It's All About Portability

Have you ever found yourself at a different computer than your own, wishing you could use your favorite browser or utility? Well, now there is a way to carry some of the most popular portable apps in your pocket. PortableApps.com has everything you need to be productive no matter where you are; work, library, or a friends computer. The beauty of a portable application is that it doesn't need to be installed on the computer hard drive. Everything runs off a USB portable flash drive. Plug it in, run the program, disconnect. What could be easier.

 

PortableApps.com includes applications for Accessibility, Development, Education (including a Bible study tool and portable planetarium!), Games, Graphics & Pictures, Internet, Music & Video, Office, Operating Systems (Mac-on-Stick Mac OS Classic 7), and Utilities. With over 90 portable applications there is definitely something for everyone. The PortableApps.com suite includes some of the most used and helpful portable apps with the integrated PortableApps.com menu and the Portable Apps.com Backup Utility. This is not just another download location but an integrated system with comprehensive support.

So if you are looking for some of the best free software in a portable suite the PortableApps.com is the place for you. They have been featured in PC Magazine, PC World, Popular Science, and USA Today just to name a few. Surf on over and take a look to see if the suite is for you. You can also just download the individual portable apps that are right for what you need to do.

 

 Next time we will look at email in a way you may have never considered. Leave comments or suggestions on this article and don't forget to follow us on Facebook!

The Last of the Free...

Last of the free what? Oh, just a simple utility called Fastone Screen Capture. This handy little gadget allows you to 'capture' anything on the screen. Any game, website, facebook (you know, farmville and countrylife, etc), even this blogpost in progress.

Pretty cool, huh? It is super easy to add the little red arrows and text boxes, just click the drag. Follow the link above to get the full version or the portable version, which can be installed on a USB drive and used on any computer without the need to install it on the computer. Very handy when you have to use someone else's system, or use the internet at the library or school. Now I would like to show you my Country Life from Facebook.

Alright enough already, you get the point. It is a fun and useful tool and I have provided the link above for the last freeware version. 5.4 started the pay version of Fastone, but with a little searching anything can be located on the internet. Maybe we'll look at that next time. Until then, happy capturing!

Simply Better

VLC Media Player

"The cross-platform open-source multimedia framework, player and server"

VLC media player is an open source alternative to Windows Media Player. The great thing about this media player is that it plays just about everything, including dvd, cd, mp3, FLAC, avi, mp4, ogg, wave, midi, wmv and a host of others. I first started using VLC after I had a problem playing a file in Windows media player. I couldn't get it to work even though I had played other video files of the same type. Finally I downloaded a codec pack and got the player to start working only to have the same problem with another media type. I admit that it was frustrating trying to figure out the problem, but not near as frustrating as dealing with the issue of media player crashing. I needed something stable and reliable.

That is when I found VLC media player.  This is no ordinary 'free' media player, but a powerful free tool licensed under the GNU general public license-. The following text is from the 'preamble' of the GNU General Public License:"The licenses for most software are designed to take away your freedom to share and change it. By contrast, the GNU General Public License is intended to guarantee your freedom to share and change free software--to make sure the software is free for all its users." The benefit of such a license on free software is the ability for developers to make changes and improvements that make something good even better. There are several versions of this player on every operating system platform, which allows a greater chance of finding exactly what you need.

I use the basic media player available here. Simply download and run the installer. That is all there is to having a fully functional, virtually crash proof, free media player that can play almost all audio and video files "straight out of the box". One other cool feature is the ability of VLC to play streams directly from youtube. Just copy the url of the video you want to see and hit ctrl-v, and VLC will play the file.

This piece of free software is simple to use considering the fact that it is not just your average media player, but an open source project for nearly any media file you will ever come across. It's really time to start ditching the bloated, resource hungry, crash-prone software that comes pre-installed on the computers we buy. Let's learn to stop relying on what 'they' force feed us and begin using free, open source software that is more functional and better quality.

Clean it up!

So you say your computer is running slower. Maybe it is just tired from all the internet surfing, or perhaps it needs a nap. No, what is happening is the system is clogged up. Think of the Interstate at 3am. It's not congested and you can usually cruise at the speed limit with no problems at all. Now think of Friday rush hour on the same stretch of Interstate. There is a noticeable difference. We have to realize that there is nothing wrong with the road or with the cars on the road. There are just too many cars traveling the same path to get to their destinations.

