lynda.com New Releases for all courses

InDesign FX

Thu, 31 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Released On: 8/4/2011

InDesign FX is a collection of self-contained effects projects designed to be completed in ten minutes or less. Taught by expert Mike Rankin, the series explores every aspect of InDesign's graphic effects capabilities through real-world examples, all without relying on Photoshop or Illustrator. The intent is to reveal the quick, practical, and sometimes surprising application of InDesign effects to creative projects.

New InDesign FX installments will be released every other week.

Windows Phone SDK Essential Training

Thu, 31 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Michael Lehman

Released On: 5/31/2012

Discover how to build professional apps that encompass the 17 major feature areas of Windows Phone, from XAML to multimedia to network access. In this course, author Michael Lehman details the standard hardware device configuration, teaches how to navigate the development environment, and explores the Windows Phone APIs. The course shows how to build sample applications while learning Windows Phone concepts and frameworks, including the Metro design language.

Design in Motion

Wed, 30 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Rob Garrott

Released On: 10/26/2011

Design in Motion is a series of creative techniques featuring short projects using After Effects and CINEMA 4D. Taught by motion graphics expert Rob Garrott, the course covers how color correction, expressions, rendering type, lighting, and animation are used in each program, and the topics are updated weekly. Using these tips and tricks, motion graphics designers will find designing to be a more efficient process.

Word 2010 Power Shortcuts

Wed, 30 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Alicia Katz Pollock

Released On: 5/30/2012

In this course, author Alicia Katz Pollock shares the keyboard shortcuts, workflows, and commands that can transform the casual Word 2010 user into a pro. This course covers helpful and lesser-known techniques for making document navigation, content creation, formatting, layout, working with data, graphics integration, and publishing easier. Alicia also includes her favorite top 10 formatting tips in Word, from clearing existing formatting to inserting lines and creating abbreviations with AutoCorrect.

Deke's Techniques

Tue, 29 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Deke McClelland

Released On: 1/11/2011

Deke's Techniques is a collection of short Photoshop and Illustrator projects and creative effects that can be completed in ten minutes or less. The series is taught by computer graphics guru Deke McClelland, and presented in his signature step-by-step style. The intent is to reveal how various Photoshop and Illustrator features can be combined and leveraged in real-world examples so that they can be applied to creative projects right away.

New techniques will be added to the collection each week. Exercise files accompany the course.

FileMaker Pro 12 Essential Training

Tue, 29 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Cris Ippolite

Released On: 5/29/2012

In this course, Cris Ippolite walks through the essential FileMaker Pro skills, from creating tables to managing fields and records and working with layouts. The course shows how to find and sort data, create reports, import and export data, create scripts, and diagram relationships, and more.

AutoCAD Essentials 3: Editing and Organizing Drawings

Tue, 29 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Jeff Bartels

Released On: 5/29/2012

Properly managing a drawing is essential to being productive in AutoCAD. In this course, author Jeff Bartels concentrates on the Autodesk AutoCAD tools and features dedicated to organizing and editing geometry. The course covers making selections, creating and adjusting layers, identifying objects with hatch patterns, and scaling, exploding, and joining elements. It also includes lessons on creating fillets and chamfers, copying existing objects into rectangular or circular patterns, and accessing specialized tools that make measurements and calculations a lot easier.

PowerPoint 2010 Power Shortcuts

Tue, 29 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Alicia Katz Pollock

Released On: 5/29/2012

Discover the power shortcuts the pros use to navigate PowerPoint 2010 with ease. Author Alicia Katz Pollock shows how to customize views, work with text, format slides, and publish your final presentation. The course also includes her top 10 tips for working with presentations, including autofitting text, creating custom bullets, and using shapes to mask images and video.

View Source

Fri, 25 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Ray Villalobos

Released On: 2/3/2012

The View Source weekly series offers 10-minute projects on intermediate and advanced web design topics, covering technologies such as HTML, PHP, jQuery, and CSS, as well as content management solutions like WordPress and integration with Twitter, YouTube, and more. Each movie in the course is self-contained and shows how to accomplish an interesting effect and/or technique. Example projects include creating datepickers and custom photo galleries, and mapping and geotagging with Google Maps.

Photoshop for Photographers: Portrait Retouching

Fri, 25 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Chris Orwig

Released On: 5/25/2012

In this course, photographer, author, and teacher Chris Orwig details the tools every photographer needs to retouch portraits to make them look their best while remaining authentic. The course includes an overview of the retouching process and how to develop a plan for a retouching project.

