Downloads of Week

Our best download in a while: The new Firefox web browser with the excellent Google Toolbar built in:

Open Office 2.0 Beta Release candidate - Though this is a Beta version, Open Office 2.0 offers many improvements over Open Office 1.1, including greater compatibility with Microsoft Office, and new internet features. (not yet rated)

Firefox 1.01 - The best alternative browser available, Firefox is the real reason that Microsoft is working on Internet Explorer 7. *****

Mp3 tag - Mp3tag renames music files based on tag information, replaces characters or words from tags and filenames, imports and exports tag information, creates playlists, and more. It supports online freedb database lookups for selected files, allowing you to automatically gather proper tag information for select files or CDs. This can be a big time saver if you have a huge collection of .mp3's

ClamAV For Windows is a free and open source anti-virus software package. Unlike most antivirus products, ClamAV requires no yearly subscription fee, and is completely free with source code to anyone who wishes to use it. Very much worth a look. For support, or more information, go here: Clam AV homepage

AVG 7.3.08- The newest version of AVG- our top pick for freeware anti-virus programs. (for a free program *****)

Yahoo Pops - Check your Yahoo email with Outlook, Outlook Express, Thunderbird, Eudora, etc. ****

Divx to DVD 0.5 - Convert your .divx encoded movies to regular DVD and watch them on any player. (not yet tested0

We have been using Google's Adsense program for over one year now, and have made thousands of dollars (literally) with mere minutes of work - it's certainly worth looking into!

Mozilla Thundebird - More secure than Outlook Express, Thunderbird is an excellent and full featured mail program that is to Outlook what Firefox is to Internet Explorer. ****1/2

Mozilla Sunbird - Though it's early in development, Sunbird looks to be an excellent calendaring app. (Early beta version: unrated)

Opera 8.0 Beta 2 - For a time, Opera looked to be Internet Explorer's number one contender, and it's still a good browser. Will version 8.0 be enough to take over the number 2 spot from Firefox?

02-19-05
Our best download in a while: The new Firefox web browser with the excellent Google Toolbar built in:

Station Ripper - An immensely useful tool that will allow you to record shoutcast internet radio, and separate it into individually named .mp3 files. More info here: StationRipper.com *****

Spamihilator: works between your E-Mail client and the Internet and examines every incoming E-Mail. Useless spam mails (Junk) will be filtered out. This process runs completely in the background. The new Learning Filter (Bayesian Filter) uses the rules of Thomas Bayes (English mathematician, 18th century) and calculates a certain Spam-Probability for every E-Mail. You can train this filter! So it will know your messages even better than you. Hence the recognition rate will continuously increase. In addition Spamihilator uses a Word-Filter, that searches messages for known keywords. Of course, Spamihilator supports Plugins. These useful additional filters protect your system against annoying spam mails. The program works with almost every E-Mail client, such as Outlook 2000/XP/2003/Express, Eudora, Mozilla, Netscape, IncrediMail, Pegasus Mail, Phoenix Mail, Opera, etc... More information at The Spamihilator homepage. (no rating yet)

Google Toolbar Beta: Adds a spellchecker, word translator and automatic street address to map feature on top of the already excellent Google toolbar tool. (*****)

GAIM: Gaim is a multi-protocol instant messaging client for Linux, BSD, MacOS X, and Windows. It is compatible with AIM (Oscar and TOC protocols), ICQ, MSN Messenger, Yahoo, IRC, Jabber, Gadu-Gadu, and Zephyr networks. Gaim users can log in to multiple accounts on multiple IM networks simultaneously. This means that you can be chatting with friends on AOL Instant Messenger, talking to a friend on Yahoo Messenger, and sitting in an IRC channel all at the same time.

Picasa2 - An excellent picture album tool from Google. It allows you to instantly find and catalogue all of the pictures on your system and sorts them into visual albums.

World Wind 1.2 (from NASA): World Wind lets you zoom from satellite altitude into any place on Earth. Leveraging Landsat satellite imagery and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission data, World Wind lets you experience Earth terrain in visually rich 3D, just as if you were really there. Virtually visit any place in the world. Look across the Andes, into the Grand Canyon, over the Alps, or along the African Sahara.

