A few free programs that are very helpful!!
Please add your opinions & reccomendations
Sunday, November 25, 2007 by Choopocabras | Discussion: Personal Computing
I stumbled acress a program today that I find to be pretty usefull, it's called EULAlyzer. The free version only runs as you call for it to which is what I prefer. Whenever you have to read an EULA, just run this program and drag the crosshairs to the text you want to analyze. It will highlight stuff that stands out such as talking about installing 3rd party software or adbots, ect.
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/eulalyzer.html
http://www.download.com/EULAlyzer/3000-2086_4-10464852.html
I also just d/l a program called MP3TAG that works very fast and well for editing mp3 tags easily and lets you copy and past album covers (i have roxioEMC10 but too many issues on vista!!) http://www.mp3tag.de/en/
Ausligics disk defrag works very smooth for a free disk defrag. I'm using this for now untill I find something really worth it for Vista (the one that comes with Vista sucks, at least the one on XP had some info to it)
http://www.auslogics.com/disk-defrag/
Here is a great utility for doing minor edits on pictures and even can get plug-ins to play video and mp3 The best is you can easily resize a picture (by pixel, percent or there is even a button to quickly reduce it by 1/2 (VERY light on resources)
http://www.irfanview.com/
BLACKVIPER~ a great O/S service page It has a list of all windows (even VISTA) services and what they do, and recommendations on what can be turned on/off in certain situations
http://www.blackviper.com/Articles/OS/OSguides.htm
One thing that I need some opinions on is a good firewall for vista, but also not a resource hog. I figure if you have read past where I mention turning off system services then I'm confident that you will have some educated opinions
I had ZONEALARM Pro, and 2 months after I paid for 1 year, I got vista. A year later and they do not have a version that works good with vista?! The zonealarm they have ready for vista is too buggy and a por version is still not available (they were gonna credit me for the time I've been subscribed but not using ZApro but now I'm calling them trying to get a refund to my credit card) Guess they're following same path as adaware 2007.
I've tried outpost firewall and It woulda been a sure choice for me but for some reason surfing the web slowed down to early dial-up pace (ruled out kaspersky AV, firefox addons and IE, ect) Next I tried Jetico Firewall but that one is too involved. I have been looking at reviews but most of them list norton and big names like that (and all the user comments rave about how great it is)
Please reply back with any suggestions for good Vista Firewalls (not worried if it is free or not) and any free usefull programs that people may not realize are out there
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/eulalyzer.html
http://www.download.com/EULAlyzer/3000-2086_4-10464852.html
I also just d/l a program called MP3TAG that works very fast and well for editing mp3 tags easily and lets you copy and past album covers (i have roxioEMC10 but too many issues on vista!!) http://www.mp3tag.de/en/
Ausligics disk defrag works very smooth for a free disk defrag. I'm using this for now untill I find something really worth it for Vista (the one that comes with Vista sucks, at least the one on XP had some info to it)
http://www.auslogics.com/disk-defrag/
Here is a great utility for doing minor edits on pictures and even can get plug-ins to play video and mp3 The best is you can easily resize a picture (by pixel, percent or there is even a button to quickly reduce it by 1/2 (VERY light on resources)
http://www.irfanview.com/
BLACKVIPER~ a great O/S service page It has a list of all windows (even VISTA) services and what they do, and recommendations on what can be turned on/off in certain situations
http://www.blackviper.com/Articles/OS/OSguides.htm
One thing that I need some opinions on is a good firewall for vista, but also not a resource hog. I figure if you have read past where I mention turning off system services then I'm confident that you will have some educated opinions
I had ZONEALARM Pro, and 2 months after I paid for 1 year, I got vista. A year later and they do not have a version that works good with vista?! The zonealarm they have ready for vista is too buggy and a por version is still not available (they were gonna credit me for the time I've been subscribed but not using ZApro but now I'm calling them trying to get a refund to my credit card) Guess they're following same path as adaware 2007. I've tried outpost firewall and It woulda been a sure choice for me but for some reason surfing the web slowed down to early dial-up pace (ruled out kaspersky AV, firefox addons and IE, ect) Next I tried Jetico Firewall but that one is too involved. I have been looking at reviews but most of them list norton and big names like that (and all the user comments rave about how great it is)
