Multiple Image Resizer .NET is an excellent batch image processor

Overview:

With Multiple Image Resizer .NET, you can resize, add borders, add text, overlay images, crop, rotate and flip - with a few simple mouse clicks.


Features:

Batch Image Processing Features


* Resize images

* Rotate images

* Flip images

* Add borders to images

* Add text to images including file and Exif information

* Crop images

* Overlay / Watermark images with another image


Other Features


* Flexible command line batch image processing scripting engine

* Preview of unprocessed and processed images

* Ability to save and load image processing settings

* Ability to alter the order in which batch processing features are applied to images

* Customisable user interface

* Fully integrated help documentation

* Check for updates feature

* Multi-language - English, Spanish, Dutch, Danish, French, Portuguese, Czech, Galician, German, Italian and Hungarian



Supported Image Files


Multiple Image Resizer .NET can open images in 28 image formats, and save processed images in 16 image formats:


* Windows Bitmap .bmp - [Open and Save]

* Dr. Halo .cut - [Open]

* DirectDraw Surface .dds - [Open]

* Enhanced Windows Metafile .emf - [Open and Save]

* Exchangeable Image File .exif - [Open and Save]

* Graphics Interchange Format .gif - [Open and Save]

* High Dynamic Range .hdr - [Open and Save]

* Windows Icon .ico - [Open and Save]

* Amiga IFF .iff - [Open]

* Deluxe Paint .lbm - [Open]

* JPEG Network Graphics .jng - [Open]

* JPEG Format .jpg, .jpeg, .jif, .jpe - [Open and Save]

* Commodore 64 Koala .koa - [Open]

* Multiple Network Graphics .mng - [Open]

* Portable Bitmap ASCII & Binary .pbm - [Open and Save]

* Kodak PhotoCD .pcd - [Open]

* Zsoft Paintbrush PCX Bitmap .pcx - [Open]

* Portable Graymap ASCII & Binary .pgm - [Open and Save]

* Portable Network Graphics .png - [Open and Save]

* Portable Pixelmap ASCII & Binary .ppm - [Open and Save]

* Adobe Photoshop .psd - [Open]

* Sun Rasterfile .ras - [Open]

* Truevision Targa .tga, .targa - [Open and Save]

* Tagged Image File Format .tif, .tiff - [Open and Save]

* Wireless Bitmap .wbmp - [Open and Save]

* Windows Metafile .wmf - [Open and Save]

* X11 Bitmap Format .xbm - [Open]

* X11 Pixmap Format .xpm - [Open and Save]


Review:

Some people have a constant need of resizing their pictures , now i am not of those people but if you are then i suggest you use multiple image resizer .NET. Like the name says it will resize your pictures but its capable of doing so much more like crop; rotate; flip; add text; add borders and add images, all of these processing options can be carried out together with a batch of images which makes this program very versatile in my opinion. If there is a downsize to all of the awesomeness (Is that even a word?) found in this package then it must be the time it takes to start when you run multiple it, its only a few seconds but i could notice it in my system which is kinda disappointing...anyway this is still a great program that could come in handy to all of you photographers or other people in need of image manipulation. Available for Windows 2000/2003/XP/Vista.


Get it at http://www.multipleimageresizer.net/

Ashampoo Burning Studio Free is a burning suite made by ashampoo

Overview:

The new Ashampoo Burning Studio 6 keeps all the advantages of its predecessor and adds multi-disc file backup, an integrated audio CD ripper and further improved support for the exciting new Blu-ray format with capacities of up to 25 gigabytes per layer.

Many users are tired of over-complicated CD burning applications that are getting harder and harder to use. Sometimes you can waste most of your time just trying to find a function. Ashampoo Burning Studio focuses on what you want: To burn discs quickly, easily, with maximum quality and minimum hassle. It includes everything you need to be able to do that. And it excludes everything that could get in the way.

