convertible

It's easier being prudent with your travel budget when you know how much those souvenirs really cost. This free converter lets you compare the value of currencies against each other. It is ideal for tracking international exchange rates, but loses something of its value from previous versions, when comparing among currencies was more intuitive. This newer version also adds banner advertising; thankfully unobtrusive.

You can still swap the master currency and compare to monies from other countries, but to do so you'll need to tap the currency name--U.S. dollars, for instance--and enter the amount you'd like … Read more

Laptop mice are supposed to be smaller than average ones to save space in your bag, but do they have to be so small that only Stuart Little can use one? I'd rather sacrifice a little extra room in my bag for a comfortable mouse, but Jasco offers a peaceful compromise.

The Jasco Convertible Mouse looks similar to other laptop mice; it has a retractable USB cord, contoured buttons, and a small scroll dial, but the real difference is in the top slider that extends out the back to provide extra space for your hand. I tested both sizes … Read more

Updated at 11:30 a.m. PT with pricing info.

Intel has a convertible Netbook on tap for the CES 2009 crowd assembling once again in Las Vegas next month.

Laptop magazine got a sneak peek at the newest version of the low-cost Classmate PC. It has an 8.9-inch swivel screen with touch and stylus input, a Web cam, and 1.6 GHz Intel Atom processor, 60GB hard drive, and Windows XP, with a few Intel touches to make XP work for the convertible form factor. So far, that includes Vision Objects Pen Input, which makes anything input via … Read more

This video converter is made by Red Kawa, the same folks who now make the popular Videora iPod video converter. Although both programs are plagued by rampant advertising, the situation is much, much worse in this one. The ads take up much more screen space than they do in the iPod video converter, and the ones for the PSP include shrill voices excitedly informing the user that you have won not one but two, yes two, iPod Nanos. And judging from the included images, they're old Nano models at that.

Although freeware with ads can be annoying, the manner … Read more

The Sony PlayStation 3 is a game console first, but its Blu-ray playback also makes it one of the most popular home theater devices on the market. The only problem is that because the PS3 lacks an IR receptor, its difficult to integrate with home theaters centered around a IR-based universal remote, like a Harmony. For those who have become accustomed to controlling their gear using simple buttons that say "Watch TV" or "Watch a Blu-ray disc," it's a real pain that the PS3 requires using Sony's Blu-ray DVD remote or the game controller.… Read more

Even if you don't own an iPod, it can be easy to get sucked into the AAC trap. It's the default format used by the popular iTunes Software to rip CDs, and the program will prompt you to convert WMAs to AACs upon initial use if you have the Windows format living in your music folder. That's not to say AAC--or WMA, for that matter--is a bad format to use; in fact, some users prefer it to MP3. Plus, more and more portable devices are adding AAC support. However, MP3 is still the most widely supported file … Read more

Highly versatile and especially proficient with boot discs, UltraISO Premium creates, edits, and burns disc images in several popular formats: ISO, BIN, Nero, Alcohol, CloneCD, and Xbox. It also converts images among formats. UltraISO supports data and audio/video discs and includes a simple MP3 encoder, but it really excels at creating bootable discs. It even can create a disc with a menu for booting several OSs.

The interface is well organized, though rather plain, and we wish its icons were more readable. Also on the negative side, the program can't mount CD images, which will diminish its value … Read more

PrimoPDF 4 converts just about any file type to a PDF, using the source program the file was created with and its print command. Two new changes make the program easier to use and more useful. The interface redesign is definitely easier to navigate, and users can now choose to email the PDF instantly after its creation.

The conversion process from whatever document is on your screen to PDF is quick and efficient. Other features include a security feature, which allows the user to wrap the PDF in 40-bit or 128-bit encryption, PDF merging, and password protection. The user also … Read more

One of the five members of the Federal Communications Commission, Republican Robert McDowell, said Tuesday that the DTV transition "will be messy...but we'll get through it."

The statement comes three weeks after Commerce Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye, a Democrat, warned that the next presidential administration may inherit a "communications crisis."

McDowell urged broadcasters, the party he identified as having the most to lose in the transition, to step up their informational campaigns and to tailor the information to local markets in the months leading up to the transition. As an example, he said that technical differences between local markets may require campaigns that urge consumers to also purchase a new antenna to get their DTV converter boxes to work.

To parse McDowell's statement, he's probably referring to the fact that, even if consumers buy a converter box and hook it up to their current antenna, they may not receive as many channels as they did before the transition. Digital TV signals use a completely different transmission method from analog, and in many cases we've heard reported, people often can't get the same number of digital channels as analog ones.

As reported in Broadcasting & Cable, FCC chairman Kevin Martin told Congress last month that, after the switch, approximately 15 percent of digital TV stations will not reach as many viewers as their analog signals did.… Read more