Completely FREE Software - CFS Weekly Newsletter #427 issued March 30, 2007

Home > CFS Weekly Newsletter #427: issued March 30, 2007

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(does not take you directly to the program listing) it is probably because the site has been upgraded and the link is no longer valid.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

Moto Geeks v3.1 – Win9x/ME/XP/Vista
Moto Geeks is a top-down, vertically scrolling racing game where you must race around a circuit on your motorcycle and beat your opponents. It features a choice of 5 bikes (each with different attributes – speed, maneuverability, acceleration & weight), 10 levels, lots of powerups, good animated graphics, HUD-style display of the track ahead, light-hearted background music & sound effects, world-wide high score, and more. This is a single-player racing game that combines good graphics with progressively more challenging gameplay. You control the bike of your choice using the arrow keys (up to accelerate, left and right for directional control, and down to reverse) and we liked the way the bike banked as it went around corners at speed. We aren't sure about the reverse control – not something that is normally associated with racing bikes – but the rest of the game is quite acceptable. Moto Geeks has, to us, two negatives. First, you are expected to download the MeMedia music, video, articles and games search cube, though you can refuse to download it and the game will still play (our recommended action). The second is that whenever you close Moto Geeks the game's Website opens up in your Web browser if you are connected to the Internet – which is annoying but not necessarily a major problem (they would probably be collecting statistics about the number of games played). Those two small hassles aside, Moto Geeks is quite a good vertically scrolling racing game and is particularly appealing to motor cycle enthusiasts. Worth a look! Access this 3.52MB download from: Win95 General Games

Spyware Terminator v1.8.4.965 – Win98/Me/XP/Vista
Spyware Terminator is a program that removes spyware, adware, trojans, keyloggers, home page hijackers, and other malware threats. It features Real-Time Protection (guards the computer, personal information, etc from hidden threats), includes a Real-Time Shield (any attempt of an unknown application or library to install is analyzed), offers System Restoration, safe quarantine, locked file removal, ClamAV antivirus integration, and more. This is a superb suite of tools that adds an excellent layer of protection to a computer, and even integrates with the free ClamAV antivirus program. You can carry out a full scan, a quick scan, do manual scans, and schedule daily scans to locate and remove malicious attacks on your computer. It checks processes, libraries, services, BHOs, toolbars, WinSock2, Registry startups, uninstallers, Start menu, desktop, favorites, cookies, etc. We ran a scan on our test computer (which we thought was adequately protected!) and Spyware Terminator found GPINSTALL.EXE, an adware program (also called a backdoor trojan) which monitors user Internet activity. It killed the process and safely removed the file. Normally residing in the desktray (next to the clock), it automatically updates itself to ensure that it has the latest signatures and data to help keep your computer clean. While Spyware Terminator is not an antivirus program, it does put in place another level of protection that can help keep you safe. We were most impressed with Spyware Terminator. It is very easy to use, has sufficient automated control so you don't have to worry about manually updating its reference data or running computer scans – these it will do without your input. We loved! Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95. Access this 2.90MB download from: Win98 Desktop Utilities

kPad v1.0 – Win9x/ME/XP/Vista
kPad is a lightweight text editor that works with RTF and TXT file formats. It features a tabbed multiple document interface (MDI), virtually unlimited filesize, virtually unlimited undo & redo, text string find & replace, full RTF text formatting, text highlighting, and more. This is a tiny text editor but it offers a huge range of features, many of them not included with more "heavyweight" word processors. The tabbed MDI interface is a joy to use and makes skipping between open documents easy, and kPad offers all the normal RTF formatting. This includes font selection (can be applied to single words or characters and is not global), font color selection, background selection (just over the highlighted text), and lots more. We loaded a 10MB test file with 490,000 lines of text and kPad opened it within a few seconds. In most cases there is no need to run a massive word processor when you just wish to type a simple letter, or make notes, so a program like kPad can be invaluable. We were most impressed with this minuscule editor, even though it didn't have a spell checker. Check it out now! Get this 52kB download (we said it was small!) from: Win95 Text Programs

Expert Sokoban v1.0.1 – WinXP/Vista
Expert Sokoban is a Sokoban puzzle for "experts" where the emphasis is on where a piece goes, not on moving it there. It features 50 original levels (plus 2 advanced levels), a level editor, unlimited undo & redo, superb graphics, extensive keyboard shortcuts, and more. This is a somewhat unusual version of this popular Japanese puzzle where boxes must be pushed around a warehouse and into their allocated area. Rather than work out the exact path for each box and then move your warehouseman around, you simply click on a box and indicate where you want it to go. While this might sound like it is taking away some of the fun of the game, in fact it is designed to allow the player to concentrate on winning harder levels without worrying about the mechanics of moving the man. Compared to many Sokoban games, Expert Sokoban offers few levels (a total of only 52 instead of the 300+ in many other versions) but there is a level editor so more levels can be added as required. Once you master moving the man around the warehouse (which takes all of 2 minutes), anybody who has played this game before will quickly find themselves enjoying the freedom to quickly complete an easy level so they can concentrate on the harder levels. One good point is that you don't have to complete the levels in order – levels can be skipped so the harder levels can be played. While Expert Sokoban is targeted at "expert" Sokoban players, if there was a little more instruction within the program it would also be suitable for new players too. We were highly impressed with Expert Sokoban. It takes this popular puzzle game to the next level. Grab a copy now! Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 404kB download from: WinXP General Games

