Open source medical imaging software for iPods

Slashdot is pointing to a CNN article on Osirix, an open source image viewer for iPods (and Macs). Medical images are, by necessity, incredibly large. The big GB count on iPods seemed a perfect match for storing these images... Normally the story would end there. But you have to ask why would someone store pictures on an iPod instead of a USB drive? Wouldn't that be cheaper?

Well that sums up the entire PC industry, doesn't it? It's cheaper to build an AMD Windows box, after all.  But the developers of Osirix have decided to make more than just a simple transport device. Osirix takes DICOM images (the format of medical imagery), and manages to squeeze them into an iPod, for viewing on a Mac or iPod (photo and up). In addition to that simple task, they've integrated iChat into the viewer, so doctors can collaborate online. Add to that privacy controls, optimization for the new quad-G5's, plug-in capabilities, and XGrid support. Plus, when you're done saving lives you can listen to music.

Osirix is inspiring in their use and implementation of Apple's tools, and as developers. Which might explain why Osirix won a 2005 Apple Design Award for Best Mac OS X Open Source Product. If you have a hard time selling management, be sure to find the killer Keynote presentation that'll pitch the boss man for you.