Apple Siri Versus Google Jelly Bean: Voice Search Showdown

One of the big enhancements in the Android 4.0 (Jelly Bean) operating system update that Google announced on June 27 is improved voice recognition in search. You can now ask your Android phone questions in a natural way--meaning you no longer have to sound like a robot to get answers. We wondered which service is better at answering questions: Android's Voice Search or Apple's much-touted Siri. To test the services, we assembled a list of 17 questions or commands, and asked them of a Galaxy Nexus running Jelly Bean and an iPhone 4S running iOS 5. A quick disclaimer: Apple has greatly improved Siri in iOS 6, but we weren't able to get our hands on the beta to test it. And the version of Jelly Bean we received from the Google I/O developer conference was not the final version, which will come to phones in mid-July. Our results? Siri and the new voice recognition software in Jelly Bean each have their fair share of pros and cons. In the end, Android came out ahead on 8 of the 17 questions and commands we posed. Here's a breakdown of how well each phone handled each question or task. Question 1: "Where Is the Empire State Building?" Siri seemed to have trouble understanding this question, while Jelly Bean produced a map that gave us the address of the Empire State Building in New York. For now, Android has the upper hand when it comes to locating famous buildings. Winner: Android Jelly Bean Question 2: "Will I Need an Umbrella on Sunday?" The first few times we asked this question, Siri gave us directions to the nearest department stores. We believe that it may have been trying to point us to places that sold umbrellas, rather than answering our weather question. When Siri finally realized that we were asking about the weather, it informed us that it could not predict what the weather would be on Sunday, and showed us a graphic displaying the local weather forecast for the next five days. Android told us that we wouldn't need an umbrella on Sunday, and also produced a five-day forecast. Winner: Android Jelly Bean Question 3: "Show Me Pictures of Mount Rushmore" Android automatically brought up a small grid of images, while Siri asked if we wanted to perform a Web search. Siri finally showed us what we had asked for, but it required an extra step. Winner: Android Jelly Bean Question 4: "Where Can I Get a Taco Around Here?" Siri, which pulls its results from Yelp, brought up 20 restaurants in the area that had tacos on the menu. Android presented a map of places that served tacos, but only one establishment was nearby; the rest were spread throughout the city. We have to hand it to Siri on this one, due to the number of results and owing to how close they were to our approximate location. Winner: Apple Siri Question 5: "What's the Capital of Canada?" Both phones came up with an answer, but Android was faster at fetching a result. Winner: Android Jelly Bean Question 6: "Get Me Directions to the California Academy of Sciences" As with the Empire State Building question, Android immediately brought up a map with the location of the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, and started opening Google Maps to give us directions. Siri found two entries for the California Academy of Sciences, and required us to select the correct entry before proceeding to give us directions. Winner: Android Jelly Bean Question 7: "How Old Is Stan Lee?" Both Siri and Android gave us an answer, but Google showed us a picture of Marvel's Stan Lee and read the answer to us. Winner: Android Jelly Bean Question 8: "Who Was the Number One Pick in the NBA Draft Last Year?" Neither Siri nor Android had an answer to this question, and both defaulted to performing a Google search instead
By Friendly Computers Copyright: 2010-01-28

Seven Tips for Spicing Up Your Facebook News Feed

Are you tired of seeing your Facebook news feed filled with inane app and game updates, personal posts from people you haven't spoken to since high school, and generally bland content? If so, it's time to spice up your news feed to make sure that you get regular updates from people you care about, as well as news and information on topics you're interested in. You actually have a surprising number of options to improve your news feed--such as editing your friends list, adding interests, using the Like button, and hiding the stuff you hate. Priming your news feed will take a little work on your part, but if you're a Facebook fan and you want to improve your feed, here's what you need to do to take Facebook to the next level. Friend or Acquaintance? Seven Tips for Spicing Up Your Facebook News Feed Facebook lets you classify your friends as close friends or acquaintances. Classifying people as acquaintances can improve your news feed, since you'll lose the annoying daily updates from people you haven't spoken to in ten years. You'll still receive updates from acquaintances, but only the important