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Review: Solitaire lets you play the Klondike variation of the game

Solitaire is an OK port of the classic game, but the ads and lack of options stop it from being great. The game loses all of its replay value by only giving you a deck of cards to play the Klondike variation of the game. Other apps let you do that while giving you literally dozens of other options.

The game's layout very interestingly mimics the Vegas table layout. It looks neat, but the app gets the most annoying part of Vegas--the incessant advertising--in there, too. The persistent banner ad isn't just annoying; it actually gets in the … Read more

Review: Track and sort your library with Book Hunter

Book Hunter for Mac's excellent interface and helpful tutorial make it a good application for sorting and organizing a book collection. As users read more and more on their computers, smartphones, tablets, and with physical books at home, this type of application is becoming more useful.

After downloading and starting up, the free application brings the user into a tutorial, which links to the developer's Web page for more information. This help is not really needed since Book Hunter for Mac is easy to use. The main interface includes noticeable buttons for entering book information and creating separate … Read more

Review: DVD Hunter catalogs and organizes your DVDs the easy way

DVD Hunter for Mac offers basic functionality for creating a database of your DVD collection. Even though this application mostly works, adding titles can be a bear and some features are implemented rather poorly.

On first launch, DVD Hunter for Mac asks the user to import their Contacts, which may seem a bit odd at first since this is a DVD cataloging app, but after getting to know all the options offered later on, this made sense. After the application completes importing contacts, the user is given the option of reading a Getting Started guide. The app's interface seems … Read more

Review: Perform advanced calculations using EdenMath

Using EdenMath for Mac, users can perform nearly all of the advanced functions of a traditional scientific calculator. The application's interface is lean and easy to use, with all major functions properly labeled for quick access.

After a fast download, the application's main interface started up quickly. The accompanying instruction file was not needed since the menu looked just like a calculator. The right side of the window includes a number pad and buttons for advanced functions such as mod and square root. The higher-level functions are on the left side. Buttons for cos, log, and exponents are … Read more

Review: Game Hunter sorts and organizes any large game collection

Game Hunter for Mac, like its sister application DVD Hunter for Mac, offers users a way to comprehensively catalog and keep track of their large video game collections. The level of detail this app offers might be a bit overwhelming, though.

Installation was performed quickly and easily, and we were adding games to our newly created catalog within minutes. The intuitive interface meant little hassle in adding titles and populating the various fields of data. We typed a few words into the title field and clicked "Auto complete" to retrieve the rest of the information from Amazon's … Read more

Windows 8.1 vs. Apple: Twofer or tablet?

Will new Windows 8.1 hybrids finally expose the iPad for what it really is, a mere tablet?

That's what Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer suggested this week.

When speaking at the company's Build Conference on Wednesday, he described in colorful -- and maybe just a tad exaggerated -- terms how tablets don't measure up to laptops (or even pencil and paper).

Enter the "2-in-1," as Microsoft likes to call hybrids. During his keynote presentation, Ballmer brandished the Lenovo ThinkPad Helix as an example of a 2-in-1 he has used.

The Helix can be a pure … Read more

Review: Aqua Mail combines multiple e-mail addresses into one gorgeous app

Aqua Mail combines advanced features you won't find in other e-mail apps with a basic layout. It lets you view and back up multiple inboxes with stellar custom menus. Its endless-scrolling and HTML coding support makes it a truly remarkable e-mail app.

If you're using mail services that require two-factor authentication, it may make this app tough to set up. You might have to generate an app-specific password or jump through other hoops to get in. Once you log in, your mailboxes sync really quickly. It only took Aqua Mail a few seconds to load an inbox that … Read more

Review: OmniDazzle adds whimsy to presentations

OmniDazzle for Mac offers a set of desktop enhancements that include visual effects for aiding in presentations or just having a little fun while sitting at your computer. Even though most effects work well, some are a bit glitchy.

Installation was the regular matter of downloading and copying to the Applications folder. When we launched the app the first time, it brought us right to the help screen, which offered a good breakdown of what the app does and how to use it. OmniDazzle for Mac only allows one effect to be active at any time, so we selected our … Read more

Review: Fotor is a robust image editor and collage creator

Fotor is a finely-crafted image-editing tool that provides numerous filters and tools for free to customize your photos before uploading or sharing. The result is an easy-to-use piece of software with enough features to be useful, but not so many as to be overwhelming. It also happens to be free, and, combined with its collage creation tools, is a great download for any PC photo hounds.

When you first install Fotor you can start editing images right away. Click the Edit or Collage button and you can enter the basic editing menus for the software. There are dozens of different … Read more

Microsoft's pitch for hybrids: Tablets alone don't cut it

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer pitched upcoming "2-in-1" devices hard Wednesday at the Build Conference. Part of the pitch included mocking the dedicated tablet experience.

Here's what Ballmer said.

How many of us have gone to a meeting with somebody who brought a tablet and then when it comes time to actually take notes, writes them down on pencil and paper. Or can't get at the spreadsheet...or try to use it in terminal emulator mode...or take [a long time] to set up and turn their tablet into something that approximates a PC.

That statement -- … Read more