The gloves are off as the Labour leadership battle heats up between brothers Ed and David Miliband. This CGI animated sketch shows the brothers brawling through a TV debate show. We can only imagine the priceless look of disgust on Digital David Dimbleby's face.

The video was made using Moviestorm version 1.4, an easy-to-use software platform enabling anyone to write, produce, direct and edit their own digitally animated movies.

"We are tremendously excited by getting fully customisable faces into Moviestorm, and opening up the application to users interested in making movies that feature anything from famous faces to Halloween zombies or films of themselves and their friends," says Andrew Kennedy, Managing Director of Moviestorm.

"Reaction to the pre-release build of 1.4 from our current users has been absolutely fantastic, and we look forward to seeing fantasy news, satire, and personal movies from our growing user base and new movie fans."

You can give Moviestorm a go on a week-long free trial by clicking here. A subscription fee of £4.99 follows thereafter.

Iolo Technologies are just putting the finishing touches to their latest version of PC tune-up software System Mechanic, which they're claiming is the most comprehensive performance enhancing tool your computer can get its hands on without resorting to electronic steroid abuse. We met up with the team in London yesterday to see some of the new features of System Mechanic 10 in action.

We're not going to focus on what's been previously available in other versions of System Mechanic (you can check that out by clicking here). Instead we're going to dive straight in on version 10's new features.

This latest release introduces a new Program Accelerator feature which tidies up a previously unknown area of PC slowdown. Ever notice how, no matter how often you defrag your PC, some programs still take way longer to load than they did when you first installed them? Well according to Iolo Technologies, it's because most defraggers work based on ageing principles.

Traditional drive defragmenting apps work by ordering file fragments spread out across your storage drive so that the mechanical disk doesn't have to jump around so much to access the information it needs quickly. This worked fine back in the early late 80s and early 90s when most programs were single, large .exe files. However, these days a program is made up of so many multiple components that many defraggers fail to order the fragments efficiently, and over time, slowdown still occurs. System Mechanic 10 on the other hand is able to identify which components are related to each other, and group them together to improve performance, sometimes with drastic results.

Another new feature is the CRUDD unused software detector. It rounds up all the unnecessary bloat-ware that has accumulated on your PC, from packed-in trial software to those annoying browser toolbars, displays them according to size and how often you use them, and then allows you to remove unwanted software completely.

Iolo Technologies have also extended the licence of the software beyond the standard 3 PC maximum, so that System Mechanic 10 can now be used to care for as many computers as your household keeps. Those upgrading from any previous version of the software can also do so free of charge.

We'll have a full review of System Mechanic 10 soon, ready in time for its late September release.

Post-it Notes used to only be good for jotting down the odd phone number or sticking a hastily scribbled reminder onto the side of your desk, only for the sticky bit to dry up, fall off, go missing and your memory fail you.

But in this digital age of widgets and gadgets, the Post-it Note can do oh-so-much more, as the Post-it Note Shopping Genius app shows.

Available on iGoogle, Mac OS X desktop and Windows 7 / Vista desktops, the free download tracks up to five products you've been eyeing-up online, and then scours the web for the best available prices. It tracks and gives notifications if the prices change, allowing you to wade in with your cash when the price suits your pocket.

There's also a monthly prize draw worth £1,000 for anyone who shares the app with their friends.

Click here to download it for free and give it a try.

Adobe are planning to bring a full 3D update to their Flash software at the LA based Max Conference this October.

The "Flash Player 3D Future" demo Adobe are hoping to display will be a fully fledged 3D affair, a a big jump forward for the platform apparently rather than the dabblings shown previously in Flash 10.

Product manager Imbert Thibault was pretty gushing in his blog report on Adobe's work: "I tell you, some serious stuff is coming for 3D developers. If you are into 3D development for games, augmented reality, or just interactive stuff like Web sites, you just can't miss the session."

Will 3D compatibility give Flash a much needed boost after being run into the ground by Apple's Steve Jobs? With confidence in HTML5 growing more with each passing day, Adobe need to pull out all the stops to cement Flash's position as a relevant plug-in for web design.

