In the lab: Online Operating Systems

A Window to Web 2.0
In the days of arguably bloated operating systems and terabyte hard drives, how about an OS that fits in your browser cache? That's the promise that's made and varyingly kept by a host of OSes that run entirely in your browser window.
The potential benefits of an online-only operating system are obvious. Forget remote access, the promise is of an entirely online desktop, whether you own a desktop or not. In theory, anywhere in the world that you're able to get a reliable internet and reasonably fat internet connection, you have access to your desktop. Not a browser window showing files on your home computer but your own, password protected and always available desktop.
At least, that's the idea.
With the current proliferation of online OSes floating around, it stands to reason that only the strong shall survive.
In other words, if you pitch your tent in a losing online OS's field, you stand to lose your data along with it. Also bear in mind that you'll be entrusting your data to a third party, likely outside of Canada and therefore not subject to Canadian laws.
As it stands, online operating systems are a neat novelty to play around with and can prove a useful utility for some users but a core desktop system where business is conducted, sensitive information stored and as a system that replaces your desktop or laptop's operating system? Not quite yet.
Some online operating systems prove a boon for managing online collaboration and serve as the ultimate gateway homepage.
While it's true some of these web-based operating system aren't quite ready for the big leagues just yet. That said, these are powerful online tools; whether ensuring you have access to important documents anywhere, keeping your data in-sync no matter where you access it and keeping your most important information available anywhere.
Goowyhttp://www.goowy.com/ What's available: Email, calendar, IM, games and Widget- / Gadget-like "Webits" and moreClosest to: The bastard child of Windows Vista and Mac OSXSwitch? Not yet but it's got some potentialSpeed: Very goodPlatforms tested and working: Firefox 2.0.0.7, Internet Explorer 7.0.5370.11Requirements: Adobe FlashSpace: 1GB up to 5GBCost: Free (1GB) or $4.99/mo. (5GB)
At first glance, it looks like Goowy's got it all; clever name? Check, Goowy is a play on Graphical User Interface or GUI. Email? Check, complete with beta calendaring option that looks remarkably like a scaled down Outlook Express. Games? Those too. Instant messaging? It's in beta but present and accounted for. Word processor... wait, no. That's mysteriously missing. There is no document management system at all. Users are offered 1GB of free online storage for documents or whatever other files don't violate the terms of service (TOS), which seems to be most.
Storing files on Goowy is a simple affair, functioning much like the attach button on an online email service. In an attempt to keep users honest, the file upload window informs of a 10MB upload limit for a single file. An Actions toolbar allows for the batch uploading of numerous files; just hold down CTRL as you would when selecting multiple files within your desktop OS.
In an attempt to get users to switch over full-time, at least for things like checking web-based email, Goowy offers an incredibly simple and effective utility for integrating an existing email account with your Goowy desktop. Selecting Gmail, for example, will populate Gmail specific port and security settings leaving you to fill out the name, email address, password and a few other simple fields.
Goowy is entirely Flash based, which is both a good and a bad thing. While it limits the end-user customizability and in this case, eliminates the possibility of right-clicking (potentially a hard habit for some OS users to break), it allows for a flashier interface and some fancy graphic icing. Take, for example the decidedly (and decidedly cheeky) Windows Vista-looking default desktop wallpaper and the decidedly Mac OSX-inspired task bar across the bottom of the interface, complete with icons that jump and bounce when clicked.
DeskTopTwohttp://www.desktoptwo.com/ What's available: Web site editor, notepad, IM, MP3 player, blog, email, calendar, address book and moreClosest to: Windows NT, interface wiseSwitch? There's a strong argument to be madeSpeed: Very goodPlatforms tested and working: Firefox 2.0.0.7, Internet Explorer 7.0.5370.11Requirements: Java, Adobe Flash and AcrobatSpace: 1GB free up to 50GBCost: Free, US$25, US$45, US$95 and US$185 for 1GB, 5GB, 10GB, 25GB and 50GB of storage
DeskTopTwo is pretty serious; so serious, in fact, that they've got a premium offering up for $185/yr. There is, of course, a free version of the web GUI desktop available for those looking to experiment.
It's laid out logically and immediately brings to mind a cross between Windows XP and Vista and Ubuntu.
An advertising bar sits at the top centre of the screen and is at about 30 per cent transparency until you mouse over it, at which points the ads become clear. It's a creative solution to the ad-supported model and, assuming you're running DeskTopTwo in full-screen or as a full-screen browser window, it doesn't get in the way of the icons on the desktop. It's called "Deals and Steals" and actually does highlight some interesting, often web-only deals.
On the desktop and in what looks a lot like Window's Start menu are a calendar application, RSS reader, message boards, instant messenger, MP3 player, web site editor and several other varyingly useful apps including a "Hard Drive" which functions as a file upload / download utility. There doesn't seem to be an upload cap (we were able to upload a chunk of the Ubuntu 7.04 disc image file before tiring of the slow upload speed.
The inclusion of a full OpenOffice 2.0 suite makes this a compelling offering. However, the load time is bit much; understandably so, perhaps. However, the OpenOffice 2.0 components do seem a bit buggy and sometimes crash as soon as they finish loading. That said, the Sapotek team admits it's still working out a few issues... just in case the word "beta," prominent in the bottom right corner of the interface didn't tip users off.
DeskTopTwo feels a lot more like a cohesive desktop experience than some other offerings we've tried; things like the ability to move icons on the desktop, the ability to save files direct to your online "hard drive" from the various desktop applications and, once the initial and somewhat slow initial load is done, near offline desktop performance.
eyeOShttp://www.eyeos.org/ What's available: File manager, word processor, music player, calendar, notepad, contacts manager, file sharer, group manager, group boardClosest to: UbuntuSwitch? Maybe not switch but definitely useSpeed: Reasonable with public servers, great with eyeOS server and a decent connectionPlatforms tested and working: Firefox 2.0.0.7, Internet Explorer 7.0.5370.11Requirements: Adobe FlashSpace: UnspecifiedCost: Donation driven, GNU Public License (v.3)
Anyone familiar with navigating in graphic user interface Linux operating systems will feel right at home with eyeOS; not only does it carry over the community-driven design and open source software idea, it also brings a lot of the same navigation principals that are found in Linux installs.
At the time of testing, the load times were painfully slow when using the hosted system. However, during other periods, the online OS was snappy and responsive, bringing up requested programs with just a few seconds loading time.
On the clean and uncluttered desktop sit "home" and "trash" folders; the former is used for storing, sharing, downloading and otherwise working with saved files like documents, videos and music, each of which have their own dedicated folders within the larger whole.
Uploading files is a simple affair; from the home folder, users choose the eyeOS folder they wish to upload to, navigate to the file and hit upload. One major issue here is the lack of a progress bar; while there doesn't seem to be a cap on the size of files to be uploaded, you're never quite sure whether the file you're trying to send up is actually moving or not; it's not a big deal with the near instant uploads of smaller files (tested with a 198KB JPG file) but it certainly is with larger files (tested using the 697MB Ubuntu 7.04 disc image file, ubuntu-7.04-desktop-i386.iso).
When opening folders within eyeOS, a taskbar appears below the desktop for easily switching between applications or folders. At the top of the desktop sits a launcher, broken down in to Office, Network, Accessories, Games, System and Places folders. Within these categories, you'll find a simple word processor (eyeDocs), a calendar (eyeCalendar), simple chess game, RSS reader, group message board and even a Windows-esque task manager to kill non-responsive programs.
Development seems to have slowed somewhat but if the open source community devotes some attention to eyeOS, it's got a lot of potential. The inclusion of a free server-based eyeOS that users can easily install on a server and open up to internal collaboration and workflow management makes eyeOS a compelling, scalable and configurable option.
Glidehttp://www.glidedigital.com/ What's available: Contacts, email, calendar, photo editing, word processing, presentations, web publishing, music, video and moreClosest to: Palm OS, strangelySwitch? Switch? no. Augment? sure.Speed: QuickPlatforms tested and working: Firefox 2.0.0.7, Internet Explorer 7.0.5370.11Requirements: Adobe FlashSpace: 2GB, 10GB+Cost: 2GB and 4 users, free, 10GB and 24 users, US$4.95/mo., US$49.95/year
When you first make it in to the Glide interface, you may be struck with just how much it looks like a Palm, BlackBerry or Windows Mobile operating environment; big icons in the middle of the screen that serve as application launchers and headings.
Titles like Write for word processing, Crunch for number crunching, Present for creating presentations, an email inbox, contacts management, calendar and the like. Other apps such as chat, share and publish speak to the online group collaboration that is clearly Glide's raison d'etre. Applications like the word processor, presentation creator and web site publisher have email, chat and share tabs running down the left-hand side of the application window to facilitate online collaboration between groups in the same office or around the globe.
Across the top of the Glide desktop are mini-apps that open within the desktop environment as opposed to launching in a new window. The internet radio, weather and RSS feeds are the most interesting applets. There's also a functional calculator for doing quick equations.
Perhaps the biggest draw here is being able to access the same desktop applications, communications and collaboration whether at your desk or on the road; an impressive list of supported devices that can interact with a mobile version of the Glide OS allows users, ideally with a QWERTY keypad device though it's not technically necessary, to connect to their desktop remotely and interact with the content on it. It works like a charm and ensures always-available access to your content.
A downloadable application that's available in Mac, PC and Linux flavours allows for automatic or manual synchronization of files, minimizing version control headaches and ensuring that people with access to files are always seeing and editing the latest version.
YouOShttp://www.youos.com/ What's available: Chat, Flickr integration, Google Docs, photo editor, RSS reader, sticky notes, customizations and moreClosest to: AmigaSwitch? NoSpeed: FastPlatforms tested and working: Firefox 2.0.0.7, Internet Explorer 7.0.5370.11Requirements: JavaSpace: 250MBCost: None
YouOS seems a more entertainment-oriented online operating systems. There's a word processor present and accounted for but that's really about it from a productivity standpoint. Instead, there's a fully fleshed out chat module, Flickr integration (that, incidentally, starts off with photos from around the world tagged "puppies."
YouOS does an excellent job of incorporating other online applications like Google Docs and Spreadsheets for working with, managing and sharing word processing documents, spreadsheets and the latest addition to the Google Docs online app. Also included is an image editor called YouPhotoshop, essentially a window displaying Pixenate, an online photo editor. Within this application, users can take care of common photo editing tasks like resizing, cropping and rotating images along with buttons to level horizons in the frame, manage colours, brightness and contrast, auto-enhance images (with generally impressive results), sepia tone images and apply other image effects. Once finished editing, users can upload directly to Flickr or save to the desktop... the actual desktop, that is, not the online one.
Other applications that are of questionable worth productivity wise but that are invaluable when looking for some entertainment online include a link to every episode of South Park up to season 11 and a modified Super Mario World game, both of which run within the YouOS desktop environment.
SSOEgiffard.dynalias.net/ssoe What's available: Weather watch, audio player, web cam browser, XML parser, plain text editor and a little moreClosest to: A shinier WebTVSwitch? NoSpeed: SlowPlatforms tested and working (sort of): Firefox 2.0.0.7, Internet Explorer 7.0.5370.11Requirements: Adobe FlashSpace: NoneCost: None
Right from the get-go, presented with the option to launch either the "semi-stable" or the "unstable" versions, you'll know something's up. This is essentially a hobby project by Christopher Giffard and an impressive one at that. However, if users approach it as anything other than a hobbyist project that's worth a look from a pure interest standpoint, they stand to be disappointed. Using the unstable version allows users to get a glimpse of features that may come along in the future, including a GameMachine and a simple chess game. Good for a bit of novelty, it's more an alpha than a beta; interesting for its achievement but not in a truly usable state.
From a pure hobbyist standpoint though, it's interesting to poke around and see one man's vision of what an online OS could be. A quick word of advice though; when creating a system that is heavy on the graphic eye candy, back it up with some usable and useful applications. As a tech demo, it's worth a look. As a usable online operating system though, your time is better spent elsewhere.

