Spotlight - Products - 1/07

The displays, which are positioned within the company’s professional line, are SpectraView II- and GammaComp MD-compatible, and sport HDCP (High-Bandwidth Digital-Content Protection) for the retention of the content’s integrity when transmitted in an encrypted format. The products also support X-Light Pro, a new feature that keeps the backlight at a constant brightness level, and offer 1920x1200 native resolution.

Poised to address the demanding medical, graphics, pre-production film, financial, gaming, and broadcast industries, the new displays use in-plane switching (IPS) module technology. IPS-based modules are high-performing LCD technology that deliver unparalleled color reproduction and brightness uniformity by minimizing off-angle color shift and by producing clearer black tones in dark-colored images.
Nvidia announced the Quadro FX 3500M, a high-performing mobile workstation graphics solution geared for the CAD, DCC, and scientific visualization markets.

Engineered to deliver performance for accelerated workflow and shortened design cycles, the Quadro FX 3500M with support for OpenGL and DirectX offers up to 512mb G-DDR3 memory, a 256-bit memory interface, up to 38.4gb/sec memory bandwidth, and up to 2gb/sec pixel read-back. The solution also includes adaptive power management tools for performance scalability and visualization of extensive datasets with extremely high image quality.

Autodesk has unveiled the first creative tools extension for use with its Autodesk Toxik 2007 software.

For the creation of feature-film visual effects, Toxik provides users with 2D and 3D compositing tools, built-in collaboration, and the ability to manipulate high dynamic range imagery (HDRI). Although Toxik 2007 includes a 3D Transform tool, Toxik Extension 1 adds a 2D Transform utility that enables users to move, scale, and rotate an image while maintaining high accuracy and quality. This new feature is based on filtering techniques developed by Autodesk’s Image Science Group.

This first Toxik extension also includes Lens Distort, with which artists can remove, adjust, or apply lens distortion. The new add-on offers Comparison, a feature borrowed from the Autodesk Flame visual effects system that enables users to juxtapose images and compare the results with reference frames or other nodes in a composition.

Autodesk Toxik 2007 Extension 1 is available to Autodesk subscription holders via download from the Toxik portal. A single seat of Autodesk Toxik 2007 is priced at $6500, whereas the optional subscription is offered at $1200.

Autodesk has upgraded AliasStudio, its industrial design software, to Version 13.5. Autodesk AliasStudio supports the industrial design workflow, from initial sketches to concept visualization to production modeling. Version 13.5 is designed to improve the overall design workflow process and increase performance and productivity.

The latest edition includes updates to Autodesk DirectConnect, which enhances the exchange of data with computer-aided design solutions. Autodesk has also upgraded AliasStudio software with faster responsiveness, particularly when working with large data sets; enhanced sketching, modeling, and visualization tools; and a modified user interface for a more streamlined, productive workflow. Further, a more robust Initial Graphics Exchange Specification (IGES) translator and new DWG/DXF translator ease the importation of files from AutoCAD.

Autodesk AliasStudio 13.5 is now available.