After exploring techniques to improve the overall photo, Chris shares his techniques for reducing wrinkles, enhancing eyes and other facial features, improving hair, and retouching makeup. The course concludes with a look at retouching skin and reshaping portions of a portrait using transformations, the Warp tool, and the Liquify filter.

InDesign Secrets

Thu, 24 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: David Blatner, Anne-Marie Concepcion

Released On: 8/25/2011

In this series, David Blatner and Anne-Marie Concepción, co-hosts of the web's top resource for InDesign tips and tricks, InDesignSecrets.com, share some hidden and sometimes surprising workflow tips that will make working in InDesign more efficient and more fun. The course covers built-in timesaving features such as Quick Apply and auto-expanding text, but also little-known tricks, such as using the eyedropper to copy and paste character and paragraph text attributes and making accurate selections by selecting through or even into objects.

New techniques will be added to the collection every other week, so check back early and often. Find more tips and tricks at indesignsecrets.com.

Nondestructive Exposure and Color Correction with Photoshop

Thu, 24 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Richard Harrington

Released On: 5/24/2012

Every photographer has looked at a photo and been disappointed that it didn’t convey the original scene. This course reveals how to use Adobe Photoshop to enhance the color, contrast, and sharpness of a photograph. Using tools from adjustment layers to filters, discover how to nondestructively transform your photos. The course also covers how to work with raw images and perform special-case adjustments such as color matching and tinting.

ActionScript 3.0 in Flash Professional CS5 Essential Training

Wed, 23 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Todd Perkins

Released On: 10/21/2010

In ActionScript 3.0 in Flash Professional CS5 Essential Training, Todd Perkins shows Flash designers how to incorporate ActionScript code into their projects and create interactive presentations and applications. The course includes a review of ActionScript language basics and the object-oriented programming (OOP) methodology, a tour of those Flash Professional CS5 features designed for developers, such as code hinting and the Code Snippets panel, and instructions on interacting with objects in the Library and placing code on the Timeline. Exercise files are included with the course.

Foundations of Programming: Object-Oriented Design

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Simon Allardice

Released On: 5/22/2012

Most modern programming languages, such as Java, C#, Ruby, and Python, are object-oriented languages, which help group individual bits of code into a complex and coherent application. However, object-orientation itself is not a language; it’s simply a set of ideas and concepts.

Let Simon Allardice introduce you to the terms—words like abstraction, inheritance, polymorphism, subclass—and guide you through defining your requirements and identifying use cases for your program. The course also covers creating conceptual models of your program with design patterns, class and sequence diagrams, and unified modeling language (UML) tools, and then shows how to convert the diagrams into code.

AutoCAD Essentials 2: Drawing Fundamentals

Mon, 21 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Jeff Bartels

Released On: 5/21/2012

AutoCAD Essentials is a multi-part series that takes a more modular approach to this massive program, used for everything from 2D and 3D CAD design, drafting, and modeling to architectural drawing and engineering projects. In this installment, author Jeff Bartels concentrates on the particulars of creating basic geometry in AutoCAD, including assigning imperial or metric units of measurement, using object snaps to control accuracy, and drawing and transforming basic lines and shapes. The last chapter in the course tests your newfound skills in a short project.

Editing Video in Photoshop CS6

Mon, 21 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Richard Harrington

Released On: 5/21/2012

With the release of Photoshop CS6, Adobe introduced the ability to edit video footage. Author Rich Harrington guides you through this brand-new workflow, from building a sequence to working with audio and exporting your video in a variety of high-quality formats. The course also covers how Photoshop's strongest feature, its image enhancement toolset, translates to video, from fixing under- or overexposed footage, performing color balancing, and adding vibrance and contrast to special effects, such as converting to black and white and using Smart Filters to soften skin.

Photoshop CS6 for Photographers: Camera Raw 7

Fri, 18 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Chris Orwig

Released On: 5/18/2012

This course provides in-depth training on Camera Raw 7, the Photoshop CS6 component that enables photographers to open and manipulate raw format images. Raw images are minimally processed in the camera; they’re effectively the exact data recorded by the camera’s sensor. Author Chris Orwig shows you how to control a raw image's appearance—exposure, shadow and highlight detail, color balance, and sharpness—with far more precision than is possible with JPEG images. The course also introduces the new workflow procedures and technical concepts and issues associated with raw content, so that photographers can best leverage this powerful format.

