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D-I-Y Software; Print Great Pix

By Larry Wood


Tools
Vista Watch
In mid-July, the European Union nailed Microsoft again, to the tune of $357 million,
for failing to comply with a 2004 monopoly injunction. Vista, according to Microsoft, is still on target for business release in November and wide release in January.
    A new feature you’re likely to find in Vista is internet-searching capability built right into the operating system just to prod Google. Another promised feature is said to be some kind of fixed-document system (akin to Acrobat) for Adobe to stew over.

Easier Software Publishing
Getting your Windows or Macintosh software complete, bullet-proofed and documented is half the battle for software publishers. Next, you have to figure out how users download, install and pay for it.
    Software pirates steal billions of dollars annually. Researchers in the United Kingdom conducted a study recently to show that more than $3.6 billion in games are stolen annually. They also report people generally don’t think of downloading pirated material as theft.
    During my research on how best to protect my new software, I found eSellerate, which I believe represents “best of breed” as a software-commerce provider and is part of MindVision Software, a software firm that has its roots in Vise, a Macintosh and Windows installation system.
Publishers and Retailers: As a publisher or an affiliate that resells other publishers’ wares, you can set up a custom web store in eSellerate. These powerful, easy-to-set-up product- and license-management systems provide outstanding means to get up and running quickly.
    When you sign up, eSellerate has a great team of account execs to help. They provide effective tools to manage your product-inventory SKUs (stockkeeping units); generate licenses in a variety of ways; post your products for purchasing, downloading, installing, try-and-buy and authenticating; plus all the financial functions associated with a sale.
Cash and Deliver: eSellerate will act as your cashier with secure transaction processing or a license-authentication service if you sell or distribute your software independently. The pricing model (low percent on low sales, increased percent as sales blossom) impressed me. The company clearly wants to attract new (small) business, and I found eSellerate’s pricing more than fair.
Web Store or Direct Integration: Publishers of Macintosh and Windows software can integrate eSellerate’s functions directly into their product with an application programming interface (API), or they can integrate a custom web-store experience; both are well-implemented (and there’s a great tech-support team to boot).
If you’re looking for a solid, inexpensive way to sell, distribute, license and track your software to reduce piracy and increase revenue, check out eSellerate online.


Toys
Digital Photo Formats
Last month, I discussed top-flight digital single-lens reflex cameras. (My professional-photographer friend, Jay, just bought the Canon Rebel I reviewed, and he loves it.) Thus, a short discussion on popular digital-picture formats is in order. Mid-range to high-end SLRs may offer to save your images as RAW, JPEG or TIFF formats. If you want to shine up your photo skills, you need to understand these formats as well as how and when to use them.
    RAW format stores all the information about a picture right off the image sensor without processing it into a viewable image. Professionals who want fine photographic prints use RAW because they can control contrast, white balance, saturation, sharpness and other features in Photoshop and other PC tools to produce the highest quality prints. RAW format is “lossless,” meaning it keeps all the data. That translates to large files and lots of post-processing work before you print.
    TIFF is also lossless. Unlike RAW, it doesn’t require post-processing to view, but editing flexibility is similar. Don’t waste your time converting JPEG to TIFF; you can’t improve the picture, because you’ve already tossed some information when the JPEG was saved. And what’s gone is gone.
    JPEG (or JPG) is “lossy,” meaning information is tossed to make the file smaller. The less quality you choose, the smaller the file. JPEG images saved in high quality are in most cases less than half the size of the same photo in RAW and are virtually indistinguishable from pictures saved in other formats when viewed on a TV or computer or a consumer color print. However, color range, intensity and sharpness are reduced by varying degrees, and a critical analysis (or a big print on high-quality stock) will reveal the loss.
When to Shoot What: Save your shots in RAW format when you need to perform post-processing using tools (including Photoshop), and you’re willing to deal with storage, file conversion and other utilitarian activities to get a fine print. For most recreational prints and slide shows, plus web and newspaper photojournalism, high-quality JPEG files are fine. Leave TIFF for use in high-quality print magazines and offset or web-press book publishing.

Photo Printing, the Bright Stuff
You’ve invested in a great digital-SLR camera, learned how to save, store and touch up your best shots. Now to print. What printer will match your efforts with stunning, lasting visual results? For a serious photographer, dye-sublimation printing is the only way to go to assure print quality and longevity. (Inkjet prints often show visible signs of fading in just a few years.)

Dye-Sub vs. Inkjet Printers: Dye-sub printers create lab-quality prints right on your desk by using heat to transfer high-quality dye to a medium: paper or plastic. One at a time, three layers (cyan, magenta and yellow) are placed on your stock, plus a final overcoat for water, air and UV-ray protection. Sublimation refers to the process of gasifying solid material without an intervening liquid stage, e.g., dry ice.
    Dye-sub printers produce a wider range of color than inkjets, because the tiny heating elements have 256 temperatures, delivering 256 color steps per color, resulting in more than 16 million shades. Plus, dye-sub prints leave the printer bone dry. However, dye-sub printers don’t have the size flexibility of an inkjet, the equipment must be handled with care to prevent skin oils from touching the paper or ribbon, and dust can lead to print blemishes.
    Consumer-quality, dye-sub 4" x 6", 6" x 8", and 8" x 10" printers from Kodak, Olympus, Hi-Touch and Canon run from $169 to $999; many cluster at the $300 price point. Pro-quality printers range from $700 to $7,000 (Fujifilm), depending on size, speed and features.
    Dye-sub printer consumables, of course, are more expensive than those for inkjet printers; a print kit including 50 sheets of 8.5" x 12" print stock with dye-sub ink ribbon runs about $100.

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