HP Blackbird 002

A dark horse arrives on the luxury PC scene
HP’s annual product showcase in New York City last month put the electronics manufacturer’s slim and sexy laptops and mobile devices in the limelight, but the product that stole the show was the Blackbird 002—a massive, 80-pound desktop PC.
The first official product borne out of HP’s acquisition of Calgary-based luxury computer manufacturer Voodoo PC—a company known for premium gear priced in the tens of thousands of dollars—Blackbird is a stunningly advanced, powerful and elegant piece of machinery.
HP’s chief technology officer Phil McKinney and Voodoo founder/head of HP gaming Rahul Sood stood over the machine, manufactured and assembled in Alberta, like proud parents as they showed it to journalists for the first time just hours prior to its official unveiling.
The Blackbird’s chassis is a single cast piece of aluminium painted matte black on its front and top grills and polished to a mirror shine along its interior side edges. The entire unit is suspended on a metal pedestal, allowing air to enter the box from beneath the tower to cool its high powered innards—what Sood calls “a sixth side of air cooling—an industry first.”
The machine is loaded with the sort of plush extras that Voodoo is renowned for, including an LED light on the back of the box that illuminates the machine’s jack pack for easy cable alterations, a hydraulic powered pop up panel on top of the machine that houses a bevy of quick access ports and a swinging VESA mount on the right side of the tower to which users can attach a variety of peripherals, such as LCD screens and game controllers.
Pop off the stylishly-designed side door and a gleaming interior loaded with the most decadent of PC components is exposed, including a proprietary liquid cooling system that keeps the machine dead silent even while running the most resource hungry software, and a monstrous 1.1 kilowatt power supply designed to ensure that the computer’s power hungry hardware is well fed (a green machine the Blackbird is not).
Users have the ability to order the machine to precise specifications, choosing between factory over-clocked AMD and Intel quad-core processors and the latest graphics boards from either Intel or Nvidia. Users can also select whether they’d like to add a Blu-ray, HD-DVD or dual format high definition optical drive next to the two slot loading high-speed DVD burners on the front of the machine. All components, including an ATX motherboard, are industry standard, allowing for virtually unlimited modifications.
Speaking of which, the Blackbird has a stunningly innovative, tool-less design that makes the process of swapping parts so simple that even a technophobe grandmother could tackle it. From graphics cards to hard drives, everything simply snaps into place—no screws to twist out, no cables to plug in. “It’s basically like Lego,” said Sood, as he demonstrated the installation of a standard, off-the-shelf hard drive, which involved little more than pulling out one of the system’s five hard disk trays, dropping the hardware into it, then shoving it back in and snapping up a plastic lock. Sood also mentioned that there would be no need to “mess around” with driver installation, though didn’t demonstrate this point.
HP wants to get the message out that the Blackbird is designed to be tampered with by its customers. “You won’t void your warranty by opening the case,” said McKinney. “We want people to get inside these machines.”
He also noted that, unlike the majority of ready-built consumer PCs, Blackbird will not ship with any eyesore stickers advertising interior third-party hardware (think Intel Inside), nor will it have any preloaded junk software. Indeed, much like an exotic sports car, Blackbird will be unblemished and tuned to deliver maximum performance upon delivery.
So, even though the Blackbird is branded by HP (at least on the outside; there’s a giant Voodoo DNA logo visible the second you crack open the case), it’s essentially a Voodoo dream rig—but one with a surprisingly affordable sticker price. HP will offer several recommended models ranging from $2,500 for a basic build to about $7,000 for a completely pimped out rig. Users can also choose to order a wholly tailored machine.
However, interested parties—we won’t just say gamers, since, unexpectedly, only 25 percent of people who buy Voodoo machines use their über powerful computers to play videogames—still have a small wait ahead. While a limited number of Blackbirds were made available this month to a lucky few VIPs, the general public will have to cool its heels until November to place their online-only orders.

