Download Squad

Black Friday software deals you can score online

Lee Mathews — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Commercial, Holiday Gift Guide

This weekend signals the beginning of holiday shopping craziness in the U.S., and there's no shortage of deals to be had. We're scouring web sites around the 'net to find discount prices on games, apps, and operating systems - if you've found some, share them in the comments!

Be sure to check back, we'll be updating this post as we find more savings to pass along!

Applications and Operating Systems

AVG Internet Security 2 year protection for 3 users - Free after MIR at NewEgg.com
Microsof Office Home and Student for 3 pcs - $59.99 at TigerDirect.com
Microsoft Office 2008 Home and Student for Mac - $109.99 at Bestbuy.Com
Windows 7 Home Premium Upgrade - $109.49 at Amazon.com
Windows 7 Ultimate x64 OEM - $164.99 at ZipZoomFly.com

PC Games

5-day long one day only sale - tons of games at half price at Steam
LucasArts premier pack - 7 games for $49.99 at Steam
THQ Complete pack - 18 games for $49.99 at Steam
Fallout 3 GoTY edition for $29.90 at GoGamer.com
Unreal Tournament 3 for $5.90 at GoGamer.com
World of Warcraft for $4.90 (Friday/Saturday 11/27-11/28 ONLY) at GoGamer.com
Popcap Complete pack feat. Chuzzle, Peggle, Bejeweled, Bookworm (44 games total) - $99 at Popcap
Crysis Maximum Edition for $19.95 at Direct2Drive.com
The Sims 3 for $29.95 at Direct2Drive.com
30% off all downloadable games from the EA Games online store

iPhone Games
Gameloft is offering the following titles at $0.99 each - pick up $25 worth of games for $5!

Castle of Magic
Real Tennis 2009
Blades of Fury
Terminator Salvation
Brothers in Arms - Hour of Heroes
Shrek Kart

Thanks to Engrish.com for the awesome image!

Black Friday software deals you can score online originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 26 Nov 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Livescribe's Pulse smartpen store hands-on

Victor Agreda, Jr. — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 17:05:00 EST

Filed under: Text, Utilities, Hardware, Windows, Macintosh, Web services, Holiday Gift Guide

There's little to add to my glowing review of the Livescribe Pulse smartpen I wrote for TUAW last year. This is one of those gadgets that you show people and it looks like magic. It kinda is magic, I think. But this year's model introduces an app store for the pen (plus some nifty paper products), making it a desirable platform for anyone who takes their notes seriously.

Read my review for the hardware scoop; the newer models now have an improved cradle. You can now charge and keep your computer asleep, for example. The desktop software, which allows you to sort and annotate your notes (plus many other tricks covered in that earlier review for the Mac version of the software) is similarly the same but slightly upgraded. What matters is what's in the pen, since that's what you'll be using every day.

The pen runs Java applications specifically made *for* the Pulse smartpen. Now, earlier there had been some tech demos for 3D audio (the pen records in 3D, and it is very cool) and what amounted to built-in utility apps. Stuff like calculators and a simple piano that you draw and tap to play. Like Apple launching the iPhone with a limited set of pre-built applications, the Pulse had only a few "apps" but that was fine. The app store for the pen opens the doors to a huge variety of other applications, much like Apple's store does for its mobile platform.

The Livescribe Store also looks and feels nearly identical to Apple's -- at first. There's more than just apps here; there are paper products (you use special paper with the pen) and pens themselves. When you go to check out, you notice the lack of polish. Every purchase, even the free stuff, requires about three times as many clicks at it takes to buy something on the iTunes App Store. I'm not sure why people don't understand this seemingly obvious notion that consumers want to consume quickly. Especially for a pen, you know? But the entire store is a website, really, so perhaps app purchasing can be streamlined later. For now, it is catering to the physical side of the store by requiring shipping info with your orders.

Gallery: Livescribe Store

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Livescribe's Pulse smartpen store hands-on originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 17:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gift Guide: get 50 photo holiday cards for free

Dolores Parker — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Internet, Photo, Holiday Gift Guide, Web

Since we're all looking for ways to save money for the holidays, you might want to take advantage of this limited time offer from SeeHere.com where you can buy 50 (4x8) or 50 (5x7) photo holiday cards for absolutely nothing. This offer includes free standard shipping and represents a savings of $40.

SeeHere is Fuji's photosharing site where you can create cards, photo books and gifts. They have a decent holiday selection and new account users can also get 100 free (4x6) prints for registering. (Shipping not included - promo code "prints").

To get the 50 holiday cards for free, be sure to use the promo code "freebies4mom-1109." Don't procrastinate! This offer is only good until 11/30.

