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Curious Software Helps TSR Bring
The Swiss Mountains To Life
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The decision to invest in Curious World Maps Software has enabled Swiss broadcaster TSR, (Télévision de la Suisse Romande) to create a stunning range of map graphics for its regular weather forecasts.
TSR broadcasts a mixture of news, documentaries, light entertainment and films to the French speaking population of Switzerland. Its news programming is also broadcast on TV5, an international French language satellite channel that can be seen all over the world.
Graphic designer Philip Nikoulin handles most of the graphic creation for TSR's news programmes. He was the first to spot the potential of Curious Software's innovative map creation package after coming across it on the Internet.
He explains: "If you are handling graphic design for news, you need to have a good knowledge of the available production tools because speed is always of the essence. We don't always have the time to look and search for information relating to concepts such as animations, graphic charts, maps etc. Our main task is to provide content using director-approved graphic layouts and because of the speed at which news breaks we often have to work on the fly. It's not uncommon for us to produce an animated clip for a news item in just five minutes, which is why we are always on the look out for tools that help us work more quickly and efficiently."
Nikoulin first evaluated the basic version of Curious World Maps then, after a few days experimentation, he contacted the company for examples of local street and satellite imagery.
"The people at Curious were very helpful and sent over everything I needed to evaluate the software. The database was excellent, even in the basic version. The whole package was far superior to the software we had been using and the level of care I received from the company made me realize that I was looking at a much better product."
At Nikoulin's recommendation, TSR bought Curious World Maps, along with street data, satellite imagery and enhanced DEM data for Switzerland.
"This additional data allows us to zoom in very close and create highly detailed maps, particularly of the mountains," he says. "I would recommend buying satellite data to anyone who is creating maps of a country with mountainous terrain because it gives much more detailed relief and allows you to zoom in without losing quality."
The new software was immediately put to work, creating maps of the entire country for a new weather forecast graphic layout. This was so successful that Nikoulin is now working on map layouts for news programmes.
"The software is ideally suited to News graphic creation because it allows you to work so quickly," he explains. "Journalists often ask for detailed information about countries that I've never heard of and in the past it would have taken me time to research their requests. With Curious, I simply type in the reference and immediately have access to detailed information about regions, roads, towns, etc. I can also animate and output the final animation in a very short period of time."
Nikoulin was so impressed with Curious World Maps that he recently gave a demonstration of the software to graphic designers from the Swiss Italian television broadcaster, TSI.
"I think everyone who works in broadcast or video should know about Curious Software and I'm very happy to spread the word," he says.
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TSR
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