Pdf to Doc

You've got a lot of options out there, but I'm going to recommend Nitro PDF to Word They sell a professional converter program, but their free web service works very well if you don't have a massive number of documents to convert.

Go to the web page, tell it what file you want to convert, select the format you want it converted to (.doc or .rtf), and to what email address you want it mailed.

You'll soon get two emails. One will try to convince you to subscribe ( you don't have to). The other is your pdf.

I tried it with some pretty complicated .pdfs. The formatting, while not always perfect, was always close. More important for editing purposes, the text flowed properly in the correct order.

And if the fact that they require your email address bothers you, their privacy policy is short, simple, and promises that they will behave.

Why Is Microsoft So Scared of OpenOffice?

Microsoft and its supporters have a long history of applying all kinds of FUD to any discussion of free and open source software. Whether it's Linux or other free alternatives to Microsoft's high-priced products, it seems no conversation can take place without the inevitable insinuations about higher total cost of ownership, lack of support, and other baseless fearmongering.

Such claims are, of course, nothing more than deliberately perpetuated myths designed to scare customers into Redmond's malware-infested arms, as I recently pointed out.

This week, however, we have a shining new example: A video on YouTube designed specifically to attack OpenOffice.org.

Could the sweat on Steve Ballmer's brow be any more evident?

Running Scared

It has been clear for some time now that free and open source software has Microsoft running scared. Last year, for instance, the company made plain the fact that it was worried about Linux's growing popularity and the detrimental effect that might have on the Windows empire.

And no wonder: Given the high prices, malware risks, and vendor lock-in associated with Microsoft's products, it has plenty to fear. Linux blows Windows away on both the desktop and the server--let's not even mention Microsoft's mobile track record--and open source productivity applications are apparently putting a serious dent in Microsoft's bottom line too.

Why else would the company bother to create this FUD-filled video? Titled "A Few Perspectives on OpenOffice.org," it features a series of "horror stories" from customers who tried the open productivity suite and purportedly suffered as a result.

‘Exorbitant Cost, Limited Support'

"We originally installed Linux-based PCs running OpenOffice to save money in the short term," an unseen voice begins. "But we quickly found that the exorbitant cost and limited availability of support left us worse off."

Such concerns, of course, play upon the fourth and eighth myths described in my recent post on the topic, and are straight out of Microsoft's standard playbook. They also fly in the face of the fact that OpenOffice.org has set download records on new releases, and likely accounts for about 10 percent of the overall office suite market today. I guess all those millions of users are just suffering in silence!

A Better Alternative

Today, of course, there's not just OpenOffice.org--which Oracle recently pledged to continue supporting--but also LibreOffice, as well as a number of other business productivity alternatives. Amid all the increasing competition, one glaring question emerges: If Microsoft Office is so superior, better-supported and cheaper, then why the desperate attack video?

The answer is simple: Microsoft's products aren't superior, better-supported or cheaper. They're flaw-ridden, vulnerable and expensive, and they lock your company into a future of more of the same.

Apple Designs Solar-powered iPhones

Apple may be planning to develop solar-powered iPhones, suggested in patent filings that describe putting solar cells on portable devices and on iPods.

This isn't the first attempt to bring solar power to iPhones. As you may remember, in May, Dexim brought us the DCA19 P-Flip, a solar-powered battery and dock for the iPhone 3G and 3GS. The most recent patent filed by Apple was on Touch Sensor Integrated Solar Panels on media players.

While the next couple of iPhones may not incorporate solar cells, given the recent patent applications by Apple, it's intuitive to realize that the company is looking to put more and more devices on solar power and eventually include iPhones. According to the patent application for solar cells on portable devices, Apple would completely cover the device in a thin film layer of solar cells, even the display.

According to Gizmodo, Motorola has considered fusing solar cells with LCDs. This would make your device even more efficient, because no matter which way you had it oriented in the sun, it would always be harnessing the power of the sun.

If Apple can cover your iPod or other devices completely in solar panels, then surely they can make a highly efficient solar powered phone. If not, you could always get a solar charging case . . .

Motorola's 2GHz Android Phone Means Business

Motorola's turning up the heat on the smartphone market -- and this time, it's not only casual consumers the company's eyeing.

Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha announced plans for a 2GHz Android smartphone during a presentation in Chicago this week. The superpowered phone, he said, should hit store shelves before the year's end.

A 2GHz chip would give Motorola's new Android phone twice the processing power of any smartphone available today: The market's current top-of-the-line devices, including the HTC EVO 4G and the iPhone 4, use 1GHz chips. According to Jha, that extra punch could let the smartphone take on a whole new kind of role in the realm of mobile business.
Motorola's Android Phone Future

The talk surrounding Motorola's 2GHz Android phone is what's most telling. Jha, according to widely cited reports, predicted that traditional mobile computers have only a few more years of life within the corporate environment. Businesses, he reportedly said, will soon start handing out high-end smartphones in place of notebooks to their employees.

That's precisely where devices like the 2GHz smartphone could come into play. Such devices, Jha is quoted as saying, would allow people to have "faster and faster access to information." The added processing speed would allow for smooth multitasking of enterprise-oriented applications, including resource-heavy programs such as remote desktop utilities and video conferencing tools.

The complete specs of Motorola's 2GHz Android phone haven't been released, but rumors suggest the device could include a Nvidia Tegra-based graphics processor with full Flash 10.1 hardware acceleration. It's also said to have a high-definition display and support for 720p video output.

Motorola and the Android Appeal

Android's flexible interface already allows for ample customization, and with Android 2.2 on the horizon, a high-end Android smartphone like Motorola's could gain even greater enterprise appeal.

Google's updated version of its Android operating system boasts several new business-friendly features, including such security-minded additions as remote wipe for administrators, minimum password settings, and lock-screen timeout. Android 2.2 also incorporates auto-account-discovery and calendar sync for Exchange and global address list look-up within the phone-based e-mail application.