About the slowest thing your computer has to contend with is the hard drive. While CPUs are in the nanosecond range, hard drive access is measured in thousandths of a second, quite slow in the world of light-speed processors. On top of that, most computers crash because of hard drive problems, as they are extremely complicated eletromechanical beasts. Want to work faster? Want to say goodbye to hard drive crashes? You will, with Solid State Drives (SSDs), which represent the next step in storage evolution.

The future has already started, and CRE is on the leading edge once again with MacBook Pro rentals equipped with this superfast memory. It will take some time for the prices to come down to “old-fashioned” hard drive levels, but now that SSDs are being mass-manufactured it is happening just like it did before. More and more computer makers are offering them as options. But the really astonishing thing is this: SSDs address just about every weakness of standard hard drives, and will completely replace them in the future. SSDs really are amazing, which is why they are taking over, and soon!

How Solid State Drives work

As opposed to those older hard drives, SSDs are simply gargantuan versions of NAND flash memory like the SecureDigital card that goes in your camera, the USB thumb drive you use for your sneakernet, and the memory in cell phones and iPod nanos. When enough chips are packed together you get enough storage volume for today’s use, from 8 to 64GB for iPhones and iPads, 32-64GB and up for netbooks, laptops and desktops. For computers, the SSDs are even built to existing form factors (2.5-inch laptop and 3.5-inch desktop sizes) so they are easily installed into existing devices. They use the same SATA connectors as most current hard drives, too.

Their advantages are many and dramatic – no moving parts, no noise, less heat and zero vibration. Because there are no spinning platters and moving read/write heads, there are no crashes due to hardware malfunctions. They draw less power, as well. All of this means tremendous reliability, over a million hours MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure) and incredible speed. A fast 7200rpm hard drive has an access time of between 5 and 10ms, while the SSD clocks in at a staggering 0.1ms. Yes, one-tenth of a millisecond. Clearly, this is the future of data storage, at least for work in progress. It may or may not be the best long-term archiving solution, which is why other media (hard drives, optical media, tape) will remain in use.

Benefits of  SSDs

As previously noted, CRE now has MacBook Pro rentals with superfast SSDs. You may not notice that the laptop is a bit lighter, but you will definitely notice that it is quieter, cooler and faster. SSDs can also withstand drops and impacts that would send read/write heads scraping across your regular hard drive’s disc platters, obliterating data on their way. You would have to physically crush or smash an SSD with a crowbar to experience that kind of data loss.

Whether you need the swift SSD-equipped MacBook Pros, the potent Mac Pro rentals, other computer rentals, or A/V and convention-related technology, CRE is your one-stop shop for all of it. We have the expertise, the equipment and the experienced Account Executives to help you find the right solution for your particular challenge. Give us a call, send an e-mail or fill out the Quick Rental Quote form. We will put together a quote right away so that you get the laptop rental with SSD or other rental equipment when you need it – guaranteed!

In 2003, the Green Meetings Task Force of the Convention Industry Council (CIC) was asked to create minimum best sustainability practices for event organizers, vendors and participants. The task force included representatives of industry, government and think thanks, from the EPA, the Ocean’s Blue Foundation and the World Travel Organization to convention and visitor’s bureaus, hotel firms, convention centers, meeting planners and other organizations. The Task Force’s work resulted in a set of guidelines for event organizers and suppliers for producing “eco-friendly” events.

What is a green event?

The CIC Task Force defines a green meeting or event as one that “incorporates environmental considerations to minimize its negative impact on the environment.” Once the principles were established, it was thought, the continuing march of technology would provide ever faster, cleaner and more sustainable methods for reducing the negative impact. This has, in fact, occurred. Since 2003, wireless networking has found its way into every laptop line, like MacBook Pro rentals, and with inexpensive wireless access readily available, event organizers can reduce their use of paper for programs, maps and schedules by emailing or using Twitter to keep attendees informed.

Digital recording has progressed leaps and bounds. A Digital Recorder rental, like the M-Audio MicroTrack 24/96, offers a professional, 2-channel, mobile digital recorder that records WAV and MP3 files to Compact Flash (CF) cards and fits in the palm of your hand. Event organizers can record sessions and upload them, making it easy for attendees to listen to sessions missed;  add PDF files of session handouts and notes, and you’ve created a greener event.

High-Tech Convention Centers

Advances in green meetings are being paralleled by advances in convention technology, which we will cover in an upcoming blog. There is another trend, however, that is most exciting, and that is the new generation of high-tech convention centers.

When the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority (MCCA) built its new Boston convention facility, the goal was to create a high-tech convention center that would serve as the centerpiece of the city’s waterfront revitalization program. Designed as a totally wired facility, it provides visitors with site-wide Internet access and exhibitors with under-the-floor boxes for easy access to all utilities and communication. Setting up a networked PC to run presentations on an LCD monitor rental is a snap with this kind of pre-planning.

