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Hardware 2.0

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes
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Hardware 2.0 - Best software applications/tools/utilities

By | September 28, 2009, 4:51am PDT

Summary: I regularly receive emails from readers asking me for a list of the software tools and utilities I use regularly. Well, you asked for it, so here it is! Here’s a list of my favorite applications, tools and utilities.

I regularly receive emails from readers asking me for a list of the software tools and utilities I use regularly.

Well, you asked for it, so here it is! Here’s a list of my favorite applications, tools and utilities.

Check out the full image gallery here.

Virtual CD

You might be thinking that Virtual CD is just another example of a tool that allows you to mount .ISO CD images on your system. Well, you’d be right. It also lets you create .ISO files and burn them to disc. OK, nothing special so far. Where Virtual CD differs from similar utilities such as Daemon Tools or Virtual CloneDrive is that Virtual CD allows you to create virtual CD and DVD burners on your system. This allows CD burning applications to see the drive as a valid disc burner and write data to a virtual disc that you can then store as an image.

Virtual CD

Why might you want this feature? Well, one use for it that I’d found is a quick way to burn a backup on an iTunes library without going through the physical disc stage. That’s just one use for this tool. Once you have a virtual CD/DVD burner on your system, you’ll wonder how you managed without.

Virtual CD

Virtual CD has some other cool features. One feature that I use regularly is its ability to make an .ISO image of a folder or collection of files from the right-click in an explorer Window.

One negative that I have of Virtual CD is that it can seem overwhelmingly complicated initially, offering a myriad of options and settings. However, if you work through the help file you’ll soon figure out what does what.

Excellent utility that I couldn’t do without. Also, as far as I’m aware, one of a kind!

Virtual CD - Single license $39.95

Fraps

If you’re a gamer who obsesses over frame rates then you should be familiar with Fraps already. Fraps has a number of uses, but the one that most people seem to be away of is its ability to display (and record) the number of frames per second you are getting in a game.

Fraps

But Fraps does a lot more than display frames per second. Another handy Fraps feature is the ability to capture stills and video from games. Yeah, OK, not many people want to do this, but if you do, then Fraps is the tool for you.

Fraps - Freeware version available/Single license $37

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Topics

Workstation, CD, Disc, ISO, VMware Inc., Best Software, VMware Workstation, 7-zip, Tool, DVD, Virtual CD, Fraps, CDBurnerXP, Softros LAN Messenger, UltraEdit, Foxit Reader, Productivity, Virtualization, Desktop Virtualization, Hardware, Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes is an internationally published technology author who has devoted over a decade to helping users get the most from technology.

Disclosure

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

All opinions expressed on Hardware 2.0 are those of Adrian Kingsley-Hughes. Every effort is made to ensure that the information posted is accurate. If you have any comments, queries or corrections, please contact Adrian via the email link here. Any possible conflicts of interest will be posted below. [Updated: February 23, 2010] - Adrian Kingsley-Hughes has no business relationships, affiliations, investments, or other actual/potential conflicts of interest relating to the content posted so far on this blog.

Biography

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes is an internationally published technology author who has devoted over a decade to helping users get the most from technology -- whether that be by learning to program, building a PC from a pile of parts, or helping them get the most from their new MP3 player or digital camera.

Adrian has authored/co-authored technical books on a variety of topics, ranging from programming to building and maintaining PCs. His most recent books include "Build the Ultimate Custom PC", "Beginning Programming" and "The PC Doctor's Fix It Yourself Guide". He has also written training manuals that have been used by a number of Fortune 500 companies.

Adrian also runs a popular blog under the name The PC Doctor, where he covers a range of computer-related topics -- from security to repairing and upgrading.

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Foxit is good, but...
Dogcatcher 1st Oct 2009
Foxit is a good PDF reader. It is small, fast, and has a clean interface. However, the last version I tried made it impossible to copy-and-paste text from a PDF into another application. C&P was available in the paid version.

Therefore, I moved to PDF-Xchange. Seems to be about as fast as Foxit and I can get text when I want it.

Adobe has features that may meet specific needs, but its bloat and security problems finally drove me to remove it. Not once have I regretted removing it from my PCs.

View in thread
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Why VMware workstation?
sahirs@... 28th Sep 2009
Why VMware workstation and not VMware server?
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Yes, whats the difference between the two? (nt)
EvilBean 28th Sep 2009
nt
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That was nice. Only, you do all this stuff in Linux for FREE
D T Schmitz 28th Sep 2009
nt
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I was thinking the same thing...
GoodThings2Life 28th Sep 2009
...just replacing them with other apps.

