Advanced SystemCare

Advanced SystemCare

Added 18.11.2011     Version 5.0

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Advanced SystemCare Free 5 uses its powerful arsenal of optimization tools to keep your PC feeling fresh and clean. 

It also includes a couple of features that could help boost performance for either gaming or work purposes--your choice.

Advanced SystemCare's Quick Care option includes the ability to clean your registry, perform a rudimentary malware scan, fix and remove broken shortcuts, delete junk files, and erase browsing tracks. 

It works in a flash, requires almost no user input, and to make things even easier, can be configured to run on system startup.

The Deep Care option, on the other hand, takes system care to another level. 

It performs all of the Quick Care items to a much deeper degree, plus it adds several other scans and fixes to its checklist, including disk defragmenting, a Windows vulnerability fix, and a system optimization with several presets. 

Understandably, this kind of deep digging can sometimes make a user nervous. 

Fortunately, the program's log records all of its activities, letting you see how each affects your computer.

Scan times for the Quick Care and Deep Care options differ significantly, yet, both processes still seem blazingly fast. 

For instance, we completed a Deep Care scan in approximately 15 minutes, which is an impressively short time for a system-invasive program like this.

Brand-new to version 5 is the Active Boost function, which runs in the background and automatically improves PC performance by managing your system resources. 

We recommend enabling it, as it even keeps a log of all the active processes that it manages to speed up. 

Also important, Version 5 connects to the cloud in order to keep its database up to date.

As for Advanced SystemCare's user interface, we were impressed, to say the least. 

The main dashboard is superclean, with nifty icons and intuitive navigation. 

Plus, there's an unimposing smiley face always at the bottom of the screen, indicating your PC's overall health. 

If you click the Status button next to the smiley, you can also get more detailed info from the system performance monitor.

One part of the program we recommend new users approach with extreme caution is the Turbo Boost, which can be set to optimize for either gaming or work purposes. 

It sounds fun, but you must first configure the tool by telling it which core system services to disable in order to accelerate your computer's performance. 

Since the Turbo Boost section doesn't spell out how disabling these services might affect your computer, we highly recommend doing your research before exploring. 

To its credit, though, Advanced SystemCare can create rescue points, so it's not hard to undo changes if you end up making any mistakes.

One small problem we found was that some of the program's options open in new windows, while others open in the same window. 

Those in the same window have convenient back-navigation buttons in the upper left; those in new windows are sometimes overlaid directly on top of the previous window and make it hard to see how to return to the previous screen. 

Also, we were a bit turned off by the cleverly disguised ad for Roboform Password Manager during installation. 

It looks a bit like a terms-of-service sheet, so be sure to read carefully before your instincts kick in and you automatically click Accept.

Overall, we love Advanced SystemCare's toolset, performance, and convenience. 

Sure, we wish the program were more explicit about how it changes your computer, but we still think it's an awesome all-in-one system utility, and we highly recommend downloading it.

Free registry repair and cleaner - Advanced SystemCare Free. What does it help? 

Slow down, freeze, crash and security threats are over. 

Advanced SystemCare Free is a comprehensive PC care utility that takes an one-click approach to help protect, repair and optimize your computer. 

Scanning and finding what other utilities miss, it can keep your PC error-free and smooth than ever. Why Advanced SystemCare Free? New PC Performance - Do you remember the feeling of a brand new PC when you first bought it? 

Why not try Advanced SystemCare Free, a free PC tune-up utility that focuses on the performance of your PC. 

Computer Crashes without Reason - Have you ever encountered your PC crashes and you even did not know why. 

After months or years of using your PC, there might be plenty of changes, which added burdens to your PC but never get cleaned. 

What Advanced SystemCare Free does is to clean the stuffs that are left over and clean craps to make your PC neat and clean. 

Registry Repairing and Cleaning - As an elementary part to a PC, if it does not working well, then your computer will be in big trouble. 

What does Advanced SystemCare Free do? 

It cleans the records which is unnecessary to your PC but makes the PC running slow and produces troubles. 

It also repair parts that are missing and make the PC complete.

What's new in this version: Version 5.0 features new architecture and re-written source codes for 32bit/64bit system; new UI technology for quicker start and less resource usage; new ActiveBoost function for real-time optimization; and new Cloud technology to keep database up-to-date.