Convention center management used the facility’s Ethernet backbone network to design the Building Automation System (BAS). The BAS allows third-party systems to inter-operate with its single front-end system,which has over 5,000 control points. Convention center staff can manage and monitor the entire center’s operations and systems both centrally and remotely — everything from HVAC equipment, fire alarm interfaces, A/V systems and more. When a problem occurs with any of the systems, the BAS alerts convention center staff via cell phone or e-mail.

Looking for a partner that is committed to “green” and is a leader in convention planning and rentals? CRE Rentals is ready to help you plan, implement and equip your next event. Give our expert Account Executives a call, send an e-mail or fill out the Quick Rental Quote right now to start “greening” your next event.

The pace of technological change is not only relentless, it’s breathtaking. Every day, new kinds of devices make work (and play) less time-consuming and therefore less costly. It’s too much for the average person to stay abreast of, so CRE Rentals brings you monthly updates from every corner of the Tech Universe. Whatever kind of technology you’re using for video, post-production, event planning, conferences, meetings or just plain office work, CRE has you covered when you’re in a crunch. From advanced Audience Response System rentals for meetings and marketing focus groups, to a dozen wifi-enabled Tablet PC rentals to keep your conference staff connected, we’re here with solutions.

Pro specs at a consumer price

Panasonic’s newest, most compact “Micro Four Thirds” camera is the Lumix GF1, which has 12-megapixel resolution, a 3-inch LCD viewscreen and integrated flash. Professional photographers and filmmakers, many of whom have MacPro rentals, know that the “Micro Four Thirds” standard is an impressive extension to the “Four Thirds” standard that Leica, Olympus, Panasonic and other makers developed for their pro-level digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) cameras. The GF1 stores images on SD/SDHC cards, has a dust cleaning feature, boasts optical image stabilization and still comes in 35% smaller and 26% lighter than its predecessor, the G1.

Smartphone for video pros?

Philips is set to debut its latest Google Android smartphone, the V808. It is the firm’s second Android-powered unit and has a bright, detailed 3.2 inch touchscreen display, support for microSD storage cards up to 8GB and a full-featured 3.2 megapixel camera. Video post-production pros that use AJA Io HD rentals from CRE can now get up-to-the-minute samples of projects sent to their phones, as the device offers both “widget” support and an audio/video multimedia player. The V808’s 1000 mAh battery should give several hours of service at full-on use, and its GSM/GPRS/EDGE connectivity will interface every which way.

MacBooks get a boost

Apple just upgraded its MacBook with more powerful components, with CPU speed upped from 2.13 to 2.26GHz and the hard drive from 160 to 250GB. The 2GB of DDR2 RAM was replaced by the latest memory module technology, the faster DDR3 memory. Cosmetic changes include the new rubber bottom, the Apple-exclusive multitouch trackpad (made of glass), a seven-hour built-in battery and LED backlighting for its 13.3-inch display. As CRE integrates newer models into its MacBook and MacBook Pro rental inventory, users will find a unibody polycarbonate enclosure in the former and an aluminum one in the latter.

If you have questions about how the new technologies can help you, call one of our expert Account Executives today, toll free, at (877) 266-7725. You can also use our Contact Page or Quick Rental Quote web form for immediate assistance.  We’re here to offer first-rate service and support, and get you the solutions that you decide you need.

Watch for Part 2 of the CRE Tech Product Update, set to appear on Wednesday, November 4th.

When Apple announced its new Macintosh in the legendary “1984” commercial during the 1984 Super Bowl, it positioned the diminutive computer as the “anti-PC.” It boasted point-and-click simplicity with its novel “mouse,” a graphical user interface with “folders” and “windows,” and the desktop “look and feel” that redefined the relationship between humans and computers.

Now, 25 years later, that little breadbox with the 9-inch grayscale screen has evolved into the potent Mac product line of laptops. iMacs, servers—and the creative pro’s number one favorite, the Mac Pro. Add Apple’s Final Cut software and an AJA Io HD rental from CRE Rentals and you have an editing and post-production solution that puts you in the big leagues. There are certainly some cutting-edge PCs out there, and some very good Windows software, too, but somehow the Mac made a splash with creative types, from art directors to filmmakers.

Chips and dips

The 1980s and 1990s brought one pitched battle after another, which grew into a war between the Mac and everything associated with the PC. Apple’s CPU maker, Motorola, today a major cellphone maker, was the good guy, and even made a short-lived Mac clone. Intel, CPU maker for PCs, was the bad guy, but Microsoft, as the power behind all the various PC brands, was the chief villain in the eyes of Apple partisans.