Add a Wraparound Effect for a Marquee with jQuery

Fri, 18 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Chris Converse

Released On: 5/18/2012

Join Chris Converse as he teaches how to add a wraparound effect to your homepage marquee with a concise bit of jQuery code. The course covers positioning the photos, adjusting the navigation, activating the marquee, and making sure the marquee auto-plays. In a few short movies, designers can learn how to add this dynamic feature to their web sites.

For more information on creating the marquee, please watch Create an Interactive Homepage Marquee with jQuery.

Add a Wraparound Effect for a Marquee with jQuery and Dreamweaver

Fri, 18 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Chris Converse

Released On: 5/18/2012

Join Chris Converse as he teaches how to add a wraparound effect to your homepage marquee with Dreamweaver and a concise bit of jQuery code. The course covers positioning the photos, adjusting the navigation, activating the marquee, and making sure the marquee auto-plays. In a few short movies, designers can learn how to add this dynamic feature to their web sites.

For more information on creating the marquee, please watch Create an Interactive Homepage Marquee with jQuery and Dreamweaver.

Drupal 7 Advanced Training

Thu, 17 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Tom Geller

Released On: 5/17/2012

This course teaches web site designers how to take their sites to the next level with a few advanced techniques and the free and open-source Drupal software. Author Tom Geller shows how to configure the most popular add-on modules; use *nix commands and an FTP program to manage a Drupal site on a web server; change its visual appearance using the latest graphical tools; automate and speed through common tasks with Drush; integrate with social media sites; and see how "supermodules" like Panels, Context, Rules, and Features open up new worlds of code-free development.

Drupal 7 Advanced Training was designed as a follow-up to Drupal 7 Essential Training and it also dovetails nicely with our other Drupal courses, such as Drupal 7 Reporting and Visualizing Data and Create Your First Online Store with Drupal Commerce.

3ds Max 2013 Essential Training

Wed, 16 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Aaron F. Ross

Released On: 5/16/2012

The course covers Autodesk 3ds Max from the ground up, providing a thorough overview of this advanced 3D graphics and modeling package. Author Aaron F. Ross covers the 3ds Max interface and walks through common tasks such as modeling, texturing, rendering, animating, and adding special effects. The course is centered around two real-world projects, a motion graphics project and a special effects project, that provide designers practical examples to use with the lessons.

AutoCAD Essentials 1: Interface and Drawing Management

Tue, 15 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Jeff Bartels

Released On: 5/15/2012

AutoCAD Essentials with Jeff Bartels is a multi-part series that takes a more modular approach to this massive program, used for everything from 2D and 3D CAD design, drafting, and modeling to architectural drawing and engineering projects. This first installment includes a lengthy tour of the interface, from understanding the concept of model space to customizing the AutoCAD preferences and working with dockable palettes. The second half of the course show how to manage your drawings, including getting the most from the mouse and many shortcuts, creating time-saving templates, and plotting from either model space or in a layout.

Melodyne Essential Training

Mon, 14 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Skye Lewin

Released On: 5/14/2012

In this course, author Skye Lewin explores how to harness the power of the leading pitch correction software, Melodyne. The course begins with the installation and setup process, and includes recommendations on choosing the best workflow and preference settings for your project. The lessons also demonstrate how to get audio into Melodyne, whether importing existing files or recording new tracks; how to arrange a new session; and how to edit the audio and export the corrected tracks.

Invaluable: Becoming a Leading Authority

Wed, 09 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Dave Crenshaw

Released On: 5/9/2012

Dave Crenshaw's Invaluable series reveals how to build a career improvement plan by increasing personal productivity, pursuing different avenues for self-education, and setting up a documented standard of performance. This fifth and final installment of the series, Invaluable: Becoming a Leading Authority, teaches you to identify areas where you can become an authority, leader, and decision maker. Even if you don’t think you’re in the public eye, being recognized as an authority can dramatically improve your value within your company and the community beyond. This course demonstrates a clear, step-by-step process to becoming a system expert within a business and then shows you how to evaluate and increase your value through activities such as building a library, assembling an online network, and gaining personal publicity.