The 3D demo is listed as being shown on the 27th of October, with Adobe's keynote conference happening two days earlier. Expect to hear more about Flash's 3D advances then.

Via: CNet

Following the massive success of Windows 7, Microsoft have begun making preliminary plans for what the Windows 8 operating system will be like. And, from the looks of a leaked presentation online, they'll be taking their cues from Apple.

The presentation for computing giants HP revealed many secrets waiting in the wings for Windows 8. Perhaps most intriguing of all was a Windows 8 app store, featuring apps from Microsoft and other developers in a Zune-like interface, suggesting that Windows 8 will to some extent be tablet-centric.

This tablet-focus was further re-enforced by a series of renders of Windows 8 concept machines featuring touchscreen controls that looked more than a little like iMac designs.

Facial recognition and cloud-based Office 2010 web apps will also feature more heavily than ever before, with clues pointing towards implementation of the Xbox 360's Kinect motion-sensing technology at some point too.

A slide titled "How Apple does it: a virtuous cycle" explicitly shows Microsoft's desire to capture some of the circus-like excitement surrounding Apple's product launches. But perhaps Microsoft are being a little modest here. Microsoft are reporting some 150 million sales of Windows 7, a staggering figure, so they must be doing a lot right still.

Via: Microsoft Kitchen

Apple have released version 9.2 of their iTunes software. Load up your previously installed version of iTunes and you'll be greeted with an offer of an update to bring your iTunes library into line with the incoming iPhone 4 and iOS4.

It's an essential update for anyone with an iPhone 4 pre-ordered, or £GS owners looking to update their operating system to iOS4. It's necessary to sync with the new handset and OS, bringing with it iBooks 1.1 support for iPad and iPod Touch devices too.

As well as fixing general stability issues and back-up speeds, iTunes 9.2 also adds folder support for apps, one of the big changes set to be introduced in iOS4 when it launches on June 21st.

Probably wont really notice the best bits of this update until your iPhone 4 or newly installed iOS4 software arrives, but for plenty of little fixes too it's well worth the update.

New iPhone? You can bet your bottom dollar that that means a new version of iTunes to go along with all the new features that theiOS 4 software introduces. Similarly to Apple's new operating system, so far only developers have been able to get their hands on iTunes 9.2. But when has that ever stopped details of a few features making their way online, eh?

So by the looks of things, iTunes 9.2 so far does not include cloud-based streaming. Obviously it'll now include functionality to sync up with an iPhone 4, meaning you'll be able to use it to drag music and movies onto your flashy new smartphone.

iTunes 9.2 brings with it the ability to sync and read books with iPhone or iPod touch with iPhone iOS 4 and iBooks 1.1. You'll be able to organise your PDF files within iTunes before popping them onto an iPad, iPhone or iPod running iOS 4.

You'll also be able to organise your iPhone apps into folders through iTunes, just incase you cant get to grips with it on the handset itself.

Overall performance should be improved too, with faster back-ups and syncing between iTunes 9.2 and any device running iOS 4.

Via: Gizmodo

It may not have been the headline act at this year's WWDC 2010 conference, but Apple have now confirmed that Safari 5, the latest build of their internet browser, is on the way.

The new version features Safari Reader for undistracted reading whilst on the web. A Reader icon pops up in the Smart Address Field for compatible pages, and clicking on it brings up a clear, stripped-back version of the article you wish to view.

There is also the ability to choose between Google, Yahoo! or Bing as the search provider and a claimed 30% increase in performance over Safari 4. Better development tools, and fresh HTML 5 tech also make an appearance.

Safari 5 is available for both Mac and PC. You can get it for free by clicking here.

Name: RealPlayer SP

Type: Media managing/ web video downloading and converting software

Price: £24.99 (Free version also available)

Once a leading light in media managing solutions, Real Networks began to build a bad reputation for themselves by bloating their RealPlayer software with third party add-ons and adverts. With rivals like iTunes offering more streamlined interfaces, RealPlayer's star sharply fell. Realising the error of their ways, Real Networks are looking to stage a comeback, and their impressive RealPlayer SP software sees them come out fighting.