ones. Facebook has an automated tool that helps you organize your friends list into close friends and acquaintances, so you don't have to go through your pals one by one. The tool automatically generates a list of friends that it thinks are your acquaintances, and asks whether you'd like to see less of them in your news feed. Although Facebook does a pretty good job of weeding out acquaintances based on the people you do and do not interact with, you should check the selections to make sure that a close friend doesn't slip through the cracks. You can run the tool as many times as you wish to keep tweaking your news feed until you run out of friends to add to your acquaintance list. Still Too Noisy Seven Tips for Spicing Up Your Facebook News Feed If you're still getting unwanted updates from people after running the friend organizer tool, you can quickly get rid of them. Let's say you want to silence Frank because he posts too many game updates. Hover your mouse over Frank's offending post, and click the downward-facing arrow in the upper-right corner of the update. From the drop-down menu, select Only Important, and Frank's FarmVille updates will instantly disappear. Get Interested [Click to enlarge] Seven Tips for Spicing Up Your Facebook News FeedYour Facebook profile has a feature called Interests that lets you subscribe to general categories such as photography, technology, or design. Each category contains people, fan pages, and brands on Facebook that relate to that particular interest. If you subscribe to the interest "Chefs," for example, you'll see public updates in your news feed from 25 famous chefs, such as Anthony Bourdain, Cat Cora, Jamie Oliver, and Wolfgang Puck. To spice up your news feed with Interests, go to your Interests page and click +Add Interests in the top-right corner of the center column. On the next page you can browse through popular lists created by other Facebook users. If you don't find something you like, you can make your own list by clicking +Create List in the top-right corner. Interest-list updates usually clump together as two or three updates from different people on the list at once. Blogger Robert Scoble, who has been advocating some of the methods in this article for several months, points out that Facebook Interests are a great way to get news and information from people you don't care enough about to subscribe to, but from whom you would still like a few updates every week or so. Like Stuff Seven Tips for Spicing Up Your Facebook News FeedAnother way to add interesting items to your Facebook news feed is to "Like" stuff. The items you Like can include brand pages, such as that of PCWorld. If going through Facebook to find things to Like is too much work, just keep an eye out for Like buttons as you travel around the Web. The key here is to Like entire brands or websites, not just articles; doing so will add more updates you're interested in directly from a personality or brand. Start Blocking Seven Tips for Spicing Up Your Facebook News Feed Not only can you add stuff to your news feed to make it better, but you can also subtract items from your news feed. The best thing to do is to eliminate specific types of updates that annoy you--for me, it's the never-ending stream of gaming updates. The easiest way to zap posts like this is to strike them down where they stand. Let's say that updates from friends playing CityVille are driving you bananas. Hover over a CityVille gaming update, and click the down-facing arrow in the top right of the status area. At the bottom of the drop-down menu that appears, select the option that says Hide all by CityVille. Top Stories or Most Recent Seven Tips for Spicing Up Your Facebook News Feed By default, Facebook shows you only what it believes are the most relevant items from friends, Interest lists, and Likes. This is Facebook's curated news feed, which is based on various factors such as your relationship to the poster and the popularity of the post. If you'd rather see the latest updates--regardless of popularity--click Sort at the top of your news feed and select Most Recent from the drop-down menu. Facebook will remember your choice the next time you return. Ticked at the Ticker? Facebook's Ticker on the far right of the screen shows you the latest updates, comments, and activity from your friends in real time. It's a perpetual stream of information that can cause social networking overload. Give yourself a break and banish the ticker in one of two ways. The first way is to go to the bottom-right corner of your news feed and click the right-facing arrow and square bracket symbol to hide the sidebar. The downside of this method is that it hides your Facebook chat window as well. Alternatively, you can adjust your chat window to cover up the annoying ticker. To do this, hover over the divider between your chat contacts and the ticker. When you see the double-edged arrow, just click and keep scrolling up until the ticker disappears.
