Completely FREE Software - CFS Weekly Newsletter #512 issued July 10, 2009

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This electronic newsletter is registered – ISSN 1441-6840
Welcome to the CFS Weekly Newsletter.
The programs listed here are completely free for non-commercial use, even though some may be shareware or commercial products. None are time-limited and all are fully functional. If you know any that aren't exactly as specified, please let us know and they will be removed immediately.
If the link below does not work (does not take you directly to the program listing) it is probably because the site has been upgraded and the link is no longer valid. Please use the CFS Site Search facility (above) to locate the program.
COMPLETELY FREE SOFTWARE

Rise of the Machines v1.3 – Win98/ME/XP/Vista
Rise of the Machines is a futuristic, top-down, semi-3D shooter where the world has been invaded by an alien race of machine warriors. It features 15 levels, 15 landscapes & surroundings, 6 powerups to collect (plasma weapons upgrade, rocket weapons upgrade, nuclear bombs, extra lives, health, & trophy), mouse control, good sound effects & graphics, and more. This is a great shooter with a sci fi theme. In this game you are an elite soldier, controlling an advanced military hovercraft, and you must take out the machine warriors on land and in the air. Your mouse controls both travel and firepower, which makes playing this game very easy. The visual and audible aspects of the game are good, and there are enough explosions to please most players. Even though Rise of the Machines is a predictable shooter, it has an element of addictiveness that brings you back for more and more. Where's Arnie when you need him? Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95. Access this 13.6MB download from: Win98 General Games

UltraExplorer v2.0.2.0 – Win9x/ME/XP/Vista
UltraExplorer is a file manager and replacement for Windows Explorer. It features an optional Mac-style columns view, it has a tabbed interface, there is an optional dual pane view (Norton Commander style), it has a Drop Stack (temporary holding place for drag 'n drop operations), it offers fully configurable layouts, it is faster than Windows Explorer, has a good Helpfile, and more. This file manager rocks! Rather than just a pretty face on the tired old Windows Explorer file manager, UltraExplorer offers many enhancements and quite a few functions. We particularly liked the columns view which offers another way of displaying the file structure. There are so many small and large features in UltraExplorer it is impossible to list them all in a short review. It was hard to fault this excellent file manager. Use it for a short time and you will probably never go back to Explorer. UltraExplorer puts the power back in the hands of the user and allows you to create an overall look 'n feel to suit you. We loved! Access this 3.11MB download from: Win95 Windows Enhancements

Lunascape v5.1.1 – WinXP/Vista
Lunascape is a tabbed Web browser compatible with Internet Explorer & Firefox. It features a choice of 3 browser engines (Trident, Gecko & WebKit), it is fully customizable, offers Favorites dynamic management, includes an RSS reader & ticker, ad blocker, multi-search bar, plug-in technology, there is a multi-windows view, it has mouse gestures, offers podcast, and more. This is a unique Web browser that gives you a choice of three different browser engines – Trident (Internet Explorer), Gecko (Firefox & SeaMonkey) and WebKit (Safari & Google Chrome). There are even different options available for whichever browser engine you choose! One of the problems with Lunascape is that it downloads the latest browser engines during the program install and you could have a considerable additional download. As we were using Firefox 3.011, and Lunascape uses the Firefox 3.5 engine, we had a 13MB download to get the latest Gecko engine. Likewise we had a 10MB download to get the latest WebKit engine. Fortunately, our Trident engine (Internet Explorer) had been updated. Lunascape offers all the regular bell 'n whistles we've come to expect from a quality Web browser but gives the user the option of which Web browser engine to use for a specific site. You can grab a new skin from the hundreds available at the Lunascape Website. While it offers the facility to include add-ons, only one plug-in was available when we reviewed this program. Hopefully more will be added in the near future. With its ability to use any of three browser engines, Lunascape is a unique browser, and one that should appeal to many users. We liked! Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 8.41MB download (plus necessary browser engines) from: WinXP Internet Related

Iconer v1.0.0.1 – Win98/ME/XP/Vista
Iconer is a simple icon and cursor editor that creates 16x16 or 32x32 icons in 1, 4, 8 or 24 colors. It features an icon extractor, it creates 32-color toolbar bitmaps, there are 8 levels of undo/redo, a color mask, it draws circles & squares (filled & unfilled), there is an image nudge, and more. Unfortunately Iconer may not correctly handle 32x32 8-bit icons and cursors and the author suggests that you make copy before editing. This advice should apply to all edits. One area that is well supported is the icon extractor, a tool that allows you to extract icons from EXE and DLL files. Some of the program's interface is a not "Windows standard" but users quickly adjust to the program and it is easy to use. If you are looking for a simple icon and cursor editor then consider Iconer. Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95. Get this 137kB download from: Win98 Graphic Programs