As well as offering a comprehensive and intuitive library function for managing your videos and mp3s, RealPlayer SP also offers some very cool features for fans of web video. Integrating with your web browser or using RealPlayer SP's own built-in browser, the software lets you download and convert video from sites like YouTube with just a few clicks. Once you've installed RealPlayer SP, you'll find a "Download This Video" button appear in your browser when you hover your mouse over video content, letting you save clips locally on your PC with a single click.

Once you've found a video you're interested in, connect one of 27 supported devices (ranging from games consoles to mobile phones) and RealPlayer SP will convert the video into the appropriate file format and transfer it onto the device in the correct folder. Conversion is quick and trouble free, with the option to create a "custom device" if your gadget isn't supported as one of the 27 pre-built profiles. RealPlayer SP has full Flash support, with the majority of web video downloadable by the software, though copyright-protected material is obviously not supported. While tech junkies may already have a video conversion solution, Real Network's offering is simple enough for even novices to get stuck in straight away.

Real Networks have also recognised that we now live in an age where everyone insists on sharing content across multiple social networks. As a result, every downloaded video can be posted to sites including Twitter, Facebook and Myspace, or sent to friends via email. The software also includes some basic clip editing tools that, while no match for dedicated video editing software, will be handy for trimming away embarrassing parts of personal videos.

Upgrade to the premium version, RealPlayer SP Plus, and you'll get a few more additions to the service. This includes support for H.264 conversion and increased control over the details of the conversion formats, DVD burning tools, CD burning up to 320Kbps, volume normalising for your mp3s, cross-fade mixing options and tools to help you transfer vinyl to digital music files. As with the rest of the package, these optional add-ons are implemented tidily, with the DVD burner in particular being very intuitive. However, apart from the H.264 converter, you'd expect many people will not need the other things thrown in with the premium version, or would at least already have other software installed to cover the functionality the upgrade adds.

Though it's a very strong offering overall, there are still a few annoyances with RealPlayer SP. I found too often that the program would not allow me to log into my premium account, with a "technical difficulties" pop-up appearing at least two out of three times. The list of supported handsets, while still a growing feature, is missing quite a few notable phones. HTC or Nokia owners for instance may find that they'll need to do a bit more fiddling about than iPhone or Blackberry owners to get videos converted and transferred correctly onto their devices, delving into the "custom devices" menu to get the most out of the software. There is also a focus on the proprietary RealVideo standard rather than letting users convert to AVI or DivX for PC playback. It's also arguable that Real Networks have been a little bit stingy by only allowing the H.264 converter to be used in the paid-for version, though other similar software packages also put a premium on this feature.

Still, there's a lot to love about this RealPlayer reboot. Provided you have a compatible device the software makes converting and transferring media content incredibly easy, with a beautiful interface and tidy integration into your web browser. It may not do enough to convince you to splash out for the premium edition, but Real Networks have shown enough smarts here to coax lapsed users back into the fold.

4/5

Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser had a pretty rough month in April. The browser saw its share of the browsing market drop to below 60%, their worst market share since 1999.

Internet Explorer may remain the most widely used of all browsers, but the fall means IE has lost around 9% of its user base in the last 11 month. Official figures from NetApplications count the drop being from a 68.32 percent share to 59.95 per cent.

It seems the introduction of the Browser Ballot, allowing Windows users a clear choice of default browsers, is shaking things up quite significantly.

Google's Chrome browser jumped up 6.73 percent in market share, seeing it overtake Apple's Safari and take the spot of the third most popular browser.

Opera, currently in fifth place also saw a jump in share, rising from 2.03 to 2.3 per cent.

Firefox, the second most widely used internet browser, also experienced a small jump in market share, rising from 22.43 per cent to 24.59 per cent.

Via: IT Pro

There's not long to wait now before Mac gamers get their hands on the Steam gaming platform. After missing its April launch date, the popular game library and download software will now be hitting Apple's machines on the 12th May.

