TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES

This page will provide a number of referral links to resources on the Internet that you will find useful.

Many of the programs I use are free of charge. Some are unlimited evaluation copies, but more often I prefer to use software licensed under the GNU GPL, or other GNU licenses. See www.gnu.org for more information about this type of license, but essentially just know the programs are free to use.

Some of the programs I use are not free. I will try to give you an idea how much you should expect to pay if you want the commercial software. Click on the category below to jump to the recommendations for that category.

  • Applications

Sharing large files over the Internet

I looked for a convenient way to transfer large files over the internet. Such as photos, etc.. I found several. These are the ones I like reasonably well. It is a free service, or you can pay for faster access or more capacity. I find the free version works just fine for most things.

Tip: If you want to upload multiple smaller files, like photographs, put them in an "electronic envelope." That is basically what a compressed "Zip file" really is. You should add your files to a compressed *.zip file before sending then in an Email or uploading them to an FTP site to save bandwidth and also to prevent data corruption. The next entry on this page will get you a free file compression utility if you need one.

Application Joseph's Comments

Xdrive - Free Secure Online Storage
"Xdrive, your 5GB personal hard drive on the Internet, is the best alternative to other storage devices. Get easy backup and more secure storage with protection for your precious files. And all of this without the worry of losing or damaging a piece of hardware."
http://www.xdrive.com/

XDrive is an excellent tool for sharing large files, or a compressed collection of many files like photos. I use this myself, and I will recomend this to anyone who wants to send large files into the web site.

Box.net - Free Online File Storage
"Box makes it easy to get your files from anywhere you have an internet connection. Access important documents from your desktop, laptop, or even mobile phone on the go. Once you've uploaded your files to Box, you can also share them with anyone, or just keep them safe for as long as you want. Send large documents, presentations, and zip files to contacts and clients. Forget the hassle of emailing attachments — just send them a link to download! Best of all, you can be notified when they download the file."
http://www.box.net/

Box.net is another free online storage service. Easier to get started, though only 1GB with the free account. Enough to transfer a CD worth of data.

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File Compression Utilities

There are several applications. You may already have one installed, so take a look. In case you need one, both of these companies are excellent. For Windows, I recommend 7zip, because the compression is much better.

Application Joseph's Comments
7-Zip
Command-line and Windows shell utility for manipulating ZIP archives. Supported formats: ZIP, CAB, RAR, GZIP and TAR. 7-Zip is a file archiver with high compression ratio, which means smaller archives to store or transfer. 7-Zip is free software distributed under the GNU LGPL (except for the RAR plugin). 7-Zip will create archives and also extract them and the program is free.
www.7-zip.org/
7-zip is free. It works. It is a bit more technical, and in most cases you will need to remember to set the archive to a *.zip format instead of the default *.7z format. The default format is a higher compression, but not as widely used. I use this on all of my extra computers, and use my WInzip license on my primary computer.
WinZip® 10.0 (30-day trial, then $29.95 - $49.95 depending on version)
"WinZip, the original and most popular compression utility for Windows, is a powerful and easy-to-use tool that quickly zips and unzips your files to conserve disk space and greatly reduce e-mail transmission time. WinZip 10.0 is available as Standard or Pro."
http://www.winzip.com/ovwc17/prodpagewz.htm

The main advantage to using WInzip is the convenience of using a mature product with excellent technical support built in. In most cases, the program is easy to use right off the bat, though newbies to compression should read the help file to understand what they are doing.

Beginning users can try the evaluation version for 30 days. Winzip also has a more evolved help system to explain the basic concepts more thoroughly. There is no downside to trying it, and a lot fo gain. The pro version has some nice features for advanced users that make it worth $50 if you do any scripting.

StuffIt Expander
Completely redesigned for better performance, STUFFIT EXPANDER expands all your compressed and encoded files! If you are exchanging StuffIt archives with other users , they can download StuffIt Expander for free at:
http://www.stuffit.com/expander
For MacIntosh, I recommend StuffIt, which is usually preloaded on new MacIntosh computers. To create archives, you will need to upgrade the basic to the standard edition.

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Internet Security

There is a lot of hype out there about Internet Security. I will tell you that the basics are simple. Get a good antivirus scanner, get a good personal firewall for your computer to block unauthorized inbound/outbound traffic, and if you have broadband (cable or DSL, etc.) then also buy a good hardware firewall/router for your network perimeter for superior inbound protection.

