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Technology Page !
As of: 02-12-20

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Wow - It's really Big !
(Useful Computer, Internet, Software, Anti-Virus, Anti-Malware, Tech Support, News)
Applications, Tools, Links, Alternatives, and more...

It Grew so big we gave it it's own page !
Welcome here you will find:

Helpful Antivirus Spyware Malware and Parasite - Removal Tool: Comparisons, Detections, Forums, Threat Alerts, World Virus maps and more. Interesting new technology readings and reference data (e.g Hardware, Computers, Peripherals, Software, etc). Internet Service Tools/Information/Comparisons, Software Download Sites, Technical Support Sites/Blogs/Forums, Driver Downloads, Technology and Product Reviews. What's running on your PC, Process List Tools, Technology News, Product News Alerts Announcements Etc, Shopping, Research Centers and Laboratories, Software Alternatives Powerful and Competitive Web Browser Alternatives, Office Suite Software and Operating Systems. Internet Reference Utilities and Tools, Whois Lookup Tools, Domain Name Lookup Sites, Domain Names Explained (.com .org .net etc), IP Address Lookup Tools (e.g What is your Outside Real World Internet IP Address, the address of a particular website, etc), Wi-Fi Hot Spot Locator Sites and Tools. Wireless WWAN 3G and 4G Mobile Phone information. Online and Downloadable DNS, Ping, and Trace Route Network Tools. Internet Speed Test Sites and Speed Test Site FAQs. Internet Statistics/Reports/Monitoring Tools, Web Host Provider Tracking and Information Sites, Website Page History lookup, Who Hosts a site, Email Statistics Tracking, Cable Modems Information. Windows Tools Applications and Shortcuts, System Process & File Definition Lookup Sites, Windows (Keyboard & Mouse) Shortcuts, Tech Support Forums (Software, Hardware, etc), Miscellaneous Useful Software's and Applications, Portable Applications (no need to install), and more... O'h - There's so much more, come and look around !


 

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What's new here:  Things currently new or in beta on this page.



QR Codes: (updated)
 Have you seen these around, wondered what they were? How useful are they, where or how can I make them? They are especially useful in print (hard copy - fliers - exhibits, etc) when you want to make it easier to bring users to a specific (url) website address and they have a smart phone or tablet device. Come visit the QR Codes section of our Technologies Page below for more information. February 12 2020 updated link
 


 Windows-10: Do you currently have Microsoft Windows 7, Windows-8 or 8.1, or some older version of windows? Want to know what's coming next?  Keep on top of what is coming afterwards, tentatively code named Windows 10 come visit the new Windows-10 section of our Technology Page for more information. You may be eligible for a free upgrade until at least July of 2016. Keep on top of news announcements, developer tools, reviews, videos, new enhancements, and more. December 12th 2015

Great Wallpapers for Single Monitors and Multiple Monitor Systems:  Checkout HD Wallpapers, Pure High Definition quality wallpapers for Desktop, Tablets, Mobiles in HD, Wide, 4K Ultra HD, 5K, 8K UHD monitor resolutions. Visit the Great Wallpapers forSingle Monitors and Multipule Monitors section of our Technology Page for more information. April 10th 2016

- LibreOffice Software Suite: On September 28th 2010 several members of the OpenOffice.org project formed a new group called The Document Foundation. The Document Foundation created LibreOffice from their former project in response to Oracle Corporation's purchasing of Sun Microsystems over concerns that Oracle would either discontinue OpenOffice.org, or place restrictions on it as an open source project, as it had on Sun's OpenSolaris.

It was originally hoped that the LibreOffice name would be provisional, as Oracle was invited to become a member of The Document Foundation. Oracle rejected offers to donate the OpenOffice.org brand to the project and demanded that all members of the OpenOffice.org Community Council involved with The Document Foundation step down from the OOo Community Council, citing a conflict of interest.

The Go-oo project was discontinued in favor of LibreOffice. Improvements made by the project are being merged into LibreOffice. Enhancements made in other forks are also expected to be incorporated into LibreOffice. Also underway is the reduction of Java dependency, with the goal of minimizing security issues and improving application stability.

As a result of the fork of OpenOffice.org into LibreOffice, and the resulting loss of developers, Oracle announced in April 2011 that it was terminating the commercial development of OpenOffice.org.

In June 2011, Oracle announced that it would contribute the OpenOffice.org code and trademark to the Apache Software Foundation, which decided to accept the offer and start an incubation process within the foundation. Google and Red Hat began to contribute programmers to LibreOffice in June 2011. So all hail LibreOffice, come visit the LibreOffice portion of our Office Software Suite Section on our Technology Page here for more information. Keep on top of news announcements, developer tools, reviews, videos, new enhancements, and more.

* LibreOffice runs on: Windows, Mac OS, Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, Unix, and more platforms. It truly is a cross platform office suite package and...
* (Update) LibreOffice for Android:
  Effective October 2015, the Document Foundation is proud to present LibreOffice Viewer for Android in this initial attempt to provide LibreOffice for the Android Operating system and platform of products (phones and tablets). It is now available for download on Google Play here. The problem has been scaling the LibreOffice suite small enough to fit and run on most ARM processor based systems. Editing is still an experimental feature which has to be enabled separately in the settings, and is not stable enough for mission critical tasks. It will be enhanced in the future to a fully fledged editing solution with the help of developers. December 2nd 2015

  Microsoft-Word, Excel, and PowerPoint for Android: It's brand new so we caution you, It appears to be free, hopefully locally based rather than cloud based (requiring internet). Microsoft has told us though it has just released The real Microsoft Word/Excel/and PowerPoint app's for Android phones and tablets. The Microsoft App's for Android are made for work on-the-go. Word/Excel/and PowerPoint have the familiar look, feel and quality of Office with an intuitive touch experience designed for Android phones and tablets. Visit the Microsoft Word/Excel/and Powerpoint Android section of our Technology Page for more information. December 2nd 2015

Polaris Office for Android and Apple:
 Come visit the ANDROID and Apple - Polaris Office portion of the Office Software Suite section of our Technologies Page for yet another Android and Apple office suite alternative capable of viewing and editing a variety of standard office software file formats (doc, docs, ppt, pptx, pdf, xls, xlsx, etc) on your Android or Apple based Tablet - Smart Phone related devices. September 24th 2015

Quickoffice for Android and Apple:
 Come visit the ANDROID and Apple - Quickoffice portion of the Office Software Suite section of our Technologies Page for an Android and Apple office suite capable of viewing and editing a variety of standard office software file formats (doc, docs, ppt, pptx, pdf, xls, xlsx, etc) on your Android or Apple based Tablet - Smart Phone related devices. October 9th 2013

Oracle-Sun JAVA, Adobe Flash, and Microsoft Silverlight: See whether you have JAVA Adobe Flash Elements, or Microsoft Silverlight you currently may have installed on your system (i.e Add-on's/Extensions/etc), where to find them, and if installed see whether or not you have the latest versions installed by visiting the following.    April 17th 2013

- Oracle-Sun JAVA     - Adobe Flash     - MS Silverlight

Android and Apple App's Stores: Come visit the ANDROID and Apple APP's (Applications) section of our Technologies Page for useful information and links to Android Marketplace and Apple Store for your Android or Apple based Tablet - Smart Phone related devices. November 2nd 2012

Autoruns: See what tasks are scheduled to run at system start-up and windows login and more with Autoruns a Microsoft Windows Sysinternals Utility. Visit the  What's running on your PC? section of our Technologies Page below for more information. March 21st 2012

Windows-10: Do you currently have Microsoft Windows 7, Windows-8 Vista, or some older version of windows? Want to know what's coming next?  Keep on top of what is coming afterwards, tentatively code named Windows 8 come visit the new Windows-10 section of our Technology Page for more information. Keep on top of news announcements, developer tools, reviews, videos, new enhancements, and more. February 12,  2020

Disk Backup Software - Online Services - Disk Cloning etc:  If your asking yourself should I?, I don't know how!, My systems pretty good it won't crash. my system already has a restore partition, etc, or are just inquisitive which you should be then you need to check out this section. Visit the System Backup Software - Online Services - Disk Cloning section below for more information. January 24th 2011

Hot!!! - Holiday News Google Wireless Holidays: Google is doing it again this year (Nov 2010 - Jan 2011) Google Gives Wi-Fi Away Free at 47 U.S. Airports for Holidays. Call it an early holiday gift from Google to millions of airline passengers. Google said will be offering free Wi-Fi to travelers across the United States starting Tuesday at 47 airports. Google says the Wi-Fi will be available from November 2010 until January 15, 2011. Google says it will also extend the free Wi-Fi offer to Virgin America flights within the continental United States.  Click below and find out more about this offer. Visit the Google Wireless Holiday portion of our  WiFi Hot Spot Locator section below for more detailed information. December 3rd 2010

Technology (R&D) Research & Design Centers and Laboratories:  Check out what some of the worlds leading name companies in a umber of fields are doing now, actively participate in upcoming and on going projects and influence some of tomorrows technologies. Visit the Leading Technology Research & Design Centers and Laboratory Links section below for more information. December 2nd 2010

HoaxSlayer.com (Email Hoaxes and Scams):  Hoax-Slayer is dedicated to debunking email hoaxes, thwarting Internet scammers, combating spam, and educating web users about email and Internet security issues. Hoax-Slayer allows Internet users to check the veracity of common email hoaxes and aims to counteract criminal activity by publishing information about common types of Internet scams. Hoax-Slayer also includes anti-spam tips, computer and email security information, articles about true email forwards, and much more. New articles are added to the Hoax-Slayer website every week. Visit the Email Hoaxes and Internet Scammers section below for more information. October 1st 2010

Got Reception?:  was created in response to a major issue plaguing millions of cellular consumers unsatisfactory service. This issue is compounded by the fact that the cellular industry ranks lowest in terms of customer satisfaction. In fact, the Council of Better Business Bureaus reported that customers filed more complaints about cell phones in 2004 than any other industry. With GotReception, anyone can search their area to see which carrier has the best ratings in their area. People can share their experiences with others by posting their own rating for their carrier, find reviews, coverage area maps, and more. Visit the Useful Cellular Information and News portion of our Wireless WWAN / Next Gen 3G and 4G, Mobile Computing, Cellular Network Info and more section below for more information. September 17th 2010

Windows (Disk Defrag) Programs: Want two great Disk Defragmenting programs (fast, effective, and free?) to choose from. Checkout both Defraggler and Auslogics Disk Defrag, their fast, free, able to be scheduled to run, can defrag FAT16/32 and NTFS, run on 32 bit or 64 bit machines. Visit the Disk Utilities portion of our Useful Windows Informative Software Tools & Utils section below to find out more. April 22nd 2009

Windows-7: Note do you have Windows 7 and some older Programs or Legacy Apps won't run now? Consider Microsoft Virtual PC software (free for Windows-7 Professional and up users) with Windows XP Mode. Visit the Microsoft Virtual PC piece of the Windows-7 portion of our Technology Section below for more information. March 9th 2010

ULTRAMON: Do you have more than one monitor hooked up on your PC? Do you find yourself laboriously dragging open program windows from one screen to the other's? Quickly move windows between monitors or maximize a window to the desktop using the additional window buttons added by UltraMon. Would you like more control over screen savers, wallpapers, etc on each monitor?, would you like to be able save the icon positions of what's current placed on those monitor desktops and have separate taskbars for each one? Use more than 10 monitors, mirroring, etc. You can do this and more with one of Doc's favorite tools called Ultramon by Realtime Software, it's small quick and efficient.  Click below and find out more about this great utility. Visit the Ultramon portion of our  Miscellaneous Software's and Applications section below for more information. June 26th 2009

FINK: There are already a number of new applications such as browsers like Firefox, and Office Software Suites like OpenOffice which can run on MAC Hardware as well as a number of other platforms. Now thanks to the hard work of numerous contributors there is a way to run applications written for Open Systems on MAC Hardware, it's called FINK.  Visit the new Macs and Open System Software section below for more information. April 13th 2009

Portable App's: Carry your favorite programs with all of your settings, bookmarks, email and more. Use them on any Windows computer, all without leaving any personal data behind. Portable Apps provide a truly open platform that works with any hardware you like (USB flash drives, iPod, portable hard drives, etc). It's open source built around an open format that any hardware vendor or software developer can use.  Visit the Portable Windows Applications portion of our Miscellaneous Software's and Applications section below. January 21st 2009

Wireless Wide Area Networks (Cellular): Want to know more about Wireless Wide Area Networks (WWAN). Mobile telecommunications using cellular networks such as UMTS, GPRS, CDMA2000, GSM, CDPD, Mobitex, HSDPA, 3G & 4G to transfer data to devices such as laptops, handhelds etc by means of WWAN PCMCIA Cards, etc ? (Say What!) Then visit the Wireless Wide Area Networks (WWAN) portion of our Internet Reference/Utils/Tools section below. January 12th 2009

Open Office Add-On's and Extensions: Want extras, extensions, add-on's, templates, etc, or where to find tutorials for all of the OpenOffice modules? Visit the updated Office Suite Alternatives portion of our Software Alternatives section below and find 100's. January 9th 2009

Looking for more information and reading for Operating System Alternatives like (e.g GNU, FreeBSD, Fedora, Linux, and Umbuto)? Then visit the Operating System Alternatives section below. January 9th 2009

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(*) = Recommended Links        (*) = New recent additions
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Add Doc Dingley's Education Page to your Browsers Favorites List, click here to bookmark and add this page.
Tell your friends about www.DocDingley.com as well.

