Freeware Centre

Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus

2011-04-22T10:31:00.000-07:00

Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus

Microsoft Security Essentials is a free anti-virus provided by Microsoft for users having Genuine Windows. Microsoft Security Essentials is completely free and provides a user-friendly and comprehensible interface that users can use to protect their computers.

Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus offers proper protection against the many malicious treats including viruses, Trojans, spyware and the other malware. Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus automatically updates its system upon with newer and better data.

Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus can both be used for personal and business purposes. Running in the background, Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus does not consume much memory, nor does it constantly interrupt users with prompts.

Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus does not only scan and detect the malicious software present in the computer, but it also cleans them and provides a real-time protection to the various user and system files, including rootkits, as well as network protection. Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus can also be integrated with Windows Firewall for further and better protection.

Download and Reference Area for Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus:-

Download the latest version of Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus
Homepage of Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus
Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus License Terms
Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus System Requirements
Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus Features List
Microsoft Security Essentials – Free Anti-virus support

Winrar - Powerful Archive Manager

2011-04-10T10:26:00.000-07:00

Winrar - Powerful Archive Manager

Winrar is an amazing and powerful archive manager that can compress, split and extract/merge files. In my opinion, Winrar is a must-have tool on any computer as most files are protected with it on the internet and it provides a lot of functions.

Winrar is actually a shareware. You can use the trial version of the program but it is recommended that you buy it.

Winrar is a very powerful tool as a compressor and can compress very big files into small once to save space. You can even prevent users from exploring the compressed files if they do not know the password.

While compressing and splitting, users can include passwords to protect their data even in the compressed form.

As a splitter and compressor, Winrar can use both the .rar and .zip extension. The smaller parts is like the following: file.part001.rar, file.part002.rar, ...

Winrar has many options that it provides to the users like, scan for viruses, test archive, type of compression, size of split files, place comment in archives, and more ...

Further options allow users to search for files in the archive, generate reports and organize a 'favorites' list.

Users can even select only a few files that they want to use from the archive and extract only these from the whole Double-clicking automatically extracts the file in the temporary folder and opens it with the its appropriate program.

Among the extensions that are recognized by Winrar are: rar, zip, cab, arj, lzh, ace, 7-zip, tar, gzip, uue, bz2, jar, iso, z, .r00, ....

With Winrar, you will not need different compressing, splitting or merging tools installed on your computer.

Additionally, Winrar can even open .001, .002, .003, ... files and can even resolve an issue that the best .001, .002, .003, ... files merger, HJsplit cannot at this time. Read this tutorial on How to join .001, .002, ... files? to learn more.

Download and Reference Area for Winrar - Powerful Archive Manager:-

Download latest trial version of Winrar - Powerful Archive Manager
Winrar - Powerful Archive Manager Homepage
Winrar - Powerful Archive Manager Themes
Winrar - Powerful Archive Manager News

HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger

2011-04-10T06:51:00.000-07:00

HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger

HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger is a free file splitter and merger that can split very big files into smaller ones in the form file.001, file.002, file.003, …

In the same way, HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger can merge files of these extensions into one big file.

Well, you will sometimes encounter files of the extension .001, .002, .003, … on the internet. The first question that will come to your mind if you are new to these files is: How to join .001, .002, .003 files?

Know that HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger is the best solution. Even if there are other programs that can do this, HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger is the free and the best tool to do this.

HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger is available on many platforms, including, and not limited to Windows, Linux, Mac and more. It is also an inter-platform tool – that is, a file cut on Windows can be joined on Linux with HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger.

Dealing with smaller files is better for uploading and downloading. Additionally, big files can be made into smaller ones by HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger for burning.

The program is easy to use, direct and does not consume much RAM. Users need to place all the files in the same directory and choose the .001 file to start the joining process (if there is 5 parts: file.rar.001, file.rar.002, file.rar.003, file.rar.004, and file.rar.005 – everyone of them should be in the same place).

HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger is portable – that is, you need not setup it but only need the files to run it anywhere from a USB, CD, DVD, …

Before downloading, you recommend reading this tutorial on How to join .001, .002, … files? to learn of a special way to counter an issue that you may obtain with HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger.

Download and Reference Area for HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger:-

Download latest version of HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger
HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger Official site
HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger News and New Features
HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger for Windows
HJsplit – File Splitter and Merger Documentation and Manuals

NVIDIA Release 270.51 Beta Drivers

2011-04-09T10:36:00.000-07:00

The NVIDIA Release 270.51 Beta Drivers was announced on the 30th March 2011. It includes great boost in performance and features of graphics card.

