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    My Must Have PC Utilities/Tools

    Discussion in 'Sager and Clevo' started by jml00a, Oct 23, 2011.

  1. jml00a

    jml00a Notebook Guru

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    Updated 10/24/11

    Was organizing my work USB drive and figured I'd create a list of some of the tools I use for work on a computer. These tools range from benchmarking to error checking and should be everything you need to troubleshoot a system. The beauty is that these are all free. This isn't a complete list of all the great tools out there so feel free to add some more. Just thought that since we seem to have a lot of newer people that come here, I'd put together a list of helpful tools I use day in and day out. Hope it helps someone.

    Hard Drives
    HDtune:HDD/SSD/USB tests/benchmarks

    RAM
    Memtest86+:Memory tests

    Benchmarks/Monitoring
    HWMonitor
    CPU-Z/ GPU-Z

    Cleaners
    Ccleaner:Registry cleaner

    Recovery
    Recuva:File recovery

    Antivirus/malware/etc
    RKill:kills known malware processes so that anti-malware programs can do their job.
    SuperAntiSpyware
    Avast Antivirus

    Compression
    7zip:Compression software

    Virtualization
    Virtual Clone Drive: Drive emulation
    Daemon Tools Lite
    Magic ISO/Magic Disc
    Virtual Box:OS virtualization

    Burning
    Handbrake: DVD ripping
    Imgburn:CD/DVD/HD DVD/Blu-ray burning. Create images too.

    Web Browsers
    Chrome
    Firefox

    Media Players
    Media Player Classic
    VLC Player:The best media player imo. Plays freakin everything without having to bother with codecs.

    Installers/Uninstallers
    DriverSweeper
    Ninite:Install or update multiple apps at once
    Revo Uninstaller

    All Things Boot Related
    Ultimate Boot CD:a great tool for creating your own boot cd/dvd/usb
    Hiren's BootCD:Lots of tools. Listed here. Note that not all works on Windows7.
    GRUB:Multiple OS Bootloader

    Misc or "haven't decided where to put them yet"
    Sysinternals Suite:Large list of tools.
    SumatraPDF :pdf reader much faster than Adobe.
    Foxit Reader :pdf reader much faster than Adobe.
    Dropbox:Online storage, 2gb free.
    WintoFlash:Make easy USB Windows installs
    Backtrack:Linux based security penetration testing
    Who Crashed:Tells you what caused BSOD
    Utorrent:best torrent downloader EVER :)
    Team Viewer:Remote desktop

    _____________________________________________________________________________________
    Also, if you suggest something, make sure it's good. I don't mind having multiples of similar programs because each have different feature sets but if there isn't any improvement or anything to differentiate it from another, don't bother as I don't want this list to contain every program known to man, just useful ones. Thanks.
     
    jml00a, Oct 23, 2011
    #1
  2. Larry@LPC-Digital

    Larry@LPC-Digital Company Representative

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    Thank you jml00a! Great job! +1 :)
    _
     
    Larry@LPC-Digital, Oct 23, 2011
    #2
  3. jml00a

    jml00a Notebook Guru

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    edit:had another list listed here but screw them. i like our list better :) we're smarter, we're better, and dog gone it...people like us.
     
    jml00a, Oct 23, 2011
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  4. ownasaur

    ownasaur Notebook Consultant

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    ownasaur, Oct 23, 2011
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  5. Larry@LPC-Digital

    Larry@LPC-Digital Company Representative

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    ^^^^Boy I haven't seen that list in a long time. Yes it is quite detailed.

    There is nothing wrong with having a new list here on THIS forum. :)
    _
     
    Larry@LPC-Digital, Oct 23, 2011
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  6. Patrck_744

    Patrck_744 Burgers!

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    Nice list but SumatraPDF is a better alternative than Foxit Reader.
     
    Patrck_744, Oct 23, 2011
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  7. hotblack_desiato

    hotblack_desiato Notebook Consultant

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    I would add media player classic, chrome, and, of course, utorrent.
     
    hotblack_desiato, Oct 23, 2011
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  8. MrDJ

    MrDJ Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    nice list.thanks for sharing.
    heres my old list that got locked otherwise i would have kept it updated HERE
     
    MrDJ, Oct 24, 2011
    #8
  9. johnnyman27

    johnnyman27 Notebook Lover

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    johnnyman27, Oct 24, 2011
    #9
  10. Captain Razer

    Captain Razer Notebook Evangelist

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    then you never tried mpc with k-lite codec :)
     
    Captain Razer, Oct 24, 2011
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  11. NovaH

    NovaH Company Representative

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    +1 for Chrome. I personally like it much better than FF. Feels lighter and much more responsive.
     
    NovaH, Oct 24, 2011
    #11
  12. jclausius

    jclausius Notebook Virtuoso

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    While 7zip can open the archive, sometimes you just wanna access files w/ out extracting. I didn't see it listed but MagicDisc from MagicISO is also a must have for Win XP/Vista/7 if for dealing with iso files.
     
    jclausius, Oct 24, 2011
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  13. J.P.@XoticPC

    J.P.@XoticPC Company Representative

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    Yup, agree with MagicISO, or Daemon Tools Lite. Great list by the way.
     
    J.P.@XoticPC, Oct 24, 2011
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  14. NovaH

    NovaH Company Representative

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    Agreed on Daemon Tools Lite as well. Great piece of software and very easy to use.
     
    NovaH, Oct 24, 2011
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  15. NovaH

    NovaH Company Representative

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    I'd like to add TeamViewer to the list. Comes in very handy when you want to help a buddy out by taking control of his PC.
     
    NovaH, Oct 24, 2011
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  16. jml00a

    jml00a Notebook Guru

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    updated! great additions guys :) keep em coming. i saw those other lists but feel like the people are this clevo forum are just a notch above the rest so enjoy seeing what you all suggest.
     
    jml00a, Oct 24, 2011
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  17. TheHansTheDampf

    TheHansTheDampf Notebook Evangelist

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    no advertising but I have gotten used to TuneUp Utilities, I know it is lazy and I could do all this manually with freeware, but its convenient and I somehow got used to it after years of using it.
     
    TheHansTheDampf, Oct 24, 2011
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  18. Bluefish024

    Bluefish024 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Nice list.. will check those out..Thanks
     
    Bluefish024, Oct 24, 2011
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  19. Catan

    Catan Notebook Evangelist

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    +1 for TuneUp Utilities. If you are willing to pay for a group license, it's a tremendous value indeed. Definitely better than CCleaner at what it does (optimization) and far more intuitive with more controls.
     
    Catan, Oct 24, 2011
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  20. jml00a

    jml00a Notebook Guru

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    Yeah TuneUp Utilities seems to get decent reviews but the last thing I look to do when either buying a computer or fixing someone elses is spend more money. Especially when there are great freebies out there already.
     
    jml00a, Oct 25, 2011
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  21. TheHansTheDampf

    TheHansTheDampf Notebook Evangelist

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    agreed, it's more for the lazy hearted ;)
    I do enjoy it though haha

    the list is great gonna add some from these! Thanks!
     
    TheHansTheDampf, Oct 25, 2011
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  22. J.P.@XoticPC

    J.P.@XoticPC Company Representative

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    J.P.@XoticPC, Oct 25, 2011
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  23. Catan

    Catan Notebook Evangelist

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    Can TeamViewer remote a PC that's asleep? :eek:
     
    Catan, Oct 25, 2011
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  24. TheHansTheDampf

    TheHansTheDampf Notebook Evangelist

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    Yes it can if setup properly and the correct rights are given. I do not know how though, but my IT department can access my computer locked, hibernated, sleep, awake, whatever they need, via Teamviewer :) I wonder whether they could actually start it :O
    I do have a fixed IP and am on Intranet though ;)
     
    TheHansTheDampf, Oct 25, 2011
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  25. zakazak

    zakazak www.whymacsucks.com

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    zakazak, Oct 25, 2011
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  26. J.P.@XoticPC

    J.P.@XoticPC Company Representative

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    J.P.@XoticPC, Oct 25, 2011
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  27. Bryanu

    Bryanu Notebook Deity

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    Yup, that is what the Wake on Lan feature is good for.

    Though not many people these days I see using it but you can even power up a computer that's off if the card has WoL which most do.
     
    Bryanu, Oct 25, 2011
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  28. TheHansTheDampf

    TheHansTheDampf Notebook Evangelist

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    btw talking software, anyone happens to know a good morning alert software which starts the computer on time and plays a tune?
     
    TheHansTheDampf, Oct 25, 2011
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  29. Anthony@MALIBAL

    Anthony@MALIBAL Company Representative

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    A scheduled task in Windows :) No software can turn a computer on from a cold shutdown, but a scheduled task should execute from a machine that's sleeping.
     
    Anthony@MALIBAL, Oct 25, 2011
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  30. biba028

    biba028 Notebook Consultant

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    Acronis or Norton Ghost - Backup tool
    Microsoft Security Essential - Antivirus/Malware
     
    biba028, Oct 26, 2011
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  31. Mirabis

    Mirabis Notebook Guru

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    Why no ?
    - Comodo Internet Security (HIPS)
    - Microsoft EMET? ( Software Vulnerability )
    - Spacesniffer ( Where does my disk space go )
    - Secunia PSI? ( Software Vulnerability )
     
    Mirabis, Oct 26, 2011
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  32. philiphan

    philiphan Notebook Consultant

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    I've noticed I don't really have a sound manager on my P170HM. Will Realtek Sound manager work for me?
     
    philiphan, Oct 26, 2011
    #32