Adobe have rolled out today the Adobe Creative Cloud, a supplementary service to use alongside CS6.

Working on a monthly subscription basis, it gives online access to CS6 install files, HTML5 apps like Adobe Muse 1.0 for code-free webpage building, Adobe Edge preview for animated and interactive content, integration with Adobe Touch apps for Android and iOS as well as 20GB of web-based storage for easily sharing and saving your creative projects.

"We announced Creative Cloud and CS6 two weeks ago and these releases have caught the imagination of creatives everywhere," said David Wadhwani, senior vice president, Digital Media Business, Adobe.

"Today we're shipping CS6 and look forward to the beginning of an exciting new era as we introduce Creative Cloud later this week."

Adobe Creative Cloud membership is available from today in 36 countries. Membership costs individuals £38.11 (ex VAT) per month based on an annual membership and £57.17 (ex VAT) per month for month-to-month membership. A special introductory offer of £22.23 (ex VAT) per month for customers already using the older CS3, CS4, CS5 and CS5.5 packages is also available.

For more info, click here.

Amazon have released a Mac version of their incredibly useful Send to Kindle application.

The application allows Mac users to send document and eBook files directly to Amazon's Kindle eReader, without needing to hook them up to your computer over a cabled connection. You simply need drag the file you want to transfer onto the icon in the Mac dock.

The documents are then sent into the cloud and archived, ready to be downloaded via Wi-Fi or over select Kindle's 3G connections.

If you're using a 3G-enabled Kindle and are looking to send larger files without incurring digital delivery costs from Amazon, it's best to set up the application with the "free.kindle" email address associated with your eReader.

To use Send to Kindle for Macs you'll need to be running OS X Snow Leopard (v10.6) or Mac OS X Lion (v10.7). You can grab the app by clicking here.

PC users can also use the application, which has been available on Windows since January.

Hot on the heels of the Google Drive launch come's Sony's own cloud storage offering, Play Memories.

A slightly different proposition, Play Memories is solely for the cloud-based storage of photos and videos, and doesn't support documents or other file types. However, unlike the other rival services, photos and videos won't only be accessible through desktop, tablet and smartphone applications, but also via the Sony PlayStation 3 console, whose rich media playback capabilities make it a perfect match for video and photo content.

Sony are also looking to roll the service out to their Bravia TVs and S-Frame digital photo frames, with an aim to have the service hit these other platforms by the summer.

Like Google Drive, Play Memories offers 5GB worth of free storage space; 3GB more than Dropbox, and 2GB less than Microsoft's SkyDrive.

You can grab the PlayMemories Online app now for free on both Android and iOS devices.

Google have officially lifted the covers off Google Drive, their cloud storage alternative to Dropbox.

Available as a PC and Mac desktop app, and an Android mobile app on smartphones running version 2.1 and upwards of Google's operating system, the service allows users to share up to 5GB worth of data and files across devices, on the go. As the service is cloud-based through the web, all transfers are done seamlessly, wirelessly, meaning updating files on one device automatically sees the most up-to-date version transferred to over Google Drive-using devices too.

Using a drag-and-drop grid interface on the desktop, files can also be transferred between colleagues and friends once a "Share With Me" folder has been created. If more storage than the initial free 5GB is needed, it can be purchased through the service.

If it all sounds familiar, that's because it is. Dropbox works on almost identical principles, though Google may muscle in and grab newcomers to cloud storage by offering 5GB free whereas Dropbox only offers 2GB initially.

Scroll down for some videos direct from Google describing the service:

Dropbox have announced that they are to take new investment from Bono and The Edge of classic rock band U2, with the musicians giving personal backing to the online cloud storage service.

While the amount invested has not been disclosed, Dropbox founders Drew Houston and Arash Ferdowsi posed with the band members in picture posted to Twitter, confirming the news:

"Dropbox is excited to welcome Bono & The Edge as investors. Thanks for the support and look forward to great things!" the company tweeted.

