Top 6 Windows Spyware Scanners
Spyware is a type of malware that is installed on computers and collects information about users without their knowledge. The presence of spyware is typically hidden from the user. Typically, spyware is secretly installed on the user’s personal computer. Sometimes, however, spywares such as keyloggers are installed by the owner of a shared, corporate, or public computer on purpose in order to secretly monitor other users. Following are a selection of the best adware and spyware scanning tools to ferret out these often hidden menaces. If you go the standalone route, make sure you back it up with antivirus software and a firewall.
See Also: 10 best Free Online Virus Scanners
See Also: 12 Free Windows Antivirus of 2009
McAfee AntiSpyware 2006 is no longer sold as a standalone product, but don’t despair. McAfee VirusScan (2006) includes the same stellar protection. In our tests, both products nabbed 98% of running processes associated with adware and spyware, effectively neutering the infestation. At $39.99 for both stellar spyware protection and a top-notch virus scanner, McAfee VirusScan (2006) is a steal.
Windows Defender is offered free and, like CounterSpy, sports above average detection rates. The product is still considered beta and tech support is not provided. Despite these setbacks, it can provide a good second opinion. However, Microsoft AntiSpyware and CounterSpy should not be installed on the same system, as they both share common components.
Free for personal use, Spybot doesn’t have stellar removal rates. It does, however, provide TeaTimer and SDHelper which are extremely effective at preventing adware and spyware from gaining a foothold on your computer. So while you may not want to rely on it for detection and removal, you may want to install and activate it alongside other protection to help keep your system spyware-free.
Spy Sweeper removed 100% of the miscreant BHOs and Toolbars in our tests and stopped 84% of the active processes associated with adware and spyware. Spy Sweeper is a standalone spyware scanner and not a full-fledged Internet security suite, thus it is best used in conjunction with antivirus and firewall software.
5. Sunbelt CounterSpy
Sunbelt’s CounterSpy removed 90% of the miscreant Browser Helper Objects (BHOs) in our tests. Sporting above average detection for only $19.99, CounterSpy offers inexpensive protection, an easy-to-use interface and US-based tech support.
6. Hijack This
Another free utility, Hijack This isn’t a traditional spyware scanner. It will, however, provide a full report of what’s active on your system. Experienced users can peruse the report, identify the miscreants, and use Hijack This to disable the unwanted loading (or do so manually). Less experienced users can save the Hijack This log and send it to a more savvy friend for advice.
Create Sticky Notes in Windows 7
November 20, 2009 by Raj
Filed under How to, Tips N Tricks, Windows 7
Sticky Notes is one of my Favorite feature in Windows 7, its Really simple to use, Now you don,t need to paste digital stickies to your Windows desktop. If you are Windows 7 Users you can do this with simple and easy steps. To run the app, just click Start, type sticky, and press Enter. You’ll immediately see a new note; just start typing whatever it is you need to remember.
Want another Note as a Sticky, Click on the + icon for a new Sticky and Prefer a different color. Right-click in the body of the note and choose from six options. Thats it !
Windows 7 Starter Kit
Windows 7 is the new Baby in the town and if you are in love with you new Windows 7 PC or Laptop than you have to try all these Free Must Have Apps which are really Useful to your new Windows 7 Baby, So these are the must have starter apps for your windows 7. Windows 7 Starter Kit is divided into 10 categories Web Browser, E-mail Client, Office tools, Image Editors, Music Video Jukeboxes, File Compression, PDF Reader, Torrent Client, and Tweak Tools
Web Browser
Mozilla Firefox is a free and open source web browser descended from the Mozilla Application Suite and managed by Mozilla Corporation. A Net Applications survey put Firefox at 24.07% of the recorded usage share of web browsers as of October 2009[update], making it the second most popular browser in terms of current use worldwide after Microsoft’s Internet Explorer.
Chrome is blazingly fast and is easily the quickest browser available. Based on Webkit, the same open-source engine that powers Apple Safari, Google’s Android mobile platform, and several other Web-browsing tools, Chrome’s interface is a drastic departure from other browsers. Instead of the traditional toolbar, Chrome puts its tabs on top. Moreover, the tabs are detachable: “tabs” and “windows” are interchangeable here. Detached tabs can be dragged and dropped into the browser, and tabs can be rearranged at any time. By isolating each tab’s processes, when one site crashes, the other tabs do not.
E-mail Client
Mozilla Thunderbird is a free, open source, cross-platform e-mail and news client developed by the Mozilla Foundation. Mozilla Thunderbird combines smart browsing with sharp innovations aimed at both Web mail clients and industry standards like Microsoft Outlook. Basics like junk mail filters, HTML support, multiple identities, and POP, IMAP, and Microsoft Exchange server support load fast and are bolstered by S/MMIE, digital signing, message encryption, and a phishing detector. Interface tweaks maximize message viewing, a necessity in an e-mail reader. See Also: Top 10 most useful Thunderbird add-ons
Office and Productivity
OpenOffice.org includes powerful applications for making text documents, spreadsheets, presentations, diagrams, and databases, as well as HTML and XML documents. Not only does it let you edit basic documents, such as letters and faxes, it also handles equations and complex and multipart documents with bibliographies, reference tables, and indexes.
2. AbiWord
This free, open-source word-processor strikes us as a worthy alternative to pricey, big-name products. AbiWord has a quick learning curve, since the interface is very similar to those in Word and WordPerfect. AbiWord, gives you just the word processor without the entire suite. It has a quick learning curve with an interface similar to those in Word and WordPerfect.
Image Editors
1. The GIMP
The application provides professional tools that can stand against the big boys without the hefty price tag. Even the installation process has gotten simpler, with no need to download and install the GTX Runtime Environment separately. Extremely powerful and easy to work with, GIMP is ideal for both amateur and pro photographers, Web designers, or anyone who wants to create and edit professional-quality digital images on a budget.