Please reply back with any suggestions for good Vista Firewalls (not worried if it is free or not) and any free usefull programs that people may not realize are out there
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Leo the Lion
Reply #2 Sunday, November 25, 2007 5:23 PM
Reply #2 Sunday, November 25, 2007 5:23 PM
A lot of people who know computers swear by ESET/NOD software when it comes to Security. ESET bought out a new Smart Security Suite a few weeks ago and there have been some small bugs as you would expect but they seem to move fairly quickly to resolve them. It looks a good suite and includes anti-virus, firewall and anti-spyware. There is a free 30day trial. Give it a try and here is a link............. WWW Link
As a matter of interest I'm still on Norton Internet Security and the other day I noticed there is there was a facility within the software to update your version. I had about four months left of my subscription to the 2007 version and after following the instructions - and a few little hitches - I was allowed to download the 2008 version for FREE!!! Yep, FREE. So if there are any of you out there on NIS or on any other Norton products you might like to try the same. I must admit I had a hitch when I ran into an installation issue on the 2008 version but I quickly managed to resolve that and it installed like a dream
As a matter of interest I'm still on Norton Internet Security and the other day I noticed there is there was a facility within the software to update your version. I had about four months left of my subscription to the 2007 version and after following the instructions - and a few little hitches - I was allowed to download the 2008 version for FREE!!! Yep, FREE. So if there are any of you out there on NIS or on any other Norton products you might like to try the same. I must admit I had a hitch when I ran into an installation issue on the 2008 version but I quickly managed to resolve that and it installed like a dream
MasonM
Reply #3 Sunday, November 25, 2007 5:26 PM
Reply #3 Sunday, November 25, 2007 5:26 PM
Or you could just run Linux.
Ok, before the fanboys get all fired up, that was a facetious remark.
Ok, before the fanboys get all fired up, that was a facetious remark.
Phoon
Reply #4 Sunday, November 25, 2007 5:36 PM
Reply #4 Sunday, November 25, 2007 5:36 PM
I never understood why people use software based firewalls on highspeed connections.
A home router/firewall is very inexpensive, will do the job better, and will not hog resources.
A home router/firewall is very inexpensive, will do the job better, and will not hog resources.
Pugboy
Reply #5 Sunday, November 25, 2007 5:38 PM
Reply #5 Sunday, November 25, 2007 5:38 PM
Windows Defender and OneCare together make a great package. It is what I am using now, and so far, no viruses, spyware or anything of that sort.
kona0197
Reply #6 Sunday, November 25, 2007 8:08 PM
Reply #6 Sunday, November 25, 2007 8:08 PM
Leo - no one in their right mind uses Norton. That's just asking for trouble.
Phoon - good point. I've wondered the same thing. I think a few people out there are on the paranoid side of the fence.
Phoon - good point. I've wondered the same thing. I think a few people out there are on the paranoid side of the fence.
Phoon
Reply #7 Sunday, November 25, 2007 8:28 PM
How true and sad. Norton used to be the top of the line AV solution at one time too.
I will say however, that the corporate product Symantec AV is good.
Personally, I prefer Trend-Micro. Pc-Cillin at home, Neat Suite at work.
Reply #7 Sunday, November 25, 2007 8:28 PM
no one in their right mind uses Norton. That's just asking for trouble.
How true and sad. Norton used to be the top of the line AV solution at one time too.
I will say however, that the corporate product Symantec AV is good.
Personally, I prefer Trend-Micro. Pc-Cillin at home, Neat Suite at work.
TheD2JBug
Reply #9 Sunday, November 25, 2007 9:10 PM
Reply #9 Sunday, November 25, 2007 9:10 PM
Lets see
CCleaner
Spybot S&D
Avast AV
MS PowerToys. ( TweakUI )
....
CCleaner
Spybot S&D
Avast AV
MS PowerToys. ( TweakUI )
....
basj
Reply #10 Sunday, November 25, 2007 9:49 PM
I never understood why people use software based firewalls on highspeed connections.
A home router/firewall is very inexpensive, will do the job better, and will not hog resources.
Off Topic but i really like to know
Seriously guys..does this mean I can actually uninstall my zone alarm and still be safe? I am currently on a router/firewall modem. Is it really save? I need all my resources to do other things..
please advice.. Thanks. 
Reply #10 Sunday, November 25, 2007 9:49 PM
I never understood why people use software based firewalls on highspeed connections.
A home router/firewall is very inexpensive, will do the job better, and will not hog resources.
Off Topic but i really like to know
Seriously guys..does this mean I can actually uninstall my zone alarm and still be safe? I am currently on a router/firewall modem. Is it really save? I need all my resources to do other things..
please advice.. Thanks.
