Tag Archives: windows

Mojopack 2.0: a software to create a portable Windows XP VS Damn Small Linux

Today, in our Freeware Page, we have posted a brief review about Mojopack a free (for 90 days, sic!) software which allows to bring your personal OS (with all the configurations) practically everywhere with you. To use Mojopac you need a working Windows XP OS, an USB portable disk or key and the Mojopac software. After the download, you can install it on your USB key in just few minutes. Mojopac works sufficiently silky on USB 2 connections but if you have time and are very patient you can use it with USB 1.1 ports. Last but not least, be sure to have administrator access privileges but some new versions, able to solve this problem, are in the plans. On the other hand we want to focus your attention on Damn Small Linux which is 100% free and can be intalled on CD, DVD, USB devices or simply embedded on your Windows XP computer. After some tests we really preferred this Linux solution because is completely free and very intuitive to use after just a couple of hours. Recommended!

Ext2fsd: an useful freeware to manage Linux partitions when running Windows

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Nowadays it is common to find PCs with more than one OS installed. Normally, when on a Linux OS, it is very simple to access Windows partitions and copy, create, delete or transfer files. Rarely, it could be also necessary to access Linux partitions (ext2 or ext3) from Windows OS but this operation it is not simple to manage. After some web-searches we have found a light and simple program which instantly allows to use Linux partitions as local disks: Ext2Fsd. In our Freeware Page we have posted a brief review about this freeware which is very simple to install (as usual we suggest to reboot your computer after the installation) and in just few clicks you will be ready to manage your Linux hard disks. We tested Ext2Fsd for a couple of weeks and we actually were satisfied from the results; in fact we have never registered any bug and all the writing – copying – deleting tasks were executed in a 100% proper way. Obviously, if you need to access a Linux partition, you are a purist and you do not want to use a Windows OS you can use a Linux Live CD. Potentially useful.

How to easily check HD health using a cross platform software: GSmartControl 0.8.3

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GSmartControl is a multiplatform (Windows, OS X, Linux) freeware drive health inspection tool which is very useful in all that case when you think something is not working perfectly on your HD. Today, in our Linux Page (in Spanish) we have posted a brief comment about this software which basically is the graphical user interface for smartct. The program is very intuitive and easy to use; it automatically detects all your internal HDs (with some external USB disks we had some problems because they were detected as unknown) and let you decide if you want to activate the SMART feature. This particular feature let you “predict certain kinds of failures with certain chance of success” so you have a better chance to avoid HD crashes and all the consequent data loss. If you prefer, clicking on the “Enable Auto Offline Data Collection” the HDs will be tested every four hours without impacting your CPU performance. I would like to focus your attention that GSmartControl is very well developed and it is possible to download many “personalized” versions for all the main Linux distributions, OS X and Windows. Last but not least, do not forget that SMART could predict some HD crashes but it is not 100% safe; for this reason we strongly recommend you to backup your PCs, at least every week!

Instantbird: the best cross platform and multi-protocol instant messaging client on the market now!

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This week, in our Linux Page (in Spanish) we have posted a brief post about Instantbird which could be actually considered as the most complete and flexible software to manage all your instant messenger client you normally use (IRC, ICQ, AIM, SIMPLE, SILC, YAHOO, MySpaceIM, XMPP, Sametime, Google, etc..). Moreover Instantbird is completely free, open source and cross platform so you can use it on every PC you have (also at work). We have tested Istantbird for a couple of weeks, without stressing it too much, and we really did not find any bugs so we are really satisfied from the results. Frankly speaking, this software does not contain any “revolutionary” new feature but it can be considered as the state of the art software in its category; something everyone has to benchmark if he (or she) is planning to develop a new instant messaging client! Recommended!

How to install XBMC on Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex

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This week, in our Linux Page (in Spanish), we posted a brief tutorial about installing XBMC on Ubuntu 8.10. As you certainly know, XBCM is a complete Media Center based on Ubuntu. This program is multiplatform (Linux, Windows, OS X and also XBOX – not officially supported-) and, in our opinion, is the most efficient and complete open source media center you can find today on the Internet. Moreover, XBMC has developed a special version that could be installed on a USB Key on a Live CD to freely test the application before installing on your PC. The post is brief but contains all the complete instructions to quickly install XBMC without problems. Please, be sure to digit sudo apt-get update in Terminal after you install the new repositories. Recommended!!

