Finally taking advantage of its acquisition of Macromedia back in 2005, Adobe is set to announce the release of Fireworks CS3. The web graphics app will replace ImageReady and, not surprisingly, has been designed to better integrate with the rest of Adone’s Creative Suite, including Photoshop and Illustrator.

Besides support for sharing objects with the rest of the suite, the editor has pumped with a range of new tools lifted from Photoshop, including drop shadows, glows, overlays and layer blending effects. There’s also album creator that strings photo collections into a slideshow that uses HTML or Flash - even if the user has no experience with either.

While many fans of Fireworks will be relieved that can now combine the app with their other favourite design tools to produce slick web sites, many will argue that this is a program that simply isn’t needed – or at least it shouldn’t be needed. What it amounts to is Adobe canning its web editing tool, ImageReady, which came bundled with Photoshop, and forcing users to purchase a separate app for optimising their programs for the web.

As one of the veterans of the P2P file-sharing world, eMule is still used by millions to exchange files over the Net. Although its return on searches is pretty impressive, we’ve always been a little disappointed by the speed at which the client transfers files, which is a tad sluggish compared with the likes of Ares and Limewire.

We’ve just come across a way you can inject a bit more pace into the old nag by changing the ‘Upload Limit’ option within the ‘Preferences’ menu. When you are downloading data, the client must send an 'ack' (acknowlegement) to the server. If your upload stream is running at your connection limit these 'acks' wont get back/will be slowed down so you won't be sent the next little bit. Setting the upload cap to about 70% to 90% of your total upload total capacity should improve download speed and ensure that the client doesn’t get clogged by sending unnecessary ‘ack’ data.

Whenever a security flaw is found within a popular application it’s usually nothing more than a chance for tech reporters to take a cheap shot at a major developer. That’s what we thought when we read about the discovery of a hole within the widely-used Adobe Acrobat Reader.

However, it turns out that the bug is a little more serious than everyone first thought. According to security specialists, the glitch within the software allows hackers to access all information on the victim’s hard drive via malicious JavaScript to PDF files hosted on websites.

Billy Hoffman, lead engineer at SPI Dynamics said: “This means any JavaScript can access the user's local machine. Depending on the browser, this means the JavaScript can read the user's files, delete them, execute programs, send the contents to the attacker, et cetera. This is much worse than an attack in the remote zone.”

While there is no patch available at present, the problem can be rectified by downloading the latest version of the PDF viewer, Adobe Reader 8.0.

Without doubt, Photoshop is the greatest image editor to grace the screen and on the surface appears to contain everything you need to create web sites, enhance photos and produce stunning graphic designs. However, the power of Adobe’s flagship app can be boosted even further by installing plug-ins that add extra functionality. It’s this extensibility that has helped to make the program so popular, and some of today’s add-ons are so advanced that they match up to the best stand-alone graphics software.

We’ve rounded up the most popular Photoshop plug-ins on Softonic to bring you an essential list of the tools you need to improve your graphical creations and save you time to boot. If you have a favorite plug-in that you couldn’t survive without then we’d love to hear from you.

1. Genuine Fractals: Increase image sizes without reducing quality

2. AKVIS Chameleon: Create image collages without any fuss

3. FocusFixer: Sharpen even the most blurred images

4. Neat Image: Reduce visible noise in digital photos

5. Background Remover: Extract an object within an image

6. PhotoZoom Professional: Enlarge digital images without distortion

7. PTLens: Correct lens pincushion/barrel distortion, chromatic aberration, and vignetting

8. ColourWorks: Modify colour values within photographs to create original effects

9. Topaz DeJPEG Plug-in: Eliminate imperfections caused by JPEG compression

10. Flood: Add realistic 3D effects to your images

Although P2P networking still survives as a means of downloading video, audio and software, many people are now turning to torrents as a means of getting hold of their entertainment. While BitTorrent and BitComet rule the roost in terms of on-the-fly downloads, there are a few other pretenders to the crown that are worthy of a mention. BitSpirit is definitely up with the best of them, allowing you to grab hold of torrents quickly without any fuss.

The application is significantly easier to use than many of its rivals, however, BitSpirit disappoints compared with its peers when it comes to tracking active downloads. If you would like to access information on your current download then you need to access the torrent itself, rather than relying on the application to provide you with this information.

Considering it’s the season of good will to all, some sneaky devils are adamant on spoiling it for everyone, according to Sunbelt software. The company is warning users of the rise of computer software masquerading as legitimate security software.

