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  <title><![CDATA[applications for Windows - Softonic Search]]></title>
  <description><![CDATA[Download applications for Windows - Free subscription and downloads for your favorite programs]]></description>
  <link>http://en.softonic.com/</link>
  <language>en-US</language>
  <pubdate>Tue, 14 Oct 2008 20:35:47 +0100</pubdate>
  <docs>http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss</docs>
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   <title>Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic</title>
   <link>http://en.softonic.com/</link>
  </image>
  <item>
   <title><![CDATA[Microsoft Silverlight 2.0]]></title>
   <link>http://microsoft-silverlight.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/65000/65257/2_silver3.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>Microsoft's long awaited answer to Adobe's Flash is finally released. This lightweight (1,4Mb) plug-in works on most popular browsers both on Mac and PC. It's really simple to install, and  you'll just need to restart your browser to make it work. We went to the Silverlight home page to see the plug-in in action. Although it's got a lot of snazzy effects, obviously set up by Microsoft to impress users, the plug-in worked smoothly and we experienced good image quality. Silverlight can stream high resolution video well and supports HD quality videos.</p>
<p>Developers will be glad to know that you can write managed .NET code that runs right in the browser. Using Expression Studio and Visual Studio (which are separate from Silverlight), designers and developers can build their own Rich Internet Applications with Silverlight.</p>
<p>On the downside, Silverlight supports Windows Media audio and video, VC-1 and MP3 but not other popular formats like H.264, Flash or AAC. Flash still remains the reference by far, but with many big content providers looking to use Silverlight we should be seeing more of it in the near future.</p><p>Download <a title="Microsoft Silverlight 2.0" href="http://microsoft-silverlight.en.softonic.com"><strong>Microsoft Silverlight 2.0</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://microsoft-silverlight.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Tue, 14 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">65257</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[Norton AntiVirus 2009]]></title>
   <link>http://norton-antivirus.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/21000/21972/2_nortonav-01.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>Norton has been always considered to be a synonym of security. Some of their products have been in the market for years and are used by millions of computer users around the world on a daily basis.</p>
<p>The new Norton Antivirus 2009 promises a faster, easier installation and a better updating technology that protects your computer without interrupting your work. And I must say it really meets the expectations. I'm always afraid of anti-virus tools being too heavy on memory or displaying too many annoying messages, but Norton Antivirus does its job in an excellent way. Besides a really quick installation in just three steps, the program doesn't hog system resources at all and doesn't disrupt your workflow either. What's more, it now includes a "Silent Mode" that temporarily disables alerts and other background activity, perfect for those moments in which you need to really concentrate on work.</p>
<p>The new Norton Antivirus 2009 displays a completely redesigned interface and includes some configuration settings which you can tweak to fine tune the program's behavior, including the elements that should be monitored (e-mail, messenger chats, etc.) and the possibility to schedule automatic scans.</p>
<p>On the downside, I found that the new interface in Norton Antivirus 2009 design lacks information. In their attempt to create a simpler, easier design I think they've gone too far and now the main interface doesn't show as many interesting data as Norton Antirivirus used to. Also, bear in mind that you'll have to set up a free Norton account even if you only want to test this product during the 15-day trial.</p>
<p><b>Norton Antivirus is a powerful yet light security application with which you'll keep viruses, worms and other online threats away from your system without hassle.</b></p><p>Download <a title="Norton AntiVirus 2009" href="http://norton-antivirus.en.softonic.com"><strong>Norton AntiVirus 2009</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://norton-antivirus.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Tue, 14 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">21972</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[FileHamster 1.6.0.0]]></title>
   <link>http://filehamster.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/59000/59770/2_filehamster3.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>FileHamster provides real-time backup and archiving of your files while you work. It enables you to monitor specific files on your hard drive and automatically create incremental backups whenever those files are modified. It also enables you to store notes about the changes that have been made, allowing you to quickly locate a specific revision or provide a detailed account of the work you've done on a project.</p>
<h3>First backup tool for artists</h3>
<p class="indented">Optimized to intelligently handle the varying saving schemes for all applications and includes features focused on helping artists be more efficient while they work.</p>
<h3>Real-time backup</h3>
<p class="indented">Creates revisions as you save without affecting your workflow.</p>
<h3>Plugin support</h3>
<p class="indented">Easily add new features through plugins. See our Downloads page to get them!</p>
<h3>Simple</h3>
