multimedia

Media conversion made easy

iFFmpeg is a free, easy-to-use front-end for the powerful--and also free--command line tool FFmpeg, which lets you easily convert media files between different formats. (Note that you must also download an FFmpeg binary to use iFFmpeg, but the developer's Web site has simple, drag-and-drop instructions for doing so.)

The iFFmpeg interface is straightforward enough for even beginners to use, with a sparse menu bar that lets you add a file to convert, or preview, start, or merge files. You can also look at FFmpeg binary information, choose a codec (from an almost overwhelming array, from basics like AVI, MOV, … Read more

Nero 11 multimedia suite does it all

Released today, version 11 of Nero's one-stop multimedia suite adds a more integrated interface, photobook printing, picture-in-picture video support, and so much more to what was already an impressive list of editing, burning, backup, and organization tools. With its solid basic features and its new higher-level additions, it appears to be a potential workflow solution for casual media enthusiasts and prosumers alike.

With an improved user experience in mind, Nero's developers have reconstructed the suite with each of its main application's interfaces looking and feeling more consistent throughout. There's also a convenient new MediaBrowser, which gives … Read more

Orb Live hits Android, adds Hulu

Meet Orb Live for Android, a versatile media app that lets you stream free Hulu content, premium videos, and even your home media library right to your Android device. Since it requires no subscription fee, its $9.99 download price may just be a great deal for those of us wishing for more multimedia on the go.

Here's how it works. First, install Orb Caster on your PC or Mac (for free), and point the program to your multimedia folders so it knows which files to make available for streaming. You can also point it to your iTunes and … Read more

A blast from the past

Winamp has been around for ages--it's one of the first media players we remember using--and it's still alive and kicking. Winamp Lite is a scaled-down version of the program, offering the basic character of Winamp with fewer features and in a smaller package. Although we personally find Winamp to be dated and awkward to use, hard-core fans will likely approve of this lightweight version of the software.

Opening Winamp Lite was a blast from the past, as its interface has remained largely unchanged over the years. It's still full of tiny text and buttons with hard-to-read labels. … Read more

Organize your notes with themes

Awesome Note for iPhone lets you manage messages, memos, and ideas in several unique ways. An intuitive interface lets you use themes to help categorize information the way you want and get to the information you need quickly. Awesome Note includes a few demo categories (shown as folders) that you can use to see how your notes and info will be laid out. You can create new folders by hitting the add folder button in the lower right, selecting your preferred color, and adding a title. Opening a folder displays your notes for that category laid out as thumbnails so … Read more

Sync your notes across platforms and devices

Evernote (Free) is just one part of an excellent, access-from-anywhere note-taking system. In addition to using Evernote on your iOS device, you can also create and get to your notes from a variety of mobile devices (including apps for both the iPhone and iPad) and any Web browser on any computer. A free Evernote account links all your notes together.

Evernote is a mature and popular app, with an impressively streamlined interface that shares similarities across its multiple platforms and gives you many ways to create notes and collections of notes called notebooks. Your notes can be text, images, or … Read more

Better notes mean better grades

Notability might be the best note-taking application we've seen for the iPad, with tons of useful features that are easily accessed through the app's intuitive interface. Perfect for students or really anyone who needs to gather and organize information, Notability lets you use your onscreen keyboard (or a compatible Bluetooth keyboard) to keep track of information by grouping your notes into categories by subject.

You can start a new note by tapping on the Compose button, or open an existing note from the start screen. You have the option to open notes from Dropbox, or from your iDisk … Read more

Rich multimedia notes with Evernote

Evernote for Android lets you keep track of your ideas using multimedia notes with text, voice clips, pictures, attached files, even location stamps. It automatically backs up to your cloud-based Evernote account for easy access from any data-connected device.

Evernote's interface, as sleek and intuitive as it may be, is a bit more involved than your basic notepad app, simply because the full Evernote service is so robust. It does a lot more than type out notes. From the Home screen you can choose to view your notes, notebooks (essentially folders to organize your notes), shared notebooks, or tags. … Read more

Crappy calendar

We always like to try new calendar applications, because periodically we come across some really innovative programs. Occasionally, though, we come across programs like Kalendra. It's innovative, all right, but not necessarily in a good way. As the kids would say, this program is a hot mess.

Kalendra's interface is fairly similar to other programs of this type, at least as far as the layout is concerned. But it has a cluttered, amateurish feel to it. We set about trying to explore its features and were duly unimpressed. Kalendra allegedly functions as an e-mail client, but we had … Read more