Gift Guide: get 50 photo holiday cards for free originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Track Black Friday prices with Invisible Hand add on for Firefox

Dolores Parker — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Internet, News, Mozilla, Holiday Gift Guide, Search, Browsers, Web

We've covered Invisible Hand, the discreet shopping comparison add on for Firefox, which displays prices on items you are searching on the web. Just in time for Black Friday, the hand has trotted out a new add on which along with other improvements, incorporates Google search results.

Now, you can get your price results in real time so you know you're getting the best deal. My test drive of the hand went smooth, the results loaded up within a second or two and updates were very discreet. This is a real time saver for getting price results.

The add on will be officially released to the Mozilla site within a few weeks, but the first 200 Download Squad readers can download the beta version. Just click on the link below and key in invisibleDLS for the access code.

http://preview.getinvisiblehand.com/

Track Black Friday prices with Invisible Hand add on for Firefox originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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3 photo sharing sites for your new shutterbug - Holiday Gift Guide

Dolores Parker — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Internet, Photo, Video, Holiday Gift Guide, Social Software

If you know someone on your gift list is getting a camera or is a new shutterbug, you might want to consider getting them a "pro" photo sharing account where they can upload all their new photos. This is a nice gift for several reasons: 1. A pro account is a must have since most free accounts have a storage limit that the average photographer will easily exceed. 2. Pro accounts are ad free. 3. Pro accounts have more features and allow the upload of larger file sizes. 4. As the giver of the account, it stands to reason you might be given access to your shutterbug's photostream, although, it's equally possible you might not.

Here are my top picks for investing in a pro account. (Many thanks to our readers for enthusiastically recommending Smugmug).

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3 photo sharing sites for your new shutterbug - Holiday Gift Guide originally appeared on Download Squad on Sat, 29 Nov 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The best apps to put on the iPhone you're giving - Holiday Gift Guide

Jay Hathaway — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fun, Games, Holiday Gift Guide, iPhone

If you're giving an iPhone or an iPod Touch as a gift, like thousands of other people this season, you might want to think about personalizing it with apps that your beloved giftee would enjoy. The iPod/iPhone has become a failsafe present: you don't have to know someone particularly well to know they'll enjoy it. Throwing some music and a few choice apps on there adds a personal touch and gives them something to play with as soon as they unwrap the gift. Here are a few of my favorite picks:

RjDj (iPhone only) is a reality-hacking music experience that you have to see and hear to believe. RJDJ takes different musical "scenes" and incorporates the sounds of your surroundings into a unique, immersive composition. The developers pride themselves on creating "a digital drug which causes a mind twisting hearing sensation," and artists are creating new scenes all the time. RjDj is a great way to show off the possibilities of that new iPhone to the person you're giving it to. ($2.99)

Continue reading The best apps to put on the iPhone you're giving - Holiday Gift Guide

The best apps to put on the iPhone you're giving - Holiday Gift Guide originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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5 Fun, casual Steam games you can give for under $20

Lee Mathews — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fun, Games, Windows, Commercial, Holiday Gift Guide

If you're a gamer, chances are good you've bought something from Steam - Valve's "Nexus of PC Gaming." If not, it's a great place to purchase some inexpensive and extremely fun games. Steam, of course, offers a gift purchase option, making it an ideal spot to find a nice, cheap gift for that special someone on your list.

Steam has tons of casual, fun games in its library - here's my list of five titles under $20 that are sure to provide some maddeningly addictive fun. Hardware requirements for these are fairly light, so they should run on just about anyone's desktop or laptop (provided they're running Windows).

World of Goo ($19.99). Sure, its cartoonish 2d graphics are cute, but this is one seriously smart physics puzzle game. Stack the little goo balls to build structures and reach the goal - it sounds easy, but World of Goo is as challenging as it is whimsical. Finessing your structures into doing what you want takes patience and requires some serious thinking at times. This one's a great choice for anyone who enjoys a good challenge.

Continue reading 5 Fun, casual Steam games you can give for under $20

5 Fun, casual Steam games you can give for under $20 originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tis the Season for Small Business Gifts

Sue Polinsky — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business, Office, Google, Microsoft, Holiday Gift Guide

Every year, small businesses struggle with the customer appreciation gift. Should we give one to every client? Only to new clients? What about long-term clients? Should we order pre-printed (and clever) cards? And the big question: how much is this going to cost?

Saying thanks to our clients in a better fashion is something we set out to do last winter during the re-creation of our branding model. We rebuilt our logo, changed colors, formalized templates, printed letterhead, stickers and designed mail-ready new-client packets and generally upgraded our schwag. It was time for us to have something to hand out besides business cards.

