NewTech Infosystems, Inc. (NTI), which has over 70 million users worldwide, has combined nine standalone products in one. They consist of:

• NTI CD & DVD-Maker Platinum®: For easy to use and highly reliable CD/DVD burning.
• NTI HomeVideo-Maker®: For capturing video directly from a camcorder and directly producting DVDs.
• NTI DVD Fit®: For compressing dual-layer movies down to single-layer size.
• NTI Backup NOW!®: For backing-up programs at the file-level for archiving.
• NTI DVD Player®: For viewing DVD movies and slideshows directly on a PC.
• NTI FileCD®: For using CD-R and DVD-R discs as drag-and-drop floppies.
• NTI Jewelcase maker®: For creating, designing, and printing disc labels and jewelcase inserts.
• NTI Wave Editor®: For editing and enhancing digital audio.
• NTI Music Café®: For playing back music CDs and music files.

All nine of the applications can be launched from a single interface.

Wizard-based interfaces can be used to auto-edit videos and slideshows to produce professional-looking productions automatically. The user simply selects a style and background music. $79.99

The program is published by the developer of Watson, the award-winning Web services application that transformed the use of the Internet on a Macintosh.

Sandvox provides a creative environment that can be used by almost anyone to publish text, photos, movies, etc. immediately to the Web. The composition environment offers realtime viewing of what the site will look like when published, without the need to preview it within a browser.

The process of publishing the content on the Web, using the Host Setup Assistant, is the easiest we have seen, and includes a listing of ISPs from which to choose. The program does the testing to insure that a connection is valid and reliable.

The user is presented with dozens of professionally designed Web page layouts from which to choose. Their content can be viewed using any of the designs, providing an instant presentation of the design attributes.

The site is composed of Collections, which are holders for various kinds of content, such as text, or Weblog pages. Content can be dragged and dropped onto pages, or text can be entered in realtime. The user can easily build in all sorts of features such as RSS feeds, podcasts, etc. The Pro version, which supports input of HTML code is $69, the regular version is $39.

The process of executing a transfer is accomplished in three steps: Installing the software, connecting the cable, and installing applications and then using the software to move data and settings. Data includes such things as documents, photos, videos, spreadsheets, music, contacts, notes, calendar entries, browser connections, keyboard preferences, shortcuts, fonts, and more.

The package includes Simple Backup®, for making partial or full backups to a hard drive or removable media; and SecureClean®, to remove personal and sensitive files from an old computer that is to be sold, donated, or disposed of. $69.95

Message templates are composed of "merge tags" in the form of or , that can be embedded to create individualized communication.

New in this version is Web Page Messages, which are fully composed HTML messages that the user stores in a folder on their Web page. The URL is entered in the message, and the fully composed HTML page appears when the recipient opens the mail.

The program supports plain text and HTML messages, file attachments, message priority, return path, and customized headers. The program supports the direct use of database fields, dragging them into IntelliMerge from a floating palette. The import function works with FileMaker, Entourage, Excel, Now Contact, or an tab/comma delimited text file.

Conditional statements can be inserted to select recipients on the basis of their meeting specific criteria, such as living in a certain state, or having a vehicle of a certain vintage.

Prior to sending, the user can preview each message. As messages are sent out via the user's local mail server (SMTP), the program tracks errors and provides a report in the form of a pie chart.

The new AutoSubscriber feature enables users to add or unsubscribe themselves without the need to have the application open. by uploading the AutoSubscriber PHP script to any Web server, IntelliMerge users can simply add a one-click "unsubscribe" link to the bottom of any message.

IntelliMerge 5.0 is $99. IntelliMerge 5.0 with AutoSubscriber is $179.

The plug-in simplifies the production of complex catalogs, directories, price lists, and other database publications through the use of document templates which are designed as models of how database records are to appear on a page. The user can create any number of templates, and keep them stored for use or modification. The templates can be constructed using any of the typographic and table parameters that are available within InDesign, providing the ultimate degree of design variety.

