Bag of Beans

The Road to Know Where has compiled a list of over 150 free programs for Windows and Office that have been released by Microsoft. Check the comments at the end for a few more as well.

• Link

Here’s another extensive list (with reviews) of lots of useful programs in many categories. Includes both free and non-free software.

• Link (via the DonationCoder forum)

eConsultant has many useful lists in different categories. In particular, their freeware and open source software lists are very comprehensive.

• I want a Freeware Utility to … 450+ common problems solved
• Open Source Freeware : 400+ free applications and utilities

Gizmo at Tech Support Alert has just made some major updates to his recommendations for the best freeware utilities available. Lots of useful stuff here.

• Link

The latest version of TrueCrypt encryption software has been released. This is one of the best tools available out there for securing your data.

TrueCrypt 4.2 Released

April 17, 2006; 1900 GMT

We are pleased to announce that TrueCrypt 4.2 has been released. Among the new features is the ability to create a TrueCrypt volume under Linux, ability to create a ‘dynamic’ container whose physical size (actual disk space used) grows as new data is added to it, ability to change volume passwords/keyfiles under Linux, ability to create keyfiles under Linux, ability to restore and backup volume headers under Linux, and many more.

This release makes the Linux version of TrueCrypt completely independent on the Windows version. However, both versions will continue to be mutually compatible. For a comprehensive list of changes, please see http://www.truecrypt.org/history.php

• Download here

This incredible album is a collection of mp3 remixes based on the soundtrack for the original DooM game (not the movie!). Hangarmageddon, Industrial Strength and Mystery Meat are some of my favorites. But Darkness Dawning just blows me away. Wicked stuff.

New release of Thunderbird email client available. Many new features, including automatic updates, and a nicer RSS feed interface.

This page lists some of the best extensions currently available for Firefox.

There are hundreds of firefox extensions on the web. Which ones do you use? Here is my attempt to collect the 50 best and popular firefox extensions which make your browsing, downloading and navigation in Firefox as easy as possible, while harnessing the full power and features of Firefox.

This is an excellent resource page that has links and short reviews to some really useful, free programs.

There are a lot of great freeware products out there. Many are as good or even better than their commercial alternatives. This list features my personal pick of the “best of the best.”

xpy is a useful utility that helps close some security holes in Windows XP by tweaking certain registry settings for you.

Small tool which disables the default threats of a Windows XP installation. Besides disabling Windows and some of its components to communicate with Microsoft servers, xpy improves privacy settings and your system’s security.

Make sure you know what you are disabling or you may break some applications on your system.

Another way to run Linux under Windows.

Cooperative Linux is the first working free and open source method for optimally running Linux on Microsoft Windows natively. More generally, Cooperative Linux (short-named coLinux) is a port of the Linux kernel that allows it to run cooperatively alongside another operating system on a single machine.

It is currently geared towards KNOPPIX Japanese Edition. You may need to make some modifications to your distribution of choice to get everything working. See their wiki for more details. Also see The Slackware on coLinux HOWTO which contains some information that is useful for other distributions as well. Gentoo users should check out this thread.

Here’s a way to create a custom Windows OS Installation CD, allowing you to completely prevent the installation of components you don’t want.

nLite is a tool for permanent Windows component removal and pre-installation Windows setup. After removal there is an option to make bootable image ready for burning on cd or testing in virtual machines. With nLite you will be able to have Windows installation which on install doesn’t include, or even contain on cd, unwanted components.

Latest version of Portable Firefox available, now at their new home on PortableApps.com. Lots of other cool applications there to check out.

Portable Firefox 1.5 has been released. New in this version is:

• An update to Firefox 1.5 Final (with all the new features)
• Compatibility with nearly all extensions when switching computers
• Enhanced detection of multiple browser instances
• Automatic repair of some common profile issues
• A splash screen for instant feedback

Sysinternals has released an update for their root kit detection utility.