#27 - New Technology for Artists at Comdex

New Technology for Artists at Comdex

By Chris Maher

The huge Comdex show in Las Vegas was as overwhelming as ever. More than 225,000 people came to see 2000+ high tech firms show their latest offerings. I was one of 3,600 members of the press who went to report on the show. My interest was in the technology and products that would be useful to artists and craftspeople marketing their work on the Internet.

The focus of the SYAO newsletter has always been on marketing, not the technical aspects of the Internet. I will try to maintain that approach even as I talk about all the hardware and software that I saw at Comdex.

Digital cameras have come along way in the last year. Prices have fallen and quality continues to improve. Shooting your work digitally is a super quick and convenient way to publish pictures of your latest creations on the web.

In evaluating cameras I looked for three things, quality of image, price, and how close the camera would focus. Last year I didn't see a single camera for under $1000.00 US that I felt comfortable recommending. The less expensive models were fine for snapshots, but lacked quality and couldn't focus close enough to show the details of a painting, let alone jewelry.

This year cameras with some macro capability were common, although exactly how close they focused varied widely. I was most impressed with the Ricoh RDC-2, which auto focuses down to 10mm (3/8"), has 768x576 resolution, and even captures sound with the images, for only $599.00 US.

If you can shoot pictures of your work near your computer, you can save quite a bit by buying a digital camera connected by a USB cable. Eastman Kodak was showing the Digital Science DVC 300. It's capable of both video and very nice quality still images, focused as close as 12.7cm (5") and only cost $150.00 US.

The Snappy video capture device continues to improve, and now the price is down to $99.00 US. Version 3.0 is actually just a software upgrade, the hardware itself hasn't changed. If you already own a decent video camera, this is a inexpensive and quick way to capture images of your work for the web.

Web site authoring software continues to improve as well. It is getting easier all the time to create a very impressive site with almost no HTML skills. My number one pick would be Microsoft's FrontPage 98. It's a big improvement over FrontPage 97, which I have used to create many sites.

If you prefer to work more directly with the HTML mark up language, SoftQuad's Hot Metal Pro continues to improve. It also can be used as a "drag and drop" site builder.

For creating web graphics, Ulead's Photo Impact has some really great tools. It does an elegant job of creating animated GIFs, and has one of the best type creation tools any where. And it's easy to use compression software is tops for creating really tight .JPGs and .GIFs. This is simply one of the best software packages for web graphics available.

Some subscribers asked me to check out output devices, such as printers. Canon, and HP both had fine new models, but close comparison shows the Epson Stylus 800 ($399.00 US) and Epson Stylus Photo Printer ($399.00 US) as still the best in their class.

The only really new printing technology being shown was by ALPS. Their Micro Dry ink was revolutionary when they showed it last year. It is pigment based, and so much more resistant to fading than the dye based ink jet inks used by everyone else.

It can also lay down a white layer to print on, so you could create art on dark materials (like colored t-shirts) that would be in full color. Output possibilities also include transparent decal material, to create water transfer decals that can be put on almost any non porous surface.

This year ALPS showcased the MD-2300 printer ($749.00 US) which can change between MicroDry inks to a dye sub printer with a simple cartridge change. The dye sublimation output was beautiful - truly photographic.

Apple didn't have a booth at the show this year, so I didn't get to see all the latest Mac hardware and software. I wouldn't interpret this as a very bad sign, but it wasn't a good one either. I met some folks with the new Power PC machines running the G-3 chip, and it's good technology. But Apple's market is continuing to erode, and that is not good.

So what does this all mean for artists and crafts people? The bottom line is that technology is continuing to evolve at a astonishing rate. It's getting easier all the time to create a good looking web site, and to communicate effectively with your audience.

This page last updated: 09/02/04

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