compatibility

Microsoft is making a selling point of the fact that the new Zune HD and associated software update are optimized for Windows 7, which is due out on October 22. I've got a copy of the final release code of Windows 7 on my work PC, and there is some useful synchronization between the two. For instance, the Quickplay menu in the Zune software--which lets you get immediately to music you've recently added, your Smart DJ stations, and any other favorites you want to "pin" to the list--is propagated into the Windows 7 Start menu. So … Read more

Apple on Thursday released a relatively minor update for Mac OS X Snow Leopard that fixes an issue users had with the operating system that downgraded them to an older version of Adobe Systems' Flash Player.

When Apple released Snow Leopard on August 28, it included an older version of Adobe's Flash plug-in that was known to have security issues. Sophos security expert Graham Cluley warned users of the downgrade and urged anyone who installed the operating system to upgrade immediately.

Snow Leopard 10.6.1 addresses this issue by updating the Flash Player plug-in to version 10.0.… Read more

Mac OS X Snow Leopard has been available for one week, and for the most part, users are reporting very few problems upgrading.

While not everyone is thrilled with the way Apple handled the release, it turns out that Snow Leopard is Apple's most compatible operating system release ever. According to sources familiar with Snow Leopard's internal testing process, Apple kept an enormous amount of statistics on third-party application compatibility.

They said that Apple not only tracked many of the most widely-used apps, they tracked many of the shareware apps, as well. If an application exhibited problems, the … Read more

This is a fun little piece of freeware that uses some basic personal information to predict the compatibility of two people based on their Chinese zodiac signs. The simple interface could not be easier to navigate, and the layout of the compatibility reports is easy to read.

There aren't too many bells and whistles with MB Chinese Zodiac Compatibility, but its reports are fairly comprehensive. Each partner is analyzed separately based on his or her birthday, and the couple's overall compatibility is rated and explained. There's plenty of detail about the various birth years; we especially liked … Read more

MB Love Test Finished is a free suite of different resources that use various esoteric systems (Numerology, Kundali, etc.) to test the compatibility of two partners. All of them function in essentially the same way: users input their personal data and get back a variety of reports.

A number of issues plague what is potentially a fun tool. A few of the reports were overly simplistic, and some of the predictors won't work unless your region is set as the U.S. Some spelling errors and an overall rudimentary interface give the whole program a somewhat amateurish feel. However, … Read more

Snow Leopard should be compatible with most applications that ran on Leopard; however, the revamped underpinnings have broken functionality with a few applications. Some of these Apple has been able to identify and the system will notify you of the incompatibility, but others have not worked and either unexpectedly quit or hang.… Read more

With the public release of Apple's Snow Leopard operating system upgrade today, there have been some concerns about legacy compatibility. Perhaps the biggest worry was with Adobe Photoshop CS3, which has proven to be a nonissue, but there have been others, too.

If you're curious about whether your current software will work on OS X 10.6, checking out this list is a good place to start. Comprehensive and alphabetized, it offers a simple red, yellow, or green light to indicate a program's status. Games are included, too, so Age of Empires and World of Warcraft fans … Read more

An Adobe Systems executive is trying to calm Photoshop users who were alarmed to hear an earlier but still widely used version of Photoshop isn't supported on Snow Leopard, the new Apple operating system arriving Friday.

Photoshop Principal Product Manager John Nack on Tuesday published Adobe's FAQ about its Creative Suite support for Snow Leopard, aka Mac OS X 10.6, that said the current CS4 version from October 2008 is the only one that's supported. The comments quickly took on panicky and angry tones among people who thought their older CS3 version of the software wouldn'… Read more

MB Horoscope Compatibility provides a simple way for two people to tell if the stars think they are a good match. By entering some basic information, users will have fun reading the results.

The program's interface is very intuitive, consisting mostly of a well-labeled main screen asking for data in open boxes. The answers are easily read, even if one doesn't understand astrology, but also provides enough detail for experts. The Help file is so basic it is best ignored. Getting a reading is very simple, providing you have specific information about both parties. Users enter one person'… Read more