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Helpful - Antivirus, Spyware, Malware, and Parasite Removal Tools:

What Can You Do?

Watch what you surf, pay attention to Pop-Up windows or screens and what they ask!, else terminate them using Task Manager. Have a reputable AntiVirus with internet security firewall, run AntiMalware software, keep your Antivirus and Anti-Malware definition files regularly up_to_date. Clear your browsers histories as well as their cache when done.

Don't be mislead - Stick with name brand programs when possible (read the reviews below), if some of the well known forum groups refer you to off beat names unanimously for unique infectious removals then maybe defer !

Although it's not a guarantee - The best defense to preventing (
e.g  viruses, trojans, keyloggers, hijackers, malware, dns changers, identity theft, data theft, file manipulation, crashing computers, blue screens of death...  Ahhhh!) is to have good antivirus and anti-malware software installed with resident shield protection turned-on (e.g file protection, registry scanning, memory, internet, email, etc), up to date definition files. Use Firewall and Cryptic password protection, as well as complete regular system recovery backup software. Sound a little over board? There can be downsides (e.g system performance, consistent permission nag screens, annual costs, etc) some which can be fine tuned and turned off, but as they say 'an ounce of prevention...' read-on for more information and help below.
 


 - Alerts -



Conficker Worm Information:
updated 11-03-09
Can't get to certain well known Anti-Virus Anti-Malware sites all of a sudden but can on another computer?

Check here Conficker Working Group - Eye Chart to see if you have Conficker Virus/Worm and which variant !

*Note: If your Antivirus or Anti-Malware does not clean Conficker from your system try
Microsoft's Malicious Software Removal Tool (MSRT) kb890830

*TIP: If you can't reach these sites from the infected computer try downloading utilities from an un-infected system
and burning the utilities to a CD-ROM, don't put them on a flash drive SD Card etc for example since you would
probably infect those devices as well, burning to a CD will help eliminate this.

More Information:
Can not access Malwarebytes, Symantec, McAfee Sites (Conflicker Microsoft Answers)
Conficker Working Group Homepage - Latest info on threat/variants/etc
Conficker - Wikipedia Outbreak Info
- Search for 'Conficker Removal Tool'


*Note: Microsoft is offering $250,000 USD reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those involved with Conficker !

Microsoft - Press (Reward Offered)
- Search for 'Microsoft Conficker Reward'

See our Malware, Virus, and Threat - Alerts, News, Announcements, Etc ! section below
also for information from a number of leading Anti-Virus/Malware Manufacturers.
 


 

Antivirus, Malware & Spyware
Comparison and Review Sites

Trying to determine which is the best Anti-Virus and/or Anti-Malware Software is tough for sure, it's like trying to hit a moving target since the market is flooded and always changing. There are a vast number of products available on the Internet, some not always true (see Free Online Scan SCAMS on this page for details).

Below is a list of regularly updated, independent, hopefully non biased review sites to help assist you. Use your discretion, take the time to read the reviews on the sites below, and don't be persuaded by popular names or sites which might be influenced by manufacturer advertisements, sponsorships, write-ups, etc.

The Review Sites
Determining what is the best for you:

*AV-Comparatives
**AV-Test
The Independent IT-Security Institute
German testing lab best known for evaluating
the effectiveness of antivirus software

**TopTenReviews Anti-Virus Software
**TopTenReviews Anti-MalwareSoftware
Antivirus reviews on CNET
Antivirus - Reviews Comparisons PC Magazine
Checkvir.com

- Search for 'Antivirus reviews'

* Software Review Finder - Softpedia
Enter some anti spyware/antivirus software's names
 for reviews. See our Technology Product Review
sites as well by clicking here.


- Search for 'Antivirus Software'

What Next?

Go to our
Antivirus Software
Detection Removal Tools/Etc

section below for a list of leading
manufacturers of Antivirus Tools.

* Click here for a list of
Malware/Spyware Tools.

Antivirus-Malware-Spyware Forums and Support
(Industry Leading Support forums)
 



Malware & Spyware
Anti-Malware Detection Software Removal Tools and Forums

** Be sure to keep you virus and malware definitions up to date



** Spybot S&D

Spybot S&D
Safer Networking  Forums



Lavasoft
 
Lavasoft Support Forums



** Malware Bytes.org
Having trouble loading updates automatically, manually
download updates from here:


* ** Malware Bytes Chameleon
Malwarebytes Chameleon technologies gets
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware installed and
running when blocked by malicious programs.

Mbam Rules - Malwarebytes.org

Malwarebytes.org Forums

Malwarebytes on Twitter
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Review
Review Information:
** Top10 Anti-Malware Software Reviews.com

* The Low Down on Free Anti-Spyware Downloads

* HijackThis!

A very powerful tool for understanding just exactly what is going on with your computer as to possible HiJacks, startups, BHO's, etc. This is a very powerful useful tool but we caution you "it should be used with extreme care" as it could effect the operations of your computer, it could manipulate or delete files, and/or change the system registry.  Above is the link to Merijn.org the homepage of HijackThis as well as other useful tools. There are lots of discussion groups and forums which you can start with here (online help forums) about the HijackThis tool and other programs, but again we stress use this tool with extreme caution and ask the experts for help, there are useful task list report tools within the program which can be used to generate report tools to send to these groups for advise.

*Note: Many reputable support forums and Anti-Spyware/Malware/Anti-Virus forums will ask you to run and post a HijackThis logfile when asking advise. In most cases this is acceptable and helpful. Scan your output log file if you can before posting to understand if private information is contained such as passwords, serial numbers , product keys, etc.
 

 
* Antivirus Software
Detection Software and Removal  Tools:

** Be sure to keep you virus and malware definitions up to date
*Note: There are many varied opinions about the subject of what's available, who's best, who's not, scam antivirus cleaners and sites, costs, effectiveness, etc. We won't go into those subjects here. Review sites for antivirus software's can be found above and are highly recommended for things such as features, performance issues such as hording systems resources, prices, etc.  A good review site such as **Anti-Virus Software Reviews.com ** is a useful place to start.

Here are a few examples of some of the top contenders:

BitDefender, Kaspersky, ESET Nod32, AVG, F-Secure, TrendMIcro, McAfee, Norton, CA (Computer Associates)Norman Antivirus, Panda, *AVAST, PC-Tools Antivirus, F-Prot, VIRobotPopup, Webroot, etc. Some offer free or Pro versions of their software see the sites for comparison differences.

*New ** Visit Andy Manchesta's huge site of Anti-Spyware, Anti-Virus, Anti-RootKit, Firewall, Security Tools, Cleansers, Security Feeds, DNS Tools, Latest Threats List, etc. Take particular note as to when and when not to use certain removal tools and cleansers when cleaning or disinfecting a PC.

Please see our section here about Free Free Online Scanner Scams

(*) AVAST Software Review
** Anti-Virus Software Reviews.com
 



** Free 'Online Antivirus Scanner'
Scams or Truth?

WARNING: Be aware of misleading companies (usually lesser or unknown) offering free online scans, virus removals, cleanup services, and claims of software to taking care of suspect files. It doesn't always mean removal and/or quarantining of unwanted files. In a number of cases it's simply an attempt to get you to come to their site(s) in order to potentially load key loggers, trojans, worms etc possibly for identity theft, or sometimes simply a means to get you purchase their software sometimes with relentless haunts afterwards if you don't purchase it with not much guarantee of results or effectiveness if you do.

Here is a good article by Brian Livingston related to just what we are talking about: Don't Fall for PC SCAN Scams!

And from About.com - Before you Use an Online Scanner

We recommend reading the article listed above here and if you must use an online scanner, use some of the more better known reputable companies listed above

Read the company's product descriptions carefully (even well known companies), understand the online scanner services/software before downloading or using to understand fully the impacts: (e.g Using with other Antivirus tools already installed?, Is there is any cost?, Can you obtain and printout results logs? Know what to expect - Just exactly what will the services do? Is removal/quarantining of infected files possible? for a cost? Do you then have to download software? etc). Some company's will offer the ability to scan other devices such as flash drives, external, CD-Rom, etc as well and others will not offering the capability to scan the system disk or specified portions only. Note also, often these companies will require Active-X or Java to be enabled to download and run the online scans.

Although it's not a guarantee the best defense is to have good antivirus and anti-malware installed with residents shields (such as file, memory, internet, email) and up to date definitions. Firewall, and cryptic passwords protection, as well as complete regular system recovery backup software. There are downsides however (e.g system performance, permission nag screens, costs, etc)  but as they say 'an ounce of prevention...'

Below are some additional information and links as they pertain to Online Scanners

About.com - Top 5 Online Scanners
Webupon - Which Online Scanner is best for you
Hubpages.com - Top Free Online Virus Scan Services

Search - Top Online Scanners'


Unique Removal Tools:

CWSHREDDER  updated
From Merijn.nu The Best Defense against CoolWebSearch
Hijacks. Owned by Trend Micro now.
 
** Visit Andy Manchesta's huge site of Anti-Spyware, Anti-Virus, Anti-RootKit, Firewall, Security Tools, Cleansers, Security Feeds, DNS Tools, Latest Threats List, etc. Take particular note as to when and when not to use certain removal tools and cleansers when cleaning or disinfecting a PC.


POP-Up Stoppers:
Use your discretion, there are a number of commercial Pop-up stoppers available on the Internet. Some browsers (IE6/IE7) combined with features such as Google, Yahoo, AOL, and MSN toolbars have pop-up stopper features available within them. Here is a sample of some popular standalone downloads available.

* Panicware's Free Pop-Up Stopper

Vaccine Education Online
Here is a good site for detailed information relating to
turning on or off pop-up stopper features.

Pop-Up Blockers.org
List of more standalone pop-up blocker software's.
 
 



-new-
Internet Email Hoaxes and Internet Scammers

* HoaxSlayer.com Latest Email Hoaxes - Current Internet Scams

Hoax-Slayer is dedicated to debunking email hoaxes, thwarting Internet scammers, combating spam, and educating web users about email and Internet security issues. Hoax-Slayer allows Internet users to check the veracity of common email hoaxes and aims to counteract criminal activity by publishing information about common types of Internet scams. Hoax-Slayer also includes anti-spam tips, computer and email security information, articles about true email forwards, and  much more. New articles are added to the Hoax-Slayer website every week.


   
Internet  - 'Online Scams and Tricks'
Scams or Truth?

Tricks Pornographers Play
ScamBusters.org
Snopes.com - Scam report
HoaxBusters.org


-More to come-

- Google News search for 'Internet Scams'
- Search for 'Internet Scams'
Try also putting a space using the Google search above here
after the word Internet Scams for a list of other searches
e.g Internet Scams List - Internet Scams and Hoaxes
 

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* * AntiVirus - Malware - and Spyware Forums and Support:

Almost all the leading manufacturers listed above for both Antivirus, Anti Malware, and Spyware will have
support groups and forums. Here are a few support forums and Submit a file sites to aid and assist you as you get started.


AntiVirus Forums

General Purpose

Avast Support Forum
AVIRA Support Forum
AVG Free Forum
Bitdefender Support Forum
ClamWin Support Forum
CA (Computer Associates)
ESET Support Forum
F-Prot Support Forum
F-Secure Support Forum
Kaspersky Support Forum
McAfee Support Forum
MS OneCare Support Forum
Norman Support Forum
Norton Symantecs Internet Security
 - Tek-Tips Norton AntiVirus Forum
 PC-Tools Antivirus Forums
QuickHeal Supprot Forum
TrendMIcro Support Links
VBA32 Support Forum
Webroot Spyweeper Tech Support Links

* See our Tech Support Forums Section below also

Anti-Malware & Spyware Forums
* Spybot S&D - Safer Networking Forums
Lavasoft Support Forums
Malwarebytes.org Forums
 
Bleeping Computer

Major Geeks - Forums on a number
of AntiVirus and AntiMalware Software

MalwareTeks Blogs - Forums on a number
of AntiVirus and AntiMalware Software

Spyware Info (SWI) - Forums on a number
of AntiVirus and AntiMalware Software

TechSupportForum - Forums on a number
of AntiVirus and AntiMalware Software and more

Wilders Security Forums - Forums on a number
of AntiVirus and AntiMalware Software and more

Virus Bulletin - Information on a number of
AntiVirus and Malware Software, Testing, and more

* Castle Cop Security Group Closes Down (Too bad) 2008
See Google Search below for stories
- Search for 'Castle Cops'

Specialty Forums

AV Comparatives Forum
* Merjin (HiJackThis Util) - Support forum

UploadMalware Blog
Via Andy Manchesta: UploadMalware.com is an excellent resource for submitting files to Malware Experts and Anti-Malware Vendors worldwide, etc. If you have a suspicious file and your not sure what to do with it then please send it to them, When UploadMalware receives your files they will be analyzed by security experts and then submitted to over 50 Anti-Virus & Anti-Malware vendors. More files submitted to them means better protection for everyone and safer surfing so please help them to make the web a safer place.
UploadMalware.com
UploadMalware.com - Submit a File
UploadMalware Blog
Other (Submit Sample) Sites:
McAfee - Submit a Sample
Symantec Security Response Center - Submit a Sample
Kapersky - Scan a file

* See our Malware, Virus, and Threat Alerts, News, Announcements Section below also for helpful information, news, and alerts.

-More to come-
 

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*
Virus - Malware - and Spyware
Online Encyclopedias, Glossary's, Reports, News, Alerts etc:

(continued)

Viruses, Worms, Trojan Horses, Rootkits, Spyware, Keystroke Loggers, Malware - What Are they ?
Check Squiddo for a simplified explanation of what they are and below for even more detailed information and help.
 



Encyclopedias/Glossary's/Definitions
Trend Micro Virus Encyclopedia and Definitions
Symantec Virus Encyclopedia
McAfee Virus Glossary
ShadowsServer.org
Eset Virus Descriptions


The Challenges of delivering Content and Applications
on the Internet

Prof Tom Leighton MIT (Akamai Co Founder) Gives a wonderful talk
on the Internet, Vulnerabilities, and it's future 1hr-18min


- Search for 'Virus Glossary'



World - VIRUS Maps

McAfee Security - World Virus Map
F-Secure World Virus Map

Trend Micro Malware/Spyware Map
Trend Micro (via mwns) World Virus Map

World Virus Map - Google Search
 


* See the Process List Tools
component of the Windows Tools Section below
for assistance in trying to understanding just what
may be running on your system.
 


 
Malware, Virus, and Threat
 - Alerts, News, Announcements, Etc ! -


Bitdefender - Realtime Virus Reporting Center
Eset - Virus Radar Virus Information (virus alerts, etc)

Kapersky - Threat Post News
Interesting readings on security, World News fact related etc
Malware-News.com
McAfee Virus Information (virus alerts, etc)
Microsoft Security Response Center MSRC
Securityfocus.com (security & virus alerts, etc)
SANS.Org - Internet Storm Center
SANS.Org - Todays Diary (alerts etc)
Symantec - Threats Risks, and Vulnerbilities

Talisker Network Defense Operational Picture
Realtime (monitoring, maps, alerts, attack locations)

Trend Micro Virus Information (virus alerts, etc)

Shadow Server Fondation
Providing information on Botnets, Malware, eFraud, Honeypots, and more
 



Interesting Readings

What are Crimeware, Hacking, Viruses, Spam, Malware, etc?

Kaspersky - Threats Readings
Trend Micro - Phishing & Pharming
 


Hmmm - Doc Dingley II (The Prof) is at it again !

Top of Page  /  Bottom of Page Jump to: Quick Section Finder for this Page


          
Technology Reference Stuff
(Computers, Internet Services, Tools, Software Alternatives, etc)

* See our Helpful Anti-Spyware and Parasite Removal section also.
 



Software Download Sites:
(Use your discretion there are a lot of sites (software mfgrs direct and public download sites)
to choose from. Here is a sample of some the popular public download sites)


CNET - Downloads
** FileHippo - Downloads
Major Geeks Downloads/Tools
NoNags
PC Magazine - Downloads
PCWorld - Downloads
Snapfiles
Tucows Downloads

Freeware Network.com
Free-Downloads.net
FreewareFiles.com
Shareware Junkies - Links
Assoc of Shareware Professionals
 

Hmmm - Does it look like someones office you know?

Technical Support:
* Best (Free Technical Support) Sites, Etc

* Technical Advice & Company Listings Site
(Find Technical Advice and links to Leading manufacturers)

About.com - PC Support

Donelan.COM
Internet Service Providers offering Internet security support
Microsoft Technet - Homepage
Microsoft Technet - Blog Home
Setup 32 Tech-Tips
TechNibble.com

* See also Tech Support Forums Section below
 


Driver Downloads
Techspot - Drivers & Downloads
(See your specific hardware/software manufacturers for most current also)

* See our Windows Tools section below also.
 


Advanced IT & Computer Terms

TechTarget What Is?
(Advanced IT/Computer Term/Tech Encyclopedia)


What's running on my PC?

* See Process List Tools portion
of the Windows Tools Section below.
 


Technology
Product Reviews:

PC Magazine
PC World
CNET Reviews
*Epinions.com
 (review products and stores)
ZDNET Reviews

 


 
Technology Shopping:

Click here and jump to the Technology Portion of Shopping Page now.
Best Buy, CompUSA, Micro Center, Radio Shack, Circuit City, more

* Batterymart.com

Find Batteries for (Battery Backup UPS's, House, Cars, etc)
 


Interesting Leading Technology (R&D)
Research & Design Centers and Laboratory Links:

Adobe Labs
AMD Research Lab
updated link
AT&T Labs Inc
updated link
Bell Labs
Where some of it began
Dell R&D
eBay Research Labs
Family Search Labs
Google Research
Google Labs
HP Labs
Hulu Labs
Intel Research Labs
IBM Research Lab
LG Research Labs
Los Alamos National Laboratories
MIT Research Labs
Microsoft Research
Microsoft Office Labs
Motorola Technology R&D
Mozzilla Labs
Nec Labs
Nokia Beta Labs
Opera Labs
Panasonic Labs
PayPal Labs
PARC (Palo Alto Research Center)
Formally Xerox Technology PARC
Where a lot of it began!
Samsung R&D Center
Sony SCEA R&D
Sprint Research Lab
Sun Microsystem Research Labs
now
Oracle Labs Nov 2010
uTorrent Labs
Verizon FIOS Labs
Verizon Technology Labs
Yahoo! Labs
Yahoo! Research

- Search for 'Apple research and development'
** - Search for 'Technology Research Labs'
* - Search for 'sites beginning with labs. in url'
To name a few!
-More to come-


 
Technology News:

 Product Announcements - Alerts - News Etc

Technology, Hardware, Software, Computers, Cell Phones, Servers, Peripherals, Applications, Broadband, Graphics, Digital, Unusual, and more

Clickz - News
The ClickZ Network is the largest resource of interactive marketing news, information, commentary, advice, opinion, research, and reference in the world, online or off-. From search to e-mail, technology to trends, our coverage is expert, exclusive, and in-depth

BetaNews.com
 Inside Information; Unreleased Products
Bit-Tech.net Home (UK)
Coolest-Gadgets.com
IT Examiner.com
The Register Sci-Tech News for the World
Newsfactor.com - Technology News
Slashdot News for nerds, stuff that matters
Techdirt.
Technology Review Emerging Technologies and their Impact
TechRepublic - A Resource for IT Professionals
TG Daily - Technology News
Welcome to the Inquirer
Wired.com Gadget Blog
Wired.com - Home Page
ZDNET

Dell's - IDEA Storm
(Innovative Discussions and ideas for changes
and new products)


- Search for 'Technology News'
 




Leading Technology Electronic Trade Show & Conference Links

** Wikipedia - List of Trade Fairs
* Wikipedia - Computer Expo's
* Linkscan - Trade Show Links
List of High Technology Trade Shows and Conferences

-Sampling-
* MacWorld - * Consumer Electronics Show (CES)  - CES Wiki
INTEROP (Comdex Repl)

Comdex - End and its Replacement (Wikipedia)

-More to come-
 

Top of Page  /  Bottom of Page Jump to: Quick Section Finder for this Page


Software Alternatives:
Powerful and Competitive
Web Browsers, Office Suites, Operating Systems
Open Source Projects, etc



Open Source Project & Resources Sites:

SourceForge.Net
Huge list of Open Source Projects happening - By Type, etc
Open Source Living
Contains list of Open Source applications for several categories
and many operating systems with user reviews

OSALT Open Source Alternative
Find Open Source alternatives to well known commercial software
AlternativesTo
Find alternatives to paid applications

10 Best Websites to find Free Alternative and Open Source Software
Article Jul 2010

- Search for 'Open Source Projects'
-More to come-

* See also Open System Societies below
 



Internet Web Browser Alternatives:
To e.g Windows I.E  Internet Explorer.
For Desktops, Laptops, Netbooks, etc
Most run on Windows OS, *Mac OS, Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, and more.

Information Facts:
Wikipedia - Web Browsers
What exactly is a Web Browser?

W3Schools - Browser Trends/Stats
What is the trend in Browsers?
Market Shares - Browsers (by NetApplications)
** Wikipedia - Comparisons of Web Browsers


You can undoubtedly find more but here are some
of the more well known alternatives, read more about them below.


Firefox (Free)

From Mozilla the organization that brought you web browsing. Download Firefox, one of the most versatile, powerful web browsers there is. Featuring Multi-Tab Browsing, Firefox is a versatile alternative to Internet Explorer and Netscape, it does not over take or replace your existing browsers so you can have multiple browsers residing on your system for side by side comparison, best of all it's free.  For more information click on the link or logo above.

* See what version of Firefox you are running by selecting Help then About Mozilla Firefox while in the Firefox Browser.

 ** Check for updates anytime while in the Firefox Browser by selecting Help then Check for Updates.


** Firefox - Download
Windows, Mac OS, Linux, FreeBSD, Android, etc

Misc'l Firefox related links:

Are there any Firefox features you don't know about?
MozilliaLinks.org - Tips, Articles, Reviews

Mozzilla Labs
 

Firefox Add-Ons
-More to come-

Mozilla.org - Add-on's (listings) for Firefox

*NewTabURL -
A very nice Add-On, which allows you to set what page opens when a new Tab is opened instead of a blank page.

* updated FlagFox - Displays a country flag in the URL address bar depicting the location of the website's server and provides quick access to detailed location and server information..

IE Tab - Useful for when you want or need to open IE formatted web pages and websites (e.g Microsoft Windows Update) in Firefox.

DownloadThemAll - Useful for when you want to download a number of files from a webpage at onetime.

- Search for 'Firefox Browser plugins'
 

* (Free)
Checkout Opera, find out why it has been claimed to be one of the fastest operating browsers on the market, and is Windows and Mac compatible. Opera contains and supports many of the same features found in Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer, etc. It supports Multi-Tab browsing, file downloading, Import and Export of most other browser bookmarks, on the fly highlight speech, translation, dictionary, shortcuts, and encyclopedia functions, as well as fully customizable toolbars and search engine capabilities as well. For more information click on the link or logo above.

* See what version of Opera you are running by selecting Help then About Opera  while in the Opera.

** Check for updates anytime while in the Opera Browser by selecting Help then Check for Updates.
Opera Labs

Opera.com - Add-ons and Widgets

- Search for 'Opera browser plugins'


Apple Safari (Free)
We didn't list it in the past because of Safari had issues with it's windows versions and in part to Apples QuickTime nags whenever updates were available for Safari, and it still does not run on Linux platforms (at this time). For a longtime Apple has offered on their own systems and touted Safari as the fastest browser around but judge for yourself. For those of you who wish to try Safari click on the link or logo above.

- Search for 'Safari browser plugins'


Google Chrome (Free)
We didn't list it in the past because quite frankly we were a little skeptical about what might be going on under the hood. The jury isn't in yet but if your wanting to give it a try here it is: Google Chrome click here on the link or logo above.

- Search for 'Chrome browser plugins'

Miscellaneous:  Information, Tools, and Links for Browsers

*Microsoft - Add-ons Gallery Internet Explorer
- Search for 'Internet Explorer browser plugins'
 



Office Software Suite - Alternatives:
Word Processing, Spread Sheet, Presentation Programs

Wikipedia - Office Software/Suites
What exactly are Office Suite software packages, alternatives, comparisons?


** The OpenOffice Software Suite (Free)
Has been given to and placed in incubation by the Apache Foundation - 2011
Note: (See LibreOffice below as replacement and details!) !

Runs on :Windows, Mac OS-X, Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, Unix, and more platforms !
Have you been seeking a cost effective alternative to products like the MS Office or Corel Office Suites?  Join in the crusade for Open System Public Domain Software.

Download and use it for free OpenOffice Lgpl Software by the
Open Office Organization. A derivative of Sun Micro Systems STAR Office this extremely versatile and powerful office suite offers one of the most versatile and powerful office suite packages there is today. It just keeps growing and growing.  OpenOffice is a multiplatform and multilingual office suite and an open-source project. Compatible with all other major office suites, the product is free to download, use, and distribute. Best of all it does not over take or replace your existing Office Suite so you can have both packages reside on your system for side by side comparison. One of the few true ODF compliant software suites find out why it happens to be one of the best alternative office suites there is and is MS-Office compatible. Programs in the suite include writer, calc, impress, draw, math, and base. There are no strings attached, no trail expirations, etc. it's part of the open system initiative. Click here, or the logo above, or any of the ones below for more information.

See what version of Open Office you may be running by selecting Help then About Open Office  while in any of the applications of OpenOffice.


Want more reasons to checkout OpenOffice?
No hassles, better but compatible, Open for businesses, Easy to use, and it's free
About the OpenOffice Group (450,000 Strong)
Why OpenOffice and Why Should I (we) use it?
Governments, Education Institutions, Businesses, Not for Profits,
IT Businesses, F/OSS Advocates, Individual Consumers, and more...
OpenOffice - Major Deployments

Wikipedia - OpenOffice
(Full description, history, market share, platforms, etc)

Oxygen Office Project
Check out the Oxygen Office Project - OxygenOffice Professional (OOOP, O2OP) is an enhanced version of the free OpenOffice.org that is a multi-platform office productivity suite. OxygenOffice Professional contains more extras like templates, cliparts, samples, fonts and VBA support. Note, you can get templates and extras for OpenOffice by visiting the sites below.

OpenOffice Portable
Templates/Extensions for OpenOffice: (sampling)
Find a treasure load of templates and extensions for almost all of the OpenOffice Suite modules thanks to the 450,000 people contributing to the projects.

OpenOffice.org - Extensions
OpenOffice.org - Extras
(ooextras)

and much more, do a google serach here...
- Search for 'Open Office Templates'

Support : (sampling)
Doc's, Forums, Projects, Mail Lists, How To's, Education, etc

OpenOffice.org Release Notes
Ever Changing - Click on Release Notes under Documentation right column for latest info.
OpenOffice.org Support
*OpenOffice Wiki (Great Starting Point)
Development Topics, Documentation, Education, Marketing, Prod Releases,
Users Experience, User Resources, List of wishes, more


Tutorials, Documentation,  Etc:

OpenOffice Tutorials
OpenOffice Documentation

Blogs and News on Open Office:

OpenOffice.blogs.com
OpenOffice Forums


OpenOffice.org Ninja
News, previews, reviews, tutorials, tips, how-to


** The LibreOffice Software Suite
 Runs on :Windows, Mac OS-X, Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, Unix, and more platforms

Via wikipedia: On September 28, 2010, several members of the OpenOffice.org project formed a new group called "The Document Foundation". The Document Foundation created LibreOffice from their former project in response to Oracle Corporation's purchasing of Sun Microsystems over concerns that Oracle would either discontinue OpenOffice.org, or place restrictions on it as an open source project, as it had on Sun's OpenSolaris.

It was originally hoped that the LibreOffice name would be provisional, as Oracle was invited to become a member of The Document Foundation.  Oracle rejected offers to donate the OpenOffice.org brand to the project and demanded that all members of the OpenOffice.org Community Council involved with The Document Foundation step down from the OOo Community Council, citing a conflict of interest.

The Go-oo project was discontinued in favor of LibreOffice. Improvements made by the project are being merged into LibreOffice. Enhancements made in other forks are also expected to be incorporated into LibreOffice. Also underway is the reduction of Java dependency, with the goal of minimizing security issues and improving application stability.

As a result of the fork of OpenOffice.org into LibreOffice, and the resulting loss of developers, Oracle announced in April 2011 that it was terminating the commercial development of OpenOffice.org. In June 2011, Oracle announced that it would contribute the OpenOffice.org code and trademark to the Apache Software Foundation, which decided to accept the offer and start an incubation process within the foundation.

Google and Red Hat began to contribute programmers to LibreOffice in June 2011


Runs on :Windows, Mac OS-X, Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, Unix, and more platforms !

* LibreOffice runs on:  Windows, Mac OS, Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, Unix, and more platforms. It truly is a cross platform office suite package and...
* (Update) LibreOffice for Android:

Effective October 2015, the Document Foundation is proud to present LibreOffice Viewer for Android in this initial attempt to provide LibreOffice for the Android Operating system and platform of products. It is now available for download on Google Play
here. The problem has been scaling the LibreOffice suite small enough to fit and run on most ARM processor based systems. Editing is still an experimental feature which has to be enabled separately in the settings, and is not stable enough for mission critical tasks. It will be enhanced in the future to a fully fledged editing solution with the help of developers. December 2nd 2015

** Wikipedia - LibreOffice to Microsoft Office Feature Comparisons

** LibreOffice - Official Homepage
(Downloads, Forums, News, Etc)

** LibreOffice - Downloads
(Downloads most operating systems, latest releases, stable releases, release notes, etc)

The Document Foundation

LibreOffice Portable

Support : (sampling)
Doc's, Forums, Projects, Mail Lists, How To's, Education, etc

LibreOffice.org Support

LibreOffice.org Forum

LibreOffice.org Get Help

LibreOffice.org Release Notes *

Extensions and Templates : (sampling)

LibreOffice.org  - Extensions Center
LibreOffice.org - Templates Center

- Search for 'LibreOffice versus OpenOffice'

Wikipedia - LibreOffice

(Full description, history, market share, platforms, etc)


 Microsoft-Word, Excel, and PowerPoint for Android:
Date: November 2015

It's brand new so we caution you, It appears to be free, hopefully locally based rather than cloud based (requiring internet). Microsoft has told us though it has just released The real Microsoft Word/Excel/and PowerPoint app's for Android phones and tablets. The Microsoft App's for Android are made for work on-the-go. Word/Excel/and Powerpoint have the familiar look, feel and quality of Office with an intuitive touch experience designed for Android phones and tablets.

Visit the
Microsoft Word Google Play
Microsoft Excel  Google Play
Microsoft Powerpoint  Google Play

sections of the Google Play Store for more information on each product and to download.

IBM
 
Runs on Windows, Linux,  and Mac

Yet another alternative Office Suite available to users, based on OpenOffice.org's OpenOffice, IBM joins the crusade in Open Documents packages. IBM® Lotus® Symphony™ is a richly-featured set of productivity tools that are intuitive and easy to use and provided at no charge. There are three applications that make up Lotus Symphony: Lotus Symphony Documents, Lotus Symphony Spreadsheets, Lotus Symphony Presentations. Lotus Symphony puts you in charge – take control over spiraling upgrade costs, ensure access to documents well into the future with new standard file formats (ODF), get more from your current investments with support for Microsoft Windows and Office file types. Click the IBM Lotus Symphony link here or logo above for more information.
 

 

Quickoffice Software for Android and Apple
Android and Apple office suite capable of viewing and editing a variety of standard office software file formats (doc, docs, ppt, pptx, pdf, xls, xlsx, etc) on your Android or Apple based Tablet - Smart Phone related devices.

* Google Android:
  GooglePlay Store - Quickoffice

* Apple Store &  iTunes:
  Apple Store - Quickoffice


New Polaris Office for Android and Apple:
Another Android and Apple office suite alternative capable of viewing and editing a variety of standard office software file formats (doc, docs, ppt, pptx, pdf, xls, xlsx, etc) on your Android or Apple based Tablet - Smart Phone related devices.

* Google Android:
  GooglePlay Store - Polaris Office

* Apple Store &  iTunes:
  Apple Store - Polaris Office
 



Operating System Alternatives:
(Linux, Unix, etc - To name a few alternatives !)

Wikipedia - What is an Operating System?
What exactly is an Operating System?
* See also Wikipedia - List of Operating Systems All companies/platforms


W3Schools - OS Platform Trends/Stats
What is the trend in OS Platforms?

Market Shares - Operating Systems (by NetApplications)

Related Articles

PCWorld - The Truth About Windows Alternatives
Read this very interesting article.

See MSBOYCOTT's list of operating system, browser,
and Office Suite package Alternatives also.


See MICROSUCK's list of operating system, browser,
 and Office Suite package Alternatives also.

OS Alternatives
- Linux -



Linux.org
Linux Operating System
See also Wikipedia - Linux
Linux Forum


The GNU Project
GNU Operating System
See also Wikipedia - GNU


Fedora Project.org
Fedora Linux Based Operating System (Free)
See also Wikipedia - Fedora
Fedora Forum


Ubunto.com
Community Developed Linux-based Operating System (Free)

A computer operating system based on the Debian GNU/Linux distribution. Ubuntu is designed primarily for use on personal computers, although a server edition also exists. Ubuntu holds an estimated global usage of more than 12 million desktop users, making it the most popular desktop Linux distribution with about 50% of Linux desktop marketshare. It is fourth most popular on web servers, and its popularity is increasing rapidly.

See also Wikipedia - Ubunto
Ubunto Forum

Varients
(Include: Ubuntu Desktop/Server, Edubuntu, Kubuntu,
Mythbuntu, Ubuntu Studio, and Xubuntu)


Xubunto.org
Community community maintained derivative of the Ubuntu operating system
using the Xfce desktop environment (Free)
See also Wikipedia - Xubunto
Ubunto Forum


FreeBSD.org
BSD Operating System
See also Wikipedia - FreeBSD
FreeBSD Forum


Gentoo.org
Gentoo Linux Operating System
See also Wikipedia - Gentoo Linux
Gentoo Forum


RedHat
RedHat Linux Operating System
See also Wikipedia - Red Hat Linux
Red Hat Forum

Want More?

Review Linux - A list of alternative Linux Systems/Distributions
Linux OS Reviews and News
Currently about 87 Linux alternatives Systems/Distributions (Current/Obsolete)

- Search 'Windows Alternatives Reviews'
- Search 'Microsoft Windows Alternatives'
- Search 'operating system alternatives'

Linux Forums
Linux Forums.org
Linux Questions.org
Unix and Linux Forum

News and Interesting Reading
Linuxfoundation.org
Wikipedia - Linuxfoundation

Linux Today
* ReviewLinux.com - Linux Reviews and News
Top 10 Best Linux Distributions of 2009 - Daniweb
Top 10 Linux Distributions - Distrowatch

Qty 25+ useful Unix/Linux/Solaris Command Cheat Sheets




Open System Societies
Articles, Sources, and more:


Open System definition - Wikipedia


Free Software versus Open Software

- Search for 'Free Software v.s Open Software'

Free Software Foundation - S/W Directory

The Free Software Directory is a project of the Free Software Foundation (FSF) and United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). They catalog useful free software that runs under free operating systems particularly the GNU operating system and its GNU/Linux variants. Click on the Link above to learn more.

** SourceForge.Net

SourceForge.net is the world's largest Open Source software development web site, hosting more than 100,000 projects and over 1,000,000 registered users with a centralized resource for managing projects, issues, communications, and code. SourceForge.net has the largest repository of Open Source code and applications available on the Internet, and hosts more Open Source development products than any other site or network worldwide. Click on the Link above to learn more.

* Mozilla.org - Projects List

From the people who brought you Firefox,Thunderbird, etc. The Mozilla Project Group is a global community of people who believe that openness, innovation, and opportunity are key to the continued health of the Internet. They have worked together since 1998 to ensure that the Internet is developed in a way that benefits everyone. They are best known for creating the Mozilla Firefox web browser. Click on the Link above to learn more.

- Search for 'Open Software projects'

* See also Open Source Project Sites above.



Help Me - I'm M e l t i ng !
Microsoft - Bashing Kicking, Windows Problems,
and Other Related Issues Sites:

Please  don't hate us we didn't come up with the names, just visit the sites !

 

* Update - To bad the site is up for sale (click here for more) 12-01-08

Microsuck.com - OK don't let the name fool you, what may have started as a joke has become one the worlds flagship organizations for the eradication of  certain software monopolies, namely Microsoft. Find articles, operating system, and application alternatives and more. There we said it, visit the site by clicking on the logo above and find out more on operating system, browser, and Office Suite package alternatives.

MSBOYCOTT

MSBoycott - Founded in 1996 by a small group of independent thinking Web designers and network administrators, the Microsoft Boycott Campaign has one purpose - To return real choice to the computer industry by defeating Microsoft and its chokehold that destroys innovation and competition. Find articles, operating system, and application alternatives and more. OK  - Enough said, visit them by clicking on the logo above and find out more.

The MSBC Superlist now links to more than 160 Web sites and nearly two-dozen Usenet groups. The sheer size of this list proves that overall public sentiment towards Microsoft ranges from mild dislike to outright rage, and the number of people opposing the company grows by the day. Next time your Windows PC locks up and loses hours of hard work, remember that you are not alone. Find articles, operating system, and application alternatives and more. Click on the logo above and find out more.

CRN - Kicking The Microsoft Habit
(Var Business Article - May 18th 2006)
Very interesting and informative article


- Search for 'Kicking The Microsoft Habit'

View - Just Say No To Microsoft The Book
'12 Steps to freedom from Microsoft'

Microsoft's Really Hidden Files
'A New Look At Forensics'

Windows Secrets Newsletter
(sampling past issues)

Microsoft changes Windows files on
user PCs without permission
(Computer World)

David Letterman on Bill Gates Retirement updated
(Good-Bye! Bill Video)

- 'Microsoft Loosing Market Share?'

- Google News search for 'Windows'
 




Microsoft Vista
Issues & Details


Bad Vista.org
Wonder what they have to say about Windows-7?

So You Decided to Skip Windows Vista?

5 Reasons skipping over Vista could backfire

Did we say that? No the Gartner Research Group did !

- Search for 'Skipping Vista'
- Search for 'Vista Problems'
 



Internet Utilities & Tools:


Domain Name/Website
Whois Lookup Tools:
-Sampling-
Find out who owns, supports,
and registered a Domain Name.

* Pairnic.com - Whois
CompleteWhois
Internic - Whois
* Domain Tools - Whois


Find out where a website
is being Hosted:


WhosHostingThis,com


Domain Names Explained
(.com .org .net etc)


Country Code Top-Level Domains - Wikipedia
Domain Name and Country Code Explanations



FlagFox Browser Add-On
Displays a flag icon in the browser address bar
indicating the current web server's physical location. Clicking the
flag takes you to Geo Tool Map page for that country.

FlagFox Add-on for Firefox
 FlagFox Extension for Google Chrome
 FlagFox Add-on I.E (non yet)


IP Address Lookup Tools:
Find out who owns an IP Address or address block, if one is available, etc

ARIN Lookup
DNS Tools.com
Complete Whois
* What Is My IP Address
displays IP4 and IP6
What's MyDNS.net

** IP Location.net
IPChicken
Find geolocation by ip address (compare several gelocations sites simultaneously
Show or Locate IP Addresses to Country & City
by komar.org



What is your Internet Real World IP Address:
(The I/P Address of the street side of your Cable Modem/DSL/Dial-Up)

myipaddress.com
** ipchicken.com
whatsmyIP.org
* What Is My IP Address
showmyip.com
(Has more detail)

SpeedGuide.net - TCP/IP Analyzer
Show your PC's IP Settings (MTU, RWIN, MSS)
instantly online for optimized speeds.


Microsoft's - wntipcfg.exe

Show your PC/Laptops IP Settings, (Win2000, XP, Vista) through a GUI interface. Remember when you used to be able to do that with winipcfg but could not that after Windows 98? They told us we had to use Command (DOS) windows and use ipconfig instead.  Here's the answer, sure you can use wizards on XP and Vista. Why not try the GUI that Microsoft didn't make all that well known. The GUI version is part of the Windows 2000 Resource Kit and if you don't have it download and read more about it from the link above.

Note: The GUI version lacks some functionality of the command line IPConfig.exe. For example, you can't flush or display the Domain Name System (DNS) resolver cache or reregister DNS names.

Keep in mind that Windows XP ships with another GUI tool that can display TCP/IP properties. In Control Panel, click Network and Internet Connections, Network Connections, Local Area Connection, and the Support tab and similarly with Vista.


Wi-Fi Wireless Information:
 

 
- Hot Holiday News -
* Wireless Holidays:

Via (PC World Nov 10th 2010 but they are doing again in 2011) Google Gives Wi-Fi Away Free at 47 U.S. Airports for Holidays. "Call it an early holiday gift from Google to millions of airline passengers. Google said will be offering free Wi-Fi to travelers across the United States starting Tuesday at 47 airports. Google says the Wi-Fi will be available from November 2010 until January 15, 2011. Google says it will also extend the free Wi-Fi offer to Virgin America flights within the continental United States".

 "Among your available wireless networks will be paid hotspots and Google's complimentary Wi-Fi, so make sure you choose the free service and save yourself a few dollars. One other thing Google doesn't address in its announcement is whether its gift of free Wi-Fi will be ad supported or not..." (click here to read more...)

* Google Holiday Offer Webpage (Airline/Airport Listings)
Google Holiday Offer (FAQs)

 


WiFi Hot Spot - Locator Sites:

* JIWIRE - WiFi Hot Spot Finder
Search the world's largest directory of public Wi-Fi Hot Spots

EZGoal - WiFi HotSpot Locator
By State, Country, Area Code, Free, Paid and more
* Free WIFI HotSpots
Cafes, Coffee Shops, Hotels, Airports, RV Parks, etc

gWiFi
(Google WiFi Finder)

HotSpot Locations Directory

NetStumbler HotSpots
(WiFi Finder)

Open WiFi Spots

Technews WiFi Hotspot Locator

Travel Post - Airport Wifi Internet Guide
Lists Free and Pay

WiFi 411

- Search for 'Free WiFi Hotspots'



Virtual Telecoms Library
(Selected Telecommunications companies around the world)


 
Wireless WWAN / Next Gen 3G and 4G, 4G LTE, WiMAX Mobile
Computing, Cellular Network Info and more:
Info on Cell Phones, PDA's, Smart Phones,
Cellular Modems, Laptops, Notebooks, etc

This section focuses on the WWAN/3G/and 4G networks, an explanation about how they work and function, what's out there, and where things are headed, rather than on cell phone, laptop, smart phone, and PDA types, comparisons, etc. There are far to many manufacturers and carriers to mention an examine here right now, maybe later as time permits we will add more on those subjects...


Wireless Wide Area Networks (WWAN):

What are they?
Mobile telecommunications using networks such as
UMTS, GPRS, CDMA2000, GSM, CDPD, Mobitex, HSDPA & 3G/4G
to transfer data to devices such as laptops, handhelds etc by means
of PCMCIA Cards, etc.


Wikipedia - Wireless Wide Area Network
Wide-Area Wireless Computing
A Network Computing Article

Examples of providers for WWAN include Sprint Nextel, Verizon, AT&T (Cingular)

3G Mobile Networking:
Wikipedia - 3G Mobile Computing

* 4G - 4G LTE, 4G WiMax, 4G LTEA, and 5G
Mobile Networks:

 Flash-OFDM, WiMax, WiBro, iBurst, and 3GPP Long Term Evolution
Wikipedia - 4G Mobile Computing (next evolution)
Wikipedia - 4G LTE (Telecommunication)

Wikipedia - WiMAX (Telecommunication)
- Search for '4G news'
- Search for '4G LTE news'
* - Search for '4G LTEA news'
* - Search for '5G LTE news'
- Search for 'WiMAX news'


Useful Cellular Information and News:
Got Reception?
Created in response to major issue plaguing millions
of cellular consumers unsatisfactory service.
Find reviews, coverage area maps for most
all of the providers, and more from fellow consumers...

**TopTenReviews.com Mobile Tech Categories (Plans etc)

Wikipedia - 3G Mobile Computing


Cell Phone Manufacturers:
Phonedog.com - List of Mobile phone Mfg'rs
About.com - List of Mobile phone Mfg'rs
Wikipedia - List of Mobile phone Mfg'rs (by country)
**TopTenReviews.com Cell Cell Phone Manufacturers



Cell Phone Service Providers/Carriers:
Phonedog.com - List of Cell Phone Service Providers
Consumeresearch.com - Prepaid Wireless Service Reviews

**TopTenReviews Cell Phone Providers
TopTenReviews Cell Phone Services
Wikipedia - List of US Wireless Comm Service Providers
Wikipedia - List of Mobile Network Operators (worldwide)


 
* ANDROID and Apple APP's (Applications)
for Android and Apple based Smart Phones, Tablets
and other related based products.


Use the links below to explore whats available or use the PlayStore and iTunes apps on your Tablet, Smart Phone Device to go directly to the stores and see Apps available to you.


* Google Android:
Wikipedia - Android Operating System
Wikipedia - Google Play Store (aka Android Market)

GooglePlay Store - Android Apps


* Apple Store &  iTunes:
Wikipedia - Apple Store (IOS)

Apple Store - Apps
See also iTunes - iTunes

See Also our Apple/Mac OS Info Help Section



DNS - Ping - and IP Trace Route
Network Tools:


DNS Tools.com - TraceRoute, Ping etc
Trace Route from MIT
** Traceroute.org
Find the nearest Trace Route Site to you worldwide
and many useful links and utilities at the bottom as well.


* Visualware - Free online Demo VisualRoute

Visualware - Visual IP Trace Server

Visualware - Online Demo Page of all Products

Insecure.org
Security, Port Task Lists, etc

Argonne National Lab Web100 based
 Network Diagnostic Tool (NDT)
Test the reliability and operational status of your
desktop computer and network connection

* IPVoid - IP to Google Maps Tool
- Search for 'geolocation by ip address google maps'
 



Downloadable Network Tool Programs:

* TJPing Utility - One of Doc's Favorites
(Download Free Version Available)

Visualware - VisualRoute Lite
(Download Free Version)

Nirsoft - (Free) Downloadable Network Tools
Portmonitor, Adapter Watch, NetResview, FastResolver
PingInfoView, Bluetooth View, IPNetinfo,  Whois,



Internet Speed Tests:
 ♪ Ludicrous-Speed

YouTube - Ludicrous Speed
Watch the famous scene from Space
Balls the movie.


-New-  Important Consumer Info !
FCC's Speed Test Checks Broadband Vendors' Claims
PCWORLD - Mar 14, 2010 11:46 am

Broadband Plan.gov

-Preferred-
Socket to Socket Test Sites
(very fast)

*** Internet Speed Test by Ookla
 ** Speakeasy.net
 * Visualwares - MySpeed Test

(Click on button once there to start test)

------------------------------------
Speed Test FAQs!

MySpeed - FAQs
Get answers to most commonly asked questions,
understand about socket to socket tests which IP Layers
versus html, and be familiar with the myths and faqs about
speed tests.


------------------------------------
Speed Test Sites
Which vary regionally
(HTML and Flash)

* Bandwidth Speed Test (Cable/DSL/Dial-Up)
* SpeedTest.net
TestMy.Net
Performance.Toast.net

DSLReports.com - Broadband
Over Qty-150 Speed Test Sites by Country

- Search for 'Speed Tests'
------------------------------------

Broadband Speed Test Census

Broadband Census.com
Get involved take the census, find out what's available
in your area, see what the Gov says, See what people rank
and say about their ISPs.



Miscellaneous Internet Tools



Internet Statistics/Reports/Monitoring Tools:

Internet Traffic Report
Monitors Traffic Flow Around the world every 15-min
How Is The Internet
Many links to Internet Status, Statistics , other sites, etc
* Akamai - Visualizing the Internet
Mirroring the World. Network Usage, Real-Time
 Web Monitor, Performance, Usage, etc


Akamai Nocc Tour impressive
with Dr Tom Leighton CoFounder and MIT Prof

UCI.Edu - Internet Weather Report updated
Monitors Traffic Flow on Major Providers every 10-min

ICSI Netalyzr Test - Berkley.edu

Researchers with the International Computer Science Institute in Berkeley, Ca. unveiled a completed version of their Netalyzr service, a tool designed to detect and revile useful statistics about your ISP and your Internet connection. *Note a harmless but useful virus alert may be noted when running this test which is necessary to detect intrusion alerts and test anti-virus software, see this FAQ for more information.

Internet Pulse
Monitors Traffic Flow on Major Providers
(Latency, Network Availability, Packet loss)
Internet2 Universities
Universities currently involved with Internet2
GÉANT2
Europes high-bandwidth academic Internet

Who Own the Internet
Wikipedia - Internet Backbone
Wikipedia - Internet2

Clickz - Stats
A number of statistics ranging from Web Monitoring Worldwide, Advertising, Marketing, B2B, Broadband Demographics, Education, E-Mail, Spam, Entertainment, Finance, Geographics, Government, Politics, Hardware, Healthcare, Professional, Retailing, Search Tools, Security Issues, Small Medium Enterprises, Software, IT Traffic Patterns, Travel, Wireless.


   
Web Host Provider
Lookup/Tracking/Reviews/and Information:

 

Our intent is to list non biased Web Host review sites and not web host companies themselves (there are simply too many). Reviewer listings here are based on in-depth analysis, details, and user ratings.

A good ratings site will not be biased, should show 'all'
web hosting services (good/bad) and not just their representation of the top-10 or 50, they should give the ability to (e.g sort by name, show ratings by users reviewers based on and showing the total number of votes used to obtain that ranking. They should show details about web hosting company's services, features, ratings etc, and show/review comparisons equivalently so users are able to compare features and services more easily.


Market Shares - ISP's (by NetApplications)

* Host Count
"Dedicated to Monitoring relative size and performance
of web hosting companies algorithmically"


Fixed Orbit
Stats of the top providers of Internet (backbone) services

* Best Web Host Ratings.com
Web Hosting Ratings sort by name,
ratings, total number of votes, find details, etc

* Netcraft - Hosting Providers Performance/Uptime
Hosting Provider Uptimes, Performance, and more.

Host Cue.com
Web Host Provider Search Tools and Reviews

* Host Search.com
Web Host Provider Search Tools and Reviews

**TopTenReviews.com Internet/ECommerce Categories
Web Hosting, Blog Services, Forums, Data backup, ISP's, more

Consumer Search.com
Here is a good one, a review of
web hosting reviewers sites/magazines
---------------------------------
** WhosHostingThis - Host Reviews

Web Hosting - Glossary of Terms
Over 290 Terms related to Web Hosting explained.

W3Schools - Web Hosting Explained
Intro, Providers, Types, Domains, Technologies, Capacities, more

TheSiteWizard - Which Webhost do you recommend

TheSiteWizard - Criteria for Choosing a Webhost



* Website - Page History:

The Internet Archive  - WayBack Machine
 

The Internet Archive is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that was founded to build an ‘Internet library,’ with the purpose of offering permanent access for researchers, historians, and scholars to historical collections that exist in digital format. These include websites, digitized media, etc In short a historical database of website pages on the Internet of most websites, expired or not. You may not find extinct pictures, downloads, etc but you will certainly find the content, links, etc. See also Cached feature seen sometimes on Google Searches - Not as historical but works sometimes
 



Email Tracking:

Visualwares -  Email Tracker Pro Online Demo
Quick and easy email lookup; trace and report spammers, trace an email
 message to the sender's location



Cable Modems:


Cable Modems.Org - Tool Box
A Few Useful Tools to check your connection and performance

Cable Modems.Org - Main Page
The Cable Modems Ref Guide - Useful Information
 

 



    

Microsoft Windows 10
 (Reviews, Info, Links)

Confirmed with Microsoft - Windows 10 will be a Free upgrade for Windows-7, Windows 8.0, and Windows 8.1 Users if done before July 2016

Officially Released: July 29 2015
official release dates from hardware manufactures have varied as they go through their own testing

Gearing up for Windows 10
 Synopsis
- Backup your current system (System backup)
- Retrieve and have at the ready installation software (CD, DVD, downloaded of app's you currently have just in case
-Download Windows 10 from Microsoft, maybe put on Flash Drive
-Install

*ITPro UK - Everything You Need to know about Windows10-
release date, features, devices and free upgrade: Everything you need to know about Microsoft's latest OS

*Microsoft: How to upgrade to Windows10

News & Announcements

Microsoft - Windows 10 Help

Windows 10 Reviews

- Microsoft - Building "Windows 10" - Video #1

- Search for 'Windows 10' click on logo
- Search for 'Windows 10 Reviews' click on logo
- Google News search for 'Windows 10'click on logo
 - More to come -
 




    

Microsoft Windows 8 / 8.1  Desktop & Metro
 (Reviews, Info, Links)

Officially Released: Oct 26th 2012
Gearing up for Windows 8

News & Announcements

Windows-8 News.com

Microsoft - Previewing Windows 8 (MSDN, Build Conf, News Center, and more)

- Microsoft - Building "Windows 8" - Video #1

- Search for 'Windows 8' click on logo
- Search for 'Windows 8 Reviews' click on logo
- Google News search for 'Windows 8'click on logo
 - More to come -
 





Microsoft Windows 7 (Reviews, Info, Links)
Issues & Details

(Home Premium, Professional, Ultimate)  x32 & x64bit
Is it 7 or should it be 6.5?, then again maybe windows 8x? (naa that's coming)

News & Announcements

Windows-7 Compare Versions

20 Things Windows 7 MUST include

- Search for 'Windows 7'
- Google News search for 'Windows 7'
 

Thinking about upgrading from Vista/Windows-XP/or an older version to Windows-7?

Going from Vista (x32 or x64) isn't so bad in fact it's a vast improvement over Vista, but going from e.g Windows XP/XP  Professional/x32 or x64 or earlier is a different story. Deep cleansing breath here as they say, be prepared to jump some hoops and hurdles and have all those installations CD's/DVD's/etc available. Some are saying you might be better to do a clean install. Checkout and read some of these articles and links first...

Checkout Operating System Alternatives also.

 



* Microsoft Virtual PC and Window XP Mode
Do you have some older programs or Legacy Apps that won't run now on Windows 7?

Consider Microsoft Virtual PC software (free for Windows-7 Professional and up users) with Windows XP Mode.

We would suggest you check with your vendors to see if updated versions of their programs-drivers-applications-etc have been made and are available now that would enable them to function under Windows 7. In lue of that consider Microsoft Virtual PC software (free for Windows-7 Professional and up users) with Windows XP Mode which might to do the trick.

We had an HP 4470c HP Scanjet which worked on Win2000 & Windows XP x32 but stopped working under Windows 7 Professional (x64).

We checked HP Support, Microsoft, forums, and other websites relating to fixes or resolutions to the problem which a number of other people also had. We called HP, they were very friendly and said o'h your scanner is old... legacy... it's not supported under Vista let alone Windows 7 want to buy a new one? So we went on this course of action and simply put a few minutes worth of effort now our scanner is working on Windows 7 Professional x64. I'm fairly certain this probably will work for some of you who have other models of HP Scanners which were once were working  under Windows-XP but not Windows-7, it's not guaranteed but it's a pretty good certainty and this may help some of you who have no choice with e.g legacy applications you might have and need to use  so hay! give it a try.


Microsft Virtual PC
- If you have not used Microsoft's Virtual PC it basically runs on top of Windows-7 (see thumbnail above), a bit more than your average application but none the less that is what it is, an app/shell (it's Windows-XP within Windows 7). We have a new box with an I5 processor and 6-gig of memory so our install went pretty fast as well as running Virtual PC. The big thing was the almost 500-meg download of Windows XP Mode software followed by another download same page of Virtual PC much smaller. The install all in all went pretty well, you download and run Windows XP Mode installation software followed by Virtual PC Software (fairly quick the download even at high speed took longer). A few minutes of config and a reboot and you now have Virtual PC with Windows XP Mode. To install software's which will run under XP you launch Windows XP Mode from Virtual PC under your start Menu (Windows-7) and install your application under XP mode. There is a slight trick in mounting and unmounting devices (e.g USB Scanner, USB disk drives etc - getting used to the (shared & release) but after that it works great. In our case HP Scanner Software installed fine with no errors under virtual PC.

Using our HP SCANNER Software under Virtual PC - In our case before we could start the HP Scanner software (e.g HP Precision Pro), we needed to launch Virtual PC with Windows XP Mode, mount any devices such as the scanner by going to the USB pull down tab at the top of the window, find the scanner if it's USB connected (we did not have parallel connected scanner so I am not sure how the HP scanner software would react in that case) find any disk drives you want available and connect them. A word to the wise 'watch where you save your scans to' else you'll be looking for them later and scratching your head, you may have to release them thru the USB Tab again in order to see devices later back in Windows-7.

Virtual PC with Windows XP Mode works fine for some other older programs that used to work under XP as well (see support and videos link below for more information).

Sound complicated !  It's not really, put your mind at rest. View the informative Videos on Microsoft site first, see if your system meets the requirements (e.g  Does your CPU supports VM virtual mode) before you start by visiting the Download page as well.


Support & Videos**
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc/support/default.aspx

Download Page (Virtual PC and Windows XP Mode Downloads, and tools to test compatibility to see if your system supports Virtual PC VM Mode, etc)

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc/download.aspx

P.S -
Alternatives to Virtual PC: As some have indicated another alternative to this would be to partition your hard drive or have another portable (bootable) device and install XP on that partition/device and use a dual boot method, booting Windows-7 for the most time and then booting Windows XP for example when there is a need need for older legacy software's applications which will run under XP.
 

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Apple/Mac
OS Info - Help - Open System Software




Apple/MAC OS X Updates

Apple MAC - OS X (Most Recent) Updates Page


 




Apple/MAC - Helpful SupportTools/Forums


** Apple Support - Official Main Site
MacWorld - Five helpful troubleshooting tools you already have
Cult of Mac - Essential Utilities for Mac Maintenance and Troubleshooting [MacRx]

- Search for 'Apple MAC information tools'
* - Search for 'Apple Troubleshooting tools'

- Search for 'MAC support forums'
- Search for 'MAC Help forums'

- Search for 'Recovery keyboard startup shortcuts mac'

OS X Keyboard Shortcuts - Support Apple
Startup key combinations for Intel-based Macs - Support Apple



Mac World/iWorld - Expo
Mac World - Magazine
 



Software/Hardware/Accessories
Apple Stores / Resellers / Service / Etc


Apple (Official) Store - Online
Apple - Authorized Retail Stores Locater
MacMall - Online

* Where Can I buy Apple Products?
(Find a Reseller by State/Zip - Sales/Service/Training/Consulting)
 




Apple/MAC - Miscellaneous Software


Apple MAC Freeware.com
MAC OSX Freeware Apple.com
MAC Freewares Freebees Tripod.com

The Great Mac OS X Freeware List - Macapper Apple.com

- Search for 'Apple freeware'



Run Open Software on your MAC

There are already a number of new applications such as browsers like Firefox, and Office Software Suites like OpenOffice which can run on MAC Hardware as well as a number of other platforms. Now thanks to the hard work of numerous contributors there is a way to run applications written for Open Systems on MAC Hardware, it's called FINK. Checkout What is Fink below, or click on their homepage link here to find out more.

The FINK Project (HomePage) <-- Click here to find out more !

What is Fink: Fink relies on the excellent package management tools produced by the Debian project - dpkg, dselect and apt-get. On top of that, Fink adds its own package manager, named (surprise!) Fink. You can view fink as a build engine - it takes package descriptions and produces binary .deb packages from that. In the process, it downloads the original source code from the Internet, patches it as necessary, then goes through the whole process of configuring and building the package. Finally, it wraps the results up in a package archive that is ready to be installed by dpkg.

Since Fink sits on top of Mac OS X, it has a strict policy to avoid interference with the base system. As a result, Fink manages a separate directory tree and provides the infrastructure to make it easy to use.

Why use Fink?
Five reasons to use Fink to install Unix software on your Mac:

1. Power. Mac OS X includes only a basic set of command line tools. Fink brings you enhancements for these tools as well as a selection of graphical applications developed for Linux and other Unix variants.

2. Convenience. With Fink the compile process is fully automated; you'll never have to worry about Makefiles or configure scripts and their parameters again. The dependency system automatically takes care that all required libraries are present. Our packages are usually set up for their maximum feature set.

3. Safety. Fink's strict non-interference policy makes sure that the vulnerable parts of you Mac OS X system are not touched. You can update Mac OS X without fear that it will step on Fink's toes and vice versa. Also, the packaging system lets you safely remove software you no longer need.

4. Coherence. Fink is not just a random collection of packages, it is a coherent distribution. Installed files are placed in predictable locations. Documentation listings are kept up to date. There's a unified interface to control server processes. And there's more, most of it working for you under the hood.

5. Flexibility. You only download and install the programs you need. Fink gives you the freedom to install XFree86 or other X11 solutions in any way you like. If you don't want X11 at all, that's okay too.
 

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Windows Tools:
Windows Tools - Applications - and Shortcuts:

Process List Tools
Useful during troubleshooting of slow systems,
malware and virus investigations, etc
 

 



Useful Microsoft (Windows Updates) Info, Tools, & Links:

* PC Magazine - Windows Update Announcements
** Wikipedia - Windows Updates Info
Detailed information and history about Windows Update, Microsoft Update, Office Update,
Automatic Updates Windows Vista, Server, Windows 7 and more...



Microsoft - Windows Update (Official Site Link)
(Note some of you may have automatic updates already turned on
this is in case you want to review and or manually visit the site and
use e.g Custom Setups. Requires Microsoft IE Browser unless you use
IE Tab for Mozilla Firefox)


 



What's running on your PC?
Using the Windows Task Manager - processes tab


Windows Task Manager:


There are any number of process list monitoring tools out there on the market and the Internet, perhaps one of the most simple and readily available tools is the Windows Task Manager.  Task Manager is a Windows system utility that displays the tasks or processes currently running on your computer. To open Task Manager, press Ctrl+Alt+Del. The Applications tab lists the applications currently running on your computer. Where the Processes Tab lists most of the processes currently running on your computer. Clicking on any of the column field names (e.g CPU) arranges or sorts the processes in the order for example of processes using the most CPU percentage. Caution should be used when using this tool as to terminate processes else unspecified results can occur. Used in conjunction with the sites and forums listed below in the Processes/File Definitions Sites there are a number of people (MVPs, etc) and resources available to you to aid and assist you in your quest of understanding of just what some of these processes are and how they may be effecting you.

Can't get to the Windows Task Manager?  Try this !

Get to the Run command by going to Start Button - then Run (XP), or the Question box (Windows Vista/7) and type Taskmgr and hit Enter.

How to make a shortcut to Windows Task Manager on your desktop:
Bleeping Computer - Windows Task Manager shortcut on your desktop

NOTE: Add columns to Windows Task Manager by going to View then Select Columns in Task Manager, Add Disk I/O Activity, Reads/Writes etc to see what's going on.

Here are some other utilities/programs which may be useful:
Process Explorer - By SysInternals (no installation)

Autoruns - By SysInternals (no installation)
Download at MS-SysInternals or *FileHippo

Show what tasks are scheduled to run at system start-up and windows login and more...
 



System Process & File Definition Sites:

* FileInfo,net

The definitive list for file extension information (.dll's, exe's, media formats etc).

* TaskList.org

For a complete comprehensive definition list of what's the processes are running on your computer (.dll's, exe's, etc).

Processlist.com
(Discover what's running on your computer)

WhatsRunning.net

- Search for 'List of what processes are running
on your computer'
 




System Recovery

Recovery Partition Keyboard Shortcuts
-Use Caution-


- Search for 'Recovery partition keyboard shortcuts'

See Also System Backup Software Solutions

-More Coming-



Windows - Informative and Useful Tool Sites:
Information, forums, tools

* Annoyances.org 

For one of the most complete collections of information, forums, etc assembled by actual Microsoft Windows users and professionals. Topics include (performance issues, annoyances, troubleshooting tips, problem solving, etc).

Answers That Work.com
Task Lists, Drivers, Blogs, Computer problems, Library

Insecure.org
Security, Port Task Lists, etc

*
Microsoft Technet - Windows Sysinternals

The Sysinternals web site was created in 1996 by Mark Russinovich and Bryce Cogswell to host their advanced system utilities and technical information. Microsoft acquired Sysinternals in July, 2006. Whether you’re an IT Pro or a developer, you’ll find Sysinternals utilities to help you manage, troubleshoot and diagnose your Windows systems and applications. If you have a question about a tool or how to use them, please visit the Sysinternals Forum for answers and help from other users and our moderators.

Microsoft Technet - Command Line Ref (A-Z)
 


HijackThis!
A very powerful tool for understanding just exactly what is going on with your
computer as to possible HiJacks/Processes/Apps Running. Click here to see a
complete description of this application above.

- Search for 'Windows Troubleshooting'
 

 +   or
List of Windows (Keyboard & Mouse) Shortcuts:

Asktheadmin.com - Windows Shortcuts
e-How How to use Windows Shortcuts (Extensive List)
Technofile - Windows Shortcuts
TechnoTraits - 23 Lesser known Windows Shortcuts


Want more? Well There's more !

- Search for 'Windows Shortcuts'
 



Useful Informative Windows
Alternate Software Tools & Utilities:
(sampling)

- Search for 'Built in Windows information tools'


System Information Retrieval - Tools


* CPUZ Free
Displays CPU ID (Single/Multi Core), Cache, Memory, Main Board,
Memory, Clock Speed, Other information as well

Sysspec
by Alex Nolan - No Installation required

*** SIW - Portable Free
System Information for Windows.
This free tool extracts huge amounts of information about your hardware, software, and networks and displays it in a familiar, easy-to-manage view. It also includes a variety of tools that do useful things. Since it's portable, it runs without installation and leaves no traces behind in the registry


CPU (Central Processing Unit ) - Temp Monitors

* RealTemp Free
* CoreTemp Free


GPU (Graphics Processing Unit - Video Card)
Temp Monitors & Information Tools


* Tech Powerup's GPU-Z


Hard Drive - Disk Utilities

* Windows Explorer - Folder Size Shell Extension
Ever notice how Windows Explorer doesn't show folder sizes ?
There is a reason for that (system resources), however now you can
add this feature and display folder sizes with this add-on extension.



* Patch for Windows XP Disk Cleanup Utility running Slow

In Windows XP when you try to run The Disk Cleanup Utility it also tries to run something where it tries to calculate how much space you may save if you were to compress old files. Unfortunately calculating this takes an abnormally long time and even stops responding  on some systems where you may receive the following message: Disk Cleanup is calculating how much space you will be able to free on (C:). This may take a few minutes to complete. At that point some systems stop responding while calculating the space to be saved. This is for a feature that most people no longer desire and there is no option to deselect, namely because file compression takes so long (it's like archiving or zipping each old file infrequently used as determined by XP and when you do use that file it will have to be un-archived, secondly with most drives today offering such a large amount of space why bother archiving files. To fix this and speed up the Disk Cleanup utility dramatically Microsoft has come out with a patch known as KB# 812248 , click here to view the knowledge base article and get the patch which takes less than a minute to download and apply.

Ever notice how Windows Explorer doesn't show folder sizes ?
There is a reason for that (system resources), however now you can
add this feature and display folder sizes with this add-on extension.

 





Windows Disk Defragmenting Programs



** Defraggler - by Piriform
Defraggler is fast, free, able to be scheduled to run,
can defrag FAT32 and NTFS, run on 32 bit or 64 bit machines,
not only defrags entire disk drives but individual files as well, is more
interesting to watch than the default, and has useful additional features.
What's not to like about this program.

- Piriform - (Defraggler) Community Forums



Disk Defrag by Auslogics
Auslogics Disk Defrag is a compact and fast
defragmenter that supports both FAT 16/32, and NTFS file systems. It is
supplied with advanced optimization techniques, which will remedy
your system sluggishness and crashes caused by files fragmentation.
Click (here) to read more.
 





Clearing your Browser History, Cookies, Temporary Internet Files
Registry, and Windows Temporary Files


Learn how to clear Temporary Internet Files, Cookies, and private data
within the browser of your choice routinely by looking at the browser settings and help.

  Note, there are a number of tools software's out there to help you with this they should all be used cautiously below is an example of one such program with can accomplish this type of maintenance,



** CCleaner - by Piriform
CCleaner is free. Use with Caution !!!

Cleans temporary files, history, cookies, Autocomplete form history, index.dat., download history in I.E, Firefox, Google Chrome, Opera, and Safari. Temporary files, history, cookies, form history. In Windows cleans Recycle Bin, Recent Documents, Temporary files and Log files. Registry Cleaner Advanced features to remove unused and old registry entries.

Piriform - (CCleaner) Community Forums


Useful Tech Support Forums:
(e.g Windows, Software, Hardware, etc)

(sampling)
Certainly there are no end to the number of support forums available on any number of Hardware, Software, Internet, product support forums, etc. We advise you to first take a look at your original vendors product support forums initially for insightful answers from support staff and knowledgeable users who might have experienced similar issues with the types of problems or answers you may be looking for. Below are some samples of useful technical support forums related to a number of technical issues
 

Bleeping Computer
* The Elder Geek XP
The Elder Geek Vista
Major Geek Support Forums
Tech Support Guy
Tech Support Forum
Toms Hardware

Look at Support Forums on your Vendors Site, Do a
smart search (isolate your terms and group them together "+"to
narrow down your search results...

Fixya

Provides Free tech support and technical help for gadgets, electronic equipment and consumer products, vehicles, etc. Fixya's technical experts advise on fixing problems and provide instructions on proper usage of products either by chat or message posting. Fixya stores manuals and troubleshooting guides for over half a million products. Fixya's tech support community will provide a quick solution for your "how to" problem.
 

- Search for 'Windows Support Forums'
- Search for 'Hardware Support Forums'

* See our Tech Support Section and
AntiVirus, Malware Support Forums above also


 



 

* System Backup Software Solutions:
(Backup Software, Online Services, Disk Cloning)
Windows, Mac, Linux, OS Independent


If your asking yourself should I?, I don't know how!, My systems pretty good it won't crash!, I've got a Restore partition of my Disk (ha-ha) etc, or are just inquisitive which you should be then you need to check out this section.
 

If your asking yourself why? Then read this:
**TopTenReviews Why Backup Your Data?

Wikipedia - Disk Cloning
Wikipedia - List of Disk Cloning Software
Wikipedia - Comparison of Disk Cloning Software

*TopTenReviews Disk Imaging Software.com
*TopTenReviews Data Backup Software.com
TopTenReviews Online Data Backup.com
TopTenReviews Online Backup Service Review.com

-More to Come-
 



Miscellaneous Utilities & Software
Recuva by Piriform

Undelete files on your computer: Deleted a file by mistake? Recuva brings lost files on your computer, USB drive, camera or iPod. Recovery from damaged or formatted disks Even if you've formatted a drive so that it looks blank, Recuva can still find your files on it. Recover deleted emails Emptied your email trash and need it back? Recuva's got you covered with full support for Microsoft Outlook Express, Mozilla Thunderbird, or Windows Live Mail. Recover deleted iPod music Deleted music from your iPod or MP3 player? No problem, Recuva will get this back for you along with any additional track data. Restore unsaved Word documents Did Microsoft Word crash or did you forget to save that important Word document. No problem with Recuva! As it can intelligently rebuild Word documents from their temporary files. Quick-Start Wizard
If you need your files back right away without fiddling with options, Recuva's Quick-Start Wizard is the answer. Deep Scan Recuva can find most files within a minute. Or, set the Deep Scan to look for more deeply-buried results. Securely delete files you want to erase forever Want to protect your deleted files? Recuva also allows you to permanently erase any traces of deleted files. Portable version Take Recuva with you wherever you go with the portable version. Full Windows OS support and many languages Recuva has support for every modern version of Windows and 37+ languages.
 

* Old Version.com

Because newer is not always better. Provides old versions for most recent and popular applications. This site is useful if you are facing trouble with the recent software version.
 
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Miscellaneous Software's and Applications:
 



Media Players,Codecs,and Bit Torrents:


Codecs and Codec Alternatives

Free Codes.com
AfreeCodec.com
Codec Guide.com

* K-Lite Windows Media Player Codec

Windows Media Player didn't initially come with the ability to play DVD Movies. Hence aftermarket players or Codec's where developed to enable Windows Media Player to do this. Here is a sample of where you can obtain a codec to allows Windows Media Player WMP to play DVD's. We recommend downloading the Standard Pack !


    
Media Players for Windows, Mac, Unix, Android O.S
Wav,MP3, MP4, Movie, DVD, Multimedia, Music Player and more
Rip, Sort by Artist, Genre, Album, Song Title, etc

There is no limit to the amount of media players (audio/Video/Etc) out there available on the Internet. Do a search for media players/MP3/DVD/Video/and Audio players and you will undoubtedly be overwhelmed with the number results returned. Below is a sample of multi versatile players available on the Internet. Do a search on your own or start with the Wikipedia link below for a great start of media player comparisons.
 

* Wikipedia - Comparisons of Media Players

Digital Media Players - Reviews and Downloads

- Search 'media player comparisons'
- Search 'media player reviews'
Media Players:

Microsoft Windows Media Player
RealPlayer Media Player
Winamp Media Player
* VLC Media Player



Bit Torrents & P2P Programs
-Some Notable Facts-

We should start off and tell you that Bit Torrent P2P Programs do have there place, most often you will find them when people share software, programs, files, music, movie, video downloads, etc using programs such as (Kazza, Limewire, Ants, Bitcomment, BitTorrent, UTorrent, etc).

But you should be aware that are risks when you use these sites and these programs. The programs most often use a technology known as P2P (Peer-To-Peer) networking meaning that you and others leave your PC wide open to possible attack from malicious users even with a firewall, antispyware, and antivirus protection. In most cases ports used in the communications process are left open (tunneled) as part of the process of sharing files. The programs are configured so as to make acceptances/allowances through firewall, antispyware, and antivirus protection programs or in some cases not even seen. Let alone you have knowingly or unknowingly now made your system into an Internet fileserver and are open to suffering from system performance issues sometimes severe performance (speed) degradation if there happens to be a popular file/program etc on your system that any number of people would like access. In most cases multiple people can download from your system at the same time. Sometimes the torrents are plagued with malware, rogue viruses, etc

Have we scared you? We don't mean to but you should be aware that there is a potential danger or threat if you use these programs and/or join these communities. Below is a list of several search results and sites which list the potentials and dangers of using such programs and P2P technology, we urge you to check them out, click on the logo's below.
 

* - Search 'p2p issues'
*
- Search 'p2p security issues'
- Search 'p2p beware'
- Search 'p2p limewire kazzaa beware'
 


File Transfer Protocol (FTP) Software:


 

* FileZilla - The Free FTP Solution

Open Source (GNU/GPL) FTP client for Windows, Mac OS X and GNU/Linux. The FileZilla Client is a fast and reliable cross-platform FTP, FTPS and SFTP free client with lots of useful features and an intuitive graphical user interface

** Check for updates: Anytime while in the FileZilla by selecting Help then Check for Updates.


CD-R/W and DVD Burning Software:


 

* DeepBurner - Free CD-R/W & DVD Burning Software

Don't have a CD-R/W & DVD Burning Software package on your system? Then checkout Deep Burner. See the differences between the free and Pro versions by clicking here.



Website Tools and Statistics Analyzers:
~sampling~

*Note: There are many varied opinions about the subject of website statistics, analysis tools, etc of what's available, who's best, etc. The following represents a sampling.

- Analytics free

Track Website Visitors, Page Entries, Exits, New versus Returning users,  How they navigate through your site, How they found your site's, Average Time Spent, Trends, Time Periods, Reports, Geographic Locations, on one or more of your sites and more. Find out how to signup and use this great free tool by clicking here.
 

- Webmaster Tools free

View of your site's and diagnose problems, See how Google crawls and indexes your site and learn about specific problems they may have accessing it. Discover your link and query traffic. View, classify, and download comprehensive data about internal and external links to your site with new link reporting tools. Find out which Google search queries drive traffic to your site, and see exactly how users arrive there. View more information about your crawl errors with the new content analysis tool. Find out how to signup and use this tool by clicking here.

Statcounter Free Website Statistics - Website Statistics free

StatCounter: Track Website Visitors, Page Entries, Exits, New versus Returning users,  How they navigate through your site, How they found your site's, Average Time Spent, Trends, Time Periods, Reports, Geographic Locations, on one or more of your sites and more. Find out how to signup and use this great free tool by clicking here.

Others Comparisons:

*Note: There are many varied opinions about the subject of website statistics, analysis tools, etc of what's available, who's best, etc. We won't go deeply into those subjects her, suffice to say there are many companies out there some good/ some questionable. There are Online and Standalone Tools available (free and paid). A sampling of review comparison sites for Website statistic analyzers, etc can be found below:

Top10Reviews of Website Traffic Statistic Service Comparisons

Top10Reviews of Web Analytics Product Comparisons
 



TrueType Fonts:

Our site predominately uses Arial Standard font styles as well as Comic Sans MS font styles. We recommend to get the most out of the site that you load and install the Arial Standard and Comic Sans MS fonts if you do not already have them installed.

Arial.ttf, Artbrush.ttf, and  Comic.ttf

Instructions: After downloading any of these fonts to your computer to a location of your choice (e.g "My Documents" for instance) you must drag and drop them (or copy) them into your Windows "/FONTS" folder found under the "C:\WINDOWS" or "C:\WINNT" file folder on your C: drive to install them. It's that easy

If for some reason you have trouble downloaing any of these fonts, try using your "right" mouse button to click on the font of you choice then select "Save Target As." This will let you save the font to your selected location on your PC
 



-A Great Program-
** Ultramon Multiple Monitor Software:
If you have multiple monitors this is a must !

Do you have more than one monitor hooked up on your PC? Do you find yourself laboriously dragging open program windows from one screen to the other's?

Windows Management: Quickly move or pop windows to other monitors (we love that feature) without dragging them or maximize a window across multiple monitors to the desktop using the additional window buttons added by UltraMon. Would you like more control over screen savers, wallpapers, etc on each monitor?, would you like to be able save the icon positions of what's current placed on those monitor desktops and have separate taskbars for each one? Use more than 10 monitors, mirroring, etc. You can do this and more with one of Doc's favorite tools called Ultramon by Realtime Software, it's small quick and efficient.  Click below and find out more about this great utility.

Overview, Take the Feature Tour, Download
Forums, Add-On's
 


* Great Wallpapers for
Single Monitors and Multiple Monitor Systems:
If you have multiple monitors this is the place to go !

Do you have more than one monitor hooked up to your PC/Laptop? Would you like to have amazing breathtaking landscapes, mountain scenes, seashores, etc seamlessly spanned across your multiple monitors like one big background picture? Try these sites, click on of the links below (support for up to quad screen wallpapers - If you have more than that get another picture etc for the other 5,6,7,8 etc)

HD Wallpapers - Home Page Updated

Pure High Definition quality wallpapers for Desktop, Tablet, and Mobile Devices in HD, Wide, 4K Ultra HD, 5K, 8K UHD monitor resolutions...

* **WallpaperFusion.com

High Definition Single Monitor, Dual monitor, Triple, Quad monitor Wall Papers, numerous monitor resolutions. ,and more...

Wallpaperpimper - Home Page
down 12-12-16
Database Error


More Multiple Screens:
Digital Trends - 8 Sites for Dual Monitor Wallpapers

- Search 'wallpaper multiple monitors'
 


     
 QR-Codes:
What are they and how can I make them?

Have you seen these around, wondered what they were? How useful are they, where and how can I make them? They are especially useful in print (hard copy - fliers - exhibits, etc) when you want to make it easier to bring users to a specific (url) website address and they have a smart phone or tablet device.

QR-Codes - What are they?
QR-Code Explained - Wikipedia

QR-Code - Generator/Creator Sites:

* 10 Best Free online QR Code  Genertators for 2020

Kaywa QR-Code Generator
Generate QR-Codes for URLs, Text, Phone Numbers, SMS Messages, Contacts.

QRCode Monkey as of 5-17-19
Generate QR-Codes for URLs, Text, Phone Numbers, SMS Messages, Contacts, Calendar, Geo Location, Wifi Network, Facebook Twitter, and more...

** QR Code Generator.com as of 2-12-20
Generate QR-Codes for URLs, Text, Phone Numbers, SMS Messages, Contacts, Calendar, Geo Location, Wifi Network, Facebook Twitter, also has SCAN ME Frames, to draw attention and more...

Zxing Project QR-Code Generator
Generate QR-Codes for URLs, Text, Phone Numbers, SMS Messages, Contacts, Calendar, Geo Location, Wifi Network.

QR4 QR-Code Generator
Generate QR-Codes for URLs, Text, Phone Numbers, SMS Messages, Contacts, Calendar, Geo Location, Wifi Network, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MECard, YouTube

** - Search for 'QR code generator Free Download' sites
Look out for signup sites

QR-Code and Barcode Reader Applications (Apps) for Smart Phones, Tablets, etc (Android and Apple):
** ZXing Teams - BarCode Scanner - Android Phones/Tablets GooglePlay
BarCode Scanner Apps - Google PlayStore

* BarCode Scanner - iPhone/iPad  iTunes
 


Adobe Reader (Pdf), Shockwave,
and Flash Players/Plug-In's:
Get the latest info and downloads for Adobe Reader ,  Adobe Flash Player, and Adobe Shockwave free. All run standalone as separate applications and integrate with most web browsers as well:
 


    
  * Get Adobe Flash Here
* Verify or Upgrade your Adobe Flash Version Here
See Adobe Version History - Release Notes Here




* Get Adobe Shockwave Here
* Verify or Upgrade your Adobe Shockwave Version Here




* Get Adobe Reader Here

Verify your version of Adobe Reader:

** See what version of 'Adobe Reader' you are running by loading Adobe Reader, next select Help then About Adobe Reader this should tell you what version of the Adobe Reader Application you are using.

 * Check for updates anytime while in Adobe Reader by selecting Help then Check for Updates.

See if you have Adobe Reader Installed:

* Test to see if you have Adobe Reader Loaded
 


 
JAVA (JRE) from Sun Microsystems/Oracle: Free

Java is supported by most all browsers today because of the fact that so many webpage designs use it. Click here to see what's new with the latest free Java Runtime Environment (JRE) from Sun Microsystems. JRE enables your computer to run applications and applets that use Java technology such as (a number of websites, browsers, applets, etc) seen on most systems today. Visit this site and download the latest updates to keep your computer running up to date if your not already running it.

Sun Microsystems/Oracle JAVA.com (Download, News, etc)
Download JAVA Sun Microsystems/Oracle  Here

Checking to see if you have Java,
What Version, and if Updates are available:


Most times if you have Java running you will see a small coffee cup icon in the task bar (lower right) near the system clock when java apps from websites are running, when updates are available usually Java will let you know by showing the coffee cup and displaying a message down near the icon. You can manually check to see if there updates are available by either right-clicking on the Java icon coffee cup, then properties, and going to the Update Tab or by going to the link below using any web browser.

** To see if you have Java running, which make (Sun, Microsoft, etc), what version you may, and if there are any updates click here:

Verify your Version of JAVA here - JAVA.com


*Can I remove older versions and do I need multiple versions of Java installed on my system?. Most recent versions of Sun Java will now remove some number of older versions from your system now automatically upon successful updating. Get the low down and how to manually cleanup and remove older copies here:

JAVA.com - Removing older copies from your system


 
Microsoft Silverlight: Free

Is an application framework for writing and running rich Internet applications, similar to Adobe Flash. A plugin for Silverlight is available for some browsers. While early versions of Silverlight focused on streaming media, current versions support multimedia, graphics, and animation and give developers support for CLI languages and development tools. Silverlight is also one of the two application development platforms for Windows Phone, but web pages that use Silverlight cannot run on the Windows Phone or Windows Mobile versions of Internet Explorer, as there is no Silverlight plugin for Internet Explorer on those platforms. Microsoft announced the end of life of Silverlight in 2012. In 2013, Microsoft announced that they had ceased development of Silverlight except for patches and bugfixes. Microsoft has set the support end date for Silverlight to be October 2021.[6] Silverlight is no longer supported in Google Chrome since September 2015. Since Microsoft Edge does not support plugins, it also does not support Silverlight. Silverlight was used to provide video streaming for the NBC coverage of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing,[9] the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, and the 2008 conventions for both major United States political parties. Silverlight was also used by Amazon Video and Netflix for their instant video streaming services, but Netflix said in its Tech Blog in 2013 that, since Microsoft had announced the end of life, they would be moving to HTML5 video.

Microsoft Silverlight (Homepage, Download, News, etc)
Download Microsoft Silverlight Here

Checking to see if you have Silverlight,
What Version, and if Updates are available:


** To see if you have Silverlight running, what version you may, and if there are any updates click here:

Verify your Version of Sivlerlight here


 



Stickies POSTit-Note Like Prog:

Stickies (freeware) - A wonderfully useful and handy POSTIt like program to help remind you of tasks and other Things To Do. Stickies not only allows you to place notes to your screen but also allows you to schedule when you want them to notify you for example of something (e.g Meeting, Appointment, etc), has changeable skins, fonts, styles, etc, and works with small network groups. Stickies runs on Windows 98, 98SE, Me 2000, XP, Vista, Window-7, Palm OS, PPC devices, etc. Click above now to learn more of this wonderful free program.

Note: Skins for Stickes can be found here.
 


PDF File Generation/Creation Tools:


Primo PDF:

PrimoPDF (freeware by Nitro Software) - This great utility installs within minutes and allows you to create PDF formatted files in seconds from almost any program/screen simply by selecting Print from most windows programs (e.g Word, Powerpoint, etc) and selecting PrimoPDF within a matter of seconds you'll have a shareable PDF formatted file with or without security features enabled (your choice). A wonderfully useful and handy utility, PrimoPDF runs on Windows 98, 98SE, Me 2000, XP, and Vista. Click above now to learn more of this wonderful free program.

See Also:

* Convert PDF to Word/Excel Online:
Also brought to you by Nitro Software free Online tool or standalone download. Provides the ability to Convert your PDF files back to editable Microsoft Word documents. Convert files one at a time online, or try Nitro Pro and convert all your files free for 14 days  Click here PDF to Word or here PDF to Excel for more information and the online link.


PDF Forge - PDF Creator
PDF Creator (freeware) another great
utility is an Open Source project just like primo PDF and
offers vast flexibility in the ability to generate PDFs . Click above
now to learn more of this wonderful free program



Picture Viewer and Photo Manipulation Programs:

Although newer versions of MS-Windows come with fairly decent picture viewers/handlers today, it isn't always easy to manipulate, view, or convert them. There are a lot of 3rd party programs to choose from (free and paid) e.g Adobe Photoshop, PaintShop Pro, etc, to name a few. Here are a few alternatives to start with.

* IRFANVIEW (free)
 

This great utility installs within minutes and allows you to view and manipulate a large variety of picture file formats (e.g Gif /TIFF /JPG /PNG /SWF /MP3 /AVI /ICO click here to see all the formats supported). Packed with a number of features it's small and easy to use. In addition to being able to manipulate photos in numerous ways, it also includes Thumbnails, Slideshow, MPEG, and Audio support. See why it's been one of the most popular free viewers since 2003 with over 1-million downloads every month. Click above now to learn more of this wonderful free program, and remember to get the free plug-ins support while your there also.
 

GIMP (free)
 

GIMP is an acronym for GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a freely distributed program for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. It has many capabilities. It can be used as a simple paint program, an expert quality photo retouching program, an online batch processing system, a mass production image renderer, an image format converter, etc. GIMP is expandable and extensible. It is designed to be augmented with plug-ins and extensions to do just about anything. The advanced scripting interface allows everything from the simplest task to the most complex image manipulation procedures to be easily scripted.

GIMP is written and developed under X11 on UNIX platforms. But basically the same code also runs on MS Windows and Mac OS X.  Click above now to learn more of this wonderful free program, and remember to get the free plug-ins support while your there also.




Updated for Windows 7

Microsofts - ClearType What is It?

With Windows XP & Windows Vista, ClearType delivers improved font display quality over traditional forms of font smoothing or anti-aliasing. ClearType improves readability on color LCD displays with a digital interface, such as those in laptops and high-quality flat panel displays. Readability on CRT screens can also be somewhat improved.

Note: Windows 7 users should use the built-in ClearType tuner found in the Windows 7 Control Panel under Appearance and Personalization then ClearType settings to adjust their ClearType settings. Windows XP and Windows Vista Users should use the online links below.

Microsoft ClearType for Windows-XP Util (go here)

Microsoft ClearType for Windows-Vista Util (go here)




   
* Portable Windows Software's/Applications:
 

Carry your favorite programs with all of your settings, bookmarks, email and more. Use them on any Windows computer, all without leaving any personal data behind. Portable Apps provide a truly open platform that works with any hardware you like (USB flash drives, iPod, portable hard drives, etc). It's open source built around an open format that any hardware vendor or software developer can use.

Wikipedia - List of Portable Software

PortableApps.com
PortableApps.com Suite and Platform is free. It contains no spyware. There are no advertisements. It isn't a limited or trial version. There is no additional hardware or software to buy. You don't even have to give out your email address. It's 100% free to use, free to copy and free to share. Find pocket sized applications like Firefox, Filezilla, OpenOffice,  Thunderbird, Cool Player and more

* The Portable Freeware Collection
 

Create and share your work online, upload from and save to your desktop, Edit anytime, from anywhere, Pick who can access your documents, Share changes in real time, Files are stored securely online with Google Docs, It's FREE!

**Visit the Template Gallery, choose from hundreds of useful templates including: calendars, fax covers and invoices.
 


* Windows Desktop Icon Position
Layout Utility Manager (Layout.dll):
Ever want to save the icon positions of your desktop?

Did you ever want to save the positions of your desktop icons because either someone else, some program, or a screen resolution change has moved them around (Grrr!) ? Well guess what Microsoft has a tool around you might not have known about, it's small quick little utility add-on that allows you beforehand to save those icon positions just incase of such an event.  Microsoft's Layout.dll (free) file, which is included in the Windows NT Resource Kit, can be installed on Windows 2000 and XP systems. This utility adds the 'Save Desktop Icon Layout' and 'Restore Desktop Icon Layout' options to the right-click context pop-up menus associated with system icons like the Recycle Bin and My Computer found on most desktops. It's a bare-bones solution that lacks the useful frills found in such products as EzDesk, but it gets the job done. Click below and find out more about this useful utility (Win-2000, Xp, and Vista - 32-bit and 64-bit versions available).

* Overview & Download - Via The HowToGeek (Vista, XP 32 and 64-bit versions)
  Discussion Forum and Links via PC Magazine
- Search for 'layout.dll'
 


Wow! - Now that's a really Big Page
 

 

Best viewed with either Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.X or later  (preferred), Mozilla Firefox 1.5.x and later, or Opera 9.x or later   browsers at these or later versions. Use with 800x600 or better resolution, small/medium size text.  *Note: Portions of this site require that JavaScript and Cookies be enabled to view the best effect of the website features.

Our site predominately uses Arial Standard font styles as well as Comic Sans MS font styles. To to get the most out of the site we recommend  that you download and install the Arial Standard and Comic Sans MS fonts if you do not already have them installed, visit the TrueType Section of this page to obtain copies of these fonts and instructions on using them as well as the Microsoft XP and Vista Clear Type Tool also on this page..
 

 



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