Phase correlation is an approach to estimate the relative translative offset between two similar images (digital image correlation) or other data sets. It is commonly used in image registration and relies on a frequency-domain representation of the data, usually calculated by fast Fourier transforms. The term is applied particularly to a subset of cross-correlation techniques that isolate the phase information from the Fourier-space representation of the cross-correlogram. == Example == The following image demonstrates the usage of phase correlation to determine relative translative movement between two images corrupted by independent Gaussian noise. The image was translated by (20,23) pixels. Accordingly, one can clearly see a peak in the phase-correlation representation at approximately (20,23). == Method == Given two input images g a {\displaystyle \ g_{a}} and g b {\displaystyle \ g_{b}} : Apply a window function (e.g., a Hamming window) on both images to reduce edge effects (this may be optional depending on the image characteristics). Then, calculate the discrete 2D Fourier transform of both images. G a = F { g a } , G b = F { g b } {\displaystyle \ \mathbf {G} _{a}={\mathcal {F}}\{g_{a}\},\;\mathbf {G} _{b}={\mathcal {F}}\{g_{b}\}} Calculate the cross-power spectrum by taking the complex conjugate of the second result, multiplying the Fourier transforms together elementwise, and normalizing this product elementwise. R = G a ∘ G b ∗ | G a ∘ G b ∗ | {\displaystyle \ R={\frac {\mathbf {G} _{a}\circ \mathbf {G} _{b}^{}}{|\mathbf {G} _{a}\circ \mathbf {G} _{b}^{}|}}} Where ∘ {\displaystyle \circ } is the Hadamard product (entry-wise product) and the absolute values are taken entry-wise as well. Written out entry-wise for element index ( j , k ) {\displaystyle (j,k)} : R j k = G a , j k ⋅ G b , j k ∗ | G a , j k ⋅ G b , j k ∗ | {\displaystyle \ R_{jk}={\frac {G_{a,jk}\cdot G_{b,jk}^{}}{|G_{a,jk}\cdot G_{b,jk}^{}|}}} Obtain the normalized cross-correlation by applying the inverse Fourier transform. r = F − 1 { R } {\displaystyle \ r={\mathcal {F}}^{-1}\{R\}} Determine the location of the peak in r {\displaystyle \ r} . ( Δ x , Δ y ) = arg max ( x , y ) { r } {\displaystyle \ (\Delta x,\Delta y)=\arg \max _{(x,y)}\{r\}} === Subpixel registration === Commonly, interpolation methods are used to estimate the peak location in the cross-correlogram to non-integer values, despite the fact that the data are discrete, and this procedure is often termed 'subpixel registration'. A large variety of subpixel interpolation methods are given in the technical literature. Common peak interpolation methods such as parabolic interpolation have been used, and the OpenCV computer vision package uses a centroid-based method, though these generally have inferior accuracy compared to more sophisticated methods. Because the Fourier representation of the data has already been computed, it is especially convenient to use the Fourier shift theorem with real-valued (sub-integer) shifts for this purpose, which essentially interpolates using the sinusoidal basis functions of the Fourier transform. An especially popular FT-based estimator is given by Foroosh et al. In this method, the subpixel peak location is approximated by a simple formula involving peak pixel value and the values of its nearest neighbors, where r ( 0 , 0 ) {\displaystyle r_{(0,0)}} is the peak value and r ( 1 , 0 ) {\displaystyle r_{(1,0)}} is the nearest neighbor in the x direction (assuming, as in most approaches, that the integer shift has already been found and the comparand images differ only by a subpixel shift). Δ x = r ( 1 , 0 ) r ( 1 , 0 ) ± r ( 0 , 0 ) {\displaystyle \ \Delta x={\frac {r_{(1,0)}}{r_{(1,0)}\pm r_{(0,0)}}}} The Foroosh et al. method is quite fast compared to most methods, though it is not always the most accurate. Some methods shift the peak in Fourier space and apply non-linear optimization to maximize the correlogram peak, but these tend to be very slow since they must apply an inverse Fourier transform or its equivalent in the objective function. It is also possible to infer the peak location from phase characteristics in Fourier space without the inverse transformation, as noted by Stone. These methods usually use a linear least squares (LLS) fit of the phase angles to a planar model. The long latency of the phase angle computation in these methods is a disadvantage, but the speed can sometimes be comparable to the Foroosh et al. method depending on the image size. They often compare favorably in speed to the multiple iterations of extremely slow objective functions in iterative non-linear methods. Since all subpixel shift computation methods are fundamentally interpolative, the performance of a particular method depends on how well the underlying data conform to the assumptions in the interpolator. This fact also may limit the usefulness of high numerical accuracy in an algorithm, since the uncertainty due to interpolation method choice may be larger than any numerical or approximation error in the particular method. Subpixel methods are also particularly sensitive to noise in the images, and the utility of a particular algorithm is distinguished not only by its speed and accuracy but its resilience to the particular types of noise in the application. == Rationale == The method is based on the Fourier shift theorem. Let the two images g a {\displaystyle \ g_{a}} and g b {\displaystyle \ g_{b}} be circularly-shifted versions of each other: g b ( x , y ) = d e f g a ( ( x − Δ x ) mod M , ( y − Δ y ) mod N ) {\displaystyle \ g_{b}(x,y)\ {\stackrel {\mathrm {def} }{=}}\ g_{a}((x-\Delta x){\bmod {M}},(y-\Delta y){\bmod {N}})} (where the images are M × N {\displaystyle \ M\times N} in size). Then, the discrete Fourier transforms of the images will be shifted relatively in phase: G b ( u , v ) = G a ( u , v ) e − 2 π i ( u Δ x M + v Δ y N ) {\displaystyle \mathbf {G} _{b}(u,v)=\mathbf {G} _{a}(u,v)e^{-2\pi i({\frac {u\Delta x}{M}}+{\frac {v\Delta y}{N}})}} One can then calculate the normalized cross-power spectrum to factor out the phase difference: R ( u , v ) = G a G b ∗ | G a G b ∗ | = G a G a ∗ e 2 π i ( u Δ x M + v Δ y N ) | G a G a ∗ e 2 π i ( u Δ x M + v Δ y N ) | = G a G a ∗ e 2 π i ( u Δ x M + v Δ y N ) | G a G a ∗ | = e 2 π i ( u Δ x M + v Δ y N ) {\displaystyle {\begin{aligned}R(u,v)&={\frac {\mathbf {G} _{a}\mathbf {G} _{b}^{}}{|\mathbf {G} _{a}\mathbf {G} _{b}^{}|}}\\&={\frac {\mathbf {G} _{a}\mathbf {G} _{a}^{}e^{2\pi i({\frac {u\Delta x}{M}}+{\frac {v\Delta y}{N}})}}{|\mathbf {G} _{a}\mathbf {G} _{a}^{}e^{2\pi i({\frac {u\Delta x}{M}}+{\frac {v\Delta y}{N}})}|}}\\&={\frac {\mathbf {G} _{a}\mathbf {G} _{a}^{}e^{2\pi i({\frac {u\Delta x}{M}}+{\frac {v\Delta y}{N}})}}{|\mathbf {G} _{a}\mathbf {G} _{a}^{}|}}\\&=e^{2\pi i({\frac {u\Delta x}{M}}+{\frac {v\Delta y}{N}})}\end{aligned}}} since the magnitude of an imaginary exponential always is one, and the phase of G a G a ∗ {\displaystyle \ \mathbf {G} _{a}\mathbf {G} _{a}^{}} always is zero. The inverse Fourier transform of a complex exponential is a Dirac delta function, i.e. a single peak: r ( x , y ) = δ ( x + Δ x , y + Δ y ) {\displaystyle \ r(x,y)=\delta (x+\Delta x,y+\Delta y)} This result could have been obtained by calculating the cross correlation directly. The advantage of this method is that the discrete Fourier transform and its inverse can be performed using the fast Fourier transform, which is much faster than correlation for large images. === Benefits === Unlike many spatial-domain algorithms, the phase correlation method is resilient to noise, occlusions, and other defects typical of medical or satellite images. The method can be extended to determine rotation and scaling differences between two images by first converting the images to log-polar coordinates. Due to properties of the Fourier transform, the rotation and scaling parameters can be determined in a manner invariant to translation. === Limitations === In practice, it is more likely that g b {\displaystyle \ g_{b}} will be a simple linear shift of g a {\displaystyle \ g_{a}} , rather than a circular shift as required by the explanation above. In such cases, r {\displaystyle \ r} will not be a simple delta function, which will reduce the performance of the method. In such cases, a window function (such as a Gaussian or Tukey window) should be employed during the Fourier transform to reduce edge effects, or the images should be zero padded so that the edge effects can be ignored. If the images consist of a flat background, with all detail situated away from the edges, then a linear shift will be equivalent to a circular shift, and the above derivation will hold exactly. The peak can be sharpened by using edge or vector correlation. For periodic images (such as a chessboard or picket fence), phase correlation may yield ambiguous results with several peaks in the resulting output. == Applications == Phase correlation is the preferred m
Powerset (company)
Powerset was an American company based in San Francisco, California, that, in 2006, was developing a natural language search engine for the Internet. On July 1, 2008, Powerset was acquired by Microsoft for an estimated $100 million (~$143 million in 2024). Powerset was working on building a natural language search engine that could find targeted answers to user questions (as opposed to keyword based search). For example, when confronted with a question like "Which U.S. state has the highest income tax?", conventional search engines ignore the question phrasing and instead do a search on the keywords "state", "highest", "income", and "tax". Powerset on the other hand, attempts to use natural language processing to understand the nature of the question and return pages containing the answer. The company was in the process of "building a natural language search engine that reads and understands every sentence on the Web". The company has licensed natural language technology from PARC, the former Xerox Palo Alto Research Center. On May 11, 2008, the company unveiled a tool for searching a fixed subset of English Wikipedia using conversational phrases rather than keywords. Acquisition by Microsoft: One significant milestone in Powerset's history was its acquisition by Microsoft on July 1, 2008, for an estimated $100 million. This acquisition was part of Microsoft's broader strategy to enhance its search capabilities and compete more effectively with other search engine providers, particularly Google. Natural Language Search Engine: Powerset's primary focus was on developing a natural language search engine capable of understanding and interpreting user queries in a more human-like manner. Instead of simply matching keywords, Powerset aimed to comprehend the meaning behind the words, allowing for more accurate and contextually relevant search results. Technology and Partnerships: Powerset had licensed natural language technology from PARC, the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center. This technology likely played a crucial role in the development of Powerset's NLP capabilities. Wikipedia Search Tool: In May 2008, Powerset unveiled a search tool that allowed users to search a fixed subset of English Wikipedia using conversational phrases rather than traditional keywords. This demonstrated the potential of Powerset's NLP technology in providing more precise and relevant search results. == Powerlabs == In a form of beta testing, Powerset opened an online community called Powerlabs on September 17, 2007. Business Week said: "The company hopes the site will marshal thousands of people to help build and improve its search engine before it goes public next year." Said The New York Times: "[Powerset Labs] goes far beyond the 'alpha' or 'beta' testing involved in most software projects, when users put a new product through rigorous testing to find its flaws. Powerset doesn’t have a product yet, but rather a collection of promising natural language technologies, which are the fruit of years of research at Xerox PARC." Powerlabs' initial search results are taken from Wikipedia. == Notable people == Barney Pell (born March 18, 1968, in Hollywood, California) was co-founder and CEO of Powerset. Pell received his Bachelor of Science degree in symbolic systems from Stanford University in 1989, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa and was a National Merit Scholar. Pell received a PhD in computer science from Cambridge University in 1993, where he was a Marshall Scholar. He has worked at NASA, as chief strategist and vice president of business development at StockMaster.com (acquired by Red Herring in March, 2000) and at Whizbang! Labs. Prior to joining Powerset, Pell was an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Mayfield Fund, a venture capital firm in Silicon Valley. Pell is also a founder of Moon Express, Inc., a U.S. company awarded a $10M commercial lunar contract by NASA and a competitor in the Google Lunar X PRIZE. Steve Newcomb was the COO and co-founder of Powerset. Prior to joining Powerset, he was a co-founder of Loudfire, General Manager at Promptu, and was on the board of directors at Jaxtr. He left Powerset in October 2007 to form Virgance, a social startup incubator. Lorenzo Thione (born in Como, Italy) was the product architect and co-founder of Powerset. Prior to joining Powerset, he worked at FXPAL in natural language processing and related research fields. Thione earned his master's degree in software engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. Ronald Kaplan, former manager of research in Natural Language Theory and Technology at PARC, served as the company's CTO and CSO. Ryan Ferrier is a member of the founding team of Powerset. He managed personnel and internal operations. After 2008 he went on to co-found Serious Business, which made Facebook applications and was later bought by Zynga. Another Powerset alumnus, Alex Le, became CTO of Serious Business and went on to become an executive producer at Zynga when it bought the company. Siqi Chen founded a stealth startup in mobile computing after leaving Powerset. Tom Preston-Werner worked at Powerset and left after the acquisition to found GitHub. == Investors == Powerset attracted a wide range of investors, many of whom had considerable experience in the venture capital field. The company received $12.5 million (~$18.2 million in 2024) in Series A funding during November 2007, co-led by the venture capital firms Foundation Capital and The Founders Fund. Among the better-known investors: Esther Dyson, founding chairman of ICANN, founder of the newsletter Release 1.0 and editor at Cnet Peter Thiel, founder and former CEO of PayPal Luke Nosek, founder of PayPal Todd Parker. Managing Partner, Hidden River Ventures Reid Hoffman, executive vice president of PayPal and founder of LinkedIn First Round Capital, seed-stage venture firm
Coolgorilla
Coolgorilla was one of the earliest software developers that created 3rd party native applications for Apple iPod devices. Coolgorilla was an early adopter of using a sponsorship business model to enable mobile applications to be given away freely. Coolgorilla developed a series of Talking Phrasebooks for iPods in 2006. They partnered with online travel company lastminute.com who sponsored the applications enabling them to be made available to download completely free of charge. As mobile devices became more sophisticated, Coolgorilla developed the Talking Phrasebooks for Sony Ericsson and Nokia Mobile Devices which at the time were considerably noteworthy since the applications used real voice audio translations. With Apple's introduction of the iPhone in 2007, Coolgorilla developed a Web App before having four of the iPhone Talking Phrasebooks available to download from Apple's App Store on the day it opened in 2008. == Almanac in Chronological Order == On 23 December 2005, CoolGorilla, a new start-up, launched a trivia game for the iPod. It was titled "Rock and Pop Quiz". It was a quiz game that tested users' knowledge on bands such as U2, Metallica, Beyonce, and the Beatles. The quiz contained twenty megabytes of audible trivia questions. The free game was compatible with 3rd, 4th and 5th generation iPods, iPod mini and nano. In March 2006, Coolgorilla released "Movie Quiz for iPods" with a price of $5. It was an audio game narrated by New York's DJ Thomas, a radio and television host, voice over artist and event Master of Ceremonies. There were questions on Star Wars, Spiderman, The Godfather, Pulp Fiction, The Matrix, James Bond, and others. The user could keep track of their score. The game included a secret code for players who answered all questions correctly which enabled users to enter their name on the Coolgorilla Hall of Fame. In May 2006, Coolgorilla launched a World Cup Encyclopedia which was released prior to the 2006 FIFA World Cup. It had information on the World Cup schedule, details of every player from every team, every score from every world cup game ever played, stadium details, and manager profiles. It was a free download. In June 2006, Coolgorilla released a series of iPod Phrasebooks in German, Greek, French and Spanish. They were sponsored by lastminute.com and were free. The phrasebooks included common words and phrases for tourists with 750 sound files. They were accessed through the iPod's Notes feature. In April 2007, Coolgorilla released a downloadable version of the Talking Phrasebooks for Nokia and Sony Ericsson mobile devices. French, Spanish, German, Greek, Italian, and Portuguese were produced. The application provided real voice translations. They initially sold for £3 but 3 months later were offered for free. The branding was lastminute.com branding. Apple's iPhone was released at the end of June 2007. Soon after, Coolgorilla released an online all-in-one version of their Talking Phrasebooks for iPhone (Web App). The Phrasebooks were made available online in the form of a web app as iPhone did not yet allow for the download of additional apps. The app provided both text and audio translations in French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, German, and Greek. The iPhone translated the phrases using the recordings of real, native voice-over artists. A text translation on screen was also displayed. Apple's App Store opened in July 2008 with approximately 500 native apps available. Four of these Apps were Coolgorilla's Talking Phrasebooks for iPhone (Native Apps). There was French, German, Italian, and Spanish. These Apps carried lastminute.com branding and were available for free download. In the first three weeks following their release, the phrasebooks had over 350,000 downloads. Subsequently, Dutch, Arabic, Mandarin and Cantonese were also released. In October 2008, Coolgorilla released an iPhone London Travel Guide. Coolgorilla featured on NBC News in August 2009. In 2010, FIAT used the Italian Phrasebook to help promote the release of their FIAT 500 in the US. There has been no further activity since.
