August 09, 2006, 5:53 PM PDT
FreshBooks, a refreshingly straightforward invoicing service
Posted by: Rafe Needleman

FreshBooks is another online invoicing service for small businesses. Like Blinksale and Simplybill, which also prepare invoices online, it's a somewhat spare utility that does just one business function.

But this one's feature set is not quite as spare as those of the other utilities. There are more options for managing clients, projects, and contacts. The product will generate recurring invoices and autobill customers. There are several useful reports you can run. There's a rudimentary time-logging function (useful for billing services; see also Tick). There's even a support ticket module, although I'm not sure this belongs in an invoicing utility--but I guess if a support issue is causing a customer to not pay you, you might want to track it here.

The product also links to other related applications. For starters, it will import from and export to QuickBooks, Simply Accounting, and CSV files. FreshBooks will directly integrate with 13 payment-processing systems (including PayPal) and will collect income automatically if you have set up recurring invoices. And recently sales-tracking service Pipeline announced a partnership with FreshBooks, so users can take contacts and deals from their early stages all the way through invoicing.

These little Web 2.0 applications still need a bit more connective tissue. A universal login between them would be a big start. And the user interface differences between the vendors' applications will give users headaches.

Compared to the other invoicing services that I've covered--which I like quite a lot--FreshBooks strikes me as a bit more intelligent and more mature. Its user interface is not quite as bubbly as those of many other Web 2.0 services. It is, though, extremely clear and fast, despite offering users a lot of control and options.

The service is free to use indefinitely, but limits you to three client accounts. Paid versions start at $14 a month and allow you to bill more clients and have more users at your business working on the system. If you're looking at online invoicing systems, definitely try this product.

Permalink | Post a comment

• Read also: Web 2.0, Work
• Email to a friend | Print this post

August 09, 2006, 11:29 AM PDT
Quad SLI finally ready for the DIY crowd
Posted by: Rich Brown

It's been roughly eight months since the first appearance of Nvidia's Quad SLI 3D graphics technology, and on today's release of the ForceWare 91.45 graphics drivers, you can finally put together a Quad SLI rig yourself. You'll need an Nvidia Nforce 4 SLI or Nforce 590 chipset motherboard for either AMD or Intel and a pair of Nvidia GeForce 7950 GX2 3D cards. That hardware alone will cost you at least $1,100, not to mention the CPU, the memory, and the 30-inch LCD that will use that much 3D power to best advantage. If you do have the means, reports from PC Perspective, HardOCP, and other sites around the Web that got an early crack at the drivers indicate that you'll be in for a heretofore unseen 3D gaming experience.

Our take is that, yes, it's fantastic to be able to play at super high resolutions with all the detail levels turned on. We've seen the old GeForce 7900 GX2, system vendor-only brand of Quad SLI in action, and even that was amazing. But as we said in our review of the GeForce 7950 GX2 card, DirectX 10 is coming with Windows Vista, and with it a whole new generation of PC graphics. Yes, you'll have to wait for January or perhaps even later for Vista and the DirectX 10 games (Crysis chief among them). But just know that if you shell out $1,000+ for the best in current 3D gaming technology, you could be a generation behind in less than six months. We imagine that plenty of folks out there will still want to try Quad SLI now, but if you're the type who likes to pick your technology spots wisely, we think waiting for the soon-to-be-released next-gen stuff is the most prudent option (if you can call spending $1,000+ on 3D graphics prudent).

Permalink | Post a comment

• See product information for Nvidia GeForce 7950 GX2
• Read also: Systems, gaming
• Email to a friend | Print this post

August 09, 2006, 9:55 AM PDT
Bob Dylan exclusive on iTunes
Posted by: Jasmine France

From Digital Music News:

"The Bob Dylan legacy easily predates the personal computer, but the folk superstar is now diving into digital. The singer, a 'personal hero' of Steve Jobs, is offering an iTunes Music Store exclusive on his upcoming album, Modern Times. The preorder is available for $13.99, and album buyers will be eligible to purchase prerelease concert tickets from Ticketmaster. The physical album is slated for release August 29, and iTunes buyers will not have access to their downloads until that date. Dylan and label Columbia Records are also positioning a digital box set, which offers a collection of nearly 800 tracks for $199. Dylan is slated to begin touring in the fall."

