Need an application to safely copy files between your local computer and a remote computer? Get WinSCP.

What is the big deal about WinSCP?

It is a Portable WinSCP is an open source free FTP client and SFTP client for Windows that also supports the SCP protocol. WinSCP is a free utility that allows for safe copying files between local and remote computer. It can also perform other basic functions such as such as copying and moving files. You can also use this freeware to rename files and folders, create new folders, and change properties of files and folders. One of its two selectable program interfaces allows user to manage files even on local computer. Most operations can be done recursively for files in folders.

Some of the key features of this program include: it has a graphical user interface; Support for SSH password, keyboard-interactive, public key and Kerberos (GSS) authentication; Support for SFTP and SCP protocols over SSH-1 and SSH-2 and plain old FTP protocol; Batch file scripting and command-line interface among others.

Martin Prikyl, the publisher of this program, has added a few new changes to this version. These changes include: Prototype of WebDAV sessions; Using term Site instead of Stored session; Tab with disconnected session is greyed; When upgrading, setup offers to restart Windows Explorer (or other applications), when drag&drop shell extension needs to be updated and a Simplified Transfer options dialog: The dialog is shown only on the first transfer, when using drag&drop, unless user explicitly opts to show it the next time.

Downsides?

This is the program to beat. Excellent work from its publishers.

To learn more about this program, please visit http://winscp.net/eng/index.php

Need an application that helps you convert your PC/TV into the most advanced media center? Then go get MediaPortal.

What is so special about this program?

MediaPortal converts your PC/TV into a very advanced Media Center, or Home Theater PC (HTPC). With this program, you could listen to your favorite music & radio, watch and store your videos and DVDs, view, schedule and record live TV as a digital video recorder and much more. With its hundreds of plugins and skins, you can do almost anything- monitor your HTPC; view sports scores or local movie show times; stream or download web TV, Apple Trailers, YouTube videos or internet radio; even start up MediaPortal playing music from a predefined playlist.

Some of the benefits of this program include: watch, schedule and record live TV for free; play your favorite movies and videos; stream media, radio and TV to any HTPC / PC connected to your network; check the weather, news and so much more. You can do all these from the comfort of your living room, on your big screen LCD or Plasma TV or projector. It is very easy to install and configure.

Downsides?

MediaPortal is an excellent piece of software and it’s free. It works as advertised and uses little of your system resources.

To find out more about this program, please visit Team-Mediaportal.

Want an application that helps you to manage your host file with ease? What you probably need is HostsMan.

What is the big deal about HostsMan?

HostsMan is a freeware that allows you to easily manage your host files. Some of the main features of this program include: built-in hosts updater; enable/disable usage of hosts file; open Hosts file with one click; merge two hosts files; built-in hosts editor; prevent other programs of writing to the hosts; scan hosts for errors, duplicates and possible hijacks; find how many host names; easily install newly downloaded hosts file; create encrypted backups of your hosts file; resolve host names; keep log of latest blocked sites; exclusion list and more.

It is clean- it does not contain adware, spyware or viruses. It is also easy to use.

The publisher, abelhadigital.com has added a few new changes to this version. They include: detection of common issues in “Troubleshooting Information”; main window redesigned; more code refactoring and UI tweaks and Fixed: the installation of an update may fail if the corresponding cached file is not available.

Downsides?

It is too complicated for the casual/novice users.

If you want to learn more about this program, go to Abelhadigital.

Bullzip PDF Printer is a freeware that functions as a MS Word printer thus allowing you to write PDF documents from practically any Microsoft windows application.

What is the real deal about this Bullzip PDF?

BullZip PDF Printer is an app that sets up a virtual printer on Windows, in order to create PDF files from all types of documents. This way, it allows any application to create PDF documents using just the print menu. It also allows you to write BMP, ESP, JPEG, PCX, PNG, PS, TIFF files.

