Astraware has a history of producing good quality puzzle games and some of these will always have a place on my smartphone- Text Twist, Bejeweled 2 and Big Money, to name but three. Westward is a whole new ball game and one that attempts to grow out of your phone, and create an environment so immersive that you could actually forget that you are sat in a Doctor's surgery or on a conference call. So, the question is whether it acheives the nigh impossible task of bringing a 'big' game to the small screen.

I have tested Westward on a Centro and an expansion card is recommended because the prc file weighs in at over 2MB. This is not big by today's standards, but may stretch the more limited Palm PDAs and smartphones. When you first open the game, the real shock is that the entire game fits into less than 3MB of space. You are greeted with a classic western style soundtrack and througout the game this theme continues, with American old style yee haa music to get you in the mood for building towns from the days when Mary Ingles was not blind.

The tutorial is excellent and one of the best that I have seen in any game. There is a lot to remember, but it is carefully thought out and takes you through the main steps visually. Your hand is held at each stage and whilst this may frustrate the more impatient of you reading this, it really does work and I would recommend a few minutes of your time to learn how to play the game properly.

In essence, the game is based on building communities and this is done by controlling various characters who can utilise natural products to repair and create new buildings. I must admit to not aving got too far into the game, but I keep coming back to it for more. The graphics and animations are some of the best I have seen on a smartphone and they certainly add a touch of realism to the interface, and strangely drag you in before you are aware that you will never get back the hour you just spent playing it.

On a screen the size of the Centro, the amount of information on screen can be hard to fathom initially, but it soon fits into place and almost feels alive. The animations are detailed to the point that I still struggle to understand how they created them. It should be impossible to produce such clarity in such a small space, but Westward gives Warfare Inc. a run for it's money when it comes to building an arcade quality world on, of all things, a phone!

This will be part one of my Westward review because I have only played it for two hours so far. Two hours would normally be more than enough time to offer a comprehensive and detailed review for most games, but I feel like I haven't scratched the surface yet.

My initial thoughts are that Westward could be Astraware's best game yet, and that is saying something considering the history of games produced by this developer.

Available from Astraware for Palm OS and Windows Mobile Pocket PC / Smartphone.

It's that time again. Scotland play England on Saturday in the Six Nations Rugy Union Championship.

All you have to do is use the comments link below to guess the total number of points that will be scored in the match. The person nearest the total will take home $25 of free software from our Palm or Windows Mobile software stores. If Scotland win (no chance!), the prize will go up to $40!

Links: Palm Store / Windows Mobile Store

Alongside the launch of the official new SBSH Mobile Software web-site earlier this week, we are excited to invite you today to take part in our Shakin' It With SBSH activity and get a chance to win your own professional SBSH Cocktail Shaker!

SBSH Mobile Software new web-site introduce many new advanced utilities that ensure ease of use and confident navigation experience, such as: Device-Based and Platform-Based navigation helping users to find applications designed for their mobile device easily, automated RSS news feeds for new application updates and announcements and much more!

Starting March 5th thru the next two weeks (may vary between different web-sites) we'll be giving away 50 SBSH professional cocktail shakers with our different web-site partners! Wanna get ready for the hot summer? Take part in this exciting opportunity and you might become the owner of a shiny new SBSH Cocktail Shaker!

All you have to do is tell us which SBSH application you like the most, or your thoughts on the best things about SBSH via the comments link below.

Google added another option today that lets you sync your Google Calendar with Microsoft Outlook Calendar. You can sync your calendars either one way or both ways and check your Google Calendar in an offline mode in Outlook. This announcement appeared in the Google Calendar’s “What’s New Page”.

With Google Calendar Sync, you will be able to sync events between Google Calendar and Outlook Calendar. You can download the program here (.exe file). Once you start the program it will ask you to enter the e-mail address and password (as shown in the picture below).

You have to specify whether you want one way or bi-directional sync between the two calendars and also you need to specify the time interval between the sync.

To know more about this installation setup follow this easy to do instructions.

Since we have multiple calendars in both Outlook as well as in Google, with this Sync program, you can only sync your main calendar (default calendar) between the two.

Another advantage with this feature is once you sync your Google Calendar with Outlook Calendar, then it becomes easy to sync it with your mobiles like Palm, Windows Mobile based handhelds. Thanks to Chris.

Americans have become more dependent on their cell phones than conventional phones.

For the first time, Americans say they would have more trouble giving up a cell phone than a traditional phone, the Pew Internet and American Life Project said in a report Wednesday. Less than two years earlier, respondents still considered their landlines the most crucial technology.

"The preferences have flipped," said John Horrigan, author of the new Pew report. "During that timeframe, people have gotten new devices that have more capabilities. People have more experience using cell phones for text messaging and other information tools. That has helped pushed cell phones as `go to' devices." More at Yahoo.

Today's free eBook is Kiosk- "THE FABRIKATOR WAS UGLY, noisy, a fire hazard, and it smelled. Borislav got it for the kids in the neighborhood.

One snowy morning, in his work gloves, long coat, and fur hat, he loudly power-sawed through the wall of his kiosk. He duct-taped and stapled the fabrikator into place.
   
The neighborhood kids caught on instantly. His new venture was a big hit.
   
The fabrikator made little plastic toys from 3-D computer models. After a week, the fab's dirt-cheap toys literally turned into dirt. The fabbed toys just crumbled away, into a waxy, non-toxic substance that the smaller kids tended to chew.
   
Borislav had naturally figured that the brief lifetime of these toys might discourage the kids from buying them. This just wasn't so. This wasn't a bug: this was a feature. Every day after school, an eager gang of kids clustered around Borislav's green kiosk. They slapped down their tinny pocket change with mittened hands. Then they exulted, quarreled, and sometimes even punched each other over the shining fab-cards."