PC Hell: Internet Software Center

In order to use the Internet efficiently, you must have the right software. Listed below you'll find my favorite (or in some cases just popular) shareware or freeware programs.

Before downloading any software from the Internet, it probably a good idea to download WinZip, a great pkzip/unzip utility to compress and uncompress files.

Shareware
Most of the downloadable Internet utilities provided here are called shareware. A shareware program is available free on a trial basis. If you keep it, you pay the author for it. Be sure to read any licensing agreement when you download a program.

Freeware
Freeware, like shareware, is free for download on the Internet. But unlike shareware, there's no fee for the program. There may be some restrictions regarding its use. Always read the license agreement.

E-mail Programs
Electronic mail is one of the fastest ways to send messages and allows you near instant communication. Most Web browsers include e-mail, but some only allow you to send, not receive messages. For this reason, its a good idea to have a separate email program as well.

Eudora Probably one of the most popular email programs around. Its not my favorite, but it works.

News readers
Newsgroups are the bulletin boards of the Internet. They span nearly every topic imaginable. There are currently over 20,000 UseNet Newsgroups. News readers are Internet utilities that make sorting through and viewing the thousands of newsgroups on the Internet easy and fast.

WinVN A combination newreader, telnet program with many features, although a bit awkward

Web Browsers
A web browser is a utility used to "surf" the World Wide Web, the graphical section of the Internet. Web pages make up a large part of the Internet and a web browser enables you to view these sites.

Netscape Navigator Probably the most popular browser around, although personally I hate the whole "frames" issue this browser supports.

Microsoft Internet Explorer Microsoft's entry into the browser market, with lots of bells and whistles and its FREE

Firefox the latest entry in the browser field, but fast becoming a fan favorite.

FTP Programs
FTP programs transfer files to and from your computer. When you use your browser to download a file, it usually uses its own FTP program automatically to give you the file. But a separate FTP program can sometimes make downloading faster and easier.

Graphic Viewers
An graphic viewer allows you to see images created in several different graphical formats.

Gopher, Archie, Finger, IRC, and Telnet
Once the mainstay of the Internet, Gopher utilities allow you to explore the Internet in a text-based format. They search for information throughout the entire Internet, not only the WWW. Archie utilities search FTP (File Transfer Protocol) sites (or software sites) for matching information. Finger utilities allow the user to learn more about an online acquaintence by viewing their online information possibly including their real name. Want to communicate in real time with others over the Internet. IRC (Internet Relay Chat) programs allow you to exchange live messages with others around the world. Telnet is a text-based program which allows you to connect to another computer on the Internet and use it by remote control. Anything you type on your keyboard is transferred to the other computer.These utilities were around long before the easier to use Web Browsers of today.

Audio
If you have a sound card and speakers installed in your computer, you can hear sound on the Internet--from music clips to live talk shows.

Video/Multimedia
The Internet is much more than still pictures and words. You can watch movie trailers, commercials, sports events or animation over the Internet.

PUSH Technology
Programs that push information to your desktop without you having to travel all over the Internet to find it.

VRML (Virtual Reality Modeling Language)
VMRL is all about three-dimensional, computer-generated environments on the Internet. VRML allows you to interact and move within these worlds. VRML is still in its developmental stages.

Compression Utility
A compression utility compresses one or more files into a single, smaller file. It also decompresses (or extracts) compressed files back to their original form.

Virus Scanner
A virus is a program written to attack your computer. Some are annoying, but fairly harmless. Others can be devastating to your computer. A virus scanner detects and deletes viruses from your computer.

Parental Control (Cyber Blockers)
The worries about the dangers of the Internet can be lessened by using a parental control program that limits access to Internet sites based on criteria by the parent. This criteria covers sex, violence, and other inappropriate material on the Internet.

BESS The Internet Retriever BESS is a WWW page which allows access to the Internet using sophisticated filtering techniques. Web pages, sites, mail, etc. containing objectionable language or images are filtered out. Although a subscription service, it is definitely worth your consideration.

Cyber Patrol v3.0 for Windows (550K) or Cyber Patrol v2.10 for Macintosh(700K) Cyber Patrol gives you the tools you need to help shield your children from the darker side of the Internet. Cyber Patrol features: comprehensive time and budget management functions, multi-user capability and ChatGard¨- which prevents children from divulging personal information online ! Cyber Patrol is the #1 Internet filtering software worldwide.

CyberSitter Solid Oak Software offers several versions of CyberSitter. You may run it on a network or on a personal computer. They are also working on a program to help rate the internet.

Cyber Snoop Cyber Snoop shows you which Internet sites have been visited by your children by monitoring their on-line activity. If monitoring components are disabled without a password, the computer will shut down and reinstate the missing monitoring modules. If suspect sites are found, you can use the software to generate a link to the questionable site and visit the web site through your web browser. Full Internet Blocking is optional.

InfoScan InfoScan is a filtering tool for evaluating information available on networks. The main goal is to optimize the use of information sources already known by the user: electronic mail, News, local or remote databases, and so on. The full text of the articles is scanned and evaluated according to the keywords chosen by the user. The articles are displayed in a graphical and intuitive way so that the most interesting ones can be spotted immediately.

The Internet Filter The Internet Filter is a program that monitors, filters, analyzes, and logs internet access. This site has a free, limited feature version, and allows you to purchase the full version. They also encourage comparisons of various products, so they are pretty certain they have a winner.

Net Nanny This software allows the parent to control all access to the computer, not only Internet resources, but offline computer usage as well. Check this one out!

Net Shepherd Net Shepherd is a new technology for rating and filtering access to the World Wide Web. There is a lot of unique features in this package.

Net Rated Net Rated by PCDataPower blocks X-Rated Internet Sites and limits playtime and installation of unwanted programs. Net Rated is available for Windows 3.1 and Windows 95, and supports all major online services such as America Online, CompuServe, and Prodigy as well as WWW Browsers, such as Netscape, Mosiac, and NetCruiser.

SPECS Specs is a software solution that directs kids to the positive content and allows you to filter out material you do not want your kids to see. Specs claims to be the only safe, comprehensive and free Internet viewing management solution for families and schools that does not censor sites.

Surf Watch Download a demo of the Surfwatch software, an internet filtering program. This program was designed to protect your kids and keep the internet free and safe.

If you have any comments, suggestions,
or software you'd like to see on this page,
please send email to pchell@gmail.com

PC HELL

Internet Software Center