The Action of Bangladeshi Police

The Ergonomic Office

Creating a healthy and usable workspace
Pain, throbbing, discomfort, aching, tingling, numbness, burning, stiffness in your neck, shoulders and wrists – these are all warning signs of a Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI). If left untouched, they can develop into a full-blown musculoskeletal disorder (MSD). Because these injuries develop slowly, you may not even know that you have one. They are also very difficult to treat.
RSIs and MSDs are more common than you’d think. “A recent epidemiological study followed 632 newly hired computer users for up to three years and found that more than 50 percent of them reported repetitive strain symptoms during their first year of their new job. Worse, 68 percent of the reported RSI symptoms were deemed to be severe enough to be classified as musculoskeletal disorders (198 out of 291 instances),” reports Microsoft in a white paper, “The Important of Ergonomic Input Devices in the Workplace.”
Performing the same routines, day after day – typing on a keyboard, staring at a monitor, talking on the phone, clicking away on a mouse – can cause injuries to your muscles, joints, tendons, cartilage, blood vessels, tendons and ligaments. And while our bodies have the natural ability to heal themselves against these forms of soft tissue damage, with repeated and prolonged exposure, sometimes they just can’t keep up.
Carpal tunnel syndrome is the most well-known MSD yet represents only a small percentage of injuries, says Dan ODell, Ergonomist and User Researcher for the Hardware Division of Microsoft. The most common problems, according to ODell, are found in necks and shoulders.
Setting up an ergonomic workspace with proper hardware, furniture, alignment and lighting will help reduce your risk. You should also establish a routine for light exercises and stretch breaks. Your after-hours activities are also important: make sure you get the proper amount of sleep to allow your body time to heal, exercise to maintain a level of flexibility and eat well. Not only will these precautions protect you from physical damage, they will increase your comfort and productivity at work.
Your primary danger is repetition. So while it’s good to be focused, every now and then, you must snap out of it and take a break. When you get wrapped up in an activity on your computer, your blink rate goes down. This puts additional strain on your eyes, says ODell, and eye fatigue is correlated to muscle disorders. Rest your eyes every 20 minutes by covering them for 10-15 seconds, or look away from your screen and focus on a distant object.
Proper lighting will also help. If your desk is near a window, minimize glare on your screen by placing your desk sideways so the light comes in from either the left or right. Make sure there is at least three feet between the window and your desk. Task lighting should come from both the left and right side to reduce shadows. Documents should be illuminated brightly, while screen lighting should be kept low. According to UCLA’s ergonomics department, a 1:3:10 ratio is ideal: your task area should be up to three times brighter than your immediate surrounding area, and 10 times brighter than the peripheral area. Too much contrast should be avoided.
Age also comes into play. For example, a 60-year old worker requires up to 10 times more light than a 20-year old worker, says UCLA. Full spectrum fluorescent lights, which mimic natural sunlight, are the best on the eyes. Stay away from bright white bulbs, which can cause headaches. Other little things you can do include keeping your monitor clean and adjusting settings such as brightness, contrast and font size to put the least amount of strain on your sight.
Make sure the top of your monitor screen is eye level and that the monitor is one arm’s length away from your face. If you use a laptop, your monitor will most likely fall below this measurement, so pick up a notebook stand to raise the screen to the proper eye level. These are priced between $45 and $100, with the more expensive units including features such as a built-in USB hub.
The height of your desk should be adjusted so that your keyboard and mouse sit at elbow height. Many desks are set too high, says ODell, designed for handwriting instead of computer use. Average desks are between 29-30 inches high. For typing, they should be set a few inches lower, around 26-27 inches.
Shopping for a proper office chair may seem intimidating, with prices ranging from $140 to $600. But more expensive doesn’t necessarily mean better where ergonomics are concerned. Aside from sitting down to determine whether or not a chair feels comfortable, there are a few key features you need to look for: make sure it has an adjustable height, provides lower back support (with your hips placed securely against the back of the chair) and that the seat is the right width and depth for your body shape. A chair with five prongs at its base will be more stable than one with only four. Breathable fabrics are a plus, as are seats without deep seams or buttons that could cause localized pressure points.
Determine seat height by making sure it allows you to rest both of your feet flat on the floor, with your knees bent at a 90-degree angle. Make sure the seat is the proper depth: you should be able to fit your fist between the back of your knee and the front of your seat. The seat should also be wide enough that there is at least one inch on either side of your hips. Men tend to need deeper seats to accommodate long legs, says UCLA, while women need wider seats to accommodate hips. The back of your seat should be positioned at a 100- to 110-degree angle, as a slight recline reduces pressure on your lower back.
While sitting, you should have a comfortable, natural position. There is not one “perfect” way to sit, and even if you think you found it, sitting in that same position all day could cause prolonged damage. Remember to change your posture throughout the day. What keyboard and mouse you use has a significant impact on your health and productivity at work. According to a Microsoft user research survey, mice and keyboards are the objects used most often during the day, second only to a pillow. Using these peripherals creates low-impact forces to your body, so avoid bad habits such as clicking keys hard, resting your wrists or palms on a surface while typing or clicking, gripping your mouse tightly or relaxing your arms, hands or wrists on the edge of your desk.
A study on ergonomic computer peripherals by Moore and Swanson, “The Effect of Alternative Keyboards on Musculoskeletal Symptoms and Disorders” found that fixed split keyboards have a significant positive effect on musculoskeletal symptoms. The split keyboard “better accommodates the natural posture of each arm,” explains Microsoft, compared to straight keyboards that require you to modify your posture to an unnatural position. Microsoft was the first company to introduce a fixed ergonomic keyboard and has since become a leader in this category. Microsoft employs a full-time ergonomist and bases its “ergo” label on extensive university research.
The Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 ($74.95, www.microsoft.com/hardware ) is the best-selling wired keyboard in the U.S., and the company’s latest wireless model, the Natural Ergonomic Desktop 7000 ($149.95), is based on that popular design. This Desktop set includes the Natural Wireless Ergonomic Keyboard 7000 and Natural Wireless Laser Mouse 7000. The keyboard features a padded palm rest that helps your wrist stay straight while typing. When you stop typing, the padding is also a good place to rest your hands. There is a removable palm lift with a seven-degree reverse tilt that helps reduce tension in wrists and prevents them from dropping while typing. The Natural arc curves the keyboard layout so your pinky fingers don’t need to stretch so far to reach the keys at either end. To keep your arms in a natural handshaking position, there is a 14-degree gable angle.
Some people find the split keyboard too difficult to adjust to. If this is the case, Microsft also offers keyboards with the Comfort Curve design. While not as beneficial as a 12-degree split angle, the Comfort Curve 6-degree curved design still provides a more natural wrist posture than regular straight models. The new Microsoft Wireless Entertainment Desktop 8000 ($349.95) is an elegant keyboard and mouse set that features the Comfort Curve, as well as freedom from wires via Bluetooth, soft keys, Vista shortcuts, and backlighting with a proximity sensor that detects your fingers approaching the keys. (Mac users can use the lower centre button as the Apple key.)
Considering the average typist on a conventional QWERTY keyboard moves his or her fingers between 12 and 20 miles per day (says Microsoft), picking up an ergonomic keyboard is a good idea and costs about the same as a premium regular keyboard. Also try to utilize one-touch buttons and shortcut keys. Shortcuts can eliminate common keystrokes by up to 40 percent (according to internal Microsoft research).
Mice are used three times more than the keyboard, says ODell, who helped develop the Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000, Wireless Entertainment Desktop 8000 and the Natural Wireless Laser Mouse 6000 ($99.99 at Best Buy). With traditional mice, he explains, people tend to rest the heels of their palms on their desks, which places pressure over the carpal tunnel. The Natural Wireless Laser Mouse 6000 is designed to distribute even pressure by filling the gap that occurs when your hand is resting in a natural position. The mouse slopes your wrist to a vertical, rather than horizontal, position, which removes that dangerous lower carpal tunnel pressure. Slants and scoops support the natural curve in your fingers so you don’t strain to keep them straight.
Only a right-handed version is available, due to supply-and-demand. About 10 percent of users are left-handed, explains ODell, and only 10 percent of these users actually use a left-handed mouse. Many lefties either adapt to a right-handed mouse or use a symmetrical mouse that works for both. Laptops users should also invest in a good mouse and ignore their trackpads for regular use.
The placement of objects on your desk is also important. Objects you often use, such as your phone, notepad and mouse, should be located within two to three feet of your body. Your monitor and keyboard should rest in the centre of your desk, directly in front of you. If you find yourself spending a lot of time on the phone and often crank your neck to hold the handset in between your shoulder and cheek, you should consider switching to a wireless headset so you can free up your hands and prevent strain on your neck. A document holder (about $25) is handy for placing pages upright on your desk while typing or reading and should be spaced between your keyboard and monitor.
Clean up any clutter underneath your desk so there is adequate room for your legs to move. If you can’t adjust the height of your desk and need to raise your chair so your elbows are level with your keyboard and mouse, you can purchase a foot rest for about $25 to raise your feet to the appropriate height.
Remember, the key is to avoid prolonged repetition. So switch back and forth between typing and handwriting, interchange between your mouse and keyboard (such as scrolling vs. arrow keys, or menu bar selections vs. keyboard shortcuts), use shortcut buttons, communicate with email and then make some phone calls – mix it up, add some variety. Don’t become a robot at your desk.
Every hour, take a five to 10 minute break from the activity you were performing and do something else. Try to enforce the 20/20/20 rule: every 20 minutes, look at a point 20 feet away from your monitor for 20 seconds. You should also take a one or two-minute break to stretch.
And don’t trust a product simply because it has “ergonomic” on the label. There are no regulations in place for ergonomic branding, says ODell, so you should research the company and make sure you can trust their brand.
• Monitor and keyboard centred with body• Window at least three feet away from desk• Desk situated so light comes from the side• Relaxed shoulders• Back of seat at 100- to 110-degree angle• Lower back support with hips placed against back of chair• Knees bent at 90-degree angle• One- to two-inches of seating available on either side of hips• Adjustable chair height• Secure chair with five castors• Back of knees have one-fist clearance from front of seat• Feet flat on the floor, or on a footrest• Document holder placed between monitor and keyboard• Clutter-free leg room• Keyboard and mouse sitting at elbow height (approx. 26-27 inches high)• Straight wrists• Monitor one arm’s length away from face• Top of monitor screen at eye level

Are we there yet?

