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 offers both a free edition and a paid edition. The free version is one of the best free antivirus programs available, while the paid version provides even better protection.
• Microsoft Security Essentials - Antivirus from Microsoft...  Microsoft Security Essentials has received very good reviews by PCWorld, CNet, and other highly-regarded technology review companies. It does a good job blocking viruses and other malware and is FREE!

• 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.

• Classic Shell - This utility gives the start menu back to Windows 8. With it installed, you get the speed and security of Windows 8 with the familiarity of the older Windows' Start Menu. You will think that you went back to Windows 7!
• 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.
• LibreOffice - LibreOffice 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.
• CDBurnerXP - CDBurnerXP is a free CD and DVD burning application for Windows. It has the same features as most of the paid programs, but is free. This program works with Windows XP and above.
• 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.
• WeatherGopher - This program runs in your system tray (by the clock) and constantly displays the weather as reported by Weather Service. It provides the same functionality as the program provided by The Weather Service, but does not slow down your computer and does not display any advertisements.
• ieSpell - Do you want to be able to add spell-check to Internet Explorer and have it function like the other browsers? This application adds spell-check capability to Internet Explorer. When you misspell a word, it will underline it and give the usual context menu -- similar to Microsoft Word. It will even auto-correct common spelling errors.
• 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.