Reviews Archive

  • Google has finally released a formal version of gDrive, it’s called Google Drive and for the longest time I’ve been trying to remind people about making a backup of some of their most important documents to at least a jumpdrive. With Google Drive you can accomplish this with 5Gb of free space online. 5Gb may not sound like much to most people, but for other people who don’t back up, who don’t have that much to back up and have may never thought about doing a quick backup now there’s really no reason not to, especially with it being free. I presume the only caveat to that’d be requiring a high-speed connection to the Internet…

    5Gb of free online storage from Google Drive

    Posted on April 24, 2012 | No Comments
    Google has finally released a formal version of gDrive, it’s called Google Drive and for the longest time I’ve been trying to remind people about making a backup of some of their most important documents to at least a jumpdrive. With Google Drive you can accomplish this with 5Gb of free space online. 5Gb may not sound like much to most people, but for other people who don’t back up, who don’t have that much to back up and have may never thought about doing a quick backup now there’s really no reason not to, especially with it being free. I presume the only caveat to that’d be requiring a high-speed connection to the Internet…

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  • When Windows 7 was release it has voice recognition in it. My initial thoughts on the voice recognition was that it was good, but the user interface was for crap. Now, when I did that review, it was on a beta version of Windows 7; it was a release candidate— I recall thinking, this is so bad, they’re going to have to update this to make it usable… but when Windows 7 was released officially, Microsoft had done absolutely nothing to it to improve the GUI. I have always said that the voice recognition of Microsoft was good, but the GUI is the biggest problem with it. It’s like trying climb a range of boulders with a skateboard; it’s clumsy at best. So, when I downloaded the RC version of Windows 8, one of the first things I wanted to see was the GUI of the voice recognition. And what a disappointment it is. Microsoft has done NOTHING to it to make it more user friendly. But I need to explain…

    Review: Windows 8 Voice Recognition Interface Continues To Disappoint

    Posted on April 4, 2012 | 3 Comments
    When Windows 7 was release it has voice recognition in it. My initial thoughts on the voice recognition was that it was good, but the user interface was for crap. Now, when I did that review, it was on a beta version of Windows 7; it was a release candidate— I recall thinking, this is so bad, they’re going to have to update this to make it usable… but when Windows 7 was released officially, Microsoft had done absolutely nothing to it to improve the GUI. I have always said that the voice recognition of Microsoft was good, but the GUI is the biggest problem with it. It’s like trying climb a range of boulders with a skateboard; it’s clumsy at best. So, when I downloaded the RC version of Windows 8, one of the first things I wanted to see was the GUI of the voice recognition. And what a disappointment it is. Microsoft has done NOTHING to it to make it more user friendly. But I need to explain…

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  • In a previous post I talked about things with Facebook that are lacking and one of those things is the ability to upload images to Facebook. Now, apparently Facebook finds it more important to provide an Instant Messenger for Facebook, but not an easier way to send photos. In relation to that, I had a relative asking me how to upload photos to Facebook. Contemplating that process of how photos are actually uploaded to Facebook, and then contemplating how to upload them with the method they have now; it doesn’t sound fun. But there applications out there that can help you, and they can make it really easy… I have a really easy option for you…

    Uploading images to Facebook [easy]

    Posted on March 21, 2012 | No Comments
    In a previous post I talked about things with Facebook that are lacking and one of those things is the ability to upload images to Facebook. Now, apparently Facebook finds it more important to provide an Instant Messenger for Facebook, but not an easier way to send photos. In relation to that, I had a relative asking me how to upload photos to Facebook. Contemplating that process of how photos are actually uploaded to Facebook, and then contemplating how to upload them with the method they have now; it doesn’t sound fun. But there applications out there that can help you, and they can make it really easy… I have a really easy option for you…

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  • The Windows 8 Consumer Preview has given all of us a much clearer picture of what Microsoft has in store for its next-generation operating system. This time around, it truly is “next-generation;” in fact, it’s the biggest change since DOS grew a GUI. Already, the spectrum of responses have ranged from gushing love to seething hatred — with plenty of room for gray-area confusion in the middle. Let’s take a quick look at five of the biggest reasons why Windows 8 is (or will be) a success, followed by another five indications that Redmond has made a terrible mistake. And keep in mind we’ve still got at least half a year before the finished product.

