Google Chromium OS has been on everyone’s lips for a few weeks, and is finally available for download – only as source code, though. The new operating system developed by Google is intended to dramatically change the way we use our computers today, and definitely move on to the Cloud.

I’ve tested this very first version of Chromium OS on VMware, and I have to say that my first impression has been one of disappointment. After reading so much about it I expected something else… at least something more than a web browser! Because that’s exactly what Chromium OS looks like: a simple, standard web browser.

After the initial shock, the truth is that having a web browser as operating system – or viceversa – is quite a revolutionary idea, with a few positive sides to it. First, everything’s done online: you use online apps, you store files online, you work with online documents. Everything is available anytime, anywhere. Second, it makes the system much faster and lighter on resources. Chromium OS hardly takes 10 seconds to boot up, and has been developed with netbooks in mind. Third, the web browser interface saves you the pain of having to learn how to use a new operating system. You’ve probably been using web browsers for a few years now, so you know how they work. Read the rest of this entry »

Windows: You’ve probably never heard of it, but QQ Messenger is the most popular IM client in China. With over a billion registered accounts, it  has everything you need: support for voice and video, tons of smileys, customization options, photo and file sharing… all of it in a nicely designed interface that makes the program a pleasure to use.

iPhone: Tower Defense has to be one of the most addictive game genres of all time. This free iPhone version of the game sees you try to defend your sheep from aliens who want to make scarves out of them. TowerMadness Zero: 3D Tower Defense arms you with a variety of different weapons that you need to place strategically on the field in order to block the baddies’ route.

Mac: The creation of Letterbox is a good example of developers responding to simple user needs. Letterbox takes advantage of widescreen monitors to make using Mail a much easier experience. It’s ideal for those using Powerbooks, MacBook Pros and Cinema displays, although it’s appropriate for anyone with a widescreen display. It makes reading clearer and organization more stress free.

Microsoft have finally launched a first Beta version of the much anticipated Microsoft Office 2010. You can download it from the Microsoft Office website, as long as you have a Live ID (your Hotmail address or Live Messenger account will do the trick).

Microsoft Office 2010 Professional Plus Beta is available in several languages, for both 32-bit and 64-bit systems, and features a few differences from the Technical Preview we tested last July. First of all, the number of apps included in the suite has grown from seven to ten, with Infopath Designer, InfoPath Filler and SharePoint Workspace – the new name for Microsoft Groove.

Secondly, the interface in all the Office 2010 has been slightly redesigned. They still keep the ribbon toolbar, but in a much clearer, cleaner style. Also, the ‘Office’ button has been renamed to ‘File’ and opens up a different – and I’d say much more complete - information pane.

Another important new feature is the ability to share documents online, something that wasn’t implemented in the Technical Preview. You can now save any Word document, Excel spreadsheet or PowerPoint presentation to your SkyDrive account directly from the Share menu. Read the rest of this entry »

Today Google are going to show off their in-development operating system Chrome OS, and possibly even release a beta version. There are already three major OS choices, so what can Google do differently?

The Cloud: It’s expected that the main feature of Chrome OS will be its reliance on being online. Instead of loading your PC with tons of software, as much as possible will be accessible via cloud computing. Most computing is done while online now anyway, so this may make a lot of sense. As Google itself offers an increasingly powerful array of online tools, such an approach meshes perfectly. Perhaps it will somehow make Google’s Wave useful, instead of being the coolest web app no-one is using that it is today!

However, there has to be more to it than that, as you can already use Google’s applications from your browser, and while a stripped down OS will save disk space and CPU usage are there really so many machines out there that struggle with what’s already available? Apple’s OSX has the unique selling point of sleek sexy usability, Linux can be endlessly tinkered with by tech-heads, and Windows 7 is a lighter, better version of the dominant OS around the world. I don’t think being small and lightweight can really be enough for Chrome OS.

Security: It is rumored that Chrome OS users won’t have to deal with viruses, malware and their associated security updates due to a completely rethought approach to security architecture. This would be a godsend for everyone except Symantec and the other security software companies - but to be honest I just can’t see how you can create risk free computing, as hackers have been around forever.

Design: In the same way there is an assumption that a Google branded phone will be the best thing since the iPhone due to Google inherent good design sense, people are assuming the same from Chrome OS. Personally, I think they’ll struggle to out design Apple. Their mobile Android OS is eminently functional, flexible and really neat, but when it comes down to pick up and play design, Apple are the masters.