For example, I use Notepad++ which is open source instead of UltraEdit, and it really accomplishes the same end game.
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1 for notepad
magallanes 28th Sep 2009
Plus Imgburn :create cd, image, burn image, duplicate... and all for free.
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RE: Hardware 2.0 - Best software applications/tools/utilities
me-a4@... 28th Sep 2009
MagicDisk, offered as freeware by the MagicISO programmers at:
http://www.magiciso.com/tutorials/miso-magicdisc-overview.htm, available for several years and the reason I purchased the core MagicISO program several years ago, also provides the ability to create virtual CD and DVD burners on one's system.
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RE: Hardware 2.0 - Best software applications/tools/utilities
hansa@... 28th Sep 2009
I formerly used Vmware but have switched to VirtualBox. Vmware is still king but Virtualbox is free and I am using it to run multiple operating systems with no trouble. The systems can also be networked. I can test things and then dump the clone or snapshot and be back to original.

I also use notepad++. It's free and does everything.
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What is so good about Foxit?
pwatson 28th Sep 2009
Could you provide a little more information about why Foxit is so desirable?

In these days of cheap 1 TiB disk drives, few people seem to be concerned about size.

Faster? How much faster? 10%? 50% Just "feels" faster?

The Adobe Reader is also free, so I am not sure that this is a selling point.

I am not promoting Foxit or Adobe. I just want to know why this is your preferred reader.
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Adobe Reader
aussiedawg 28th Sep 2009
has unnecessary features that present security issues from time to time. My preference in the freeware PDF reader genre is PDF X-Change viewer. It didn't suffer from the last security problem that also affected FoxIt. It loads quicker (the only marker I use is how long I wait) than Adobe by far and has usable features that are not trial as in FoxIt.

I merely need to read a PDF and alter a form when needed.
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because
paladin2 28th Sep 2009
I starting using Foxit just because it wasn't Adobe and it's seemingly endless security problems. Now I just use it because it's good for the job and Adobe isn't constantly harassing me with 'offers'.
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For me, printing issues
keebaud@... 29th Sep 2009
Adobe Reader has always had printing issues for us when it comes to large documents (50 or more pages). It'll either only print a few pages, or print nothing at all. Even setting to raw print can sometimes cause issues.
Foxit prints the same documents with no problems at all.
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Till he used it on Win7...
morrig Updated - 29th Sep 2009
So no mention of his Win7 woes with Foxit-http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=5599&tag=nl.e539.
I like PDF-XChange Viewer best as aussiedawg does-http://www.docu-track.com/home
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Foxit is good, but...
Dogcatcher 1st Oct 2009
Foxit is a good PDF reader. It is small, fast, and has a clean interface. However, the last version I tried made it impossible to copy-and-paste text from a PDF into another application. C&P was available in the paid version.

Therefore, I moved to PDF-Xchange. Seems to be about as fast as Foxit and I can get text when I want it.

Adobe has features that may meet specific needs, but its bloat and security problems finally drove me to remove it. Not once have I regretted removing it from my PCs.

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MagicISO - Free / Virtual CD - Not
Keeping Current 28th Sep 2009
Good list and personally agree with most choices. Although, I tend to embrace GNU/GPL where possible. To that end I've found MagicISO to be a great virtual CD/DVD utility.

Can't give enough props to IDM for UltraEdit/Ultracompare. Great products.

AnyDVD is also a good product but the folks at Slysoft must be smoking something really good to charge the prices that they do. I have lifetime licenses for IDM for UltraEdit/UltraCompare but who has $115 to blow for a a background utility. And a limited license (2 year) at that. Yes, Slysoft has a lifetime option for $160 but seriously. There must be a lot of folks out there with a much more disposable income than I do. More power to them. In the meantime, I'll take a slightly more labor intensive but MUCH more affordable solution and use DVDFab.

Thanks and good luck to all.
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RE: Hardware 2.0 - Best software applications/tools/utilities
TsarNikky 28th Sep 2009
Yes, VMware's Workstation is fantastic software.
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Foxit ain't reliable
IE9 Updated - 28th Sep 2009
One of the few pieces of junk programming I removed from my Vista installation. (only VLC is less stable but that is more usefull).
I'd rather have the bloat of adobe reader
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RE: Hardware 2.0 - Best software applications/tools/utilities
ak87 28th Sep 2009
Need to add Notepad ++ its light its free and supports many computer languages with built in syntax highlighting. I use it all the time when writing matlab code or to read a txt file
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CCleaner is great!
djchandler 29th Sep 2009
To me this is a must-have tool when evaluating a PC for repairs as long as I know there are no hardware weaknesses.It's the next thing to do after a virus scan on a bootable but erratic system. I find its ability to scan and repair registry problems remarkable. Even though CCleaner can make a pre-repair backup, I've not once found it necessary to restore a registry to its prior state.

I run CCleaner's registry scanner after installing, upgrading or removing any software on my own Windows computers.

License: Freeware

http://www.ccleaner.com/

Disclaimer: I have no stake in the failure or success of Piriform Ltd., its associates or its affiliates.
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7-Zip goes on all my Windows installs too (nt)
djchandler 29th Sep 2009
NT
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Hmmmm
KenTankerous 1st Oct 2009
So, in writing about BlogJet you say:

"It also has powerful features such as a spell checker and auto replace."

And then for UltraEdit you write:

"It might seem wierd to you paying for a text editor".

It seems, um, weird to me that BlogJet's "powerful" spell checker didn't catch the spelling error. happy

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