AVG continues to be one of the most popular free antivirus programs available on the internet and it maintains this position with a combination of effective protection and an easy to use interface.

As noted the interface of AVG Free has been improved and it is easier to see what protection AVG is providing and what needs attention via icons in the main part of the screen. Tabs along the left hand side give quick access to important information on updates and ongoing scans.

In addition to traditional antivirus protection, AVG Free now offers protection from Spyware without installing extra software.

An extra feature added with AVG 8 is the LinkScanner. Also available as a standalone download, LinkScanner works with Internet Explorer and Firefox to check links found in Google, Yahoo and MSN searches to make sure that there is no risk to clicking on the links. There is a slight delay as the pages are checked but it is worth the short wait in exchange for avoiding malicious (or hacked) sites.

OS Support : Windows 2000/XP/Vista

Download Link :

1. vnunet.com : AVG Anti-Virus Free 8.0.175

Sources :

1. vnunet.com : Impressive and free antivirus package

IrfanView is a fast and compact image viewer/converter, simple freeware image viewer and editor that supports all major graphic formats (support showing 400 type file image, and convert to 50 type file image), including BMP, DIB, JPEG, GIF, animated GIF, PNG, PCX, multipage TIFF, TGA, and more.

In addition, it features drag-and-drop support, directory viewing, TWAIN support, slide shows, batch conversion, and modifications such as color depth, crop, blur, and sharpen.

This latest 4.x adds support for a new paint plugin, support for previewing FLV files, new effects and much more.

IrfanView is now bundled with Google Toolbar and Google Desktop Search. Installation of these components is optional.

OS Support : Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/2003/XP/Vista

Download Link :

1. www.download.com : IrfanView 4.2
2. RapidShare : IrfanView 4.2
3. vnunet.com : IrfanView 4.2
   

Sources :

1. vnunet.com : Powerful image viewer & editor

The main features of 7-Zip :

1. High compression ratio in new 7z format with LZMA compression.
2. Packing/unpacking format : 7z, ZIP, GZIP, BZIP2 and TAR.
3. Unpacking format only : RAR, CAB, ISO, ARJ, LZH, CHM, MSI, WIM, Z, CPIO, RPM, DEB and NSIS.
4. For ZIP and GZIP formats 7-Zip provides compression ratio that is 2-10 % better than ratio provided by PKZip and WinZip.
5. Self-extracting capability for 7z format.
6. Integration with Windows Shell.
7. Powerful File Manager.
8. Powerful command line version.
9. Version 4.57 supports WinZip-compatible AES-256 encryption for .ZIP archives and 7-Zip can unpack MSI and WIM archives now.
10. Also there are some speed optimizations.

OS Support : Windows 98/Me/NT/2000/2003/XP/Vista
Download Link : 7-Zip 4.57

Asustek Computer's Japanese arm has alerted owners of its new Eee Box low-cost desktop PC that the machine shipped with a virus.

The D drive of the Eee Box B202, which launched in Japan last week, contains a virus file named "recycled.exe," Asustek said in a statement. When the drive is opened, the virus begins copying itself to the main C drive on the machine and to any other removable drives or USB memory connected to the computer.

Despite repeated attempts to get more information from Asustek, the company has not confirmed that the problem is limited to only Japanese Eee Box PCs. The company also didn't explain how the virus got into the computers.

Sources :

1. NetworkWorld : Asus reports virus loaded into Eee Box PCs

Every week, over 25% of Internet users worldwide play online games, which amounts to over 200 million people. This number is growing at a rate of almost 17% each year (comScore, July 2007).

To continue to fuel the growth of online games for users and as part of our ongoing efforts to develop new ways for publishers to earn revenue, Google announced today the availability of AdSense for Games (TM), a program that integrates video advertisements into web-based games, complemented by text and image ads. The program helps advertisers reach its audiences in new ways. Google is working with select game developers and publishers including Konami, Playfish, Zynga, Demand Media, games network Mochi Media, as well as beta advertisers such as Esurance, Sprint, and Sony Pictures.

This screenshot shows one way Google will place ads in games,
including casual Web-based games like PlayFish's Wordplay.
(Credit: Google)

AdSense for Games gives game developers a new way to monetize their games and advertisers additional tools to reach their audiences, ultimately benefiting users by spurring innovation in the online gaming space. AdSense for Games is currently available in beta to select partners in the U.S.





Sources :

1. Google Press Centre : Google Announces AdSense for Games in Effort to Fuel the Growth of Online Gaming | October 8, 2008.

OpenOffice.org 3.0.0 is the leading open-source office software suite for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases and more.

It's the result of over twenty years' software engineering. Designed from the start as a single piece of software, it has a consistency other products cannot match. A completely open development process means that anyone can report bugs, request new features, or enhance the software. The result: OpenOffice.org 3 does everything you want your office software to do, the way you want it to.

It's available in many languages and works on all common computers. It stores all your data in an international open standard format and can also read and write files from other common office software packages. It can be downloaded and used completely free of charge for any purpose.

OpenOffice.org 3 is easy to learn, and if you're already using another office software package, you'll take to OpenOffice.org 3 straight away.

Best of all, OpenOffice.org 3 can be downloaded and used entirely free of any licence fees. OpenOffice.org 3 is released under the LGPL licence. This means you may use it for any purpose - domestic, commercial, educational, public administration. You may install it on as many computers as you like. You may make copies and give them away to family, friends, students, employees - anyone you like.

You can take tour to OpenOffice.org web site to complete information and download this software.

Download Link : OpenOffice.org 3.0.0

Sources :

1. OpenOffice.org