Trillian 3.0 - Probably the best Instant Messenger client, compatible with AOL IM, Yahoo IM, ICQ, etc.

WinRar - An excellent freeware/shareware program for dealing with .zip, .rar and other compressed files.

Avast Anti Virus - The new and free version of Avast Anti-virus, a very good and free personal anti-virus package.

AVG Antivirus - New version 7.0! Our Recommended freeware antivirus program. Not quite as good as Trendmicro or Norton, but much better than nothing (or even a two year old Norton/Mcafee)

GIMP Install First Gimp Install 2nd. - (Best software name ever!) The GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) is a freely distributed piece of software for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. You can resize images, feather edges, erase, fill, magnify, and select portions of your images using the lasso tool. You can also create layers and add text to your images.

Open Office - The brand new version of Open Office - a free and very easy to use Microsoft Office replacement.

Peter's Backup: A program for backing up your important data files on to diskette, zip drive, fixed disk or CD/RW. It uses an extremely efficient compression algorithm. It keeps track of all versions of your files in full and incremental backup. Click here for more information.

SyncBack: Integrates with Windows Scheduler so you can schedule automated backups easily. You can back up or sync your files to another drive, directory, or network. SyncBack creates detailed HTML log files for your review and (using MD5) verify that files are copied correctly. It lets you run simulations, include and exclude based on file types, exclude specific files, and select which sub-directories

EnditAll Two - A handy little freeware program that lists the programs running on your system and lets you decide which ones to shut down. Those necessary for basic system operation are protected from termination. From the remaining processes, you can choose which to close, which to close down forcibly, and which to protect.

3d Cube Saver Gold - "3D Picture Cube Saver is a fully-customizable screensaver that allows you to place your own personal pictures on a moving 3D cube! It also allows you to play your own music or music playlist while the screensaver runs! Possible uses include... - Pictures of loved ones - Photos of your favorite musical group - Your company logo - Pictures of your pets - Almost any digital image you may have!"

eGroupWare - a multi-user, web-based groupware suite developed on a custom set of PHP-based APIs. Currently available modules include: email, address book, calendar, infolog (notes, to-do's, phone calls), content management, forum, bookmarks, wiki. Instructions available here in .pdf form.

Audacity - A fast multitrack audio editor and recorder for Linux, MacOS, and Windows. Supports WAV, AIFF, Ogg, and MP3 formats. Features include envelope editing, mixing, built-in effects and plug-ins, all with unlimited undo.

CWShredder - Get rid of Cool Web Search Spyware. As always, update the product before you scan.

WebCalendar: WebCalendar is a PHP application used to maintain a calendar for a single user or an intranet group of users. It can also be configured as an event calendar. Instructions Here

Irfanview v3.92 - If you're looking for a lean and mean graphics utility, IrfanView is a top choice--and the fact that it's both free and a high-quality program makes it nearly irresistible.

Virtual Desktop Manager - If you can't have more than one computer, you might as well have multiple desktops on the one you've got. With this XP PowerToy, you can manage up to four desktops on your PC. Access them directly from the Windows taskbar to change desktops as easily as you'd change hats.

Spamfighter - An interesting tool for fighting spam. It requires registration, but is free (and you get a pro version for 30 days). This tool works within Outlook and Outlook Express and will truly reduce the spam you receive in a very short time. More info: www.spamfighter.com

Firefox Our best download in a while: The new Firefox web browser with the excellent Google Toolbar built in:

World Wind -(external link) World Wind is NASA's most ambitious software project to date. This global information system pulls together a high resolution map of the entire world and layers into it satellite information from a variety of sources. The program's Web page says that World Wind lets you zoom from satellite altitude into any place on Earth, leveraging high resolution LandSat imagery and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) elevation data to experience Earth terrain (or any planet with the data) in visually rich 3D, just as if you were really there. Virtually visit any place in the world. Look across the Andes, into the Grand Canyon, over the Alps or along the African Sahara.

Process Explorer 8 - Windows Task Manager tells you what applications and processes are running, but some process names aren't very clear to the casual reader. Process Explorer helps you get to the bottom of things by digging down to see which application started a process and which resources that app is currently using. This excavation can be a big help when you?re trying to figure out which background processes you dare shut down, and it can even help sniff out spyware, too.