According to the firm, certain sites are able to trick users into paying for applications that are actually ineffective at securing their computer and could even contain malicious viruses or malware themselves. The company has seen incidences of bogus software (much of which comes from the same companies and is simply rebranded) increase in the run-up to Christmas and warn that it could represent a continued threat throughout the new year. Our advice is to stick to programs like Norton Internet Security, Panda Antivirus (or AVG if you’re on a tight budget) in order to tackle potential attacks

When it comes to taking on the might of Internet Explorer, the small, but perfectly formed Opera is a mere bit-part player in the battle for browser supremacy, with Firefox now firmly established as the mainly pretender to IE’s crown. Not to be deterred by its tiny share of this market, Opera has pulled off something of a masterstroke when it releases a beta version of its browser for the Nintendo Wii on December 22nd.

The console has received many plaudits for its innovative use of new technology, and in particular the motion-detecting joypad. It’s rather fitting then that Nintendo should team up with Opera, which is famed for its innovation (it was after all the first app to give tabbed web browsing and mouse gestures). The two firms have been mere also-rans in recent years, so it’s nice to see them working together to develop the first external web browser for a console.

Unless you’re hiding in a bush in the desert then you would’ve probably noticed that it’s Christmas. If you’re not quite in the festive spirit then why not deck out your PC with some Christmas trimming to get you in the mood? We’re not talking about draping a bit of tinsel across your monitor or spraying fake snow over your keyboard (not recommended), but installing a seasonal screensaver to bring yuletide merriment to your home or office. We’ve got a sackful of them, and the Christmas number one at the moment is the Winter 3D screensaver, which whisks you away to a winter wonderland.

Here’s our top ten list of Christmas screensavers:

1. Winter 3D Screensaver
2. Ultimate Free Christmas Screensaver
3. 1 Nutty Santa Screensaver
4. Free New Year's Night Screensaver
5. 3D Christmas Eve Screensaver
6. 7Art Xmas Screensaver
7. 3D Magic Christmas Toyshop
8. Christmas Clock Screensaver
9. 3D Christmas Tree Screensaver
10. American Snowman Screensaver

There’s nothing that puts a visitor to your site off more than a string of broken links, missing graphics or files. To avoid this embarrassment and the consequent exodus from your site, Dreameaver has a neat tool that helps you make sure everything is working properly. Simply go to the ‘Site’ menu in the application and choose 'Check Links Sitewide'. Adobe's flagship web editor will then willingly generate a report of all broken links on your site.

To fix a link all you need do is click onto the broken link and browse to the correct file. Be warned though, if you need to view local file references you’ll need to change your Link Checker from 'Show Broken Links' to ‘Show External Links’. You can also use the app to find orphan files (i.e. files that aren’t in use) by altering your link report to ‘Show Orphaned Files’. If you’re a HTML puritan and don’t use a WYSIWYG editor then try Web Link Validator, which is more than adept at checking broken external links.

You can be sure that once Bill Gates starts banging on about a new business or technology concept, IT departments everywhere will be clambering aboard the bandwagon. The craze in question this time is ‘mind-mapping,’ a system of planning and structuring ideas through a visual approach. The whole idea is that instead of thinking in a linear fashion when taking notes or brainstorming ideas, you develop a solution in the form of branches radiating from a central core, known as a mind-map.

According to Gates, mind-mapping software can “be used as a digital 'blank slate' to help connect and synthesize ideas and data - and ultimately create new knowledge.” It’s quite rare to hear Bill Gates talking about technology that Microsoft does not have a software program for, so you can take it as read that the Redmond giant is close to an acquisition in this area (or is that just us being cynical).

Next time you try to pull a fast one on your buddy, think twice because Skype is now offering a built-in lie detector for its VOIP service. The KishKish Lie Dectector analyses audio streams over a Skype call in real time, illustrating the stress levels of the other person to determine whether or not they’re telling the truth. The app represents the latest in a long line of smart tools seized on by Skype to add to its premium plug-ins service.

Paul Amery, Director of Skype’s development program said: “This is an excellent application, and the kind of thing we want to see more of. Lie Detector is the latest in a variety of products in our premium add-on programme which greatly enhances the Skype communication experience.”

The developer of the KishKish Lie Detector offers a superb illustration of how the app works by using it to analysing President Clinton’s infamous denial of his ‘relations’ with Monika Lewinski.

Here’s a good tip for iTunes users who want to share their downloads with more than five computers. There’s no doubt that the Apple service is probably the best around, but limiting your MP3s for authorized use on just five machines can be somewhat annoying.

Thankfully, the guys and gals at Firblitz have engineered a way of getting around this problem, so you can listen to tracks downloaded through iTunes on any computer. iTunes stores its authorization data in a hidden folder (/Users/Shared/SC on Macs, C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Apple Computer\iTunes\SC Info on Windows). In order to authorize the file for all machines simply back up the SC Info folder on an authorized machine, de-authorize the computer, then restore the original SC Info folder. Your computer should work as if it's authorized, but will no longer take up an authorization slot in iTunes.

This workaround isn’t completely foolproof and any music you purchase after the sneaky trick will not play, as a result of iTunes changing the key each time you purchase a new song. However, it does work with old purchases and if you’re in the spirit of giving this Christmas then you’ll be able to share your old downloads with whoever you like. Just be warned, Santa does not work for Apple and therefore the company won’t take kindly to you handing your downloads over to one and all.

Having idled away countless hours wandering the planet with Google Earth, I've recently discovered a feature that is guaranteed to dent my productivity even further. Instead of just being able to scan the home planet in 3D, you can now apply whole planet image overlays to transform the Earth into other planets.

Virtual intergalatic exploration was first made possible by the creation of animations for planets such as Mars and Saturn by the Google Earth project. One of the project's community members has now come up with an animated overlay that lets you take a tour around the biggest of all the planets, Jupiter, using imagery taken by the NASA Cassini spacecraft in 2000.

After loading the animation, you need to click on 'View --> Atmosphere'. Now you can either move the slider manually, or click on the triangular ‘Play‘ on the right-hand side of the gadget. It’s worth using the clock gadget on the left of the screen and turning up the speed a bit for a smoother animation. Expect to see overlays for the other planets in our solar system soon, allowing you to act out all your Captain Kirk-related fantasies.

While it’s fair to say that there is a piece of software that covers virtually every computing requirement, it seems some people are still left wanting when it comes to performing certain tasks. Despite the rise of online photo-blogging services like Flickr and applications such as Web Photos Pro, one Indian paediatrician was disappointed at the lack of tools for his personal requirements and decided to take the matter into his own hands by creating his own piece of software.

In order to help him set up his bird photography site, nagpurbirds.org, first-time developer Tarique Sani turned his hand to a spot of PHP programming and conjured up his fully featured photo blogging creation, CheeseCake Photoblog, in just three weeks. Like many before him, Sani believes that the open source PHP and MySQL platform is proving to be the perfect launchpad for bringing bespoke web applications to life.

The doctor-turned code junky explained: “PHP has a phenomenal potential for India. There's money to be made provided it is built up properly. Now it's making inroads into the enterprise class of code, which was earlier dominated by Java. That's good news.”

Though it’s unlikely that CheeseCake will ever come near to toppling Flickr, it’s certainly a decent application with plenty of tailor-made features such as buzzwords, specifically designed for blogging, and is open to expansion by bolting on plug-ins. With PHP authors such as PHP Designer and DzSoft PHP Editor becoming ever easier to manipulate, we’re bound to see more part-time developers making in-roads into extremely niche areas within the software world that the big players simply don’t have the inclination to explore.

After two years of hype and expectation, Windows Vista is finally upon us. No sooner has the somewhat muted launch been made and already analysts are queuing up to dismiss the chances of Microsoft’s latest puppy making a major impact on the computing world. Undoubtedly the OS has made major strides in plugging security holes, improving mobile communication links and making the desktop look all pretty, but will consumers be excited enough to rush for an upgrade?

The IT boffins at Gartner think not, predicting that by this time next year, Vista will be running on a mere 10% of PCs, arguing that home users and businesses do not see a benefit in an immediate upgrade. According to the analysts' blog:

"Microsoft promotes Vista as a remedy to a myriad of mobility challenges - power management, network awareness, offline access to important data, multiple displays, grab-and-go docking and readability - and the new features do make headway in these areas. Although Vista's mobility features are useful, they are not essential. None of them, nor the sum, constitute an immediate "must have" for any organization. As a result, organizations should resist the idea of early migration ahead of desktop computers, unless specific business issues are being addressed."

However, not everyone is so pessimistic about the chances of the latest version of Windows, including UK-based analysts Ovum. Software practice head David Mitchell predicts that 15% of PC users will adopt Windows Vista during its first year, compared to between 12 and 14% for Windows XP, which launched in October 2001. "That would make it the fastest moving operating system ever," according to Mitchell.