Articles about Software

German software developer Ashampoo GmBH has launched Ashampoo Snap 7.0, a major new release of its screen-capture tool for Windows users. Version 7 is described by Ashampoo as "The screen capturing solution that does it all", and is backed up with a large array of new features.

Version 7 also comes with the promise of a smoother workflow, simpler user experience, smarter work environment and integrated sharing tools.

Continue reading →

So Windows 8.1 is finally here and although it is a massive improvement over its predecessor (I recently had to install Windows 8 on a laptop and couldn’t believe how bad it is in comparison), Microsoft’s new Start button really isn’t what a lot of people were hoping for.

If you want to enjoy the benefits of the new operating system without being bothered by the Modern UI there are lots of alternative third-party options available. And when I say lots, I mean it. Some cost money, others are free. I’ll list my favorite three and then suggest some others to try if those don’t appeal.

Continue reading →

Berlin developer O&O Software GmbH has released O&O SafeErase Professional 7.0, a major update to its secure delete tool for Windows PCs. Version 7.0, also available in 64-bit form adds Windows 8.1 compatibility and promises faster data deletion on more powerful PCs.

The new release also debuts a tweaked user interface with redesigned icons and subtle changes that O&O claims will make it easier and better to use than previous releases.

Continue reading →

PNG is a great format for compressing images without any loss in quality, but its files are usually much larger than the equivalent JPEGs, and that can be a problem. Especially when you’re using them on a website.

There are tools which can help, though, by using various lossless compression techniques to slim down your graphics. Daanav Software’s Image Optimizer is the latest, and we downloaded a copy to run a few tests.

Continue reading →

Adobe has updated Lightroom to 5.3 with extended camera support, new lens profiles and a lengthy list of bug fixes.

The upgrade includes support for 20 recently-related cameras, including the Canon PowerShot S120 and EOS M2, Casio’s EX-10, Fujifilm FinePix XQ1, Nikon 1 AW1, Olympus Stylus 1, Pentax K-3 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10.

Continue reading →

Romanian developer Softland has announced the release of Backup4all 5.0, a major update of its flagship backup package.

As previously, the program is available in Lite ($19.99), Standard ($39.99) and Professional (currently $49.99) editions. And perhaps unsurprisingly, it’s the high-end Backup4all Professional edition which gains the most, with support for backing up to Microsoft Azure and Amazon S3 destinations.

Continue reading →

Berlin-based utilities developer O&O Software has announced the availability of O&O AutoBackup 3.

The big addition in this release is support for real-time synchronization. As soon as file is created or changed in your specified folders, AutoBackup 3 will copy it to the destination drive.

Continue reading →

iolo has released a major update to its family of System Mechanic tools with the release of iolo System Mechanic 12.5. Also available as a cut-down free version as well as a more fully featured Professional version, System Mechanic 12.5 adds a number of significant new features.

Chief among these is LiveBoost Technology, a real-time responsiveness tuner that utilizes three different tools to ensure the user’s computer is always running smoothly. This feature is restricted to the paid-for versions only.

Continue reading →

System utilities developer IObit has announced the release of Advanced SystemCare Ultimate 7, its all-in-one security and system optimization suite.

The new version sees IObit’s antivirus engine enhanced, with more scheduling options and an expanded malware database for better protection (and as before, you get the Bitdefender engine as well).

Continue reading →

Windows system software developer Uniblue has released two updates to its system tools collection. Uniblue Powersuite Lite 2014 and Uniblue DriverScanner 2014 come with a handful of new and improved features to help keep Windows systems ticking over.

Powersuite 2014 comes with the promise of better in-product help, a new Scorecards feature and improved tools for speeding up PC performance, while DriverScanner 2014 adds improved restoration of previously installed drivers to its feature set.

Continue reading →

German utilities developer Ashampoo has announced the release of Ashampoo Burning Studio 14, the latest incarnation of its disc burning suite.

Top of the new features list is support for AES-256 encryption. The "Crypted disc" project type will encrypt whatever files you burn to CD, DVD or Blu-ray, and only someone who knows the password you’ve chosen will be able to access your data.

Continue reading →

German developer Paragon Software Group has announced the release of Hard Disk Manager 14, the latest edition of its drive partitioning, backup, copying and management suite.

New features this time include the introduction of pVHD, an optimized container format, and its greater efficiency makes for smaller backup files, improved performance and stability.

Continue reading →

When writing about new programs we’ll normally start with a general outline of what they do, but FastKeys ($9.99) makes that unusually difficult. It’s a highly versatile Windows automation program with support for several time-saving technologies, but how these are used is very much up to you.

The program could be a simple Start Menu replacement, for instance; move your mouse to the top edge of the screen and a basic Start menu appears. This starts off with just a few links (Office, system applets, Documents folder, a few web shortcuts, shutdown options), but can easily be expanded to add more.

Continue reading →

Budapest-based FinalWire Ltd has launched AIDA64 Extreme Edition 4.00 and AIDA64 Business Edition 4.00, major new builds of its diagnostic and benchmarking tools for Windows PCs.

The new release updates support for the latest CPU, GPU and SSD models, adds a new OpenCL GPGPU  benchmark suite and expands its business offering to provide a new dedicated Network Audit tool (users should complete this form to test-drive this new product).

Continue reading →

RITLabs has announced the release of The Bat! 6.0, a major update of its flagship email client. Top of the "New Features" list is full Unicode support, which means users should now be able to work with multiple languages simultaneously.

The program now adds support for Internationalized Domain Names (IDN), allowing it to correctly recognize domain names containing Arabic, Chinese, Russian and other characters.

Continue reading →