Like big red buses, games of the same genre have a habit of making their introduction in close proximity to each other.  An example of this happened quite recently when two similar games, that belonged to the Breakout/Arkanoid family, turned up within days of each other.  One of these titles was reviewed earlier on this site and now it is the turn of Gem Ball from URSE Games.

Perhaps we could all join together and sing a chorus of Happy Birthday to Canon.  This would be to celebrate Canon's 50 years of existence in Europe and the current 20 years of sales built up by the EOS system at the heart of Canon's range of camera products.

Why should mobile phones have sole access to all the tasty features that are currently available within the telephony sphere?  Landlines have been around for far longer and, even now, hold the dominant position within the home - so maybe it is time for some of these usability features to make the transition from mobile to landline.

I doubt whether any research has been conducted on the subject but, from my personal observations, it does appear that many laptop users seem to prefer a mouse to the touchpad that forms an integral part of the portable computer.  Where ever I go, even locations such as exhibitions where space is at a premium, laptops that are demonstrating the various software offerings and services, generally have a mouse attached.

Following its take-over of Maxtor, Seagate has not been sitting back admiring its new acquisition nor has it been contemplating a cull of its enlarged product portfolio.  That is not to say there won't be any casualties but, for the record, Seagate will be continuing with the Maxtor brand.

Sat Nav products tend to fall into one of two main categories.  There are devices that have been purposely built to provide just the functionality of satellite navigation whether based in a car or used in pedestrian mode.  While a second approach, used by certain companies, involves adding satellite navigation capabilities to a third-party device.

Sony Ericcson J110i The early months of the year were once again Sony Ericsson's chosen time period to call together members of the UK press to hear about the latest developments regarding the company's new phone models that will be demanding market share.  As is its normal practice, Sony Ericsson has several new product announcements due to make an appearance over the coming months.

Although marketed as a portable piece of kit, your average laptop or notebook rarely comes with the appropriate means to make transporting it easy.  While you could tuck it under your arm as you move from location to location, it is hardly a practical solution to the problem.

How well do you know your local area?  Probably well enough to get around as long as you do not venture too far a field in an attempt to explore the history and natural delights of this country.  One way to expand your geographical knowledge could be to make use of a mapping product such as Anquet Maps.

While Adobe and Corel occupy the high profile positions in the arena of computer graphics, there are other developers producing creative software that deserves consideration.  Flying the flag as a leading UK developer of graphics software is Xara.

Having set up your computer to suit your own individual style of working before storing all those important documents, images, videos and audio tracks, it does make practical sense to take precautions, such as a backup, in the event of problems occurring.  While Windows has its own backup facility, it is not the most feature-rich utility currently available.  A well respected alternative is .

As the first offering from its next-generation modular digital imaging platform, code-named "Alta", Corel has released Snapfire.  This product is available as a free download ( ) in its vanilla flavour or as a boxed Corel Snapfire Plus version.  This review is based on the commercial Plus edition of the product. www.snapfire.

Following on from its Jewel of Atlantis title, Enkord has now turned its attention to a period of history even further back in the mists of time.  Instead of ancient artefacts, it is prehistoric animals that form the centre of attention of the company's latest puzzle game.  Entitled Jurassic Realms, this game is built around tiles embellished with distinctive icons.

Mobile phones come in a variety of styles with collections of specific features that are designed to appeal to a particular market sector.  For example the Nokia 5500 model, also known as Sport, is aimed at the more energetic and health conscious members of society by the addition of some exercise based features.  That is not to say that the other types of features associated with mobile phones have been neglected.

In the normal course of events, Windows writes data to the first available space it finds.  As a result files will be broken up into parts that will fit into whatever spaces there are.  This fragmentation of files can, over time, seriously affect the performance of your system as it will need to access the fragmented files from different locations before loading them into memory for your use.

Tesco Personal Finance, as distinct from the numerous financial services currently on offer from the UK's leading supermarket conglomerate, is a software product.  Licensed from Reilly Technologies (a new name to me), this title is one of the six products that make up the initial release offerings from Tesco.

Adding to its family of SatNav devices, ViaMichelin (a wholly owned subsidiary of the restaurant and hotel guide producing Michelin) has released its top -of-the-range (Global Positioning System) model.  This product takes in Europe as it covers 20 countries down to street number level and has full UKK postcode search capability.

While Windows has its own media player, this particular feature is not everybody's favourite nor is it as feature-rich as some of the competition from third-parties.  One alternative, with a long pedigree, is WinDVD.  The latest version of this InterVideo product is WinDVD 8 with both Platinum and Gold versions being available.  This review is based on the Gold edition.

Up until recently you could have walked into your friendly computer retail store and purchased a device that allowed you to wirelessly connect your iPod or MP3 player to a radio, HiFi or in-car entertainment system.  While the manufacturing and selling of such a product was entirely legal, you would have broken the law if you had used this product.

In my house there is a constant fight ensuing between various items of computer equipment and living space.  I hate to admit it but it is often the former that wins the day in these battles.  Sometimes, though, a compromise can be reached as in the case of a KVM (Keyboard, Video and Mouse) solution.

As part of its branded range of software titles, Tesco has released Easy Record which is a product that was originally developed by Sonic Solutions who are also responsible for Roxio Easy Creator software.  Easy Record, as you might suppose from its title, is software designed to create and copy various forms of optical media.

While wireless is generally accepted as the preferred option for home networking, it is not always the most suitable method for some users.  A wireless network may remove the need for unsightly wires between devices and be relatively easy to set up in the ideal environment but complications can get in the way.  Often thick walls and metal mesh encased in structures will interfere with wireless signals and cause communication problems.

As prices of computer systems continue to fall while specifications increase, the temptation grows for users to upgrade their computing capability with a new purchase.  The problem can then arise as to what to do with the old system.  If you do not wish to get rid of an old friend and space considerations are an issue, then you might like to consider a KVM (Keyboard, Video, and Mouse) solution.

When the conversation turns to mobile phones then it isn't long before the name of "Nokia" pops up.  After all the company does have every type of phone you could imagine with regards to style and functionality (and maybe some that are so advanced and futuristic in concept that they have yet to see the light of day).  A quick check of the company's UK website revealed that there are 79 current models available from all good stockists.

VoIP (Voice over IP) technology has been around for a good few years now but it has taken initiatives such as Skype to really kick-start its popular acceptance.  Skype was founded by Niklas Zennstrm and Janus Friis in 2003.  Distributed as free software, this product provided users with the ability to make superior-quality calls using a computer connected to the Internet.

Where there are numerous brands of portable music players, it has to be said that it is the iPod family that has the street cred to leave the opposition trailing in its wake.

What is red or blue; has its own set of weights; six buttons; and has on-the-fly sensitivity adjustment?  As an additional clue, I will also throw in that it is a world first.  If you are still puzzled then perhaps I should reveal that the item in question is the new GM3200 Laser Mouse developed by Saitek.   This is not a shrinking violet of a mouse.  For a start this USB connected mouse is of the bulky variety.

The letter "X" is becoming increasingly popular when naming computer items.  Quickly checking around reveals that both software and hardware products have jumped onto this particular bandwagon.  We have operating systems using this letter; various applications use the "X" in their version number; and, of course, there is that popular game console from the giant of Redmond.

Joining the ranks of slow installation routines is the one used by Roxio Easy Media Creator.  With a number of long pauses when nothing appeared to be happening, the procedure easily exceeded 40 minutes before requiring a system reboot.