Completely FREE Software - CFS Weekly Newsletter #428 issued April 13, 2007

Home > CFS Weekly Newsletter #428: issued April 13, 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(does not take you directly to the program listing) it is probably because the site has been upgraded and the link is no longer valid.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

BattleTanks II v1.0 – Win98/ME/XP/Vista
BattleTanks II is a 3D action battle game using tanks. It features a choice of "quick game" (no setup options) or "normal game" (choose landscape, difficulty, aiming method, game style, etc), extensive options menu (adjusts the effects level, sound/music volume, etc), HUD display includes map, an excellent 3D graphics, good sound effects, and more. This is an awesome battle game where, in the "normal" game mode, you have a choice of 5 landscapes over which to battle, there are 2 turret modes (controlling how you aim the turret), 3 reinforcement styles, 3 reinforcement speeds, an option to allow base capture (default), 3 levels of difficulty (changing the enemy's AI), an option for a freestyle game, and more. BattleTanks II is played using a combination of mouse and keys (mainly the arrow keys but others can be used too) and you can move the camera angle of the field to experience the battle from various viewpoints. The 3D effects are excellent and the game quite realistic. You can either participate in the action (recommended) or sit back and watch your computer-powered team battle the enemy's computer-powered team. This is an excellent example of a good quality 3D game, though we were a little disappointed that it was single-player only – there was no option to battle with your friends, either locally or across a LAN. BattleTanks II is a terrific game and a lot of fun to play. We loved! Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95. Access this 15.5MB download from: Win98 General Games

After Work v1.0 – WinXP/Vista
After Work is a tool for erasing sensitive information left on computers at the end of a day's work. It removes on-line tracks (temp Internet files, IE history & typed URLs) & off-line tracks (opened docs, started programs & temp Registry values). This little utility program does not require installation or unpacking, just double-click on the downloaded file to view the program's main window. After Work analyzes the computer (1 or 2 seconds) and reports the number of files it would remove of allowed to clean the computer. Details from each of the 6 sections is available for perusal so you can see what is redundant and could be removed. Once it has cleaned your computer, no-one can easily check to see what files you've accessed, what Website addresses you have typed in, or see your temporary Internet files (which shows which sites you've visited). If you are worried that someone else (boss, or children) could see what you've been accessing, run After Work before shutting down your computer and these tracks will be removed. Simple. Note: we have been advised that this program is not suitable for Windows 95, 98 or ME. Access this 180kB download from: WinXP Desktop Utilities

BackUpTime v1.6 – Win9x/ME/XP/Vista
BackUpTime is a fully automatic backup program that provides excellent control over what is backed up, how it is stored, and when it is backed up. It features complex scheduling of backups, the ability to copy to any media (floppies, CDs, DVDs, HDDs, flash drives, etc), optional dynamic (date-related) files & folders, it supports multiple languages (English, Norwegian, Swedish & Deutsch), and more. This is an unusual approach to hard drive backups – one you will probably either love of hate. While it offers immense power to control the back up, we found the interface to be less than intuitive and the Helpfile to be less than helpful. Once you understand the author's love of nested dialog boxes that seem to be never ending, BackUpTime delivers the goods if you have filled in all the boxes correctly. Backups can be simply file copying, or you can back up to a ZIP file or an SFX ZIP. You should know that ZIP files have a limit of 2GB so you cannot create a ZIP archive larger than that. While we could appreciate the shear power of this program, to us it seemed to have an overly complex interface combined with a detailed, but cumbersome Helpfile. If you like holding the reigns of power then BackUpTime could be exactly what you want – if you are prepared to learn its idiosyncrasies. Access this 792kB download from: Win95 General Programs

EF Commander Free v3.85 – Win9x/ME/XP/Vista
EF Commander Free is a Norton Commander style twin pane file manager. It features disk info, DOS window shortcut, multi-instance opening, 2 drive-button bars, file & folder controls, compare directories, copy from CD without Read-Only attribute, multi-lingual interface, and more. This is a neat look, and highly function replacement for the antiquated Windows Explorer file manager. It offers all the regular functions we have come to accept in Explorer (including the right-click context menu) but it adds lots more functionality. It also gives you the option of deciding whether or not you want confirmations for activities like file copy, delete, move, etc. It does lack the "Type" column that tells you which program is associated with the filename (if any) and this is probably is biggest omission. It adds a DOS window shortcut so you can view, or open, a file or folder in DOS, and it allows you to have either one or two drive-button bars. EF Commander Free lacks some of the high-end functions found on some other file managers but, if you don't need them, it is often easier not to have them cluttering up the screen. Overall, EF Commander Free is an acceptable replacement for Explorer, specially if you enjoy working with twin-pane file managers (though this can be turned off and you can run it like the classic Explorer interface). Worth a look! Note: at the time of writing this review the program was listed near the bottom of the author's download page – its shareware bigger brother was near the top and could easily be downloaded in place of the free version. Access this 590kB download from: Win95 Windows Enhancements

Neku Garu POP! v1.1 – Win9x/ME/XP/Vista
Neku Garu POP! is a Pang clone where you must pop the falling balloons before they hit the ground by scratching them with your claw. It features 3 levels (one is a secret level), 2 levels of difficulty, challenging gameplay, it is suitable for all ages, and more. This is a fun little game which is just challenging enough to keep you playing. The concept is simple – you are a cat woman who must scratch the falling balloons before they hit the ground, the more balloons, the higher the score. You can move the cat woman left and right using the arrow keys, and the Shift key is used to select a menu item and also to claw the balloons. It is a shame that the author chose to create it in a small 320x200 screen which, when played fullscreen with a 1024x768 or larger screen resolution, starts to look a little bitmapped. Apart from that, Neku Garu POP! is a fun way to kill half an hour. Check it out for yourself. Get this 1.76MB download from: Win95 General Games
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