And today? Today, all new Macs have Intel CPUs, and powerful ones, at that. On Intel Macs, like the iMac rental available from CRE,  you can run Windows both natively and under virtualization (with such products as VMware and Parallels Desktop). If you have a business and you’re upgrading workstations, you only need a couple of iMacs to replace whatever office PCs you’re running.

Covering all the bases

If your demands are a little greater, upgrade to the Mac Pro rental to keep all your work going forward in both OS environments. The quad- or 8-core Mac Pro will fill the bill no matter how much horsepower you require—for animation, video and audio work, Web and publishing layouts, 3D, texture mapping and the whole range of high-intensity creative jobs. In fact, no matter what the job—on a Mac or PC, for office applications, interactive presentations or video editing—CRE has got you covered when you need a potent computer workstation rental.

Truce time

There is little left of the bitter Mac-PC war. Apple’s devices, from its computers to its non-Mac products like the iPhone, iPod and iTunes money makers, prove their productivity every day. In addition, all tech professionals respect the power, affordability and utility of the best PCs, like the powerhouse HP XW 8400 that CRE rents.

Macs are shining so brightly these days that they may steal a little bit of the late-October limelight that Microsoft was hoping to keep focused on its Windows 7 release (learn more about Windows 7 features). Apple sales are big, for Macs, iPhones and iPods, and ongoing improvements to the MacBook line (like MacBook Pro rentals) have lifted Apple’s laptop sales figures to double that of its desktops.

Our expert Account Executives can show you how two former foes, the Mac and the PC, can work together to bring you solutions for events, trade shows, rush jobs and creative “crunch time.” Contact one of our Account Executives by e-mail or phone, or use our online Quick Rental Quote form, today.

Who do you think won the battle? We would love to hear from you.

When it comes to computers and personal electronics, Apple is the company that the pundits (and Wall Street) keep an eye on. Yesterday, the firm was in the headlines again with a range of announcements concerning its iconic iPod line, but there was just as much interest in what wasn’t said, such as the all-but-confirmed rumor of a Macintosh tablet computer. Steve Jobs may have looked a bit frail after his liver transplant, but the company itself is as robust as ever, perhaps more so.

Last week, Apple shipped the latest version (10.6) of its operating system, dubbed Snow Leopard, which powers its line of computers. Upgrades have slowed a bit on their iMac models, which CRE proudly provides to many  firms, as sales tumbled some 25% over last year, as well as on the potent Mac Pro towers, which CRE’s customers rely on daily. The overall PC market dipped some six percent between 2007 and 2008, making production plans for 2009 a bit dicey. However, Apple’s laptop sales (MacBook and MacBook Pro) skyrocketed, growing some 70 percent in the first quarter of this year as compared to 2008.

CRE customers are well aware of the power and utility of the Mac line, which has been the computer of choice (with the OS of choice) for creatives since its debut over 25 years ago. The venerable, still-muscular PowerMacintosh G5, which CRE outfits with the Kona card, is a mainstay of the animation and video/film production sector. For the powerful AJA Io HD system, the Mac is an elegant, stable and efficient front end, bringing incredible power and precision to post-production in tandem with Apple’s own Final Cut Studio 2 software.

Video, in fact, made the news in Apple’s Wednesday extravaganza, as the capability to record in the state-of-the-art h.264 format was added to Apple’s iPod Nano model, along with FM radio (with a Live Pause function). Along with incredible price reductions and flash memory upgrades to the entire iPod line, this capability can do nothing but further establish the iPod as the personal music and video appliance king. The line as a whole has an incredible 70% market share.

What was left unsaid was the future of the Mac tablet, rumors about which Apple is no longer deploying its famed (and feared) legal department to combat. Analysts now think that a touchscreen unit resembling a larger iPod touch (oddly, Apple doesn’t capitalize the name of this capital-earning model) will be a “connected device” offering movies, music, games, Web browsing and microcomputer capabilities at a sub-$1000 price point. Many industry observers expect it to be Apple’s next “growth catalyst.”

Finally, the iPhone, now available starting at just $99, was given short shrift at the Apple event, since the big announcements about it came from AT&T and Verizon. Both companies are promising “warp speed” for the iPhone with their revamped 3G networks. Apple’s App Store is doing a incredible volume of business, as is iTunes, which was just upgraded to version 9, on the music side. Apple is healthier than ever, its stock having doubled in the last year, and the only reason the price took a slight dive late yesterday was because the profit-takers cashed in on the company’s 2008-2009 growth and its sterling prospects for the future.

CRE customers know that they can expect all the best in Apple and other technology products, from WiFi tablets to office equipment, when they need to get that big job out the door or ramp up for a new project. As Apple pushes into the future (with a recovering Steve Jobs, one hopes), CRE is right there with them. Wherever Apple goes, it’s bound to be a happy journey for the millions of Mac, iPhone and iPod users, a large and talented contingent of folks that CRE proudly serves. Fill out an online quote request form, give us a call or e-mail our Account Executives today for all your technology needs, from Apple and other first-rank tech companies.