Verbal overshadowing
Verbal overshadowing is a phenomenon where giving a verbal description of sensory input impairs formation of memories of that input. This was first reported by Schooler and Engstler-Schooler (1990) where it was shown that the effects can be observed across multiple domains of cognition which are known to rely on non-verbal knowledge and perceptual expertise. One example of this is memory, which has been known to be influenced by language. Seminal work by Carmichael and collaborators (1932) demonstrated that when verbal labels are connected to non-verbal forms during an individual's encoding process, it could potentially bias the way those forms are reproduced. Because of this, memory performance relying on reportable aspects of memory that encode visual forms should be vulnerable to the effects of verbalization. == Initial findings == Schooler and Engstler-Schooler (1990) were the first to report findings of verbal overshadowing. In their study, participants watched a video of a simulated robbery and were instructed to either verbally describe the robber or engage in a control task. Those who engaged in giving a verbal description were less likely to correctly identify the robber from a test lineup, compared to those who engaged in the control task. A larger effect was detected when the verbal description was provided 20, rather than 5, minutes after the video, and immediately before the test lineup. A meta-analysis by Meissner and Brigham (2001) supported the effects of verbal overshadowing, showing a small but reliably negative effect. == General effects of verbal overshadowing == The effects of verbal overshadowing have been generalized across multiple domains of cognition that are known to rely on non-verbal knowledge and perceptual expertise, such as memory. Memory has been known to be influenced by language. Seminal work by Carmichael and collaborators (1932) demonstrated that labels attached to, or associated with, non-verbal forms during memory encoding can affect the way the forms were subsequently reproduced. Because of this, memory performance that relies on reportable aspects of memory that encode visual forms should be vulnerable to the effects of verbalization. Pelizzon, Brandimonte, and Luccio (2002) found that visual memory representations appear to incorporate visual, spatial, and temporal characteristics. It is explained as follows: With the temporal code (where the only information available is the sequence of the stimuli), performance levels remain high, unless participants are required to retrieve the stimuli in a different order from that used at encoding (visual cue). In this case, performance is significantly impaired, even in the presence of a visual cue. The study showed that order information acts as a link between the two separate representations of figure and background, hence preventing verbal overshadowing at encoding (temporal component) or attenuating its influence at retrieval (spatial component).(p. 960) Hatano, Ueno, Kitagami, and Kawaguchi found that verbal overshadowing is likely to occur when participants verbally described targets in detail. Detailed verbal descriptions resulted in more frequently inaccurate descriptions that in turn created inaccurate representations in the memories of participants. Inaccuracies are also likely to occur when face recognition comes immediately after verbalization. Other forms of non-verbal knowledge affected by verbal overshadowing include the following: [Verbal overshadowing] has also been observed when participants attempt to generate descriptions of other 'difficult-to-describe' stimuli such as colors (Schooler and Engstler-Schooler, 1990) or abstract figures (Brandimonte et al., 1997), or other non-visual tasks such as wine tasting (Melcher and Schooler, 1996), decision making (Wilson and Schooler, 1991), and insight problem-solving. (p. 871) (Schooler et al., 1993) Verbalization of stimuli leads to the disruption of non-reportable processes that are necessary for achieving insight solutions, which are distinct from language processes. Schooler, Ohlsson, and Brooks (1993) found that face recognition requires information that cannot be adequately verbalized, giving rise to difficulty in describing factors in recognition judgments. Subjects were less effective in solving insight problems when compelled to put their thoughts in words, which suggests that language may interfere with thought. The verbal overshadowing effect was not seen when participants engaged in articulatory suppression. Performance was reduced in both the verbal and non-verbal description conditions. This is evidence that verbal encoding plays a role in face recognition. By testing with distracting faces presented between study and test, Lloyd-Jones and Brown (2008) suggested a dual-process approach to recognition memory took place, that verbalization influenced familiarity-based processes at first, but its effects were later seen on recollection, when discrimination between items became more difficult. == Verbal overshadowing in facial recognition == The verbal overshadowing effect can be found for facial recognition because faces are predominately processed in a holistic or configurable manner. (Tanaka & Farah, 1993; Tanaka & Sengco, 1997) Verbalizing one's memory for a face is done using a featural or analytic strategy, leading to a drift from the configurable information about the face and to impaired recognition performance. However, Fallshore & Schooler (1995) found that the verbal overshadowing effect was not found when participants described faces of races different