Adobe Lightroom for Mac allows both professional and advanced photographers to import, store, organize, edit and export thousands of pictures from one uncluttered interface. You can create sets and collections to store your pictures and add tags to every individual photo. The timeline view at the bottom is a great way to quickly browse through pictures.

Editing tools are located on the right of the Adobe Lightroom for Mac interface. The Library section works wonders to adjust things like white balance, exposure or vibrancy quickly. For advanced editing you'll have to go to the Develop section though. This is where you'll be able to correct details, camera calibration, split toning and more. AAdobe Lightroom for Mac lets you create virtual copies so you can edit elements without affecting the original.

Adobe's photo management tool also includes a section to create your own slideshow, including transitions and overlays. Although it creates nice slideshows it feels a bit counter-intuitive. We also liked how in-depth the print settings were, letting you adjust things like margins or print resolution very precisely. The last section allows you to optimize your photos for the web and create a flash gallery and a postcard viewer among others. It includes integration with sites such as Faceback and Flickr although not Picasa and iPhoto.

Thanks to an excellent structure, advanced editing tools and features to print, publish to web and create a slideshow, Adobe Lightroom for Mac is one of the best photo management programs out there.

Download Adobe Photoshop Lightroom for Mac 4.4 in Softonic

It allows you to synchronize and share photos, videos, music and documents between multiple computers. All you have to do is create an account use the Drobbox for Mac client to create the folder on your Mac. Once you've created an account, you get 2GB of space for free. You have to associate one or more computers to your account and put your data online dragging or copying them into the Dropbox for Mac folder created by the program. Your data is automatically synchronized with your online account, and therefore accessible to all Macs on your network.

Alternatively, you can access files from any Web browser and download the files hosted onto your account. A public folder lets you share files with other people, whether or not they registered with the service offered by Dropbox. The problem is that since Dropbox for Mac synchronizes with your files, it slows down your system considerably and dropping files into it can be painfully slow. Also, it should be easier to find e-mail links that you can link to to send files to friends out side of the Dropbox network.

Dropbox for Mac is a great idea in theory but in reality, it works quite slowly although it's useful for the sharing of really big files.

Download Dropbox for Mac 2.0.12 in Softonic

While comparisons with other similar services – such as Last.fm – are inevitable, Spotify has certain characteristics that make it stand out from the rest. You can search the entire Spotify music database in several ways (by artist, album, genre, decade, label brand…), create as many playlists as you want and share them with other users, and learn more about your favorite bands thanks to extensive, highly detailed biographies. Spotify also helps you discover new music through the “Related artists” and Radio service.

There are three types of Spotify accounts: Free, Unlimited and Premium. Free is limited to 10 hours of free ad-supported a month (approximately 200 songs) and lets you play each song up to five times. Unlimited has no ads and no playback restrictions. Finally, Premium includes high-quality MP3 (also with no ads or restrictions) and also includes an offline mode for playlists.

The one big criticism of Spotify was the lack of social features. Luckily the developers took note of this complaint and include a bunch of new social elements in Spotify’s next version – together with the Library, a centralized area from which you can manage your music collection – including Spotify’s lists and your own MP3 files, which you can now import into Spotify from your hard drive, your Windows Media Player Library or your iTunes library.

The brand new features included in the latest version of Spotify now let you manage and sync the music in your iPod, iPhone or Android. Also, the Spotify mobile app has been made available for anyone, and not just Premium users. Last, but not least, Spotify has launched its MP3 download service, thanks to which you can buy and download individual songs and also your custom playlists. The price depends on the number of songs you want to download – the longer the playlist, the less you pay for each track. You can pay with credit card or Paypal, though the latter is not accepted if you only purchase one song.

Just like a good wine, Spotify gets better with age. If you don’t mind the limitations in the Free version (or you’re willing to pay for the Unlimited/Premium one) it’s probably time to ditch your old desktop music player.

Spotify lets you browse, play, share and buy music, including not only your lifelong favorite bands, but also brand new styles and artists.

Download Spotify 0.9.0.133 in Softonic

iTunes 11 has been completely redesigned from the ground up. Development of iTunes has been stagnant the last few years so Apple needs to get this one right. Has Apple nailed it or is the new iTunes a mess? Read on to find out.

The interface of iTunes has been completely re-imagined. Everything is simpler and space is better utilized. In the previous version of iTunes, there was a persistent bar on the left where you can access playlists, albums, devices, and more. While it provided quick access to those features, most users didn't use them most of the time. Apple has scrapped this and has made the default album view take up the entire window.

