Completely FREE Software - CFS Weekly Newsletter #555 issued July 30, 2010

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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(does not take you directly to the program listing) it is probably because the site has been upgraded and the link is no longer valid.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

Star Defender 2 v1.43 – WinXP/Vista/Win7
Star Defender 2 is an update of the famous Space Invaders top-down shoot-em-up. It features 9 missions (each with a Boss), 4 levels of difficulty (including a child's level), 17 powerups, 100+ levels of play, 30+ enemy units, sensational ray-traced graphics, input via mouse or keyboard, fullscreen or windowed modes, and more. This is a fabulous update of an old favorite. Enemy units (many looking like crustaceans) come thick and fast with lots of continuing action and lots of powerups to enhance your gameplay. Sound effects and background music are good, and the whole package has a professional look 'n feel that should appeal to gamers of all ages. We found Star Defender 2 to be a worthy successor for the now-ancient Space Invaders. It incorproates all the addictive shoot-em-up gameplay of the original while adding modern graphics, powerups, sound effects and gameplay. We loved! Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 5.38MB download from: WinXP General Games

Free Sound Recorder v9.0.1 – WinXP/Vista/Win7
Free Sound Recorder is a real-time, sound-recorder that records any sound from the PC's sound card, and saves the recording directly to MP3, WMA or WAV. It features a built-in audio-recording engine, it offers voice activation, an AGC (automatic gain control), hotkey recording, recordings can be scheduled, it has customizable output settings, it is easy to use, and more. This is an excellent sound recorder that can take any audio fed through the sound card (including streaming audio) and save it to an appropriate audio format (MP3 is the most common). There are lots of controls to tweak, though most users will find the default settings adequate. Free Sound Recorder carries some baggage, however, and this includes installing Cool Record Edit Pro which is a shareware program you can use for 30 days without payment. Whether or not you want this audio editor, it is included with the download... We found Free Sound Recorder to be an excellent sound recording tool that is suitable for many functions – like recording from a microphone, capturing streaming audio from the Internet, saving audio from external input devices (like CDs, LPs, audio cassettes or phone lines), as well as audio from other applications (like Winamp & Media Player). If you are looking for a free sound recording program then Free Sound Recorder should be very high on your list. A superb tool. Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 12.2MB download from: WinXP Multimedia Programs

Genie Timeline Free v2.1.2.312 – WinXP/Vista/Win7
Genie Timeline Free provides an automated real-time backup of files & folders. It features a simple 2-part setup Wizard, has automated backups every 60 minutes, restores backup data from Timeline Explorer, requires zero maintenance & zero scheduling, has optional e-mail notifications, it has turbo & smart modes, and more. This is an easy way to not just backup your data, but to back it up regularly without having to schedule it. Genie Timeline Free conducts background backups every hour so, after the initial backup, you won't even know it is happening. There are a few problem areas with Genie Timeline Free – made deliberately so you are encouraged to purchase one of the full versions. These include the lack of compression (backups are saved at full size) and also a lack of security (backups can be viewed by anyone accessing the computer). We were also disappointed that we had little control over what programs and data were backed up – you can crudely specify what types of data you want to backup (ie video files, music files, etc) but not individual files. The biggest advantage of Genie Timeline Free is that it carries out automated backups, but we would have liked to have seen much more control over backing up individual files (specially if you use non-standard folders for documents, etc). We were also disappointed that it did not backup data from a non-Outlook e-mail client. While you can backup to the computer's primary hard drive, we recommend that you either add a second hard drive for backups, or an external USB drive so that, in event of hardware failure, you don't lose your precious data. Overall, Genie Timeline Free is great if you use standard Windows folders for your data, and use Outlook as your e-mail client. Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 30.8MB download from: WinXP General Programs

PC Brother System Care v1.5.1.0 – WinXP/Vista/Win7
PC Brother System Care is an all-in-one system protector and optimizer that can help the PC operate more efficiently and run faster. It features system auto detect, there are 7 major categories (Evaluation, Maintenance, Utilities, Hardware, Software, Status & Service), it offers customizable one-click optimization, PC info is presented in real-time, it offers optional downloads of Windows updates & external programs, and more. PC Brother System Care is an extensive system tool that offers much more than most similar programs. It examines most aspects of your computer and reports on their status. Part of this examination is to check that Microsoft updates are installed, and told us that we had not yet installed .NET Framework 4 which is an optional download from Microsoft and one that isn't included in the automated Windows update feature. PC Brother System Care covers so many areas of your computer that we do not have space to report on them all, but it is definitively one of the most comprehensive tools of this type we have seen. Unfortunately it is not perfect and reported that we did not have an anti-virus program, and that this non-existent anti-virus program was not up-to-date (?). In fact we run Norton internet security and, yes, it is updated many times per day. Why PC Brother System Care could not detect that we had Norton Internet Security we do not know but it did leave us wondering in what other areas it was inaccurate. It also told us that our hard drive needed defragmenting but we have a program running which does this automatically in real-time – our hard drive is always defragged! Those glitches aside, PC Brother System Care seems to provide an excellent system makeover and cleanup, and it offers a vast array of tools and utilities to carry this out. You can use it to control what programs automatically load with Windows, to uninstall reluctant programs, to optimize your Internet connection, and lots more besides. Now if it could only recognize that we already have an anti-virus program it could be a lot closer to being the perfect system optimizer. Even with its limitations, PC Brother System Care is well worth trying for yourself. We liked! Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 11.5MB download from: WinXP Windows Enhancements

