Skype made available a new beta version of the communication software for the Windows operating system today which introduces several new features in the Windows client. Facebook users who – for whatever reason – did not want to create a Skype account until now can now use their Facebook login instead. What this means is [...]
Free Software Reviews
Below is a selection of popular software categories and individual guides that are available on this website.
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Antivirus Software - Microsoft Software - Portable Software - Security Software
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Backup Software - Adobe Reader - Download Youtube Videos - Windows Live Essentials
Dataram RamDisk 4.0 now with Windows 8 support
Current prices for computer memory certainly make ramdisks an attractive alternative, considering that you get 8 Gigabytes of RAM for less than $40 these days, and 16 Gigabytes for about $70. While you may want to shell out a bit more for faster speeds and timings and all, it is fair to say that RAM [...]
SlimCleaner 4 with software update checking
SlimCleaner is a popular PC maintenance and optimization software for Windows that can best be compared to programs such as Advanced System Care or Comodo System Cleaner. It is an all-in-one program that combines CCleaner-like capabilities with options to optimize the PC. I suggest you check out the SlimCleaner 3.0 review for an overview of [...]
Share the Windows 8 startpage with the classic desktop
The two interfaces that Microsoft has implemented into Windows 8 are a major change from previous versions of the operating system. Instead of just having to work with the classic desktop, users now have to cope with the newly added startpage that Microsoft is pushing and the classic desktop. While it is certainly easy to [...]
GameSave Manager now with option to move Steam games
GameSave Manager was created as a way to bring order into the save game chaos on Windows. As you know, it is up to the game developer to pick a save game storage location on the PC. Some store save games in My Documents, others in the user folder or program folder. That’s bad if [...]
Password manager KeePass 2.20 released
Regular readers of this blog know that KeePass is my go to software for all things that have to do with passwords. It is a desktop application that leaves little to be desired when it comes to secure password management. From secure storage over browser plugins to note taking, it is all there integrated into [...]
Anvil’s Storage Utilities: Comprehensive SSD Benchmarking Tool
If you are building computer systems as a hobby or profession, or are simply an enthusiast who wants to get the maximum out of a PC, then you may want to use benchmarking tools to test your setup. Anvil’s Storage Utilities has been designed to be the most comprehensive benchmark tool for Solid State Drives [...]
AVG Antivirus Free 2013 download available
AVG Technologies today has released the annual update for their AVG Free Antivirus 2013 security application for Windows introducing new and improved features as well as a new user interface. AVG Anti-virus Free is one of the most popular free antivirus solutions for Windows PCs. It has grown in recent years from an application that [...]
Foxit Reader 5.4 update released
Foxit Reader is a popular Adobe Reader alternative that users like to install if they prefer faster pdf loading times or simply do not want to keep up with the security vulnerabilities that are discovered regularly in Adobe’s pdf reader. Windows users like Foxit Reader for a number of features, including fast startup times and [...]
DVD Author Plus: create a movie DVD from video files
So you have all those nice video files on your hard drive and want to watch them on the big television screen and not your computer. While you may have devices or gadgets at your disposal to do that effortlessly, for instance by streaming the videos, you sometimes may need to burn them to DVD [...]
Reduce file sizes without quality loss with File Optimizer
If you reduce the file size of your online contents by 10%, you may speed up the page loading time by the same amount. While the end result may vary, it is clear that people can access the contents faster if the size of the files get reduced. Most webmasters concentrate on images when it [...]
ViStart updated: Windows 7 like start menu for Windows 8
My favorite program to bring back the start menu to the Microsoft’s Windows 8 operating system is Start8 by Stardock as it not only gives me the option to add a classic Windows 7-like start menu or a Windows 8 inspired start menu, but also options to load Metro apps right from the start menu [...]
Monitor all Windows Explorer file activites
We here at Ghacks Technology News have reviewed several applications in the past that allow you to monitor specific areas of the operating system. SpyMe Tools for instance lets you monitor the installation process of a software, while Reg from App and What Changed keep an eye on the system’s Registry. Windows Explorer Tracker concentrates [...]
Eusing Free Registry Cleaner 3.0 released
Opinions are mixed when it comes to Registry cleaners. Some say that these programs are like snake oil, that do not really improve anything after they have been used to clean up the Registry. Others notice improvements, for instance in start up speed as the size of the Registry often gets reduced as a consequence [...]
Start8 updated: now with improved Windows 8 Start Menu
Stardock’s Start8 was one of the first programs to bring back a start menu to the Windows 8 operating system. Unlike Classic Shell, it moved part of the operating system’s new start page to the start menu area to bring its functionality to the desktop. The advantage here was that it allowed users to use [...]
PasteAsFile: Save Windows Clipboard entries to files in Windows Explorer
I have been working on Enterprise systems in the past were users were not permitted to install or run third party software on. This was a big issue if you had to create screenshots for the Intranet or presentations, as you were left with using the print screen to save them to the Windows Clipboard, [...]
Taskbar Pinner: pin anything to the Windows Taskbar
Microsoft introduced an update to the taskbar of the Windows operating system in Windows 7. Major improvements included the ability to pin programs permanently on the taskbar for faster access and the new jumplist feature that you could use to access previously used files or initiate specific program related actions. For a mail program, you [...]
Look up IP address information offline
I can’t think of many situations where you may want to look up IP address information when you are offline. Two possible options include analyzing a log file, for instance that of a computer’s firewall or that of a website while offline or not connected to the Internet, the other to not leave a trace [...]
Security app RogueKiller 8.0 with graphical user interface
Our first review of RogueKiller dates back to January 2012. Back then the security app shipped with a Dos-like interface that you could only control with your keyboard. Today’s release of RogueKiller 8.0 comes with a new and improved graphical user interface that makes the program more appealing and easier to work with. RogueKiller scans [...]
Clover Brings Tabs to your Windows Explorer
There are several options available for those who want to add tabs to Windows Explorer – something Microsoft should probably have done themselves when they redesigned the app for Windows 8, including the previously reviewed Tab Explorer, QTabBar and QDir. One app I have been using on a couple of our home computers is called [...]