Marty and the Doc back together again.

And your kids are really going to love the latest Back To The Future game to hit the shelves.

Let’s face it, there have been some pretty awful BTTF games to grace our consoles and computers over the years — such an amazing movie done such a disservice by extremely poor movie tie-ins.

But, I’m pleased to report that this latest outing, out now on PC and Mac from TallTale Games, is definitely going to take you to 88mph…and beyond.

This game is the real deal and has been completely re-written from ground-level by fans for fans of the classic movie trilogy by a company who has given us such classics such as Tales of Monkey Island and Sam & Max.

This is a completely new cinematic adventure which is set to unfold over five gripping episodes, set in 1986, six months after the events of the third film.

The first, ‘It’s About Time!’, sees the Delorean Time Machine mysteriously return to Hill Valley – minus the Doc!

And you, as Marty, must go back in time to recruit assistance from a teenage ‘Emmet Brown’ in a bid to solve the mystery and make sure the space-time continuum is left intact.

What’s amazing about this game is that the feel and atmosphere is so close to the original movie trilogy, both in looks, content and even the Doc himself – Christopher Lloyd, gives his voice to the animated character.

This game looks great, sounds great and plays even better. From first launching Episode 1, I was instantly transported back to the Back To The Future World.

Even Bob Gale, the original movie’s co-creator and writer, consults on the new title: “Twenty-five years ago when I wrote Doc Brown’s line about ‘seeing the future,’ little did I realise that I would be traveling with him to work on this game. Collaborating with Telltale is an amazing opportunity to continue the adventures of Doc and Marty,” said Gale.

In my opinion, this game is so good it could even be turned into a new movie chapter – Spielberg could be in talks with Robert Zemeckis as we speak to bring the film back to life … but then again, remember Jaws 4!

Seriously, even the voice of Marty is so close to that of Michael J Fox, it’s scary — thanks to the wonderful talents of AJ LoCascio – he looks nothing like Fox, but his voice is spot on.

As you meander through the story as Marty you are treated to some iconic moments and props from the film.

I loved the way the developers incorporated the ‘Big Amp’ into the game – I’m not going to say anymore as I don’t want to spoil your fun … but it definitely rocks!

Going back in time to the teenage years of the doc, you get to meet and greet Kid Tannen – another of Biff’s relatives… and yes, he hates manure!

As well as mental challenges, the game also treats you to a series of mini-games — one in particular where you have to use some scientific equipment to make a special mixture is excellent, very funny and very entertaining into the bargain.

I have completed Episode 1 already and I am chomping at the bit to get on to the next section.

Cleverly, TallTale Games have made each chapter download-only so they can control when it is released. All I can say is please can we have some more!

Make sure you check back soon for a review of Episode 2!

Check out www.backtothefuturegame.com to get your own copy of this classic with a modern twist — you won’t be disappointed.

Related Articles

• “Back to the Future Game from Telltale Games Coming December 22″ and related posts (dreamstation.cc)
• BACK TO THE FUTURE: THE GAME EPISODE 1 IT’S ABOUT TIME Review (geektyrant.com)
• Interview: We chat with Telltale’s co-designer about the Back To The Future episodic game (news.bigdownload.com)

To say I am impressed is a real understatement – the tech bods at Microsoft have surpassed themselves, taking the concept of ‘control’ to a completely new dimension.

Nintendo started the ball rolling with the Wii, but the Kinect is something else – it is much more than a control system – this method of control could become a way of life, a way for all of us to control everything from the TV and Hi-Fi to DVDs and kitchen equipment.

No, I’ve not lost my mind, but I really think the potential the Kinect boasts could be utilised for almost any application, so watch this space.

But back to the reason everyone seems to love the Kinect so much. The system allows you to ‘be’ the controller. Your body movements are converted in realtime to allow you to move left, right, up down – in fact, whatever you do with your body does gets translated into movement on the screen.

So far, I have only managed to get my hands on Kinect Adventures, the game that comes with the Kinect sensor, and demos of Sonic and Joyride – but watch this space as I plan to review many more of the titles, as they hit the shelves.

Kinect Adventures is a game where you, your friends and family get to kick, jump and dodge your way through 20 heart-pounding adventures and locations like roaring rapids, magnificent mountaintops and and even outer space!

And there’s no real learning curve – stand up, wave your hand in front of the sensor, wait for it to scan you and your surroundings and you’re off!

This is gaming as it should be – easy and fun. You don’t have to learn a secret code of button bashes to defeat your enemy – you are the controller so move in the right way and you’re on to a winner!

My favourite game includes River Rush, 20,000 leaks, where you have to plug the leaks in an underwater container (very clever!) and Space Pop -  which is very Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, flapping your arms to fly and pop a load of bubbles…I don’t think they are lemonade bubbles though!

Where the Kinect scores over its competition is the fact the sensor scans you and your body, can learn who you are via face-recognition and can even be controlled using your voice – opening the disc tray with your voice is the height of laziness, but is really cool. The same thing can be said about being able to pause, rewind and play DVDs though the Xbox – it’s technology as it should be.

Joyride, the demo, is amazing and I can’t wait to get my hands on the full game, but being able to drive a car around a track just by holding your hands in a steering wheel shape is revolutionary!

My kids couldn’t get enough of either of these games and  is testament to just how good the Kinect is and why every house should have one, definite party-fodder – perfect for all the family Christmas parties around the corner!

Microsoft has really taken the concept of c0ntroller-less gaming, turned it on its head and come up with a system that impresses on many levels. This is definitely the beginning of the story and I can’t wait to see what third-party games will be coming out this year as well as some more stunning titles from Microsoft…it’s definitely a case of watching this space!

Related articles

• Microsoft Plans Living Room Takeover With Kinect (gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com)
• Microsoft’s Kinect Is Much More Than a Game (fool.com)
• Microsoft: Kinect Hacks Are ‘Cool’ (blogs.forbes.com)
• Xbox And Kinect Are The Future Of TV… Except Microsoft Will Figure Out A Way To Blow It (MSFT, AAPL) (businessinsider.com)
• CES 2011: Kinect Sells 8 Million Units in 2 Months (devicemag.com)
• Microsoft Sold 8 Million Kinects Since Launch (1up.com)
• Connecting With Microsoft’s Kinect (forbes.com)

Take Mafia II, out now on the Xbox 360 – it’s difficult to tell the cut-scenes from the actual scenes sometimes as the transitions are just so smooth.

This is an awesome game that takes sucks you in as soon as you start playing as Vito, a beaten-down Italian American who is hell bent on escaping the life of poverty and providing for his family.

The first chapter sees you back in your home town of Sicily in the war fighting for the Americans – this I wasn’t expecting and it seemed as though I was playing Medal of Honour, but it certainly set the scene.

Once out of the army, Vito hooks up with his old pal Joe (no surprise there on the name front!), who seems to have become a bit of a wannabe-gangster during the war days…and this is where the game really takes shape.

Mafia II is a fantastic looking game that delves into the dark world of the American gangster, expanding on the original hit game which captivated more than two million gamers around the world.

I love the way the game teaches you the controls by interacting in certain scenes – the fight sequence with the man harassing his sister is excellent, with the fight seeming to be pretty realistic – including the blood which certainly flies after each well-landed punch.

But don’t think that you’re gonna land the Don’s job straight off the baseball bat! You have to earn your stripes starting off with low-level jobs like robbery and stealing cars.

Driving the cars is more than a bit tricky, especially as there seems to be a blanket of snow on the roads – slipping and sliding is inevitable and tough if you’re trying to keep a stolen car in good nick to sell it for dollars.

This is my only criticism of the game really, and it’s not much of one.

