[From a listserv discussion of the Online News Association]

Hi everyone -
One of my guys, Greg Gross, just sent me this recent review on Soundslides, which he was evaluating along with several other applications.
- tom
__________________________
          Tom Mallory
  Breaking News Team Editor
The San Diego Union-Tribune.
619/293-1041 fax: 619/293-1896
   tom.mallory@uniontrib.com
    SignOnSanDiego.com

Tom -
Took my first shot yesterday at using the free "demo" version of Soundslides I have on my desktop computer at home.

I LOVE this program!

Easily the most intuitive piece of multimedia software I've used to date, so much so that it's hard to make a mistake with it. Easy to use, attractive, effective and you will be up and running with it in no time:

1) Open a new project.

2) Import your stills into it.

3) Import your audio into it.

4) Drag and drop your stills into the order you want.

You're almost done already.

5) Drag and sides of each still in the timeline to shorten or lengthen their appearance in the slideshow, or Click on the menu item at the toip of the screen that automatically sets each one for the same length, in synch with the audio.

6) Write your headline, captions (if desired) and credits (the equivalent of your byline).

7) Export to the Web

That's it. You're done.  "Easy-peasy," as the Brits say.  Your pre-schooler could do it.

In fact, there's a good chance your pre-schooler has already done it.

The one thing I can't do so far is export the completed project to the Web, but that may be a deliberate limitation in the "demo" version.  I'll load what I did onto a CD and bring it in to show you later this week.

Cost for the full version, about $40 each. Some of our photographers are already using this.

I'd like to hear the #M Committee's view on this, but this may be the only no-brainer we encounter in this process for quite awhile.

cheers,
g.

----------------------------

Today's Topics:

   1. Re: slideshows (Vallance, Karla)
   2. Re: slideshows (Ken Sands)
   3. Re: slideshows (Amy L. Webb, Dragonfire Editor In Chief)
------------------------------

Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2006 12:10:54 -0700
From: "Ken Sands" <kens@spokesman.com>
Subject: Re: [ONA Talk] slideshows

Tim:
A different question might be: "Is anyone NOT using Soundslides?"
There are reasons why so many people are using it...
It's easy, it's cheap, it works.

Ken Sands
Online Publisher
The Spokesman-Review
www.SpokesmanReview.com
kens@spokesman.com
(800) 789-0029 x5014
(509) 459-5014

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2006 15:28:21 -0400
From: "Amy L. Webb, Dragonfire Editor In Chief" <editor@dfire.org>
Subject: Re: [ONA Talk] slideshows

We have a handful of Flash templates that we created in-house.  But 
they're easy enough that anyone can put photos and audio into them... 
And of course, you can skip the audio completely in Flash and develop 
a handful of different templates that allow for captions, embedded 
maps, etc.

Amy

--
Amy L. Webb
Editor In Chief
Dragonfire http://www.dfire.org
Email: editor@dfire.org
Voice:  215.895.6469 (direct)
Office: 215.895.2055

On Sep 6, 2006, at 3:01 PM, Vallance, Karla wrote:

> Tim,
>
> We have so far found Soundslides to be good for ? as the name would 
> imply ? slideshows with an audio track, but we are still looking 
> for something that?s a better fit for slideshows with no track.
>
> Our most recent Soundslides foray: http://www.csmonitor.com/
> specials/katrina1year/index.html
>
> Karla Vallance
> Managing Editor, Electronic Publishing
> The Christian Science Monitor
> http://csmonitor.com
>

> Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 2:05 PM
> To: talk@journalists.org
> Subject: [ONA Talk] slideshows
>
> We're moving toward slideshows (finally). We have Flash but haven't 
> used it yet. Photogs have mentioned that Soundslides is easy to 
> use. Would appreciate any comments on either of these ...
>
> Tim Cotter
> Assistant Managing Editor for Online Publishing
> www.theday.com
> New London, Ct.
> t.cotter@theday.com
> 860 701-4372
>
URL: http://journalists.org/mailman/private/talk_journalists.org/attachments/20060906/38a3370b/attachment.html



End of Talk Digest, Vol 17, Issue 6
_______________________________________________
Talk mailing list
Talk@journalists.org
http://journalists.org/mailman/listinfo/talk_journalists.org