Just a warning! People using the Transmission BitTorrent client software may have given hackers access to their computers. According to a MacWorld.com article, People who downloaded a new version of Transmission this past Sunday and Monday (August 28th and 19th, 2016) may have installed the affected software, capable of spreading malware through your system.
If you may be affected, please read the article at: http://bit.ly/2c2Akkc
UPDATE!
You should be informed – I heard back from Parallels today – SAME day I requested their flexibility – and they DID do the right thing! As I’ve been a loyal customer for many years, they honored my purchase, and offered me a new license key for the new version of the software! They ARE trustworthy!
As you all know, I believe in offering both praise an condemnation when appropriate. I praise Parallels today, for doing what’s right!
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Many of you have seen me teach using Parallels to emulate the Windows environment on my Mac. Overall, I’ve found it to be the most reliable, user friendly emulation software among all the alternatives.
I’d delayed my purchase of their version 11, because I had no need of it until I upgraded my Virtual Machine to Windows 10. That was July 28th. Yesterday, Parallels announced the release of their Version 12. Oddly, their “free upgrade” for recent purchases section only allows free upgrades for software registered between August 1st (25 days prior to the release) and October 30th (when people won’t be able to buy the old version, anyway).
I’ve contacted them about the 2 day discrepancy – almost NO software company declines to offer free upgrades for purchases less than 30 days.
I’ve touted Parallels’ virtues to many of my students and clients over the years. I have my request to extend the free upgrade date on escalation. I’ll keep you updated on the outcome, as I’d never again suggest this software to anybody, if they choose to enforce their unreasonable and draconian rules in this situation.
I’ve received SO many questions on how to fix spots on images, with a great emphasis on how to do it to a lot of images at one time. This Tutorial will teach you how to remove sensor dust, but the technique can be used to remove repetitive spots from many sources. Check it out on my YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/TGS3jIarjJg
Or, Right here:
One set of my favorite plugin developers, MacPhun, has released an article on their blog about the expected changes in the upcoming MacOS Sierra. While I’m usually quite hesitant to upgrade my OS (I don’t like buying software upgrades for my existing apps – and what happened with Mavericks and it’s lack of video codecs is inexcusable), some of the revelations about the new Mac native photography apps are intriguing.
I skipped Mountain Lion, I’ve skipped El Capitan – but I might consider Sierra (after a good, long, healthy wait to the .2 update version).
Check out their article at: MacPhun
As my Photoshop students have already learned, brushes can be made using any set of pixels and can be manipulated almost unendingly with the Brush panel. But sometimes, it’s very helpful to have a starting point. Grutbrushes.com provides some beautifully made starting points! The detail and settings of his brushes are unique in their realism and detail in use. They work well with just a mouse, but like any brush, take on their real strengths when using a pen tablet like the Wacom brand of tablets.
Normally, I pass by a lot of the ads I see on Facebook, but a few months ago, I decided to click on one and found an excellent resource.
At Grutbrushes.com, the (very responsive) developer Nicolai has made sets of brushes, ranging from inks to calligraphy, to natural media, and more. He even provides a Photoshop Extension to open a panel in which you can organize your brushes into sets as you like them. Just recently, I used just one of his cloud brushes in a project, and created very realistic clouds. He offers a LOT of freebies, and if you sign up for his email list, you can get even more. He sells sets of them as well. His full set is a VERY reasonable $22.
Remember, all of the brushes are just starting points – Presets – from which you can use the Photoshop Brushes panel to manipulate them, resize them and alter how they work.
You all know, I LOVE Free stuff – and here, there’s a plethora of freebies along with the paid content. I think any Photoshop user will find a great deal of use and enjoyment of these. Plan on seeing some lessons on this within a few weeks.
As I mentioned, I’d be discussing some Photoshop plugins. One of the first I’ll be discussing is a set of plugins from Topaz Labs. This software has a zillion modules and excellent tools, from Image Effects, to retouching to masking. I’ll be reviewing a bunch of these shortly, but in the meantime, here’s a link that’ll get you a $20 credit for whatever product you buy. I own the whole set, and one of my favorite things about these guys is that once you buy a plugin, the upgrades are FREE for LIFE. Check them out HERE!
Hi guys! Sorry for the lag in my posts, but I’ve been working on updating this site to all WordPress, and it’s time-consuming! In the meantime, I’m also working on some new tutorials. I’ve had a lot of requests for my input on Photoshop Plugins, and they’re upcoming, along with some training videos on my favorites. Stay tuned for more info – and a new look.
For students who plan on attending classes using trial software, this notice is extremely important. Please note that if you intend to do so, you’ll want to hold off on installing the necessary application until just before your class is scheduled to begin. Otherwise, you’ll be required to enter their Subscription Program to continue usage throughout your class time.
On May 9th, Adobe posted:
Adobe provides free trial periods for Creative Cloud in order to allow individuals to download, evaluate and try Creative Cloud before deciding to become a Creative Cloud member. In order to ensure that trial lengths align more accurately with how trials are being used, we are making some adjustments to the program.
Beginning May 9th, 2016 the length of the trial period for Creative Cloud will be standardized worldwide to 7 days.
Individuals currently evaluating Creative Cloud via a trial will not be impacted.
You can find more information on Creative Cloud trials, including how to sign up on the Creative Cloud trials page.
To see the original post, please visit: http://blogs.adobe.com/adobecare/2016/05/09/update-on-creative-cloud-trials/
Download.com has negotiated a deal with Adobe for the Adobe CC Photography Plan (Photoshop CC and Lightroom). Instead of $9.99/mo the first year of the plan, they’re offering 20% off the first year of the plan, so your first year is $7.99/mo (and will go up to $9.99/mo after that). This offer is valid through June 30th, so take a look!
https://creative.adobe.com/promo/downloadccpp
By the way, this may be more important than you think… Adobe seems to have just announced that their Trial versions will no longer be valid for 30 days, but for only 7 days. See a future post for more info on that one!
As most of my design and graphics students know, I’m a bit of a type geek. In almost every class, even if it’s not in our regular syllabus, I try to include at least a brief introduction to Type as Design – or, Typography.
And, you probably also know how I stress the idea of kerning – the way individual letterforms fit together, as a method of refining your work, adding a cohesive look and confirming that you’ve taken some time and put in some effort at making your type look good, as well as read well.
Today, I found an excellent infographic at Digital Synopsis.com, that may help you to make better decisions about how to improve your Headers, your Titles, and all display type. Take a look!