Software Reviews

Synopsis: Instantly remove thousands of Spyware and adware traces, Trojans, keyloggers, tracking threats, and other nasty Spybots from your PC with the multi-award winning Spyware dection removal utility -- Spyware Doctor! Spyware Doctor 3.2: ... Screenshots Click here to view: Page 1 | Page 2. Spyware Doctor 3.2: Description Did you know that every keystroke you type, every web site you visit, and every conversation you have may be monitored by unscrupulous software companies? When you consider the amount of valuable personal information stored on your PC, including credit card and banking ... (view more)

Continuing on with our in-depth discussions on backup solutions , this article will review Acronis True Image version 8.0. This will be the final article in our 7-part series, stretching back almost 1 month to date: Choosing a Backup Solution: An In ... Depth Look 6 Key Elements for any Backup Strategy Backup Made Easy: A Six Point Guide to Buying Backup Software Genie Backup Manager Review System Restore and similar Registry Reverting utilities -- pointless? The results are in: which Disk Imaging Backup software is best? Acronis True Image Review (version 8): In Depth RE: Disk Imaging software ... (view more)

Recall -- Following with our recent theme on " backup software ", I announced last week that I be compiling an in-depth review on a disk imaging software. In a subsequent newsletter, I asked Infopackets Readers to send me their opinions (good or ... bad) on their favorite imaging program. Responses have been strong, with about 60 opinions to date. Based on those opinions, the consensus is that Acronis True Image is ranked as the favorite recommendation, providing best overall feature set and the least amount of bugs and incompatibilities. One other strong point brought to my attention ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Helen H. writes: " Dear Dennis, I recently installed Norton System Works 2005, and now my computer is reporting that System Restore for Windows XP will not complete the restore process. It says, 'System Restore Incomplete.' Can ... you tell me if the Norton antivirus is interfering with the restore program? If so what to I need to do to correct the problem? " My response: Personally, I don't use Norton System Works 2005, so I can only speculate on your situation. Since one of the components of Norton System Works (NSW) is to provide a "Go Back" restore ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader John C. writes: " Dear Dennis, I have been getting your newsletter for awhile now -- thanks for that. As of late, however, I've noticed that some of your software reviews seem to be more like advertisements, rather than an ... unbiased review. In my opinion, you should state up front whether or not you profit from anything you review or write about, and make it clear it is an advertisement. " My response: Rest assured -- the reviews I write are absolutely 100% biased. The reviews are biased because I chose to write them, and I often prefer one software product over ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Skip 'BigFoot' writes: " Dear Dennis, I just finished reading your stellar review of Genie Backup , and was very interested in making it my primary backup solution. The problem is that many of the backup programs I've tried in the ... past have fell short of their promises, leaving me with a bad taste in my mouth (for lack of better words). Before I decide to purchase the Genie Backup program, I would like to obtain a trial version first to see if it will work with my system. Is this possible? " My response: As far as I understand, the Genie-Soft web site (home page ... (view more)

The last three articles in our newsletter have provided an in-depth look into The Importance of Backing up Data , highlighted a number of Backup Strategies , and even presented a Six Point Guide to Buying Backup Software . At the same time the ... articles were being compiled, however, I quietly enlisted myself on a top secret mission to research, review, and rigorously test a never-ending list of backup software. The purpose: to find the best, easiest to use, feature-packed backup utility according to the stringent set of criteria previously established in our 6 Point Purchasing Guide (namely: ... (view more)

Continued from Choosing a Backup Solution: An In Depth Look and 6 Key Elements for any Backup Strategy ; this article is our third and final installment. -- Each year, home and business users lose millions of dollars in lost data because the backup ... solution they've elected to use has failed to live up to its promises -- often, the result of a failed restore, partially corrupted files, or poor hardware support. With -- literally -- millions of documents on the web related to "backup software", making an informed decision about an appropriate backup solution can prove to be an ... (view more)

Continued from Choosing a Backup Solution: An In Depth Look . As I outlined in my previous article, there are many backup solutions available -- but few that are designed to meet the requirements of virtually every computer user. Therefore, it's ... important to establish your backup strategy ahead of time before choosing the backup solution that is right for you. Whether it's a short term or long term solution, and for home or office use -- here are 6 key elements you can use in formulating your own Backup Strategy: 1. Determine the Frequency of your Backups Most (but not all) backup solutions ... (view more)

The next few feature articles of our newsletter will spotlight 4 editorials written by Kevin J. Vella of UniBlue, and provides an interesting and in-depth view of choosing a backup solution. -- It was Sunday, the 23rd of November 2003 at 4 PM, and I ... was in my final months of Graduate Business School. Two chapters of my research project were stashed on my hard drive -- no hard copies, just bits and bytes of hard work compiled over the last three months. I was punching away at my keyboard -- when all of a sudden, my notebook slowed dramatically. I started closing down open applications in hopes ... (view more)