That's why we don't send out holiday gifts anymore; heck, we don't send out "winter holiday" cards anymore. Instead, we thank our clients all year long. With a simple Access database, we keep track of each client who's referred business to us and we send a handwritten note (on those new branded and printed cards we designed) and a small gift card to an omnipresent store. First referral? A five-dollar Starbucks card. Second referral? A somewhere-else gift card. If a referral turns into business? A larger Target or Paneras card is coming your way inside a handwritten custom-branded notecard. If you're local, it might be a lunch gift certificate at a restaurant (also a client).

Continue reading Tis the Season for Small Business Gifts

Tis the Season for Small Business Gifts originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 12 Dec 2007 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Forget buying toys online this year, buy a cow instead

Dolores Parker — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Internet, Holiday Gift Guide

We don't want to be thought of as Grinch-like this holiday season, but we have noticed a trend in some social circles where "no gifts please" is prominently posted on invitations and cards. Apparently, some children have so many toys and everything they can possibly want that too much of a good thing has turned into clutter and junk.

Well, rather than come empty handed, you can give a gift that provides meaning and possibly the means to a living, by buying cows, sheep, chicks, and other nice critters for families in impoverished areas to give them food and become self reliant.

Heifer International is an organization dedicated to helping people obtain a sustainable source of food and income. And they have a very powerful online gift catalog where you can buy all kinds of livestock to benefit those who need it most.

Re-gifting at Heifer is actually something expected. Your gift truly does keep giving. The offspring of the animal(s) you give, are in turn given to others in need.

Heifer has projects all over the world, including several In the United States. They are well respected and have won several humanitarian awards, as well as earning a respectable 20.7% return on their endowment.

After you select your gift, you can send a nice email card, or print a card with an insert to give so you can show up with something after all but not feel guilty about it.

Forget buying toys online this year, buy a cow instead originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 06 Dec 2007 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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December PDA software sales

Brad Linder — Mon, 18 Dec 2006 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Palm, Holiday Gift Guide

It's December, and that means crazy sales on everything, even PDA software. Not that I really expect you to buy a copy of Conduits Pocket Player or eSoft Interactive's Word Challenge for that special somebody in your life. But if you do, you can save a few bucks this month.

Here's a few bargains we dug up. Feel free to post others in the comments section.

Conduits has a coupon code for 35% off of anything in the Conduits Store. The code is holidaysale2006 and it's good through January 31st, 2007.
eSoft Interactive is going a bit further, slashing prices on all the games in their store by 50%. The coupon code ESOFTHOLIDAYS is good through Januardy 1st, 2007.
PocketGear is offering 20% of any purchase. The code holiday20 will only work for a limited time, but it's not clear when it expires. In the past, PocketGear codes have been known to work long after the promotion had ended, so keep this one handy and see if it works even after PocketGear takes the banner ad down from their site.
This one's not software based, but Pocket PC Techs makes cables, screen protectors, and power accessories for PDAs. They also do PDA upgrades and repairs. The coupon code PPCTCAMPXMAS02 will save you 20% on any purchase made through January 15th, 2007.

December PDA software sales originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 18 Dec 2006 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gifts for your Geek this year

Ryan Carter — Sun, 10 Dec 2006 14:02:00 EST

Filed under: Windows, Macintosh, Linux, Commercial, Freeware, Holiday Gift Guide

Some people can't seem to get this idea out of their heads that gifts have to be something physical. When I began to think about the holidays this year, I thought about all the things I wouldn't mind having, and I thought of mostly physical hold-it-in-your-hand gifts I want. Most of the gifts I hope to get happen to be virtual. Here is a nice rundown of some of the things you might think about buying for your own geek (both virtual gifts and physical gifts):

Flickr Pro account $25/year
Basecamp accounts ranging from $12/month to $149/month
Skype credit for free calls
Any other kind of pro account or account upgrade your geek may want from an online service
Anything from ThinkGeek.com (USB gadgets, like a rocket launcher or a bluetooth laser keyboard)
iTunes prepaid music card (as big as you can ~~afford~~ find)
World of Warcraft prepaid gameplay card (for any aspiring geeks who don't already play the game)

Now I know this list is not extensive or by any means complete, but that's why I need your help to complete it! Tell me what is on your geeky wish list this season in the comments below. What should be on this list? You tell me.

