The Best Free Software of 2011 - System Utilities

For years, PCMag has brought you an ever-bigger, ever-better list of desktop software that will cost you absolutely nothing. As of last year, we shook things up a bit. Instead of an annual look at the best free software, we went monthly. Since software can cost thousands, you might wonder why and how you can score immensely useful programs for free. We're throwing in all the worthy apps that run on Windows 7 and 8, the latest MacOS, and of course, the cloud-based Web apps that run in a browser like Chrome, Firefox, or IE to use anywhere. Look for a new category of free software titles every month. Topics from 2014:

Five freeware gems for Windows | The Cheapskate Wow. You people know your freeware! A few weeks ago, when I asked you to name your freeware favorites , I never dreamed I'd get more than 400 responses--some of which listed programs and utilities that were new to me. (And here I thought I knew them all.) I'm still sifting through those replies, looking for recurring favorites and investigating some of the suggestions. In the meantime, I thought I'd share a handful of freeware goodies that I know and love--and that I neglected to mention the first time around. Fences: Best. Stay tuned for more freeware roundups, this time based on some of your favorite picks. Top 8 Programs That Can Make Your Computer Run Faster It’s a common problem among computer users: after a few months, our computers become weighed down by programs and all sorts of other junk, and inevitably become sluggish. For the less tech-savvy users, this may induce thoughts like “Why is my computer so terrible?” or “I guess I could always upgrade this… what-cha-ma-callit RAM thing”. Regular maintenance is usually required to keep a computer optimized and running at its best. MSConfig For those who despair endlessly that their computer lags too much at start up yet don’t know how to go about fixing that, taking a look through MSConfig would be the place to start. Having a lot of programs that start up when the computer boots is one of the main reasons that boot times are so long, for most PC users. CCleaner CCleaner stands for “Crap Cleaner” and that is exactly what the program is great for. Temp files aren’t the only junk files cluttering up your computer, however. To do this, use the “Registry” tab in Ccleaner. Revo Uninstaller 1. 2.