Not quite. Tech innovations we’d like to see
It could be argued we live in privileged times when it comes to technological advancements: 50-inch wall-mounted televisions capable of displaying hundreds of channels; laptops that have more processing power than what Apollo 11 used to get to the moon; and a little ol' thing called the Internet that offers a world of information, entertainment and communication at our fingertips.
But we still have not yet reached true tech nirvana. After all, we're still toiling over complicated computers, having trouble copying music and video over to portable media players, and, while our phones seem to have everything but the kitchen sink, we still struggle to place a simple call because of teeny buttons.
And so here is a look at a few tech innovations that should hurry up and arrive already.
Talk to me, baby
Computer keyboards and mice might do an okay job, but nothing is more natural to use than the human voice. And so many are waiting for a voice-activated operating system that lets you talk to your PC in plain English and hear responses in a pleasant (okay, sexy) voice. How cool would it be to walk into a room and ask your computer "What time is it?" while you leaf through a newspaper? Or, "Computer, what is the weather like outside?" as you roll out of bed. Or, "Tell me the highest-rated Indian restaurant on Queen Street West?" Imagine being able to play your favourite music, TV show or movie by simply asking for it by name.
Where we're at: Products such as Nuance's Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 ($129.99; www.nuance.com/naturallyspeaking ) offer voice-to-text transcription, therefore you can "type" a document or email simply by speaking. They can also let you use your voice to navigate around the web instead of typing and clicking. A similar technology from Nuance for supported cellphones is called Voice Control, available through select carriers such as Rogers Wireless ($6 a month; www.rogers.com/nuance ).
Wham spam
Spam is still the bane of our email existence.
This unsolicited, unwanted junk mail continues to pollute inboxes with everything from medical solutions for erectile dysfunction to promises of large sums of cash in an African bank. In fact, IronPort Systems, a division at U.S. telecom outfit Cisco Systems, has just confirmed a whopping 83 percent of all email is now spam, twice what it was just a year ago. Junk mail now accounts for between 60 billion and 150 billion messages -- per day -- and contributes to the growing problem of Internet congestion. Microsoft co-founder and chairman Bill Gates once predicted spam would be eradicated, but it's getting worse instead of better.
Where we're at: While some companies are getting better at filtering and segregating spam, such as the latest Microsoft Outlook email program, others are designing ways of barring it from your inbox altogether. Software such as DigiPortal Software's ChoiceMail (Free to try, US$39.95 to buy; http://www.digiportal.com/ ) is one of the growing "challenge-response" solutions that blocks everyone out of your inbox unless: a) they're already in your address book; or b) the sender is willing to take the time to type in some numbers and letters when the email bounces back initially, in order to prove they're a real person and not a spamming program.
A true "all in one" device
Sure, we've got so-called smart phones that can take photos, but the pictures are often so blurry they look like they were taken underwater. And yes, many phones can play music, but storage remains an issue (expandable phone memory tops 2GB, yet the latest iPods are 160GB), not to mention the battery suffers when you use your camera for music, shooting video and so forth. The point is, if you want a digital Swiss Army knife today, there's a serious trade-off when it comes to quality, memory and battery life.
How amazing would it be to have one pocket-sized device that truly does it all, and well? One day, and hopefully soon, our phone will be our high-definition camcorder, stereo system and high-speed Internet connection that lets you use VoIP services, such as Skype, for free calls over the Net.
Where we're at: Though it's not available in Canada just yet, the much-hyped iPhone (US$399; http://www.apple.com/ ) does a good job at organizing and playing your media, but it offers only 8GB of storage, which isn't much - especially when you're talking about high-quality, two-hour films.
Similarly, a small handful of phones take decent photos, such as the Sony Ericsson K790a ($179.99 with 36-month Rogers Wireless plan; http://www.sonyericsson.com/ ) with its 3.2MP camera, but when printed, photos could still look grainy. Perhaps in time we'll have the do-it-all device with no trade-offs.
What would you like to see? A flying car? An electronic newspaper you can roll up (with video and WiFi)? A laptop with enough battery power to last a few days, like your cellphone? Email us at letters@ppublishing.ca.

These fine mice. (See how they click!)

Computer mice worth laying your hands on
It’s the most used, yet underappreciated technology you use: the computer mouse. Let’s face it, your hand spends more time on this little piece of machinery than it does your steering wheel, TV remote, favourite beer...or dare we say it, your significant other. So, why are you using the same ‘ol mouse that shipped with your computer? It’s like an audiophile who keeps the preinstalled factory deck in their car.
Tsk Tsk.
Whether you use your PC for work or play, or a bit of both, we thought we’d highlight a few recommended peripherals worth laying your palm on. Some are straight-forward models, while others specialize in a particular function and a couple of the following are just plain strange.
You say you want a Revolution?
Winner of a CES (Consumer Electronics Show) Innovation award in the Design and Engineering category, the Logitech MX Revolution ($149; www.logitech.com ) is a comfortable and cordless mouse that lets you fly through large documents and websites with fast speeds, thanks to its MicroGear Precision scroll wheel. For added convenience, this mouse offers extra buttons such as a thumb wheel on the side that lets you easily toggle between open applications and a dedicated search button that launches your favourite web or desktop search tool. Thanks to its rubber-coated sides and sculpted design, this ergonomic mouse also feels great to the touch.
4-in-1 gadget
Consider it the Swiss Army Knife of computer mice: Microsoft’s Wireless Notebook Presenter Mouse 8000 ($125; www.microsoft.ca ) is the first notebook mouse that functions as a 2.4 GHz Bluetooth laser notebook mouse, slide presenter, laser and digital pointer and media remote control – all rolled into one. Therefore, you can use this mouse like any other or pick it up to click through a PowerPoint presentation (and use the laser pointer to highlight something on the slide) or to change songs in your music playlist up to 30 feet away from the PC. Also available is the Logitech Air Mouse ($159), which can also be used on the desk and in the air – including wrist-based gesture commands to control your media from afar.
Thin is in
This falls into the “Why didn’t I think of that?” category. The MoGo Mouse (US $49; www.newtonperipherals.com ) snaps inside the laptop’s PC Card or ExpressCard slot, which stores and recharges it, and then can be used when popped out. These Bluetooth-based MoGo mice from Newton Peripherals also have a little “kickstand” that flips open to elevate the credit card-sized peripheral for use. If your laptop doesn’t have integrated Bluetooth, you can snap in a small USB receiver. The latest versions of the MoGo mice also offer wireless presenter functionality for boardrooms or media control to access your laptop’s music, photos and videos.
Game on!
By partnering with celebrated PC peripheral company Razer, Microsoft has created a high-performance mouse for all your Windows games. Perfect for 3-D shooters, real-time strategy (RTS) games and role-playing games (RPGs), the Habu ($84.95) is a “laser” mouse that offers incredible precision (reading 2,000 dots per inch), high-speed motion detection, incredible comfort and programmable rubber-coated buttons. While it's a wired mouse for superior performance (and with a gold-plated USB connector!), it actually feels like it's wireless thanks to the thin and flexible wire. You'll also love the glowing blue highlights for low-light, late night gaming sessions.
Blown away
Similar to its award-winning gaming controllers, the Nyko Air Flo Mouse ($25; www.nyko.com ) is a breeze to use – literally. That is, whether you’re working, surfing the Net or playing PC games, this clever computer mouse blows cool air through tiny pores on its surface to keep you from overheating (with adjustable air flow intensity). While not cordless, this ambidextrously-designed mouse for righties or lefties is quite comfortable, plus it works with both Windows and Macs and includes optional software to program commands to the buttons. “Cool” idea, no?

