Bulk Image Downloader v1.34 - Free with limitation of 200 queue files & 2 concurrent download

 

Suppose you've come across a thumbnailed web gallery full of beautiful high quality pictures that you just have to download and add to your collection. But clicking on each thumbnail to get to the full sized image will take ages - plus you'll probably have to battle popups and adverts if the images are hosted on a free image hosting site! Some web hosts even scramble the image filenames, while others are so unreliable that you end up clicking Refresh over and over until the image finally loads!! So what do you do?

Well, you've found the solution! Bulk Image Downloader (BID) is a specialized image downloading tool that can save you hours of tedious manual work. BID is so easy to set up and use that you just won't believe how quickly you'll have it downloading full sized images from almost any thumbnailed web gallery you throw at it. Its built in image detection technology can handle image hosts that most other conventional web downloaders can't! It will even detect corrupt and partially downloaded images and automatically retry for you. All your images will be downloaded without fail.

I have been looking around for an image downloader that can bypass imagehost. I found only 2 so far, and they are:

ImageHost Grabber (Firefox Extension)

Bulk Image Downloader (Max 200 queue files and 2 simultaneous download)

ImageHost is discontinued as of 18-Feb-2008 and It only left me with Bulk Image Downloader (Shareware version have unlimited download queue and 50 simultaneous download). I still find it worth downloading because it is better than manually click each image by hand. On average a good picture have around 50+ images per topics in forum and doing it manually is out of the question. My suggestion is try Bulk Image Downloader for the unregistered version and it is still better than doing it manually.

 

http://www.antibody-software.com/

EssentialPIM - Free Personal Information Manager

PIM stands for Personal Information Manager, and it allows you to keep all you information in electronic form. All your appointments, tasks, to do lists, notes and contacts are stored in a graphical and easily accessible form

Main Features:

1. Tools to satisfy your calendar, contact management, to do list and notes needs.
2. Synchronization with Outlook, Windows Mobile devices, Palm, iPOD, Google Calendar.
3. Simple printout of any or all modules and quick export of your data into the most useful formats (iCal, vCard, HTML).
4. Strong data protection using Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) algorithm.
5. Intuitive interface in many languages including German, Italian, French and Spanish.

http://www.essentialpim.com/?r=download

Foobar2000 - Audio Player

Foobar2000 is an advanced audio player for the Windows platform. Some of the basic features include ReplayGain support, low memory footprint and native support for several popular audio formats.

Features

• Open component architecture allowing third-party developers to extend functionality of the player

• Audio formats supported "out-of-the-box": WAV, AIFF, VOC, AU, SND, Ogg Vorbis, MPC, MP2, MP3, MPEG-4 AAC

• Audio formats supported through official addons: FLAC, OggFLAC, Monkey's Audio, WavPack, Speex, CDDA, TFMX, SPC, various MOD types; extraction on-the-fly from RAR, 7-ZIP & ZIP archives

• Full Unicode support on Windows NT

• ReplayGain support

• Low memory footprint, efficient handling of really large playlists

• Advanced file info processing capabilities (generic file info box and masstagger)

• Highly customizable playlist display

• Customizable keyboard shortcuts

• Most of standard components are opensourced under BSD license (source included with the SDK)

http://www.foobar2000.org/download.html

ClamWin 0.93 - Open Source Antivirus

ClamWin is a Free Antivirus program for MS Windows 98/Me/2000/XP/2003 and Vista.

ClamWin Free Antivirus comes with an easy installer and open source code. You may download and use it absolutely free of charge. It features:

• High detection rates for viruses and spyware;

• Scanning Scheduler;

• Automatic downloads of regularly updated Virus Database.

• Standalone virus scanner and right-click menu integration to Microsoft Windows Explorer;

• Addin to Microsoft Outlook to remove virus-infected attachments automatically.

The latest version of Clamwin Free Antivirus is 0.93

Please note that ClamWin Free Antivirus does not include an on-access real-time scanner. You need to manually scan a file in order to detect a virus or spyware.

ClamWin Free Antivirus is based on ClamAV engine and uses GNU General Public License by the Free Software Foundation, and is free (as in freedom) software. To find out more about GNU GPL, please visit the following link: Philosophy of the GNU Project - Free Software Foundation.

ClamWin Free Antivirus uses ClamAV Scanning Engine

http://www.clamwin.com/content/view/18/46/

ZoneAlarm Free 7.0.473.0 - Firewall Protection

ZoneAlarm is designed to protect your DSL- or cable-connected PC from hackers. This program includes four interlocking security services: a firewall, an application control, an Internet lock, and Zones. The firewall controls the door to your computer and allows only traffic you understand and initiate. The Internet lock blocks Internet traffic while your computer is unattended or while you're not using the Internet, and it can be activated automatically with your computer's screensaver or after a set period of inactivity. Zones monitor all activity on your computer and alert you when a new application attempts to access the Internet. Version 7.0.362 may include unspecified updates, enhancements, or bug fixes.

ZoneAlarm is an easy-to-use firewall that blocks hackers and other unknown threats.

• Intrusion Blocking systematically identifies hackers and blocks access attempts.

• Stealth Mode automatically makes your computer invisible to anyone on the Internet.

• Automatic Program Configuration provides safety and simplicity by automatically configuring programs. Automatically decides whether to allow or deny Internet access to individual programs.

• Expert Controls give savvy users precise control over security settings.

   

  This free version is for non-commercial use only.

  Note: ZoneAlarm is free for individual and not-for-profit charitable entity use (excluding governmental entities and educational institutions). Advanced features are available.

http://www.download.com/ZoneAlarm-Firewall-Windows-2000-XP-/3000-10435_4-10039884.htm

Comodo Firewall 3.0.22.349 - Firewall with spyware & trojan protection

• Complete protection from Hackers, Spyware, Trojans and Identity theft

• Host Intrusion Prevention System stops malware from being installed [NEW]

• Clean PC Mode registers your current applications then will allow only applications that you approve to be installed on your computer [NEW]

• Malware Scan Feature checks your computer for viruses, spyware and trojans before you install Comodo Firewall Pro [NEW]

• Free Download. No charges or license fees ever.

Install now for out-of-the-box protection against identity theft hackers, trojans, viruses, scripts and other unknown threats

Offers More Features Than Similar Paid Firewalls

Unlike some other free firewalls, this is not a stripped down version, but is a fully functional product. Updates are also free.

Comodo is delivering this highly rated firewall free as a cornerstone of our initiative to empower consumers to create a safe and trusted online experience whenever you go online. This new initiative will also make available other free desktop security tools to avoid leading threats such as phishing attacks.

The free tools include: the ability to authenticate web identities in real time (www.vengine.com), free email certificates for secure email encryption, secure backup for backing up files on your pc and iVault for password management and launching secured internet sessions. Together, all these solution could cost upwards of $500 per year to achieve a comparable level of internet security and safety. And all these products are offered free for the lifetime of the PC - without any annual subscription fees or licenses.

http://www.personalfirewall.comodo.com/G/cfp/btn_get_comodo_firewall_pro_free_index

AVG Free Edition 8.0.100 - Best Free Antivirus

AVG Free Edition is the well-known anti-virus protection tool. AVG Free is available free-of-charge to home users for the life of the product! Rapid virus database updates are available for the lifetime of the product, thereby providing the high-level of detection capability that millions of users around the world trust to protect their computers. AVG Free is easy-to-use and will not slow your system down (low system resource requirements).

Highlights include:

• Automatic update functionality

• The AVG Resident Shield, which provides real-time protection as files are opened and programs are run

• The AVG E-mail Scanner, which protects your e-mail

• The AVG On-Demand Scanner, which allows the user to perform scheduled and manual tests

• Free Virus Database Updates for the lifetime of the product

• AVG Virus Vault for safe handling of infected files

http://free.grisoft.com/ww.download?prd=afe

Foxit Reader 2.3.2822 - Free and Fast PDF Reader

Foxit Reader is a free PDF document viewer and printer, with incredible small size (only 2.55 M download size), breezing-fast launch speed and rich feature set. Foxit Reader supports Windows Me/2000/XP/2003/Vista. Its core function is compatible with PDF Standard 1.7.

In the past, you've had to download a huge PDF reader from another software company, go through a lengthy installation process and wait for an annoying splash window to disappear just to open a PDF document. Moreover, if you want to annotate a PDF document, you have to pay US$299 to buy certain software.

Now with Foxit Reader, you don't have to endure such pain any more. The following is a list of compelling advantages of Foxit Reader:

• Incredibly small: The download size of Foxit Reader is only 2.55 M which is a fraction of Acrobat Reader 20 M size.

• Breezing-fast: When you run Foxit Reader, it launches instantly without any delay. You are not forced to view an annoying splash window displaying company logo, author names, etc.

• Annotation tool: Have you ever wished to annotate (or comment on) a PDF document when you are reading it? Foxit Reader allows you to draw graphics, highlight text, type text and make notes on a PDF document and then print out or save the annotated document.

• Text converter: You may convert the whole PDF document into a simple text file.

• High security and privacy: Foxit Reader highly respects the security and privacy of users and will never connect to the Internet without users' permission. While other PDF readers often silently connect to the Internet in the background. Foxit PDF Reader does not contain any spyware.

I have been using Foxit Reader for a while now. Previously I used Adobe Acrobat and with the new version that they have it takes a long time to open a pdf file and to move between each page take a long time to render. Foxit Reader is much faster than acrobat on initial opening and between each page. It is  a very good pdf reader.

In the new version they even have a tab navigation so that each pdf file that you open will occupy one tab. It is a very nice improvement for me, since I can open quite a few pdf simultaneously.

http://www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/reader_2/down_reader.htm

Taskbar Shuffle v2.5

No hotkeys, no extra steps, just rearrange the buttons on your Windows taskbar by dragging and dropping them. Allows you to rearrange your system tray icons by dragging and dropping as well (but that does require a hotkey).

No need to get all nervous when an application crashes or if you need to reboot; you can reorder your programs exactly as they were anytime by just dragging and dropping them directly within your Windows taskbar!

Once you download, install, and run Taskbar Shuffle, left-click and drag the programs/buttons on your Windows taskbar to rearrange them. That's really all there is to it... if you need any help, post to the forum or contact me. As of version 2.1, you can shuffle your tray icons as well, but that requires you to hold a hotkey (CTRL by default).

If you find this program useful, please pass it along to your friends or donate a few bucks to keep me going.

http://www.freewebs.com/nerdcave/taskbarshuffle.htm

LimeWire Basic 4.16.7 - File Sharing Applications

LimeWire is a fast P2P file-sharing application, letting users share and search for all types of computer files, including movies, pictures, games, and text documents. The application's other features include dynamic querying, the ability to preview files while downloading, advanced techniques for locating rare files, and an extremely intuitive user interface.

• Ease of use - just install, run, and search

• Ability to search by artist, title, genre, or other metainformation

• Elegant multiple search tabbed interface

• "Swarm" downloads from multiple hosts help you get files faster

• iTunes integration for Mac and Windows users

• Unique "ultrapeer" technology reduces bandwidth requirements for most users

• Integrated chat

• Directly connect to a computer

• Browse host feature--even works through firewalls

• Added Bitzi metadata lookup

• International versions: Now available in many new languages

• Connects to the network using GWebCache, a distributed connection system

• Automatic local network searches for lightning-fast downloads

• Support for MAGNET links that allow you to click on web page links that access Gnutella

http://www.limewire.com/

Safari 3.1.1 - Apple Browser for Windows

Experience the web, Apple style, with Safari: the fastest, easiest-to-use web browser in the world. With its simple, elegant interface, Safari gets out of your way and lets you enjoy the web, up to 2 times faster than Internet Explorer.

The fastest web browser on any platform, Safari loads pages up to 2 times faster than Internet Explorer 7 and up to 1.6 times faster than Firefox 2.

And it executes JavaScript up to 2.8 times faster than Internet Explorer 7 and up to 1.6 times faster than Firefox 2. What does all that mean for you? Less time loading pages and more time enjoying them.

http://www.apple.com/safari/

ICL Builder 0.3 Beta 2 - Creating icl files for Folderico

Considering numerous questions " How to create a theme (ICL-file) for Folderico and it is desirable with help the freeware program - we spread the additional tool for Folderico - ICL Builder.

By help of given util you can create ICL files from standalone ico-files, but consider, this is a only BETA version.Therefore write, that wish to see in this program.

http://eng.softq.org/icl_builder

Sandboxie v3.26 - Running applications in a container

Sandboxie requires neither the disabling nor blocking of functions available to Web sites through the browser. Instead, Sandboxie isolates and quarantines the outcome of whatever the Web site may do to your computer, including the installation of unsolicited software. There is no trade-off of functionality for security: the Web site can use the full range of active content tools, and if it uses these tools maliciously to install software or otherwise make changes in your computer, then these changes can be easily undone.
Sandboxie has originally been designed to increase the security of browsing with Internet Explorer, however it is just as effective with any other browser, and in fact, any other program. Sandboxie wraps a protection layer around the programs it supervises. It is this layer that intercepts and isolates any changes the programs make to the computer. And this layer is impartial to the specific program it wraps.
Sandboxie is a software that allows you isolates and quarantines website.
When you browse the web, changes occur to your computer system. Most of the time these changes are harmless, like recording the addresses of web sites you have visited (and when), so the browser can help you complete a web address that you type in. Whether these changes are harmless or harmful, they do in fact happen to your computer system.
When you use Sandboxie to protect your browsing session, it catches all these changes just as the browser is about to apply them into your computer system. Sandboxie does record these changes on behalf of the browser, but it records them in a special isolated folder, called the sandbox.
The benefit of having a sandbox is that it ensures your ability to get rid of all changes done by the browser, simply by deleting the sandbox folder.
Another useful feature of Sandboxie is the ability to terminate all sandboxed programs at once. As some web sites tend to pop up three new browser windows for each one you close, you can have Sandboxie close all of them with a click of a button.
You may use Sandboxie free of charge for any length of time that you desire. However, if you use Sandboxie for more than 30 days, the software will occasionally remind you to consider paying the registration fee. By doing that, you would show your support for further development and improvement of Sandboxie.

 

http://rapidshare.com/files/111130889/Sandboxie_v3.26.rar

RSFind! 1.1 - Firefox 2 Extension

RSFind! is a firefox extension that comes to make your life easy, if you are one of Rapidshare (or other hosting services) maniacs.

RSFind! can find links to files on hosting services (e.g. rapidshare) that appear in the currently visiting webpage(s). It gives you the capability to select the files you want and manage them altogether. Currently implemented managements are copying them to clipboard and opening them in tabs.

Note that you can pass the links to a Download Manager (like USDownloader) by using the copy to clipboard function (it is required that the Download Manager has a clipboad-watching function).

This is a good addons for firefox that deals with file sharing site such as rapidshare.com, rapidshare.de, easy-share.net, etc. In the past, I only used flashgot to retrieve the links but then it won't use my rapidshare password because it contains other links than rapidshare. By using this extension than only links to rapidshare are retrieve.