Features:

* Burn files and folders on data CDs/DVDs/Blu-ray discs

* Burn Audio CDs from WAV, MP3, FLAC, WMA and Ogg Vorbis files

* Burn MP3-CDs from your MP3 files

* Burn Video DVD, Video CD VCD or Super Video CD S-VCD

* Create and burn CD/DVD/Blu-ray disc images

* Burn speed and other options can all be set automatically

* Make copies from audio, video or data discs easily

* Interactive troubleshooting assistant for solving hardware and media problems

* Save project files so that you can burn the same discs again later

* Erase CD-RWs / DVDRWs / DVD-RWs/ DVD-RAM/ BD-REs

* Integrated support for over 1,700 CD, DVD and Blu-ray burners

* ... and much more!


Review:

So everyone who has a PC has a need for burning stuff like porn, movies, music, games, more porn and stuff like that, anyway ashampoo burning studio free is a free program created by ashampoo, they musn`t be well know so they are giving a free taste of their burning software. Now this program is very similar to nero so its very easy use and has an attractive interface, it also has a bunch of features that i consider somewhat advanced like blu-ray support, CD-ripping and an integrated backup option. The stuff that i have burned with this program was burned quickly and without problems and i was satisfied with the amount of currently available options however power users that need really advanced stuff may be disappointed with program (I am not of them).
In conclusion ashampoo burning studio free is a simple and lightweight way of burning stuff. Available for Windows 2000/XP/Vista.


Get it at http://www.divshare.com/download/4609072-dc8

Btw i found a link that supposedly offers a free registration key for ashampoo burning studio 7 from the ashampoo company itself, but i haven`t had the time to download and register burning studio 7 so you might wanna give a try to see if its the real deal.

here is the link:http://www2.ashampoo.com/webcache/html/1/trial_step_1_2504_2.htm

Add shortcuts on your desktop automatically when inserting drives or media with Desk Drive

Overview:

Desk Drive™ solves a really annoying problem. You pop a USB thumb drive or DVD into your computer and then you have to open Window's Explorer and find the mapped drive or folder. Desk Drive adds a desktop icon pointing to the drive automatically. Remove the media and the shortcut goes away. Brilliantly simple and effective.

Desk Drive sits quietly in the system tray. Configuration image at right is just a click away and allows you to specify which types of media to monitor. So simple, it just works. Download it today!


System Requirements:

Windows XP/Vista

.Net Framework 2.0


Review:

So one of the cool things that ubuntu had over windows when i tried it was something so simple like adding a shortcut to a recently inserted media like a CDROM or pendrive, it made knowing what stuff you had inserted in your PC very easy and in addition you could access your stuff without opening the ubuntu explorer. Anyway this functionality can be replicated in windows by using desk drive, it will sit on the system tray and will add a shortcut to whatever stuff you insert in your PC , these shortcuts will disappear once you remove whatever you have put in, you can choose with drives will be monitored and btw i suggest you remove your floppy drive otherwise desk drive will search for inserted floppies constantly which will cause a constant and annoying sound, at least that is what happened to me. In my system desk drive used between 10MB to 20MB which is ok i guess for those rich people that have like a gig of ram and more (yes i am bitter because i only 256MB, oh wait i mean 224MB after you subtract the shared memory that the integrated video uses....i hate my PC).
So in conclusion use desk drive if you feel interested in having a shortcut for every media that you inserted. Available for Windows XP/Vista.


Get at it http://blueonionsoftware.com/DeskDrive.aspx

Backup your entire disk to another one with HDClone Free Edition

Overview:

Copies smaller drives onto larger ones for migrating or backing up complete installations as well as for data rescue. The download package contains a program to easily create a bootable floppy disk or CD/DVD under Windows with only few clicks. A floppy image, ISO image, and manual as PDF are also enclosed.

Review:

Let me say first that i didn`t have the chance to try this particular program because i only have one hard disk and i couldn`t even boot the CD and pendrive that hdclone made (its probably my PC), so the word "review" may be a little bit of a lie...so consider this review a theoretical one rather than a one made with the hands on the software....yeah just follow me. Basically hdclone free edition will copy your entire hard disk into another one,a larger one. first you must download the installer that will allow you to make a bootable floppy, pendrive or CDROM. This way is better since you won`t have to deal with windows, anyway after you boot hdclone you can only backup the entire hard disk into another larger physical disk, there is no support for the backup of partitions or stuff like that, in addition you can only copy up to 300 MB/min which maybe too slow for most people and it doesn`t support USB 2.0 which will probably cut speed when using portable USB devices for backup. In conclusion while HDClone lacks a lot of stuff it may just be what you need when you want to quickly backup a disk. Available for Windows 98/2000/XP.


