Crave World Clock License Giveaway – The Winners Are….

I’m happy to announce the 20 winners of a free license for Crave World Clock, a must-have world clock application for people who need to keep track of the current time in different cities and time zones around the world. The current time can be displayed on a real world map, along with day and night effects.

You can add cities of your choice on the world map.

You can set the world clock as your desktop wallpaper, or use it as a screensaver.

You can add analog clock and digital clock on your desktop, to keep track of time for multiple cities.

Congratulations to the winners:

Grr, Nil, Ankit, yılmaz, Bob Slyker, Stfan, Mal, John d, TRY, John, Hipockets, Alvin Bruce, Jerry Chance, ha14, Brennan Krieger, delenn13, Don Naphen, Briareoushex, Mike M, David.

Each winner will be notified directly by the developer – please allow up to 4 days for the developer to contact you.

If you weren’t one of the lucky winners, you can download a 14 day trial version of this great application.

System requirements: Windows XP, Vista, Win 7

Try the full version free for 14 days.

Download at: Reflection Software Solutions

Purchase: $14 USD.

Crave World Clock – 20 Free Licenses Giveaway

“Young men know the rules, but old men know the exceptions.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes.

So, being a grumpy “old man”, from time to time I make an exception to the rule that I don’t get involved in software license giveaways. And, this is one of those “relax the rule” times – with good reason.

Manoj Shinde, the developer of DiskAnalyzer Pro, and currently the principal of Reflection Software Solutions based in Aurangabad, India – recently offered to provide 20 free licenses for his company’s, Crave World Clock, to Tech Thoughts readers. I accepted Manoj’s offer gratefully.

Reflection Software describes Crave World Clock as follows:

Crave World Clock is a must-have world clock software for people who need to keep track of current time in different cities and time zones around the world. The current time can be displayed on a real world map along with day and night effects.

You can add cities of your choice on the world map. You can set the world clock as your desktop wallpaper or use it as a screensaver. You can add analog clock and digital clock on your desktop to keep track of time for multiple cities.

So, how would you benefit from installing Crave World Clock on your system? It’s fair to acknowledge that perhaps you wouldn’t – but, if the global business environment is the place where you hang your hat – like I do – Crave World Clock offers a number of features which could make your life just a little easier.

Click on graphic to expand.

Let me give you a simple personal example – it’s not at all unusual for me to speak directly with developers, software vendors, or service providers by telephone or Skype – from such diverse places as China, Romania, Croatia, India, America, Australia, Turkey……. Since global business operates 24/7, it’s obviously important to be aware of local times, and Crave World Clock has made that just a little easier for me.

As the “fact facts” below indicate – the application offers much more than simple acting as a global local time reminder.

Fast facts:

Set world clock with real world map as desktop wallpaper – The real world map with multiple city time displayed on it can be used as a desktop wallpaper while the software will be minimized to system tray. So you can easily track current time for multiple cities right on your desktop without much interference in your work.

Use world clock with current time as your desktop screensaver – Crave World Clock can be used as a desktop screensaver. So when your PC is idle, it will display world map with current time for selected cities, day / night effects . It will be updated every minute to reflect current time.

Place analog and digital clocks on your desktop for multiple cities – You can add multiple analog or digital clocks on your desktop to see current time for the cities of your choice. You can choose a clock theme for the clock from a pre-defined list of stunning clock themes.

Add reminders regarding your “things to do” for different time zones – Use the reminder tool to get notifications (with sound) about your phone calls, follow ups or things to do related with cities around the world.

Quickly find time for any city with Time Finder tool – You can use the time finder tool which you can access with a shortcut key to quickly find current time for any city or country. Just type in the city or country name then current date/time will be displayed for that city.

Multi-year calendar view at a glance – This tool displays calendar for a year at a glance so you need not browse through months to refer to future dates or dates falling in other months.

Quick access to International dialing codes – If you frequently need to make international calls then you can refer to international dialing codes list for all countries available with a shortcut key.

System requirements: Windows XP, Vista, Win 7

You can download Crave World Clock software and try the full version free for 14 days.

Download at: Reflection Software Solutions

Purchase: $14 USD.

Giveaway procedure:

To enter the giveaway contest to win a free license, simply add a comment at the end of this article. On February 17, 2012, all comments will be added to the online List Randomizer, and the first 20 names that come up, will win a free license for Crave World Clock.

You don’t need to write a paragraph – “enter me”, or something similar, is enough. There’s no need for me to acknowledge your entry, but rest assured, if you comment – you’re in.

