SysInternalsUpdater: Automatically update that goldmine of Windows utilities

Ask any Windows power user and tech about SysInternals and they will tell you that they are the best utilities around for working with Windows.

Originally written by Mark Russinovich and Bryce Cogswell the SysInternal suuite of tools quickly became … Read More

Software Review: System Mechanic 9.5 Part 4

Welcome to the last part of our review of System Mechanic by iolo technologies. Now before I wrap this review up with my final thoughts about system Mechanics there are a couple of other parts of this package of tools that I want to take a look at first.

As I have pointed out several times in this review some of the tools found in System Mechanic allow you to mess around in some really sensitive areas of Windows and because of this you should make sure to create a System Restore point or at least have a current back-up image of your system.

That isn’t to say that the System Mechanic team hasn’t done their best to make this collection of tools as safe as they possibly can. Far from it but t hat doesn’t change the fact you should also make sure you have all your bases covered just in case something does go wrong.

I am sure that the team behind System Mechanic realize things can go wrong and this is one of the reasons that they have included their own form of rollback called SafetyNet.
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Software Review: System Mechanic 9.5 Part 1

System Mechanic has been around for quite a long time and is probably one of the most feature complete packages of tools to enable you to optimize your computer with the minimum of fuss and maximum ease of use.

Normally it is pretty easy, if time consuming, to do software reviews since there are a limited number of things you can write about. Then along comes a program like System Mechanic that is basically an interface for a vast number of individual tools or wizards that help you work with your computer.

I could treat System Mechanic as any other program up for being reviewing and write a 600 to 1,000 word post with some screen captures but with the complexity of what is offered in the program I didn’t feel right do that. Instead this review will be separated into four parts over this week so that I can provide you with the right amount of information so that you can make an informed decision about the program.

The review will be broken down into the following sections:

• Part 1 – Initial look and the Overview Section of System Mechanic
• Part 2 – The Individual Tools Section
• Part 3 – The All-in-One section
• Part 4 – Miscellaneous & The Wrap-up and Thoughts

At the end of the review I will pull it together with my overall opinion of System Mechanic but any decisions about buying the package will be up to you. Now on to the review.

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Software: Start-Q Startup Manager

When any flavor of Windows is booted up, there are many programs vying for the attention of your system resources. In addition to the Windows system files, many other programs you’ve installed are all trying to get loaded up…at the … Read More

Create a bootable USB for installing Windows 7

USB sticks are finding all kinds of interesting uses among them now is the ability to create a bootable USB drive for Windows 7 and Vista. While this might not be a great need for a lot of people … Read More

Boot Screen Changer

I just ran across a fun little util at TheTechTurf called BootSkin from Stardock, makers of such creations as WindowsBlinds, which was the subject of several posts and the prize in a contest here at Winextra. Made a couple years … Read More

Software Review: ZipItFree

Archived files are a way of life in this day and age. Even with broadband speed, connections are dropped, packets are lost, and time is valuable. So, we use Archival Utilities. WinZip is probably one of the best-known of … Read More

Software Review: Unlocker

Seen this before? Of course you have. Sometimes it’s something simple. You try to delete a video file, forgetting that you have that same video paused somewhere in a minimized window. Close the player and you’re good.

It’s not … Read More