Browsing by album is a pleasure. Click on an album and the tracks will show up below. iTunes also analyzes the color of album artwork to create a colored background for each individual album. It works well for the most part but the effect blurs the album art around the edges.

New in iTunes 11 is the "Up Next" feature, which is basically a fancy name for your queue. Add songs to your queue from wherever you are in the interface. You don't need to manage a playlist to arrange and rearrange the tracks to your liking.

Creating playlists is much improved. Instead of having to jump in and out a playlist to add and arrange tracks, playlists now have a dedicated pane on the right where you can manipulate tracks without having to jump around the program.

iCloud integration has also been tightened. Every track you've bought in iTunes will now show up in your music library, whether or not it has been downloaded. Click on it to download the album. User can now also stream directly from the cloud instead of having to download the track first. This also applies to all your TV and movies that were purchased in iTunes. There's also a dedicated tab for iTunes Match, Apple's music matching service to make all of your tracks available across devices, if they're available in the iTunes store.

The iTunes store has also gone through a redesign with featured content up top. Top lists are still there and are easier to browse. iTunes 11 will also allow you to access the iTunes store content from your music library, suggesting similar artists and tracks, without having to take you to the iTunes store.

The mini player has also been completely redesigned and is actually useful now. The mini player has gotten smaller but utilizes that small space much better than previous versions. Player controls will show up with you hover your mouse over the mini player. There's access to search and your Up Next queue can be manipulated from the mini player.

Devices now show up as a button at the top right. Clicking on it will take you to a detailed page where you can manage everything. Choose what you want synced, manage your apps, and even play music directly from your iOS device. Everything is easier to read and comprehend in the device tab.

The only thing missing from iTunes 11 is a music streaming service. iCloud gives users the ability to download tracks locally but not stream them. There is no subscription service in iTunes to compete with the likes of Spotify, Rdio, and Xbox Music. It's only matter of time before Apple releases its own music subscription service but it's disappointing that Apple didn't release it with iTunes 11.

iTunes is still one of the best media players around. It has gotten easier to use, feels less bloated, but is still missing a music subscription service.

Download iTunes 11.0.3 in Softonic

With Skype you can call other Skype users absolutely free wherever they are in the world thanks to P2P technology. Skype brings together the main functions of talk, chat, video, file sharing and screen sharing in one main window. In the latest release, by default your contacts list is on the left with the other basic functions in the main part of the program window making it more streamlined and slicker than previous releases.

New in Skype 5 is the ability to video conference with up to ten participants. Group conferencing has also been made easier thanks to the redesigned call window which means that all distractions (such as other conversations) are minimized and only the names of participants displayed. However, although you can video chat with one contact for free, group video conferencing is now a premium feature which you have to pay for,

Skype features a new contacts list sorted by category and you can add favorites to the top of the list. Searching for them has also been made easier by integrating them with your Mac address book. You can also now rename contacts so that you're not stuck with their default username. Finally, accessing Skype is now easier thanks to a mini Skype control bar that sits on top of any web pages, documents or photos you've got open although some may find this a bit intrusive.

Although the latest Skype adds many improvements, some people may miss the smaller and more discreet interface of Skype 2.8. There is a feeling that the developers have gone a bit over the top in expanding Skype and "hiding" certain features and it will take users of the old version some getting used to. The fact that video conferencing is now a premium feature will also annoy many faithful users.

Finally, most recently Skype was taken over by Microsoft which has led to further integration with Microsoft services among other things. You can now sign into Skype with your Microsoft Live account details for example and chat to MSN contacts online using Skype. There's also been considerable integration with Facebook allowing you to chat and communicate with Facebook contacts from Skype.

The new Skype brings video conferencing and a more intelligent user interface that once you've adapted to, should make Skype an even better way to keep in touch while you're away. However, those that don't like the interface changes will be less than impressed and can still download version 2.8.

Download Skype 6.4.0.833 in Softonic

Powerful but not too complex

Packed with editing features

Surprisingly easy to use

An excellent alternative to After Effects

Download Motion 5.0.7 in Softonic

iMovie '11 works by importing your movie (which for large films has to be in DV format) and then allowing you to cut and paste bits of it together, much as you would with a word processing application. Adding soundtracks is a breeze thanks to integration with iTunes as is images due to integration with iPhoto. Also, if you just want to cut something for YouTube, an integrated uploaded makes sure your creations go online instantly although I sometimes find this fails to upload properly or doesn't tag the video correctly.

There are tons of trailers and templates for you to choose from that make your movie look far more polished that would ordinarily be possible. By the time you've finished, your raw film will look amazingly polished. iMovie '11 can be fussy with formats - it works best with DV format films and trying to import other formats may not work or just crash it completely.