It's not the first time that U2 frontman Bono has dived into the world of tech investments. As co-founder of Elevation Partners, he has also invested in Palm, Yelp and Facebook, building a $1bn investment fund on the back of the latter two ventures.

Their early investment in Facebook back in 2004 was a particularly savvy one. Investing $270 million into the social network, an imminent IPO is expected to see Zuckerberg's empire valued at $100bn, bagging Elevation Partners a cool $1bn. Yelp too are doing well; having completed its stock market flotation earlier this month, Yelp currently has a market capitalisation of $1.4bn.

Dropbox seems an equally well considered investment, with Forbes predicting revenues to have hit $240m in 2011 despite the fact that 96% of users only use its free service. However, with a 2GB free space limit, and file sizes growing exponentially, Houston still expects sales to double in 2012.

Apple have released an update to their enthusiast level music production software packages Logic Pro and Logic Express.

Offering compatibility, performance and stability improvements, the update hasn't yet been added to Apple's support download page. However, you can still grab the update early through Software Update, manually triggering the download.

Check below for the list of updates highlighted in the release notes:

Compatibility

Resolves an issue in OS X 10.7.x Lion that caused the Consolidate Project command in Logic to open a backup of the project at the end of the process.

Via: CNET

Had a computer problem that's resulted in you being left on hold to a customer services call centre for the best part of an hour, totting up an enormous phone bill in the process? Wish your tech savvy mate was always on hand to offer advice as to how best to manage your PC? Then you should give an app called Soluto a try, which is looking to revolutionise the way we handle our PC trouble-shooting woes.

Compatible with Windows 7, Vista, XP and the forthcoming Windows 8 OS, Soluto is a program that allows users to help one another through their computer-based troubles.

Free for up to five users (with premium plans available for enterprise users), one member of a group of Soluto users is elected as the tech whizz kid, and becomes the go-to source of help for the other users. Using the Soluto interface, the users can view problems that the others in the group are experiencing, and use the Soluto toolset to remotely fix problems and install useful programs on each other's PCs.

It's a slick UI that makes tasks that would be daunting for novices (such as de-fragging a PC, or installing anti-virus software) a breeze, but really comes into its own when being used by a remote power user. They can use Soluto to manage multiple PCs at once, checking out a user's system configuration to tailor fixes to each machine. As Soluto uses the cloud to communicate between users, fixes can be queued up to be triggered even when the machine in question is switched off, kicking in when the system is again booted back up. For the most part, Soluto is a discrete application too; a user will never be able to trigger a fix for a problem that would interrupt another user's current session.

It's worth noting that you can't directly access another users' documents, photos or email through Soluto, due to obvious privacy concerns. The Soluto interface instead acts as a front-end, a portal through which to apply updates and run optimisation tools without compromising your pals' sensitive data.

Perhaps the program's most impressive feature however is how Soluto intelligently uses your solutions to help other users around the globe. While your identity is never shared beyond your circle of selected friends or colleagues, the Soluto team are constantly analysing data sent by the app in order to help notify users around the world when another Soluto users has come up with a solution to their problems. Soluto aim to make crash and usage data freely and publicly available too, which should be invaluable to the next wave of software developers.

Soluto is also available as a Windows 8 Metro app, and was one of the first available as part of the Windows 8 Consumer Preview build. We saw it running on a Windows 8 tablet, and was pleased to say it was just as intuitive as its desktop counterpart, with responsive, finger-friendly touch controls and clean, animated menu transitions. It can be difficult to make an IT trouble-shooting app look appealing, but the mix of pastel shades and Wii-like avatars dotted around Soluto make it very easy on the eye.

How much of a success Soluto proves to be will be largely down to how simple or complex the developers eventually allow the service to become for users of differing computer literacy levels. For instance, while we liked the fact that it had at least one application available to be remotely downloaded onto a fellow user's computer to fit most scenarios, the list of apps wasn't exactly extensive. We imagine some power users will be frustrated that they can't, for example, put their precise media player of choice on another user's machine.

