Keeping my computer running smoothly is the of the utmost importance to me. Here’s a few programs that help me along and at no cost.
Note: If you’re a Mac user like ALIE you can stop reading right now. You probably won’t comprehend my stellar vocabulary anyways.
PerfectDisk 2008 - Disk defragmenter. Keeps your hard drive from having to search all over for pieces of a certain file. (May be a demo. I’m not sure. They still haven’t actually asked me to pay.)
Ad-Aware 2008 - Searches for spyware, adware, trojans, etc. The actual scanner is free but you have to pay for on-the-fly protection. The free features suffice though.
Spybot - Basically the same as Ad-Aware, only it includes the immunization feature which stops you from browsing sites known to be infected as well as evil cookies.
Comodo Firewall - Tells you whenever a program is making a connection to the internet. By using Defense+ you can stop programs from making changes to your registry and other important shit on your comp. Be warned that you’re going to get a LOT of pop-ups when you first start using it. Once you’ve defined a bunch of trusted apps the pop-ups will slow down but you’ll still get them whenever you install programs or start using a new program.
avast! - Uber sweet free virus scanner. Has active scanners that monitor the files you download and the emails you open and ensures that they’re virus free. Only complaint is the default scanner as it’s really hard to use. That can be fixed by downloading a more user-friendly skin; I recommend aVist.
CCleaner - Clears your temp files among other garbage that’s just clogging up your hard drive.
Wise Registry Cleaner Free - Gets rid of useless registry entries that could potentially slow down your computer. It’s probably not even necessary but I’m a bit OCD when it comes to this stuff. Note though: The registry is the heart of your computer. Messing with it can seriously screw up your computer. If you’re not sure what you’re doing then may just want to skip this program.
OKAY. That’s about it. Happy computing, folks.
Popularity: 4% [?]
Recent Comments