The game play is awesome and you can easily lose hours playing as you try to work you way up the Mafia family ladder.

This really is an authentic portrayal of Mid-20th Century America, complete with a soundtrack that complements the golden era – the radios in the car blast away songs of yesteryear that will have your grannie tapping her feet and shouting – ‘Oh yes, I remember this one!’

Down to the cars, clothing and atmosphere, Mafia II is definitely worth checking out – I can see me playing this one for some time to come.

Just be warned that as it is rated as an 18 certificate, there’s some choice language and graphic scenes which definitely aren’t suitable for younger players – this is one definitely for the adults to enjoy.

For more information, check out the official website: http://www.mafia2game.com/

Related Articles

• Mafia II Review: Smelling The Roses In A Life Lived Too Fast [Review] (kotaku.com)
• Writer’s Room: Mafia II is Not a Game (escapistmagazine.com)
• Review: Mafia II (g4tv.com)
• Mafia Boss Arrested While Playing Godfather Xbox Game (techdirt.com)
• Mafia II: Joe’s Adventures DLC Announced (cinemablend.com)
• Mafia II (go.theregister.com)
• Review: Mafia II (macworld.com)
• Mafia II (tobolds.blogspot.com)
• Review: Mafia II (escapistmagazine.com)
• Review: ‘Mafia II’ an energetic, bloody ride (cnn.com)

Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs introduces programming for Apple TV at Apple’s music-themed September media event in San Francisco, California September 1, 2010. Content © 2010 Reuters All rights reserved.

So what can you expect to get for your £99.
The unit, which is about 80 per cent smaller than the original. It is fully HD (720p) and has ports for Ethernet, HDMI and has wi-fi capability to connect to your home network, meaning for the first time, you can stream content from your Mac or PC to your TV, as well as feeds from Netflix, YouTube, Flickr and MobileMe (although, not all content may be available in the UK).

Apple TV users will be able to choose from the largest online selection of HD films to rent, including first run movies for just £4.49, and the largest online selection of HD TV programme episodes to rent* from ABC, ABC Family, Fox, Disney Channel and BBC America for just 99 cents. You will also be able to enjoy slide shows of your photos on your HD TV using Apple TV’s selection of built-in slide show features.

Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs speaks on stage showing the size difference of the redesigned Apple TV box at Apple’s music-themed September media event in San Francisco, California September 1, 2010. Content © 2010 Reuters All rights reserved.

“The new Apple TV, paired with the largest selection of online HD film and TV programme rentals, lets users watch Hollywood content on their HD TV whenever they want”, said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “This tiny, silent box costing just £99 lets users watch thousands of HD movies and TV shows, and makes all of their music, photos and videos effortlessly available on their home entertainment system”.
Apple TV will be able to rent thousands of advert-free, HD TV episodes on iTunes for just 99 cents, with up to 30 days to start watching and then 48 hours to finish — or watch multiple times. Users can also rent over 7,000 films with over 3,400 available in HD, with most new releases available the same day they are released on DVD.
I’ve got to say this is definitely a product I would like to get my hands on – it sounds too good to be true.
The only thing missing is the ability to watch standard TV channels out-of-the-box, then it would have been a package to rival the likes of Sky and Virgin Media – which is probably why it doesn’t!

Related Articles

• Apple TV a first step for more ambitious plans? (reuters.com)
• The Apple TV we really wanted to see (dvice.com)
• Apple TV moves from download to streaming (variety.com)

