New "Your Windows Basics" thread discussion
 

I propose we create a new "Your Windows Basics" thread seeing as how the old one is 4 years old and there have been new versions of Windows since then. Yes, some of those programs suggested in the old thread are still the best choices but some aren't.


So the nerdy-nerd types should post and defend their choices for anti-virus/firewall/and everything else that was in the original and then we'll put that in a new thread and sticky it making DS' reign of terror obsolete.

i agree. fuck ds








he broke my heart :'(

My contribution to the free area, something I use, some I don't. I recommend Iron based on chromium for a browser listed below.


FREE Antivirus software:

AVG: http://free.avg.com/gb-en/download.prd-afg#tba2 // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AVG_(software)

AVAST!: http://download.cnet.com/Avast-Free-...=dl&tag=button // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avast!


FREE Anti-Spyware/Malware software:

Spybot - Search & Destroy: http://www.safer-networking.org/en/mirrors/index.html // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spybot_...ch_%26_Destroy

Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware: http://download.cnet.com/Malwarebyte...=dl&tag=button // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malwarebytes'_Anti-Malware


FREE Optimising utilities:

CCleaner (Crap Cleaner): http://www.filehippo.com/download_ccleaner // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CCleaner

Speed Guide TCP Optimizer: http://www.speedguide.net/downloads.php // http://www.speedguide.net/tcpoptimizer.php


FREE Browsers:

SRWare Iron: http://www.srware.net/en/software_sr...n_download.php // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SRWare_Iron

Google Chrome: http://www.google.com/chrome // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Chrome

Mozilla Firefox: http://www.mozilla-europe.org/en/firefox/ // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mozilla_Firefox

Opera: http://www.opera.com/download/ // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opera_(web_browser)

Safari: http://www.apple.com/safari/download/ // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safari_(web_browser)


FREE Various:

µTorrent: http://www.utorrent.com/downloads // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%9CTorrent

7zip: http://www.7-zip.org/download.html // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7-Zip

OpenOffice.org: http://download.openoffice.org/ // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenOffice.org

DAEMON Tools Lite: http://www.disc-tools.com/download/daemon // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daemon_Tools

Interface Lift: http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper_b...ds/rating/any/

LINUX

I miss Linux. :(

Free Antivirus - Avira
Free Firewall - Comodo
Internet Browser - Firefox with Adblock Plus - Better Security - Downthemall - Fast Dial
Torrent Software - Utorrent
Antispyware - Spybot Search and Destroy, always immunize.
Media playing - CCCP and VLC
Iso Mounting - PowerISO
Zips etc - WINRAR
CD Burning - Imgburn

My basic windows tips.

Always get drivers from the manufacturer (Intel, Nvidia etc) rather than the supplier (Dell, Asus) as they are usually more up to date.

Redirect all temp directories to a single directory e.g. c:\temp makes things heaps easier.

Ensure Hibernation and your paging file are disabled before defragging.

Set your paging file's min and max to 1.5 times your memory. If you have 4gb or more of ram, try not using a paging file. I don't use one.

I'll think of more later.

explain this paging file thing to me plz, i've never heard of it before.

also i put avast on before because AVG screwed my old laptop once, and avira had some guy ad telling to you buy it ever day. i like it so far.

I second almost all of what Bad Company uses :y:

Things I use that haven't been mentioned:

Disc burning: CDBurnerXP
Music: foobar2000
Quick text editing: Metapad
MP3 tagging tool: MP3Tag
MP3 sound-leveling: MP3Gain
E-mails: Mozilla Thunderbird
PDF tool: PDFCreator
To use when downloading torrents: Peerblock
Sound editing: Audacity
IM client: Pidgin

I also agree with Bad Company a lot too.

If you are going to modify your paging file, I suggest disabling it, Then defragging first, then re enabling it.

AbiWord - Basically Word. I'm starting to find Open Office a bit on the slow side so I've been looking for alternatives for the word and spread sheet parts. This works wonders in place of the word portion.

Firefox is on the down. Memory leaks and 94/100 acid test. I used to love it, but I've moved on. Should of mentioned VLC.. love it.

It may be on the way down, but it's still the best browser.

Thanks man, I was still running PG2 on my old PC, which hadn't had an update in forever and I couldn't remember what the newer program was called.

Also, I used SUPERAnti-Spyware on my old PC and it found stuff that neither McAfee, Spybot or Malwarebytes found, so I would suggest that.

Nah, Firefox's add-ons do it for me more than the browser.

Sync is a fucking godsend. Same cookies, history, bookmarks and open tabs on my home, work (bookmarks only on the work, best not put all my history there :shifty: ) and phone browsers? Awesome times.

Is MP3GAIN any better than the shitty early version I used in like 2003? That made all of my MP3s horribly quiet and took like 6 hours to adjust 1000 songs.

i like firefox just for the adblock and button bookmarks or whatever you'd call them.

also this is a necessity for anyone running firefox:

I just put the number of dB at around 100, then I check the option that prevents sound distortion. Can't remember how they call it. Anyway, the songs then automatically adjust to the highest possible number while maintaining sound quality.

If you go too loud, you start losing quality, so be careful about that.

I looked it up. Not compatible with iTunes or iPods, so no go. My mp3s aren't so wildly different from each other that I have to adjust the computer speakers. This is more for playing through headphones and a really shitty iPod dock at work.

normalising is for dicks anyway. the only songs i can think of that really need it are led zep - no quarter and toto - i won't hold you back.

plus you're just degrading the quality by changing it all up :'(

You're degrading the quality by converting to MP3 anyway. May as well go the whole hog.

mp3s are still 16 bit though. normalizing would fuck with that.

wait, ignore that. i mean the sampling rate is still 44.1kHz which is the same as an audio cd

managed to confuse the shit out of myself right now.

Look, if it's not iPod compatible, I don't give a fuck. I want a portable music player with video capabilities and MASSIVE disk space. My iPod is 160GB. The nearest equivalents I am aware of are from Archos , who nickel and dime you into paying $243527834578256789 for what an iPod does for a lot less, and some Korean shit that falls apart right after you buy it.

Ok Hasney, time to make this. Make sure it's properly formatted and does not include broken links. Some color would be nice too.

Do this and I shball make you tech forum mod

As a mod then you shbould get this done immeadiatly. Make it so