http://news.softpedia.com Softpedia News - Linux software reviews Softpedia News en-us 2001 - 2013 Softpedia. All rights reserved. Sat, 25 May 2013 03:25:47 GMT Sat, 25 May 2013 03:25:47 GMT News http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 10 http://news.softpedia.com/base_img/softpedia_logo.gif http://news.softpedia.com http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Ubuntu-13-04-Review-348274.shtml Ubuntu 13.04 (Raring Ringtail) has been launched by Canonical, and from what we can tell so far, this is the best one yet.

We have gotten used to receiving small doses of Ubuntu every six months. The visual changes aren't significant from one version to another (with the exception of Unity), but if we compare 11.04 with 13.04, they seem to be completely differen... (read more)]]> Thu, 25 Apr 2013 12:01:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Ubuntu-13-04-Review-348274.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Ubuntu-13-04-Review-348274.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Banshee-for-Linux-Review-345855.shtml Banshee is a music player with an old history. It left its mark on the open source community by showing that different concepts could work for the same kind of software.

As you can imagine, there are quite a few music players available for Linux. Most of them will offer a standard number of functionalities, but a small part of them are actually better than... (read more)]]> Wed, 17 Apr 2013 07:01:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Banshee-for-Linux-Review-345855.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Banshee-for-Linux-Review-345855.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/SMPlayer-for-Linux-Review-344064.shtml SMPlayer is just one of the many media players available on the Linux platform, but it's also the member of a very exclusive club of applications that distinguish themselves from the rest by providing everything a user might need.

Just like most players, SMPlayer is actually just a front-end for Mplayer. This doesn't mean that the developer, Ricardo Villalba, ... (read more)]]> Tue, 9 Apr 2013 11:51:01 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/SMPlayer-for-Linux-Review-344064.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/SMPlayer-for-Linux-Review-344064.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Deluge-Review-335898.shtml Deluge is a BitTorrent client developed for multiple platforms, which provides full functionality and comes with a vast array of plugins that extend its uses.

It's not clear why, but Deluge has lost some of its fans along the way, in favor of other similar solutions. The reasons are not apparent because this is an excellent client and it deserv... (read more)]]> Wed, 27 Mar 2013 13:21:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Deluge-Review-335898.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Deluge-Review-335898.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/flareGet-1-3-5-Review-317890.shtml The Linux platform has a lot of download managers and other platforms such as Windows and Mac have taken their inspiration from them, but sometimes things can work the other way around.

When it comes to downloading files, Linux can provide many ways to do it, but none of them is pretty or modern. Most of the download managers only work in a terminal and e... (read more)]]> Wed, 30 Jan 2013 14:21:01 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/flareGet-1-3-5-Review-317890.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/flareGet-1-3-5-Review-317890.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Steam-for-Linux-Review-317889.shtml It's been a long time coming, but the Linux platform has finally been recognized as a valid entertainment medium, and the first ones to take a major step in this direction were the guy from Valve, with their Steam for Linux client.

Steam was initially launched in a time when the retail business was booming and the speed of the internet connection of the avera... (read more)]]> Tue, 29 Jan 2013 08:41:01 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Steam-for-Linux-Review-317889.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Steam-for-Linux-Review-317889.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Waking-Mars-for-Linux-Review-313243.shtml
Two decades ago, there was a gaming genre that spawned quite a few titles. Players had to operate vehicles, with the help of thrusters, and keep them from falling. Many times it was just about landing space crafts, but the gameplay was simple and addictive.

The last game that used this kind of mechanic, with moderate success... (read more)]]> Fri, 14 Dec 2012 17:01:00 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Waking-Mars-for-Linux-Review-313243.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Waking-Mars-for-Linux-Review-313243.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Disks-Review-309577.shtml Ubuntu operating systems always pride themselves with the ease of use and Canonical has tried to provide users with facile access to certain features. Disks falls into this category, allowing people to simply interact with the storage devices.

One of the things changed in Ubuntu 12.10 was Disks. It seems that not too many people use it, although it provides great... (read more)]]> Wed, 5 Dec 2012 14:28:00 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Disks-Review-309577.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Disks-Review-309577.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Ubuntu-Software-Center-Review-309576.shtml Ubuntu Software Center is one of the most disputed applications in the Ubuntu operating system, but the developers have stuck with it and it has proved to be a very good decision.

Canonical doesn’t have the best track record when introducing new applications, especially when they are the developers of it.

Usually, the people who put... (read more)]]> Tue, 27 Nov 2012 20:31:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Ubuntu-Software-Center-Review-309576.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Ubuntu-Software-Center-Review-309576.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Rhythmbox-Review-307841.shtml
Rhythmbox has been introduced into Ubuntu 12.04 for the first time to replaced Banshee, a somewhat similar software. It’s deeply embedded into the system, but very few people know tha... (read more)]]> Mon, 26 Nov 2012 08:41:01 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Rhythmbox-Review-307841.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Rhythmbox-Review-307841.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Shatter-for-Linux-Review-307839.shtml Shatter is a 2D block-breaking Arkanoid type game, developed and published by Sidhe Interactive, which tries to remake an old genre into a modern title.

