Apple Special Event - iLife '08
Apple announced yesterday the immediate release of the new iLife '08 suite of applications. They have posted a guided tour that covers the latest enhancements at a high level.
Anyone who maintains a large collection of photographs will appreciate the new 'Events' feature in '08. Users will now enjoy automatic library organization (based on the date the photo was taken). Events that span multiple days can be merged. Days with multiple events can be split apart. I am hoping for improvements to keyword management.
I have created short movies using the pre-'08 version of iMovie application with rather disappointing results. The '08 release appears to be a complete re-write of this application -- which is great! The skimming feature (fast movie previews) and exporting features are amazing. I really hope this application works as it appears in the videos on apple.com!
The major new feature added to the '08 release is something called 'Magic GarageBand'. The magic is really a virtual stage with preset instruments that can be arranged in any order to create loops/songs. This should be easier than dragging individual instruments to a time line.
One of the new features that some novice developers will enjoy is the ability to add 'Web Wigits' to their pages. Wigits are pieces of preformed HTML that when inserted on a page provide Google Maps, Google Ads, and YouTube videos embedded in the page. iWeb includes cool features and is a must have for individuals who do not have development skills.
The '08 release has better performance, pro-quality encoding, and 10 new animated themes. The excitement of these enhancements was taken down a notch after hearing the extra comments Steve Jobs shared during his presentation. "There are some people who still want to make some DVD's" followed by, "For people that still want to make DVD's, we are going to make it even better with iDVD". Something tells me Steve is not burning a lot of DVD's these days. I wouldn't be too surprised to see iDVD dropped in a future release of iLife.
Apple has added additional .Mac integration in to the iLife applications. A web gallery has been added to .Mac, allowing users to upload pictures and videos to a web 2.0 page that can be shared with friends and family. I am not an .Mac subscriber at this time, though I am becoming increasingly tempted to try it out.
I love software updates -- it is fun to see new features, performance improvements, and increased integration. For me, the enhancements made to iPhoto and iMovie are well worth $79.
It appears that Applehound has been scooped on the new Iphone update 1.0.2 ????? Can it be true?