Through the viewfinder

A photographer’s take on Adobe Photoshop CS3
As digital photography evolves, the trend in digital editing has been towards providing the photographer with a workflow: selecting and transferring images from a camera or card reader, sorting and organizing them, then editing them for various outputs including prints and posting on the web. While Adobe Photoshop has been the industry's premier graphics editor for years, it has lagged behind other products such as Aperture and Lightroom in providing the photographer a complete workflow and ease-of-use features specifically focused on photography rather than graphic arts.
Consequently, each successive release of Photoshop has seen Adobe add additional or improved features related specifically to digital photography. Photoshop CS3 offers a strong list of new and improved features designed to help professional and advanced amateur photographers develop a workflow and take image preparation to its maximum potential. There are two versions of Photoshop CS3: Standard CS3 and CS3 Extended. Photoshop CS3, which is the focus of this review, is the basic upgrade from CS2. CS3 Extended includes advanced features for those working with videos and 3D applications. Those features will not be discussed here.
For Mac users, Photoshop CS3 now runs Intel-native code, allowing Intel-based Macs to run the program faster and more stably than CS2. Performance improvements are not limited to Macintosh, however. CS3 code has been optimized, improving performance on Windows machines as well and the performance enhancements also extend to Adobe Bridge.
Adobe CS3 Bridge
There are three programs in the Photoshop CS3 suite that work together to provide a digital photography workflow: Bridge, Camera Raw and Photoshop itself. The starting program of the workflow suite is Bridge, a standalone application that works faster and better than the CS2 version. It contains a downloader for transferring images from camera or card reader to your computer, and highly customizable options for viewing them and making culling decisions. You can nuke the bad shots and rank the good shots, rename the images in various ways and save them to disk in two different locations if you wish, such as a main drive and backup drive for safety. You can add metadata, such as your name, copyright information and keywords to all the images prior to transferring them. CS3 Bridge includes a new Loupe tool that lets you magnify parts of an image from 100 percent to 800 percent to check on critical sharpness. Bridge can also be used to batch convert images to other sizes and formats.
Adobe Camera Raw
Adobe Camera Raw, or ACR as it's often abbreviated, provides the foundation of a digital photography workflow. This core program, as the name indicates, converts a camera manufacturer's RAW files into a form that can be viewed and edited. ACR is used to make global adjustments to an image or set of images. In CS3, this has been extended to TIFF and JPG format as well. Despite its intuitive and easy-to-use interface, ACR packs a whollop. Its feature set is so rich and powerful that entire third-party books are available on squeezing out its full potential.
At its most basic level, ACR can be used to adjust colour temperature, tint, exposure, brightness and contrast. Its "Recover," "Fill Light" and "Blacks" sliders work like the Shadow/Highlight tool in Photoshop, helping bring back detail in underexposed dark areas and trimming back highlights in overexposed light areas. A new "Vibrance" slider works as a kind of "Smart Saturation" tool, making some colours more vibrant without disturbing others. The traditional Saturation glider is present as well. The greyscale conversion in ACR resembles the greyscale conversion in Lightroom, with multiple tonal sliders. With ACR, you can prep your images (including batch adjustments) to be optimized before they reach Photoshop for final polishing.
One of the most interesting features of the Photoshop CS3 suite is Photoshop's new ability to handle files as "Smart Objects." When a photo has been adjusted to your satisfaction in ACR, you can now open it in Photoshop in this new non-destructive mode, further applying "Smart Filters" to the photo. The flow from ACR to Photoshop can now resemble the non-destructive workflow of Aperture or Lightroom.
User Interface
A first look at the Photoshop component of the CS3 suite is startling - the user interface has been dramatically altered and simplified. Palettes are now contained in special docks that can be expanded and contracted, and the toolbar on the left has been shrunk to a single column located at the left border. This allows more space for the images as you work on them - a welcome change. Palettes can be torn off the dock and floated on the screen or combined with other palettes, and for anyone who finds the change too drastic, the interface can be switched back to "classic" mode. I liked the new interface as soon as I saw it. It's intuitive, attractive and the larger image working area is an improvement.
Small Enhancements
Let's start with some of the little improvements that might interest experienced Photoshop users: top on my list is the refined Curves tool. It now features a histogram behind the graph and a black-and-white slider under the graph, similar to Levels. There are a number of new presets available such as "Cross Process," "Darker," "Lighter," "Medium Contrast" and "Color Negative." An advanced control lets you to work in percentages of ink/pigment rather than light. A less obvious update has happened to the previously lame Brightness/Contrast tool. It's finally a simple way of adjusting brightness and contrast that doesn't mess up the distribution of values in your image. The "Channel Mixer" tool has sprouted six new presets: infrared, plus blue, green, orange, red and yellow filters. The infrared filter doesn't make anything look remotely like infrared, to my eye, but the others are useful starting points.
Black and White
For years, I've been perfecting my ability to convert digital colour images to convincing B&W in Photoshop. There are dozens of techniques and approaches to B&W conversion, and they may have all just been rendered unnecessary by CS3's new Black-and-White Conversion tool - an addition that was likely borrowed from Adobe Lightroom. I've been pitting this tool against my honed techniques from previous releases of Photoshop, and I haven't been able to significantly improve upon it. Worse, it's easy. Forget all the pain and esoteric knowledge - Adobe got it in one with this new addition. It's just plain good.
The Black-and-White tool is available both as a basic tool and as an adjustment layer. It offers 10 presets: Blue Filter, Green Filter, High Contrast Blue Filter, High Contrast Red Filter, Infrared, Maximum Black, Maximum White, Neutral Density, Red Filter and Yellow Filter. The tool itself has sliders for Reds, Yellows, Greens, Cyans, Blues and Magentas. By customizing the sliders, you can achieve very sophisticated tonal adjustments. You can also tint your B&W's and control the saturation of the tint. And did I mention it's easy? If this tool doesn't tempt you to create sumptuous B&W images, stick with red and yellow tulips.
Quick Selection and Refine Edge
If you've ever wished for a Magic Wand tool that really worked, or at least worked better, you'll find it in the new Quick Selection tool. Just click the tool on something in your photo and drag, pressing left bracket and right bracket to decrease or increase the size of the brush. It can do most of the selection work for you, relatively accurately. Then click the Refine Edge tool to finesse the selection, all the while previewing the results in a number of optional ways. At last, you can preview the effects of feathering - something that had previously been a trial-and-error procedure. The Quick Selection won't help with very delicate, fine detail, but it gets you into the ballpark in a hurry. If you've been reluctant about extensive selecting in the past, this addition may spur you onto trying some photocompositing - creating an image from bits of several other images.
Easier Compositing
Auto-Align Layers can align layer elements based on similarities, such as corners and edges. It can be used for compositing elements from several layers to create a photomontage, or to create panoramic images from several images. One such use for this, outlined in the CS3 online help, is for group portraits in which one person blinked. If there's another shot with the person not blinking, it can be used to replace the blinking person in the otherwise good group shot.
Improved 32-bit HDR
Photographers who strive to achieve High Dynamic Range photos by combining different shots of a subject taken with different exposures will find a few improvements in 32-bit editing and Merge to HDR. 32-bit images can contain layers with layer masks and certain filters. In addition, a 32-bit image can be retouched with updated versions of core tools such as Brush, Pencil, Blur, Sharpen, Gradient, Smudge and Pattern Stamp. Merge to HDR can now store response curves for each of the cameras you shoot with.
Smart Filters
Compared to some of the newer photo editing and workflow products on the market, such as Aperture and Lightroom, Photoshop has lagged in the area of non-destructive editing. Photoshop is catching up with its new Smart Filters that let you add, adjust and remove filters from an image without having to resave the image or start over to preserve image quality. As with Lightroom modules, you can apply filters to visualize changes and experiment with an image without altering original pixel data. Unfortunately, not all filter effects can be used on 16-bit images, but all are available while editing 8-bit images.
Bottom Line
Although Adobe Photoshop CS3 Standard is an expensive program ($740 or $240 for an upgrade), it easily retains its status as the premier photo editor of the industry. For any photographer working seriously with layer adjustments, fine selections, composite images, and extensive third-party plugins, Photoshop has no peer. The CS3 version has brought welcome improvements and spruced-up workflow options. Nonetheless, for many photographers, these features are overkill. If your photographic needs are simply to get image files sorted and organized, adjusted a bit in terms of contrast, tone and tint, and sharpened a little for printing, then a dedicated digital photography workflow suite such as Aperture or Lightroom may be a more appropriate product for you. If you need some, but not all, of the layer-based features of Photoshop, then Photoshop Elements ($130) may meet your needs. But for photographers who consistently draw on its deep set of features, Photoshop CS3 is the best Photoshop yet.