Disclaimer regarding timeliness of software recommendations. There are no guarantees with technology. The research and development scientists are always coming up with new and better products. Also, the crackers and spammers are working hard to defeat existing products and in many cases they are just behind or even ahead of the security products available to end consumers. By the time a product makes it to the store, it has already been in the wild for a time. The bottom line is that as soon as I post this advice, there might be released an exploit or a better product. This is the best advice I can give you right now.

A less concise, but more up to date collection of information, can be found at:

Home PC Firewall Guide
"The Wild West -- A personal computer connected to the Internet without a firewall can be hijacked in just a few minutes. The only way to make it 100% secure is to turn it off or disconnect it from the Internet. The real issue is how to make your computer 99.9% secure when it is connected. For current news, alerts and reviews, see our Internet Security News page. It is updated daily."
http://www.firewallguide.com/

Antivirus software

Antivirus software is essential for anyone who uses the Internet. Look for a good Email and file attachment scanner as well as on demand and on access scanning for the local machine. The free software I favor for home users is AVG Free Antivirus. There are no extra bells and whistles. It just works.

About the application What is it? Why should I want this? Why should I care?
AVG Free Advisor: Free anti-virus, anti-spyware and anti-malware tools
"AVG Anti-Virus Free and ewido anti-spyware Free is for private, non-commercial, single home computer use only."
http://free.grisoft.com/doc/1
The free paid antivirus software I favor for home users is:
AVG Anti Virus: AVG Internet Security
"Complete security protection against all of the most serious Internet threats, including viruses, worms, trojans, spyware, adware, hackers and spam."
http://www3.grisoft.com/doc/35184/lng/us/tpl/tpl01

This is nice, because for about $70, you get two year subscription, so it actually works out cheaper to operate than many others.

Other brands to consider: Trend Micro Home Network Security, Kaspersky Internet Security 6.0, ... I may add more later, but you will be fine with what I have given you. Stay away from Norton. It is a resource hog and may end up causing more problems than it solves.

 

Personal Firewall

What is a firewall?   
"A firewall ABSOLUTELY ISOLATES your computer from the Internet using a "wall of code" that inspects each individual "packet" of data as it arrives at either side of the firewall — inbound to or outbound from your computer — to determine whether it should be allowed to pass or be blocked."
Read More of this article: http://www.grc.com/su-firewalls.htm

I recommend either Kerio Personal Firewall, or Commodo Firewall. Both are free. Both stop leaks. Both are free.

About the application What is it? Why should I want this? Why should I care?
Sunbelt Kerio Personal Firewall
http://www.sunbelt-software.com/Kerio.cfm
Kerio will give you 30-day trial of the full version, then after the trial, the basic version remains active on your computer. kerio will prompt you when a new version is available, unless you disable the automatic update notification
 
Commodo Free Firewall
http://www.personalfirewall.comodo.com/
Comodo is a little more difficult to train, in my opinion, but it is a solid firewall. It also does not offer a trial version and so does not bug you to buy anything ever.

 

 

Hardware Firewall Router (essential for broadband users - don't bother if you only have a dial-up connection.)

A hardware firewall router differs from a personal firewall in that it is a solid state device. Usually a router, this device will offer the best inbound protection in the form of network address translation (NAT). This seamlessly changes your IP address so that it is no longer directly available to the world as a public IP Address. It is essential security for any broadband connection and well worth the money. A decent hardware firewall router will cost between $40 and $60, depending on brand and features.

Most users will get a hardware firewall router integrated into a gateway router, also known as a DSL Router, or a Broadband Router, or sometimes a Network Security Device, depending on the manufacturer. Safe brands names are recognizable and available at most electronics and computer hardware stores.

Netgear, Linksys, and D-Link lead the way for small home networks. Any of the models listed at firewallguide.com (see Wired Router Reviews) will do fine. I have used all of those models and they are fairly simple to configure and come with an installation poster that will get you up and running in a few minutes. These router models also incorporate a network switch, so that will save you a little money if you have more than one computer to connect to the Internet. Using a hardware firewall router, (also called a "gateway router") is the ONLY way to connect more than one computer to the same internet connection at the same time.

If you know a lot about networking, then you can purchase or custom build your own firewall from an older computer. The commercial hardware firewall routers I mentioned on this page are nice becasue they essentially integrate three devices into one (network switch, network address translation, and stateful packet inspection). Don't let the technical terms throw you off, they are all basically just plug and play devices.