Maybe Google will prove me wrong. The essence of Chrome OS design is supposed to be minimalism, which I completely approve of, but if it just works like a minimal Windows or Linux like interface - that will be boring. I know it’s a tall order to reinvent the wheel, but that’s still what I want!

We’ll know all this within hours, and will update with our impressions soon.

The most tedious part of buying a new computer is having to transfer all your data from the old system to the new one. With photos, music, documents and the likes there’s not much of a choice: you use your favorite backup software or simply copy and paste files and folders from one computer to another using an external hard drive. But what about your web browser data? History, bookmarks, passwords. All of that needs to be synced too. And here’s where Mozilla Weave comes in handy.

This project was released from the Mozilla Labs a few months ago, as an experimental Firefox add-on, and has just hit version 1.0 Beta. Mozilla Weave lets you sync browser data (bookmarks, history, tabs, passwords and user preferences) between multiple instances of Firefox installed across different computers and devices.

The first thing you have to do after installing Weave is create a user account, either on the Weave servers or your own. This account is used to sync data from your browser to the server, so that it’s available when you need to sync it with other instances of Firefox or other devices – your laptop, your mobile phone, another computer. The account creation process also gives you the chance to customize the extension’s settings and choose the syncing method: merging data between the local computer and the server, syncing from computer to server or syncing from server to computer. Read the rest of this entry »

Lets leave the ‘why would you read a book on your PC?’ question to one side for a moment, and take a look at Amazon’s new free eBook reader:

What you can see is everything Kindle for PC can do. You can insert bookmarks, but not annotations or highlights (like you can on the Kindle device). The library system is basic, although clear and there’s an amazon button that takes you to the shop via your browser. The presentation of text - the important bit - is minimal. You can’t alter font, but can change size and the width of pages. There’s no option to mess around with color or background at all. I was pretty unimpressed with the text, as there are tiny apps like Gargoyle (unfortunately not an ebook reader) that present text in a much more readable form. This just looks like text in MS Word! You can use out-of-copyright eBooks from the Gutenberg project, though, which is good.

Dedicated desktop readers aren’t very common, but there are other options. Check them out after the break - I’ll start at the bottom!

Read the rest of this entry »

Windows 7 is scheduled to be launched in less than a month, and in anticipation of this important date, many developers have been working hard on new versions of their programs that take full advantage of all the enhancements included in Microsoft’s new operating system. One of them is WinZip, which announced the release of WinZip 14. The popular archiving and compression tool is now available for downloading as a pre-release beta version that lets you have a sneak peak at all its new features and check how well it works with Windows 7. And you know, I just couldn’t resist the temptation!

WinZip does look great on Windows 7. But it’s not only about visual appearance: it also takes advantage of all Windows 7 special features. You can, for example, access the most frequently used tasks in WinZip from the Jump lists in the Start menu, or the taskbar. Read the rest of this entry »

A few days ago Microsoft started rolling out a Technical Preview of Office Web Apps, the long-awaited online version of the new Office 2010 suite. However the event was so successful that invites quickly ran out and the Preview was closed. As one of the hundred users who were left out, I started looking for alternative ways to try Web Apps, until I finally stumbled upon this simple trick on Cecilia’s blog.

All you have to do is login to Live SkyDrive, the free online storage service provided by Microsoft. If you don’t have an account in SkyDrive, you can easily create one with your Live user (that is, your old Hotmail address or Messenger user). Once, you’re inside SkyDrive, you need to upload at least one Office document to any of your folders.

As soon as there’s an Office document in your SkyDrive account, you’ll see a link to join the Preview program to test Web apps. Click the link, accept the terms and you’re in!

Note that Office Web Apps are still under development and have some serious limitations. To begin with, online Word is not available yet. Also, you’ll need to convert old Office files to the newest format (that is, PPT to PPTX, for example), though this seems to be done automatically by the suite itself, while keeping a backup copy of the old document. Read the rest of this entry »

Mac: Sharing your music with others is a great way to get into new music and also reveal what awesome/terrible taste you have. Simplify Media (now updated to version 2.5) is designed to help you do this with the minimum of fuss over WiFi allowing you to share music via iTunes. In effect, it means that you can enjoy and share songs with your friends wherever they are as long as you’re connected to the web.

