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A number of people really want to use the latest in technology, but they just feel held back by a lack of understanding toward the programs. One of the best way for them to overcome this problem is to just get Microsoft Office training. Microsoft Office practically runs the world. If they get a good overview of the programs in the suite, then they will know how to build presentations, databases, and write. That should be all the basics that they really need.

This isn’t that easy for everyone though. Some people have rough schedules or face a tough drive to the local training center. They need a good way to train on their own schedule without leaving the home. This is where the Microsoft Office training CD comes into play. This is a way to teach them everything that they need to know while they are using the computer. If they can put the disc in the drive, then they are set. The CD contains lessons, examples, and simulations to walk them through all the little problems that they could face. Once it is all said and done, they should be just fine. If nothing else, it is a really great way to get them past any initial fear of technology.

Games are increasingly serious business, apparently serious enough to convince the U.S. Army to green light a dedicated video games unit and earmark $50 million over five years for game-related projects to enhance soldier combat-readiness. Funding for this new “games for training” program begins in 2010.

“The Army takes this seriously,” said Lt. Col. Gary Stephens, product manager for air and ground tactical trainers at Project Executive Office — Simulation Training and Instrumentation (PEO-STRI), reports Stars and Stripes. “We own gaming for the Army — from requirements through procurement.”

Acknowledging the games industry’s multibillion clout, Stephens says the Army wants “to take advantage of that,” but doesn’t intend to compete in that capacity. “We don’t have the intent or capability to be a commercial game house,” he said, adding that the Army’s gaming unit will instead monitor industry trends and identify technology appropriate for military training.

It’s not clear from the Stripes piece how or even if the program relates to America’s Army, the self-billed “official game of the U.S. Army.” America’s Army, a tactical first-person shooter based on variable flavors of Unreal engine technology, launched in July 2002 as a public relations and recruiting tool for the U.S. Army. It’s been the subject of numerous popular and academic articles, many questioning whether the game improperly blurs the line between entertainment and war.

The Army already uses an alternative commercial first-person shooter based on Codemasters‘ Operation Flashpoint technology to train soldiers. The Army says it’s shipped over 3,000 copies of the game — called DARWARS Ambush! and designed to quickly allow soldier-authored training scenarios — since the project launched in 2003.

What’s next? Something called “Game After Ambush,” a move to update DARWARS Ambush! with a low-cost, visually modern, more flexible training tool based on an off-the-shelf product. “We have an impending award announcement for the contract that we will make in the next couple of weeks,” said Stephens.

The new game, which can play out in virtual battle spaces up to 100 x 100 kilometers, will attempt to simulate everything from urban area and convoy ops to contact reaction and ambush tactics. It’s also designed to interface with the Army’s real world battle command system (ABCS), which it uses to track actual equipment, enemies, and friendly forces. Imagine soldiers at desks training soldiers in the field, all linked through systems capable of simulating battlefield scenarios, and you’ve got the basic idea.

By September 2009, the Army expects to have 70 gaming systems distributed across 53 locations in the United States, Germany, Italy and South Korea, according to Leslie Duvow, project director for gaming at PEO-STRI. “Each system will consist of 52 computers with ancillary equipment including steering wheels, headsets and mice,” she said.

My take: Given the U.S. government’s deranged money-management mentality, some of you might feel less than enthused about all this based on that $50M price tag. Understandable, but consider that the Army’s DARWARS project reportedly saved the military money measured against the costs of traditional simulation trainers. It also saves in operational expenditures, say the tens of thousands of dollars in ammunition soldiers can blow through in a single day. Sounds like an attempt to be more efficient with asymmetric technology to me.

Touchscreen phone users are discovering that much of the fun in their devices stems from applications — those little nuggets of convenience, amusement and distraction available for download on the slightest whim.

A good example is Google Inc’s newly updated Mobile App for Apple Inc’s iPhone, which has been generating a lot of buzz for one main reason: voice search.

Want to find the nearest pizza place, showtimes for the James Bond movie “Quantum of Solace,” or the latest Bruce Springsteen video? Google voice search is uncannily accurate.

But it has obvious limitations, particularly with names. Say “Barack Obama” and you get a full page of data. Try “Emile Zatopek,” the famed Czech distance runner? Forget about it.

Of course, there are many applications available for download on all sorts of mobile phones, but touchscreen devices have emerged as consumer favorites.

While the mobile app race is still in its infancy, the iPhone is already well ahead of rivals such as Research in Motion Ltd’s BlackBerry and T-Mobile’s G1, which features Google’s Android operating system.

But competition is going to get more intense. RIM’s touch-screen Storm was launched last week, although its app store won’t open until next year. The Android app store opened for business last month but so far hasn’t generated nearly the momentum of the iPhone app store, which went live in July.

In the first two months, iPhone users downloaded 100 million apps, choosing from among thousands of options. The programs, the vast majority offered by third-party developers under the watchful eye of Apple, run the gamut from utterly frivolous time-wasters to the surprisingly useful.

In addition, many handy iPhone apps are available for free, not a small consideration in these troubled economic times.

FOR FOODIES, ECO-CONSCIOUS, MUSIC LOVERS

The free Shazam mobile app is now available on the Android platform, following its successful debut on the iPhone. The program has developed a devoted following among music lovers as it seeks to solve the age-old question: “What is the name of that song?”

If you hear a song playing — on the radio, or blasting from a car stereo — and want to know more, launch Shazam and the program will capture the song, check it against its database and display the song information.

Another popular free app for the iPhone is offered by UrbanSpoon, which features user-generated restaurant reviews, but with a twist. If you feel like trying something new, just punch in your criteria, shake your iPhone, and UrbanSpoon will pick a restaurant for you.

The clever interface looks like a slot machine, and is a good way to break out of a food rut.

Ever been at the supermarket and found yourself wondering how safe or green a certain product might be? The free GoodGuide app — still an iPhone-only offering — features ratings on more than 60,000 household and personal use products.

Just punch in the product name and GoodGuide gives you a ranking based on environmental safety, impact and labor policy.

Consumers can expect to see many more mobile apps in the coming months, as the sheer creativity of small, third-party software developers should keep the market buzzing for some time.

Apple Inc is the target of a lawsuit that claims a technology the iPhone uses to surf the Web infringes on a patent filed by Los Angeles real estate developer Elliot Gottfurcht and two co-inventors.The lawsuit was filed by EMG Technology LLC on Monday in the US District Court in Tyler, Texas. EMG was founded by Gottfurcht, is based in Los Angeles with an office in Tyler, and has just one employee.

The suit alleges that the technology the iPhone uses to navigate and display some websites designed for small phone screens infringes on a patent obtained last month by Gottfurcht and his co-inventors and assigned to EMG.

Apple spokeswoman Susan Lundgren declined to comment on the lawsuit, saying that the Cupertino, California-based company does not discuss pending litigation. EMG has not considered suing companies such as HTC Corp, maker of the G1 Google phone, and Research in Motion Ltd, maker of the BlackBerry, which also produce devices that can display mobile websites, according to Gottfurcht’s lawyer Stanley Gibson, a partner with the Los Angeles law firm Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro.Mobile websites are essentially reformatted versions of ordinary websites, with their content manipulated to be easily viewed on tiny screens.

“We haven’t looked at anything other than the iPhone,” said Gibson. “That was the device that we looked at. Obviously it’s very popular.”

Gibson was one of several attorneys who prosecuted a recent patent infringement case against Medtronic Inc that resulted in a $570 million verdict for his clients, according to a statement issued by his law firm.