Data is imported into an EasyCatalog panel into which it can continue to be modified and organized apart from its database origin. This workflow is different from most approaches, and it offers much greater flexibility in the creation of a publication. For example, the user can import data from a number of sources, unlike most database plug-ins. After data is organized to suit the purpose of the publication, such as changing its order, or hiding selected columns, it is dragged and dropped onto a template wherein it immediately takes on the preset appearance. The template can take the form of a text box or a table.

In addition to taking on the predefined typographic parameters, data conforms to user settings defining such things as numeric formats, and the treatment of images, as it is flowed onto the page. Images are automatically resized and aligned according to user specifications.

The placement of database fields is determined by the placement of Field Specifiers, which can be placed in any text box, or in an InDesign table. These are labels that represent field contents, and serve as variables which are replaced with live data from each database record. The user can apply InDesign formatting to them, save them in a library, and use them again and again.

The process is remarkably simple and direct, and belies its inherent power. Although no programming, coding, nor scripting is required, an optional scripting module is available. EasyCatalog, along with its various optional modules (priced separately), provides a complete database publishing solution that is logical, flexible, and most importantly, highly efficient. $1299

The process of "smashing" fonts is very simple. The user can either click the "Add" button, select the "Add Suitcase" option from the File menu, or drag and drop suitcases onto the Smasher listing window. As the fonts are imported, Smasher checks their integrity and eliminates any corrupt files. Clicking on the Smash button, or dragging the fonts to the desktop "smashes" them, creating a new suitcase for use in Mac OS X. The program intelligently keeps the printer font with its matching bitmap screen font.

When suitcases are in the Smasher environment their contents are revealed, and each font can be previewed on-screen. Font properties, including the font format and style, foundry and copyright data, file permissions, etc. are all displayed. Users can opt to work with only the individual fonts that they require.

Users can easily move OS 9 fonts to OS X, and vice versa.

Many system-related problems can be attributed to fonts. In order for Mac OS X to function properly fonts must be activated and cached. When the font cache does not perform correctly it can result in a number of problems, such as incorrect text reflow, incorrectly generated PDF and PostScript files, and application slowdown. Smasher enables the user to clear font caches easily. $49.95

The program has many high-end features, supporting the production of PDF files, as well the capability to import and edit them; support for CMYK color separations and Pantone® color swatches; curved, beveled, and glowing text; direct entry of text and production of graphics, or import of assets from external sources; text stringing between columns, runarounds, and text fill in irregular shapes; control over hyphenation, drop caps, leading, kerning, and vertical alignment; intelligent tables that simplify complex text layouts and incorporate spreadsheet calculation capabilities; special effects text, including extrusion and 3D; long document features including master pages, running headers and footers, page numbering, and book composition combining multiple files; style sheets that control character and paragraph attributes; mail merge for personalized documents; text accuracy tools including an as-you-type spell checker, thesaurus, and Proofreader Wizard; basic drawing tools supporting arrows, borders, and shapes; photo enhancement tools with transparency controls, red-eye repair, and creative filters; and much more.

The program comes with a 90 day money back guarantee which speaks well of its quality. New users are also supported with step-by-step tutorials, and free telephone and e-mail tech support. $99.95

The unit features buttons for random/shuffle mode, last station recall, last song played; a digital LED display; and a three foot audio cable. $34.99

Users can process both PAL and NTSC formats, including multiple angles, soundtracks, and subtitles, and extract a single chapter or the entire movie, and preview the video before extracting. The process is fast, especially if the DVD has been copied onto the users' hard drive. In this case, the extraction process takes about 1/8 of the play time. If the DVD is being read directly from the disc, the speed is limited by the read speed of the DVD drive. $59.95

This massive volume contains over 500 "recipes" for solving specific Active Directory problems. This "how-to" book provides developers with quick answers to their programming problems related to deploying, administering, and automating Active Directory to manage users in Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003.

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