Elite Free Software

AutoHotkey - automation software

2010-07-12T05:52:00.000-07:00

AutoHotkey is an open source scripting language automation software. It provides keyboard shortcuts for any application with UI.

This is not the only way you can use AH, it's got a lot of options and allows you to do some more complicated tasks, like:

-creating a custom data-entry forms and user interfaces

-converting any script into an EXE file

-automating almost anything by using a mouse clicks or sending keystrokes

You can download AH installer (and some related stuff) from this site: download

Portable utilities

2010-05-13T08:43:00.000-07:00

Links to useful portable utilities:

Portable CCleaner - a very popular 'crap' cleaner for Windows. It cleans temporary internet files, cookies, history (for internet browsers), temporary files, memory dumps, Windows log files, old prefetch data (for OS) and more. On top of that it can scan Windows registry to resolve integrity problems within it.

Portable Auslogics Disk defrag - fast and handy portable disk defragger. From drop down menu you can choose an option to defrag+optimize (optimizing data on hard disk) or defrag only.

It's got an option to turn off PC automatically after defragmentation.

Look In My PC - System information & diagnostic utility

2010-04-04T16:12:00.000-07:00

LookInMyPC allows you to make a complete system profile.

Apart of that, you can monitor running processes, services, startup programs, network activity, system restore info, installed hotfixes and more.

Its got a clear and simple User Interface, so you won't have any trouble using it.

The best think about LIMP is that you can send a generated report via email by clicking just one button.

And of course it's available for free.

It's got my stamp of approval :-]

You can download it here: Download

If you are looking for another reliable diagnostic tool, try this one: Belarc Advisor

Online tools/utilities

2010-03-25T14:50:00.000-07:00

A few useful online utilities:

Image Converter - it supports most of the popular formats, that is: JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP etc.

Mailinator - a temporary mailbox service. It's simple to use and it does not require registration.

Mindomo - a mind mapping service. It allows users to create and save 3 mind maps at a time for free.

Tests of Anti-Virus Software [Feb 2010]

2010-03-20T16:36:00.000-07:00

Full test report (PDF): av-comparatives.org

File Manager - Unreal Commander v0.96

2010-03-20T04:31:00.000-07:00

Remember that file manager - Free Commander - that I praised in Nov '09?

Well, I have recently found a better tool for that task :-]

It combines reliability (when using free commander I encountered a problem with copying files from my USB flash drives to HDD) with usefulness of Free Commander.

It's got all the tools you would expect from modern file manager, like:

- tabbet interface

- built-in archiver

- built-in FTP client

- multi rename tool

- drag and drop support

And a few extra features, like: directories synchronizer or delete manager for example.

To be able to use all of Unreal Commander functions you have to complete registration process (it's very fast and simple - you don't even need to give your email address).

You can download Unreal Manager from here: UM

CreaWriter

2010-03-08T13:41:00.001-08:00

I have recently found a tool that helped me greatly to write this post.

Its name

is CreaWriter and it's basically a very minimalistic notepad.

Why should you give it a try? Cause it's effective!

Once launched, it hides all the desktop icons, windows taskbar and all of the open applications and provides you with distraction free environment. You can even hide all of the program's options and a background and leave text only.

It's simple, efficient and it's available for free. What else do you want? :-]

You can download it from this site: CreaWriter

Recuva - recovery tool

2010-03-02T14:49:00.000-08:00

This useful utility will help you to recover files deleted from your hard disk or from one of your pen drives or memory cards.

It's very simple to use: when you lauch it, it will ask you to specify what sort of file you want to recover.

Then specify on which drive/memory card it was stored.

Don't worry if you forgot a location of your lost files - you can always use 'I'm not sure option' and Recuva will search everywhere on your computer.

Then all you have to do is to click 'start' and recuva will start processing data stored on your disks (if you want some more results you can always enable deep scan).

It's a pretty useful tool and it helped me to recoved a few important files that I though were lost forever :-]

And, of course, it's free.

You can download it from this link: Recuva

Unlocker 1.8.8 - delete manager

2010-02-20T04:52:00.000-08:00

Unlocker is a free utility that can help you delete any useless file occupying a space on your hard disk.

It removes a file's access restrictions and deletes it permanently (you have to reboot a system in some cases).

It's a perfect, minimallistic tool for the job.