Windows: If you’re tired of local TV, try tuning in to some foreign channels instead! With TVU Player 2.4.7.2 you can watch satellite and cable TV over the Internet on your own computer, without any special hardware. Content is very varied - from soap operas to important sport competitions worldwide - and includes channels from many different countries.

iPhone: Convertbot aims to make the process of working with different scales of measurement much easier. The app handles all manner of conversions including currency, area, volume, speed, and temperature. There are 21 different categories of units available, and you can select or deselect those that you’d like to appear in the interface using the settings menu.

Windows: After a few years without major changes, Avast has launched a new version of its renowned antivirus. The all new Avast 5 Beta features a complete interface overhaul - much better than the previous design! - and interesting new features such as the so called Behavior mode. Despite being still a Beta, it’s a good chance to take a sneak look at the future Avast.

iPhone: For many people, Wikipedia is now the first point of reference for information on a particular subject. Now you can carry the huge online encyclopedia in your pocket thanks to this official iPhone client, Wikipedia Mobile. The free app provides an optimized version of the site designed to make it very simple and fast to access on an iPhone.

Mac:  Stealing the crown from WinZip, the previously undisputed king of file compression apps, RAR (now updated to version 3.90) is a must-have in any modern-day Mac toolkit. The application not only includes support for extracting virtually any kind of file compression format, it also boasts a no-nonsense approach to reducing file sizes.

This week I had the chance to test Immunet Protect, a cloud-based antivirus tool that protects your system thanks to the collaborative work of its thousands of users worldwide. Innovative as it sounds, this is actually not the first cloud security app I’ve seen. I tested Panda Cloud Antivirus a while a go, so I thought it may be a good idea to compare these two programs and see whether the cloud trend has any future in security software.

As a starter, Panda Cloud is not compatible with other antivirus tools you may have already installed on your system (in my case, AVG 8.5) but this is in fact a typical feature of Panda software – they can’t even coexist with other Panda apps. Immunet Protect, for its part, doesn’t mind working with other antivirus software, though you should generally avoid having two antivirus apps running at the same time.

Both programs have a ‘Summary’ window that shows system’s current status and other data. But there are some differences: Panda Cloud Antivirus has a nicer interface, with visually appealing icons and large buttons that make it easier to use. Immunet Protect, on the contrary, seems to focus more on numbers and statistics, and its toolbar menu is a bit overcrowded with buttons a links. Just after installation, Immunet performs a first system scan, while Panda doesn’t lift a finger. Read the rest of this entry »

iPhone: When the rain falls outside it often seems like there’s very little to do and amusing yourself can become a problem. Well, instead of sitting there reading reviews of mobile software why not install play some board games to pass the time in a fun way? Whether you’re alone or with company the collection of titles in Astraware Boardgames will keep you amused for hours.

Mac: If you’ve been left unimpressed by the look and speed of your browser then Safari is Apple’s iconic answer and as you’d expect from them, it’s a delight to use and easy on the eye. The latest version sees some exciting introductions such as Top Pages to instantly see your most visited pages, tabs on top for easier management and Cover Flow to flip through your bookmarked sites iTunes style.

Windows: uTorrent is one of the most popular BitTorrent clients, and it keeps on improving and adding new features. The latest version, uTorrent 2.0 Beta , is still under development, but you can already take a look at all the new goodies: support for UDP trackers, enhanced CPU power usage, new setup dialog with built-in speed test and new transfer cap options.

Stop the presses, it’s a Twitter service that doesn’t use the prefix “twit”! That already makes FileSocial pretty cool even before you try it. FileSocial is a file sharing service for Twitter, that allows you to share any file up to 50mb.

Using it is simple, you have to allow it access to your Twitter account, then just choose your file, upload it, write a message, and it will be tweeted from your account. You can choose not to tweet directly, and just create a link to your upload. As FileSocial accepts any format, including compressed files, you can share whatever you like, which is excellent. According to their site, there is no expiry date on your uploads, although you can of course delete whatever you upload.

The service is quite new and still in a beta testing phase, but works well. You can see how many visits your link has got, although not how many downloads. Hopefully they will release a desktop application so you don’t need to always go through their website. Otherwise, FileSocial looks like a really promising Twitter service.