<p class="indented">Users of any skill level will be able to back up their files in seconds.</p>
<h3>Easy interface</h3>
<p class="indented">Easiest backup tool on the market.</p>
<h3>Comments</h3>
<p class="indented">Make notations as you go, enabling you to easily know what changes were made in each version.</p><p>Download <a title="FileHamster 1.6.0.0" href="http://filehamster.en.softonic.com"><strong>FileHamster 1.6.0.0</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://filehamster.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Tue, 14 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">59770</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[Mz Ram Booster 2.5.1]]></title>
   <link>http://mz-ram-booster.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/62000/62031/2_mzramF1.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>CPU and RAM memory are among the most important factors to determine computer's power. The first one refers to the velocity of the computer to operate data; the second one refers to the amount of memory the PC has in order to handle those data. This is one of the cases in which it's always true to say, the more the better. Unfortunately, we are not always financially able to upgrade our computer.</p>
<p>Another way to increase the performance of your PC is to use a program that optimizes the usage of these crucial components, CPU and RAM. Mz Ram Booster is a free application that is supposed to do so. It's fairly friendly to use and there is also a comprehensive manual at your disposal. For non-expert users I would just recommend pressing the 'recommended settings' button and applying the settings before closing the program. This will free RAM when CPU usage is lower then 30% and will auto optimize the memory every two hours.</p>
<p>It is also interesting that you can set the CPU's priority, choosing to give the best response time to foreground applications or to background ones, or to apply the same priority for both. You can also set your processor's L2 cache size if you know it exactly, otherwise run <a href="/ie/15311">CPU-Z</a> to get the exact number of Kilobytes.</p>
<p><b>Give your computer a boost improving RAM and CPU usage. It can make a difference, especially if your computer is not particularly powerful, otherwise its benefits may be limited.</b></p><p>Download <a title="Mz Ram Booster 2.5.1" href="http://mz-ram-booster.en.softonic.com"><strong>Mz Ram Booster 2.5.1</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
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   <pubdate>Mon, 13 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">62031</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[StudioLine Photo Classic 3.50]]></title>
   <link>http://studioline-biz.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/49000/49215/2_studioline_about2.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>As the hard drives and Flash memory cards of the world’s burgeoning photography community continue to fill up, there is increasing demand for low-cost methods of keeping their images in some kind of order. With some snap-happy enthusiasts taking hundreds of pictures a week, there’s a danger that the fun of photography will be replaced by the mundane task of finding the shots you once they’re on your PC. While programs such as Photoshop Album and PaintShop Album are pretty good at helping you sort images, StudioLine aims to take things one stage further – by not charging you for the privilege. </p>
<p>You might expect that by not demanding a fee for a photo organizing program, you’d have to settle for a largely scaled-down version of its costly equivalents. We were pleasantly surprised to see this wasn’t the case, and the application is brimming with features that not only make it easier to sort and search for photos, but which can instantly improve the appearance of your images. </p>
<p>The main premise of the program is to help you whip your photo collection into some sort of order, and it does this admirably. You start with an Image Archive, which is basically a database where you can load in all of your images. From here, you can create a hierarchical tree system of folders based through an Explorer-style interface, making it a painless process. Sorting through your images is aided by the capacity for adding information about a photo using the ‘Descriptors’ data, photos, allowing you to categorize by image topic, date, location or person. You can even enter a star rating for each image to help you later in the sorting process. Another nice inclusion is the ability to change the size of thumbnail previews using a slider when viewing all the images within a folder. </p>
<p>As if the slick sorting facilities weren’t impressive enough, the program boasts a range of editing tools that rival many priced image editors. There’s a diverse variety of tools ranging from preprocessing, through photo correction, to special effects, all of which can be previewed and applied with ease. The Classic version of StudioLine Photo comes with a raft of features that you don't get in Basic. These extra treats include a Timeline view that automatically organizes images by date, a star rating facility, and a neat image archive filter which significantly ramps up your picture hunting speed.<br /> <br />The user interface is generally a joy to use, with lots of customizable options, and draggable palettes like those you see in professional editing suites. There are a couple of bothersome aspects of the interface which could do with changing though, such as the fact that an image loads in a new pop-up menu when its thumbnail is clicked on, rather than in the main window (as a tab perhaps). The tips boxes that spring up a little too frequently can also get a tad irritating, especially as there seems to be no way to permanently disable them.</p>