By Friendly Computers Copyright: 2010-01-28 http://www.pcworld.com/article/258608/seven_tips_for_spicing_up_your_facebook_news_feed.html#tk.hp_fv

How to Maintain Your Android Phone

Your Android phone is a powerful computer. But like any other computer, it won't run at its best without proper care and maintenance. If you've ever owned an Android phone, you probably noticed that it became slower after a few months of use than it was when you first brought it home from the store. There are several reasons for this phenomenon, and in this article I'll explain how to get your Android smartphone back into tip-top shape. You can accomplish a lot of what I'll be recommending here by performing a simple factory reset; but if you take that approach, you'll lose your data and have to reconfigure your phone. So instead, grab your Android phone and follow these steps to get it running like new again. Clear the Cache [Click to enlarge] Android phone maintenance: Clearing the cache; click for full-size image.Android phone maintenance: Clearing the cache.Have an app that's always crashing? Rather than force-closing or uninstalling it, try clearing its cache. This simple step will help resolve most of the issues that troublesome apps may be experiencing--and it won't create new problems, as forcing the app to shut down might. To clear an application's cache, open the Settings menu on your phone and click Applications. Then select Manage Applications and tap the app that's been having problems. Don't worry--all of your data and settings will remain intact; you're just getting rid of temporary files that may be causing difficulties. Uninstall Apps [Click to enlarge] Android phone maintenance: Uninstalling apps; click for full-size image.Check your app drawer for apps you don't use or need.Even though it's my job to love apps (and I do love them), improperly written ones can cause all sorts of trouble for your Android phone. Built-in problems can range from storing critical data as a plain-text file in your memory card to sullying your notification bar with constant updates that can't be disabled. Consider the official Facebook app: Opening it automatically turns on your GPS, in case you want to upload a photo or create a status update that shares your current location. That's fine and dandy, except that the app periodically forgets to turn off your phone's GPS once it's done using it, wasting precious battery power and leaving you scrambling for the nearest outlet. Even apps you aren't intentionally using may be running processes in the background that waste resources for no good reason. Unfortunately, task killers are generally ineffective at combating this problem, so your only practical option is to open your app drawer and uninstall apps that you don't regularly use. Doing so will open up space on your phone for more music, videos, and pictures, and it will help reduce the number of apps that are running in the background. Clean Out Your Memory Card Cleaning out your SD Card may not boost your phone's performance, but it makes sense to remove any old or unused files that are just taking up space on the card. To identify the biggest hogs on your memory card, I recommend installing DiskUsage. This app shows you which files on your phone are taking up the most room, though you'll have to plug your phone into a computer or use a file browsing app (such as Astro) to delete the unneeded files. [Click to enlarge] Android phone maintenance: Cleaning out your memory card; click for full-size image.DiskUsage shows you what's on your SD Card. You should do this whenever you uninstall applications, largely because some apps leave folders of data behind when they're uninstalled. If your phone is rooted, you can download the SD Maid app to automatically clear out old junk files. SD Maid also lets you freeze or remove any bloatware that came preinstalled on your smartphone--so you can finally get rid of the annoying Blockbuster app that continually asks you for updates. Root Your Phone If you don't mind voiding your warranty, rooting can breathe new life into an ancient Android phone. We've described how to root your Android phone countless times in the past, so you can refer to one of those guides when you're ready to walk through the actual process. A rooted phone gives you complete control over your Android device: You can remove unwanted bloatware, install root-only applications, and even load custom ROMs that change the look and feel of Android on your phone. Another benefit of rooting is that you no longer have to depend on your carrier for Android updates. While everyone else is waiting for their phone to receive Android 4.0, you can probably find a ROM for your phone that will give you a taste of Ice Cream Sandwich a few weeks or months before the update officially appears. Rooting isn't without its hazards, however, and a serious mistake can render your phone unusable. In my opinion, though, the benefits are worth the risks, especially if you have an older Android phone; it's definitely an option you should consider if you aren't satisfied with your current Android situation.
