The 12 Best Free Photoshop Plugins for Designers

While Adobe Photoshop is a powerful, creative platform, using plugins can help to extend its capabilities and use it to its full potential. Using an add-on can help you perform tedious or difficult tasks in a more efficient manner, enabling you to spend more time on design.
There are thousands of plugins to choose from, but many are outdated and no longer work with updated versions of Photoshop. We've collected the best free plugins you can download, install and start using right away.

See also: 12 Premium Photoshop Plugins for Designers

We focus on a variety of free plugins best suited to web and graphic design, to help you work faster and more productively. The plugins can help with a range of functions, including layer control, exporting assets, icon exploration, guides and fonts.

Explainer: What is the Internet of Things and why should you care?

There's been a lot of talk about the "internet of things" lately. It was big news at this year's CES, and Google's sudden purchase of Nest made the whole internet sit up a bit straighter and pay a bit more attention.
But it's got a stupid name which, depending on your point of view, either makes no sense at all or makes a tiny bit of sense but still really doesn't make sense.
It could mean basically anything, and it could mean basically anything too.
So what does it all MEAN?
Over the past few weeks, TechRadar has been trying to answer that question. We've looked at the past, present and future of the connected everything.
Should we be terrified of the spam in our fridges? Will ISPs be able to cope with all these things joining the internet? Regardless, it looks like the concept is here to stay since it adds up to big money for governments.
So, come on. Get geared up, set your toaster to stun and dive in to our comprehensive look at what the Internet of Things is and what it means for you.

What the devil is it?

• What is the Internet of Things?

• Why the Internet of Things will change all of our lives

• From Apple to appliances: how Nest is making everyday items relevant again

Should we be worried?

• The Internet of Bad Things: Time to get paranoid about your fridge

• Smart devices? Most manufacturers can barely make simple ones

• The Internet of Things is nothing to fear

• Vint Cerf is worried about intelligent fridge dystopia

What about security and privacy?

• Archos thinks the Internet of Things is a wild west that desperately needs a sheriff

• ARM says you need to take your data back

What does the future hold?

• Beyond the Internet of Things: the amazing tech that's coming next

• Why did Google buy Nest?

• The Internet of Things is a big deal for Bluetooth

• "We've probably got one of the largest IoT platforms in the world": Razer CEO talks Internet of Things

What does the IOT mean for businesses?

• What can the Internet of Things do for SMBs?

• IOT is a bandwagon businesses should jump on early, says ARM

Study: Men Prefer Microsoft Over Apple

Men don't think there's anything soft about Microsoft, according to a new survey that finds the software brand resonates more with men than Apple does.
The survey, based on 1,509 interviews in November 2013 conducted by Annalect, found that Microsoft held that title among men Boomer men and Millennial men, and was No. 2 (behind Nike) for male Gen-Xers:

See also: Man Turns Wife's Shopping Trips Into Hilarious Game

Apple wasn't far behind, except among Boomer men, who rated Apple No. 5 in terms of resonance. Pamela Marsh, director of primary research and insights for Annalect, speculated that marketing buildup for Microsoft's Xbox One launch, which took place during the survey, may have influenced the results. 'We found that in October and November, Microsoft outspent all the other brands listed,' she said. Marsh was citing Nielsen figures estimating advertising spending

New Samsung Galaxy S5 Details Emerge in Big Leak

New Samsung Galaxy S5 Details Emerge in Big Leak is a post by Adam Mills from Gotta Be Mobile.
Thanks to new alleged Samsung Galaxy S5 benchmarks, we have some new Samsung Galaxy S5 details to share ahead of the device’s upcoming launch which is reportedly going to arrive on February 24th, the same day that Samsung has scheduled its Unpacked 5 Episode 1 event at Mobile World Congress 2014.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 continues to leak and those leaks continue to reveal, and confuse, ahead of the expected Galaxy S5 launch date later on this month. Much of that confusion is thanks to purported Galaxy S5 benchmarks that have emerged in recent days, showing off a conflicting set of specifications that could be on board the real Galaxy S5 when it arrives.

Last week, a leak made a mess of Samsung Galaxy S5 rumors and today’s leak doesn’t clean anything up. Instead, the AnTuTu benchmarks for alleged Galaxy S5 variants, discovered by SamMobile, only add to the intrigue surrounding the Galaxy S5 and fuel rumors that point to two Galaxy S5 models.
Rumors and predictions from well respected KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo have suggested that Samsung will be introducing two Galaxy S5 variants, one premium and one budget. It’s still not clear what the major differences will be though a new benchmark seems to shed some light on what we could possibly see from two Samsung Galaxy S5 models.