To use it, user have to click the button manually on the status bar. This addon also have an option to check link that are clear text, so the use of any extension to linkify the link is not needed.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/5572

Pivot - Software for creating stick-figure animations

Pivot makes it easy to create stick-figure animations. You can build your own stick figures and load your own backgrounds. The animations can be saved as animated gifs to be used on web pages. An example animation is included.

http://atlas.walagata.com/w/peterbone/Pivot.zip

BORGChat 1.0.0.438 - LAN Chat Program

BORGChat is a LAN Chat program.

Features:

• #Main chat. This chat is available for all users in every workgroup
• Private chat-Choose someone to chat with in a private chat.
• #Channels. Very similar with main chat .In the near future you will be able to set a password for others to join it.
• Message board .Here you can post a message which will be send to other users even if you exit BORGChat
• Private message (in a window or a balloon) (to user /selected users/all users)
• Send File with pause and bandwidth control
• Send Picture from Clipboard
• Beep user /selected users/all users
• View computers and shares from your network
• Map network drive
• Message on Messenger service/Winpopup program
• More than 80 ANIMATED SMILES and the possibility to add your own
• Html stuff (Bold,Italic,Underline,Insert: IMG,QUOTE,URL,HR)
• Quick messages with key combinations Shift+F1...F12
• Commands /? /help /me /here /clear /nick etc
• 3 Chat modes Here/Busy/Away with customizable messages
• Ignore private messages/ all messages
• Add to block list (message filtration)
• Online Alerts
• User info - (Mem/OS/Cpu/Ip/MacAddress/CompName)
• Chat logs
• Transparent icons when chat is not in front/hidden
• Insert user name by pressing tab
• Multilanguage support --> Curent : Lang: Eng,Ro,Swedish, Spanish, Polish , Slovak , Italian , Bulgarian , Danish, German ,Russian, Turkish, Ukrainian, Slovenian, Czech, Dansk, French, Latvian, Portuguese, Urdu, Dutch, Hungarian, Serbian; (i need more translations).

http://borgchat.softnews.ro/download.php

Sandboxie 3.26 - Running application in virtual sandbox for safety

Sandboxie requires neither the disabling nor blocking of functions available to Web sites through the browser. Instead, Sandboxie isolates and quarantines the outcome of whatever the Web site may do to your computer, including the installation of unsolicited software. There is no trade-off of functionality for security: the Web site can use the full range of active content tools, and if it uses these tools maliciously to install software or otherwise make changes in your computer, then these changes can be easily undone.

Sandboxie has originally been designed to increase the security of browsing with Internet Explorer, however it is just as effective with any other browser, and in fact, any other program. Sandboxie wraps a protection layer around the programs it supervises. It is this layer that intercepts and isolates any changes the programs make to the computer. And this layer is impartial to the specific program it wraps.

Sandboxie is a software that allows you isolates and quarantines website.

When you browse the web, changes occur to your computer system. Most of the time these changes are harmless, like recording the addresses of web sites you have visited (and when), so the browser can help you complete a web address that you type in. Whether these changes are harmless or harmful, they do in fact happen to your computer system.

When you use Sandboxie to protect your browsing session, it catches all these changes just as the browser is about to apply them into your computer system. Sandboxie does record these changes on behalf of the browser, but it records them in a special isolated folder, called the sandbox.

The benefit of having a sandbox is that it ensures your ability to get rid of all changes done by the browser, simply by deleting the sandbox folder.

Another useful feature of Sandboxie is the ability to terminate all sandboxed programs at once. As some web sites tend to pop up three new browser windows for each one you close, you can have Sandboxie close all of them with a click of a button.

You may use Sandboxie free of charge for any length of time that you desire. However, if you use Sandboxie for more than 30 days, the software will occasionally remind you to consider paying the registration fee. By doing that, you would show your support for further development and improvement of Sandboxie.

 

http://rapidshare.com/files/111130889/Sandboxie_v3.26.rar

CCleaner 2.07.575

CCleaner (formerly Crap Cleaner) is a freeware system optimization and privacy tool. It removes unused and temporary files from your system - allowing Windows to run faster, more efficiently and giving you more hard disk space. The best part is that it's fast! (normally taking less than a second to run) and Free.

Cleans the following:

• Internet Explorer Cache, History, Cookies, Index.dat.

• Recycle Bin, Temporary files and Log files.

• Recently opened URLs and files.

• Third-party application temp files and recent file lists (MRUs).

  Including: Firefox, Opera, Media Player, eMule, Kazaa, Google Toolbar, Netscape, Office XP, Nero, Adobe Acrobat, WinRAR, WinAce, WinZip and more...

• Advanced Registry scanner and cleaner to remove unused and old entries.

  Including File Extensions, ActiveX Controls, ClassIDs, ProgIDs, Uninstallers, Shared DLLs, Fonts, Help Files, Application Paths, Icons, Invalid Shortcuts and more... Backup for registry clean.

• Windows Startup tool.

If you like and use this software then it is polite to make a donation to the author.

http://www.ccleaner.com/download/downloading

SuperScan v4.0 - TCP port scanner

SuperScan is a powerful TCP port scanner, that includes a variety of additional networking tools like ping, traceroute, HTTP HEAD, WHOIS and more. It is made by a FoundStone. A company where people are familiar making an antivirus and security protection.

Some of SuperScan v4.0 Features:

• Superior scanning speed
• Support for unlimited IP ranges
• Improved host detection using multiple ICMP methods
• TCP SYN scanning
• UDP scanning (two methods)
• IP address import supporting ranges and CIDR formats
• Simple HTML report generation
• Source port scanning
• Fast hostname resolving
• Extensive banner grabbing
• Massive built-in port list description database
• IP and port scan order randomization
• A selection of useful tools (ping, traceroute, Whois etc)
• Extensive Windows host enumeration capability

Info:

Windows XP Service Pack 2 has removed raw sockets support which now limits SuperScan and many other network scanning tools. Some functionality can be restored by running the following at the Windows command prompt before starting SuperScan:

net stop SharedAccess

http://www.foundstone.com/us/resources/termsofuse.asp?file=superscan4.zip&warn=true

Windows XP SP3 Direct Download

Below is direct link to Microsoft for Windows XP SP3. I previous post is the same but if you are in doubt then below is the official one.

LINK

Windows XP SP3 - 5512 Final RTM

FILE: WindowsXP-KB936929-SP3-x86-ENU.exe
SIZE: 331,805,736 bytes in 1 file
SFV: C411A9DA
MD5: BB25707C919DD835A9D9706B5725AF58
SHA1: C81472F7EEEA2ECA421E116CD4C03E2300EBFDE4 

http://rapidshare.com/files/109666910/MSWXP.SERVICE.PACK.3.v5.1.2600.5512.ENGLISH-WZT.part1.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/109668183/MSWXP.SERVICE.PACK.3.v5.1.2600.5512.ENGLISH-WZT.part2.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/109669056/MSWXP.SERVICE.PACK.3.v5.1.2600.5512.ENGLISH-WZT.part3.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/109669398/MSWXP.SERVICE.PACK.3.v5.1.2600.5512.ENGLISH-WZT.part4.rar

RockXP 4.0 - Windows Passwords / Serials Retriever

- Allow you to get all Microsoft Software Serials
- Allow you to change your XP key
- Allow you to save you XP activation
- Allow you to retrieve you internet connection parameters (like passwords)
- Allow you to retrieve MSN login and password
- Allow you to retrieve XP login and HASH password
- Allow you to display system password (LSA)
- Allow you to generate random password

Warning:

RockXP is a tool that allow you to retrieve password. To do that, RockXP use a third part tool called Pwdump2.exe is an opensource software (Sources are included in RockXp). This tool retrieve HASH password of Windows. Unfortunatly, some Antivirus detect this tool like a Virus, but it’s not. So if you have downloaded this software from this website, I guarantee a 100% free of virus software… So, now you are free to use this tool… Thanks to you.

 

There are a lot of shareware for doing thing as the freeware RockXP. I see no point on buying a software just to do a simple and rarely used application. Luckly RockXP is there, it is free and does the job.

http://www.korben.info/rockxp/

DeepBurner Free - CD / DVD Burning Software

Powerful CD and DVD Burning Package

DeepBurner is an advanced and extremely powerful CD and DVD burning package. It even removes the hassle of making autoruns, creating and printing your own labels and booklets. Burn any data, copy any disc, make backups, create astonishing photo albums, make ISO images and Video DVDs with this very easy to handle professional software!

Currently, there are two versions of the program: DeepBurner Pro and DeepBurner Free.

http://www.deepburner.com/?r=download

Windows® Essencials Codec Pack - Codec for Windows Audio & Video

What is it?

Windows Essentials Codec Pack is a collection of Video and Audio Codecs and tools that are required to Encode / Decode (i.e., PLAY) Audio and Video files. With Windows Essentials Codec Pack you should be able to play 99% of all the movies and music files that you download off the internet, and stay up to date with the latest Codecs through W.E.C.P's Audio / Video Codec Update Service.

So, what is so cool about it ?

For starters, it's free (yey!) and it's user-friendly (i.e., click-click all done!) it keeps your computer up to date with the latest codecs (don't get left behind) and it's 1000% spamware / adware / spyware / scumware free (yey!)

But more importantly, unlike other codec packs which include several filters / decoders that are capable of decoding the same media format (which usually cause many conflicts / errors) W.E.C.P was especially designed to assign each file type to the most appropriate filter / decoder, which not only reduces the installer size but also eliminates many of the conflicts / errors caused by multiple codecs being used to decode the same file type(s).

Which formats does W.E.C.P supports ?

W.E.C.P. is designed as a near complete solution for all your video and audio needs, with it you can play Audio CDs, DVDs, (S)VCDs and XCDs on the fly, and it adds support for 3GP, AAC, AC3, APE, AVI, DivX, 3ivx, DAT, h.264, x264, AVC, Nero Digital, DTS, FLV, FLAC, HD-MOV, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, M4A, MPC, MP3, MP4, MO3, MOD, MKV/MKA, MTM, OFR, TTA, OGG/OGM, S3M, Vorbis, VOB, WavPack, ATRAC3, XviD, XM, WV, UMX and many more formats so you could play any video / audio file with your favorite media player or with the free and wonderful Media Player Classic player that comes included with W.E.C.P.

So which Codecs / DirectShow / VfW Filters / Tools does W.E.C.P. includes ?

• APE Source Filter: DirectShow audio decoder filter used to decode Monkey's Audio files (APE files)
• AC3 Filter: DirectShow audio decoder and processor filter used to decode audio tracks in movies (DVD, MPEG4 and others)
• AVI Splitter: Replacement for DirectShow's default Audio Video Interleave (AVI) Splitter (It can open many broken files and can reindex when needed)
• CDDA Reader Filter: DirectShow audio decoder capable of reading Audio CDs
• CDXA Reader Filter: DirectShow video decoder capable of reading (S)VCDs and XCDs
• CoreAAC Filter: Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) DirectShow audio decoder capable of reading AAC files
• CoreFlac Decoder: DirectShow audio decoder for the Flac audio codec
• FFDShow: DirectShow decoding filter for decompressing DivX, XviD, H.264, FLV1, WMV, MPEG-1 and MPEG-2, MPEG-4 and various other audio and video formats. It uses libavcodec from ffmpeg project for video decompression, postprocessing code from mplayer to enhance visual quality of low bitrate movies, and is based on original DirectShow filter from XviD, which is GPL'ed educational implementation of MPEG4 encoder
• FLV Splitter: Capable of splitting Flash Video files (FLV) and decoding On2 VP62 Video streams (notable users of the FLV format include YouTube, Google Video, Reuters.com, Yahoo! Video and MySpace.)
• OGG Splitter: DirectShow OGG Splitter capable of splitting OGG and OGM file(s) and enables to play / create .ogm wrapped video
• GPL MPEG-1/2 Decoder: DirectShow MPEG decoder filter can be used to play MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 streams
• MOD Source Filter: DirectShow filter decoder capable of decoding Tracker files (MO3, IT, XM, S3M, MTM, MOD and UMX)
• MPEG Splitter: DirectShow splitter capable of splitting MPEG1/MPEG2 files (MP(E)G, VOB, DAT, TS, TP, etc.)
• MPV Decoder: DirectShow decoder capable of decoding MPEG1/MPEG2 Video streams, and DVDs
• MPA Splitter: DirectShow Splitter capable of splitting MPEG Audio files (MP3) and MPEG4 Audio files (AAC)
• MPC Source Filter: DirectShow decoder filter capable of decoding MusePack Audio files (MPC).
• MP4 Splitter: DirectShow Splitter capable of splitting MP4, M4A, 3GP and HD-MOV files
• Matroska Splitter: DirectShow splitter capable of splitting Matroska files (MKV and MKA)
• Media Player Classic: an open source media player that looks just like Windows Media Player, but has many additional features. It has a built in DVD player with real-time zoom, support for AVI subtitles, QuickTime and RealVideo support
• OFR Source Filter: DirectShow filter decoder capable of decoding OptimFROG Audio files (OFR)
• RealMedia Splitter: DirectShow splitter that allows you to play RealNetworks audio/video files.
• SHOUTcast Source Filter: DirectShow decoder filter capable of handling internet radio stations streams (http://www.shoutcast.com)
• WV Splitter / Decoder: DirectShow WV Splitter and decoder capable of splitting and decoding WavPack Audio files (WV)
• VobSub Filter: DirectShow Vob Subtitles filter capable of displaying (embedded) Subtitle files (SRT, SUB, IDX, etc)

Wow cool ! How much does it costs again ?

Nothing, it's free and mostly open source published under GNU GPL license

http://www.download.com/Windows-Essentials-Media-Codec-Pack/3000-2140-10662709.html?part=dl-WindowsEs&subj=dl&tag=button

Process Explorer 11.13 - Task Manager Replacement

Ever wondered which program has a particular file or directory open? Now you can find out. Process Explorer shows you information about which handles and DLLs processes have opened or loaded.

The Process Explorer display consists of two sub-windows. The top window always shows a list of the currently active processes, including the names of their owning accounts, whereas the information displayed in the bottom window depends on the mode that Process Explorer is in: if it is in handle mode you'll see the handles that the process selected in the top window has opened; if Process Explorer is in DLL mode you'll see the DLLs and memory-mapped files that the process has loaded. Process Explorer also has a powerful search capability that will quickly show you which processes have particular handles opened or DLLs loaded.

The unique capabilities of Process Explorer make it useful for tracking down DLL-version problems or handle leaks, and provide insight into the way Windows and applications work.

Process Explorer works on Windows 9x/Me, Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Server 2003, and 64-bit versions of Windows for x64 and IA64 processors, and Windows Vista.

