Windows only: The Image Resizer Powertoy Clone adds an option to the Windows explorer context menu for quickly resizing pictures—without opening an image editor.
Windows only: The built-in tool for dealing with unknown file types in Windows simply doesn’t work. Openwith.org does, and it points you, or your less free-software-savvy friends, to downloads that fit the bill. If you’ve ever received an urgent email reply (or phone call, or text message) from a parent, friend, co-worker, or anyone else who needs “HELP!” because “this file won’t open when I double-click!”—you’ve turned to the right download. Openwith.org installs an option on the right-click menu for files without an icon and associated program, reading “Openwith.org – How do I open this?” Choose that option, and the Openwith app launches, showing a brief file type description at the top and offering links to download free applications to handle that file. If one is already installed on the system, but maybe not the default handler, Openwith.org knows that and offers to open the file with it.
When finishing up a re-install, or helping out a friend, it stinks to find out your favourite free app is now a paid-for affair. The Last Freeware Version website can help. The site has one of those names that ruins our Lifehacker-style headlines, because it just does what you’d think it does. The organisation could use a little work, being a series of pages organised by an app’s last update, but you can quickly scan or Control+F search the All LFV page to grab links to apps like IsoBuster, RegCleaner, FastStone Capture, and other apps that exist in the dual realms of free and licence-based. We’ve used LFV in our own features before to track down apps, and it’s pretty handy when you just know a certain app is available gratis somewhere. Free to use, no sign-up required. Last Freeware Version [via Download Squad]
Whether you got a shiny new flash drive over the holidays or your old thumb drive is looking for a new lease on life, pack it full of goodness with these five killer portable applications.
All platforms: Download your favourite online video clips from YouTube, 5min, Metacafe, and more than 50 other online video sharing sites with free open source application xVideoServiceThief. Enter a URL of nearly any online video and xVideoServiceThief will automatically download the video (unless you specify otherwise). Videos can be downloaded to either FLV or AVI formats. For an alpha build, xVideoServiceThief has a few bugs; not all services were tested error-free. The application does, however, accept anonymous bug reports automatically. Regardless, the interface is pretty slick, with options to pause, cancel, and to delete downloads from the queue. An indicator displays the download status and speeds of each video. xVideoServiceThief’s open source approach should mean that downloading videos from your favourite sites should never be too hard to achieve. xVideoServiceThief is a free open source download for Windows, Mac, and Linux.
xVideoServiceThief [via Hehe2.net]Windows only: Freeware application John’s Background Switcher automatically switches your desktop wallpaper at regular intervals using photos from your desktop or from online photo services, ranging from Flickr to Picasa to Yahoo image search. We’ve covered this application once before, but it’s been updated significantly since then with support for more web services and way more features. Among them, the new version can embed a calendar on your desktop over the switchable wallpaper, apply effects to the photos, or limit photos you use to landscape mode so you’ve always got wide photos. John’s Background Switcher is freeware, Windows only.
John’s Background Switcher [via MakeUseOf]Windows only: Robust backup utility AceBackup offers a host of features missing in most freeware backup apps, like file versioning, secure FTP, file-specific encryption, Windows shell integration, and backup compression. To set up a secure backup job in AceBackup, create a new project, select the files, choose the level of security, tell AceBackup where to put the files—local hard disk, network disk, CD/DVD, remote FTP, etc—and how often, and bam! You get automated, secure, local and remote backup nirvana that rivals the current Lifehacker favourite, Syncback SE. Ace Backup is a free download for Windows only. Ace Backup [via gHacks]
Windows only: Didn’t get the Mac you asked for this Christmas but still desperate to feel like you’re running OS X, even if it is on a Windows computer (assuming you’re not running a Hackintosh, that is)? Freeware application FlyakiteOSX transforms the look of Windows so even though you’re still running Windows, it looks convincingly like OS X. Everything from your Control Panel to your login screen gets the OS X polish, so if you’re one of the many who tries prefers the feel of OS X on your Windows box, the freeware, Windows-only FlyakiteOSX may be for you. Vista users, you’re not currently supported.
FlyakiteOSX [via the How-To Geek]I don’t know about you, but I have this dream of computing nirvana which starts with a tabula rasa of a freshly reformatted PC, the installation of only the essential programs and the start of a ‘best practise’ regime of backups and clutter-killing on a regular basis.
Well, today I found someone had beaten me to the first part of this geek dream. The Freeware Genius blog has a very detailed post on reinstalling Windows and outfitting your system with only freeware applications. First he takes you through the programs he uses to backup and partition the hard drive (he recommends a couple of programs I hadn’t heard of including Unstoppable Copier and Amic Email Backup). Once you’ve reinstalled, he recommends a heap (53 in total) of freeware programs for starting again from scratch. He describes each program, so it’s worth browsing the list to see if there’s anything there you’d find useful. I’ve bookmarked this one for reference when I find the time to reformat my computer!
Reinstall Windows and outfit your system with all freeware programs [Freeware Genius]
The Make Use of blog has an article today entitled 10 Free Microsoft Apps That Don’t Suck. The list includes the forthcoming Windows Live online Office suite, the Windows Live safety scanner, the search tool Tafiti (which runs on Silverlight).
I have to admit there were a couple of apps mentioned which I haven’t tried and may be worth a look, including Win XP Powertoys, FolderShare and the SysInternals Suite.
So have you tried any of the apps on this list? What do you reckon – worth trying?
10 Free Microsoft Apps That Don’t Suck [Makeuseof.com]