Your computer is the same way. Almost every program you install wants to be used, therefore it adds itself to your start up so it can be running in the background, even if you don't use it regularly. Another problem is junk files that accumulate and clutter everything up making it take longer for the computer to find and access the files you need. Uninstalling unused programs can free up space but often leave files that aren't deleted and registry entries that don't do anything, thereby taking up space and causing the computer to 'look' at unnecessary information on it's way to what you want it to do. Computer memory and speed operate just like your car on the Interstate. When the road is clear the going is good, but when the road is congested it is slow and frustrating. The idea is to "clear the road" so you can get to where you are going.

Today we will look at three ways to "clear the road" and make your computer operate at full capacity. The first is to clear the junk files. I recommend that you don't keep a long history in your internet browser (which is firefox, right?), or keep cookies forever. Delete that stuff every now and then. A setting in firefox will allow the cookies to be deleted every time you close the browser and another setting that doesn't remember history at all. These options are not for everyone and you should decide whats best for you. The second thing we need to do is to clean the registry. The registry is a hierarchical database that stores configuration settings and options on Microsoft Windows operating systems. Basically it tells programs how to operate and stores user preferences (that is a very basic definition). Imagine a dictionary that wasn't alphabetized and had recipes interspersed among the definitions. Now try to find a word's definition. Wouldn't be easy would it? Now take all the recipes out and put it in alphabetical order and it becomes very quick and simple to find what you are looking for. The third is to put all our files back together in order to access them quickly. So how do we accomplish these tasks easily and effectively? We will use three simple programs that are safe and thorough enough for even the most stubborn computer. Note: if the computer is old and outdated, then nothing will help it. Most software today is bigger and requires more computing power than just a few years ago. Nothing will make it work beyond what it was designed to do, but we can make it work to the best of it's ability.

First up is CCleaner. Download and install, always remembering to do a custom install and never install any toolbars or 'extras'. This was originally called "Crap Cleaner" but the name was a little beyond what people deemed 'reliable software'. It is a fast, easy to use tool that will really keep things in order. CCleaner offers a file cleaner, a registry cleaner, an uninstall manager (better that windows add/remove), and a start up manager. The file cleaner is simple to use and thorough enough to be effective without deleting anything important. Simply analyze, double check what it found, just to be safe, and click 'run cleaner'. In a few seconds you will have freed up a good amount of space. The registry cleaner scans for issues and lists them before doing anything to the registry. When you click 'fix selected issues' it gives the option to back up the registry, which is a good idea just in case. After that, click yes to back up, then 'fix all selected issues'. It should be done in a couple of seconds. While this tool is effective at cleaning the registry, it is not a deep registry cleaner. We will see that in the next piece of software. On to the uninstall manager. I feel like this is better that windows add/remove because it doesn't 'hide' programs. Most anything that is installed can be uninstalled, and that is a good thing considering all the bloatware that most computers are sold with. You just have to get rid of that junk because most of it is either useless or trial versions of software the company wants you to buy. There is not much more to explain with that feature. Now to the start up manager. This has to be the best tool I found for speeding up the boot process and freeing up memory. Remember that almost every program you install will want to be on the start up list. Well not every one is needed every day, so why not open certain programs only when you need them? Click on tools, then start up and a list of all programs in the start up will appear. Carefully examine the entries and google anything unfamiliar. Once you know what you need to start up with your computer you can turn the others off. Do this by simply clicking the entry and clicking 'disable'. Just like magic it doesn't start up when you reboot. I only start up my wireless, my Comodo firewall, and my touch pad (laptop). Nothing else unless I need it and only when I need it. On to something more in depth.

For a deeper registry cleaning I recommend Comodo Registry Cleaner. This is different than the Comodo System Cleaner, which I found to be oversized and practically worthless. Follow the link, download and install. I can't say it enough so do a custom install and accept no toolbars or extras. After installation, open the cleaner and go to Miscellaneous, then to Settings. Only two boxes are necessary to check and those are 'create backup...' and 'prompt for restore point...'. Uncheck the other boxes. Go to the Summary tab and click 'Scan My Registry', read the warning and click 'ok'. The cleaner will do the rest and prompt you when it is done. This only takes a few minutes but it is very detailed. When complete it will show you the errors it found. Notice that all will be selected except for 'unsafe entries'. Normally these are nothing to worry about, but google them if you are unsure. I usually delete the unsafe entries as I have never found anything that would be a mistake to delete. Click 'clean registry' and it will prompt to create a restore point. Click either yes to create the restore point or no to bypass that option and the cleaner will instantly start cleaning the registry. Usually this takes less than a minute and when it is finished you can close Comodo Registry Cleaner and go about your computing with a clean registry.