<p>Apart from these minor niggles, this is a fantastic program which, is arguably the cheapest way of effectively managing your image collection. The addition of features for creating slide shows, web galleries and emails only serves to raise its status as a serious contender to its big budget rivals.</p><p>Download <a title="StudioLine Photo Classic 3.50" href="http://studioline-biz.en.softonic.com"><strong>StudioLine Photo Classic 3.50</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://studioline-biz.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Mon, 13 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">49215</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[OpenOffice.org 3.0.0]]></title>
   <link>http://openoffice.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/70000/70944/2_openoffice3-02.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>After a few betas and four release candidates, OpenOffice 3.0 Final has at last hit the shelves and has even celebrated the event with a launch party in Paris.</p>
<p>If you've already tested any of the previous development versions, you won't notice much of a change. OpenOffice 3.0 reveals itself as a very decent competitor to other popular proprietary office suites: it's light on resources, easy to use and offers full compatibility with standard document formats – including the latest docx, xlsx, pptx and so on from Office 2008.</p>
<p>OpenOffice includes six different apps that enable you to work with text documents, spreadsheets, presentations, databases, vector-based graphics and mathematical formulas, respectively. All six apps are easily accessible from a launcher ("Start Centre") with freshly designed icons, as well as from an OpenOffice icon (“Quickstarter”) in the System Tray. Both the launcher and the Quickstarter icon include a handy template manager as well, though most templates are to be used only with for presentations.</p>
<p>The suite's applications met our expectations in every aspect: they're easy to use (especially if you're used to working with Microsoft Office) and feature all the necessary tools to create complete documents, spreadsheets, presentations, databases and more. They're also thoroughly documented so, if you get lost you can always find a way out by clicking on the Help menu. I particularly liked the wizard-style interface in Impress (the "Power-Point" app) which enables you to create presentations in no time. But the best thing about OpenOffice is probably the possibility to improve and customize your suite with new templates and extensions, downloadable directly from the developer's site.</p>
<p><b>OpenOffice 3.0 left a very good taste in our mouths. It's a very decent alternative to other suites and can be easily customized with new extensions. Definitely worth a try!</b></p><p>Download <a title="OpenOffice.org 3.0.0" href="http://openoffice.en.softonic.com"><strong>OpenOffice.org 3.0.0</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
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   <pubdate>Mon, 13 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">70944</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[KillProcess 2.43]]></title>
   <link>http://killprocess.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/50000/50516/2_killprocess01.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>While Windows already features a task manager that enables you to kill any active process in the system, it's always good to have other alternatives like KillProcess. This simple, intuitive application also allows you to kill active processes but has certain advantages over the Windows standard tool.</p>
<p>Some of these advantages are the ability to kill processes right away (no waiting times), the possibility to kill several of them simultaneously by using the so called kill lists and a small info window that displays extended information about the selected process, although we must say this wasn't really that helpful at all.</p>
<p>One last tip: disable the program's sounds if you don't want to be startled by an annoying gun shot every time you kill a process.</p><p>Download <a title="KillProcess 2.43" href="http://killprocess.en.softonic.com"><strong>KillProcess 2.43</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
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   <pubdate>Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">50516</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[The GIMP 2.6.1 with Softonic Toolbar]]></title>
   <link>http://the-gimp.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/11000/11503/2_gimp06.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>The Gimp is the open source reference in image manipulation. This free application will allow you to retouch, author and edit your photos thanks to a wide set of tools.</p>
<p>Let’s quickly go through what you can do with the Gimp. The painting function has the essential clone, airbrush or pencil tools and a powerful gradient and blend tool. You can also create and save your own brushes and patterns for later use. The program lets you manipulate your photos, adding layers, doing Bezier and polygonal selections or setting text. Load and save animations in a frame-as-layer format and batch process all your photos for quick editing. The multi-windowed interface can be moved around to fit your needs and resized according to your desktop space.</p>
<p>What’s more, the Gimp can be expanded with over 100 different plug-ins and extensions available on the Gimp’s <a href="http://registry.gimp.org/">website</a>. These apply in majority for layer effects such as render, distort or blur and make a great addition to the ones already present in the program.</p>
<p>While the Gimp is user friendly, the installation process can result a bit hairy. Because the application works under the GTK Runtime Environment, you will have to install this kit to successfully launch the program. The process is fairly lengthy and some error messages tend to pop up, however if you persist, you will be able to install the Gimp properly on your PC</p>
<p>Despite this fairly hazardous installation process, the Gimp is a program we recommend. Whether you’re out of dough or are looking for a free alternative to Photoshop, the Gimp is excellent image manipulation software with all the tools you’d expect. The friendly interface and expandability make this a program of choice.</p><p>Download <a title="The GIMP 2.6.1 with Softonic Toolbar" href="http://the-gimp.en.softonic.com"><strong>The GIMP 2.6.1 with Softonic Toolbar</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
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   <pubdate>Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">11503</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[Instant Housecall Free Edition]]></title>
   <link>http://instant-housecall-free.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/74000/74636/2_instantcall01.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>As soon as your friends and relatives learn you're good at computers, they immediately ask for help about all sorts of stuff: installing apps, removing viruses, improving PC performance - but sometimes helping them can be a real pain.</p>
<p>Luckily you can now count on Instant Housecall Free Edition. This simple remote control application grants you temporal access to a remote system, enabling you to see the desktop, move the mouse and open and close apps just as if you were sitting in front of that computer.</p>
<p>Using Instant Housecall Free Edition is a piece of cake. All you need to do is install a small client and create a specialist ID, which works as your username on the system. Then just tell your friends, customers or whoever has asked you for support to visit the developer's website and enter your username on the 'Request for support' form. They'll also need to install a small client on their side, but it’s really easy, plus it can be uninstalled right away when the session is finished.</p>
<p>As soon as you get a call for request, Instant Housecall Free Edition will open up a window with the remote desktop on it. You’ll have total control over the remote system, including the ability to transfer files between both computers and a handy chat app to talk to your customer.</p>
<p>I was pleasantly surprised with Instant Housecall Free Edition in many aspects: it's dead easy to use and it works seamlessly through firewalls and Vista UAC. The application is perfect for occasionally lending a hand to your not-so tech-savvy friends or parents, but I'm afraid it's too simplistic if you're looking for a professional customer support service. In this case you may want to turn to the paid version of Instant Housecall.</p>
<p><b>If your friends are constantly asking you for help with their computers, this handy little app can be really useful and time-saving!</b></p><p>Download <a title="Instant Housecall Free Edition" href="http://instant-housecall-free.en.softonic.com"><strong>Instant Housecall Free Edition</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://instant-housecall-free.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">74636</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[StudioLine Photo Basic 3.50.54]]></title>
   <link>http://studioline-photo.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/27000/27679/2_studioline_explorer.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>As the hard drives and Flash memory cards of the world’s burgeoning photography community continue to fill up, there is increasing demand for low-cost methods of keeping their images in some kind of order. With some snap-happy enthusiasts taking hundreds of pictures a week, there’s a danger that the fun of photography will be replaced by the mundane task of finding the shots you once they’re on your PC. While programs such as Photoshop Album and PaintShop Album are pretty good at helping you sort images, StudioLine aims to take things one stage further – by not charging you for the privilege. </p>
<p>You might expect that by not demanding a fee for a photo organizing program, you’d have to settle for a largely scaled-down version of its costly equivalents. We were pleasantly surprised to see this wasn’t the case, and the application is brimming with features that not only make it easier to sort and search for photos, but which can instantly improve the appearance of your images. </p>
<p>The main premise of the program is to help you whip your photo collection into some sort of order, and it does this admirably. You start with an Image Archive, which is basically a database where you can load in all of your images. From here, you can create a hierarchical tree system of folders based through an Explorer-style interface, making it a painless process. Sorting through your images is aided by the capacity for adding information about a photo using the ‘Descriptors’ data, photos, allowing you to categorize by image topic, date, location or person. You can even enter a star rating for each image to help you later in the sorting process. Another nice inclusion is the ability to change the size of thumbnail previews using a slider when viewing all the images within a folder. </p>
<p>As if the slick sorting facilities weren’t impressive enough, the program boasts a range of editing tools that rival many priced image editors. There’s a diverse variety of tools ranging from preprocessing, through photo correction, to special effects, all of which can be previewed and applied with ease. The fact that you can apply changes you’ve made to one photograph to hundreds of other images in one click is another major boon, and is ideal if you want to turn a batch of images into black and white, or apply an auto-colour correction to an entire album of photos, for instance.</p>
<p>The user interface is generally a joy to use, with lots of customizable options, and draggable palettes like those you see in professional editing suites. There are a couple of bothersome aspects of the interface which could do with changing though, such as the fact that an image loads in a new pop-up menu when its thumbnail is clicked on, rather than in the main window (as a tab perhaps). The tips boxes that spring up a little too frequently can also get a tad irritating, especially as there seems to be no way to permanently disable them.</p>
<p>Apart from these minor niggles, this is a fantastic program which, is arguably the cheapest way of effectively managing your image collection. The addition of features for creating slide shows, web galleries and emails only serves to raise its status as a serious contender to its big budget rivals.</p><p>Download <a title="StudioLine Photo Basic 3.50.54" href="http://studioline-photo.en.softonic.com"><strong>StudioLine Photo Basic 3.50.54</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://studioline-photo.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">27679</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[BitComet 1.05]]></title>
   <link>http://bitcomet.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/35000/35799/2_comet3.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>From slow beginnings, BitComet has risen to become one of the most popular torrent client downloads on Softonic. For users accustomed to the often sparse interfaces of torrent apps, BitComet surprises with its flashy icons and multitude of options that give you more control over your downloads. For those that want a no-fuss client, the extra features may simply get in the way.</p>
<p>Once a torrent is selected for download with BitComet, a dialog pops up allowing you to determine the location to save to and select exactly which files in the torrent you want. Once downloading, the regular stop, pause, cancel, update etc options are all available plus a handy “remove torrent & all files” option which removes all trace of an unwanted torrent from your PC. Many users report the download rates are good although note no particular difference with other client speeds. The best feature however is a ‘preview media’ option, which forces the torrent to download sequentially instead of randomly thus allowing you to preview any multimedia downloads. It’s a great way to avoid broken links, but, on the downside, it will slow down your download considerably. </p>
<p>Another interesting feature is the ‘intelligent disk cache’ which really comes into its own on high speed connections. If you are lucky enough to get download transfer rates of 500 kb/s or higher, activating it allows BitComet to cache the data to access the disk less frequently. The result of this is that it doesn’t slow down your PC as receiving large amounts of data can sometimes do.</p>
<p>Forum reports from foreign users suggest that the program has not been translated properly from English, yet this doesn’t affect the capacities of BitComet.  The other downside is that the uninstall procedure is not particularly clean. The application directory remains as does the registry entry although you can remove the former manually and the latter with any good registry cleaner. </p>
<p>There are simpler clients out there, such as uTorrent <a href="/ie/43961">uTorrent</a> and <a href="/ie/ 31008">Azureus</a> that offer the same download rates but with less fuss. If you have a particularly fast connection, can’t wait for your files to download before watching them and enjoy a torrent client with lots of whistles and bells, BitComet might be for you.</p><p>Download <a title="BitComet 1.05" href="http://bitcomet.en.softonic.com"><strong>BitComet 1.05</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
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   <pubdate>Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">35799</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[VDownloader 0.74]]></title>
   <link>http://vdownloader.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/55000/55984/2_vdownloader4.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>Getting a video out has always been one of the best ways to while away an evening at home. However, these days few people choose to trudge down to the video store, preferring to download a movie, or plunder the near-infinite archives on popular video sharing sites such as YouTube and Google Video. Until recently it's been impossible to obtain movies from these sites without having to stream them online. However, Vdownloader is one of a number of programs changing that, allowing you to download these videos to your computer in AVI or MPEG format.</p>
<p>Essentially what this means is that you don't need to wait an age for popular videos to start streaming and can keep your favourites on your hard drive to watch at any time. This application does the job as simply as you could wish for. The executable makes a very small footprint and although the interface is very barren, it makes it easy to grab videos from YouTube, Google Video, Grinvi or DailyMotion very quickly. Basically all you need to do is copy and paste the link to the video into the box provided and hit ‘download'. Alternatively, you can browse the sites themselves by selecting the portal of your choice from the drop-down menu.</p>
<p>In one sense, the sparseness of the interface is an advantage, as it keeps things as clean and simple as possible. In another respect we were left wanting for extra features and options to help us peruse and download the videos we want. Practically the only setting you can tweak is the via the format dialog, allowing you to specify the format of the saved video (AVI or MPEG), the size of the video and the audio bitrate. We feel that the addition of a built-in video search tool or some video compression utilities would have lifted the program from being a good program to a great one. </p>
<p>Add to the fact that you can't download embedded movies like the ones you find on the front page of Google Video and you can't help feel frustrated that VDownloader doesn't do quite as much as it perhaps could. Having said this, the app is still in the early stages of development and the fact that it is so lightweight makes it prefect for those who want to grab video content with the minimum of fuss.</p><p>Download <a title="VDownloader 0.74" href="http://vdownloader.en.softonic.com"><strong>VDownloader 0.74</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://vdownloader.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">55984</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[Photoscape 3.2]]></title>
   <link>http://photoscape.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/63000/63689/2_photoscape08.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>It's really unbelievable to find free software applications as amazing as Photoscape. But as they say, truth is stranger than fiction. Here you have a really excellent photo editing tool that includes just about everything you need to view, optimize, edit, print and have fun with your photos, all for free.</p>
<p>Photoscape strikes us from the very beginning with an uncommon interface design from which you can choose what you want to do: view pictures, optimize those that didn't come out so well, print several photos on a single page collage-style or perhaps add any of the dozens of filters and special effects included in the program. Other extra tools featured in Photoscape are a file renamer, a color picker, a screen capture tool and even a RAW converter.</p>
<p>We really have nothing negative to say about Photoscape. Just download it, test it, love it and keep it forever. It's free!</p><p>Download <a title="Photoscape 3.2" href="http://photoscape.en.softonic.com"><strong>Photoscape 3.2</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://photoscape.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">63689</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[HardCopy 17.0.08]]></title>
   <link>http://hardcopy.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/5000/5249/2_5249.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>Hardcopy is a professional and easy-to-use application that allows you to capture screenshots under Windows. You can capture rectangular parts of the screen as well as complete windows. Captured images can be cut easily and colour shade can be modified. Pictures can be saved, copied in Clipboard, edited with any imaging program or printed.</p><p>Download <a title="HardCopy 17.0.08" href="http://hardcopy.en.softonic.com"><strong>HardCopy 17.0.08</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://hardcopy.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">5249</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[MediaMonkey 3.0.5.1187]]></title>
   <link>http://mediamonkey.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/29000/29522/2_mmpanel.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>There’s a plethora of music players to choose from, among which iTunes and Winamp usually have the upper hand. However, if you are curious enough, you might find that lesser known alternatives like MediaMonkey offer a reasonable amount of features and tools to organize and equally enjoy your music library.</p>
<p>MediaMonkey automatically scans your PC for all types of music formats. If you have playlists from other programs, it’s good to know that the application also adds m3u files, sparing you the pain of having to recreate them. The file explorer view on the left lets you easily navigate your music collection by categories like artist, genre or rating. You can convert tracks into any format you wish, depending on what size or quality of sound you’re looking for. MediaMonkey also lets you analyze and adjust the volume of tracks to increase your listening experience.</p>
<p>MediaMonkey has made its reputation on its advanced tagging management feature. Every time a track is added, the program will verify its tags. You can automatically fill in missing details with info from Amazon or Filename. The program can clean up your tags, move information into the correct categories and synchronize tags for selected tracks. You can also rename and move multiple files thanks to the auto-organize function. MediaMonkey also supports Winamp plugins and visualizations plus skins can be applied to spice up the interface.</p>
<p>If you want to make your own mix CDs, you’ll be happy to know that MediaMonkey rips and burns CDs and DVDs. Create a virtual CD of your favorite tracks and let MediaMonkey do its job. Budding DJs will enjoy the auto-DJ mode, which mixes tracks for you and the Party Mode, which blocks your configuration but lets anybody play their favorite tune. MediaMonkey’s versatility doesn’t stop there. The music manager also lets you synchronize with your portable music devices like your iPod or iRiver.</p>
<p>If you feel like completing your library with a couple of fresh albums you can browse sites like Amazon, Barnes and Noble or AllPosters and purchase tracks. However, unlike Songbird, where you can type in a URL, browse and save your favorite music blogs and sites, MediaMonkey only allows you to browse their selection of online stores.</p>
<p>We were disappointed with the web radio selection, which only features Shoutcast and Icecast, and were surprised to see no sign of podcasts anywhere in the application. However version 3.0 is planning on incorporating this to the application.</p>