AD-AwareSE 1.05 - Yet another update to Lavasoft's newest adware removal tool.

Winuscon - now Freeware! - Winuscon (short for Windows User Console) unearths many Windows's most useful features and sets them neatly on your desktop. Whether you want a multi-panel internet browser, to run an internet trace, or just to find out what time it is in Singapore, Winuscon has you covered. The main form is divided into six areas: Menu, Internet, Internet Utilities, Office, Accessories, and Settings.

WinPatrol 8 - WinPatrol gives you greater control over what can run on your machine. You can set it to display additional information about--and approve of--startup programs. You'll also be alerted when something tries to load an IE plug-in or set a cookie. And to get rid of a particularly nasty piece of spyware, you can use the "Delete File on Reboot" feature, so Windows will get rid of it before any other program can protect it or relaunch it.

Bulk Rename Utility v2.1.0.7 - With this utility, you can rename groups of files or folders in one fell swoop. You can perform string substitutions, add date-stamps, add or remove specified digits or characters, and make other useful changes. A preview shows you what the new names will be, so you can change your work before committing to renaming.

Everest - EVEREST Home Edition is a freeware system information, system diagnostics and benchmarking solution for home PC users. Pretty handy way to keep tabs on everything going on with your system.

CleanCache - A free and very powerful Internet Explorer 6.0 and Windows XP cleaner.

Google Deskbar - A definite improvement on Xp's awful search tool - understand the privacy implications before you install. DON"T USE THIS ON A COMPUTER THAT'S SHARED WITH OTHERS - AND MAKE SURE ANY PUBLIC COMPUTER YOU USE ISN'T RUNNING GOOGLE DESKBAR.

Power Toys For Windows XP - (external link) Microsoft's overhaul of Windows may have given most people everything they need to personalize their computing experience, but what about those of us who want to delve deeper under the hood? PowerToys for Windows XP is a suite of separately offered tools that lets you do things like view images burned to a CD as a slide show and create a Web-ready slide show of your digital pictures. The useful Alt-Tab Replacement displays the icon of the application window you are switching to, as well as a preview of the page. This is particularly helpful when multiple windows of an application are open. You can also take pictures at specified time intervals from a Webcam connected to your computer and save them to a location that you designate. Another tool, Tweak UI, gives you access to system settings that are not exposed in the Windows XP default interface, including settings for the mouse, Explorer, the taskbar, and more. Other tools let you resize images with a right-click, manage four virtual desktops, and switch users without going through the log-on screen. This suite also lets you magnify parts of the screen from the taskbar, and to open a command window (cmd.exe) by pointing to a selected folder. The Power Calculator can graph and evaluate functions as well as perform conversions.

AD-AwareSE 1.05 - yet another update to Lavasoft's newest adware removal tool.

09-11-2004

AI Roboform - AI RoboForm is a one-click web form filler and password manager with some serious Artificial Intelligence inside.

QuickTime Alternative - QuickTime Alternative will allow you to play QuickTime (.mov .qt) files. This way there is no need to install the official QuickTime Player. It also supports QuickTime content that is embedded in webpages. The QuickTime plugins include iPIX and QuickTimeVR. The QuickTime Browser plugin supports Internet Explorer, Opera, Mozilla and Netscape.

Fast Defrag 2 - A great program for defragging your memory, and freeing up memory from programs that you've closed out. This is a program I use quite a bit, and is great for multitaskers!

Windows Media Player 10 - The brand new version of Windows Media Player incorporates quite a few new fixes and enhancements.

Real Player Alternative - Real Alternative will allow you to play RealMedia files without having to install the official RealPlayer. You do need a media player that is capable of playing RealMedia files. The included Media Player Classic supports it. Supported are RealAudio (.ra .rpm), RealVideo (.rm .ram .rmvb), RealText (.rt), and ReadPix (.rp). Not fully supported are: Streaming smil files (.smi .smil) and Realmedia embedded in webpages.

XP Antispy - Many have noticed that Windows XP does a fair amount of "spying" on users. Use this program to disable the "spying" aspects of Windows XP, but do so at your own risk, and be sure to read a bit about the program and how it works. Read the FAQ here for more details.

Aim Ad Hack - Use at your own risk, of course, but this program will disable the ads in AOL instant Messenger.