About the device What is it? Why should I want this? Why should I care?

RCA.com - PressReleaseDetail
"The RCA Small Wonder EZ201 Digital Camcorder, with a suggested retail price of $129, offers versatility and unique functionality. With a convenient flip-out display, the EZ201 allows the person shooting the video to be part of the fun. The camcorder offers up to an hour of recording time with its on-board flash memory, which can easily be expanded to up to five hours of recording with the addition of an SD memory card (sold separately) that simply slides into the unit's memory expansion slot.

Downloading and sharing memories is a breeze with the exclusive RCA Memory Manager software, which simplifies editing and sharing of your favorite moments with friends and family. The lightweight and pocket-sized RCA Small Wonder runs on two standard "AA" batteries eliminating the need for special chargers, and the camcorder's built-in USB jack makes it easier than ever to connect to a computer. "
http://home.rca.com/en-US/PressReleaseDetail.html?Cat=RCAAudioVideo&MN=114

RCA Small Wonder
http://www.mysmallwonder.com/

A friend of mine picked up one of these and carries it with him everywhere. The portability and convenience of this video camera makes it usesable by anyone. Just point and press the record button.

 

 

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Applications

Most of these are free to download. All are field tested by myself. Cannot guarantee the future, but I use these programs every day.

About the application What is it? Why should I want this? Why should I care?
OpenOffice.org
An office suite
 
Mozilla Firefox
Internet Browser
 
Mozilla Firefox Extensions
Sage, CopyURL, Copy Plain Text, Google Toolbar for Firefox, Customize Google, TinyURL, secure password,
Google Safe Browsing is major benefit, also spell check.
 
Mozilla Thunderbird
Email client
 
EditPad Lite - Free Text Editor for Windows
"EditPad Lite is a general-purpose text editor, designed to be small and compact, yet offer all the functionality you expect from a basic text editor. EditPad Lite works with Windows NT4, 98, 2000, ME and XP. EditPad Lite is free for non-commercial use. That is, you may use EditPad Lite if you do not get paid, directly or indirectly, for the work you do with EditPad Lite. Registered charities may also use EditPad Lite. If you want more editing power or need a text editor to use at work, check out EditPad Pro."
http://www.editpadpro.com/editpadlite.html
Editpad Lite
a better text editor and why is this important?
Multimedia Xplorer and other graphics programs
ThumbsPlus, ACDSee, AoA video products,
 
PDF Generators
Adobe, CutePDF, etc.
 
File Compressions  
Google Earth  
Spybot - Search & Destroy - The home of Spybot-S&D!
"Spybot - Search & Destroy detects and removes spyware, a relatively new kind of threat not yet covered by common anti-virus applications. Spyware silently tracks your surfing behaviour to create a marketing profile for you that is transmitted without your knowledge to the compilers and sold to advertising companies. If you see new toolbars in your Internet Explorer that you haven't intentionally installed, if your browser crashes inexplicably, or if your home page has been "hijacked" (or changed without your knowledge), your computer is most probably infected with spyware. Even if you don't see the symptoms, your computer may be infected, because more and more spyware is emerging. Spybot-S&D is free, so there's no harm giving it a try to see if something has invaded your computer."
http://www.safer-networking.org/en/spybotsd/index.html
 
HTTrack Website Copier - Offline Browser
"HTTrack is a free (GPL, libre/free software) and easy-to-use offline browser utility. It allows you to download a World Wide Web site from the Internet to a local directory, building recursively all directories, getting HTML, images, and other files from the server to your computer. H"
http://www.httrack.com/
 
The GNU Privacy Guard - GnuPG.org
"GnuPG allows to encrypt and sign your data and communication, features a versatile key managment system as well as access modules for all kind of public key directories."
http://www.gnupg.org/
 
SourceForge.net: FileZilla
"FileZilla is a fast FTP and SFTP client for Windows with a lot of features. FileZilla Server is a reliable FTP server."
http://sourceforge.net/projects/filezilla/
 
More - See: File Transfer Protocol - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"File Transfer Protocol
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ftp
 
Nvu - The Complete Web Authoring System for Linux, Macintosh and Windows
"A complete Web Authoring System for Linux desktop users as well as Microsoft Windows and Macintosh users to rival programs like FrontPage and Dreamweaver. Nvu (which stands for "new view") makes managing a web site a snap. Now anyone can create web pages and manage a website with no technical expertise or knowledge of HTML."
http://www.nvu.com/index.php
 
   

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