What we now know as Apple Final Cut Pro, now in version 7 while the Studio package is in version 2, was actually created by Macromedia. That’s the company that took over the venerable FreeHand vector drawing program way back when, and also brought Dreamweaver (née GoLive), Flash and a few other goodies along when Adobe absorbed them in 2005.

Long story short, Macromedia brought a beta version of a program called KeyGrip to the National Association of Broadcasters convention in 1998 (NAB1998) but found no takers. In somewhat of a strategic move, Apple bought up the KeyGrip code and the team that birthed it, added Firewire and DV support, continued developing the product and released it at NAB1999 as Final Cut Pro (FCP).

Meanwhile, its old code and low optimization took Adobe Premiere’s Mac market share steadily downward, to the point that Premiere Pro became a Windows-only product at about the turn of the millennium. Starting then, however, FCP began making serious inroads into the Hollywood movie scene, and by 2007 it had just about half (49%) of the domestic professional editing market, compared to 22% for Avid.

It began with a teen flick

Demonstrating the power and potential of a consumer (more like “prosumer”) product, the teen movie Rules of Attraction was edited on a beta release of FCP3 in 2001. This made the film’s director, Roger Avary, something of an unofficial spokesman for Apple’s editing software, which caused a few industry pros—editors, directors of photography, directors, producers—to take notice. The entertainment world as a whole then noticed, and FCP won an Emmy in 2002 for its “impact on the television industry.”

All the Macs that CRE rents—from MacBook Pros to the Mac Pro towers—are able to run FCP, so professional and amateur moviemakers alike can work on their latest masterpieces at home, on a soundstage or on location. Some of the heavy lifting for special effects may take some extra horsepower, additional time or both, but the fact is that FCP has democratized the filmmaking field more than any other product, service, or invention.

Gaining momentum still

There is no doubt that FCP’s involvement in the production of the 2008 Brad Pitt hit, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, sent a powerful “get on board” message to filmmakers still undecided about the software. The movie led the year’s Oscar nominations with a baker’s dozen (13, remember?) and was noteworthy for the excellent look and seamless special effects. Renting CRE’s Mac Pro with FCP gets you the same power that brought a bucket of Oscar noms to this well-regarded film.

Even before Benjamin Button, however, a long list of first-rate films attested to the growing power and popularity of Apple’s editing package (see Mac Movies List, below), including multiple Oscar-winner Cold Mountain, Clint Eastwood’s Letters from Iwo Jima and the Best Movie of 2008, No Country for Old Men.

Big help for small films

It’s not only big studios and bankable stars that benefit from the Mac’s creative muscle. Able Edwards, made in 2004 by director Graham Robertson and producer Steve Soderbergh, was shot on a small Hollywood green-screen stage in 15 days on a $30,000 budget. It was edited on a single PowerMac G4 with a mere 2GB of RAM, using FCP alongside Maya, QuickTime and Adobe Photoshop. Five years later, the iMacs that CRE rents have many times the power of that G4, so a low-cost rental can put you in the race for Oscar gold—assuming you have a great script, a talented cast and a distribution deal (YouTube may do in a pinch).

As far as a “movie on a shoestring” story, there’s an even better one. Johnatan Caouette made his a 2003 documentary film, Tarnation, on an iMac for a final budget of $281. If you think that’s impressive, he didn’t even use FCP, he did it all with iMovie. Incredibly, the distributor spent over 1,400 times more (nearly $400,000) promoting the flick and bringing it to theaters. Caouette didn’t even have an external hard drive for storage, much less a RAID array like CRE rents, and dealt with iMovie’s limitations by producing 15 minutes of the film at a time. He would then dump each segment onto his Hi-8 tape master, delete it from the iMac and start up on the next piece.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way—but where there’s a Mac, it’ll save the day. If you are thinking of giving Universal and Paramount some competition, and need a little extra post-production prowess, CRE is here with the right solutions. One of our specialties is supporting animators, editors and special effect pros in the entertainment industry, so contact us by filling out the CRE Quick Quote Rental Form , calling us toll-free at (877) 266-7725 or sending an e-mail for a quick, courteous and knowledgeable response.

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Major films edited with FCP:

Black Snake Moan
Burn After Reading
Cold Mountain
Corpse Bride
Full Frontal
Happy Feet
Intolerable Cruelty
Jarhead
Letters from Iwo Jima
Napoleon Dynamite
No Country for Old Men
Open Water
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
Super Size Me
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Ladykillers
The Ring
The Ring 2
The Rules of Attraction
The Simpsons Movie
Zodiac