Well, it is always good to stay updated with the latest and best drivers so that you can use your graphics card to the max.

Find all the NVIDIA Release 270.51 Beta Drivers features here

It is highly recommended that you check which drivers work for your graphics card to prevent problems.

Check the latest NVIDIA driver for your graphics card and download it here

VLC Media Player - Free Media Player

2011-04-06T00:43:00.000-07:00

VLC Media Player - Free Media Player

VLC Media Player is a free and open source cross-platform multimedia player that plays most of the video and audio formats in addition to DVDs, Audio CDs, VCD and others.

VLC Media Player works great on most platforms including Windows, Linux, Mac, Unix and many more (Solaris, OpenBSD, FreeBSD, Syllable, ... )

As said above, VLC Media Player plays almost everything and in terms of performance, VLC Media Player is simple but yet, powerful and fast. What is more interesting is that VLC Media Player can play most codecs without actually requiring any special codecs pack.

VLC Media Player is ads-free, and does not contain any spyware and user trackers.

VLC Media Player also includes a media converter and streamer feature and runs subtitles and other features correctly where other media players would fail.

As soon as a newer version of VLC Media Player is available, users are automatically prompted to download the newer version, or continue using the actual one.

Download and Reference Area for VLC Media Player - Free Media Player:-

Download Latest Version of VLC Media Player - Free Media Player
Homepage of Version of VLC Media Player - Free Media Player
List of supported Video formats of VLC Media Player - Free Media Player
List of supported Audio formats of VLC Media Player - Free Media Player
List of all features of VLC Media Player - Free Media Player
Screenshots of VLC Media Player - Free Media Player
Skins for VLC Media Player - Free Media Player

K-Lite Codec Pack - Free Media Player

2011-04-03T11:04:00.000-07:00

K-Lite Codec Pack is a collection of audio and video components that enable the OS to recognize and play files with formats that would not be playable normally.

K-Lite Codec Pack is a freeware and is only available for Microsoft Windows.

Additionally, K-Lite Codec Pack comes together with some tools such as Media Player Classic, Codec Tweak Tool and GSpot Codec Information Appliance.

K-Lite Codec Pack comes in 4 variants:-

Basic Edition
Standard Edition
Full Edition
Mega Edition

Below are screenshots comparing the abilities and contents of the 4 variants. Note that these screenshots are not from my content, but were rather taken from the official site of K-Lite Codec Pack.

Comparing the abilities

To see the complete list of ability comparison, click here

To see the complete list of content comparison, click here

Download and Reference Area for K-Lite Codec Pack - Free Media Player:-

Download K-Lite Codec Pack
Official K-Lite Codec Pack Site
Information about K-Lite Codec Pack
K-Lite Codec Pack Guides
Fix Codec Errors and Improve PC Performance
K-Lite Codec Pack FAQ

CCleaner - Free Optimizing and Cleaning Tools

2011-04-03T10:42:00.000-07:00

CCleaner is a product of the Piriform company. CCleaner is a freeware and is considered to be the best cleaning tools.

This utility program is used to clean potentially unwanted files and Windows Registry entries from a computer.

At this time, CCleaner is only available for the Windows operating system.

CCleaner is a small and easy-to-use utility.

Among the files that are cleaned by CCleaner are the unwanted files from applications like: Firefox, Opera, Internet Explorer, Safari, Google Chrome, Windows Media Player, eMule, Google Toolbar, Netscape, Microsoft Office, Nero, Adobe Acrobat, WinRAR, WinAce, WinZip and many more. Browsing history, cookies, Recycle bin, memory dumps, file fragments, log files, system caches, application data, autocomplete form history, and various other data are also cleaned by CCleaner.

CCleaner also includes a registry cleaner that cleans registry files and correct errors in the registry, such as missing DLLs, unused registration entries for file extensions, and missing references application paths.

Of course, the above mentioned files can be selected or deselected before the cleaning process.

Why is it important to regularly clean such files?

It makes the computer faster.
It secures users from viruses and spywares.
No more reboots.
Cleans unwanted registry files that are not removed even after the uninstallation of a program.
More free space is obtained on the hard disk.
Other reasons.....

