SketchUp: Why Kids With Autism Love It

Link via Newsweek

Science is rich with happy flukes. Remember the story of penicillin? Alexander Fleming discovered the bacteria-destroying mold by accident when he left a culture dish uncovered in his lab in 1928. Eight decades later, here’s another one: a Googlesoftware program called SketchUp, which was intended largely for architects and design professionals, has found a very unexpected and welcome fan base—children with autism. SketchUp is not only entertaining kids with autism spectrum disorders, it’s providing them with skills that might one day help them as they age out of school and into the workforce.

Google SketchUp Pro 7 is available at an academic discount price of $49 to students.

Google SketchUp Pro 7 is available at no cost to instructors.

Parallels Desktop 4.0 for Mac free 2GB USB Flash Drive Special!

Link via Creation Engine

Parallels 4.0 and USB 2GBParallels Desktop 4.0 for Mac

$39.99 for new CD-ROM or download version with free 2GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive! $40 off normal price for boxed version.

Offer good through 2/28/2009

Toon Boom Animate Review

Link via Digital Arts

Toon Boom AnimateWhile not in the price range of Toonz or Animo, Animate is still an expensive option for a new animator. If they don’t need tools like IK or integrated FLV export, there’s no urgent need for TBS users to upgrade.

However, if you’re a traditional animator who still hasn’t gone digital, or you simply want to take 2D animation further, Animate is definitely worth a serious look.

Toon Boom Animate is available at an academic discount price of $360.

Editing Eyes: 3 Photoshop Steps to Eyes that POP

Link via Digital Photography School

Here’s how to make eyes POP in three steps using Photoshop.

Photoshop CS4 Extended is available at an academic discount price of $299.

Photoshop CS4 Extended Student Edition is available at an academic discount price of $199.

Plug-In Suite 4 for Photoshop Special!

Link via Creation Engine

Plug-In Suite 4 for Photoshop Special!

Only $299 after $100 mail-in rebate! (List Price: $499)
Offer good through 3/31/2009.

Take the new FileMaker 10 UI Tour

Link via FileMaker

To illustrate many of the new features introduced in FileMaker 10, FileMaker now offers a series of Quick Tours on its website. The tours take us through the new interface (particularly the new Status Toolbar), show us some of the new database Themes and Templates, and demonstrate Script Triggers, Save Finds, Dynamic Reports, and other features new to FileMaker 10.

FileMaker Pro 10 is available at an academic discount price of $179.

Bunkspeed Software Used to Launch Tesla Roadster Sports Edition

Link via Bunkspeed

Los Angeles, CA, January 14 – Bunkspeed, developer of the world’s fastest 3D rendering technology for design, engineering, and marketing, announced today that Tesla Motors is using HyperShot and HyperDrive for the creation of all launch imagery of their all-new Tesla Roadster Sports Edition. This vehicle is being launched this month at NAIAS 2009 in Detroit.

HyperShot HD Mac/Windows 1-year license (download version) is available at an academic discount price of $95.

FocalPoint wins Software Plug-in of the Year

Link via Photo District News

Software Plug-In of the Year – FocalPoint
I love software that is so intuitive and easy to use that before you know it, it’s up and running on your computer and you’re playing around with it and having a blast. Even better is if it’s a program that’s actually useful along with being fun. One of the niftiest imaging tools I tried this past year is a plug-in from onOne Software called FocalPoint 1.0 which lets you easily add selective focus and vignetting to your images. Though it’s not as enjoyable as capturing dramatic, selectively focused images with a specialized lens, it comes pretty darn close.


FocalPoint 1.0 is available at an academic discount price of $79

Review: Mindjet MindManager 8

Link via vnunet.com

The latest upgrade to Mindjet’s MindManager brainstorming and planning tool is a worthwhile one, giving access to more databases, better collaboration features and even better integration with Microsoft’s Office productivity suite. Adding a Mindjet Connect or Web subscription would deliver even more productivity for project management teams.

Pros : Embedded Mindjet browser improves pulling web data into maps; more databases supported; Mindjet Player gives better collaboration with users not having MindManager client.

MindManager 8 for Windows is available at an academic discount price of $149.

Apple Picks MathType for its new iWork ’09 Suite

Macworld Expo: Apple Picks MathType for its new iWork ’09 Suite

Equations can now be inserted and edited in all three iWork applications: Pages, Keynote, and Numbers

LONG BEACH, Calif. — January 13, 2009 — Design Science today announced that Apple has chosen MathType™ as the equation editor for its new iWork ’09 suite of applications. Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, made this announcement in the keynote address at last week’s Macworld Expo conference in San Francisco and demonstrated editing a MathType equation in a Pages ’09 document. MathType works with all three iWork applications: Pages (word processor), Keynote (presentation), and Numbers (spreadsheet).

“The Mac has always been big in education, science, and engineering.” said Paul Topping, Design Science’s President & CEO. “Until now, Mac users that need equations were limited to using Microsoft Office. Now they have a choice.” It is expected that many Mac users in these markets will make the move to iWork. If they have existing Microsoft Office documents containing MathType or Equation Editor equations, these can be imported into the new iWork applications and the equations will remain editable.

MathType has long been known as the professional version of the Equation Editor in Microsoft Office, used by millions of educators, scientists and engineers to create papers and presentations with textbook-quality equations. According to scientific and technical publishers, over 85% of submitted manuscripts containing mathematical notation are Microsoft Word documents with MathType or Equation Editor equations. Now that MathType works with Apple’s iWork, coverage of the most popular word processing and presentation applications on Mac and Windows is virtually complete.

MathType 6.5 is available at an academic discount price of $55.