As the kit is very specialised it is advised to get a specialist to fit it for you (see below for contact details of a Sutton Coldfield-based fitter).
But once it’s in all you will see is the microphone for your hands-free calls and the small dashboard-mounted control console.
Despite, only having a volume control and three or four buttons, the small device is the heart and soul of the kit.
Syncing a phone or iPod to the device is very simple.
Once paired, the next time you get into the vehicle, your devices will automatically connect with the unit – as long as your Bluetooth is turned on. It even remembers five devices and will connect with them automatically once you enter the vehicle.
I was amazed at how easy it was to get my phone and iPod through the car’s speakers within a few seconds of playing with it.
I then had a go at getting my Sat-Nav through the speakers – again very easy.
You can only connect two devices at a time so have to decide whether you want music and phone or directions and phone – this was only a slight drawback to using the unit, but would be a good addition for future upgrades.
The addition of bass and treble controls would be useful too, as you can’t use any of your existing car stereo’s tone settings, but again a minor point – the clarity of the sound was fantastic regardless of the device I was using.
One feature I did like was the ability to skip through the album tracks on my iPod using the forward and back buttons on the dashboard device.
The phone side of the kit was also excellent, providing excellent sound in the car and at the other end, according to the people I was speaking to.
You can even call the last number dialled from one of the buttons on the device as well as using voice dialling with a supported mobile.
Even better was the fact that my music was paused while taking the call, and continuing once I had finished.
The iO Play even allows you to listen to your radio and then as soon as a call comes in it drops it out until you have finished with the call. This was particularly impressive – this was also the same for my multi-disc CD player. Having so much choice while on the move makes this a must-have accessory for anyone doing a lot of travelling.
I was really impressed with the iO Play and would definitely recommend it to anyone thinking of installing a hands-free kit in their car – this gives the real advantage of being able to stream music from your iPod, MP3 player or mobile, while staying safe on the road.
For more information about the iO Play – check out www.ioplay.co.uk/

* Sutton-based Andy Anderson can be contacted on 07836 777006 or via his website: www.cvista.co.uk

Image via Wikipedia

When I was invited to take a look at an online game where ‘the world is your oyster’ I must admit to being a little more than sceptical, but after spending only 15 minutes in Free Realms my skepticism turned to excitement.
If you’ve not heard of this latest PC phenomenon from Sony Online Entertainment then let me be the one to enlighten you.
Free Realms is a free 3-D virtual world where you can do whatever you want, go wherever you like and be whoever you want to be – and best of all it’s completely child safe.
You play it from your web browser, although you do have to download a bit of software to make it work, but believe me once you’re in – you wont want to leave – it TOTALLY addictive!

There’s so much content in this game that I would run out of space if I even attempted to list it all, but here’s just a taster for you: You can battle enemies, search for lost treasure, teach your pet new tricks, cook a meal, race a car, smash cars up in Demolition Derby – as well as the chance to meet up, chat and share achievements with your online friends.
It really is a ‘must-see’ game. The visuals are stunning – not only the animations, but the 3-D locations are breathtaking, especially when you see hundreds of other people just like you running around doing the same things that you are – it really is like living in another world.
So whether you want to climb mountains in Snowhill to enjoy the views, delve deep into the dark and scary forests of Blackspore or catch some rays in Seaside Village is entirely up to you – because in this game YOU are the ruler.
It’s the sort of game that you will start playing, thinking you’ll only spend an hour or so before having to go and mow the lawn, only to realise two weeks later you’re living in a forest!
This really is a great game and one I would highly recommend, just be prepared to spend some time working out what you need to do because it’s not always straight forward, but the rewards are tenfold once you get going.
To enjoy this game, all you need to do is go to www.freerealms.com sign up for a free account, create your character and you’re away – you can then decide what job you would like, and yes you have to have a job in this game just like the real world…although in Free Realms having a job really is fun!
I became a postman, got the uniform and the T-shirt and then had to run challenges to deliver the mail before the timer ran out – it’s amazing how much fun you can have delivering someone’s mail.
But that’s not all, there’s mini games galore, including cooking and checkers, you can have your own pet and teach it tricks – that’s really funny and collect and trade Free Realm Trading cards both in the real world as well as the virtual one.
So what are you waiting for, stop reading now, head on over to www.freerealms.com and check out the game – maybe I’ll even see you in there!

