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Antivirus software provides an essential layer of protection from a multitude of virus, trojan, worm, spyware, adware, dialer, keylogger and rootkit infections. Traditionally antivirus programs just detected virus and spyware removers just detected spyware but nowadays the boundaries between antivirus and spyware removers are unclear. Most current antivirus have at least reasonably good detection rates of all forms of malware.

Malware (short for malicious software) includes virus, trojan, worm, spyware, adware, dialers, keylogger, rootkit and other hostile software that performs malicious activities on a computer. With the huge increase in malware, antivirus cannot fully keep up with detecting all of it. This is why it's so important to use a layered security setup. However, using more than one real-time antivirus can cause conflicts and uses much more system resources, so I recommend you only choose one antivirus for real-time protection. Instead, you can increase your protection using other security software.

I looked at several free antivirus programs which are vital in protecting your computer from virus threats and other types of malware.

Avira AntiVir Personal Edition is my top pick for the best free antivirus software if you're looking for the best protection against virus, spyware and rootkit threats. AntiVir is very light on resources and the detection rate of malware is outstanding, however, there are some reservations.

First, AntiVir does not include e-mail scanning, this is only available in the paid version. The lack of an e-mail scanner means that AntiVir won't warn you of infected emails before you open them. However, should you open an infected email, AntiVir will still spring into action, so it doesn't mean that you're not protected from email-based infections. Second, AntiVir's updates are very slow, and occasionally gets interrupted with server problems. Third, AntiVir has advertisements that appear with every update, altough you can disable these ads. Also, you can disable AntiVir's splash screen if you wish, as some people find it intrusive. Finally, AntiVir has a time-limited license. It is renewable, but be aware that you'll have to periodically go through the hoops. 

Neither Avast nor AVG is as effective in detection of virus infections and other malware as AntiVir.

Avast! Home Edition is also an excellent free antivirus. Although its funky media player style interface is not to everyone's taste, skins can be downloaded for free, such as the MacLover OS X skin. Avast is the least restricted antivirus out of the three, with both spyware removal and antirootkit capabilities, full real-time capabilities, including web, e-mail, IM, P2P and network shields, as well as boot-time scanning. Avast is fairly light on resources, and is also the only antivirus to continue support for older Windows platforms. Avast can be set as a set-and-forget solution through the use of their Silent Mode ("Customize" under the detailed settings for On-Access Protection Control), where malware is automatically removed.

On the other hand, Avast has a relatively high rate of false positives. Like AntiVir, it also requires periodic re-registration, whereas AVG Free does not.

AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition is a good set-and-forget solution, as it's capable of both automatically updating and removing threats. This is especially useful if you want to set this up on a friend's computer who is not so computer literate.

The latest version AVG Antivirus free makes further improvements to an already solid antivirus program. It now includes spyware removal, phishing and email scam protection and LinkScanner Pro.

However, AVG Antivirus free has grown considerably in size and resource usage, and has very slow scan speeds. AVG also had continuous problems with updating signatures on my computer. AVG has advertisements, but they can be disabled.

These three free antivirus software are excellent free antivirus programs that provides a real alternative to the major commerical antivirus software.

You can increase your protection if you run on demand scans with another antivirus. On demand scans can be run regularly to check for virus, trojan, worm, spyware, adware, keylogger, rootkit and other malware that may have been missed by your main antivirus scanner. If you have a good preventive security strategy in place, however, the extra protection an on demand antivius scanner offers is minimal.

You can also use one of the free antivirus mentioned above as an on-demand antivirus scanner. One advantage is that you can set scheduled scans if you wish.

Avira AntiVir Personal Edition: During the install, under "Choose Installation Type" select "Custom", and under "Install Components" untick "AntiVir Guard".

Avast! Home Edition: During the install, under "Configuration" select "Custom", and untick all the items under "Resident Protection".

AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition: In the interface, open the "Resident Shield Component" and untick "Resident Shield Active".

Norton Security Scan and Clean is an outstanding choice for an on demand free antivirus. It has excellent detection rates, with very few false positives. The downside is that it uses an older engine, but the signatures are still updated.

Another option is a-squared Free, which started as a trojan remover but  recently included the Ikarus antivirus engine. The detection rate is incredible, and a-squared also has context-menu scanning. Sadly, it is riddled with false positives, and the large update sizes make it unsuitable for dial-up users. And a-squared has a service that is running even when you aren't using it.

Kaspersky Virus Removal Tool is an excellent on demand antivirus scanner, with good detection rates and strong removal capabilities. However, it requires you to download the whole file again if you want to update the signatures. Also, the scan speed was exceedingly slow on my computer. Bear in mind that the detection won't be as good as the current Kaspersky product, which has a newer antivirus engine.

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It's been some time since my last round of testing, and the time has certainly come for a refresher. Adopting much the same approach as previously, I have been asked if there were any surprises, and the honest answer is yes, there have. The most significant surprise was how difficult I was finding it to infect my system in the first place. After three hours of browsing, deliberatley choosing websites and domains where infection was almost a prerequisite, I had nothing, and it was only after investigating various system settings that I found out why.

For those looking for the technical "how I did it", I once again started with a clean install of XP SP2 on a virtual machine, patched with the necessary microsoft updates. I deliberately did not upgrade to SP3. Having gotten my clean install, I backed it up, and then went off to infect it. Before doing so I downloaded installation packages for those on test, and once I had my machine infected, I backed up the infected machine. I restored the original infected machine to test each product, ensuring a level playing field for each test. Finally, I did incremental scans with each product on the same infected system.

So, the question is why was it so hard for me to get my machine infected in the first place, and having identified the "problem", my top recommendation is not an anti-malware product, and doesn't even involve a download or a scan of any type. It doesn't offer any form of protection on your PC, but it will help enormously against infection in the first place.

What is this magic solution? For some time, I have been using OpenDNS as my DNS server, rather than my ISPs own offering. I hadn't realised how pro-active OpenDNS is in the fight against drive by malware protection. Quite simply, every time I tried to visit a site guaranteed to infect me, it was simply shown as not found. During normal browsing sessions you never see this, and so it took me a while to realise the cause. Only after switching back to my ISP hosted DNS was I able to find the infections that I craved. Requiring only a quick, free registration and simple confirguration change, you improve your protections considerably.

Having made that recommendation, it is still possible to infect your system, either running software that may spread infection, or visiting sites that may not be in OpenDNS blacklist, and whilst an excellent first line of defence, local protection is still a must.

 

• Best Free Anti-Virus Software
• Best Free Trojan Scanner/Trojan Remover
• Best Free Rootkit Scanner/Remover
• Best Free Intrusion Prevention and Detection Utility for Home Use (HIPS)
• Best Free Browser Protection Utility
• How to Secure Your PC

This software category is maintained by volunteer editor Steve Hargreaves.

The comments section below is so lengthy that it has become difficult for our visitors to read. Future posts will now be edited for length and repetition, and personal attacks deleted. You are all welcome to join our Security Forum which is much better-suited  for intensive debate ... peter 

No other freeware product causes as much angst to users, whether in installation or day-to-day use, as a firewall. To find a stable and high quality firewall for windows often involves a process of trial and error. Firewalls should protect while not being too intrusive or too complicated to handle. This article gives you a selection of the best free software firewalls available.

If you want to learn more about firewalls, visit this excellent introduction on How Firewalls Work. Be sure to use only one software firewall at a time. But feel free to combine a hardware and a software firewall to improve protection. Additionally, most products highly recommend uninstalling other third-party software firewalls before installation.

Firewalls are increasingly useful to help you control the activities of Internet facing applications. It's becoming difficult to tell when applications connect online because they link so many of their features to Internet resources. Few programs stop to ask your permission. Often when you click for "Help," you find your browser launching and connecting to the Internet; sort of like asking your doctor for information and finding a needle in your arm instead of an answer. So, I predict that firewalls will be ever more important for privacy and control and choice.

I organized the article into three sections ranging from (I) broad protection and greater user involvement; (II) to basic 'firewall only' configurations and less user involvement; (III) to narrow protection and "set it and forget it" products.

I. Best Software Firewalls for Maximum Protection and Greater User Involvement

The following personal firewalls provide excellent network protection. Each firewall comes with default settings and shouldn't require tweaking except for the needs of advanced users. I provide some configuration and usage details since a little extra information may help you better answer popup alerts. I also give a few tips to help minimize alerts without letting malware through.

Still, they seem to require a fair amount of time to learn their features and they require more user involvement. But they are not as bad as the User Account Control (UAC) in Vista and they have various features that limit the extent of action required by you.

Oh, and I always create a drive image before installing a new firewall since they are known to give your PC serious problems if they conflict with anything. However, I installed and uninstalled each firewall several times during testing and had no problems.

Outpost Firewall Free is my top choice for users who want highly flexible protection without sacrificing usability. It was obviously made with average users in mind, judging by the care taken to simplify alert messages and make it easy to adjust intrusion prevention (or HIPS) monitoring. The default settings include port stealthing, self-protection, and an automatic silent mode for programs (such as games) entering full screen mode in addition to its inbound firewall and outbound HIPS components. The resource usage of Outpost is about half the size of the current version of Comodo.

The free version lacks many extras of the pay version, however, such as automatic updates, additional malware protection, anti-spam protection, and web safety features. Though, more annoyingly, the free version lacks helpful features such as breaking active connections you don't want. I also didn't like the automatic Outpost news updates, which place up-to-date advertisements for the Outpost Pro version in the interface. This being so, I see many user reports of satisfaction over Comodo and this is probably because of the extra care taken to reduce user involvement and limit outbound monitoring to a reasonable level.

The HIPS component is called "Host Protection" in the interface. It provides four default levels of protection, which can be easily set with a slider and additionally customized item by item by advanced users. The default "optimal" setting only monitors "most dangerous activities" instead of all program activities. So the default "optimal" settings lack protection from keyloggers, direct disk accessing, window hooking, DNS API request monitoring, etc. You can check the types of reduced monitoring by clicking the "customize" button in the Host Protection section. I believe the intention of the "optimal" level is to acclimate users to the firewall and provide more outbound protection than the windows firewall. After you get used to the firewall, you can increase its protection.