Internet Download Manager

Internet Download Manager
Added 29.12.2011     Version 6.07.16


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Don't let the dull name fool you: Internet Download Manager is a full-featured package that handles downloading tasks with aplomb. 

It conveniently integrates into your browser, even if you use Mozilla or Opera.

It automatically sorts incoming files by file type and puts them in the appropriate folder. 

Most importantly, it supercharges download speeds (it doubled ours). 

Its windowed interface is clean and easy to understand. 

Power users can take advantage of the command line interface to resume file transfers, schedule downloads, connect through dial-up, or log on to password-protected sites. 

Experienced users also can limit the number of connections, the download speeds for specific sites, and even create an exception list to block specific, user-defined sites.

Other features include automatic virus checking and the ability to download all files linked to a page. The new version has a Web spider that can analyze a site and retrieve, for example, all the images on it.

Internet Download Manager strikes us as a natural choice for users in need of a trusty transfer tool. 

Internet Download Manager is a tool for increasing download speeds by up to 5 times, and for resuming, scheduling, and organizing downloads. 
The program will resume unfinished downloads due to network problems, or unexpected power outages. 
The program features a full-fledged site grabber that downloads files that are specified with filters, for example, all pictures from a Web site, different parts of Web sites, or complete Web sites for offline browsing. 
The program supports HTTP, HTTPS, FTP and MMS protocols, and has an adaptive download accelerator for MP3 audio, FLV and MPEG video files. 
The program also features Download Video and Audio Panels for Internet Exporer, Chrome, Opera, Safari, Firefox and other Mozilla based browsers that appears on top of a web-player and can be used to download flash videos from sites like YouTube, MySpaceTV, Google Videos.

TeamViewer

TeamViewer

Added 14.12.2011     Version 7.0.12313

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TeamViewer is an excellent screen-sharing and file-transfer app that can be used to facilitate business collaborations, remotely access a second computer, or help distraught relatives diagnose and cure computer problems.

Along with being free for noncorporate use, it gives users precisely the tools they need to share screens securely, send files with a minimum of hassle, control access rights, and even flip which user has control.

The options available while you're in control work smoothly.
You can maximize the pane that the other computer's screen is visible in, as well as utilize several smart options from a drop-down toolbar in the center of the window.
A big X lets you close the connection, while the Actions button lets you switch who's in control, disable remote input, and reboot remotely.
The View menu hides options to adjust the screen resolution, the optimization toward speed or quality, and control multiple-monitor displays.
New features that work just as effortlessly as the old ones include VoIP audio and video conferencing, and integrated teleconferencing.
These features push TeamViewer a notch above the rest because they will work without requiring firewall reconfiguration.

When you log in, you're given an access code and a password.
Sharing those allows your computer to be controlled by the level you set it to: remote support, presentation, file transfer, or VPN.
The TeamViewer servers remember which computers you've connected to, so reconnecting to previously shared computers happens faster.
TeamViewer also has a Web-based version, for remote connecting to home from public computer. Even the installation process is impressive.
Users can toggle admin rights, can opt out of running at startup, and can opt into installing the TeamViewer VPN driver for more secure screen sharing.
TeamViewer makes screen-sharing and file-sharing as fluid and unobtrusive as it should be, and is a must-have for the home or remote office user.

Would you like to help friends or acquaintances with their computer problems from a remote location or have them help you?
Do you want to make large files available to others - quickly and easily?
Or would you like to show your desktop to someone at a remote location?
In these and many other cases, TeamViewer is the perfect freeware for you.
Use TeamViewer free of charge as a personal user and benefit from its extensive capabilities: remote control of PCs, transfer of files, working online with others in a team, communicating via VoIP or video, chatting or presenting online.
TeamViewer is easy to use and secure (and trouble-free behind firewalls, proxy servers and NAT routers).
Test it yourself: Download TeamViewer (without registration). Your first connection will be up and running in two minutes.

WinRAR

WinRAR
Added 30.05.2011     Version 4.01


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WinRAR is a lightweight, flexible, and easy-to-use archiving utility that can unpack most archive formats, as well as compress to both RAR and ZIP. 

Free to try for 40 days ($29 for single license), WinRAR is definitely top dog in the compression category.

WinRAR's interface is about as simple as it gets. 

Start creating (or add to) an archive by dragging and dropping your files into the interface or by browsing through the Folder Tree side panel (when enabled). 

From there, the most common functions are laid out in the form of colorful, mostly intuitive icons, which can all be customized by downloading themes from the company's Web site. 

Add files to, Extract, Test, Delete, or even Repair archives right from the main interface. 

Drop-down menus house the program's more advanced features, including self-extracting archives, archive locking, benchmarking, and autodeletion of temp files.

In our performance tests, both creating and unpacking archives was blazingly fast. 

Compression ratios varied depending on file type, but in general seemed on par with or slightly better than other archiving programs.
Overall, WinRAR is a winner because of its speed, simple interface, flexibility with file formats, and powerful advanced features.

WinRAR is a 32-bit / 64-bit Windows version of RAR Archiver, the powerful archiver and archive manager.
WinRAR's main features are very strong general and multimedia compression, solid compression, archive protection from damage, processing of ZIP and other non-RAR archives, scanning archives for viruses, programmable self-extracting archives(SFX), authenticity verification, NTFS and Unicode support, strong AES encryption, support of multivolume archives, command line and graphical interface, drag-and-drop facility, wizard interface, theme support, folder tree panel, multithread support and Windows x64 shell integration.
WinRAR provides complete support for RAR and ZIP archives and is able to unpack and convert CAB, ARJ, LZH, TAR, GZ, ACE, UUE, BZ2, JAR, ISO, Z, 7-Zip archives. WinRAR is available in over 40 languages.

YouTube Downloader

YouTube Downloader

Added 22.12.2011     Version 3.5

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YouTube Downloader is a popular, free program that enables you to download and convert online videos (legal content, to which you have the rights) for later viewing on your desktop or mobile device. 

It can convert files to MOV, MP4, 3GP, WMV, AVI, or MP3.

The name "YouTube Downloader" is terribly misleading because the program, in fact, downloads a whole lot more than just YouTube videos. 

On the developer's site, you can find an extensive list of additional supported sites including Facebook and Vimeo. 

This wide net of support easily pushes YouTube Downloader to the top of its category.

When you find a video you'd like to download, copy the URL of the video page and open YouTube Downloader. 

From there, you'll notice that the program automatically pastes the URL into the appropriate field. Choose your desired Download quality (Best Available is a nice option) and your destination folder, then hit Download. 

Once your download is finished, hit the Play tab to watch. 

The Convert tab lets you export to a different file format for playing elsewhere, and gives you a convenient mini editor for making minor alterations before your export. 

You can change video volume (or remove audio altogether) and splice footage by setting specific start and end times.

One thing that disappointed us was the absence of a one-step download-and-convert function in the free version. 

If you want the one-step convenience, you'll have to upgrade to Pro ($19.90), which also gives you the capability of downloading multiple videos at once. 

Also, it would've been nice to be able to name files before downloading them, but that's certainly not a deal-breaker.

For online video enthusiasts looking to download non-copyrighted or personally owned videos, YouTube Downloader appears to be a near-perfect tool. 

Sure it's missing a few minor conveniences, but its simplicity and the fact that it casts such a wide net of support for online video sites make it virtually unbeatable.

YouTube Downloader allows you to download videos from YouTube, including HD and HQ videos, Facebook, Vevo, and dozens of other video sites and convert them to other video formats. 

The program is easy to use--just specify the URL for the video you want to download and click the Download button. 

The program also allows you to convert downloaded videos for iPod, iPhone, PSP, Cell Phone, Windows Media, XVid and MP3, or play video that you have previously downloaded or converted.

The YouTube Downloader interface includes a tabbed format for easy downloading, converting, and playing, and a new Activity tab allows you to keep track of multiple downloads and conversions in real time. 

The program has the ability to download full playlists as opposed to just one video. 

YouTube Downloader is available in English, Arabic, Bulgarian, Croatian, Chinese Simplified, Czech, Danish, Dutch, French, Finnish, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Norwegian, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Spanish and Swedish.

Anti-Virus Software

AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 2012

Added 23.12.2011 Version 2012.0.1901

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Review:

The never-ending mantra chanted by security suite vendors sounds a lot like "faster scans, easier to use, better performance," and AVG has released a new version that it says accomplishes all three. Certainly, the scans are faster, it does install more quickly, and some tweaks to the interface have made it easier to view.

Two new core security changes will make you safer, too.

Installation:
We found that the program can go from completed download to ready to use in about 5 minutes.

Last year, AVG cut down the number of installation screens from 13 to 5.
This year, the process continues to be short, but savvy users will want to be wary of a few things. First, if you have a browser open when installing, AVG will not warn you before it forces it to close. Second, you are opted-in to AVG's Security Toolbar and the Secure Search default search engine change.
Users who opt out of installing the toolbar but want it later will need to rerun the installer to get it.

On the polite side, AVG does not opt you in to an automatic AVG Internet Security trial.
By starting from a null position, you are required to actively choose to install AVG Free or the 30-day trial of AVG Internet Security.
So this year's install procedure is a bit of a crapshoot, better in some ways than last year, but unchanged in others.

Interface:
The changes to AVG's interface in the 2011 version were minor but actually improved usability quite a bit.
This year, the tweaks are even less pronounced.
There's not much different besides redoing the icons in the main interface so they're easier on your eyes.

    

There's a one-click Fix button for automatically repairing security breaches that appears at the top along with a yellow X when your system safety has been compromised.
It disappears when your system gets a clean bill of health.

Joining the one-click Update button on the side nav is a one-click Scan Now button.
There's a clean look to the nav, as well, with bigger fonts and timestamps for the most recent scan and most recent update.

AVG has placed icons for its security components in a central pane.
Double-click on one to access more information and basic configuration settings for each specific tool.
Advanced settings are available under Tools on the menu bar at the top of the window.

The new interface changes are small, no doubt, but they do make AVG easier to use.

Features and support:
AVG 2012 includes a couple of solid changes to make you safer.
The first is a patent-pending technique for identifying one of the most obnoxious threats to ever reach your computer: the fake antivirus.
If you're unfamiliar, these programs purport to be an antivirus, or a Web-based antivirus scan.
Once they install on your computer, the only way to get rid of the infection is to "buy" their license. They're also related to the ransomware infections, which don't even bother with the effort to pretend to be an antivirus.
AVG 2012 will block both of them.

The LinkScanner tool has been improved to watch out for more dynamic code, which is essential in the security game because threats are mutating at such a rapid rate.
Meanwhile, premium users get the new AVG Accelerator option, which optimizes your Internet connection to speed up downloads and rendering.
It currently works on two sites: YouTube, and you can see its impact when pausing and unpausing videos; and Download.com binary downloads.
The accelerator protocol was developed internally at AVG.

AVG now includes a monitoring tool that automatically warns you when Firefox, Chrome, or Internet Explorer consumes too much memory.
Called AVG Advisor and in all of the AVG suites, it opens a small pop-up and asks you if you'd like to restart your browser.
There's no way to "force" it to activate, although if you open up a couple dozen tabs, wait a few minutes, and then open another dozen or so, it ought to kick in.

Changes made last year are still relevant.
The software offers what it calls "smart scanning," which leverages AVG's behavioral detection network to scan known safe files once, and only rescan them if it detects changes.
As with its competitors, AVG's network is made up of its user base anonymously contributing data up to the cloud.
You can choose to opt out of contributing your data when you install, or from the options menu.
AVG says opting out won't negatively affect your security.

The smart scanning tech also gives you a built-in system resource manager that prioritizes scans.
If a scan is scheduled to begin while the computer is in use, it will automatically restrict the scan so that it runs slower but doesn't interfere with the computer's other tasks.
When it detects the computer idling, it will then allocate more power to the scan.
The feature comes with a slider so you can customize how sensitive it is.

The desktop gadget for Windows Vista and Windows 7 users that lets them initiate scans and updates with one click, without having to open the full interface.
It also contains links to AVG's Twitter and Facebook pages, which the company uses to bolster its support for the free version.

The PC Analyzer scans your system for Registry and disk errors.
It includes a disk defragmenter and a broken-shortcut cleaner, as well.
Although the feature is restricted in full to paid users, if you have the free version, the PC Analyzer comes with a one-time offer to clean all errors it finds.
It provides a link to download the separate PC Analyzer tool, once the scan is completed.
This is an interesting twist on the idea of letting users detect but not repair errors, and it provides more functionality while not affecting the basic security of your computer.
However, it's likely that some users will shy away from the extra download.