There are an increasing number of online synchronization, sharing and backup solutions appearing on the market. This is mainly due to our increasingly mobile access-data-on-demand-anywhere lifestyles, with iPhones and Web 2.0 apps being a particularly big driver. One of the latest efforts at satisfying these needs is NomaDesk which has been around for Windows for some time now but has just been released for Mac. I took a look at it to see what it can offer.

NomaDesk bills itself as “The easiest and most secure way to share, synchronize and backup critical files; wherever you are, even off-line.” Such a service does come at a price however - usually $15 per month for teams and $50 a year for individuals although if your data is important, it’s a relatively small price worth paying. Fortunately you can have a free 30 day trial of NomaDesk before parting with any cash.

NomaDesk is available in two separate versions — a “Team Fileserver” for people who want to share and collaborate on documents, and a “Personal Fileserver” for those who use different computers but want to make sure information is synchronized.

Naturally, all files stored on NomaDesk’s servers are encrypted and password protected. Getting them there is also made as easy as possible. For example, you can e-mail them directly to the server and allowing others to access them is as easy as sending a link. In case the worst happens, there’s a handy “Theftguard,” which enables you to remove data from your hard drive in a flash if your computer gets stolen. NomaDesk can remotely remove data at your request but the information is still securely saved on NomaDesk’s fileservers. The program also uses a “Delta-sync” feature which synchronizes only those parts of a file which have changed, saving you time and bandwidth. Meanwhile, if you’ve got an iPhone, you can access and modify your files extremely easily via a NomaDesk dashboard widget.

There are some major drawbacks I found to NomaDesk however. One is the lengthy setup process which requires a complete restart after installation and is really annoying if you’ve got lots of applications open. You also have to send a confirmation e-mail after the restart which all adds time onto the account setup process. Worse than this however are the frequent hang-ups and crashes when NomaDesk logs-in. Twice it hung my entire system forcing me to make a complete restart leaving me less than impressed.

However, these problems can probably be attributed to the fact that NomaDesk for Mac is still in Beta stage. When it is working properly, NomaDesk is extremely simple and easy to use. The cost of using NomaDesk may put off some but if your data is valuable, it could be a price worth paying once it’s more stable.

Those canny Swedes have been at it again. Following on from the launch of music service Spotify, Voddler is a new service where the focus is the screen rather than music. Voddler promises to offer a service similar to Spotify except with films and TV shows on demand.

Co-founder Mathias Hjelmstedt told OnSoftware:

“Since 2005, we’ve been working on developing the streaming technology that’s allowed us to conceive this project. It will offer both TV shows and films on demand and eventually will be extended beyond home computing to become part of your living room viewing experience.”

The service is initially being rolled-out in Scandinavia first before being launched in UK and then worldwide and will work on Windows, Mac and Linux. Voddler has been in beta stage since 1st July and the development blog claims that 16,000 people signed-up for it on the first day.  Once you’ve entered your name and e-mail address however, you’ll have to be one of the lucky ones selected for beta testing. OnSoftware has been granted an exclusive pass so watch this space for one of the first looks at this exciting app.

Asked if Voddler uses the same streaming software common to sites such as YouTube, Hjelmstedt says, “Not at all. If YouTube were to use our patented steaming technology, my guess is that they could save up to 90% of their streaming costs.” A bold statement indeed. Asked also if Voddler is anything like Hulu, Hjelmstedt simply replied, “No, it’s much better.”

But will paid-up users receive a better service than those only using the ad supported version? Hjelmstedt says, “It depends on the film. It’s quite possible that a newly released film at the cinema will be available the same day on Voddler to all users. However, some film studios only want paid-up users to have access to new content so it really depends.”

Eventually, Hjelmstedt sees Voddler as an essential home entertainment system. “Eventually there will be a Voddler box that plugs into your TV so that you won’t even need a computer.” Asked about the price of the premium service, he says, “Cheap. A little bit more expensive than Spotify though because it’s films and not music.”

Scanning the blogosphere, it doesn’t seem that many people have been invited at this early stage although Morten Skogly offers us an exciting sneak preview with high-resolution screenshots.

Apart from the screenshots on Skogly’s blog, the only other shot we have of the service is from the Swedish ISP that Voddler is currently being promoted with.

Watch this space for a full review of Voddler on OnSoftware soon!