The installation asks users whether they want to train the firewall for a week (using its Auto-Learn mode and Rules Wizard). I'm not a fan of this feature (it's initially unchecked during the installation) and you can easily switch to it at any later point, say for an hour while you start using a new, trusted program. In my testing it greatly reduces protection during the time the firewall trains so (like with the other top firewalls) it's best to only train for short periods of time. One technical advantage over Comodo is that the self-protection component works well in all its levels of protection, whereas self-protection in Comodo depends largely on having Defense+ enabled.

Additionally, (along with the firewall from PC Tools) it's alert messages do not depend on the user to set "trusted" rules if they want to permanently automate HIPS alert responses for a program (in its maximum security settings). So it has the advantages of PC Tools firewall in usability and similar proactive security protection to Comodo in its maximum settings. Outpost also has a helpful feature to set rules automatically for known safe applications. Otherwise Outpost's maximum security settings are not much more user friendly than Comodo and Online Armor. It prompts the user with just as many popup alerts. And Outpost lacks some of the techniques used by Comodo and Online Armor to decrease the number of alerts in their maximum security settings, such as the more flexible safe programs list in Comodo or the security wizard in Online Armor. So Comodo and Online Armor have the potential to be less intrusive in their max settings, but the continual work and annoyance in configuring them reduces their advantages in user-friendliness, giving Outpost a considerable edge for many types of users.

If full featured security rather than ease of use is your criterion, then the Comodo Internet Security is the top contender. The firewall itself is very robust and includes an intrusion detection system (or HIPS feature -- called "Defense+" in Comodo). It also provides buffer overflow protection (a "memory firewall"), a training mode to automatically create rules for programs you trust, and a parental control password to automatically block all alerts (so children and inexperienced users do not make poor decisions on popup alerts). It's the only top, free firewall with full anti-keylogger protection. I found its "safe" mode setting for the Firewall quite user-friendly (in contrast to Defense+). On the minus side, the Defense+ HIPS is initially rather talkative, and this may unnecessarily alarm inexperienced users. The "Threatcast" community feature helps you respond to alerts by allowing you to see how others typically respond, but in my testing it rarely provided feedback. However, for the technically initiated who can cope with these annoyances, this is an outstanding free product.

During installation, it gives you a choice between three levels of security. The "Firewall Only" mode is discussed in the next section. The intermediate option mainly turns off some protection from Defense+, including some direct access monitoring. The "Proactive Security" configuration uses all Defense+ monitoring and increases in aggressiveness over the "Firewall Security" configuration. I recommend using the "Proactive Security" configuration (check this setting by right-clicking the tray icon and selecting configuration). You can reduce the number of popup messages you get and automate the behavior of Defense+ by (1) using the "Clean PC Mode"; (2) adding files to "My Own Safe Files" for safe mode; (3) treating applications that regularly need more access as trusted or blocked or isolated (etc.) when you get popup alerts about them. Though any of these require much knowledge and work on part of the user, and if the user gets frustrated they may allow malware through.

If you are fairly certain your PC is malware free, set Comodo to the "Clean PC Mode." In "Clean PC Mode" it automatically treats all applications on your drive as safe (but if any malware is currently hidden on your drive, it too would be considered "safe" in this mode). The exceptions to this rule are new files and applications. They get sent to a list of files "waiting for your review" in the "Summary" page. Files listed for review will be considered "possibly unclean" while you are in "Clean PC Mode" and will provoke popup messages. If you want to prevent initial alerts about these new files, you can manage the list before you run any programs listed in it -- you could empty it (if you are malware free) or add known safe applications to your safe files list. If you treat them as trusted or blocked (etc.) as you get alerts for them, this also automates the responses of Defense+ (even if you leave them in the list of new files waiting for your review).

It also has an alternative "Safe Mode" in which you will get many popup alerts at first. But Comodo limits these alerts by automatically allowing some known safe applications to run (unless you use "Paranoid Mode"). Also, if a safe program needs additional access to run, then Defense+ will alert you and you can decide whether to treat it as a "trusted application" (which, finally, ceases most alerts about it from Defense+ in every mode). If you don't add your everyday programs to your safe files list or treat them as trusted or blocked or isolated (etc.), Defense+ in safe mode seems to alert you constantly.

A solid contender is the free version of Online Armor Personal Firewall. The free version strips out its anti-keylogger protection and web shield (including a DNS spoof checker and a list of dangerous websites to warn you about or block). Even so, it still has outstanding leak-test and HIPS performance (the HIPS feature is named "Program Guard"). And it also has the ability to set a password to block all alerts (which also makes it a "parental control;" just with a different name), but as with Comodo, this password lock will also block programs from running or accessing the Internet if user input is required. Though, its Program Guard also relies on user input and user interpretation to answer its numerous popup alerts, so this may be quite a challenge for average users. It will learn your programs so that alerts will eventually decrease over time with a combination of its automatic list of safe programs, your responses of trustworthy programs, and your on-demand scans with its "Safety check" wizard.

The installation is lengthy if you go through its "Safety check" wizard, but it will accomplish much of what you have to do manually in Comodo's max security modes: it will search your PC for programs to set as safe and it also uses its own list of safe applications to automatically allow programs to run or access the Internet. You can disable this automatic feature in the settings, but it uses an excellent popup message when it automatically allows a program (it doesn't require user action). It has a short learning phase after installation and you can use its learning mode to create automatic rules at any point later, say, for a trusted online game that gets constantly interrupted by firewall alerts. On my testing, you receive about as many alerts as Comodo's "Safe Mode" (with applications manually added to its safe files list). But I found the installation more straightforward and user-friendly.

Additionally, Online Armor was the most resource efficient on memory use. It also allows you to close both its tray tools from its right-click context menu. Both are not needed for the firewall and HIPS components to continue running and protecting, and even with the two tray tools active, it is still the most resource efficient firewall of all top contenders in this article (with PC Tools a close second).

Also a solid performer in the personal firewall class is PC Tools Firewall Plus. It provides a HIPS-like component through its "enhanced security verification," which asks the user for input about any possible malicious behavior. It relies on a whitelist of safe programs to reduce popup alert messages, so it will only ask you about unknown programs and it will remember your decisions. In the online help it discusses an option between silent and normal modes for this HIPS, but none exists in the program interface that I can find. In any case, it matched Online Armor's overall degree of protection in the Matousec tests, so obviously it's an excellent HIPS in performance. That said, it gave me nearly as many popup alerts as Online Armor and Comodo, and it still expects a learning curve and high level of knowledge from the user to respond to the many alerts. It also lacks most anti-keylogger protection.

However, one very surprising difference was the ease of installation and configuration. In fact, I didn't have to do anything; no searching for or adding programs -- it just installs and starts protecting your PC. But, of course, this means a few extra popup alerts will appear if you have rare and unknown programs not in its automatic list of safe applications. It seems to download this list with a "PC Tools Plus Service," but if you have a slow Internet connection you may experience an overall lag for any program connecting and using the Internet until the service finishes downloading. Like the other firewalls above, you can disable the automatic allow feature in the settings to take back control.

It also has a password feature that prevents users from setting permanent rules. But you can still run any program you want as long as you don't mind clicking "allow" countless times without use of the "remember this setting" feature (so it is not really comparable to the parental controls of Comodo and Online Armor). Though, it does have an interesting "Full Screen" mode or game mode that blocks all alerts while, say, you play a trusted online game. The program looks and feels user-friendly, with a simple setup and simplified alert messages, but still it's not for average users.

II. Best 'Firewall Only' Configurations for Basic Protection and Less User Involvement

The same three firewalls above have alternate configurations (see below to configure them) that compare favorably to user friendly firewall products. These configurations accommodate the use of your favorite active anti-malware and HIPS programs, and they reduce the burden of answering chains of popup alerts and make them easier to manage for average users. Additionally, some users (of many degrees of experience) prefer to avoid advanced firewalls that employ a constant "security guard" that question them daily when they want to connect to the Internet, install a new program, play online games, or run their programs. The more you install and uninstall programs, the more the fancier firewalls need user involvement and extra work.

Outpost Firewall Free comes with reduced monitoring in its default settings. You can check this setting with a right click on the tray tool, click "Settings..." > "Host Protection" > the slider should be set "Optimal". This leads the section and is the best reduced monitoring configuration. It isn't quite a "firewall only" configuration, but it's much more user friendly than its maximum configurations.

If you disable behavior monitoring in the following firewalls, then they still provide excellent inbound protection, minimal/marginal outbound filtering, and additional features such as port stealthing.

First, of course, you must download and install the following software of your choice, then change their settings to reduce their level of protection/monitoring (in other words, disable their HIPS components). Here are the key settings to adjust:

• Comodo Internet Security: Right-click on its tray icon and set the "Defense+" feature to "disabled" or select the "Firewall only" configuration during installation. You will see the number of alerts significantly decrease like the others and I didn't notice a significant difference in usability from the other choices here (in this configuration). Comodo describes this as an excellent configuration for advanced users who use an alternative HIPS, but it also seems good for average users in my view (if not more so), especially when combined with a silent HIPS program.
• Online Armor Personal Firewall: Right-click on its tray icon and uncheck the "Program Guard" to disable the HIPS component (or do the same in the interface options). Be sure the firewall component is turned on, though! This would be an excellent, user-friendly choice for this sort of configuration and for use with other security layers of your liking.
• PC Tools Firewall: Uncheck "Enhanced Security Verification" and it will let you easily open your everyday applications without annoyance, but, of course, this includes malicious programs too as with Comodo & Online Armor in this basic configuration.

All three will still ask you whether unknown programs should have access to the Internet, but they will not worry if you start OpenOffice Writer to compose your next poem. They also seem to remember your responses to alerts in a simple, straightforward way. Additionally, all three have a list of programs they automatically allow. For example, I noticed that none of them asked whether Firefox should be allowed to connect online. Though, they did alert me when some of my other lesser known programs tried to go online for updates. So there will still be a learning curve in dealing with popup alerts, but the alerts settle down quickly once the firewall has a good list of rules for your Internet-bound software.

Though, these configurations will lose you important protection from malware running on your PC, such as root-kits, keyloggers, Trojans, viruses, or spyware, and dramatically increases the chance such malware will successfully make outbound connections (if you're without other security software). You would need additional security software to supplement these configurations. We have articles on options such as virtualization, HIPS and anti-malware. These are important security layers to help safeguard against malware and prevent it from harming your PC or from making outbound connections to steal your personal information or take control of your PC.