RonyaSoft CD DVD Label Maker v1.03.04 – WinXP/Vista
RonyaSoft CD DVD Label Maker is a CD & DVD cover design tool that creates CD, DVD & slim DVD case inserts, paper CD sleeves & origami CD cases (folded paper CD cases). It features a WYSIWYG editor, you can add your own image & text, you have full control over text attributes (font, size, color, etc), it includes cut & fold lines, you can export your inserts to PDF, and more. This is a simple-to-use program to create cover inserts and sleeves. Contrary to its name, it is not designed to print labels that are affixed to CDs or DVDs, or to print directly onto printable disks. RonyaSoft CD DVD Label Maker offers 7 templates for various case inserts and sleeves, and then makes it very, very easy to add your own text and/or image to the template of your choice, dress it up using the WYSIWYG preview screen, and then print it out. This version is being hosted by CFS because later versions from the publisher are shareware. If you need to create inserts and/or sleeves for your CD/DVD collection then grab a copy of RonyaSoft CD DVD Label Maker. Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Get this 1.10MB download from: WinXP General Programs

Damaged DOCX2TXT v1.0 – WinXP/Vista
Damaged DOCX2TXT is a program that can usually recover the text from damaged Word 2007 DOCX files, even when Word 2007 fails to recover it. Unfortunately CFS was unable to review this program. The author says: "This program will extract the text even from damaged or corrupted Word 2007 docx files. It succeeds at doing so where Word 2007 itself fails to salvage text. It can also be simply used as a viewer of the text in a docx file without having Word 2007." Damaged DOCX2TXT is a GUI version of the docx2txt Perl script by Sandeep Kumar. Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Get this 3.05MB download from: WinXP Text Programs

Damn Small Media Player v0.3 – Win9x/ME/XP/Vista
Damn Small Media Player (DSMP) is a very small MP3 player. It plays selected tracks or contents of a folder (and sub-folders), loads & saves DSPP playlists, optional random play, built-in volume control, no installation required, shortcut keys, file search, and more. For such a small player, Damn Small Media Player is feature rich, though not all features are as functional as they appear. For example, the search feature only works in the current playlist – you cannot use it to search your entire computer for a particular track or artist. We were a little disappointed that the author chose to use a native file extension for the playlists in favor of a universally known extension, like M3U. You can rename DSPP playlists to give them a M3U extension and they will play in most other players because the format is virtually identical, a text file listing all the songs in the playlist and their path. We were also a little disappointed that Damn Small Media Player does not minimize to an icon in the tray so that it is out of the way while playing music in the background while you work. However, this is still an early beta version and the author may have plans for this in the final version. We liked the ability to be able to play all the MP3 files in a folder, though an option to turn off recursive sub-folders would be an advantage. Even as is in its unfinished form, Damn Small Media Player is an excellent little player for anyone who wants a small fast MP3 player. Worth a look! Access this 717kB download from: Win95 Multimedia Programs

NiMuSi Sokoban v1.0 – Win98/ME/XP/Vista
NiMuSi Sokoban is a clone of the popular Japanese warehouseman game. It features 206 collections (many collections contain 50 levels), unlimited undo, fast level restart, move counter, random puzzle option, some simpler levels for children, and more. In this game a warehouseman must slide boxes around a warehouse, stacking the boxes in a specific location. As the boxes can only be pushed, and there are lots of obstacles, this is a game of logic as you work out a feasible path for each box. NiMuSi Sokoban contains some of the best Sokoban collections we have seen, including some of the most challenging. The base game (the GUI) is quite elementary but the selection of levels available (thousands!) is awesome and you could spend years just playing every available level. There is an information sheet about every collection, usually including the author's name and e-mail address should you wish to contact him or her. We would have preferred a little more eye candy but you soon forget everything but the puzzle on hand as you try and find the solution (or a solution, often there are multiple solutions to a level). The most annoying feature of the game occurs after you have finished a level, it is replayed in reverse (all the boxes are put back) and then the level is automatically replayed. That minor irritation aside, NiMuSi Sokoban contains a mind boggling selection of Sokoban levels that will stretch your gray matter as you try and solve them all. We loved! Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95. Access this 721kB download from: Win98 General Games
UPDATE
Icy Tower – a platform-style arcade game where you must climb a tower – has been updated to version 1.4 with a new, much larger download size of 5.26MB. The author advises that this version adds totally new graphics, stat-tracking and the possibility to customize the gameplay. Get this excellent game from: Win98 General Games
COMMENTS
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