Photoshop comes with a very powerful filter for extracting complicated areas like hair, clouds, trees and others. Whenever I need to extract parts of an photo where there are no sharp edges the Extract Filter is the best tool for the job.

Photoshop CS4 does not include the Extract Filter in the basic installation but you can copy it from the Goodies folder on the install DVD. You can also download it directly from Adobe’s website.

Download

Adobe Photoshop CS4 Optional plug-ins pack includes:
• Bigger Tiles
• Picture Package (ContactSheetII)
• ExtractPlus
• PatternMaker
• PhotomergeUI
• TWAIN
• Web Photo Gallery (WebContactSheetII) plus presets
• Textures for Texturizer
• script for Layer Comps to Web Photo Gallery

Mac Download:
http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/detail.jsp?ftpID=4047

Windows Download:
http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/detail.jsp?ftpID=4048

The long awaited software update for the iPhone is finally available. There are no big surprises but some necessary features for your iPhone.

Copy, Cut & Paste

One of the features I was missing since the very first moment was the ability to copy and paste throughout all applications on the iPhone. I am so glad to have that functionality now.

Next Generation iPhone Apps

The new update will bring tons of new apps with more advanced functionalities to the AppStore.

Spotlight Search

Searching for files, apps, and other things will get much more easy using the newly integrated Spotlight for iPhone. Spotlight is one of the best productivity tool for Macs – so why shouldn’t it be great for the iPhone as well?

Voice Memos

Sometimes it is quite handy to record some thoughts vocally. Much faster and easier than typing in text.

There are many more new features that come with this update. To get the new OS 3.0 for your iPhone just follow these steps:

1. Connect you iPhone with your Mac/PC
2. Run iTunes
3. Select your iPhone in the Devices list on the left side
4. In the iPhone Summary pane, click Check for Update.
5. Click Download and Install

I found today a superb resource for Cheat Sheets (also known as reference cards) on DZone.

Whenever I find a cheat sheet in a book store I need to buy it.  Looking up information on the Internet is way faster but sometimes you don’t have a connection and these short e-books can be of good help.

Here is a short list of Cheat Sheets I found on DZone:

• Essential MySQL
• Core ASP.Net
• Core CSS: Part III
• Essential Ruby
• Core Java
• PHP
• Struts
• C#
• JQuery Selectors
• Design Patterns
• Spring Configuration
• Getting Started with Eclipse

You will find on http://refcardz.dzone.com more the 50 of these sheets.