Shatter is not exactly a new game. It was initially developed for Playstation 3, back in 2009 and it enjoyed a moderate success.

A year later, it was ported for the Windows platform and distrib... (read more)]]> Mon, 26 Nov 2012 07:41:01 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Shatter-for-Linux-Review-307839.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Shatter-for-Linux-Review-307839.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Wizorb-for-Linux-Review-306104.shtml Wizorb is an arkanoid type of game that tries to make its way into a very crowded market by combining two genres which don’t usually mix.

We all have played Arkanoid or brick breakers type games, as they are more commonly known. Both names stem from older titles that were very successful more than 20 years ago, but which followed the same formula.
read more)]]> Fri, 16 Nov 2012 17:31:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Wizorb-for-Linux-Review-306104.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Wizorb-for-Linux-Review-306104.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Ubuntu-Review-304246.shtml Ubuntu 12.10 (Quantal Quetzal) is the latest operating system launched by Canonical and it’s also the most advanced version they’ve ever produced. It may have its quirks, but the end result is not unexpected.

Reviewing an operating system is no different than any other software, even if it’s infinitely more complicated. It’s all about the new f... (read more)]]> Mon, 12 Nov 2012 08:31:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Ubuntu-Review-304246.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Ubuntu-Review-304246.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Faster-Than-Light-for-Linux-Review-297538.shtml Space battle simulators, strategies, RPGs, and a ton of other genres have covered every possible corner of space warfare. Or so we thought until the arrival of Faster Than Light, one of the most surprising games to have been launched in recent times.

I don’t usually dish out compliments, especially if it’s about indie games. Faster Th... (read more)]]> Wed, 17 Oct 2012 19:51:01 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Faster-Than-Light-for-Linux-Review-297538.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Faster-Than-Light-for-Linux-Review-297538.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Dustforce-Review-297537.shtml Dustforce is a game that desperately wants to be unique and it actually manages for the most part. Taken apart, it’s a 2D platformer, with an interesting idea at its core.

It’s not unusual for game studios to come up with strange ideas from time to time. Sometimes, these ideas actually make it through development and turn out to be successful, but they ... (read more)]]> Sun, 14 Oct 2012 19:31:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Dustforce-Review-297537.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Dustforce-Review-297537.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Torchlight-Review-297536.shtml Tochlight is an RPG developed by Runic, a very small studio that managed to impress everyone with their skill and speed.

Action RPGs will always be compared with the games from the Diablo franchise. Blizzard has turned a small genre into a mammoth, and it’s hard for anyone to make games that are capable of withstanding the comparison.

T... (read more)]]> Thu, 11 Oct 2012 19:11:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Torchlight-Review-297536.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Torchlight-Review-297536.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Rochard-for-Linux-Review-297535.shtml Rochard is not your average 2D platformer and players certainly won’t expect an interesting and engaging story from such a game, but this is one exception you will be happy to play.

Unlike a lot of games released with the help of the Humble Bundle initiative, Rochard is a rather new title. It was initially released in 2011, to critical acclaim, mostly... (read more)]]> Mon, 8 Oct 2012 18:41:01 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Rochard-for-Linux-Review-297535.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Rochard-for-Linux-Review-297535.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Uplink-for-Linux-Review-289197.shtml Uplink is a synonym to history. The fact that a game is included in a Humble Bundle doesn't make it a new title. In fact, Uplink is probably the oldest game to be included in the Humble Bundle package, ever.

Uplink was launched 11 years ago, by Introversion, for Linux and Windows, a move that was really bold at that time. It arrived in the golden era of hacking when ... (read more)]]> Sat, 22 Sep 2012 19:34:00 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Uplink-for-Linux-Review-289197.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Uplink-for-Linux-Review-289197.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Google-Earth-Review-289198.shtml Building a software that can catalog an entire planet is not a feat for everyone, and if there is someone out there who is up for the task, then Google is surely the only company capable to do it.

Sure, many have tried to encompass the entire Earth in a single application in the past, but the sheer size of the software would have made this task almost impossibl... (read more)]]> Wed, 12 Sep 2012 13:21:01 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Google-Earth-Review-289198.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Google-Earth-Review-289198.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Fieldrunners-for-Linux-Review-289195.shtml Fieldrunners is yet another tower defense game in the crowded market that is practically teeming with such titles. Is Fieldrunner a game that’s worth the player's money and time, or it's just another mediocre title, reusing a recipe that proved successful for a lot of other studios?

First of all, Fieldrunners is an old game. It was launched back... (read more)]]> Wed, 5 Sep 2012 08:21:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Fieldrunners-for-Linux-Review-289195.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Fieldrunners-for-Linux-Review-289195.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Anomaly-Warzone-Earth-for-Linux-Review-289196.shtml Anomaly Warzone Earth is a tower defense game in reverse mode! If you have no idea what that is, then you are not the first to ask the question.