What's new in Version 11.0:

• New treelist control for better UI responsiveness
• Asynchronous thread symbol resolution on threads tab of process properties
• More flags on groups in security tab and SID display
• Thread IDs on threads tab
• On-line search uses default web browser and search engine
• Vista ASLR column for processes and DLLs
• Vista Process and thread I/O and memory priorities in process and thread properties
• Vista Process and thread I/O and memory columns
• PROCESS_QUERY_LIMITED_INFORMATION support on process permissions on Vista
• Run as limited user runs with low IL on Vista
• Reports information for all object types on Vista
• Show details for all processes elevation menu item on Vista
• Supports replacement of task manager on Vista
• /e to launch elevated
• /s switch to select a process at startup
• Compiled w/ASLR, DEP
• Faster startup
• Miscellaneous bug fixes and minor improvements

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/ProcessesAndThreads/ProcessExplorer.mspx

Mozilla Firefox 2.0.0.14 - Best Internet Browser

- Above is Screenshot of my Firefox -

The award-winning Web browser is better than ever. Browse the Web with confidence. Firefox protects you from viruses, spyware and pop-ups.

Enjoy improvements to performance, ease of use and privacy. It's easy to import your favorites and settings and get started.

The latest version delivers easier navigation for everyone, including those who are visually or motor-impaired. Firefox is the first browser to support DHTML accessibility, which, when enabled by Web authors, allows rich Web applications to be read aloud. Users may navigate with keystrokes rather than mouse clicks, reducing the tabbing required to navigate documents such as spreadsheets. Firefox 1.5 (Windows version) is also the first browser to meet US federal government requirements that software be easily accessible to users with physical impairments.

Nothing else to say except that you should try, if you have not use it. There are tons of extension that will improve your browsing experience.

Features :

• A lot of extensions to personalize Firefox
• Very easy to customize Firefox by modifying userChrome, XUL, JavaScript files
• Custom ... Custom everything to suit your need :)
• I think that's about it ... "Customizable & Extensionable", The Sky is The Limit

http://www.mozilla.com

KeePass - Password Manager

What is KeePass?

Today you need to remember many passwords. You need a password for the Windows network logon, your e-mail account, your homepage's ftp password, online passwords (like CodeProject member account), etc. etc. etc. The list is endless. Also, you should use different passwords for each account. Because if you use only one password everywhere and someone gets this password you have a problem... A serious problem. The thief would have access to your e-mail account, homepage, etc. Unimaginable.

KeePass is a free/open-source password manager or safe which helps you to manage your passwords in a secure way. You can put all your passwords in one database, which is locked with one master key or a key-disk. So you only have to remember one single master password or insert the key-disk to unlock the whole database. The databases are encrypted using the best and most secure encryption algorithms currently known (AES and Twofish).

Main Features:

Strong Security
Multiple User Keys
Portable and No Installation Required
Export To TXT, HTML, XML and CSV Files
Import From Many File Formats
Easy Database Transfer
Support of Password Groups
Time Fields and Entry Attachments
Auto-Type, Global Auto-Type Hot Key and Drag&Drop
Intuitive and Secure Windows Clipboard Handling
Searching and Sorting
Multi-Language Support
Strong Random Password Generator
Plugin Architecture
Open-Source!

 

http://keepass.info/download.html

Handphone Secret Codes

Nokia Secret Codes

On the main screen type*#06# for checking the IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity).

*#7780# reset to factory settings.

*#67705646# This will clear the LCD display(operator logo).

*#0000# To view software version.

*#2820# Bluetooth device address.

*#746025625# Sim clock allowed status.

#pw+1234567890+1# Shows if sim have restrictions.

*#92702689# - takes you to a secret menu where you may find some of the information below:

*#7370925538# on the main screen-This resets wallet code but be warned you lose all stuff in the wallet

1. Displays Serial Number.

2. Displays the Month and Year of Manufacture

3. Displays (if there) the date where the phone was purchased (MMYY)

4. Displays the date of the last repair - if found (0000)5. Shows life timer of phone (time passes since last start)

*#3370# - Enhanced Full Rate Codec (EFR) activation. Increase signal strength, better signal reception. It also help if u want to use GPRS and the service is not responding or too slow. Phone battery will drain faster though.

*#3370* - (EFR) deactivation. Phone will automatically restart. Increase battery life by 30% because phone receives less signal from network.

*#4720# - Half Rate Codec activation.

*#4720* - Half Rate Codec deactivation. The phone will automatically restartIf you forgot wallet code for Nokia S60 phone, use this code reset:

*#7370925538#Note, your data in the wallet will be erased. Phone will ask you the lock code. Default lock code is: 12345Press

*#3925538# to delete the contents and code of wallet.Unlock service provider: Insert sim, turn phone on and press vol up(arrow keys) for 3 seconds, should say pin code.

Press C,then press * message should flash, press * again and 04*pin*pin*pin# \*#7328748263373738# resets security code.Default security code is 12345Change closed caller group (settings >security settings>user groups) to 00000 and ure phone will sound the message tone when you are near a radar speed trap.

Setting it to 500 will cause your phone 2 set off security alarms at shop exits, gr8 for practical jokes! (works with some of the Nokia phones.) Press and hold "0" on the main screen to open wap browser.

Samsung Secret Codes

Software version: *#9999#

IMEI number: *#06#

Serial number: *#0001#

Battery status- Memory capacity : *#9998*246#

Debug screen: *#9998*324# - *#8999*324#

LCD kontrast: *#9998*523#

Vibration test: *#9998*842# - *#8999*842#

Alarm beeper - Ringtone test : *#9998*289# - *#8999*289#

Smiley: *#9125#

Software version: *#0837#

Display contrast: *#0523# - *#8999*523#

Battery info: *#0228# or *#8999*228#

Display storage capacity: *#8999*636#

Display SIM card information: *#8999*778#

Show date and alarm clock: *#8999*782#

The display during warning: *#8999*786#

Samsung hardware version: *#8999*837#

Show network information: *#8999*638#

Display received channel number and received intensity: *#8999*9266#

*#1111# S/W Version

*#1234# Firmware Version

*#2222# H/W Version

*#8999*8376263# All Versions Together

*#8999*8378#Test Menu

*#4777*8665#GPSR Tool

*#8999*523#LCD Brightness

*#8999*377#Error LOG Menu

*#8999*327# EEP Menu

*#8999*667# Debug Mode

*#92782# PhoneModel (Wap)

#*5737425# JAVA Mode

*#2255# Call List

*#232337# Bluetooth MAC Adress

*#5282837# Java Version

Type in *#0000# on a Samsung A300 to reset the language

Master reset(unlock) #*7337# (for the new samsungs E700 x600 but not E710)

Samsung E700 type *#2255# to show secret call log (not tested)

Samsung A300, A800 phone unlock enter this *2767*637#

Samsung V200, S100, S300 phone unlock : *2767*782257378#

#*4773# Incremental Redundancy

#*7785# Reset wakeup & RTK timer cariables/variables

#*7200# Tone Generator Mute

#*3888# BLUETOOTH Test mode

#*7828# Task screen

#*#8377466# S/W Version & H/W Version

#*2562# Restarts Phone

#*2565# No Blocking? General Defense

.#*3353# General Defense, Code Erased.

#*3837# Phone Hangs on White screen.

#*3849# Restarts Phone

#*7337# Restarts Phone (Resets Wap Settings)

#*2886# AutoAnswer ON/OFF

#*7288# GPRS Detached/Attached

#*7287# GPRS Attached

#*7666# White Screen

#*7693# Sleep Deactivate/Activate

#*2286# Databattery

#*2527# GPRS switching set to (Class 4, 8, 9, 10)

#*2679# Copycat feature Activa/Deactivate

#*3940# External looptest 9600 bps

#*4263# Handsfree mode Activate/Deactivate

#*2558# Time ON

#*3941# External looptest 115200 bps

#*5176# L1 Sleep

#*7462# SIM Phase

#*7983# Voltage/Freq

#*7986# Voltage

#*8466# Old Time

#*2255# Call Failed

#*5376# DELETE ALL SMS!!!!

#*6837# Official Software Version: (0003000016000702)

#*2337# Permanent Registration Beep

#*2474# Charging Duration

#*2834# Audio Path (Handsfree)

#*3270# DCS Support Activate/Deactivate

#*3282# Data Activate/Deactivate

#*3476# EGSM Activate/Deactivate

#*3676# FORMAT FLASH VOLUME!!!

#*4760# GSM Activate/Deactivate

#*4864# White Screen

#*7326# Accessory

#*7683# Sleep variable

#*3797# Blinks 3D030300 in RED

#*7372# Resetting the time to DPB variables

#*3273# EGPRS multislot (Class 4, 8, 9, 10)

#*7722# RLC bitmap compression Activate/Deactivate

#*2351# Blinks 1347E201 in RED

#*2775# Switch to 2 inner speaker

#*7878# FirstStartup (0=NO, 1=YES)

#*3838# Blinks 3D030300 in RED

#*2077# GPRS Switch

#*2027# GPRS Switch

#*0227# GPRS Switch

#*0277# GPRS Switch

#*22671# AMR REC START

#*22672# Stop AMR REC (File name: /a/multimedia/sounds/voice list/ENGMODE.amr)

#*22673# Pause REC

#*22674# Resume REC

#*22675# AMR Playback

#*22676# AMR Stop Play

#*22677# Pause Play

#*22678# Resume Play

#*77261# PCM Rec Req

#*77262# Stop PCM Rec

#*77263# PCM Playback

#*77264# PCM Stop Play

#*22679# AMR Get Time

*#8999*364# Watchdog ON/OFF

*#8999*427# WATCHDOG signal route setup

*2767*3855# = Full Reset (Caution every stored data will be deleted.)

*2767*2878# = Custom Reset

*2767*927# = Wap Reset

*2767*226372# = Camera Reset (deletes photos)

*2767*688# Reset Mobile TV

#7263867# = RAM Dump (On or Off)

*2767*49927# = Germany WAP Settings

*2767*44927# = UK WAP Settings

*2767*31927# = Netherlands WAP Settings

*2767*420927# = Czech WAP Settings

*2767*43927# = Austria WAP Settings

*2767*39927# = Italy WAP Settings

*2767*33927# = France WAP Settings

*2767*351927# = Portugal WAP Settings

*2767*34927# = Spain WAP Settings

*2767*46927# = Sweden WAP Settings

*2767*380927# = Ukraine WAP Settings

*2767*7927# = Russia WAP Settings

*2767*30927# = GREECE WAP Settings

*2767*73738927# = WAP Settings Reset

*2767*49667# = Germany MMS Settings

*2767*44667# = UK MMS Settings

*2767*31667# = Netherlands MMS Settings

*2767*420667# = Czech MMS Settings

*2767*43667# = Austria MMS Settings

*2767*39667# = Italy MMS Settings

*2767*33667# = France MMS Settings

*2767*351667# = Portugal MMS Settings

*2767*34667# = Spain MMS Settings

*2767*46667# = Sweden MMS Settings

*2767*380667# = Ukraine MMS Settings

*2767*7667#. = Russia MMS Settings

*2767*30667# = GREECE MMS Settings

*#7465625# = Check the phone lock status

*7465625*638*Code# = Enables Network lock

#7465625*638*Code# = Disables Network lock

*7465625*782*Code# = Enables Subset lock

#7465625*782*Code# = Disables Subset lock

*7465625*77*Code# = Enables SP lock

#7465625*77*Code# = Disables SP lock

*7465625*27*Code# = Enables CP lock

#7465625*27*Code# = Disables CP lock

*7465625*746*Code# = Enables SIM lock

#7465625*746*Code# = Disables SIM lock

*7465625*228# = Activa lock ON

#7465625*228# = Activa lock OFF

*7465625*28638# = Auto Network lock ON

#7465625*28638# = Auto Network lock OFF

*7465625*28782# = Auto subset lock ON

#7465625*28782# = Auto subset lock OFF

*7465625*2877# = Auto SP lock ON

#7465625*2877# = Auto SP lock OFF

*7465625*2827# = Auto CP lock ON

#7465625*2827# = Auto CP lock OFF

*7465625*28746# = Auto SIM lock ON

#7465625*28746# = Auto SIM lock OFF

Type *#9998*627837793# Go to the 'my parameters' and there you will find new menu where

you can unlock phone.(not tested-for samsung C100)

To unlock a Samsung turn the phone off take the sim card and type the following code *#pw+15853649247w# .

Java status code: #*53696# (Samsung X600)If you want to unlock your phone put a sim from another company then type *#9998*3323# it will reset your phone. Push exit and then push 7, it will reset again.

Put your other sim in and it will say sim lock, type in 00000000 then it should be unlocked. Type in *0141# then the green call batton and it's unlocked to all networks.

This code may not work on the older phones and some of the newer phones.

If it doesn't work you will have to reset your phone without a sim in it by typing *#2767*2878# or *#9998*3855# (not tested)

cheers!ps.................

I dont have a samsung at the moment, so I cant say for sure if this'll work, just proceed with caution when doing them on your phone. (backup everything first).

Motorola Secret Codes

To get your IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number:*#06#

The "master key" unlock code for phone and SIM card lock: 19980722 OK

To change the phone's PIN number: [] [] [] 0 0 4 [] 1 []

Access the manufacturing information:*#403# OK

Adding phonebook to the main menu: [] [] [] 1 0 5 [] 1 []

Turn on Enhanced Full Rate (improves call quality/trade off of using 5% more energy:*3370#

->To make Enhanced Full Rate go away: #3370#

->Change default language to English (lovely when renting cell abroad): *#303# Ok

->Adding messages to main menu: [] [] [] 1 0 7 [] 1 []

Unlocking SIM after pressing wrong PIN three times ("puk" number): [] [] [] 0 0 5 [] 1 []

Copy your phonebook menu: [] [] [] 1 0 8 [] 1 []

Save settings and restore default language: *#0000# OK

->Lists Hardware and Software Version: *#300# OK

->Play around in Engineering mode: #304*19980722#

->And to make it go away: *304# OK

->Turning the net monitor on: * * * 1 1 3 * 1 * [OK]

And off: sameKeypads functionality test: *#301# OK

->In order to lock keys: *7 (press at same time)Press to hear self indulgent, experimental music: #9

LG Secret Codes

For your IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number:*#06#

Bringing up the LG secret menu: 2945*#01*#

To access test mode off the main screen: 2945#*#

To unlock selected CDMA LG phones: hit Menu then 0 then 000000to bring up the programing menu. Other defaults such as 123456or 654321 might also work.

Codes for the LG B1200Bring up Simlock menu: 1945#*5101#

Software version: * 8375 #

The factory test: #PWR 668

Recount cheksum (related to checking for errors): * 6861 #

Codes from the LG-U81XXTo reset phone without a SIM card: 277634#*# or 47328545454#

To bring up the unlock menu on phone with a SIM card: 2945#*88110#

Codes for the LG CU400Fix a "non-acceptable content" message (downloading ringtones related): 277634#*#then Port Setting > Data Setting > BT Set for Datathen turn the phone off and on again.

