Software

While the tool of choice for many professionals working with digital images is Adobe Photoshop, the pricing of this product puts it out of the reach of mere mortals. Fortunately Adobe, being aware of the financial restraints many of us have to work under and still wishing to draw more customers into its family, has developed a more economic but less powerful offering. This is Photoshop Elements which is now up to version 12 and is available in either Windows

It is your responsibility to make sure your data is kept safe. A scheduled back-up process can help in this respect.

received an email recently which reminded me that there was a task that required my immediate attention. This email informed me that my Norton 360 subscription had expired and I was no longer protected. This wake up call was just the impetus I needed to make sure the next product under review would be the latest version of Norton 360 which provides antivirus and Internet protection for up to three devices.

Bringing together the latest versions of four of its software products, CyberLink has created a new version of its Director Suite offering.

When Serif adds a new product to its portfolio of graphic based offerings (WebPlus, PagePlus, DrawPlus and MoviePlus to mention just some), you could be forgiven for expecting this new title to feature the Word “Plus” as part of its name. However this is not the case with this particular new title. As this software is concerned with photo editing and management, the obvious title would have been PhotoPlus but Serif already has a product with this name. Therefore the company has

As Nero fiddled, it is claimed, while Rome burned, so the software of the same name will burn your multimedia content and other data to optical media. This feature, however, has been just one element of the Nero software for a while now as other features have been added to create a multimedia suite offering. Rather than stick with the numbering system that was used with earlier versions of this software, Nero has opted to switch to a date designation with the latest versio

Now part of the MAGIX family, Xara has released the latest version of its flagship graphics product.

Offering users a one-stop shop for their media needs, CyberLink has released the latest version of its Media Suite product.

“Step by Step” and “Plain & Simple” are two Word 2013 books from the Microsoft Press. As well as teaching the new user how to use the program, they each also cover new features which increase Word’s versatility especially in the areas of cooperation. They each adopt a different approach and so one can choose the one that best suits one’s needs.

The number ‘13’ and some peoples idea that it is unlucky means they go from 12 to 14 or as more than one company has done go from 12 to XIII. Whatever you feel a software package that has had that number of incarnations must be mature.

Now part of the MAGIX family, Xara’s flagship graphics photo and designer product has reached version 9.

Xara Photo & Graphic Designer 9 does what it says on the tin and is aimed at having broad appeal. On the basis that not all users are experts, it incorporates extensive help and guidance which is so important to enable new users to edit their photos and get to work with their drawings. It also incorporates the wide range of features that will satisfy the needs of the advanced user.

While I have reviewed similar products on a PC there are probably an awful lot of younger people that live with their ‘i’ device. While the cost of Apps for these devices is minimal if you sell a lot of them then you make a lot of money.

Having destroyed the alien invaders or rescued hostages being held captive by terrorists, you might want to share your achievements with others. This next title offers to help you record your success for posterity.

As technology advances, so older formats tend to go unsupported. However sometimes help is available to convert the older formats into one that can be used on modern equipment.

Now that Windows 8 is well and truly here -- even though an updated version will probably be out within the year -- there is a need for a detailed manual. This is particularly important because it is a significant redesign focussed on a touch-screen interface. "Windows 8 The Missing Manual" should meets the needs of power users as well as the rest of us who need to get to grips with this new environment.

By the time anything gets to version 4 it should be mature; however this has something that few such products have and that is the ability to work just as well with touch screens such as those for some recent Windows 8 PCs it supports fully.

PowerDesk is the file manager that Windows Explorer should have been. It is easy to use and has a wide range of features that make it a valuable tool for the serious PC user. The recently released version 9 adds even more features and is also compatible with Windows 8.

Rather than a book this is a software package that will work on Windows XP, Windows 7 and Windows 8. It has text to read – this can also be read out – and things to do after it has explained them using a dummy Windows 8 interface.

After years of going head-to-head with the Roxio Creator package, Nero now faces a different challenge following Corel’s buyout of Roxio.

Once regarded as an upstart as it offered graphics software at prices well below the accepted standards of the day, Serif is now an established software developer with a range of offerings such as this next title.

In the past I have looked at a number of Doro products of which the greatest majority were handset designed specifically for the older generation. These handsets, whether of the candy bar, slider or clamshell variety, feature an easy to use interface combined with large style buttons with a useful emergency facility.

This is the current latest version of Microsoft Office, it has a very new and somewhat sinister edge to it in that it is now a item that comes with a licence to allow its use for 12 months after that you need to pay to keep using it.

As part of its range of software titles designed specifically for the less experienced user, MAGIX has released Photostory Easy. This product, as it titles might suggest, allows the user to combine various photo images, transitions and a sound track into a slideshow. Boxed and downloadable versions of the software are available with my preview copy being of the latter type.

Corel has never been afraid to open its purse strings to purchase software companies especially when it concerns graphics offerings. One of its latest purchases was ROXIO.

It is not just celebrities who can benefit from a digital make-over. Now you can use a software package to tidy up your own image.

There is one product in the CAD market that people think of even if they never use CAD. However providing certain rules are adhered to there is no reason why others cannot work in the same arena here an offering from Corel.

As regular as clockwork, Serif brings out upgraded versions of its graphics software aimed at the budget conscious user.

This is another of the recent releases that I waited for a working copy of Windows 8 to review. If you are serious about editing your videos then this software can do it, transform, add, delete, modify and more then this can do it.

While you may not always be looking your best when a photo is taken, this next product could help smarten your appearance.