I just dislike this type of software sneaky enough to make my PC sick and myself angry at it because it does not perform very well anymore. I guess we have all been there for various reasons. And to avoid lots of frustration I wrote this humble topic about it.
There was a day where surfing the Internet for software was a great time. You searched for a software you were in need, go to the website and click the download button and here you go... having the software downloaded. You were also able to install it without any trouble and your PC just installed what you asked for nothing else.
These days are long time gone now and it is so hard to find a freeware site where to perform such action. Even you find one it still worth for the sake of your PC to take some precaution. So I did with time build a list of site where I can trust the download without too much fuss.
Here is a list of what I do based on my experience and some of the reason why.
(A) Anti-virus, Anti-malware installed and updated as frequently as possible. I will not recommend anything. There are lots to choose from and you should choose the one you are comfortable with. Not the one you do not understand the options or not sure how to operate it. Just learn what you choose and build confidence.
(B) Install WOT as an add on into your browser.
WOT is a fantastic add on for your browser (e.g. Mozilla Firefox).
What does it do? It is a free community service. Basically the community reports bad and trusted website increasing or decreasing the reputation of this website. When your browser attempts to go to a bad reputation website by WOT it warns you and eventually you can stop going to this site before too late. Some Java script these days can inject all sort of baddies while you wait the page to load. Sneaky enough eventually the result will appears at next boot of the PC or instantly. WOT is the first line of defence. ADBlock plus is also a good Add on to have. It blocks advertising material.
(C) Set your browser in a way any download cannot be done automatically more like a SAVE AS. NEVER execute a software once downloaded. Always control with your anti-virus and anti-malware you trust first.
(D) Common sense. Click here and there blindly on the Internet or a link in your email even attachment will bring you a day to a situation where your PC will be infected. Quit the bad habit to click too fast. Think twice. It is especially true when it come to download software. These days most of the site to make some revenue will place strategically a huge button called: Download. It is most of the time an advertising material and some worst. Look for the real link to the download. Check the size of the download: not the size promised by the site... something is not right... abort and investigate. Do not accept any software downloader and Installer you do not recognise, actually do not use them at all.
Most of them will try to install crap you do not need on top of what you really asked for. Sometimes it even install crap only, sigh. Avoid this type of site where it is the only way to download the software and report it to WOT. Check the extension... A picture called Picture.jpg.exe is NOT a picture it is an executable. Learn what extension are executable. Some common one: .exe, .com, .vbs. The list is huge. Here is a link that list them all: http://www.file-extensions.org/filetype ... able-files
Other common sense: make your home work before you want to download something. Check the reputation of the software, read article. Check for software alternative. Pretends it is a malware and search for HOW TO REMOVE 'what you want to download' and you might be surprised. Once download check the download with your favourite anti-virus and anti-malware. Why also not propose it to Virus Total for scanning (https://www.virustotal.com/)? Create a restore point if you trust system restore, at the very least a backup of your registry base. Common sense is your best tool. I forget this one: check the system requirement of the software... does your PC answer it? Also... if you are offered anything that is too good to be true, it is probably a scam. Once again, search for this offer as a scam and if it is report it to WOT. Be aware, grow your knowledge, just to not be caught as simple as that.
(E) Toolwiz TimeFreeze. So here you are you have done the lot and you are finally ready to install the software. Launch TimeFreeze. It is a sandbox and act a little bit like system restore but it's much better as INSTANT. It place your PC in a virtual mode. Read the EULA, scroll down down down... do you read something like: 'This software will install this crap because support by add'? Test the software and check for bad change. OOPS you have a fake alert message? Drop all the change and reboot. Nothing wrong? Like the software, stop timefreeze and accept the change. As easy as that. Use this tool in combo with Unchecky. It is a little software that will uncheck all these options crap. We all can be tired or lack of focus for any reasons. Read more about Timefreeze here: http://www.toolwiz.com/products/toolwiz-time-freeze/ and about Unchecky here: https://unchecky.com/.
(F) Revo uninstaller. This is a tool you can use also during installation. It monitors change (paid version) to your system but not only. I separated from (E) point as it also serve as an uninstaller. Way better then the one provided by the OS. When it come to uninstall a software, even the stubborn one... Revo Uninstaller will perform nicely and smoothly. It can do lots of other things too. Learn this tool and you will not be disappointed: http://www.revouninstaller.com/revo_uni ... nload.html or at the TPFC: http://www.portablefreeware.com/index.p ... staller&m=. I found the freeware version excellent, and if you use timefreeze they are no reason to buy the Pro version of this software. You can still thought as appreciation for the work,
(G) CCleaner. No matter what you did while browsing during your internet session you will probably have accumulate crap in the cache of your browser. One habit of mine is to clean the cache as often as I can. After any long session on the net is one of my habit. This little tool permits to delete all accumulate crap on your PC and is an absolute must to have too. Also when you check the registry base with one of its tools and after uninstalling software they might still have some left over orphan or bad key in the registry base... this software eliminates them safely. The software is updated regularly too. You can download it here on this site http://www.portablefreeware.com/index.php?q=ccleaner&m=
(H) Hiren Boot CD, Ultimate Boot CD. Even, you took all the precautions against all baddies, it will come a day when you need to troubleshoot your not booting so well or not booting at all PC. Having said that you might find handy a distros CD like Hiren Boot CD and Ultimate Boot CD. These are two booting CD. They contains so many tools I cannot describe them all. But when it come to save a PC in bad shape due to software malfunction they are more then handy and are worth mentioning. The trick here is to learn the tools offered before you need them. Some are not as easy as you might think. But from restoring the registry, blow up a password on an account, uninstall a program, fight viruses and malware and so much more, these two distros CD will perform well when you need them. Here is where to learn more about it and download them. Hiren Boot CD is here http://www.hiren.info/pages/bootcd and Utlimate Boot CD there: http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/
All the software I talked about are freeware. This is a solution I found to avoid most of the crap you can stumble upon while operating your PC. It is not bullet proof unfortunately but close enough. Just remember: your common sense and intuition will save you from lots of bad time. Common sense is build with knowledge and experience. Therefore please feel free to add your solution, critics and comment. I hope this topics helps the community. And at last, the portable freeware collection is a place to trust for software.
