1 comments about Roxio Easy CD & DVD Burning.

1. This is the second time I am writing this review. I don't know what Amazon did with the first one!? Anyway, do not waste your money on this software. I have already destroyed my disc by putting in my shredder. Boy, did that feel good! This product has so many problems that I thought I was back in the early '90s when almost all software had bugs and needed endless patches and fixes. I think Roxio should recall this product and give us all our money back!

5 comments about Guitar Praise By Digital Praise.

1. Well, I bought this game thinking my kids would love it, since they love Rock Band and Guitar Hero so much. Man was I WRONG! They played it once and didn't want to touch it again. The songs are great, but the rest of the game is old-school. The graphics are not impressive whatsoever. You have to hit the notes before they reach the bar, unlike Guitar Hero and Rock Band.
   
   If you are buying this game thinking your kids will like it as much as Rock Band or Guitar Hero, you will be disappointed. If you don't own either of those games, then you may be satisfied with Guitar Praise.



2. Guitar Praise is a great alternative to Guitar Hero without all the crap. Guitar Hero has insisted on not supporting any faith based music in it's music selection and this includes Christian bands that are popular in the secular market (Switchfoot, Flyleaf, Relient K etc). So when I first tried Guitar Praise, the music was the best part. Digital Praise put together a wonderful package of music with more to come. Finally, my 14 year old son and I can jam to the music we listen to rather than the secular crap in the other music products. I don't have to worry about sexual overtones and stuff like that one younger kids are over playing. That alone is a big plus. And it takes nothing away from the enjoyment of the game as a whole.
   
   Overall, the game suprised me. It is extremely well designed and functions wonderfully. The graphics work well though they aren't as polished as Guitar Hero. I am sure that will get better in time and some people have even started making their own backgrounds to use with the game. The game play is very good and I don't have it running on a monster computer. The notes play perfectly and there is no slowdown anywhere.
   
   The game has a ton of options including online high scores you can send your top scores up to. You can also get a second guitar (I now have two) and one player can play bass guitar and one player can play lead guitar. It's a blast and it really makes it a family game everyone can enjoy.
   
   One note to keep in mind, the game does not support third party guitars. But seeing that the software really isn't copy protected, I can see why they did this.
   
   In my opinion, Guitar Praise is worth every penny. I highly recommend it.



3. Alright - I got a chance to play the game today. What I discovered is that this game is decent, but clearly not as fun or refined as Guitar Hero. I haven't explored everything, and haven't played multi-player, but I can tell you not to expect this game to have the level of excellence you experience with Guitar Hero.
   
   First problem - platform. For most people, the computer is not an ideal place to play the game. Most of us don't have our PCs hooked up to the TV, so the game is just plain small.
   
   Second problem - audio. The songs are good, but the guitar noises seem like they've just been "added on" to the song rather than fitting right in. Also, the whammy bar makes the music sound HORRIBLE.
   
   Third problem - graphics. Granted there are no bikini clad women or satanic looking backgrounds, but the graphics are pretty lame. The background is boring, and the guitar area looks very simple compared with Guitar Hero.
   
   Fourth problem - game play. The game is not as challenging, and you have to hit the notes a little early for it to work/sound right.
   
   Biggest PLUS!!!! The music! I'd much rather have these songs stuck in my head than what's offered in Guitar Hero.
   
   Overall, this is a decent effort. I'd like to see further developments and attention paid to the above concerns. The guitar itself is great. Seems very solid and very similar to Guitar Hero.
   
   Taken for what it is, developed by a company that certainly doesn't have the financial backing (nor the potential sales) of Guitar Hero, this is a good product. I'm looking forward to playing it more and hope to learn to like it more and more.



4. We love the music! Guitar Praise is a great alternative to the secular version if you are like me and not interested in bringing the other one into your home. We have played guitar hero and rock band at friend's homes and I have to say that Guitar Praise is lacking in the graphics area and we were not pleased with having to strike the bar before the note instead of ON the note. It was rather confusing, not only if you are used to playing guitar hero, but when you are used to playing a real guitar...it's just too complicated for me! Anyway, overall, I am giving this product four stars because I am thrilled about having an alternative to guitar hero. I am excited to see what the next version is like once they take our feedback into consideration and make improvements! Way to go Digital Praise! Keep up the good work and I can't wait to see what is next!



5. Just picked this up for my 9 and 7 year old boys. I must admit my expectations were low considering it was being released by such a small software company with likely very limitted resources. Turns out this is a great quality game. I think the graphics hold up fine against other similar video games, and the gameplay is first rate. There are wallpapers and simple animations in the background while you are playing, not animated characters like in "guitar hero", but who has time to watch the animations while your frantically trying to keep up with the notes on the fretboard anyway? After all, the game is really about the guitar and music and with over 50 songs to be unlocked, with a very wide variety (rock, blues, slow, fast, old school, contemporary....), all of course with great lead guitar parts and also playable bass parts. The guitar itself is good quality and wireless,it has a solid feel and even storage for the usb adapter in the back (great idea), with amazing battery life already hours of play without a hitch. Can't wait for expansion packs and for more artists to sign on. I hope more software companies like these capitalize on this under served market. I think this title is ready for the prime time and it would be nice to see it on the consoles wii, 360, PS3, but works fine on my computer. Very simple to connect my laptop to my lcd hdtv, even attached it to a Optoma Movietime projector for Big Screen fun one night. If your looking for a great guitar simulation game with music that breathes life and not hedonism and death this is the game for you. Five Stars!!!