Related Articles

• Sony Online Entertainment brings Domo to Free Realms (massively.com)
• 12 Million Registered Players Take Their Summer Break in Sony Online Entertainment’s Free Realms(TM)! (prnewswire.com)
• Free Realms offering lifetime memberships for $30 (joystiq.com)
• Free Realms adds new pets, mounts, and windsocks (massively.com)

Image via Wikipedia

These days there are more and people using Macs – particularly iMacs and Macbooks.
The reason…because they are a just so easy to use, stable and do exactly what they should do – they very rarely fail or fall over.
I recently bought a 20” iMac and really love it – in fact, I’m writing this review now on it using Word for the Mac.
One piece of software I really think is worth its weight in gold, and that it comes free with all new macs, is iLife – Apple‘s of suite of lifestyle applications.
The latest version iLife 09 is simply amazing.
With applications like iPhoto ’09, iMove ’09, Garageband ’09, iWeb ’09, and iDVD – there really is something for everyone.
I shall look at each of the applications in turn and reveal some of the fantastic features that each one has as well as some of my favourites.

iPhoto ’09 – this has got to be one of the best digital photo organisational tools that I have ever used – it’s simple to operate, but incredibly powerful at the same time.
The screen is broken down into sections. The middle or main part of the screen is where you view your albums and events as well as carrying out work on captioning them or manipulating their brightness or contract.
Down the left-hand side of the screen there are different sections to click in. Under a heading of library, you decide whether you want to see Events, Photos, Faces or Places.
Events are cool as you can organise your various photos into particular events. Been to a wedding recently, upload your pics, give the event a name and all of the photos will appear in there – you haven’t got to manually create an album or caption all of the photos to be able to find them.
This is definitely my favourite way of displaying images – everything is very easy to find thanks to the fact that it uses one photo, which you can choose, to represent the entire event.
Photos – gives you access to ALL of the pictures in your library – but unlike Events it displays all of your pictures – still sectioned by events – but every single image you have.
Both are very useful views and it’s down to preference which one you choose.
Faces – is definitely one of my favourites features and is unique to ’09. As soon as you upload your digital pictures and click on Faces, you are presented with a headshot of everyone in your collection – one picture per person.
And using face recognition technology, iPhoto ’09 will scan your library to find matching faces. It does a pretty good job to be honest, although it really depends on how good the picture was in the first place and the angle it was taken at. For a straight-on shot though it always tends to get it spot on which I still find amazing. Once you click on Faces, iPhoto displays its work and there should be a number of pics that it has managed to find automatically, followed by suggestions underneath where it wasn’t quite sure. Simply tag the pictures as you would do in say Facebook and iPhoto ’09 keeps a record of all the faces from your collection displayed on a cork board. Click on the face you want to view and all the pictures of that person are there – very cool!
Places – utilises GPS built-in to mobile phones and some digital cameras – and using maps plots the location where you pictures were taken. You can even edit the information manually so you can see where you’ve been on the map – click on the location pin opens those photos for viewing – a nifty little feature.
You can also create albums which you can then print out as a calendar, card, poster – you can even get them professionally printed if you have MobileMe account.
The whole programme oozes class from the second you load it – you can now even upload your pictures directly to Flickr or Facebook in just a few clicks. iPhoto ’09 is worth the price of the software alone in my book.