Our best download in a while: The new Firefox web browser with the excellent Google Toolbar built in:

GAIM .82 - Gaim is a multi-protocol instant messaging client for Linux, BSD, MacOS X, and Windows. It is compatible with AIM (Oscar and TOC protocols), ICQ, MSN Messenger, Yahoo, IRC, Jabber, Gadu-Gadu, and Zephyr networks. Gaim users can log in to multiple accounts on multiple IM networks simultaneously. This means that you can be chatting with friends on AOL Instant Messenger, talking to a friend on Yahoo Messenger, and sitting in an IRC channel all at the same time.

Zone Labs Zone Alarm Firewall August - More robust than the firewall bundled with Windows XP, the Zone Alarm firewall provides solid protection against outside intrusion. Be warned - While a firewall is becoming a necessary component in this day and age, setting one up wrong, or answering it's questions wrong (when the program asks you what to let access your computer and what in your computer you want to access the internet) will cripple or disable your computer! Don't just guess, be informed!

Winguard Pro 2004 - WinGuard Pro Free is a program that lets you lock some features of your system so that nobody can use them while you are away. The program lets you specify a password and then choose from a variety of options - what features to lock, for example, the find tool, backing up, desktop, etc. All the options are listed within one window and they are self-explaining, so there is no need to wade your way through dozens of sub-folders and weird registry key values. The limited version of the program is free - you're asked as you first install the program what version you would like to activate: the free one or the shareware one

BHODemon - Internet Explorer has a nasty habit of allowing so-called Browser Helper Objects (or BHOs) to install themselves into IE. Some BHOs are helpful, like the Google Toolbar, but others (especially those planted by viruses or spyware) can be malicious and harmful. BHODemon gives you a quick look at the BHOs installed on your PC, tells you whether a specific BHO is known to be safe or harmful, and gives you the ability to enable or disable individual BHOs with a single mouse click. For the record, we hate products named after evil beings....how much sense does that make?

Supervillian Anti-Virus, version Lex Luthor 3 - This isn't a real program, of course, just poking fun at the the above named product!

AntiVir 6.27.00.03 - Freeware Antivirus program - much better than outdated or no protection at all.

Erunt and NtRegopt - As recommended by John from Vestavia: ERUNT - The Emergency Recovery Utility NT will help you Backup, restore and optimize your NT/2000/XP registry. Features: - Backup the Windows NT/2000/XP registry to a folder of your choice. - System and current user registries selectable. - Command-line switches for automated use of ERUNT - Restore the registry in Windows 9x/Me/NT/2000/XP and MS-DOS (all-in-one restore program) - All programs in this package are completely localizable. Also included in this package is NTREGOPT; a program for optimizing the registry

Tweaknow Registry Cleaner - A free tool to clean up old files and references in your registry - this can help speed up a slow computer, but novices proceed with caution!

Page Defrag 2.3 - uses advanced techniques to provide you what commercial defragmenters cannot: the ability for you to see how fragmented your paging files and Registry hives are, and to Defragment them.

Ad-Aware SE - It's finally here....the new version of Ad-Aware! This product forms a dynamic duo with Spybot Search and Destroy to rid your computer of spyware and adware!

Firefox updated - The updated version of Mozilla's next generation web browser, Firefox. Definitely worth a look. This is version .93 with the security hole plugged. (link fixed)

Thunderbird - Open Source alternative to Outlook Express - More secure and easy to use. (link fixed)

Updated Spyware Blaster - Prevent spyware from installing on your system. Thanks for the heads up from Mike in Anniston about the new version.

Everest Home Edition v1.10 Lavalys Everest Home Edition, a system diagnostic and benchmark tool, delivers details about your hardware, down to the component level. The program will benchmark any PC running on a Win32 platform. It displays information on the screen, prints it, or saves it to file in various formats like HTML, CSV or XML.

Espn Bar - A scrolling bar from ESPN that will give you updated scores and news on our desktop.

Sticky Note - Leave yourself virtual post it not reminders on your computer with this handy and free program.

Gaim for Windows - Similar to Trillian, Gaim is a multi IM client that will let you communicate with users of AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger, ICQ and much more. Uses much less system resources than the others.

System Meter - monitor the performance of your computer in a wide variety of areas.