Nonetheless, it's an intelligent and intuitive solution for dealing with the remote IT problems of your peers. We'd imagine premium-rate gadget and IT helplines will be looking at Soluto with some trepidation.

For more on Soluto, click here.

iOS 5.1, the latest version of Apple's touch-based mobile operating system, is now available to download for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch users.

Launching alongside the Retina Display packing new iPad, iOS 5.1's biggest new feature is tailored for Japanese audiences, bringing Siri support to the land of the rising sun.

To grab the update, either hook your iOS device up to iTunes through your computer, or use the Software Update feature within iOS to carry out an over-the-air, cable free update.

Apple list the full line up of changes as follows:

o Japanese language support for Siri (availability may be limited during initial rollout)

o Photos can now be deleted from Photo Stream

o Camera shortcut now always visible on Lock Screen for iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and iPod touch (4th generation)

o Camera face detection now highlights all detected faces

o Redesigned Camera app for iPad

o Genius Mixes and Genius playlists for iTunes Match subscribers

o Audio for TV shows and movies on iPad optimized to sound louder and clearer

o Podcast controls for playback speed and a 30 second rewind for iPad

o Updated AT&T network indicator

o Addresses bugs affecting battery life

o Fixes an issue that occasionally caused audio to drop for outgoing calls

RELATED| Hands-On: New iPad 3 initial review

Kindle owners get a great new tool this morning with the launch of the new "Send to Kindle" feature for PC.

A small downloadable plugin, "Send to Kindle" lets you easily transfer PC files and documents, along with eBooks, to your Amazon eReader by adding a wireless transfer option to the right-click menu in Windows Explorer.

"From Windows Explorer, simply right-click on one or more documents and choose Send to Kindle. From any other Windows application that can print, select Print and choose Send to Kindle," reads the Amazon blog.

"Your last page read along with bookmarks, notes and highlights are automatically synchronised for your documents (with the exception of PDFs) across your Kindle devices and supported Kindle reading apps."

DOC, DOCX, TXT, RTF, JPEG, JPG, GIF, PNG, BMP and PDF file types are among those supported. Even the Kindle's own .MOBI files, saved on your PC, can be sent using the new function.

Though similar functionality has previously been possible by using your Send-to-Kindle email address, or using the superb eBook manager Calibre, this new feature takes much of the stress out of getting content stored on your PC onto your device though.

Remember however to try where possible to download files over Wi-Fi, or you could end up with a Whispernet 3G charge on supported Kindle devices.

Click here to grab the Send To Kindle plugin. It's a must-have for Kindle owners.

Tech gifts don't have to be about screen sizes or processing capabilities these days. In fact, they don't have to be physical gifts at all. You can put a smile on a loved one's face just by setting them up with one of the many ace online digital services and subscription packages that are tied into apps, download and streaming sites too.

From music packages like Spotify to productivity programs like Dropbox, there's something here for everyone.

When you're done here, be sure to check out the rest of Tech Digest's 2011 Christmas wishlists too.

We all know that Apple produce some of the most powerful laptops and desktops that need no configuration at all. The build quality of the computers is second to none, im actually writing this on a four year old macbook which is still fully working and in great condition. The Apple software is also some of the industry's finest, if you know how to use it that is.

To many who have only ever had a PC in their life, sometimes working with Apple's operating system can be quite a daunting task, everything is new and there aren't any of your usual applications for doing your day to day tasks.

To try and provide a bridge between the two operating systems Parallels has come out with their software Parallels Desktop 7. It is usually a very big step to go from Windows to OSX, i know for me it was a huge step at first and sometimes you really want the comfort of your old PC as a safety net. The software allows you to run multiple operating systems on your macbook bringing together the best hardware and software together.