    The Best and Worst of Windows 8 Consumer Preview

    Posted on March 12, 2012 | No Comments
    The Windows 8 Consumer Preview has given all of us a much clearer picture of what Microsoft has in store for its next-generation operating system. This time around, it truly is “next-generation;” in fact, it’s the biggest change since DOS grew a GUI. Already, the spectrum of responses have ranged from gushing love to seething hatred — with plenty of room for gray-area confusion in the middle. Let’s take a quick look at five of the biggest reasons why Windows 8 is (or will be) a success, followed by another five indications that Redmond has made a terrible mistake. And keep in mind we’ve still got at least half a year before the finished product.

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  • As with many other people, I went out this weekend to grab a movie and dinner. I chose to go to the new This Means War movie. It had a few people in it that normally make a good movie; Reese Witherspoon and Chris Pine— there was another actor I’m not so familiar with, Tom Hardy, but I recently saw him in another movie, Warrior that wasn’t that bad— but this cast of characters brought the movie together for me.Throughout the movie there’s point that are obvious to come, but still this movie is all about getting there… The movie is 90+ minutes and it’s rated PG13.

    Movie review: This Means War [just great.]

    Posted on February 19, 2012 | No Comments
    As with many other people, I went out this weekend to grab a movie and dinner. I chose to go to the new This Means War movie. It had a few people in it that normally make a good movie; Reese Witherspoon and Chris Pine— there was another actor I’m not so familiar with, Tom Hardy, but I recently saw him in another movie, Warrior that wasn’t that bad— but this cast of characters brought the movie together for me.Throughout the movie there’s point that are obvious to come, but still this movie is all about getting there… The movie is 90+ minutes and it’s rated PG13.

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  • When you have young children, you know; you just have to accept that there’s going to be things that you don’t want to do and there’s going to be movies that you don’t want to see. Because my son is only six years old he’s attracted to all the traditional kid shows and movies that are coming out, and even though I have the ability to determine if movies are going to be good or not, I still have to bite the bullet for the sake of my son and go see certain kid movies. Journey 2: The Mysterious Island is one of those movies that you can tell from the advertisements and the trailers that it was going to be just one of those ‘cheesy’ kids movies, but I didn’t really think it would be worse than the first one; I was wrong. It’s a PG movie [standard and 3D] and a solid 98 minutes of boredom I will never get back…

    Review: Journey 2: The Mysterious Island [Nope.]

    Posted on February 10, 2012 | 2 Comments
    When you have young children, you know; you just have to accept that there’s going to be things that you don’t want to do and there’s going to be movies that you don’t want to see. Because my son is only six years old he’s attracted to all the traditional kid shows and movies that are coming out, and even though I have the ability to determine if movies are going to be good or not, I still have to bite the bullet for the sake of my son and go see certain kid movies. Journey 2: The Mysterious Island is one of those movies that you can tell from the advertisements and the trailers that it was going to be just one of those ‘cheesy’ kids movies, but I didn’t really think it would be worse than the first one; I was wrong. It’s a PG movie [standard and 3D] and a solid 98 minutes of boredom I will never get back…

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  • I have to admit I’ve never used a ‘music maker’ before, but I was recently very surprised when I downloaded a free version of Magix Music Maker [silver]. It’s been so fun to make my own music, my wife has even found the process very creative. If you’ve never created music on your own, thinking the process maybe too complex to even attempt; you have a pleseant surprise ahead of you with Magix Music Maker. I don’t have the high end version of this software, but I still find all the things I can with it very nice. And not only can I create music with it, I can import music from other sources and edit those; making them my own and using them in my own compositions, which is very exciting to have it all come together.

    Review: MAGIX Music Maker – Silver

    Posted on January 4, 2012 | 2 Comments
    I have to admit I’ve never used a ‘music maker’ before, but I was recently very surprised when I downloaded a free version of Magix Music Maker [silver]. It’s been so fun to make my own music, my wife has even found the process very creative. If you’ve never created music on your own, thinking the process maybe too complex to even attempt; you have a pleseant surprise ahead of you with Magix Music Maker. I don’t have the high end version of this software, but I still find all the things I can with it very nice. And not only can I create music with it, I can import music from other sources and edit those; making them my own and using them in my own compositions, which is very exciting to have it all come together.