Get it at http://www.miray.de/download/sat.hdclone.html


I have uploaded a handy chart that shows what the free edition lacks, use this before you try HDClone to check if it fits your needs.

Give a little extra funcionality to your sendto menu with Send To Toys

Overview:

Send To Toys is an enhancement of the Send To system menu.


Features:

- Send To Toys Control Panel Applet allows you to manage the Send To system menu content, and configure the various Send To Toys settings.

- "Add to Send To menu" and "Remove from Send To menu" allows you to personalize the Send To system menu for drives, folders, and programs.

- Send To "Clipboard as name" copies the name of the file or files to the clipboard. Hold down the CTRL key to change the settings for this extension.

- Send To "Clipboard" command line utility copies the output of a command to the clipboard. Type SENDTOCLIP /? at the command prompt for more information.

- Send To "Command Prompt" opens a DOS console window, setting the current directory to the selected folder. If the selection was a file, the folder containing the file will be the active directory and the name of the file will be typed for you at the prompt. Hold down the CTRL key to change the active directory to a different folder. Hold down the SHIFT key to force the use of the COMMAND.COM regardless of the Windows version.

- Send To "Default Mail Recipient" creates a new e-mail with attachments and predefined defaults for the recipients, subject, and message. Hold down the CTRL key to change the settings for this extension.

- Send To "Favorites" adds a shortcut to your Favorites list. Hold down the CTRL key for the "Add Favorite" dialog.

- Send To "Folder..." sends a file or files to another folder, you will be shown a dialog box that lets you choose where the files should be copied, moved, or have a shortcut created. To move the files press and hold down the SHIFT key. To create a shortcut hodl down the SHIFT and CTRL keys.

- Send To "Quick Launch" adds a shortcut to the Quick Launch toolbar.

- Send To "Recycle Bin" sends a file or files to the Recycle Bin. Hold down the CTRL key to perform a file shredding.

- Send To "Run..." sends a file or files to the Run command dialog.

Freeware. For 2000, XP, 2003 Server, and Vista


Review:

I hardly use the windows sendto menu except when i wanna copy something to my pendrive quickly, i actually find the default sendto menu useless, one more windows failure in my eyes. Anyway send to toys hopes to make the sendto menu worth a damn and in a small way it succeeds, it will add a bunch of new options, some of them are pretty crappy (run, command prompt and the recicly bin are LOL bad) while others could be possibly useful in some situations (clipboard, favorites, quick launch and the default mail recipient are decent choices in my opinion) but the one that makes send to toys worthy of a post on my blog is the folder option. This option will either copy or move a file or folder to the place of your choosing, i found this method way faster that opening the windows explorer and manually copying and pasting files.
The only bad thing with this program that i noticed is that you can`t restore the deleted context menu options once you have erased them, i refer specifically to those options like the command prompt and such that can`t be located easily so i would recommend not erasing any options that you may use in the future so that you won`t have to reinstall send to toys.
In conclusion send to toys would be crap if it were not for that special send to folder option, try it only because of that. Available for Windows 2000/XP/2003/Vista.


get it at http://www.gabrieleponti.com/software/index.html

MediaInfo is an excellent way of knowing everything about a video or audio file

Overview:

MediaInfo supplies technical and tag information about a video or audio file.
This is free software free of charge and free to access source code: GPL or LGPL licence

Features:

What information can I get from MediaInfo?

* General: title, author, director, album, track number, date, duration...

* Video: codec, aspect, fps, bitrate...

* Audio: codec, sample rate, channels, language, bitrate...

* Text: language of subtitle

* Chapters: number of chapters, list of chapters


What format container does MediaInfo support?

*Video: MKV, OGM, AVI, DivX, WMV, QuickTime, Real, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DVD (VOB)...(Códecs: DivX, XviD, MSMPEG4, ASP, H.264, AVC...)

* Audio: OGG, MP3, WAV, RA, AC3, DTS, AAC, M4A, AU, AIFF...

