Articles about Free Software

Sober Lemur SRL has just released a major new version of its free and open-source PDF toolkit with the launch of PDFsam Basic 5.0 for Windows, macOS and Linux.

The application, which allows users to quickly and easily extract pages from PDFs as well as offering split, merge and rotate tools, gains a major facelift with the version 5 release, along with a brand new tool and several additions to existing features.

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Running Windows on Macs is nothing new, but with the loss of BootCamp support for the newer Silicon-based Macs (those running M1 and M2 chips), your only option for installing Windows is through virtualization software. You’ll find plenty of free and paid-for options available, so what makes UTM 4.1 stand out from a crowded field of virtualization tools?

When it comes to running Windows, UTM offers nothing you can’t find elsewhere in the form of Parallels Desktop, but there’s one crucial difference: UTM is open source and -- if you’re willing to update it manually -- completely free. If you want automatic updates, or you simply want to support the project, a one-time fee of $9.99 can be paid by purchasing UTM through the Mac App Store.

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The second and final Release Candidate for Kodi 20 'Nexus' was rolled out to testers a month ago and today the full, finished version arrives. This is the first release in a while that clears all known blockers, meaning it becomes available for all platforms.

Kodi 20.0 'Nexus' brings a wealth of changes, fixes and new features to the popular home theater software, including support for multiple instances of binary add-ons, AV1 Video support, and a massive rework of the subtitle system.

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Open source video broadcasting, recording and streaming tool OBS Studio 29.0 has been released for Windows, macOS and Linux.

With this release, the Windows build now supports AV1 encoding on both AMD (Radeon RX 7000 upwards) and Intel  (Arc Graphics) chipsets in addition to prior support for NVIDIA. Support on Linux is expected to follow in a future release.

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Kodi 20 -- codename 'Nexus' -- is the next version of the hugely popular home theater software. After several alpha releases the Kodi Foundation put out the first beta build -- Beta 1 -- last month.

For obvious reasons, alpha and beta releases aren’t ideal for use on a daily basis, but we have some good news -- the team has decided the software is now stable enough to not require a second beta release.

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Bartels Media GmbH has unveiled a major new version of its freemium cross-platform text expander tool with the launch of PhraseExpress 16 for Windows. The new release, which coincides with the software’s 20th anniversary, boasts a fresh new look, new trigger system, improved Edit History feature as well as a new unified phrase file format for using with Mac and iOS builds -- both of which are currently in beta.

The first major change sees the user interface updated with new high-resolution icons to match Windows 11’s more modernized look. Bartels is keen to highlight that the UI has been 'carefully updated' to ensure existing users aren’t left floundering looking for their favorite tools.

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Rick Brewster has announced the release of Paint.NET 5.0 (alpha). This early pre-release, which is also available as a portable build for existing users keen to try out the new features without affecting their current, stable release, promises significant performance increases, resurrected support for pressure-sensitive pens and tablets, plus a brand-new plugin system.

In addition, there are several new adjustments and effects, and a raft of improvements across existing tools. The new build does, however, jettison support for 32-bit systems and older versions of Windows.

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One of my favorite features on the Apple iPhone 14 Pro is the new Dynamic Island that replaces the old notch at the top of the screen. This, if you don’t know, is a dark island that expands and contracts (and even bubbles off) to show important alerts, notifications, and activities.

It’s a cool addition which Apple says, 'blurs the line between hardware and software'. And you can now add this feature to Windows. Here’s how.

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Auslogics has released a major update to its Windows optimization suite with the arrival of Auslogics BoostSpeed 13.0. The latest version is the first to fully support Windows 11, but also ships with several improved features.

Implementing full support for Windows 11 PCs means that BoostSpeed 13 can target specific parts of the new OS -- for example, users are able to delete documents from the 'Recommended' section of Windows 11's Start menu, while other new tools include a multi-uninstall manager and add-ons manager for removing unwanted browser and shell extensions.

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IObit has released major new version of its Windows driver and game component updater tool. IObit Driver Booster 10 simplifies the task of finding and updating drivers across Windows PCs, and comes in both ad-supported free and paid-for versions.

Version 10 sees the tool expand its driver database to now include more than 8.5 million device drivers and game components.

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Audio editing tools -- much like photo editors -- can be both incredibly expensive, and tremendously complex. Audacity has long served as an alternative to such apps, and with the release of Audacity 3.2 it just became even more powerful.

The developers are not hiding their light under a bushel, describing this update as a "gigantic release". This latest build sees the addition of support for realtime effects that allow for non-destructive editing of audio files. But there is more, including improved VST3 support and the option to upload and share content to audio.com.

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The Blender Foundation has unveiled its first Long Term Support release of the Blender 3.x series with the release of Blender 3.3 LTS. LTS releases are supported for two years from release.

Also available as a portable Windows build, this is the third major point release in the 3.x series since it debuted in December 2021.

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The fourth major point release of The Document Foundation’s open-source, cross-platform office suite has landed. As with the previous release in February, LibreOffice 7.4 is targeted towards improving the experience for those migrating from Microsoft Office.

The focus on improving compatibility with Microsoft Office -- both for those migrating away from the platform and others who need to share documents with MS Office users -- is an ongoing process, and the 7.4 press release focuses a lot of attention on LibreOffice’s "highest level of compatibility in the office suite market segment".

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It is very easy to keep Windows up to date -- so easy, in fact, that you hardly need to do anything. Just make sure that the Automatic Updates feature of Windows Update is enabled, and everything will happen in the background. IObit Software Updater does much the same for the apps you have installed as well.

While there are some apps that will update automatically -- including, but not limited to, those installed from the Microsoft Store -- it is certainly not the case for all software. And this is where IObit Software Updater can help, ensuring that all of the software you have installed is up to date, so you not only benefit from the latest features and options, but also the highest level of security. IObit Software Updater 5.0 is now here, complete with support for scores of additional applications.

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Five-hundred-and-one in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 and 11 on the Microsoft Store and elsewhere in the past seven days.

Microsoft released the first development version of Windows 10 version 22h2 to the Release Preview channel; this marks the final stage of development before official release later this year.

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