No, dictionary apps aren't sexy. But for the avid reader, they are a useful addition. Sure, most e-reading apps and e-readers have integrated dictionaries, but sometimes it's nice to be able to look up an unfamiliar word anywhere. That's how I use the Dictionary.com app on my Nexus 7. It's always been a functional app, but it looked like a phone app spread out on a tablet screen, not an uncommon occurrence in Android apps. Today, however, Dictionary.com updated its app, optimized for Jelly Bean, and they completely refreshed the user interface. It's now a nice looking as well as functional...

  By Adrian Diaconescu Now that was fast. Acer unveiled the Iconia B1 tablet a few weeks ago at CES and said it’ll go on sale “soon,” which usually means anything but that, but the 7-incher is in fact up for grabs already. Well, it’s only available in the UK for now, but you know what they say – today in England, tomorrow all around the world. As expected, the tab’s number one selling point is the pricing. Tech-savvy blokes in GB looking to save up a buck before Valentine’s are therefore only asked to shell out £99 ($156). That’ll get you a surprisingly snappy slate with...

One secret of Microsoft’s success is the rapidity with which they eradicate their older software versions when they bring out new ones. Just like last month’s copies of Playboy at the newsstand, last year’s version of Windows disappears very rapidly from shops and other outlets when this year’s comes out. Only on eBay can you find copies of Windows XP, and as for Vista, it might as well never have existed. Doctors bury their mistakes; software companies shred them. Desktop Linux, of course, is at the opposite extreme, with old versions, new versions, spin-offs and forks all existing more or less comfortably in...