* Subtitles: SRT, SSA, ASS, SAMI...


What can I do with it?

* Read many video and audio file formats

* Different methods of viewing information text, sheet, tree, HTML...

* You can customise these views

* Exporting information as text, CSV, HTML...

* Graphical Interface, or Command Line, or DLL

* Integration with MS-Windows shell drag 'n' drop, and Context menu

* Internationalisation: any language display on any version of your Operating System

* Localisation capability but volunteers needed


Review:

When a video file you play has only sound but no video or the other way around the most likely cause is that you have a missing codec, now you can randomly install codec packs or just use mediainfo. With this program you can know the codecs and settings which were used in creating the audio or video file, this is useful in identifying a specific codec but it can be also used to check the settings that make a good quality video, you can then use this information when creating your own video or audio files. This program is very easy to use and gives accurate info, i specially liked how you can export your results in a variety of ways and when mediainfo has identified the used codec and it will present you with a link to the website where you can download the appropriate codec, finally this program is fully portable and can be used from a pendrive which is very useful if you are a Mobile person.
In conclusion mediainfo is a good way of knowing the information of video or audio files. Available for Windows 98/2000/XP/Vista.


Get it at http://mediainfo.sourceforge.net

IPaddress is a quick way of knowing your PC`s IP address

Overview:
IPaddress is a tiny utility that you can use to determine your IP address and lets you copy it to the computer's Clipboard.

Features:

* Finds both your WAN and LAN IP addresses

* Allows you to save them or copy them to the clipboard

* Keeps a history log of your IP addresses

* Send the IP address to your friends with build-in e-mail supports Exchange Server

* Runs on Windows 2000/2003/XP/Vista


Review:

There are various ways of checking your ipaddress in windows but they are kinda complicated and not so fast as you would like, so what`s a guy to do when he isn`t very tech savy? the answer is ipaddress. With this program you can find your IP in a very fast and easy way, in addition you can copy the ip address in your clipboard or send it using the build-in email (supports Exchange Server). In conclusion ipaddress is an excellent way of checking your IP. Available for Windows 95/98/NT4/2000/2003/XP/Vista.


Get it at http://bluefive.pair.com/ipaddress.htm



(I hope someone find this post useful because i wrote this while i am really sick, flu's and colds really suck T_T)

System Spec is a portable utility for the gathering of info about your PC

Overview:

What is System Spec ?, A utility to produce a specification of your system's hardware and software.
With System Spec you can see, save and print a complete spec of your PC. This standalone, system information utility can also perform various windows functions. Additional advanced info includes CPU, drives, applications, display, memory, networking, internet, CD / DVD drives and more.

Features:

System Information Shown

* Computer Name
* Username
* IP Address
* MAC Address
* Windows version and service pack
* Windows Serial Number
* Internet Explorer Version
* Memory
* CPU Type and speed
* Calculated CPU Speed
* Sound card type
* Video and virtual video adapters
* Screen Resolution
* Network Present
* Network Adapters
* AC Power Status for laptops
* Battery Charge Status for laptops
* Time Zone
* CD / DVD Make and model
* COM Ports
* LPT Ports
* Mouse capabilities
* Hard Disks
* Hard Disks Serial Number
* BIOS Date
* PC Serial number
* Manufacturer
* PC Product
* PCMCIA Laptops
* USB ports
* Firewire ports
* Motherboard
* Modem

Windows function such as shutting down and run can be performed from the System menu. The Control Panel menu allows you to quickly open items from the Control Panel.

Other screen and system information shown.

* Personal
* Memory
* Display
* Drives
* CD / DVD
* CPU
* CPU Meter
* Processes
* Services
* Internet
* Programs
* Start-up
* Network
* Network Adapters
* Browse Network
* User List
* Printers
* Sound
* Devices


Review:

Knowing your computer is important, it allows you to know its capabilities if you want to upgrade your computer or in looking a specific driver. With that said one of the most simple and straightforward ways of getting to know your PC has to be system spec, just run it and system spec will show a basic overview of the hardware and software that you have, you can see more advanced reports using the icons on the upper right, in addition you can run several windows functions from one place making this a good method of running those services.
In conclusion system spec is pretty awesome and portable too, so use it if you want learn more about your computer hardware. Available for Windows 98/2000/XP.


