The Friendliest Computer Club in Ventura County Since 1986
PRODUCT REVIEWS UPDATED: WHAT'S NEW?
This is a reprint from the August 2007 issue of TOE (The Outer Edge)
By Jim Thornton
Frequently, software developers release new versions or updates to their products to add enhancements and/or to correct problems. Here are the updates to various software products that we have recently reviewed.
AD-AWARE SE 1.06r1: Advertising and Spyware File Searcher and Eliminator (Reviewed In April 2006 newsletter).
Product Description: Ad-Aware's Standard Edition is the award-winning, free, advertising and spyware detection and removal utility that leads the industry in safety, user satisfaction, support, and reliability. With its ability to scan your memory; registry; and hard, removable, and optical drives for known data mining, aggressive advertising, and tracking components, Ad-aware provides the confidence to surf the Internet knowing that your privacy remains protected.
What's New in This Version? The disk scan progress is approximately 30 percent faster as its search engine is improved and uses less CPU and memory resources.
Requirements: Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP
Release Date: Dec. 4, 2006
Web site: AD-AWARE SE 1.06r1
BADCOPY PRO 3.81: Recovers Corrupted or Lost Data (Reviewed in March 2006 newsletter).
Product Description: BadCopy Pro is a data recovery tool for floppy disk, CD-ROM and CD-R/W discs and other storage media. It effectively recovers, rescues, and repairs corrupted, damaged, defective, lost, unopenable or unreadable floppy disks and CD discs. In addition, data on deleted, inaccessible, and quick formatted floppy disks may be recovered, repaired or rescued as well as burning CD problems are. Data on hard drives. flash drives. and Iomega ZIP, JAZ, and MO disks may be recovered. Even lost photographs on memory sticks from digital cameras may be recovered.
Requirements: Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP
Release Date: March 10, 2007
Web site: BADCOPY PRO 3.81
PRETTY GOOD SOLITAIRE 11.0.1: Solitaire Card Game (Reviewed in June 2007 newsletter).
Product Description: Pretty Good Solitaire is a collection of 640 solitaire card games, from the classic games like Klondike, FreeCell, and Spider, to original games found nowhere else. The games are easy to play, giving you the choice of the standard drag and drop or its unique quick right button mouse clicks to move the cards. You can leave a game in progress, Pretty Good Solitaire will save it for you, and when you start the game again you'll be right back where you left off. You can submit your statistics to the Pretty Good Solitaire Web site and see how you rank against other players worldwide. The playing cards are large, beautiful, and easy-to-read with a large choice of backgrounds, which you may change to any color or any image of your choice. If you can’t decide which game to play, Pretty Good Solitaire can select a game at random for you. You can even create your own solitaire games with the Pretty Good Solitaire wizard!
What's New in This Version? Updates for Windows Vista compatibility
Requirements: Windows 95/98/NT/ME/2000/XP/Vista
Release Date: Jan. 18, 2007
Web site:PRETTY GOOD SOLITAIRE 11.0.1
REGISTRY MECHANIC 6.0.0.780: Registry Scanner and Cleaner (Reviewed in September 2006 newsletter).
Product Description: Registry Mechanic is an advanced registry cleaner for Windows that allows you to safely clean and repair registry problems with a few simple mouse clicks. Windows registry problems are a common cause of Windows crashes and error messages. By using a registry cleaner regularly and fixing your registry, your system will become more stable and even run faster. Registry problems occur for many reasons, from left-behind data after the un-installation or incorrect removal of software, to missing or corrupt hardware drivers, to orphaned startup programs.
Requirements: Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
Release Date: March 6, 2007
Web site: REGISTRY MECHANIC 6.0.0.780
VERSIONTRACKER Pro 3.6.1: A Finder, Downloader, and Installer of Software and Driver Updates (Reviewed in August 2007 newsletter).
Product Description: A software updated for all your drivers and third-party applications. VersionTracker Pro provides the current version information to assist you in making the proper decision whether to update your software and drivers or not. The program automatically monitors and inventories the versions of the drivers and software on your Windows computer, compares it against the manufacturers’ current versions, and immediately notifies you of any differences and of all new updates. Version Tracker Pro currently maintains a comprehensive database of more than 75,000 products.
Requirements: Windows NT/2000/XP/Vista; Intel Pentium or better processor; 64MB
RAM; 3MB HDD space; Internet connection; and a Web browser such as Internet Explorer or Firefox.
Web site: VERSIONTRACKER 3.6.1
WINDOWS DEFENDER 1.1.1593: Advertising and Spyware File Searcher and Eliminator. Formerly titled Windows Antispyware (Reviewed in June 2006 newsletter).
Product Description: Windows Defender has a redesigned and simplified user interface incorporating the feedback from the Microsoft customers, which makes it able to detect and remove more threats posed by spyware and other potentially unwanted software. Real Time Protection has also been enhanced to better monitor key points in the operating system for changes. Windows Defender will first validate that your copy of Windows is genuine before starting its installation. Should your copy of Windows not be genuine, Windows Defender will remove only severe threats while low, medium, and high threats will be detected but not removed.
Requirements: Minimum system requirements are an Intel Pentium 233MHz or higher processor; Pentium III (recommended); operating system of Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or higher, or Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 or higher; 64MB of RAM (minimum); 128MB RAM (recommended); 20MB of available hard disk space; Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher; and an Internet access with at least a 28.8 Kbps connection.
Release Date: March 13, 2007
Web site:
WINDOWS DEFENDER 1.1.1593
WINPATROL 11.3.2007: Identifies New Programs That May Have Installed Without Your Knowledge (Reviewed in December 2006 newsletter).
Product Description: WinPatrol and its Scotty the Windows Watch Dog will quickly expose worms, Trojan horses, cookies, adware, spyware, and other malicious programs. WinPatrol will alert you to all new programs, including the ones that may have been added without your knowledge, and will ask you to confirm if you want these new programs to start and run whenever you start your computer.
Requirements: Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
Release Date: April 19, 2007
Web site: WINPATROL 11.3.2007
