A lot of people, when I tell them that I’ve found something neat or something useful that I think they can use to make their overall computer life bearable and a little more convenient, tell me to stop talking and simply e-mail them what I’m talking about. Well, those requests have piled up to the point where I think I should go ahead and make a nice, big, huge link post detailing a lot of the programs I commonly use for many tasks, both online and off, both business and fun, and where you can get them. So here goes, with the following caveat: I currently only use Windows XP at home, so that’s the breed of apps I’m pushing here. (All links will open in a new window, so you don’t have to leave my little corner of computer bliss.)
First, a non-Windows related push: for my hosting solution, which is currently with United Hosting, with offices in the UK and server farms in Texas. Weird combination, I know, but it seems to work really well. They are Linux-based hosts, and support just about everything you can think of. I couldn’t run my site without their support and services - and their prices are top-notch in the first place. The only downtime I’ve had in the six months or so I’ve been using them has been one evening when they had to do massive kernel changes - requiring a reboot. Not a problem for me. If you sign up with them, please list me by e-mail address as a referral, or refer my domain - I don’t know if I’ll get anything, but it never hurts to try.
We’ll start at the site level. My blogging software is the endlessly configurable and just plain cool CGI application called Movable Type, which is free for personal use and has a wide support community available for help. It is very popular and widely supported by Linux hosts. I also use the picture gallery software called Coppermine, for the (currently unused) photo album portion of my site, which is also easily configurable and extensible (possibly because it uses phpBB code, which is in itself nice stuff). My forum software, which supports a currently desolate and unused forum, is Invision Power Board, which is also free for personal use (with attached copyright notice), and cheap for institutional use. I currently prefer to hand-edit my HTML and my PHP/CGI files using MetaPad, which is also freely available, though I sometimes resort to using Dreamweaver MX when I’m short on time or I’m feeling lazy with an imagemap.
I update my blog with Zempt, which supports some nice features and give me an easy way to do updates through XML-RPC, which is more comfortable for me, especially since it includes a spell-checker and a preview pane. I view other people’s blogs with WildGrape NewsDesk, which is about the best RSS aggregator I’ve ever laid eyes on (even though it requires an install of the .net Framework), and allows me to check the news, some favorite sites, and even some web comics all at one time in the morning.
As far as web browsers are concerned, I fully support and highly recommend Mozilla Firebird at the moment; Mozilla itself is becoming a little too feature-bloated for my tastes (I currently don’t care for Moz Mail very much), and I can get Firebird to do everything I want with a few simple snap-ins. Firebird is a very simple install - you just drop the folder onto your hard drive and go. For FTP use, I prefer SmartFTP, which also is a free download and offers a full complement of FTP usage tools. I won’t bother with instant messaging service links to bore you, but suffice to say that I prefer ICQ over others.
I rip audio from my CDs to MP3 format using CD’n'Go, which, despite its ridiculous name, supports every codec you can find, and also does its job very quickly and very efficiently. It doesn’t do anything I don’t want to my music, which is something I cannot say for most other options out there. And it’s free.
I use The All-Seeing Eye to browse game servers - it also is free in its gimped form, but I have registered it myself, and would suggest that you do the same if you use it. It’s the fastest updated and least bloated server browser available today.
Spyware fears my system because of SpyBot - Search and Destroy, which works much better and much faster than its free competitors, and also allows me to change many more options.
Decrompression is handled for me currently by 7-Zip, which supports many compression algorithms, and even utilizes one of its own, and it’s more efficient at packing space than most commercial ones.
Many of you who know me know also that I am an avid gamer - so here’s what’s driving my computer as of late: as always, I am returning on a semi-regular basis to the fun world of Dark Age of Camelot, which currently controls the money I have set aside for ONE subscription-based game. Unfortunately, I am thinking about breaking that self-imposed rule for Laser Squad Nemesis, which is a PBEM strategy game from the X-Com folks. I play Raven Shield and Battlefield 1942 on a regular basis, and, when schedule permits, on a competitive basis with Tactical Advantage. I am an active EA Sports fan, and play most game series on PlayStation 2 at the moment, but I am known to kick in a round of Tiger Woods PGA Tour on the PC from time to time. For real-time strategy, you can’t beat Rise of Nations, or the equally superb Warcraft III.
I think that about covers it. And it took me so long that it qualifies as my entry for Thursday.
Sweet.
If you have anyquestions, leave a comment. I’ll get to you as soon as I can (especially considering that I’m back to dialup at the end of this week through most of the month).