Tag Archives: download

Microsoft Security Essentials – hands on…

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It was in tech news today that Microsoft has let loose its new free security system to replace Windows Live OneCare. It’s been expected for release for quite a while but we didn’t know an exact date.

So, GEEK! decided to have a quick go with the new software and see whats up.

You can download it for free here, providing you have genuine Windows software. The download is under 5MB, so you don’t have to worry about a large download. Once it is downloaded and you run it, it will do a verification of genuine Windows software, and then it will install. Installation is remarkably quick, and before you know it the software will be downloading updates.

Surprisingly, this took a very long time. It took nearly 10 minutes for my mid-spec laptop (dual core, 2GB RAM) to download the relevant updates.

Once it had finished, I did a quick scan. This wasn’t too bad actually. I was quite pleased at how little resources this used. While it was scanning, my computer told me it was using about 7MB of RAM and very little CPU power so I was very impressed at how quietly it runs.

I also did a couple of hours of browsing around the software. I have to say it is extremely simple to use and navigate.

I’d like to see it become popular because I’ve always had my views that paid antivirus is a waste of time.

In my case, I won’t be keeping it because I like Comodo Personal Firewall a lot, but if you’re a novice computer user and you need a simple way to get protected, this might be for you. It will work on Windows XP, Vista and 7 and as long as you have genuine Windows software you can get it for free.

I have to say I like it, but I’m looking forward to seeing if it gains any form of popularity.

Windows 7 almost here – will you be rushing for the upgrade?

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Well, now we’re less than a month away, I’m beginning to think about whether it being worth it upgrading from Vista.

At the moment, I’m actually not too bothered about it. I think I will upgrade eventually, but I don’t think there’s and rush to do so. Windows 7 only has a few major features over Vista – speed and a couple of handy interface upgrades. But for now, I think I can wait and will do the upgrade towards the end of the year.

What are you thinking of doing? Of course, if you’re planning to get a new PC or laptop, you’ll get Windows 7 included – either by a free upgrade on October 22nd or included automatically after that date. But what if you already have XP or Vista and you’d like to upgrade. Do you think it is worth it? Can you see any big advantages in Windows 7?

I’m kind of stuck in the middle – not sure what to do. I do really like the new Start bar and the cool interface, but I don’t really want to spend £60 (or whatever it is) to upgrade…

iTunes 9 Review – A definite improvement

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As most of you will already know, the Apple conference on the 9th of September brought a lot of news to iPod users. As well as the new iPod Nano and “new” iPod Touch (I can’t say it’s new, all they’ve done is made a bigger size), Apple also released the new iTunes 9. Sadly I wasn’t able to get it right away as I’m going through small problems with internet bandwidth, which also explains why I haven’t been able to post reviews on the new iPod Touch/iPhone firmware yet – don’t worry I will get round to it as soon as I get my unlimited bandwidth back which, as far as I know, should be next week.

Anyway, as for the new iTunes, I am surprised to say that I’m actually very impressed with the new release. The new features aren’t ground breaking, but the new performance upgrades have finally arrived.

The new iTunes packs new features such as Home Sharing, which allows you to share your music between other computers in your home, and a brand new redesigned iTunes Store. Both of which work very well. I haven’t checked out the Home Sharing yet but from what I’ve read online it looks very good. The new iTunes Store is certainly very tidy and works very efficiently and I much prefer it over the previous version.

But I’m happiest about the much smoother performance. The load-up time has improved dramatically and actually browsing through the application is much more speedy.

What used to be a misery is now much easier to use and much less time consuming. I still don’t think iTunes is brilliant, but the new version has definitely made syncing my iPod much less of a chore.

Well done Apple, this is a big improvement.

If you’d like to download the new version, open up iTunes and click Check for Updates in the Help menu. Otherwise, you can head over to apple.com and download a copy from there for free.

SiS M672MX drivers for Windows XP [Download]

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If you have a laptop with the SiS M672MX, you’ll be sadened to know that there are no official drivers for Windows XP. However, you’ll be glad to know that I have got some drivers for Windows XP – I found them on my laptops driver disk but I’m pretty sure they work on any Windows XP computer, as long as you’re trying to run it with a SiS M672MX.

I’ve uploaded them to GEEK! so you can download them here on GEEK! exclusively.

Please note: GEEK! does NOT accept liability for any damage – both hardware or software – by use of these drivers. If they do not work, please uninstall them and return to what you were previously using.

If you’re ready to try them out, click the link below:

Download here – approx. 17MB

Once downloaded, simply extract the ZIP and run the setup.exe file in the VGA folder and follow the instructions on-screen.

If they work, leave a comment and let the readers of GEEK! know! 🙂

TomTom Sat Nav Software now available on the iTunes Store!

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If you have a iPhone 3G or 3GS you’ll probably be pleased to know that TomTom has launched it’s own app for satellite navigation!

As you can probably guess, the software uses the GPS navigator to run the software.

The software doesn’t come cheap but TomTom is a very well-known provider of sat-nav facilities so I suspect it will do well.

The software is currently available in 6 packages each relating to a different part of the world:

  • UK & Ireland (costs £59.99)
  • Australia (costs £44.99)
  • New Zealand (costs £54.99)
  • U.S. and Canada (costs £59.99)
  • Western Europe (costs £79.99)

An exciting idea that may prove a success to the company, but this certainly isn’t the first piece of sat-nav software available for the iPhone. There have also been a few complaints that the software has its problems – one of them being that the software apparently pauses when a call is received which would be a pain if you are driving. I guess only time will tell if the product sells.