Last but not least is Defraggler. Defraggler is a small and fast file and disk defragmenter, which essentially means it takes files that are in pieces (fragmented) and puts them back together in the same location, making it easier and faster to find what you need. Download and install Defraggler (and remember our install rules), then double click to open. Click Analyze to get the status of your file system. Notice how many files are fragmented and what percentage. Now just click Defrag and let it do it's thing. I normally just leave the computer alone until it is done, which can take a while due to large hard drives or a high percentage of fragmentation. Once it is complete you will have your files together where they belong and your free space optimized and ready for more information to be stored.

I recommend downloading and installing all three of these applications before running anything. After installing, run CCleaner. Do any uninstalling first, then check the start up manager and make any changes. Next clean the files and last clean the registry. At this point I recommend rebooting since only those programs you allow in the start up will be running for the next steps. Start Comodo Registry cleaner and follow the instructions above. Last, run defraggler until it is complete. I usually do another reboot just to start fresh, but it isn't totally necessary. After these steps you should have a computer that runs like it did when it was new! Do these steps every two or three weeks depending on your needs.

I would like to hear from you what you would like me to post next time. Follow us on Facebook and leave your ideas in the comments section of this post or on the Facebook group wall. I will take tomorrow off since it is a day of rest and worship and start back Monday, so have a great weekend.

Help! I have a virus!

Anti-virus is a big business today because, as you might suspect, there are a ton of viruses out there. A quick google search revealed 22 major anti-virus programs. As you might suspect by now, we will be considering only free software. I am no fan of Norton or Mcafee. Not only do you have to pay for them but they are not even the best. The only thing you will get with either one of these is the privilege to pay for them and a huge program to hog up precious computer resources. Don't fall for slick ads or the fact that new computers come with them preinstalled.  If you already have one of these you may feel bad about uninstalling something native to your computer or because you paid for it. These are not good reasons to keep bloated, ineffective anti-virus software. In fact, to uninstall Norton you generally have to use a special "Norton Removal Tool" because it's roots run deep.

I have 3 anti-virus and anti-spyware tools I use. They are AVG free, Malewarebytes Anti-Malware, and Spybot-search and destroy. All are free but the first two offer paid versions which are unnecessary to the average PC user. The first step is to remove your existing virus software using add/remove programs in control panel. Delete all backups if prompted to and don't panic about not being protected for a few minutes. You have a good browser and firewall installed by now, and if not, please read the previous posts and do it!

First up is AVG free. First off, it's free! Now not everything free is worth it, but this sure is. AVG offers a good virus that is updated frequently to meet the new viruses that are created almost daily. Downloading and installing takes a while, but you won't have to leave your computer unattended. There are other options with the free download including a link scanner and an email scanner. I don't use either one of these but they are good at what they do. Try it out because you can disable those later if you want. Remember, we don't install toolbars so read everything before you click next or ok. You may have to uncheck a box or two during the installation. Once it is installed, click update. It is automatic and will give you the status of the software. After that, I click is all it takes to scan your entire computer. The entire scan will take a while since it is very thorough. The option to schedule scans will be up to you. I don't use the scheduling feature since I prefer to decide when to scan and when not to. It is a good option to have and you may want to try it to see if it works for you.

Next is Malewarebyte's Anti-malware. This software is super speedy and can distinguish between false positives and truly dangerous applications. It has picked up things other software misses. I can't recommend it as a stand alone with nothing else, but it will get into the deep nooks and crannies where vicious maleware likes to hide. While it doesn't offer real time protection like AVG, it is a breeze to use and update. Anti-malware also resists some virus attempts to shut down ordinary anti-virus software. It just might save your computer from the nastier viruses out there. Installation is a breeze as is updating. An interesting thing happened to Malwarebytes recently when IObit stole their database to build their own anti-virus software. Read the article here. I guess they figured if they were going to steal someone else's work, might as well get the best database!

Last, but certainly not least is Spybot! This anti-spyware is truly free although the team behind it accepts donations to keep the work going. Only download the Spybot search and destroy. We will update it after the installation. Spybot has two features that really stand out to me. One is the comprehensive database for, not just viruses, but actual spyware. The difference is that viruses are malicious to your computer but spyware is malicious to your identity. A piece of spyware can reside on your system without causing any damage except your private information becoming public. The other is the ability to immunize your browsers from known hijack attempts. This protection is before a problem happens, not to clean it up later. These two alone make Spybot a necessary tool in your arsenal. Double click the installation icon and spybot will install in a matter of minutes. After installation and 'first run' wizard will appear and walk you through the update and immunization. I usually download updates from giganet (you'll see it on the download list). After the updates and immunizations are complete then comes the scanning. There are nearly a million entries in the database, but it doesn't take all day to complete. After immunization and your first scan, your computer will feel squeaky clean and ready to run like a champ.