The software allows you to run two or more operating systems at the same time without the need to use Bootcamp or rebooting your system to switch between them, you can literally have them side by side. You can choose from Windows 7, Chrome OS, Linux or even get the developers version of Windows 8, all running on your macbook.

The software takes advantage of installing the operating systems as a virtual machine, making any additional operating system run faster by not putting additional pressure on the RAM and CPU of your computer. The only large specification you will need will be hard drive space, you will need around 15GB for every operating system.

If you are not that literate when it comes to computers, parallels has a feature called Parallels Wizard that will run through most of the installation automatically, choosing the best settings for your computer. The average installation time takes between twenty and thirty minutes, which for installing an operating system is pretty impressive.

But even though you are working with Windows software it doesn't mean the software ignores the Apple features. Trackpad gestures are supported in all programs related to Windows, a nice addition, you still feel like your working with the quality of a Mac computer. The main advantages of this software is using full Windows programs on your Mac, Microsoft Office being one of the main pieces that would be popular with users. Because you are working with a full version of Office everything works how it should, there is no limitations to make it work on a Mac.

A helpful addition is the full integration of copy and paste, across platforms. You can simply drag and drop files across operating systems without any file changing or reconfiguring. In the same principle the software also allows the user to transfer over their whole PC to their Mac, all their personal files, installed software, everything will be transferred saving all your investment into older machines.

The main idea behind this software if ease of use, it is about making the bridge between PC users going to Mac a lot safer and secure. It is a big choice switching operating systems and the easier and shorter the process the better for the consumer at the end of the day. A way that this has been implemented is with two hours worth of video tutorials built into the software with everything from installation to getting started with parallels.

The company gets a lot of its new features from its users. Requests can be made through a form built into the software so that the company can develop a tailored experience for the customers needs. So if you think that something would suit the software you have a say and the company an consider developing it.

This sort of software also brings opportunities to Mac users that they may never have had before, gaming would be increased with Window's games now being played on Macbooks and for professionals, more advanced graphic software such as AutoDesk applications.

Parallels have also launched an app for IOS devices to access their virtual machines from your mobile or tablet. The app will give you full access to your computer, if it is in sleep mode the phone will access the server and wake the computer up for use. There is no need to install any other software and the only information you need is your account information and that is it. The app is priced at £11.99

The software is priced at around £65 for the standard edition, the switch to my mac edition includes a USB cable in order to link together both PC's to transfer all your data. This is software that, for anyone considering the switch, would make the whole process that much simpler and a less stressful experience and with free updates always being produced it is a worthwhile investment.

Name: Acronis True Image Home 2012

Type: PC data back-up utility

System requirements: Click here for full details

Price: £39.95 (£23.95 if upgrading from previous edition)

Backing-up PC data can be a chore, but it's a necessary pain if you hope to protect your sensitive and precious files from the odd ghost in the system. The Acronis True Image Home 2012 suite aims to take the hassle out of backing up your files, while also having enough flexibility to sate the appetite of even the most avid PC tinkerer. Read on for our verdict.

Rather than focussing on one form of data back-up, the Acronis True Image Home 2012 suite offers the complete package. Be it online back-ups, file-based or continuous incremental back-ups of whole drives as they update, drive image creation or images of partitions, the software pops all methods into a single neat product.

Whether you're using True Image Home 2012's Nonstop Back-up feature to keep your My Documents folder safely duplicated as you pop new files inside, or using an Acronis True Image Online account to synchronise local folders with a network or a laptop (which follows similar concepts to those that use the Dropbox service), there's a solution for pretty much every situation.

It's all presented in such a way as to be make it comfortable to use for even those who find the thought of back-up processed intimidating. A re-vamped interface opens with a "Get Started", which offers tutorials on "How to back up?", "When to recover?" and "What is sync?". Whatever your skill level, Acronis have done a fairly good job of walking you through each step of each back-up process.

