Sonic Solutions today introduced Scenarist Designer PS Software Version 2.1, a plug-in for Adobe Photoshop that brings increased power to the HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc menu design process.

Offering seamless integration with the title-creation workflow in Sonic's Scenarist Workgroup authoring applications, Designer PS enables simultaneous format-compliant output of color-optimized menu graphics for both Blu-ray Disc (HDMV and BD-J) and HD DVD (HDi). New in version 2.1 is support for non-Scenarist-based authoring systems. Scenarist Designer PS 2 is available immediately through Sonic's resale channels worldwide.

Available for both Macintosh and Windows platforms, Scenarist Designer PS 2.1 handles graphics for the advanced content modes of both high-definition formats (BD-J and HDi), and is the only tool available as a Photoshop plug-in that handles menu design for standard content Blu-ray Disc (HDMV). With Designer PS, the HD menu design process leverages familiar techniques such as grouping button-state elements with Photoshop layer sets, allowing designers to focus on visuals without worrying about format conversion details. The export of finished menu designs to one or more formats is fully automated, saving hours of authoring work for each project and yielding all the components required to reconstruct a menu in a Scenarist authoring workstation.