For average users who want to try an alternative, simple and lightweight free firewall, Sunbelt-Kerio Personal Firewall causes very little annoyance for the user in its default settings. Yet it also manages excellent inbound protection, with marginal outbound protection. Its 'no popup' configuration disables "Application Behavior Blocking." If you use its feature for advanced users, the behavior blocker, then its protection is better and it superficially operates more like the top three firewalls (except its performance isn't in their league). You would also have many popup alerts to handle at least initially. Some advanced features are automatically turned off after the 30 day trial period and some users experienced system crashes in the past. But I had no problems with it in my recent testing. Other user friendly alternatives include Ashampoo FireWall Free and ZoneAlarm Free Firewall.

III. Best Firewall for Novice Users

The built-in windows firewall is an excellent choice for novice or impatient users since it avoids the hassle and confusion of incessant alerts while employing excellent inbound protection. This may sound unusual; a Gizmo Freeware article advocating the use of a built-in windows product -- almost seems impossible. Most novice users, however, are simply not prepared to reliably handle the numerous popup alert messages of the best firewalls on the market.

Windows firewall is lacking against outbound malware threats, but users who merely click "yes" to each and every alert they encounter will not have the level of protection they think they have (and certainly not if the user gets so frustrated that they uninstall their maximum security personal firewall).

Additionally, it does not require installation, so it's the least likely to conflict with other programs or your PC. If you are fairly sure no malware exists on your computer and you have no use for the other features of a personal firewall, then windows firewall is actually a practical and useful solution.

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There are four major ways to send feedback: registered users can contact me directly here or in the forum under Contact Info. Registered users may also post in the forum. And anyone can post a comment at the bottom of this page.

I will start with a caution. These programs no matter how good they are may sometimes cause harm to your computer. With the steps below however you can avoid most problems very easily.

Tune-up utilities are just as necessary as getting a car serviced. They keep your computer running fast and error-free. There are a variety of tasks tune-up programs can do, such as cleaning temp files, incorrect registry entries, even ensuring your privacy.

There are two scenarios that stand out where these type of programs will shine. The first example being an older computer that has been running for a longer time and needs all the resources it can get. The second is computers who run resource intensive programs, such as cutting edge computer games or video processing.

All-in-one tune-up suites are more convenient than using several individual products, but the downsides are if you are unfamiliar with all the different tools you may use some above your knowledge level.Something to keep in mind as well is some stand-alone freeware are more effective than the all in one options.

Before you start with tune-up programs there is a couple things you should always do. Most of these apply as a general rule of thumb of working with computers but I just want to make sure we are all on the same page.

1. First please make sure you have a recent restore point with Windows. Case in point as I was reviewing one of these programs it disrupted my internet connection. Having a restore point before the changes were made it took no more than five minutes to fix it.
2. Have a recent back up of your critical data
3. Check the options menu of your selected software. For example I am currently looking through Comodo's System Cleaner and they have an option to create a restore point before you clean the registry which is not selected by default. A good piece of software does a lot of the thinking for us if we allow it to.
4. Load a rescue disk onto a USB flash drive or CD/DVD

My top pick is Advanced SystemCare Free from IObit. It has one-click cleaning for most of its features. It offers a wealth of features that are both powerful and useful. However, SystemCare seems a bit sluggish when I browse the interface. Furthermore, the program is full of advertisements, with ads that pop up when I try to change some settings and after a one-click cleaning is finished. Even worse, some of the advertisements contain misleading information about the effectiveness of their Pro version. Note that some people have reported various problems after running SystemCare; however, I personally have not encountered any trouble yet. Overall, this is the most feature rich application.

SystemCare free offers several security features - spyware removal, a security analyzer and immunization. The anti-spyware capabilities are dubious at best, and the security analyzer seems to be just a clone of HijackThis. The immunization however, is of some use. SystemCare also contains disk, privacy and broken shortcuts cleaning, which worked very well in my use of it. The disk defragmenter is very basic, and is only a limited version of their excellent Smart Defrag. It also includes registry cleaning and defrag. SystemCare has a process, startup, uninstall and context menu manager, along with system information and recommendations for system tweaks, and various other miscellaneous tools.

My second choice is Ashampoo WinOptimizer 5, from Chip Online. (Thanks to For Free On Internet for the information.) WinOptimizer has a very sleek interface, with one-click cleaning for disk, privacy and registry cleaning tasks. It also has a nice option of a full scan, which gives recommendations for disabling unnecessary services, tweaking system settings, as well as the one-click cleaning features. I also like "Did you know?" tips, some of which I found quite useful. However, WinOptimizer is the only product that requires registration. Also, no further updates are provided. However, this is the best choice if you want something simple that can clean your computer with a few clicks, with no ads.

WinOptimizer offers a very basic disk and privacy cleaner; in particular, it does not clean the history of most programs. The disk defragmenter is very fast, but seems to be a bit too quick to offer good file placement. The file erasing utility is very comprehensive, with wiping options up to Gutmann and the ability to rename the files and folders before it is erased. The registry cleaner also seems very basic, detecting very little items. (Of course, registry cleaning is not simply a case of the more the better, but the result was far less than even some very conservative registry cleaners). It also has a tweaking utility with over 450 tweaks, and it's the best I've seen out of these products. WinOptimizer also has a detailed process manager, a startup manager, a system information utility, a benchmarking utility and various other tools.

Another good option is Glary Utilities. It has one-click cleaning for some tasks. One important feature that Glary does not have is disk defragmentation. This is quite a powerful product, but many of its tools require user interaction.

Glary Utilities free offers a very basic disk cleaner, but it is made up by a reasonable privacy cleaner and various tools which can remove broken shortcuts, duplicate files and empty folders. Unfortunately, I could not find an option to overwrite files in the privacy cleaner. The disk-space analysis feature is outstanding, offering the most detailed information out of these products. However, I was unable to find out what encryption algorithm Glary uses for its encryption/decryption utility, so I would not rely on it for sensitive data. Glary also contains a file and free space eraser and recovery of deleted files. The registry cleaner works very well and it also contains a registry defragmenter. The startup manager is the only product to contain a startup delayer, however, the security ratings from both the startup and process manager do not seem to be very accurate, but it could be useful for experienced users. Glary also includes a few other tools.

Comodo System Cleaner is a new offering by Comodo, the makers of the popular free firewall. System Cleaner is the only product to have scheduling options for some its features. However, it does not offer one-click cleaning. Also, System Cleaner does not have a disk defragmenter. Comodo System Cleaner is best suited for experienced users because of its potentially dangerous features.

The disk and privacy cleaner is very thorough, but could be dangerous in the hands of a beginner. System Cleaner has a wide variety of file utilities, with encryption/decryption, a rename tool and calculation of checksums, to name a few. The registry cleaning is very aggressive, maybe too aggressive in my opinion. Other features include a  minimal disk-space analysis feature, a detailed process manager, a startup manager, a rather basic tweaking utility and system information and benchmarking.

Regardless of which tune-up utility you use, I suggest you read Gizmo's Best Free Disk De-fragmenter and run one of those defragmenters regularly. The reason for this is that I believe none of the disk defragmenters provided by these suites are that effective or have scheduling/real-time options. If you use a disk defragmenter in conjunction with one of these tune-up utilities, you'll have a remarkably complete tune-up package.

Remember that cleaning your PC always involves a small element of risk, so backup your data, create a System Restore Point and have an image backup handy before you start.

I recommend that you run the tune-up programs monthly. After each monthly Windows update is an excellent time to run a clean up. If you install and uninstall many products, you may want to increase this frequency to weekly or even daily.

If you have never tuned up your PC, then you should see a real improvement in speed and responsiveness the first time you run these programs. However, on subsequent runs the improvement may be much less noticeable.

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Of all these products, the most impressive product for average users was CDBurnerXP. It's easy to use and possesses all of the core features you need, including:

• an intuitive interface
• the ability to author data discs
• create audio CDs playable in a regular CD player or MP3 capable player
• create DVDs (single layer only)
• create bootable discs
• copy discs
• create and burn image files (e.g. ISO)

It passed most of the tests we were able to throw at it: it added to a multi-session disc created on another drive with another burning application, and created a functional slip-streamed Windows XP installation CD! In addition to the core features, CDBurnerXP also has several additional features: customizable boot disc options (lacking in DeepBurner), integrated cover printing utility, integrated audio player and audio, the ability to rip audio CDs to various formats (including MP3 with CDDB lookup). Those of you who are familiar with Nero will feel right at home, because the interface is very similar. All up, CDBurnerXP is a top choice for average users who want a capable, easy-to-use burner provided they don't want to burn double layer disks and a lot of video CDs.

If you do want to burn double layer disks, Blue-ray or need more flexible video burning options then a better choice may be ImgBurn. It's an immensely capable product with all the features of CDBurnerXP and more and our "Top Pick" for experienced users.

However its extra capabilities come at the cost of extra complexity which is not helped by the somewhat confusing user interface that reflects the product's origins as an image burning program. It's also confusing that some of the funcionality is accessible only from the right click context menu.

Personally I love ImgBurn but I do accept that not everyone is prepared to put in the time to learn to use its many features. Such users will be better off with CDBurnerXP.

DeepBurner Free is another easy-to-use option. However the free version lacks a number of important features including video burning, and bootable CD creation.

On the plus side, it is a much smaller download package and has a smaller installation footprint. It also offers a portable version that can be executed as a stand-alone application from a USB drive.

In addition to these products, there are several free burners that specialize in just one or two features.

For example, Burrrn is for authoring audio CDs, CreateCD and CommandBurner offer command line burning capabilities, DVDShrink is designed for creating DVD backups, and ISO Recorder can burn images to disc with a couple clicks of the mouse.

Editor's note: many thanks to regular contributor Craig Vollmar who originally prepared these reviews.

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This software category is in need of an editor. If you are interested in taking it over, please email Elizabeth, our editorial co-ordinator with a little bit about your background and in particular, whether you have any commercial affiliation with products in this category.

If you are currently logged in, you can contact Elizabeth directly by clicking here, if not then click here.

Malware, trojans and threats

Most PCs are now connected to the Internet and networks, making easier the spread of malicious software (malware), which includes trojans (also known as trojan horses), viruses, worms, spyware, adware, rootkits and other malicious or unwanted programs.

Like spyware and adware, trojans can get onto your computer in a number of ways, including from a web browser, via e-mail, or in a bundle with other software downloaded from the Internet.