If you’re a lucky winner, the developer will contact you directly and provide you with the free license.

Good luck!

Experts Galaxy – Kaspersky and Bitdefender License Giveaway

My good buddy Neeraj Rawat, over at the Experts Galaxy web site, is currently running a number of license giveaway contests. Checkout the site for more details.

From the site:

One More License Giveaway For Bitdefender Antivirus 2011 (1 Year)

Exclusive Kaspersky Internet Security 2012 One Year License Giveaway

Neeraj tells me that he has two more license giveaways scheduled in the coming weeks for Superantispyware and Zemana AntiLogger –two superb applications which I highly recommend.

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TechPaul’s Auslogics BoostSpeed 5 – Software License Giveaway Contest

I recently reviewed Auslogics BoostSpeed 5 here (Auslogics BoostSpeed 5 – A Powerful “One Stop” Optimization And Maintenance Suite),  and judged it to be an impressive solution for a host of issues affecting a computer’s performance and reliability. BoostSpeed 5 can uncover bundles of issues and problems, and then correct those problems – often, with just a few clicks of the mouse.

Review takeaway:

If you’re an average user, disappointed with your computer’s performance, or you’re just tired of having to deal with reoccurring unexplained issues, you may find that Auslogics BoostSpeed 5 is worth its $49.95 purchase price.

If you’d like an opportunity to possibly pickup a free license for Auslogics BoostSpeed 5, and save yourself $50, then checkout TechPaul’s Auslogics BoostSpeed 5 – software license giveaway contest.

From the Tech – for Everyone site:

Folks, I had decided to not run any more contests; but, I recently received an email from a company I trust, asking me for a review. The upside for you is: the folks at Auslogics have generously donated three licenses (a license can be used on up to three PC’s) to me, to award to my readers.

So, I am going to do a random drawing contest from folks who “enter” by posting a comment. The drawing will close midnight (Pacific) Thursday, April 7 — the winners announce Friday — so act now.

How to enter? Residents of the US and Canada may enter the contest drawing by simply clicking on “comment” and entering a name and a valid e-mail (so I can send you the license key) in the form. Actually commenting is optional.

To enter the contest go here.

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The Winners in the SPAMfighter Pro, Free License Giveaway Are ….

I’m happy to announce the 10 winners of a free license for SPAMfighter Pro, the award winning anti-spam desktop application designed for both typical at-home users, and business users.

SPAMfighter Pro is a terrific application which continuously filters e-mail, to eliminate spam and protect users against phishing, and e-mail-borne viruses.

Congratulations to the winners:

Grr

PasjonatLeonaWachholza

Mariel

Kate

Nick

Michael Cole

Jerry Chance

Paf

Murphy

jamir

Each winner has been notified directly. If you weren’t one of the lucky winners, you can download this great application at SPAMfighter. If you decide not to buy a Pro license, you will be converted to the free Standard version when the trial expires.

If you found this article useful, why not subscribe to this Blog via RSS, or email? It’s easy; just click on this link and you’ll never miss another Tech Thoughts article.

SPAMfighter Pro – Ten License Giveaway!

SPAMfighter has generously provided us with 10 free licenses for their award winning flagship product, SPAMfighter Pro.

To enter the contest to win a free license, simply add a comment at the end of this article. On January 14, 2011, all comments will be added to the online List Randomizer, and the first 10 names that come up, will win a free license for this award winning application.

As with previous giveaways, you don’t need to write a paragraph – “enter me”, or something similar, is enough. There’s no need for me to acknowledge your entry, but rest assured, if you comment – you’re in.

Good luck!

Read the following review, and I’m sure you’ll agree; this is definitely a contest worth entering!

SPAMfighter Pro:

 

The view that somehow Web based email is safer than a desktop-based email client, since Web based email clients such as Gmail, Hotmail and others, supposedly filter out all dangerous or unwanted content, is not an opinion that I entirely agree with. This view does not line up with my personal experiences.

The fact is, many desktop-based email clients can be superior in this area, since they offer advanced security options, as well as junk mail filters, and anti-phishing protection.

SPAMfighter, is a fee based (also available as a free version), anti-spam desktop application, designed for both typical at-home users, and business users, which continuously filters e-mail, to eliminate spam and protect users against phishing, and e-mail-borne viruses.

Each time you check your email in your email client, SPAMfighter automatically checks your mail against the SPAMfighter servers list of known spam messages. If a message is identified as spam, it is automatically moved to the Spam folder.

I’m a big fan of community based security applications such as WOT, and Immunet Protect, to name just two. SPAMfighter has embraced this community driven philosophy, and has built community-based filtering technology into the application which exploits the power of a very large community of users.