So far only a few lucky beta testers have got stuck into Valve's service, which allows games such as the Half Life series and the upcoming Portal 2 to be downloaded to an account and moved to multiple machines. But in just under a fortnight's time it'll be released to the Mac gaming community at large.

It could be the start of a renaissance for Mac gaming. Steam is a popular format among gamers and a lucrative one for developers. It could see the Mac gaming market pick up speed, after losing lots of momentum for many years now.

Since it launched nearly a decade ago, Apple's iTunes has become almost synonymous with digital music. A beautiful and intuitive user-interface coupled with the most thorough library of legal MP3 downloads available, it was the perfect accompaniment to the iPod and, later, the iPhone.

So, what must Apple do to keep iTunes king of the digital music libraries? Here are Tech Digest's 5 things iTunes must do to stay ahead of Spotify.

1.) Free, cloud-based music

While iTunes for me remains the best option for locally-stored music, there's no denying the tech world is moving ever further into the cloud. High-quality MP3s literally take up over half of my relatively large hard-drive, and yet I'm increasingly turning to streaming services to listen to music. Why? Because of convenience. It's instant, easily shareable and, thanks to apps like Spotify, mobile. I don't have to be anywhere near my computer to listen to the songs I want to, so long as I have internet access. And with 3G and broadband services ever-improving, that's not a problem.

What Apple need to understand is that music is less about ownership these days, and more about access. They've got to offer a cloud-based streaming service with the next update.

And what's more, I want this streaming service to be free, ad-funded or otherwise. Of course, I don't mind paying a higher premium for ownership of a special edition of something I really love, but with so many other services offering free streaming options (Last.fm, Spotify, We7), iTunes here seems sorely behind the times. It may be on the cards for the next major update, due in September, but it's a feature that can't come soon enough.

2.) More attractive payment options

Don't get me wrong here, iTunes download prices are very reasonable. Any cheaper than the average £0.99p track price and the artists would go hungry. However, there is room for more options and more flexibility from Apple here.

Just take Spotify's Premium subscription service for example. For £9.99 a month you get unlimited, uninterrupted streaming access to their catalogue of songs on your desktop or on-the-go, with playlists that can be downloaded for offline playback. Even better is Nokia's Comes With Music service, bundled in with their high-end music phones; it offers unlimited music downloads for a whole year, which, apart from some annoying DRM constraints, means you could literally download thousands and thousands of songs legally without breaking the bank. Imagine if the iPhone 4G shipped with a similar unlimited downloads scheme through iTunes?

3.) Full social network integration

You may or may not know this, but iTunes, much like in the recent Spotify update, can be integrated into Facebook and Myspace to give your friends a taste of what you've been recently listening to. Unlike Spotify's recent update however, it's a relatively convoluted process that requires the user to play about with either AppleScript for Mac OS X or the Apple-provided SDK for iTunes on Windows.

Again, this is about convenience and ease-of-use. Straight from the iTunes browser, I want to be able to Tweet and Facebook share music that I think will really excite my friends, and reach out for recommendations from real people around the world for new music, rather than relying on Apple's suggestions. This is tied into the idea of free and streaming options however; I don't want to recommend songs to my friends only for them to hit a very silent paywall.

4.) Full lyrics and album booklets

Artwork and extras is somewhere all the streaming services currently falter. You may get a little album or single cover to accompany your song of choice, but not much else. And, given that the majority of these streaming services are running on low-cost, ad-funded models, what more do you really expect?

Apple have a great opportunity to capitalise upon here, especially if they want their premium download service to continue to thrive. With strong relationships with the major music publishers, they are in a unique position to be able to really push for unique content to accompany their downloads. I'm talking about full album artwork, lyrics for each song, band website integration, exclusive videos and interviews, the works. They already made tentative steps towards a more visually enraging experience with the "Cover Flow" view, but it needs to go a step or two further.

