Flock

Flock is a social browser that connects you to Web sites--and to your friends, photos, videos, and more--on the Web. And in its latest version, 2.5, Flock adds new tools that make accessing your favorite social-networking sites--and their features--even easier.

Where most browsers make you go out and find all of the sites and pages you'd like to see on the Web, Flock works in reverse: It brings the information to you. You customize Flock with the various social networks that you use--including Facebook, Twitter, Pownce, and, now, MySpace--and Flock displays a list of your friends in a panel on the left side of the screen. You can see status messages, profile updates, and any photos and videos that have been added. You also can update your own information, and share images and links with your friends by just by dragging and dropping. If you're the type of person who constantly checks Facebook or MySpace, this is the browser for you.

But Flock goes beyond social networks. It also will alert you when you have new messages in your Webmail account or new photos and videos on various media streams that you may subscribe to. You also can directly post blog entries to blogs hosted with Blogger, WordPress, TypePad, and other services.

New features in Flock version 2.5 take aim at two of the Web's most popular social sites: Facebook and Twitter. Flock now lets you use Facebook's chat feature from any browser tab or window; previously, the chat feature didn't work when you navigated away from the actual Facebook site. Also new in this version: the ability to post content and links to your Twitter account from Flock's sidebar. Flock goes beyond social networks. It also will alert you when you have new messages in your Webmail account or new photos and videos on various media streams that you may subscribe to. You also can directly post blog entries to blogs hosted with Blogger, WordPress, TypePad, and other services.

Flock is based on the technology behind the Firefox 3 browser, so it works well for plain old Web browsing, too. But it's designed for so much more than that.

--Liane Cassavoy