Linksys, what happened to thee?

I've been around computers so long I remember back before they were networked together.  Then came the modem revolution, you would use your modem (remember USRobotics?) to dial your ISP to connect to the Internet.  Fortunately that era didn't last long - broadband (DSL and cable modems) brought that to an end.  When broadband was taking off, so did products from Linksys.  Hubs, switches, routers, wiressless access points, DSL and cable modems, etc.  Just about everyone had a Linksys device, and I highly recommended them for about a decade.  But lately I've had nothing but problems with Linksys, to the point that I can no longer recommend their products.

About 1 year ago I purchased a Linksys E3200 wireless router.  This was one of their top-of-the-line models.  Wireless N speeds, dual band 2.4 and 5GHz frequencies, gigabit wired ports, etc.  But this router has turned out to be a huge disappointment.  The problem stems from the fact the 5GHz band in basically useless.  When you turn the router on both the 2.4 and 5GHz bands are active.  But within several hours the 5GHz band will suddenly stop broadcasting.  If you login to the router it gives no indication of a problem.  The only way to restore the 5GHz band is to power off and on the router.  But within a few hours the 5GHz band will be down again.

Since I can't keep cycling the router like this, I spent the extra money to buy what amounts to a 2.4-only router.  Sadly this is a common problem.  Internet searches turn up lots of people with my exact problem.  And Linksys has not released a firmware update to fix this.

So I finally decided to kick this piece of junk to the curb and buy a new router.  I purchased a NetGear WNDR4300 wireless router.  Many of the same specs; wireless N, dual band 2.4 and 5GHz, and gigabit wired network.

I've been using the new router now for about a week and not had a single problem.  The 5GHz band is rock solid.  I also like some of the features of this router.  The new "guest network" features are much nicer.  With the Linksys you could create a guest network, but it was unlocked and required the user to visit a web page and enter a password.  Whereas this works, I don't like that anyone in my neighborhood could try and snoop my guests.  Also, the guest network was only on the 2.4 band.  With the NetGear it has both 2.4 and 5GHz guest networks, both of which are fully encrypted and secure.  Much nicer!

I don't know if Linksys' problems started with they were purchased by Cisco - but I no longer recommend their hardware.  I've heard great things about NetGear (which is why I went with them).  So give them a try if you're looking for a networking product.

My ultimate free software list - round 2

A little over a year ago I posted my ultimate free software list.  In the past year I've found many more great free programs that have made the list.  Below is the new software to make the list in the last year.  Be sure and read the original post for all the great software goodness found in there.

Multimedia

1. foobar2000 - A lot of people are familiar with foobar2000, it's not exactly an unknown piece of software.  What I like about foobar2000 is that's it's got a clean and simple UI.  Most media players have skinned UIs which I absolutely hate.  But foobar2000 doesn't.  And it plays most media formats you throw at it.
2. XnView - There are tons of image management and viewing software out there.  I like XnView because of it's powerful set of features and clean UI.  I also like that XnView maintains a database cache of image thumbnails which makes browsing a drive of tens of thousands of pictures fast and easy.

Security

1. AxCrypt - Whereas KeePass and TrueCrypt are my primary tools for encrypting info, AxCrypt definitely has it's place.  Where it shines is as a single file encryption and decryption tool.  AxCrypt also gets bonus points because you can run it as a "portable" application.
2. ClamWin - Although I don't run anti-virus software on my system (at least not real-time protection), from time to time it's nice to scan and give yourself piece of mind.  I like ClamWin because it's an open source project.  It's not the fastest scanner, but since I only run it every few weeks I don't mind.

Communications

1. qBitTorrent - I rarely download files via torrents, but when I do I only use qBitTorrent.  I know uTorrent is the main client everyone uses, but qBitTorrent is much better in my opinion.  And it's free of all the ads and bloatware found in uTorrent.  Give qBitTorrent a try.