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  • This is a post for the use of the PaperPort application to convert the MAX files to PDF. Nuance decided with the release of v14 that they’d start using PDF files as a standard; which is good, since they now have a strong offering for a PDF viewer. A lot of users have complained about the lack of conversion tools for MAX files, and MAX files for the most part are completely non-standard and the only way to read MAX files is with the PaperPort MAX file viewer; something that’s just not very fun to deal with. But I believe after Nuance listened to to their customer base, they furnished a batch converter. I haven’t been able to find this converter on the Nuance website via a http page or FTP; I just can’t find it. And it maybe because they want customers to upgrade to v14 and as part of that, get the conversion tool. I don’t know; but seems logical. Although, I don’t see them offering this, because the option to make the converted PDF seaarchable, and I don’t know if that’s something that’d be backwards compatible… But I have this video for you to watch…

    PaperPort 14: Batch Converting MAX files to PDF [easy]

    Posted on November 14, 2011 | 5 Comments
    This is a post for the use of the PaperPort application to convert the MAX files to PDF. Nuance decided with the release of v14 that they’d start using PDF files as a standard; which is good, since they now have a strong offering for a PDF viewer. A lot of users have complained about the lack of conversion tools for MAX files, and MAX files for the most part are completely non-standard and the only way to read MAX files is with the PaperPort MAX file viewer; something that’s just not very fun to deal with. But I believe after Nuance listened to to their customer base, they furnished a batch converter. I haven’t been able to find this converter on the Nuance website via a http page or FTP; I just can’t find it. And it maybe because they want customers to upgrade to v14 and as part of that, get the conversion tool. I don’t know; but seems logical. Although, I don’t see them offering this, because the option to make the converted PDF seaarchable, and I don’t know if that’s something that’d be backwards compatible… But I have this video for you to watch…

    Continue Reading...

  • This is just a random review and video of an app that was listed in AppBrain for Android. From time to time I’ll drop in to AppBrain and see what the random top application of the day is, just to see what’s trending. For this post, I’ve got a application called Assaulter. It’s an 80′s style game with fast action and explosions. The game play is linear; it’s not FPS or anything and reminds me of the old games like Pitfall and Mario Brothers [just with lots of weapons]. You can get in to the game really quick and start playing— there’s very little delay there. I have created a video to show the installation and game play of the application.  

    Random application: ASSAULTER

    Posted on November 10, 2011 | 1 Comment
    This is just a random review and video of an app that was listed in AppBrain for Android. From time to time I’ll drop in to AppBrain and see what the random top application of the day is, just to see what’s trending. For this post, I’ve got a application called Assaulter. It’s an 80′s style game with fast action and explosions. The game play is linear; it’s not FPS or anything and reminds me of the old games like Pitfall and Mario Brothers [just with lots of weapons]. You can get in to the game really quick and start playing— there’s very little delay there. I have created a video to show the installation and game play of the application.  

    Continue Reading...

  • I recently ran in to an age old problem of needing to connect two PC’s to the same printer. For various reasons, I couldn’t share the printer, or run it though a server; the two machines can’t speak to each other for security reasons. Basically, one PC is on a home network and another is on a VPN 95% of the time. The issue was that for the most part I didn’t have to print things on my secure PC, but when I did, I would have to unplug the USB cable and plug-in another one. It took a minute or two to get up, unplug it, wait for the other machine to detect and install the drivers and then be able to use the printer [Hewlett Packard LaserJet P1006]. It’s not complicated, but as things moved forward and you get busy, you forget sometimes to put the cables back in a default order [as I was doing]. And for the 95% of the time the printer, it was hooked up to a server. Sharing printing services to the other machines in my house. Forgetting to reset this config was a regrettable thing because my wife uses the printer a...

    Wonderful USB Sharing Adapters

    Posted on November 8, 2011 | No Comments
    I recently ran in to an age old problem of needing to connect two PC’s to the same printer. For various reasons, I couldn’t share the printer, or run it though a server; the two machines can’t speak to each other for security reasons. Basically, one PC is on a home network and another is on a VPN 95% of the time. The issue was that for the most part I didn’t have to print things on my secure PC, but when I did, I would have to unplug the USB cable and plug-in another one. It took a minute or two to get up, unplug it, wait for the other machine to detect and install the drivers and then be able to use the printer [Hewlett Packard LaserJet P1006]. It’s not complicated, but as things moved forward and you get busy, you forget sometimes to put the cables back in a default order [as I was doing]. And for the 95% of the time the printer, it was hooked up to a server. Sharing printing services to the other machines in my house. Forgetting to reset this config was a regrettable thing because my wife uses the printer a...

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  • I saw my first MFM device the other day that uses a camera to scan images in to your computer. I saw that there’s been discussions people using cameras to scan and OCR documents, but this was the first I have actually seen on the shelves. It was the Lexmark Genesis. Initially The Lexmark Genesis costs close to $400 at lexmark.com. The presentation of the unit was comical. It was massive in comparison and dumb looking in comparison to some other MFM devices. It was almost 20 inches tall and you can quickly tell, just by looking at it that the mass of the unit was to simply accommodate the tiny camera in the back of the unit. I believe using a camera to convert documents to images is a great idea, considering the level of digital quality and also that people have been doing this for years already, but it’s not possible right now I’m putting that monstrosity on my desk.

