I’ve always thought of FileMaker as “databases for the rest of us” – the software is easy to understand for even novice users, it has an immense focus on visual design that allows users to create impressive looking solutions quickly and easily, and it packs quite a bit of power. All of those traits get a boost in FileMaker 12, which was released this morning.

My first impression on using FileMaker 12 is that the company took all the things I’ve always like about FileMaker Pro and Server and turned them up to 11 – particularly when it comes to making mobile solutions.

Disk images are the way most software came packaged before the Mac App Store, allowing developers to pack entire folders full of installers and files into a single compressed image, ready to send acros the internet at a moment’s notice (and the payment of a shareware fee, hopefully). DropDMG makes this process super simple.

It seems Ashton Kutcher is delighted to be playing Steve Jobs in Mark Hulme’s upcoming movie, so much so that he has canceled all of his other projects and has already begun meeting with Steve’s friends to “get inside the voice.” Hulme reports that Kutcher has “poured himself” into the role that was “meant for him.”

RIM has launched iOS and Android support in its BlackBerry Mobile Fusion mobile device management (MDM) software. The new feature known as Universal Device Service follows February’s initial launch of BlackBerry Mobile Fusion. The initial launch primarily provided the ability to manage RIM’s PlayBook tablet. The launch of the iOS and Android components of the software have been expected for quite some time.

The release is likely to be welcome news to companies and IT departments that are established customers of RIM products. Beyond those customers, however, BlackBerry Mobile Fusion simply joins a long list of existing MDM services that support iOS, Android, Windows Phone, and Even RIM’s own BlackBerry OS.

There are now over 500,000 iPhone apps and 170,000 iPad apps available on Apple’s App Store and that number will surely continue to increase as new app developers enter the foray. In March 2012 Apple’s App Store surpassed its 25 billionth download. If you’re not already buying apps regularly, you probably will be soon. Here are some tips that may help you save some money on your App Store purchases.

In our mobile and always connected world, packing for a business trip or a vacation includes one inevitable question: what devices should I bring? While we may strive to carry our entire office or home theater with us, there’s always a chance of getting to our destination and discovering we don’t have everything we need (because of trying to travel light or simply forgetting something).

Most major hotels, resorts, and cruise lines (and some airports) offer fully equipped mini-offices known as business centers that can usually provide everything from a copier or fax machine to power cords to printers and even fully equipped desktop computers. One thing that’s becoming more common is to see business centers populated with iMacs rather than Windows PCs – and for good reasons.

External batteries for our Apple notebooks aren’t cheap, but they’re hugely worthwhile if you’re frequently on the road with little access to a power outlet. But before you shell out $250 for a ready-made solution, why not make your own for less than $60?

Apple and Google, sitting in a tree, f-i-g-h-t-i-n-g. We know that the Apple/Google relationship has gone from best friends to hate/hate, and that Apple has done its best to distance itself from its former lover. Apple has already bought mapping company C3, and is using OpenStreetMaps in iPhoto for iOS. But the Apple-designed map tiles are a little hokey. What the Maps app needs is these beautiful CC licensed tiles from Stamen Maps.

Memoir Tree is a new oral history for capturing memorable moments – including those goofy things your kids say while away at pre-school or that look on your grandfather’s face as he tells those war tales.

Although there might be more iPhone diary and journal apps than pages of the daily doings of Samuel Pepys, the folks behind Memoir Tree want their iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad app to become the app of record for schools, nursing homes, museums and at events, too.

Avatron has released a new version of its popular Air Display iOS app that allows the user to view OS X Lion in hi-res HiDPI mode on the new iPad’s Retina display. Air Display turns your iPad or iPhone into a secondary display for your Mac, and the latest update takes advantage of the new iPad’s 2048×1536 screen resolution by exploiting a super hi-resolution mode in Lion called HiDPI.