Muse Essential Training

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: James Fritz

Released On: 5/7/2012

In this course, author James Fritz shows designers how to use Muse to create HTML-based web sites using a toolset familiar to anyone who's used Photoshop, InDesign, or Illustrator before. The course covers the design process from start to finish, from setting up web pages and populating them with graphics and text, to creating dynamic menus and adding special features such as widgets, slideshows, embedded video, social media integration, and more. The final chapter shows how to publish and update your site and view analytics on web traffic.

Flash Professional CS6 Essential Training

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Anastasia McCune

Released On: 5/7/2012

This course provides a solid foundation in Adobe Flash Professional CS6 and shows how to create an assortment of Flash content. Author Anastasia McCune explains the different destinations for Flash projects—mobile devices, the desktop, or the web—and where ActionScript fits into it all. She shows how to create a new project, structure document layers and arrange objects on the Timeline, and how to get started drawing basic shapes and incorporate text, images, audio, and video. The course also explains the different types of symbols and tweens in Flash, and how to use them to build and animate content. The final chapters outline the publishing options available for Flash projects, including Adobe AIR.

InDesign CS6 Essential Training

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: David Blatner

Released On: 5/7/2012

InDesign is an essential tool for design firms, ad agencies, magazines, newspapers, book publishers, and freelance designers around the world. This course presents the core features and techniques that make this powerful page layout application fun and easy to use. Author David Blatner shows how to navigate and customize the workspace, manage documents and pages, work with text frames and graphics, export and print finished documents, explore creating interactive documents, and much more. He also covers popular topics such as EPUBs and long documents and includes advice on working with overset text, unnamed colors, and other troublesome issues that may arise for first-time designers.

After Effects CS6 Essential Training

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Ian Robinson

Released On: 5/7/2012

In this course, author Ian Robinson introduces Adobe After Effects CS6 and the world of animation, effects, and compositing. Chapter 1 introduces the six foundations of After Effects, which include concepts like layers, keyframes, rendering, and moving in 3D space. The rest of the course expands on these ideas, and shows how to build compositions with layers, perform rotoscoping, animate your composition with keyframes, add effects and transitions, and render and export the finished piece. Two real-world example projects demonstrate keying green screen footage and creating an advanced 3D composition with the expanded 3D toolset, an important addition to CS6.

Dreamweaver CS6 Essential Training

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: James Williamson

Released On: 5/7/2012

Discover how to build web sites, prototypes, and more in this course on Adobe Dreamweaver CS6. Author James Williamson shows designers how to take control of their site by properly naming and structuring files and folders; how to create new documents and web pages from scratch or with starter pages; and how to add content such as text, images, tables, and links. James also provides a background on the languages that power projects built in Dreamweaver—HTML and CSS—and introduces the programming features in the application, for developers who want to dig right into the code. The last chapter shows how to finesse your project with interactive content such as CSS3 transitions and Spry widgets.

Illustrator CS6 Essential Training

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Justin Seeley

Released On: 5/7/2012

Adobe Illustrator can be used to accomplish many different design tasks, from illustration to app development. This course demonstrates core concepts and techniques that can be applied to any workflow—for print, the web, or building assets that will find their way into other applications. Author Justin Seeley explains the elements that make up vector graphics (paths, strokes, and fills) while showing how to use each of the drawing tools, and demonstrates how to combine and clean up paths and organize them into groups and layers. The course also covers text editing, working with color, effects, and much more.

Premiere Pro CS6 Essential Training

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Abba Shapiro

Released On: 5/7/2012

This course introduces Adobe Premiere Pro CS6, using a project-based approach that introduces video editors to all the skills necessary to cut their own program. Using a short commercial project as an example, author Abba Shapiro walks viewers through a complete and logical workflow that begins with importing media, creating a basic rough edit, and then refining the cut with music and sound effects, transitions, visual effects, and titles. The course also includes troubleshooting advice, such as reconnecting offline media and using the History panel to undo multiple actions.

Audition CS6 Essential Training

Sun, 06 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Garrick Chow

Released On: 5/6/2012

Audition CS6 Essential Training demonstrates all of the major features of Adobe Audition and prepares sound editors to start enhancing and correcting audio—whether it's music, dialogue, or other sound effects. Author and musician Garrick Chow begins by covering how to import, record, and manage media files, from extracting audio and importing video, to creating a new multitrack session from scratch. The course then dives deep into editing, repairing, and cleaning up audio files, using the Waveform and Multitrack Editors, and the Spectral Frequency Display. It also covers how to use built-in effects, how to mix both stereo and surround audio tracks, and how to work with video projects from Premiere Pro.

