liveBooks, Inc. Press Release

New Features and Functions Transform liveBooks 5.0 Into Powerful Online Marketing Tools by Putting Creative Control in the Hands of Photographers

San Francisco, CA, November 27, 2006 – Following the overwhelming success of its version 4.0 website management software, released in January 2004, liveBooks, Inc. is proud to announce the release of its new version, liveBooks 5.0. Thousands of professional photographers worldwide have benefited from the company’s web-based software application. It gives users the freedom and flexibility to manage all the content on their website themselves. More importantly, it allows for detailed management of their image portfolios using an intuitive drag-and-drop interface called the EditSuite lightBox. The new liveBooks 5.0 software builds on the intuitive navigation and professional aesthetic of its predecessor by adding new navigation options, website styling options, and features such as: slideshow movies, HTML gallery presentations, music upload, integration with other web services, and a robust shopping cart for selling prints. Additionally, Client Access, the feature that enables users to create a password-protected area of their site with customized content, and the website’s search engine compatibility have been enhanced.

At the heart of all liveBooks websites is the web-based liveBooks editSuite™ software, a collection of editing tools that give photographers creative control over the content on their website in real-time. Version 5.0 adds tools that enable photographers to quickly and easily personalize their website in many ways. For example, they can choose image transitions from a library of various styles, or upload and assign music to a portfolio of images with just a few mouse clicks. In addition, photographers can save time thanks to several new and improved features including: multi-image upload, extended drag and drop controls, a more intuitive workflow, and ground-up optimization of the application’s code for faster performance. All of these features, along with the following features, make liveBooks 5.0 the ideal online portfolio presentation and marketing tool for photographers who want to achieve their web marketing goals in a way that is time efficient and cost effective.

“Photographers need an effective online portfolio Website to prosper in today’s competitive marketplace,” says Andy Patrick, President and CEO of liveBooks, Inc. “A liveBooks Website gives them the edge they need to compete and succeed by giving them creative control over the look and feel of their Website as well as the tools necessary to effectively present their work to their clients and the market at large.”  liveBooks 5.0 is extremely robust in functionality and provides a number of additional features photographers have been asking for.”

New Features of Version 5.0

Streamlined control of content:
Quickly Upload Images
The editSuite Upload screen gives photographers a convenient way to quickly upload single, multiple, or groups of images or folders into storage libraries.  Storage libraries are the staging area for images before the user adds them to a web portfolio). The result of this enhancements makes it possible to upload, organize, and publish an entire website worth of content in minutes.

Drag-and-Drop Image Sequencing
The editSuite lightBox screen provides photographers with a simple drag-and-drop interface through which they can control the page-by-page image placement of their online portfolios. In addition they can add/update the IPTC data for each image, increasing the probability that the website will be found by search engines.  Users will also appreciate many other subtle usability improvements.

Personalized Website Styling
Image Transitions
Photographers can enhance the creative look and feel of their website viewing experience by using the editSuite Transition Picker screen. Here photographers can decide what type of transition effect takes place as users switch from image to image within a portfolio.

Enhanced Menu Item Control
Using the editSuite Pages screen, users can personalize the navigation menu items by naming and renaming them any time they like. , as well as determine the animation style in which the drop down list is displayed.

Streamlined Business Management
Secure Client Access
Photographers can now offer their clients secure, customized presentations on their liveBooks site. Using the editSuite Client Access screen, users can create password-protected projects for specific clients or job pitches that may include custom portfolios, uploaded html galleries, PDF documents and URL links. Making it easy to review location shots, talent selection, etc.

Large File Exchange
Managing large file exchange with clients is simplified for both the client and the photographer using the editSuite FTP screen. Here photographers can upload content and designate a receiver. The receiver then receives an email with the photographers note requesting them to download the content from a specific web link. This avoids any mail server issues and any need for clients to own or download special FTP software, while protecting the security of the web server.

Search Engine Compatibility
All liveBooks 5.0 sites are generated in Flash, and in HTML. The HTML site design is optimized for search engines. Both the website and each individual image’s IPTC core data can be changed in the editSuite. The HTML version of the website is kept current simultaneously with the Flash site when you save changes in the editSuite.

Web stats
All liveBooks sites come with normal web stat tracking and are also compatible with Google Analytic service.

The liveBooks Data Center: Speed and Stability
Our state of the art data center sits on the silicon valley internet backbone and consists of load balanced servers that are optimized from the ground up for the job of serving big images very quickly and 99.9% uptime.

Email Service
liveBooks sites come with enterprise level email service, which includes web mail, POP mail, and state of the art spam filtering. For a complete listing of features download the latest Product Comparison Brochure at http://www.livebooks.com/PDF/comparison_brochure.pdf.

About liveBooks, Inc.
LiveBooks, Inc. is the leader in on-demand Website creation, management and marketing services for photographers requiring a rich, image-intensive online presence. As creative professionals ourselves, the LiveBooks team understands the passion behind our customers’ work and their need to easily upload, edit, market, send and sell images within a Website they can create within minutes without the need for programming or design skills. The LiveBooks Website supports photographers’ creative vision with full-screen, high-quality images that download quickly, an intuitive navigation system based on input from photo buyers, and a professional design aesthetic to help develop their business. For more information, log onto http://www.livebooks.com