Promises of FREE-DUMB for Creative Professionals

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They say that "no good thing is this world is free!" (paraphrased). I don't believe the statement is applicable for all circumstances and I believed that Ubuntu Studio was also going to prove this statement wrong.

Being zealous about Open Source apps I quickly downloaded Ubuntu Studio which promised to be beneficial for creative professionals (individuals who do graphics, video and audio editing). It was professed that the applications that came with the OS would be industry standard. Unfortunately they were not!

I tested the OS for myself and found a bunch of stand-alone applications for audio editing (synthesizers, drum machine emulators, voice recording, looping etc...) , that in itself was a setback and definitely provided no competition for Pro Tools or Adobe's Audition. Not to mention that the video editing applications had interfaces that were difficult to maneuver around.

I agree that Ubuntu is breaking ground, producing a Linux based OS that is easy to install and use for the average user. But it fails to be that for the Creative Professionals.

So, not everything that is free is good!

One small step for Dell and one giant leap for Ubuntu - Linux

Linux has been around for a while but not may computer users are aware of this open source operating system and some who do are skeptical of open source, willing to shell out major bucks for Microsoft's latest. Truth is, Linux is mostly used by developers and individuals in 3rd world countries. But I think all that is about to change!

On Sun.May.27.07 I was browsing the net and came across an article on CNet's Download.com with regards to Wubi - a windows based instillation program for Ubuntu 7.04. Wubi is in a beta phase but got raving reviews. I then whent to Ubuntu's website and saw an ad for Dell pcs with Ubuntu 7.04 pre-installed. Talk of Dell selling pcs was just that, talk! Now it's official.

I was all smiles, not because Dell was now selling systems with Ubuntu Linux but that linux was finally being acknowledged as a OS worthy to be considered as an option in the corporate market. And with the help up Wubi users can no run a dual OS pc.

I wonder what's next?!?!?

Apple Strikes Back…

Microsoft recently came out with it’s “iPod Killer” – Zune. However, that didn’t seem to stop consumers from buying iPods. And for consumers who purchased Zunes there was a constant comparison with the iPod, with regards to the size. It seems with all this in mind Apple threw another punch and unveiled the iPhone which is to be launced in June 2007 for US$599.

The iPhone thrives on the need to be cool, providing a media player, touch screen interactivity, internet connectivity (wireless), 2.0 Mega Pixel Camera, Widgets that give stock exchange reports, weather etc… and all the other features of the modern day cell phones. The iPhone has a 8GB hard drive (unexpandable) and a 3.5 inch screen.

On rotating the phone form landscape to portrait (or vice versa) the phone detects the rotation and rotates the image accordingly. It also detects when the phone is close to the ear and turns off the display screen in order to save power. All this is done on the Mac OS X platform.

Though there has been a few snags along the way, such as the law suite from CISCO with regards to the trademark for the name “iPhone”, apple seems to be going full speed ahead with its new product. The phone will be available exclusively to Cingular customers for now.

It seems that this phone is targeted toward a younger market and will do well seeing that cell phones, portable media players and digital cameras are trendy. All of which the iPhone embodies.

Productivity in a Flash...

On Christmas of 2006 I got a 2GB flash drive that was labeled “U3 Smart”. I didn’t even take notice until I stuck the drive in my pc at work and saw a splash screen. I was like, “Yow! Mad!” I noticed an icon in my system tray that when clicked gives me a menu similar to that of Windows. Yup! And it was from the flash drive. I’ve seen Ceedo work on a 4GB flash drive but thought such things were limited to flash drives of that size. I was wrong!

This inspired me to do a quick Google search on applications suitable for flash drives and I found out that U3, Ceedo and Portable Apps are platforms which allow applications to me installed and executed primarily from a flash drive.

The U3’s platform can be found on various brands of flash drives starting from 512MB up. However, the platform cannot be downloaded but is preloaded on “U3 Smart Drive.” On the other hand, Ceedo and Portable Apps Suite can be downloaded and installed. However, Ceedo’s has to be purchased while Portable Apps is totally free and open source. Each platform is supported by a list off installable applications exclusive to that platform.

Does it make sense?
I know individuals my question as to why one should install such software on a flash drive, but I believe each has its own strength and is designed for people who may not have a laptop and roam from pc to pc. All three platforms have applications varying from word processors, text editiors, web messengers to media players. So if users are accustomed to using specific apps on their pc they don’t have to worry about its absence while using someone else’s pc. For instance, I use Firefox at home and get tired of using IE whenever I’m on the road. But now I can use Firefox with all my extensions and bookmarks, form my flash drive.

Pros and Cons
I find Ceedo’s platform to be very light, customizable and user-friendly, it mimics that of Windows XP and comes with a Web Browser, Mailing Client and Microsoft Office apps, such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint. On the menu is a space update as to how much space is used and free.

Next follows Portable Apps, which gives the option to install the basic platform (with now apps), Lite or Standard suite. The Lite & Standard suite pretty much comes with the same as Ceedo’s but with OpenOffice instead of Microsoft Office and even Games. It also has a back-up feature and a space update like Ceedo.

U3 seems to be the most inflexible but the most secure and like all the others have a list of applications that can be installed.

The development of these platforms affords individuals like me to be productive on the go and I like it!