News - Softonic English

Facebook launches App Center

Facebook had previously announced that it was going to launch its own App Center for web, Android, and iOS platforms. United States Facebook users can already view the App Center online, although it doesn’t appear that it’s live for browsing quite yet on iOS and Android devices. It is expected that Facebook will be rolling out the App Center to all users in the coming weeks.

The App Center features 600 apps. Many of these have some form of Facebook integration, which isn’t surprising. The small number of apps also presents an appearance of exclusivity, because the Facebook App Center relies heavily on your friends for app suggestions.

Based on the popularity of apps that your friends use, you will be sent personalized app recommendations. Facebook’s reliance on social sharing is apparent in the way it connects apps to the specific friends of yours who use them.

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Top 6 features of Windows 8 Release Preview

The official release of Windows 8 is getting closer and closer, but should consumers be excited for the new operating system? Sure Windows 8 may be the boldest move that Microsoft has ever made with their desktop operating system, but does that make it good? Let’s check out some of the top features of Windows 8 and you can decide for yourself.

1) Metro interface

The biggest and most noticeable change by far has to be the introduction of the Metro interface design that consumers first saw with Windows Phone 7. In fact, the Metro design is a bold move by Microsoft to incorporate the design across all of their user interfaces from phones, Xbox, and PCs. Continue reading “Top 6 features of Windows 8 Release Preview”

DAEMON Tools for Mac released

DAEMON Tools has finally released DAEMON Tools for Mac. The free CD/DVD emulation software has been available for many years on Windows and is an excellent tool for emulating CD or DVD drives if you don’t have a physical drive available or don’t want the hassle of burning one.

DAEMON Tools for Mac Lite is free and has been initially released in beta. Like the Windows version, The Lite version of DAEMON Tools for Mac lets you emulate up to four virtual drives at once.

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Google Drive to launch this week

It’s widely rumored that Google will launch a Dropbox style online storage service this week called Google Drive offering users up to 5GB of free storage space. According to The Verge, concrete evidence has even emerged in Google Docs with a reference to transferring your documents to “Google Drive on the web”. Added to a sudden 5GB increase in the storage space offered to some Google Docs users, it does indeed seem like Google is preparing to take on the likes of Dropbox and Microsoft’s SkyDrive.

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Firefox 12 released

Although there’s been no official word from Mozilla, Firefox 12 is now available to download for Windows and Mac. Since there are no final release notes, it’s hard to say exactly what’s changed so most of the known changes come from the Firefox 12 beta release. Mozilla claim there are 85 changes in all but the most notable is that Windows users will no longer get pestered by a User Account Control pop-up every time the browser updates. Also, the HTML5 media controls have been updated to provide a full screen button. Continue reading “Firefox 12 released”

Instagram released on Android

Instagram is one of most popular photo apps on iOS. When it was announced that Instagram would be releasing on Android, many people were waiting in anticipation for when it would release.

The app is now available on Android devices, allowing you to take your customized pictures and share them across many of the most popular social networks.

Read our review of Instagram below.

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Firefox 11.0 final released

Mozilla have released the final version of Firefox 11.0 for Mac and Windows. The most notable change in Firefox 11 is add-on syncing which means that you can sync your add-ons across machines.

This means that if you install Firefox on a different computer and need the same add-ons that you usually use, Firefox will sync them automatically so you have identical browsers. You can toggle it off and on via the Sync tab in the Options window.

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Windows 8 Consumer Preview released

Microsoft have today announced the release of their Windows 8 Consumer Preview, at the Mobile World Congress, available in 32 and 64 bit versions. We saw the developer’s preview last year, but this is much improved – more stable and with more features. It’s the ideal opportunity for Windows users to check out the new Metro interface and apps, which are a radical departure for Windows.

Read on for screenshots and my impressions of Windows 8.
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Microsoft Flight out now

When Microsoft closed the studio responsible for its Flight Simulator series, it looked like the end for the much loved game. However, soon afterwards Microsoft Flight was announced, and today it has been released as a free to play title.

I took a look at the closed beta last month, and while there are plenty of changes, I came away impressed. Microsoft Flight is great for new players, with excellent tutorials teaching you everything you need to know about flying. At first glance ‘hardcore’ sim fans might be put off, but I think there is enough depth once you get into it.

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