Halfbrain.com has announced the launch of Brainstorm, a Web-based tool that enables users to create and share ideas online through an easy presentation interface. Written entirely in Dynamic HTML (DHTML), Brainstorm requires no downloads or installation; it's a Web page that "thinks" it's a presentation program. Now presentations can be accessed and updated by a click of a URL-thus the Web is the application. Similar to the firm's cornerstone product, BrainMatter, Brainstorm employs Halfbrain's userfriendly interface and pull-down menus, making it simple to create and publish intelligent Web content. Brainstorm features include outline view, slide sorter and slide-show views, multiple master slides, background patterns, blends, picture, line, and box elements. It has drag-and-drop editing, and direct manipulation of text in outline and slide views. Users can access and embed BrainMatter's live calculators into Brainstorm presentations. Additionally, text within Brainstorm slides can contain any spreadsheet function, allowing slides to automatically update themselves with live data such as stock quotes. The beta version of Brainstorm is accessible at http://www.halfbrain.com and works with Internet Explorer 4 and 5, with a Netscape version in development.

Source: Halfbrain.com, San Francisco, 415/576-9500; http://www.half brain.com.