Unlike viruses or worms, trojans do not replicate themselves but they can be just as destructive. On the surface, trojans appear benign and harmless, but once the infected code is run, trojans kick in and perform malicious functions to harm the computer system without the user's knowledge.

For example, waterfalls.scr is a waterfall screen saver as originally claimed by the author, but it can be associated with malware and become a trojan to unload hidden programs and allow unauthorized access to the user's PC.

Some typical examples of threats by trojans are as follows:

• Erase, overwrite or corrupt data on a computer
• Help to spread other malware such as viruses (by a dropper trojan)
• Deactivate or interfere with anti-virus and firewall programs
• Allow remote access to your computer (by a remote access trojan)
• Upload and download files without your knowledge
• Gather e-mail addresses and use them for spam
• Log keystrokes to steal information such as passwords and credit card numbers
• Copy fake links to false websites, display porno sites, play sounds/videos, display images
• Slow down, restart or shut down your computer
• Re-install themselves after being disabled

To minimise the threats, most PC users will need an effective anti-malware program to remove trojans along with other malware.

Anti-malware and anti-trojan programs

As more computer security developers are extending their product capabilities to address more than one type of malware, the boundary between different types of anti-malware programs is no more a clear cut and has become blurred.

For example, an anti-virus program such as AVG Anti-Virus covers not only viruses, but offers protection against spyware, adware and others. An anti-spyware program such as SuperAntiSpyware not only detects spyware, but removes trojans, rootkits and other threats. Likewise an anti-trojan program can offer to remove viruses, spyware and other types of malware.

More appropriately, these security products are to be classified as anti-malware programs rather than to be grouped by the name of the products.

In this respect, anti-malware products which are designed to detect and remove trojans more effectively than the others will be reviewed in this category.

How many anti-malware programs need to install?

Disclaimer

Despite their ratings in this review, some anti-malware programs in certain cases are able to detect more malware than the others depending on their designs, online databases and the infections on computers.

• Rising PC Doctor comes with a scanner for trojans and spyware, and an option to enable automatic protection such as Trojan Interceptor, Trojan Download Blocker along with some other protections. Other tools such as start up control, process manager, service manager, file shredder, etc., are also included.
 
• SDFix is a free trojan removal program written by AndyManchesta to remove trojans along with other malware such as worms, rootkits and others. It requires rebooting the system into safe mode to run the program.
 
• Trojan Killer is a malware removal application to remove various types of malicious or unwanted programs such as hidden dialers, adware, spyware, etc. Dangerous items are highlighted in red after scanning and can be removed with a right click. Current database has relatively fewer signatures as compared to a-squared Free.
 
• Comodo BOClean Anti-Malware features automatic detection of trojans and other malware in the background with daily database updates. It covers approximately 70,000 trojans in the current database as shown in the list produced by the program with a click on the "Covered Trojans" button.

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This article is maintained by volunteer editor Jojoyee. Registered site users are allowed to edit and improve this article wiki-style.

anti-malware, anti-trojan, anti-virus, anti-spyware, adware, remover, scanner, freeware, free trojan scanner, free trojan remover

The registry is what keeps your computer running; it tells the computer what to do when certain events happen. However, as you use your computer, a lot of unwanted and unnecessary information is written into the registry, and this usually occurs because you've installed and uninstalled programs or updated versions of existing programs. This gradual accumulation of unneeded or incorrect information will, over time, slow the speed of your computer.

A registry cleaner tries to get rid of this unwanted data and restore your PC to full speed. The problem is that the cleaning process is less than perfect. In particular, there is always a small risk that the registry cleaner may incorrectly remove data that is actually needed. In the worst case scenario, your PC may become unusable as a result.

That's why it's absolutely essential that you backup your registry before using a registry cleaner. For most users the easiest way to do this is to create a system checkpoint.  An even better way is to use a drive-imaging program to create a snapshot of Windows, which you can use for system recovery if needed. As an added layer of protection, that may actually be more effective than System Restore, consider using the excellent ERUNT utility.

This ever-present risk of problems is why the "best" registry cleaner is the one that causes the fewest problems, rather than the one that finds the greatest number of registry errors.

Thus it is evident, a registry cleaner is - if at all - a tool reserved for the experienced user. The inexperienced may be assured that since the introduction of Windows XP, registry cleaning is no longer a crucial issue for the stability, security and performance of your system. Don't mess around with it!

EasyCleaner : Historically, it has proven that it doesn't create problems, and it periodically updates its list of "registry values" that must not be cleaned under any circumstance. Its main drawback is the lack of a backup function.

Eusing Free Registry Cleaner is our recommendation. Free, simple, fast and offers the indispensable option to backup the registry.

Finding an all-in-one media player used to be impossible.  In the past you needed to use several separate programs to play MP3 files, streaming media from Real, Mpeg files, Quicktime movies, CDs and DVD discs, but with the advent of Microsoft's Windows Media Player (WMP), all of these media types could be played in one player.  Over a period of time, however, WMP for XP and Vista has become bloated and isn't compatible with all of the available file formats.  WinAmp, which began as an mp3 player, now plays almost everything, although it uses a lot of system resources and may contain adware if you aren't careful on the installation.  iTunes has become more prevalent on many PCs due to the almost universal reach of the IPod, but it also uses a lot of resources and is processor intensive.  So I've done some major research to find alternative media players capable of playing all of these media formats, including digital music, video, CD, and DVD, while still being light on resources.  I was impressed with what I found.  Not only do these programs replace WMP ITunes and WinAmp,  but they also exceeded their functionality.  The products that I've reviewed here are capable of playing multiple types of media files, including various digital audio and video formats, CDs, and DVDs.  They are also easy to install and use and are light on system resources.

NOTE:  Some of these programs may require additional codecs for expanded functionality.  For more information about codecs, including what they do, legal issues and download links, see the article, "Understanding Codecs".

My personal favorite is Media Player Classic. Available for Windows (95 through Vista), MPC looks like the old Windows Media Player v6.4, but that's where the similarity ends.  Under the hood, this program packs a lot of features, including codecs for viewing DVD discs, MPEG1, MPEG2, and MPEG 4 video files, MP3 and Ogg files.  MPC can also use the QuickTime and the RealPlayer architectures (if installed on the computer) to play their native files.  If you really want to extend MPC's functionality while avoiding the installation of RealPlayer, WinAmp and Quicktime, download ffdshow, Real Alternative, QuickTime Alternative and WinAmp Alternative packages.  They will make sure there will be almost nothing you won't be able to play. MPC is the only product reviewed here that requires no installation on your PC.  This means that it can be run from your USB flash drive as well as your hard drive.  (Note:  there is some dispute over the legality of Real Alternative and QuickTime Alternative codec packs.  ffdshow is opensource, completely legal, and should cover almost all of your needs.)

Many subscribers have asked me to look at The KM Player, and for good reason...  This is one exceptional media player.  Originally the work of one programmer, the project is now owned by Pandora TV and continues to be developed.  This is an impressive program.  On a default install, it is configured to play almost any media file available without the need for additional codecs, making it easy to use for those with less experience.  Yet if needed, it can be configured to selectively use any codecs you have installed yourself.  This means that one can have full control over which codecs and filters The KM Player will use, thus preventing media playback from being messed up.  Among its other features, The KM Player can set multifarious audio and video effects, slow down or increase playback speed with regular tone, select parts of a video as favorites, do an exceptionally powerful A-B repeat, remap the keys of remote interface for HTPC including overlay screen controls, and change a skin dynamically depending on the type of media you wish to play.  Plus it is completely customizable thanks to a wide selection of skins and color schemes. In short, the configuration options of The KM Player are the most extensive I've ever seen.  But keep in mind that many features means a larger program.  Weighing in at over 13 MB, The KM Player is one of the larger downloads of the products reviewed here.

My thanks to everyone who suggested The KM Player, especially subscriber Sandeep, whose comments were helpful in creating this review.

An excellent alternative to MPC is VLC Media Player.  VLC is available for multiple OSs, including all versions of Windows (98 through Vista), Mac OS X, and many varieties of Linux.  VLC can also be installed and run directly from a flash drive.  Most versions will support playback of most video files and DVD discs without the need to download external codec packs, including flv files, which MPC cannot natively play.  VLC has another unique feature as well.  There are 5 different DVD region codes.  DVDs manufactured for one region will not play in players made for a different region.  This applies to PC DVD drives as well... until now.  VLC plays them all.  There is no need for any shady (and possibly illegal DVD region spoofing programs).  This is especially nice if you're an international traveler and want to watch a movie on your laptop outside of your country. VLC also has the ability to convert videos to formats it supports and like KM Player, you can specify whether or not to use system codecs.  VLS also has the ability to take screenshots of your video, even while during DVD playback, a real attractive feature.

Another good alternative is GOM Player.  Available only for Windows (98Se through Vista), it also will play most media files, including flv files with its own internal codecs.  If, however, you come across a file it cannot play, it will direct you to the appropriate open-source codec to install.  The program is a little quirky, though.  I tried to play a DVD disc on two different PCs using GOM... On one it would not play it at all (and this was a machine I've been able to play DVD discs on before), while on the other PC it played it fine.  One very noteworthy feature of the GOM player is its ability to play broken media files.  According to subscriber Ash, "GOM Player's claim that it can play broken avi files is very true.  We have a file sharing network on campus which uses DC++. Usually avi files which are being downloaded stop partway due to too much traffic. GOM Player was able to play every one of those files on my system up to the point where they stopped downloading."

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A disk defragmenter is a key toolkit element for keeping your PC running optimally. Disk fragmentation occurs through normal everyday use of your PC; over time your system becomes unable to store related data on your disk in a sequential (contiguous) manner, and must "fragment" files across different physical locations on your hard drive. This increases the number of times your hard drive must spin (or "seek"), which slows down the process of reading and writing files. Defragmentation software compresses files and free space back into contiguous blocks.

Defragmenting your hard drive on a regular basis is a sound housekeeping habit; a chore that most home users should do once a month.

Our top recommendation for Vista users is Smart Defrag from IObit.Com - it combines many of the best features of its competition in a single product. Originally a simple utility to defragment your drive in the background during system idle time, the team at IOBit.Com has been busy developing a fully-fledged disk optimization utility. More than just a defragmentation tool, Smart Defrag also allows users to choose to optimize the placement of files on their hard drive during the operation. It still offers the "always-on" Auto Defrag, which can be further customized to kick-in after a set period of idle time and cut-out at a certain point of resource usage. Other options include a simple scheduling tool, a battery power setting for laptop users, the ability to skip files based on size and a range of startup options. While still in its infancy (it's only version 1.10), the product belies its age with its range of options and performance. IObit.Com has been extremely responsive to early concerns about initial defragmentation times on large drives, with the latest version offering "Fast Optimize" and "Deep Optimize" options.

