Piriform Defraggler – Best Free Windows Defragmentation Program
Way to go Piriform! Â I haven’t seen a defragger that made me this happy since MS-DOS 6.22. Â I could continue to gush about this, but really, the proof is in the pudding. Simple Recipe for Better Performance: Download Defraggler now, and run it. Let it get finished, reboot, and run it again. Now, just tell me your computer doesn’t feel snappier. It really is that simple. Â In the future, activate Defraggler a few times a month, or use it’s handy scheduler. Â When opened, the main window looks like this: Click the Analyze button and let it do it’s thing. Â After a few moments of counting on electronic fingers, you should see a report like this: It has the measure of the drive…now, one more thing…let’s move...
Linux.com Article: Using Windows, Xbox, and iPod as Alternative MythTV Front Ends
Originally published at www.linux.com on December 09, 2008 at 09:00 AM; reprinted with the author’s permission. Digital video recorders (DVR) are becoming more and more mainstream. TiVo, in fact, has passed the truest test of any popular technology — having its name transformed into a verb. MythTV, a free and open source application that lets you turn a computer into a DVR, burst on the scene a few years ago, and has found fans among Linux users. However, with a little effort, it’s possible to run MythTV front ends on Windows XP, Windows Vista, Xbox, and even an Apple iPod Classic. When MythTV first emerged, only the bravest of the open source faithful dared to try it. Few had the specific hardware to make it work, let alone the...
Linux.com Article: Protecting Networks with SmoothWall Express 3.0
Originally published at www.linux.com on December 09, 2008 at 09:00 AM; reprinted with the author’s permission. Corporations and home users alike need firewall protection. Many choices abound, including some expensive, commercial options that only run on specialized hardware. Others, like SmoothWall Express, are freely downloadable, built on the same technology as the commercial solutions, and even deliver some superior features. SmoothWall Express 3.0, from August 2007, is an open source firewall distribution released under the GNU General Public License (GPL). It provides all the features commonly found in a modern system, but also a few that you might not expect. Stateful inspection, dynamic and static NAT, egress controls, demilitarized zone (DMZ)...
CCleaner – Clean up your Windows
Well, if you haven’t been paying attention, apparently Windows will slow down after some time in use…or so they say. Â Mine doesn’t. Â Mainly because I’m careful about spyware (not such a problem anymore since Google Chrome and Firefox), but also because I use utilities like this. So if you want your machine to stop dogging out. Â First, uninstall all the worthless programs you never use but none-the-less have collected over the last year or two. Â Go to Microsoft Update, get any updates you may need. Â Update your hardware drivers from each vendor’s website. But most of all, go to Piriform and download the excellent FREE CCLeaner. Â Once installed and started, the interface presents four tabs on the left. Â Cleaner,...
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