Codes for the LG 8600Correcting a "Music Player Error" when trying to burn music: In MS Media Playerat the "Options" menuclick the "Rip Music" tab then uncheck the "Copy protect music" box.

Sony Ericsson Secret Codes

IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity): *#06#

Firmware Version: >*<<*<*

Programming Checks: >*<<*<*> or >*<<*<*>

Accessing the phone without a SIM card: **04*0000*0000*0000# then on 'Wrong Pin' No

Reset English Menu: *#0000#

300, 600, 700 Series

Programming Menu (Short): 987 + >

Programming Menu (Long): 923885 + >

Field Test: 904090 + > (to exit 904090 + >)

Phone Test: 904059 + > (to exit 3 + <)

Phone Reset: 904060 + >

CDMA Mode: 904093 + menu

Analog Mode: 904095 + menu DM mode 904959 + menu

IPhones Secret Codes

What a hack-y afternoon. Here are some more secret iPhone codes for you to enjoy. After realizing that the *3001#12345#* was a familiar Nokia code, I decided to spend some time googling for other phone codes that might work on the iPhone.

These (mostly) do. There are more. Feel free to add your own to the comments.

*3001#12345#* and tap Call. Enter Field Mode.Field mode reveals many of the inner settings of your iPhone, specifically up-to-date network and cell information.

*#06# Displays your IMEI. No need to tap Call.IMEI is the unique identifier for your cell phone hardware. Together with your SIM information it identifies you to the provider network.

*777# and tap Call. Account balance for prepaid iPhone.

*225# and tap Call. Bill Balance. (Postpaid only)

*646# and tap Call. Check minutes. (Postpaid only)These three are pretty self explanatory.

*#21# and tap Call. Setting interrogation for call forwards.Discover the settings for your call forwarding. You'll see whether you have voice, data, fax, sms, sync, async, packet access, and pad access call forwarding enabled or disabled.

*#30# and tap Call. Calling line presentation check.This displays whether you have enabled or disabled the presentation of the calling line, presumably the number of the party placing the call.

*#76# and tap Call. Check whether the connected line presentation is enabled or not.State whether the connected line presentation is enabled or disabled. Presumably similar to the calling line presentation.

*#43# and tap Call. Determine if call waiting is enabled.Displays call waiting status for voice, data, fax, sms, sync data, async data, packet access and pad access. Each item is either enabled or disabled.

*#61# and tap Call. Check the number for unanswered calls.Show the number for voice call forwarding when a call is unanswered. Also show the options for data, fax, sms, sync, async, packet access and pad access.

*#62# and tap Call. Check the number for call forwarding if no service is available.Just like the previous, except for no-service rather than no-answer situations.

*#67# and tap Call. Check the number for call forwarding when the iPhone is busy.And again, but for when the iPhone is busy.

*#33# and tap Call. Check for call control bars.Check all the usual suspects (voice, data, fax, sms, etc) to see whether barring is enabled or disabled for outgoing.

T-Mobile Secret Codes

Check out how many minutes you've used, press: #MIN# or #646# in plain speak

To find out how much money you owe, dial: #BAL# or #225#

Reset your voicemail password: #PWD# / #793#

To get Knicks tickets, poison your food, or check how many text/multi media messages you've used: #MSG# or #674#

See your remaining minutes, for prepaid: #999#

Buy more prepaid minutes...

if you have the attention span: *ADD or *233

On/off the voice mail security: #PWO# / #796#

To show on phone number: #NUM# or #686#

Verizon Secret Codes

To reset phone to factory settings: ##1133

If you want to receive a text about how many minutes you've used: #MINor #646

Access your voice mail: *VMor *86

Report drunk driver, great for real or prank on friends: *DUI (*384)

To hook up call forwarding: *72and 10 digit number

Make it go away: *73.

Get rid of caller ID so people only know "Unavailable" is calling them: *67and 10 digit number

Overpay for directory information: 411

Reach customer support:*611

Coast Guard Boater's Assistance...

don't try in Midwest dumbass:*CG (*24)

To access Voice Mail or Calls Number that have been forwarded to you: *VM (*86) 

7-Zip - File Compression Software

7-Zip is a file archiver with a high compression ratio.

7-Zip is open source software. Most of the source code is under the GNU LGPL license. The unRAR code is under a mixed license: GNU LGPL + unRAR restrictions. Check license information here: 7-Zip license.

You can use 7-Zip on any computer, including a computer in a commercial organization. You don't need to register or pay for 7-Zip. But you can make a donation to support further development of 7-Zip.

The main features of 7-Zip

• High compression ratio in new 7z format with LZMA compression
• Supported formats:
  • Packing / unpacking: 7z, ZIP, GZIP, BZIP2 and TAR
  • Unpacking only: RAR, CAB, ISO, ARJ, LZH, CHM, MSI, WIM, Z, CPIO, RPM, DEB and NSIS
• For ZIP and GZIP formats, 7-Zip provides a compression ratio that is 2-10 % better than the ratio provided by PKZip and WinZip
• Strong AES-256 encryption in 7z and ZIP formats
• Self-extracting capability for 7z format
• Integration with Windows Shell
• Powerful File Manager
• Powerful command line version
• Plugin for FAR Manager
• Localizations for 69 languages

I have try 7-Zip, ZipGenius, IZArc for my compression software and 7-Zip is the one that I like best. Maybe for other user prefers IZArc or ZipGenius because it has a better interface. I like 7-Zip because it is faster than other free compression software and almost like WinRAR in comparison to commercial software. Highly recommended for file compression. Their new .7z file compression have have less file size than .zip or .rar.

http://www.7-zip.org/download.html

IZArc - File Compression Software

 
IZArc is the ultimate freeware archive utility supporting many archive formats like: 7-ZIP, A, ACE, ARC, ARJ, B64, BH, BIN, BZ2, BZA, C2D, CAB, CDI, CPIO, DEB, ENC, GCA, GZ, GZA, HA, IMG, ISO, JAR, LHA, LIB, LZH, MDF, MBF, MIM, NRG, PAK, PDI, PK3, RAR, RPM, TAR, TAZ, TBZ, TGZ, TZ, UUE, WAR, XXE, YZ1, Z, ZIP, ZOO. With a modern easy-to-use interface, IZArc provides support for most compressed and encoded files, as well as access to many powerful features and tools. It allows you to drag and drop files from and to Windows Explorer, create and extract archives directly in Windows Explorer, create multiple archives spanning disks, creating self-extracting archives, repair damaged zip archives, converting from one archive type to another, view and write comments and many more. IZArc has also build-in multilanguage support.

With IZArc you can open CD image files like ISO, BIN, CDI and NRG. It is also possible to convert such files from one type to another (BIN to ISO, NRG to ISO).

If you need to send large files to your colleagues, friends or customers who may not have archiving tool you can easily create self-extracting archive that can be extracted by simple double click.

IZArc can be configured to run your preferred Anti-Virus scanner when you open any archives.

IZArc supports 256-bit AES encryption to secure your data.

IZArc is integrated in Windows so you can perform all archiving operations by using right-click menus in Windows Explorer.

If you have broken archives IZArc can help you to repair them with ease.

IZArc is 100% virus free and it doesn't contain any spyware or adware.

IZArc is th

e most complete archive utility available today.

http://www.izarc.org/download.html

Ares - File Sharing Program

Ares is a free open source file sharing program that enables users to share any digital file including images, audio, video, software, documents, etc.

You may now easily publish your files through the Ares decentralized network. As a member of the virtual community, you can search and download just about any file shared by other users. Latest versions support BitTorrent protocol and Shoutcast radio stations.

With Ares you can also join chat rooms or host your channel and meet new friends.

Fast multisource downloads

Ares automatically finds more sources and downloads files from many users at once. This can increase remarkably the speed of your downloads.

Powerful library organizer

Your shared files are organized into categories in a library section. You can sort your files by type, category and easily change your share settings. An handy quick-search feature locates your files by typing a keyword.

Built-in audio/video player

You can preview files while their download is in progress and organize a playlist made of your favourites. Ares' player supports internet radio.

Filesharing chat rooms

You can host your chat room and join other available channels. Creating a chat channel has never been easier, now you can chat and meet new friends while you download files.

http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/aresgalaxy/aresregular209_installer.exe?download

eMule Pluse - eMule Compatible Client

eMule Plus is a new generation eMule compatible client created to improve the original GUI and to bring you the best experience ever. Give it a try and feel the boogie ;) eMule Plus does not contain any spyware, adware or the like. It's open source and free for life.

eMule Plus was achieved thanks to the extensive work of Aw3, DonGato, Eklmn, kuchin, KuSh, morphis and SyruS and through the collaboration of all the people sending us code. We also thank the dedication BavarianSnail, bond006, Cax2, DropF, DrSiRiUs, EC, FoRcHa, katsyonak, Lord KiRon, moosetea, morevit, netwolf, obaldin, Purity, reCDVst, TwoBottleMod and zegzav gave to the project. We wish them the best of the luck in their lives.

We want to thank all beta testers and translators who gave part of their lives to make this application better. Keep up the good work!

http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=71866

eMule - P2P File Sharing

What is eMule?
At dawn of  May 13th 2002 a guy called Merkur was dissatisfied with the original eDonkey2000 client and was convinced he could do better. So he did. He gathered other developers around him, and eMule Project was born. Their aim was to put the client back on track where eDonkey had been famous before, adding tons of new features and a nice GUI. They couldn't imagine what impact this decision would have...

As of today, eMule is one of the biggest and most reliable peer-to-peer file sharing clients around the world. Thanks to it's open source policy many developers are able to contribute to the project, making the network more efficient with each release.

What does eMule mean?
The name "eMule" comes from an animal called "Mule" which is somehow similar to a donkey ;)

How often is eMule updated?
eMule is not updated regularly, but at the moment the frequencies are between 1 and 3 months. Don't take this for guaranteed. :)

A list of a few features available.

• Clients use several networks to create one reliable network. (ED2K, Source Exchange, Kad)
  • Kad is now in an open testphase, eMule v0.42 can be enabled to use Kad
• eMule's Queue and Credit system helps to ensure that everyone will get the file he wants by promoting those that upload back to the network.
• eMule is completely free. eMule is also completely free of any Adware, Spyware, and ect. We do this for fun and knowledge, not for money.
• Each file checked for corruptions while downloading to ensure an error free file.
• The eMules Intelligent Corruption Control helps to speed up the correction of corrupted parts.
• Auto priorities and Source management allows you to start many downloads without having to monitor them.
• The Preview function allows you to look at your Videos and Archives before they are completed. For video previewing, we recommend the Video Lan Client.
• The eMule features webservices and a webserver that allows you to have quick access to and from the internet.
• You can create categories for your download to organize them.
• To find the file you want, eMule offers a wide range of search possibilities which include: Servers (Local, and Global), web based (Jigle, and Filedonkey), and Kad (Still in Alpha).
• eMule also allows you to use very complex Boolean searches that make the searches much more flexible.
• With the messaging and friend system, you can send messages to other Clients and add them as friends. In your friend list, you can always see if a friend is online.
• With the build in IRC client, you can chat with other downloaders and chatters around the globe.

http://www.emule-project.net/home/perl/general.cgi?l=1&rm=download

Azureus - Java BitTorrent Client

 

Azureus implements the BitTorrent protocol using java language and comes bundled with many invaluable features for both beginners and advanced users:

• Multiple torrent downloads
• Upload and download speed limiting, both globally and per torrent
• Advanced seeding rules
• Adjustable disk cache
• Only uses one port for all the torrents
• UPnP sets the forward on your router
• Can use a proxy, for both tracker and peer communications
• Fast resume
• Can set a default download dir and move completed files
• Can import torrents automatically from a set dir
• Highly customizable interface
• IRC plugin included for quick help
• Embedded tracker, host your own torrents, automate your shares (periodic scanning of a dir)...
• Distributed Hash Table: host on it a completely decentralised torrent and/or benefit from it when the tracker is offline.

Many useful plugins are available:

• Auto-adjustment of your upload and download speeds according to your network charge with Autospeed
• Auto-download torrents with RSS Feed Scanner
• Schedule upload and download speed limits with Speed Scheduler
• Receive a mail when a download finishes with Status Mailer
• Add numerous info on torrents (Extra seeding columns, Country Locator)
• Remote control Azureus through the Swing Web Interface or the HTML Web Interface

http://azureus.sourceforge.net/download.php

Sizer v3.3 - Window Resizing & Repositioning Context-Menu

Sizer is a freeware utility that allows you to resize any window to an exact, predefined size. This is extremely useful when designing web pages, as it allows you to see how the page will look when viewed at a smaller size. The utility is also handy when compiling screen-shots for documentation, using Sizer allows you to easily maintain the same window size across screen grabs.

Using Sizer

When you run Sizer the 'sizing arrows' icon appears in the system tray. The screen grab below shows the Sizer icon in the right most side of the system tray. While this icon is shown, Sizer is active and the following actions can be performed.

Precise resizing

While Sizer is running, move the cursor over the border of a window so that the one of the resizing cursors appear, the screen grab below shows the NW-SE sizing cursor:

Any edge or corner of the window will do as long as it brings up one of the resizing cursors. When the resizing cursor is displayed, click the right hand mouse button and a pop-up menu will appear as shown below.

 

This menu shows a list of sizes, simply select an item from this menu to resize the window to that size. To add new sizes to this menu or redefine existing ones use the Sizer Configuration Dialog.

As well as right clicking on the border of a window it is possible to right click on the restore button to bring up the resizing menu, see below. This feature can be useful if the window is currently maximized.

System Menu Integration

When configured to do so, Sizer will add items to the standard system menu. The system menu is accessed by either right clicking on the title bar or clicking on the program icon at the left of the title bar. Selecting one of a menu items under the Resize/reposition sub-menu repositions a window in the same way as descriped earlier.

System Tray Resizing

It seems that quite a few people liked the way the original version of Sizer operated, so from v3.21 this feature that been reintroduced. As an alternative to the precise sizing method described above, it is possible to resize a window directly from the system tray popup menu. Simply right click on the Sizer icon in the system tray, the popup menu will display a set of options to resize the active window to one of the defined sizes (see screenshot below). The first line on the menu is not selectable and is used only to let you know what window Sizer will resize when one of the menu items below it is selected. If the active window is not resizeable then Sizer won't show these options on the menu.

Interactive resizing

Sizer also offers a feature that shows

the current size of a window in a tooltip as you resize it. When windows are resized in the normal way a tooltip is displayed as shown below

In addition if you press and hold the Control key while resizing a window, Sizer will snap the window size to the nearest grid size. By default this grid size is 10 pixels, but this can be set to a different value in the Configuration Dialog.

