PreviousAlternatives to Microsoft Office
Buyer's Guide In the world of productivity suites, you don't need to pay a lot to get the basic tools for reading, writing and arithmetic. Read our reviews and previews to discover what's in each bundle, from the freebies to the full-featured suites.
Lotus Symphony: a first look
Preview Although it's still in beta testing, IBM's Lotus Symphony offers strong alternatives to Word, PowerPoint and Excel with more features and nicer interfaces than most other free software.
Open-Xchange Express Edition review
Review Open-Xchange Express is an excellent substitute for Microsoft Exchange for small or medium-sized businesses that don't need a big-company feature set.
8.0 Editors' Rating
Inside iWork '08
Photos Apple's office productivity suite now handles spreadsheets in addition to word processing and presentations. Check out our screenshot gallery.
iWork '08 review
Review Although Microsoft Office 2007 offers deeper features, particularly for number-crunchers, Apple's iWork '08 is a strong Mac productivity package and a pleasure to use.
7.3 Editors' Rating
Ten Top Tech Tomes
Buyer's Guide Looking for an alternative kind of holiday reading? Why not brave the bafflement of fellow beach denizens and pack a tech tome in your luggage? At least you'll guarantee some space around you on the sand!
Send review
Review A book on the style and etiquette of writing email sounds as though it should be soundly mocked. In fact, it's well worth reading as it might steer you around a number of online pitfalls.
8.0 Editors' Rating
Configuring and using Windows Meeting Space
Photos Windows Vista includes a useful collaborative application for setting up impromptu meetings with other Vista users. Here's how to set it up.
Sex.com review
Review Who would have thought that a tale of the legal shenanigans surrounding the theft of a domain name could be entertaining? But when the domain in question is sex.com it can be, as Kieren McCarthy demonstrates in this book.
8.0 Editors' Rating
Privacy on the Line review
Review The second edition of this book, first published in the late '90s, details the changes in the world of electronic snooping, cryptography and privacy in recent years.
8.0 Editors' Rating
Photos: Opera Mini 4 beta
Photos Opera has launched a browser specifically designed for use on a mobile phone. Check out our photo gallery to see how your mobile web experience might improve.
Dreaming in Code review
Review This book examines the software development process by following the progress of Chandler, a (still unfinished) Web 2.0/open source personal information manager dreamed up by Lotus founder Mitch Kapor.
7.0 Editors' Rating
Inside Safari 3.0 for Windows (beta)
Photos Apple ports its Safari browser over to the Windows XP and Windows Vista operating systems, adding a few new features.
Photos: Firefox 3 Alpha 5 (Gran Paradiso)
Photos Developers can run the latest iteration of Firefox now, although casual users should wait until the final release later this year.
Play Money review
Review In this book, the author recounts his experiences trying to make more money in Second Life than he did in his real-life job as a journalist, along with musings on virtual worlds and the convergence of work and play.
7.5 Editors' Rating