Here’s how that works: When a new e-mail arrives, it is automatically tested by SPAMfighter. If it’s spam, it will be instantly moved to your SPAMfighter folder. If you receive a spam mail that is not detected, just click on a single button, and the spam mail is removed from the rest of the 7,417,522 SPAMfighters in 228 countries/areas in seconds. In this way, very few people in the community will ever see the spam mail.

Setup is uncomplicated and straightforward.

Additional functionality can be accessed from the email client toolbar.

Fast facts:

Award winning technology to block spam

Protects all the email accounts on your PC

Protects against “phishing”, identity theft, and other email frauds

Privacy Guaranteed – we don’t see any of your email

Protects against “phishing”, identity theft, and other email frauds

Spam abuse reporting with one click

Unique language filtering tool – Stop emails in languages you don’t understand

Protection of multiple email accounts

Blacklist domains and emails

Automatic whitelist management

Interface in multiple languages

Option to move the toolbar in Microsoft Outlook

Free phone support

Unlimited Blacklist/Whitelist entries

If you run a desktop-based email client, then SPAMfighter is definitely worth taking a look at.

Note: SPAMfighter in basic mode, is free for individual users.

Supported Clients: Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Mail, and Thunderbird, as well as for businesses in Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes environments, or even those seeking a 3rd party hosted solution.

System requirements: Windows 2000, XP, Vista and Windows 7 (32bit and 64 bit).

Languages: English, German, Spanish, Chinese, French, Italian, Greek, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Suomi, Japanese, Portuguese, Bulgarian, Russian, Polish, Czech, Thai, Turkish and Danish.

Download at: SPAMfighter (If you decide not to buy a Pro license, you will be converted to the free Standard version when the trial expires).

To get the most out of SPAMfighter Pro take a look at the Beginners Guide here.

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The Winners in the PC Tools Internet Security 2011 Free License Giveaway Are…..

I’m happy to announce the 10 winners of a free license (installable on up to 3 PCs), for the award winning PC Tools Internet Security 2011.

Congratulations to the winners:

Zug

David W

Lee G

Ahmed Helmy

Olga Silva

Kevin (kvhc)

Cappydawg

TomGer

Sara (sesser)

Paul Lubic, Jr.

Each winner will be notified shortly with a congratulatory note and license, directly from PC Tools. If you weren’t one of the lucky winners, you can download a free, limited, trial version, at PC Tools.

Thank you, to all those who participated. Once again, I was struck by how polite the contest participants were – in almost every case, the participants said “Thank you”.

Either Tech Thoughts draws unusually polite people, or the world isn’t quite as bad as we’re often led to believe. I’m convinced it’s the latter – the vast majority of people are polite, and considerate.

Just a quick reminder: Next week we will be offering a giveaway for 10 free licenses for Europe’s leading anti-spam application – SPAMfighter Pro

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PC Tools Internet Security 2011, Ten License Giveaway! – Reminder

As part of Tech Thoughts “Stay Safe on the Internet focus”, PC Tools has generously provided us with 10 free licenses for their award winning flagship product, PC Tools Internet Security 2011, (retail value $59.95 ).

To enter the contest to win a free license, simply read the review here, and add a comment at the end of the article. On December 17, 2010, (just in time for Christmas), all comments will be added to the online List Randomizer, and the first 10 names that come up, will win a free license (installable on up to 3 PCs), for this award winning application.

As with previous giveaways, you don’t need to write a paragraph – “enter me”, or something similar, is enough. There’s no need for me to acknowledge your entry, but rest assured, if you comment – you’re in.

Good luck!

If you found this article useful, why not subscribe to this Blog via RSS, or email? It’s easy; just click on this link and you’ll never miss another Tech Thoughts article.

PC Tools Internet Security 2011 – Ten License Giveaway!

As part of Tech Thoughts “Stay Safe on the Internet focus”, PC Tools has generously provided us with 10 free licenses for their award winning flagship product, PC Tools Internet Security 2011, (retail value $59.95 ).

To enter the contest to win a free license, simply add a comment at the end of this article. On December 17, 2010, (just in time for Christmas), all comments will be added to the online List Randomizer, and the first 10 names that come up, will win a free license (installable on up to 3 PCs), for this award winning application.

As with previous giveaways, you don’t need to write a paragraph – “enter me”, or something similar, is enough. There’s no need for me to acknowledge your entry, but rest assured, if you comment – you’re in.

Good luck!