Google Chrome: how to neutralize the unique ID tracker and partially preserve your privacy

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Today, in our Freeware Page we added a post about two useful freeware which are able to remove the ID tracker contained in this new browser. Using them you will able to defend your privacy a little more effectively your navigation when using Google applications. The first is Chrome Privacy Guard (CPG), a useful tool, whose icon you will click on to activate Google Chrome. When using CPG you have to remember not to run directly the Google Chrome icon. Moreover, this software contains also a command which allows you to disable the CPG option inside Google Chrome, so your browser will send again statistical data to Google. The second one is UnChrome, an Abelssoft creation which definitively remove the unique ID contained in Google Chrome. Last but not least, I want to focus your attention on the fact that these two freeware run only in Windows PCs but we hope that a MAC and Linux version will be released in the next months. Useful!!

NoteCase: a simple multiplatform (Linux, Windows, OS X) freeware to preserve the privacy of your notes!

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Today in our Freeware Page we added a brief post about NoteCase a powerful note editor for Linux. In our tests we installed NoteCase on a Ubuntu 8.04 with positive results. This free software allows you to write complex notes dividing them between “nodes” and, if you need, it is also possible to easily create child notes at each level. Moreover, using NoteCase you can insert images and links to your text. Using NoteCase, for complex projects, you can decide to insert tag in each node and find them in just few clicks with the “Find” feature. Last, but not least, when you save your notes, you can decide to save them into an encrypted file. In few wordsNoteCase is one of the best freeware to manage notes using different OS without risks. Recommended!

Three interesting extensions to enjoy a real Web 2.0 experience with OpenOffice 3.0

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After more or less a month from its release, the new OpenOffice 3.0 is receiving tons of positive comments. Anyway, this week, in our Freeware page, we have posted some brief notes abut three different extensions which are able to improve your effectivenss in office routines. First of all we have ooo2gd a simple menu bar which allows you to directly upload or download all kind of documents from Google Documents and Zoho. The second one is the Sun PDF Import Extension which has been created to allow minimal but useful changes to PDF documents. After few minutes we were able to make some interesting changes to a complex PDF documents with just a couple of clicks and export the result “into a hybrid PDF file, which is a PDF with the embedded source file asODF “. Last but not least we tested Sun Presentation Minimizer: an effective extensions which cuts the size of presentations reducing, for example, the image sizes. Using Sun Presentation Minimizer you will be able to simply and freely decide what kind of changes you want to make to your multimedia files contained in the presentations. To conclude it is necessary to focus your attention on the feature that also allows Sun Presentation Minimizer to work on Microsoft PowerPoint presentations. In few words we think that these extensions are guaranteed to be 100% satisfactory!!

XBMC: the best multiplatform, open source media-player on the web.

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Today, in our Linux Page (in Spanish) we added a brief post about XBMC, the best open source (GPL), free entertainment hub you can find on internet. XBMC is really easy to install (for Linux users, especially in Ubuntu) and its features are very intuitive and simple to configure. Moreover the graphics themes are very attractive and it is able to manage many multimedia formats, “playlists, audio visualizations, slideshow and weather forecast functions”. It is also possible to add many interesting third-party plugins that you can find through a simple google query (XBMC plugin). Last, but not least, XBMC is a multiplatform software, in fact the download page contains four different versions for Windows, XBox, Linux and MAC OSX. When we compared XBMC to the Windows Media Center we did not notice any loss in this open-source media center and, honestly, we were positively impressed by all the XBMC featured we tested. Recommended!

How to freely annotate, typewrite and draw your pdf files: Foxit Reader 2.3!

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More or less two years ago, at the very beginning stage of this blog, we wrote a post about Foxit Reader, a freeware software which allows you to read pdf files without using Acrobat reader or other proprietary programs. Today, in our Freeware Page, we have written a simple but effective post about the new features contained in Foxit Reader 2.3, the new updated version of this wonderful software. First of all it is necessary to focus on the new features contained in the Tools menu which allow you to typewrite, draw or commenting your pdf files even if they are locked by their authors. Using Foxit Reader you can actually personalize your pdf documents adding notes and -de facto- improving their value for your own goals. Please, do not forgive to save an extra copy of your original pdf files if you do not want to delete all the comments/drawings you have added. Moreover, the new version of Foxit Reader includes also a player to watch or listen the multimedia elements coming with pdf files. Last but not least, in my experience Foxit Reader 2.3 contains more features and it is simpler to use than its Ubuntu competitor PDF Editor. A freeware to try!