copies

iPhone videoconferencing? I'm still waiting for copy and paste

InformationWeek's Alex Wolfe dug through an Apple patent filing Monday and found that the company may be working on a videoconferencing feature for the iPhone.

According to Wolfe, the patent provides "proof...that Apple's thought through what it needs to do to make the iPhone video-recording and -conferencing capable." He then goes on to make the bold prediction that "we will see these features in the third-generation iPhone."

First off, I should note that companies file patent ideas all the time and usually, nothing comes of them. More often than not, patent filings are a way to cover the company just in case it decides to release the feature or stop its competitors that may try to offer it themselves. So, I'm less certain than Wolfe that videoconferencing will be made available in the third-generation of the iPhone.

But if videoconferencing does come to the next-gen iPhone, should we be excited? More importantly, will it mean that Apple will kick another improvement, like copy and paste, from the next iPhone to get videoconferencing into it?

I know both could probably be added to the device at the same time, but if we were forced to choose, which would we pick?… Read more

Back up with an elephant's memory

The program provides standard functionality for backing up and synchronizing your data. Like many similar applications, Second Copy is based on profiles that store information about what files to back up, where and when to do so, and so on.

The program can back up 25 versions of the same file, handy for those users who routinely make a lot of changes. All you have to do to create a new profile is modify a similar one. You can group numerous profiles and run backups automatically in the background. For more advanced users, the program offers FTP support, command-line options, … Read more

Print, scan, copy with $55 Epson Stylus Photo printer

Epson's having a rare sale: you can get a refurbished Epson Stylus Photo RX595 all-in-one printer for just $55 shipped.

What's significant about this model? Most of the cheapie multifunction printers I come across have low-end print engines, meaning they're not great for photos. The Stylus Photo RX595, as you might infer from the name, was built with glossies in mind.

It accepts just about any memory card on the planet (USB drives, too), previews images on a 2.5-inch color LCD, and prints using a six-cartridge system. It can also print on CDs and DVDs, scan … Read more

Futzing with features: Firefox add-ons in 2008

As performance reasserts its prominence and features become less of the driving force behind browsers, I find myself looking at the list of inactive extensions in Firefox with jaundiced eyes. It's been months since I've added a new extension, but the ones I still have I use regularly, and several are actually new to me for this year.

Part of the problem with add-ons is that they're such a personal, subjective thing. What do you need? Why do you need it? One of my favorites is a minor, tiny thing, but it saves me so much time … Read more

Lexmark printer joins elite ranks of not-so-secret organization

Dear Lexmark,

We'd like to invite you and one of your printers to join our secret society: it's called Best 5, and although we don't have perverted initiations, secret handshakes, or kooky hats, you do get to feature your X7675 Professional on our list of the Best 5 printers.

We put the X7675 printer/scanner/copier/fax machine through a series of grueling tests to gauge its print speed, ease of use, and output quality, and we're impressed with the results. The front mounted control panel contains individual buttons that toggle commonly used preferences, and you … Read more

DVD the easy way

This DVD copier doesn't do much, but what it does, it does pretty well. Like similar programs, Easy DVD Clone copies 9GB movies by compressing them onto one 5GB DVD or splitting them onto two. It also lets you preserve space on the destination DVD by ditching extras such as bonus features and subtitles.

If you have a dual-layer drive, you can copy the entire DVD without compressing the content or leaving anything out. In our tests, Easy DVD Clone performed well and generally lived up to its name. The homely but straightforward interface shouldn't give beginners trouble, … Read more

Light and easy

To put it gently, Adobe Reader is a real pain in the hindquarters. It's monstrously large, slow to load, and includes many features most users will hardly ever need. Foxit PDF Reader 3.0 kills the bloat and throws in some useful features, such as multimedia support and content-sharing options, while still allowing you to quickly access your PDFs.

The interface mimics Adobe's, so you won't have to change your reading habits. In our test, the text readability was similar. The small program starts surprisingly fast compared with Adobe. You might need to fiddle a bit to … Read more

Get a Wi-Fi multifunction printer for $75 shipped

Fwip-fwip-fwip. That's the sound of my beanie propeller spinning furiously. You see, Buy.com has the Brother MFC-490CW multifunction printer on sale for $75.24 shipped. Why all the fwipping? Because this baby's wireless.

As regular readers know, I've seen sweet deals on wireless inkjets and lasers and on Ethernet-equipped multifunction printers. But I've never seen such a great price on a wireless MFP.

Built for smallish offices, the Brother MFC-490CW prints, scans, copies, and faxes, all in color. It features an unusually large (3.3-inch) wide-screen LCD, Wi-Fi and Ethernet connectivity, a media-card reader, and … Read more

iTunes customers angry over copy protection moves at Apple

Want to watch a high-definition show from iTunes on an older external display? Good luck!

Some Mac users are teed off that they are getting error messages saying the iTunes movie they rented or bought can't be played on their display because it is not HDCP (High Digital Content Protection) authorized.

And some people are complaining they are only able to play certain standard definition iTunes content on their laptop or via an HDMI connection.

As a result, some Apple forum participants have threatened to boycott iTunes.

"And here we are now with Apple users who have spent … Read more

Epson printer narrowly escapes death by baseball bat

I have a love/hate relationship with the Epson Artisan 800 multifunctional printer. Let's start on the positive end: after doing a thorough test of the features, I have no problem saying that the Artisan 800 produces some of the highest-quality photo and graphic prints I've ever seen, even on regular 20-pound white paper. Our standard sheet of colored text also looked very pleasing. On top of that, I have to applaud Epson for the 800's chart-topping print speed. The printer delivered a 4-inch-by-6-inch color photo in 18 seconds, almost double the speed of our comparison printers.… Read more