By Friendly Computers Copyright: 2010-01-28 Give us a call today: 281-554-5500 or visit Friendly Computers to schedule an appointment. http://www.pcworld.com/article/258295/how_to_maintain_your_android_phone.html#tk.hp_fv

New Airport Express a Tiny Wi-Fi Base Station Powerhouse

The redesigned 2012 model of the AirPort Express Wi-Fi base station has become the mouse that roars. The revisions transform this model into a tiny powerhouse by adding to its previous modest attributes a second ethernet port, simultaneous dual-band Wi-Fi, and a guest network option all in a form factor identical to the Apple TV (except white and an ounce lighter). At the same $99 as the previous two models, the AirPort Express might serve an entire apartment or single-floor home, or act as a main base station to which other base stations are chained via Wi-Fi or ethernet, where previously the $179 AirPort Extreme base station would be required. The Express uses the same configuration tools and options as its bigger siblings, the Extreme and Time Capsule. In testing, performance and throughput are in line with those models. It’s extremely difficult to offer generically useful advice when testing the range for a base station, because every home and office varies in what blocks or reflects wireless signals. The new Express provided excellent signal strength across my 90-year-old house, which requires three base stations to cover its modest size due to materials in walls and the floor between the main story and basement that block signals. The Express compares favorably to two different models of Extreme in use in the same house. As with all base stations, you may need to try out an Express, and even move it to different locations, to determine if it can cover the area you need. (Try the free NetSpot mapping program to help with that task.) While any Wi-Fi device may connect to an AirPort Express network, Apple only allows configuration via AirPort Utility, whether on iOS, Windows, or Mac OS X in Leopard, Snow Leopard, and Lion. Apple currently has two chains of utility software in Mac OS X to provide legacy support for features it removed in a software revision, but which are still available in hardware. With Leopard and Snow Leopard, AirPort Utility 5.6.1 must be installed to configure an AirPort Express; with Lion, the minimum version is now 6.1. (While Lion can still use 5.6.0 to access features in all previous 802.11n base stations, those released from 2007 to 2011, 6.1 is absolutely required for the new Express, and Lion can’t use 5.6.1.) Simultaneous dual-band AirPort Utility: An AirPort Express can be connected wirelessly, indicated by the dotted line in AirPort Utility, to an existing network to provide fuller coverage.While the previous AirPort Express (2008) supported 802.11n networking, you had to make a choice to set the Express to use either the 2.4GHz or 5GHz band available for 802.11n, not both at the same time (known as simultaneous dual-band). All older 802.11b and 802.11g gear can connect only using 2.4GHz channels. This is also true of a fairly large amount of newer equipment that supports 802.11n, but only for 2.4 GHz connections, which includes all iPhones and iPod touch models with 802.11n, many smartphone and handhelds, and even some newer computers. All iPad models, the Apple TV, and all Mac models released since 2006 can use either 2.4GHz or 5GHz. (The 5GHz band offers much greater throughput but only at closer distances than 2.4GHz.) Having both bands available at once in the 2012 AirPort Express (a feature added in 2009 to the Extreme and Time Capsule models) allows your network to perform at the highest possible speeds no matter how distant a device is from the base station while it remains in range of a signal. That’s a significant improvement, and makes the Express a much better value, especially compared with equipment from competing manufacturers, such as Linksys. Competitors have offered relatively inexpensive simultaneous dual-band gateways for years, but those models lack Mac-specific features, such as Wake on Demand. Two streams The AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule models (since 2009) have one advantage in the radio department over the Express. In 802.11n, the radio system can use varying amounts of power across the multiple antennas used to send out data to “steer” a signal (think of multiple cue sticks hitting a pool ball to control how it caroms), and create separate data streams at full throughput across different paths in space. The Express has two streams, while the Extreme and Time Capsule offer three. This approach allows a three-stream router, like the Extreme, to have an effective raw throughput of 450 Mbps in 5GHz and 225 Mbps in 2.4GHz, while the Express is limited to 300 Mbps and 150 Mbps, respectively. In practice, the