Read the following review, and I’m sure you’ll agree; this is definitely a contest worth entering!

PC Tools Internet Security 2011 review

Since I had test driven the 2010 version of PC Tools Internet Security, and had given it top marks, I readily accepted an invitation from PC Tools to test drive the 2011 version. And, I’m happy to say, (after testing this application for 30+ days), that this new version is even more impressive than the previous suite.

PC Tools Internet Security 2011 performed superbly in the “real Internet world”. The world that’s full of cyber criminals, scam and fraud artists, and worse. The world that reeks of tainted search engine results, malware infected legitimate websites, drive-by downloads and bogus security software.

By combining the highly regarded technologies of Spyware Doctor, a very efficient Firewall, an Antivirus engine, and ThreatFire’s heuristic detection engine (Behavior Guard), plus a Browser Defender, and more – PC Tools has built a suite of applications that provides powerful Anti-Spyware, Anti-Virus, Firewall, and Spam protection. Taken together, the components provide excellent protection from hackers, cybercriminals, unauthorized software, and network attacks.

PC Tools has a knack for building powerful applications, but still manages to combine each component in a highly functional and easy to understand user interface – not as easy to accomplish as you might imagine.

It’s hard to overstate the fact that typical computer users require a simple, intuitive, and easy to use interface in order to get the most out of a security suite, and PC Tools Internet Security excels in this department.

The application is straightforward to setup, customize, and run – as the following screen captures illustrate. (Click on any graphic to enlarge).

Fast facts:

Built on award-winning Spyware Doctor antispyware technology.

ThreatFire Behavioral Intelligence features technology to block new threats faster than traditional signature methods.

Advanced rootkit detection technology identifies and removes hidden threats from your PC.

Memory Scanner helps eradicate threats lurking on your PC.

Download Guard stops new threats by checking your downloads against a cloud-based network.

Multi-layered browsing protection against web-based attacks including phishing attempts, scare tactics and silent automatic malicious downloads.

IntelliGuard™ technology stops potential threats before they infect your PC.

Automated Firewall defends against cybercriminals seeking to gain access to your PC. It analyses network traffic and automatically makes intelligent decisions for you to reduce annoying alerts.

Advanced spam filtering utilizes intuitive behavioral technology to detect spam and effectively block phishing, unsolicited and malware emails.

Smart Updates provide automatic updates to combat the newest malware by silently installing product updates and upgrades that keep you protected without interrupting your online activity.

24/7 Global Malware Research Center constantly tackles the latest threats and implements new technology to quickly combat cybercrime, keeping your online network safe.

Network Awareness: Set “trust levels” for each network you connect to and let the firewall automatically adjust rules to match.

Designed to reduce impact on your PC system and your network – perfect for memory-intensive tasks such as playing games, watching movies and streaming content online.

Improved AntiSpam features. Improved accuracy and performance give you better and faster filtering of unwanted email.

PC Tools Internet Security 2011 , which is available in 28 languages, offers all of the protection that a top notch anti-malware suite should, in an easy installation package leading to a “dead simple” interface, and then does what it sets out to do – protect the user efficiently, against the epidemic of malware and additional dangers circulating on the Internet waiting to trap the under protected, and the unaware.

System requirements: Microsoft Windows 7 (32bit, 64bit), Windows Vista SP1+ (32bit, 64bit), Windows XP SP2+ (32bit)

You may buy PC Tools Internet Security 2011, ($59.95 direct, for three licenses), or you may download a free, limited, trial version , at PC Tools. Please note that the trial version offers time unlimited real-time protection (free threat blocking), but does not remove threats detected during on-demand scans.

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5 License Giveaway Of TuneUp Utilities 2011 – Two Days Left!

Two Days Left! It’s not too late to get your entry in!

As part of Tech Thoughts “Keep your PC in top shape focus”, TuneUp Utilities has generously provided me with 5 free licenses for TuneUp Utilities 2011, (retail value 49.95).

To enter the contest to win a free license, simply add a comment at the end of this article. On December 7, 2010, all comments will be added to the online List Randomizer, and the first 5 names that come up, will win a free license (installable on up to 3 PCs), for this award winning application.

As with previous giveaways, you don’t need to write a paragraph – “enter me”, or something similar, is enough. There’s no need for me to acknowledge your entry, but rest assured, if you comment – you’re in.

Good luck!

Read the following review, and I’m sure you’ll agree; this is a contest worth entering!

TuneUp Utilities 2011 – Tune Up Your PC To The Max

 

If you’re an average PC user, I’m willing to wager that your computer underperforms. Getting the best out of your PC – getting what you paid for from that high powered beast, is more complex than it has ever been.

