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Technology has done a lot to improve efficiency and make tedious chores more tolerable. Every now and then, however, some misguided soul creates a cure that's worse than the disease. So it goes with Click Shopping Organizer. The program attempts to make the process of compiling a shopping list easier, but it ends up being more trouble than it's worth.

Even installing Click Shopping Organizer was a pain. The program requires the installation of the Microsoft SQL Server, which must be downloaded separately. We spent at least 20 minutes just getting everything downloaded and installed. For the most … Read more

Ever since it became the go-to URL for streaming TV episodes, folks have been wanting to see a version of Hulu.com for smartphones. The response comes in the form of a monthly subscription to premium content that's available on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch via the free Hulu Plus app.

Hulu's large storehouse of content from major TV networks and movie producers is its claim to fame over competing services that are attempting to bring on-demand entertainment to mobile devices. Though we found the app's interface attractive, navigating around was doable, but more difficult than … Read more

It's a little plain and slim on features, but the free Kindle app for Android does its job as an e-book reader. Once you fire it up, it lets you shop for new books or download books you've already bought through your account.

Since Kindle is about book sales, the app lets you buy e-books through Amazon's online Kindle Store, where works typically sell for about $10 a piece. A much-needed and hopefully cleaner-looking and quicker-operating in-app store is reportedly coming in future versions. If you're unready to commit to a book, you can wirelessly send … Read more

Plenty of people have aspirations of writing a novel or screenplay, and most of those people have a lot of ideas about the plot and characters of their masterpiece. Actually getting those ideas down on paper in a way that makes sense isn't always easy, though, and many potential writers get overwhelmed before they even begin. PlotBuilder is a simple program that breaks the writing process down into manageable steps, making it easier for writers to get started and keep going.

The program's interface is simple and intuitive, reminding us of more recent versions of Microsoft Office. The … Read more

Small businesses frequently must choose between "enterprise" (pronounced "expensive") solutions and personal software that just isn't up to the job. ITAZ Sohodox is a document management application specifically tailored for the small office, but it has many uses outside the workplace, since it creates a centralized, searchable, multiuser database of all your documents. Sohodox works with any TWAIN-compatible scanner and saves documents in a wide range of formats, including PDF and TIFF. It even has OCR capabilities.

Sohodox has single-user and client installation options; we tested the single-user installation. The interface resembles Microsoft's Outlook … Read more

Tvalx specializes in mathematical software; its Scientific Calculator Decimal is essentially a virtual version of the classic handheld scientific calculator optimized for calculating decimals. It's suitable for everyone from math students to scientists and engineers. It's precise up to 30 digits and includes trigonometric, hyperbolic, and inverse functions.

As with other calculating tools from Tvalx, Scientific Calculator Decimal has a clean, efficient, attractive layout that's largely based on the functional design of handheld scientific calculators, though you can customize the look, too. The layout strikes a good balance between busy and clean. File, Edit, Tools, and Help … Read more

One of our major complaints about PC-based task lists is that such programs are fine when you're in front of the PC, but not available when you're out and about or on another machine. For this reason, we favor Internet-based task managers, but Task Coach Portable is another solution to this problem. This lightweight application is, as the name would imply, designed to be portable, making it easy to carry with you on a USB drive or other portable device.

The program's interface is plain and intuitive, and Task Coach Portable actually packs a surprising number of … Read more

The foreign exchange market, where international currencies are traded, is the largest financial market in the world, and staying on top of exchange rates is no simple task. Forex Currency Rates & Converter is a simple tool made for anyone with an interest in the foreign exchange market.

The program bills itself as a widget, and its interface will look familiar to anyone who's had experience with Apple Dashboard widgets. The program appears as an icon in the system tray, and when it's clicked, the widget appears: a smallish rectangle with rounded edges. The widget is nice to … Read more

We wouldn't be the least bit surprised if choosing a single Twitter app for Android leaves you paralyzed by choice. There's no shortage of third-party Twitter apps in the Android Market, but Twitter is attempting to change that with its first official release for Android phones--or at least those running version 2.1 of the operating system or higher.

As a whole, Twitter's contribution is good. It's attractive and works in most of the features you'd expect from a solid Twitter-helper, including photo updates, link-shortening, geolocation, and notifications. Its two home screen widgets broadcast recent … Read more