file manager
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Downloads for iOS is a decent file manager with limitations
Downloads - File Downloader & Manager is, as the name suggests, a universal app for iPhone and iPad that can download various types of files like documents, images, ZIP and RAR files. The app can then display certain (but not all) files you've downloaded using its built-in viewer. It's free in the App Store, but a paid in-app purchase for US$0.99 will unlock unlimited downloads. As far as first impressions go, the design of Downloads doesn't make a very good one. It is a very strange mixture of iOS 7's stock UI, an iOS 6-inspired UI and a custom one. I get the jarring feeling of using multiple apps within one, but no, this is actually the way the designers chose to design it. The app has a built-in web browser so if you download files quite often, you might spend more time in Downloads than in Safari. If you come across a file the app can download, such as a PDF, just tap it once to bring up your menu of options. The first option is aptly a "Download" button, followed by the ability to copy the link, send it via email or SMS or open it in Safari. If you download the file, it will go into the Downloads tab just while it's downloading then migrate once more to the Files tab when complete. I chose a random 0.18 MB PDF through Google search and the download time was almost instantaneous. It's not a large file size for the app to justifiably take too long, but the speed of the app is still very decent. The document viewer supports .pdf, .xls, .csv, .doc, .txt, .xml, .rtf, .ppt, .gif, .png, .jpeg, .jpg and .bmp file formats -- mostly all of the basics. The viewer presented thumbnails for each page of the PDF I opened at the bottom, plus a grid view option at the top and other buttons to print, email or bookmark. The viewer switches over to the iOS 6 UI, but offers all the essentials. Also worth noting is that aside from the document viewer and ZIP/RAR extraction, you have to open any other file in a third-party app that supports it. I then searched for something a bit more intensive to throw at the app. When I tried to download my second file, Downloads greeted me with a very unwelcome message stating that I had used up all my downloads and to buy the full version for $0.99 to download anything else. This is disappointing. It's not that $0.99 is expensive, because it's not. It's the principle of calling an app free when it's really just more of single free chip given out at a wholesale store in a weak attempt to convince you to buy the entire bag of chips. The app with the full benefits of being able to download as many files as you want is actually around a buck. Downloads - File Downloader & Manager seems mostly like a decent app for downloading and opening various documents, images and some other files. The user interface is strange but not unintuitive, and both the download speed and document viewer are perfectly adequate. Be prepared to pay $0.99 if you want to use Downloads more than once though. Also, power users who need a more advanced file manager may still want to consider looking elsewhere.
Microsoft details Windows 8 Explorer tweaks, adds ribbon UI
Lots of things are getting tweaked, if not completely overhauled, for Windows 8. That includes the ever-present Windows Explorer. Just like many other Microsoft apps, the file manager will be adopting the slightly more finger-friendly ribbon interface. But don't freak out about your precious screen real estate, the next version of Explorer will actually display more files than Windows 7 could by moving the details pane to the right-hand side and tweaking the padding. The up button has also returned and a slew of new keyboard shortcuts are being introduced. Check out the source link for more detail and a demo video.
Toshiba Thrive review
This isn't the first time Toshiba has showed up fashionably late to a party. Back in 2009, long after most every other consumer electronics maker big and small had jumped on the netbook bandwagon, the company belatedly released its first mini, the NB205. And it was fantastic. So we were optimistic when the outfit finally got around to releasing the Thrive, its first Android tablet for the US market. Surely, we thought, it's learned a thing or two from everybody else's mistakes. And in that regard, at least, this 10-inch tablet doesn't disappoint. It has full-sized USB and HDMI ports, an SD card slot, and a removable battery -- all features you'd sooner find on a laptop. It comes with a raft of practical apps already installed, so that you don't have to go hunting for them in Android Market. It's one of the first out of the gate with Android 3.1, an undeniably improved version of Honeycomb. Oh, and it starts at $429, undercutting many of its competitors. Right there, in less than a paragraph, we've laid out why you might want this over any of the other umpteen tabs crowding the market. But should you get one? Well, folks, we'll need more than a paragraph to tackle that. Join us after the break, won't you? %Gallery-128500%
Adobe CreatePDF for Android does exactly what its name implies
Google's mobile OS is growing and maturing into a business-savvy adult before our very eyes. With the release of Adobe's CreatePDF in the Android Market, we're delighted to finally see a PDF-creation app on the mobile front. Not only does it let you build a PDF from the ground up, it can convert most popular filetypes -- Word, Excel, Powerpoint, OpenOffice, Photoshop, RTF, and Illustrator, just to name a few -- into PDF format. You can import any of these kinds of docs from your phone to app via the built-in file manager, or transfer an email attachment to it using Android's share function. Available for a one-time payment of $9.99, CreatePDF won't be for the light-walleted or the casual app enthusiast; don't be put off by the price, though, because the online version charges that much per month to do the exact same tasks on your computer. Anyone rocking Eclair or better can partake of the PDF love, so head to the source link to get straight to installing.
Google adding Netflix, Hulu support, offline Gmail, Calendar and Docs to Chrome OS this summer, prices hardware at $20 per month
Google's currently in the process of detailing Chrome OS' latest improvements and there are a couple of big 'uns: Netflix and Hulu support will be available right out of the box for the pair of new Chromebooks -- one from Samsung and one from Acer. An improved file manager has also been added to the upcoming version of Chrome OS, plus offline versions of Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Docs -- all will be made available for Chromebook users this summer. You can learn more about these improvements in the video after the break. Far more monumental, Google's also just announced the cost of these Chromebooks and there's no upfront payment to speak of. Instead, Chrome OS laptops will be distributed on the basis of a recurring monthly subscription, which will cost $28 per user for businesses and $20 per user for schools. That includes regular software and hardware upgrades. Hardware as a service, folks! %Gallery-123369%
Homebrew file manager reveals secrets [Update 1]
The TIFF applications keep on coming. The latest one allows you to rename, move and delete files off your Memory Stick, directly from the PSP. I don't see much of a need for this, but it may be helpful for those of you that need to rename, hide and delete all that porn those confidential documents that you've been saving to the Memory Stick. Hey, more power to you. I love using my PSP as a back-up flash drive. It's great for carrying porn term papers around.If you do use the program, it appears that there are folders called GPS and USBMIC hidden on your PSP's flash memory. What could that mean? If we're lucky, it might mean that the upcoming GPS peripheral may have support on 2.80 firmware, without having to upgrade! That would be great for those of you that want to get the official device while running these small TIFF homebrew apps.[Via PSP3D][Update 1: The application has recently been updated. It can now read UMD data as well.]
Quickly navigate your Mac with Filegazer
Filegazer by Donelleschi Software is a very useful (and even fun) file-browsing utility. Basically, you set up the edges of your screen as hot zones. You can assign any folder to any hot zone, like your home folder or Applications. Mouse over that area and a hierarchical menu appears. This is where the fun begins.Filegazer allows you to navigate through your folders as you would expect, and offers live previews of several file types, such as JPGs, PDFs, HTML (without a browser), Word documents, videos and more. You can resize image previews and even jump to full screen mode and back again quickly. I like it.Filegazer requires Mac OS 10.3.9 or later and costs $19.95US for a single license.