Other features are restricted to users of AVG's paid upgrades.
The paid upgrade version of AVG Anti-Virus 2012 distinguishes itself by offering chat link shield, a download scan for files sent via instant message that looks at all ports, not just port 80, and telephone support 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The PC Analyzer option mentioned earlier is also included, and comes without restrictions.
New in 2012 to premium users is the new AVG Accelerator option, which optimizes your Internet connection to speed up downloads and rendering.
It currently works on two sites: YouTube, and you can see its impact when pausing and unpausing videos; and Download.com binary downloads.
The accelerator protocol was developed internally at AVG.

AVG Internet Security 2012 includes all that AVG Anti-Virus 2012 offers, and adds in a firewall and antispam protections.

Performance:
AVG claims some major performance enhancements in the 2012 versions.
Specifically, the company says that it has reduced by 40 percent the size on your hard drive of the virus signature database.
That database is a major component of how the program recognizes threats.
AVG also stated that the number of running processes that run suite has been reduced from 16 to 11, that it uses 20 percent less memory overall than previous versions, and that it ought to impact your computer's boot time less.

However, we can't directly compare this year's results to last year's because we upgraded our testing computer from Windows 7 x64 to Windows 7 x64 with Service Pack 1.
We can report that AVG's boot time impact was slower than average, ranging from 2 seconds slower than the average suite from AVG Free to 18 seconds slower than average for AVG Anti-Virus. AVG Internet Security was a few seconds slower than AVG Free.
This is not unusual for AVG, as it historically has a big impact on startup, but that doesn't mean we don't want to see it get faster.

Shutdown impact continued to be minimal.
Security scan times were the third-fastest suite we've seen so far year, though not as good as last year's tied-for-fastest numbers.
The impact of the suites on the computer while in use were very similar to last year's-in general, slightly better than average, but not stellar.

Security Program	Boot time	Shutdown time	Scan time	MS Office performance	iTunes decoding	Media multitasking	Cinebench
Unprotected system	40	6	n/a	395	120	342	17,711
Average of all tested systems (to date)	64.3	16.6	1,185	418	125	348	17,111
AVG Anti-Virus Free 2012	66.3	12	753	411	125	347	17,131
AVG Anti-Virus 2012	82.3	13.7	842	410	124	346	17,026
AVG Internet Security 2012	69.9	11.3	792	416	124	344	17,259

*All tests measured in seconds, except for Cinebench. 
On the Cinebench test, the higher number is better.

In our other tests, it was a bit faster than the median.
It's not a big shift from last year, but it's enough to notice that it's moving in the right direction.
You're looking at a much slower startup, fast scans, a minimal impact on shutdown, and a midrange hit to general system performance with AVG Free.

Third-party efficacy results haven't been published yet for AVG Anti-Virus Free 2012, but the 2011 suite marks are solid, if not spectacular.
In the AV-Test.org test on Windows 7 from the first quarter of 2011, AVG Internet Security 10 (version 2011) scored 13.5 out of 18 overall, a solid midrange score.
The suite had a 5.0 rating out of 6 in Protection, a 4.0 in Repair and a 4.5 in Usability.

The second quarter 2011 test, on a Windows XP computer, definitely showed improvement in some areas and regression in others.
It scored 13.0 out of 18 overall, also a midrange score.
The suite improved in Protection and Repair with a 5.5 rating out of 6 for the former and a 4.5 for the latter, but Usability dropped to 3.5 most likely due to false positives.

The most recent AV-Comparatives Whole Product test, which looks at on-demand scanning, retroactive tests, and "real-world" guards including cloud-based protections, puts AVG Internet Security 2011 toward the back of the class, out of 17 suites tested.
Looking at Whole Product test results cumulatively from January 2011 to June 2011 found that AVG came in 13th, blocking 95.1 percent of threats.
Much of that low score came from bad showings in March and April; by May it was back up in the 96 percent range.

It's fair to conclude that according to these third-party tests, AVG has been moderately effective, with some indications that it's been getting better in recent months.
However, since AVG Internet Security and AVG Anti-Virus Free share the same engine, you're getting a strong level of protection at no cost.

Conclusion:
A word of caution: We've noted before that the average person is paying more and more attention to performance, and there are far more viable operating system options than ever before.
If security is more or less similar, people will be scrutinizing system impact greatly, and adding 30 seconds or more to your boot time has the potential to drive people not just from your security suite, but from your OS, too.

All that said, AVG Anti-Virus Free continues to offer an excellent if not perfect level of security, and is well-worth a serious shot at being your go-to suite.