Visual Terrain Maker v1.4 – WinXP/Vista/Win7
Visual Terrain Maker is a small tool that visually creates 3D landscapes (maps) for games, etc. It features WYSIWYG visual landscape modeling, can export to Direct X file format, bitmap textures support (BMP), viewer & real-time model deformation tools, and more. Unfortunately CFS was unable to review this program. The author says: "Visual Terrain Maker is a simple 3D-Modeling program allows visually create landscapes (maps) for games and other purposes. The program can export to Direct X file format. The program is not critical to the video adapters and drivers. Suitable for DarkBasic (Professional) developers. No special software and hardware required (just OpenGL v1.1). Visual Terrain Maker can export to Direct X file format and also can save and load internal file format. Program combines easy, "what you see is what you get"-style visual landscape modeling and landscape creation wizard every time you launch the program. Program supports bitmap textures (BMP). Program includes Viewer and real-time model deformation tools: Sine, Cone, Smoother, Sharp-making tools. All help info in the program window as comments." Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 321kB download from: WinXP Graphic Programs

No Autorun v1.1.1.21 – WinXP/Vista/Win7
No Autorun is a small utility that locks the autorun.inf file when a USB disk is inserted, so it blocks all autorun-related viruses and other suspicious files. It features the quarantine or deletion of suspicious files, offers an optional read-only mode for the USB drive (in case a computer could be infected), and more. This is an amazing little tool that will give most PC users a great deal of peace of mind. It prevents an autorun file on a USB drive (either a stick or an external drive) from activating, and gives the user the option of (a) doing nothing (it cannot run so it cannot harm your computer, (b) quarantine the suspicious file(s), or (c) delete the file(s). When the main computer is suspected of having a virus, or the situation is unknown, you can use the "USB disk soft write protect" function in No Autorun to prevent anything being written to the USB drive. This terrific little program therefore protects both ways – from a suspect USB stick infecting a computer, and from a suspect computer infecting a USB stick. Using No Autorun is a no brainer, just load it and let it run with Windows (by default it will autostart and reside as an icon in the tray). If you ever insert a USB stick into your computer it will leap into action, blocking any suspicious activity and preventing the autorun.inf file from running. You can optionally allow autorun for CDs, or leave them blocked too. We loved No Autorun and it has found a permanent home on our computers. A "must have" for all PC users! Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 41kB download from: WinXP Desktop Utilities

Flower Quest – WinXP/Vista/Win7
Flower Quest is a colorful falling blocks type puzzle where you connect up flowers via twigs and stems so they disappear and more fall. It features 50 levels, 3 modes of play (Timed, Timeless & Challenge), 3 levels of difficulty (Easy, Normal & Hard), bonuses, excellent graphics, addictive gameplay, and more. This is a fun puzzle game for the whole family. The game sounds a little complex to play but it quickly becomes clear once you start playing. The quick instructions are: "Rotate the branches and roots of budding flowers to connect the plants to one another. As new paths are completed, the foundation tiles are removed, eventually allowing for you to progress to the next level." The secret to this game is to remove the tiles and, once all the tiles in a level have been removed, you move on to the next level. The Challenge mode is slightly different from the timed and untimed modes because you must link up flowers with different colored stems so they disappear and remove any tile that they cross. Flower Quest is a great game that is spoilt by excessive advertising. There is a TV-style ad at the start of the game, at the end of the game, and the game itself is interrupted on occasion with an ad. Aaaarrrggghhh!!! The other annoyance with this game is that the bulk of the game must be downloaded when you start to play – the initial install file is just a starter for the main program, which is over 23MB in size (the starter is a 1.14MB download). These factors spoil what should be an excellent puzzle game that really is suitable for all ages. That said, we loved playing Flower Quest, even with the girly imagery and anaemic storyline. As you progress through the game it gets progressively harder... Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 1.14MB (plus another 23MB+) download from: WinXP General Games
COMMENTS
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