Software Reviews

Digital Retro review

Review Digital Retro: The Evolution and Design of the Personal Computer is a stunningly addictive book for anyone who ever lusted after the eccentric, engaging and short-lived systems that graced the pages of computer magazines in the 1980s.

Succeeding with Open Source review

Review If open-source software seems to you like a foreign land with strange customs, Bernard Golden's Succeeding With Open Source is a good guide.

Wi-Foo: The Secrets of Wireless Hacking review

Review Although not for the technically faint-hearted, Wi-Foo does a good job of explaining the vulnerabilities of wireless networks, and how administrators can marshal and maintain their defences.

ACT! Professional review

Review Sage’s excellent ACT! Professional is an entry-level customer relationship management (CRM) solution that helps small sales teams become more productive by simplifying the process of sharing customer/client information.

Beyond Fear review

Review In this book, Bruce Schneier argues that successful security requires the continuous assessment of risks and trade-offs.

Free Culture review

Review Lawrence Lessig's Free Culture is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand today's copyright wars and their background.

PopUpCop 2.5 review

Review PopUpCop 2.5 for Internet Explorer does what it promises: it eliminates annoying adverts. Unfortunately, it isn't available for Netscape, Opera or the Mac.

Google Desktop Search Beta

Preview Google has joined the burgeoning desktop search market with a public beta. We've had a day or so to play with it -- here's our initial report.

Copernic Desktop Search review

Review It may not search the Internet, but Copernic Desktop Search locates all file types on your hard drive and offers a pleasing interface.

Blinkx review

Review Blinkx doesn't index your entire hard drive, and the files it misses are the image files most people want to find. We'll wait for the next release of this desktop search tool.

X1 Search 04.08 review

Review This standalone desktop search tool, X1 Search, is blazingly fast but costs about $75 (~£42) more than its nearest competitor. In our opinion, the free programs perform just as well.

HotBot Quick Search Deskbar 3.1.6 review

Review Lycos's HotBot Desktop provides a glimpse of the future, combining desktop and Internet searches, but other programs actually deliver these features now.

Lookout 1.2 review

Review Regular Outlook fans will find this desktop search tool easy to use, but the rest of us may be frustrated.

GhostSurf 2005 Platinum review

Review Want to remain anonymous while you surf? Check out Tenebril's GhostSurf, which encrypts your Internet connection and provides some useful security-related utilities into the bargain.

Contribute 3.0 review

Review Contribute is an easy-to-use and effective program for making visual changes to Web pages. However, the fact that it doesn’t support dynamic database-driven sites will limit its appeal to seasoned Web developers.