Of course, if you're familiar with the concepts of preserving your files, you can dive straight in with the Backup and recovery" tab and picking from options like: "Disk and partition", "Online", "File", "Email" and "Nonstop backup". Again the interface is clear, letting you easily pick source and destination locations, and in the case of Online and File back-up processes, offering check-box style controls to select the precise files that need copying.

It's all highly configurable too, letting you set back-up schedules, password protect resulting archives and (in the case of the online back-up tools) set network bandwidth limits so that your uploads to the Acronis servers don't totally drain your internet speeds. Archives are created in manageable sizes, and the True Image Home 2012 processes can run happily in the background without hogging too much of your system's resources. The program had a few issues recognising a Crucial solid-state drive we were testing with that hadn't been assigned a drive letter, but it's a problem that seemed unique to our set-up.

Those looking for very specific back-up tools will be pleased to discover True Home Image 2012's Email Back-up and Try&Decide tools. Outlook users in particular will benefit from Email Back-Up, letting you quickly and effectively archive all inbox messages and contacts, saving invaluable stuff in the case of a disaster be you a business owner working from home or simply a person who'd simply die if they lost their email-archived holiday snaps. Try&Decide was our personal favourite tool, letting you road-test risky installations (say a work-in-progress driver or a download from an untrusted source) and then revert back quickly and simply to a prior state if you encounter any problems.

These are among a long list of features already present in previous versions of True Image Home 2012. Managing all these options could potentially become a pain, but again a clear UI means that it's simply a matter of checking a list in the Back-up and Recovery tab to keep on top of everything lined up.

Verdict:

While the computer whiz-kids amongst us will already have fool-proof methods for manually creating back-up copies of their valuable files, True Image Home 2012 makes the whole process much simpler for newbies. There's also enough smart features (like Try and Decide) to make even those with their own tried-and-tested back-up methods consider giving this a try. It's not without its quirks, and the full suite of online support isn't the most competitively priced, but it comes strongly recommended nonetheless..

Adobe have revealed that Flash 11 will hit the web in "early October", and will push 3D content as a major feature as the company gear up to position themselves as a major force in web gaming. Air 3 will also launch fully in October, though both Flash 11 and Air 3 are currently available in release candidate versions.

While HTML5 seems to be the future of web developing (a technology Adobe are increasingly supporting) the company are hoping that developers will be drawn to Flash 11 thanks to its 3D content creation suite, Stage 3D.

"Today, approximately 70 per cent of web games are powered by Flash, along with 9 of the top 10 games on Facebook, about 70 per cent of the games on Google+, and the top social games from companies like Zynga and EA," reads a post on the Adobe blog.

"Games at their best are fluid, immersive experiences, and the unmatched consistency of Flash Player allows game developers to focus on making great games rather than fight fragmented technology.

"Games just play. And play big: Flash Player brings an audience over 11 times larger than that of the best-selling current generation game console... Flash Player 11 is the next-generation console for the web."

Other features set for inclusion in Flash 11 and Air 3 include native 64-bit support for Mac, Windows and Linux browsers, and improved Air 3 extensions to help make for swifter "one-click" app installs on Android, Windows, and Mac OS.

Apple's latest OS update, Mac OS X Lion, touched down at a remarkable £21 last month, but was limited to in-store and Mac App Store download sales. The latter of which is fine if you've got a healthy web connection, but a nightmare if you're stuck in the dial-up dark ages.

Thankfully then, Apple have now made OS X Lion available from their online store in a physical format via a USB thumb drive.

However, it looks like Apple will be penalising anyone who doesn't go through their Mac App Store portal, charging £55 for the stick for those who haven't tried their desktop digital store front.

Still, we say it's at a steep price, but that initial £21 download price was a steal to begin with we guess.

Pick it up by clicking here.

Steam, the digital distribution gaming store that's been keeping PC gamers loaded with top quality titles since 2003, is to get a major backend overhaul that will drastically improve download times.

Though Steam is hardly a slow service as it stands, the release of high-profile games can cause the service to chug along at a snail's pace during the early hours and days of a big launch. That's all set to change though thanks to an "all new" server and client coding from the Valve team.

