Nick Peers

Acronis has released the first private beta of Acronis True Image Home 2012, its flagship backup tool. True Image, which combines drive-imaging, online and file-based backups in one program, is now available to Acronis account users. After registering, the beta can be downloaded and installed.

Acronis True Image Home 2012 introduces a new file synchronization feature, closer integration with Acronis Online Backup and a number of under-the-hood improvements as well as some other minor changes.

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We all know how important backing up your hard drive is. Whether you're backing up a clutch of files and settings, or want a complete backup of the entire hard drive, there are solutions a-plenty to choose from. But while you may have given a lot of thought to backing up your computer, have you ever considered what you'll do if the worst comes to pass and you need to restore that data?

What you need is a tool that doesn't rely on you being able to load your operating system before it allows you to get at your data. And if it's free, well so much the better! The good news is that you can have your cake and eat it, with the aid of Redo Backup and Recovery, which has just enjoyed its first stable release (1.0) after a lengthy period in beta.

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On Friday, Dropbox revised its terms of service, privacy policy and security overview documents. Although the updates are designed to make Dropbox's T&Cs simpler and easier to understand, it has reignited the debate that first surfaced when Dropbox announced it was changing its terms and conditions to allow it to hand over data if required to do so by the authorities.

In its defense, Dropbox has always recommended software to let users encrypt their data before its uploaded to Dropbox's servers, thereby protecting their data even if Dropbox was forced to hand it over. TrueCrypt is one such solution, and BoxCryptor is another, and now there's a third option available for Linux and Windows users in the form of SecretSync.

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The Document Foundation has released LibreOffice 3.4.1, a landmark update for its open-source, multi-platform office application. With its release, LibreOffice 3.4.1 is now the recommended build for all users except large enterprises, thanks to the bug fixes and improved stability that provide the focus of the release.

LibreOffice is an off-shoot of the OpenOffice project, development of which has stalled since many developers switched across to LibreOffice when it was launched in September, 2010.

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TRIM Support Enabler, a tool for enabling TRIM support on non-Apple manufactured Solid State Drives, has been updated to version 1.2. The change is a minor one, designed to make the tool more compatible with OS X 10.6.8, which was released last week.

TRIM support is a technology designed to optimise SSD performance, which is affected over time as data is written to and deleted from the drive. TRIM Support Enabler successfully allows OS X Snow Leopard to recognize, and utilize, TRIM support on SSD drives that aren't manufactured by Apple.

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Mozilla has placed the final code for Thunderbird 5.0 on its download servers. Version 5.0 represents the first major upgrade of Thunderbird for 18 months, although the number of headline features is relatively small: an improved email account wizard, better and more versatile tab handling, and a brand new Add-ons Manager and extensions management API.

There's also a new troubleshooting information page (accessible from the Help menu) that contains key information about your individual Thunderbird setup to aid fixing problems that may occur, as well as the fact attachments are now displayed with the file size next to them.

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Opera has released the final version of its popular alternative web browser for Windows, Mac and Linux, Opera 11.50. Codenamed "Swordfish", this latest release actually debuted yesterday as Release Candidate 5, but was quickly updated to become a final release.

The most notable change in Opera 11.50: it features major improvements to the program's Speed Dial page, making it possible to get all the information you need from a Speed Dial without having to open the web page itself.

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It's all very well buying a photo editing package with lots of bells, whistles and complicated tools, but actually having to learn and use all that functionality can, to put it mildly, be slightly off-putting. Ashampoo Photo Optimizer 3 is designed to simplify the process of improving your photos by providing a number of one-click tools that can quickly improve individual photos or entire albums up to scratch.

Ordinarily, Ashampoo Photo Optimizer 3 would cost you $9.99, but the good news is that you can download and use the software for free via this link -- all you have to do is register by email within 10 days and you won't have to pay a dime.

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If you're the kind of person who regularly runs Firefox with multiple tabs open, you might find keeping track of which website is where challenging. In those circumstances, Tab Scope for Firefox is the perfect add-on for your needs.

Tab Scope for Firefox allows you to preview any tab by rolling the mouse over it, just like the Aero Peek feature in Windows Vista and 7. A small pop-up preview of that tab's contents will appear, allowing you to quickly locate the tab you're looking for. But while that's impressive in itself, there's more: not only does Tab Scope provide you with some handy shortcuts for that tab via its preview window, it's also infinitely customizable too.

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Cyberlink has unveiled the final release of PhotoDirector 2011, a photo-editing tool aimed at photo enthusiasts and semi-professional users. It takes a workflow-based approach to organizing and editing images, steering the user through the process of importing, managing, correcting and finally exporting and sharing photos.

PhotoDirector 2011 includes native support for RAW-format images from Canon and Nikon cameras, a non-destructive editing environment allowing users to experiment with different edits before committing to changes, and an online resource for pros called DirectorZone where users can share and download image editing presets.

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Many people never truly take advantage of all the little shortcuts built into Windows, sometimes because they're not aware of them, but also because they don't find the options on offer suit their needs. The right-click menu is a case in point. It offers some useful shortcuts when you click a folder or file with the right mouse button, but often it's missing the kind of tweak you'd actually use.

Thankfully, there's a free tool in the shape of Right Click Enhancer that can give you a lot of functionality you need, enabling you to shape the right-click menu to your more precise needs. Also available as a standalone portable tool, Right Click Enhancer can do everything except remove existing context menu items -- for that you'll need a program like ShellView.

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Nitro PDF Software has released version 2.0 of its popular free PDF editor/creator software, Nitro PDF Reader. Available in separate 32-bit and 64-bit builds, Nitro PDF Reader 2.0 is actually the first stable release of the software -- previous 1.x versions were classed as beta.

PDF Reader 2.0 offers PDF conversion, creation and editing tools in addition to its basic viewing capabilities. Nitro markets the software as "no strings attached" software because of its extended functionality and lack of registration nags or ad-supported components. Version 2.0 includes some notable performance improvements, particularly in the field of PDF creation -- as well as a number of new features.

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A new Windows beta of its Skype's popular instant messaging and voice and video mail client is now available. If you're one of the 92 percent of online social networkers using Facebook (according to Pew Internet), this release could be for you. Skype for Windows 5.5 Beta big new benefit is deeper integration with Facebook.

These closer ties include the ability to take part in instant chats with Facebook contacts, plus access Facebook news feed within Skype itself. Skype 5.5 also makes it possible to both Like and comment on Facebook statuses. All of this extra integration is rounded off by a new dedicated Facebook tab, which gives users access to all of their Facebook friends.

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The Evernote Corporation has released a major update for both Mac and Windows clients of its online note-taking tool, Evernote. Evernote 4.4 (Windows) and 2.20 (Mac) includes a major new feature called Note Links, which allows users to create links to any specific note that can subsequently be placed just about anywhere else: notes, calendars, to-do lists, documents and even other apps.

Other new features in the latest update include an option for copying notes between notebooks, a brand new "snippets" view, plus the addition of forward and back buttons to the Note History browser. In addition to this there are several features exclusive to Windows and Mac versions of the software.

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The only reason anyone would want to run a Nightly build of a Mozilla product like Firefox is because they want to help provide a test environment for providing that vital early feedback on a product that's so fresh it's completely untested. This early exposure provides the basis on which Firefox, Thunderbird and its brethren migrate towards the first major milestone in a program's life, the alpha build.

When it comes to evaluating these programs, you need a collection of useful tools to help you test and provide the feedback essential for catching early bugs. And Mozilla provides those tools in the form of the Nightly Tester Tools, a free add-in designed specifically for these early, unstable builds. It works with Firefox, Thunderbird, SeaMonkey and Songbird.

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