iMovie ’09 – I must confess to not having played much with this package as it turned out my Sony video camera was incompatible with iMovie. But what I did do was use to stock footage to play with the very powerful editing features which allow you to put a movie together in no time – similar to creating a slideshow in iPhoto…simple!
Once you’ve imported your footage, iMovie ’09 displays in Event just like iPhoto ’09 – all ready for you to start work on straight away.
To create a movie all you do is select clips and then drag them into the project timeline. Add more clips until you’re ready and then select your music – because this is Apple, everything is available, just search your iTunes library for the song you want and drag it to the timeline.
Just like other video editing packages, you do everything manually or if you want to save time, Apple has created some amazing themes which add transitions and titles to your project instantly – you can then watch the whole thing in full screen before deciding to share it on the web or burn a disc to watch on your TV.
One of the new features is the Precision Editor which allows you to cut your clips exactly where you want without having to second guess – presented in a very simple drag and drop style.
You can even fix wobbly footage thanks to some new automatic stabilisation features – again, the results have to be seen to be believed. I recommend you check out Apple’s website and watch their video demos of iMovie ’09 – they’re very impressive.
I particularly like the animated travel movie which uses an animated globe to depict where you are travelling to between two points. You can even make Indiana Jones-style travel maps with a flying red arrow over old fashioned maps or even a spinning globe.

iDVD is probably the weakest of all the packages as not a great deal has changed from previous iLife versions. Having said that it is still a great tool for putting together your own copyright-free (in other words, your own home movies) videos with intro sequences and

iWeb ’09 – This is one of those packages that certain people will love and others will ignore. It used to be useful only for people with .Mac or MobileMe, as it’s known now, accounts – but with the latest version of iWeb you can export you site directly to a server.
Again the software has the same feel as the rest of the suite and relies heavily on drag and drop for creating its content. It is very powerful and has some really great templates that can be instantly tweaked to make original looking websites. So if you have a hobby, a blog, a club or your own business, you can produce something that won’t look like other iWeb designs.
Choose the template and then the type of page you want to include and then you can start tweaking by adding your own content and images.
I particularly like one of the new features which enables you to add web widgets to your page – I thought the countdown was really excellent – great if you’re in a band and want to let people know how long it is to the gig – all this without any separate programming.
To have this included with such a suite of apps is a real boon and a definitely feather in Apple’s cap!

Garageband ’09 – unless you’ve been on a desert island for the past five years, you’ve bound to have heard someone muttering the name Garageband at some point.
If you have been on a desert island for five years, Garageband is a music application which has plenty of tricks up its sleeve.
Not only can you create a whole variety of musical styles using the inbuilt instruments and loops, but it will also teach you how to play guitar or piano via a series of interactive lessons – and they are very good.
The first time I played on Garageband I was instantly hooked. Just dragging and dropping a variety of loops into the timeline creating my own composition. To be honest, I lost complete track of time and realised I’d been composing for about an hour!
But loops are only a very small part of Garageband. Click on the section Learn To Play and you will be taken to a number of videos which teach you the basics of playing the piano and guitar. The first time you load up you will only have two videos, but a quick trip to the Lesson Store means you’ll be able to download the rest of the lessons for free. If you want to learn specific songs, there are a number of artist videos, including Sting, that teach you how to play – of course, they’re not free…musicians have got to live off something!
One of my favourite sections is Magic Garageband. Here you select the style you want to listen to or create and click choose. A stage appears with a number of instruments playing. By clicking each one of the instruments you can change its type – say a double bass to an electric bass – which give the music a completely new feel. Once you’re happy with your mix, you can click to open the arrangement in Garageband and start changing bits, adding your own parts, even record a lead vocal or guitar part part – you basically get to jam along with your own band…and the best bit is that they won’t drink all of your beer, run off with your partner or need paying!
Seriously, Garageband is an excellent tool if you fancy having a dabble at making music but don’t want to shell out straight away on dedicated music recording packages like Logic.
Garageband certainly does more than wet you feet, but for a fraction of the cost.

What Apple has created with its various applications in iLife ’09 is definitely worth commending – I have been impressed with all of the apps, and like I say some people will use certain ones to others, but overall iLife ’09 is definitely worth investigating.
Check out www.apple.com for more information.

