AirRadar easy to work with. A new Network Scanner helps you find the best networks in your area. Select the scanner option, then press the Start Scan button. Networks will start popping up in your list or you can also use the search box if you know the name of a network and it has a hidden name.

You can create your own list of favorites, or filter out those that you don't want to see. Unfortunately however, AirRadar doesn't allow you to drag and drop networks from the scanner tab to either favorites or filter. You'll have to enter them individually every time.

The graph section is fairly basic and will display both signal and noise levels. You can use it to monitor which network to connect to based on performances.

AirRadar is a basic but effective wireless network scanner and a solid alternative to OS X's Airport scanner..

Download AirRadar 2.2.3 in Softonic

Shimo started in 2006 as a replacement for the ugly and rather limited graphical user interface that came with Cisco's VPN client. However, since then, Cisco's VPN client is now supported naively in OS X 10.6 although it is still very limited in controls and preferences. Shimo however, gives you much more control.

Using Shimo is easy. Once installed, it may ask you for your system password so that you can update Shimo's drivers to support as many VPN protocols as possible. To setup a new connection, just click on Profiles and then the "+" symbol to add a new connection. You can choose to either import a profile or add the details manually yourself. In the case of Cisco connections, this usually requires the server address, username, password, group name and group name password or "shared secret".

There are many customizations and preferences beyond this although for most people, they won't need touching. However, I found myself trying to change some of them in order to make Shimo connect to a Cisco VPN. Using Snow Leopard, I could only ever get as far as "Securing" in the connection status dialog. Whether this is because my settings weren't quite right or whether its because Shimo simply doesn't support Cisco very well in Snow Leopard I'm not sure.

Note that in this free version, your connection times will be limited and you will be subject to a nag screen asking you to upgrade from time-to-time.

Overall, Shimo is a slick and highly flexible VPN client but you may have troubles getting it to work with Cisco VPN connections.

Download Shimo 2.3.3 in Softonic

PdaNet lets you tether your computer to your phone's Internet connection using your USB cable, and it's really simple to set up. You just need to download and install the desktop client on your Mac then follow the on-screen instructions. You may have to download driver software PdaNet doesn't recognize your device.

Once you're done, install the PdaNet mobile client on your Android. Then, connect your Android phone using the USB cable, and your computer should pick up the data connection from your phone and be able to piggyback on that. An icon will appear in your System Tray informing you of the connection status. From here you can alter the settings in PdaNet, which include auto-connecting when the cable is attached, showing network icon when connected, and using Google DNS.

I should point out that tethering your phone's connection in the way that PdaNet permits is frowned upon by many network operators. So, if you have a contract then you should really check the terms and conditions of service before proceeding to use the app so you can avoid getting into any hot water with your provider.

All in all though, PdaNet offers a simple and reliable way of connecting your computer to the internet using your phone's connection.

Download PdaNet 2.41 in Softonic

Tunnelblick is a graphical OpenVPN client for Mac OS X which comes with binaries and drivers included. It supports multiple connections but to get there, installation is a bit fiddly. Firstly, you'll need to copy the disk image to your hard drive because it won't work from the image itself. Secondly, you'll need to put your configuration file (such as openvpn.conf) in the "~/Library/openvpn/" file.

Alternatively, when you are prompted to do the latter, you can just click "Continue" and Tunnelblick will create an example configuration file in the correct location, which you can then customize or replace. Once opened and running, the Tunnelblick interface is clear and easy to use, featuring an extensive log which details your VPN traffic and can be cleared at any moment.

The great thing about Tunnelblick is the fact that it supports multiple connections - you can easily switch between VPNs from your menu bar. The bad thing is the configuration, however - setting up Tunnelblick isn't very straightforward for those new to VPNs and will no doubt leave many frustrated.

If you need to use several VPN connections per day, Tunnelblick is an interesting solution worth investigating. Be warned that configuration can be a pain, though.

Download Tunnelblick 3.1.7 Beta in Softonic

GameSalad is a clever tool for non-programmers that allows you to design your own apps using a WYSIWYG interface. Not only can you create applications and games for iPhone, iPad, Desktop, and Web but you can share them instantly over the net.