Tooltip support makes use of a set of features that may not be available on all systems. I believe this only affects a very small number of systems, namely Windows 95 without Internet Explorer installed or using a version lower than IE 4. If this is the case on your system, Sizer will warn you and will disable interactive sizing, precise resizing and system tray resizing will continue work as before.

Configuring Sizer

Sizer has a number of configuration options that control how precise and interactive sizing work. To access these options right click on the Sizer tray icon and select Configure Sizer... from the popup menu, as shown below.

Sizer displays the following dialog to allow its behaviour to be customised.

The Menu Configuration area is used to configure the list of sizes displayed in the popup menu when precise sizing is used. By default Sizer is configured to allow window resizing to 640×480, 800×600 and 1024×768. To add additional sizes click the Add button, then enter a Description, a Width and a Height into the relevant edit boxes. The order menu items are displayed can be customised by selecting an item from the list box and clicking the Move Up and Move Down buttons.

As well as resizing a window is it possible to reposition it as well. The Move To drop-down lists gives the option to reposition the window at the predefined points. If the User Defined option is selected, the Top and Left edit boxes are enabled allowing you to type while the top left corner of the window should be positioned. A value of Top = 0 and Left = 0 will reposition the window to the top-left of the screen. If you only want to reposition a window and not resize it set the Don't resize window check box.

The lower part of the dialog is used to configure other Sizer options. The check box Show tooltip when resizing windows controls whether or not a tooltip containing the window size is displayed when a window is resized normally. The Window resizing snap size controls the grid size that windows are snapped to when the control key is held during resizing. The operation of these two options is described in interactive resizing.

Finally unchecking the option Show Size icon in system tray can be used to prevent Sizer showing its system tray icon. This can be useful if you've got a lots of applications in the system tray and you want to remove some of the clutter. With the system tray icon disabled, it's not possible to access the configuration dialog as describe above. Instead you'll need to run Sizer again to popup the configuration dialog. In such cases only one copy of Sizer will be running so there's no need to worry about using up memory with multiple copies.

Just found this tiny and very useful application. I have been using pistachio to resize my windows but now I'm using this one because it is much simpler. Don't forget to configure sizer from tray icon so you have more option than the default one which are 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768. What I really love is the option to be able to position the window in the center after resizing the windows. Highly recommended for visual tweaking.

The easiest way to download and install Sizer is to use the setup program sizerinst.exe (73 KB). Once this file has been downloaded, simply run it and follow the on screen instructions to install the files and create shortcuts as required.

Alternatively, for those who prefer not to use the installation program and are happy to setup shortcuts themselves, the files can be downloaded in a zip file sizer3.zip (17 KB).

Please note: Sizer is not supported under Windows Vista. There are issues installing the program and using interactive sizing. An update may be released at some stage but this won't happen in the immediate future. The author doesn't have much free time to give to the task and it is difficult to give a concrete date. Please do not report issues with Vista until a version that supports it has been released.

mp3DirectCut - Cutting MP3s

All you need to cut your mp3

mp3DirectCut is a fast and extensive audio editor and recorder for compressed mp3. You can directly cut, copy, paste or change the volume with no need to decompress your files for audio editing. This saves encoding time and preserves the original quality, because nothing will be re-encoded. The built in recorder creates mp3 on the fly from your audio input. Using Cue sheets, pause detection or Auto cue you can easily divide long files.

Features

• Non-destructive cut, copy, paste
• Volume change, fade, normalize, pause detection
• mp3 recording with ACM or Lame encoder
• Fast mp3 visualisation and easy navigation
• Supports Layer 2 (dvd/dvb audio)
• ID3v1.1 tag editor · ID3v2 tag keeping
• Cue Sheet support
• Auto cue (track dividing by time values)
• Track splitting with filename and tag creation
• Trim · Crop · Fast play · Loop play
• VU meter, bitrate visualisation
• High speed recorder · Command line usage

http://www.mpex.net/software/download/mp3directcut.html

WPChanger 1.3.4

WPChanger 1.3.4 (last freeware version) is an easy to use tool to automatically cycle through your collection of desktop wallpapers. Just add the images to be included n the cycle, and it will show them in a list with thumbnail previews. If you prefer not to switch your wallpaper automatically, you can let the program run in the tray, and quickly change wallpapers manually by simply double-clicking on one. Some additional features include conversion to grayscale, image stretching and random cycle, and an option to create a screensaver from the selected images.

http://www.aplusfreeware.com/categories/LFWV/WPChanger_4in1Browser_FSPlayer.html

Using a HOSTS File to Speed Up Web Access

The HOSTS file is a plain text file that you can create or edit with a text editor like Notepad, and that resolves hostnames with their corresponding IP addresses, without having to go out to a DNS server. To use it to speed up web access:

1. Run a text editor like Notepad or Wordpad.
2. In your text editor, open the file called HOSTS in %SystemRoot%\System32\Drivers\Etc\HOSTS. The file has no extension; it is named only HOSTS. If the file doesn't exist, create it.
3. Enter the IP addresses and hostnames of your commonly visited web sites. Each entry in the file should be on one line. The IP address should be in the first column, and the corresponding hostname in the next column. At least one space should separate the two columns. It should look like this:
   208.201.239.37       oreilly.com
   216.92131.107        simtel.net
4. If you'd like, add comments to the file by preceding the line with a #, in which case the entire line will be ignored by the file, or by putting a # after the hostname, in which case only the comment after will be ignored. You might want to comment on individual entries—for example:
   130.94.155.164       gralla.com    #still in beta
5. When you're finished editing the file, save it to its existing location.

One of the causes of slowdowns in accessing web pages is the way that your PC uses the Domain Name System (DNS). The Internet can't understand plain English words that you use to visit a web site, such as http://www.oreilly.com. Instead, it needs to know the numeric IP address. So whenever you type in a hostname, such as http://www.oreilly.com, that address needs to be resolved to its IP address, such as 208.201.239.37. DNS servers automatically provide that name resolution.

It takes time to send your request to a DNS server, have the server resolve the IP address, and then send the IP address back to your PC. You can speed up the process by creating or editing a local HOSTS file on your own PC that contains hostnames and their corresponding IP addresses. When you create one, XP will first look into the HOSTS file to see if there's an entry for the hostname, and, if it finds it, it will resolve the address itself. That way, you won't have to go out to a DNS server and wait for the response before visiting a web site.

You'll frequently come across software on the web that promises to speed up Internet access by changing a variety of "hidden" settings on your PC. It's questionable whether changing these settings has much of an effect on Internet speed, especially if you have broadband, such as a cable modem or DSL modem. And many of these programs also make changes to your HOSTS file, which, as this recipe shows, you can do yourself. So be wary of paying for Internet speed-up programs, because it's not clear that they actually have much of an effect.

If you use this recipe to edit your HOSTS file, make sure that you check the file regularly and keep it up to date, or else you may deny yourself access to certain web sites. For example, if the http://www.gralla.com web site were to change its IP address, but your HOSTS file kept the old, incorrect address, your browser would not be able to find the site, because it would be given the wrong addressing information.

Surfing the Web Anonymously

To surf anonymously with an anonymous proxy server, follow these steps:

1. Find an anonymous proxy server. There are hundreds of free, public proxy servers available, but many frequently go offline or are very slow. To find the best one, go to http://www.atomintersoft.com/products/alive-proxy/proxy-list. The web site lists information about each server, including its average response time, uptime, and the last time the server was checked.
2. Find the server with the highest percentage of uptime and write down its IP address and the port it uses. For example, in the following listing 212.170.23.82:80, the IP address is 212.170.23.82, and the port number is 80.
3. In Internet Explorer, select Tools->Internet Options, click the Connections tab, and click the LAN Settings button.
4. Check the Use a proxy server for your LAN box. In the Address field, type in the IP address of the proxy server. In the Port field, type in its port number. Check the Bypass proxy server for local addresses box; you don't need to remain anonymous on your local network.
5. Click OK and then OK again to close the dialog boxes.

Now when you surf the web, the proxy server will protect your privacy. Keep in mind that proxy servers can make surfing the web much slower.

You can also download a piece of software to automatically configure your browser to use anonymous proxy servers, and find the fastest one. GhostSurf (http://www.tenebril.com/products/ghostsurf) uses multiple anonymous proxy servers and always looks for the fastest one. The software costs $29.95, but you can download a free, 15-day trial.

Simply browsing the web leaves you vulnerable to privacy invasions by web sites. They can track your online travels, know what operating system and browser you're running, peer into your clipboard, uncover the last sites you visited, examine your history list, delve into your browser cache, and examine your IP address to learn basic information about you, such as your geographic location, and more. In short, your life is an open book.

Using an anonymous proxy server can protect your privacy by hiding all these details and more from web sites. An anonymous proxy server sits between you and the web sites you visit. Instead of contacting a web site directly, your browser tells a proxy server which web site you want to visit. That way, the web site sees the proxy server, not your PC. It can't read your cookies, find out your IP address, see your history list, or examine your clipboard and cache. It can't probe your system at all because your PC is never in direct contact with it. You can surf anonymously, without a trace.

OpenOffice.org 2.4 - Best Microsoft Office Replacement

 

OpenOffice.org 2 Suite contains:

• OpenOffice.org Base -> MS Access
• OpenOffice.org Calc -> MS Excel
• OpenOffice.org Draw -> MS Vision
• OpenOffice.org Impress -> MS PowerPoint
• OpenOffice.org Math - Math & Scientific Equations
• OpenOffice.org Writer -> MS Word

OpenOffice.org 2 is the leading open-source office software suite for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases and more. It is available in many languages and works on all common computers. It stores all your data in an international open standard format and can also read and write files from other common office software packages. It can be downloaded and used completely free of charge for any purpose.

Great software

OpenOffice.org 2 is the result of over twenty years' software engineering. Designed from the start as a single piece of software, it has a consistency other products cannot match. A completely open development process means that anyone can report bugs, request new features, or enhance the software. The result: OpenOffice.org 2 does everything you want your office software to do, the way you want it to.

Easy to use

OpenOffice.org 2 is easy to learn, and if you're already using another office software package, you'll take to OpenOffice.org 2 straight away. Our world-wide native-language community means that OpenOffice.org 2 is probably available and supported in your own language. And if you already have files from another office package - OpenOffice.org 2 will probably read them with no difficulty.

and it's free

Best of all, OpenOffice.org 2 can be downloaded and used entirely free of any licence fees. OpenOffice.org 2 is released under the LGPL licence. This means you may use it for any purpose - domestic, commercial, educational, public administration. You may install it on as many computers as you like. You may make copies and give them away to family, friends, students, employees - anyone you like.

   

I have been an MS Office user for almost 10 years now and I have grown to love it but the recently with the new improvement of OpenOffice.org 2.x I do not see the need of using MS Office anymore. OpenOffice.org 2.x features is closed to MS Office 2003 which I think it is suiteable for most user. One of the thing that I love most with OpenOffice.org is the OOo.org Writer, It can save text document in a clean and simple HTML. Unline MS Word which also alows you to save in HTML format but put so many information on the saved file that it will grow 3x -4x from normal HTML.

Although OOo.org is free but it is a very powerful and feature pack that is good for majority of users. Especially if you're in school or college which do not have budget like business company budget. I strongly you tried OpenOffice.org.

The only thing that is missing for me is the search and replace features in OpenOffice.org is not as powerful as MS Office. So if you use search and replace regularly using a wildcard / regular expression than you will certainly not able to do much in OpenOffice.org

 

http://download.openoffice.org/index.html

Xinha Here! - Firefox 2 Extension

Portable WYSIWYG editor! No matter what site you're visiting you can launch a WYSIWYG right in your browser.

Xinha Here! is a wrapper for the Xinha HTML editor that enables WYSIWYG editing in any HTML textarea and text input elements. Xinha Here! opens Xinha editor on the client side. This allows you to edit the field data in a WYSIWYG editor on any website without coping and pasting to a secondary editor. To use Xinha Here! simply select Xinha Here! from the context menu of the desired textarea or text input element. Up will pop a Xinha WYSIWYG HTML editor. Press OK and the raw HTML is pushed back to the original text box. Simple as that.

Because the Xinha editor is installed on your local machine rather then a server it is both portable (use it on any website) and faster (files don't need to be transfered over the net). This extension goes great with the SpellBound spell checker extension.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1449

Running chm files with custom windows size & position

I created an AutoIt script to open chm files because there are some chm files that doesn't save the windows position and size. Also it is better using below a wrapper because everytime I open any help files it will have my desired window size and position.

Below is an AutoIt script for wrapping hh.exe to open chm files and then change the window size and position to your specified values.

ShellExecute("D:\( My Documents )\.AutoIt\HH Project\BackUp\hh.exe", $CmdLineRaw)

WinWait("[CLASS:HH Parent]")

WinMove("[CLASS:HH Parent]", "", 70, 0, 1850, 1171)

ControlMove("[CLASS:HH Parent]", "", "HH Child2", 0 ,43, 438, 1096)

Instruction:
1. Use AutoIt Window Info for setting the correct values for WinMove and ControlMove. Above setting is used for my 1920 x 1200 monitor.
2. And then you need to copy the original hh.exe from C:\windows\hh.exe to any location and the change the ShellExecute values to the hh.exe that you copied into.
3. Compile above script in AutoIt then copied the compiled hh.exe to :
c:\windows\servicepackfiles\i386
c:\windows\system32\dllcache
c:\windows\system32
c:\windows

hh.exe (Microsoft HTML Help) Parameters

HH.EXE is distributed with HTML Help so you can rely on it being present. It lives in the Windows folder and has a limited number of command-line options. HH.EXE is associated with .CHM files. So double-click a .CHM file and Windows will open the file using HH.EXE. Its a very small file, it mostly passes the help filename onto a HH API library. HH.EXE is not single instance, if you open a CHM file three times using HH.EXE, then three help windows will appear.

Example of opening a help topic using Help ID = 1001

HH.EXE  -mapid 1001 ms-its:path/help.chm
Note: The “–map <ID> <file.chm>” command line became available in HH 1.1b.

Example of opening a help topic using a topic path

HH.EXE  ms-its::path/help.chm::/path/topic.htm
HH.EXE  mk:@MSITStore:path/help.chm::/path/topic.htm

Example of using HH.EXE to decompile a CHM help file

HH.EXE  -decompile  destdir  file.chm
where "destdir" is the directory to put the files into. This could be simply "."

Note: The mk:@MSITStore protocol works with IE3 and above while ms-its works with IE4 and above. A shorter version of “ms-its” is to just use “its”. Actually, the later versions of HH don’t even require the protocol prefix.

KeyHH.EXE is a free program from KeyWorks Software, written by Ralph Walden. KeyHH.EXE supports many more command line options then HH.EXE. I have to say that KeyHH.EXE is an excellent program. I distribute it with most applications I help produce.
You can get more information about KeyHH.EXE from the KeyWorks web site at http://www.keyworks.net/.