With the iPad flying off shelves, rich visual content to accompany the tunes on the tablet device makes perfect sense, and would stand a good chance of winning over old-school music fans who miss the sense of discovery and artistry that used to accompany buying an album. They're the same crowd who don't really care for the whole cloud-based thing that I previously mentioned, and if Apple choose to opt out of offering a streaming service, they really have to win over the old faithful who religiously stick to their hard copies.

5.) Intelligent updates

This one, really, is just a personal bug-bear of mine. Why, with every iTunes update, must I really grab QuickTime too? Fixes seem to be rolled out every time I boot the software up, and yet the program still has a tendency to lock-up, or lose track of files. I'd rather less frequent but more thorough updates, and a less flaky user-experience.

Conclusion

As it stands, iTunes as a music library has only one real trump card over Spotify; availability. Spotify remains only a European service, whereas iTunes and Apple have global reach. But what will happen if (or increasingly more likely, "when") Spotify launches in the US and the rest of the world? There could be a mass migration if Apple aren't careful, and the new Spotify update makes the service even more attractive.

Time is still on Apple's side however. Despite slow progress, Spotify are still yet to finalise a business plan that sufficiently pleases the major record labels enough in the US to make it a viable territory to launch in. But it surely must only be a matter of time. There are a few months until the next version of iTunes is expected to launch, and much will be expected of it if it is to compete in a rapidly evolving market.

Related Stories | 5 Things we greedily still want Spotify to add

Microsoft's Steve Ballmer has lifted the lid on the latest version of Windows Live Messenger, dubbed "Wave 4".

Better video chat, photo sharing, social network and cloud integration are top of the agenda in this latest revamp, Ballmer told Universidad de Sao Paulo students at a preview yesterday.

The new Messenger Connect feature demonstrates this new emphasis on web-browsing with Windows Live Messenger Wave 4. Much like Facebook Connect, it allows Messenger to integrate with websites so you can chat about and share them with your friends. It also allows users to send messages from the client directly to Facebook.

HD video chat is also included, alongside new tabbed conversation windows. They're two big features Messenger has been missing for a while now, with tabbed windows in particular coming as great relief to those who's chatty friends mean they often have many flashing Messenger conversations going at once.

There's also a Windows Phone 7 and iPhone version of Wave 4 in the works, alongside further Live updates for Hotmail.

Expect a beta version of the software to touch down in the Summer.

Spotify rolled out a pretty extensive update to it's streaming service this morning. Adding robust social networking features, Spotify now links in with your Facebook account for lightning fast music sharing between your friends, as well as syncing up your locally stored MP3 files between your PC and mobile Spotify applications.

It's a forward-thinking update that looks poised to make Spotify the musical heart of the social networking phenomenon, and potentially knock iTunes from its lofty pedestal as the Number #1 music library app.

However, there's always room for a tweak here and an improvement there, so here are Tech Digest's 5 things we greedily still want Spotify to add.

Listening parties

So we're connected to all our friends with Spotify now through Facebook, and we're busily swapping tunes and playlists. But that's really just a spruced up version of the link sharing we'd already had. I want listening parties, where my pals can all log on together, connect into a little group and take turns choosing tracks for each other in real time, a bit like with a pub jukebox, streaming the same songs simultaneously to my connected friends. It's also a must for musically bullish types like myself; I cant bear to think that my carefully picked recommendations are going ignored, so listening parties would let me keep a close tab on pals as they check out my suggestions.

Instant Messaging

Instant Messaging ties in nicely to the listening parties idea above. You've settled down together for the first hallowed play-through of the (currently non-existant) new Pixies album, their first in X number of years, and you're all buzzing to share "lols" and thumbs-up emoticons as a squealing riff comes in. It'd make this new "social" focus a lot more interactive, and add to those "I Remember The First Time I Heard..." moments.

Artist and Track comments

Being able to add little notes to songs and artists across the site would be great, and would be an excellent way of opening up discussions with like minded music fans. There's nothing better than debating whether or not Nirvana sold-out or if The Beach Boys' Brian Wilson was made a better or worse song-writer for his hermit-period, and sparking off of interesting comments with strangers would be a great way of doing this. Of course, the system could be abused if not carefully policed, so adding filters perhaps to limit visible comments to just those in your friends list would mean you're only ever getting opinions that you want to hear.