I think the editors over at DMN sum it up quite nicely. Bob Dylan fans who preorder Modern Times will also be rewarded with several music videos that will be available on iTunes before the album drops. The integrated deal with Ticketmaster will allow iTunes users to purchase Bob Dylan concert tickets 10 days prior to when they go on sale to the general public on September 9 (although, considering the number of iTunes users, I'm not sure how much of an advantage that is). For more info, check out the full story over at Digital Music News.

Permalink | Post a comment

• Read also: MP3
• Email to a friend | Print this post

August 09, 2006, 8:53 AM PDT
Shooting straight in the dark, the Fujifilm way
Posted by: Lori Grunin

Though it's targeted at some heavyweight activities--such as criminal forensic investigation--Fujifilm's new version of its FinePix S3 Pro dSLR introduces some novel capabilities that are attractive to the creative (or nosy!) photographer in all of us. As its name implies, the FinePix S3 Pro UVIR adds the ability to shoot in the ultraviolet and infrared ends of the spectrum, making the invisible visible.

Both film and digital cameras need to filter out the extremely short UV light waves for a variety of reasons. In the case of digital, UV rays hit the sensor first, and unless filtered out, will saturate the photosites before the visible light can even hit them. The extremely long IR light waves have the opposite problem. They hit the sensor last, and during the long exposure time necessary to capture them, the photosites would become saturated by visible light.

For the S3 Pro UVIR, Fujifilm removed the UV and IR filtering, instead allowing the photographer to use lens filters for controlling which bands of the spectrum reach the sensor. However, this also requires that you use manual focus, which the S3 provides via a Live Preview LCD, as well as manual exposure modes when shooting outside the visible spectrum. The S3 Pro UVIR takes all the same Nikon-mount lenses as the standard version of the camera.

This isn't new: independent companies have been retrofitting--or, more accurately, stripping--both digital and film cameras for years. Hutech Astronomical Products, for example, offers defiltered versions of Canon's EOS 20D and Rebel XT. Still, I'm looking forward to taking the S3 Pro UVIR on a test drive through New York at night, though I'll bypass any bloodstains I happen to find. It's slated to ship next month for about $1,800.

Permalink | 1 comment

• Read also: digital cameras
• Email to a friend | Print this post

August 09, 2006, 8:03 AM PDT
Motherboard merger: Gigatek? Asusbyte?
Posted by: Matthew Elliott

TG Daily reports that Asustek and Gigabyte have agreed to a merger, which will allow the combined company to battle larger vendors such as ECS and Foxconn for precious market share. They've yet to decide on a name, but the new company will begin operations on January 1, 2007. Asustek will hold a 51 percent stake with Gigabyte holding the other 49 percent. Word is this may not be the last merger in the increasingly competitive motherboard market, with MSI perhaps looking for a suitor.

Permalink | Post a comment

• Read also: Computers, desktops
• Email to a friend | Print this post

August 09, 2006, 7:18 AM PDT
Dell explains the XPS 700 delay
Posted by: Rich Brown

TG Daily has an interview with Dell's Liem Nguyen responding to the cause behind the delay of the XPS 700. Rather than, as speculated, a problem with Core 2 Duo chip supplies or the Nvidia Nforce 590 motherboard chipset, Dell claims it held up shipments because of a cooling problem that it has now resolved. We have no way to confirm whether that's actually the case, but what's clear is that this explanation removes blame from Intel and Nvidia.

The interview answers a lot of questions, but we still have others. Dell told us that our reviewed XPS 700 configuration will still be valid by mid-October, so we'll take its word that it's a real system. But asking you to pay for our box's GeForce 7900 GTX cards when they'll be a generation behind when you receive them is foolish. If Dell doesn't address this problem, expect our review score to change. We actually have a face-to-face meeting with some folks from Dell's desktops crew in an hour and a half. We'll report back if we learn anything.

Permalink | 9 comments

• See product information for Dell XPS 700 (Intel Core 2 Extreme X6800)
• Read also: Systems, gaming
• Email to a friend | Print this post