My *Fav* Fixit Tools .. for Free!!

Like Bobby Fischer once said about his favorite opening in chess .. the Ruy Lopez/Pawn to King 4, or 1e4 in today's algebraic notation, "Best by Test" .. this is my feeling about the diagnostic/repair utilities I've selected for this blog entry. After extensive research, comparison and rigorous use .. the following utilities are the ones I've found to be the easiest and most effective to use. And they all work and play very well together.  *And* have the least amount of impact on what the *human* wants to accomplish.  That is to say, cutting into your processor performance and slowing you down.

Author's NOTE: I have not received *any* compensation from the program authors of the following software.  This information is presented merely as a public service.

((click on any image below for an enlarged view of same))

<> For the PC <>


Advanced System Care

1st up .. my *ideal* for the model of the way utility software should be written .. working smarter, not harder .. "Advanced System Care."  This program is pretty much a 'kitchen sink'/do all software gadget.  But its interface is so well done, that it is a veritable *pleasure* to make repairs to your PC software. The picture below is the main window of ASC:

As you can see, the button on the right is the standout image.  And, for basic use, that's *entirely* all you need to know about!  After you install this program and open it, simply left click the "SCAN" button. The program will then proceed *automatically* through several diagnostic functions to see what needs repairing. After the scan is complete, select "Repair" if automatic repair has not already been done.

When the routines are done, left click the "X" at the top right and you're done!  Now what, I ask you, could be simpler than that!?  There is a shortcoming .. the program will not do *deep* diagnostics unless you register for the 'Pro" version.  And although it would be well worth it, the basic version does housekeeping just fine for most folks.

By the way, if you're not sure what your internet speed is, here's a website to find out:  http://www.speedtest.net/ .. when you get there .. you may/may not have to download and install a software module to facilitate the test .. then select a server location that is geographically closest to you and 'speedtest' does the rest.

This site is also *very* helpful if you are subscribed for say 10mbps (megabits per second), and by testing, you find you're only getting 7mbps .. well then .. it's time to call your ISP (internet service provider) and have them give you what you're supposed to have by way of *tweaking* your service back to optimum.


CCleaner

This is a small software gadget that I use as an adjunct to ASC.

The reason being .. in its basic form .. ASC does not cover all the 'Chrome' browser privacy deletions.  So, after I run ASC, I bring up CCleaner to finish taking out the garbage. And it's just a simple 2-step procedure, so no worries mate!

Here's the main window for CCleaner:

Just left click "Analyze" .. and then left click "Run Cleaner" .. and that's it!  You're done with this one. Just click the "X" at the top right corner of the window to put this little one to bed 'til next time ...


avast! Free Antivirus

More *free* good stuff!  Cool!

One of the few antivirus programs that is 'Windows approved' so to speak.  Windows recognizes it as a good antivirus program that is complimentary with the Windows operating system software.

After download and install, you are given the option to register for a full year.  Good idea.  Mostly because you won't be pestered after 30 days to register again.  But for *free* for a full year .. what's not to like!?  And, much like ASC, this is another program that I would *highly recommend* upgrading to the Pro version.

This Antivirus gadget watches *everything* .. your email, your browsing on the internet, your files .. *and* it updates the virus signatures library daily .. with an audio notification!  It saved me from a trojan horse virus ridden website as recent as yesterday!  When that happens, you get a *red* warning window and audio notification telling you that the website has been blocked as having the potential to cause harm to your PC.

And .. *bonus* .. you can set up 'avast!' to do a *rootkit* scan on reboot.  A rootkit is a type of malware that normal scanning while in the Windows OS may not be able to detect or repair.  It's sort of like a tick; it gets under the skin of the normal software and is harder to remove.  So it's a good idea to do at least 1 rootkit scan after you install 'avast!'  Starting at the main window, here's how:

In the left column, select, "Scan Computer" .. then, still in the left column, select "Boot-time Scan" .. in the center of the window near the top of the window, select "Schedule Now" .. over on the right hand side of the window, you have the option to "Restart Computer" immediately.  Or you can just close out 'avast!' and restart when you are ready to do so.  And please bear in mind, when you see the blue screen with the white text on reboot it is not a problem; it is 'avast!' doing the rootkit scan.

