Extended Statusbar 1.5.3-A much more detailed overview of your browser activity

Extended Statusbar is a useful Firefox add-on which allows you to see much greater detail over how it’s loading a page.

Extended Statusbar shows shows the number of images, load size, load speed, and timer for web-page loads. However, it doesn’t take up considerably more size than the normal Firefox status bar although if you’ve got a widescreen monitor, it won’t pose such a problem. However, if you’ve got other icons along your status bar, it can still get pretty crowded down there.

Annoyingly, it only loads on the left hand side of the screen and there seems to be no way to change this. The other problem is that if you change tabs, the loading information does not change - you can only view the loading information for the first tab you open.

Nevertheless, Extended Statusbar is a useful extension for anyone that needs to know how pages are loading such as for web developers.

Download Extended Statusbar 1.5.3 in Softonic

Curve Builder 1.0-Resolve parametric functions graphically

If you’ve got no idea what parametric functions are then read no further - this application will be a complete bore and mystery to you.

If however, you deal with parametric functions as part of mathematical or scientific research, then it could save you some major headaches. Curve Builder draws graph for parametric functions by allowing you to set real functions for each coordinate in 3D space.

Curve Builder draws graphs isometrically but it only gives you four viewing angles - front, left, from underneath and from above. However, that’s all you’ll probably need unless you’re doing something particularly complex. Curve Builder also comes equipped with a zoom which, if your parametric graph is way too big for the screen, adjust it automatically to fit nicely.

If you’re not into maths, Curve Builder will remain a complete mystery but if you want to better understand parametric functions, then it very easy to use.

Download Curve Builder 1.0 in Softonic

Qplayer 1.0.0.1-Music from social networking sites under one umbrella

Qplayer is the official player of the Qbox.com project - an online social networking site designed to help users find groups and bands that are recommended by MySpace and YouTube users.

It’s an interesting project that claims to give indie bands greater coverage and outreach although when I surfed into the site, the first band is showed and played was Coldplay! The developers estimate that 75% of MySpace visitors use MySpace to find music and according to one survey, 52% of respondents stream music from social networks such as MySpace, Bebo, and Hi5.

The Qbox project and Qplayer attempt to bring all these sites together by allowing fans of similar music to interact and discuss their favourite tunes. By indexing the entire music collections on the largest social networks, Qbox allows users to search, organize and listen to all the music available across sites such as MySpace and Bebo through one simple app.

Qplayer is simply the interface through which all this can be watched allowing you to also leave messages and interact with other users on the Qbox network. It claims to have access to over 21 million songs and the repository is certainly impressive. The player itself however is very heavy on graphics producing album art and pictures of the band you are listening to which makes it rather heavy on RAM and not exactly lightweight

However, this is an extremely interesting project and a very bright idea - if you love music and can’t be bothered going through different social networking sites to find it, you might find Qplayer and the Qbox network a superb resource.

Download Qplayer 1.0.0.1 in Softonic

StaffEye 4.01-Pull the wool over your boss’s eyes

Ok, now I shouldn’t really be recommending this program to anyone because it basically allows you to stop your boss seeing what you’re really up to on your PC.

However, for a moment, let’s just substitute “boss” for partner, mother, colleague or anyone else who can’t fire you from your job. StaffEye is an innovative way to allow you to see what’s going on behind you as you work by using your webcam as a “third eye”. It detects any kind of motion and movement and when it does so, instantly closes Windows that you’ve opened whether they be games, messaging programs, or anything else you shouldn’t really be using. Of course, the program remains invisible - there’s no taskbar or system tray icon to worry about. You simply press a customizable combination of keys to launch it into action although this will inevitably look a bit suspicious if you jump for the keyboard everytime StaffEye detects some motion. The default is “Alt+M” but you can change this to whatever you like. However, I’d strongly advise configuring it to be triggered my mouse - either a double right-click or something less obvious to reduce suspicion.

A handy program although it can be ultra sensitive to motion whether it be your boss or not and of course, it relies on your being allowed to use a webcam in the office.

Download StaffEye 4.01 in Softonic

AnyClient 1.7-All you need to donwload and upload files via FTP or WebDAV

I’m all for free FTP clients and AnyClient is an excellent free and easy to use FTP client for those that want to upload via FTP or WebDAV.

AnyClient is a free platform independent file transfer application that supports all major file transfer protocols including FTP/S, SFTP and WebDAV/S. AnyClient works both as a web based service (which requires no installation) although this is the standalone version that needs to be downloaded locally.

Launching AnyClient this way also avoids the need to use a Java Applet with the web based version which is a bit annoying anyway. To connect to a site, simply click the “connect” button to display the Site Manager dialog and create a new site profile or connect to an existing site profile. You may have some problems configuring the exact connection parameters and there’s not much help for working out to do this, but it works extremely quickly and simply.

AnyClient is a great way to upload to FTP sites across platforms and especially those that need to connect to WebDAV sites.

Download AnyClient 1.7 in Softonic

TeamViewer 4.1.6194-Simple, fast and secure desktop sharing

Desktop sharing is not just the expert field of tech professionals anymore. Whether you want to show how an application works or simply to explain things on someone else’s PC, you’ll need to find a way to share desktops easily.

TeamViewer offers a simple way of creating desktop sharing sessions with other users whether on a distant PC, local connection or over the internet. Both users will each have an ID and password with which to connect to their session.

