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Software Reviews

by ezyduzzit

The reviews and opinions below are posted by SnapFiles visitors. They do not necessarily reflect our opinion, and are solely based on the experience of individual users.

TDP x-Ray Lite
  • Freeware
  • Win2000/XP/2003/Vista

qleft  The best disk space analyzer  qright

TDP x-Ray Lite version 2.1
  • Interface: 5
  • Features: 5
  • Ease of use: 5
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 5

This little tool is fast and efficient, giving a neat graphical display of the folders and files on your drive. You can pinpoint directories quickly by hovering your mouse cursor over them; moreover, subfolders are displayed in a pop up graph and can be accessed seamlessly without delay, allowing you to quickly drill down to any location. You can also access the explorer shell from within the interface (explore, delete etc) and view everything in fullscreen mode. Works a treat on Windows 7 RC1 - it should be a part of the Windows explorer shell in my opinion. It's that good.

    Review date: Sep 05, 2009

GFI Backup Home Edition
  • Freeware
  • Win2000/XP/2003/Vista

qleft  Effective and versatile backup tool  qright

GFI Backup Home Edition version 2009
  • Interface: 5
  • Features: 5
  • Ease of use: 5
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 5

This wizard-driven backup tool walks you through the steps of creating backup tasks that can be executed manually or automatically using the scheduler. It's very easy to get the hang of and most users will find it an effective and versatile backup tool.

    Review date: May 23, 2009

Photostage
  • Freeware
  • Win2000/XP/2003/Vista

qleft  Burn your slideshows to dvd,psp, ipod  qright

Photostage version 1.12
  • Interface: 4
  • Features: 4
  • Ease of use: 4
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 4

This is easy to use software that can quickly burn slideshows to dvd or render them to video for devices such as PSP or iPod. The options to enhance slideshows are limited but the results are very good. My only gripe with NCH software in general is that it offers to install extra software, adds unnecessary entries to the start menu and a bookmark to IE favorites.

    Review date: May 22, 2009

XRECODE
  • Freeware
  • Win2000/XP/Vista

qleft  Plain and simple audio converter  qright

XRECODE version 2.58
  • Interface: 4
  • Features: 5
  • Ease of use: 5
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 5

This is a joy to use - the interface is nothing to write home about but that's a good thing - you can get the job done easily and quickly with absolutely no messing about. It has established itself as my preferred audio converter.

    Review date: Apr 28, 2009

Imgares
  • Freeware
  • Win2000/XP/2003/Vista

qleft  1,2,3.....fast and easy  qright

Imgares version 1.44
  • Interface: 4
  • Features: 4
  • Ease of use: 4
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 4

Despite the awful name, Imgares is a simple to use batch resizer with a few extras thrown in; it's clearly a work in progress but one to watch.

    Review date: Jul 18, 2008

Ashampoo Burning Studio Free
  • Freeware
  • Win2000/XP/Vista

qleft  Good all-rounder  qright

Ashampoo Burning Studio Free version 6.61
  • Interface: 5
  • Features: 5
  • Ease of use: 5
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 5

Of all Ashampoo products, Burning Studio has always impressed me the most for it's clean interface and ease of use. Now that a free version is available it should be on every novice's computer - hassle-free burning and ripping at the click of a button.

    Review date: Apr 17, 2008

EverNote
  • Freeware
  • WinXP/Vista

qleft  As good as it gets  qright

EverNote version 1.5.0.207b Basic
  • Interface: 5
  • Features: 5
  • Ease of use: 5
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 5

I can think of few freeware products that have as many useful features as Evernote - the web clipping ability alone is worth the download. On a tablet pc, handwritten notes and drawings are a breeze.

    Review date: Jan 15, 2007

KeePass (Classic Edition)
  • Freeware
  • WinWin (All)

qleft  Complicated and fiddly  qright

KeePass (Classic Edition) version 1.06
  • Interface: 2
  • Features: 3
  • Ease of use: 2
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 3

Double clicking this standalone executable just complicated my life unnecessarily. It's packed with features and if I had the time and inclination, I'm sure I could get the hang of it. But I need a password manager that works straight out of the box - not one that sends me on a wild goose chase. Fun for some, I guess...

    Review date: Jan 08, 2007

Newzie
  • Freeware
  • Win98/ME/2000/XP

qleft  Why i like newzie  qright

Newzie version 0.99.5 Beta
  • Interface: 4
  • Features: 5
  • Ease of use: 4
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 5

Ok so this the latest beta and so far i have found it easy to use. it's the standard two pane browser with a file/list directory and the main viewing pane. it can synchronize rss feeds on start up highlighting the latest unread items. newzie is bright and stylish to look at with a host of useful features such as a scrolling ticker, pop up notifier customizable with sound file, news slideshow and postsweeper to get rid of the junk. i like the fact that selected posts open in the main viewer rather than externally in your internet browser. it may take a bit of getting used to but on the plus side it's from the same stable as the excellent ziepod and this release works well (apart from one glitch with the ticker - grrr). definitely one to watch even if it's not exactly your cup of tea at the moment.

    Review date: Apr 14, 2006

Ziepod
  • Freeware
  • Win2000/XP/2003/Vista

qleft  Why i like ziepod  qright

Ziepod version 0.99.1 beta
  • Interface: 4
  • Features: 4
  • Ease of use: 4
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 4

It's neat to use as a stand alone application and so far has worked without any niggles. you can switch quickly from an IM style window to an explorer browser or player mode to a handy toolbar. It's easy to export opml so you can load it on your other machines. I wish it had native support for video files but heck, it's free.

    Review date: Apr 13, 2006

Tux Paint
  • Freeware
  • WinWin (All)

qleft  One of the best  qright

Tux Paint version 0.9.14-1
  • Interface: 5
  • Features: 5
  • Ease of use: 5
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 5

I urge you to download this application now if you have kids and want them to learn how to use a simple drawing program. Along with the available "stamps", Tuxpaint is a versatile and attractive program with which youngsters can draw and experiment. But don't be fooled that TuxPaint is somehow limited: a great many artistic results can be achieved with ease. There many tools and effects are thoughtfully arranged; sounds add to the fun. The ability to save and print their creations from the program itself will delight kids. An added bonus is the friendly homepage and online gallery.

    Review date: Nov 04, 2005

Switch Off
  • Freeware
  • WinWin (All)

qleft  Very useful, very small shutdown utility  qright

Switch Off version 2.3
  • Interface: 3
  • Features: 3
  • Ease of use: 5
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 4

The fact that this neat application has not been updated since 2002 is testament to its stability. It is only a 65kb download and comes with a basic feature set and interface that mark it out as a practical tool rather than as a flashing, flickering system tray ornament. It is about one tenth the size of similar applications and not prone to the usual errors (at least so far!). Highly recommended if you value ease of use and simplicity over multifunctionitis. Brother, I have been cured.

    Review date: Nov 02, 2005

Slawdog Smart Shutdown
  • Freeware
  • WinWin (All)

qleft  Useful, simple, free  qright

Slawdog Smart Shutdown version 2005
  • Interface: 3
  • Features: 4
  • Ease of use: 4
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 4

You get an icon in the systray from which you quickly shutdown, log-off, reboot, hang up your internet connection etc. Works well. Options are available for timed actions but be wary of setting shutdowns or restarts for less than 20 seconds. Depending on your OS and configuration, you can get into an endless loop! (Yep, I did..)

    Review date: Oct 31, 2005

Desktop Sidebar
  • Freeware
  • Win2000/XP

qleft  Control freak  qright

Desktop Sidebar version 1.04.75
  • Interface: 5
  • Features: 5
  • Ease of use: 4
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 5

Highly configurable and relatively easy to use, Desktop Sidebar is composed of various panels which you can move about to your heart's content. You can get better clocks, weather reports, pc performance stats, mail checkers etc as stand alone applications but these are all in one place and they're free. The news panel is oriented toward the US; however, I added RSS feeds quickly and it works fine. The mail checker, unlike Google's Desktop 2, can check multiple accounts including IMAP and Hotmail. You can access many areas of your pc via the sidebar. If you select Auto hide, the sidebar does not resize your browser window. It integrates with Outlook Express but I would like to see support for Thunderbird. Impressive tool if you need this much functionality.

    Review date: Oct 23, 2005

Fast Launcher
  • Freeware
  • WinWin (All)

qleft  Clear the clutter!  qright

Fast Launcher version 3.11
  • Interface: 3
  • Features: 3
  • Ease of use: 3
  • Value: 5
  • Overall: 4

One of the best freeware applications available. It sits in the systray and gives you complete control over all the programs you want to run. It makes quick launch and start menu more or less redundant. Reminds me a lot of Jet Toolbar but it doesn't take up so much space at the bottom of the screen. The interface is a bit basic but it works without a glitch. The perfect place for all those programs you think you should have but don't really use.

    Review date: Oct 20, 2005

Tanida Quiz Builder

Tanida Quiz Builder

Create educational quizzes in Flash format that can be distributed online or as standalone .EXE file.

Spytech SpyAgent

Spytech SpyAgent

A powerful monitoring solution to record PC activity, including keystrokes, email and more.

Demo Builder

Demo Builder

Create interactive Flash movies and tutorials to show how applications and systems work.