Softimage XSI 7 on 30 Sept 2008

(Via CGSociety) Softimage has announced SOFTIMAGE|XSI 7, the latest version of its professional 3D animation software for games, film and television.
XSI 7 introduces ICE (Interactive Creative Environment), a groundbreaking technology that transforms XSI from just another 3D product into a powerful and flexible open platform.

ICE greatly improves collaboration between artists and technical directors, allowing them to create custom tools and effects visually, see the results interactively, and do it all without scripting, or writing a line of code. Effects built or modified in ICE are performance tuned and multi-threaded, so they perform at maximum efficiency across all available processors.

XSI 7 will be available before September 30, 2008.

CGSociety Softimage XSI 7 Article

Flash Lite 3.1 on Q4 2008 ?

Via Biskero ( and --> Blocketpc), looks like Flash Lite 3.1 is on the way to OEM, here some more infos:

• H.264 support
• Improved web browsability with support for most Flash 8 content
• Object oriented extension mechanism for device APIs
• Red Hat Linux reference port
• Flash Lite 3.1 was released to OEMs on March 31, 2008
• Flash Lite 3.1 devices are expected to hit the market towards the end of 2008.
• Flash Lite 3.1 includes H.264 standard video support, the same standard deployed in Blu-Ray® and HD-DVD® high definition video players and HD web videos. Playback of H.264 video is dependent on the device’s capabilities for seamless play back existing H.264 web video content.

Create your own Search Engine, with Yahoo! BOSS

Yahoo! Search Blog annouces BOSS is a new, open platform that offers programmatic access to the entire Yahoo! Search index via an API. BOSS allows developers to take advantage of Yahoo!'s production search infrastructure and technology, combine that with their own unique assets, and create their own search experiences. While search APIs have been available for some time, BOSS removes many of the usage restrictions that have prevented other companies from using them to build innovative new search engines.

Here's a quick summary of what's available today:

• Ability to re-rank and blend results -- BOSS partners can re-rank search results as they see fit and blend Yahoo!'s results with proprietary and other web content in a single search experience
• Total flexibility on presentation -- Freedom to present search results using any user interface paradigm, without Yahoo! branding or attribution requirements
• BOSS Mashup Framework -- We're releasing a Python library and UI templates that allow developers to easily mashup BOSS search results with other public data source
• Web, news and image search -- At launch, developers will have access to web, news and image search and we'll be adding more verticals soon
• Unlimited queries -- There are no rate limits on the number of queries per day

Via

Lively: Second Life by Google

Google releases Lively, a 3d multichat social network.
In Lively, you'll have an experience in which you can communicate and express yourself using avatars in your very own space.



Lively requires Windows Vista/XP with Internet Explorer or Firefox.

Google Talk for iPhone and iPod Touch

Google releases a GTalk (Google Talk) special version for IPhone and Ipod Touch.
With this gadget you can chat with your friends without installing any application, but simply using Safari.
However, at this moment this gadget is available only for US resident users:

http://www.google.com/talk/

Another particular "problem": as you can see in the link above, you must enter your phone number, to receive a link from Google.

Via Motoricerca.

Google learns to crawl Flash contents

From the official Google blog: Google has been developing a new algorithm for indexing textual content in Flash files of all kinds, from Flash menus, buttons and banners, to self-contained Flash websites.
Now (and finally!) indexing full flash websites and/or flash contents will be easier, so we can develop websites also for those customers with low budget for web marketing / web indexing.
Ok, now we have to do some tests... :-)

Create you own home online

PlanningWiz is an Online Room Planner Software for Furniture Retailers and Manufacturers, Building Contractors, Realtors and more...
With this web based application you can build your apartments, creating rooms, walls and so on, and add your furnitures taken from multiple libraries.
Additionally, you can save, email and print your projects. Cool!

http://v3.planningwiz.com/

Flash player plugin required.

PlayNES: Online NES emulator

http://www.playnes.net/

contains many playable NES games (java runtime required to run).

It also contains many nice flash games.

Kunfu Fu Panda, CGSociety article

Kung Fu Panda is the new Dreamworks 3d animation movie (in theaters june 6, 2008).

CG Society publish an intersting article about Kung Fu Panda production focus (article by Renee Dunlop).
The article starts:
"A journey of a billion frames begins with talent, characters and a whole lot of effort by the team at DreamWorks."...

"A wash with color and technical complexities, DreamWorks brings us their next animated film, Kung Fu Panda. In production since 2003, the film introduces a cast of clothed and furry or feathery animals that never completely sit still, languishing, dreaming, learning, and battling throughout a collection of expansive environments." ...

Continue reading this article about Kung Fu Panda

Other links:

CG Society

Kung Fu Panda official website

Dreamworks website

Explore Disneyworld in 3d with Google Earth

Google Earth adds new 3d models to have a fantastic virtual journey to Disney World in Orlando (Florida).


Here a Youtube video taken from Google Earth Blog: