BurnAware starts up with a well-designed wizard style interface that lets you select the appropriate recording task. You can choose between data and music discs, as well as DVD videos and ISO files. In all cases you may choose files and folders from BurnAware itself or simply drag and drop files onto its interface. Also, notice the drop-down menu on the bottom bar, from which you can select the target size: CD, DVD, double-layered DVD and Blu-Ray.

BurnAware includes all the classic settings in a burning tool: support for multisession, a rewritable disc erasing tool and writing simulation among others, but lacks a more advanced configuration menu that enabled, for example, tweaking recorder settings to take full advantage of each disc's space. That said, it's an easy-to-use, straightforward tool that supports all the burning tasks that the average user will need.

BurnAware is a basic, yet effective burning tool for data, video and music discs that supports Blu-Ray.

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Streamlined and intuitive

When you launch TuneUp Utilities for the first time, the programs performs a system analysis and displays the 1-Click Maintenance window. This provides you with an overview of your computer's main problem areas, the specific problems it has found and a "1-click" button to fix them.

You can open TuneUp Utilities' main window later. It's divided into several tabs, each one of them devoted to a different purpose: status & recommendations, gain disk space, customize Windows and more. The whole program exudes a clean efficiency, with only the essential information showing unless you choose to look deeper into any one option. A complete list of TuneUp Utilities' functions - and there are many - is available under the Overview of all functions link in the top right corner.

Bunches of optimization tools

TuneUp Utilities includes tools to optimize system startup, defragment the hard drive, clean broken keys Windows Registry, restore accidentally deleted files, check your hard drive for errors, modify Windows hidden settings and customize Windows appearance, to name but a few. Other interesting utilities in TuneUp Utilities 2012 are a file shredder, a complete system report generator and the excellent 1-Click Maintenance tool which lets you automatically and regularly scan for some of the most likely issues you computer will have.

Among some of TuneUp Utilities 2012's newest features are an Economy Mode - perfect for saving battery when you are working on a laptop - and a flexible, automatic program deactivation option, ideal for when you need peak performance for certain tasks. Summing up, TuneUp Utilites remains an excellent optimization suite, with a wide selection of powerful tools, yet easy enough for everyone to use.

TuneUp Utilities gathers all the maintenance and optimization tools you need into one efficient, easy-to-use application. You couldn't ask for more.

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The beauty of AnyDVD HD is that it simply works in the background to automatically remove the copy protection of a DVD movie as soon as it's inserted into the drive. In this way, it can decrypt data without actually saving it to your hard-disk. You can watch the DVD at the same time or just insert a disk and let AnyDVD HD do its stuff. When you insert a disk, you are automatically prompted whether you want to decrypt it. When it has finished inspecting the disk, AnyDVD HD prompts you to backup the DVD using your preferred backup tool such as CloneDVD or Power DVD Copy.

AnyDVD HD goes much further than this though. A handy bonus is that you can also remove the RPC region code, thereby making the movie region free and viewable on any DVD player. This is especially useful for those who buy many of their disks abroad or travel a lot. If you want to create a stripped-down version of a DVD, iAnyDVD HD can also remove unwanted movie features, including subtitles and extras for example. AnyDVD HD also moves beyond decryption and allows you to control the speed of your DVD drive. This is useful if you’re having trouble playing a DVD properly or if the noise of your drive is causing annoyance. Finally, there’s also an option in AnyDVD HD to display the frequency of your monitor for both NTSC and PAL displays although you probably won’t use this unless you’re having serious display issues.

The only drawback of AnyDVD HD is the number of daily updates that are released. Whilst this is obviously a good thing in terms of keeping it up-to-date with the latest encryption methods, the update alerts can be rather annoying and are prone to slowing your computer down.

However, this is a small price to pay for a program that seems able to crack all but the toughest disks and for anyone who likes to create backups of their favorite DVDs, AnyDVD HD is an essential addition to your software collection.

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As soon as your MP3 or photo collection starts to grow, you realize how important is to have your files properly named. And in case they aren't, Advanced Renamer can lend you a hand.

Much like Adero Renamer Standard, Advanced Renamer lets you easily rename multiple files and folders simultaneously, applying a single renaming profile to all of them at the same time. This profile is totally customizable, meaning that the renaming tasks in Advanced Renamer may vary from fixing letter case to completely replacing the file's name with a new one.

One of the greatest features Advanced Renamer possesses is flexibility when it comes to configuring the profile. There are certainly quite a few options to choose from, so you'll surely find one way or another to properly rename your files. Also, Advanced Renamer lets you preview changes in real time, which is perfect to check how the new name will look like and fix any possible errors.

The portable version of this program can also be downloaded.

Advanced Renamer is a serious time-saver when it comes to renaming multiple files quickly and all at once.

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As soon as your MP3 or photo collection starts to grow, you realize how important is to have your files properly named. And in case they aren't, Advanced Renamer Portable can lend you a hand.

Much like Adero Renamer Standard, Advanced Renamer Portable lets you easily rename multiple files and folders simultaneously, applying a single renaming profile to all of them at the same time. This profile is totally customizable, meaning that the renaming tasks in Advanced Renamer may vary from fixing letter case to completely replacing the file's name with a new one.

One of the greatest features Advanced Renamer Portable possesses is flexibility when it comes to configuring the profile. There are certainly quite a few options to choose from, so you'll surely find one way or another to properly rename your files. Also, Advanced Renamer Portable lets you preview changes in real time, which is perfect to check how the new name will look like and fix any possible errors.

The full version of this program can also be downloaded.

Advanced Renamer Portable is a serious time-saver when it comes to renaming multiple files quickly and all at once.

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Chances are you have because it's one of the curses of Windows but fortunately, there is a way to get round this problem. ProcessKO is a far more powerful alternative to Windows Task Manager because it kills those hard to close processes that simply won't go away. The program sits discreetly in the system tray and requires simply clicking on (so no keyboard use is required) to activate in times of trouble. It shows a list of processes that are operating at any one time but note that you'll need to understand the generic names Windows assigns to your programs to know exactly what you are closing.

Process KO closes instantly those programs that you select even if they've been impossible to kill in any other way. In addition, the program "learns" which processes regularly cause you problems. In this way, it allows you to instantly access those programs that frequently crash your system and close them instantly without going through a huge process list. Even better, it fits on a USB stick so it's perfect for network administrators that need to go around rescuing blocked PCs.

A much better option than Windows Task Manager although if your mouse crashes, then it's not much use at all since you can't access it.

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UltraDefrag doesn't really look much different to any other defrag tool but the developer has obviously tried to keep it to a bare minimum to make it lightweight and fast. UltraDefrag is open source, so it's completely free. It can be run in two modes - console mode and advanced mode.

In advanced mode, you can instruct UltraDefrag to ignore certain files that you don't want defragging or reorganizing. The litmus test though is whether it really makes a difference to the speed of your system afterwards and it doesn't make a huge boost in operating speed but it definitely feels slicker for a while.

Fast, free and easy to use, UltraDefrag is definitely worth a try if you're not happy with Windows defrag tool.

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The PeaZip Portable interface has been renovated, with a nice fresh look and a few in-built themes to spice things up. Using the program is a pleasant experience - at the most basic level, add the files you want to compress/decompress using the file explorer on the right and chose the action you want from the main toolbar or by right clicking.

Right-clicking on a file or folder and choosing Add to archive or Browse path with PeaZipwill also provide direct access to the program's factions. The compression/decompression process is very quick and smooth, and there are impressive advanced options for users who want to get a little more technical.

Among the best of these advanced PeaZip Portable features are the encryption/password options, compression variables, and the File tools, which allow you to split files, join them and even view the checksum files. PeaZip Portable really impressed me - it's a top-class program that performs at a really high level.

PeaZip Portable is a fantastic program for all your compressing/decompressing needs.

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Using the program is a pleasant experience - at the most basic level, add the files you want to compress/decompress using the file explorer on the right and chose the action you want from the main toolbar or by right clicking. The PeaZip interface is fresh and easy-to-use with a few built-in themes to spice things up.

Right-clicking on a file or folder and choosing Add to archive or Browse path with PeaZip will also provide direct access to the program's factions. The compression/decompression process is very quick and smooth, and there are impressive advanced options for users who want to get a little more technical.

Among the best of these advanced PeaZip features are the encryption/password options, compression variables, and the File tools, which allow you to split files, join them and even view the checksum files. PeaZip really impressed us - it's a top-class program that performs at a really high level, and is a worthy rival to apps such as WinZip or 7Zip.

PeaZip is a fantastic program for all your compressing/decompressing needs.

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If you have an Android phone, you've probably installed an app or two. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to run them on your Windows PC? BlueStacks App Player makes this possible for certain apps.

BlueStacks App Player is the alpha version of an emulator that lets you use use Android applications on Windows. It works a bit like a widget. When clicked, BlueStacks App Player will display the ten apps that have already been pre-installed, which are mostly games.

BlueStacks App Player's interface is easy to navigate. You can install new applications by clicking the "Get More Apps" button. Currently, there are more than 25 apps you can install this way. Hopefully, the number will grow as BlueStacks App Player develops.

The BlueStacks App Player team is currently taking emails for volunteer signups for an upcoming beta release as well. You can add your name to the list on the program's official website.

BlueStacks App Player is onto a good start when it comes to letting users play Android apps directly on their Windows PC.

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The main purpose of DVDFab Blu-ray Copy is copying and backing up your disks, so that you'll have copies to fall back on should the unthinkable happen and you lose your physical collection. There 4 copy modes: Full Disc, Main Movie, Clone and Write Data, and DVDFab Blu-ray Copy shouldn't have any problems with copy protection restrictions or region codes, and it can even handle 3D.

DVDFab Blu-ray Copy can also help you to back up your non-Blu-ray DVDs, or to convert your video file formats so that you can use them on other devices, like PSP or iPad, for example. It also has a number of options that will allow you to save space when you copy your movies, making it easier to fit your whole collection in the smallest space possible.

Whatever you use DVDFab Blu-ray Copy for, however, it's simple to use and has loads of configuration options. If you're a beginner, drag and drop your files into the interface and use the default settings. If you know what you want, however, have a look under the options and tweak the compression, encoding, extras and more.

Fast, multi-featured and very efficient, DVDFab Blu-ray Copy is a great back-up tool for your movies.

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The developers of VueScan claim that it's the world's most widely-used scanning software among photographers, home users and corporations. Although this would seem far fetched, it's certainly true that it must be popular simply by virtue of it's simplicity and ease of use for anyone not familiar with scanning software.

VueScan is highly flexible which is another great aspect of it - it doesn't matter if you change scanner as it still continues to support it whatever model it is. According to the developers, VueScan supports more than 400 scanners and 185 digital camera raw files so you won't find any incompatibility issues. Installation is lightning quick as it's such a light package and there's little waiting around - just open VueScan and you're ready to scan.

There's not much to it but in a way, that's the great thing about Vuescan - it doesn't bloat your system with unnecessary features or scanning options.

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