clients

Trillian, the popular multiple-personality IM client, recently upgraded to version 5, giving it a refreshed interface, improved social integration, and, get this, all of the Pro features from previous versions, all for free. Now every user can enjoy themes, activity history viewer, and multiple location sign-in, along with the newly developed continuous client feature, which keeps chats synced across all devices. For now, these upgrades have only hit the Windows client (download) and the now free Android app (download). Mac, iOS, and Blackberry are all on deck.

While the idea of free is nice, as we all know, nothing ever … Read more

Twitter today told developers explicitly that they should stop making third-party clients, citing repeated privacy policy violations and an inconsistent user experience.

Ryan Sarver, who leads the company's platform team, said in an announcement on the company's developer discussion group that existing third-party clients can continue to operate but they will be held to rigorous standards of privacy and consistency. The micro-messaging company said it now makes the top five Twitter clients (including its Web site) and says 90 percent of its active users use its apps at least once a month.

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iPad corporate users can directly access and control their Windows PCs from their tablets through a new app from VMware.

Launched in Apple's App Store today, the free VMware View app for the iPad is designed for business users who want to be able to access their own office PCs or PCs set up in their company's data center through their tablets. The app can run over a Wi-Fi or 3G connection, allowing people to connect either in or out of the office.

In a blog posted today, VMware said that iPad users can use the tablet's … Read more

File transfer protocol (FTP) tools are among the oldest Internet software, yet they're still some of the most useful programs to have around, especially since today's FTP clients do so much. Case in point is BitKinex, a free FTP manager from Barad-Dur. It's a full-featured FTP client that not only transfers files but also synchronizes directories and performs server-to-server mirroring and backups; a Secure FTP (SFTP) client that accommodates all available secure protocols and also offers multiple connections and automatic download resumption in secure connections; and a Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV) tool with all the … Read more

I've been following the evolution of client-side computing off and on for over 20 years. Remember ASCII terminals? Green screens? Beehives? X terminals? If you do, they're most likely dimming memories.

The history of client side computing is filled with efforts to shift the balance of power between the server (ne host) and the client device. Which side is responsible for what, and how the sides communicate with each other, determine the cost, control, security, flexibility, and richness of the result. Some years it's "do everything meaningful on the server." Others, "do most work … Read more

There's a lot to keep up with when you're running a business: schedules, inventory, conversations with clients, e-mail, to-do items, and much more. CRM-Express Standard is a surprisingly comprehensive program that helps users stay on top of almost all aspects of their business.

The program's interface has a sleek look, with its main features arranged in well-organized tabs. And what a lot of features there are! The program has a flexible, multiview calendar, a built-in e-mail client, a list of news feeds, and a to-do list. Sounds like a great way to stay organized and informed, right? … Read more

Google has released a programming tool to help move its Native Client project--and more broadly, its cloud-computing ambitions--from abstract idea to practical reality.

The new Native Client software developer kit, though only a developer preview version, is designed to make it easier for programmers to use the Net giant's browser-boosting Native Client technology.

"The Native Client SDK preview...includes just the basics you need to get started writing an app in minutes," Google programmer David Springer said Wednesday in a blog post announcing the SDK, a week before the developer-oriented Google I/O conference. "We'll … Read more

Dillobits' SNTP Service is a full-featured Simple Network Time Protocol (SNTP) synchronization application for 32-bit versions of Windows, including XP, Vista, and Server 2008. It can maintain network time synchronization and services for a single Windows PC or a large network from the Administrator's desktop. It includes complete SNTP client/server capabilities and offers many extras for advanced users, such as support for multiple time severs, built-in Denial Of Service attack resistance, and advanced logging.

SNTP Service's main interface is a small and efficient control panel applet that gives the administrator the ability to remotely configure, update, monitor, … Read more

Google is expanding the abilities of its Native Client technology for accelerated Web applications so it will encompass a newer and increasingly important frontier of computing: graphics.

Native Client, available as a plug-in and being built directly into Google's Chrome browser, got its start as a way to run software modules for x86 chips such as Intel's Core or AMD's Athlon. The difference over conventional software is that Native Client (NaCl) modules are downloaded over the Net but for security reasons run in a restrictive sandbox and with certain instructions prohibited. Google's vision is to marry … Read more