"The maximum aggregate bandwidth of the system will be greater than the current system; this will help us satisfy spikes in demand when there's a big release," reads the official announcement.

"Upcoming client releases will include things like download scheduling, bandwidth throttling, and prioritising which games get downloaded first. You'll also be able to download an update to a game while you're playing that game; Steam will apply the update after you exit the game."

As well as the improvements detailed above, the new Steam set-up will also mean patch sizes will decrease.

The new system will roll out gradually over the coming weeks, with the entire Steam catalogue eventually upgraded.

Microsoft are urging PC users to call time on their Windows XP operating system and migrate to Windows 7 or prepare to move to Windows 8, with the company only offering support for the ageing OS for a further 1,000 days.

Massively popular, XP launched nearly ten years ago on October 25th 2001, and ushered in the internet age with home computing. However, those who are security concious will want to think about jumping ship soon, as Microsoft will no longer be offering security updates and customer support for the product.

"Wouldn't it be great if the glory days lasted forever?" said Stephen Rose on the Microsoft blog.

"But reality is trophies get dusty, records are broken, and what it took to be the best ten years ago, just isn't enough for today's standards. Things get better, faster. And eventually, it's time to move from good enough to something much better," he added

"Windows XP had an amazing run and millions of PC users are grateful for it. But it's time to move on. Two reasons: 1) Extended support for Windows XP is running out in less than 1000 days, and 2) there's an OS out there that's much better than Windows XP."

Following the relative failure of Windows Vista, Windows 7 was a return to form for Microsoft, exceeding over 400 million in sales. Windows 8, the next version of the OS that i set to feature tablet optimisation, is expected to be released later this year.

Kaspersky Lab have revealed deatils on their latest security software releases for 2012. Anti-Virus 2012 and Internet Security 2012 combine both cloud-hosted and local PC protection to offer what they feel is the most advanced PC security set-up in the world, able to protect users from the growing threat of malware found on Twitter, Facebook and serch engine results, and dreaded "Black Hole SEO".

The press release notes the following key features across the two security software suites:

- Cloud-based protection. The exchange of information between computer-installed software and centralised, cloud-based databases ensures that users are always protected against the very latest threats and spam. Protection arrives within seconds without users having to store a large amount of data on their computers. Databases located in the cloud also provide real-time protection against new spam emails. This helps Kaspersky Internet Security 2012 and Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2012 to adapt quickly to ever-changing spammer tactics.

- Internet link threat warning. These warnings alert users to links that could pose a threat, for example by redirecting users to fraudulent, malicious or spammer websites.

- New user interface. The user interface remains straightforward, intuitive and user-friendly, but now also includes animated graphics.

- A program activity monitoring module. "System Watcher" tracks program activity. If suspicious behavior is detected, the offending program and related applications can be removed, and changes made to the PC undone with a single click.

"More than 300 million users worldwide depend on Kaspersky Lab to protect their computers and online activity. We are committed to providing them with the best protection available. The new 2012 versions take home PC security to the next level," said Eugene Kaspersky, CEO and co-founder of Kaspersky Lab.

"They feature world-class technologies that harness the power of the cloud, but also ensure PCs are fully protected when they are not connected to the internet. This hybrid approach will combat even the most complex of threats. At the same time, these products are now simpler, faster and more user-friendly than ever before."

Name: Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11 Premium Edition

Type: PC dictation and speech recognition software

Software System Requirements: Click here

Price: £149.99







Just as the clickity-clackity sound of the humble typewriter was superseded by the tip-tap of the PC keyboard, could we soon replace even this staple PC accessory with merely the power of our voices? That's more-or-less the idea behind the Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11 Premium speech recognition software from Nuance, offering advanced dictation and hands-free PC navigation controls. Is it time to unplug your keyboard and warm up your vocal chords? Read on to find out.