Get it at http://www.alexnolan.net/software/sysspec.htm

Need an ultra basic image viewer?, then try First Impression

Overview:

Graphic viewer that shows images as they are, nothing more, nothing less.
It's fast.
Supports most of the famous image formats, including jpg, gif, png, tif, etc.

Features:

No Unnecessary UI

For images' sake, First Impression abandoned all the space-occupying standard UI elements. All its features can be accessed via the right-click context menu instead.

Easy Navigation

You can easily navigate through image files in a folder, using the Space and Back-space key.

Fast Displaying

Image loading and displaying are optimized to provide the best possible speed.

Unicode Support

First Impression can load images from any exotically named files and folders.

Visual Features

First Impression has several interpolation modes to provide better results when an image is resized. You can also flip and rotate the loaded image.

Review:

Sometimes less is more, excpet in those times when you want more. Anyway first impression (weird name, probably all the good ones were already taken) is an ultra basic image viewer, so basic that that strips everything that you are accustomed to expect in an standard image viewer, showing pictures is the main feature. As an image viewer its get the job done , however its has several nags that i really don`t like for starters you advance to the next picture with the space key button and you go back with the backspace key and there is no way of changing that, you can`t even configure keyboard shortcuts or anything like that. Another thing that i don`t like is the lack of a true fullscreen view that i am so used to, the displayed images are shown without a black background, this is probably a personal preference of mine but still.
In conclusion first impression is your saviour if you just need to view pictures without having any of the extra options that can be had with other image viewers. Available for Windows XP/Vista.


Get it at http://www.utilhaven.com/fi/index.htm

Make strong passwords with FlyingBit Password Generator

Overview:

If you need to create a password that meets all security requirements, use FlyingBit Password Generator. A lot of options and ease of use make it simply indispensable to system administrators and usual users. You just start the program, click just one button and get your password. The password you get is guaranteed to be strong and is easily remembered due to its phonetic representation.

FlyingBit Password Generator allows you to change the parameters of the result that you get. You completely control such important password characteristics as its length, repeated characters and their type. The default program settings meet all basic security requirements. Its small size and the possibility to work without installation will allow you to run the program from a removable device on any computer.


Features:

* Easy to use
* Small size
* Changing the password characteristics
* Copying to the clipboard with one click
* Filtering similar characters (l,1,I,o,0...)
* Filtering repeated characters 5 items deep
* Exclude dictionary filtering
* Calculate entropy for each password

Review:

If you are a person that spends a considerable amount of time when trying to come up with a password you may consider using flyingbit`s password generator. This is a program that creates random passwords from letters and numbers, it has a bunch of configuration options like selecting the length of passwords and stuff like that. The generated passwords can be saved in a text file for save keeping or copied into the clipboard for quick use, the phonetic representation is probably on of the coolest features of the program that can help you remembering a password more easily. The only problem that i have with this program is that it takes a while to start because when you run it it will load an exclude dictionary, its not that big of a deal because it takes less of a minute but i though it was worthy of mentioning. In conclusion flyingbit password generator is a great program for the creation of strong random passwords. Available for 98/ME/2000/XP/2003/Vista.


Get it at http://www.flyingbit.com/products/password_generator/

Free video downloader will download and convert online video files

Overview:

Free Video Downloader is an absolutely free application that allows you to download video files from YouTube.com, Google Video, Break.com, Wrzuta.pl and other video services.

Video files are saved in original format mostly FLV or they can be converted to many popular audio and video formats AVI, MPG, MOV, MP3, WAV and other. With this application you can convert also video files from hard disk.

Free Video Downloader is based on multithreading architecture, so user can download / convert many files at the same time.

100 freeware - for commercial and non-commercial use. No limitations, no adware, no spyware.


Review:

There are several ways in which you can download videos from sites like youtube and such but free video downloader is probably one of the easiest. Just input the URL of a video, select an output directory , choose if you want to keep the original video type or select a new video codec and click get/convert, the selected video will be automatically downloaded and converted if you choosed that option. The only problem with the program is that it supports only 3 major video sharing files (The others i have never heard of) YouTube.com, Google Video, Break.com, which is dissapointed if you do not use those sites. In conclusion free video downloader is an excellent way of downloading videos of a limited list of video sharing sites. Available for Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP.

