Corel announced the latest release of the companies flagship digital imaging software package. Paint Shop Pro Photo XI is a suite of digital photography applications that Corel says can meet the needs of hobbyists and professionals alike.

In addition to offering a full range of image editing tools, the new release offers several new features such as a color changer tool and a time machine tool that lets editors see what their photos would look like if they were taken in another era.

Corel says the new Color Changer tool allows users to change the color of an object or an area in a photo - such as clothing, painted objects or carpets - with just a few clicks. The Time Machine lets you see what your photos might have looked like if they were taken in the Roaring 1920s or the Swinging 1960s, among others. It replicates the process by which photos were developed in various ages of photography to recreate a highly realistic look.

Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo XI is available now for $99.99 and potential buyers can register with Corel and download a free 30-day trial version here .

Source: Digital Home Canada

Microsoft is promising not to take any legal action against developers or customers who use any of 35 Web Service specifications.

The software maker, based in Redmond, Wash., issued a new “Open Specification Promise” on its Interoperability Web page on Sept. 12.

“The Open Specification Promise is part of Microsoft’s overall interoperability commitment to customers and is for 35 core Web services specifications, including SOAP [Simple Object Access Protocol] and all Web services security specifications”

Source: eWeek

It’s only been a day since Apple updated iTunes to version 7, but the folks over at the Hymn project already have a new version of the program that can be used to remove the DRM from songs purchased from it. It’s an updated version of the recent release that could remove DRM from music purchased from iTunes 6.

I confirmed that the new 2.3 version of QTFairUse6 works fine for converting one iTunes 7 song at a time, although apparently the function for batch converting an entire library of purchased songs doesn’t work. In order to convert a single song, you’d just drag it from your iTunes Music folder onto the QTFairUse6.exe file and click “Y” in the DOS command line interface that pops up.

Source: Wired

Dell has added a new dimension to its desktop PCs by taking the wraps off of its first AMD-processor-based machines.

The PC maker began taking orders for its new Dimension E521 and C521 desktops, which will offer Advanced Micro Devices’ Sempron, Athlon 64 and dual-core Athlon 64 X2 chips, on Sept. 13.

The Dell-AMD machines, aimed at consumers and small businesses, are part of a cadre of upgraded desktops the Round Rock, Texas, PC maker has introduced as part of an effort to better address customers’ needs by broadening its product line in 2006.

Dell, which had long been an Intel-only shop, made the jump to AMD because it has been convinced that customers wanted AMD chips and also that AMD itself is on good standings in terms of technology and manufacturing capacity.

Source: eWeek

The file transfer service BitTorrent plans to open an online movie store to sell foreign films and other hard to find video, including content from China, Japan and India.

The service will not compete with other movie download sites such as the Unbox store launched by Amazon.com last week, nor Apple’s iTunes, both of which offer mainstream shows. Instead, BitTorrent plans to market content users want but have a hard time finding, such as Bollywood movies and shows based on Japanese manga comics.

Source: Yahoo

The Walt Disney Co. on Wednesday said it reached an agreement with ABC television affiliates to include local advertising in the network’s online offering of seven prime-time TV series, including “Desperate Housewives” and “Lost.”

Disney plans to reintroduce its free, ad-supported broadband video player software at ABC.com later this month after a two-month test this summer showed that viewers could recall the interactive ads at far higher rates than on TV airings.

Source: Reuters

Not for Samsung the simplicity of offering a phone with quad-band GSM support to allow the handset to be used all around the world. The South Korean giant today unveiled a device capable of connecting not only to GSM but also to CDMA and JCDMA networks.

Source: Reg Hardware

Microsoft has won what it described as the largest reported civil award against a spammer in Europe. The software giant says it won a court order requiring spammer Paul Fox to pay £45,000.

Rather than pursue a case under Britain’s limited anti-spam laws, Microsoft filed a complaint that Fox had breached the terms and conditions of its Hotmail service. It conditions state: “You may not use any [Microsoft] Services to send Spam. You also may not deliver Spam or cause Spam to be delivered to any of Microsoft’s Services or customers.”
Sun Microsystems

A Microsoft spokesperson said: “Under a Court Order, breach of which would be contempt of court and a criminal offence, Mr Fox agreed not to repeat his spamming against Microsoft or any ISP and to pay £45k ($83k) by way of damages and as a contribution to Microsoft’s legal costs.”

Source: The Register

Symantec on Tuesday announced Norton AntiVirus 2007 and Norton Internet Security 2007, updated versions of the company’s widely used security software for consumers.

Slated to be available later this month, both products have been updated to provide better protection and system performance, Symantec said in a statement. Norton AntiVirus 2007 protects against viruses, spyware and related risks. Norton Internet Security 2007 is a suite that includes antivirus and anti-spyware protection and adds a firewall, intrusion prevention, and for the first time includes a phishing shield.

Among the technology updates is protection against entire families of malicious software without the need for signature updates, Symantec said. Also, the antivirus technology can now detect malicious software that tries to hide using stealth technology known as rootkits, the company said.

Source: News.com

Sony Corp. said on Wednesday it will launch a DVD recorder using Blu-ray technology by the end of the year in Japan, fortifying its lineup of high-definition optical disc products.

Sony, which promotes the Blu-ray format in competition with the HD DVD standard led by Toshiba Corp. , did not give details such as a launch date, price or overseas release dates.

The Tokyo-based electronics and entertainment conglomerate already offers a Blu-ray drive in its Vaio computers and will be selling Blu-ray players in the United States from around October.

It also plans to roll out its PlayStation 3 game console, which is equipped with a Blu-ray player, in November in Japan and North America.

Source: Reuters

A court in China has used a software program to help decide prison sentences in more than 1,500 criminal cases, a Hong Kong newspaper said on Wednesday.

The software, tested for two years in a court in Zibo, a city in the eastern coastal province of Shandong, covered about 100 different crimes, including robbery, rape, murder and state security offences, the South China Morning Post said, citing the software’s developer, Qin Ye.

“The software is aimed at ensuring standardized decisions on prison terms. Our programs set standard terms for any subtle distinctions in different cases of the same crime,” Qin was quoted as saying.

A Beijing-based software company had worked with the Zichuan District Court in Zibo since 2003 to develop the program and input mainland criminal law, the paper said.

Judges enter details of a case and the system produces a sentence, the paper said.

Source: Reuters

Skype has released the beta version of Skype for Mac 2.0, which gives any Mac user with an Internet connection the ability to make free video calls to anyone else on Skype regardless of whether they use the Windows or Mac platform. Skype’s new cross platform support allows its extensive international community of more than 113 million users to make free video calls to people across the globe using both Windows and Macintosh computers.

In order to make video calls Skype for Mac OS X 2.0 requires a Macintosh computer with Mac OS X v10.3.9 Panther or newer, a G4, G5, or Intel processor running at a minimum of 800 MHz, 512 MB RAM, 40 MB free disk space, and an Internet connection. In addition to the release of Skype for Mac OS X 2.0, Skype announced today the release of Skype for Mac OS X 1.5 Gold.