Sure, if you are technically competent, you are likely aware of, and comfortable using, any number of free system tools readable available for download on the Internet – tools that can act as a helpmate in tweaking and maintaining computers.

But, typical users need more than just a helpmate application to assist them in tweaking and maintaining their computers. Drilling down through complicated operating system structures to get maximum performance from an operating system, is generally outside the range of a typical computer users skill set.

Just like high end users though, average users want maximum performance  from their machines as well – if they only knew how. Luckily, there are applications designed specifically for average users that take the “if they only knew how”, out of the equation. Applications that make it easy for a typical user to achieve the same level of high performance, as a techie.

Despite the fact that I’m a huge fan of free software, I have to admit – there are times when only a commercial application will meet all of a typical users tune up needs, in one application. And that brings me to TuneUp Utilities 2011.

I’ve been using TuneUp Utilities since 2003, and I’ve come to rely on it to help me get the very best out of all my machines. Despite the fact that I’m a huge fan of free software, there are times when only a commercial application will meet all of my needs in one interface.

Let’s take a walkthrough to look at  just some of the powerful features which are available in  TuneUp Utilities 2011. Clicking on any screenshot will increase the size to the original.

Following installation, you will have the opportunity to analyze your computer to search out issue that are negatively impact performance.

When the analysis phase is completed,  system issues that require action can be dealt with easily and quickly.

All system issues have been fixed and all recommendations show green across the board.

If you prefer not to go the automatic route, an abundance of applets (32 in total), are available to analyze and repair, maintain and improve, and configure the operating system, as the following screen capture shows.

The “fix problems” applet shows here, that Windows Media Player presented a problem with my personal privacy on the test machine, which was easily fixed.

Common computer problems are a snap for TuneUp Utilities 2011 to deal with. Simply select the problem, and in a couple of clicks the issue is resolved.

Customizing Windows to get that “just you” look, couldn’t be easier. Virtually every Windows element can be customized.

For this test, I set TuneUp utilities to run once every 3 days, and after 9 days of operation you can see from the screen shot, the machine remains fully optimized.

Since I last tested TuneUp Utilities in October 2009, the developer’s have made substantial improvements to an already top notch application – including the following:

TuneUp Program Deactivator with TuneUp Programs-on-Demand Technology – For the first time ever, you can turn off programs completely and drastically reduce the load on your PC: The services, startup entries, background processes, or scheduled tasks in a program that are turned off will remain inactive until you need them again.

TuneUp Start Center – Thanks to the fresh look of the Start Center, users will find all optimization features in seconds: Features stand out more clearly as they are now divided into five categories for maximum readability and immediate access. TuneUp Utilities tuning highlights appear immediately under the categories of “Status & recommendations”, “Optimize system”, “Gain disk space”, “Fix problems”, and “Customize Windows”.

TuneUp Turbo Mode – With a single mouse ‐click, shut down over 70 background processes that slow down Windows 7, Windows XP, and Windows Vista. By pressing a button, you get an immediate boost of power when working at your PC, a smoother gameplay, and complete control over background activities that slow down your computer.

Tuning status – Tuning status shows how many optimizations have already been performed with TuneUp Utilities, and what potential for optimization still remains. You will never forget or overlook a single tuning measure again!

Rating function for programs – The experiences of countless TuneUp Utilities users help you make the best tuning decisions. Windows performs best and is most effective when you turn off programs, deactivate startup entries and/or uninstall third‐party software that you don’t need on a daily basis. But it’s often unclear what lies behind a cryptic program entry. The new rating functions supports you here to make better decisions on each program.

Overview of all functions pane – Made for true Windows experts: The new “Overview of all functions” view on the Start Center gives you instant access to all TuneUp Utilities™ features and settings—32 in total!

As with previous reviews of  TuneUp Utilities, I could go on and on describing the additional features that are included in this terrific application but, I think you get the point. This program is overwhelmingly inclusive, and provides virtually every tool and applet, that an average computer user is ever likely to need.

Is it worth $49.95 for a 3 machine (many of us have more than one computer), license? In my view the answer is a definite – yes. TuneUp Utilities 2011 is easier to use than ever, is overwhelmingly inclusive, and provides virtually every tool and applet, that an average computer user is ever likely to need.

Take a free test run on TuneUp Utilities 2011 for 15 days, and see if you don’t agree that this is one commercial application that offers excellent value.

System requirements: Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP (all 64 bit compatible).

Download a fully functional 15 day trial version at: TuneUp Utilities

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