Akregator is a news feed reader available for Linux, where we can access our common feeds from a KDE desktop. Even though it was designed for KDE, Akregator is also available from Ubuntu download center making it possible using in Gnome.
If you usually access and use RSS to get the latest news from sites and blogs, you should know that the way we are retrieving the information is crucial for not missing anything important. If we don’t have a simple GUI in the application we are using, probably we just won’t read anything.
Akregator’s simplicity brings the simple features we may need in a RSS reader: organizing feeds in folders, quick preview, full search possibilities, etc.
You can download Akregator using this link.
The Kobo ebook reader is just one of many mobile ebook readers on the market. What makes this ebook stand out from the many out there is the cross platform capability. We are familiar with ebook apps on our iPhone/iTouch, or maybe even our mobile phones, but the Kobo allows you read your selections from the mobile device, a smart phone, desktop, or laptop.
The ebook reader is globally known and backed by the likes of Indigo Books & Music, Borders, REDgroup Retail, Cheung Kong Holdings, and other leaders in technology and retail. They firmly state that they believe anyone should have access to their content and be able to read anywhere, anytime, no matter what. Their support of open standards goes directly against some of the bigger competitors who firmly believe in close systems. According to Kobo’s site, closed systems stifle innovation and growth, thus their support of allowing their product to go across multiple platforms.
They are currently boasting approximately 2 million books and over 200,000 PDF’s to browse through. With top hits from the New York Time’s best seller list to the most popular ebooks, readers should find something of interest and enjoy the fact that the open system allows for them to move from device to device without fearing any sort of lock down.
I find it interesting that they state that even if they have not heard of a device or if it’s not out yet, they can find a way to be on there. A true testament to the fact that the Kobo ebook reader is really part of an open system.
This is definitely one of my favourite products of 2010 and the year has just begun. It’s a wireless device which allows you to insert an SD card and read it on your PC or mobile phone as thou it were connected via a USB cord. This would be excellent for photographers who need to easily transfer files from their SD cards and indeed those who transport SD cards around with them containing important files frequently.
It’s called the Airstash and is targeted at iPhone users because of it’s portability. However it uses WiFi and as such it can be used in conjunction with any other WiFi enabled device or laptop. It is small, weighs very little and supports cards up to 32Gb.It also acts as a WiFi access point. Unfortunately, the fact that it must be accessed via a browser means that you loose your Internet connection when using it. It can also be used as a USB device. However, in my book, so long as it’s not ridiculously over priced (we’re expecting an RRP to be released in a couple of months) then I think I’ll be buying one!
Barnes & Noble, the popular publishing company, released a competitor to the Amazon Kindle in late November called the Nook. It was equipped with 3G capabilities and WiFi as well as other similar features such as an ink screen and matt finish to avoid glare.
However, fans of the device (who run a site called NookDevs) just released a guide which enables users to easily hack the device. And it really is quite simple. Even a novice user could do it.
All that is required of the user is to pop open the device and remove the memory card. There are then some changes to be made via a PC (namely gaining root access to the operating system) and then the card is re-inserted. You can find the instructions here.
I though I’d share with you guys an RSS reader that I started using recently called Feedly. Basically it’s and add-on for most browsers including Chrome and Firefox which combines all your RSS feeds into one incredible place that by far surpasses generic readers such as Google.
Here is a screenshot:
What I like most about is that it also combines other services such as GMail and Twitter into the same package so you’re getting all of your information in the one place instead of having several tabs open.
It’s free and its easy to set up once you have installed it as an add-on. Click here to download Feedly.