Close behind is Defraggler – a solid combination of performance, stability and usability from Piriform. We have been watching Defraggler since its Beta release and now that some of the early bugs have been ironed out with its most recent version, it’s a good, safe bet. With a very clean interface design based on the common Windows defrag interface, Defraggler is incredibly easy to use and offers all the options you need to keep your machine running smoothly – including the ability to defragment individual files and folders as well as an in-built defragmentation scheduler. As an added bonus, eXcessive Software – the guys behind the popular Power Defragmenter interface – have released a shell extension called Enhanced Defraggler Shell which allows Defraggler to be run directly from the Windows Explorer context menu.

For users with older versions of Windows we still like Diskeeper Lite, an older free version of Executive Software's current commercial Diskeeper product. It's simple to use, has a good graphical interface and performs very well – despite being at version 7 while its commercial sibling is at version 11. It is possible to update to version 9 of Diskeeper Lite by downloading Intel's large (89MB) Desktop Utilities package available from the Intel site. If you unzip the file you'll find Diskeeper V9 Lite in the folder ../3rdparty/Diskeeper/. Neither the read-me file nor the License Agreement prohibit downloading and using this program on a single computer, so it appears to be a perfectly legitimate way to obtain the program.You can remove Diskeeper's annoying nag screen by following the instructions here. Unfortunately, Diskeeper does not work with Vista.

Another popular player in the commercial defragmentation space is DiskTrix which produces Ultimate Defrag. Fortunately, they also offer a freeware version -  UltimateDefrag Freeware Edition. While the free version lacks many of the features of its commercial sibling, it still offers top defragmentation performance as well as the ability to allow users to place files and folders on sections of the disk for better performance.

If you want a simple, effective but resource-frugal option, try the open source JKDefrag. One of its nicest features is the ability to set it up as a screensaver ; that way your disks will always be defragged without getting in the way of your work. Unlike Diskeeper, it's compatible with Vista and also has a 64-bit version.

For more options you may want to consider these:

Another company investing heavily in product development of late is Auslogics with its Auslogics Disk Defrag offering. The last few releases have seen the team add the ability to defragment single files and folders, schedule operations and update the program's algorithm for improved performance. We're excited by the prospect of what might come next.

If your needs for a glossy graphical interface are not a driving factor, Contig from SysInternals is a robust command line utility which defrags one file at a time and results in excellent performance gains. It's fast and safe, but the command line can turn off users. Fortunately, eXcessive software has built an excellent user interface for Contig, called Power Defragmenter that turns Contig into a really usable product. The latest release of Power Defragmenter offers a very nice “TripleMode” option which runs Contig in three passes; defragmenting any remaining fragmented files with each pass.

Enhanced Defraggler Shell for Defraggler from eXcessive Software.

Desktop Utilities with Diskeeper Lite V9 from Intel.

Instructions to remove nag screen from Diskeeper Lite.

There are many different audio and video formats out there, and most devices (such as the iPod) and programs (such as Windows Media Player) will only take a few specific formats. A DVD or WMV movie will not play on an iPod, for example, without being converted into an MP4 file.

Many commercial programs will do this conversion for you, but there are a few good ones that will do it for free. None of these programs are quite perfect. Some support more formats and devices, some are easier to use, and some are more stable. While some are better than others overall, which one is best for you will depend on your specific needs.

Note: I don't own DVDs, so I'm not qualified to review DVD rippers. If you want to review them, or have software suggestions, leave them here.

The best all-around program in this category is FormatFactory. It supports dozens of devices (in addition to generic encoding) and does picture conversions, making it the most complete converter in this review. The sidebar-based interface is very slick, responsive, and stable. Although the sheer amount of devices supported will throw beginners for a moment, making (and saving) advanced tweaks and adding files is a snap. If only it worked right out-of-the-box (I had to change the output directory in order for it to start normally), used less popup meus, and and didn't include a static banner ad for eBay, it would be perfect.

My favorite iPod/device converter is Pazera Video Converters Suite. It's really a package of several seperate device converters with a common launcher. Each converter has a simple text-based interface, good presets, and support for basic tweaking and custom profiles. It's a shame it doesn't handle advanced tweaks and odd output formats.

If you find Pazera's interface too flat and cluttered, Quick Media Converter is probably the best bet. The Easy Mode device selection could not possibly be simpler - you select from a dozen devices (each of which has four obviously different options), add files, and go. However, there is no way to tweak Easy Mode conversions if they come out bad, and the Expert Mode is worthless. Nonetheless, this program is the simplest to use and should serve adequately for newbies.

For custom encoding jobs, MediaCoder is umatched. The options in Advanced Mode are virtually unlimited, from start-stop times and odd codec combinations to custom croppings and channel mapping. However, these options are hard to navigate and can conflict with each other if you are not careful. MediaCoder includes several device presets and a setup wizard, but these are often incomplete and hard to find. This program is also more likely to lag, crash, or fail a job than the others. Still, its reliability and interface are rapidly improving, and its power is unparalleled. Regular users should try something else, but watch this space.

If you do a lot of simple custom jobs, you may like SUPER. Its right-click-driven interface is annoying and its presets incomplete, but it has no popup menus or sub-menus, making it extremely easy to tweak jobs.

Tested and not recommended

Any Video Converter: FormatFactory with less options
Videora/Audioro: Slow, limited batch support, seperate programs for audio and video
WinFF: Pazera without the tweaking, Quick Media Converter without the eye candy 

All of the PDF writers in this review are programs that function by creating a pseudo printer on your system.  When you want to create a PDF document from pretty much any application you just choose to print it to the PDF printer and it creates a PDF document.  The thing that distinguishes one product from another is the number of options and flexibility available.  The one problem with this approach is that you need to have a program that will open the file on your system.  If someone sends you a file created with a program you do not have and you can't open the file then you can't print it and if you can't print it then you can't convert it to a pdf using a pseudo printer technique.  The two online products do not suffer from this problem but are limited only by the file formats recognized by the online vendor.

After eliminating those PDF Writers suggested by readers that were not free, were limited time trials, and basically adware (the product was free but forced the user to endure various ads as a punishment for using it), there were only six candidates left.  These were (alphabetically) Bullzip PDF Writer, CutePDF, doPDF, PDFCreator, PrimoPDF, and TinyPDF.  Which one of these is best?  That really depends on the options you need.

While I have recommended PDFCreator in the past, I have now moved to either PDFill Writer and/or Bullzip PDF Printer as my personal favorite(s).  Both have more of the options I need and has worked flawless for me. A problem with Bullzip is that the pdf file created may not be searchable. While it created a searchable pdf from word processing programs it did not from other programs like Excel. All the other candidates produced a searchable document from Excel and other non-word-processing software.  Please note that both of the recommended writers, and especially PDFill Writer, have enough options that they can be confusing to one who only wishes to create a simple PDF file.  Both PDF Creator and Cute PDF Writer will easily suffice for most users.

Key features of Bullzip PDF Printer include:
The ability to password protect your pdf files (only PrimoPDF and PDFCreator also had this ability)
The ability use either 40 or 128 bit encryption on the file (only PDFCreator also had this ability)
The ability to add a watermark (PDF Creator had a limited ability to add watermarks)
The ability to append or prepend files (PrimoPDF and PDFCreator also had this ability)
The ability to choose different levels of output quality (All but CutePDF and TinyPDF had this ability)
The ability to add/change metadata (PrimoPDF and PDFCreator also had this ability)

PDFCreator is still my second choice and has all the features of Bullzip with the exception of a 64 bit version and more limited watermark abilities.  The help files are available only in English, French and German.  However it does have one unique feature among these products.  It comes with both a standalone install and a server install.  In a company setting this gives you the ability to install the printer driver on a server and make it available to all the workstations on the network without doing an install on each one of them.  This may make it a preferred choice in business situations if you don't need the other options that products like Bullzip offer.  The only item PDF Creator failed at was printing a web page to pdf.  I was unable to get consistent output and generally the program produced an error and exited.  This can be a major issue for many users.

Among the very basic pdf Writers is CutePDF.  This provides only the most minimal functions and creates the pdf file with no options for password, encryption, metadata, or most other optional functions.  On the other hand, it is among the smallest of the downloads. doPDF is comparable to TinyPDF in terms of features.  It provides a minimal set but does have the ability to choose different levels of output quality which the other two do not.  I can see no reason not to prefer it over the other two unless you often print graphical documents to pdf.  

The most commonly asked question by readers has been about the size of the output file.  Using a large test file without graphics doPDF created the smallest files at 1.4 megs, CutePDF, and PDFCreator came in at 1.8 megs, and Bullzip came in at 1.9 megabytes.  While CutePDF, PDFCreator and Bullzip were larger they were also set at 600 dpi while the other two did not have the ability to change output and appeared to be 300dpi.   This was not a sufficient difference in output file size to make it an important factor for deciding on one over the other.  However, when a substantial amount of graphics were included doPDF produced a much larger file than the others.  CutePDF came in at 3.5 megs (at 300dpi), PrimoPDF and Bullzip both came in at 7.8 megs (at 600dpi) and doPDF came in at a whopping 13.3 megs (at 600dpi).  PDFCreator failed to correctly render the page and created failure errors each time it was tried.  

Primo pdf was removed from the list of best software because after downloading the newest version on June 5 from their website I found it totally unacceptable.  The product still does everything it did before but there is a lag of several seconds from the time I selected the printer until the screen with the Primo interface opened.  I even wondered if my computer was hung and was starting to look for the application to stop the process when it finally came up.  With no features that are not also found in Bullzip, I decided to delete it from the recommended list.  I should note that on my fastest computer it worked reasonably well but still much slower than all other products.

Although PrimoPDF was removed from the recommendations of best pdf Writer it does have a free online version at http://online.primopdf.com/ that allows you to upload a file and receive it back as a PDF via email.  If you need a pdf conversion only on rare occassion or you are on a computer that does not allow you to install software, or you don't have a program that can read the file, then this is a reasonable option.  Of course there is no opportunity to add passwords, encrypt, or add any of the other features you may need.  It is just a straight pdf file.

The most requested missing feature in all of these products is the ability to delete or reorder pages.  Sorry but you have to go to a paid product to get these features as none of them provide it in the free version.

HP also offers a free online service called CloudPrint.  It is designed to give you the ability to print from a cell phone or PDA.  If you check your email from a cell phone and need to print an attachment you can just send it to this service, which will convert it to a PDF file and send a SMS message to your cell phone with a reference ID.  When you get to a computer with an Internet interface you can login to the CloudPrint service and print the document.  It will also convert and print pictures taken with your cell phone.  While I don't see a need for this service personally, some swear by it, especially those who are constantly on the road seeing clients or between multiple offices.  This was not considered as one of the best PDF Writers only because it does not produce a file that you can save and keep as a PDF on your local drive.  It converts to PDF on the web server and allows you to print it from there.  On the other hand, it does allow you to print documents without having the original program that produced the file.  

If you select a PDF Writer that you like but it does not have some of the features you need you might consider a couple of products that offer the ability to add functions after creating the file.  pdfExchange Viewer is a fast viewer for PDF files that also allows the reader to add annotations to the file.  It can then be saved and printed either with or without the annotations.  PDFTK Builder allows you to add passwords and limit the ability of the reader to print, annotate, copy portions or otherwise use the pdf file other than reading it.  However, it does not have the ability to add encryption.  And lastly, JPDF Tweak allows the addition of watermarks, passwords, and encryption as well as limiting the ability to print or copy the file.  These all work on a pdf file that has already been created and are not used to create one.  Since those are beyond the limited scope of this article I have not included their information in this review, but they are easy enough to find with a web search.

There are many reasons people have for wanting to surf anonymously, ranging from simple paranoia in terms of protecting personal data, to hiding browsing activities from other users of a computer including parents, spouses, or even other organizations. Whatever your reasons for wanting to use anonymous browsing services, or criticizing others for wanting to use them, I will not debate the political, legal, moral, ethical and other reasons, but simply review the available technology. Be aware that most corporate networks will block the use of anonymous surfing activities at the corporate firewall. Corporate networks and internet links are after all the property of your employer and should never be misused in violation of corporate acceptable use policies, so don’t expect any help here in finding ways to circumvent firewall blocking.

The most obvious anonymous browsing application for most people is in internet cafes, on public terminals, using wireless or even wired access points away from home, or in fact, on any PC including your own, where you don't want to leave traces of your private surfing activities. Some other browsing activity cleaners exist that clear the cache, cookies, history and other traces, some are even available as a standard in most browsers, but anonymous browsing goes a step further. What attracts me is not so much the privacy aspect, but rather the security potential, because all of the anonymizing browser proxy based services create a secure encrypted connection between the PC you are using and the first anonymizing proxy server. This allows you to safely transmit information with little risk of local interception, making it ideal for surfing on open Wi-Fi networks, or in hotels while travelling.

Previously, secure surfing on such networks required the use of private VPN networks, generally an option only available to corporate employees, those with the available money to pay for it and the technically savvy. Now, using any of the Tor or JAP based browsers, any surfer can reap the same sort of security benefits for their browsing. Whatever the reasons anyone may have for using anonymizing browsing, commercial services that offer anonymity are doing well, and a number of both free and subscription based browsing applications and services have become available.

Two dominant services exist which provide the foundation for free, secure anonymous browsing. The JAP network was good enough that the German Police insisted in 2004, that a backdoor be put into the product to allow interception of child pornographers. This was done, but subsequently removed as a result of court action by the JAP development team. The alternative is Tor (The Onion Ring), which is a system that not only allows anonymous browsing but also anonymous P2P, email, IM, and IRC chat. Given the US Navy origin of Tor, the suspicion inevitably arises that this system may have a permanent backdoor, however, the source code is now publicly available so that suspicion can perhaps be set aside. More worrying was a raid by German police in September 2006 involving the seizure of some Tor servers in that country. Again, pedophiles were the supposed target, but who really knows.

OperaTor is my clear first choice, a portable version of Opera with an included and well integrated Tor engine that uses the free Tor network. OperaTor is small and relatively fast, using just 6Mb of memory for it’s Tor engine, 2Mb for the Polipo caching proxy, 3Mb for the OperaTor loader and 18Mb for Opera. In my experience, OperaTor is by far the fastest browser, even with multiple proxies on the Tor network so that the browsing trail is frequently changing for greater security. Some people don't like the fact that OperaTor is not released with source code available (at least not that we have yet located) which may influence the choice in whether to use it or not. I believe that unless a user is proficient in programming, or at least reading the development language of any particular application, this becomes rather irrelevant, unless some amount of comfort or security might be perceived in knowing that source is available and others might be checking it even if the user of the application can not read it personally. Even closed source projects that become popular generally receive enough user and peer scrutiny that most problems would be quickly exposed.

JonDo (previously known as JAP) is my second choice and is in some ways a more flexible option, in that it is simply a Java application that performs the role of a local (PC based) proxy server that redirects browser requests via the JonDo (formerly JAP) network. This allows the user to configure their choice of any browser rather than requiring a change to Opera. Unfortunately, being Java based means that the application becomes somewhat bloated, requiring 54Mb of memory just for the Java JonDo application, as well as another few Mb for the JAP engine, and then whatever additional is required for the web browser of choice. JonDo does have quite a nice GUI display which shows the strength of the anonymity based on the number of anonymizing proxy servers, and takes care of managing the random proxy changes for greater anonymity. A commercial service known as JonDonym has been introduced which uses dedicated servers to provide higher speeds, higher levels of availability and more security along with support for chat, ftp and ssh in addition to web browsing. Another offering from the commercial JonDonym group is JonDoFox, a customized version of Firefox with JonDo code embedded along with other anonymizing optimizations. Unfortunately, JonDo not being a network like Tor is prone to some limitations in terms of the numbers of free servers, and some subsequent downtimes may be more likely with the smaller server base.

Vidalia is my third choice, a close match to JonDo in that it is quite a bit lighter in memory use and generally feels faster, but may not have the same level of anonymizing as JonDo. Vidalia is another integrated package using a combination of Privoxy and a Tor engine to connect to the Tor network, but it offers many new features. As with JonDo, Vidalia behaves as a local proxy for use by any browser, but it also provides configurations allowing it to run either as a simple standalone process or as a Windows service (for security and performance reasons, among others). Vidalia allows the user to participate in the anonymizing process by becoming a Tor Relay to help censored users in a similar way to becoming a BitTorrent relay, and a live realtime facility is available showing a map of the earth with lines representing connections to the Tor server participants. Vidalia uses 24 - 32Mb of memory, with an additional 4Mb used for Privoxy and another 16.5Mb for the Tor engine. One initially confusing aspect of Vidalia is that it provides a configuration access through port 9051, but it is not immediately obvious that Privoxy is listening on port 8118. Browsers using the Vidalia bundle must be configured to use the Privoxy port 8118 as the proxy server, not port 9051. Like JonDo, the Vidalia/Privoxy combination constantly changes proxy servers to mask the trail to provide greater anonymity.

Whatever your preference, both JAP and Tor networks offer a level of secrecy that is better than many commercial systems, though they are not watertight. Expect your surfing to slow down, in some case substantially, because you'll be relayed through a chain of servers, all heavily impacted by BitTorrent users seeking to hide from the RIAA. Note: the latest V5 release of JAP now allows Tor users to use JAP as a software access point to the Tor network.

The XeroBank Browser (previously known as TorPark) provides a new customized version of the Firefox browser configured to work with the free Tor anonymizing service, or with a subscription service for higher speeds using dedicated servers, and other features. Firefox users may feel more comfortable with XeroBank, as it is based on Firefox, but also need not make any changes at all if they make use of either the JonDo or Vidalia bundles to access the Tor engine other than to set the proxy server, and of course, manual cleanup of the cache, cookies and browsing history after use. XeroBank claims to have many advanced features, but for the average user most of these may not be apparent, unless the subscription service is used. While the XeroBank browser is free to use on the Tor network, the XeroBank web site promotes the use of their subscription-based account. During installation, the XeroBank Browser offers the choice of using either the commercial XeroBank Client or the free Tor service. Caution! Some antivirus scanners report trojan infected code in the XeroBank download. Use http://jotti.org to verify all downloads, and use XeroBank and all other applications with caution, but be aware that some of the virus scanners used by jotti.org may also be overly zealous in their reporting of infections. Some claimed virus or trojan infections in various applications are no more than firewall detection, or software product key reporting capabilities mis-diagnosed by the scanner as a potential threat.

 The downside of XeroBank as contrasted with using JonDo or Vidalia, is that you would need to use XeroBank for anonymous browsing and your regular browser for other surfing. Using JonDo or Vidalia, you can use the browser of your choice, and just reconfigure to use the proxy when you want to anonymous surfing. This won't automatically clean out all other personal data (cache, history, cookies etc.) when the application is shut down, which OperaTor and XeroBank do.

For all anonymizing services, check that you are running in anonymous mode by first browsing to one of many servers which reports your IP address, for example http://www.whatismyip.com/ and take note of your IP address. Reconfigure your browser to make use of the anonymizing service, and reload / refresh the browser and verify that the reported IP address has changed. Some IP reporting servers will also tell you which country, and even which city you now appear to be connecting from.

Most of the services reviewed are able to run directly from a USB flash drive if the executables are simply copied as is from their installation directories. This works really well, just plug your flash drive into any PC with a USB port, launch both the anonymizing proxy software and a browser, set the browser to redirect via the anonymizer and you will be in business. In the case of both OperaTor and XeroBank, all you need to is launch the browser from your flash drive and you will be ready to start browsing.

While some 'LiveCD' applications such as XeroBank Machine and Incognito Live CD have been created and may provide similar functions, they mostly seem to be currently released in various stages of alpha or beta test versions and have bugs or limitations. For example, the XeroBank Machine provides two options. You can either run the xBMachine.exe from a Windows prompt which starts a QEMU virtual machine and then runs a GenToo Linux kernel, or by booting from a "Live CD". This Live CD boots the same customized GenToo Linux environment from CD without any Windows involvement. In simple terms, both xBMachine options simply provide a different "hardened" OS platform to run the Firefox based XeroBank Browser. Is LiveCD really useful? To some people, yes, not to me. It does mean that like SandBoxie, your guest operating system is protected from malicious web sites via your browsing, and when you stop the QEMU virtual machine or reboot the PC from hard disk rather than CD all traces are removed. I am a Unix / Linux geek so I am totally at home with them, but for the average person, I suspect the LiveCD and QEMU based options will provide a confusing level of complexity that will just interfere with their browsing and desire to be safe. Not much can beat truly safe browsing habits, whatever browser or add-on tools you use. xBMachine is a 380Mb zip file download, which unpacked yields a 391Mb ISO image to create a CD as well as another 10Mb or so of the QEMU environment. The QEMU hosted browser uses 292+Mb of memory, requires the ISO image present, and took more than 5 minutes to load and be ready for use on a 1.8Ghz dual core Intel PC with 1Gb or memory. It provides a Linux X-Windows GUI with a profile configuration, a network configuration, xBBrowser, e-mail, Pidgin instant messenger, terminal and an option to configure for the paid subscription network. I don't know about you, but I am not willing to wait 5 or more minutes and have close to 300Mb of disk space tied up in a browser that took another minute or two to load, and then in my case never managed to connect out anyway. For those who feel that having source available makes a better product, go ahead and try to download the XeroBank source. All of the links gave me a 7Mb source zip file which was corrupted and would not open. Would this give you "open source available" feelings of security? I don't think so.

I'm a freeware and open source fan, I can read and write programs, but not when the source file is corrupted, and I am not likely to start poring through tens of thousands of lines of code even if I could unpack the source. Even if it does unpack, how do we know that exact source was used to build the tool, and not another set of customized source with a built in Trojan or spyware? The reality is that we really don't know unless we both inspect the source code and then compile it and compare the distributed executable.

One final comment on anonymizing, your browsing activities will never be 100% secure and guaranteed to be anonymous. It will be very difficult for anyone to trace you while browsing through the Tor network, except as reported in the Tor wiki, "when you access pages that use Java, Javascript, Macromedia Flash and Shockwave, QuickTime, RealAudio, ActiveX controls, and VBScript are all known to be able to access local information about your operating system and local network. These technologies will work over proxies and can tunnel the information back to their source."

You might want to check out these articles too:

• Best Free Web Browser
• Best Free Browser Protection Utility
• Best Free Browser Scrubber
• Best Free Router Tracer
• How to Improve Your Security When Using a Public Terminal

Free anonymous surfing service

Welcome to the editors' choice list, where you'll find a collection of the best free software on our site. Many of the software products on this list won the coveted "Gizmo's Top Pick" award.

You'll find only the best free software products here, many as good as or better than their commercial counterparts. Our choices include a broad selection of must have free programs, exquisitely rare freeware treasures, reliably effective freeware, and editor freeware favorites.

To get into this list a product must have done more than win a Gizmo's Freeware award; it must also impress our editors with its usefulness and professionalism. One of the most convenient measures of product "usefulness" is article popularity. So the freeware products on this list are from our most popular articles, but we exclude redundant top picks and any programs that are mostly a placebo.

Usually our top software picks must win in a competitive, Darwinian struggle against many rival programs!

We suggest you browse the whole list at your leisure as you may be surprised what freeware gems you will discover. The pathologically impatient can use the category index below.

Security & Privacy: Antivirus - Firewall - Virtualization - Antispyware - HIPS - Anonymous Surfing

Cleanup & Tune: PC Tuneup - Defrag - Registry Cleaner - File Cleaner - Uninstaller - Startup Manager

Disk & File: Drive Imaging - Backup Program - Folder Synch - Zip Utility - File Manager - Partition Manager

System Tools: Software Update Monitor - Screen Capture Utility - Screen Information Utility

Multimedia: CD & DVD Burner - Media Player - Music Player - MP3 Tagger - Audio & Video Conversion...

Image Tools: Image Viewer - Image Editor - High Dynamic Range (HDR) Software - Photo Organizer

Home, Office, & Desktop: Office Suite - Portable Apps Suite - PDF Writer - PDF Reader - PDF Tools

Internet Tools: Web Browser - Email Client - BitTorrent Client - Download Manager - Remote Access

Still Reading? Games, Lists, Tutorials, & More: Top 20 Miscellaneous Lists, Guides, Articles

Antivirus Software ("Using more than one real-time antivirus can cause conflicts and consumes system resources heavily, so only choose one antivirus for real-time protection;" both picks have anti-rootkit and anti-spyware scanning.)

• Avira AntiVir Personal Edition: "My top pick if you're looking for the best protection against virus, spyware and rootkit threats. AntiVir is very light on resources and the detection rate of malware is outstanding."
• Avast! Home Edition: "An excellent product for average users. It is less restricted than Avira and AVG, with both anti-rootkit and anti-spyware capabilities. It has full real-time capabilities and is fairly light on resources."

Firewall (Only choose and run 1 software firewall; both have flexible HIPS protection that you can adjust if you think they require too much user involvement.)

• Outpost Firewall Free: "Highly flexible protection, simplified alert messages, and its max security settings compare favorably with Comodo."
• Comodo Internet Security: "The security effectiveness of the Firewall and application monitor (Defense+) exceeds the performance of many commercial products. On the minus side, it's rather talkative and this may unnecessarily alarm or annoy users." The antivirus component is optional on install. See above for our antivirus recommendations.

Browser Protection Utility / Internet Safety Raters and Site Scanners

• Sandboxie: "Creates a special sandbox environment on your PC [either for web browsing or any program]. So that within the virtual sandbox provided by Sandboxie the vital portions of your PC are totally isolated... If set correctly, any spyware, Trojans, keyloggers or other malware products that 'infect' your PC while browsing will be eliminated. It can cause problems on some PCs so backup before installing."
• WOT: "Fast ratings about possible malicious websites, multiple categories of ratings, and provides reports with user comments and more information. Uses a fantastic warning or blocking screen to empower users to avoid potentially bad websites without filter 'censorship'."
• LinkExtend: "Uses multiple free sources to maximize security ratings and other categories of site ratings, feature rich."

Adware/Spyware/Scumware Removers

• OpenDNS: "After only a quick registration and configuration change, it considerably improves your pro-active protection against drive by malware. It's an excellent first line of defense, but local protection is still a must."
• SuperAntiSpyware: "Top of the list once again in detection and removal of malware, with a fairly lightweight download and simple installation."
  

Intrusion Prevention and Detection Utility for Home Use (HIPS)

• DriveSentry: "Excellent default settings for novices, but also highly configurable for more experienced users. Not only does it do what it says "on the box" but it does so in a way less likely to cause problems than some of the alternatives."

Anonymous Surfing Service

• OperaTor: "A portable version of Opera with a well integrated Tor engine that uses the free Tor network. It is small and relatively fast, but not open source."
• JonDo (alternatively, if this site is down try here): "It's more flexible by allowing the user to configure it for their choice of browser. Vidalia is a close next pick and it generally feels faster, but it may not have the same level of anonymizing as JonDo."
  

Related Top Picks:
a-squared Free - LastPass - AxCrypt - 7 Good Safe Computing Practices

All-in-one PC Tune-up Utility

• Advanced SystemCare Free: "Overall, this is the most feature rich application. Be sure to run one of the disk defragmenters below because none in these all-in-one suites are that effective."

Disk De-fragmenter

• Smart Defrag: "Our top recommendation for Vista users. Full-featured disk optimization tool, well-designed interface, Auto Defrag and scheduled defrag option available, intelligent control of resource and battery usage."
• Defraggler: "Close behind with an easy to use and clean interface. It has a thorough defragmentation process, defrags individual files and folders, and supports scheduled defrags."

File Cleaner / Registry Cleaner

• CCleaner: "It's very effective in freeing up disk space by removing unused and temporary files, cookies, Recycle bin entries, Windows hot-fix files, old prefetch data, history and cache files in many applications... Additionally, it will check the Windows Registry for invalid entries." And it also provides secure erasing.
• EasyCleaner: "Historically, it has proven that it doesn't create problems. Though, there is always a small risk that a registry cleaner may incorrectly remove data and produce an unstable PC, so be sure to backup your registry before using a registry cleaner whether by restore points or a utility like ERUNT."

Program Un-installer

• Revo Uninstaller: "It is the only freeware product I know of that will make a decent job of cleaning up a failed install."

Startup Manager

• WinPatrol 2009: "My personal favorite because as well as startup management (including a very useful "delay" enhancement, which may smooth-out booting), it includes a plethora of other features."
• Autoruns (also runs online): "The top startup manager for technical users."

Related Top Picks:
Eraser - Duplicate Cleaner - CleanMem

Drive Imaging Program

• Macrium Reflect Free: "Easy to use and a fast way to create a disk image. Use it to return your PC to the exact state it had been in at the moment a disk image was created, thus saving maybe a day's work reinstalling and configuring all the programs."
• Acronis True Image: "Always the top choice if you can get it for free, perhaps during one of the many promotions, or with a Seagate or Maxtor disk - it's in their Disk Tools software, a 126.75 MB file that you must download from the Seagate website."

Backup Program

• Titan Backup 1.5: "Commercial application for free with easy to use wizards. Supports numerous backup locations and media."

Folder Synchronization Utility ("Synchronization utilities are important in helping you keep identical versions of your files or folders, say, on both your home computer and office computer.")

• SyncToy: "This is more than a syncing program: it can copy, move, rename, and delete files between any number of folders and even computers."
• Allway Sync: "If you need a synchronization solution that supports older Windows versions, ftp, and portability, then check out Allway Sync."

File Archiver/Zip Utility

• 7-Zip: "Easy to install, gives meaningful error messages, capable of uncompressing from multiple embedded files."

File Manager

• xplorer² lite: "It offers more functionality than Windows Explorer, but with an interface sufficiently similar to Explorer that most users will find it easy to learn and use."

Partition Manager

• EASEUS Partition Master (Home Edition): "Intuitive and user-friendly interface, features include resize, move, copy, create, delete, hide, unhide, convert, explore and format partitions with a single step."

Related Top Picks:
IsoBuster - jDiskReport - PC INSPECTOR File Recovery - Active@ HD Monitor - DriverMax

Software Update Monitor

• Update Notifier: "It is very easy to use, detects more programs than Update Checker, detects some programs that SUMo is as yet unable to detect and is typically the first update monitor to detect an update."

Screen Capture Utility

• Gadwin PrintScreen: "It does exactly what I want, in the way I want, and it avoids the trap of providing a lot of useless and confusing features."

