Applications

Moxie Boosts Self-Service With Widgets, Crowdsourcing
October 01, 2012

Moxie Software recently released two separate, albeit highly complementary, CRM self-service applications. One is a revamped version of its self-service application called "Knowledge Spaces." Enhancements allow users to "widgetize" pieces of the application and embed just those portions on a website.

Linux's Brilliant New Gaming Career
August 30, 2012

The legendary Mark Twain is said to have once observed, "If you don't like the weather in New England, just wait a few minutes," and much the same sentiment could just as well be applied to life here in the Linux world. To wit: Not so very long ago, gaming was held up as one of the big obstacles keeping PC users off of Linux and on Windows instead.

Firefox 15 Goes on a Memory Diet
August 29, 2012

Better management of memory and updates highlight the latest release of the Mozilla Foundation's Web browser, Firefox 15. Firefox's development team has steadily improved the browser's memory management over recent months, but with this release of the program, it's targeting a major contributor to the software's piggish memory ways: add-on applications.

Blender Graphics Editor Slices, Dices and Amazes
August 29, 2012

Blender is such a highly specialized and powerful rendering app that at least two Linux distros are built around it. This cross-platform 3D graphics application matches features and performance of the leading commercial equivalent software packages. Professional-strength rendering software is not a tool for tinkerers.

Twitter Perches on Linux Foundation's Shoulder
August 28, 2012

Twitter on Tuesday joined the Linux Foundation. However, the move comes just days after Twitter removed its find-friends feature from blogging service Tumblr. Twitter had earlier done the same to Instagram, and has imposed new restrictions on developers.

Gesture App Flutter Flickers With Potential
August 27, 2012

I like to listen to music occasionally while I work, but I also end up pausing songs often -- there are phone calls to take, to make, and sometimes writing particular paragraphs requires all the brain power I have available. I usually just hit the Play/Pause button at the top of my Mac keyboard.

Disney and FOSS: Fun and FUD in the Magic Kingdom?
August 27, 2012

They say it's a small world after all, but in the Magic Kingdom, it appears to be a FUD-filled world as well. How else to explain a recent episode of "Shake It Up" on the Disney Channel? Asked to diagnose a misbehaving PC, a stereotypically geeky character asks, "Did you use open source code to save time and the virus was hidden in it?" Much canned laughter ensued, of course -- as did widespread outrage.

For Modest Mousepad, Simplicity Is Both Virtue and Vexation
August 22, 2012

Mousepad is a notepad-like graphical text editor for Xfce based on the Leafpad text editor that runs on any Linux desktop. It is very handy as a go-to tool when you do not have any heavy lifting to do. If you are looking for a text editor that functions more like a lightweight word processor, then look elsewhere.

Mint for OS X Provides Eagle-Eye Scrutiny for Personal Finances
August 20, 2012

Back in the days of coin and cash, you could see your money. You could hold in your hands, put it in your wallet, and hang onto it. When it was time to spend it, you could feel about how much was leaving you in exchange for something else. Was the transaction worth it? Maybe, maybe not.

WinFF Makes Multi-File Conversion Painless
July 25, 2012

Converting media files is often one of the messiest chores that audio and video fans must tolerate, but WinFF is one of the simplest methods I have found to convert audio and video file formats to make them compatible on my growing collection of mobile media platforms.

aQuantive Fiasco Hands Microsoft Its First Fiscal Loss
July 20, 2012

Microsoft reported its first loss in more than two decades Thursday as an accounting adjustment and low PC sales hurt the software maker's numbers. However, the company remained optimistic that consumer demand will regain momentum when various upcoming products hit the market later this year.

Microsoft's EU Browser Bugaboo Could Cost Billions
July 18, 2012

A technical error that affected 28 million Windows users in Europe could cost Microsoft billions in penalties. The glitch, which disabled the display of a browser choice screen in Windows, violates an agreement between Microsoft and European Union regulators. The maximum penalty for such a violation is 10 percent of a company's annual revenues.

Microsoft Remodels Office
July 17, 2012

Microsoft unveiled the new versions of its Office suite and and Office 365 subscription-based service on Monday. The updated Office has an intuitive design that makes it touch- and stylus-compatible, and usable across a variety of devices running Windows, including tablets and smartphones.

Symantec Update Leaves XP PCs Feeling Blue
July 17, 2012

Symantec has determined that combining the newest version of its antivirus software with the decade-old Windows XP operating system can cause users' PCs to freeze up with the dreaded Blue Screen of Death. After Symantec analyzed the problem, it revealed that the incompatibility hit machines running the OS in combination with certain other applications.

Apple Draws Up Blueprint for iTunes Renovation
June 29, 2012

Apple's iTunes may be getting a facelift soon. The new iTunes Store will be rolled out later this year -- most likely along with the next generation of Apple's popular iPhone -- and sport improved discovery and sharing capabilities, as well as better iCloud integration, according to a report.

Samsung Shows Its Softer Side
June 19, 2012

Today in international tech news: Samsung's new chief stresses software. Also: A Japanese man takes issue with Google's autocomplete function, filing a lawsuit claiming that the feature not only made him lose his old job, but also kept him from getting a new one; a deaf German blogger gains notoriety for using her lip-reading acumen to transcribe on-field banter; and more.

Epic Revs Up PC Gaming With Unreal Engine 4
June 08, 2012

Epic Games on Friday officially announced its upcoming Unreal Engine 4 technology, which could be the foundation for the next decade of graphics technology in video games. This comes the day after the close of E3, the video game industry's largest trade show, and it's notable in that the current video game console systems will not be able to take advantage of this technology.

Ringer for OS X Sets Just the Right Ringtone
June 05, 2012

Tone overlap syndrome can be a stressful affliction, and it seems to affect iPhone users on a regular basis. It's a phenomenon in which someone with whom you live or work has the same kind of phone you do and they use one or more of the same built-in tones you use on yours. Left unchecked, tone overlap can lead to annoyance, acute irritation, and eventually madness.

A Slap to the Interface: 3 Apps for OS X Window Management
May 22, 2012

Features that Apple has added to OS X over the years, like Mission Control and Spaces, have given users more options for laying out their work areas. Each time another edition of OS X comes out with new interface abilities, the desktop feels more manageable, less constricted. However, there are still a few window management tricks and functions that OS X can't do on its own.

MenuTab Keeps Facebook Nicely Widgetized
May 15, 2012

Facebook's march toward its IPO has put a harsh spotlight on the social network's shortcomings, and one of the primary worries among prospective investors is that Facebook doesn't have very sharp mobile chops. There are a million things it could be doing in mobile to draw in more revenue, they say, but it's still an area in which the network moves painfully slowly.