New Products
May 1st, 2008 by James Gray in
SpectSoft LLC has long provided its high-end, uncompressed video solution RaveHD to the big Hollywood studios. Now, the company aims to reach smaller studios with a number of lower-cost solutions in its new RaveHD Basic product line. RaveHD, says SpectSoft, is a “solid deck replacement”—that is, a Linux-based turnkey solution that offers the storage and tools needed to “bridge the film, video and data gap”, with source code available to its users for integration. Some key features include uncompressed capture and playout of frame-based sequences (DPX), native database and configurable metadata, configuration for SAN support, batch capture and more.
With its new Web Gateway, a line of all-in-one Web security appliances, Astaro further simplifies the task of Web security for small- and medium-size businesses. Web Gateway enables organizations to limit Internet use for business purposes, protect networks from malicious content and prevent virus and spyware infections, thus reducing legal risk. The products provide integrated URL filtering, malware detection, instant messaging and peer-to-peer application control, as well as bandwidth optimization to secure and control Web access completely. It also may be deployed as either a hardware or virtualized appliance and managed through a single browser-based GUI.
Eclipse users keep getting more treats, the latest being SlickEdit Core Version 3.3. The product is a plugin for Eclipse that allows developers to use the SlickEdit code editor as the default within Eclipse. SlickEdit Core consists of the SlickEdit editor, seven additional views and the DIFFzilla differencing engine. The combined functionality is said to “offer greater editing power and better speed in navigating code, allowing even the most accomplished power programmers to be more productive”. The new version is for Eclipse 3.3 and CDT 4.0.
Protecode has unveiled the Protecode plugin, a software development tool that unobtrusively manages IP by detecting and logging 100% of the content entering a software project. Protecode logs, identifies and reports pedigree and licensing information associated with external content in any stage of software development projects. Protecode automatically creates a software “bill of materials” and manages compliance with an organization's IP policies, offering a clean pedigree that ensures developers/contributors are using licenses accurately. Protecoding (coding with the Protecode plugin as part of the development environment) frees developers from having to understand open-source rules and licenses. Initially launched for Eclipse with Java and C/C++, the plugin will expand later into other languages and infrastructures.
Illustrating how everyone can use a little open source, XAware announced a new plugin for Salesforce.com users that enables additional control over customer data and extension of capabilities of the popular SaaS platform. One can “migrate, manage, share and mashup data from various systems”, says XAware. XAware also features an Eclipse-based design environment and an Eclipse plugin to the many developers who use it as their standard development environment. The XAware plugin is available at the company's Web site or from Salesforce.com's AppExchange.
Michael Johnson and Erik Troan have spiffed up their book Linux Application Development enough to warrant this new, second edition. Published by Addison-Wesley, the book presents key APIs and techniques one needs to create robust, secure, efficient software or to port existing code to Linux. It further offers “deep coverage of Linux-specific extensions and features”. The new edition has been updated for the Linux 2.6 kernel, the GNU C library version 2.3, the latest POSIX standards and the Single Unix Specification, Issue 6.
Suddenly Charles River Media is on a tear to get out more Linux and open-source book titles worthy of your attention. Case in point is Allen Sherrod's Game Graphics Programming, which the publisher claims is the only book that teaches the fundamentals of game graphics programming. The title covers topics such as an overview of game graphics, 2-D and 3-D through shaders, software rendering, ray tracing, mapping surfaces, reflections and refractions, lighting, global illumination, optimization, shadows, high-dynamic range and other special effects. A software rendering system and ray tracer are included, allowing users to work through the projects and demos in each chapter. All demos (except DirectX) have Linux, Mac and Windows versions.
Okay, game geeks, you're getting your wish. CodeWeavers is now shipping CrossOver Games, a download-only application that allows you to play tons of popular Windows-based games on either a Linux or Mac OS without the need for a Windows license. Some of the titles you can play include Team Fortress 2, World of Warcraft, Civilization 4, Guild Wars, EVE Online, Peggle, Counterstrike Source and others. CodeWeavers is one of the lead sponsors of the Wine Project, on which the company's products are based. The purchase price includes 12 months of free product support and software updates.
Special Magazine Offer -- 2 Free Trial Issues!
Receive 2 free trial issues of Linux Journal as well as instant online access to current and past issues. There's NO RISK and NO OBLIGATION to buy. CLICK HERE for offer
Linux Journal: delivering readers the advice and inspiration they need to get the most out of their Linux systems since 1994.
Sorry, offer available in the US only. International orders, click here.
Delicious
Digg
Reddit
Newsvine
TechnoratiSubscribe now!
Recently Popular
| Linux HOWTO: Video Editing Magic with ffmpeg | Jul-23-08 |
| Man vs. Myth: Greg Kroah-Hartman and the Kernel Driver Project | Jul-21-08 |
| Google Gadgets for Linux | Jul-21-08 |
| Building a Call Center with LTSP and Soft Phones | Aug-25-05 |
| Review: HP 2133 Mini-Note | Jul-16-08 |
| Boot with GRUB | May-01-01 |
Featured Videos
Non-linear video editing tools are great, but they're not always the best tool for the job. This is where a powerful tool like ffmpeg becomes useful. This tutorial by Elliot Isaacson covers the basics of transcoding video, as well as more advanced tricks like creating animations, screen captures, and slow motion effects.
Shawn Powers reviews the HP Mini-Note portable computer.
Thanks to our sponsor: Silicon Mechanics
Silicon Mechanics is a leading manufacturer of rackmount servers, storage, and high performance computing hardware. The best warranty offerings available are backed by experts dedicated to customer satisfaction.
From the Magazine
August 2008, #172
There's nuttin like a Cool Project to give you some relief from the summer heat, so get out your parka cuz we got a bunch of em. First up is the BUG, not a bug, The BUG. It's got a GPS, camera and more, in a hand-sized package that's user programmable. The BUG does everything. It's both a floor wax and a dessert topping. Get one now. Need a software version of a Swiss Army knife? Take a look at Billix, and don't leave home without it. Then, chew on this one, an X server on a Gumstix device driving an E-Ink display. Need more storage? How about 16 Terabytes? Can do.
And, of course, we have the usual cast of characters: Marcel, Reuven, Dave, Kyle, Doc, plus the new kid on the block Shawn Powers. But it doesn't stop there: build a MythTV box on a budget, build your own GIS system, set up the tools to monitor your enterprise and more. Finally, remember The War of the Worlds? Now you can play too.