System Information Utility

• System Information for Windows (SIW): "My current favorite for home use. It displays many detailed specs such as CPU, memory, devices, installed programs, processes, services, network, and page file usage."

Related Top Picks:
TCPOptimizer - Process Explorer - Memtest86+ - ArsClip - Spotlight on Windows - NetMeter

CD / DVD Burning Software

• CDBurnerXP: "A top choice for average users who want a capable, easy-to-use burner provided they don't want to burn double layer disks and a lot of video CDs."
• ImgBurn: "Better choice for experienced users and those who need to burn double layer disks or Blu-ray. Immensely capable product, with flexible video burning options and all the features of CDBurnerXP."

Media Player

• Media Player Classic: "This program packs a lot of features, including codecs for viewing DVD discs, MPEG1, MPEG2, and MPEG 4 video files, MP3 and Ogg files. It's my personal favorite, with no installation required, great general ease of use, and an extremely small memory footprint for the features it offers."
• The KM Player: "Capable of playing most media without additional codecs and easy to use for those with less experience. It is also extremely customizable."
• VLC Player: "Available on multiple platforms (98-Vista, Mac, Linux), and reads DVDs from all 5 regions."

Music Player and Organizer

• Jaangle (formerly Teen Spirit): "Intuitive and user-friendly interface, excellent library for music/video managing or play listing, interesting download capabilities of associated artist photos/bios, song lyrics, etc."
• AIMP 2: "Excellent features for organizing music, comes with all necessary tools for building a music library, and has a visually stunning design."

MP3 Tag Editor

• TagScanner: "Supports basic and extended tags, complete with Music Renamer and Tag Processor. It allows you to preview tag information and cover art from online databases like freedb or Amazon. But if you prefer a more normal user interface then Mp3tag is a good alternative. "

CD Ripper / Audio & Video Format Conversion

• Exact Audio Copy: "Rips CD imperfections and scratches with ease. But use CDex if you need to convert to many types of formats."
• Super: "It has two great strengths: first, it's reasonably easy to use, and secondly, it converts a large number of different file formats."

CD & DVD Emulation Software

• Gizmo Drive: "Support up to 26 virtual drives, create ISO image, burn ISO files or folders to recordable disks, complete with Gizmo Manager and Image Wizard to perform tasks."

Audio Editing / Video Editor

• Audacity: "Interface is easy to use, easily applies noise profiles, capable of saving in multiple compressed formats."
• Avidemux: "Supports many file types including AVI, DVD compatible MPEG files, MP4 and ASF. It's simple and easy to use, with well documented tutorials."

Online TV Viewer / Streaming Media Recorder

• JLC's internet TV viewer: "A simple, but effective TV streams viewer that doesn't have much overhead."
• CamStudio: "My personal favorite for on-screen media capture and recording because the output is in the more widely used .AVI and .FLV formats."

Related Top Picks:
DVD Profiler

Digital Image Viewer

• XnView: "Fast, lots of features, very manageable, many plug-ins, supports nearly any OS."
• IrfanView: "This product is first-class and a real winner. It's amazingly capable and fast at displaying images."

Digital Image Editor

• LightBox Image Editor: "My top pick for basic image editing because it has an attractive user interface and it's simple and straight forward to use."
• Paint.net: "It's a very good choice for mid-level photo retouching because of its excellent design and attractive interface. It also has options and tools comparable to commercial software, but it requires you to install Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 or newer."

High Dynamic Range (HDR) Software

• Qtpfsgui: "Comes out slightly ahead of the several HDR software packages. It has great tone-mapping and aligning facilities, allows 8, 16 and 32 bit channels and two means of manually manipulating the image."

Digital Photo Organizer

• Picasa 3: "Simply sensational editing features that provide you with every function amateur photographers need."

Related Top Picks:
Project Dogwaffle - Noiseware Community Edition & Helicon Filter - Microsoft ICE

Software Suite / Office Suite / Portable Applications

• Liberkey: "A true 'Swiss Army Knife' of free programs that comes in three sizes: basic (28 programs), standard (100 programs) and ultimate (200 programs)."
• OpenOffice 3: "Covers the basics of office document creation: word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, a desktop database. It allows you to save your documents in many choices of file formats so you'll have no problem exchanging documents with MS Office."
• PortableApps.com Suite: Similar but portable options, including Firefox and OpenOffice, with program launcher. But be sure to read the installation and usage instructions since portable apps may have a few tricks to remember.

PDF Writer / PDF Tools / Non-Adobe PDF Reader

• Bullzip: "It has more of the options I need and has worked flawless for me. All of the PDF writers in this review function by creating a pseudo printer on your system."
• PDFill PDF Tools: "Clean and nice user interface, includes most features such as merge, split, reorder, rotate, header and footer with page number, watermark, encrypt and decrypt, convert PDF to images or vice versa, convert PostScript to PDF."
• PDF-XChange Viewer: "Loads reasonably fast, can print PDFs, allows basic annotation without watermarking, good text clarity, allows you to fill and save Adobe PDF forms, extract text and images, magnify text, and export PDF pages or documents to BMP, JPEG, TIFF, PNG formats."

Related Top Picks (Home & Office):
Jarte - GnuCash - Palm Desktop - EditPad Lite, Notepad++... - Stamina

Related Top Picks (Desktop & GUI):
Dexpot - Launchy, Enso... - Copernic Desktop Search - Stickies - QTTabBar

Web Browser

• Mozilla Firefox 3.0: "It browses a tad faster than IE, is very stable and more standards compliant. It has thousands of Add-Ons to enhance the program and is very secure."
• Opera: "Extremely fast at loading pages, loads of features. There's so much to like about it you could easily create a case that it's better than Firefox. Though, alas, there are not nearly as many widgets available as there are Firefox extensions."
• SRWare Iron: "Looks and acts almost exactly like Google Chrome, but without sending any information back to Google's servers. Amazingly fast at loading pages, minimalist interface, with impressive features such as an Incognito Mode for privacy."

Email Client

• Mozilla Thunderbird: "Customizable and expandable through add-ons, intuitive user interface."

Download Manager

• Gigaget: "The fastest by far to download files, monitor major browsers and clipboard, resume/pause download, import/export list, data transfer encryption, and classification of downloaded files."

BitTorrent Client ("Quickly became an important download format for its speed, efficiency, and cheapness in distributing content over the Internet.")

• Vuze (formerly Azureus): "Cross platform, informative interface, wide variety of plugins, excellent support and the Vuze platform of legal content that downloads at high speeds."
• µTorrent: "Small, efficient (lowest memory use of all clients), many features and excellent support."

Remote Access Software ("Remotely administer another computer for off-site troubleshooting or for accessing your home PC while traveling.")

• UltraVNC: "Offers all the features you need, including auto-configuration, easy user interface, extensive hotkeys and embedded file transfer. Add to that the fact that it's free, secure, reliable and reasonably speedy and you have a winner. "

Related Top Picks:
Eclipse & Aptana - Fire FTP - WireShark & Nmap - NetworkStumbler - Digsby

Check out these other articles and lists on our site. There are so many hot suggestions here you will be glad you kept reading and clicking.

Top 5 Most Popular Articles or Lists or Guides (Recently or All Time):

• 50 Places for Free Books Online
• Best Free Vista 64 bit Software
• How to Make Vista Run Faster
• Optimizing µTorrent for Speed - Optimizing Vuze (formerly Azureus) for Speed
• Best Free Vista Tweaks

Popular Articles or Lists:

• Gizmo's Desert Island Utilities
• Best Windows Freeware/Shareware Download Sites
• Best Sites for Windows Tips, Tricks and Tweaking
• Best Free Technical Support Sites

Top 'How To' Guides and Tutorials:

• Gizmo's Guide to Securing Your PC
• How to Disable Internet Explorer
• How to Back up Mozilla Firefox and Thunderbird
• How to Make Firefox Load Faster
• How to Move the My Documents Folder
• How to Hide a Windows Folder
• Never Re-install Windows Again (Partitioning and Imaging Your Hard Drive): Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

How About Some Games?

• 10 Best Free Game Sites
• Best Free Computer Chess
• Best Free Jigsaw Puzzle and Creator
• Best Free Computer Go

Rootkits are a special kind of software tool used to hide trojans, viruses and other malware from your anti virus scanner and other security products. Unfortunately, they are extremely effective, which means that some of you who are reading this will be infected, even though you believe your PC to be totally clean. Thankfully, there is a new class of security product now available, called "rootkit detectors", that use specialized techniques to detect these dangerous intruders.

The reality is that at the present time, full protection against rootkits may require the use of multiple products, and complete removal may require a system rebuild. For more details, see my introductory article on rootkits.

Most of these detectors require quite a bit of technical skill to interpret the results, but two of the simplest to use are also amongst the most effective. The first is called Panda Anti Rootkit. It's my top recommendation for average users because it's not only good at detecting rootkits, but it's also quite effective at removing them. As a bonus, it's small and doesn't require installation, although you do have to register at the Panda website before you can download it. I suggest that all of you download this product and scan your PCs. The chances of you being infected are small, but for five minutes work it's well worth eliminating the risk. Panda Anti Rootkit will detect most rootkits missed by AV scanners, but it can't provide perfect detection; no rootkit detector can. That's why I suggest you use more than one.

If you are an experienced user, you should check out Sysinternals RootkitRevealer. It uses a totally different technique than Panda Anti Rootkit and BlackLight, and by using all three products together you'll be getting excellent overall detection. RootkitRevealer is more complex to use than BlackLight, and is a bit prone to false positives, so take care before you delete detected items.

For experienced users, my top recommendation is GMER, although you will need to read the documentation carefully before using this one. I like this product a lot but it's not for everyone. So if you are the type that simply likes to press the "scan" button, then stick with Panda Anti Rootkit

Currently, two of the biggest guns in the rootkit detection war are the free Chinese products IceSword and DarkSpy. IceSword has an English interface, but if you want to read the help manual that comes with it, you might find it cumbersome because it is written in Chinese.  IceSword and DarkSpy are not really detectors like the other products, Rather, they offer a set of tools that can help reveal the presence of a rootkit. These tools include a special process viewer, startup manager and port enumerator that are not fooled by rootkits. It's left to the user, though, to interpret the results. In the hands of a skilled user, these are powerful tools, but are not of much use to beginners. The Chinese download sites are slow, so I've  given local download links.