Advanced video editors will find that iMovie '11 lacks specialist editing functions but for most people, iMovie turns you into a pro with minimum effort.

Download iMovie '11 9.0.9 in Softonic

With good reason too. Firefox remains an incredibly powerful and customizable browser although persistent memory leakage problems and competition from Google Chrome have dented its popularity.

There are a few interesting improvements in Firefox 21. There's a new Enhanced three-state UI for Do Not Track (DNT) to enhance privacy protection. Firefox should also start a bit quicker on your Mac as it suggests what can be done to improve start-up time (such as disabling certain unused add-ons). There's also a new Firefox Health Report feature which monitors how stable and well oiled your version of Firefox is. Other than this, there have been some minor cosmetic changes to functionality and some developer focused improvements.

The interface is pretty much the same as previous versions of Firefox, with a minimalist toolbar and there's still no way of removing elements that you may not want such as Java and .Net Framework. The major downside for most users however is that some plug-ins or add-ons won't work with the latest version of Firefox yet - so if you have a lot installed, prepare to be disappointed.

One major problem that persists is the high usage of RAM when Firefox is displaying Flash videos such as YouTube. Firefox runs an extra "Plugin-container" process for Flash videos that can occasionally consume 100% of your CPU and cause your Mac to freeze temporarily.

Something that's been introduced in more recent versions of Mozilla Firefox is Facebook integration. Firefox now supports Facebook's social API so you can have dedicated buttons for Facebook in your browser. Mozilla Firefox supports Facebook's Messenger within Firefox, giving users desktop notifications as well as a persistent friends list and activity feed on the right. Conversations will open up as overlays on top of whatever website you're on so you can multitask while you chat.

Mozilla Firefox 20 isn't a revolution in the development of Firefox, but there are some useful improvements that still make it a decent browser.

Download Mozilla Firefox for Mac 21.0 in Softonic

Flip4Mac has been completely rewritten to meet the new requirements in OS X 10.7 and 10.8. Flip4Mac 3.0 includes an option to install Microsoft Silverlight which is Microsoft's answer to Adobe Flash although you don't have to install it. However, it's useful to have it as some video streaming events on the net use Silverlight to deliver content.

First some background to Flip4Mac. WMV is Microsoft's own video format which by default, won't play on Macs since Apple's own video format is QuickTime. The most common solution for users has been to install a multimedia player such as VLC media player or a plugin such as Perian or Flip4Mac which both allow QuickTime to play WMV files. However, with Perian only supporting older versions of WMA and now no longer being developed, Flip4Mac is set to become the most logical choice for users, especially because it is officially endorsed by Microsoft and effectively, the official Windows Media Player for Mac.

Flip4Mac 3.0 is not just a plugin for QuickTime however. For the first time, it introduces its own player - Flip Player - but it will still allow you to view WMV videos in QuickTime. The difference from the previous version of Flip4Mac however is that it now leaves a watermark in the top right-hand corner of QuickTime although Telestream say they hope this will be gone when the public beta is released. Flip Player doesn't feature this watermark with the additional bonus that it has some powerful added extras although many of them are only available in the Pro version.

The free version of Flip Player in Flip4Mac 3.0 is very clean in appearance and does a good job of not obscuring video content during playback as there are no overlay controls. Instead, the player controls only appear when you move the mouse cursor over it. Flip Player also includes a new "Dim Lights" feature which neatly darkens everything around it so that you focus on just the video. Playback controls are enhanced with slow motion options and most functions can be performed using keyboard shortcuts.

Among the more powerful features of the basic version of Flip Player are the ability to Crop, Rotate, Scale and Trim video which is not possible in QuickTime X. You can also now convert and export WMV video for iMovie and Final Cut Pro but without creating quality damaging H.264 files. Instead, a native AIC (Apple Intermediate Codec) file is created for iMovie to avoid additional transcoding when importing. For Final Cut Pro users, it creates a ProRes file that automatically sets the correct dimensions and native video codec that fit with project settings. You can even export sound from your favorite videos to an iPhone ringtone and use the trimming features to refine it.

If you want to change the general plugin settings of Flip4Mac 3.0, they can be accessed at the bottom of your Mac system preferences under "Other". There are several different configurations options including for the Flip Player media browser, upgrade, update and plugin settings.

Note that Flip4Mac 3.0 no longer supports OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard (although version 2.4.4 still does) as its been designed for the new demands of Lion and Mountain Lion such as Gatekeeper aimed at making Macs more secure. The benefit of this is that Flip4Mac 3.0 features much improved 64-bit support for OS X 10.7 and 10.8 although the QuickTime video components have remained 32-bit due to the QuickTime component architecture. However, audio codecs are 64-bit now.

