Free alternatives to Windows' built-in utilities
I wouldn't give you a nickel for all the system tools that come with Windows. That's because I can replace them with programs that do the job better without spending even that much.
Start with the firewall, which most people would consider an indispensable piece of software. Windows Defender's firewall is better than none at all, but not by much. Of the free alternatives, my favorite is the Comodo Firewall Pro. I described why and how I switched from ZoneAlarm to Comodo in a post from last February.
Since that time, I replaced the Comodo firewall and all my other free security apps with a commercial security suite. For me, the convenience of a single security program is worth paying for.
However, I recognize that many people will gladly put up with maintaining several individual apps if they can save a few dollars. For them, Comodo's a good firewall choice. Popular antivirus programs that are free for home use are AVG, Avira AntiVir, Malwarebytes Anti-Malware, ESET NOD32, and Avast.
Top-rated spyware blockers include Ad-Aware, Spybot Search and Destroy, and Spyware Blaster.
Plenty of better browsers
Internet Explorer 7 has been a big improvement over IE 6, and early reports are that
IE 8 will be a big step up from the current release. But Internet Explorer isn't even my fifth favorite browser, trailing (in no particular order) Firefox, Opera, SeaMonkey, Chrome, and Safari.
I acknowledge that some people have to use Internet Explorer--maybe their organization requires it--but the rest of us have no excuse for limiting ourselves to a single browser. The NoScript add-on (donationware) that lets you block scripts in Firefox is reason enough to use that browser. IE has nothing to compare with it.
One-step cleanup tool is the multitasking champ
I'm surprised that so many PC users don't know about Piriform's CCleaner (donationware), which does the job of about a half-dozen Windows applets. Along with a disk cleaner, you get a program uninstaller, a start-up manager, and a Registry checker.
CCleaner clears the clutter from your drive and performs other system tasks with aplomb.
(Credit: Piriform)You have to exercise a little restraint the first few times you run CCleaner, which empties your Recycle Bin, clears your Internet history, and performs other irreversible system chores. Still, I've been using CCleaner for several years and haven't had any problems with the program yet.
A new alternative for shoring up your drive's sectors
In a post from last March, I described the free Disk Defrag utility from Auslogics. My new favorite free disk defragger is another Piriform product, Defraggler (donationware). The program recovered 20GB of lost space on my laptop's 200GB hard drive, though in my unscientific tests it seemed to take longer to complete the defragmentation than it does when using Disk Defrag. This might indicate that Defraggler's doing a more thorough job, but maybe not.
The Defraggler disk defragger provides more info than Windows' built-in defragger.
(Credit: Piriform)You can also defrag from a command prompt. To open a command prompt in Vista, press the Windows key, type cmd, and press enter. In XP, click Start > Run, type cmd, and press Enter. The Vista Forums provide a detailed explanation of the many options you have when you defrag the DOS way.
Some people claim defragging does nothing to speed up your system. Even though my notebook wasn't necessarily low on disk space, I'll take that recovered 20GB any day.
Freebies for inveterate system tweakers only
Sysinternals, which is now part of Microsoft, offers a solid lineup of utilities for digging deep into Windows' darkest corners. Two of my favorites are Process Explorer and its cousin, Process Monitor. Once you get a handle on the information they present, the programs give you as complete a glimpse inside Windows--in real time--as you'll find anywhere.
Dennis O'Reilly has covered PCs and other technologies in print and online since 1985. Along with more than a decade as editor for Ziff-Davis's Computer Select, Dennis edited PC World's award-winning Here's How section for more than seven years. He is a member of the CNET blog Network, and is not an employee of CNET. 
Iobit also make Advanced Systemcare which is a good replacement tool for most, if not all, other system cleaning applications, it also includes a fairly large number of extras which can be seen through their site.
Of course, the best way not to have to defrag your system is to go to an OS which doesn't need it, but that's for another time.
Both these programs are free for both private and corporate use. Some people are already familiar with the Comodo Firewall, but their Internet Security suite will become just as well known and be just as effective. Check out all their free products at http://www.comodo.com.
1) Firewall. Okay, he says Comodo is better than ZoneAlarm and links to why, but says he switched from Comodo to make his life easier. That's about all he had to say on firewalls. Maybe it's covered in that other story about ZoneAlarm and Comodo, but why would the average user want/need to switch from the default Windows firewall? A little explanation would seem to be in order for the average reader.
2) Browsers. Pretty much covered to death at this point. Not to mention a week doesn't go by that Cnet does a pro-anything-not-IE article. Fair enough. Again, how about just a few sentences on why you need a free alternative. That's the point of the article, right?
3) Clean up. Yep. Good tip.
4) Defrag. I'd have to do some searches but I'm pretty sure Cnet did an article last year comparing Vista's defrag and a few others including Diskepper. The article basically said there's no reason to use anything else. The performance was just about the same across the board. Other than you can do scheduling with the 3rd party apps there was't much advantage. I remember the article doing some semi-scientific analysis too. Recovered space? I guess you mean to say your record table was in such bad shape that small blocks were being truncated and space going unused. That's why MS made Vista's defrag always run in the background.
5) Tweaks. Not horrid.
Also, a lot of people who religiously use firewall programs don't know that their ADSL router already has one built-in, and some people don't even know what a firewall is meant to do.
"...Windows Defender's firewall is better than none at all...."
Windows defender is a anti-spyware application, not a firewall!
Anyway, thanks for the advice!
Valerie
Opinions are there to be argued with and in my opinion JKDefrag is the best free defragger BUT facts are facts and articles such as this should always be accurate.
For more information, and to download current SeaMonkey versions suitable for use with your Operating System Visit: http://www.seamonkey-project.org/releases/
- by psharkauburn September 20, 2009 8:42 PM PDT
- Well, free alternatives are always a good thing - thumbs up to the author for mentioning some free applications worth trying. On a negative note, it's really tought to take articles like this seriously. Being a tech professional, when someone starts getting facts wrong I stop listening to further advice.
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(17 Comments)1. Windows defender has nothing to do with firewalls - it's purely malware/spyware defense, and does a decent job, nothing crazy or exceptional but free if you have the OS
2. Windows firewall is fine, and advanced firewall in Vista/Win 7 is absolutely amazing - assuming you already have the OS it's free.
3. Defrag will never free up 20gigs of space, never ever. I have no clue why defrag is being associated with freeing up hard drive space and not disk I/O speed increases.
4. NoScript is definitely wonderful if you use firefox. But IE has had these features for ages...internet zones. NoScript is a javascript whitelist tool...as are security zones in IE. Make a restricted zone the default, and whitelist your favorite sites to your hearts content by putting them in a higher zone. Saying there is no alternative in IE is just lying.