With this application, you can also stamp your document with a text watermark, and customize its font, color, size, outline width, layer, rotation, and position. It allows you to merge and superimpose PDF documents, as well as set a password (owner and user) with customizable key length and permissions to increase the file security. You also control the creation of an image file by configuring the device, horizontal and vertical resolution, and others.

Some of the main features of this program are: Print to PDF from almost any Windows program; Direct output to the same file each time or prompt for destination; Control if the printer should ask if you want to see the resulting PDF document; Control output and prompts programmatically; use password to protect PDF document and so on.

System requirements: Runs on Microsoft Windows 2000/XP/XP x64/2003/2003 x64/Vista/Vista x64/2008/Windows 7 and supports 64-bit operating systems. It requires GPL GhostScript 8.64 or later.

Downsides?

Nah! This is one of the best PDF printers available. The publishers have worked out the kinks in this software over time and it now works beautifully well.

To learn more about this application, visit BullZip.

Tired of manually writing out the network settings whenever you use your computer in several places? That is what NetSetMan is here to fix.

What You Need To Know About NetSetMan:

When you use the same laptop in several places-homes, work, school- you will need to change the network settings every time you plug in the network cable. Doing this manually can be quite boring. What NetSetMan does is that it allows you to save up to 6 different network settings. You simply choose the one you want and hit the apply button. There is no need to manually write them down again as this program does it all for you on auto.

The program has a simple interface where you simply enter and save the network settings. It also offers support for WiFi, printers, workgroups, PC names and DNS domain settings. Each profile can be named based on the network so it will be easy to keep things organized. It is able to deal with several network adapters simultaneously.

Some of the key features of this program are: IP address settings, subnet Mask setting, default gateway settings, alternative DNS server settings and computer name and workgroups.

Ilja Herlein, the publisher of this program, has added a few changes to this version: fixed NSM Service didn’t work with Win8 in certain cases; fixed some problems with volume/mute for speakers and microphone; fixed some activation progress bar inconsistencies and a few others.

Downsides?

Nope. It works very well especially if you travel very frequently and would need to connect to various networks very often.

To learn more about this amazing program, please go to http://www.netsetman.com/.

MemInfo is a freeware that shows you the current memory usage of Windows in the system tray.

What is the real deal about MemInfo?

Using a small graphic and the value updated in real time, it gives a fast feedback to current memory usage in Windows. There are many ways to monitor memory usage these days, but MemInfo promises to make everything a lot easier by bringing all stats at one-click distance.

It is highly customizable; you can choose when this program should warn you about high memory usage, show physical memory or Windows page file, show free or used memory, choose the font that looks better. It has an inbuilt memory defragmenter which helps to speed up your computer by maximizing the available free memory.

It comes with a memory optimization tool that could really come in handy to many users. It can automatically free up RAM and thus boost the overall system performance in just a second. It is very easy to use even for newbies and runs on low system resources. The program interface is so simple that it does not require ant Help file. It does not interfere with system resources; it works very well with Windows.

Carthago Software, the author of this software, has added the following new changes to this version: added a command to check for updates; top processes now show the respective application icon; top processes can be highlighted with a background color if memory exceeds a configurable value and several other changes.

Downsides?

None. It’s really a nice piece of software.

To learn more about this program, please follow the link to Carthagosoft.

Do you need an application that allows you to keep track of all the USB devices connected to your computer? Then check out USBDeview.

What is the deal with USBDeview?

This freeware is a small but very efficient utility that allows you to keep track of all USB devices connected to your computer- both presently connected and previously connected. It displays the full information about each USB device such as Device name/description, device type, serial number (for mass storage devices), the date/time that device was added, VendorID, ProductID, the devices that has been disconnected from your computer and the time of their disconnection. It can also be used on a remote computer if you login with admin user.

This tiny application does not require installation: it runs as soon as you extract and click the program’s zipped executable file, so it’s easy to store on a flash drive or other device for use on any Windows PC. It has a cute user interface. It is a very effective tool to have when you want to troubleshoot a faulty USB device or connection or just want to find out what is/was connected to your computer. You can use this program to disconnect or uninstall any USB device that is connected to your computer.

This program can also be used to change the drive letter. This is particularly helpful when you want to change the list order of the drives in Windows Explorer.

Nirsoft, the publisher of this program have added the following changes to this version: update for Windows 8: It seems that on Windows 8, it’s impossible to detect from the Registry whether a device is connected or disconnected, so instead of using the Registry, a device is displayed as connected if it has power/version information. Be aware

Downsides?

This is a very brilliant application. Works as advertised. Very tiny and efficient too. Kudos to the authors. To familiarize yourself with this amazing program, please visit Nirsoft.

Looking for a software that allows you to represent your data in a chart format quickly and easily? KaPiGraf does it.

What Kind Of Tool Is KaPiGraf?

This freeware represents your data as a chart quite easily and quickly. It also contains some functionality which is not available on the MS Excel. Unlike MS Excel, it is not limited to just 32,000 data rows; it has a whole lot more. The program does not impose the 32000 data rows limit of Microsoft Excel.

This program does not bore you with unnecessary questions. It helps you to create graphs and charts in simple, short steps. The graph created can be used in many ways: moving, zooming, changing parameters, exporting into MS Excel, printing, saving, and transferring units and many others.

KaPiZone, the publisher of this   program, has added some changes to this version. These changes include: Support date format (yyyy-mm-dd); Added support for empty data (NULL / no value) and added multiple graphs added saving settings color, thickness and style of the curves in the graph. This program also comes with its uninstaller.

Downsides?

A great utility for converting data into charts and graphs.

To learn more about this program please visit Kapizone.

Need a software that securely password your folders on your computer? My Lockbox does it quite well.

What is the deal with this program?

My Lockbox allows you to hide, lock and password protect folders on your computer. This helps to ensure the privacy of your documents from prying eyes and unauthorized users. it would require you to enter in the correct password to be able to access the files. It is very easy to use. It has a skinned user interface that allows you to choose from several skins the most comfortable look and feel of the software.

Apart from hiding folders, it also has the following functionalities: password protection, drag-and-drop capability, hot keys, trusted apps list, notifications, skins, and more. Its password tab has a Hint field, a feature not every such program has but should. You can configure how this program checks for Updates, too. It also allows you to change the program parameters such as password, location of the protected folders, hotkeys, and trusted processes very easily.

Some of the main features of this program are: it is extremely easy to use; effective password protection; supports all modern Windows OS; passwords almost any folder on your system and several others.

FSPro Labs, the author of this program, has added a few changes to this version. They include: Christmas edition; addition of new skins and fixed minor bugs.

Downsides?

The free version allows you to hide only one folder per computer. It could have been designed to hide more folders. Apart from this, it is a very good folder protection utility.

To learn more about this software, please visit Fspro.net.

If you need an application to help you keep your ROM and game collection up-to-date? Then search no more,  ClrMame can help you with that task.

More On The Program

ClrMamePro is a freeware that makes it easy for you to manage your ROM and keeps your game collection up to date. It uses MAME (multiple arcade machine emulator) software to recreate the original software environment for realistic play and preservation.

It uses a series of small, efficient, and well-designed dialogs to configure and control its functions. CLRMame Pro is a useful utility available to the emulation scene. It manages your ROM files. Most emulators use ROM files to store their games. It checks all of the individual ROM files against a data file to make sure that they have the right information in them. Data files are available for nearly all arcade emulators and also some console games too. ROMs can pile up on your hard drive quickly: this is where ClrMamePro comes in handy. It is a free ROM management tool that makes it easy to keep your game collection up-to-date with each new release and every deleted set. It’s not just for MAME but it can manage ROMs in practically all other systems, too.

Downsides?

Apart from its rather lame GUI, it’s a very powerful and great addition to the MAME community.

To learn more about this program, please go to Mamedev.