Arm Adult Filter v1.0 – Win9x/ME/XP/Vista
Arm Adult Filter is a parental filter to block Web browsers accessing undesirable Websites (porn, gambling, etc). It features word blacklist, domain blacklist & whitelist, editable lists, blocks search engines from displaying blacklisted sites or searches using the blacklisted words, accessible from tray-based icon, and more. We love parental filters because there are many undesirable sites on the Internet that children should just not see. Unfortunately, while Arm Adult Filter is quite effective as a filter, it lacks any form of security to prevent a child from turning it off. It is also not effective when used with Internet Explorer 7, though it works well with Mozilla Firefox 2.0. The author states that it is "compatible with a variety of popular web browsers, such as Internet Explorer, Opera, Mozilla and others". While we assume that compatibility with IE7 won't be far away, we are more worried about the lack of security (password protection) that allows children to either close the program or temporarily stop it from working and therefore access blacklisted sites. There isn't even a log kept of the sites visited! Arm Adult Filter should be a great parental filter as it has the basics already in place. However, until it can offer some form of security so that children cannot turn it off, its effectiveness is much reduced. Access this 553kB download from: Win95 Internet Related

PMBCom v1.0 – Win9x/ME/XP/Vista
PMBCom is a Web-based business communication and presentation suite powered by video and providing plenty of private tools, public exhibition, and direct communication, with the additional capabilities to create, convert and upload videos. Unfortunately, CFS was unable to review this program. The author says: "The software was designed for private business man, companies, and any other who wish to manage their contacts and to be able to show their products as well as receive direct communication with the clients. The software suit[s] business to business, business to customers and private usage. The additional video features will enable a user to create a video blog or to convert his own professional video. The user can write his articles or press releases release his classified ad, and create a show case of his products/works. This is a complete solution to cover up the gaps that the social networks leaves open." Access this 3.83MB download from: Win95 General Programs

SnapShooter v1.2.2595 – WinXP/Vista
SnapShooter is a powerful screenshooter application that can capture an image of the active window or screen directly to a file. It features support for 5 image formats (BMP, TIF, GIF, JPG & PNG), adjustable image quality, captured-image resizing, mouse pointer capture, you can send images to the Clipboard, it supports multiple monitors/screens, automatic image capture at given time intervals, full control over separate images, plug-in support, 7 plug-ins included, and more. On paper this is a sensational screen capture tool that offers a huge number of very desirable features and plug-ins. You can choose not only which format to save your screenshots, but their image quality and it can even capture the Windows Clipboard. Unfortunately, in practice we found SnapShooter to be somewhat skittish in behavior, specially when it comes to plug-ins. We wanted to add a watermark (both image and text) to a screenshot, and have that image inserted in the Clipboard for pasting into our photo editing program for retouching and resizing. While the image was saved (sometimes the entire screen, not just the active window we had specified) there was no watermark – that was only inserted into the saved copy on the hard drive. We also could not get it to include a watermark image, just the text, and the Helpfile lacked sufficient information to help us sort out what was going wrong. Even though we specified that the cursor be included, in no screenshot did it appear. Maybe we were doing something wrong but in most places the Helpfile only records what the function is supposed to do, not how to do it. For most people, who do not have the exacting demands that we require of a screen capture tool, SnapShooter is probably perfect, offering much more than the Clipboard/paste function offered by Windows. However, for really demanding screen captures, we did not find that SnapShooter lived up to its promises. Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 1.47MB download from: WinXP Graphic Programs

Old School Monster Shooter v1 – Win9x/ME/XP
Old School Monster Shooter (OSMS) is a classic platform game where you have to collect all the keys to get to the next level. It features 12 different monsters, 16 levels, powerups, good graphics & sound effects, windowed & fullscreen modes, save game function, highly addictive gameplay, and more. This is a fun, challenging game that employs the classic platform genre to good effect. There are plenty of monsters to battle and lots of keys to collect (many in very awkward places!). You control your man using the arrow keys for movement (up is jump) and the Ctrl key for firing. You have to watch out for your ammunition because, if you run out, you are toast. Fortunately there are some powerups to help you, and that includes more ammunition. We thought Old School Monster Shooter was terrific. It is just the sort of time waster that keeps you coming back for more and more, though we do suggest you keep the game saved so you don't have to keep on starting at the beginning. Good animated graphics, background music than can be turned off if required, good eye candy and challenging gameplay – what more could you want in a game? We loved! Access this 3.09MB download from: Win95 General Games
UPDATE
Play DVD – plays DVD movies from both DVD drives and from the computer's hard drive – has been updated to version 1.2 with a new download size of 2.98MB. The author advises that changes in this version include: can play different Audio/Video formats (like MP3, MPG, AVI, WAV, VOB etc); Progress Bar has been added; zoom function for DVD discs has been added; fast forward & rewind function has been added; replaceable skin; plus various minor changes, bug fixes and memory management. Get this much updated program from: Win95 Multimedia Programs
COMMENTS
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