points

For over a year now I've championed Kingsoft Office Free 2012 as one of the top Microsoft Office alternatives for Windows, and with good reason: It's one of the best-looking clones out there, with superb file-compatibility to boot.

Yesterday, Kingsoft unveiled Office Free 2013 (Windows). (Please see below before you install it.) I'll go out on a limb and say it's now the single best free replacement for Microsoft Office, for a couple of very good reasons.

In case you're unfamiliar with it, Kingsoft Office includes three modules: Writer, Spreadsheets, and Presentations. Needless to say, … Read more

While 3D-printed guns have been grabbing most of the headlines lately, other types of firearms that make use of new technology are also hitting the scene.

TrackingPoint, a startup based in Austin, Texas, just began selling some of the most high-tech long-range shooting rifles available in the world -- they use 3D graphics, laser technology, and Wi-Fi, and allow users to live stream their exploits and post photos to social media and on personal devices.

"TrackingPoint introduces the world's first precision guided firearm -- the revolutionary new long-range shooting system that puts jet-fighter lock and launch technology in … Read more

Xbox users may be able to use gift cards and credit cards, instead of points, to purchase games and other content.

"Sources familiar with Microsoft's Xbox plans" told tech news site The Verge that Microsoft will replace its Xbox Points system with gift cards. The gift cards will let Xbox owners buy currency to purchase games and other content. Users also will be able to use credit and debit cards to buy Xbox items online.

The gift cards would work in the Windows Store and the Windows Phone Store, The Verge added. Microsoft may announce the new … Read more

An American hedge fund billionaire has called for the breakup of Sony, in a bid to tighten its focus on the electronics division.

The call on Tuesday came from Daniel Loeb, founder and CEO of hedge fund Third Point, known for its role in ousting Yahoo's former CEO Scott Thompson and enlisting Marissa Mayer from Google to run the company, the New York Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Sony's entertainment arm includes one of the biggest film studios in Hollywood and one of the largest music labels in the world.

Loeb also signaled he would … Read more

If your phone is your go-to business gadget, you absolutely need a way to view PowerPoint presentations. PowerPoint Reader lets you read them, but you won't be able to watch them as a slideshow. You can't make any edits or changes to them either.

Before you can actually read documents with PowerPoint Reader, the app has to convert them to PDF. That means you can't view the animated slideshow, transitions, or annotations. PDFs are usually larger than the original documents, as well. Make sure you have space on your phone before you convert. Annoyingly, the app drops … Read more

Businesses that perform sales transactions need a system to track and manage items and pricing. For those who do not have a dedicated system for transactions, Copper Point of Sale Software for Mac performs well, but lacks a few critical features.

Download of Copper Point of Sale Software for Mac completed quickly, but setup required acceptance of a lengthy user agreement. Users must also enter information on their company and provide a name, address, phone number, and password for settings and receipt printing. A help link to an instruction manual on the developer's Web site is available. For those … Read more

It would be easy to think that no one, no one was buying BlackBerrys right now.

Somehow, the brand -- at least in the U.S. -- appears to be enduring a soporific phase. Why, only the other day, some highly unreliable research suggested that it was the phone that people least wanted to buy.

BlackBerry, though, believes bigger and brighter days are ahead. Recently, it hired Alicia Keys as its creative director.

Some pointed out, to BlackBerry's discomfort, that Keys was an iPhone user with an iOS app.

Just as that information reverberated, Keys was seen tweeting from … Read more

Two California men have been indicted for allegedly hacking point-of-sale terminals at Subway shops to steal at least $40,000.

Prosecutors accused Shahin Abdollahi, aka "Sean Holdt," and Jeffrey Thomas Wilkinson of hacking at least 13 point-of-sale (POS) terminals to install software that fraudulently loaded at least $40,000 onto Subway gift cards, according to an indictment unsealed in Boston on Friday (see below). The pair then allegedly used the cards to make purchases at Subway shops and sold them on eBay and Craigslist.

Abdollahi owned a Subway franchise in Southern California from 2005 to 2008 and later … Read more

Field Trip (Android|iPhone) helps you find out more about your current location by sending you notifications when you're near landmarks, restaurants, historical sites, and other noteworthy spots. The app draws information from several sources, including Arcadia, Historvius, Food Network, Zagat, Atlas Obscura, Daily Secret, and others to enrich your experience of locations you wouldn't know were uniquely interesting otherwise. You can use it as a personal tour guide or share interesting locales over Facebook and Twitter.

The app also lets you set the frequency of notifications from none to an Explore mode that gives you all the … Read more