posts/1cab6ddd5e

Let's enjoy a great weekend of technology, networking and fun and support the local community and Flash technology!

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

How to Fix a Botched Tourist Photo in Photoshop (Via Digital Photography School)

"I recently took a trip to Europe with my parents, and throughout the whole trip, we only got one picture of all three of us, because I didn’t like the idea of giving my precious camera to a stranger to take one. Well, when I finally caved in front of the Eiffel Tower, the person who took it didn’t even bother to get the whole Tower in the shot with us! Realizing the shot was far from suitable for framing in its current state, I did a little creative Photoshopping and masked me and my parents in front of a picture I took of the Tower around the same time.

NOTE: This works best if both photos were taken from roughly the same distance, same perspective, same time of day, and same settings."

Full article: http://digital-photography-school.com/how-to-fix-a-botched-tourist-photo-in-photoshop#ixzz0ItdVd48x&D