The following is a screenshot of the user-friendly interface of CCleaner:-

Download and Reference Area for CCleaner - Free Optimizing and Cleaning Tools:-

CCleaner - Free Optimizing and Cleaning Tools Download Links
CCleaner - Free Optimizing and Cleaning Tools Official Site
CCleaner - Free Optimizing and Cleaning Tools Support
More information about CCleaner - Free Optimizing and Cleaning Tools
CCleaner - Free Optimizing and Cleaning Tools Latest Update Information
More Freewares from Piriform

Format Factory - Free Audio and Video Converter

2011-04-03T10:15:00.000-07:00

Format Factory is an amazing multifunctional media converter software ( freeware ) that can convert both audio and video to many different formats that are usually used by most people and even supports other formats not normally known by others.

This post describes some of the features of Format Factory and provides multiple download links for this freeware.

Format Factory is presented in a user-friendly interface, so it should be difficult to get used to it and know of its functions.

With Format Factory, the following can be done:

All to MP4/3GP/MPG/AVI/WMV/FLV/SWF.

All to MP3/WMA/AMR/OGG/AAC/WAV.

All to JPG/BMP/PNG/TIF/ICO/GIF/TGA.

Rip DVD to video file , Rip Music CD to audio file.

MP4 files support iPod/iPhone/PSP/BlackBerry format.

Supports RMVB,Watermark, AV Mux.

Format Factory's Features:

support converting all popular video,audio,picture formats to others.
Repair damaged video and audio file.
Reducing Multimedia file size.
Support iphone,ipod multimedia file formats.
Picture converting supports Zoom,Rotate/Flip,tags.
DVD Ripper.
Supports 56 languages

The is Format Factory 2.60 ( If there is a newer version, you will be able to download it using the links below )

List of Version 2.60 changes:-

Improve "Mux",Now supports multiple video and audio files.
Fixed the compatibility issue MP4 files.
Improve "Drag and Drop" , now supports drag folder object into user interface

File Size: 38.23MB

OS requirements: All Windows OS

Download and Reference Area for Format Factory - Free Audio and Video Converter:-

Latest Format Factory - Free Audio and Video Converter Download Link
Format Factory - Free Audio and Video Converter Homepage
Format Factory - Free Audio and Video Converter FAQ
Format Factory - Free Audio and Video Converter About page

Attention : If you fail to run FormatFactory , Please download this patch to fix your system runtime. vcredist_x86.exe

I have also searched for some frequently asked questions and have listed some of them here. So, if you encounter a problem with the problem, you may find the solution among these.

Question : Appear error message "Missing FFMpeg.dll".
Answer：Please uninstall older version or empty the FormatFactory folder first , then install new version again.

Question : when I use "All to RMVB",appear error message "Fail to decode".
Answer：FormatFactory use system installed codec to decode sourec files. you must install some codec that your files needed. You can install "K-Lite" or other codec pack to solve this problem.

Question : How to make VCD/DVD.
Answer： FormatFactory only support file to file conversion. You can convert to MPG ,then use "Nero" to burn VCD/DVD.

Question : When I trys to rip DVD , several of my dvds get errors.
Answer：Please click mencoder.rar download and unrar it , then replace "FormatFactory\FFModules\mencoder.exe" in FormatFactory installation folder.

Question : After I convert a movie with subtitle, the result come out without character ç, ã, é and Á.
Answer： Because the defaut font doesn't support these character , Please change subtitle font to "Tahoma (Tahomabd.ttf)"

I hope that the post about Format Factory - Free Audio and Video Converter is useful to you.

Audacity - Free Sound Editor

2011-04-03T07:38:00.000-07:00

Audacity is a free cross-platform audio editor developed by a team of software developers, translators, documentation writers, and other contributors around the world.

It allows users to record and edit sounds and is available for Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows, GNU/Linux, and other operating systems.

The software comes with a very simple and comprehensible interface. After a few sessions of trials, users should become familiar with the basic functions of the application ( unlike other software which can only be understood after studying in-depth tutorials which are usually payable ).

There is several releases and newer versions fix the bugs found in the earlier versions.

Users can use Audacity to:

Record live audio.
Convert tapes and records into digital recordings or CDs.
Edit Ogg Vorbis, MP3, WAV or AIFF sound files.
Cut, copy, splice or mix sounds together.
Change the speed or pitch of a recording.
And more!

Here are some other features:-

Recording

Audacity can record live audio through a microphone or mixer, or digitize recordings from cassette tapes, vinyl records, or minidiscs. With some sound cards, it can also capture streaming audio.

Record from microphone, line input, or other sources.
Dub over existing tracks to create multi-track recordings.
Record up to 16 channels at once (requires multi-channel hardware).
Level meters can monitor volume levels before, during, and after recording.

