Partitioning your hard drive lets you make optimum use of its space by storing different types of data in separate sections, but the partition manager in Windows (called Disk Management) is basic and confusing. Macrorit Partition Expert is a more sophisticated alternative, which packs lots of useful features into an easy-to-understand interface. The free version offers everything you need to … Read more
WizTree has long been my favourite program for discovering which files and folders are taking up the most room on your hard drive, so you can delete them to free up storage. It’s impressively fast, free for personal use and makes it easy to identify space hogs using its colour-coded ‘tree map’. Infor DRIVE SPACE ANALYSER https://diskanalyzer.com What … Read more
l’ve always hated how file-recovery programs claim to find lost photos, but then charge you to locate them. Is there software that actually does it all for free – with no sneaky hidden charges? Simon Lindsay There are several free photo-recovery tools, but our favourite is PhotoRec. It’s open-source, so is completely free with no hidden catches. It … Read more
Is it safe to use Microsoft’s new PC Manager tool? It aims to speed up your computer, but might actually make it slower. Read our Is it safe to use Microsofts new PC Manager tool. Microsoft’s PC Manager has finally launched. We first wrote about it in Issue 645, back in late 2022, after it arrived … Read more
We asked Nik Rawlinson to move out of his comfort zone and give this stripped-down version of Windows 11 a try. Read our Tiny11 Review. Tiny11 is a stripped-down version of Windows 11. Where the full-fat OS requires 4GB of RAM and 64GB of drive space, Tiny11 can manage with 2GB and 8GB respectively. It looks like the perfect … Read more
Hoping to recapture some of my lost youth, I decided to see if I remembered how to programme the ZX Spectrum (my first computer). Which is the best Spectrum emulator for Windows 11? Michael Cornell Try Spectaculator (www.spectaculator.com), available for Windows, iOS and Android. The Windows version has a free 30-day trial, after which it costs £ for the current edition, or £ to add lifetime … Read more
After resetting my laptop to its factory settings. I’ve lost a lot of programs that are no longer compatible with Windows 11. One was Microsoft’s SyncToy, which I used to back up my files to an external hard drive. Is there a good free alternative? Andrew Ball Backing up your files is an essential, ongoing task, so … Read more
BurnAware is one of the few remaining programs for creating your own CDs and DVDs, and recently released version 17.2. The disc-burning software offers free and paid-for editions, so you can download the one that best suits your needs. Read our Should I pay for BurnAware Premium. Free trial: Seven days What you need: Windows 7, 8,10 or … Read more
Presenter view in Microsoft PowerPoint makes it easy to deliver all kinds of material – from photo slideshows to background information like an itinerary or statistics. But what if you’re not in the room when your presentation is being delivered? Or you’re delivering it over the internet? In these situations you can use PowerPoint’s Cameo tool to insert yourself into the presentation via … Read more
I can’t recall why, but I stopped using Privacy Eraser (https://www.cybertronsoft.com/products/privacy-eraser/) a few years ago. I decided to download it again after reading about the new version. I remembered instantly how easy it was to use. Every setting seems to be in just the right place. What I also like is that the settings it … Read more
My 20-year-old music library is in a mess. In the past I’ve used both MediaMonkey (www.mediamonkey.com) and MusicBee (www.getmusicbee.com) to manage it, but after the arrival of Windows 11 just about everything is duplicated. What can I use to sort this out? Read our How can I remove duplicate music files ? Hugh Manuel You need a program … Read more
When you want to remove an app or program from your PC, you probably reach for Windows’ built-in ‘Add or remove programs’ option. It’s okay for removing the odd program here and there, but all too often you’ll be presented with a message telling you that some components couldn’t be removed, or that the uninstall … Read more