Windows XP only: Free system utility Phlox has a single, small purpose, but it's one that's caused certain people to hunt down free ways to get Vista's features into XP. That feature is a smarter renaming scheme, one that doesn't make you re-type the file's extension just to change its name. Hit the F2 key on a file, and it does its advertised job. As the FreewareGenius blog points out, however, it uses about 5MB of memory to get the job done, so fans of scripting utility AutoHotKey can get the same feature, or check out system-wide tweakers in Adam's XP-like-Vista guide that do the same. Phlox is a free download for Windows systems only.

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Wired's newly-revamped Webmonkey site has an informative guide on seeing, changing, and understanding file permissions in Unix-like systems. These are the kind of operations and syntax that can often confuse and put off first-time Linux users or command line neophytes on OS X systems, but Webmonkey details the commands you need to change permissions on however many files for whichever users you need. Worth a bookmark, and a good work-around for those unexpected "Action not permitted"-type errors.

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The CyberNet blog has posted a seriously helpful cut-and-paste script that anyone can turn into a shortcut to turn Windows' hidden file showing on and off. Normally, showing hidden files—like folders named with a starting "." and configuration files—is accessed through the options in Windows Explorer windows or shell extension tools, but this Virtual Basic script can be stashed anywhere and accessed from a keyboard shortcut. Great solution for those who alternate between showing and hiding hidden files.

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Windows only: Free application Pocket Killbox deletes files Windows Explorer won't because they're in use or locked. If you tried our previous tips on deleting locked files and were still unable to delete the file, Pocket Killbox might be the proper hammer for the problem at hand. By killing the process using the file and deleting on reboot, Pocket Killbox can circumvent Windows and put your file to rest. Pocket Killbox is a free download for Windows only.

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Windows/Mac OS X only: Freeware application DiskAid enables iPhone and iPod touch owners to use their devices as an external hard drive. Install DiskAid, plug in your iPod touch or iPhone, and watch as it detects your device and lets you to copy files and portable applications to and from it. You won't be able to upload images or songs to the device and be able to listen to them or view them on-device, but with DiskAid, you can transfer files like documents and portable apps from your Mac to your iPhone and then to your PC. (Here's how to transfer songs from any iPod to your computer.) DiskAid does not require you to jailbreak your device and works from the get-go. DiskAid is a freeware download for Windows and Mac OS X. Thanks, Jay!

Windows only: When you've got a file with an extension you don't recognise, the free command line tool TrID can help. We've covered how to use the web to find out what kind of file you have, but TrID adds a probability output. Rather than simply listing all the file types that have ever used the extension you're searching for, TrID analyzes the file itself and returns the probability of the file being a certain type, as shown.

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Ack! The computer ate my term paper! We've all been there at some point. You delete an important file, somehow it skips your Recycle Bin altogether, and for all practical purposes, it's disappeared into the ether. But before you hit the big red panic button, there's a very good chance that your file is still alive and kicking somewhere on your hard drive—you just need to know how to find it. With the right tools, finding and recovering that deleted file can be as simple as a few clicks of your mouse.

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Windows only: DupliFinder, a free Windows utility, compares digital photos by their name, size, and actual image information to find duplicates you can delete without worrying about. Brought to you by the coder of Vista Battery Saver, DupliFinder has a slightly rough interface at this point—you have to drag and drop in a folder to search if it's not "My Pictures," for instance—but its comparison engine works just fine, giving percentage ratings and quick delete buttons for duplicates. Looks like a great tool for finally tackling that picture clean-up project you keep putting off. DupliFinder is a free download for Windows systems only.

Mac OS X only: Rename large groups of files—like that batch of photos fresh off your camera's memory card—using simple or complex rules with Name Mangler. Simple options include numbering files sequentially, adding a prefix or suffix, or changing case. In advanced mode, you can script any number of those actions and save them. Name Mangler also produces reusable droplets you can add to Finder; then, whenever you want to batch rename a set of files, simply drag them onto the droplet without even starting up the application. Name Mangler is a free download, donations requested, for Macs running Leopard only.

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Tim from the Daily Cup of Tech weblog has transitioned to an almost all BitTorrent TV diet, but the resulting disorganisation of files left him with an unsettled stomach. He prefers to archive everything he downloads to a system of folders, but while some video files he downloads hit his hard drive as plain AVI files, others are archived RARs, and manually organising it all became to much of a hassle. The solution: a saucy Windows batch script that automatically extracts RARs and sends all of his files off to the proper, well-organised folders. If you've got your own method of automating your file organisation, let's hear about it in the comments.

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