net throughput might be just 10 to 30 percent higher for an Extreme or Time Capsule over an Express (say 130 Mbps instead of 100 Mbps), and if you’re that concerned about throughput, you may need to use wired connections in any case. Apple’s AFP file-sharing typically peaks at much lower rates than these maximum data rates. The additional antennas required and the additional stream also fill in hard-to-reach spaces with better Wi-Fi coverage. For larger homes or offices, or ones that have dead areas with an Express or other Wi-Fi gear, the Extreme or Time Capsule may be required. Ethernet connectivity Ports: (left to right) Power, ethernet WAN, ethernet LAN, USB, and audio (analog/optical). The AirPort Express once had a single ethernet port, making it useful only to extend networks via ethernet if it were plugged into a broadband modem. Older models could also extend an existing Apple wireless network (that feature still exists) and use the single ethernet port to provide access to wired machines. The new second ethernet port opens up the Express by allowing both a Wide Area Network (WAN) connection to a broadband modem or a larger network, and a Local Area Network (LAN) connection to a computer via ethernet, or to an ethernet switch to which many computers and devices can be connected. The Time Capsule and Extreme each have a built-in three-port gigabit ethernet (10/100/1000 Mbps) switch, while the Express continues to use 10/100 Mbps ethernet on both its WAN and LAN ports. However, the 100 Mbps limit doesn’t affect data exchanges between Wi-Fi devices, which work at the maximum wireless rates available, and it’s easy enough to plug in an inexpensive gigabit ethernet switch to allow the fastest throughput between wired devices. Only two particular situations require an Extreme or Time Capsule because of the ethernet limitation: if you have a broadband connection of faster than 100 Mbps, which is uncommon, but becoming more widely available; or you are determined to have the maximum possible throughput between ethernet and Wi-Fi devices on the same network. More features Guest networking has also been added, which allows a second virtual network with a unique network name (SSID) and security scheme to be available to visitors or others without providing access to the main network. Guest users can’t sniff or have access to Bonjour resources (like shared printers or file servers) or other traffic on the main network, either. This has been in Apple’s full-sized base stations for years, and it’s a nice feature to find in the $99 model. Apple also brings over the option from the other simultaneous dual-band gateways of naming the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz networks separately. That lets you choose to have a device connect to one band or another if it has the option of connecting to either. On some combinations of devices and networks, it can be useful to force 5 GHz for throughput or 2.4 GHz for range. The Express continues to have a unique option in the Wi-Fi base station line-up, which is a dual-function analog and digital optical (Toslink) port which lets it be a target for AirPlay audio streaming from iTunes on a Mac or Windows system and from any capable app in iOS. (Rogue Amoeba’s Airfoil extends AirPlay streaming to any audio output in Mac OS X or under Windows.) Previous models had an integral two-prong power plug (in 110-volt countries) that allowed them to hang directly off a wall outlet or fit into a power strip. The base station was heavy enough that it could easily fall off the outlet, and locating it by an outlet or a power strip could often mean that signals were blocked by furniture. A separate cord with a three-prong plug was only available as part of a $39 A/V kit. The 2012 Express (in the U.S. edition at least) has a 6.5-foot (200 cm) long two-prong cable that allows it to be more easily placed. It’s also attractive enough, unlike the unit it replaced, to sit on top of a TV cabinet or table. The 2012 Express, just like the two preceding models, can only share a single USB printer using Bonjour. The Extreme and Time Capsule use Bonjour sharing for a printer or hard drive (via AFP and Samba) through a USB port, but also allow the use of a USB hub to share multiple devices. Macworld’s buying advice The quibbles about USB and ethernet are relatively minor compared to the features available in this mighty mite. For the money, the Express makes an effective base station for modestly sized apartments or homes, or where access is only needed in a few adjacent rooms in an office. This sleek model is the right choice for many, and at $80 less than the AirPort Extreme, a prudent one as well.
By Friendly Computers Copyright: 2010-01-28 Give us a call today: 281-554-5500 or visit Friendly Computers to schedule an appointment.