A note for non-geeks and newbies: if you want to get something like a pro account from an online service for your geek, you don't have to know how to use it, find it, or anything. If you know they want it, either enlist a geeky friend to help you in the process or simply write the name of the service on an index card or print it out all pretty like. Wrap it up to give to your geek, trust me they won't care what the gift card looks like, depending on the gift. Oh, and you get extra points if you write the message on the card in binary. I remember when my wife wrapped up a brochure for high-speed internet in the early days...best gift ever. See what I mean?

Gifts for your Geek this year originally appeared on Download Squad on Sun, 10 Dec 2006 14:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GiftHat, don't look it in the mouth

Ryan Carter — Tue, 14 Nov 2006 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fun, Internet, Text, Windows, Macintosh, Linux, Web services, Freeware, Holiday Gift Guide

Nevermind the other guy, what about what you want for the holidays? So you can't keep track of all those gifts you want? Sick of explaining the difference between an Intel Core Duo and and AMD 64 X2 to your loved ones? GiftHat gives you a place to store all your desires for the holidays and helps you justify being the greedy selfish little kid we all are inside, all the while maintaining the charade that it is a good thing for your loved ones, since they will know what you want without having to ask you, therefore maintaining that holiday tact no one seems to have. It will even allow you to load page images from Amazon to pick the right pix for your item, and grab the price too. The cool thing about GiftHat is that it will let you either automatically detect settings from a site or manually type in the details, so it works for just about any site, not just Amazon. With the nifty little JavaScript bookmarklet (drag this link to your bookmarks) and the ability to post a little GiftHat badge to your blog or website, it becomes a powerful service rivaling the functionality of del.icio.us except for gifts not sites, and actually makes shopping for yourself and getting what you want easy as, well pie. Pumpkin pie. The last great thing is that you can have any relatives, friends, and other people who will buy you stuff go to a simple URL on the web to see your list, in the form of gifthat.com/yourlistname. Email them the link, let them know that this is your wishlist, and you're done.

Wow, I feel so self-centered after this post, I am going to go feed a homeless guy or something. Peachy.

GiftHat, don't look it in the mouth originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 14 Nov 2006 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vista-ready gifts will be on Santa's sleigh

Ryan Carter — Sat, 14 Oct 2006 10:41:00 EST

Filed under: OS Updates, News, Windows, Microsoft, Holiday Gift Guide

On Ozzie, and Allchin, and Ballmer...Microsoft will be looking to rake it the dough this holiday season. Already there are 250 plus products that are Vista ready, and will be ready to ship for the holiday season from many third party vendors. Santa will have a lot of Vista-ready stuff to hand out this year. Many new hardware and software products will both be available for this season's holiday rush, among them, many usual suspects. Keyboards, mice, other peripherals, and also many software titles, such as Flight Simulator, Company of Heroes, Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy. Is there anything you've seen and heard about that you want this holiday season from the ever-growing Vista universe? Come on tell me, I may not be Santa, but we go way back, I'll see what I can do for you.

Vista-ready gifts will be on Santa's sleigh originally appeared on Download Squad on Sat, 14 Oct 2006 10:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gift Guide: Greeting card templates

Marc Perton — Thu, 22 Dec 2005 22:45:00 EST

Filed under: Fun, Holiday Gift Guide

Admit it. It's getting down to the wire, and you haven't picked out gifts for everyone, or even sent out all of your cards yet. One popular last-minute solution is to send out e-cards, and here's one way to make those cards a little more interesting. Instead of just using the canned cards available on countless sites, design your own. Don't have the time or Photoshop chops? No problem. Just use a canned template and plug in your own images, words and whatever else you need to make the card work. One good source is the scrapbook community, where designers have a wealth of templates available at prices as low as $3.00, most of which can be used both for e-cards and for printed ones - though, unless you're going to spring for FedEx or deliver your cards by hand, the latter isn't a likely scenario this year.

Gift Guide: Greeting card templates originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 22 Dec 2005 22:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gift Guide: Software company swag

Marc Perton — Wed, 21 Dec 2005 21:52:00 EST

Filed under: Holiday Gift Guide

What do you get for the geek who has everything? How about some software company swag? Software companies large and small offer everything from the Google Goo pictured above, to Mozilla's plush firefox dolls, to logo-pimping t-shirts. Some of my favorites include the non-logo t-shirts from Mac developer Panic Software (they include one featuring the Mac "spinner" and one that boasts "i make macintosh software"). If you really want to impress, you can hunt down collector-level swag on eBay, including old Apple lapel pins and Microsoft bobble-head dolls.