So if you need an app that does one single task only, but it does it well - give unlocker a try.

Download it from here: unlocker

Comodo Dragon Internet Browser

2010-02-14T05:12:00.000-08:00

Comodo Dragon is a fully secured browser built on Chrome and made by the same guys who created Comodo Firewall and Comodo Antivirus suites.

Basically, this browser is as fast as Google Chrome but is far more secure.

So, if you're looking for a fast and secure internet experience - give it a try!

One of the downsides of the application is that it doesn't support extensions (yet?) but that shouldn't stop you from using it.

Download Comodo Dragon: Comodo Dragon installer

You can download a portable version from this link: Comodo portable

Chrome extensions

2010-01-01T14:02:00.000-08:00

I dugg through most of them and now I would like to share my experience with you.

My personal favorites, my top ten, best of the best, most useful selection is:

Send from Gmail - it provides a button to compose an e-mail with a link to a website that you'd like to share with your friends.
Search cloudlet - tag cloud for search results (it works only with google search engine though)
invisible hand - price comparison addon
google tasks - allows you to access Google Tasks from your browser's menu
goo.gl url shortener - shorten current website URL with goo.pl
ebay extension - official eBay extension for Chrome
docs PDF viewer - allows to preview any pdfs, powerpoint presentations, and other documents in Google Docs Viewer.
a viary - take a snapshot of any website and edit it in your browser
auto pagerize - A chrome extension for auto loading paginated web pages (e.g. google search results)

OK then, it's not actually top ten - more like top 9, but these are my favorites :-]

Try them!

12 lines long review: FreeCommander

2009-11-29T13:09:00.000-08:00

FreeCommander is a great replacement for windows file manager.

It includes all the necessary functions to manage your data e.g.

- tabbet interface

- tree view for each panel

- file viewer to view files in hex, binary, text or image format

- FTP client

- multi rename tool

- file searching

- file filters for display

On top of that, you can replace windows explorer with FreeCommander by using this trick: replace Explorer with FreeCommander

You can download the newest version of FC by clicking on a link: FreeCommander 2009.02a009.02a

2009-11-25T12:16:00.000-08:00

Few updates:

New foobar2000 1.0 beta 1 is ready for download

The same goes for MediaMonkey (current version is 3.2.0.1294)

Alien Arena 7.32 - fast paced FPP shooter

2009-11-22T12:45:00.000-08:00

Sorry that I haven't updated my blog recently but from now on I'm going to update it more often.

Today, as a gratification, I'm going to post a review (yeah, right - I'm too lazy for that) of my favorite freeware game :-]

Alien Arena 7.32 is a fast paced FPP shooter powered by pretty efficient CRX - open source engine.

Here some specs:

32-bit high-resolution textures
parallax mapping
shaders
real-time shadows
real-time vertex lighting

What is the most important: the game is free to play, so all you need is an average PC and a connection to the internet (and some skillzz of course :-])

AA earned positive reviews and is available for free (my favorite price :-]) for Linux, FreeBSD and a Windows platforms.

Download it!

Enjoy responsibly!

Belarc Advisor 8.1b

2009-07-23T07:25:00.001-07:00

Belarc Advisor builds a detailed profile of your installed software and hardware, anti-virus status, Center for Internet Security benchmarks, and it displays the results in your Web browser.

This program doesn't solve the problems itself, but it tells you how to address each issue.

Belarc requires (to present the data) one of the following browsers to be installed on your PC :

Internet Explorer 3 or Netscape 3 (or higher).

It also supports Opera, Firefox and Chrome.

Summary:

+ very easy to use

+ clear interface (builds clear reports)

+ it's for free

Operating system:

Windows 2003, Windows Vista, Windows 95, Windows Me, Windows Server 2008, Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows 7, Windows 98

Download Belarc Advisor here: BA 8.1b

Comodo Internet Security 3.9.95478.509 - Firewall+Antivirus protection

2009-07-06T11:41:00.001-07:00

Comodo Internet Security combines Comodo's firewall and a solid antivirus protection in one suite.

Comodo defends your PC against viruses, Trojans, root kits and other malware.

Version 3.9.95478.509 has new features like multilingual support and also stateful file inspection for realtime virus scanner.

My advice is: turn off Windows Firewall (you can't buy me, Bill...) and install Comodo Internet security.