D-Link Boxee Live TV Tuner

The Boxee Live TV tuner ($49 as of June 21, 2012) lets you use a Boxee media streamer to watch over-the-air broadcast TV. This digital TV tuner connects to a Boxee USB port on one end, and (via a coaxial connector) to an existing antenna, an existing cable, or an antenna that comes with the product on the other end. However, if you have a digital TV (or an analog set with a digital-TV converter), you already have a DTV tuner--whether you're using it or not. On a typical HDTV, the tuner input is the one that's labeled 'TV' and connects to an antenna or cable the same way the Boxee does, via a coaxial input. (Of course, pay cable services also deliver over-the-air stations, but the point of the Boxee tuner is to fill in the blanks that you'd have without the pay service.) What the Boxee Live TV tuner brings to the party is integration of over-the-air broadcast channels with Boxee's software and features. If you own a Boxee and use your HDTV set's own tuner, you get the same stations, but you have to switch inputs between whatever the Boxee is connected to (for content you stream from the Internet and your home network) and the TV tuner, which also involves fiddling with multiple remotes. On top of that, you can't share your live-TV habits with Facebook friends or use Boxee's electronic program guide (which usually provides some program info you don't get over the air). Another benefit of the Boxee tuner: With some programming, you get easier access to related Boxee content (for example, other series episodes). In other words, paying the $49 cost of the Boxee tuner to enable the Boxee Live TV service buys a measure of convenience--if you're committed to Boxee as your primary TV source. Setup is fairly straightforward. The Boxee Live TV tuner is a USB dongle about the size of a typical cell phone modem or Wi-Fi adapter; it plugs into one of the two available USB ports on a Boxee Box. When you fire up the Boxee after connecting the tuner, with the antenna or cable also attached, on-screen prompts direct you to get a software update that adds Boxee Live to the menu options. The first time you run Boxee Live, it performs a channel scan (much as any TV does during setup if you're using its tuner) based on your input of your zip code and whether you're connecting to an antenna or a cable. This process typically takes 5 to 10 minutes or so. If you're using an external antenna, whether your own or the one that Boxee ships with the tuner, the number of channels you receive will depend a lot on both the location of your home and the situation of your antenna. You can't do much about the former--if you live an an area with poor reception, you may never be able to get some stations--but you can take steps to improve antenna placement. If your set is situated indoors and far away from a window, don't expect to get much live TV unless you invest in a long cable that will let you put the antenna outdoors or at least next to a window. (This problem would be evident whether you used the set's tuner or the Boxee tuner.) In my tests with a TV located some 40 feet from a window, the Boxee tuner and its included short antenna could pick up only a half-dozen or so channels; when I connected the antenna to a 50-foot coaxial cable and placed it next to a window, though, a new channel scan found 53 channels. Quality in some cases was uneven: Stations with weaker signals sometimes disappeared completely. It's worth noting, too, that the Boxee Live TV tuner can't do some things that I've gotten used to as a Comcast subscriber with an HDTV/DVR box; most notably, it can't pause or rewind live TV. That said, it's true that you can save a lot of money by eliminating monthly cable service fees and relying on over-the-air TV and streaming Internet media. If you're happy with the quantity of over-the-air TV that you can receive (you might want to use your TV's built-in tuner first to see what you can get), and if you're already using Boxee for a lot of Internet content, $49 isn't much to pay for convenience. But you should understand that convenience is pretty much all you're getting.
