SkinStudio 6.4

Create your own Windows graphical user interface with SkinStudio. With SkinStudio, you can design your own title bars, Start menu, push buttons, scrollbars and virtually every other visual element of Windows XP or Windows Vista. Then save your creations and apply with Stardock WindowBlinds to give Windows a whole new experience.

Version 6.4 adds support for glass menu bars on Windows Vista, and support for different mouseover images on the right hand side of the Start Men

Tired of Windows' look and feel? SkinStudio lets you change it down to the last detail. Everything is fair game: window borders and titles, buttons, window elements (check boxes, sliders, progress bars), logoff dialogs, the animations you see when copying files, the taskbar--and that's just a partial list. Start from scratch or edit ready-made themes you find on the Web (though the demo won't let you incorporate elements from other people's themes). The straightforward interface encourages experimentation. After changing an attribute of a visual element, you can immediately view the result. With its wealth of features, SkinStudio probably isn't the best option for newbies who just want to tweak a couple features of a premade theme, but it's a great choice for desktop doctors who want to perform major Windows surgery.
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Zoom Player Standard 5.02

Zoom Player can be compared to a game of chess, it can be learned by a 4-year old in minutes, but it may take a lifetime to explore its feature rich yet unbloated capabilities.

Zoom Player supports every format imaginable (AVI, DIVX, XVID, MPEG, Flac Audio, Monkey Audio, Matroska, Windows Media, OGM, RealMedia, QuickTime, Flash and more), updated on a regular basis (new stable beta releases every few weeks), every feature is fully documented, supports all the latest playback technologies (Multi Monitor, VMR9, P2P Video Preview) and sports one of the most active support forums you can imagine. Designed for use as an every day media player and all the way up to a Home Theater PC control center. Special TV Viewing features allowing easy remote control of your media playing experience. From Newbie to Guru, Zoom Player is for you. Version 5.02 may include unspecified updates, enhancements, or bug fixes.

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CounterSpy 3.1.2710

CounterSpy 3.1 continues the strong series of releases for this basic yet powerful antispwyare software. The program makes it simple to schedule and customize spyware scans or run scans on demand, while also offering an adjustable level of real-time protection. Installation is quick and easy. A configuration wizard walks users through the basic settings options for the program, including necessary proxy info, the frequency of risk-definition update checks, the level of real-time protection, and the initial scan schedule. Oddly enough, the default scan is 1 a.m. and can't be edited in the wizard.

In addition to the standard Quick Scan and the full computer Deep Scan, CounterSpy has a fully customizable option that lets you specify which areas of your machine are scanned and what the scan is looking for. CounterSpy also throws in a few extra tools, including a file eraser, a history cleaner, and a useful process exploring tool that provides quick access to system information like running processes, hosts file, LSPs, Downloaded ActiveX controls, start-up programs, and browser helper objects (when bad, they're called browser hijackers).

CounterSpy claims that the latest release has faster scans and uses less system resources, so it's worth looking at both. Based on our limited testing, scan times seem a bit faster than comparable programs, but not the type of instant satisfaction. The options for customizing the area of your scan and how the scan works are impressive. As for resources, while deep scanning, the CounterSpy Service used about 30MB of internal memory, while the user interface took up about half that. The Service did occasionally jump up in RAM usage and CPU, but we managed to use Outlook, Photoshop, and Firefox with no snags while the full scan was running.

All in all, the feature set, the fully functioning 15-day trial, the smart design, and the strong stability and performance are all major factors that contribute to the top rating for this antispyware app.

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Advanced System Optimizer 2.01.4

From Systweak :

ASO2 includes more than 30 tools for supercharging your PC's performance, and more than 200 tweaks for customizing Windows and improving its performance. New features include a spyware detective, an e-mail checker, an icon manager, a fast e-mailer, and a comprehensive backup tool for Outlook and for files and folders. You can back up the registry and restore it if it's damaged by a virus attack. The system cleaner removes junk and obsolete files from the system, including files often missed by the system uninstaller as well as by defrag and ScanDisk programs. The registry cleaner ensures that invalid information is removed, and the registry defragger helps you get maximum speed from your computer.

Advanced System Optimizer's privacy protector keeps prying eyes out of your system. By removing cookies, the Web history, and the recent documents history, the program ensures your sensitive information can't be retrieved by others. Version 2.01.4 fixed the installer, which had a problem in Windows 98 and Me.

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Spyware Doctor 6.0.1.445

iFR editors' review

The latest release of PCTools Spyware Doctor 5.5 addresses a number of nettlesome software glitches we experienced with version 5.0. However, the free trial version is not fully functional--a fact you will discover only after downloading, installing, and then running a complete system scan.

In our trial scans, Spyware Doctor repeatedly flagged several dozen harmless cookies as potential threats, more than any other antispyware product we tested. We were also unable to learn more about each threat or why Spyware Doctor flagged each. Clicking each threat opened our default browser to a generic threat page on the PCTools site.

Should you decide to remove the Spyware Doctor trial, the uninstall process isn't clean, leaving behind traces of PCTools software in both the directory and in the system registry.

Publisher's description

From PC Tools :

Spyware Doctor is an advanced adware and spyware removal utility that detects and cleans thousands of potential spyware, ad ware, trojans, keyloggers, spy ware cookies, trackware, spybots and other malware from your PC. Protect your privacy and computing habits from prying eyes. Version 6.0.1.445 includes protection against the latest malware and internet threats.

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Spybot - Search & Destroy 1.6.2

iFR editors' review

Spybot - Search & Destroy has been in the antispyware game for a long time offering features we've come to expect in the best apps in the category, but bugs and false positives make it difficult to recommend.

The program checks your system against a comprehensive database of adware and other system invaders. It also features several interface improvements, including multiple skins for dressing up its appearance. Scan results now appear arranged by groups in a tree, and a sliding panel lets you instantly view information about a selected item to help you decide whether to kill it or not. The Immunize feature blocks a plethora of uninvited Web-borne flotsam before it reaches your computer. Other useful tools, including Secure Shredder, complement the program's basic functionality for completely destroying files. Hosts File blocks adware servers from your computer, and System Startup lets you review which apps load when you start your computer.

Unfortunately, the program has the tendency to lock up at times and even during the install process for this review, we encountered several errors. The ambitious feature list and functionality make Spybot a good choice for those in search of a second antispyware program, and recent updates have made it run faster. It still makes errors in flagging spyware that isn't, and overall there are others in the category that do a better job.

Publisher's description

From Patrick M. Kolla :

Spybot - Search & Destroy can detect and remove a multitude of adware files and modules from your computer. Spybot also can clean program and Web-usage tracks from your system, which is especially useful if you share your computer. Modules chosen for removal can be sent directly to the included file shredder, ensuring complete elimination from your system. For advanced users, it allows you to fix Registry inconsistencies related to adware and to malicious program installations. The handy online-update feature ensures that Spybot always has the most current and complete listings of adware, dialers, and other uninvited system residents.

Version 1.6.2 features support for the latest Opera releases, support for Google Chrome, and improved support for fast user switching while Spybot is running.

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