An excellent multifunction utility is TuneUp Utilities 2004 (www.tune-up.com) published by TuneUp Software International, of Darmstadt, Germany. This is a feature-rich and comprehensive suite of utilities that can perform a variety of beneficial tasks. Upon opening the program the user is greeted with an attractive menu that lists and explains the available tasks that it can do. On the left side of the menu are the categories of tasks available, including Customize & Analyze, Clean up & Repair, Optimize & Improve, Administer & Control, and File recovery & Destruction. On the top right corner are three links for Rescue Center, Update Wizard, and an icon for help and other functions.

When Customize & Analyze is selected, a variety of choices is available, including system control, a startup manager, system information, and WinStyler.

System Control lets the user change Windows to suit personal preferences by changing the look and feel of Windows. The startup manager shows the programs that are loaded when the computer is booted, along with a brief description of those programs, and an intuitive checkbox that allows the user to exercise control over what loads. This is much easier to use than the integral msconfig utility included in some versions of Windows. If utilized along with the PacMan startup information at www.sysinfo.org, the computer will boot faster, run better, and have fewer software conflicts, making the startup manager a very useful utility. The system information icon shows in great detail the hardware, software, drivers, settings, and other technical information about the computer. This information is useful in identifying drivers for updating, repairing the computer, getting tech support, and other functions. WinStyler allows the user to manage and change the icons used, as well as to repair icons and the cache of icons used by Windows.

Clean up & Repair has two valuable utilities, a disk cleaner and a registry cleaner. The disk cleaner can identify junk and other useless files on the hard drive, giving the user the opportunity to delete them, and free up space on the hard drive. The registry cleaner can identify obsolete and invalid entries in the registry, and repair or delete them. By periodically cleaning up the registry the computer will boot and run faster with fewer software errors. This is a much more effective utility than the scanreg included in some versions of Windows.

Optimize & Improve includes three utilities, a memory optimizer, a registry defragger, and a system optimizer. The memory optimizer frees up memory which is intended to improve system performance by deleting obsolete data from memory. Registry defragging corrects physical errors and compresses the registry by reordering the data and removing empty spaces. A defragged registry takes less memory, and improves the boot and shutdown time of the computer. The system optimizer modifies internal settings in Windows to improve system performance. Some settings, if properly set, can significantly improve performance when surfing the web. Other settings speed up the video and other functions in the computer. When properly configured, which may be an automated process, not just is performance improved, but the system becomes more stable with fewer lockups and other problems.

Administer & Control allows the user to monitor and control what is actually running on the computer, including programs and libraries that may not be apparent to the casual user. Sometimes some programs do not always totally close when exited, leaving some parts running, depleting system resources. Another function in this section is a registry editor, which allows the user to manually edit the registry. The user can do this with almost no risk, as the software automatically makes a backup prior to any changes that can easily be restored, if desired. We all have installed and then uninstalled software, and sometime have difficulties with the uninstall process. The uninstall manager is better at deleting unwanted programs than Windows Add/Remove Programs function.

Many of us periodically create files that may be considered sensitive or proprietary, and would not want others to be able to recover those files at a later date. The File recovery & Destruction section includes a digital shredder which ensures that sensitive files which are deleted can not be recovered, improving computer security. Many of us also have deleted files that we later wanted back; this software has an undelete function that recovers recoverable file which have been deleted, even after emptying the recycle bin or trashcan.

The rescue center icon, which appears on all menu items, allows almost any action taken to be undone if we change our mind. All of us have made changes and regretted it later, and this function can be a lifesaver in those circumstances.

Since this software is updated periodically, the update wizard automates that function allowing for the latest revisions to the software to be downloaded and installed.

A free trial version of the software can be downloaded at www.tune-up.com, and a registration key can be purchased online for $40. I found this to be a very useful program, and recommend it highly.

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With Southeast Texas being at the intersection of Hurricane Alley and Ground Zero, disaster planning has become a more serious activity for all of us. The Lamar University Department of Nursing, and Entergy have recently released a CD, Disaster Preparedness Planning for the Special Needs Population. This free CD contains interactive video and audio on a variety of important topics including local emergency management information, evacuation routes, a disaster preparedness supply checklist, transportation and shelter issues, medical equipment concerns, patient transfer concerns, dealing with pets, and special needs database software. Much of the information is also available on a companion website at www.disaster-research.us, and inquiries and requests for the free CD can be emailed to smithrwmd@sbcglobal.net.

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