23 downloads you shouldn't miss this week
Another busy week of software releases is behind us and, in case you managed to miss some of them, we’ve collected some of the most-compelling titles together into this week’s roundup.
If you spend time installing a lot of the programs we highlight here, you’re going to need a suitable launcher to help you manage them. Winstep Nexus 12.20 is a stylish dock for Windows that provides easy access to all of your apps. The software is perfectly complimented by Winstep Xtreme 12.20, which enables you to completely customize the appearance of your desktop with skins and widgets that can be as adventurous as you like.
Anyone looking to make Windows easier to use rather than making it prettier will like Mayhem Developer Preview, which can be used to automate frequently performed tasks using scripts, while Mouse Switcher 1.0.0 is an interesting tool that allows for program switching with the mouse wheel.
Typically there are normally a fairly large number of web browser updates, but this week was much quieter than usual. Pale Moon 11.0 is the latest version of the speed optimized Firefox variant, based on v11. This time around you’ll find improved HTML5 and CSS support as well as page rendering speed improvements. If you have a 64-bit version of Windows, you should take a look at Pale Moon x64 11.0, while if you like keeping your software on a USB drive to take with your rom computer to computer, you’ll be interested in Pale Moon 11.0 Portable and Pale Moon x64 11.0 Portable.
Security and Sync
Whatever browser you’re using to surf the internet, you need to keep safe, and ZoneAlarm Free 10.1.101.000 is a free firewall that keeps you protected against hackers and malicious software.
This has been a great week for utility fans, starting off with Wise Disk Cleaner Free 7.11, which can be used to free up disk space and IObit Advanced SystemCare 5.2.0.223 FINAL that provides you with a series of tools to help optimize and maintain your computer.
If you’re one of the millions of people who flock to Twitter each day, TweetDeck 1.3 has been updated to include support for more picture services, better list management options, new columns and much more. TweetDeck is a Twitter client that is available for multiple platforms.
If you work with multiple devices you should check out SugarSync, which enables you to keep your files synchronized between devices with ease. SugarSync 1.9.50 is available for Windows and Mac, and there is also SugarSync for Android 3.5.1 and SugarSync for iOS -- the iPad version has received and impressive makeover that makes it even more appealing.
Convert and Create
Fancy getting away from it all for a while? Look no further than Microsoft Flight 1.0, the free flight sim that enables you to explore the island of Hawaii.
The final selection of tools this week are all related to video and image files. Light Image Resizer 4 is a quick and dirty tool that reduces batch image editing and resizing to a minimum of steps.
Adobe Photoshop CS6 beta is an exciting preview of the next version of the world-famous image editing tool that includes a number of content-aware features and more than enough tweaks, enhancements and additions to make this the most impressive version of Photoshop for quite some time.
On the video front, Freemake Video Downloader 3.0.1 is a free tool that makes it possible to download video files from all manner of streaming web sites, while Freemake Video Converter is on hand to enable you to convert these, and almost any other video into a range of different formats.
Download and Do
Miro 5.0 RC1 is a similar tool that not only allows for video downloading, but also provides you with a dedicated program interface for managing all of your on- and offline video content.
If you’re more of an offline video viewer, VLC Media Player 2.0.1 FINAL has been updated to include Blu-ray support for Mac users as well as a range of enhancements for other platforms.
One final program worth pointing out this week is Close All Windows 1.3 which will make it easier to close a number of programs in one fell swoop. Join us again next week for another roundup of Mac, Windows, Android and iOS software.
Remember to keep one eye on Downloadcrew Giveaway. On Monday Ashampoo Photo Commander 9 will be available, on Wednesday AIDA64 Extreme Edition and on Friday, another full commercial application, which will be confirmed next week.
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