    Just Noticed: Lexmark Genesis s815 wi-fi MFM Device

    Posted on October 31, 2011 | 1 Comment
    I saw my first MFM device the other day that uses a camera to scan images in to your computer. I saw that there’s been discussions people using cameras to scan and OCR documents, but this was the first I have actually seen on the shelves. It was the Lexmark Genesis. Initially The Lexmark Genesis costs close to $400 at lexmark.com. The presentation of the unit was comical. It was massive in comparison and dumb looking in comparison to some other MFM devices. It was almost 20 inches tall and you can quickly tell, just by looking at it that the mass of the unit was to simply accommodate the tiny camera in the back of the unit. I believe using a camera to convert documents to images is a great idea, considering the level of digital quality and also that people have been doing this for years already, but it’s not possible right now I’m putting that monstrosity on my desk.

    Continue Reading...

  • I was needing a new webcam and I wanted to ensure the next webcam I got was high definition, 1080 resolution and was autofocus. With all the buzz being around being able to do video chat and with Skype and Google+ having almost perfected the sequence of connecting; I wanted something that just worked. Unlike my last webcam from Creative that was a constant reminder of crap quality and horrible customer support. But I believe I got all that I wanted with my latest purchase of the Logitech c615 webcam. And the price was great; right at $30…

    Review: Logitech c615 HD Webcam

    Posted on October 11, 2011 | 4 Comments
    I was needing a new webcam and I wanted to ensure the next webcam I got was high definition, 1080 resolution and was autofocus. With all the buzz being around being able to do video chat and with Skype and Google+ having almost perfected the sequence of connecting; I wanted something that just worked. Unlike my last webcam from Creative that was a constant reminder of crap quality and horrible customer support. But I believe I got all that I wanted with my latest purchase of the Logitech c615 webcam. And the price was great; right at $30…

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  • In the age of media, it’s important to have something to organize you pictures and other media, but NERO seems to be focusing on the most easy and popular media right now; the massive job of working with images… But does anyone ever stop and think about images after they’re on a memory card? Not many, and who, or how many of those pictures nowadays actually makes it to print; you know— PRINT. Where it’s actually on a piece of photo paper in good quality for all time? Well, I believe that’s what NERO is attempting to do here with Kwik Media. There’s options for customers to completely customize their photos and images in to cards, calendars, and books [with themes].

    Kwik Media: FREE software to organize your pictures from Nero

    Posted on October 10, 2011 | 1 Comment
    In the age of media, it’s important to have something to organize you pictures and other media, but NERO seems to be focusing on the most easy and popular media right now; the massive job of working with images… But does anyone ever stop and think about images after they’re on a memory card? Not many, and who, or how many of those pictures nowadays actually makes it to print; you know— PRINT. Where it’s actually on a piece of photo paper in good quality for all time? Well, I believe that’s what NERO is attempting to do here with Kwik Media. There’s options for customers to completely customize their photos and images in to cards, calendars, and books [with themes].

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  • Some people may have already taken interest in the new looks over at blogger. Blogger is trying out a new set of templates; they call them dynamic views. Consider them things that you can change on the fly to suit your personal preference. Dynamic views from blogger was launched yesterday. Blogger reports this as having a unique browsing experience, and I think it is because no other blogging services offered this right now; for the users to be able to change the display of a person’s website or blog dynamically based on their preferences Right now there’s only six different dynamic views. The option to change the blog views are located in the top left-hand corner and by hovering over the menu option. When the mouse hovers over the option, there’s a drop-down box that lists the six options are available.

    Blogger releases ‘Dynamic Views’

    Posted on September 28, 2011 | 2 Comments
    Some people may have already taken interest in the new looks over at blogger. Blogger is trying out a new set of templates; they call them dynamic views. Consider them things that you can change on the fly to suit your personal preference. Dynamic views from blogger was launched yesterday. Blogger reports this as having a unique browsing experience, and I think it is because no other blogging services offered this right now; for the users to be able to change the display of a person’s website or blog dynamically based on their preferences Right now there’s only six different dynamic views. The option to change the blog views are located in the top left-hand corner and by hovering over the menu option. When the mouse hovers over the option, there’s a drop-down box that lists the six options are available.

    Continue Reading...

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