File Utilities

1. DiffMerge - DiffMerge is a free file difference comparison tool from the makers of Vault.  It was created with source code in mind, but it works on all text files.  It does a great job and I can't decide which tool I like more, DiffMerge of the open source tool WinMerge.
2. FreeFileSync - FreeFileSync is a powerful tool for comparing two folders and showing file differences and/or similarities.  It will also automate the process of syncing the two folders.  I actually never use the file sync step, I only use it to report file differences.  But it's a great tool nonetheless.
3. Seafile - I previously blogged about what a great cloud sync service Seafile is.  Great for the security-conscience computer user.
4. TreeSizeFree - TreeSizeFree scans a given folder or drive and reports how much data is stored in each folder.  It's a great way to find which folder(s) on your computer are sucking up all your hard drive space.

System Information and Utilities

1. A43 - This oddly named program is a Windows file manager similar to the built-in Windows Explorer.  Whereas I like Explorer++ more (read on) this is a good option.
2. Explorer++ - Explorer++ is a replacement file manager for the built-in Windows Explorer.  In newer versions of Windows Microsoft has made changes to Windows Explorer which I don't like.  The changes were made to improve usability for touch screens, but I'm using a mouse so I don't want/need those changes.  I can't say enough good things about Explorer++.  Free, open source, simple, fast, powerful, and portable.  Heck, it even comes in x86 and x64 versions.  I wish more people knew about this program and spread the word.  Great software like this deserves a try.
3. inssider - This nifty little program shows you all wireless signals within range of your computer and displays info like channel, strength, security options, name (SSID), manufacturer, etc.  It even displays hidden wireless signals.  It can also graph wireless strength over time of all signals.  And to top it all off, it supports both 2.4GHz and 5GHz.  This is a great utility when configuring the wireless network in your house for maximum performance.
4. Process Hacker - Think of this as Windows Task Manager on steroids.  It has tons of extra info and details really only useful to power users and developers.  I personally like SysInternals Process Explorer more, but this is a great tool also.  And it's open source!
5. Q-Dir - This is another Windows Explorer replacement program, although not as good as Explorer++ (above).  By default Q-Dir is overwhelming with it's four-pane view.  But if you use the options to change it to a single view and enable the tree view on the left then it becomes a good Windows Explorer replacement.

Applications

1. AbiWord - AbiWord is a free open source word processor.  Like Microsoft Office Word, but it's free.  Another popular option is Libre Office Writer which is also free.  What I like about AbiWord is you can run it as a portable application, no need to install.  It also reads all popular formats out there.
2. Gnumeric - Gnumeric is a free open source spreadsheet.  Again, Microsoft Office Excel is the big one and Libre Office Calc is also free.  As with AbiWord, the benefit to Gnumeric is it can be run as a portable application.
3. GeeTeeDee - GeeTeeDee (or GTD) stands for Getting Things Done.  It's a todo list manager.  Add tasks to the list and remove them once complete.  You might think "what's the purpose, I'll just remember to do it."  Well studies have shown most people who are successful are that way because they are organized and keep lists of things to do.  Keeping a todo list is the first step to doing them.  I tried a lot of todo list programs and GTD was the best of the bunch.

Editors

1. Foxe - Foxe is a simple Xml text editor.  What I like about it is the ability to "pretty" or format Xml files.  Very useful for making Xml files easier to read.  Foxe can also be run as a portable application which is always nice!

Development

1. Vault - Vault is a great free version control software.  Version control software is primarily used by software developers, but has uses for many people.  I realize a lot of people use cloud service nowadays for this, which is great if you want the NSA reading your data or hackers breaking in.  But if you want to keep your data local and private, might I recommend Vault.  It's free for a limited number of users.

Databases

1. SQLiteBrowser - SQLite is the worlds most used database format.  Never heard of it?  Not surprising.  But a lot of software on your computer (Firefox, Chrome, Adobe, etc.) use SQLite database files.  SQLiteBrowser is an open source program that allows you to open and view SQLite databases.
2. SQLiteSpy - SQLiteSpy is another program to browse SQLite databases.  I prefer SQLiteBrowser, but SQLiteBrowser has issues on some databases, so it's nice to have a second utility around.