MasonM
Reply #11 Sunday, November 25, 2007 10:06 PM
I never understood why people use software based firewalls on highspeed connections.
A home router/firewall is very inexpensive, will do the job better, and will not hog resources.
Off Topic but i really like to know
Seriously guys..does this mean I can actually uninstall my zone alarm and still be safe? I am currently on a router/firewall modem. Is it really save? I need all my resources to do other things.. please advice.. Thanks.
That router/firewall is better assuming you actually set it up correctly. Huge assumption though.
Reply #11 Sunday, November 25, 2007 10:06 PM
I never understood why people use software based firewalls on highspeed connections.
A home router/firewall is very inexpensive, will do the job better, and will not hog resources.
Off Topic but i really like to know
Seriously guys..does this mean I can actually uninstall my zone alarm and still be safe? I am currently on a router/firewall modem. Is it really save? I need all my resources to do other things..
please advice.. Thanks. That router/firewall is better assuming you actually set it up correctly. Huge assumption though.
ALMonty
Reply #12 Sunday, November 25, 2007 10:10 PM
I must whole heartily disagree. I've been using Norton for years. Never had a virus. Right now I'm running it on 3 machines 2 on XP 1 on Vista. I wouldn't trust anything else.
Reply #12 Sunday, November 25, 2007 10:10 PM
no one in their right mind uses Norton. That's just asking for trouble
I must whole heartily disagree. I've been using Norton for years. Never had a virus. Right now I'm running it on 3 machines 2 on XP 1 on Vista. I wouldn't trust anything else.
kona0197
Reply #13 Sunday, November 25, 2007 10:14 PM
Reply #13 Sunday, November 25, 2007 10:14 PM
ALMonty - ask Jafo about Norton. You'll see it has a evil side to it.
ALMonty
Reply #14 Sunday, November 25, 2007 11:07 PM
Reply #14 Sunday, November 25, 2007 11:07 PM
It's like any other program, it works perfect on one computer and rips the other apart. I haven't had any problems so I'm sticking with it. 
Leo the Lion
Reply #15 Sunday, November 25, 2007 11:24 PM
Reply #15 Sunday, November 25, 2007 11:24 PM
ALMonty, you're absolutely right. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it's down to your own personal experience. I have known people who have had nightmares with Norton but personally my experiences are the same as yours. It's always protected my machines and been 'on the ball' to warn me with anything suspicious. I have no complaints with Norton on the Security side however their Systemworks package does not seem to be as efficient or as good as some of the other software around. I recently moved to PerfectDisk and TuneUp Utilities and have found that these two progs are top notch and really keep my machine fast and clean. I mentioned ESET at the beginning of the thread and I think I am going to change to their Security Suite when my Norton expires. I am a great one for listening to those who have computer expertize and looking at other forums and ESET certainly seems to be the big fav.
aufisch
Reply #16 Sunday, November 25, 2007 11:49 PM
Reply #16 Sunday, November 25, 2007 11:49 PM
I am currently using Kaspersky (KIS7), as it was one of the first Firewalls that worked reliably on Vista64bit.
The main reason for me to get a software firewall additionally to the one in my router, was because I wanted easy control over which programs are allowed to access the Internet and which are not.
The main reason for me to get a software firewall additionally to the one in my router, was because I wanted easy control over which programs are allowed to access the Internet and which are not.
Jafo
Reply #17 Sunday, November 25, 2007 11:59 PM
Reply #17 Sunday, November 25, 2007 11:59 PM
NIS may be OK....but NAV is a dog.
IF it works OK on your machine...and you have had no problems...good luck....cos 'luck' it is.
If it fubars and takes out your BITs service along with it you'll enjoy the fix.... a nice way to while-away your twilight years.
No Symantec product will ever go on one of my machines again.
Ever.
jamespaulp
Reply #18 Monday, November 26, 2007 12:48 AM
Reply #18 Monday, November 26, 2007 12:48 AM
I use Avast AV on XP, Vista and Linux. Firewall just the default settings on XP, Vista and Linux and almost locked down on my router.
greywar
Reply #19 Monday, November 26, 2007 1:04 AM
Reply #19 Monday, November 26, 2007 1:04 AM
Jesus, with all the (even on Vista) caveats you have on here I have to ask why you haven't switched to something else? why work this hard to overcome huge OS problems. Just switch OS's and half of your list becomes obsolete.
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Reply #1 Sunday, November 25, 2007 5:04 PM
Yeah, I guess reading comprehension is a problem for some people.