CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive

29 April 2005

Implementation Investments

Cosmic Blobs Develops First Mac OS X 'Tiger' Dashboard Widget for Kids

Dassault Systemes announced that Cosmic Blobs, the most powerful 3D graphics software ever invented for kids, has developed the first Tiger Dashboard widget designed specifically for young people.

The Cosmic Blobs Dashboard Widget functionality for Mac OS X Tiger is available for use with Tiger, which begins shipping today. The Cosmic Blobs Widget provides a conduit to a vast library of Cosmic Blobs material, including models, tutorials, and educational curricula. One of Tiger's most important innovations, the Dashboard is a set of accessory applications (widgets) that zoom onscreen and give weather, stock quotes and more, then disappear just as quickly.

"The Dashboard is a revolutionary way for Mac users to access valuable content in small bites," said Scott Harris, Cosmic Blobs' creator. "We're providing that content for kids in the form of fun, constructive, and entertaining 3D graphics along with creative ideas and activities."

"Breakthrough Tiger features like Spotlight and Dashboard will fundamentally change the way people use their computers," said Ron Okamoto, Apple's vice president of worldwide developer relations. "We're excited to see Cosmic Blobs creatively use Tiger widgets to deliver informative and fun content to younger Mac users."

The Cosmic Blobs Dashboard Widget will give kids, parents, and teachers a way to preview the possibilities of Cosmic Blobs software on the Mac. It will also help them stockpile materials to hit the ground running when Cosmic Blobs software becomes available for Tiger and other Mac operating systems later this quarter. Cosmic Blobs, which can be thought of as digital modeling clay for children, lets kids ages 7 to 14 quickly design and animate 3D creations that are on par with today's leading computer-generated movies and cartoons. Educators around the world have purchased Cosmic Blobs for their classrooms, both public and private.

The Dashboard Widget for Mac will offer a steady stream of Cosmic Blobs material-for example, a "Blob of the Day," a 2-minute video on how to make a Blob motorcycle, or a Blob-based lesson plan for geometry class.

Tiger is the fourth and most significant upgrade to Mac OS X version 10.4, released today after much anticipation.

Cosmic Blobs for the Mac can be pre-ordered through the Dashboard Widget or pre-purchased for $44.99 at http://www.cosmicblobs.com/widget . It will be shipped immediately upon availability later this quarter. Cosmic Blobs is available now for Windows PCs running Windows 98SE or later, on a PC with a Pentium 1.0 Ghz processor or equivalent, 256 MB RAM, and a 3D graphics video card with 16MB RAM or more.

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