Fireworks CS6 Essential Training

Sun, 06 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Ray Villalobos

Released On: 5/6/2012

Join Ray Villalobos in this course, Fireworks CS6 Essential Training, as he shows how to create custom web graphics and web site mockups with Adobe Fireworks CS6. The initial chapters explain the basics: how to get around in the interface and create and organize documents. The course proceeds to cover all the essential drawing features in Fireworks, from drawing simple lines and shapes to applying fills, strokes, and opacity values to objects. The course also covers how to move, scale, and otherwise transform text and images as well as create symbols, use sprites, and integrate CSS and jQuery Mobile.

Mixing a Rock Song in Pro Tools

Fri, 04 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Brian Lee White

Released On: 5/4/2012

Watch professional mixer Brian Lee White take a rock song from the raw recorded tracks to a great-sounding, polished mix in Avid Pro Tools. The course moves at a quick pace, showing how to establish a workflow for a particular song and make mixing decisions on the fly. Watch as Brian quickly sets initial levels, sculpts the individual tracks with EQ and compression, uses spatial and special effects to create depth and interest, balances the lead vocal and rhythm section, and adds the finishing touches before bouncing down the mix. Brian also stresses the importance of “thinking like a mixer” by being creative and serving the song, exploring ideas that inspire you, and breaking away from the template mindset.

Switching from Windows to Mac (2012)

Wed, 02 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: David Rivers

Released On: 1/26/2012

Switching from Windows to the Mac focuses on the similarities and differences between the two operating systems, highlighting the new terminology and interface that can initially be mystifying for first-time Mac owners. Author David Rivers explores not only the software—Mac OS X Lion and its bundled applications—but also important hardware subjects, like understanding keyboard and mouse differences, interacting with gestures, and connecting to printers and cameras. The course also covers transferring files and mail from a Windows computer to a Mac, and installing and working with applications. Along the way, David shares a few of his favorite free apps and tips for adjusting the system preferences, so you can get the most out of your Mac experience.

Create and Embed a Photo Gallery in a PDF

Wed, 02 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Chris Converse

Released On: 5/2/2012

Discover how to create and embed a photo gallery, portfolio, or product catalog into a single, interactive PDF file—with one line of code. This course demonstrates how to create an interactive gallery with Adobe Bridge, featuring your own photos or files. Using Adobe Acrobat, author Chris Converse also shows how to embed the entire interactive user experience into a single, shareable PDF file. Use this technique to share photos, promote portfolios, or show off a product lineup in an easy-to-distribute format.

Up and Running with Evernote for Mac

Tue, 01 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: David Rivers

Released On: 5/1/2012

In this course, watch author David Rivers show how to harness the power of Evernote, a popular cloud note-taking and note-sharing tool. The course begins with a look at ways Evernote can help you note and track important items and then build and work with notes and collect notebooks for sharing. David also shows how to take and store photos, screenshots, and even video in notebooks. Plus, the powerful tagging and search features help keep your notes organized and accessible. The course also covers the notebook sharing and protection features, so your privacy is maintained at all times.

Up and Running with Evernote for Windows

Tue, 01 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: David Rivers

Released On: 5/1/2012

Unit Testing iOS Applications with Xcode 4

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Ron Lisle

Released On: 4/30/2012

Unit testing increases productivity and raises code quality. In this course, author Ron Lisle explains installation and effective use of unit testing tools and techniques for iOS projects, to ensure more stable, functional apps. An example application is provided to demonstrate testing and as the course progresses, developers are shown how to tackle the increasingly complex problems encountered when unit testing iOS development projects.

Up and Running with Photoshop Lightroom 4

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Jan Kabili

Released On: 4/30/2012

In Up and Running with Photoshop Lightroom 4, author Jan Kabili introduces the Adobe Photoshop Lightroom features for organizing, enhancing, and sharing digital photos and video clips. The course shows how to import photos and video clips from a camera and from a hard drive, explaining how Lightroom catalogs work along the way, and how to manage and organize photos and video clips with the Library module. The course also covers enhancing photos in the Develop module, including cropping, adjusting exposure, recovering details from highlights and shadows, sharpening and adding clarity, and correcting part of a photo, as well as enhancing video clips. The course concludes with a look at sharing photos: posting them on Facebook, creating photo books, exporting, and printing.

