Canadian cartoon animation software developer Toon Boom Animation Inc. announced the upcoming release of Toon Boom Studio 6, an updated version of its Mac OS- and Windows-based animation system for students and hobbyists. Version 6 features a complete bone rigging animation capabilities, including Skeleton Effect Layer in the timeline; Bone Level for segmenting and animating the character; easy settings for rotation, length and position of the bones; practical manipulation of the bones in the timeline; real-time preview of Bone Effect; SWF export of Bone effect (Vector shapes only); and more. Toon Boom Animation is offering a special pre-launch price of $299.99 US, instead of $329.99, valid until September 1, 2010. Upgrades from version 4.5 and 5 to version 6 can be purchased at $79.99 US, instead of $99.99 US. [source]

Toon Boom Animation Inc. announced the upcoming release of Toon Boom Storyboard Pro 2, an essential Windows- and Mac OS X-based storyboarding tool for storyboard artists, directors, producers, game designers and communication specialists. Version 2 adds new content creation tools (including fast creation and reuse of brushes with specific settings; extended rich text support for captions; or sketch captions on a panel-by-panel basis), extended I/O capabilities (Final Draft 8 support; improved PDF and Final Cut Pro support), enhanced storyboarding and animatic capabilities (naming convention improvements; optimized playback; real-time transitions...), and various user interface improvements (full scene anti-aliasing support; layer transparency; Save As and Auto-Save commands) and more. For pricing, visit Toon Boom's on-line store. [source]

Adobe Systems Inc. announced the immediate availability of the Adobe Creative Suite 5 product family. The Creative Suite 5 line-up includes five new versions: Creative Suite 5 Master Collection (est. street price $2599 US), Creative Suite 5 Design Premium ($1899 US), Creative Suite 5 Web Premium ($1799 US), Creative Suite 5 Production Premium ($1699 US), Creative Suite 5 Design Standard ($1299 US), as well as 15 point products and associated technologies. Creative Suite now includes a brand-new component, Adobe Flash Catalyst, a professional interaction design tool that allows designers to rapidly create expressive Web application interfaces and design interaction without writing code. Also available as part of the Creative Suite 5 product family, sold separately or in one of the five Creative Suite editions, are new versions of the Adobe Creative Suite tools, including Photoshop CS5, Illustrator CS5, InDesign CS5, Flash CS5 Professional, Dreamweaver CS5, Adobe Premiere Pro CS5, After Effects CS5 and more. New trial versions are also available. [source]

Adobe officially unveiled the new CS5 lineup: Photoshop CS5, Illustrator CS5, InDesign CS5, Flash Professional CS5, Dreamweaver CS5, Adobe Premiere Pro CS5, Adobe Soundbooth CS5 , and After Effects CS5. These tools are available separately or in one of the five Creative Suite editions. Adobe Creative Suite 5 products are scheduled to ship within 30 days, with availability through Adobe Authorized Resellers, the Adobe Store and Adobe Direct Sales. [source]

Emmy Award-winning Toon Boom Animation Inc. announced the release of Toon Boom Animate 2, a new version of its Windows and Mac OS X-based application for creating traditional, digital, cut-out and Flash-style animation. For more information on features, read our previous news article here. Buy Toon Boom Animate 2 now at the special launch price of $599.99 US (regular price: $699.99 US), valid until April 14, 2010. All customers who took advantage of the pre-order campaign which started on March 8, 2010, will receive their Product Code electronically along with instructions on how to install and activate the product. A PLE license can be downloaded at this location (requires registration). [source]

Spiral Graphics Inc. has released Genetica 3.5, an update to its flagship seamless texture, animated texture, and HDRI environment map package. The new version adds a suite of tools for the creation of seamless textures directly from photographs, allowing photorealistic results to be achieved in seconds. Genetica comes in three flavors: Basic, Pro and Studio, priced between $149 and $899 US and is compatible with Windows XP / Vista / Windows 7 systems. A free trial can be downloaded here. [source]

Emmy Award-winning Canadian animation software developer Toon Boom Animation Inc. announced the upcoming release of Toon Boom Animate 2, a new version that provides professional animators with more power and flexibility for creating traditional, digital, cut-out and Flash-style animation. New feature highlights include fast distribution of character parts to layers; easy adjustment of velocity on multiple character parts; efficient creation of richer-looking ambiance; full-fledged SWF export with effects; direct import of scanned drawings (TWAIN); and convenient text capability (more)... Toon Boom Animate 2 can be ordered now at the special pre-launch price of $549.99 US (reduced from $699.99 US), or upgraded for $199.99 US (reduced from $299.99 US) valid until March 21, 2010. The software runs on both Windows and Mac OS X-based workstations. If you're new to Toon Boom Animate, try the free Personal Learning Edition (requires registration) of version 1.x... [source]

Wacom introduced Cintiq 21UX, its newly-redesigned interactive pen display delivering state-of-the-art pen performance and innovative ergonomics in a color-accurate LCD display. Designed specifically to meet the demanding needs of professional photographers, designers, artists and animators, the new Cintiq 21UX comes with new pen performance, offering 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity; rear-mounted Touch Strips that are ideally placed for fingertip access while working; all-black color scheme; customizable, application-specific ExpressKeys; and a patented stand that allows to recline the pen display at any angle between 10 degrees and 65 degrees to match the users ideal working posture. In addition to reclining, the Cintiq 21UX can be rotated up to 180 degrees in either direction or removed from its stand for use on a table top. The new Cintiq 21UX (DTK-2100) priced at $1999 US is intended to begin shipping in the United States, Canada and the majority of Latin America countries in late March or early April. Consult your local electronics retailer or visit wacom.com for the most current information. [source]

At the 2010 National Association of Broadcasters show (from April 10-15, 2010 in Las Vegas), digital media content production tools developer Vizrt will showcase Viz Trio One-Box - the latest version of its Viz Trio real-time 3D graphics and animation system. Viz Trio allows artists and operators to deliver creative and visually complex graphical presentations that enhance live sports, news, and specials. Viz Trio previously required two standard desktop PCs to operate - one for Trio client and one for its powerful companion renderer Viz Engine. With Viz Trio One-Box, Viz Trio as well as the latest Viz Engine, runs on a single PC with two graphics cards on-board. Viz Trio One-Box will be the standard configuration for all future Viz Trio systems. [source]

Adobe Photoshop, the leading image creation and manipulation software that redefined creativity in the digital age, turned 20! For more information, see the "Photoshop 20th Anniversary" documentary where the founders of Adobe Photoshop - John Knoll, Thomas Knoll, Russell Brown, and Steve Guttman - tell the story of how it all begun. Over its 20-year history, Photoshop has evolved significantly from a simple original display program to a wildly popular application that has over 10 million users worldwide. With each release, Adobe has introduced technological innovations that defy the impossible. Layers, introduced in Photoshop 3.0, gave designers the ability to create complex compositions easier than ever before. The Healing Brush, another groundbreaking feature introduced in Photoshop 7.0, allowed users to retouch images by seamlessly removing blemishes and wrinkles, while preserving lighting and texture. Photoshop tools like crop, eraser, blur and dodge and burn have become part of the creative vernacular worldwide... [source]