Recommended Software

Over the years I have used many programs and I am continually finding better more efficient programs that do the same task better. For example I found the program Firefox and preferred it over Internet Explorer long before it became popular. There are many programs like Firefox in this list. They are made for the same task yet the “off-brand” program works much better. Since I do not like bloatware and programs that run inefficient, I am constantly searching for these programs. This is why I created this page. I took a look at all the programs that I use frequently and put them on this list. I hope you can benefit from these programs as I do.

If you find a program that you absolutely hate in this list and you don’t know why I could ever recommend such a filthy program please let me know why you don’t like it. I love to hear why people choose to use certain programs. Use the contact tab at the top of this page.

I have broken the programs I recommend into categories.

Browsers

 
Suggested:
Opera - My favorite browser, extremely fast and its made in Norway!

Others:
Internet Explorer (If you have to use it - get the Google tool bar with it)

Spyware Removal

 
In no particular order:
Ad-Aware - Not to be confused with adware…
Spybot S&D
Housecall - Since the installed antivirus could be compromised or disabled. Using a WEB BASED scanner helps to assure the virus list is current.
CWshredder
Stinger
HijackThis - One of the best tools to eliminate spyware but it’s not very user friendly.
Rootkit Revealer
WinSockFixXP - Sometimes spyware and adware can damage the WinSock protocol in Windows (Basically your internet doesn’t work) This tool fixes this automatically for you. Here is Microsoft’s resolution is noted here.

Anti-Virus

 
Suggested:
NOD32 - I used Symantec Corporate Edition and other virus scanners on thousands of computers when I worked for the University NOD32 catches FAR more viruses and spyware.

Others:
Symantec Antivirus Corporate Edition - Not a bad scanner, available in most stores but I would much rather use NOD32.
AVG FREE Edition - Free is always good
AntiVir Personal Edition - This one runs good in bart pe environments.

Office/Productivity

 
Suggested:
OpenOffice - In my opinion this is much better than the current version of Microsoft Office for many reasons and… its free! and yes it will open your Microsoft Office documents.

Others:
Microsoft Office - Costs alot and very annoying to work with. I listed this here because some applications require Microsoft Office.

CD Ripping (Converting CDs to “Mp3s”)

 
CDex - I have used pretty much everything under the sun and this is by far the best ripper I have found for windows. I can’t recommend anything else.

Media Players

 
Recommended:
Media Player Classic - The BEST media player for windows, very small, no installation required, dvd playback with menu support, just hit play and double click to maximize the screen, you don’t have to worry about it converting/moving your media files or taking over your mime types.
VideoLAN - Very powerful player for both linux and windows, supports streaming video over a network.

Others:
MPlayer - Linux only but my favorite media player. The only draw back that I don’t like is the lack of dvd menu support. But thats not really a big deal, you can always skip to the root menu.

Codecs

 
Suggested:
defilerpak - Comes with DivX/xvid, This is an alternative to the real DivX codec because the official codec from divx.com is loaded with spyware/adware.
QuickTime Alternative - Be able to watch quicktime files without having to worry about Apple’s Quicktime software sitting in your system tray and eating resources and causing other problems.
Real Alternative - Same as Quicktime alternative…

Others:
This is all the codecs I can recommend at the moment, since most codec packs contain spyware and adware. You have to be very careful what you download. Even the reputable codecs like Quicktime contain many “features” I find quite annoying and unnecessary. For instance you should watch quicktime movies in media player classic so you can view them in full screen, Quicktime at the time I used it, didn’t even support full screen viewing. It also starts up when you boot your computer and is using system resources even when you are not watching a video file.