<p>Despite these drawbacks, we recommend MediaMonkey to anybody looking for a solid alternative to iTunes or Winamp. This original music manager is more than capable of organizing a very large music library and offers advanced tagging management rarely seen in other music applications. While the browser and web radio are fairly limited, MediaMonkey allows you to rip your custom CDs and connects to most portable music devices. If you really take a liking to MediaMonkey, cough up a few bucks and upgrade to the Gold version, which will open up all of the program’s functionalities like finding missing tracks or creating auto (smart) playlists.</p><p>Download <a title="MediaMonkey 3.0.5.1187" href="http://mediamonkey.en.softonic.com"><strong>MediaMonkey 3.0.5.1187</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://mediamonkey.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">29522</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[CyberLink DVD Suite 6 Essential]]></title>
   <link>http://cyberlink-dvd-suite.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/74000/74532/2_dvdsuite03.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>CyberLink DVD Suite includes ten basic tools designed to help you make the most out of your multimedia library. Tasks like burning music compilations onto CD and DVD, creating data backup copies, or designing photo slideshows to share with friends and family are just some of the tasks that you'll be able to carry out with CyberLink DVD Suite.</p>
<p>The suite includes an application launcher, known as PowerStarter. This launcher works as some kind of control panel from where you can easily access all the tools included in the suite. They're categorized in tabs according to the task or action you can do with them ("watch movie", "make an audio CD", "copy a data DVD") instead of displaying the actual tool's name. PowerStarter also includes a special Favorites tab where you can add shortcuts to your most frequently used actions.</p>
<p>This app launcher obviously makes things much easier for the average user, but power users may find it confusing, as they're probably used to choosing the application they want to open – not the task they want to do.</p>
<p>What does CyberLink DVD Suite include? As a starter, you'll find a powerful recording tool (Power2Go) with which you can burn audio and data CD and DVD, perfect to enjoy your favorite music anywhere and make backup copies. </p>
<p>Another outstanding app is PowerProducer, which lets you create VCD, SVCD and video and photo compilations. If you want to create a fully customized slideshow with soundtrack, transition effects and all the bells and whistles, then your best choice is Medi@Show. PowerDVD Copy and PowerBackup also deserve a mention, allowing you to copy non-protected DVD movies and create security copies of your sensitive data respectively.</p>
<p>CyberLink DVD Suite is undoubtedly a very complete package with high-quality tools, which is very suitable for the average user. I'm not that sure about more advanced users though: I'm convinced that the more you learn about how to use computers and software, the less you need to download a huge-sized suite with a dozen tools from which you'll probably only use three or four - especially in the case of CyberLink DVD Suite, where you can't choose which specific tools you want to install.</p>
<p><b>CyberLink DVD Suite is a fully featured multimedia suite with a very varied set of tools to burn discs, create backup copies, design slideshows and more.</b></p><p>Download <a title="CyberLink DVD Suite 6 Essential" href="http://cyberlink-dvd-suite.en.softonic.com"><strong>CyberLink DVD Suite 6 Essential</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://cyberlink-dvd-suite.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">74532</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[FileZilla 3.1.3.1]]></title>
   <link>http://filezilla.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/19000/19825/2_fz1.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>You could pretty much consider FileZilla an open source success story. It's popular, works well and fast, and regularly updated.</p>
<p>If you're looking for a solid FTP client what more could you ask more? In fact, FileZilla is not just limited to FTP, but also handles FTPS and SFTP for secure transfers of multiple files on multiple servers. The interface gives you a quick outlook of all your transfers, sites and disks and makes it easy to drag and transfer. I also quite like the QuickConnect feature to access your favorite server in seconds.</p>
<p>FileZilla is known to be fairly fast, and can also resume downloads and handle very big transfers, I'm talking here higher than 4 GB. You can set both local and remote filters for things like images, explorer files or CVS and SVN directories or even create your own. FileZilla also includes a tool to compare directories in terms of file size or modification time.</p>
<p>The application can guide you when setting up your network and lets you set speed limits in case you don't want to overload your bandwidth.</p>
<p>One thing really missing from FileZilla though is a scheduler to automatically set transfer times.</p>
<p><b>Despite lacking a scheduler, FileZilla is an excellent open source FTP client. It's stable, fast and very efficient. Highly recommended.</b></p><p>Download <a title="FileZilla 3.1.3.1" href="http://filezilla.en.softonic.com"><strong>FileZilla 3.1.3.1</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://filezilla.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">19825</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[Atomic Mail Verifier 5.20]]></title>
   <link>http://atomic-mail-verifier.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/27000/27711/2_ssatomic.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>If you run a web business and collect information about your users through online forms then you'll know how annoying the problem of faked or invalid email addresses can be.</p>
