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As mobile devices take on a more prominent role today, file readers are becoming more popular as they allow Android devices to view and/or edit files from Microsoft Word, for example. WordReader is one option, and while it can be useful, there are still many other alternatives that offer more features and work with more file types.

On the plus side, WordReader is a fairly light app that loads very quickly and allows the user to get right to work. The first unusual aspect of this app is the fact that it comes with its own file browser. Microsoft … Read more

It's good to have hobbies. Some people just have more unusual hobbies than others. Michael Birken says he spent 11 months playing with Post-it notes. He wasn't writing memos or reminders, he was sticking them on the wall to create an elaborate stop-motion video tribute to his favorite classic games. He calls it Post-it Note Arcade.

The video includes footage of both Ms. Pac-Man and Mario. Birken says he recorded actual gameplay footage and then printed the images out, one frame at a time, to replicate on the walls around his office. He spent holidays and weekends posting the little pieces of paper up and filming the results. It's probably just as well his co-workers didn't have to witness this madness.… Read more

A new kind of vulnerability popped up recently, one that lets hackers stick a USB thumb drive into a computer -- even if it's logged-off or locked -- type out a bit of attack code and steal whatever data they want.

In an effort to avoid this type of cyberattack, Microsoft issued its monthly software patches today and included a fix for this Windows vulnerability called MS13-027. This vulnerability lets a hacker get into the computer with a thumb drive and take over administrative privileges.

"When the Windows USB device drivers enumerate the device, parsing a specially crafted … Read more

Microsoft Office 2013 has officially hit the streets, and it offers a significantly upgraded interface, more tools, and perhaps most importantly, a cloud-friendly system that lets you work from anywhere. While CNET's Jason Parker did give the updated Office suite high marks, he was also quick to say that its new $100-per-year subscription scheme will likely be hard for many people to swallow. Sure, there are (confusingly) single-pay standalone versions available as well, but those don't offer quite as much as the Office 365 subscription version.

In any case, if you are part of the camp that is … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Asus unveiled a new ultra-wide 29-inch LED monitor at CES 2013. The widescreen MX299Q boasts a 21:9 aspect ratio, 2,560x1,080 IPS panel, and should be available for sale in the first quarter of 2013 at $599.

The MX299Q monitor has a slim profile with sundial-style stand, a frameless edge-to-edge screen, and built-in speakers co-developed by Bang & Olufsen, ICEpower, and Asus. Ports on the monitor include HDMI/MHL, dual-link DVI, and DisplayPort.

When you think of a typical Mac user, you may imagine a young Silicon Valley go-getter type with hipster glasses and a tongue-tying Starbucks order involving half-caff, soy milk, and foam. According to an unscientific composite created by app maker BlueStacks, you'd be way off base.

BlueStacks compiled data from Nielsen and 1.1 million Facebook fans to determine what the typical Mac lover looks like. It turns out that Ms. Mac 2012 is a freckled, T-shirt wearing lady with long, black hair.

Ms. Mac also happens to be from North America. She's under 20, has OS X Lion installed on her Mac, wears jeans, and rocks a pair of sneakers. There are no geek hoodies to be found anywhere on the infographic, though.… Read more

Many of us use templates for commonly required formatting in Microsoft Office. Templates for MS Office is, as the name suggests, a collection of templates specifically for Office (although they do work with other compatible software apps). Templates for MS Office includes templates for Word, PowerPoint and Excel, with more than 70 templates total in the free package. These can be saved and opened as needed with the selected app, or the Templates for MS Office interface can be used to select the template then launch it in the correct app.

The strength of any template library is the quality … Read more

The phrase "immersive experience" gets bandied about quite a bit, but it's often an overstatement -- unless you happen to be in a room completely surrounded by a fully playable Ms. Pac-Man game.

Keita Takahashi, the creator of Katamari Damacy, got to experiment with a variety of video games for the recent Babycastles Summit at the Museum of Art & Design in New York.

Takahashi's new take on Ms. Pac-Man involved projecting it onto the walls and ceiling of a room. It looks like what would happen if Tron and Ms. Pac-Man got together, minus the glowing skin-tight suits.… Read more

Hasselblad has lowered the price of its high-end medium-format cameras from the upper stratosphere to the lower stratosphere.

The 60-megapixel HD4-60's list price is now $30,995, down $9,000, the company said Friday. And the HDR-200MS, a "multishot" model can combine four 50-megapixel shots into one higher-quality image to compensate for image sensor shortcomings, was cut $8,000 to $35,995.

Lower down the line, but geared and priced for professional photographers, the HD4-31 with a 35-90mm lens is down $3,595 to $15,995.

Hasselblad specializes in medium-format cameras, which in an earlier era meant … Read more