Summary:

+ The best software for power user

+ Auto update of antivirus database several times a day

- May be a little hard to cofigure for novice users

You can download it here for free: Comodo Internet Security

Avidemux 2.4.4 - video editor

2009-06-27T01:04:00.000-07:00

Avidemux is a video editor designed for simple cutting, splitting, filtering and encoding tasks.

It supports many file types, including AVI, DVD compatible MPEG files,

MP4 and ASF, using a variety of codecs.

The program also includes advanced options, including generic decoder and post-processing tools, user-defined filters, GlyphSet adjustments, and more features.

Downloads, documentation, and other features can be found at

avidemux.org

You can download it here for free: Avidemux 2.4.4

The KMPlayer 2.9.4.1434 - a brilliant video player

2009-06-22T10:30:00.000-07:00

The KMPlayer is all-in-one media player covering (with it's built-in codecs) various formats such as VCD, DVD, AVI, MKV, Ogg, OGM, 3GP, MPEG-1/2/4, WMV, RealMedia, QuickTime etc.

It includes a plethora of playback controls and tweaks, and broad DVD support.

Has great customizable skins and awesome keyboard shortcuts.

You can download it here for free: KMPlayer 2.9.4.1434

Weekend Fun: Freeciv 2.0.10

2009-06-19T11:29:00.000-07:00

Freeciv is a multiplayer, turn-based strategy game inspired by the

Sid Meier's Civilization series.

It is released under the GNU licence and it's free to play.

Players take the role of a tribe leader in 4000 BC and have to guide their people through the centuries.

Over time, new technologies are discovered, which allow the construction of new city buildings and the deployment of new units.

The game ends when one civilization accomplished the goal of space colonization, or at a certain deadline.

You can download Freeciv 2.0.10 here for free: Freeciv 2.0.10

Stellarium 0.10.2 - Create a virtual sky on your PC

2009-06-15T12:55:00.000-07:00

Stellarium is a free open-source planetarium for your PC.

It shows a photo-realistic sky in 3D, just like what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope.

The default catalog includes 600,000 stars from 10 different constellations.

When you run the program for the first time it asks that you set your location (you can do it easily by pointing your current location on the built-in map)

Stellarium 0.10.2 is a fantastic piece of software, I really recommend it!

You can download it here for free: Stellarium 0.10.2

Weekend fun: Torus Trooper - great shoot'em up game!

2009-06-12T15:43:00.000-07:00

Torus Trooper is a fast-paced, arcade style space shooter.

Destroying alien spaceships is not an easy task, so you can use your

extra weapon (Left Alt) to blow your enemies away :-].

Great game from Kenta Cho - one of the best independent programmers.

You can download it here for free: Torus Trooper

Enjoy!

Paint.NET 3.36

2009-06-10T09:40:00.000-07:00

Paint.NET is a free image and photo editing software with essential tools to crop, rotate, resize images, adjust colors, and create collages.

It features an intuitive user interface with support for layers, unlimited undo, special effects, and a variety of useful and powerful tools.

Paint.net supports common image formats - JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF and others.

System requirements:

Windows XP (SP2 or later), Vista, Server 2003 (SP1 or later), Home Server, Server 2008

Processor:

500 MHZ or higher

RAM:

256 MB (512 MB or more recommended)

Free hard drive space:

200 MB

Software component:

.NET Framework 2.0

You can download it here for free: Paint.NET 3.36

Safari 4 ready for download!

2009-06-09T11:01:00.000-07:00

Stable version of Safari 4 is released and ready for download.

Apple claims that Safari 4 is the fastest browser available.

According to Apple, JavaScript loads 4.5 times faster than Safari 3, more than 4 times faster than Firefox 3, and 8 times faster than IE 8.

Ver. 4 implements a Smart Address Field for jumping to most likely search results and introduces Top Sites as a "speed dial" feature for blank tabs.

You can download it here for free: Safari 4

Foobar2000 0.9.6.8

2009-06-08T14:41:00.000-07:00

foobar2000 is a freeware audio player for Windows with highly customizable interface.

It supports MP1, MP2, MP3, MPC, AAC, Ogg Vorbis, FLAC / Ogg FLAC, WavPack, WAV, AIFF, AU, SND, CDDA and WMA formats.

The new version: 0.9.6.8 is a bugfix-only release and

you can download it here for free: foobar2000 0.9.6.8