Posted 11/03/08 at 01:00:00 PM by David Murphy
The best kinds of system applications are the ones that make your life easier without you having to lift a finger. While the freeware applications we're profiling in this weekly roundup still require you to input a few settings, they're great tools to help automate some of the critical parts of your daily computer life. From hotkey creation utilities to applications that help you conserve power by turning off your PC at specified intervals, these freeware tools are must-have additions to your computing repertoire!
What it does: Remember gMote? It's an application that lets you create mouse gestures for any function you want on your PC. HotKeyz is similar, but instead of twitching your mouse around to launch your favorite application, you just jam on a specific combination of keyboard buttons. You can set your little combination to launch programs, folders, or run commands in a normal, minimized, or maximized state! Start your screensaver, shut down your computer--with HotKeyz, your fingers can command nearly any task!
Download it here!
It's ok. Not all of us can sport the fastest PCs, the largest chunks of memory, or the fastest hard drives. And sometimes, when you go to start your machine, it can just be agonizingly slow as a result of your underpowered rig. That's where Startup Delayer comes into the picture. Rather than letting Windows attempt to start up all of its applications and processes immediately after your machine logs in, Startup Delayer lets you set specific time intervals before each program can start. Instead of launching 10 applications at once, you can now space them out and--who knows--use your PC. It sure beats sitting there and watching your hard drive activity light blink!
Download it here!
So what do you often use your maximum pc (and maximum broadband connection) for? Downloads. And when's the best time to fill your Internet's pipe, as to not hack off your roommates who also depend on your connection? Nighttime. But suppose you hate the idea of leaving your souped-up, energy-sucking rig on needlessly. We do too. That's why we use AMP WinOFF to manage our computer's uptime. You can set the program to perform any number of shutdown actions for your PC, including a normal shut off, a restart, a log off, et cetera. These can run by timer or CPU usage--if your processer drops below a certain rate of use for a set period of time, the application can flip off your PC! Watch your electric bill go through the floor thanks to one simple little utility!
Download it here!
Hey, did you know that there's an election coming up? An important election? If you did, and you're one of those hardcore folk who cling to the latest polling numbers and statistics, then this is your screensaver. The screensaver pulls updated polling numbers from the 'net and displays them, state-by-state, in a beautiful DirectX-based screensaver. Show your pride in your statistical knowledge and prevent monitor burn-in all at once!
Download it here!
© 2009 Future US, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Links:
[1] http://www.maximumpc.com/user/themurph
[2] http://www.skynergy.com
[3] http://dl.maximumpc.com/galleries/systemutil/1.jpg
[4] http://www.handform.net/gmote.php
[5] http://www.r2.com.au
[6] http://dl.maximumpc.com/galleries/systemutil/2.jpg
[7] http://www.ampsoft.net/
[8] http://dl.maximumpc.com/galleries/systemutil/3.jpg
[9] http://www.cannonade.net/ElectoralCollege.html
[10] http://dl.maximumpc.com/galleries/systemutil/4.jpg
[11] http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/nine_new_tweaks_songbirdthe_itunes_alternative
[12] http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/tweak_your_pc_with_four_top_open_source_tools
[13] http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/a_newbies_guide_opensource_hardware
Comments
Print
Email
