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FINE FREEWARE
The first useful program I’d like to mention is Belarc Advisor. Belarc Advisor builds a detailed profile of your installed software and hardware, including Microsoft Hotfixes, and displays the results in your Web browser. The profile is comprehensive and even lists the serial numbers of your installed software. A printout of the results could come in very handy when reinstalling software or when you need to know exactly what hardware and software you’re running, versions, etc. You can find Belarc Advisor here: http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html. Next, I found a free Zip/Unzip program that is very popular. CoffeeCup Free Zip Wizard makes it easy to Zip and Unzip files. It has built-in email and FTP functions so you can Zip and send your files in one easy step. Free Zip Wizard can also run any program or setup file inside Zip files. It can also create self-extracting .exe files and find all the Zip files on your system. This program even allows you to email the zipped file without leaving the program. And, it has a built-in FTP feature so you can zip files that are too large to email and send them over the Internet. Download your free copy here: http://www.coffeecup.com/zip-wizard/.
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For extracting songs from CD’s onto your computer, Cdex is an excellent choice. Again, it’s freeware and is a very good program.A straightforward audio player is included. It has tons of configuration options so new users may feel intimidated. However, the help menus are thorough and novices soon get the feel of the program. It’s hard to believe that Cdex is free. Get your copy here: http://download.com.com/3000-2140-10226370.html?tag=lst-0-1. Many of us have more than one program that can open our audio, video and word processing files. However, Windows assigns just one program as the default program to open each file type. Well, there’s a nifty free program that allows you to right-click on the file you want to open and choose which of your programs to open it with. OpenExpert adds a right-click option called “Open With” to your files. It is fully configurable so you can specify exactly which programs to include in the list. To learn more about OpenExpert, check it out at: http://www.baxbex.com/openexpert.html. I don’t know about you but I’m a lousy Poker player. I recently heard of a free Poker game called Poker Mania that teaches you how to play and even has a Las Vegas feel to it, complete with sound effects. For your free copy, go to: http://www.fileheaven.com/Poker-Mania/download/9829.htm. That’s about it for this month. I hope you like these programs. As always, your comments and suggestions are always welcome. Best Wishes, Jerry Wonderly |
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Sometimes,
we don’t have to spend a bundle to get good software. This
month I’ve looked around some of my favorite freeware sites
and found several free programs that I like and, hopefully, many
of you will too. So without further adieu let’s take a look
at them: