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ThinkFree Portable Office for U3
September 20, 2007 in 4 out of 5 stars, A piece of software, Hosted "Office"ThinkFree Portable Office for U3: A portable, zero-footprint, Microsoft Office compatible office suite you can cart around with you on a U3 USB drive. It includes Write (MS Word clone), Calc (Excel), and Show (PowerPoint). ThinkFree, Corp. The U3 technology is nifty and this is a perfect use for it. It's like having your own private mini-computer with an Office suite that you bolt onto any computer you travel to. It has strong compatibility with MS Office, a beautiful clean user interface. 1/10th the price of MS Office. Surprisingly lightweight. Secure. Theoretically leaves behind no trace on the computer you hook into (which is usually true as long as you remove the U3 drive properly). They've got versions that'll work with your iPod. Plus the obligatory hosted version, and even a server version, and a desktop version. There are a few UI differences in the Office software that take some getting used to. As a company, ThinkFree is going in so many directions their marketing is confusing. Windows Only (because of the U3) but they have other versions (non U3) that are compatible with PC/Mac/Linux.
$50 Reviewed by Carson McComasWhat is it?
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TaskBin
September 18, 2007 in 3 out of 5 stars, Hosted software, Issue trackers, ProductivityTaskBin: It is a group task management tool. It helps you allocate tasks to your team members and is built around the concept of sharing tasks as a group (or groups). All of your tasks are visible to others and can be shared. Other members can add tasks to your plate or edit tasks already there. Mangospring Very smooth interface, attractive, feature-rich, and for a group working on a project, it offers a simple way to share and keep track of tasks. Nifty constructs like softer deadlines (today, tomorrow, next week, sometime soon) introduce an interesting (and more real-world?) way to prioritize tasks. It has a highly annoying construct where it forces you to add first and last name for anyone. None of the marketing pages outline what the "premium" account is, or what it costs. The confirmation link they email you is beastly-long, but not a hyperlink (easy fix, guys!). Free for everything I could find. There's mention of a "premium" account during signup, but I never saw anything else about it. Reviewed by Carson McComasWhat is it?
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Happy Quote?
September 11, 2007 in An interview, Happy Quotes"I feel badly for these people who have forced themselves to become Don Quixote; who are embracing a project that can never go anywhere. Because if you're working on something that can never go anywhere, you don't have to worry about it ever going anywhere.
That weird uncle who's always got some board game he's dreaming up is safe. His board game is never going to get bought by Mattel. His board game is never going to change his life. He can live under the illusion that he's challenging the status quo, when in fact he is hiding."