Free Disk and Dial-up Utilities
In this category, FreebieList.com takes a look at the Internet's best disk and dial-up freeware. If you happen to stumble across an outdated link, we'd very much appreciate it if you could report it.
Handy Backup - A freeware backup program designed for most versions of Microsoft Windows. Handy Backup will backup and restore all your important files to virtually any type of storage media (i.e. a CD-ROM, tape, etc.), including remote FTP servers. If you've never performed an automated backup before, don't worry. This program will do most of the leg-work for you.
CCleaner - CCleaner is a neat and efficient system optimisation tool that removes unused and temporary files from your PC, allowing it to work faster. CCleaner can clean-up files from many popular programs, including Kazza, WinZip, Netscape, Office XP, Nero, Adobe Acrobat, etc. What's more, this freeware program cleans-up registry entries, invalid shortcuts and also redundant log files.
HDD Health - This freeware program will sit quietly in your system tray and wait patiently until it detects an impending system failure. Using a method called SMART (Self Monitoring and Reporting Technology), HDD Health can warn of possible errors via e-mail, local pop-up messages, Net messages and even event logging. It's also very system-friendly, using no notable resources.
EZBack-it-up - A free and easy-to-use backup utility for personal use. Unlike a compression backup tool, this program makes a duplicate of your files to a pre-determined destination, meaning once the process is completed, you can easily manage all the "saved" materials. EZBack-it-up uses incremental-style backups, too, so only recent or updated files are added to the backup archive.
AutoEject - AutoEject is a small utility program designed to eject floppy disks at Windows shutdown. It displays a small icon in the system tray that can also be clicked on to eject the disk immediately. It also supports Windows NT Workstation 4. Unfortunately, the site here doesn't go into great technical depth about the program, although it is fast-loading and fairly reliable.
Floppy Image - This small but extremely useful program copies image files to floppy disks for backup purposes and can also reverse the process. Graphic images can be saved as executable files, compressed or uncompressed, plus the program has a range of other tools like the ability to add descriptions to your images and copy to additional "floppy" drives. For Win 98/Me/NT4/2000/XP.
JDiskReport - An easy-to-understand freeware program that will help you visualise how much directory space you're using on your hard disks. JDiskReport scrutinises your hard disk and gathers various statistics in the form of pie charts, bar charts, tables, etc. This tool is free from advertisements and since it's freeware, will never expire or throw up irritating "nag" messages.
Free Online Meter - Worried about the cost of Internet dial-up rates? This useful program logs how long you've been connected to the Internet and from that, calculates the approximate cost incurred, by automatically detecting which ISP you're using. A report of the monthly cost and time spent surfing can also be produced. This program functions on Windows 95/98/ME/NT4/2000 and XP.
Eraser - A fine privacy and security tool for Windows based systems. Using a drag and drop facility, Eraser permanently deletes files so they cannot be recovered, even by the most advanced software. It's ideal for covering your tracks or for removing sensitive information from your PC. No uninstall utility (free or commercial) can bring back the files once you have deleted them with Eraser.
DISKdata
- A file manager program which is very similar to the Windows Explorer
application. You can select and report on different drives, then can
display the information in various pie charts, graphs etc. DISKdata
tells you drive and file sizes, attributes, modification dates and
many more things that Windows won't. An ideal application for people
who like to keep an eye on their drives.
Note: DISKdata is no longer freeware, however,
a 30-day shareware trial is available.
NetMonitor
- Unless you pay a huge amount for an Internet connection, chances
are you get disconnected on a regular basis. It can be very irritating
when you are in the process of a download and suddenly your connection
is lost. NetMonitor prevents your ISP link from being terminated and
keeps it running until you manually disconnect. With over 1 million
users, its audience is vast.
Note: this site is currently unavailable.
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