from their own. A study by Brown and Lloyd-Jones (2003) found that there was no verbal overshadowing effect found in car descriptions; it was only seen in facial descriptions. The authors noted that descriptions were no different on any measure including accuracy. It is suggested that less expertise in verbalizing faces rather than cars invokes a stronger shift in verbal and featural processing. This supports the concept of a transfer inappropriate retrieval framework and addresses some limitations of the effect. Wickham and Swift (2006) suggested that the verbal overshadowing effect is not seen in describing all faces, and one aspect that determines this is distinctiveness. Results showed that typical faces produce verbal overshadowing, while distinctive faces did not. In studies of eyewitness reports, variation in response criteria given by participants influenced the quality of the descriptions generated and accuracy on identification task, known as the retrieval-based effect. Face recognition was also impaired when subjects described a familiar face, such as a parent, or when describing a previously seen but novel face. Dodson, Johnson, and Schooler (1997) found that recognition was also impaired when participants were provided with a description of a previously seen face, and they were able to ignore provided versus self-generated descriptions more easily. This finding of verbal overshadowing suggested that eyewitness recognition is not only affected by their own descriptions, but of descriptions heard from others, such other eyewitness testimonies. == Voice recognition == The verbal overshadowing effect has also been found to affect voice identification. Research shows that describing a non-verbal stimuli leads to a decrease in recognition accuracy. In an unpublished study by Schooler, Fiore, Melcher, and Ambadar (1996), participants listened to a tape-recorded voice, after which they were asked either to verbally describe it or to not do so, and then asked to distinguish the voice from 3 similar distractor voices. The results showed that verbal overshadowing impaired accuracy of recognition based on gut feeling, suggesting an overall verbal overshadowing for voice recognition. Due to the forensic relevance of voices heard over the telephone and harassing phone calls that are often a problem for police, Perfect, Hunt, and Harris (2002) examined the influence of three factors on accuracy and confidence in voice recognition from a line-up. They expected to find an effect, because voice represents a class of stimuli that is difficult to describe verbally. This meets Schooler et al.'s (1997) modality mismatch criterion, meaning that describing the speakers age, gender, or accent is difficult, making voice recognition susceptible to the verbal overshadowing phenomenon. It was found that the method of memory encoding had no impact on performance, and that hearing a telephone voice reduced confidence but did not affect accuracy. They also found that providing a verbal description impaired accuracy but had no effect on confidence. The data showed an effect of verbal overshadowing in voice recognition and provided yet another disassociation between confidence and performance. Although there was a difference in confidence level, witnesses were able to identify voices over the telephone as accurately as voices heard direc
Adobe Encore
Adobe Encore (previously Adobe Encore DVD) was a DVD authoring software tool produced by Adobe Systems and targeted at professional video producers. Video and audio resources could be used in their current format for development, allowing the user to transcode them to MPEG-2 video and Dolby Digital audio upon project completion. DVD menus could be created and edited in Adobe Photoshop using special layering techniques. Adobe Encore did not support writing to a Blu-ray Disc using AVCHD 2.0. Encore is bundled with Adobe Premiere Pro CS6. Adobe Encore CS6 was the last release. While Premiere Pro CC has moved to the Creative Cloud, Encore has now been discontinued. == Licensing == All forms of Adobe Encore used a proprietary licensing system from its developer, Adobe Systems. Versions 1.0 and 1.5 required a separate license fee (rather than making 1.5 available as a free update). Version 3, also known as CS3, was sold only in bundle with Premiere CS3. Encore CS4, CS5, CS5.5 and CS6 were only sold in the Premiere Pro CS4, CS5, CS5.5 and CS6 bundles, respectively. Adobe CC subscribers no longer have access to Adobe Encore CS6. Adobe Encore is not included with Premiere Pro CC. == Functionality == Adobe Encore allowed for creating interactive DVD menus from Photoshop documents, which could be tweaked from within Encore. Video and audio streams could be embedded in the DVD and be made to play when certain elements of the menu are interacted with. It had similar functionality to Adobe Flash and Premiere Pro, due to its ability to both edit video on a timeline and embed interactive content.
24SevenOffice