By Friendly Computers Copyright: 2010-01-28 http://www.pcworld.com/article/256409/boxee_live_tv_tuner_review_device_adds_overtheair_to_boxee_lineup.html#tk.hp_new

Recommend: 0 3 4 Email 0 Comments Print Microsoft Surface Tablet: The Keyboard is the Key

Until recently, I've never been attracted by the idea of a tablet. The Surface may change that. By Barbara Krasnoff, Computerworld Jun 20, 2012 9:32 am Complete Coverage Microsoft Surface Windows RT I need keyboards with my computers. There are a couple of reasons for this. One is that I am a writer by profession and by inclination. A large portion of my life has been, and will hopefully continue to be, the act of putting words on a page (whether that page be paper or virtual). For that purpose, a keyboard remains the best method. And that's my second reason: I'm a touch typist. I learned how to type in high school, back in the days when they were still training girls to be seamstresses and secretaries (the boys were sent to auto mechanics and woodworking). My brain is wired for it. I type on a QWERTY keyboard as naturally as I walk. [Click to enlarge] Microsoft Surface Tablet: The Keyboard is the KeyI've tried other methods. For example, I have tried speech-to-text; most recently, with some of the functionality offered by my Android 4.0. However, while I'm pretty amazed by the accuracy of the technology, it still isn't perfect -- and not as fast. As a result, until recently, I've never been attracted by the idea of a tablet. Oh, I know how great they are for a number of tasks like watching videos, gaming and surfing the Web. I have many friends with iPads and other tablets, and I've tried a few review units myself. But I couldn't type on one. I've watched journalists at press events picking out words on the touchscreens of tablets, staring down as they made sure that their fingers connected with the correct keys. It would drive me bananas. Yes, you say, but there are now great, lightweight keyboards that you can buy for your tablet. True -- in fact, we've run two articles on keyboards that you can get for your iPad or for Android tablets, and some of those got high praise from the reviewers. But they added weight, bulk and extra expense to the tablets, and I felt as if I would be simply turning a tablet into a notebook. Sure, I'd be able to detach the tablet when I wanted it for entertainment -- but I'd be carrying it around with the keyboard and the case, and it just seemed like too much trouble and expense simply to be able to join the tablet crowd. [Click to enlarge] Microsoft Surface Tablet: The Keyboard is the KeyNow, Microsoft has come out with its Surface tablet, which comes with a lightweight cover that is also a keyboard -- and one where you can feel the keys. I've been in this business way too long to get enthusiastic about a product that hasn't yet been examined by journalists and other non-Microsoft testers. Especially when there is still so much information that we don't yet have. And I'm definitely not wed to the Microsoft OS -- while my personal laptop uses Windows 7, my work laptop is a MacBook Pro, and I carry a Samsung Galaxy Nexus loaded with Android 4.0. But, as Matt Hamblen says in his hands-on article about the Surface, the keyboard covers that Microsoft introduced are the "secret sauce" that could make these tablets something to be considered -- both as entertainment devices and as lightweight systems on which somebody who writes can get some real work done. I'll be very interested to see what the reviewers have to say once the tablets are available.
By Friendly Computers Copyright: 2010-01-28 Give us a call today: 281-554-5500 or visit Friendly Computers to schedule an appointment.

How to Edit Images for Free

Want to do some serious image editing without spending a lot of cash? Here are a few of the better image editors that you can download for free on your Windows, Linux, or Mac system. By David Daw, PCWorld Jun 18, 2012 8:00 pm Paint.netIf you work on the Web, you've probably been asked to do some simple image editing, even if your job has little or nothing to do with the artistic side of things. The standard image editors that came with your computer are fine for basic tasks, but complex editing typically requires the more sophisticated functions of Adobe Photoshop. This can be a problem, since Photoshop's $600 price tag is rather hefty. Serious artists still need (or at least prefer) to use Photoshop to take care of business. But if you merely have to crop an image on occasion or do some light image editing, you can find tons of free and easy-to-use alternatives that replicate Photoshop's best features without making you pay the price. What Tasks Are These Editors Good For? Free image editors excel at midrange image manipulation. High-end image editing (manipulating individual layers of complicated image files, for instance) is best done in Photoshop. On the other hand, you can perform most rudimentary tasks in the free image editor that came with your computer. For example, if you simply need to crop or resize an image, Windows Photo Gallery and Apple's Preview each have the tools you need. Just look for the proper command: On a Windows PC, both crop and resize are located in the Fix menu, and Mac users should look under Tools. If you need to do more with your pictures, pick up one of the free image editors outlined below. These editors are ideal for tasks such as creating simple multilayer images and exporting them in various file formats. You may not have to do this sort of thing often, but these programs can be useful if you're trying to merge several images into one, or if you need to spice up a boring shot. You could, say, alter the background behind a subject to place the person in a new environment, add a company logo to your images, or construct a new logo out of stock photography. Which Editor Should I Use? Linux: Fans of GIMP often tout it as the "Free Photoshop," and of all the free image editors on the market, it comes closest to matching Adobe Photoshop's capabilities. Not only does GIMP replicate Photoshop's default functions and tools faithfully, but it also has its own plug-in architecture, so (in theory) GIMP can be just as flexible as the "real thing." When in doubt, go with the GIMP. Originally developed for Unix, GIMP has been ported to every major operating system in at least one form (and usually multiple ones), which makes it an easy blanket recommendation for anybody seeking all of the features of Photoshop with none of the expense. I could end this article right here--except for the fact that GIMP is, rather notoriously, as slow as molasses. If you're a Linux user, or if you want free access to a range of tools that's similar to what Photoshop offers, then GIMP is still your best bet. However, Windows and Mac users just looking to remove the backgrounds from images or wanting to do some simple work in layers can turn to alternative free image editors that are faster. Windows: You can find a great free image-editing package in Photoscape. In addition to an image editor, this software includes an image browser and a batch processor for quickly editing groups of photos at once. It's also a fast and stable little application. The problem is that it doesn't support any advanced image-editing features. If you need to color-correct an image, Photoscape is great--but its lack of layer support and its omission of advanced selection tools means that it falls short as a Photoshop replacement. Photoscape for Windows is pretty simple, but it's also free. If you need an application with a little more power behind it, Paint.net is probably the answer. Although it still isn't as complete as Photoshop, Paint.net is much more powerful than Photoscape, and its support for layers and image filters should satisfy all but the most hard-core users. Paint.net is the fastest and most stable Photoshop replacement I tested for this article, too: During my limited time with Paint.net, it didn't crash once, and it loaded and manipulated images speedily. Mac OS X: Though the freeware editor Seashore uses GIMP's image format, it was developed in Cocoa specifically for Mac OS X. That means Seashore doesn't require X11 to run its graphical user interface the way GIMP does for Mac OS X, and as a result it's significantly faster than GIMP. Seashore is like a faster, slicker version of GIMP for your Mac. Seashore does have a few disadvantages, however. First, it isn't as full featured as GIMP or Photoshop. Though it does provide layers and all the basic editing tools, it offers no support for plug-ins, and the filter selection is limited. On top of that, it isn't the most stable image editor; I've had Seashore crash on me more than once while I was in the middle of editing, so I suggest saving early and often. If you're a Mac user willing to shell out a few bucks, the $29 Pixelmator is a solid image editor for the price. But if you're editing images only every week or two, and you're looking for a free program, Seashore is the application for you. Web software: Of course, if you're really unlucky you may not have access to your regular computer when you need to edit an image. If you're tasked with editing images while you're on the road or otherwise away from the office, try Pixlr, an entirely Web-based image editor available for free on the Pixlr website. For a Web editor, Pixlr is surprisingly powerful and feature-rich, with everything from layers and filters to standard tools such as the lasso and magic wand. Unsurprisingly, Pixlr is also fairly poky. If you need to edit a large batch of photos, Pixlr can easily slow to a crawl, and even basic filters take significantly longer to run in Pixlr than they do in a traditional application. Nevertheless, if you're backed into a corner, Pixlr can be a lifesaver. While professional designers and illustrators still ought to invest in the full version of Photoshop, most users should be able to benefit from any of the free image-editing tools and services described here. Whether you're making quick fixes or working on a few modest projects, these programs will meet your needs.
By Friendly Computers Copyright: 2010-01-28 Give us a call today: 281-554-5500 or visit Friendly Computers to schedule an appointment. http://www.pcworld.com/article/257752/how_to_edit_images_for_free.html#tk.hp_fv