Gift Guide: Software company swag originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 21 Dec 2005 21:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gift Guide: Comic Life

Jordan Running — Wed, 21 Dec 2005 07:00:00 EST

Filed under: Design, Fun, Photo, Macintosh, Holiday Gift Guide

Have a budding photographer, character artist, or social commentator on your hands? A scrapbooker you'd like to nudge in the direction of something a bit more economical? Give Comic Life a try. An "award winning photo comic app," Comic Life lets you take your pictures and put them into slick-looking comic book layouts. Full of great text and photo effects, it's easy to use and has gotten some outstanding reviews and costs $24.95.

Now if only they'd release a Windows version.

Gift Guide: Comic Life originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 21 Dec 2005 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gift Guide: Support open and free computing

Jordan Running — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 06:00:00 EST

Filed under: Open Source, Holiday Gift Guide

Once you've sorted out gifts for your family, friends, and favorite bloggers, why not give a bit back to the people whose free software you enjoy (and depend on) all year 'round? Devanshu Mehta has put together a great list of free software projects and organizations that depend on your donations and involvement to keep producing great products. Among his picks are the Mozilla Foundation, the Wikimedia Foundation, OpenOffice.org, the Fedora Project, Emacs, Adium, Fink, and, of course, the EFF. I would also add to that list the Free Software Foundation, WordPress, and in a slightly different category, Child's Play.

Gift Guide: Support open and free computing originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 20 Dec 2005 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gift Guide: Linux Format magazine

Marc Perton — Mon, 19 Dec 2005 10:35:00 EST

Filed under: Holiday Gift Guide

Why on earth would you want to get someone a holiday gift made from dead trees? For one simple reason: Linux Format magazine, from the UK's Future Publishing, comes with tons of free software (well, free after the $15 each issue will run you in the US). In fact, many issues come with pre-configured distros that you can install and run instantly. Yes, you (or your gift recipient) can download most of the software that comes bundled with the magazine. But even with a broadband connection, it's sometimes nice to get that software delivered to your door on a CD or DVD that you can just pop into your drive and run (especially if you don't want to deal with burning discs from ISOs). And, for the Mac or Windows fan on your list, Future also publishes Mac Format and PC Format, both of which also come with software - though you're not going to get a copy of OSX or XP with your magazine.

Gift Guide: Linux Format magazine originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 19 Dec 2005 10:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gift Guide: QuicKeys for macros with muscle

Marc Perton — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 19:11:19 EST

Filed under: Utilities, Windows, Macintosh, Productivity, Commercial, Holiday Gift Guide

I know some of you are going to flame me for recommending a macro program that goes for $79.99 when there are plenty of free alternatives out there, but hear me out. And remember, this is a gift guide; I'm not suggesting you get this for yourself, but for someone who might be less technically inclined, but who can still benefit from some automation of repetitive tasks on their PCs. QuicKeys has been around for close to 20 years, and is one of the most mature macro programs on the market. For much of that time, it's been cross-platform, though it's far better-known to Mac fans than Windows users - perhaps because the Mac has always been less keyboard-centric than Windows, making the need for a solid macro utility more apparent. Creating even complex macros with QuicKeys is easy, and requires no knowledge of a specialized language or syntax. Give QuicKeys to mom, dad or anyone else who needs macros but doesn't want to spend hours creating and debugging them. They'll thank you for it - with one keystroke.

Gift Guide: QuicKeys for macros with muscle originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 16 Dec 2005 19:11:19 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gift Guide: Open an office with StarOffice

Marc Perton — Thu, 15 Dec 2005 14:36:49 EST

Filed under: Windows, Linux, Office, Productivity, Commercial, Open Source, Holiday Gift Guide

Software or web-service subscriptions make great gifts: They don't need to be wrapped, you can order at the last minute, and you can find a program or service for just about anyone (or at least anyone who owns a computer). With this in mind, we present our holiday gift guide, featuring products and services we've picked because we like them and use them ourselves (and, no, nobody has paid us or given us any freebies). We'll add a new item every day between now and the end of the year, and you can always click here to catch up on those you've missed.

If you're looking for an office suite for yourself, and you don't want to deal with Microsoft Office, there's one recommendation you'll almost always hear: OpenOffice. After all, it's free, it's (mostly) compatible with MS Office, and it has most of the features you'll need for day-to-day work. But if you want to give someone an office suite as a gift, you may want to consider another alternative: OpenOffice's big brother, Star Office. Why would you pay $69.95 for a piece of software that's virtually identical to something you can download for free? One word: support. A StarOffice license comes with 60 days of free tech support, including actual toll-free phone support. True, the support is limited to just three incidents during those 60 days. But, as they say on TV: "Not getting a call from Aunt Gert at 2AM because she can't remember how to spell-check her text - priceless."

Gift Guide: Open an office with StarOffice originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 15 Dec 2005 14:36:49 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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