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Issue link: https://digital.macdirectory.com/i/839
MacDirectory 155 files as well as Encore DVD projects. It is also one of the applications that take full advantage of the transcription engine, which will let you search, move about or set edit points based on the text. Premiere Pro has developed into a feature-rich editor that, given some experience with the popular video editing systems and Adobe products, is surprisingly intuitive. Until recently, Apple had a virtual lock on the DVD authoring market for the Mac, with both the low and high ends of the market covered by a couple of great tools. With Encore CS4, Adobe is making a run right down the middle. Encore CS4 (included with OnLocation as part of the Premiere Pro package), is a slick mix of professional capabilities with an interface modeled on the other CS4 video applica- tions. Encore offers two unmatchable features: one is the ability to create projects for Blu-ray discs, with the format's unique interactive capabilities. The other is the ability to output projects as Flash SWF files. Soundbooth Soundbooth CS4 is the ideal audio sweetening companion for Premiere-based projects. From its built-in video playback display to its spectral view of audio aberrations, it is the audio tool for the video artist. The major feature introduced with CS4 is the ability to work with multiple tracks, something that was a bit of stumbling block in the first version. Normalizing audio levels from multiple clips can be performed with drag-and-drop convenience. Soundbooth also simplifies MP3 compression decisions by letting you preview a project at various bit rates. After Effects Even though After Effects CS4 has no shortage of new effects and capabilities, its biggest breakthrough is in making complex projects more manageable. A Spotlight-like search tool lets you sift though both the Projects panel and the timeline. The search works with effects, parameters, filenames, filetypes and, of course, the source's metadata. If you make use of the program's nesting instincts, you'll appreciate the Shake-like flow display of complex composites. As you would expect, After Effects meshes quite brilliantly with PhotoShop CS4 Extended's 3D and video skills. One of the coolest new toys in the effects box is the cartoon tool that gives a comic book or idyllic watercolor look to live action. The package now includes Imagineer's Mocha for extraordinarily smooth, multipoint motion tracking. Flash The biggest changes to Flash CS4 Professional are in its user interface, which has been given a major makeover to incorporate some of the look and feel of After Effects. The timeline has moved to the bottom of the screen and includes a Motion Editor tab for fine-tuning animation attributes. Flash newbies will appreciate the new object-based animation model. Simply move an object on the stage and the application automatically performs the symbol conversion and tweening steps. It's hard to foretell how Flash veterans will respond to this new model, but perhaps they'll be placated by the program's new Bones (inverse kinematics) tool to link the motion of different objects (think bones and joints in a skeleton). And a new set of tools allows for click-and-drag 3D moves. In a relatively short time, Flash/SWF has become the dominant format for online video and advanced interactivity. Even though very few developers have exploited its full potential, it has become the foundation of what will be Web 3.0. But sadly, Apple and Adobe have yet to get to a point where the world's most popular media format can run on the world's most popular iDevices. But when that happens, the Suite's latest incarnation will put content creators in gear for the Web's next big paradigm shift. FIRST LOOK ADOBE CREATIVE SUITE 4 > A TOOLKIT FOR WEB 3.0 ONLOCATION SOUNDBOOTH