Speech recognition software on the PC is nothing new; it's been built into the Windows OS for years, and saw a marked improvement with the advent of Windows 7. However few have been as fully featured or as sensitively designed as Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11 Premium, holding your hand while you comfortably make the transition from keyboard controls to dictation input. That's not to say your keyboard is totally obsolete upon installing NaturallySpeaking, but when using typing commands sparingly in conjunction with Nuance's voice recognition software, you're likely to see markedly faster text entry speeds.

While you can use the software straight out of the box, going through the 15 minute initial set-up process is recommended. By selecting your age, geographic location, accent (if you have one) and by reading a short test passage aloud into the supplied mic/headset combo, the accuracy of your dictated pieces should be as high as 99%. Alternatively you can sync a profile from a previous edition of the software, which will allow you to bypass the initial clunky stages of the software as it adjusts to your speech patterns. You can also allow the software to trawl your emails and stored documents to better prepare itself for your personal style of speech and writing.

99% accuracy may be a little bit of an exaggeration, but the software managed to keep up with my dulcet cockney tones surprisingly well. What surprised me however was how quickly the software adapted to my speech and the corrections I made to the resulting text. My first extended session with the software saw me going from having to make a correction every sentence or so to barely a change every paragraph, with most corrections down to odd punctuation mistakes rather than wordings. NaturallySpeaking 11 manages to adapt more quickly than previous versions by tracking not only vocal corrections, but those you manually type in too.

However, the way in which Dragon Naturally Speaking uses this new correction-logging feature can be a little over-zealous at times. For instance, there was a moment during testing that required writing a piece that made use of the word "Museum" as a capitalised proper noun. After correcting the un-capitalised word once, the software always capitalised the word museum, no matter what the context, which was quite frustrating.

The Premium version of NaturallySpeaking 11 is compatible with not only all the major Windows Office programs, such as Word, Outlook, Excel and Internet Explorer, but also Gmail, Google Docs, Facebook, Twitter, OpenOffice and to a lesser extent almost every other application that makes use of basic text entry.

Of course with so many different possible actions across so many applications, it can be a pain memorising all the different voice commands to control them with. With previous version of NaturallySpeaking you'd have to constantly refer to a quick reference card supplied with the software. While a physical reference card is still supplied, the software now has a revamped UI that includes a right-hand bar of commonly used commands appropriate to the software package you're currently voice-controlling. Having them constantly onscreen is very useful, but they aren't context sensitive, instead displayed as a scrollable list of commands. It'd be great if this toolbar was more dynamic, for instance only showing the relevant commands to saving and filing a document when you're in the process of carrying out that task.

Having this command list constantly on show is particularly useful when using the software to navigate a PC, as some of these voice activated commands aren't quite as obvious as when using word processors or web browsers. Calling up the 3x3 mouse grid to navigate the desktop isn't all that intuitive, making browsing the desktop feel more like playing a game of battleship. For those with accessibility issues or a disability that prevents comfortable mouse use, having the feature will be very welcome, but we can't help feel Nuance could have made this feature a little more intuitive.

Verdict:

While precision typists will turn their noses up at NaturallySpeaking 11, there's no denying that the software has unrivalled accuracy. The way it adapts to your speech patterns over time is remarkable, and even those with heavy accents will see good results. While some of the more advanced PC navigation controls are a little convoluted, the tired fingers of typists will approve of the software's many excellent dictation features.

Apple's annual WWDC conference for 2011 kicked off with the usual fanfare we've come to expect from the cult of Mac. As well as the launch of the iCloud service and iOS 5 update for mobile devices, OS X Lion for Macs was also demoed by SVP WW Product Marketing Phil Schiller. Stating that PC growth is declining by 1% every year while Mac sales grow by 28%, he stated that it wasn't just the hardware catching consumer's eyes, but the Apple software too, with OS X Lion hopefully continuing the trend.