These new AnTuTu benchmarks are for a SM-G900H and an SM-G900R4. The model number SM-G900 is recognized as a likely model number for the Samsung Galaxy S5 which means that these variants could be associated with the Galaxy S5. Better yet, they come sporting features that rumors have placed on board the Galaxy S5.

What’s interesting though is that these two devices are completely different in that they sport differing specification, something that has been rumored to be the case for Samsung’s two Galaxy S5 variants. Here is how these two devices breakdown in these two, newly discovered leaked AnTuTu benchmarks.
Samsung’s SM-G900R4 is the premium model as it sports higher-end specifications:

• QHD (2560×1400) Resolution Display
• 16MP Rear Camera
• 2.1 Front-Facing Camera
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 Processor
• 3GB of RAM
• Android 4.4.2 KitKat
• 32GB Internal Storage

The SM-G900H model in question has a different set of specifications, specifications that seem to suggest that this could be a budget, or perhaps just another version of the device:

• Full HD (1920×1080) resolution display
• 16MP Rear Camera
• 2.1MP Front-Facing Camera
• Octa-core Samsung Exynos 5422 SoC
• 2GB of RAM
• Android 4.4.2 KitKat
• 16GB of Storage

Keep in mind, benchmarks can be manipulated and faked and that they can be for early versions of a device, something that makes them less reliable than other leaks. That said, these features match up with many of the rumors that we’ve heard about the Samsung Galaxy S5, something that makes them a little more believable than other benchmarks.
A report last week from The New York Times explicitly said that Samsung would not include a QHD display on the Galaxy S5, something that went against just about every Galaxy S5 rumor and prediction. And while this benchmark seems to lessen than report’s credibility, nothing in the world of the Galaxy S5 is confirmed.

The Samsung Galaxy S5 remains a bit of a mystery in the build up to its inevitable launch date. Conflicting rumors have managed to keep watchful eyes enthralled and glued to a device that is already one of the most talked about smartphones of the year.
Samsung typically keeps its flagship designs out of sight, something that it has thus far accomplished with the Galaxy S5 design, but very rarely do we see this amount of conflict with the feature of a Galaxy S device ahead of launch. Historically, the feature set has firmed up well ahead of the launch date.
With just a few weeks to go, it’s not clear if this will happen with the Galaxy S5. Rumors point to a launch on February 24th alongside a Galaxy Gear 2 though Samsung still hasn’t said what it will be announcing at its Unpacked 5 launch event.

OneDrive revamp introduces co-owned folders for simpler file sharing

Images of Microsoft's revamped OneDrive cloud storage have been leaked online, giving us a first glimpse of its new features.
The screenshots were unveiled by Microsoft news site LiveSide, showcasing the as yet unlaunched OneDrive.com experience.
While on the surface the screenshots may appear to be little more than a rebranded SkyDrive, a requirement after Microsoft lost a lawsuit with BSkyB over the "Sky" trademark, the pictures reveal some new functionality.
The biggest change to OneDrive is the ability to have co-ownership of folders, a step up from simply sharing documents. Users can assign friends, family or colleagues as co-owners of a folder, which will give them the right to add, edit, or delete files, perfect for collaborative work.

Getting personal

The key difference between co-ownership and regular file sharing is that co-owned folders will act like personal folders to all users with the relevant rights. This lets users sync them to their PC, providing valuable offline access and backup.
LiveSide reports that there are more new features in the works for OneDrive, which are expected to be leaked in the coming days.
There's no word yet on a launch date for OneDrive.

• How cloud storage can help your business

High-Tech Business Cards Digitize Contact Info With a Tap

Despite the high-tech tools we use to conduct business, in-person networking still feels instinctive, albeit old school. You won't find startup founders swapping contact info by bumping smartphones. Instead, they solidify their exchanges with business cards — a lo-fi tradition that hasn't changed much since its origins in European aristocracy.
TouchBase Technologies, an MIT startup that made a splash at last year's DreamIt Ventures accelerator, has proposed a new option that falls somewhere between a traditional business card and the mostly unpopular digital alternatives already on the market

Facebook Is Watching How You Watch TV

Facebook has given the world its first peek at the trove of user data that will compete with Twitter's firehose in the budding social media analytics market.
In a report produced in conjunction with social media television analytics firm SecondSync, Facebook breaks down anonymized user data surrounding television shows by a variety of measures such as types of interaction, demographics, device and genre.

See also: How to See When Someone Unfriends You on Facebook

The release provides an initial look at information that previously was used almost exclusively by Facebook itself to provide targeted advertisements and 'Sponsored Stories.