Take one and call us in the morning

Tablets take control in digital ink and beyond
Whether you’re a graphics artist with a bit of departmental budget to burn, an ergonomics-obsessed office drone, a digital darkroom afficianado, an evil editor looking to lay the red ink on someone’s prose or somewhere in between, graphics tablets deserve a once-over.
For one, they’re less expensive than they once were. They’ve moved from being the exclusive domain of the professional graphics designer or pro-sumer, requiring the precision that only a pen can provide, to the advanced amateur or hobbyist. There are also ergonomic considerations that could lead your family doctor to prescribe an entirely different kind of tablet than usual.
Graphics tablets function a lot like the touch-sensitive pad often found on laptop PCs, but offer a degree of accuracy many times greater. In part, because rather than dragging a finger across a small pad, users have pin-point (or at least, pen-point) accuracy on a surface many times larger than a mouse touch pad; and in part, because said pen is constantly communicating with the tablet, telling it not just where it is on the X,Y axis, but how much pressure is on the nib that controls how much ink is laid down on the virtual page in graphics applications that support tablets.
Prices have dropped significantly at the low end of the tablet scale; 4 x 5 tablets like Wacom’s Graphire4 4 X 5 can be had for about $120.
Smaller tablet and pen interfaces are also widely available in independent computer and component retailers, but these are focused on creating a more natural text input method for Chinese, Japanese and Korean character sets and offer neither the refined sensitivity nor the software support for graphics programs.
Shifting aspect ratios
The biggest change to hit graphics tablets has been the shift from 4:3 to widescreen aspect ratio monitors (see Marc Saltzman’s story on page 44 for a look at some recent entries into the widescreen monitor category). While dual-monitor desktops—offering a much wider desktop than a traditional 4:3 monitor—are nothing new, the shift to widescreen format monitors for graphics professionals has opened the market for widescreen format tablet and pen interfaces. While a standard aspect tablet will still work and will take care of mapping the screen area to the tablet’s surface, a wide format tablet will offer a much higher degree of accuracy with a wide format or dual-monitor set-up.
New connections
In the move from the slow and clumsy serial port interface to the faster, plug-and-play, self-powered USB connection, graphics tablets—among a great many other desktop products—have reaped the benefits. Recent new additions to the tablet tableau use Bluetooth as the connection method, removing another wire from the desktop and making it even easier to share a tablet between multiple users and multiple computers. For all their convenience, Bluetooth tablets add about $100 to the price when compared with a similarly equipped, non-Bluetooth device.
Ergo, go ergo
Tablet interfaces have found their way into ergonomic office set-ups, too. Some sufferers of carpal tunnel syndrome or other repetitive stress disorders have reported finding a measure of relief when using a pen and tablet in their everyday computing. According to a study by Global Ergonomic Technology, the pen and tablet interface is a much more natural interface than the traditional mouse. Using a mouse generally only engages muscles in the wrist and can lead to issues related to overuse. A pen and tablet interface requires the use of the entire arm and is therefore a more natural way to interact with the PC. The study is, conveniently enough, archived on leading tablet maker Wacom’s website http://www.wacom.com/ .
Pen and ink style
Aside from the obvious benefit of a more natural, pen-like interface for artists and graphics professionals, the biggest benefit that graphics tablets offer is the sensitivity of the pen. When using a mouse to create, users must manually adjust brush sizes and pressure (opacity) in whatever graphics program they are using.
Graphics tablets remove the step and rely on the actual physical pressure put on the pen to determine the coverage of virtual ink on the virtual page. For example, when using the airbrush tool in Photoshop, a light touch will result in lighter coverage, while a heavier touch will lay the paint on thicker.
Cheap-o tablets sometimes offer as little as 256 degrees of pressure sensitivity. The defacto minimum for a truly usable tablet is 512 degrees with most recent tablets going beyond, doubling the sensitivity to 1,024 points.
Products
Wacom is the industry incumbent where graphics tablets are concerned. While other brands offer competitive products and even more competitive pricing, Wacom has the benefit of a wider product line and a big portfolio of add-ons to draw from. The company’s airbrush stylus uses the same technology as the touch pen, but gives a much more refined control when using a software airbrush; a rolling wheel emulates the feel of a real airbrush with tilt sensing and a rolling wheel to control the amount of digital ink going on the virtual page.
Other add-ons include a cross-hairs mouse for use in CAD applications and Wacom’s Tool ID, allowing users to assign a unique code to each tool and program how it should perform.
Wacom Graphire Bluetooth 6 x 8 Tablethttp://www.wacom.com/ Estimated price: $300
Wacom’s Graphire Bluetooth 6 x 8 Tablet is a wireless addition to its already well-received line of tablet interfaces. It works anywhere you’d typically use a mouse and allows for refined control in supported graphics applications.
With a 25 hour lithium polymer battery, the Bluetooth tablet doesn’t just swap one wire for another (the USB cable for a power cord) and allows for truly wireless use. The tablet can, of course, be charged and used at the same time, but that ruins the whole wireless desktop thing.
Using Bluetooth 1.2, the tablet can be up to 30 feet away from the monitor in optimal conditions. In normal use though, it won’t find its way more than a few feet from the monitor.
The 6 x 8 inch (3:4 aspect ratio) will work with, but is not optimized for, widescreen monitors.
Wacom Intuos3 6 x 11 Wide-Format USB Tablethttp://www.wacom.com/ Estimated price: $500
Nearly doubling the price from Wacom’s Bluetooth offering, the Intuos3 6 x 11 Wide-Format USB Tablet is optimized for wide-screen monitors and dual-monitor desktops, giving a much more representative workspace.
Soft keys at the top of the tablet, above the active area, can be programmed using the included software to run program-specific macros or to launch software. For example, in the Windows desktop, hitting one of the keys might launch a portion of the Adobe CS3 suite. Within Photoshop, one key can be programmed to incrementally increase or decrease brush size or switch to a commonly used tool.
With 1,024 points of sensitivity, users get a much more refined level of control over virtual brush, airbrush etc. pressure. As with other Wacom tablets, the package includes a battery-free wireless mouse (that must be used atop the tablet, not independently on the desk) and the pen is likewise battery-free.
A finger-sensitive touch strip works much like a laptop’s touch pad and can be used to control zooming or scrolling.
Adesso CyberTablet Z12 10 x 6 Widescreen Tablethttp://www.adesso.com/ Estimated price: $300
With a wide-screen format, 1,024 levels of pressure sensitivity, wireless pen and programmable hot keys that can be mapped to common menu tasks, Adesso’s CyberTablet Z12 gives the industry’s incumbent Wacom a run for the money.
The CyberTablet Z12 doesn’t include a wireless mouse in the package; for anyone that’s used a tablet before, however, this likely isn’t a big deal. Rather than being something that’s sorely missed in the package, it’s just one less piece of useless plastic to store in the drawer; the add-on mice that come with graphics tablets tend to be of questionable worth.
12 pre-programmed hot keys (new document, save, undo along with email, browser buttons and so on) look after common tasks in graphics and other applications. Down each side of the tablet’s active drawing area sit eight programmable keys that can be mapped to commonly used functions so that users can stash the keyboard to focus on the design task at hand. The tablet successfuly treads the line between graphics professional tool and daily computer input device.
At just under 1cm thick, the Z12 looks razor sharp on the desk. The main problem here is one that is common to many tablets and all wide-screen tablets: the footprint. While the Z12 has less dead space around the active area and although it doesn’t waste room with hardware keys, it’s still takes up a good chunk on the desk.
Also, while Wacom tablets have a wireless pen that doesn’t require batteries, Adesso’s CyberTablet Z12 requires a AAA cell in its pen, adding a little to the weight and putting one more peripheral on your desk whose battery is sure to run out at the most inconvenient time.

Super-size your PC monitor

It’s more than just eye candy
Thanks to falling prices, there’s never been a better time to upgrade your computer monitor to one of those thin, wide and larger models.
After all, your television has gone thin, big and wide, so why shouldn’t your PC monitor?
Not only are these monitors ideal for your entertainment needs - movies, games, viral videos or camcorder footage - but there's a productivity bonus to a 16:9 or 16:10 panel, too, as you can see more information on the screen while working on documents or spreadsheets or surfing the Web. Just ask a graphic artist, who uses one side of the screen as a palette of colours and tools and the other side as a canvas (actually, many artists use two monitors side-by-side!).
Other productivity boosters are the extras built into today’s computer monitors. For example, the ViewSonic VX2255wmb ($449) is a beautiful 22-inch display that offers a built-in 1.3 megapixel webcam and microphone that allows users to easily conduct VoIP or video conferences. Also, for the long hours spent in front of the screen, many monitors have a variety of ergonomic features, including height adjustment and 360-degree swivel, and a bright screen to help reduce eyestrain.
Consumers, too, can multitask more easily, such as having an email window open on the left side of the screen while navigating through your favourite music tracks or photos to the right.
According to Evans Research, the sale of widescreen PC monitors is expected to grow by triple-digit rates through 2008.
Some buying tips
Be sure to look for a monitor with low response times (eight milliseconds or lower is good; 5 ms or lower is fantastic) so it can handle fast motion smoothly, such as computer games and DVD movies. Otherwise, a flat-panel LCD monitor with a refresh rate of, say, 20, may not look as good as you may notice "ghosting" (trails) following a fast-moving object.
Another consideration is contrast ratio, which refers to how white the whites are and how black the blacks are. Flat-panel LCD monitors typically have a contrast ratio of 300:1 on the low-end and up to 2000:1 on the high-end. Look for at least a 700:1 contrast ratio, if you can.
Other bells and whistles you may want to look for include the ability to swivel the LCD monitor from a portrait view to a landscape view; adjustable height and tilt angles; VESA-compliant mounting if you want to hang it on a wall or mount it to a retractable arm; buttons that are easy to access; USB or FireWire ports to connect devices to; and integrated speakers for audio playback (though they won’t likely sound as good as stand-alone speakers).
Compatibility and performance
When it comes to compatibility with your computer, keep in mind most flat-panel monitors offer an analog “VGA” input port (three rows of five holes), while some offer both an analog connection and a digital “DVI” input port (usually white, with three rows of eight holes). If your video card offers digital output, and your new monitor gives you this option, go with this instead of analog for higher video quality (though some argue the difference is negligible).
Finally, for the best performance, you should make sure your computer has the proper software programs, or drivers. That is, sometimes you can connect the monitor and voila - the picture will look great - while in other cases, you may need to insert the CD that shipped with it or visit the manufacturer’s website to download related files.
If the images on the screen look stretched and unnatural after you've updated the drivers, try adjusting the (Windows) computer's resolution by pointing your mouse anywhere on the blank desktop, right-clicking the mouse and selecting “Properties,” and then “Settings” (in Windows XP) or right-clicking on the desktop and choosing “Personalize,” then “Display Settings” (in Windows Vista). You might need to tweak the size of the icons and text to suit your preference.

