Whether you run Windows XP, Vista, or 7, you might be the culprit of a slow boot or delay in Windows.  This may be due to the combination of many things, such as: low amount of RAM; lots of startup programs; low capacity left of hard drive space; and slow processor.

You may try to isolate the issue or deal with fixing the possible causes listed below.  Or you can cheat a littlle bit by using the freebie, Startup Delayer.  This program literally delays startup programs until after the PC fully boots.  The end result provides a faster Windows startup.  Startup Delayer allows you to select which programs you’d like to delay, and for what amount of time to delay.

Startup Delayer is a great utility for Palm, Blackberry, iTunes, and other programs that sync up with your phone, iPod, and other handhelds that require file sharing.  Why not delay your iTunes startup or Blackberry redirector software for 5 minutes to allow your computer to fully boot first?  Your programs will still work, and at the same time will receive better performance by patiently waiting for Windows to finish its boot process.  You should always leave your anti-virus software to launch at startup, but the other programs may be delayed to your liking.

There are many free useful applications available.  It is time consuming to go to each of the software’s website and download the application.  NiNite makes life easier now by storing all of your free, required apps all in one place.  This site provides: web browsers, messaging, media, anti-virus & anti-spyware software, documents, imaging, utilities, compression, and more.

Why use NiNite?  Not only does it store all of your apps to install in one place, you check the ones you want, and voila, it downloads and installs them on its own in the background with the default settings and most up-to-date version.  Plus, it doesn’t install a NiNite software installer - it just installs the apps you want.  Never has installing software been so easy!  As computer technicians, this is a useful tool for us since it allows us to quickly install these applications after performing a Windows reinstall.  Or, it is a quick way to install updated software virus removal, spyware removal, or just updating a browser or iTunes. 

This website is truly a diamond in the rough.  Previously, it was offered as a beta version to first 100 computer users who sign up.  As of October 23, 2009, it has just been made available to the public.  It differs from other sites, such as CNET, since CNET forces you to install each software one at a time wheres NiNite allows you to install several apps simultaneously.  This is definitely a good website to keep in your tech tool chest. 

It is crucial to safeguard your data.  And the added incentive to do so with free software before it might cost you tons by performing data recovery.  Here are some free apps to try out:

• RichCopy - back up your files periodically.  Plus: your files will continue to copy if your computer loses its Internet connection.
• Mozy - back up your files online up to 2GB for free.
• ADRC Data Recovery Tools - use this recovery software to save your files from a failing hard drive.  Or recover your files that you accidentally deleted.

These free applications are great to keep in your tech toolchest for backing up files as well as recovering files if necessary.

E-mailing attachments larger than 2MB is not always an easy task.  Many email accounts, such as Gmail, MSN, Hotmail, or company e-mail servers do not allow e-mails larger than 2MB.  This restriction is due to preventing viruses or bogging up the e-mail server.

If you need to send lots of pictures or big files to clients or friends all the time, you should consider using an FTP site to send across your info.  This way, you can set up a specific website for you and your recipient in a professional manner.  Filezilla is a top free FTP website that offers a way to share files via a website.  It is compatible for Macs and PCs.

An alternative is to share your current website space for FTP storage.  This way, you can create a specific page off of an existing website.  You’ll probably want to consult with your network administrator on this.

Microsoft Office has been and is very popular for office, home office, and residential users.  You may use Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Access.  However, what if you have more than one computer that you want to access your files.  Or you’d like to share your documents with other people.  If you don’t use some VPN or remote software, you might want to consider using online office applications.

Google docs is probably the most well-known sharing online application.  You can go to your Google account, create a word or excel file and share it with another Google user of of your choice.  Then, you can collaborate seamlessly no matter which computer you are using.  However, there is a limitation of rows for spreadsheets and presentation slides.

Thinkfree Online is one of the most respected online programs.  You can use word and excel on your own computer.  The program will save, for free, up to 1GB of storage.  It will automatically sync your files to the site and even allows you to share the files with others.  Further, the files are easily saveable in .doc, .docx, or .xls formats for Office users.

Zoho offers a multitude of online apps, including: word, excel, notebook, wikis, crm, projects, planner, chat, and more.  It’s worth checking out to see if you can add one of its programs to your repetoire.

All of these programs are free software and relatively tech-friendly.  It is worth checking out to see if these programs can be used for your everyday computing.  A big plus is you don’t have to worry about purchasing Microsoft Office for Windows, Mac, or both.  These online programs are compatible for both Windows and Mac.  If you don’t have a daily network that supports your files, this may be a good no-cost solution for you.