Photoshop CS6 for Photographers

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Chris Orwig

Released On: 4/26/2012

In Photoshop CS6 for Photographers, author, photographer, and teacher Chris Orwig explores Photoshop from the perspective of the photographer.

The course details the features and techniques behind enhancing and retouching photos, preparing them for print and online publishing, and much more. Chris demonstrates how to make basic edits in Camera Raw, develop and save color profiles, work with layers and selections, tone and sharpen, and retouch images while retaining their natural character.

Chris also shares some creative tips and project ideas, such as converting a photo to black-and-white and enhancing a portrait with hand-painted masks. The course also covers workflow details, such as organizing images in Bridge and Mini Bridge, optimizing Photoshop preferences, and calibrating your monitor.

Photoshop CS6 Essential Training

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Julieanne Kost

Released On: 4/26/2012

In Photoshop CS6 Essential Training, Julieanne Kost demonstrates how to produce high-quality images in a short amount of time, using a combination of Adobe Photoshop CS6, Bridge, and Camera Raw.

The course details the Photoshop features and creative options, and shows efficient ways to perform common editing tasks, including noise reduction, shadow and highlight detail recovery, retouching, and combining multiple images. Along the way, the course explores techniques for nondestructive editing and compositing using layers, blending modes, layer masks, and much more.

Photoshop CS6 One-on-One: Fundamentals

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Deke McClelland

Released On: 4/26/2012

Photoshop CS6 One-on-One: Fundamentals is a concise and focused introduction to the key features in Photoshop, presented by long-time lynda.com author and Adobe veteran Deke McClelland. This course covers the image editing process from the very beginning and progresses through the concepts and techniques that every photographer or graphic designer should know. Deke explains digital imaging fundamentals, such as resolution vs. size and the effects of downsampling. He explains how to use layers to edit an image nondestructively and organize those edits in an easy-to-read way, and introduces techniques such as cropping, adjusting brightness and contrast, correcting and changing color, and retouching and healing images. These lessons distill the vast assortment of tools and options to a refined set of skills that will get you working inside Photoshop with confidence.

Illustrator CS6 New Features

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Justin Seeley

Released On: 4/23/2012

With the CS6 release, Adobe Illustrator is turning 25 and has a new look and a few new features. In this course, Justin Seeley hosts a tour of the interface changes and the tools introduced in this version. The course covers Pattern Options for creating simple, repeatable patterns for web graphics, advanced tracing options with the Image Tracing tool, and the improved performance and file management features.

InDesign CS6 New Features

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Anne-Marie Concepcion

Released On: 4/23/2012

InDesign CS6 is dedicated to improving workflow, document distribution, and flexibility. This course provides in-depth exploration of the new features in InDesign CS6, showing not just where they are and how to use them, but also tips, workarounds, and practical applications of the features. Author Anne-Marie Concepción introduces the Liquid Layout tools and Alternate Layouts for creating flexible layouts for both print and digital publishing; the enhanced tools for creating and updating linked objects within and between documents; the Content Collector and Content Placer tools; and the introduction of EPUB 3. The course also covers creating interactive PDF forms, using the new primary text frame, previewing and exporting color layouts to grayscale, and utilizing the new production aids such as aligning selections to a key object and using smart math in panel fields.

Dreamweaver CS6 New Features

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: James Williamson

Released On: 4/23/2012

This course covers the enhancements that will most affect web designers using the latest version of Adobe Dreamweaver. Author and veteran Dreamweaver user James Williamson showcases the improved FTP capabilities; the Fluid Grids feature, which gives designers a visual way to control page layout for multiple screen sizes while automatically integrating cross-browser consistency through the use of HTML5; and the CSS Transitions panel, which makes it easy to add impressive CSS-driven transitions to any element on the page through a single dialog. James also demonstrates the increased support for jQuery Mobile, CSS, and web fonts in Dreamweaver. This course is ideal for web designers who want to evaluate the software for purchase or simply brush up on all the new features.

Flash Professional CS6 New Features

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Anastasia McCune

Released On: 4/23/2012

Discover the new features Flash Professional CS6 offers animators and application developers. Author Anastasia McCune walks through each of the software's key enhancements, including the generation of sprite sheets, which can accommodate multiple symbols or bitmaps; a new extension allowing Flash animations to be exported to HTML5; and the captive run time, which allows developers to bundle the AIR framework into an AIR application, creating a self-contained entity which eliminates the third-party dependency.