Related Articles

• 10 Reasons To Use Apple’s iMovie ’09 [Mac] (makeuseof.com)
• iPhoto Buddy Home Page (iphotobuddy.com)
• Four Ways to Speed up IWeb ’09 (pcworld.com)
• Quickstart Guide for iMovie ’09 (speedofcreativity.org)

Sure – it’s not a comprehensive as say Dreamweaver, but it hasn’t got a really steep learning curve either, and by selecting one of the many excellent templates, you will soon be producing a site that wouldn’t look out-of-place on the professional table.
You can, of course, create a site completely from scratch using all the excellent tools and facilities WebPlus X2 has to offer.
Serif has produced excellent software for years, but despite it being very reasonably priced; somehow it has never made it into the professional arena – until now!
The latest version of its web design software has been completely redesigned to allow an individual or organisation the ability to create top-quality sites with no design experience necessary.
Not only can you produce a fantastic-looking site, you can also incorporate interactive forums and blogs, animated photo galleries, podcasts and even YouTube videos.
The software even caters for e-commerce, PayPal and secure password-protected pages, so you have full control of who can see and do what on your site.
Once you have fired up the software you are presented with a screen that could be a little daunting to look at first off – but it has everything you need to your site together.
And because it’s been designed by Serif, you can create graphics directly in the program using its built-in tools – resizing pictures, applying transparency or changing the colour-scheme of the entire site in one click.
I must admit, the first time I played with WebPlus X2 I was amazed at how quickly I was able to put together a fully-functional website that was easy to manipulate and preview in a multitude of web browsers.
Recently I have put together a website for a friend of mine and he was absolutely blown away with it – at how quickly I put it together and how professional it looked, and it was all thanks to WebPlus X2.
One of the things that makes this software a joy to use is the convenience of everything you need being at your fingertips – whether it be a design element from one of the many fantastic templates provided, or a picture you want to use and manipulate – it’s all there.
You can put together a home page for a small business or personal use it minutes – all without having to write a single line of code.
One particular feature which made the process feel snappy was the on-screen help guides – a tab which can be auto-hidden, docked or floated and give you step-by-step instructions on how to do something without it interrupting your creative workflow.
I love the new and improved Navigation bars which automatically update as soon as you add a new page to your site – and there is a huge gallery or designs to choose from – all fully customisable.
WebPlus X2 also has an excellent Site Manager built-in directly so once you’ve designed your site, you can upload it via FTP to your domain very quickly and very easily without having to use a separate piece of software. This means that updates and changes to your site are very quick as well.
In all, WebPlus X2 is an excellent piece of software for anyone – whether it’s someone wanting to dip their toes into the waters of web design or a professional wanting a quick and easy way to put together a site.
Check out http://www.serif.com/webplus/ for more information.

Image via Wikipedia

We all know a picture is worth more than a thousand words and that every face tells a story…
I recently went to a party where a photographer was taking shots of everyone as they walked in.
Knowing a little about photography I was surprised at his location – the background was terrible – until he set up his full-length green screen.
I was intrigued, but to my amazement what he was doing was shooting the pictures on a green screen and then using technology to remove the screen and replace it with a perfectly-lit studio background.
But what was even more amazing was the results were almost instant.I recently bought myself a digital SLR camera and decided to investigate the green screen concept and discover just what could be created at home.
Thanks to FXHome Ltd I was able to try out their amazing software with their professional package, including a green screen and a number of top-quality background DVDs.
The software runs on either a PC or Mac and allows you to remove green or blue backgrounds automatically and instantly replace them with your own background images.
After using PhotoKey 3 for a few minutes, I discovered it was very easy to use, but harnessed power that was only ever available to professionals.
Imagine being able to take a picture of your loved ones on a removable background – the possibilities are almost endless. You could turn it into a studio shot, a beach shot, outdoor on the grass – you’re in control.
In just a few clicks your photographs are automatically composited. You still have full control and can dive into the settings at any time, with comprehensive masking tools and colour filters for dealing with even the trickiest of images.
Once you’ve lit the green screen correctly and taken your picture, you can begin delving into PhotoKey, adding special effects like shadows, depth of field, soft focus and tints…and that’s only scratching the surface.
Predominantly you have two layers – a foreground and a background. These can be manipulated independently of each other, giving you full control of your final composite without having to use another third-party photo-editing program.
PhotoKey 3 even allows you to add text and special overlays create magazine-style covers and greeting cards, and you can use batch-processing to output multiple images with different background combinations.
The software is specifically designed for studio photographers as they only need one background to shoot against instead of many different types, but with software like this anyone can take advantage and get some great ‘studio’ quality images in their own home.
I hung my green screen in the conservatory and used a few household lights to light the screen. I was able to take my pictures, and by hooking it up to my laptop, instantly see how my image would appear against background images.
This program should definitely be in a wannabe photographer’s arsenal.
I set up the software to watch a folder that my camera was populating – so as soon as I took a picture it appeared on-screen – minus the green, leaving me free to try multiple backgrounds.
Playing with some of the many settings and parameters, I was able to tailor the light from my picture to the lighting of the background image, making for some very realistic-looking composites.
I would definitely recommend this to anyone wanting to take their photography to the next level – it’s almost like having your own ‘studio’ in your house!
PhotoKey 3 Pro really has to be seen in action to be believed – check out www.fxhome.com for video tutorials and more information.

Related Articles

• How To Use Chroma Key Technology Effectively (slideshare.net)
• Projects ” How-To’s ” Composite Photograph (cutoutandkeep.net)

I first saw this device on The Gadget Show and was completely blown away with its power without it requiring hours of clicking on yes/no boxes.
Taking the unit out of the box, I installed the supplied software and plugged the device into a spare USB 2.0 slot. The entire process took no longer than 10 minutes.
From that moment onwards, anything and everything that wants to connect to the outside Internet world has to go through the Pico…and it takes no prisoners!
A word of warning though, once you’ve set a user name and password – DON’T FORGET IT.
I did and it caused me all sorts of problems and I more or less had to reinstall my entire operating system – but it was my own fault and nothing to do with the Pico.
Your user name and passwords gives you access to the Pico’s security central – the place where you need to be to monitor what is going on and how you would like to configure the unit to allow or deny programs or connections.
I have to say that I have become more than a fan of this device as it is so easy to use and because it doesn’t steal any CPU cycles, it runs my oldest 512mb laptop with no problem.
I used to have a software solution and at times, I could barely run Notepad without having to wait ages to click on something – it was more than frustrating.
As I only really use the laptop for web browsing, the Pico is the perfect accompaniment for providing support for the following:
Anti-spam
Anti-phishing
Antispyware
Antivirus
Parent control system
Transparent email proxies (POP3; SMTP)
Transparent web proxies (HTTP; FTP)
Intrusion detection system
Intrusion prevention system
Firewall
Adaptive security policy
You access the settings for the Pico via a web interface with a few colourful dials and 3D charts.
To the purist tech-bods there may not be enough control here to delve heavily into the Pico backbone, but to someone who just wants protection it is perfect. It also allows easy access to the Yoggie’s log files.
Putting the Yoggie through its paces, I ran a series of tests and I have to say it performed very well and kept its cool…well the unit became a little warm, but no more so than say being on a mobile phone for 10 minutes.
The light on the unit blinks away letting you know that it’s protecting your every move – very impressive.
If there’s one little request I could make to Yoggie headquarters it would be to include the software installation in the unit itself, then you take the unit with you, plug it into any PC and be safe in the knowledge that you’re protected.
The Yoggie Pico is an excellent piece of kit and is something that all PC users should have in their arsenal against the nasties on the net.
For more information check out www.yoggie.com

Related Articles

• Internet gets security upgrade (gizmag.com)
• New software lets PCs work while they sleep (gizmag.com)
• Safe At Home (and Anywhere Else Your Laptop Goes) (itexpertvoice.com)
• The features of the Best Spyware Removal Products have | comners (comners.com)