Ram Idle - When a computer runs for awhile, it eventually "uses up" it's ram - causing program crashes and a slow as molasses system. Use Ram Idle to remedy the problem.

Foobar2000 - A great audio player that has replaced MusicMatch for me. It loads very fast, is highly customizable, and plays every file I need it to. The look is somewhat spartan, but I like clicking on a music file, and it playing within 2 seconds without being nagged to upgrade, or what have you!

Spybot Search and Destroy 1.3 Official Release - Replacing the Release candidate we told you about two weeks ago, this is the final release of Spybot, a great frontline tool against malware that was downloaded 25,000+ times from our site last year! For support/questions, visit: The Spybot Forums

CWShredder - Have trouble with evil cool web search spyware? Download Cool Web shredder.

Spyware Blaster (new version) - Prevents spyware from being installed on your system.

Divx - the most used online codec around.- Many of the Divx codecs available have spyware in them, the free non-pro version doesn't. This is the latest one available, and if you've downloaded a video or movie, or tv show from the internet, and it won't play.....try divx and the K-lite codec pack listed below, a few weeks ago.

A 100kb First Person Shooter, with very good graphics? Tollie found this amazing little game, which is a beta version - but still amazing. How can they fit so much in such a small package?! Read the included text file before you play. The m1-9 buttons listed mean hold down the m key and the number key at the same time.

Avast Free Anti-Virus (updated 4.1): Avast! Home Edition is a complete anti-virus package for Windows 9x/Me, NT/2000/XP. It is FREE for registered home noncommercial users. It's certified by ICSA and obtained 100% mark from Virus Bulletin in June 2002 under Windows XP Pro. Avast! contains two GUIs (simple and advanced) on demand and on access scanner. It simply integrates with the user's screen saver, file explorer and mail client. Updates are simple as clicking one button and they are smaller than 100 KB. This is a 90 day demo. You should register at: http://www.avast.com/register.htm to obtain a free activation key by email.

Windows 98 Second Edition UNOFFICIAL Service Pack: Microsoft has never released a service pack for Windows98 SE. But I made a Service Pack for Windows98 SE users. It contains all Windows98 SE updates from Windows Update site and more.
It is a self-extracting and self-installing pack like Microsoft's update files. Thus, you cannot choice files individually. However, the pack installs only required fixes for your system. Uninstallation is possible from Add-Remove Programs. This is only for WINDOWS 98 SECOND EDITION ENGLISH. I highly recommend that you should backup your system before installing the pack. It contains only operating system updates. It does NOT contain Internet Explorer 6, DirectX 9, Media Player 9 and their updates. More information found at: The author's website (send questions there)

The Basics of Birdfeeding - An excellent guide from Birdfeeding.org, this .pdf file contains great tips and advice on attracting and caring for backyard birds. Good pictures and illustrations.

The solution to all your spam issues! - Well maybe...this is a freeware Bayesian anti spam product that works with Microsoft Outlook/Express and also other email programs. Don't know what Bayesian means? Go to this link for more information and to learn how to configure the Spambayes filter.
http://spambayes.sourceforge.net/

Mozilla Firefox - Tollie says it's the best browser available for the pc. Is he right? It looks good - check it out!

04-03-04:
Adobe Speed Up - Have you ever noticed how incredibly slow Adobe .pdf reader is? It makes me want to pull my hair out! After a conversation this week with Tollie, we have found the solution. Simply download this file, unzip it, and click on the .exe file.

Mozilla Web browser - Perhaps the best of the alternate internet browsers?! Having trouble with Internet Explorer (red x's, security issues, etc?) Give Mozilla a try.

03-27-04:
Deadly Rooms of Death - Imminently enjoyable and challenging dungeon based puzzle and maze game. Yes, you use a sword, but the action here is more cerebral than violent. That doesn't mean it's not loads of fun, however. Give it a try!

Trillian .74h - Updated version of the best chat program around. You can chat with AOL IM users, MSN users, Yahoo Chat, IRQ, and IRC. Great interface, and it doesn't pop up and annoy you every time you start your computer like the others. Check out www.trillian.cc for more info.