Taking control of another PC is a great way to solve issues from a distance and demonstrate things on a desktop without actually being there physically. TeamViewer also allows file transfer and includes a chat function to communicate with your contact.

You can also record sessions and play them back afterward. These can then be used as tutorials or to go back on what you’ve done in previous sessions.

If you dig in the details you’ll be able to choose not only whether to optimize quality or speed, but also configure the amount of access you want to give to your desktop.

The free version of TeamViewer has a number of limitations, and lacks a number of modules like the TeamViewer manager or customer module. If you want more features you’ll have to be ready to pay at least €159 for higher end versions.

TeamViewer is a good program to quickly share desktops with another user. The free version will let you create secure sessions and control what you show to your contact over the internet.

Download TeamViewer 4.1.6194 in Softonic

Sleipnir Portable 2.8.3-Feature-rich portable web browser with support for the Gecko engine

If you’re tired of your old web browser, try using alternatives which, despite not being very well-known, they work perfectly well. One of them is Sleipnir, which is presented here in portable version.

Sleipnir Portable is a complete web browser that can fully replace Internet Explorer or Firefox. In fact, it uses the Internet Explorer core engine but you can replace it by the Mozilla Gecko engine if you want.

When running Sleipnir Portable for the first time, you can import data from quite a varied amount of browsers. I must say however that my first impression of Sleipnir Portable wasn’t very good: the interface is simply bloated with buttons and toolbars, too many for someone like me who loves minimalist design.

That said, Sleipnir Portable does have many positive sides to it. You can browse the web comfortably (thanks to its powerful tab management system) and safely (with a wide array of security tools). Sleipnir also features a complete built-in search tool, an RSS manager similar to Firefox Live Bookmarks, support for proxy servers and many other interesting tools.

Sleipnir Portable is a powerful alternative web browser that’s definitely worth a try, even if you’re happy with your current browser.

Download Sleipnir Portable 2.8.3 in Softonic

Sleipnir 2.8.3-Full-featured web browser with support for the Gecko engine

If you’re tired of your old web browser, try using alternatives which, despite not being very well-known, they work perfectly well. One of them is Sleipnir.

Sleipnir is a complete web browser that can fully replace Internet Explorer or Firefox. In fact, it uses the Internet Explorer core engine but you can replace it by the Mozilla Gecko engine if you want. Sleipnir also comes bundled with Roboform, a handy password and web form manager.

When running Sleipnir for the first time, you can import data from quite a varied amount of browsers. I must say however that my first impression of Sleipnir wasn’t very good: the interface is simply bloated with buttons and toolbars, too many for someone like me who loves minimalist design.

That said, Sleipnir does have many positive sides to it. You can browse the web comfortably (thanks to its powerful tab management system) and safely (with a wide array of security tools). Sleipnir also features a complete built-in search tool, an RSS manager similar to Firefox Live Bookmarks, support for proxy servers and many other interesting tools.

Sleipnir is a powerful alternative web browser that’s definitely worth a try, even if you’re happy with your current browser.

Download Sleipnir 2.8.3 in Softonic

jDownloader 0.5.859 with Softonic Toolbar-Automated downloads from RapidShare, Megaupload and more

Do you usually download from free file sharing sites like Rapidshare, Megaupload and the likes? If so, you’ll love jDownloader.

This Java-based tool makes the whole file downloading process much easier for those sites, saving you the pain of going through endless pop-up windows, waiting times and download links cunningly hidden among dozens of Google AdSense boxes.

jDownloader works best with multiple downloads, as it enables you to create a list of files and then download them all at the same time. Other interesting options include the possibility to limit bandwidth usage and support for premium user accounts. Unlike other download managers though, jDownloader doesn’t have support for resuming downloads.

That said, the only thing that really needs to be improved is its user interface. I don’t know if it’s just the design, or the fact that the program runs on Java, but the truth is that jDownloader is confusing and sometimes counter intuitive.

If you take the time to learn how to use it, jDownloader will prove to be a handy companion for download junkies.

Download jDownloader 0.5.859 with Softonic Toolbar in Softonic

Wipe 2.38-Safely remove all computer usage tracks

Be warned: when you use the computer or browse the web, you’re leaving behind traces of all you movements that can be easily tracked like breadcrumbs.

Luckily there’s a way to avoid these clues: use Wipe and you’ll be able to delete all those traces from your system in a very efficient way. What’s more, Wipe includes support for the standard DoD 5220.22 algorithm, which renders deleted files unrecoverable.

When launched, Wipe performs a system scan in order to detect all the apps installed on your computer. After that, it displays a list of all the supported programs and the items you can delete from them.

The list includes common software like Firefox, Internet Explorer, Windows Media Player, WinRAR, QuickTime and Outlook Express, and deletes usual items like cookies, history of usage, recent document lists and auto-complete entries, among others. The program doesn’t show the actual elements you’re about to erase though, nor does it let you filter them in any way – which would have been useful in the case of cookies, because you may not want to delete all of them.

Wipe can erase the whole list with a simple click on the “Delete” button, but you can also erase only specific items by right-clicking on them. When finished, the program shows the number of deleted files and the amount of recovered space. The whole process hardly takes a couple of minutes and also generates a log in case you want to see extended details about the deletion process.

With Wipe you can rest assured that your deleted files won’t be recovered.

Download Wipe 2.38 in Softonic