Pre- and Post-Production in a box

Adobe Creative Suite 3: a premium offering for video production professionals
It is being called the single largest software release in the company’s history – and it’s one of the most anticipated.
As such, it’s also one of the most expensive – listing at $1,699 – and most resource intensive: the minimum recommended drive space just to load the program is 23.5GB. A bare minimum 1GB of RAM is required to get the most from the software, as is a Pentium 4 1.4 GHz processor.
With these caveats aside, it is great news - Adobe’s new Creative Suite 3 Production Premium Suite (one of three new CS3 bundles, the other two focused on graphics and Web work) is now available.
Of course, Adobe includes a whack of applications critical to the dedicated videomaker - Premiere Pro for editing, Encore for DVD authoring, After Effects for compositing and VFX creation, Photoshop for touch-ups and image manipulation and Illustrator for text and vector graphics creation. One could be happy and content right there, but the company has also added other interesting and intriguing media apps to the suite: the familiar Flash, Soundbooth (a task-based tool that replaces Audition), OnLocation (formerly known as DV Rack) and Ultra CS3 (a chromakey and virtual set tool).
These last two apps come to Adobe by way of its acquisition of Serious Magic, a great little digital media company. Luckily, these unique programs have only gained from the transition.
Adobe’s well-known strength in bringing a consistent look and feel to its interface is evident throughout this new release, and also in its integration of what were once Macromedia (also acquired by Adobe with integration in this release) and Serious Magic assets. Let’s look at the core programs first.
Premiere Pro CS3
Save for the fact this popular video editing program has returned to the Mac, it has not undergone many changes. Given the fact that the previous version, Premiere Pro 2, was a somewhat disruptive release, perhaps that’s for the better.
It is still a powerful and sophisticated editing program, capable of handling DV and HD, among other video formats. It can still output finished programs to tape, disk, mobile device or Internet stream.
And there are some cool new features. Handling HDV files is much smoother and more accurate with Premiere Pro CS3. You can also now open different bins at the same time, making transfer of captured video or other files easier to move, copy and paste between bins.
Previews can be enabled or disabled, too, which is handy if you have lots of clips that need rendering and you don't want to wait for Premiere to update all of those files on the timeline. Just click on the icon and Premiere will disable previews.
New as well is time remapping, a feature that lets you create variable-rate time stretches directly in the timeline; you can now see the clip getting longer or shorter, depending on the clip speed that you choose.
Time remapping has been available in After Effects for a while, but now it’s in Premiere. Speed changes are keyframeable, and a soft "ease in or out" command brings a nice sense of realism to things that get slower or faster over time.
Encore CS3
With the new Encore, you can author standard DVD titles, Blu-ray discs and even Web-based Flash presentations much in the same way that you always have – fully menu-driven, with linked chapters, customized buttons and a fully-interactive and user navigable interface. Blu-ray is becoming increasingly popular as a distribution medium, and anyone with a Sony PlayStation 3 or compatible player can watch your burned disc.
Encore does allow you to create visual and editorial effects right on the timeline, and it gives added slow motion and time-remapping effect control with precise keyframe placement and real-time feedback. You can add colour correction, lighting and other effects, audio filters and so on. As has been one of its video strengths in Premiere, Encore now accepts edited footage from multicam shoots with ease and precision.
By the way, perhaps because of a lot of this functional overlap, Encore will no longer be available by itself.
Soundbooth CS3
Previous Adobe video bundles included Audition, Adobe’s professional audio-editing application (formerly known as Cool Edit Pro). Soundbooth is a simpler, one-click-and-you-are-done audio processing software.
Soundbooth is well-designed for video editors with little or no experience in audio (you know who you are if you say "louder" instead of "normalizing"). The application is powerful, but the interface is very graphical and uncomplicated.
With Soundbooth, trim, fade and volume controls are really simple to use, and so are the audio cleanup features. Soundbooth shows other tabbed functions on the left side of the screen - you simply choose the function that you want (audio cleanup, score creator, etc.). The new Spectral view is great for cleaning up unwanted frequency-specific noises from audio clips (cough, cell phone, 60 cycle hum, etc.). You can literally "see" the sound on screen, and quickly eliminate it (and any others like it).
Needless to say, you can access Soundbooth from within Premiere Pro, simply by right-clicking an audio clip and choosing Edit in Adobe Soundbooth > Render and Replace. This will open a copy of the clip in Soundbooth, leaving the original untouched.
After Effects CS3
Adobe went all out in the new After Effects CS3 version. New features like Shape Layers and the Puppet Tool make it the crowning achievement of this release to some eyes. Using the new Puppet Tool is a hoot! It lets you to add "pins" or points to a still layer that you can then use to animate different parts of the layer. "Dancing" text, animated objects, motion graphics and much, much more can be created simply and easily.
After Effects CS3 also supports the new video layers in Photoshop CS3 Extended (more on that later), which makes rotoscoping inside of Photoshop and re-importing into After Effects easy and intuitive.
Vanishing point is an important new feature in After Effects. It lets you work with Photoshop to create planes on a still image for applying 3D animation. It works especially well with images of buildings, for example, where the 2D planes are easily identified and then exported to After Effects, where a fully 3D composition of your still is ready to be animated with a keyframe technique.
Also new is the ability to animate and replicate vector graphics in order to create cool backgrounds and graphic elements. Folks who have worked in Illustrator know how exciting this is. Shapes, layers, animation and more can be added across resolutions and to each individual parameter that a graphic file includes.
Photoshop CS3 Extended
Because Photoshop has been out for a couple of months and is covered elsewhere, we’ll just mention some new video-centric features.
As usual, Photoshop is at the heart of the enhanced integration features in CS3 Production Premium. Regardless of the primary editing or composition application you use, Photoshop remains a constant in the video/print/web world.
Photoshop imports video; After Effects reads this video. Send a DVD menu directly into Photoshop or After Effects for animation or editing, and bring it back into Encore DVD for authoring, seamlessly and without rendering.
In this release, Photoshop’s new Movie support app lets you retouch videos one frame at a time (great for rotoscoping!), with a familiar After Effects-like interface. There’s also lots and lots of support for video and compositing applications (like After Effects, as discussed earlier).
Flash
One of the most exciting additions to the Production Premium is Flash CS3. For those of you who don’t know Flash, it's an application designed for (among many other things) delivery of content through the Web, or even interactive (computer-play only) DVDs. Flash has a market penetration of more than 96 percent on computers that are used to browse the Internet, so almost everyone with a computer is capable of playing Flash files. You can now export Flash video with markers or cue points that trigger a specific event while your Flash video is playing. Graphics, subtitles, another video clip - you name it! You can easily update your whole presentation just by updating that one file, not the whole video. You can also copy and paste from Photoshop and Illustrator directly into Flash and retain the layer styles.
Ultra CS3 (Windows only)
Ultra CS3 is another application formerly owned by Serious Magic and now integrated into the Adobe suites. It’s used for easy and accurate chromakeying and virtual-set compositing. This release, available for Windows only, doesn’t change much from the Serious Magic version, but it brings some great new functionality to the Production Premium suite.
For those of you who do not know Ultra, this product lets you key backgrounds, even those encumbered with wrinkles and uneven lighting. Of course, Ultra supports all standard DV and HDV resolutions.
OnLocation CS3
Formerly known as DV Rack from Serious Magic, OnLocation is a powerful diagnostic and monitoring tool for recording DV and HDV content directly from a FireWire-equipped camera to a laptop or hard drive.
OnLocation displays (on your laptop's screen) valuable diagnostic information about your video clips, including Zebra displays and help with White Balance, Safe Zones, Scopes, Audio levels, camera calibration and more. It does not affect the video, but it carefully measures and monitors it, giving you greater confidence on location. You can start and stop record, log clips and write scene names, descriptions and so on.
OnLocation can also be used to help match shots from one location to another or one day to a different day through scope comparisons and measurements, making post production efforts (especially colour correction and audio) that much easier.
To use OnLocation on a Mac, you will need the BootCamp platform transcoder.
On the way out: CS3 Media Encoder and Device Central
You can now use Adobe Media Encoder (Premiere Pro, After Effects, Soundbooth and Encore DVD) to export your work for a wide variety of audiences and target devices, with newly included support for 3GPP and H.264 content. There’s also a new Device Central preview feature, letting you see you a realistic preview of how your particular file will look in a specific cell phone (or iPod, or whatever).
Taken together, Adobe Creative Suite 3 Production Premium is a powerful set of video tools, intended for the professional or working videographer. Hobbyists and weekend warriors will probably be better served by "scaled down" versions like Premiere Elements and Photoshop Elements. But if you make a living from video, or if you intend to, this suite is the way to go.