ZoneAlarm Personal Firewall - Updated version of Zonelab's excellent and free firewall. If you are a home user, there is no reason not to be using a firewall, especially if you have broadband! For more information, check out www.ZoneLabs.com and be sure and read our firewall information page - Click Here.

Our best download in a while: The new Firefox web browser with the excellent Google Toolbar built in:

Updated K-Lite Codec pack - Will allow you to view videos that you've created or downloaded - excellent if you are having trouble listening to a music file, or playing a video file.

Speed Up your Surfing with TCP Optimizer - Windows often configures network settings for low-speed and low-latency devices. Dialup users benefit, but it'll leave you lagging if you have a high-speed connection. TCP Optimizer tweaks your settings according to your connection type, allowing better transfer rates and the like. Plus, the simple executable file requires no installation. Just run it and start tweaking! You have two options.

Our best download in a while: The new Firefox web browser with the excellent Google Toolbar built in:

Winzip 9.0 - Shareware (not freeware), but the newest version of the archiving program that sets the standard.

Menuet OS - Fits on a single floppy disk, and has several useful tools. For screenshots and more info, check out the Menuet Website.

LiteStep - An open source alternative to the Windows Explorer Interface. It doesn't change the OS, just the way you see it and manipulate it. Very cool, free, and highly customizable! Check out www.Litestep.com for more information.

VLC Media Player: One of the best around, and can even play a movie archived in .bin format!

RegClean - This utility cleans your Registry of unnecessary entries that were created when you installed or uninstalled programs on your computer. This release of the utility fixes a few problems and creates an "undo.reg" file so that you can undo changes you inadvertently make to the Registry.

Note: although this program still works, it is no longer supported by Microsoft.

Start Up Control Panel (Works with Windows 2000, and others) Tired of always launching the same programs when your system boots up? This applet allows you to automatically launch programs when your system starts up. Of course, you can do that manually, by changing entries in your Registry. But this program's simple interface lets you avoid that confusion--and best of all, the program is free

Kerio Personal Firewall - Recommended by Steve Gibson of grc.com (and many others) Kerio is solid, free Firewall for personal use that has a few features that Zone Alarm doesn't Try it and send us some feedback!

Quick Time Alternative and Real Alternative (Click to Download) - Both these programs do everything that Real One Player and Quick Time do, but they don't annoy you or bog your system down nearly as much. Very, very highly recommended!! You probably should uninstall Real Player/ Quick Time before install.

15 minute, 64kb movie - An amazing demo movie (double click to launch) Recommended by Uncle Monster. How do they fit everything in 64kb?

Nifty physics based screen saver - Amaze your friends and dazzle your enemies. Bewilder your pet cat. Taunt your Mongoose. Read the text file for instructions. Quick download, nifty program 'nuff said.

Any2icon: Have some awesome pictures that you would love to replace icons on your desktop with? Now you can. This is a trial download, but it gives you 30 executions and doesn't seem to be time based. That's enough for me. Give it a try and turn your personal pictures into icons. This is a zipped file!

Internet Explorer 6.0 This is a full 48MB version so be prepared to be online a while if you're on dial-up.

K-Lite Codec Pack - Install this enable yourself to listen to or watch almost any multimedia file you can find on the internet! (free and spyware free as far as we can tell)

Yahoo Pops - A free program to download your Yahoo mail in Outlook, Outlook Express and other mail programs. Pretty nifty!

Hotmail popper - The same concept as above, only for Hotmail email. Now if only somebody would invent one for Myway.com!

Browser Hijack Blaster - Running silently in the background, Browser Hijack Blaster only springs into action when an attempt is made. It watches and protects the following items:
IE Homepage, IE Default Page, IE Search Page, BHOs

Whenver one of the above items is changed, or a BHO is added, you are immediately provided with information on the item, along with the option to keep the change, or revert to your previous settings.

Browser Hijack Blaster also can detect changes between the times it is run. If a spyware application tries to install its BHO at boot-up, and change settings at boot-up, before Browser Hijack Blaster is activated, you will be notified and (like the situation above) given the option to keep the change or to revert to your previous settings.

Browser Hijack Blaster also has a database of values common to spyware programs. If, for example, your homepage is changed to lop.com (a known hijacker) you will not only be notified, but a special notice will be displayed that you probably have Lop.com on your system (and that you should run an anti-spyware program such as Ad-Aware or Spybot S & D).

