iView Media Pro 3 (PC/Mac)
Customer Review: Fast, reliable, and effective - but no online help
iView Media Pro is a digital assets management system, which allows you to organise, view, and track thousands of photographs in a wide variety of formats including Raw.

The application is fast, reliable and effective, and has an intelligent and useful license management system. But it does not handle network use as intelligently as it might, and there is, bizarrely, no online help, although the manuals are available for download.

We recently selected iView Media Pro after a five-way shoot out with Adobe LightRoom, Adobe Bridge, QPict, and Shoebox. Each of these offers a trial version, so it was a fairly simple matter to make a comparison. For the trial we ran a PowerBook 1.667 Ghz G4, and a Quad processor G5 — both Macintoshes.

Our conclusion was that iView was the fastest application over our 8,504 images, stored on a network file server. It was substantially faster than any of the other contenders, and easier to use than Shoebox or Bridge, while offering more reliability than Bridge. Adobe LightRoom, which is still in Beta, offers more advanced workflow features, but is generally slower and harder to get to grips with.

iView is at its best in cataloging. The keyword and IPTC based features are swift and extensive, and it can intelligently sort pictures into groups based on when they were shot. Although it stores all the data in its own database, it can re-inject as IPTC data into files that support it, or add as an XMP sidecar file, or, for those that support neither, add it into a Macintosh resource fork. This last is, of course, platform dependent. The ability to synchronise its data with the actual files effectively future proofs this application - if something better comes along later, you won’t have to input all your data in switching to it.

iView offers some rudimentary editing functions, but is mainly focussed on linking up to your main image editor. iView (the company) offers workflow guides for using Media Pro with Photoshop CS2 and with RawShooter, although you could also use it with proprietory software such as Nikon Capture, or high-end workflow software such as DxO.

There is a good range of features for exporting catalogs, either onto disc or to the web. iView offers a free catalog reader which you can distribute for Mac and Windows with your catalogs on disc or over a network.

All in all this is an excellent piece of software, and would get 5 stars if it were not for omission of an online help system. The makers may be trying to avoid this by putting helpful pointers on each screen, and these prompts are a great help when you reach the appropriate screen. However, if you are trying to find a feature that you have misplaced, they have little to offer.

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Live Italian Fashion Show at Beau Monde Anniversary/Appreciation Event to be Held on March 31
Beau Monde Salon and Spa will host a live Italian fashion show to celebrate its rapidly growing client base and first year’s success. The one-year anniversary and customer appreciation party will be held on March 31, complete with food and wine.

Fashion Find: Marc by Marc Jacobs Posh Turnlock Bag
I’ve got several Marc Jacobs’ bags and think the craftmanship and materials (fabulous soft leather) are top-notch for this price point (at around $500 it’s certainly not cheap, but it’s…

Fresh from the festival fields. 52′.

Price: 7.95



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MTN Durban Fashion Week announces fashion desitgn competition finalists
The diverse cultural melting pot of Durban has spawned a wealth of design talent ? with the likes of Gideon, Karen Monk Klijnstra, Vino, Leigh Schubert, Gavin Rajah, Lindiwe Khuzwayo and Craig Native having roots in this city. Firmly established as the

A great track by one of Joe’s favourite bands. 100% Cotton

Price: 12.95



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The VIERA from Panasonic - Sponsored Link
Ad - Enter a New Visual Era w/ Panasonic VIERA HDTVs-An Enhanced Experience

FASHION in Paris: Nina Ricci
Nini Ricci showcased a vintage Victorian-style look, set off by sharp-shouldered jackets, on the Fall 2008 runway show in Paris. Nina Ricci Fall 2008 Check out our behind-the-scenes blog from the Fall 2008 international runways. See more Fall 2008 runway

Breakdance Step By Step (REGION 1) (NTSC)

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Page 1 of 3 Stuart Vevers has the Midas touch when it comes to bags and accessories, and was poached from Mulberry last year to take over as the creative director of Loewe, looking after not just leather goods but womenswear, too July 2007 I signed with Read more..

A creation by Russian designer Antonina Shapovalova. (Photo: Alexander Natruskin/Reuters) Russian designers are now wrapping up their own fashion week, hoping that with the country’s new wealth and growing taste for fine clothes that they can begin to Read more..

PINK FLOYD - BACK CATALOGUE - 140CM X 100CM GIANT POSTER

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Carla Bruni-Sarkozy impressed fashion experts with her restrained glamour Wednesday as the French presidential couple arrived in Britain. LONDON, March 27, 2008 - President Nicolas Sarkozy’s wife CarlaBruni-Sarkozy impressed fashion experts with her Read more..

“Never be afraid to create your own look. Be inspired

Price: http://www.awin1.com/pclick.php?p=15003774&a=7152&m=1120


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Trend Watch: Vests
You don’t need Kim Kardashian’s curves (pictured, left) to pull off spring’s sporty chic vest looks.What you do need is a little imagination. Because although the vest over white tee…

Ellen Tracy Deal Set to Close
Ellen Tracy is within 10 days of having a new home.

Twister [1996]
Twister was a mega-million-dollar blockbuster–helmed by a director (Dutchman Jan de Bont) hot off another scorcher hit (Speed)–that flaunted state-of-the-art digital effects and featured a popular leading actress (Helen Hunt) who would win an Academy Award for her next film (As Good As It Gets). But ask anybody who’s seen it and they’ll tell you who the real star of Twister is: the cow. Not to give anything away, but the cow is one of those inspired little touches (like, say, Bronson Pinchot’s career-making cameo in Beverly Hills Cop) that adds a touch of personality to a gigantic Hollywood production. The story is blown out the window after an impressive prologue in which Hunt’s character, as a little girl, witnesses her daddy being sucked into a tornado. Basically, Hunt and Bill Paxton are thrill-seeking meteorologists chasing twisters in order to study them (and help warn people of them, of course) with a new technology they’ve developed. If you thought the Kansas tornado in The Wizard of Oz was every bit as scary as the Wicked Witch of the West, then this may be the movie for you. –Jim Emerson

Customer Review: RUBBISH
A real disaster of a disaster movie! Despite the solid special effects the film is a dire mixture of lousy direction and even worse acting. Only Helen Hunt adds any credibility.

Avoid at all costs.

Customer Review: Wind lashing action
I watched this movie to see Helen Hunt. And she plays her part well. But the star of this movie is the Twister and the effects it has on it surroundings. The special effects are great. I have heard some people say that the plot is not great….There is a love story, a healing of a pscological trauma and the story of what it is like to be a storm chaser…..So I think there is a plot with sub-plots involved. But when all is said and done, the twister steals the show.

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4:00 PM by NP Editor Nathalie Atkinson checks in via the train to Montreal, en route to take in Montreal Fashion Week:Denis Gagnon’s comeback show (punnily titled Denise Collection) opens not with his trademark leathers but with soft, luxurious knits Continue …

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Gia [1998] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
Gia is a made-for-TV HBO film that stars Angelina Jolie as supermodel model Gia Carangi, who went from high school to the cover of British Vogue in less than two years. Carangi appeared on many more covers of Vogue (French, British, Italian, and American) and Cosmopolitan before dying of complications from AIDs (she was an IV heroin user) in 1986. Jolie comes by her talent honestly: she’s the daughter of veteran actor Jon Voight, and her own training as a model serves her well here–she has the moves. Throughout, she’s heartbreaking–as no doubt the real Carangi was–effective, and stunning. With good source material (Stephen Fried’s A Thing of Beauty: The Tragedy of Supermodel Gia), Jolie’s stunning performance, and strong directing by Michael Cristofer, the movie goes beyond the merely sensational. The script was co-written by Cristofer and novelist Jay McInerney, whose Bright Lights, Big City covers similar territory. As a cautionary tale, Gia works. But to watch Jolie in her character’s tragic self-destruction is utterly compelling. –NF Mendoza, Amazon.com

Customer Review: Not earth shattering but watchable
I bought this as all the girls talk about it, and as far as lesbian films go its alright, but some scenes are laughable. Gia and the make-up girl who so easily agreed to fling herself naked at a wire fence was a real howler, and surely for the sake of titilation. I thought a lot of the acting/dialogue was quite weak, but it is watchable, and the film improves through the second half. Dont expect wonders but with a glass of wine on a wednesday night quite enjoyable.

Customer Review: Well worth watching…
An excellent film, Angelina Jolie gives an breathtaking performance as the late Gia Carangi, a supermodel who meets her end as an early AIDS victim. The film documents the life of Gia (though with some artistic license) from childhood through her journey from obscurity to one of the most sought after models of the late 70s/early 80s, her battle with emotional instability, drugs, a fall from grace, rehab and her death. Jolie brings amazing depth to the character, revealing her as fragile and vulnerable and bringing out a softness that defies Gia’s tough exterior. The story is heart-wrenching and Jolie portrays Gia as someone you can’t help but like despite everything, a character who you laugh with and cry for. The depiction of the drug-fuelled and care-free era in which it is set is compelling to watch, as is Gia’s (fictional) relationship with Linda. All in all a highly recommended film with a heartfelt and unforgettable performance from Jolie (who unfortunately has yet to repeat such amazing acting since Gia and Girl, Interrupted).

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Trend Watch: Vests
You don’t need Kim Kardashian’s curves (pictured, left) to pull off spring’s sporty chic vest looks.What you do need is a little imagination. Because although the vest over white tee…

Fashion Find: Nautical Stripe Top
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of spring (well, other than how I should’ve been working out instead of watching Gossip Girl and Project Runway), is…

Full flow
Phong Luu shows us what?s hot and what?s not with this season’s latest trend: Volume Beige and gold taffeta high-waisted skirt, ?248, Diane von Furstenberg; Net-a-porter.com

Take this ingenious design along to every party you go to. It’s a great space-saver and useful keyfob. Metal

Price: 20.95



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In Miami, Audi presents the work of Silvia Tcherassi. By TAMARA WARREN The designers, supermodels and celebrity guests caused the buzz at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York in February, but Mercedes cars and logos were never far from view. A Continue …

The Famous Five - Five On A Treasure Island - Parts 1 and 2
Customer Review: Famous Five
I am writing this review for all the DVD and Video with the Famous Five on. I must have seen nearly evey Famous five book as a TV show and have found the perfect they all keep as close as possible to the book if your are a fan of Blyton’s Famous Five books 21 in total you’ll love these videos.

Customer Review: Five on Treasure Island
This is actually about 4 or 5 years old now and I’m refering to when I first saw it on tv. I thought that the storyline was great and the music makes it nice and dramatic, its just a shame the acting is a bit shoddy , and the credits are a bit untidy. Also when I buy other Famous Five videos from different stores, Ifind the picture is a bit out of focus, like it has been recorded with a shoddy tape recorder, straight from the TV.This is what stops it getting a 5 star mark. All that a side its a really enjoyable video.

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This fresh topper is the perfect jacket to cover you for everything from work to play this spring. It comes in a spicy chili pepper red color (great with black… Continue …