software
Comparing documents in Word 2007
Jul 7th
Do you need to quickly find the differences between two large Word documents? Have you edited a large document only to realise you didn’t have Track Changes turned on? The Compare feature in Word 2007 is your friend – and here’s how it works.
Bookmarks versus Favorites
Jun 25th
Once there was Netscape and its “Bookmarks”. Then came IE, with its “Favorites”. Now we’re in a multi-browser world again and everyone but Microsoft uses “Bookmarks”. Why did we un-favorite “Favorites”?
The long countdown to Android 2.1
Jun 19th
They keep saying it’s about to arrive, but it never does. Android 2.1 is long overdue on the HTC Hero and my initial patience has turned into something approaching rage. After weeks of annoyance and frustration waiting for the fabled upgrade, my HTC Hero has been put on notice – “endgame” has begun.
Microsoft’s design strategy: open formats, proprietary interface?
Jun 1st
This might not be a very advisable disclosure to make, but I’ll make it anyway: I actually like Microsoft Office 2007. Liking Office 2007 is not really the done thing – lots of people in my line of work turn their noses up at Microsoft in general and Office in particular. And I’m no different. [...]
Are mobile apps here to stay?
Dec 17th
Modern mobile apps are based on a publication model which limits user choice and frustrates developers, so this model will probably have to die. But in the medium term they will continue to play an important role.
Google Flu Trends
Nov 13th
In this post, I’m going to try to outline a convergence between two separate trains of thoughts. It might get messy, so bear with me. Train one (think of this as the Edgware branch of the Northern Line) is search engine optimisation. One of the areas I’ve been working in a lot recently is search [...]
Gmail’s new Labs feature – Mail Goggles
Oct 7th
Ever sent an email you later regretted? Well you might like the new Gmail Labs feature, Mail Goggles. It’s activated whenever you try to send an email late at night, when you’re most likely to be under the influence of alcohol. How does it stop you sending indiscreet, inarticulate or embarrassing emails? It forces you [...]
Skyfire – a browser for Windows Mobile
Sep 25th
Yep, I’m a Windows Mobile user—although I may not be one for too much longer. It looks like there’s going to be a long wait for Windows Mobile 7 (I’m on version 6) and the new HTC/Google Android device has piqued my interest. But for the time being I’m stuck in WinMo world. I was [...]
My Google Chrome experiment
Sep 4th
Late yesterday afternoon I joined the rest of the internet and downloaded Google’s new browser, Chrome. I’d initially thought that I’d play around with it for a while, eventually forming an opinion which I’d then broadcast to all and sundry. But while I was doing this it struck me that this was pretty futile. Internet [...]
RocketDock – Close but no cigar
Aug 28th
RocketDock is a nice idea. Billed as a “peace offering” from the Mac community to Windows users, it’s a recreation of the OS X dock – the customisable ribbon of icons allowing quick access to files, folders, applications and URLs. I’ve just installed it on my Windows XP machine and for the first five minutes [...]
Don’t be afraid of your Freedom
Aug 12th
Yesterday, Lifehacker featured a free Mac OS application called Freedom. You specify a time period and the program then shuts off your network connectivity until it elapses. I heard about it here and the Daily Telegraph has published a link to it too. Pretty simple, isn’t it? But is it useful? Not everyone thinks so. [...]
Online mind-mapping tools
Jul 14th
What are mind mapping tools? In short, they aim to visualise the conceptual relationships that make up the structure of thought. When used for project planning they allow you to break down the central objective into a set of smaller, inter-related items – these items can then be arranged hierarchically. The end result is an [...]