These are the only anti-virus programs I use, although I have used Adaware and have tried most of the others (paid and free). My philosophy is to keep it simple, but simply do away with viruses and spyware. Are you ready to use the internet again? Now you can without worry.

Next up...speed up that computer. I've actually seen people buy new desktops or laptops because they were slow or crashed every now and then. We'll look at several free programs to clean up the mess and optimize your system like new.

A Wall of Fire!

The term "firewall" always makes me think of a literal "wall of fire" that nothing can get through. Another, perhaps better, illustration would be the locks on the doors and windows of your home to prevent intrusion. Think of a firewall as protecting your computer the same way locking your house protects what is inside. A robber breaking into your home can take valuables and do damage to the living environment. Likewise, a hacker can break into your computer and take valuable information and damage the computing environment. You could be a victim of identity theft either way...the home invader steals your personal information in the form of social security cards, mail, bank information, etc., but this same information is likely stored on your computer as well. Many people shy away from using the internet to its fullest capacity because of fear. Internet banking and online stores are great assets in this technology age and there is no reason to avoid using them.

First lets look at some firewalls you shouldn't have. In my opinion, that would be anything you have to pay for. I know several people that will not use free products because they believe them to be inferior. Sometimes that may be the case, but not every time. Understand that I am not talking about trial versions but totally free (for personal use) firewalls. I'll say more about this later, but under no circumstances will I ever endorse a major name "security" product. This will include Norton and Mcafee, among others. So, what are the choices in free personal firewalls? There are quite a few, but a little research will root out the best one.

My personal choice is Comodo Firewall Pro. Follow the link to download the latest version. This firewall is bundled with the Comodo Internet Security suite. Always choose the custom install instead of the recommended install or you will get their antivirus, safesurf, and a toolbar or two. I don't use anything but the firewall and neither should you. I'm not necessarily against Comodo's antivirus, I just don't think it is the best. Instead of writing another review of Comodo firewall, I'll simply link to existing reviews that I feel are unbiased and honest. The first would be from Consumersearch.com. This is a lengthy article but the link is to the relevant part concerning Comodo firewall (click on the "TOP 4 Best Reviewed" tab to see their top picks). Gizmo's freeware has a concise article praising Comodo's efforts amongst free firewalls. With 1.4 million downloads in 2 months from Cnet alone I can say this is a very popular firewall.

Several things must be done to complete the install properly. First, if you are running Vista you will have to run the installer in Administrator mode (I'm assuming you have downloaded it already...if not see the first link above). Better yet, turn off User Account Control from Control Panel and never use it again (that is one thing that makes Vista more tolerable). Double click the installer and follow the prompts. Choose the custom install mode and only install the firewall. Ignore any toolbars, antivirus, safesearch, invitations to share information, etc. Pretty easy, right? The install should be automatic from here. Once installed the program should prompt you to restart your computer. Make sure you don't have anything open or unsaved that could be lost. After the reboot the firewall should start automatically. We want to start out in training mode in order for the firewall to get a feel for the system. Follow any prompts or instructions given. The final result will be to switch to "safe mode" for everyday operations. This firewall will give a pop up message when any unknown inbound or outbound connection is attempted. It will also keep programs from gaining registry or high level access to your computer. There are 2 options when an event is discovered and these are basically "allow" and "deny". In order to keep your sanity check the box "remember my answer" for trusted applications that you allow (like firefox) or suspect applications you deny. A little research should give you the answers on what to allow and what to deny.

That's all there is to having a perfectly capable, free firewall. One thing you must not overlook is to disable the windows firewall. Go to the Security Center (the shield icon by the clock in the lower left or in Control Panel) and disable windows firewall. I go a step further and stop the entire service. To do this hit ctrl/alt/delete at the same time and choose "task manager". Go to the services tab and look in the description for "windows firewall". Right click on this and click "stop service". Believe me, there is no need for it now.

Next time we will tackle anti-virus and anti-spyware for you beloved PC! Check out our facebook page and become a fan.