Fresh UI v8.04 - Tweak UI Companion

 

 

Fresh UI is a fresh solution for configuring and optimizing Windows. Loaded with hundreds of useful hidden settings in Windows XP/2000/NT/ 98/95/Me, this software covers the customizing and windows performance boost techniques that you'll be glad to know, such as:

• Customizing Windows User Interface (UI)
• Optimizing system settings
• Optimizing hardware settings
• Customizing Windows application settings
• Controlling user environment with policies

Fresh UI is organized by section for easy navigation and completed with detail descriptions for easy reference.

http://www.freshdevices.com/files/frui.exe

iTunes v7.6.2.9 - Video and Music Media Player

 

iTunes is an audio player for playing and organizing digital music files, and purchasing digital music files in the FairPlay digital rights management format. The iTunes Music Store is the component of iTunes through which users can purchase digital music files from within iTunes.

Users are able to organize their music into playlists, edit file information, record compact discs, copy files to a digital audio player, purchase music on the Internet through its built-in music store, run a visualizer to display graphical effects in time to the music as well as encode music into a number of different audio formats.

iTunes includes the Quicktime Player installer.

http://www.apple.com/itunes/download

ColorZilla - Firefox 2 Extension

It assists web developers and graphic designers with color related tasks - both basic and advanced.

With ColorZilla you can get a color reading from any point in your browser, quickly adjust this color and paste it into another program. You can Zoom the page you are viewing and measure distances between any two points on the page. The built-in palette browser allows choosing colors from pre-defined color sets and saving the most used colors in custom palettes. DOM spying features allow getting various information about DOM elements quickly and easily. And there's more...

http://www.iosart.com/firefox/colorzilla/

Web Developer - Firefox 2 Extension

 

The Web Developer extension adds a menu and a toolbar to the browser with various web developer tools. It is designed for Firefox, Flock and Seamonkey, and will run on any platform that these browsers support including Windows, Mac OS X and Linux.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/60

Firebug - Firefox 2 Extension

 

Firebug integrates with Firefox to put a wealth of web development tools at your fingertips while you browse. You can edit, debug, and monitor CSS, HTML, and JavaScript live in any web page.

Just the way you like it

Firebug is always just a keystroke away, but it never gets in your way. You can open Firebug in a separate window, or as a bar at the bottom of your browser. Firebug also gives you fine-grained control over which websites you want to enable it for.

Inspect and edit HTML

Firebug makes it simple to find HTML elements buried deep in the page. Once you've found what you're looking for, Firebug gives you a wealth of information, and lets you edit the HTML live.

Tweak CSS to perfection

Firebug's CSS tabs tell you everything you need to know about the styles in your web pages, and if you don't like what it's telling you, you can make changes and see them take effect instantly.

Visualize CSS metrics

When your CSS boxes aren't lining up correctly it can be difficult to understand why. Let Firebug be your eyes and it will measure and illustrate all the offsets, margins, borders, padding, and sizes for you.

Monitor network activity

Your pages are taking a long time to load, but why? Did you go crazy and write too much JavaScript? Did you forget to compress your images? Are your ad partner's servers taking a siesta? Firebug breaks it all down for you file-by-file.

Debug and profile JavaScript

Firebug includes a powerful JavaScript debugger that lets you pause execution at any time and have look at the state of the world. If your code is a little sluggish, use the JavaScript profiler to measure performance and find bottlenecks fast.

Quickly find errors

When things go wrong, Firebug lets you know immediately and gives you detailed and useful information about errors in JavaScript, CSS, and XML.

Explore the DOM

The Document Object Model is a great big hierarchy of objects and functions just waiting to be tickled by JavaScript. Firebug helps you find DOM objects quickly and then edit them on the fly.

Execute JavaScript on the fly

The command line is one of the oldest tools in the programming toolbox. Firebug gives you a good ol' fashioned command line for JavaScript complete with very modern amenities.

Logging for JavaScript

Having a fancy JavaScript debugger is great, but sometimes the fastest way to find bugs is just to dump as much information to the console as you can. Firebug gives you a set of powerful logging functions that help you get answers fast.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1843

iMacros - Firefox 2 Extension

If you love the Firefox web browser, but are tired of repetitive tasks like visiting the same sites every days, filling out forms, and remembering passwords, then iMacros for Firefox is the solution you’ve been dreaming of! iMacros was designed to automate the most repetitious tasks on the web. If there’s an activity you have to do repeatedly, just record it in iMacros. The next time you need to do it, the entire macro will run at the click of a button! With iMacros, you can quickly and easily fill out web forms, remember passwords, download information from other sites, scrape the Web (get data from multiple sites), and more. You can keep the macros on your computer for your own use, or share them with others by embedding them on your homepage, blog, company Intranet or any social bookmarking service. The uses are limited only by your imagination! ***Whatever you do with Firefox, iMacros can automate it.***

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/3863

Fast Explorer 2008 v3.0.10.393 - Managing file explorer context-menu

This handy utility allows you to manage context menus items of file objects displayed in a file manager, such as Windows Explorer or Total Commander.

With Fast Explorer you can create new menu items, submenus, dividers, specify menu bitmaps and hint text, and manage existing menu items added by other programs.

For an ultimate control over dynamic menu items added from within Fast Explorer you can define your own look & feel using the custom-drawing feature.

Fast Explorer is a very simple way to make your often used file actions quickly accessible!

What´s New in version 3.0.10.393:

• enhanced Vista-style user interface;
• 64-bit version of Fast Explorer Context Menu Extension DLL (thanks to Free Pascal Compiler);
• partial Windows x64 Edition support: menu items added from the Submenu Items tab appear on context menus for both 32 & 64-bit apps (other tabs marked with [WOW64] are working with 32-bit applications only);
• new "Check for updates" feature;
• language selection option from the main window menu;
• core code optimizations (for better performance);
• new "send crash report via email" feature;
• fix: Windows Vista automatically prompts to elevate rights to run Fast Explorer with administrative rights;
• fix: batch files (.bat) didn´t start from context menu when their paths contain spaces;
• fix: surrounding quotes were incorrectly stripped from the arguments in some cases;
• fix: shell extensions with empty name were hidden in the Shell Extensions Cleanup tab;
• fix: shell extensions with relative file names were marked as not found in the Shell Extensions Cleanup tab;
• fix: environment strings (like %SystemRoot%) in executable file names are supported.

http://thesoftpro.tripod.com/downloads/fe/

Youtube Video Downloader

Do you usually view videos in YouTube? For sure that you have ever viewed any video from that website, and do you wish to play those favar videos in your cell phone? and maybe you have felt a bit upset because you can’t download them. But now, the 100% FREEWARE Youtube Video Downloader will let you download those videos you viewed and surprised you!

Just install it, surf the web, and when you find the video you want to download, copy & paste the link in the New Download URL textbox and it will be saved in your harddisk, so you may convert it to your cell phone by Mobile Video Converter.

http://www.3gp-cinema.com/

Wireshark 1.0.0 - Best Network Tools

Wireshark's powerful features make it the tool of choice for network troubleshooting, protocol development, and education worldwide.

Wireshark was written by networking experts around the world, and is an example of the power of open source. It runs on Windows, Linux, UNIX, and other platforms. This download is for Windows only.

Wireshark can read live data from Ethernet, Token-Ring, FDDI, serial (PPP and SLIP) (if the OS on which it's running allows Wireshark to do so), 802.11 wireless LAN (if the OS on which it's running allows Wireshark to do so) and ATM connections (if the OS on which it's running allows Wireshark to do so).

Wireshark was previously known as Ethereal.

http://www.wireshark.org/

MR Tech's Local Instal - Firefox 2 Extension

Extension & Theme Managers

• Install buttons to both the Theme & Extension Manager to match the Thunderbird/NVU interface *
• New menu to top of window with several options like (with option to hide the whole menu):
• Install Extensions/Themes, Config Export, Disable/Enable All Extensions, Manually Sort list, Edit My Config, Restart and a Links menu
• Multi-extension installation support, just hold the ctrl, cmd or shift keys to select multiple XPI's
• Extension/Theme enabled/disabled count to manager window
• "Browse Install Directory" to right-click context menu for Extensions & Themes
• "Copy GUID" to right-click context menu for Extensions & Themes
• Slim mode option to Extension & Theme manager listings, on by default *
• Sort Extension & Theme lists option, off by default *
• Slider for Theme manager to resize list and preview pane
• Option to show the Theme Preview image below the Themes list
• "My Config" icon to the main menu
• EM or TM icon to the main menu to allowing switching between windows
• "Restart" icon to the main menu
• Option to disable the XPI install time delay on the Extension install prompt, on by default
• Remembers separate install paths, one for Themes and one for Extensions
• Options to show/hide manager elements like:
• "Get More..." link, Theme Manager Preview, Button Bar, Button images, Context menu options
• Option to show Extension/Theme manager window in: New Window, New Tab, Current Tab/Window or Sidebar
• Temporarily enables XPI install preference to get local XPI's to install and then sets it back to previous state.

File, Tools & Help Menu

• "Copy userAgent/Build Id" options to Tools menu *
• "My Config" export options to Tools menu *
• "Edit My Config" option to Tools menu *
• "Get More Extensions" and "Get More Themes" options to Help menu
• "About:?" submenu with shortcut to about:config & several other about: options to Help menu
• "Install Extensions" & "Install Themes" options to the File Menu with Alt-X Shortcut & Alt-M Shortcut keys - check Options dialog to hide *
• Ctrl-Shift-E Shortcut Key to "Tools|Extensions" menu *
• Ctrl-Shift-T Shortcut Key to "Tools|Themes" menu *
• Alt-O shortcut to "Tools|Options..." menu *
• Options to always show Mozilla Update icon on toolbar (only works with Fx/TB 1.0.x builds).
• Options to show/hide new "Local Install" File, Tools & Help menu options

Toolbar Buttons

• "Extensions" & "Themes" buttons with extended context menu options *
• New feature include button drops, for Extensions the drop down will show Extensions with Options or preferences, for Themes dropdown it will allow you to switch you theme (switching themes will prompt to restart on 1.5 build, prompting can be turned off in Options panel).
• "about:config" button to open the about:config configuration page, with context menu of all available about: options.
• "about:plugins" button to open the about:plugins information page, with context menu of all available about: options.
• "Build ID" button to allow pasting of User Agent and Build ID information to text or input box.
• "Clear Cache" button to clear the disk and memory cache.
• "Clear Private Data" button to clear or prompt on what to clear based on the new Firefox 1.5 Privacy options
• "Edit My Config" dropdown menu button with several profile and browser core file editing features.
• "JS Console" button to open the JavaScript Console window.
• "My Config" button that displays your current configuration with options to save to text, html or bbcode. *
• "Options" button to open the Options dialog.
• "Restart" button to restart the current app with option to prompt in preferences (only work with Fx/TB 1.5 and above).
• "Get All" button for Thunderbird to get all mail and send unsent mail.
• "Toggle Preview" button for Thunderbird to toggle the preview pane.

Other Tools

• Customized Title options to display internal application variables to main window title. *
• "Paste userAgent/Build ID" to input and textarea boxes context menu.
• "Archive XPI" and "Archive JAR" context menu option fro xpi & jar file downloading.
• Option to Auto-Archive Extensions & Themes on installs (archiving on updates currently only works with 1.0 builds)

Options & Other Goods

• Enable/disable Extension Installation and access to Installation "Allowed Sites" from Option dialog
• Options to manually edit the default Extensions & Themes file dialog install paths
• Options to disable File or Tools menu options and shortcuts
• Adds Esc key to close View Source window
• Remembers JS Console window size
• Remembers DOM Inspector window size and allows Esc key to close window
• Theme supported button icons *

https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/421/

FEBE Firefox Backup - Firefox 2 Extension

FEBE allows you to quickly and easily backup your Firefox extensions.  In fact, it goes beyond just backing up -- It will actually rebuild your extensions individually into installable .xpi files.  Now you can easily synchronize your office and home browsers.

FEBE  backs up and restores your extensions, themes, and (optionally) your bookmarks, preferences, cookies. and much more.

Backup as little or as much of your Firefox environment as you wish.  Perform backups on demand or schedule daily, weekly, or monthly unattended runs.  Sequential backups can be stored in timestamped directories so you can restore back as far as you like.

You may specify "User-defined" items to have FEBE backup Thunderbird, Greasemonkey scripts, or virtually any data on your computer - Firefox related or not.

http://customsoftwareconsult.com/extensions/febe/febe.html

translator - Firefox 2 Extension

translator is web translation extension that allows you to translate any web page into nearly any language at the click of a button.
Currently supports the following online translation services:
* Google Translation
* Yahoo! Babelfish
* PROMT
* freetranslation.com
* Altavista
* Im translator
Supports the following locales:
en-US, fr-FR, de-DE, it-IT, nl-NL, pt-BR, hr-HR, zh-TW, zh-CN, ru-RU, es-CL, es-ES, es-AR, tr-TR, uk-UA

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/3361

Adblock Plus - Firefox 2 Extension

Ever been annoyed by all those ads and banners on the internet that often take longer to download than everything else on the page? Install Adblock Plus now and get rid of them. Right-click on a banner and choose “Adblock” from the context menu — the banner won’t be downloaded again. Maybe even replace parts of the banner address with star symbols to block similar banners as well. Or choose a filter subscription, then even this simple task will usually be unnecessary: the filter subscription will block most advertisements fully automatically.

http://adblockplus.org/

Stylish - Firefox 2 Extension

Stylish is a Firefox, Thunderbird, Flock, SeaMonkey, Mozilla Suite, and Songbird extension that allows easy management of user styles. User styles empower your browsing experience by letting you fix ugly sites, customize the look of your browser or mail client, or just have fun. With an online repository at userstyles.org, you don't even need to know how to write styles yourself; just a couple clicks and the chosen style is applied. Stylish is to CSS what Greasemonkey is to JavaScript, and unlike other methods of using user styles, most styles take effect immediately.

https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/2108/

Tab Mix Plus - Firefox 2 Extension

Tab Mix Plus enhances Firefox's tab browsing capabilities. It includes such features as duplicating tabs, controlling tab focus, tab clicking options, undo closed tabs and windows, plus much more. It also includes a full-featured session manager with crash recovery that can save and restore combinations of opened tabs and windows.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1122

IE View Lite - Firefox 2 Extension

This is a rewritten version of IE View by Paul Roub, which is 58.9 KB. All the same features are there, but it has been re-built from the ground up to be smaller and more efficient. IE Tab, which allows users to embed IE in a Firefox tab, only works on Windows because it uses compiled C++ in DLLs. If your a Linux user that wants to open pages in Konqueror or IE via WINE, IE Tab will not work. The regular IE View homepage says that it's Windows only. IE View Lite is cross-platform, meaning it will work on multiple OS's. It has been successfully tested on Windows and Xandros, but does not work on Mac OSX due to a flaw in Firefox.