Import and Export

Import sound files, edit them, and combine them with other files or new recordings. Export your recordings in several common file formats.

Import and export WAV, AIFF, AU, and Ogg Vorbis files.
Import MPEG audio (including MP2 and MP3 files) with libmad.
Export MP3s with the optional LAME encoder library.
Create WAV or AIFF files suitable for burning to CD.
Import and export all file formats supported by libsndfile.
Open raw (headerless) audio files using the “Import Raw” command.
Note: Audacity does not currently support WMA, AAC, or most other proprietary or restricted file formats.

Editing

Easy editing with Cut, Copy, Paste, and Delete.
Use unlimited Undo (and Redo) to go back any number of steps.
Very fast editing of large files.
Edit and mix an unlimited number of tracks.
Use the Drawing tool to alter individual sample points.
Fade the volume up or down smoothly with the Envelope tool.

Effects

Change the pitch without altering the tempo, or vice-versa.
Remove static, hiss, hum, or other constant background noises.
Alter frequencies with Equalization, FFT Filter, and Bass Boost effects.
Adjust volumes with Compressor, Amplify, and Normalize effects.
Other built-in effects include:
- Echo
- Phaser
- Wahwah
- Reverse

Sound Quality

Record and edit 16-bit, 24-bit, and 32-bit (floating point) samples.
Record at up to 96 kHz.
Sample rates and formats are converted using high-quality resampling and dithering.
Mix tracks with different sample rates or formats, and Audacity will convert them automatically in realtime.

Plug-Ins

Add new effects with LADSPA plug-ins.
Audacity includes some sample plug-ins by Steve Harris.
Load VST plug-ins for Windows and Mac, with the optional VST Enabler.
Write new effects with the built-in Nyquist programming language.

Analysis

Spectrogram mode for visualizing frequencies.
“Plot Spectrum” command for detailed frequency analysis.

Free and Cross-Platform

Licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL).
Runs on Mac OS X, Windows, and GNU/Linux.

Download and Reference Area for Audacity - The Free Sound Editor:-

Download the latest version of Audacity - Free Sound Editor
More information on Audacity - Free Sound Editor
Various plug-ins and libraries for Audacity - Free Sound Editor
Help and Tutorials about Audacity - Free Sound Editor

Flashget - Free Download Manager

2011-04-02T10:45:00.000-07:00

Flashget is a leading download manager with the highest amount of users on the internet.

Flashget is a freeware, free of adware or spyware.

The program uses MHT ( Multi-server Hyper-threading Transportation ), supports various protocols and has excellent document management features.

Flashget allows users to apply splits to their downloads and has a pause function. Flashget also has an auto-shutdown function. Users can download several files simultaneously.

Detailed information about the file being downloaded is available and can be easily analysed using the grapical grids representing the amount of bytes remaining for the file to be completed. Batched downloads can be carried out and they automatically start after the other is complete.

FTP and proxy configuration can be changed in the "Option" section of Flashget. Settings can also be configured for specific sites. For example, if you have a premium account at rapidshare, you can directly insert the username and password of that account in the download manager ( Flashget ) and you quickly start downloading without having to go to rapidshare first.

Some of the features of Flashget is listed below ( both recent and old ):-

FlashGet can call anti-virus automatically to clean virus,spyware and adware after finishing download
FlashGet can use up the lowest system resources and will not influence your normal work or study

Flashget uses MHT technique and optimization arithmetic and it can split downloaded files into sections and supports multipoint transfers in parallel. Moreover, the techniques (UDCT, Ultra Disk Cache Tech) can protect your hard disk and make you download more stable

FlashGet supports HTTP,FTP,BT,MMS,RTSP and other protocols. It is seamless between protocols and there is no need to operate manually for download switch.
The One Touch technique optimizes BT download and can automatically download target files after getting seeds information, hence no need to operate again

Flashget supports unlimited categories. Each category is assigned a download saving directory. The powerful management feature

Flashget also allow users to download the all files whose links are listed on a specific page. Of course, files from sites that require authentification codes will not be automatically downloaded ( e.g. rapidshare, unless you have a premium account )

Videos from some streaming sites can be downloaded with Flashget ( e.g. from Youtube )

Galleries can be built

Download and Reference Area for Flashget The Download Manager:-

Download Latest Version of Flashget
Online Help for Flashget
Download Manager: Flashget User Manual
Browse Flashget User Manual Online
Download Flashget Addons