The First Step

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." Lao-tzu. This ancient proverb will be our starting point on what is possibly a never ending journey. That journey is to enjoy the internet without worrying about your privacy being breached or getting the dreaded virus. There are many anti-virus programs to choose from, but that shouldn't be the first step. Obviously, to browse the internet we will need an Internet Browser. This is our first stop.

By far the most used internet browser Microsoft's Internet Explorer. Most people that use it do so because it is on their computer when they buy it. Bill and friends just aren't in to loading alternate browsers on Windows machines, and who can blame them? Personally, I used Internet Explorer for a number of years and didn't know there was anything to be concerned about. I double clicked it and the internet popped up magically. What's to worry about? Come to find out, there was plenty to worry about! I got my first virus. It was a lovely creature that infected every part of my system. I tried the anti-virus software that came with the computer but the virus kept coming back. Apparently I had a trojan downloader. I would scan and clean my system, then more viruses! Eventually this led me to format my hard drive and reinstall Windows XP. Unfortunately, I lost 3 months of important notes by not backing things up properly. Yes, it was my fault but considering how totally flustered I was about this virus situation, I didn't blame myself.

I learned one important lesson. Internet Explorer was not a very good or safe browser. Why? Well, it is huge, not secure, and a piece of trash. I will couple this extreme point of view with Windows Firewall. You know the one...may stop an incoming connection or two but will not stop any outgoing connections once something gets through. My quest for a secure computer had begun, and I will share my journey of enlightenment with any who will listen.

The first step was to ditch IE for good. But what was I going to use? Opera was the first up. I chose it because of Fravia. If you don't know what that is then click either one of the links on his name. The first is a mirror of his reverse engineering pages, the second is searchlores. Great stuff but I couldn't get into the Opera browser (although I use Opera mini on my G1 Android). I'm not saying that Opera is a bad browser by any means. It is an awesome browser, just not for me. I don't think the average internet user will find Opera to their liking.

Then Firefox emerged. It was just what I was looking for and it had a cool icon. But what did it have besides that? Did I really dump IE for a cool fox icon? No, I did it for several reasons. First was the promise of greater internet security. After the fiasco with the viruses that caused me to lose 3 months of important work, I just wanted to be secure. I found Firefox to be not only a better browser in terms of protection, but it looked and worked better, too. The tabs were nicer, there were many themes to customize it, and the add-ons were, and are, incredible! It was a perfect fit for my internet habits.

Here is a simple list of my Firefox including themes, settings and add-ons:

Themes-My current theme is "purple fox". It is just a purple and black color scheme but I like it a lot. My sister-in-law is using the Chicago Cubs theme and was really glad I sent the link to her. I have used other themes but I like this one for now. The point is that when I get tired of this one, I have over 400 more to choose from. No doubt there will be many more in the near future.

Settings-A quick click on  Tools then Options...gives you access to Firefox's main settings. These are pretty basic and shouldn't be a problem for the average user (like me). If there are any questions then a quick trip to google will provide the answer.  The first tab allows you to set your home page, download location and manage add-ons. The tab section is self explanatory then it is to the content section, which controls pop ups, javascript, java, fonts and colors and language. I personally don't allow javascript to resize or move my browser windows and I can control it with these options. Other sections allow the user to set Applications, Privacy and Security, while the last section is for Advanced options like networking, updates and encryption.

Add-ons-This is where Firefox can get fun and exciting. I have tried a ton of add-ons and here are a few of my favorites. First is Adblock Plus. Stop those annoying ads that pollute the internet. There are a few sites that I wouldn't go to any more because of the ad content. After I discovered Firefox with Adblock Plus, I didn't have to worry at all. Those pesky ads were a thing of the past. A good ad block subscription will even block the infamous "rick roll"! Another great add on is the StumbleUpon button. If you haven't tried this then you are missing out on 99% of the internet. Well, maybe not, but this is the best way to find new web pages that match your interests. Unfortunately, it is extremely addictive. User Agent Switcher is all about fooling web sites into believing you are using Internet Explorer (or some other browser). It does come in handy. If privacy is a concern then try Ghostery, which blocks trackers.

Firefox is hands down the best browser for surfing the internet. Some would disagree citing no problems with Internet Explorer or the "superiority" of Opera or Chrome, but don't listen to them. If you are still using IE then use it only one more time, and that is to go to Mozilla.com and download Firefox. After that, never click that annoying IE icon again...go ahead and send it to the recycling bin.

Remember, this is the first step on a never ending journey. Next up is firewalls! Stay tuned and visit again!