Bob's Place

“In the creative world,” says Euro RSCG executive creative director Hal Wolverton, “everyone is looking for the new thing, the new way to say something.” RSCG has found it in Color. “People may have wondered what Color is capable of,” points out colorist Alex Bickle. “We’re achieving looks that are as good as if not better than anything you can get in a high-end finishing suite. And we’re doing it with Final Cut Studio.”

Classical mechanics, fluid dynamics, kinetic energy — if you thought you were just playing a good game of baseball, wait till you watch “The Physics of Baseball.”Oone of the highly enjoyable programs brought to us as part of KQED’s QUEST: Science and Nature series on iTunes U, “The Physics of Baseball” explains the role physics plays in throwing a curve ball and hitting a solid shot to left field.

On Thursday, June 19, the Apple Retail Store, Sydney — the first Apple store in Australia — opens its doors for the first time. With two floors dedicated to the Mac and iPod and a third to training and the world’s largest Genius Bar, “this breathtaking new store will be the ultimate place for the people of Sydney to shop, learn and be inspired,” says Ron Johnson, Apple’s senior vice president of Retail.

“When Mac OS X was released with VoiceOver, it was a lifesaver,” says Elliot Aronson. Though he’s lost 90% of his vision to macular degeneration, the social psychologist used VoiceOver, which he calls “the single most important technical invention for me,” to write his latest book on his Mac mini. “The Mac with VoiceOver is indispensable. Without them, I wouldn’t be able to write or edit my work.”

Would you believe that iTunes already has the soundtrack for the soon-to-be-released “Get Smart available for you to preview and purchase? You’ll also find Filmmaker Talk podcasts (two posted and more on the way) and the exclusive — and free — Get Smart clip.

Thanks to their “updated CPUs,” “improved battery life,” and the incorporation of “touch-pad gestures from the MacBook Air,” the new MacBook Pro models led the pack with a rating of 8.2 (out of 10) in CNET’s review of desktop-replacement laptops.

Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster calls them “‘more powerful and attractive’ than anything he’d seen on a mobile device before.” He’s talking, of course, about the iPhone applications demoed at Apple’s recent developer conference. And, according to John Boudreau (mercurynews.com), Munster believes “Apple could be creating a billion-dollar industry built around the iPhone.”

“Macs have always given me the feeling that I can figure anything out,” explains Tal Yarden. And in his latest project, the video designer has figured out how to use the Mac, FInal Cut Pro, Motion, Keynote, and other Mac software to stage an innovative production of Wagner’s Götterdämmerung that adds video via a Mac mini-controlled 66 screen array.

Apple today celebrates the achievements of many innovative developers by revealing the winners of the Apple Design Awards 2008. The awards recognize technical excellence, innovation, and outstanding achievement in software development in seven categories. Take a look.

On June 18, just two days before the hilarious Get Smart opens in theaters, stars Steve Carell (Maxwell Smart) and Anne Hathaway (Agent 99) visit the Apple Retail Store, SoHo, to discuss the film, screen clips, and answer audience questions. Seating is limited, so come early to the 9:00 pm event.

The leading magazine for digital musicians dedicates its latest print issue to one topic. GarageBand. Computer Music’s June issue (with its included DVD) includes a dozen video tutorials, offers an exclusive “Best of Jam Packs” loop collection, features interviews with Fall Out Boy and Alex Greenwald, and includes plenty of demos and GarageBand songs to hone your audio editing skills on.

The duck-billed Hadrosaur dubbed Dakota grazed the area now known as the North Dakota badlands some 65 million years ago. Unearthed in 1999, Dakota yielded not only soft tissue (an exceedingly rare find) but also near-complete mummified remains. Using a Mac Pro cluster, University of Manchester scientists are now discovering how the 7000-pound looked, walked, and ran.

Be among the first to see the exclusive Get Smart clip now available — free — on iTunes. It’s introduced by stars Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway, who play CONTROL agents Maxwell Smart and Agent 99 in the film. Get Smart comes to theaters throughout the country on June 20. Enjoy.

Rather than another tie, Chloe Kamarck (mensvogue.com) thinks the “responsible Dad” will appreciate the reassurance offered by a simple yet rock-solid backup solution. Time Capsule, Kamarck explains in the magazine’s Father’s Day Gift Guide, “works with Time Machine software (built in to all Macs with OS X Leopard) to seamlessly and effortlessly back up your computer on a regular basis.“

Developers attending Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference got a glimpse at Mac OS X Snow Leopard, the next major version of the world’s most advanced operating system. Scheduled to ship in about a year and optimized for multi-core processors, Snow Leopard will enhance the performance of Mac OS X, set a new standard for quality, and lay the foundation for future OS X innovation.

The new iPhone 3G combines all the revolutionary features of iPhone with 3G networking, built-in GPS, and iPhone 2.0 software that supports Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync and runs hundreds of third party applications built with the iPhone SDK. Available in 22 countries on July 11, iPhone 3G comes in two models: an 8GB model priced at $199 (US) and a 16GB model priced at $299 (US).

Together with its partners — América Móvil, AT&T, Bharti Airtel, Globe Telecom, Hutchison Telecom, O2, Optus, Orange, Rogers, SingTel, Softbank, Swisscom, Telecom Italia Mobile, Telefónica, TeliaSonera, T-Mobile, and Vodafone — Apple will bring the highly anticipated iPhone 3G to more than 70 countries worldwide beginning on July 11.

Since its launch on March 6, Apple today announced, downloads of the iPhone SDK (Software Development Kit) have topped more than 250,000. The iPhone SDK provides developers with the same rich tools Apple itself uses to create its native applications for iPhone. Customer in 62 countries will be able to use the new App Store to wirelessly download applications created with the SDK directly to iPhone and iPod touch and start using them immediately.

The new MobileMe Internet service delivers push email, push contacts and push calendars to native applications on iPhone, iPod touch, Macs and PCs. A subscription-based service with 20GB of storage for $99 (US) per year for individuals and $149 (US) for a Family Pack, MobileMe provides a suite of elegant, ad-free web applications — Mail, Contacts and Calendar, a Gallery for viewing and sharing photos, and iDisk for storing and exchanging documents — that deliver a desktop-like experience through any modern browser.

BBC News reports that University College London, the Open University, and Trinity College Dublin are putting lectures onto iTunes U, which now features content from universities in the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. “Our students will be able to revisit materials presented to them in lectures, so they can learn anywhere and anytime,” says Professor Peter Mobbs of University College London. Learn more about iTunes U by watching their new video tour.