If Internet Explorer is your default Web browser, this could be a great chance to try Firefox instead. Click which applications you want, and Ninite creates a customized package that downloads and installs each of the desired programs. The site has handpicked a few dozen of the best free programs – browsers, instant-messaging apps, and security software (including Avast and Malwarebytes). frees up your day with its set-it-and-forget-it queue. But the clean slate will demand an afternoon – or perhaps an entire weekend – of waiting for programs to install. Your (let’s hope) more powerful computer opens up new doors for entertaining software. Getting to the fun part faster: Brand-new PCs can be equal parts exciting and bothersome. Together, the two programs are quite a team. Another cyber-superhero, Malwarebytes, helps sniff out spyware and malicious code. This year, Avast surpassed most antivirus guards as one of the Web’s best. For-pay software often feels safer, but there are several perfectly adequate free options. Now you really have a clean start.įree protection: To make sure no other gremlins slip aboard, consider downloading security software right away. has a free download – $5 donation is suggested – that automatically rounds up many of these unwanted programs and deletes them. Winnowing out these stowaways should be your first move. However, the junk can also bog down your computer. This clutter, often called bloatware or crapware, pays its way onto your PC in the hope that you’ll buy full versions later.
(Disclaimer: While most of the Monitor’s software suggestions cover both PCs and Macs, Apple fans will need to sit this article out.)Ĭlean sweep: A lot of new computers come loaded up with software that you’ll likely never use.
What better time to get your computer on a healthy diet of lean but powerful software and to throw out the bloated junk food that comes preinstalled on many machines? Here are some free programs that’ll help your new PC chug along for many winters to come. Whether Santa sneaked a PC under the tree or you’ve decided to install Windows 7 onto an older machine, millions of Americans this month will be booting up a fresh start.
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