Pike's Guide to PC Utilities

A computer system is only as useful as the software it runs- so with that in mind, here are some of the best applications out there! (And most of them are even free!)

Firefox- Best browser out there. It's well worth the time to look through the "extensions", which add new features.
http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/

Google Toolbar- It incorporates an excellent pop-up blocking utility, a handy Autofill function for filling in your name and address information on website forms (although I do not recommend storing a credit card number in it), a built in Google search bar, and a Highlighter function that lets you find keywords buried in long websites.
http://toolbar.google.com

Google Picasa- Free and easy photo editing.
http://picasa.google.com/

Microsoft power toys- Several Windows expansions, some are really helpful like TweakUI and Virtual Desktop Manager.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspx

Trillian Basic- free, multinetwork instant messaging client. Supports AIM, MSN, Yahoo, IRQ.
http://www.ceruleanstudios.com/

Copernic Desktop search tool- Awesome Local file search. I disable all the browser integration options myself, preferring google.
http://www.copernic.com/en/products/desktop-search/index.html

ExplorerXP- more powerful version of Windows Explorer. Group file renaming, Tabbed file browsing, etc.
www.explorerxp.com

Yahoo Widgets- A program where you can download and run tons of other handy mini-programs called Widgets.
http://widgets.yahoo.com/

ShortKeys- Text-replacement program. If you set it up according to how you work, this can be a huge time saver!
http://www.shortkeys.com

Security Essentials

A firewall is simply a utility that examines traffic to and from your computer, and decides whether to let it happen or not. Windows has a built in firewall, but it sucks, so disable it after you install a better one.
I suggest running ZoneAlarm from http://www.zonelabs.com, it's an excellent program, and is totally free. Take a few minutes to follow the "Tutorial" with the program, it's time well spent. Once you get the firewall set up and "trained", it will pretty much run in the background and not bother you.

Next, you need some programs to remove spyware and adaware from your system. I say "some" because no one program has been shown to be able to get everything, so you really need to run a couple. Spyware is both annoying and dangerous, as it may leave wholes in your computer defenses, and may send out personal information about you to identity thieves. The two programs I suggest are: Adaware and Spybot Search and Destroy (which are both free). These programs need to be manually updated before running a scan to make sure they are using the latest info, and the scans need to be run manually on a regular basis. While it is a pain to remember to do, make sure to run them at least once a month.

Antivirus is pretty damn important too, but they usually want money (booo...). There are a few free antivirus programs out there though, including Grisoft, so you have NO excuse for not running one of them. Again, these programs need to be updated constantly, but most have a way that you can set them to automatically check for updates. Make sure that full computer scans are being run at least weekly, either manually (by YOU) or by the program's scheduling function.

~Pike