Useful Items
We believe that items contained on this page may be useful to most PC owners. With that said, we cannot be responsible for any content that is not hosted on our site. In other words... USE AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Useful Programs
- avast! antivirus - avast! antivirus is free for home users (there is a yearly cost to business users) and has received very good reviews by PCWorld, CNet, and other highly-regarded technology review companies. It doesn't slow down your computer as much as other antivirus programs, does a good job catching infections, and is FREE!
Download avast! antivirus
Note: Please see our "Support" section for detailed instructions on how to register avast! antivirus for home use.
- Firefox - An alternative Web browser (like Internet Explorer). Firefox provides tabbed browsing and works on Windows 98 and up.
- Google Chrome - All of the tabs run as separate processes, which means that if one tab crashes, the others stay running. No more having to close your Web browser because one page had a bad script or animation.
- Foxit Reader - This is a much faster alternative to the popular Adobe Acrobat Reader. Whereas Acrobat Reader takes 30-40 seconds to load and render a PDF file, Foxit Reader will only take a few seconds to load and does not load any software when Windows starts.
- OpenOffice.org - OpenOffice is a free alternative to Microsoft Office. It contains equivalent programs to Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, and Publisher. While not as robust as Microsoft Office, it contains all of the features that most users need for basic word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations.
- CutePDF Writer - This program allows you to "print" any document out to a PDF file. It is free and, once again, faster than Adobe Acrobat! Make sure that you dowload both the "Converter" and the CutePDF installer. They are both listed on the left-hand side of the page.
- Weather Watcher - This program runs in your system tray (by the clock) and constantly displays the weather as reported by Weather Bug. It provides the same functionality as the program provided by The Weather Bug Desktop Weather, but does not slow down your computer and does not display any advertisements.
- Taskbar Shuffle - Have you ever wanted to be able to move the taskbar buttons around so that they are in a particular order? If so, this program is what you need.
- VLC Media Player - VLC Media Player is a free media player and will allow you to play DVD movies on your computer -- provided your computer has a DVD drive. When installing the program, it will prompt for the type of installation. Select "minimum" and it will not take over as your default media player for other media types. Then, when you insert a movie, Windows will ask what to do with it. Select to play the movie with VLC Media Player and check the box to always remember that selection.
- Child Control - This program makes Web browsing safer for families. You can configure time limits, restrict what type of sites can be visited, and can even block access to all sites unless you specifically allow access.
Useful Web Pages
- Gmail - Email, the Google way -- FREE!!! They provide a lot of storage, a user-friendly interface, excellent spam protection, and reliable email delivery.
- LogMeIn - You can install the LogMeIn software on your home PC and access it from anywhere that has an Internet connection. Of course, this requires you to leave your PC turned on all the time...
- Vladstudio - Okay, so maybe not so much "useful", but this is a safe site to use to download beautiful desktop wallpapers.