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Filed under: Photo, Video, Adobe

Adobe talks GPU acceleration for video apps - is Photoshop next?

We told you a while back about how the latest version of Adobe Flash supports using your computer's graphics processing unit (GPU) to speed up video playback. Well, Adobe has even bigger plans for GPU acceleration in its video apps, and maybe even in Photoshop. Adobe blogger John Nack lays out all the details in a new post, including plans to optimize for specific GPU models.

Photoshop is definitely getting multi-core and GPU acceleration, although Nack says he can't spill the details yet. Pixel Bender is an early example of the kinds of features this could bring with it. Some new features only work with NVIDIA graphics cards so far, but Adobe is looking at supporting OpenCL in the future. Then there's the aforementioned hardware optimization: just like Adobe apps used to be optimized for PowerPC and Intel processors, they'll now be optimized for different graphics hardware.

Filed under: Developer, Video, Microsoft, iPhone

Microsoft brings Silverlight video to the iPhone, without a plugin

The ongoing on saga of Flash on the iPhone (or, more to the point, the lack thereof) has been frustrating to users and developers alike. Adobe's even gone as far as creating Flash-to-iPhone app technology to bridge the gap. Meanwhile, Microsoft just scored a big coup by announcing that Silverlight video will work on the iPhone. In fact, you can already view a demonstration.

It's not as if Microsoft brokered some secret deal with Apple that Adobe couldn't. Instead, they made their own software stream Quicktime-compatible video to the iPhone using the HTML5 video tag. That means you don't need a plugin to view Silverlight video, you can just watch the same H.264 stream that sites like YouTube use on the iPhone. It also doesn't mean all Silverlight content providers will automatically stream H.264, but at least they have the option. Nice one, Microsoft!

[via Betanews]

Filed under: News, iPhone

New website covers the rejected iPhone app beat

When Apple first started rejecting iPhone apps for strange or controversial reasons, it was newsworthy, but after a while it became impractical to write about all of these rejections, because - my gosh! - you could fill an entire site with these! AppRejections.com has done just that. It's a new site you can check to see all the latest disputed app rejections.

AppRejections is a bit of schadenfreude for Apple-haters who enjoy reveling in what seems to be Apple's most unpopular policy, but it's also a place for developers to send their problems with the App Store. It lets developers commiserate and let off some steam, but it also provides some information about Apple's seemingly-inconsistent app approval policies. Heck, maybe Apple VP Phil Schiller will even descend from on high again to fix some of the more egregious rejections.

[via TheAppleBlog]

Filed under: Utilities, Windows, Troubleshooting

Teamviewer 5 beta gets faster, adds voice and video conferencing


I've been running TeamViewer as my go-to remote support app for a couple years now, and I don't see myself switching any time soon. It's fast, requires no configuration, and the additions of the Flash-based web viewer and partner list in version 4 were solid upgrades to an already good app.

Version 5 is now ready for beta testing, and it looks like Teamviewer is once again set for some solid new features and yet another boost in speed.

In addition to getting quicker, Teamviewer 5 now includes a major communications improvement. You're no longer limited to text-based chatting - v5 supports voice and video chat. Quality is good - about on par with Skype in my testing. It's still at the mercy of your ISP, of course, so the more bandwidth you have at your disposal, the better it will work.

Besides being a great app for remote support, Teamviewer evolved into an excellent screen-sharing and presentation tool in v4 and has just got even better with v5.

You can download the TeamViewer 5 beta right now and take it for a spin. As with previous releases, you can expect version 5 to be free for personal use, and there will be a portable version available as well.

Filed under: Fugly Friday

Fugly Friday: Carnage UK, best viewed when drunk -- blind drunk

Truly hideous - Carnage UK website. Does not do the blinking bits justice.
It probably says an awful lot that after spending ten (10) minutes on Carnage UK's website... I still don't know what they do exactly. I think they arrange wet t-shirt contests or something -- binge-drinking, wet t-shirt events for students in the UK.

Either way, their brutal, eye-gouging monstrosity is quite possibly the most garish and ugly site I've ever seen. I don't know if it's meant to scare prospective clients off -- or lure a very specific subset of the human species into their lurid, sweaty, drunken grip.

Further research shows that one of their clients/binge-drinking brain-dead student punters recently got into trouble for urinating on a war memorial. Why would I research such a debauched and drunken leper of a domain, I hear you ask? Because really, such a creation must be a front for something truly nefarious -- no one designs such vomit-inducing promotional material with benevolent intentions. No one.

So, if you're looking to get rip-roaringly drunk in the UK and wear 'fancy dress t-shirts', or if you're looking for a good excuse to piss all over our respected and revered military veterans, look no further than Carnage UK.

[Thanks to Irregular Shed (?) for the tip!]

Internet Explorer 8's SmartScreen blocks 2 million malicious URLs per day

While you might not be a fan of Internet Explorer 8, there's no denying it's a better browser than its predecessors. One key upgrade in IE8 is its improved security and safety features - like SmartScreen. In case you haven't heard about it before, SmartScreen is designed to keep IE users from wandering onto malicious websites. Sites like those which repeatedly turn up in Facebook scams. And it ...

Dell snuggles up to Google Chrome OS, offers customized download for its Mini 10V

In a display of surprising tenacity, Dell have gone ahead and distributed a customized version of Chrome OS for the Dell Mini 10V! Lilputing are reporting that all the necessary hardware support has been added, so in theory you could just whack the Chrome OS image onto a memory stick and boot it up right now! Mind you, the image is 8GB so this is probably only of interest to enthusiasts -- but ...

Watch Ustream over wi-fi or 3G on your Android device

Android users have been able to broadcast video to Ustream.tv for a couple of months now, but there was no way to watch Ustream shows on your Android phone until now. Ustream Viewer has just hit the Android Market, allowing for free, unlimited on-the-go viewing of the popular video site. Ustream Viewer will work over either wi-fi or 3G. The iPhone version of Ustream Viewer has been around since ...

Pie Guy shows off the power of iPhone web apps

Neven Mrgan, a developer at Panic, as well as the co-creator of the popular Birdfeed Twitter client, has just released a fascinating new iPhone game. It's called Pie Guy, and the gameplay is reminiscent of classic Pac Mac games. You won't find Pie Guy in the App Store, though, because it's a web app. You can even add it to your home screen and play it offline. The game is fairly fun, but the ...

MOG announces All Access music subscription service

Up until now, MOG has existed as sort of a music blog network and news source, but starting on December 2nd, it's also going to be Napster-like music subscription service. MOG All Access will be a $5/mo subscription service that provides unlimited access to MOG's music library. The MOG music service offers personal playlists, but it also incorporates elements from existing music services. You can ...

Featured Time Waster

The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

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