Embeddable Player

An embeddable Spotify player would be great for bloggers and social network lovers. Imagine writing an article on 10 reasons why Malcolm McLaren was a genius, and being able to have 10 tracks to go along with each of your points. There'd be no need to have to open up the Spotify app, just fire up all the songs straight from your browser. It'd be even better if they could make it work with mobile browsers too.

Spotify-exclusive content

Every once in a while Spotify gets an exclusive first look at an album a few days or weeks before it goes on general release, which is obviously great. But when it comes to actually purchasing tracks from Spotify to store on any device you choose, you get pretty much bog-standard MP3 files and not a lot else. Wouldn't it be great if there was more to tempt you into going for the paid-for downloads? How about exclusive interviews with artists, or playlists of their favourite songs? Or track-by-track making-of audio accompaniments to classic albums? It'd be a great boon for Spotify if they truly plan on taking on Apple's iTunes, and it would also be great news for artists looking to generate more incentives for their fans to invest in their music legally.

Getting hold of computer gaming software has never been all that easy for Mac gamers, often having to wait ages for a slim chance of even the biggest titles hitting Apple's computers. However, the news that popular digital distribution platform Steam is headed to the Mac may well revolutionise that, with the above clip the first showing testers trying out the platform on Mac.

Steam for the Mac OS X is currently in private beta, meaning only a select few are currently able to try it out. However, the above video is a good indication of what to expect once it launches for the masses.

While retaining the green/grey look PC users have grown familiar with, the top row of buttons has changed slightly, with larger fonts used for "Store", "Library", "News" and "Community" than its PC counterpart. Other than that though it looks pretty much identical at this stage.

Steam for Mac was due to launch in April, and while makers Valve have about a week to make good on that promise, it's looking unlikely now. But the video shows that things seem to be coming along nicely at least, so fingers crossed.

Via: 9to5Mac

Adobe has just announced the launch of Creative Suite 5, bringing with it a wealth of updated tools for many designer's software package of choice. Click here for a run-down of what's new.

There are over 250 new updates to Adobe Photoshop alone. As well as making the jump to 64-bit for Mac users, there will now also be tools for making it simpler to quickly detect an image's border when cutting or applying effects to it, as well as a Corel Paint like colour-mixing tool.

As well as updated versions of Illustrator, Dreamweaver and Flash in the Web Premium version of the package, there is also a brand new program called Flash Catalyst. This is designed to simplify the process for designers looking to jump from print to interactive design. Flash itself will also have the ability to convert Flash animations into HTML5 Canvas code.

There will also be a Packager for iPhone application in Creative Suite 5, but given the iPhone's new OS 4 and Apple's decision to ban the conversion of non-native apps from the App Store, it may prove less useful than once imagined.

Look to see Creative Suite 5 hitting shelves and digital downloads within a month's time.

Microsoft have today published a report on attitudes towards software piracy. Timed to coincide with the second reading of the Digital Economy Bill, the report reveals that piracy is rampant in both homes and workplaces across the UK.

The poll of 1,000 UK residents carried out by Loudhouse found that 1 in 3 Brits felt software piracy was "acceptable", with 1 in 6 having admitted to using it.

This is despite only a third of those surveyed believing that they fully understood the risks involved with using illegally obtained software.

"People need to understand that there are inherent risks to their own security, including identity theft, from using pirated software products and that they can often be the victim of others' criminal actions, such as an employer using pirated software in the workplace" said Susie Winter from the Alliance Against IP Theft.

While the use of pirated software at home may not come as much of a shock, the survey startlingly revealed that the use of illegal software is also rife in the workplace. 1 in 8 of the participants admitted to using pirate programs at work, with 57% stating that their boss wouldn't find it a problem.