24SevenOffice is a Norwegian software company headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with offices in Stockholm, Sweden and London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1997, the company specializes in web-based (SaaS) ERP and CRM systems. == Company history == 24SevenOffice was founded in 1997 in Porsgrunn, Norway, as IKT Interactive AS and marketed as kontorplassen.no. The name "24SevenOffice" was introduced for the company's London branch when the company entered the British market in 2003. The company changed its name to 24SevenOffice in February 2005. Originally based in Skien, the company later moved to Oslo Innovation Center, then to Tjuvholmen in the waterfront Fjord City of Oslo, and now the headquarters are located in Inkognitogaten 33, Solli plass, Oslo. The idea for the company's product was developed in 1996, and 24SevenOffice was an early innovator in the Scandinavian market in web-based enterprise resource planning solutions (ERP). A British office was established at Surrey Business Park in May 2003, with the company launching its web-based (SaaS) utility computing system to the UK SME market in 2004. An office in Chennai, India, was established in 2005, and 24SevenOffice entered the Swedish market when they acquired the leading competitor and ERP-provider Start & Run in a cash deal. In August 2005, the company had an initial public offering that raised NOK 15 million, and the company entered The Norwegian Over the Counter Market list as of 5 October 2005 (the ticker was 24SO), reaching a market value of NOK 175 million, with 5000 customers in Norway. In 2006, the company signed a deal to sponsor rally driver Petter Solberg, at the time the largest private sponsorship in Norwegian sport. Instead of receiving NOK 5 million in cash, Solberg received a 2.9 per cent ownership in the company. The company entered the German-speaking market in April 2006 when an office in Frankfurt am Main was opened. In late August/early September, they established an office with ten sales agents plus a general manager in Stockholm for the Swedish market. 24SevenOffice initiated strategic cooperation with Active 24 in early 2006 to develop a common platform. During the summer, Active 24 was bought by 24SevenOffice's ERP/CRM competitor Mamut (company), and 24SevenOffice terminated the contract with Active 24 in October demanding NOK 200 million in compensation for lost revenue. After a breakdown of settlement negotiations in the Forliksråd in January 2007, 24SevenOffice filed a case against Active 24 for breach of agreement in the Oslo District Court in March. 24SevenOffice lost on all counts in the District Court in December 2007. In January 2008, 24SevenOffice appealed the case to the Borgarting Court of Appeal, reducing the cause of action from NOK 250 to 30 million. 24SevenOffice lost on all counts in the Court of Appeal in December 2008, and was ordered to cover the costs incurred by Active 24 in connection with the dispute totaling NOK 6.91 million. 24SevenOffice appealed the case to the Supreme Court of Norway, but the Supreme Court Appeals Committee in March 2008 unanimously rejected the appeal from 24SevenOffice over the Borgarting Appeal Court's unanimous judgment of December 2008. On a counterclaim from Active 24 and Mamut against 24SevenOffice, the Oslo District Court in May 2010 found, that 24SevenOffice should pay Active 24 NOK 12 million in compensation for wrongfully having terminated the agreement, and a further NOK 360.000 of the opponent's legal costs. 24SevenOffice disagreed with the court ruling, and appealed once again. The Borgarting Court of Appeal in November 2011, ruled to reduce the amount of damages to NOK 4.4 million plus NOK 900.000 in penal interest. With several scrip issues, 24SevenOffice raised 25 million NOK (about $4 million at the time) between October 2005 and July 2006. They entered into a strategic partnership with Bluegarden, who for 30 years had delivered digital services for payroll, human resource planning, recruitment and training, in March 2006, and they made a large-scale agreement in April 2006, with US telecommunications software company Webex, a competitor to Norwegian Tandberg videoconferencing equipment manufacturer. In September 2006, 24SevenOffice signed an agreement with Fokus Bank to provide their customers with extended functionality in Internet banking. 24SevenOffice had by 2007 reportedly 9000 customers, joined the OpenAjax Alliance, and entered into a strategic partnership with Dun & Bradstreet in May 2007, but despite getting listed on Oslo Axess on 22 June (ticker: TFSO), reaching a market capitalization of NOK 120 million, the company was still losing money. The company ended 2007 with a revenue of NOK 21.7 million. In 2008, 24SevenOffice bought 50% of the stocks in telecommunication company Oyatel, partnered with Nets Group to facilitate invoicing for businesses, and telecommunications company Telipol chose 24SevenOffice's second-generation Internet platform for its 8,000 users. They announced an increase in revenues in Q2 to 11.1 million, up from 4.7 million in the same period the year before. 24SevenOffice had a turnover of NOK 37 million in the first half of 2009, a doubling compared to the same period the previous year, and presented its first positive EBITDA in Q2. The Norwegian Association of Auditors signed an agreement with 24SevenOffice in 2011, whereby they only recommend 24SevenOffice as a system for their members to use. On 27 June 2013, the shareholders of 24SevenOffice took off from the stock exchange and privatized the company. In recent years, the company has invested heavily in finance and accounting – and got leading auditing companies such as PwC and KPMG on the customer list. == Products == 24SevenOffice is a web-based (SaaS) ERP system. It includes modules for CRM, accounting, invoicing, e-mail, file/document management and project management. == Awards == 24SevenOffice won the Seal of Excellence in Multimedia Award at the 2004 CeBIT, became Norwegian Gazelle Company of the year 2004, chosen by Dagens Næringsliv and Dun & Bradstreet, won Product of the Year in the Norwegian finance magazine Kapital, and the IKT Grenland Innovation Award in 2008.
