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| CreativeTechs QuickTips #199 | Week of May 12, 2008 |
Creative
Tip: Build
an Acrobat PDF Slideshow.
You know the images will be displayed on a HDTV connected to a Windows laptop. You don't know what software will be installed, or what image formats that laptop might support. Luckily, you know that PDFs can be displayed on almost any computer today — thanks to the ubiquitous free Adobe Reader. This tip will walk you though the basics of creating a self-running PDF slideshow that can run almost anywhere. Source: This tip inspired by a question from Davis Design Associates in Kirkland. We talked about using this technique to create portfolio kiosk displays in a tip from last year: Use an Apple TV as Your Portfolio Theater. |
Imagine
you need to produce a looping slideshow of images for a client's
tradeshow booth — but you don't have many technical details. |
Tech
Tip: Should
You Host Your Own Email Server?
Ten years ago, we were installing a lot of mail servers for design firms and advertising agencies across the greater Seattle area. Today, however, we rarely recommend our clients host their own mail servers. Why the change? Email has become the key tool for conducting business. Creative teams are accessing email away from the office with laptops, webmail, and (increasingly) iPhones. And most significantly, fighting spam has become a full-time job. In short, if you own an independent creative studio, there is one good reason to have your email handled by a dedicated hosting company: They'll probably do a better job than you. The full version of this tip includes a mini-review of MailTrust, the mail provider we use and recommend at CreativeTechs:
But what if you do want to host your own mail server? CreativeTechs' lead enterprise engineer, Jordan Bojar, just published a 4-part series on his technical blog detailing how to properly host email with Mac OS X Leopard Server:
Source: This tip inspired by a number of email migration projects, including clients such as Hodgson/Meyers, India Tree, Stanton & Everybody, ect. Special thanks to Ben Greiner at Forget Computers in Chicago for recommending MailTrust to us a little over two years ago. |
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Seattle
Training: Upcoming
Workshops.
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Your
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Referrals from our clients and readers are what keeps CreativeTechs
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the friend or colleague who referred them:
Director
of web services Jason Hoffmaster at | CreativeTechs QuickTips is a free weekly newsletter for creative professionals who use Macs. Each week we publish a fresh mix of left-brain and right-brain tips based on our real world experience supporting hundreds of creative teams in the greater Seattle area. For a complete archive of previous tips, visit www.creativetechs.com/tips For IT Professionals supporting Mac users, visit Make Mac Work. This weekly technical blog focuses on IT issues facing Macs in Enterprise environments. It is written by CreativeTechs' lead enterprise engineer, Jordan Bojar. For an archive of previous topics, visit www.makemacwork.com Your referrals wanted! CreativeTechs relies on word-of-mouth introductions. If you know a Seattle-area creative team who might benefit from our unique expertise providing computer support for creative professionals, please introduce us. We are never too busy for your referrals. Email help@creativetechs.com, or call us at 206-682-4315. Copyright 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 CreativeTechs, Inc. |