2. Paint.NET
If all you want is a quick image retouch, Photoshop is overkill. Paint.NET, on the other hand, is an open-source freeware editor with all the essentials, including tools to crop, rotate, resize images, adjust colors, and create collages.
Paint.NET supports common image formats–JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF, and others–but not high-resolution RAW files. There are enough basic and intermediate effects and features to keep image-tweakers happy, though the red-eye removal tool is notably weak; those images may require manual attention.
Music and Video Jukeboxes
1. WinAmp
It now features strong device support, including iPod synchronization, AAC encoding, CD burning, and a robust file-management system. There’s an optional new interface layout that joins the separate windows, podcast support, you can edit device synchronization while in progress, and a built-in browser for media discovery. We liked that clicking on an artist’s name will get you related headlines and Web sites in a separate pane.
2. Miro
Miro is a popular, free, and open internet TV application. It brings video channels from thousands of sources and has more free HD than any other platform. Features include full torrent support, so you can download and view torrents in the same app, folder watching to manage only the hard-drive folders you specify for new videos, resumable playback, topic-based channel surfing, video sharing, hosting, and vodcast creation assistance.
VLC Media Player offers a one-stop solution for the file-format problem. The program supports playback of every major and most minor file types, and can stream media. Because of its open-source foundation, it evolves quickly, with new features and fixes released frequently.
File Compression
1. 7Zip
7-Zip is open source software. Most of the source code is under the GNU LGPL license. The unRAR code is under a mixed license: GNU LGPL + unRAR restrictions. 7-Zip unpacks most archive formats, including ZIP, TAR, GZ, RAR, and its own 7z format. It can create TAR and GZ archives, which are commonly used on Unix and Linux systems.
PDF Reader
1. Foxit Reader
Foxit Reader is everything that Adobe Reader isn’t: lightweight, effective, and streamlined. Foxit’s main purpose is to read PDFs, but it also has annotation tools. The interface mimics Adobe’s, so you won’t have to change your reading habits. Text readability is nearly the same, and the 1.6MB Foxit starts surprisingly fast compared with Adobe. It’s a nice touch that it opens PDFs from the Internet in their own Foxit window, instead of sucking resources from within the browser.
Torrent Client
1. uTorrent
Still not for the faint of heart, this torrent utility is one of the easiest to use. The uTorrent executable adds a directory and some option information to your PC, but it is still small enough to run off an old USB key.
Tweak Tools
Here is the List of 5 Free Windows 7 Tweak Tools
Windows 7 Taskbar Tweaker
Windows 7 Taskbar Tweaker is new free tool for windows 7, which helps you to tweak windows 7 taskbar easily. This one is the very helpful to all windows 7 users to tweak there windows 7 taskbar easily. You can also use the app to disable thumbail previews if you choose, and the settings menu provides options to run at startup, hide the main window, and even hide the tray icon if you like keeping clutter to a minimum.
See Also: 5 Free Windows 7 Tweak Tools
Features of Windows 7 Taskbar Tweaker
- Show standard window menu on right click instead of jump list.
- Close or focus a window on middle click instead of running a new instance.
- Disable grouping of windows by file path or application id.
- Cycle through windows of a grouped button on left click instead of showing a thumbnails preview.
- Open with while dropping a file on a taskbar button instead of pinning.
- Disable thumbnail previews.
Download Windows 7 Taskbar Tweaker here via [ Downloadsquad ]
Upgrading to Windows 7 Install apps with Ninite
If you are upgrading your PC to Windows 7 than you have to reinstall so many apps and there are lots of app that you have to install in your Fresh Windows 7. With Ninite you install lots of your fav apps with simple one click. To put it in simple words, it is a kind of wizard that will let you choose which apps you want to install from a list, and then sit back and stretch while the installation process goes into autopilot. Some of the apps and tools you can install using Ninite include web browsers, messaging tools, media players and antivirus software. The full list is far, far more comprehensive.
Read Also: How to Upgrade Windows Vista to Windows 7
Read Also: How to Install Windows 7
It allows you to bulk install up to 58 popular Windows apps without having to sit there and click through those annoying pop up questions.
Try Ninite here on your windows 7
5 Free Windows 7 Tweak Tools
Windows 7 is the next OS from Microsft and Windows 7 is fast and it is quite satisfying in the role of replacing Windows XP and Vista. So am here posting some of the best Free Tools which can help you to Tweak Windows 7. Check out these cool list of 5 Best and Free Windows 7 Tweaks Tools:-
Windows 7 malware & spyware removal tool IObit Security 360
Freeware IOBit 360 is a fast and welterweight utility for both detecting and removing malware, and determining any security holes in your system before they can been exploited. The interface has large icons with simple labels that won’t confuse novices, while the tools menu offers some useful features that more advanced users are sure to appreciate. With the unique “Dual-Core” engine and the heuristic malware detection, IObit Security 360 detects the most complex and deepest spyware and malware in a very fast and efficient way. IObit Security 360 has a real-time malware protection and frequent updating for prevention of zero-day security threats. Designed for Windows® 7, Vista™, XP and 2000 (32bit and 64bit), IObit Security 360 can work with your Antivirus for a superior PC security.
The Tools tab gives you seven useful system security tools. There’s a Hijack scan for power users, a Security Holes scan, a Passive Defense that disables cookies in Firefox and Internet Explorer, and ActiveX in IE, and an Unlock and Delete tool for getting rid of files your system thinks are in use.
There’s a Privacy Sweeper that will clean not just cookies and cache but saved forms, download history, and other Internet traces in all major browsers, as well as utilities like archival tools, multimedia players, and other applications.
Download IObit Security 360 for Windows 7 here