Overall, the introduction of Flip Player is the major innovation in Flip4Mac 3.0. It offers some powerful features that aren't available in the free version of QuickTime, and it's very well designed to suit the look of OS X. However, it lacks some of the features of QuickTime (such as screen recording) and some users may feel it's not quite as slick as Apple's own player.

Flip4Mac 3.0 remains a powerful solution for anyone that needs to play WMV and Windows Media on their Mac and the introduction of Flip Player is a significant enhancement that makes managing WMV files on Mac easier than ever.

Download Flip4Mac for Lion/Mountain Lion 3.2.0.16 in Softonic

Not a replacement for Photoshop

Simple but powerful image editor

"The image editor for humans"

Feature packed with high quality results

Perfect for those intimidated by Photoshop

Download Acorn 4.0.3 in Softonic

In the same vein as other open source productivity suites like OpenOffice.org, LibreOffice boasts a comprehensive set of office management tools arguably on par with Microsoft Office itself. LibreOffice offers six different office management tools to meet your project management needs: Text Document, Spreadsheet, Presentation, Drawing, Database, and Formula.

Text Document is relatively synonymous with Microsoft Word, where Spreadsheet is like Excel. Presentation mirrors Microsoft's PowerPoint, and Database is similar to Access. Then you also have two additional programs in Drawing and Formula, which are an added bonus to the entire package. LibreOffice is compatible with Microsoft Office's document formats and also supports PDFs natively. It also has its own document format called Open Document.

Unfortunately, if you're unfamiliar with Microsoft Office products, this program might take a little additional time to get used to, particularly if you want to master some of its more advanced features. Regular Microsoft Office users will find LibreOffice's interface quite similar, however, and should pick up on how to use its various programs without too much difficulty.

A great alternative to Microsoft Office, LibreOffice is a must-try for managing your various office projects.

Download LibreOffice 4.0.3 in Softonic

It's recommended that you have a Core Image supported graphics card when you use Pixelmator, and you'll understand why after experiencing the smooth transitions and flowing movements of the different elements of the application. The dark, slightly transparent look of the interface also sets it apart from other image editors.

Pixelmator is an excellent image editor in a gorgeous interface. It may not offer Photoshop shortcuts, nor all of the effects you can find in Adobe's image editing app, but Pixelmator looks great, is very intuitive and has pretty much all the effects and filters you'd need.

Download Pixelmator 2.2 in Softonic

Note that this version is for Intel Macs only. If you don't have an Intel Mac running OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard or later, you can also download Adobe Flash 10 for PPC Macs and Adobe Flash 9 for Mac OS X 10.1-10.3.

The long awaited Adobe Flash Player 11, introduces a host of new features which make Flash even more potent and powerful than before and it's developers that really have something to cheer about. These include new expressive features and visual performance improvements that allow interactive designers and developers to build even richer and impressive Web videos.

To get a taste of what I mean, once you’ve installed Flash Player 11, view the interactive demos to see the new 3D engine put through its paces. It's the new 3D possibilities that are the most exciting aspect of this release, but that's bolstered by some new custom filters and effects, advanced ways of laying out text and enhanced sound APIs. Indeed, the sound from Adobe Flash Player 11 is one of the most notable improvements resembling something closer to Dolby Surround Sound.

One of the essential accessories for internet browsing and videos, if you haven't installed Adobe Flash Player yet then you're in for a treat.

Download Adobe Flash Player for Intel Macs 11.8.800.42 in Softonic

Allowing developers to create new web applications using HTML, XML, JavaScript and Flex, Adobe AIR is a truly flexible and multi-faceted tool. Developers are not limited to using Adobe's library either. Instead they can create, share and use their own in order to create web applications of their choosing.

If you're a general Mac user, Adobe AIR gives you access to new and exciting rich internet applications (RIA). These can be run straight from your desktop, which is highly convenient. These types of programs also use very little memory, generally launch quickly and possess very slick looking animations and graphics. All you have to do is take a quick peek at Adobe's Showcase Gallery to see just exactly what's being developed for Adobe AIR. Some of these innovations include a Google Analytics reporting suite, a Twitter desktop client and a movie directory tool.

It is possible that Adobe AIR might give you some errors, particularly when it comes to installing new apps.

Overall, users will likely be impressed with Adobe AIR's ease of use and the impressive looking apps that are being created for it.

Download Adobe AIR 3.8.0.370 in Softonic

Previously Google had a variety of different services that connected to each other. Now Google has released Google Drive which integrates Google Docs, Google+, and a cloud storage service into one.

