Windows 8 apps »
[Windows 8] Learn about your neighborhood by reading Wikipedia on Explora
What are some cool or interesting places to visit in your area? If you’re new to the area, you probably don’t know–but with Explora, you can find out. Explora lets you view Wikipedia articles on local businesses, neighborhoods, and more, while in the process, you learn about your world.[...]
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Read More »[Windows 8] Pop the bubbles or die trying in Bubble Star
Bubble Star is a free game on the Windows Store that offers 100 levels and ”hours of fun”–and it’s not just talk. It’s for real. Bubble Star, which is essentially Frozen Bubble with powerups, is a great game to play for a few minutes at a time, eventually working your [...]
[Windows 8] Watch and listen to YouTube videos with Youtube Player
The internet is all about sharing photos, videos, music, and much much more. A large part of this is entirely YouTube, the online video sharing site that has become a home for high quality (and low quality) videos produced by everyone and their dog. Youtube Player brings that great content [...]
[Windows 8] MetroPuzzle is a simple, fun puzzler that makes you think
So few games released today are slow, relaxing puzzlers. That’s what makes MetroPuzzle stand out: rather than being all about rushing as fast as you can, it makes you stop and think. It’s all about the relationships between the blocks themselves, and trying to remove the central white shape by [...]
[Windows 8] Watch full-screen TED talks with TEDTalks HD
Ever seen a TED video? If not, then you don’t know what you are missing. TED – which stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design – is a nonprofit organization that organizes TED conferences and talks where people give speeches on ideas or inventions they have. They’re amazing to listen to, and [...]
[Windows 8] Read the latest issue of Popular Science with the free PopSci app
Popular Science is a cool magazine, and has made a great switch over into web magazine form. It has an official Android app, an iOS app, and now, a Windows 8 app. It rolls all of the latest stories and headlines into one big, beautiful app that lets you read [...]
[Windows 8] Get a beautifully-animated, wonderfully-futuristic disk scanner with Disk Falcon
The future is of technology awesome, according to movies such as The Minority Report and Avatar. (The future itself, not so much.) But those futuristic computer interfaces are actually somewhat possible today–through the use of animated computer graphics and some clever design, the team of developers at Sad Cat Software [...]
[Windows 8] View and learn about the 118 elements with the Periodic Table
Chemistry students everywhere are always in search of a better periodic table–one that shows them everything they need to know without overcrowding the already small squares. Due to their linkable, expandable nature, computers are a natural candidate in the competition, and with Periodic Table, you can quickly get all of [...]
[Windows 8] Play checkers with your computer in Modern Checkers
Are you a fan of checkers? If you are, you’ll probably be disappointed to hear that there is not going to be an official Microsoft release of checkers for Windows 8. However, that doesn’t mean that other developers can’t come in and create their own versions of the game–and that’s [...]
[Windows 8] Bring Windows Gadgets back to Windows 8 with 8GadgetPack
Microsoft changed thousands of things between Windows 7 and Windows 8. Not the least of the differences is the omission of Gadgets. Originally introduced in Windows Vista as the Sidebar, they were eventually reduced down to just individual gadgets in Windows 7, and taken out entirely in Windows 8. However, [...]
[Windows 8] Bring scientific calculator functions to your computer with Calculator²
Many people use scientific calculators only once or twice a month. This means that the rest of the time, they’re sitting, occupying space, for vast amounts of time. Ditch the physical device and start using your extremely powerful computer as a calculating machine with Calculator² for Windows 8.
One of [...]
Read More »[Windows 8] Browse the internet’s front page Reddit with the first full-featured Windows 8 Reddit app Snoo
The internet is an amazing place, and its self-purported front page Reddit.com is a great way to discuss the latest in almost any subject area, technology, or game. And, of course, cat pictures. Lots of cat pictures! A hallmark of every good platform, then, is a good Reddit app. It [...]
[Windows 8] View and download the magnificent Astronomy Picture of the Day in one beautiful, sleek interface
The world is a beautiful place. So is space. Every day for the last several years, NASA has been republishing one photo a day on their Astronomy Picture of the Day service, and it’s been brought to dozens of devices through the use of dedicated apps and services. However, no [...]
[Windows 8] Break and place triangles for as long as possible in LINX
Each triangle you place gets you more points… but the screen fills up quickly! Link L shapes into rectangles of 3×2 or bigger, but beware that each rectangle then turns into another L–of a different color. This keeps you running and running, until the board inevitably fills up.
Linx is [...]
Read More »[Windows 8] Flick off the lights with the classic puzzler Lights Out
There are a set of classic games that must be repeated on every platform before it can be considered a viable platform. There’s Tetris, of course, and Minesweeper. But then there’s also Lights Out. It’s a supposedly simple game, and with its simple logic, it’s even been created in Minecraft. [...]
[Windows 8] Play Scrabble with friends and random players with WordFeud
Are you a fan of the real-world game Scrabble, or the Facebook game Words with Friends? Try WordFeud. Building on the everlasting classic, WordFeud adds twists like random boards, push notifications, multiple languages, and more.
Everyone knows at least the basics of Scrabble. You are given a set of letters, [...]
Read More »Convert as many units as you want as quickly as you want with Unit Converter++ [Windows 8]
Are you bad at math? Even if you aren’t, you’d still have a hard time converting 10 liters to US fluid ounces. With Unit Converter++, you can take away the pain of number crunching and convert units in seconds flat. Just select a category, a beginning unit, an ending unit, [...]
Read stunning photo blogging on your Windows 8 computer or tablet with the official Big Picture app [Windows 8]
The internet is full of many wonderous things, not the least of which is a bevy of photo blogs. Of those photo blogs, however, one stands out: The Big Picture. This photo blog, run by Boston.com, is nothing short of amazing. Each entry they put out is around 40 crisp, [...]
