Do you like space? I mean, do you REALLY like space? If you go absolutely gaga over the final frontier then have we got some good news for you, NASA is giving the public free access to its research database with PubSpace.
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littleBits – open source maker kit promises a world of delight for wannabe nerds of any age
Making machines and projects out of various different objects is a pasttime that never gets old. But your creations generally don’t come with a huge selection of electronic components to choose from, nor do they snap together as easily as LEGO kits do. Until now.
Read MoreAnywhere Board Games takes free open source gaming to Google+ hangouts [Freeware]
Everyone loves a good game now and then, whether it’s cards, scrabble, chess or any of the multitude of free online game services on offer. The only problem with the online versions is you have to put up with lots of advertising, and maybe even pay a fee if you want pro features. Which is why this new online gaming concept is so interesting.
Read More0 A.D. is an absolutely gorgeous open source civilisation game [Freeware]
There’s something about civilisation games, where you pit your wits against the computer and see who can create the mightiest empire, that strikes a chord with us. Up till now though, the two main choices for this type of game has been either the excellent Civilisation, which has great gameplay but not much in the way of immersive real time graphics, or Microsoft’s Age of Empires, both of which are commercial products which cost money. Not any more.
Read MoreMakey Makey is an awesome invention kit for everyone
We cover a tiny fraction of the Kickstarter projects that approach us, mostly because there’s a limit to how many brush machined aluminum iPhone stands the world can handle in one month. But also because we’re kind of keen to avoid projects which seem destined for niche markets. Not so with this latest project, which we think will become a smash hit all over the world once it’s produced in volume later this year.
Read MoreGame Downloader puts the world of open source games at your fingertips [Freeware]
Regular readers will know we’re passionate fans of open source and freeware games. We featured our own 70 Best Games guide a while back, and we’re always trying to promote the best of the genre where we can. This latest freeware, however, is a little different, but in a good way.
Read MoreOpenMeetings, the cool open source web conferencing program, grows up [Daily Freeware]
Way back in the mists of time, or somewhere around 3 years ago, we reported on a little Google Code project which was a rudimentary but functional web conferencing system, with scheduling and audio/video communication. As we said at the time, it was OK, but a little Spartan.
Read MoreTomahawk is a superb free open source music player which is a music magnet [Daily Freeware]
There’s a huge selection of software music players around at the moment, and they all have good and bad bits. However for the most part they all fail in one way or another, which means that you miss out on the best music choice on and offline. What’s missing is a tool which lets you combine just about every music source anywhere in one simple interface. Well, guess what…?
Read MoreGlobaLeaks lets anyone anywhere create their own free WikiLeaks type whistleblower site
Of all the recent online phenomena, probably the one with the biggest global impact has been Wikileaks, the anonymous whistleblowing site designed to let people submit information to the public gaze which might otherwise be kept secret. Whether you agree or not with the type of content they have released, it’s impossible to argue against the impact this kind of informational transparency has had on the political and commercial world.
Read MoreLibrary Mixer is an extremely cool open source platform for sharing and lending files privately with friends
Recent history is awash with file sharing applications and services across the world, ranging from the massively successful BitTorrent to smaller yet still impressive services such as Tribler. However most of them either fall short in features such as privacy, or they are aimed purely at those who just want to share files with no consideration for copyright or other legal issues.
Read MoreFree Your Android is on a mission to unlock your smartphone for ever
We’ve become used to hearing that the Android operating system for smartphones and other devices is a free, open source product. But in fact, that’s not completely true. There are still bits and pieces on every Android phone that are not open and cost someone, somewhere money. Examples usually revolve around addons installed by the manufacturer (e.g. the Sense UI on HTC phones) or the service provider (e.g. all the Vodafone or T-Mobile branded apps).
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