No comments about Adobe Dreamweaver CS4 [Mac].

5 comments about Apple Aperture 2.0 Upgrade.

1. I'm not going to go into all the bells and whistles and let other reviewers do that. All I can say is, that this is a MAJOR improvement over Aperture 1.5 with a much more intuitive user interface. I might go so far as to say that v2 is more like beefed up iPhoto than v1.5 which I found frustratingly difficult to wrap my brain around. I bought the upgrade after seeing a demo at the Apple Store in town.



2. Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R12L93DK5GJFRY Aperture 2.0 was much expected and very much needed. The improvements to this program demonstrates that Apple indeed listens to its customers. Aperture 2.0 includes a better and expanded interface, with the kind of speed that makes it a work horse program for professional photographers who need to process hundreds of photos at a time. It's almost intuitive workflow makes a great program for almost any serious photographer.
   
   I especially like the new additional adjustment tools and the simplifier less crowded interface. The ability to interface with other Apple programs like iWork, iWeb, and Keynote is also a plus.
   
   Above all, for me anyone, is the image preview settings. Clicking this means that you can scan image files without them fulling loading into the program. This is the perfect setting for scanning, rating, keywording, and re-organizing image files. And the best is that you can get into image mode simply by clicking the keyboard shortcut key, P.
   
   Finally, Apple's upgrade of Aperture indicates that they indeed are not going to abandon this program. On the Apple website, you can view over two dozen short and to the point tutorials to learn about every major aspect of Aperture 2.0.



3. A tremendous jump from previous 1.5 version. Was avoiding even using Aperture cause it seemed like it had a lot of features that allowed variations in the looks of the program but did not have a lot of picture adjustment and editing tools. Not so with 2.0, like I said a tremendous jump in useful features. Aperture 2.0 is more than just a photo editor in the makes of Photoshop. More so it is a picture file management software. I beleive with forethought a medium to high level amatuer can move to the next level with this software. I downloaded the Users Manual from Apple.com/aperture under Resources tab. It is a 702 page PDF. You can check it out. It will give you detailed info about this softwares capability.
   
   I especially like the Publishing aspect of this software. You can create pages and publish directly to web, or create and publish Hardcover, softcove, or spiral bound books with relative ease. Using pre-loaded templates for both web publishing or book creation, getting your product exposure in a very short amount of time.
   
   For those of you who were overwhelmed and confused about the real direction 1.5 was trying to take you the 2.0 upgrade is worth pursuing.
   
   I congratulate Apple for taking this product seriously and remolding it to better suit a photographers creative thought and distribution processes, and not just a software that software designers could appreciate.



4. Apple Aperture 2.0 Upgrade This is a much improved version of a good product. It contains a section called "Image Adjustments" that is worth a print out. Using the example pictures will aid in understanding the adjustments. You will need to spend several months to become an expert. A printed manual would be nice to have. New books on the upgraded program would also be great.



5. Whether you're a novice with a basic "point and shoot" camera or a pro with the latest megabucks SLR, Aperture gives you the tools necessary to perfect your digital images. From correcting "red eye" to removing excess shadows, Aperture is quite simply the most powerful yet relatively easy-to-use digital photo tool available today. Period. End of story. If you want to make the most of your digital photos (or correct those others send to you) this is the tool to use. There are lots of excellent tutorials on the Apple website plus hands-on training available at your local Apple store and loads of user tips on various blogs that will have you up and running in very short order.

No comments about Adobe Flash Pro CS4.

2 comments about Sibelius Student Edition V5.

1. This is a great product but i recently upgraded to the full Sibelius 5 version, the best product of it's kind out there. The Student version is quite adequate to start with (the upgrade to 5 is very reasonable). WH



2. I haven't had a whole lot of time to play with Sibelius yet, but as soon as I do, I think I will enjoy it! I was very impressed with the fast deliverance also.

5 comments about Poser 7 3D Figure Design and Animation (Win/Mac).

1. 1. Amazon has a great price for this product. Beats eBay without the risk of getting a conterfit product.
   2. Poser 7 is great...I used the free DAZ studio but the rendering and flexibility of Poser 7 program is much better....It is a little hard to use but their cheat sheet answers most questions. One really great thing about the program is that the figures, props, poses work. In daz studio many of the freeby's just didn't work. The only con is that the program is pickey on where figures and props are stored. You have to watch the file ext and it's best to let the program install from zip files. Moving files with windows explorer within a catagory is no problem. If item fails to work just moving it to another catagory fixes the problem. Another pitfall is that V4 ds (and other ds specific programs)won't work in Poser. YOU HAVE TO USE DAZ V4 MADE FOR POSER...This is a no brainer since the files are marked with ds or ps. I had no trouble installing V4 and her morphs. The lighting options are fantastic. This is a real winner.



