Companies developing document management software, information management software, content management software, asset management software, virtual drives, and database browsers and front-ends are always looking for ways to improve the usability of their product. Adding Windows Explorer integration is one of the ways of achieving this. Windows Explorer integration allows users to interact with the software right from Windows Explorer or File Open/Save dialogs. For example, consider document management software. Every time a user needs to retrieve documents from the repository or add new documents to it, he/she has to first open the software and then interact with the software to achieve the desired goal. On the other hand, suppose the same product was integrated within Windows Explorer, the user can access documents and browse through the document repository right from the comfort and convenience of Windows Explorer. Then, to retrieve a document, he/she could simply drag-drop the document from the repository to his hard-drive. Similarly, to add a new document, he/she would simply drag-drop the document from his hard-disk to a folder within the repository. Of course, all this occurs in Windows Explorer!
And now, EZNamespaceExtensions offers to make the process of adding Windows Explorer integration (via namespace extensions) fast and painless!

Adding Windows Explorer Integration is now a breeze!

EZNamespaceExtensions is a framework library for fast, painless and easy development of Windows Explorer namespace extensions. Namespace extension development is notorious for its difficulty, subtleties and for the sheer amount of work and time that is required. With EZNamespaceExtensions, developers can concentrate on writing the functionality of the namespace extension and not worry about the hundred things that are necessary to integrate the namespace extension seamlessly into Windows Explorer and File Open/Save Dialogs. EZNamespaceExtensions can reduce the time required to develop this functionality by as much as 80%.

Fast-track namespace extension development with project wizards

One of the best features of EZNamespaceExtensions is its Visual Studio integrated project wizard. Create a new namespace extension project using this wizard generates skeletal code for a read-to-build-and-view namespace extension. With the scaffolding in place, it’s a matter of adding functionality specific to your namespace extension. Each functionality is exposed as one or more well-designed API and adding functionality is as simple as overriding methods and writing product-specific code.

Loaded with features

Feature support in EZNamespaceExtensions is quite comprehensive with full support for folders and non-folders, automatic sub-folder navigation, multi-level sub folders, context menus, background context menus, drag-drop, cut-copy-paste, details/report view, tile view, thumbnail view, group view, icons, overlay icons and lots of other things.

Choose your flavor

EZNamespaceExtensions comes in two editions: EZNamespaceExtensions.Net allows developing namespace extensions in .Net languages such as VB.Net or C#. EZNamespaceExtensionsMFC supports developing namespace extensions in MFC, ATL or C++. All versions of Visual Studio including Visual Studio 2008 are supported and all Windows OS including Windows Vista are supported.

Conclusion

Adding Windows Explorer Integration to products such as document management software has never been so easy. EZNamespaceExtensions makes it a breeze to do so. Make your product easy-to-use and stand out from the crowd and shine!

Original Article: http://www.ssware.com/articles/add-windows-explorer-integration-to-document-management-software-content-management-software-and-virtual-drives-using-namespace-extensions.htm

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

Size: 149 MB Version:3.2.0 Licence:Open Source

7-Zip
7-Zip is designed for creating or unpacking archived and compressed files. The application can unpack 7zip, ZIP, CAB, RAR, ARJ, GZIP, BZIP2, TAR, CPIO, RPM and DEB files, or create file archives in those formats. For the standard ZIP and GZIP formats, 7the application promises to deliver a compression ratio that is 2-10% better than that provided by PKZip or WinZip, and the native 7zip format can provide a 45% reduction in file size from the common zip format. Key features: High compression ratio in new 7z format with LZMA compression 7-Zip is free software distributed under the GNU LGPL Supported formats: Packing/unpacking: 7z, ZIP, GZIP, BZIP2 and TAR; Unpacking only: RAR, CAB, ARJ, LZH, CHM, Z, CPIO, RPM and DEB For ZIP and GZIP formats 7-Zip provides compression ratio that is 2-10% better than ratio provided by PKZip and WinZip Self-extracting capability for 7z format Integration with Windows Shell Powerful File Manager Powerful command line version Plugin for FAR Manager Localizations for 59 languages

Size:1 MB Version: 4.65 Licence: Open Source

WinRAR
WinRAR is a powerful archive manager. It can backup your data and reduce the size of email attachments, decompress RAR, ZIP and other files downloaded from Internet and create new archives in RAR and ZIP file format.