"Businesses have many excuses for not managing software effectively. Cost cutting, ignorance and changes in IT personnel are often cited during legal action," said Julian Swan, director of compliance marketing at the Business Software Alliance. "But the cost of being found using unlicensed software far outweighs any perceived savings. Businesses expose themselves to the risks of fines, reputational damage and data loss if they allow software to be duplicated or downloaded from illegal web sites. It may seem like a cost saving but it's a likely cause of major regret."

Apple have announced the launch of Aperture 3, the latest version of their popular photo editing and archiving software.

There are over 200 new features in the Aperture 3 program, including Brushes for touching up images and one-click photo effects with the Adjustment Presets tool.

Perhaps the best new addition is the ability to organise large numbers of photos through facial recognition and location aware features. Faces lets you view snapped faces across your entire collection and assign them a name, automatically tagging other similar entries, while Places lets you assign locations to your pics by dragging-and-dropping photos onto a map or by using location information from GPS enabled cameras, tracking devices or your iPhone photos.

Slideshows can weave together photos, text, audio and HD video, and can also be exported directly to an iPhone or iPod touch, so that you can take your favourite shots organised with Aperture 3 on the go with you.

"Millions of people love using iPhoto to organise, edit and share their digital photos," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "Aperture 3 is designed for both professionals who edit and manage massive libraries of photos and iPhoto users who want to take their photos further with easy-to-use tools such as Brushes and Adjustment Presets."

Aperture 3 is available now, priced £169 for first-time users, or £79 for those upgrading from previous versions.

For more info, visit, www.apple.com/uk/aperture .

Name: TuneUp Utilities 2010

Type: Maintenance software

Price: £24.59 (Amazon)

Keeping on top of the myriad problems that can blight an otherwise healthy PC can be quite a challenge. To a novice, watching a PC slowly grind to a halt can be as painful as helplessly watching a beloved goldfish float gradually to the top of the tank, ready for that last long trip down the toilet bowl. Sort of. Either way, dealing with broken registry entries and disk defrags can be quite daunting for the uninitiated.

Enter TuneUp Utilities 2010, an easy-to-use piece of software that helps you maintain your Windows system (XP, Vista, 7, 32-bit and 64 bit) and fix many problems. After installation, the software begins by asking you a few simple questions on the nature of your PC use. It then compiles a list of suggestions based on your answers that it thinks will speed up your PC's response times. It's incredibly simple and highly customisable, and the fruits of its work are immediately apparent. Registry issues on my machine were tidied up, a thorough disk de-frag recommended and carried out, as well as the deletion of over 160GB of outdated system restore back-up data. My system start-up times were noticeably improved.

The Live Optimisation function works very similarly. Sitting in the task bar, it prioritises start-up times based upon your configuration, and generally increases the speed at with which programs respond. There is also a comprehensive selection of Windows customisation tools, including browser add-ons, which can prove to be not only attractive but also useful, as switching off some of the showy Windows animations can seriously improve system performance.

Turbo Mode however had me a little stumped. It rolls all of your fancy OS graphics back to a basic function-over-fashion look, and prioritises your current task, switching off unnecessary background applications. This is all well and good, but as the Turbo Mode itself eats away at precious system resources, I personally found it of little use.

Now, to be honest, if you know your PC like the back of your RSI wracked hand, TuneUp Utilities 2010 isn't for you. You'll already know how to do most everything on offer here for free, and you'll likely do it with a smug air of superiority as the lowly "noobs" flounder with their snail-paced computers. However, for those who aren't too comfortable with the back end of PC maintenance, or those who'd just rather have everything in one sleekly presented place, you cant go far wrong with TuneUp Utilities 2010.

4/5

Firefox fans who can't wait to get their hands on the latest release of the super-fast, super-safe web browser can today try out the first release candidate for version 3.6.

As ever, higher speeds are top of the agenda for developers Mozilla, particularly considering the advancements made by rival Google and their Chrome browser. Start up times are quicker and Java Script performance is up, and the inclusion of asynchronous script running (prioritising bandwidth-intensive web elements) also help speed things up significantly.

Also new is the inclusion of Personas, allowing users to customise the look of the browser and increasing the security from third-party malicious software threats.

Grab the RC1 Firefox 3.6 download here.