The great thing about GameSalad is that no prior programming experience is necessary. Everything is done via drag and drop although even then, it takes some getting used to. Fortunately, there is a handy Getting Started guide which takes you through all the essentials.

All editing in GameSalad is performed in real-time so there is no compiling or rendering to slow you down. You can preview your creations at any time to see how you are doing. The only complaint I would have is that GameSalad doesn't clearly divide iPhone, iPad, Desktop and Web platforms separately.

GameSalad will be of interest for anyone interested in designing applications that doesn't have programming skills..

Download GameSalad 0.8.7 Beta in Softonic

Charles for Mac allows developers to view requests, responses and HTTP headers which contain crucial cookie and caching information. It's very useful for enabling debugging the content of HTTPS sessions. It works by simulating modem speeds by effectively throttling bandwidth and introducing latency so that developers can experience an entire website as a modem user would.

For this reason, Charles for Mac is especially useful for Macromedia Flash developers as it makes it possible to view the contents of LoadVariables, LoadMovie, XML loads etc. Finally, Charles is useful for XML development in web browsers, such as AJAX (Asynchronous Javascript and XML) and XMLHTTP.

Charles for Mac is a useful tool for any developer that needs to view HTTP proxies on their Mac.

Download Charles for Mac 3.6.5 in Softonic

To be sure of creating a truly random key that can't be broken, Entropy uses four different sources including radioactive decay/HotBits, atmospheric noise/Random.org, various sources/EntropyPool and /dev/random. Entropy can use create passwords in the following encryption modes: WEP, 64-bit, hexadecimal, WEP, 128-bit, hexadecimal, WEP, 256-bit, hexadecimal, WPA-PSK, 8-character, ASCII, WPA-PSK, 20-character, ASCI and WPA-PSK, 63-character, ASCII.

Entropy is extremely easy to use and by clicking the info symbol on the widget, you can select the type of encryption you want and from which source you'd like to use. Some of the keys generated didn't seem particularly long but, theoretically, they must be quite hard to crack according to the developer. Unfortunately, the developer's site seems to be down frequently so don't expect much support.

Entropy is a useful tool for anyone seeking to generate highly complex and strong WEP and WPA passwords for their router or WiFi network.

Download Entropy 1.4.0 in Softonic

Download DropCopy 1.7.3 in Softonic

If there were awards for number of name changes however, then Windows Live Mesh would surely win. It was formerly known by no less than 3 different names including Live Mesh, Windows Live Sync and Windows Live FolderShare. The latest incarnation of Windows Live Mesh features a much improved Mac style interface and integrates much better with OS X.

The most important advantage that Windows Live Mesh offers is the ability to send large files via email, burn them to CDs/DVDs or upload them to a website. You get a generous 5GB of free space to store and sync your data. All you have to do is sync them with Windows Live Mesh and users on both Mac and Windows and Windows mobile devices can access them.

Windows Live Mesh allows you to share and sync important information with anyone you invite but the drawback is that they must have a Windows Live account. If they've already got a Windows Live Mail account, then this is no big problem but if they don't, they'll have to go through the laborious signing up process to use Windows Live Mesh.

The Windows Live Mesh interface is extremely simple showing you at a glance, everything you need to sync devices, information with other people and even access your files remotely - a much better solution than carrying them around on an external drive. However, if you want to share files to Android or iPhone devices, you'll have to look elsewhere.

Windows Live Mesh is a useful way to sync your devices and information with other users especially across platforms.

Download Windows Live Mesh 2011 15.4.5722.2 in Softonic

However, for all those without Snow Leopard or Windows 7, DAVE v8.0 provides bi-directional file and printer sharing services for Macintosh systems in Microsoft networks. DAVE uses TCP/IP protocols instead of AppleTalk meaning that no further software is needed on the PC users side. Note however that it requires a lot of NetBIOS and TCP/IP configuration on the PC users side for which there are instructions and it's not that complicated.

However, some users have reported that they've been unable to get DAVE to work properly and haven't received the best of support with it so you're best advised to either upgrade to Snow Leopard or find some other way if you need to urgently connect to a PC.

DAVE should probably a last resort for those that need to connect to a Windows network and don't have Snow Leopard or Windows 7 to rely on.

Download Dave 8.1 in Softonic