File verification software can be used to verify the integrity of files. This is for instance helpful when verifying the integrity of data backups, or files on a web server to make sure that attackers did not modify them. All programs that offer the functionality work alike. They process a list of files, create checksums [...]
Microsoft Windows Operating System
USB Manager, Manage USB Device Types
USB is currently the most popular way of connecting external devices to the computer. The majority of external storage devices, printers, scanners, audio devices with built in sound chips and other peripherals are connected via USB to the PC. You sometimes may want to prevent that other people connect USB devices to your PC, for [...]
PC Information Tool Speccy Updated, Better SSD Detection
Piriform, company behind popular programs such as CCleaner, Defraggler and Speccy, is currently producing and releasing updates for all their applications to improve SSD detection among other things. Speccy, which has been updated yesterday, is the latest to receive that treatment. And since the last review dates two years back, I thought it is as [...]
Photo Event Organizer, Image Organizer
Have you ever worked with a folder full of photos? I’m talking hundreds or even thousands of photos taken with different camera models and in different years and locations. It is pretty difficulty to find specific photos or events in a folder filled with such an amount of photos. The free software Photo Event Organizer [...]
SliderDock is a Stylish Application Dock for your Desktop
There are several interesting application docks available and several of them have been mentioned on this site. Desktop customization is easy with Windows 7 and many users enjoy personalizing as much as they possibly can. You can fill up your Toolbar with icons and have the ordinary look or you could use other application dock [...]
Download Microsoft Office Starter 2010
Microsoft Office 2010 is available in different editions just like the Windows operating system. There is Microsoft Office Home and Student 2010 or Office Professional 2010 for instance. And there is at least one version that is only available to OEMs: Microsoft Office Starter 2010. This version is usually only available for users who purchase [...]
Disk Alignment Test, Advanced Format Hard Drive Check
There is not really a lot that users can do to improve the performance of a hard drive on a computer system. This however is changing currently with the introduction of the first Advanced Format hard drives that some PC manufacturers have started to add to their systems. The main difference is that AF drives [...]
Windows Thumbcache Viewer
The Windows operating system saves thumbnails in a file called thumbs.db whenever you change the folder view mode to thumbnail view. This basically caches the image thumbnails so that they are displayed faster the next time you open that folder with that view mode. I personally have disabled the thumbnail creation on my system as [...]
BlueStacks, Android Apps On Windows Now Compatible With XP, Vista
With so many new and exciting apps coming out for mobile operating systems like Apple’s iOS or Google’s Android, it only is natural that some users want those apps to work on their desktop PCs as well. Maybe they want to utilize the bigger screen of their computer system, show off an app or device, [...]
Hardwipe, Erase Hard Drives Securely
I usually give away old computer systems to friends or family when I build a new one. And since I’m building a new PC every one or two years, there seems to be always someone who could make good use of my old computer system. I prepare the old systems before I give them away. [...]
Speak UP: Text-to-Speech Software with a Translation Feature
Text- to-speech applications are plentiful. They are showing up on web browsers like Google’s Chrome Speak and Firefox’s text-to-speech plugin. Then there is speech-to-text software such as Dragon and many others including the built-in feature in Windows 7. If you are searching for text-to-speech software that is free and does more than just give you [...]
Fix Windows Display Quality Issues
The display is without doubt one of the most important parts of a computer system. Display related issues, like blurry text, a bad refresh rate or colors that do not really match can impact a user’s work experience on a computer. Imagine having to work ten hours a day on a computer with blurry or [...]
Multiboot USB Creator YUMI
It can sometimes be very handy to have an USB drive filled with self-booting troubleshooting tools in reach. Creation used to be difficulty, especially if you wanted to add more than one tool to a drive. This changes with the release of the multiboot USB creator YUMI. The free portable software for Windows offers the [...]
Clikka Mouse, Mouse Software For People With Disability
People with disability may have difficulties working on a computer. Sometimes it may not be possible to use a mouse or the computer keyboard. When that’s the case, special software for people with disability comes to the rescue. These programs often emulate mouse and keyboard, for instance with head movement or eye pointer software. A [...]
Looking For A Portable Audio Converter? Try FlicFlac
When you download music from the Internet, you may sometimes download file formats that your default audio player, mobile phone or mp3 player does not support. Maybe it is a Flac, Ogg or Ape file, audio files that are not that commonly supported. If you are lucky the site that you have downloaded the music [...]
Winter, Christmas Themes For Windows
I know users who change wallpapers and themes regularly, and others who have never changed the theme and still use the standard default theme that ships with Windows. Statistics to compare Windows 7 theme usage with theme usage on previous Windows operating systems would be nice to have. I would expect that there are more [...]
TDP x-Ray Lite Hard Drive Manager
There are many ways that Windows users can manage hard disk space. You can manage your hard drives with the Windows Disk Management utility, but it is somewhat difficult to navigate. Programs like WinDirStat are great for getting a good visual scheme. Tools with visual graphing for hard disk management are ideal. Everybody has their [...]
Microsoft Security Essentials Beta Program Sign Up
Microsoft’s free security software, Microsoft Security Essentials, has become a very popular program in the world of Windows. There is no single reason for that, factors that weight in heavily are that it is free, relatively lightweight and unobtrusive, and that it is developed by Microsoft directly. Microsoft yesterday has opened registrations for the next [...]
How to get your Microsoft Office Files to Open after Office 2010 Trial Expires in Windows 7
It is good that Microsoft offers a 60 day trial of Office 2010, but once it expires and you try to open Word or Excel Files, you will get an error message stating that it cannot be opened because the file is not a valid Win32 application. Sure, you can rearm the Office 2010 trial [...]
Freemake Video Downloader, Download Free Movies, Videos
When it comes to downloading movies and videos from the Internet, users have lots of options. They can install browser add-ons like Download Helper for Firefox, the myriad tool reviewed in our guide to download YouTube videos or third party programs like Freemake Video Downloader. I reviewed the program for the first time back in [...]