And, depending on the size of your PC's hard drive, it may take some time .. up to 30 minutes or more.  So you may want to plan to read a book or something like that.  But you should still check the progress of the rootkit scan. As it may prompt you as to what to do if it finds a problem file. Typically, it will display a number selection from which to pick. What I usually do, is type the number selection that sends the file to the virus vault.  If the file is resistant to being moved, then I select the 'remove' or 'delete' function.  If that doesn't do the trick, the infection may be so severe that the Windows OS software will have to be either repaired or reinstalled.  But I have found this only on very rare occasions.


Spybot - Search & Destroy

Not as well known as others of this anti-spyware genre.  And not a very fancy interface.  But this one digs deep; deeper than even the big-name anti-spyware programs that totally missed what this one fixed.  And it's also free .. but all these folks ask if you're so inclined, is a simple donation.  Well worth every penny. About a week ago, I was experiencing a noticeable system slowdown. And I had run all the above. Even another free anti-spyware program. And a defrag and optimize!  And still the performance hit persisted.  So I pulled up my old friend Spybot.  And it found about 6 things that the others missed!  One item in particular was a trojan horse type of web cookie watching gizmo.  I told Spybot to remove all that garbage, rebooted .. and all was right in PC-ville again; back to optimum performance!

Here's the main window for Spybot:

When you bring up the main window for the 1st time, you should click the "Search for Updates" button 1st.  Then click the "Check for Problems" button and let it run. After which it will display a list of what it found with the option to fix the problems. After you fix the problems, in the left column, click "Immunize" .. this will add preventative software medicine to Windows Internet Explorer and Firefox to resist spyware infection.  And then you're done!  Restart your computer; you should now see a *noticeable* performance gain!


Auslogics Disk Defrag

And last but certainly not the least in PC-tweakin' software considerations .. what I feel is the fastest, easiest to use and most efficient defragmentation and optimization program for your Windows toolkit.

Here's the main window:

Very simple interface.  If you haven't defragged *and* optimized your drive(s) in a long time .. or ever .. you really need to take care of that.  You will see a noticeable *vast* performance improvement in your PC. In fact, this should be done at least once a month to keep program functions at optimum speed. Because the longer it takes your computer to put all the *fragments* together to get them into RAM, the slower the overall get up and go will be.

So .. simply .. select the popdown menu where it says "Defrag" .. and pick "Defrag & Optimize" .. yes, it will take longer .. but this is another notch of improved speed as a function of this program for which you will very likely be thankful.  I've always felt, that computers should do computing as *fast* as possible; the repetitive tasks that they do .. so that the *humans* can get back to doing the human stuff sooner.

Depending on how long it's been since this was done, and the size of your hard drive, and the amount of free hard drive space .. this process may take 10 minutes, or it may take hours.  If there are *lots* of red fragments on the display, it's probably best to stop it if you need to do other things.  Then set it up to run overnight, or when you leave the computer to run errands.


<> For the Mac <>

OnyX

After installation and opening of the application .. the function selected is pretty much all you need to do.  Just click the "Execute" button at the bottom, and all the de-garbage-ing routines will be done the easy way.  There are other areas to explore obviously.  But do *not* do them unless you are absolutely *sure* of what you are doing or an advanced user. In any event, you should always have a *regular* backup of your software regardless of utility usage .. because hard drives don't last forever ...  Please NOTE:  Make sure the version of OnyX that you download and use supports the current version of your Mac OSX.


iDefrag

Most excellent defrag/optimize software application for the Mac.  Now in version 2.  The image is showing a very fragmented disk, with the option to do a 'full defrag' selected.  And that's the *ideal* selection.  Especially if you've not done a defrag on your Mac in a long time .. or ever ...  And now iDefrag no longer requires you to make a boot CD to do a full defrag.  Another application well worth the money.  But .. even in it's free/shareware mode, you can still do an 'Online Defrag' without a reboot.  That alone will fix a world of fragmented hurt.


iAntiVirus

Once again .. another really nice, simple/easy-to-use Mac application.  According to reviews, it runs very fast, and does not bog down other system processes while running.  Another must-see *free* nifty utility.

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And where can you *get* all these neato programs/applications..?  Why don't I *tell* you where you can get them..?  Right here:  Download.com  Tah Dah!  ;-)

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Welp .. like they usetah tell me in the Navy .. "That ought to keepya busy for a microsecond.."  And that was a compliment.  Because they knew I'd be back real soon, asking more questions, wanting to know more stuff, and get *the smarts* ...

In the meantime .. hope all yooz out there have a *Slap Happy New Year* .. and a healthy and prosperous one too .. 'til next time ..

Peace out ...

Ol' Doc CPU

;-)