Programs

 

Here are some free programs. Some are very useful, and some are just fun.

If you know of any others, e-mail me.

 

Most of the files available for download from this site are zipfiles. You will need a zip utility to open them. If you do not have WinZip installed on your computer, you can download it here.
Hook 99
Hook99 enables the user to customize the start button. You can change or remove the text and replace the Windows flag on button with icon of your choice. Supports Windows icons, bitmaps and can extract icons from executables and libraries. Hook99 can also make the background of desktop icons captions transparent.
Themes management program similar to Plus!. Set screensavers, change icons and more. If you don't have Plus!, you will need a themes manager to use desktop themes. This one is really good - and free.

Wallpaper Skins for your Internet Explorer5 and Outlook toolbars. You will need to download and install this little self-installing zip from Microsoft. To install, just open the file after you download it. It does the rest. To use your new toolbar wallpaper, open IE5, there will be a new addition to your toolbar. Look to the right of the 'mail' icon, see the icon? Click on it. In the next little window, check the box that says 'show desktop wallpaper in list'. Now choose the bmp that you want to use. Click 'OK'. Close IE and reopen. Your wall paper will now replace that ugly grey! If you don't see the icon, at the top click on Tools, a drop down menu will appear. Then click Toolbar Wallpaper. Now choose the bmp that you want to use. Click 'OK'. Close IE and reopen.

ZDNet's Where installs an entry in your Windows SendTo folder's context menu. Use it to either copy or move selected files to any folder already on your system or to a new folder created within ZDNet's Where. Various options include automatically overwriting existing files or choosing a destination folder for the selected files. ZDNet's Where makes file maintenance tasks quick and easy.
Easy Thumbnails is a freeware utility for creating accurate thumbnail images and scaled-down copies from a wide range of popular picture formats. The interface is designed to make it easy to find your images and select them for processing individually, in batches, or in whole folders, using a file selector and built-in image viewer. You can use slider controls to rotate images and adjust their contrast, brightness, sharpness, and quality, then preview the results. Thumbnails can be created in any existing folder or a new folder, and you can identify them clearly by adding a prefix or suffix to their titles.
If you're none too fond of the flood of ad-enabled software finding its way from the Internet onto your computer, take a look at AD-Aware. This free utility scans your PC's memory, hard drives, and Registry for references to adware servers at Web3000, Gator, Cydoor, Adware, Alexa, Aureate, Flyswat, and Conducent/TimeSink -- some of the most prominent names in the business -- as well as the non-adware servers at Comet Systems. The lightning-fast scan reports Registry entries, files, and folders used by these services, then removes them in the blink of an eye. If any are currently loaded into memory, you'll be prompted to restart your computer to complete the process.
Pop-up Stopper is a small and handy utility that stops Internet Explorer pop-up windows from accruing. No need to adjust proxy settings, or add sites to a list just allow pop-up windows only when you want them. User settings allow various pop-up notifications, such as a flashing icon or sound. A unique control feature makes it simple to allow only the pop-ups you want, such as opening hyperlinks or new browser windows. Simply hold down Control (CTRL) or Shift key to allow selective pop-up windows. This program is not advertising supported, nor does it require registration, and no information is collected from or about product users.

SmartFTP allows you to transfer files across the Internet. It features an Explorer-like interface that is fully customizable and supports drag-and-drop functions. Multiple FTP connections can be opened at the same time, and you can copy files from one remote host to another. Remote host directory information is cached for future viewing, FTP URLs are supported, and you can even view HTML pages within the client. SmartFTP also includes an interface for FTP-specific search engines such as FTPSearch. Other features include a Favorites list similar to that of Internet Explorer; the ability to resume broken downloads; a global history; background transfers; proxy support; a passive transfer mode; and the ability to perform recursive downloads, uploads, and deletes. SmartFTP features Active Setup, which requires that you maintain your Internet connection after you double-click sfsetup.exe. Setup will automatically check which files are required for SmartFTP, then download and install them on your computer. Update and uninstall features are also included.
Wtools32 will display information about your computer, including the time, date, CPU usage, dial-up connection speed, available memory, and running tasks. You can also play multimedia files and launch applications; log off, shut down, and reboot your computer; control all open windows; preview all installed fonts; run selected applications at startup; and copy, rename, move, and delete files and directories. The program includes a calendar and a memo register and lets you set up over 300 alarms (up to one year in advance). Modify hidden Windows settings, free up unused RAM memory, and customize numerous parameters.
TurboNote is a neat little sticky notes application. Use it to remind yourself of jobs to do, deadlines to meet, Web or email addresses, and more.You can change the colour and size of your notes at will, hide them temporarily or delete them permanently. Easy-to-use menus allow you to customize individual notes or set up a default look for new notes. You can also personalize alarm and "incoming note" sounds, hotkeys and other settings so TurboNote behaves just the way you like it.
MemMAX shows real-time statistics of physical, virtual, and total memory, then lets you easily free up memory so that programs can run better and faster. It's extremely simple to use and seems quite effective. To clean memory, just pull the slider to the percentage that you want free and click Optimize. The memory is flushed and you're left with at least as much as you specified. Virtual cache (VCache) settings enable you to optimize memory usage by changing the minimum, maximum, and chunk size of the Windows RAM cache without having to directly edit any system files. Changing the maximum can have a tremendous effect on how much memory is available to programs. MemMAX may be of particular use to anyone who uses a program that is very RAM-intensive -- run it before launch to make the program run more smoothly, and after program close to clean up. The online help is quite informative. It not only contains information about MemMAX but also explains much about how Windows uses memory and the impact of your settings.
DesktopShield 2000 will secure your PC while when you are not using it. Anyone wishing to tamper with your computer or look at your data will be locked out. Just double-click on the program icon in the system tray to instantly lock your desktop. When you enable the program, the taskbar is removed from view and task switching key combinations (Ctrl-Alt-Del, Ctrl-Esc and Alt-Tab) are disabled. You can automatically load the program when Windows starts, hide your desktop altogether, and log access attempts to a disk. In addition, you can password-protect your settings. If you want to protect your computer, whether from curious eyes, hackers, or children, or if you have sensitive information, this program is for you.
Animate your desktop with this cool water like effect. Create a lake effect on your wallpaper.
Send voice & picture messages over the internet. TalkSender works with virtually every e-mail client. Your voice messages are delivered crystal clear, for free to the recipient, and they need nothing extra to hear your message! TalkSender is smart enough to work right away with everyone in your existing e-mail client address book too! (AOL, Eudora, Netscape Messenger and MS Outlook Express).There's no need to re-enter your address book here.
ISpeed allows you to fine tune your TCP/IP parameters to maximize your throughput for your dialup internet connection. It has built-in optimal configurations that you can set to provide the greatest throughput on a number of different systems at the click of a button. iSpeed can also automagically calculate the optimal values for certain settings based on the values of other settings if desired.
Let cherry blossoms gently fall on your desktop and on your windows and enjoy Hanami! A branch with blossoms is drawn at the top of the screen, and soon the blossoms start to fall. The petals pile up on your windows and at the bottom of the screen.
RjhExtensions adds several useful file-handling functions to Microsoft Explorer's right-click menu. This neat little program is freeware and quite handy for intermediate or advanced users. Use it to rename all files in a folder by changing the filenames or extensions. Preview your changes before processing. Drop to the DOS prompt within a folder on the fly. Send a list of files with information on each file in a folder to the printer or a text file. Use the right-click menu to duplicate a file, copy its path to the Clipboard, encrypt/decrypt it with a password, or even shred it. Use the RJH Organizer to customize the order of the menu with drag-and-drop ease, add an extension to the main context menu, make it a submenu extension, or omit it from the menu completely.
MS Windows Error Messages is a free utility that enables you to look up Microsoft Windows error code numbers and display a descriptive message explaining what the numeric code actually means. If you have software programs that produce numeric error codes, now you can find out what they really mean. MS Windows Error Messages also provides a facility to display all of the error codes and messages defined for your version of Windows.
RAM Idle is a freeware program that will increase performance by making more physical memory available for your system. This program will automatically free up a set amount of RAM and defragment it when a minimum of free RAM is reached. This program will enable your applications to load faster and more responsively.
Q-Day
 A simple, funny program that will show a random quote when you start Windows. It comes with small collection of quotes (600). You can change display font, colors, window position and add your favourite quotes with any text editor. Also, you can set it to run only once a day.