Photoshop CS6 for Photographers New Features

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Chris Orwig

Released On: 4/23/2012

This course explores the newest version of Adobe Photoshop from a photographer’s perspective—helping users of previous Photoshop versions make upgrade decisions and get up to speed with CS6. Author Chris Orwig covers the improvements to Camera Raw, from the expanded exposure controls to the upgraded Adjustment Brush and Lens Correction tools, as well as the many enhancements to Photoshop. He covers the new Layers panel behavior, which makes renaming and organizing layers almost effortless; new image adjustment techniques, such as on-the-fly Liquify adjustments, content-aware retouching, photorealistic blur effects, configurable light sources, and redefined nondestructive cropping; plus the brand-new ability to edit video in Photoshop. This course promises to get photographers excited—and informed—about what's in store for them in Photoshop CS6.

Fireworks CS6 New Features

Sun, 22 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Ray Villalobos

Released On: 4/22/2012

Join Ray Villalobos as he explores the new features and enhancements to Fireworks, the Adobe web graphic and prototyping application. The course covers color workflow improvements, such as quicker access to colors and new stroke and fill opacity controls, and user experience improvements, such as an expanded UI, an updated file naming convention, and sprite generation. The course also explores the addition of CSS and jQuery, which enhance the interactivity of documents created in Fireworks, and the addition of CSS properties and jQuery Mobile templates, which help integrate Fireworks into web design and development workflows.

WordPress Essential Training

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Morten Rand-Hendriksen

Released On: 4/19/2012

WordPress Essential Training shows how to get the most out of the self-hosted version of WordPress and create feature-rich blogs and web sites. Author Morten Rand-Hendriksen explains how to get a web host, set up a domain, and download, configure, and upload WordPress to your newly hosted site. The course then dives fully into the tools in WordPress, demonstrating how to set up your profile and create content to share with your web audience. The course also includes tutorials on everything from adding images, video, formatting, and links that make posts pop, to installing plug-ins, creating custom themes, and attracting readers with permalinks, social sharing, and more.

Note: This course is also useful for migrating a blog from WordPress.com to a self-hosting solution.

WordPress.com Essential Training

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Morten Rand-Hendriksen

Released On: 4/19/2012

This course shows how to establish a web presence quickly and easily with WordPress.com, without having to download any software or set up web hosting. Morten Rand-Hendriksen shows how to sign up for an account, personalize your profile, and start posting content right away. The course also includes tutorials on everything from adding images, video, formatting, and links that make blog posts pop to installing plug-ins, creating custom themes, and attracting readers with social sharing, and more.

Foundations of Audio: Delay and Modulation

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Alex U. Case

Released On: 1/18/2012

In this installment of Foundations of Audio, author Alex U. Case explains the fundamentals of delay and modulation effects and how to apply these effects, technically and creatively, to improve the sound of a mix. The course covers adjusting individual parameters such as delay time, level, and feedback; working with long delays to create echoes, enhance groove, and add support; using delay modulation for chorus and doubling effects; and dialing-in spectral effects from delay, such as flanging. This course also includes Get in the Mix (GITM) sessions for both Avid Pro Tools and Apple Logic Pro. Exercise files are also included with the course.

Building Templates in Word

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Mariann Siegert

Released On: 4/18/2012

In this course, author Mariann Siegert shares how to harness the power of templates in Microsoft Word and create efficient and repeatable workflows. The course focuses on the basics of using and applying templates but also shows how to create custom templates with document property fields, macros, content controls, building blocks, and styles. Also discover how to create style set templates to make documents more efficient and consistent; use organizers to copy styles, macros, and Autotext between templates; modify the default Normal template; and create workgroup, global, and add-in templates to share with colleagues.

Building Blocks and Macros in Word

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Authored By: Mariann Siegert

Released On: 4/18/2012

Streamline your workflows and cut time spent on document creation by taking advantage of building blocks and macros in Microsoft Word. Author Mariann Siegert illustrates how to create, store, and effortlessly reuse pieces of document information such as boilerplate text, graphics, tables, shapes, fields, and content controls. The course also explains how to record macros to capture the steps in your workflow and run them with a single click. The course includes five real-world projects and introduces Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), the language on which Word macros are based.