Get it at http://www.dhost.info/jack1024/free_video_downloader_en/

Advanced Renamer is a quick and efficient program for the renaming of files

Overview:

Advanced Renamer is freeware program for renaming multiple files or folders at once. It can use several different methods for calculating the new name including multimedia tools for sound and picture files.

Advanced Renamer makes it easy to set up an advanced batch job using multiple methods on a large amount of files. The eight different methods make it possible for you to change the names, attributes and timestamps of files in one go.

With Advanced Renamer you can construct new file names by adding, removing, replacing, changing case, or giving the file a brand new name based on known information about the file.

This program is a great utility for organising digital pictures for both professionals and beginners. The thumbnail mode lets you display thumbnails directly in the file list giving you maximum control of the renaming process. With this program you can rename all your photos in a snap.

MP3 files often have messed up names and contain weird characters. With Advanced Renamer you can change the names of your favourite music files to more suitable names using the built-in ID3 functions.


Features:

Selected features

Undo functionality
Real time preview of file rename
MP3/ID3 renaming
Image renaming with EXIF support
Thumbnail view
Supports both files and folders
Several renaming methods
Use multiple methods at once
Tag rename

Renaming methods

New Name with Tags
New Case
Remove / Delete
Replace
Add / Insert
List
File Attributes
File Timestamp

Languages

English
Danish
Turkish
Dutch
German


Review:

So i was playing with this program for a couple of days now and now i can say with confidence that its awesome. Using advance renamer is pretty easy once you have learned the way the program works, i suggest reading the getting started guide before you try the program for the first time, this way you won`t dumbly use the program and end up renaming your files without an extension, but don`t worry even if you do that there`s a handy undo option that keeps a record of the renaming of files. This program uses tags for renaming so you wouldn`t have any problems renaming files with their width and height placed into the new filename in the case of pictures or renaming music using the ID3 tags in them. In conclusion advance renamer is an easy to use renamer with dozens of options that can be used in either a basic or very advanced way, plus its also portable. Available for Windows 2000/XP/Vista.


Get it at http://aren.hulubulu.net/

WinMD5Sum will check and compare the MD5 sums of files

Overview:

WinMD5 is a small utility for the checking and comparing of MD5 sums.

Review:

Checking the integrity of a downloaded file its not easy but it could be with winMD5sum. Some websites give the MD5 checksum of a file for verification purposes, with winMd5sum you can compare the checksum of the file you have downloaded versus the checksum given at the site, if they match your file has been downloaded correctly, if its not a match then your download is corrupt. Using winMd5 is very easy and straightforward, it evens adds a sendto menu entry for easy checking of files. In conclusion WinMD5sum is a simple way of checking if you have downloaded something correctly.


Get it at http://www.nullriver.com/products/winmd5sum

OpenDownload adds a run button when trying to download something in firefox

For all the love that i have for firefox i can`t help to mention an annoying flaw that it has, i refer of course to the idiotic lack of a run button when trying to download executables, damn even IE has that! anyway opendownload adds a convenient run button for those files that you just want to use once. Works with firefox 1.0 - 2.0.


Get it at https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/207

BullZip PDF Printer lets you make PDF files from any printable document

Overview:

The BullZip PDF Printer works as a Microsoft Windows printer and allows you to write PDF documents from virtually any Microsoft Windows application.

This program is FREEWARE which means that it is FREE for personal and commercial use. It does not contain any advertising or popups (Really!).

