Ambrosia Software, better known as the developers of productivity and utility tools like Snapz Pro X and anti-productivity OS X games, have released a minor update to their OS X audio capture program WireTap Pro. WireTap pro will capture audio from any source on your Mac – microphone, line-in, headset, radioSHARK, DVD, streaming audio, etc – if it’s playing on your Mac WireTap Pro will record it and save it as an editable, useful format. WireTap Pro supports output to .mp3, AAC, QuickTime, and AIFF file formats with total control over the file format, compression and quality of the recording (depending on source quality).

Version 1.0.1 is a minor update that, as you’d expect, is predominently a bug-fix for issues that have arisen since in wider distribution since the initial release.

WireTap Pro is $19 from Ambrosia Software. It makes a great audio recording utility for recording live inputs without running bigger software, like Final Cut Pro, for example, or for grabbing difficult-to-capture audio from DVD or games.

In addition to Automatic Duck’s broad range of Timeline Integration software for digital media artists, they have released a free XML exporter for Final Cut Pro that is considerably simpler and easier-to-use than the XML exporter supplied with Final Cut Pro. Although originally developed as part of the workflow suite, and following the recent release of Pro Import AE 3.0, Automatic Duck decided to release the XML exporter as a separate, free, product.

"I love Automatic Duck’s XML exporter because it’s so simple and straightforward. Instead of presenting confusing options, or non-options as Final Cut Pro’s exporter does, it lets me get the export done without getting in the way. The output is 100% compliant with every XML import tool I use,” added "DV Guy" Philip Hodgetts President of Intelligent Assistance, creators of the Pro Apps Hub.

Automatic Duck Free XML Exporter is available immediately as a free download from the Automatic Duck web site.

In a new Knowledge Base article, Apple have added download links to pdf versions of all Logic Pro 7 and Logic Express 7 manuals. You will need Preview or Acrobat Read 3 or later (current version is 7).

Manuals are available in English, Spanish, German and French.

Apple have added a software download for ATI Radeon cards operating under OS X 10.3.6 or higher, and is particularly relevant for anyone who installs the ATI X800 Mac Edition. Apple says:

"This software set contains drivers for all ATI Radeon retail products and compatible built-in graphics options. It is safe to use both a retail product along with an existing built-in product with this single driver set."

As well as support for the X800 card, this updated driver improves game performance and has minor ROM fixes.

As well as the resolution of bugs expected in a .02 release, Miraizon have added the ability to export to DV stream (for iMovie) and AVI output formats. The QuickTime high-quality mode is also set automatically.

Cinematize 2.02 is available from the company’s website and is free to owners of Cinematize 2.0.

Cinematize, like DVDxDV, is a tool for extracting audio and video clips from unencrytped DVDs and exporting them to standard editable formats for iMovie and Final Cut Pro (or Express). Because the tools are simple, the interfaces are also simple and are an excellent way to reuse material that is only available as DVD Video. Although it is always better to work with the source content, before compression to MPEG-2 video for the DVD, both Cinematize and DVDxDV provide workflow solutions when there is no source available.

Cinematize 2.0 can be purchased from the Miraizon.com website for $59.95 for download, or as a boxed version for $60.95 from the website or major resellers in consumer electronics.

CompanyMOVE ShowPlanner has been created by a “working member of the Director’s Guild of America (DGA) based in Los Angles, so you’d expect it to be practical! The scheduling software makes sure that the schedule is:

• integrated with Call Sheets, Production Reports and a Crew List so no redundant typing;
• icons and distinctive graphics representing scenes, inserts, still photos, lunch, second unit etc are used to communicate what’s being shot on each day on the assumption that people working in a visually-oriented industry will respond well to visual representations;
• industry standard reports in letter or legal sizes;
• flexible and powerful planning and rescheduling tools.

Improvements and updates come regularly and are free to owners. Version 1.2 adds:

• Drag and Drop full days up and down the schedule.
• User Manual now better integrated into program
• Extras Report improved
• Various Functional and Aesthetic improvements

The previous update, in late December added new entry features, improved Final Draft import and auto-fill in the Location field.

There’s a 30 day free trial and a single user license is $199 during the introductory period. CompanyMOVE position themselves as a competitor to Movie Magic/ EP Scheduling with an entry price almost double the cost of companyMOVE.

Frank Moldstad reviews the current crop of new USB or FireWire Audio Interfaces.

Portable Audio InterfacesPalm sized USB or FireWire devices proliferate By Frank Moldstad

"Looking for a convenient way to record and play back audio with your computer? A new breed of external audio interfaces that connect via USB or FireWire eliminates the hassle of setting up a PCI sound card. These units are small enough to fit in a backpack, can be moved from one computer to another easily, and since they’re external, don’t suffer degradation of audio quality from being inside a noisy computer environment."

Two through to six channels of I/O, some with exceptionally good styling and almost exclusively 24 bit/96 KHz sampling.. Read the full two page roudup here.

Originally reported on January 11, Drive Genius is now shipping.

If you’re one of the many people that ProSoft Engineering’s Data Rescue Mac has hauled back from brink of data disaster, then you might want to take a look at their latest disk maintenace, management and optimization tool: Drive Genius.

Drive Genius has:

• drive optimizer (defragmentation)
• comprehensive repair tool for analyzing, repairing and rebuilding volumes
• media surface scanning
• performance benchmarking
• data integrity checking and
• an msrp of US$129.

Drive Genius also has tools for resizing and moving volumes without formating, similar to Micromat DiskStudio [Hub News Jan 6]. If you’re up to it there’s also a sector editing tool to modify the data on any sector of the drive – not for the feint of heart!

Apparently dinctype have been snowed in in the North East and it’s gone to their head – or they’re just plain bored and want some website traffic. Whatever the reason, they’ve decided to make a selection of fonts free. These are all Mac TT fonts so will work with almost any application, including Final Cut Pro, Motion and LiveType.

These are mostly headline or special purpose fonts – a lot have a retro feel to them.

Download them by selecting each font in turn from the pop-up menu and clicking the save link for Mac TT. If there’s a cost associated, you’ve unfortunately missed out.

Drop the unstuffed font into hardrive > Library > Fonts to make the fonts available to all users. Put them in username > Library > Fonts to make them only available to that user.