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Most Innovative Apps of 2009

admin — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 14:19:12 +0000

The launch of the iPhone completely changed the way we use computers today, so it stands to reason that the applications we buy and use on our iPhones should be just as innovative. Each year there are literally thousands of apps added to the iPhone store which makes for choosing which apps can benefit you most a hard thing, especially if you don’t like slogging through hundreds of pages and details to find an app that will do exactly what you need. That’s why we’re listing the top five most innovative apps of 2009 and why they should be on your iPhone.

1. Slacker Radio – This application is basically a clone of Pandora, but it offers one great premium feature which Pandora doesn’t, which is why it edges Pandora out of the “turning your iPhone into a radio” category. Slacker Radio allows you to listen to any brand of music you want with a smart DJ feature which will play songs in similar families, all with unlimited music skips if it plays a song you hate.

2. Textfree Unlimited – This great alternative to SMS messaging lets you message for free using push notification, so you’re no longer stuck with those high SMS charges for sharing pictures and moments with your friends.

3. TweetDeck – There’s nothing like having a great Twitter application to enhance your experience, and now you can bring your favorite Twitter client directly on your iPhone with you, so you can answer the question, “What are you doing?”

4. QuickOffice – This great little app allows you to edit all of your Word and Excel documents on the go, so if you’re sitting in class or at a meeting and you need to make some last minute changes, you’re free to do so.

5. Kindle – Need your Kindle in a smaller package? This great iPhone app lets you take all of your Kindle books with you, on your phone. While is not as easy to read as the original, it saves space by putting your eBooks into one place instead of lugging around another device.

Best Social Networking Apps of 2009

admin — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 13:17:38 +0000

Let’s face it. Social network has become a part of our lives over the past few years, with thousands of applications being developed on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook which make the experience that much more addicting. But with so many new releases in the app world, how can you know which apps are the best to use? Check out this list, which is a definitive compilation of five of the best apps for social networks to be released in 2009.

1. Brizzly – Brizzly is a great service because it lets you access Facebook and Twitter all in one place, so you can see what your friends are posting and playing on Facebook, while at the same time you can keep up on those updates posted by your favorite celeb or sports star on Twitter.

2. DailyBooth – DailyBooth is sort of like Twitter, only you update your status with pictures instead of words. After all, everyone always says a picture is worth a thousand words, and there’s no way you’re getting that amount of words in a tweet.

3. SocialVibe – SocialVibe is the best way to help your chosen charity and tell others you’ve done it. It connects to your Facebook account and accepts donations on your behalf to thousands of charities across the world, so no matter your cause, you can help.

4. FarmVille – FarmVille is currently the most popular and addictive game on Facebook, and with good reason. With over 30 million players, there’s tons of fun to be had. Even if you don’t use Facebook, Zynga is working on a way to bring the FarmVille fun to you.

5. Google Voice – While it hasn’t even been released to the public yet, Google Voice is sure to set ground-breaking trends in the way mobile carriers deal with SMS and calling, as Google Voice offers many previously paid features for free.

Best Browser Alternatives For Internet Explorer

admin — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:23:13 +0000

Even though Internet Explorer 8 is fresh out of the box, it is miles behind other browsers which makes it a poor choice for people who want to get the most out of their browsing experience. Security features have been updated since Internet Explorer 6, but features liked tabbed browsing and bookmarks are still very primitive when compared to the alternatives. Here are the top five browser alternatives to Internet Explorer.

1. Firefox – Firefox’s market share has constantly grown, and with good reason. It’s the largest browser to offer open source coding and a complete web of addons which allow users to tailor their browser to their needs. In fact, Mozilla listens to its addon community so well that many previous addons have been integrated into current versions of Firefox.

2. Google Chrome – Google Chrome is a great browser for people who want speed. It’s fast, simple, and reliable, though it doesn’t have the same customization options which Firefox has, though its been rumored that Google is working to allow extensions.

3. Flock – Flock is a browser which is great for people who are social. With integration into websites like Facebook and Twitter, if you find yourself spending most of your time online at either of these sites, then you’ll likely love Flock. It’s based on the same technology as Firefox, and many of the extensions are interchangeable.

4. Safari – Safari has finally been released for Windows users and why its initial release was full of bugs, Apple has worked to iron them out to provide a smooth browsing experience. While it’s sleek and shiny, it doesn’t offer many of the customization features Firefox does, which makes it just a step behind Firefox in terms of usability.

5. Opera – Opera has been playing catch up just as much as Internet Explorer has, as its the only browser on the list which used to use a pay model. Though it’s now free to use, Opera 10 recently saw release with several improvements to browsing speed and bookmarking tools, however its still the black sheep of browser alternatives.

Programs That Put You In the Cloud

admin — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:28:36 +0000

The way the internet is advancing, pretty soon we’ll no longer need to run our applications from our desktops, instead we’ll fire up our trusty web browser and do all of our work from there, making it accessible any where you go. There are already some applications which allow you to do this, which makes it great, especially if you use multiple computers. Here are our top five applications to put you in the cloud.

1. Dropbox – Transferring documents, files, movies, and pictures between computers used to be a real hassle. Now, with the installation of Dropbox on each of your computers you want to sync, you don’t have to worry about it, as Dropbox will take care of updating all of your files.

2. Digsby – Digsby is a chat application that lets you connect to all of the major chat protocols like AIM, MSN, GTalk, Yahoo, and ICQ. However, it goes a step further by storing all of your remembered settings on their central servers, so you can install Digsby on any computer, log in with your user name and password, and feel like you’re right at home.

3. Google Docs – Sharing documents which get a lot of revisions via email is a real pain. Google Docs has alleviated this pain by allowing you to share single documents and entire folders with people in your contacts list, as well as give editing permissions, or just viewing permissions.

4. Pandora – Pandora is a great music application which is run entirely online and streams music to you based on your preferences. It offers both a free and paid version, but the Smart DJ which mixes music based on 42 different algorithms makes for a great playlist.

5. ChromeOS – ChromeOS is to be Google’s flagship operating system, with several screenshots which have surfaced over the past few months. The brilliant thing about ChromeOS is that every feature is uses is accessed through the cloud, so no matter if you do your work on ChromeOS and need to access it on a Windows or Mac, you can.