2. I've had the opportunity to play with Poser 7, and it's a fantastic product. That being said, it does require some work to fully utilize and appreciate all of it's features. I'm about to buy my own copy, and I have a question: Why 2 different prices? Are they 2 different products, or is one version limited? Afterall $30.00 difference isn't that much, but I rather buy more software...or put another 2 gallons of gas in my truck (HAHAHAHA). Does anyone know what the differenc is between the $199 and the $169 versions?
   
   Either way it's a great product.



3. First I'd have to say that Poser 7 is a very elaborate program--almost too elaborate. I was looking for a program where I could manipulate some virtual models for sketching (actual pen and paper). I don't do computer graphic design, make internet comics or do any digital art so this review wouldn't apply probably to anyone but traditional artists seeking a simple program for a visual reference. So in a nutshell:
   
   -The $169 bucks it costs may or may not be worth it to you. There is a huge variety of model types available to manipulate (males, females, skeletons) and you can adjust the ethnicity of the models with a scroll wheel buttton. Unless you're a pro you're not going to render anything close to the chick on the cover of the box in detail, more than likely you're going to end up with a very mangled poorly rendered face. (the ethnicity buttons are pretty laughable tho, the more towards 'caucasian' you go the whiter the skin turns and the more pinched the nose looks until you cave in the face. And when you move it towards 'african' the wider the nose and lips get and the browner the skin turns until the nostrils become a giant black hole in the center of the face surrounded by a carmel colored flesh tone-that's as dark as the african button would go).
   
   -You can twist and rotate models limbs and faces so much that you end up with something out of the movie "In the mouth of madness". There's no predeterminded stopper for joints, spinal twist or the laws of physics. The first couple of models I played with I mangled so much I'm sure what I did is probably illegal in 3 states. Good news, there is a back button!
   
   -Proggie was pretty finicky. You can rotate the whole figure using the twist or rotate button or rotate the plane it sits on. If you didn't click the space around the figure just right to get it to move the whole figure it would twist or rotate the last limb you were working on instead.
   
   I highly suggest downloading the demo before dropping the cash. I'm sure this program is very worthwhile to those that are going beyond just needing a model to do an acutal oil painting/sketch on good old 2D pencil and paper.
   
   I'd be all about this if it was a dumbed down version. Say with a model builder like City of Heroes (tall short fat slim, male, female, black white, etc), a basic light source option and (believe it or not) only allow you to pose the model the way a real human body moves. For now, I'll stick with "Stan" my life-sized medical skeleton I got from 3B Scientific. Not only is he a great model but it takes less time to set him up than it does to learn a computer proggie where 90% of the bells and whistles you'll never need.



4. I can't start without saying this first, I received my copy from the mail yesterday. Amazon sent it inside a bubble wrap envelope, I expected to receive it in a box. The box was totally beat up when I received it and the manufacturer packaged a scratched, almost unacceptable CD inside the CD case. This gave me a second thought about ordering from Amazon again. I was thinking of returning the item but gave it a try anyway. After trying a few times, I was able to install it in my computer. The program itself is great. It's true that the learning curve is the biggest challenge but the box comes with a 410-page reference manual. Although I also bought Poser 7 Revealed by Murdock to get started with the program. It is a good consolation that the box came with the manual. I would give Poser 7 program 4 stars (it slows down the computer) but I was unsatisfied with the shipping so I gave it only one star.



5. It was great to find what I was looking for here and it was even a better to find it for a price lower than anywhere else.

5 comments about AutoCAD LT 2008 [OLD VERSION].

1. Actually works with Vista. Several new features aid with production. We are ditching architectural desktop for production seats since it is all 2D. LT works and integrates just fine at 1/4 the price. First 'downgrade' in 14 years of autocad.



2. I have been using AutoCAD LT 2003 and like the updates in the new version. Although it takes some getting used to, some of the changes are intuitive. The older versions did not automatically go into edit commands like 2008 does. Just click on an object and the attributes highlight and can be changed without typing in the command. That is just some of the changes that make this a really nice upgrade from earlier versions.



3. I had the full blown student version of R13 for years and it served my purposed well until I upgraded my computer. AutoCAD is like many software and hardware suppliers and will not support any of their products over three or four years. So AutoCAD LT suites my purposes well for a fraction of the cost of the big package. The basics are still there, but a companion instruction manual is necessary to come up to date with all the useful changes that have been made since R13 some ten years ago. I am back in business.



4. I'm not an expert drafter but I've used AutoCAD 2005 for years and have found several of the changes make drawings harder.



5. I am very pleased with the product which was delivered in a timely manner (and with extra secure "signed" receipt because of the cost). As I only need 2D CAD there was no need to buy a full AutoCAD and this is doing all that I need-I'm VERY pleased -especially with the full Autodesk support that was included. It also accepted most of the "add-on" software that I had used with AutoCAD 2002.

No comments about Adobe Creative Suite 3.3 Design Premium [OLD VERSION].

No comments about Adobe InDesign CS4.