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Wired Software

Tools that matter, and how to make them work for you.

After an Agonizing Wait, Picasa for Mac Finally ArrivesJanuary 5

Google has released a version of its popular free photo management application for Macintosh computers just ahead of the annual Macworld Expo. Picasa has been available for Windows and Linux for years, and the Mac version is eagerly awaited by those looking for an alternative to Apple's iPhoto.

10 Most Awesome iPhone Apps of 2008January 2

The iPhone alone is an amazing device. But it's the phenomenal App Store that's made the iPhone truly revolutionary, by giving thousands of independent developers the ability extend and transform the device with their creativity.

Not even half a year old, the store has surpassed a milestone of 10,000 pieces of software available. Since the beginning, Wired.com has paid close attention to the gems that shine among the dross.

We've plucked out a list of 10 apps — from mapping software to musical instruments to games — that deserve applause for their quality, innovation and breakthrough achievements. Here they are — Jay Leno style — with our top pick at the very bottom.

10. Stanza
A book reader that grabs free titles from public domains, Stanza has soared in popularity — making the iPhone a worthy competitor to Amazon's Kindle. And if those free books aren't enough, Stanza recently expanded to incorporate a store to purchase commercial titles. The app did a good job pleasing Wired.com's Charlie Sorrel, who

6 New Web Technologies of 2008 You Need to Use NowDecember 30 2008

Every year, we see scores of innovations trickle onto the web — everything from new browser features to cool web apps to entire programming languages. Some of these concepts just make us smile, then we move on. Some completely blow our minds with their utility and ingenuity — and become must-haves.

For this list, we've compiled the most truly life-altering nuggets of brilliance to hit center stage in 2008: the ideas, products and enhancements to the web experience so huge that they make us wonder how we got along without them.

Nitpickers will notice that a couple of these technologies arrived two or three years ago. Others aren't even fully baked yet. But each innovation on our list reached a level of maturity, hit the point of critical mass, or stepped in to fill a burning need during 2008 that resulted in it significantly changing the landscape of the web.

Here's to the technologies currently making the web a better place than it was 12 months ago.

Identity Management

Few things carry more value than your digital identity, and yet most web users have only a tenuous grasp of it. That's because on the social web, identity is no longer just who you are. It's who you know, how you know them and how much you want them to know about you. On the web, your identity is explicitly tied to your relationships, both with your friends and with the websites you visit.

Three great technologies came to fruition this year to help you man

LimeWire Adds Private File SharingDecember 10 2008

LimeWire juices up its peer-to-peer client with a new version that lets you share music, video and images. The private sharing feature makes it remarkably simple to specify exactly what you want to share — and, perhaps more importantly, with whom you wish to share it.

How to Read E-Books on Your iPhoneDecember 8 2008

Is that new bestseller too much of a page-turner to put down? Take your favorite text on the road with these options for the iPhone and iPod Touch.