Articles about Free Software

If you like Chrome, but aren’t so keen on Google’s tracking code and other extras, then you could switch to Chromium, its open-source browser engine.

Sure, you’d lose the integrated PDF viewer, various codecs, the Flash player (actually, that might be a good thing).

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It wasn’t easy to work up much enthusiasm for fHash, at least initially. It's only an MD5, SHA1, SHA256 and CRC32 hash calculator, after all -- how interesting can it be?

But then we tried it, and… Okay, fHash is "only" a file hash calculator, but nicely implemented, with a lightweight, easy-to-use interface that makes it well worth a few minutes of your time.

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O&O Software has shipped O&O RegEditor, a powerful freeware Registry editor for Windows Vista and later.

The package extends RegEdit with enhanced search tools, full copy and paste support, improved editing and more.

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IObit has released a minor, but significant update to its driver update tool, Driver Booster 3.2 FREE. The new release, also available as a performance-enhanced Pro version, adds a new driver fix-it tool.

The update also includes various optimizations to improve user experience, performance and stability, plus widens the tool’s driver database engine to the latest updates.

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Foolish IT has released the first beta of KillEmAll 5.0, a portable tool designed to close all non-essential applications at the click of a button.

The program could be very useful in emergencies -- maybe to close all open browser windows if you’ve got a malicious popup -- but is also a handy timesaver whenever you need to clear your desktop in a hurry.

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Foxit Software has unveiled Foxit Reader 7.3, its free PDF reader and creation tool for Windows PCs. The new release debuts a number of significant features, including Google Drive and OneDrive integration, plus a new word count tool and official support for Office 2016.

OneDrive and Google Drive integration can be found in the program’s File menu under "Add a place", and work in a similar way to later versions of Microsoft Office by allowing users to create shortcuts to cloud-based locations.

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From tutorials to troubleshooting, game walkthroughs, presentations or just sharing desktop activity, everyone can use a screen recorder occasionally.

This used to mean tracking down and installing some low-level native application, but there are now some surprisingly capable Chrome extensions which just might do everything you need.

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While it’s great that Microsoft is offering free upgrades to Windows 10, it’s maybe less impressive that they’re using regular pop-up ads to tell us about this. Over, and over, and over again.

If you’re happy with Windows 7 or 8 then there are various ways to get rid of these alerts, but GWX Stopper is probably the simplest of all.

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Lightweight virtual PDF printer Doro has been updated with new color conversion and page rotation settings.

If the default "UseDeviceIndependentColor" color conversion strategy doesn’t work, then you can now convert to RGB, CMYK or grayscale, or just use the colors in the source document.

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Avira, Avast, Baidu: plenty of developers offer free antivirus these days, and it can be as reliable as the commercial competition.

It’s tough for a new product to stand out from the crowd, then -- but the new Sophos Home has found a way.

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Password management provider Dashlane has unveiled Dashlane 4.0 for Windows and Mac alongside Dashlane for iOS 4.0 and Dashlane for Android 4.0. The new release -- available in free and a paid-for Premium package -- shows off a brand new interface.

The new design -- which Dashlane claims has been "enhanced and optimized for convenience" shows off menu upgrades, improved search, wider support for its automatic password changer tool and support for five more languages.

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Manually shutting down a PC is easy enough -- assuming you can find the power menu, anyway -- but automating the process takes a little more work. And even if you spend a while playing with your power options, shutdown.exe and Task Scheduler, it still might not deliver what you need.

Fortunately there’s plenty of freeware around to help automate all your shutdown, restart, sleep and other power-related tasks.

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We’re usually skeptical of media managers. They always promise big benefits, but often require a lot of setup time before they deliver, if you ever see them at all.

Saleen Video Manager is a little different. Yes, you can spend an age entering library data, if you like -- but it also gives you plenty of movie manager tools you can use right away.

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Jide Technology has released Remix OS 2.0, a multitasking, mouse-friendly version of Android which comes ready to run on a PC.

The alpha build is available as a 700MB ISO, which the company recommends you run from a "USB 3.0 flash drive that supports FAT32 format, with a minimum capacity of 8GB and a recommended writing speed of 20MB/s".

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Did you wake up on January 1st full of plans to change your life, get a new job, maybe a whole new career? Only to find that, somehow, your enthusiasm has faded and you’re back to work, as usual?

The key is to start small, with simple steps that’ll take you in the right direction, but won’t leave you feeling overwhelmed. Like creating and sharing your CV with the Chrome extension Kickresume.

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