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Views of Earth from space are as close as the nearest weather site, but in the great scheme of things, we've only had the privilege a short while. We were reminded of just how awesome the view of everyone's home from space can be when we tried Desktop Earth, a free screensaver that rotates high-resolution satellite images of Earth on Windows desktops. But Desktop Earth does more than most other screensavers do. For instance, it changes with the time of day, displaying daylight and night images centered on your location. You can set it to center on any … Read more

Solitaire is one of the most popular card games ever, whether it's played with actual cards or as software. In fact, solitaire is a great PC training tool. Simple rules make solitaire easy to learn (or relearn), too. Free solitaire games are so easy to come by that you've probably already got one in Windows. But Free FreeCell Solitaire 2012 from TreeCard Games not only offers four types of solitaire (FreeCell, FreeCell Two Decks, Eight Off, and Stalactites) but also looks good enough for the corporate suite. You can upgrade to the paid version to add more games … Read more

Even though it may not have the same strategic flair as Plants and Zombies, the aspect of looking for the perfect aim and shoot in this app can serve just as well. Stupid Zombies 2 revives the same fun accuracy gaming experience of its predecessor, with more levels and upgraded gameplay.

The interface of Stupid Zombies 2 will look familiar to you. As for the game environment itself, you're given a shot gauge, the number of enemies to defeat, and a pause button. The primary objective of the game is to finish off all the zombies in a level … Read more

With a few changes and some additional functions, Talking Tom Cat 2, an interactive voice-recognition app, brings more cuteness to your Android device.

The opening screen of Talking Tom Cat 2 has many of the same elements as the original, but now Tom is set up in his own apartment with a new nemesis, Ben. The graphics are just as good in the second version and the onscreen movements are very fluid. The talk function is there again and Tom can repeat anything you say in his distinctive voice. He'll also reflexively react when you poke or swipe certain … Read more

A simple game with an added networking twist, Big Big Big 2 doesn't enhance the classic Chinese poker card game but it does allow you to play with your friends. If you are used to playing card games on computers and old game consoles, then Big Big Big 2 app might be one of the simpler pastimes you can take advantage of on your smartphone.

When it comes to the app's interface, going through the menus and options is pretty straightforward. The game settings and visual settings menu offer enough options to customize the game to your liking, … Read more

InstaMessage is a free social app that lets you privately chat with members of the popular Instagram image-sharing service in a text-message-style format. Its simple-to-use interface will have you getting to know the people behind the pictures in no time.

To begin with, you sign in to InstaMessage using your Instagram log-in information. There are four menu options, giving the choices to explore other user profiles, invite friends to chat using InstaMessage, access friends' Instagrams, and access your profile. We found a friend by exploring profiles that were in our location. After tapping the Chat button on his profile, we … Read more

If you can overlook some connectivity issues, Viber adds a convenient Internet calling and messaging platform to your smartphone. Like other messaging platforms, anyone you want to connect with will need to have Viber installed as well.

Users who've spent time with any other messaging program should have no trouble with Viber's interface. It offers the standard options, giving you quick access to chats, text messages and calls. There aren't any unique or groundbreaking features on offer, but we found each option easy to use. We did have some issues with our test calls, and the connection … Read more

If you're a fan of Garfield, you know that he's a big fan of food, especially lasagna. In Garfield's Defense: Attack of the Food Invaders for iOS, he's charged with defending his beloved lasagna and more from alien food invaders. While the graphics of the game were top-notch, the gameplay itself was awkward and quite boring.

Fans of Garfield will immediately recognize the graphics, which were taken straight from the popular comic. The premise of Garfield's Defense is pretty simple: As Garfield (or, if you choose, one of his friends), you're tasked with guarding … Read more

Paintbrush is a Cocoa-based painting and illustrating program for the Mac, very similar to the Paint application on Windows. Paintbrush is easy to install and can support BMP, PNG, JPEG, and GIF files.

The Paintbrush interface is very simple, with a floating menu with basic tools selectable for drawing on the left, and a menu bar at the top. If you've worked with Paint, Paintbrush looks and behaves the same. It takes only a few seconds to select a tool and draw with it. Paintbrush is all freehand art, although there are the traditional handles for things like circles … Read more