Features:

• Print to PDF from almost any Windows program.
• Runs on Microsoft Windows 2000/XP/XP x64/2003/2003 x64/Vista/Vista x64/2008.
• Supports 64-bit operating systems.
• Direct output to the same file each time or prompt for destination.
• Control if the printer should ask if you want to see the resulting PDF document.
• Control output and prompts programmatically.
• Setup can run unattended.
• Graphical user interface.
• Password protect PDF documents.
• 128/40 bit encryption.
• Quality settings (screen, printer, ebook, prepress).
• Set document properties.
• Watermark text, size, rotation, and transparency.
• Superimpose/background documents.
• Appending/prepending documents.
• User interface control.
• Command line interface to all settings.
• COM/ActiveX interface for programmatic control.
• Support for Citrix MetaFrame
• Support for Windows Terminal Server

Review:

Bullzip PDF printer is a good program for making pdf files from printable documents, it has a bunch of useful features like password protection, watermarks and merging of PDF files and much more!. The only two faults that i have with the program is for one the lack of watermarking options like picture watermarks, not being able to place a text watermark horizontally, being unable to make a text watermark transparent and finally a cumbersome interface for selecting where to place the text watermarks. The second flaw that annoys me a little is that after installing this program you are automatically prompted to download and install the GPL ghostscript which is required in order to make the PDF printer work, sure its only a 5MB download but it irks when programs make you download something extra after installation, they should have included ghostcript in the installer, anyway i know most people won`t care but i found it worthy of being mentioned. In conclusion bullzip pdf printer is an excellent way of making PDF files from printable documents. Available for Windows 2000/XP/XP x64/2003/2003 x64/Vista/Vista x64/2008.


Get it at http://www.bullzip.com/products/pdf/info.php

Free Zune Video Converter is an indispensable tool for putting videos into a zune

Overview:

Free Zune Video Converter is an absolutely free application which converts the most popular video files AVI, MPEG, MP4, FLV, MOV and other to Microsoft Zune compatible video format WMV, MP4. You can also extract audio tracks from video files to MP3, WMA and M4A AAC format.

The application allows you to convert full movie or selected range only. You can limit output file size and set many parameters used by encoder: audio and video bitrate, fps, resolution, sampling frequency and other.

The Free Zune Video Converter interface is very simple and user-friendly. To convert video files, just drag & drop them into main window, select proper profile from list, and click the CONVERT button. If the video quality is poor, increase video bitrate.


Features:

* Conversion from AVI, DivX, XviD, MPEG, MPG, WMV, ASF, MOV, QT, FLV, SWF, MP4, M4V, 3GP, 3G2, MKV, VOB, VCD DAT to WMV, MP4, MP3, WMA or M4A AAC.

* Supported video codecs: WMV ver. 1, WMV ver. 2, MPEG-4 AVC, H.264.

* Many predefined profiles specially adapted for the Microsoft Zune player.

* Large number of options.

* Saving and restoring encoder settings.

* Don't need any installation. Just extract ZIP archive and click ZuneConverter.exe file.

* Portability. This program can be run from portable devices.

* Supported languages: english, polish.

* 100% freeware! - for commercial and non-commercial use. No limitations, no adware, no spyware.


Review:

The owners of a zune (these people exist right?) who want to a quick way of converting their video files but don`t want to install some bloated program can stop looking now because i present to you the free zune video converter. It`s small, quick and efficient, from my tests this program converts stuff really fast while using little system resources. In conclusion free zune video converter is a great program that every zune owner should use if they want to put videos in their fancy portable device, i recommend it. Available for Windows 2000/XP/Vista.


Get it at http://www.dhost.info/jack1024/zune_converter_en/

Kakasoft`s File encryption provides a quick but light way of encrypting your files

Overview:

Kakasoft`s file encryption is a very simple but efective file encryption utility

Review:

Kakasoft`s file encryption makes some promises that it doesn`t keep, for example it claims that it has:

1. Four encryption algorithms Blowfish, AES, MD5, Triple-DES.
2. Strong key support, handling and cryptographic implementations.
3. Encrypts megabytes of file data per second on modern machines.

