I've got more good free utility software for you today. Something I might recommend you do if you start getting some of these programs is to create a folder for your desktop called "Utilities" or something similar. As you start to download and install these applications, make sure you have each program install an icon on your desktop. Then, drag the icons into the folder. They will disappear off the desktop and into the folder. This does two thing: it helps keep your desktop clean AND puts a folder where you can see it for a reminder to run some of these utilities occasionally. Just a thought. Now...on with the show.
One of the things I've long suspected and have recently verified is that the Windows Uninstaller is not all that good. In fact, it leaves stuff behind that should be erased. To do it right, you need a better program such as ZSoft Uninstaller. This baby does it right. Besides uninstalling your current software, it will even go through and find leftover temp files from previous uninstalls that should have been removed a long time ago. I used it on my studio computer and it found almost 500Mb of stuff that it removed. This one is worth getting.
A couple of years ago, I tried to find a good, free registry repair program and failed in the attempt. I wound up buying one that has served me well. However, I finally found a really good free one... Glarysoft Registry Repair software. It received rave reviews from tech writers and users alike. So I tried it and liked it a great deal. It will analyze your Windows Registry to find and get rid of outdated entries that no longer serve any purpose, making your computer start up faster when you turn it on. Just for the fun of it, the other day I first ran my paid registry repair program and it found 280 errors. After I ran it and did the cleanup, I ran the Glarysoft program. It found over 1,800 item that the other one missed! That's pretty good, I think.
This may not be the best backup program ever invented but it works great for me. This program came out in 2004, but is no longer being upgraded or supported. It is a simple, no frills backup software that I use to backup my existing data on C: drive to my backup drive. It's simple, it works, and is fast. Why I liked it initially was that I just dragged and dropped the directories on the hard drive that I wanted back up. I gave it a name, told it where to back up the files, and away it went. The first backup took the longest, but after that, it only took a few seconds as it only backs up new files or those that were changed since the last backup. Piece of cake.
This is like a backup program, but is really a file synchronizer. It synchronizes the files in two different directories, usually on different drives, but not necessarily. For instance, I keep many of my photographs on my portable Western Digital Passport drive. I use Syncback to synchronize it with the pictures on my backup drive in the studio. I can also set it so that any old files I erase on my portable drive are not re-copied back to it, but do stay on the backup drive in the studio. It's pretty slick and fast. Be sure to look for the free version.
I wrote about this one again a few days ago, so I won't go into any more detail. This is a replacement for the Windows Explorer file management program. Just get it. You can thank me later.
I have written about this one before. It is a software firewall that I first used on my laptop, but is now used on all my computers. Even though I use a router with a built-in firewall at home and at the studio, I still use a software firewall. The reason is that malware can slip through the router's firewall and even a software firewall. But, if it tries to send information about me and my computer back out to the Internet before my anti-spyware catch or anti-virus program catch it and delete it, my software firewall will pick it up and notify me that something is going on and request me to authorize it. Now the PCTools firewall may not get the highest rating, but I like it because it doesn't drive me crazy with requests for permission. The best of the free firewalls supposedly is Komodo, but I used it for a while and it drove me crazy, constantly asking me for permissions even though I had already given it before. I finally deleted it and reinstalled PCTools version.
There are of course many other fine free software programs out there. If you would like to know one place that I check for some of the best freeware information, head over to the Tech Support Alert Web site.
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