Microsoft is getting involved in the free anti-virus software market.  There are a few good anti-virus software programs out there, such as AVG Free and Kapersky.  Now, Microsoft will be offering its own free security software called “Morro” slated for the second half of next year.

McAfee and Symantec think that Microsoft isn’t able to compete on an anti-virus product level with its Live One Care so it feels it’s throwing in the gloves with a free package.   Microsoft’s Live One Care was a product put out by Microsoft that only gained 2% of the overall anti-virus market.  Its marketing ploy was to provide it for free for 90 days, then you’d pay if you like it. 

Well, it’s probably true that Microsoft is throwing in the towel with its anti-virus product, but hasn’t anyone heard of Windows Defender? Defender is a free anti-spyware that couldn’t hack it with the big boys, Spyware Doctor and Lavasoft Ad-Aware. 

Although Defender is a good automated software, it, alone, hasn’t been able to detect and remove the advanced spyware threats.  As Defender, we imagine Microsoft’s future anti-virus software will act the same - automated and light, but weak overall.  Well,  you pay for what you get!  But overall, Microsoft will win as an overall robust operating system (maybe too robust and bloated at times) that does it all.

What in the world is Ubuntu?  It is a type of operating system, Linux-flavored, that is free.  It is comprised of an Internet browser, documents and spreadsheets, and other tools to get you up and running quickly.  It is light and quick to boot up and shut down unlike Mac and Windows operating systems. 

The new 8.10 desktop is tailored to the traveler or the computer user on the go.  You can toggle quickly between LAN and wireless networks, surf between wi-fi and 3G cellphone networks, and provide guest accounts for friends while securing your data.  As an odd bonus, BBC broadcasting will be made possible on this operating system.  Ubuntu provides its own instant messaging client, video/audio conferencing tool, multiple monitoring tool, and user-friendly toolbar.

The think you must keep in mind about Ubuntu is that all the tools you need are built into the operating system.  If you need additional software, you will be able to download it as open source, or free downloadable software.  However, the nice thing is that everything is mostly integrated into the operating system so you won’t have to wonder what else you need.

There is also a new Ubuntu server offering which we might focus on in another blog.  For now, you may check out the new Ubuntu by downloading the software or request a free CD to be delivered to you.  Yes, this version is free a fully supported, but you’ll have to put your own tech support time into it by searching forums and the Ubuntu site if you need help.

If you have trouble opening your picture, you might not have the right software to open it.  If you just had a tech support person transfer your files from an old computer to new computer, you might not be able to open up some files, such as pictures.  This might be because you don’t have the right software installed.  Or maybe you can’t find the same software you had from your old computer.

Irfanview is a free software that can open many image files, such as: jpeg, tiff, bmp, architectural files and dozens of other graphics.  It is a viewer so you cannot edit the pictures.  In some cases, you can use this viewer to open up partially corrupted pictures.  That shows how powerful this software is.  The resolution only is very sharp and clear.  It allows for crisp print-outs. 

Irfanview is definitely a solid application to have in your tech toolchest.

It’s easy to lose sight over all of the important to-do items.  Keeping post-its notes one your monitor or your desk should be a thing of the past.  Having applications, such as Outlook, are good ways to list your to-do items.  But, what if you need something that stands out - not like a pop-up or spyware, but more like a pop-up reminder.

3M, the maker of the famous post-it, now has created the online post-it.  You may download the electronic post-it for free.  It is designed like the paper post-it as it may be located anywhere on your monitor screen.  And you don’t have to worry about cluttering your desk with bright yellow stickies.  Now, the power of the yellow sticky is right on your computer.  Pretty cool!

We’ve put together a list of free software that you may use instead of paying big bucks for the typical software.  Why pay a thousand bucks for Photoshop when you can use a free software? 

Here is a list of free software along with their paid-for counterparts:

1. Gimp - The free version of Photoshop - it acts and looks just like the real thing.  You may use Plastic Bugs to make the interface look just like Photoshop.
2. Open Office - Forgo the big cost of Microsoft Office - use free versions of Word, Spreadsheet, Database, Presentations, and Equation Editor.
3. Ubuntu - Sick of Windows or Apple?  Go with the free version of Linux’ operating system.
4. AVG Free - Skip the annual renewals of regular anti-virus software by going with this free updated anti-virus software.
5. Zone Alarm - Set up this free firewall to block intruders.

You can save a lot of time and money by going with these free software packages.