BOOT CAMP 537 (12/08/08)
Freeware Top Tens part 1, Handy Tools and
Utilities
In this troubled and
cynical old world it is comforting to know that there are still people out
there willing to share their ingenuity and expertise by giving away genuinely
useful computer software. It’s called Freeware and Shareware, so what’s the
catch?
Much of the time there
isn’t one. A lot of freeware is simply given away because the author hopes
others will find it useful, though they’re usually not adverse to a accepting
donations from satisfied users and if you continue to use a piece of software
it is only polite to pay the usually modest licence fee. A lot of freeware
programs are add-ons, tools and utilities for improving the functionality of
other programs and therefore have little or no commercial value. Sometimes it’s
an enticement to upgrade to a better-specified version of the program, others
use the freeware model as a testing ground for software that they hope will
become a marketable product one day.
Needless to say there is a
dark side and freeware can be spiked with all sorts of nasties, including
viruses, malware and spyware. Watch out too for ‘demoware’ and trialware that
turns out to be artfully packaged commercial programs. Some of it can be a
swine to get rid of too, and you run the risk of being plagued by pop-ups and
demands for payment.
The programs we’ll be
featuring over the next few weeks have, as far as practically possible, been
thoroughly vetted, but here’s the usual disclaimer, and you install and use
them on your PC entirely at your own risk. See alto this week’s Top Tip.
Sorry, we cannot answer any
technical questions regarding these programs; there’s usually a FAQ or support
section on the website and most freeware authors are keen to know about any
bugs and glitches affecting their programs, though you may find that direct
help and support is only available if you pay the licence fee.
All of the programs we’ll
be featuring have been road-tested on 32-bit XP and Vista PCs (unless otherwise
indicated). As is customary we’ll start off with ten top tools and utilities
and over the coming weeks we’ll be covering such diverse topics as pictures and
imaging, privacy and security, multimedia, Internet and email plus the
ever-popular Microsoft Alternatives. So without more ado let’s get started…
Baku, XP & Vista, 550kb
Powerful Registry and Driver cleaner and backup and
restore utility, designed for more advanced users, highly configurable, very
effective but use with care!
CD Recovery Toolbox, XP & Vista
http://tinyurl.com/37jmbo
Optical discs are easily
damaged but with this tool there’s a fair chance of recovering data from
scratched or faulty discs. Works with CDs, DVDs as well as HD-DVD and Blu-Ray
discs
Decrapifier, XP & Vista, 670kb
http://tinyurl.com/6eshds
Anyone who has recently
bought a PC or laptop form one of the big name makers will know how much time
you can waste removing all of the trial, demo and supposedly ‘free’ software
that comes with it. Decrapifier will do the job for you, deleting the many,
many annoyances in one simple operation
DoubleKiller, XP & Vista, 499kb
http://tinyurl.com/6o8e8e
You would probably be
surprised by how many duplicate files there are on your computer. How they get
there and where they come from no-one knows, but here’s a quick and safe way to
get rid of them, and free up valuable hard disc space. DoubleKiller scans for
duplicates and gives you the opportunity to decide which ones you want to
delete.
FileHamster, XP & Vista, 4.8Mb
http://tinyurl.com/5mjbzn
Sophisticated yet easy to
use backup program; operates in real-time, automatically backing up files and
folders as they are changed or saved. Plenty of add-ons and plug-ins available
to expand capabilities
FreeUndelete, XP (possibly Vista), 1Mb, http://tinyurl.com/3rahu
If you have accidentally
deleted a file, and emptied the Recycle Bin there’s still a very fair chance
your lost data can be recovered with this useful and potentially life-saving
tool
HD Clone Free Edition, XP & Vista, 9.0Mb, http://tinyurl.com/uuvbu
The ultimate backup tool;
creates a complete mirror copy of your hard drive; perfect for quick and easy
upgrades with the facility to copy the contents of a small hard drive to a
larger one. Compatible with IDE, SATA and USB media and simple to use.
IconExtract, XP & Vista, 35kb
http://tinyurl.com/2p7c7x
How many icons do you have on your PC? Now you can find
out with this little utility, and you may be surprised by the results.
IconExtract scans your computer, locating icons, and you can save selected ones
that you probably didn’t even know you had, to a separate file for later use.
Revo Uninstaller, XP & Vista, 1.52Mb, http://tinyurl.com/56uydj
Advanced program
uninstaller, takes over where Windows Add/Remove Programs (Programs and
Features in Vista) leaves off, ferreting out fragments of programs that can be
left behind and it’s particularly good at removing stubborn programs that won’t
go away.
Windows Font Explorer, XP & Vista, http://tinyurl.com/6gztbq
You’ve probably got
hundreds of fonts on your PC, this easy to use font manager lets you see
exactly what you have, checks for damaged fonts, and helps you install new
ones, and uninstall the ones you no longer need.
Next Week – Freeware Top Tens part 2
JARGON FILTER
BLU-RAY
Dominant
high-definition optical video disc format, developed by Sony and now adopted as
an industry-wide standard
DRIVER
A program or
data file that tells Windows how to communicate with a particular piece of
hardware, like a video adaptor, modem, printer, web cam, USB Memory Stick etc.
SATA
Serial Advanced
Technology Attachment, fast, higher performance interface used to connect hard
disc drives to PC motherboards
TOP TIP
Before installing any new
software, and this applies to mainstream and paid-for applications, as well as
freeware, it is a good idea to set a new System Restore Point. This means that
in the event of something nasty going wrong there is a very fair chance that
you will be able to ‘roll back’ your system to a time before the software was
installed and undo any damage. In both XP and Vista you will find System
Restore by going to Start > Programs > Accessories > System Restore
and click ‘Create a Restore Point’ (XP) or ‘Open System Protection’ > Create
(Vista) and follow the prompts.
Don't forget, there's a
full archive of previous Boot Camp Top Tips at www.pctoptips.co.uk
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© R. Maybury 2008, 2207
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