Anomaly is the result of an out-of-the-box thinking. The game was initially launched more than a year ago and it arrived in a saturated market full of tower defense games. Everyone was doing this kin... (read more)]]> Fri, 31 Aug 2012 11:15:00 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Anomaly-Warzone-Earth-for-Linux-Review-289196.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Anomaly-Warzone-Earth-for-Linux-Review-289196.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Psychonauts-for-Linux-Review-284130.shtml Whenever I start playing a game that was born in the mind of Tim Schaffer, I say to myself “welcome into the world of crazies.” I’ve always said that whenever a game is hard to describe, the developers have done at least something right. Well, Psychonauts is as hard to describe as it gets and no matter how late it arrived on Linux, is still a good ... (read more)]]> Fri, 24 Aug 2012 20:51:00 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Psychonauts-for-Linux-Review-284130.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Psychonauts-for-Linux-Review-284130.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Lone-Survivor-Review-284128.shtml One of these days it will happen. A zombie apocalypse will descend upon the Earth and will find us all rather prepared. In the movies it is always the other way around, but games such as Lone Survivor will make us ready for this inevitable doom.

Maybe it’s in our blood, in our genes to wish for the coming of the end of days. We have it in our holy book f... (read more)]]> Wed, 15 Aug 2012 14:41:01 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Lone-Survivor-Review-284128.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Lone-Survivor-Review-284128.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Mozilla-Thunderbird-Review-284127.shtml Mozilla built the best non-commercial email solution and called it Thunderbird. Now, they announced that Thuderbird would have its development slowed down in the coming years, but all it’s not lost and I hope this review will make you a faithful user of Thunderbird and convince Mozilla to not abandon it.

Mozilla is best known for its two flagship p... (read more)]]> Wed, 8 Aug 2012 14:31:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Mozilla-Thunderbird-Review-284127.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Mozilla-Thunderbird-Review-284127.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Braid-for-Linux-Review-283832.shtml Braid is a platformer game, but we’ve seen a lot of these in the past years. So why is it regarded as some sort of game demigod when people whisper its name in dark corners?

Nowadays, every game must have some sort of game mechanics that make it different from everybody else’s. This is true, no matter what genre we are talking about, ranging from first-... (read more)]]> Tue, 31 Jul 2012 11:32:00 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Braid-for-Linux-Review-283832.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Braid-for-Linux-Review-283832.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Amnesia-The-Dark-Descent-Review-277283.shtml Amnesia: The Dark Descent is not your average game. It’s not made for children and it’s not made for elderly people. It’s a game made to do one thing: scare the players down to their core. You might think we are ready for it, after all these years of gaming, but nothing will prepare us for this experience.

Frictional Games have mad... (read more)]]> Tue, 17 Jul 2012 14:41:00 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Amnesia-The-Dark-Descent-Review-277283.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Amnesia-The-Dark-Descent-Review-277283.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Bastion-for-Linux-Review-277277.shtml It would be easy to dismiss Bastion as another action RPG, but I have yet to have so much fun with a game that desperately wants to be an RPG and manages to be a lot more.

Bastion was developed by Supergiant Games, a game studio formed mostly by people who worked on Command and Conquer games and Red Alert 3. They wanted to try something else, but I don&rsq... (read more)]]> Wed, 11 Jul 2012 14:11:02 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Bastion-for-Linux-Review-277277.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Bastion-for-Linux-Review-277277.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Limbo-for-Linux-Review-277275.shtml Limbo is not a nice place to be, but for some unbeknown reason it's a great place for game developers. Who would have thought that the adventures of a little boy in a place that could very well be the dreaded Limbo, will make a great game and something to be remembered.

Limbo was developed by Playdead Studio and imagined by Arnt Jensen. It draws from numerous sources ... (read more)]]> Wed, 4 Jul 2012 14:10:00 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Limbo-for-Linux-Review-277275.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Limbo-for-Linux-Review-277275.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Titan-Attacks-Review-273019.shtml Titan Attacks! is one hell of a retro arcade shooter, and every minute of it is pure joy. We usually keep the conclusion until the end of the article, but we have to get it out of the system before getting on with the review.

I can’t imagine that Titan Attacks! was created by young developers. It’s inconceivable for me to believe that young program... (read more)]]> Mon, 18 Jun 2012 14:00:00 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Titan-Attacks-Review-273019.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Titan-Attacks-Review-273019.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie) http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Trine-2-for-Linux-Review-273030.shtml Trine 2 is a unique side-scrolling puzzle game that tries to be different, and succeeds in such a manner that all the games in this particular tight niche cower in fear. There aren't many games like it, and the ones that could compete are not even close.

Frozenbyte is a Finish developer with a long experience in making arcade games with a twist. I'm not really sure,... (read more)]]> Sat, 16 Jun 2012 14:41:00 GMT Softpedia News - Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Trine-2-for-Linux-Review-273030.shtml Linux software reviews http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/linux/Trine-2-for-Linux-Review-273030.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Silviu Stahie)