Software Reviews

Infopackets Reader Bhushan G. from India writes: " Dear Dennis, I have the Windows XP Home Edition Operating System, as well as Office 2000 Professional loaded on my PC. I would like to know the site where I can get free TTF* fonts. The fonts that I ... have at present (which come standard with Office 2000) are very old. Does Microsoft give access to their font library? I will appreciate your reply! " Side note: The acronym TTF stands for True Type Font, and is the standard font format used for Microsoft Windows and word processing applications. My response: I have always had a hard ... (view more)

In light of our recent discussions on PC Privacy and Security, I've decided to write a review on Webroot's Windows Washer after receiving a few emails from Readers who recommended the program. What is Webroot's Window Washer? With web browsers and ... other applications constantly recording personal tidbits of information -- such as documents and pictures you've viewed, plus web sites recently visited -- maintaining privacy while using your PC can be a daunting task. Webroot's award-winning Window Washer is a comprehensive, simple-to-use utility which protects user privacy and maintains system ... (view more)

You've probably seen me mention PopUp Stopper Pro in the Gazette Newsletter before, but I have never done in an depth review on its features -- especially the Privacy Control that is offered. So, here goes! What is Panicware PopUp Stopper ... Professional? PopUp Stopper Pro is a program which eliminates unwanted web browser PopUp advertisements. PopUp Stopper Pro can also remove both Windows and Personal History Items, thereby providing the user with greater privacy control. Panicware PopUp Stopper: PopUp Blocking features Supports all major web browsers: AOL, MSN, Internet Explorer, Netscape, ... (view more)

Sick and tired of junk email and viruses? I sure am! Not too long ago, I received the following email from Infopackets Reader Hugh G., who introduced me to a program called MailWasher: " I just wanted to let you know that I'm using MailWasher, a ... program designed to keep out unsolicited commercial email (IE: Spam) and email viruses away from your computer. MailWasher connects to your Mail Server and allows you to preview and delete emails before they are downloaded to your Inbox! MailWasher also has a really handy feature which allows you to bounce emails back to people so it looks like ... (view more)

Last week's article about tweaking spurred a few comments from our Readers. Wait a sec -- what is tweaking? In techy-terms, the word "tweak" means to optimize. With respect to PCs, tweaking may refer to one of three things: a hardware tweak (the PC ... itself), a software tweak (an application, or the operating system), or both. On the weekend, Bob T. from Wisconsin sent me an email: " Hi Dennis! Great article [last week] on tweaking. I really enjoyed reading it. I'm sure you've probably about this already, but your readers may also want to know about a program called WinGuides ... (view more)

Recall: Yesterday's issue of the Gazette was about a Freeware MS Office Replacement. Infopackets Reader Jim P. made his suggestion with reference to a freeware Microsoft Word .DOC file converter: " Fast, compatible and free: 602Pro PC SUITE is the ... freeware alternative to Microsoft Office, and includes a word processor, spreadsheet, photo editor and photo organizer. " http://www.software602.com/download/ Since then, I have received more new suggestions for Freeware MS Office Replacements. In fact, Tammy F. told me that she uses a freeware program called Open Office: " I use Open ... (view more)

In the May 21st, 2003 issue of the Infopackets Gazette, I asked readers if they knew of a freeware document converter for MS Word .DOC files: Word Perfect 2000 won't read MS Word documents? Unfortunately, I did not receive many software suggestions. ... My guess is that most users have MS Word installed on their machines and have little need for such a conversion utility... thus the reason for low response. Nevertheless -- Infopackets Reader Jim P. recommended (what appears to be) an excellent freeware replacement for MS Office, called 602 Pro PC Suite: " You wanted to know if there is a ... (view more)

Recall -- In the past 48 hours, my computer has been utterly bombarded with the W32.sobig.b@mm.html email virus. The worm clogged my mailbox so severely that I wrote an article about it in the last newsletter . Today, I received an email from a user ... named Andrew with a suggestion for anti-spam filtering software: " Hi, Dennis! Sorry to hear about your virus problems. In your last newsletter, you suggested using free anti-virus software and a firewall, in addition to Outlook Express message rules to combat the W32.sobig.b@mm.html email virus. What about using a spam killer? One of my ... (view more)

The previous 2 Feature Articles were about an alternative approach to Internet Explorer's time-saving AutoComplete function. Recall -- When enabled, the AutoComplete feature remembers (and completes) frequently used form data on web pages, such as ... user logins and passwords. Unfortunately, AutoComplete does not offer a method for exporting / backing up its form data which has been collected over time. This is very problematic for anyone who may need to format / reinstall Windows, or for users who use Disk Imaging software (like myself) to restore a previously working copy of Windows. I asked ... (view more)

Tuesday's feature article of the Infopackets Gazette Newsletter made a very brief mention of a new downloadable eBook and Video Tutorial that I've been working on. The idea to create the tutorial was spawned from our recent newsletter discussions ... about archiving software. I've decided to take a time-out from my regular featured articles to announce that the Archiving eBook and Video Ultimate Guide is now complete. What did you say archiving was, exactly? From the eBook: " Typically, archival software is used to 'glue' multiple files together into a single, smaller file. As the files are ... (view more)