The default path to IE is set to the Windows default of C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe. If you are using another OS or have Internet Explorer installed to another location, you will have to change this to the path of Internet Explorer on your computer. You can also point this to another browser, such as Opera. If you want to, you can point the path to any program. It doesn't have to be a browser.

A lot of people have been asking about wildcards. They keep requesting them, and I keep telling them that they are already there if you know how to use them. Well for everyone who doesn't know, this is how it goes. Instead of using * to signal a wildcard, you just only include the part of the URL that you need in there. IE View Lite only checks to make sure that the URL contains the terms on the list. So instead of *.google.com/* to launch all Google pages in IE, just put in google.com/ or just google. Then any URL containing google.com/ will be launched in IE. Another example: Most video players such as Scifi Pulse or CMT Loaded will not work in Firefox, but most of them do contain the word videos in the URL. So, just put videos on the Always View in IE list and any URL that contains videos will launch in IE. Yes, some URLs that shouldn't (those that contain the word videos but don't require IE) will open in IE, and some URLs that should (those that require IE but don't contain the word videos in the address) will not get launched. However, in my experience, this trick works in about 90% of cases. So all the functionality is still there, but processing * wildcard just took to much code. This way is much more compact.

Snap Links - Firefox 2 Extension

The main goal of the extension is to allow easy and fast opening of multiple results presented by search engines (but it should work on any site).

Snap Links is similar to other extensions that open multiple links yet it works in a different way from most of them. The most important differences are:

• The user selects the links by drawing a rectangle (instead of highlighting the text or moving the
• mouse precisely over the links)
• Only the main links are selected by default
• Requires only one click
• There is visual aid to show which links are currently selected
• The extension attempts to be simple, fast and intuitive

Snap Links can even be useful for (lazy) users to open single links. These way the users won't have to pinpoint by clicking on the link, instead they may just clumsily drag the mouse over the link while pressing the right mouse button.

The user selects the links by dragging the right mouse button. By default the main (bigger) links are the only ones selected.

The user may move the selection area by holding the Alt key while moving the mouse.

Pressing the Shift key will select all links that intersect the selection area instead of just the main links.

The Escape key will cancel the selection area.

Snap Links allows users to select the default action on the options window (open links in new tabs, in new windows, in new tabs on a new window, bookmark, download or copy links to clipboard). Holding Ctrl while releasing the mouse button will allow users to override the default action.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/4336

Organize Status Bar - Firefox 2 Extension

OSB will enable you to organize your status bar icons. You can now rearrange or hide any item (icon or text) in the status bar. If your status bar is full and cluttered like mine was, give this a try.

To arrange your status bar items, click "Tools->Organize Status bar...", or click "Tools->Addons/Extensions" and double-click the Organize Status Bar entry.

If you have any comments or suggestions, please contact me through my message board. For bug reports, include your OSB version, Firefox version, and any console errors. Thanks for your help!

http://yellow5.us/firefox/

PasswordMaker - Firefox 2 Extension

 

The Problem

With the proliferation of online resources these days, you probably have many different usernames and passwords that you have to remember: banks, investment accounts, bill pay systems, credit card sites, email accounts, instant messenger accounts, photo sites, blogging tools - and countless others - all require a username and password to be able to access them. If you're like most people, you probably have only a few - or maybe just one or two - simple passwords you use for all of your accounts, because it's easier to remember just one or two than it is dozens. To make matters worse, the one or two passwords that you do use are probably fairly simple, like your dogs name, your birthday, or your spouse or child's name. The problem is, this is incredibly risky.

Maybe you do use unique passwords, and get around the problem of remembering them by saving them in your browser, or storing them in a spreadsheet or other file - which is very insecure - or even writing/printing them on a piece of paper and taping it to your computer display. Maybe you even use one of the many password managers that are available. But now you've centralized your passwords and access to them becomes difficult while at work, a friend's, or a public internet terminal. You can't get to your passwords without carrying them around or publishing them on the internet. Some people even carry a USB keychain with their passwords wherever they go. How inconvenient. And publishing them on the internet? Yikes! We need not even mention the security risks inherent with that solution. Even if you trust the company storing the passwords, you can be sure every hacker in the world is drooling over the prospect of accessing their database.

Ideally, you should use a unique, strong password for each of your accounts - especially the ones that contain sensitive information, like your bank or your investment brokerage account - but what about all of your other accounts? They may not contain information that is quite as sensitive as your bank, but it is still your private information, and none of anyone else's business.

"But only a genius could memorize so many unique passwords!", you say? Well, read on...

The Solution

What if you could use passwords that are as unique as fingerprints for each and every one of your accounts, yet not have to remember them? PasswordMaker allows you to do just that. By using complex mathematical formulae, called hashing algorithms, PasswordMaker outputs the same unique passwords for you each and every time, provided you give it the same input. And these passwords are unique across the globe (providing they are of sufficient length).

Don't write them down on sticky notes for others to find; no, PasswordMaker calculates them for you over and over again -- as needed -- without storing them so they can't be stolen. And if you use more than one computer (for example, one at work and one at home), it's child's play to synchronize them. There's even an on-line version for times when you are at a public computer and can't install any software.

http://www.passwordmaker.org

ScrapBook - Firefox 2 Extension

ScrapBook is a Firefox extension, which helps you to save Web pages and manage the collection. Key features are lightness, speed, accuracy and multi-language support. Major features are:

• Save Web page
• Save snippet of Web page
• Save Web site (In-depth Capture)
• Organize the collection in the same way as Bookmarks
• Highlighter, Eraser and various page editing features
• Full text search and quick filtering search
• Text edit feature resembling Opera's Notes

https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/427

Organize Search Engines - Firefox 2 Extension

You also have too many search engines in the search bar? Never find the engine you're currently searching for? Then this extension is for you! You can put the engines in folders or separate them with a separator line.

https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/4565/

Menu Editor - Firefox 2 Extension

Menu Editor is an extension that allows you to customize the menus in Firefox and Thunderbird.

http://menueditor.mozdev.org/index.html

Linkification - Firefox 2 Extension

 

Linkification converts text links into genuine, clickable links.

Example: text: http://www.andalas.com ->
converted into http://www.andalas.com

This Firefox extension contains many options, all of which are accessible by (1) right-clicking the status bar icon, or (2) clicking "Tools->Addons/Extensions" and double-clicking the Linkification entry.

If you are experiencing an issue which cannot be resolved using the options menu, or have any comments or suggestions, please contact me through my message board. For bug reports, include your Linkification version, Firefox version, any JavaScript console errors, and the URL of the webpage in question. Thanks for your help!

For testing purposes, I have compiled a fairly exhaustive list of test cases. Linkification should recognize each of these, unless otherwise marked.

http://yellow5.us/firefox/

Locationbar² - Firefox 2 Extension

Locationbar² is firefox extension for address bar. It will simplify the appearance of firefox address bar similar to the picture above.

It also make the address to be clickable.

There is not so much, I can say about this extension. Some of its features:

• Puts emphasis on the domain (reduces spoofing risk)
• Linkifies URL segments (press Ctrl/Meta/Shift)
• Hides http://, https://, ftp:// and file://

https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/4014/

Foxmarks Bookmark Synchronizer - Firefox 2 Extension

The Foxmarks Bookmark Synchronizer automatically synchronizes your bookmarks between two or more computers running Firefox. It also lets you access your bookmarks from any computer anytime via my.foxmarks.com. An easy-to-use wizard guides you through the quick startup process. Then Foxmarks works silently in the background to keep your bookmarks up-to-date on all your computers.

Simple. Solid. Free. And ready to use.

https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/2410/

Compact Menu - Firefox 2 Extension

Customised version of Compact Menu extension, which replaced the original menubar boxes into a single button or icon.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/4550

Custom Buttons² - Firefox 2 Extension

Custom Buttons² Firefox extension buttons can be written to do various tasks that the user may require. The buttons are coded in JavaScript. Many bookmarklets can easily be converted to buttons.

Extension developers will find this extension quite useful in the development cycle. JavaScript code can be prototyped in a custombutton, avoiding the reload chrome step till the code is proven. Then the code can be moved to the extension.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/5066

Fasterfox - Firefox 2 Extension

Fasterfox - performance and network tweaks for Firefox.

• Prefetch Links
  Dynamic speed increases can be obtained with Fasterfox's unique prefetching mechanism, which recycles idle bandwidth by silently loading and caching all of the links on the page you are browsing.
• Tweak Network
  Fasterfox allows you to tweak many network and rendering settings such as simultaneous connections, pipelining, cache, DNS cache, and initial paint delay.
• Page Load Timer
  A millisecond accurate page load timer tests the effectiveness of your settings.
• Block Popups
  A popup blocker for popups initiated by Flash plug-ins is also included.
• Locales included for Chinese, Czech, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Frisian, German, Hebrew, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Lithuanian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish and Ukrainian.

http://fasterfox.mozdev.org/index.html

Fission - Firefox 2 Extension

Fission is a safari style address bar and progress bar for Firefox 2. It is combining the progress bar that used to be on bottom left on firefox and not it is in address bar. For me it is good so that I can see the progress easily than to have to glance to the bottom left everytime  I want to look at the loading progress.

 

http://mozilla.zeniko.ch/fission.xpi

Bookmark Duplicate Detector - Firefox 2 Extension

  

BookmarkDD is a very useful extension that helps you manage your bookmarks. It notices you when duplicate bookmark is added, specify where is the previous URL and give you the choice to change the parent folder of duplicate bookmark. There is also a window to manage all duplicate bookmarks already in your bookmarks.

By default, the duplicate bookmarks manager will automatically delete duplicates which are in same folder. And it is also possible to specify a default folder where all duplicates within it will be automatically deleted. It is very helpful to merge two bookmarks. Now, when you have merged bookmarks' files you can move all folders of one file to a specific folder (example: 'imported') and select this folder to automatically delete duplicates within it. After this operation you still have to arrange bookmarks not deleted from 'imported' folder.

Remark 1: Automatic deletion of bookmarks is done when the duplicate bookmark manager's window is opened.

Remark 2: If you just have sync your bookmarks (with another extension) you need to restart firefox before to search duplicate bookmarks.

Bonus: if you think it is difficult to find a bookmark within all of them this extension has a solution. BookmarkDD add the possibility to search strings within bookmark's fields: location, description and keyword.

http://bookmarkdd.mozdev.org/index.html

Skalc - Skinnable Windows Calculator

Ever notice how lacking the default Windows calculator is in the style department? Skalc aims to fix that problem with its smooth, alpha-blended skins. Supports basic calculations and has a simple skin format.

http://matt.malensek.net/apps/Skalc_1.0.1.exe

3RVX v2.0 - Skinnable Volume Controller

3RVX is a skinnable volume controller and display that supports alpha-blended skins, cool fade effects, drive eject notification, and a lot more. It was originally developed to emulate the Mac OS X volume bezel on Windows, but has evolved to support more options and features. Requires .NET 3.5.

http://matt.malensek.net/apps/3RVX_2.0.exe

Force Older Programs to Use XP Common Controls

Older Windows programs look ancient and outdated in XP, because they don’t use the XP-style buttons and checkboxes. Here’s how to make them use XP common controls.

When you run an older program in XP, the operating system applies an XP-type frame around it, with rounded title bars. But the older program itself still uses its older-style interface. You can, however, force older programs to use XP-type common controls for things such as checkboxes and buttons.

You’ll have to create a manifest file (a specifically formatted XML file) and place it in the same directory as the older file.

Example 1 shows the code to put in your manifest file. For Program Name, enter the name of the program, and for Description of Program, enter a description for the program.

Example 1 Creating a manifest file

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>

<assembly xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:asm.v1" manifestVersion="1.0">

<assemblyIdentity

    version="1.0.0.0"

    processorArchitecture="X86"

    name="Program Name"

    type="win32"

/>

<description>Description of Program</description>

<dependency>

<dependentAssembly>

<assemblyIdentity

    type="win32"

    name="Microsoft.Windows.Common-Controls"

    version="6.0.0.0"

    processorArchitecture="X86"

    publicKeyToken="6595b64144ccf1df"

    language="*"

/>

</dependentAssembly>

</dependency>

</assembly>

To create the file, open Notepad, copy the text into it, and save it to the same folder as the executable file of the program you want to force to use XP common controls. Give it the same name as the program’s executable file, but with an extension of .manifest. For example, if the program’s executable file is named oldprogram.exe, give the manifest file the name oldprogram.exe.manifest.

Change Your Windows XP Boot Screen

Windows XP users can change their boot screens with this free software. Say good-bye to the boring Windows XP logo. Windows XP users get as tired of their boot screens as Windows Vista users do—so if you’re a Windows XP user, this hack is for you. It’ll show you how to easily change your boot screen.

Download, install, and run the free program BootSkin
(www.stardock.com/products/bootskin).

A screen like the one shown in Figure 1 appears. Scroll to any boot screen and click Preview to see a larger view of it. Once you’ve found one you want to use as your boot screen, click Apply. The next time you boot, you’ll see your new boot screen. But you’re not limited to the boot screens in the program. Click Browse boot screen library, and you’ll be brought to a page from the WinCustomize BootSkins Gallery that has thousands of boot skins. It’s shown in Figure 2.

Figure 1.
Choose your new Windows XP logo here

Figure 2.
Browsing for a new Windows XP boot screen

Click one you want to download and you’ll see a larger preview of it. Click the Download button, and from the screen that appears, click the “Click link to download” link. Then save the boot screen on your PC. In BootSkin, select File→Import from fi le, and browse to and select your downloaded boot screen. You’ll get a notice that the screen was imported. The new boot screen will now show up in the program, and you can use it in the same way as you can any other boot screen.

Speed Up Startup by Halting Startup Programs and Services

Increase your PC’s performance and speed up startup times by shutting off applications and services that you don’t need.

One of the best ways to speed up your PC without having to spend money on extra RAM is to stop unnecessary programs and services from running whenever you start your PC. When too many programs and services run automatically every time you start up your system, startup itself takes a long time—and too many programs and services running simultaneously can bog down your CPU and hog your memory.

Some programs, such as antivirus software, should run automatically at startup and always run on your computer. But many other programs, such as instant messenger software, serve no purpose by being run at startup. And while you need a variety of background services running on your PC for Windows to function, there are many unnecessary services that run on startup. For example, on many Windows XP systems, the Wireless Zero Configuration Service runs to automatically configure a wifi (802.11) network card, even though no such card is present in the system. (Windows Vista does away with the Wireless Zero Configuration Service entirely.)

Eliminating Programs that Run at Startup
The task of stopping programs from running at startup is particularly daunting because there is no single place you can go to stop them all. Some run because they’re put in the Startup folder, others because they’re part of logon scripts, still others because of Registry settings, and so on. But with a little bit of perseverance, you should be able to stop them from running.

