Freeware Software

Office Sun Microsystems just released an Office product to directly compete with Microsoft Office. Sun has made it available for the public as a Freeware Product. It is called Open Office which consists of a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation (like Powerpoint), html editor, etc. The word processor is stated as Word compatible, and the spreadsheet is compatible with Excel. If you can't afford MS Office, then Open Office is for you at no cost. Open Office is compatible with all versions of MS Windows. The file is 60 MB in size. I do not recommend the software being used on Win95 or Win98. Use only on Win98SE, WinME, or WinXP.

Go to Open Office

Firewalls

Sygate and Zone Labs each make excellent firewalls for MS Windows that are Free. Both packages has inbound and outbound control. Each is highly rated.

Go to Sygate Web Page.
Go to Zone Labs Web Page

Anti Virus Software Grisoft makes an excellent anti virus software that is Freeware. Updates are also Free.

Go to Grisoft Web site

Avast also makes a good AV software which is also Free. The updates are automatic and are also Free. Some say that Avast is better than AVG.

Go to Avast Web site

Spyware Removal Software

A lot of software you download from the internet can contain modules designed to spy on the user. These spyware modules can be trojans installed by hackers or software designed by US corporations hoping to make a quick buck on the unsuspecting user. The spyware can consist of trojans, advertizing based software. The worst is that a lot of this spying takes place without your knowledge or consent. The spyware module can use your internet connection to download advertizing to your computer or whatever the spyware company had in mind.

Lavasoft makes a small utility which can remove the spyware from your system. The software and updates are Free. This is a well respected spyware removal tool used by tens of thousands of users worldwide. There is nothing on the market to compete with it. This is a must have for all home users.

Go to Lavasoft Web site

Computer Security
Steve Gibson, a computer security guru, has created a web site (grc.com) that is totally dedicated to computer security. He has developed a very strong following, and is well respected. If you have a question about about pc security, spyware, etc, then grc.com has the answer.

Go to Gibson Research (grc.com)

EMail
Pegasus Mail is a free, standards-based electronic mail client suitable for use by single or multiple users on single computers or on local area networks. A proven product, it has served millions of users since it was released in 1990. It is extremely feature-rich and powerful, yet remains small and fast.

The biggest advantage I see in Pegasus is that it can be used to screen incoming email while it is still on the ISP's mail server. You can download only the Subject line and the From address. If the message is from a spammer, or from someone you don't like, just press the Delete button, then press the Make It So button, and the particular message will be deleted while on the ISP's mail server. Undesirable messages never see your HD.

Another advantage of Pegasus is that it can download email in plain Text or HTML fashion. The problem with HTML is that it sometimes contains hypertext links for images etc. This is used by spammers and commerical interests to track and veryify valid email addresses. MS Outlook Express downloads email only in HTML. Marketers (DMA) forced MS to limit OE6 to only HTML downloading.

Pegasus has a bit of a learning curve, but, boy is it powerful. Remember, email sometimes contains viruses. Never, never download spam or from an unknown person or unknown entity to your HD. I use Pegasus mostly for screening email, and I also use it to download all email in plain text. Then I use OE6 to download email I want.

Zone Alarm Pro (see above) is an excellent choice as a firewall, with regard to email. If an email has an attachment, Zone Alarm will quarantine the attachment. Remember a lot of viruses are Java Script or Visual Basic script which sometimes are packaged as an attachment to email. Because of MS stupidity, hackers use OE attachments to spread their viruses.

Go to Pegasus Mail

File Checker
The Purpose of FileChecker: -To watch important system files for changes, modifications, or tampering (by malicious programs).
-To watch Anti-Virus program files, Anti-Trojan program files, anti-spyware program files, firewall files, etc. for tampering by rogue programs, and to notify if such action takes place.
-Now, FileChecker can log these events to the NT event log, and can run as a Windows service (for greater security).
-You can also use SMTP (e-mail) alerting, to send important information on file changes and deletions to any e-mail address

File Checker is similar in function to Ad Aware (see above).

Go to File Checker

Firewall Testing
Symantec has an excellent web site for checking the security of your pc firewall. Sometimes the firewall may not load properly, and you may not be aware of it. Or, you may upgrade your firewall to the lastest version, and you want to see if it is working properly. It is the smart thing to just test the firewall security every now and then.

Go to Symatec Firewall Testing Site

MRU Remover
MS Windows keeps lists which documents and files you have accessed. These lists are mostly located in the Registry. MRU Blaster is designed to remove MRU lists. Helps protect your privact.

MRU-Blaster is an all-new program, made to do one large task - detect and clean MRU (most recently used) lists on your computer. These MRU lists contain information such as the names and/or locations of the last files you have accessed. But they are located ALL OVER your registry, and for almost ANY file type. By looking at these MRU lists, someone could determine what files you opened/saved/looked at, what their file names were, and much more! (And, in many cases, the lists are displayed in drop-down menus automatically.)

Go to MRU Blaster

Mail Washer
If you enjoy receiving junk email, then MailWasher is not for you. Mailwasher is the absolute best method of eliminating spam while on the ISP's mail server. Just launch the application and it connects with the mail server, and retrieves the subject line of all your email. You then can delete, or bounce the junk back to the sender. That's the best part of Mailwasher, you can bounce the spam back to the sender of the junk. The spam will appear to the sender as though the spam was undeliverable. I love to retaliate against spammers. This is a must for all internet users.

The Bounce on mailwasher also has a negative downside. A spammer could put your email address in their From or Reply To address and send that message to 10,000 people. If a portion of those recipients hit the Reply button, you will receive a lot of nasty complaints. Wired has a good article on something like this Domain Hijack

Go to Mail Washer