Size: 1.3 MB Version: 3.93 Licence:Trial

Adobe Reader
Adobe Reader software is the global standard for electronic document sharing. It is the only PDF file viewer that can open and interact with all PDF documents. Use Adobe Reader to view, search, digitally sign, verify, print, and collaborate on Adobe PDF files. 

Size: 26.1 MB Version: 9.3 Licence: Freeware

Foxit Reader
Foxit Reader is a free PDF document viewer, with incredible small size, breezing-fast launch speed and rich feature set. Foxit Reader supports Windows 2000/XP/2003/Vista/7. Its core function is compatible with PDF Standard 1.7. In the past, you’ve had to download a huge PDF reader from another software company, go through a lengthy installation process and wait for an annoying splash window to disappear just to open a PDF document.

Size: 6.69 MB Version:3.3.1 Licence: Freeware

Amazon Kindle
Read Kindle Books on Your Computer: * Get the best reading experience available on your PC. No Kindle required * Access your Kindle books even if you don’t have your Kindle with you * Automatically synchronizes your last page read and annotations between devices with Whispersync * Create bookmarks and view the annotations you created on your Kindle Shop for Books in the Kindle Store: * Search and browse more than 390,000 books, including 101 of 112 New York Times® Best Sellers. If you are a non-U.S. customer, book availability may vary * Find New York Times Best Sellers and new releases for $9.99, unless marked otherwise * Get free book samples – read the first chapter for free before you decide to buy * Books you purchase can also be read on a Kindle * Kindle newspapers, magazines, and blogs are not currently available for Kindle for PC 

Size: 6.25 MB Version: 1.0 beta 1 Licence: Open Source

Dia
Dia is a gtk+ based diagram creation program released under the GPL license. Dia is inspired by the commercial Windows program ‘Visio’, though more geared towards informal diagrams for casual use. It can be used to draw many different kinds of diagrams. It currently has special objects to help draw entity relationship diagrams, UML diagrams, flowcharts, network diagrams, and many other diagrams. It is also possible to add support for new shapes by writing simple XML files, using a subset of SVG to draw the shape.

Size: 18 MB Version: 0.97.1 Licence:Open Source

Gnumeric
The Gnumeric spreadsheet is part of the GNOME desktop environment: a project to create a free, user friendly desktop environment. The goal of Gnumeric is to be the best possible spreadsheet. We are not attempting to clone existing applications. However, Gnumeric can read files saved with other spreadsheets and we offer a customizable feel that attempts to minimize the costs of transition.

Size: 20.4 MB Version:1.10.5 Licence:Open Source

Read original article from http://www.newton360.com/Detail/Top-50-freeware-for-Windows-7—Office-Tools.html

Need of Firewall –
Today computer environment has become pretty unreceptive. Hence, it has become very important to get a complete protection for your computer security otherwise hackers can get access to your PC as well as your valuable data. Apart from hackers, your computer can also get affected by Virus and other malwares. Firewall is used as a preventive measure to stay away from all such malicious items.

How does Windows Firewall work?
Windows Firewall monitors every-network traffic which is enabled. Firewall keeps track of every communication that is originated from your PC and also it prevents your PC from all the unsolicited items.

If needed, firewall dynamically opens ports and allows your computer to receive traffic that you have specifically requested, such as a Web page for which you have clicked the address.

Windows Firewall also helps user in blocking of unidentified traffic that can reach to your PC. For special uses, such as networking, hosting online games, or hosting your own Web server, you can select ports which you want to leave open. This allows others to make connections to your computer, but it can also reduce security.

It is always suggested that a firewall product must be well aware of windows firewall basics and use procedure.

Nonetheless, configuration of firewall creates issues in browsing of many websites, such as, gaming sites, web or other server. If you are also facing such issues, these problems can be well-treated with help of expert computer technicians.

(Note – Apart from handling the issues of Windows Firewall, technical support experts also help you configuration of complete PC protection system.)

Benefits

Windows firewall is considered of high importance for big corporate houses. They serve as a core of secure networking environment and keep hackers staying away from your computer and crucial information.
It offers a secure web browsing environment and reduces of your worries any data theft. It also diminishes the percentage on internal threats.
If you want an extensive reach on internet. You can customize your firewall settings. This would help you in blocking only unwanted IP address but rest would be functioning nice.
You can decide upon the protocols to be included in your firewall’s filters. You can customize it for some of the commonly used protocols, which are: IP, HTTP, TCP, FTP, SMTP etc.
Your firewall can be to customized to allow or block any port number

How to configure Windows Firewall on Your PC

Click the Windows icon & select Control Panel
Click on System and Security.
Click on Windows Firewall
If a green check mark is visible, you are running Windows Firewall.