Play an extremely confusing game of Tetris in 3D with Blockability 3d [Windows 8]
Are you a huge fan of the 2D falling block game also known as “Tetris”? If you are, you probably love that we’ve been covering a lot of Tetris-like games recently. Blockability 3d is yet another one of those: it’s Tetris, in 3D.
Unlike some 3D Tetris games, Blockability 3d [...]
Read More »Play Tetris on your computer or tablet with Tetriblox [Windows 8]
By this point in life, you must be familiar with the game of Tetris. If you’re not, it’s the game of falling blocks in which one must attempt to stack up a full row of blocks. Doing so causes them to disappear–earning you more time before they reach the top. [...]
Like Hangman? Bring it to your Windows 8 computer or tablet with Doodle Hangman Free [Windows 8]
Do you remember playing hangman in class instead of learning boring ol’ algebra? Now, you can play against your computer with Doodle Hangman Free! It’s a fun little game that lets you choose the category, so you actually might have a chance to win.
Doodle Hangman Free starts off with [...]
Read More »Play a fun crossword game on your PC or tablet with Word Search [Windows 8]
Are you a fan of the crossword puzzle? I certainly am, so I was excited when I found Word Search on the Windows Store. It’s a free, singleplayer crossword app that features built-in lists with varying difficulties and a timer to keep you on track.
There are three modes to [...]
Read More »Keep your square in the court for as long as possible in Escapa [Windows 8]
Are you a fan of this free JavaScript game? Apparently someone was, as it’s made its way into a Windows 8 app and onto the Windows Store. There, it’s downloaded by thousands as it’s incredibly fun, high-definition graphics rock the world. Escapa is a free game in which you simply [...]
Read your Google Reader feeds on your Windows 8 computer with Flux [Windows 8]
Do you enjoy reading your RSS feeds, or feel otherwise compelled to read them? Are you a fan of cloud feed synchronization services, especially Google Reader? Do you absolutely love the color pink? If you answered yes to all of those questions, Flux is no doubt the RSS reader for [...]
Connect the dots on the deceptively challenging game Blueprint [Windows 8]
There are boring, simple puzzle games. Then there are wacky, complicated puzzle games. But probably the most interesting of all is the category of puzzle game that appears to be incredibly simple, but turns out to be extremely devious. Blueprint, a game in which you need to connect all the [...]
Get inspired with inspirational quotes from Forismatic [Windows 8]
Are you feeling … uninspired? The folks at Coppertino sure were, so one day they decided to create Forismatic. It’s a free app filled to the brim with inspirational quotes to help get you thinking.
Forismatic is beautiful in its simplicity. When you open it, you’re instantly greeted with a [...]
Read More »Have fun and paint pictures with Paint 4 Kids [Windows 8]
Are you an avid fan of painting with Windows’ built-in Paint program? If you are, you’re crazy. Most kids aren’t–they’re probably looking for a fun app they can paint and draw in. Paint 4 Kids is that kind of app.
Paint 4 Kids is not the most beautiful app [...]
Read More »Pop balls in the relaxing free game Plop! [Windows 8]
There are literally billions of games in every app download center for every device in which you click on or tap on sets of three or more balls to make them disappear. Invariably, the rest fall down, and you’re left with another set of balls to tap on. Plop! takes [...]
Change your Windows 8 lockscreen picture with LockPic [Windows 8]
Whenever you lock your computer on Windows 8 you’re greeted with a harsh, cartoony picture of Seattle. We get it, Microsoft! You’re based right outside of Seattle! If you’re looking for a nice picture to replace it with, LockPic may be the app for you. While Windows 8 lets you [...]
Find words in a square with Wordament [Windows 8]
Are you a fan of [WordHero] on your Android phone, or Wordament on your Windows Phone 7 phone? Now, you can get that same game on your computer with Wordament: find the most words in the 4×4 grid as possible in the least amount of time!
Wordament is at least [...]
Read More »Do all of your clock-based managing with Clock [Windows 8]
I actually find myself Googling for an online stopwatch quite often. Clock is a free app that could get me to stop: instead of being just a clock, Clock is a timer, stopwatch, calendar, and alarm clock.
Clock is quite functional. It’s really worth the 10 megabytes of disk space [...]
Read More »Calc4Win: a scientific calculator for all of your calculating needs [Windows 8]
Are you looking for a functional calculator app for your Windows 8 PC or tablet? Calc4Win supports the standard four-button calculator features, plus the standard set of scientific calculator features.
Calc4Win is easy enough to use. You just tap out the things you need to calculate, hit the big red [...]
Read More »Read and manage your RSS feeds with Live Reader [Windows 8]
Avid readers of the internet all know about RSS, the free and awesome way to read the latest posts from all of your favorite sites. However, if you’re a fan of the new Windows 8 style interface, there’s not many choices for RSS readers. Live Reader is one of them.[...]
Solve jigsaw puzzles on your PC with PuzzleTouch [Windows 8]
Are you a fan of puzzles? If you are, you may find PuzzleTouch a fun game to download. It’s a free jigsaw puzzle app that has dozens of built-in photos, plus the ability to create puzzles from your own photos.
PuzzleTouch is a fun little app. Do beware that the [...]
Read More »Skip Metro Suite allows you to skip Start screen and disable hotposts on Windows 8
By now you know how to bypass the Start screen and go straight to the desktop. If you want an easier way to skip the Windows 8 Start screen to go straight to desktop upon boot, and the ability to disable Windows 8 hotspots, then Skip Metro Suite is just [...]