Apple Computer Inc and Silicon Graphics Inc are being drawn closer and closer as they seek to drive home their expertise in digital film and animation technologies, and yesterday SGI subsidiary Silicon Studios Inc said it would support Apple’s QuickTime multimedia technology in a new suite of archiving and authoring tools it has developed for building digital studios. The two also plan to develop file viewers and converters that will allow 3D and animation content to run in applications on each other’s systems. The SiliconStudio suite includes StudioCentral server-based asset management software, described as an object-oriented program for capturing and archiving digital content into a shared repository which can be extended to support Cosmo MediaBase Oracle, Informix, Illustra, Sybase and IBM Digital Library databases. (The existing Cinebase application is standalone). A $15,000 StudioCentral SDK will be available for ISVs to create plug-in modules from the summer. A StudioCentral Silver release, for small networks is due in the fall priced at from $5,000. A Gold workgroup version will be priced at $20,000 in the winter. Keys which link StudioCentral’s repository to third party databases will cost $10,000 each from the summer. The tools are available on SGI Irix platforms only to begin with; Oracle and xFS (Irix’s 64-bit file system) Keys will be released first. The base price covers a five-user licence only. The company says it hasn’t decided whether it’ll put StudioCentral up on Mac or PC clients yet. A FireWalker 3D authoring system for creating games and interactive tiles on PCs and the Sony PlayStation is being developed in conjunction with customers and is due as part of the SiliconStudio line in December. Sega Enterprises Ltd, Time Warner Interactive, SegaSoft and MediaX/toonsmiths are on board the FireWalker alpha programme. Single user prices will start at $10,000. SiliconStudio support services, forums, news and other information will be offered through StudioLive on SGI’s web site. SGI said its workstations have been selected as a programming and creation environment for Sega Saturn, Sony, PlayStation TM and Nintendo 64 game players. Sega’s development tools division, Cross Products Ltd and Sony’s game authoring division, Psygnosis Ltd, will run game programming tools on SGI workstations.