Packing heat

HUB tests three notebook backpacks with sizzlin’ style
Business folk like to haul their portable PCs in expensive attaché cases, and stylish technorati typically obsess over messenger bags and shoulder totes, but the most practical and ergonomic means of transporting a notebook—preferred by students, cyclists and urban hikers—is the backpack. These double-strapped shoulder bags are better for your back and can typically store a lot more than just a notebook and a few papers. And, if you choose carefully, they can be surprisingly easy on the peepers. We checked out three laptop packs that give backs a break and provide their wearers little need to fear the fashion police.
Targus Revolution www.targus.com/ca ($100)
If you can’t decide whether you’d like a messenger bag or a backpack, the Revolution might be worth a look-see. The spacious laptop compartment (fits screens up to 15.4 inches) detaches from the rest of the pack and has its own padded shoulder strap, allowing users to travel light when necessary. It’s a great solution for people who need a backpack for the bike ride to work or school and a lighter, sleeker tote as they port their notebooks to meetings or classes throughout the day. The extra material makes the Revolution a bit bulkier than competing laptop backpacks, but it’s a fair trade given the pack’s unusual utility. The only real bummer is a lack of additional pockets in the tote—it’s a pretty basic bag meant to stow little more than a notebook. (Oh—and the backpack’s beige and brown motif, while pretty, requires a wardrobe composed mostly of earth tones, assuming you don’t want to clash with your bag.)
Samsonite Pro DLX http://www.samsonite.ca/ ($165 medium, $210 large)
If durability is a factor and price isn’t a concern, renowned luggage designer Samsonite’s Pro DLX is the notebook backpack to beat. Constructed with heavy duty nylon fibres, the Pro DLX can take a serious beating without tearing or even showing signs of wear. The interior laptop compartment, which can fit notebooks up to 15-inches, provides plenty of padding as well as a strap designed to keep computers from shifting in transit. Available in black or brown with attractive orange accents and leather finishes, the Pro DLX is at home in business environments. Adding to the professional vibe is a practical design that sports far fewer outer zippers and compartments than the norm for the backpack genus, lending it an efficient, minimal appearance.
lululemon Terrain http://www.lululemon.com/ ($89)
Backpacks designed by lululemon, a rapidly expanding Vancouver-based athletic clothing company, focus on comfort, practicality, style and providing an easy way to lug your...yoga mat...around town. That’s right: in addition to dedicated pockets for notebooks, iPods and PDAs, the Terrain is also designed to make transporting your yoga gear on bike or foot a piece of cake. Hipsters will appreciate the pack’s funky little details, including pictures of items meant to be stored in each compartment found on their corresponding zipper tags, while owners of pricey notebooks will welcome the smartly designed laptop sheath, which opens from the side to allow notebooks to be inserted lengthwise. Once stowed, laptops sit comfortably flat against the wearer’s back and on an elastic band that keeps them slightly elevated and protected against the impact of short drops.

Graphics gone mobile

Quadro NVS Mobile GPU
nVidia’s family of graphics processors for notebooks share a common architecture, but provide a range of performance to suit your need for speed and your pocket book.
Late last year, Microsoft released Windows Vista, which included many new, but unfortunately resource-heavy, technologies. A couple of months ago, Intel launched its latest revision to the Centrino Mobile brand (dubbed Santa Rosa), further alleviating the performance concerns surrounding Vista while also leveraging many of its most advanced functions. Around the same time, nVidia brought its new business-focused mobile GPUs to the market as well. Not surprisingly, these new GPUs are completely compatible with the Santa Rosa chipset and are designed specifically for Windows Vista.
The great thing about the Quadro NVS Mobile series is that there is one available in every price category and all of them are based on the same architecture. What this means for the consumer is that while the various Quadro NVS GPUs have different performance levels, because they share the same DNA - they include the same major features. For example, if you’re a CAD professional or 3D animator, it would be worth the additional cost of purchasing the high-end Quadro NVS 510M with 512MB of dedicated video RAM. On the other hand, if you’re only planning to use your notebook for word processing and spreadsheets, but still want to use nVidia’s award-winning nView multi-display technology, it would be more cost effective to go with the entry-level Quadro NVS 110M with only 64MB of dedicated video RAM.
Regardless of which Quadro NVS you choose, you’re going to get the same vivid graphics, functionality and features with the only noticeable difference being the clock speed and memory configurations. The following are some of the highlights present in all of the new mobile Quadro NVS GPUs.
Application Compatibility Testing and Unified Driver Architecture:
As with the previous generations of Quadro GPUs, nVidia has tested the Quadro NVS hardware and drivers with a wide array of today’s leading business applications in order to ensure complete compatibility. The tested applications range from everyday software like McAfee Virus Scan and MS Office, to more specialized software like Hummingbird Exceed and Bloomberg. Furthermore, because the Quadro NVS uses nVidia’s Unified Driver Architecture, continued compatibility and stability are assured with future updates (or at least, that’s the intention).
PowerMizer 7.0:
PowerMizer is nVidia’s trademark intelligent power management system that adaptively adjusts the GPU on the fly to reduce power consumption. Along with dynamically altering the GPU and memory clocks, PowerMizer can also shut down inactive portions of the GPU to increase battery life. With other features like SmartDimmer (actively adjusts the screen brightness) and On-Chip Power “Watchdog” (circuitry dedicated to monitoring GPU utilization in order to throttle appropriately), the Quadro NVS Mobile GPUs offer much better battery life than previous generations.
DirectX10 and OpenGL 2.1 Optimization:
DirectX 10 is the graphics API used to power the more advanced visuals of Windows Vista. The entire Quadro NVS line of GPUs fully supports DX10 and Shader Model 4.0 to offer the most impressive graphics currently possible. Full support for OpenGL 2.1 ensures compatibility with a robust OS-independent graphics API as well as all OpenGL applications. Most of the visual improvements offered by DX10 and OGL2.1 are more noticeable in graphics heavy applications (3D animation software, CAD programs, video/photo editing), but the performance improvements when running things like AeroGlass in Windows Vista should be apparent to every type of user.
PureVideo HD:
Another important feature of the Quadro NVS series is the PureVideo HD video engine. PureVideo HD is a complete suite of hardware accelerated HD video decoders used to smooth, scale, de-interlace and colour correct HD video playback. H.264 and VC-1 (the codecs used by Blu-Ray and HD-DVD) are also supported to improve HD video disc playback as well. The PureVideo HD video engine not only allows for better playback of all video, but also lightens the processing load on the main CPU, which further improves battery life.
nView Multi-Display Technology:
Rounding out the Quadro NVS features is nVidia’s nView multi-display technology, which is vital for any business-centric notebook. With two 400MHz RAMDACs, HDCP compliance and support for a multitude of video outputs (composite, s-video, component, HDMI, VGA, DVI), the Quadro NVS offers the most fully-featured external and multiple digital or analog display support. Using the nView software makes setting up multiple displays easy and custom hotkeys makes switching between display configurations as simple as clicking a button.
Unlike a lot of other dedicated graphics solutions that tend to focus solely on increasing performance, many of the new features of the Quadro NVS line help increase battery life. Not only is the Quadro NVS able to adjust its own power consumption based on usage, it can also be used to offload many power-hungry tasks from the system CPU, which saves battery life due to the GPU’s increased efficiency (e.g. HD video playback.) As the portable PC market continues to experience drastic growth, mobile graphics hardware like the Quadro NVS line becomes increasingly important. The ability to produce desktop-level performance while maintaining excellent battery life is the key to increasing mobile productivity in graphics-heavy tasks. Add to that the fact that there is a Quadro NVS available in every price point (from budget to high-end) and nVidia really seems to have outdone themselves with their latest crop of business-centric GPUs.