the first i dunno if its true because when you encrypt stuff it doesn`t give you any option to select the encryption algorithm!, the second claim also can`t be verified without knowing the type of encryption and the third claim is the one i am willing to to concede its true because it encrypted stuff fast. So why i am posting this program if some of the stuff it claims can`t be verified?, well its because it works in a very basic but effective way. When you start the program you will see the interface of the picture i have uploaded into my post, click in "Add files" to add one or several files and type a password, if you select 2 or more files to be encrypted at the same time each one will have the same password which is a bad idea from a security standpoint, anyway after inputting a password click "Encrypt" and the selected files will have their extension changed into .encrypt and will have a new icon and also can only be decrypted by launching the file and inputting the correct password however the filename and the original extension will be visible to anyone , that is a problem if your filename is something like BIGBOOBIESANDASSES.AVI so you better rename the file you want to encrypt beforehand to something less conspicuous. Now after the file has been encrypted even if you change the extension to what it was originally and open it you will only get a message that the file has been corrupted. Kakasoft`s file encryption will probably stand low level users from getting into your files (read: your mom) but i dunno if it will stand high level users (Read: The feds) i wish i was an advanced computer technician in order to confirm this.
In conclusion Kakasoft`s file encryption is probably a good encryption utility but i wouldn`t recommend it for keeping your credit card info secret, it is better suited in my judgement to keep your porno videos secure from your mom,dad, or little brother`s prying hands. Available for all versions of Windows.


Get it at http://www.kakasoft.com/freeware.htm

UltraShredder will securely delete your files

Overview:

UltraShredder is a standalone, USB portable file shredder which deletes sensitive files by overwriting them with random characters, saving it to disk each time, and then bypasses the recycle bin, thus acting as your personal, portable file shredder. If the file were to be recovered by a data recovery program, they would only be able to see unintelligible characters on disk where the file used to be. The program is a great tool to destroy sensitive data, and is very small with a minute memory footprint, and makes no changes to your system whatsoever.

Review:

UltraShredder is a small program that deletes files in a way that makes them impossible to recover or so it claims, i was interested to see if this was the case so i copied an excel file in one of my hard disk partitions and i shred it 10 times using ultrashredder , then i used soft perfect file recovery and i searched for any recoverable files and i only found some weird eeee.eeee file that wasn`t usable in anyway even after changing its extensions to .xls (Excel`s file extension).
After this little "check of quality" i have concluded that ultrashredder is a solid way of securely deleting files, so delete with confidence whatever sick stuff you have downloaded from the internet and sleep well in knowing that your wife can`t recover your hardcore porn collection. Available for Windows 98/2000/XP.


Get it at http://www.xtort.net/xtort-software/ultrashredder/

New posts layout

Because of a suggestion of a lady (you know who you are) i have decided to change the layout of my posts, i have been having problems all along with meshing my thoughts with the features of the program i am talking about so from now on each of my posts will be structured something like this:

Overview
UberCoolware is a great utility for blah blah and blah.

Features/Specs
- It is uber cool.
- And more.

Review
Yes, I know the name is bad, but blah blah blah.

This will allow me more freedom to just focus on the review without having to worry about putting the features alongside it.
So hopefully with these changes i can provide a better reading experience to my readers, or something like that.

SoftPerfect File Recovery will salvage your deleted files

SoftPerfect File Recovery is recovery tool, just select a drive and click search and immediately you will see a list of the files that were deleted, keep in mind that SP file recovery can`t recover files if the media was formatted or the file was overwritten , you can filter by file extension using the search box located on the upper hand corner. Softperfect file recovery is fast, really fast in both searching for files that can be salvaged and restoring them, truthfully i was pleasantly surprised when i first tried it since other programs just took so long in doing their purpose, plus it also supports various file systems like FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, NTFS and NTFS5 with compression and encryption. The files recovery itself is really good not once i had a restored file that i couldn`t use except for text files that sometimes had their filename changed but their content remained unchanged.
In conclusion softperfect file recovery is a quick and efficient way of recovering deleted files from your drives. Available for Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista.


Get it at http://www.softperfect.com/products/filerecovery/

Download videos from the web with Download Helper

Download helper is a firefox extension that can help you download videos using only one click from several video sharing sites. After installation you will notice a new black and white icon on your browser that changes color when there is a video file available for download, just select the video file from the dropdown list and the download will start. Download helper works with youtube, MySpace, Google videos, DailyMotion, Porkolt, iFilm, DreamHost and other video sharing sites and supports a wide variety of video file types.
Download helper is a great little addon if you would like to save a cool video you watched on a site. Available for firefox 2 and the firefox beta 3.


Get it at https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/3006