Types of Firewall
There are various types of Firewall which can be configured on your PC. These are respectably -

Packet filtering firewall – this firewall is used to examine the information available in the header of message packet.
Application-level gateways – This firewall work on the application layer of the protocol and it works in a pretty intelligent manner than the packet filtering firewall.
Circuit-level gateways
Hybrid firewall

Microsoft draw its Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool (WUDT) from the online Microsoft Store on Nov. 10, allegedly because the program include code from the GPLv2-licensed ImageMaster project. Microsoft originally introduced the USB/DVD Download Tool as a method for netbook users, for those who lack DVD drives on their devices, to install Windows 7 on their machines.

The ImageMaster project, hosted on Codeplex, is addressed on its site as “a .Net C# application for reading and writing disc images.” One of the user said that it is a very weird feeling after poking through the WUDT’s internals because there was too much codes for such a simple tool.

According to one of the user, Microsoft may have destroyed ImageMaster’s terms for use of the open-source code decline to offer source code for their customizations to ImageMaster and stapling on their own licensing terms, further prohibiting their rights to the software.

As this comment spread in the larger media, it appears that Microsoft made the decision to pull the WUDT from the offerings on the Microsoft Store, although the “Windows 7 for Netbooks” page remains active without an “Add to Cart” link.

One of the Microsoft spokesperson said in response to it that they are currently looking into this issue and are taking down the Windows USB/DVD Tool (WUDT) from the Microsoft Store site until their review of this matter is complete. They apologize to their customers for any inconvenience.

WUDT was originally designed to make porting Windows 7 onto netbooks a relatively easy process.

One of the Microsoft spokesperson wrote while cautioning the users who would need to configure their netbook’s BIOS before they could boot off that USB device or external DVD player. For netbook users without DVD drivers, the M Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool [WUDT] will take an ISO image and create a bootable UDB device that can be used to install windows 7.

Despite so much hype and popularity of netbooks something that led Microsoft to create a Windows 7 solution for the devices in the first place is that Redmond has publicly indicated that it would like consumers to gravitate towards higher-priced “ultra-thins” that can potentially run higher-margin editions of Windows.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said during the company’s annual Financial Analyst Meeting over the summer that Microsoft’s manufacturing partners would likely start introducing ultra-thin PCs with a higher price-point than netbooks by the end of 2009.

Ballmer told one of the analysts that they want people to be able to get the benefits of lightweight performance and also be able to spend more money with them.

Step 1: Registry Editor Tool

The Registry Editor function could be given to carry out manual edits to your Windows Vista registry. It effectively creates a backup for either a specific part or your entire registry. To get using this tool, apply the following steps:

* In the Run command in your Start menu, typewrite regedit then press Enter.
* From the File menu, click Export. The File name box will be displayed.
* Type the name of the backup file in the File name box.
* In the Export Range portion, click All if you want to back up the entire registry. If you are targeting single a part of the registry, choose Selected Branch then in the next field, type the name of the branch you wish to create a back up for.
* Finally, click Save and the backup file is created.

Step 2: System Restore Tool

The System Restore function is also another effective way to secure your Windows Vista registry. The tool enables the restoration of your PC system to how it was in a specific period of time, much similar to a time machine. Try this in case your computer crashes.

System Restore is ready by default in Windows Vista. It works by taking snapshots of different system settings inside your registry so that when you opt to restore your system, relevant information is restored with the service of the snapshots. However, the tool cannot be used to back up the registry.

Step 3: Registry Cleaners

Registry cleaner tools are effective means to back up your registry. An advanced registry cleaner performs quickly in doing partial or complete backup. All it would take is a few clicks of the mouse to perform the task. Almost computer owners heavily rely on registry cleaners.

Step 4: Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore Tool

The Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore Tool is extremely effective in retrieving your Windows Vista system. It comes available with the Ultimate, Business, and Enterprise editions of Vista. You could also opt to produce a full or a partial backup using this tool.

If you opt for a complete backup, your whole operating system, all your installed applications, your registry, data files, and user configuration will all be preserved. You also have the option to just make a complete registry backup with the Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore Tool.

Now that you are equipped with the knowledge about the importance of securing your Windows Vista registry, be reminded that it is also necessary to regularly perform registry backups. Using the given tools, you could be assured of the safety of your system. It is also advisable to save your files in external devices, like CDs and DVDs, as extra precaution.