<p>Atomic Mail Verifier is designed to provide a fast and reliable way of checking that all addresses in a database or email repository actually lead somewhere. This can save you a lot of hassle in when you come to send mail-outs, because it means that you don't keep getting bounced messages and you can be sure that all of your lcorrespondance actually reaches someone the other end.</p>
<p>Though not the most elegant of applications I've tried, Atomic Mail Verifier is certainly highly functional. Just import the mail file to load all of the addresses into the main window. Now, you can verify the addresses by choosing one of the three verification models from the 'Verify' tab: by syntax, domain, or email address. The program will quickly ping the addresses to find out if they exist or not, and highlight them in red or green depending on the outcome.</p>
<p>There are a few connection settings you can play around with too, but I found them pretty unaccessible and you don't really get any explanations of what the all do. Likewise, some of the other aspects of the interface are a little clunky. for instance, I was unable to find a way of deleting multiple addresses from the main window simultaneously.</p>
<p><b>Despite its rather awkward GUI, Atomic Mail Verifier does offer a pretty reliable way to validate email addresses in a database.</b></p><p>Download <a title="Atomic Mail Verifier 5.20" href="http://atomic-mail-verifier.en.softonic.com"><strong>Atomic Mail Verifier 5.20</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://atomic-mail-verifier.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">27711</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[PowerDirector 7.0.1829 Ultra]]></title>
   <link>http://powerdirector-ultra.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/35000/35682/2_director01.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>Video is becoming an increasingly important element in multimedia creations, which means you need powerful tools to work with it in proper conditions.</p>
<p>CyberLink PowerDirector is probably your best option when choosing a decent video application. This program lets you create stunning video composition featuring videoclips, images, transition effects, clipart, text layers and of course, a personalized background soundtrack.</p>
<p>As complicated as it seems, the truth is that CyberLink PowerDirector is really easy to use. The main working area follows the standard interface design in video editors, which include a media library window to browse your multimedia library, a timeline to drag and drop elements for your creation and a preview window to check how everything looks when put all together.</p>
<p>CyberLink PowerDirector features all the necessary tools for the whole creative process, from assisting you in with the very first step (capturing video from several different sources) to adding the final touches to your creation (a totally customizable DVD-style menu).</p>
<p>When you’re done, you can save your video as a streaming file, write it back to the videotape or even upload it to Youtube straight away. The program also allows you to record the video on a CD or DVD.</p>
<p><b>CyberLink PowerDirector is the perfect combination of powerful features with an appealing, easy-to-use interface that will please power users and beginners alike.</b></p><p>Download <a title="PowerDirector 7.0.1829 Ultra" href="http://powerdirector-ultra.en.softonic.com"><strong>PowerDirector 7.0.1829 Ultra</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
   <comments>http://powerdirector-ultra.en.softonic.com/comments</comments>
   <pubdate>Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">35682</guid>
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   <title><![CDATA[AppGet 0.6.9]]></title>
   <link>http://appget.en.softonic.com</link>
   <description><![CDATA[<img src="http://static.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/74000/74565/2_appget01.jpg" border="0" align="right" style="margin:0px 5px 5px;" /> <p>When you install a dozen apps a week on the PC, tracking updates and new versions for all of them can get really hard.</p>
<p>Luckily AppGet makes things easier for you. This simple tool analyzes your system in order to create a list with all the applications currently installed on the PC. Then it searches the Internet for updates for these apps, and in case it finds a newer version, the program name is displayed in red and AppGet includes a link to download the update.</p>
<p>The whole process is automated and saves a lot of work. Plus, you can also configure the program to "read" the download history in Firefox so that it knows exactly what you have downloaded and updates are therefore easier to find.</p>
<p>That said, you should bear in mind that AppGet is not perfect. I don’t like the fact that you can't access the program’s database to see how many apps the program supports and therefore are suitable to be updated. Also, it would be great to be able to add new entries to the program's database, one for each new app you install. Finally, I don't understand the point of having a user account in the developer’s website – especially since that functionality is currently unavailable.</p>
<p><b>Despite these minor flaws I still think AppGet is a very useful tool and a great help when it comes to keeping your software up to date.<b></p><p>Download <a title="AppGet 0.6.9" href="http://appget.en.softonic.com"><strong>AppGet 0.6.9</strong></a> in <a title="Free software downloads and reviews - Softonic" href="http://en.softonic.com/">Softonic</a></p>]]></description>
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   <pubdate>Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0100</pubdate>
   <guid isPermaLink="false">74565</guid>
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