Over 250 new features will hit OS X Lion, of which Schiller showed off 10. First up was improved multi-touch with gestures, giving tap-to-zoom, pinching and two finger swiping "an incredible, physical realism that's never been possible in a PC operating system before." Apple have learnt a lot from iOS it seems and are looking to integrate as many suitable IOS features as possible to Macs for an increasingly converged software ecosystem.

Full screen applications were then demoed in OS X Lion, with Safari (now featuring iOS' tap control), iMovie and dozens of others packing out a screen with a simple swiping gesture.

Mission Control too was demoed, accessible by a single gesture and allowing for multiple desktops and dashboard widgets. Gestures let you swipe through each separate element and app displayed by Mission Control, with animations seeing them cascade off the screen. From what was shown, it seems a more fluid way of scrolling through your applications and desktop content than ever before, with gesture controls that genuinely seem intuitive.

The Mac App Store also gets a revamp with OS X Lion, with Schiller stating it's quickly become the number one online portal for buying PC software. The store is now built directly into Lion, with updates including in-app purchasing and push notifications. Delta updates, allowing for easier app patching, will also be included.

The new Launchpad gesture was also demoed. For those who are now more used to iOS than OS X, a simple pinch of a touchpad will pull all your apps and applications into a grid-like display, further showing the convergence between Apple's mobile and desktop software.

A new Resume function for apps was shown too, bringing you right back to the exact point or function of an app you were last at when the app was closed. Likewise, auto-save functionality will now come as standard, allowing you to browse multiple versions of documents as they are incrementally saved. Allowing for simple "versioning", you don't end up with multiple files either as only the deltas are saved.

Airdrop was another new feature introduced. It acts as a replacement for Sneakernet, allowing for peer-to-peer sharing and ruling out the need to courier thumb drives between pals' houses. Working a lot like Dropbox, the application will let you see a list of your pals, allowing you to quickly share files, fully encrypted with next to no set up needed.

The final addition is a totally revamped Mail client, which received rapturous applause. Two or three column views as well as full screen are now available, with a favourites bar for quick access to regularly viewed contacts, messages and folders. Search is also improved, recognising repeatedly used subjects or contacts, allowing you to build rules for specific search criteria too. Just like text messaging or the Gmail client, a conversation view is now available in the OS X Lion Mail tool too, hiding all the FWD and RE clutter that lengthy messages create.

Other features mentioned but without any details being revealed were a Windows Migration assistant, FileVault 2, built-in FaceTime and a Lion Server add-on.

Pricing comes in at $29.99, which is remarkably $100 cheaper than previous upgrades, with the whole package around the 4GB download mark. Interestingly, OS X Lion will only be available via the Mac App Store, so be prepared for a hefty download unless Apple ever decide to ship a boxed version. It'll touch down in July. The iCloud features also revealed will be supported by OS X Lion too.

Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen has stated that he believes tablets running Google's Honeycomb OS will eventually win out over the now-dominant iPad produced by Apple, just as Google's Android smartphones too are beginning to edge ahead of Apple's iPhone.

"What you saw with smartphones hitting an inflection point with Android, you'll see it again with tablets," he said.

That's not to say the Adobe CEO doesn't have good reason to support Google over Apple; Adobe and Apple have been at logger-heads for some time since Steve Jobs attacked the software, calling it buggy and a battery drain, leading to its omission from iOS devices. But Narayen suggests that the disagreement lies with conflicting business strategies rather than actual software conflicts.

"Its a business model issue, its all about control of the applications that you can run on that platform that bring that platform to life. What Apple doesn't allow us to do is to build flash content within the browser," he said.

"If you can build the application using our tools and compile it down to the iDevice platform that works."

Narayen was also surprisingly full of praise for HTML 5, Adobe's main competitor in the browser plug-in field and stating that Adobe will be building tools to help with the development of HTML 5:

"We actually not only welcome the evolution of HTML, we are actively contributing to it. Adobe is contributing typographic expertise and design aesthetics."

For the full interview with Narayen, head over to AllThingsD.