While Gmail and Google+ are still separate from Drive, Google Docs was renamed to Drive with the addition of a free 5 GB of online storage. Like Dropbox, it adds a shortcut to your Windows Explorer so you can drag-and-drop files.

Once added, they are uploaded to your online account. Any type of file can be uploaded and are then accessible through the currently available Android app or online. The integration of storage with documents allows you to work with larger assets like images and video.

Friends can comment on anything you have uploaded, adding another level of social interaction. Drive is comparable to other cloud storage services, but the added connection to your Google account makes the unified system much easier to use. You can purchase more storage for extra space if necessary.

Google Drive has a lot of potential, but there is still room for improvement.

Download Google Drive for Mac 1.9.4536.8202 in Softonic

Note that this version is for PPC Macs OS X 10.4+ only. You must unzip the archive and choose the Mac OS X folder to install. If you have an Intel Mac running OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard or later, you can download Flash for Intel Macs or if you're running an older version of OS X, you can download Flash for OS X 10.4-10.5.

The long awaited Adobe Flash Player 10, introduces a host of new features which make Flash even more potent and powerful than before and it's developers that really have something to cheer about. These include new expressive features and visual performance improvements that allow interactive designers and developers to build even richer and impressive Web videos.

To get a taste of what I mean, once you’ve installed Flash Player 10, view the interactive demos to see the new 3D engine put through its paces. It's the new 3D possibilities that are the most exciting aspect of this release, but that's bolstered by some new custom filters and effects, advanced ways of laying out text and enhanced sound APIs. Indeed, the sound from Adobe Flash Player 11 is one of the most notable improvements resembling something closer to Dolby Surround Sound.

Note that because this is an old version of Flash for PPC Macs, it may be subject to security holes and its advised that you upgrade to an Intel Mac.

One of the essential accessories for internet browsing and videos, if you haven't installed Adobe Flash Player for Mac yet then you're in for a treat.

Download Adobe Flash Player for PPC Macs 11.8.800.42 in Softonic

Interesting alternative to Skype and Messages

Rock-solid syncing with mobile devices

Slick, easy to use interface

Reliable syncing and good quality video

A solid IM and VoIP client

Download Viber 3.0.0 in Softonic

Learn to use The Force

First and third person perspectives

Optimized for MacBook Pros

Superb graphics and sound

A must for Star Wars fans

Download Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Knight Academy in Softonic

It's fully integrated with iPhoto, Aperture and Adobe Lightroom and does an impressive job of removing duplicated photos. It features a very slick interface and fits in very well with OS X. It also gives you greater peace of mind if you edit photos with applications, such PhotoShop, Pixelmator and are worried they may have merged with your current collection.

PhotoSweeper uses 6 different methods to find similar or duplicate photos, even those edited in external programs such Photoshop. PhotoSweeper is very fast at finding duplicates even with large collections. You can regroup results on-the-fly by changing a matching level of similarity. You can preview images, drag and drop them, display ratings, labels and much more.

Note that PhotoSweeper is generally extremely reliable at finding the right duplicates but it should be used with care and you should backup your collection in case it deletes photos that you want to keep.

Overall, PhotoSweeper is a very effective tool for finding duplicate photos.

Download PhotoSweeper 1.9.3 in Softonic

How to get started in Minecraft

Your world in Minecraft is randomly generated, and you appear in a land surrounded by water, with mountains, valleys, trees and animals. It's not clear what to do except explore to begin with but as the sun sets, monsters appear, who will kill you. Survival is impossible in the open, so you need to build a shelter to hide out in for the first night.

Collecting wood from trees, coal and stone from cliffs, you have to use your inventory to create tools, planks and more. Once you know how, mining and building is pretty quick, and you can create some really cool structures.

Minecraft realms

A new realm has been added to Minecraft, which allows faster travel through the huge worlds. Called The Nether, it resembles Hell, and is full of flowing lava and monsters. You can access The Nether using portals made from Obsidian you have mined. Also, when you create a new Minecraft world, it will now be more varied, with 'biomes' of different landscape, like desert, tundra and snow. NPC (non player characters) now roam villages, which can serve as early shelters for you at night, if you can find them!

Version 1.0 has some nice cosmetic changes, including an HD texture pack, better lighting from torches and even prettier sunsets and sunrises! The game launcher also looks better. There is now a 'Creative Mode', which makes you invincible, gives you unlimited resources, allows you to fly, and fast forward/rewind time! This mode is ideal for players who just want to get on and build cool stuff, without worrying about staying alive.

Minecraft is a wonderfully inventive sandbox game that really deserves the title, as your creation in it is only limited by your imagination and time!

Download Minecraft 1.5.2 in Softonic