Cleaning Out the Startup Folder
Start by cleaning out your Startup folder. In Windows XP, it is in C:\Documents and Settings\<User Name>\Start Menu\Programs\Startup, where <User Name> is your Windows logon name. In Windows Vista, find it in: 

C:\Users\<User Name>\\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup

where <User Name> is, again, your Windows logon name. Delete the shortcuts of any programs you don't want to run on startup. As with any shortcuts, when you delete them, you're deleting only the shortcut, not the program itself. (You can also clear out the startup items in Windows XP by going to Start ¨Programs¨ Startup and deleting items you want to remove. In Windows Vista, go to Start ¨All Programs¨ Startup.)

Next, clean out any tasks that have been automatically scheduled to run. In Windows XP, you’ll find them in your Scheduled Tasks folder. Go to C:\WINDOWS\Tasks, and delete the shortcuts of any programs that you don’t want to run.

In Windows Vista, you'll have to run the Task Scheduler, and delete tasks from there. Go to the Control Panel->System and Maintenance->Schedule Tasks. The Task Scheduler appears. Click "Task Scheduler Library" to display the tasks that have been scheduled, as shown in Figure 1. Look for any tasks that you don't want to run. In particular, look at the Triggers column and see whether any tasks are listed "At system startup." Such tasks start every time you run your PC. To see details about the task, including what it does, the executable fi le, how often it is scheduled, and so on, double-click it and look through the various tabs.

Figure 1.
Look for any tasks that are scheduled to run at startup in Windows Vista’s Task Scheduler, and delete them if they’re unnecessary

When you’ve identified a task you don’t want to run on startup, highlight it, click Delete, and click OK when you’re prompted.

Using the System Configuration Utility

Taking the previous steps will stop the obvious programs from running at startup, but it won’t kill them all. The best tool for disabling hidden programs that run on startup is the Startup tab in the System Configuration Utility, shown in Figure 2. To run it in either Windows XP or Windows Vista, type msconfig at the Search box in the Start menu, in a command prompt or in the Run box and press Enter. (If that doesn’t work, first do a search for msconfi g.exe, and then when you find the file, double-click it.)

To stop a program from running at startup, go to the Startup tab in this utility and uncheck the box next to the program. It can sometimes be difficult to understand what programs are listed on the Startup tab. Some, such as America Online, are clearly labeled. But often, you’ll see a phrase or collection of letters, such as fs20. That’s the name of the running fi le—in this case, fs20.exe, which is Free Surfer Companion, a pop-up killer, cache manager, and surfing utility.

To get more information about a listing, expand the width of the Command column near the top of the Startup tab. Expand it enough and you’ll see the startup command that the program issues, including its location, such as C:\Program Files\Free Surfer\fs20.exe. The directory location should be another hint to help you know the name of the program.

When stopping programs from running at startup, it’s best to stop them one at a time rather than in groups. You want to make sure that you’re not causing any system problems by stopping them.
So, stop one and restart your PC. If it runs fine, stop another and restart. Continue doing this until you’ve cleared all the programs you don’t want to run automatically.

Figure 2.
The Startup tab of the System Configuration Utility

Each time you uncheck a box and restart your PC, you’ll get a warning stating that you’ve used the System Configuration Utility to disable a program from starting automatically. If you don’t want to see that warning, disable it by checking the box in the dialog box itself.

After you’ve used the System Configuration Utility to identify programs that run upon startup, you might want to try disabling them from within the programs themselves. Run each program that starts automatically, and see if you can find a setting that allows you to prevent it from running on startup. For example, to get rid of Apple QuickTime’s startup item, right-click the QuickTime icon in the notification area, select QuickTime Preferences, go to the Advanced tab, and uncheck the box labeled “Install QuickTime icon in system tray.”

Using the Registry to Halt Programs Running on Startup

Even the System Configuration Utility won’t necessarily let you identify and kill all programs that run on startup. You might also need to hack the Registry to disable them. To do so, Launch the Registry Editor by typing regedit at the Start Search box or a command prompt (see Chapter 13 for details) and go to:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run.
The right pane will contain a list of some of the programs that run automatically at startup. The Data field tells you the path and name of the executable so that you can determine what each program is. Right-click any program you don’t want to run, and choose Delete. That will kill any programs that run and are specific to your account. To kill programs that run for every user of the system, go to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run and follow the same instructions for deleting other programs that you don’t want to run at startup.

Shutting Off Services that Run at Startup

Constantly running in the background of Windows are services—processes that help the operating system run, or that provide support to applications. Many of these services launch automatically at startup. Although you need many of them, many aren’t required and can slow down your system when they run in the background.

You can prevent services from running at startup by using the System Configuration Utility, similar to how you halt programs from running at startup, but using the Services tab instead of the Startup tab. When you go to that tab, you’ll see a very long list of services, most of which Windows requires to run. A good way to weed out unnecessary services is to see which services weren’t created by Microsoft, which aren’t required by Windows, and which have been installed by a third party. You can then decide which to stop and which to run. To see non-Microsoft services, click “Hide all Microsoft services.” You’ll see a list like the one shown Figure 2.
The System Configuration Utility is useful, but it doesn’t necessarily list every service that launches on startup. A bigger problem is that turning off services is more of a shot in the dark than disabling programs. When you disable a program, you can get a sense of what the program does. But when you turn off a service through the System Configuration Utility, there’s often no way to know what it does (or did).

A better way of turning off services at startup is via the Services Computer Management Console, shown in Figure 3. Run it by typing services.msc at the command prompt or Search box. The Services Computer Management Console includes a description of all services so that you can know ahead of time whether a particular service is one you want to turn off. It also lets you pause the service so that you can test out your machine with the service off to see whether it’s needed.

After you run the console, click the Extended tab. This view shows you a description of each service in the left pane when you highlight the service. The Startup Type column shows you which services launch upon startup—any services with “Automatic” in that column. Click the top of that column to sort together all the services that automatically launch on startup. Then highlight each service and read the descriptions.

When you find a service that you want to turn off, right-click it and choose Properties. In the Properties dialog box that appears, choose Manual from the “Startup type” drop-down list. The service won’t start automatically from now on (unless another service requires it in order to start), but you can start it manually via the console. If you want the service disabled so that it can’t be run, choose Disabled. (If you disable a service that a critical Windows service depends on, that service won’t be able to start either, which could cause problems.)

To test the effects of turning off the service, turn off any services you don’t want to run by clicking “Stop the service” in the left pane, or by right-clicking the service and choosing Stop. Note that some services can’t be stopped while the system is running. You’ll have to set them to “manual” and reboot to see the effect of turning them off.

Figure 2.
A list of all non-Microsoft services running on a Windows Vista PC

Figure 3.
The Services Computer Management Console

Table 1-1 lists some common services you might want to halt from running

Speed Up Boot and Shutdown Times

Shorten the time it takes for your desktop to appear when you turn on your PC—and make Windows shut down faster. No matter how fast your PC boots, it’s not fast enough. Here are several hacks to get you right to your desktop as quickly as possible after startup, whether you use Windows XP or Windows Vista.

Confirm That Boot Defragmentation Is Enabled

There’s a simple way to speed up Windows startup: make your system do a boot defragment, whichputs all the boot fi les next to one another on your hard disk. When boot fi les are in close proximity to one another, your system will starta faster.

On most systems, boot defragment should be enabled by default, but it might not be on yours, or it might have been changed inadvertently. To make sure that boot defragment is enabled on your system, launch the Registry Editor by typing regedit at the Start Search box or a command prompt

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Dfrg\BootOptimizeFunction

Edit the Enable string value to Y if it is not already set to Y. Exit the Registry and reboot. The next time you reboot, your computer will perform a boot defragment.

Hack Your BIOS for Faster Startups

When you turn on your PC, it goes through a set of startup procedures in its BIOS before it gets to starting Windows. So, if you speed up those initial startup procedures, you’ll make your system start faster.

You can speed up your startup procedures by changing the BIOS with the built-in setup utility. How you run this utility varies from PC to PC, but you typically get to it by pressing either the Delete, F1, or F10 key during startup. You’ll come to a menu with a variety of choices. Here are the choices to make for faster system startups:

Quick Power On Self Test (POST)

When you choose this option, your system runs an abbreviated POST rather than the normal, lengthy one.

Change Your Boot Order

If you change the boot order so that your BIOS checks the hard disk fi rst for booting, it won’t check any other devices, and will speed up your startup time.

Boot Up Floppy Seek

Disable this option. When it’s enabled, your system spends a few extra seconds looking for your floppy drive—a relatively pointless procedure, especially considering how infrequently you use your floppy drive.

Boot Delay

Some systems let you delay booting after you turn on your PC so that your hard drive gets a chance to start spinning before bootup. Most likely, you don’t need to have this boot delay, so turn it off. If you run into problems, however, you can turn it back on.

Fine-Tune Your Registry for Faster Startups

Over time, your Registry can become bloated with unused entries, slowing down your system startup because your system loads them every time you start up your PC. Get a Registry cleanup tool to delete unneeded Registry entries and speed up startup times. Eusing Free Registry Cleaner (www.eusing.com/free_registry_cleaner/registry_cleaner.htm), shown in Figure 1, is an excellent

Figure 1.
Cleaning the Registry with Eusing Free Registry Cleaner

Registry cleanup tool. It combs your Registry for outdated and useless entries and then lets you choose which entries to delete and which to keep. It also lets you restore your Registry if you run into a problem.

Speed Up Shutdown Times

It’s not only startup times that you’d like to speed up; you can also adjust things so that your system shuts down faster. If shutting down XP takes what seems to be an inordinate amount of time, here are a couple of steps you can take to speed up the shutdown process:

Don’t have Windows clear your paging fi le at shutdown

For security reasons, you can have Windows clear your paging fi le (pagefi le.sys) of its contents whenever you shut down. Your paging fi le is used to store temporary fi les and data, but when your system shuts down, information stays in the fi le. Some people prefer to have the paging fi le cleared at shutdown, because sensitive information (such as unencrypted passwords) sometimes ends

up in the fi le. However, clearing the paging fi le can slow shutdown times signifi cantly, so if extreme security isn’t a high priority, you might not want to clear it.

To shut down Windows without clearing your paging fi le, run the Registry Editor and go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management

Change the value of ClearPageFileAtShutdown to 0. (It may already be set to this.) Close the Registry and restart your computer. Whenever you turn off Windows from now on, the paging fi le won’t be cleared, and you should be able to shut down more quickly.

One simple way to speed up shutdown (and startup) times is to not ever actually shut down your PC. Instead, use sleep or hibernate modes. They use very little power, and shut down and start up your PC far more quickly than when you shut off the power completely.

Sometimes it takes Windows a long time to shut down because it’s waiting to see whether a service will stop on its own before prompting you to manually shut it down. Windows, by default, waits 20 seconds before prompting you, which can sometimes seem interminable. You can hack the Registry to have Windows ask you sooner than 20 seconds. Run the Registry Editor and go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control

Look for the WaitToKillServiceTimeout value. By default, it’s set to 20000 (20,000 milliseconds). Change it to another number, in milliseconds—such as 15000, which would have Windows wait 15 seconds instead of 20 before prompting you. It’s a good idea to start off lowering the number in increments of not more than fi ve seconds, to see how your computer responds. And don’t set it to lower than 5000, or you might lose data or your PC might not shut down properly.

Turn off unnecessary services

Services take time to shut down, so the fewer you run, the faster you can shut down. For information on how to shut them down.

DAEMON Tools Lite 4.12.2

WARNING: This software contains an optional adware toolbar. We recommend you deselect this option during installation.

DAEMON Tools is a virtual cd/dvd-rom emulator and is able to emulate nearly all known copy protections on the market today.

The application mounts ISO images to a virtual drive without having to burn them to a CD.

It is further development of Generic Safedisc emulator and incorporates all its features. This program allows running Backup Copies of SafeDisc (C-Dilla), Securom, Laserlock, CDCOPS, StarForce and Protect CD (and many others) protected games. Also included is a Virtual DVDROM drive (Generic DVD-ROM) enabling you to use your CD images as if they were already burned to CD! DAEMON Tools works under Windows9x/ME/NT/2000/XP with all types of CD/DVDROM drives (IDE/SCSI) and supports nearly any CD protection.

DAEMON Tools supports the following image files:

• cue/bin
• iso
• ccd (CloneCD)
• bwt (Blindwrite)
• mds (Media Descriptor File)
• cdi (Discjuggler)
• nrg (Nero)
• pdi (Instant CD/DVD)
• b5t (BlindWrite 5)

Notes:

• DAEMON Tools needs a 1:1 Copy to run!!
• DAEMON Tools is used to RUN GAMES, NOT TO BURN THEM!!! Means emulation must be active while you want to play a game, not while burning the copy (except for you want to use DAEMON Tools' "fastdump" feature on a safedisc protected CD).
• If you want to run a copy protected application from an image mounted to a Generic DVD-ROM enabling the copy protection emulation(s) is NOT necessary!!
• Generic DVD-ROM is able to run nearly every protected or unprotected CD image (Safedisc®, Securom®, Laserlock®, Lockblocks® etc.) like it was the original CD! Just do an image file using one of the supported burning programs and mount it with Daemon Manager!

http://www.daemon-tools.cc/

Windows Live Messenger 8.5.1302

With MSN Messenger you can chat online instantly in real time with friends, family and colleagues. It's faster than e-mail, more discreet than a phone call.

Chat using a webcam, send text messages to mobile phones, and express yourself instantly online in real time with new, cool emoticons.

MSN Messenger looks like you! Sign in with your own picture, create your own emoticons, and represent yourself with new, cool backgrounds!

http://messenger.msn.com/

ObjectDock 1.9 - One of the best windows launcher

 

ObjectDock is a program that enables users to add a "dock" to their Windows desktop that contains short-cuts, running tasks, and "docklets". It is highly configurable, easy to use, and very useful.

New in this version:

• New included Search docklet that can search Google, MSN, Yahoo, or elsewhere.
• Improved system tray support in Plus version.
• New languages supported
• Fixes to the per tray icon feature and sysstats integration
• Better Unicode support
• New "/settingsfolder" switch
• Separators supported in tabbed docks
• Zooming icons in tabbed docks

ObjectDock is freeware. A plus version is also available that adds tabs, system tray support, task grouping, and hotspot support.

http://www.stardock.com/products/ObjectDock/

Spybot Search & Destroy 1.5.2

Spybot - Search & Destroy can detect and remove spyware of different kinds from your computer. Spyware is a relatively new kind of threat that common anti-virus applications do not yet cover. If you see new toolbars in your Internet Explorer that you didn't intentionally install, if your browser crashes, or if you browser start page has changed without your knowing, you most probably have spyware. But even if you don't see anything, you may be infected, because more and more spyware is emerging that is silently tracking your surfing behaviour to create a marketing profile of you that will be sold to advertisement companies. Spybot-S&D is free, so there's no harm in trying to see if something snooped into your computer, too :)

http://www.safer-networking.org/