Submitted by Dave on Sat, 14/09/2013 - 18:23
Earlier this year Microsoft launched their free Outlook.com email service to the world at large. We blogged at the time that it was largely unsuitable as a business email solution. This was because Microsoft had failed to implement modern, standards-based support to enable the safe use of standalone email applications with it. As we originally wrote:
Submitted by Dave on Fri, 13/09/2013 - 00:04
Cloud accounting software company Xero recently made the move to shutter Xero Personal, an online personal finance management tool. The reaction this provoked from Xero's users is about what we've come to expect from folks who have invested their time and money into an exclusively online, subscription-based product – only to have it closed down.
Submitted by Dave on Tue, 10/09/2013 - 20:13
As anyone who has used Wikipedia knows, wikis are a highly convenient way of quickly searching for and accessing information on a broad range of topics using a web browser. But perhaps less well known is the fact that the software which powers sites such as Wikipedia can be easily installed on your personal computer or laptop. Why would we want to do this?
Submitted by Dave on Mon, 02/09/2013 - 00:36
We recently attended a small business community meeting on the topic of affordable software solutions for business owners. The issue of PDF support was raised by a participant—specifically, whether an affordable tool existed for editing PDFs.
Submitted by Dave on Tue, 20/08/2013 - 21:28
We're huge fans of Mozilla's Firefox web browser.
Submitted by Dave on Sat, 17/08/2013 - 14:44
Thunderbird is one of the best business email clients available today. Aside from the nice price (free), it has one of the strongest extension ecosystems of any piece of software out there. Extensions (also known as add-ons) enhance the functionality of Thunderbird in hundreds of different and useful ways. Today we're going to take a look at one of our favourite extensions - QuickFolders.
Submitted by Dave on Wed, 31/07/2013 - 20:03
Open source software offers a number of compelling advantages for new businesses. In this blog entry we'll look at how it could be a great complement for your startup.
What is open source software?
Software that is “free and open-source” may be freely installed, used, and copied without restriction. There is no initial purchase cost, nor are there any ongoing subscription fees for continued use. Far from being watered-down versions of their paid counterparts, open source applications are powerful and business-grade.
Submitted by Dave on Mon, 15/07/2013 - 01:35
The reviews of Adobe's new “cloud”-enabled replacement for their premier design suite product are coming in, and they're not pretty. By forcing customers dependent on Adobe Creative Suite applications solely into a rental scheme, Adobe has managed to release something that for many small businesses turns out to be more expensive than the outgoing product.
Submitted by Dave on Tue, 07/05/2013 - 23:13
Adobe Systems announced today that its flagship Creative Suite product would cease to be available for purchase as boxed media under a perpetual license and instead only be available under a monthly internet-activated rental scheme. Accompanying this change is the news that the Creative Suite brand itself would be eliminated, with Creative Cloud being the sole brand for the application suite going forward.
Submitted by Dave on Mon, 15/04/2013 - 01:38
Business owners may have noticed that Microsoft Office 365 Home Premium can be purchased for the quite reasonable price of NZ$165.00 RRP per year—which includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and more. The software can be installed on up to five PCs, plus mobile devices—seemingly ideal.
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