The Wonder Of Freeware
Posted 18th December 2006 at 1:31pm by M1ke, tagged as Utilities | Commenting Closed
There aren't any nag screens, trial periods, or anything that you have to worry about; just download, install, and run.
Free ware is indeed amazing, hence why Ryan of CyberNet is so delighted about TinyApps.org, a site that lists programs that tend not be larger than a few megabytes. He lists his own reasons as to why he likes it but he didn't point out my favourite - it's never multi-purpose. Generally you download a single program to do one single task - that's why they're so efficient and small.
Commercial software, because it tries to offer "value" tends to cram in all sorts of features that you'll probably never use and just slow the program down. Added to that a single program may attempt to do wildly different tasks, which further complicates the problem when you find a program that's better at one but not both - you use that as well, and the same functionality in the other program becomes redundant.
I currently use the NOD32 anti-virus program, but plans are afoot to release an 'Internet Security Suite' next year. Should this replace the stand-alone virus scanner they can rest assured I won't be buying into it, for the exact same multi-tasking reason. I have better programs that do firewall, spyware scanning etc. and don't need a big program running constantly to try and handle everything.
I know people these days aren't the most intelligent or adaptive when it comes to software, but sometimes the commercial entities should try and get people to play their tune, opening up the public to a more logical view of software and thus allowing and encouraging innovation. Until then the bedroom coder is still the king of the utilities.
Xfire Reactivated
Posted 16th December 2006 at 3:24pm by M1ke, tagged as Utilities | Commenting Closed
One thing I missed at University (other than the online games themselves) was the Xfire instant messenger. This program is similar to Windows Live Messenger, Google Talk, Skype et al in that you get a login and a friends list and can text and voice talk to those friends through the program. However the main feature is that it allows you to talk to them whilst they (or you) are playing a game, and should you both own the game (and it be an online game) you can click a button to automatically join the server they're currently residing on.
Aside to these main features it can also auto-download patches for your games, allow you to download mods, videos and other files through a bit-torrent style system with all other Xfire users, take screenshots in game and upload them to a profile and track the hours you spend on games and record them on your profile. It's totally free with only small adverts in the main interface to make them the money to keep the service running. You can create a mini-profile to display on forums, blogs and the like to show what game you're currently playing and the game you've played most in the week.
It really is an excellent program, one that is more appreciated as I've been without it for the past eleven weeks. Any gamers reading this should definately get it, install it and make sure it's running whenever they play (you can set it to start up with Windows if you would forget otherwise).
To lead out, here's my own mini-profile, which should look more interesting a few days from now:
- Link to Xfire
Log Me In
Posted 28th September 2006 at 1:26pm by M1ke, tagged as Utilities | Commenting Closed
Log Me In is a very handy program - once installed on a PC is allows any other PC with a web browser to remote control that PC. Now there are already solutions to do this already, such as Remote Desktop or WinVNC.
Remote Desktop is a Windows function that enables a network user to log on to a remote PC. The thing is, it logs off the current user of that PC and only works over a network - even then it isn't guaranteed.
WinVNC is a server that runs on a PC, so that any browser connecting to a certain port on that PC can remote control it. Unfortunately one needs to know the IP of the PC, and should the PC be behind a router ports must be forwarded. So it isn't exactly easy. Even when it runs it can be sluggish and looks a bit crap.
LogMeIn runs at startup and signs onto an account - the account owner can access the site through a browser and see which PCs are logged in. Clicking on the PC name and entering a security code (or Admin password) allows access to the file system, and to fully remote control the PC. I've installed this on my girlfriend's laptop so that I can do tech support without having to use the phone.
Incidentally I installed it on my own PC, then tried to remote control it, from the same PC. Here's the result:
Ooh, I feel dizzy now - but you can see that this program is very cool.
- Link to LogMeIn
New Google Talk
Posted 5th August 2006 at 3:11pm by M1ke, tagged as Utilities | Commenting Closed
A new version of Google Talk has been released for testing purposes - unfortunately it's not a proper installer in that it just dumps the files in C:Program FilesGoogleGoogle Talk. This is OK for most, but less so if you already happen to have GTalk in another directory. New features are as follows
- Voicemail - if your contact is offline you can leave a message for them which will appear in their email as a downloadable auido file
- File Transfer - you can send files to your contacts either by using a button in the chat window or by dragging and dropping a file to the window.
- Music Status - Songs being played by Winamp, Windows Media Player and iTunes will change your status to inform others of your current aural experience.
Enjoy the simplest IM around with some features it really needed!
- Link to Google Talk 1.0.0.95
Your IP address Is:
Posted 25th June 2006 at 8:17pm by M1ke, tagged as Utilities | Commenting Closed
Alot of people don't know what IP addresses are. If you're one of those who do then you'll know that sometimes you need to find it in a hurry. Whilst you could just come here and look in the bottom bar, there's other stuff that could distract you. A site is now live, with a nice simple address that you can remember that'll tell you the IP address you're currently browsing with.For those who don't know what IP addresses are, try Wikipedia.
- Link to This IP