AppBlock
AppBlock is a software tool for managing screen time that limits access to selected mobile applications and websites. Developed by the Czech studio MobileSoft, it is distributed for Android and iOS devices as well as through browser extensions for Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge and Brave, and as desktop solutions. The application is used primarily to restrict time spent on social media and similar distracting services while working and studying. By 2025, the application reported 700,000 monthly active users, with the domestic Czech market accounting for less than one percent of its total user base and revenue. == History == === Origins === AppBlock was created by the Czech software studio MobileSoft, based in Hradec Králové. The studio was founded in 2012 by Miroslav Novosvětský, who remains the sole owner. The idea for the application arose from the use of browser-based website blockers on desktop computers. AppBlock was conceived as a way to reduce the time spent on mobile devices. === Early releases === In its early phase, AppBlock was available only for phones running on Android. Early versions allowed users to limit access to selected applications and websites during specified periods. From the outset, the application was distributed internationally rather than only within the Czech market, and early coverage reported a multi-million number of downloads worldwide. === Expansion of functionality === Over time, AppBlock has expanded beyond basic application blocking to include additional functions related to limiting procrastination and managing attention. The development of AppBlock accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Following a reduction in external client orders, the studio reallocated resources from contract development to the application. Increased digital content consumption during lockdowns contributed to a rise in the application's usage and revenue. As the application developed, it became the company's product with the largest user base. Novosvětský described an increase in downloads over a twelve-month period, which he linked in part to the company's activities abroad, including participation in events focused on mobile marketing in the United States. These activities were an important factor in the further development of AppBlock. === Internationalization and market expansion === Within roughly the first eight years of the company's existence, MobileSoft became active both in the domestic Czech market and in the United States, supported among other things by participation in the CzechAccelerator program, which is intended to help Czech firms enter foreign markets. In mid-August 2021 the developers launched a version for iOS, which soon began to attract paying users. The expansion to iOS was accompanied by plans for cooperation with the Procrastination.com platform, intended to complement the blocking functions with educational content related to digital media use, sleep and work habits. By 2025, AppBlock was localised into 15 languages, with the largest share of users in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France, with recent growth in Brazil, and usage extending across several continents. AppBlock has reached more than 10 million installations. In the same period its creators announced plans to refine existing functions and to expand support beyond mobile phones to desktop use, including through support for additional web browsers. == Features == === Supported platforms === AppBlock is distributed as a mobile application for Android and iOS users through Google Play and the Apple App Store. Browser extensions for desktop systems are available for Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge and Brave. === Functionality === AppBlock's core function is to restrict access to selected applications and websites. The mobile application shows a list of installed apps and lets the user select which ones to block. It also includes tools to block specific websites and, on iOS, to block certain phrases entered in the Safari browser. AppBlock can mute notifications from selected applications, so alerts from those apps do not appear while blocking is active. In addition to choosing which apps or content to block, the software also offers an allowlist mode, where only selected applications remain accessible and all others are blocked. Blocking rules are organized into configurable schedules, called profiles. Users can create profiles that define time periods when selected apps and websites are unavailable. Newer versions also allow profiles to be activated automatically based on the time of day, days of the week, the device's location, or connection to specific Wi-Fi networks. The iOS version lets users set limits on how often or how long certain apps can be used before they are blocked, and it can track and restrict screen time for individual apps. In addition to these recurring rules, AppBlock includes a Quick Block feature that temporarily blocks selected apps and websites with a single action, without requiring a separate long-term schedule. Strict Mode is an optional setting that limits the ability to change blocking once it is active. For a specified period, it prevents editing AppBlock's rules and can be configured to stop the app from being uninstalled during that time. While Strict Mode is enabled, users cannot modify or disable the restrictions they have set. Deactivation requires specific verification steps, such as connecting the device to a charger or obtaining approval from a designated contact person. The mobile application also includes statistical and reporting features. In addition to blocking, AppBlock lets users view statistics and data about their use of applications and websites, including screen-time summaries and focus sessions that silence notifications and enforce blocking during defined work or study periods. Browser extensions for desktop environments apply AppBlock's website-blocking functions on Windows and macOS systems through supported web browsers. == Business model == AppBlock uses a freemium revenue model. The basic version of the application is available free of charge and allows blocking of up to three applications at the same time. The premium version removes this limit and adds further configuration options. In 2020, the application shifted from a one-time payment structure to a subscription model. By 2021, AppBlock had more than seven thousand paying users and annual revenue of about four million Czech crowns. By 2025, annual revenue reached approximately 4 million US dollars (80 million CZK) before taxes and platform fees, with roughly 20 percent of active users subscribing to the paid version. == Usage == AppBlock limits access to selected applications and websites in order to reduce smartphone overuse and digital distraction. It is used to block social media, games and other services considered addictive, with the aim of reducing frequent checking of mobile devices and creating time intervals in which these services are unavailable. Reported use cases of AppBlock cover work, students, parents, ADHD, mental health, well-being and business. The application is used both by individual users and within workplace initiatives in which employees install it to reduce digital distractions during working hours.