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Our best download in a while: The new Firefox web browser with the excellent Google Toolbar built in:

Registry Optimizer for Windows NT/2000/XP (zipped) - thanks, John for the info!

Installation

Unzip all files into a folder of your choice, and if you want, create
a shortcut on your desktop to the NTREGOPT program.

Optimizing the registry with NTREGOPT
-------------------------------------

Note: To ensure proper operation of NTREGOPT, you should be logged in
as a system administrator.

To optimize your registry, simply run NTREGOPT, click OK, and when the
process is complete click OK to reboot the computer. You should do so
immediately because any changes made to the registry after NTREGOPT
has been run are lost after the reboot.

Note that depending on your system configuration the optimization
process may take some time, and that the first bar is NOT a progress
bar, just an indicator that the program is still running.

New Google deskbar (external link) - Google, the world's most popular search engine, has released yet another tool to make seaching the Internet easier. The tool, called "Google Deskbar," allows for Web queries directly from a Windows taskbar. The search will not need to open Internet Explorer to work, but it does require IE 5.5 or greater.

The Google Deskbar will display the results just above the Windows taskbar. Additionally, it interacts with the operating system, allowing users to perform searches on highlighted words by clicking Ctrl + Alt + G. Google did want to make it clear that this product is in its infancy.

KazaaBeGone - from your system, this removal tool is what you need. If you have already tried removing it you know that just using the uninstall tool does not do a thorough job. KazaaBeGone is designed to locate and remove all traces of anything Kazaa loaded onto your system. Just click on the link above! (This file is zipped, so once you download it, you will need to unzip it before install)

Monkey Ninjas Cartoon! - If this doesn't make you laugh, then we'll send you two free tickets to the Tech Talk world tour. Carl and Phil are monkey Ninjas....a hilarious cartoon fit for most of the family (it's clean)Very, very funny, and more are available at www.MonkeyNinjas.com.

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Our best download in a while: The new Firefox web browser with the excellent Google Toolbar built in:

Spyware Blaster - yet another free weapon to add to your anti-adware, anti-spyware arsenal.

SpywareBlaster doesn't scan and clean for spyware - it prevents it from ever being installed.

By setting a "kill bit" for spyware ActiveX controls, SpywareBlaster can prevent the installation of any spyware ActiveX controls from a webpage. It does this while not interfering with "friendly" ActiveX controls - so your browser can work correctly and you can have peace of mind!

You won't get any more annoying "Yes/No" boxes popped up, asking you to install a spyware ActiveX control (which can increasingly be found in pop-up ads!). In fact, Internet Explorer will never even download or run the spyware ActiveX control!

In addition, SpywareBlaster can prevent many of these spyware ActiveX controls from running, even if they are already installed on your system.*

The newest SpywareBlaster version can even block spyware/tracking cookies!
And SpywareBlaster does not need to be running in the background to provide this protection!

The SpywareBlaster database contains information on these known spyware Active-X controls. Make sure you run the Check For Updates feature frequently to get the latest database! (And make sure you check the new items to protect your system against them!)

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SpywareBlaster also provides the exclusive System Snapshot! - Take a snapshot of your computer in its clean state, and use System Snapshot later to revert many changes made by spyware and browser hijackers!

09-13-2003

MailWasher (Free edition) - A pretty handy tool to delete spam and suspicious emails before they get to your inbox. You can bounce emails and/or blacklist the sender so they won't send you an email again. The free version only works with one email account, but it's worth trying out if you want to stem the spam tide! You'll need to know your email account settings, and I don't believe the free version will work with Hotmail or AOL mail.

Users of Windows 95 do not have the convenience of Msconfig to easily control which applications launch at boot up. This program, which was introduced in Windows 98, works in Windows 95 and Windows 2000 as well. The version for Windows 2000 is taken from Windows XP, the one for Windows 95 is taken from Windows 98.

Windows 95 users should download the file to the C:\Windows\System folder. Windows 2000 users should download it to C:\WINNT\system32. The Help File for Windows 2000 should be downloaded to the C:\WINNT\Help folder. To use it, go to Start|Run, type msconfig and click OK.

Our best download in a while: The new Firefox web browser with the excellent Google Toolbar built in: