the new MacBook Pro 17-inch

By Simon Strantzas (procurement@loop.ca), Product Specialist

You wanted it, you got it. The longest lasting Mac notebook battery ever - up to eight hours - and it's in the MacBook Pro 17". Typical notebooks have on a 200-300 recharge limit (which is why they always seem to need replacing) but not so with the new 17"; it can be recharged up to 1000 times. Longer lasting batteries mean buying less batteries. That's good for your pocketbook but also good for the enviornment. But that's not all, the new 17" ships with a high-resolution widescreen display, and all the features you've come to expect from it's 15" brethren, all crammed into a package that is less than an inch thin and weighs 6.6 pounds. All that, and the price hasn't fluctuated.

Apple has chosen this design to spearhead it's new battery initiative, and so far no one is complaining. The only drawback is we've been taking orders non-stop since the announcement at MacWorld, and yet the machines aren't shipping until the beginning of February. Still, I can't imagine anyone not thinking it will be worth the wait. Look at what you get:

• 17-inch (diagonal) high-resolution LED-backlit glossy widescreen display
• 1920-by-1200 resolution
• 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
• 6MB shared L2 cache
• 4GB of DDR3 SDRAM; supports up to 8GB
• 320GB Serial ATA; 5400 rpm
• 8x SuperDrive (DVD-R DL/DVD-RW/CD-RW)
• NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT graphics processor; and NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor with 256MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory
• Three USB 2.0 ports
• One FireWire 800 port
• Built-in 10/100/1000BASE-T (Gigabit) Ethernet
• Built-in AirPort Extreme Wi-Fi
• Built-in Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate)

And, of course, many of those specifications can be changed to custom-build a computer to your unique specifications.

The new MacBook Pro 17": the closest thing to a portable desktop you'll ever see. Ask your Loop Representative how to integrate one into your workflow.

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branding contact sheets

By Casey D'Andrea (cdandrea@loop.ca), Professional Services Technologist

Bridge is the launching pad for many script-based routines triggering other Adobe applications. Both Photoshop and InDesign have contact sheets, however InDesign’s implementation is much more flexible. The basic template used by the script is meant to provide the building blocks and allows you to tweak all aspects — objects styles, paragraph styles, colours, margins, etc. Once you've created your own template, you can replace the generic look with your own brand.

By thinking outside the box and tapping into some of the advanced features of InDesign you create some clean professional-looking contact sheets.

• using nested styles to customize the look of the metadata
• using an inner glow with 100% choke on images, not their graphic frames, to achieve a more flexible stroke effect
• using text variables to add a running header for multi-page contact sheets
• using text variables to add dynamic footer information, like you would see for a Word document

To help you get started you can download some updated templates over at indesign1200.com. You can check out the gallery to get an idea of the transformation. In addition, to help you break down the possibilities, there are some great resources out there:

blogs.adobe.com/scratchdisk - allowing InDesign documents (CS3, CS4) to be included in contact sheets in addition to the regular fare of images formats.

layersmagazine.com - customizing margins to allow for sidebars, header, etc.

blog.gilbertconsulting.com -adjustments made to the Bridge script that was bundled in CS3. He also includes links to other related scripts and his InDesign Magazine article

creativescripting.net - Bob Stucky, original creator of the Bridge-based script, is working on a CS4 version on his own. Adobe is really trying to push the enhanced web and PDF galleries provided by Bridge CS4. In doing so, they omitted the InDesign and Photoshop scripts from Bridge. Bob is rebuilding the InDesign contact sheet script from the ground up and is selling it on his website. It’s currently in beta.

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new member of the loop team – Nick Lijoi

Loop Enterprise Inc. welcomed Nick Lijoi in February 2009. After 11 years at Dell, with roles in Management and Sales, Nick brings a wealth of experience to us. He brings with him another dimension to our already forward thinking IT Service offerings.

Nick decided to join the Loop team because he believes in our business model. Carmine De Santo’s 15 years experience in IT services can be credited for creating Loop’s IT Outsourcing strategy which helps your organization focus on its core business and drive out IT costs and complexity.

Nick’s ability to understand your business from a management perspective adds value for all of our customers. He fits perfectly into our style of listening and assessing your challenges before we prescribe a solution.

Consider some typical questions for today’s business environment:

• Can you afford to invest in non-core business training for your employees?
• Does your current IT model allow you to maximize ROI in your business?
• Are the costs and allocation of resources to simply maintain your IT infrastructure preventing you from unleashing real innovation?

Understanding what it takes to scale your business effectively, from an IT perspective, is paramount in this economy. IT Outsourcing, gives you the ability to increase your company’s productivity, shift IT priorities, and reduce costs. Our solutions include Remote and Onsite Support, Preventative Maintenance, Strategic Planning, Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery, Collocation Services, and Training for Apple Software. In fact, many of Loop’s customers experience as much as a 40% reduction in the cost of hardware and application support and maintenance.

Nick Lijoi and Loop are a logical choice to help you confront the challenges of these uncertain times.

Contact Information:
Nick Lijoi
Account Executive
Email: nlijoi@loop.ca
Mobile: 416 896 2155