2 comments about Flip Album.

1. This product allows you to quickly create a photo album of digital images and photos.

   An interesting feature is that the viewing of the album is done with an animated page flipping (with sound effects) of going from photo to photo.

   There are two disappointments however.

   First, there is no ability to manually sort or drag and drop your photos in the sequence you desire. To create the sequence, the program allows you to sort your photos alphabetically. However, this requires a tedious renaming of each of your photo files to make it work.

   Secondly, it is nice to put an overall background music selection to the entire album viewing (e.g. Pachelbel's Kanon for a wedding album). However you can not time the album viewing to tie to the ending of the music resulting in a very amaturish music cut off.

   You must also buy Flip Album's CD Maker if you wish to create self executable CD's so that you can distribute your album to friends and family. (Note: You can distribute using the WEB but you will have to leave off the sound to keep the file size managable)....




2. The company produces a "pro" version, they sell it for more than it's worth, and then they compete with you by plastering their name and links to their website all over the finished Flip Album. So, you produce and try to sell, or even give away a burned copy of your hard work, and they make you look foolish.
   Their business ethics are questionable.

5 comments about Norton Cleansweep 2000 4.7.

1. Norton System Works 2000 has this along with Ghost 2000, Antivirus 2000, Utilities 2000 and the latest CrashGuard for just a few dollars more. Get it all. It's one of the best software packages out there.



2. In terms of value-for-money, this product rates fairly low. Truth is, you can get this program--and lots, lots more--by purchasing the larger Norton Utilities. And there's just not a reason to have it alone.

   If you buy it alone you're essentially saying that you have other software outside the Norton family which you can use for your other utility needs, and that you hope to be able to use this one Norton component in concert with it.

   This is a potentially disappointing stance to take. Norton products are notoriously ill-suited for use with other utilities. They have a way of being jealous of system resources, making your comnputer sometimes lock up or crash if you're trying to run with other utility software simultaneously.

   More to the point, I personally think that if you're really going to buy a standalone cleanup program, Cybermedia's Uninstaller is in some ways better. While it takes care of much of what Uninstaller does, Cleansweep isn't quite as vigorous or thorough. Uninstaller cleans up not only the detritus of internet use, it's a complete get-rid-of-anything program. It's great for COMPLETELY uninstalling a program right the first time, whereas Cleansweep tends to be more useful for cleaning up incomplete uninstalls.

   Cleansweep makes up for a certain lack of functionality compared to Uninstaller by being a MUCH faster load. In order to be effective, Uninstaller has to scan your entire hard disk, file-by-file. OBviously, if you have a big hard disk with a lot of files, this can take a LOT of time; it takes me 30 minutes to load uninstaller. However, a year ago it only took about 5 minutes. So if you don't have a lot of files on your computer, Uninstaller is probably the clear winner. For everyone else, though, you've really got to consider how much faster Cleansweep loads. It makes Uninstaller's extra features less enticing--nevermind the fact that Cybermedia's other utilities are far inferior to their Norton equivalents.

   Overall, then, Cleansweep is a solid program, but there's no reason to buy it alone. It rates a 1-star in this stand-alone format, taking value-for-money as the most important factor.




3. Great uninstaller programme, It found a lot of junk files, Invalid registries and with the cool traffic light like result and a backup option. I did not know my system had so many wasted files.



4. Norton Cleansweep is perfect for just about any computer user who wants to do some spring cleaning on their hard drive. I would reccomend this above any other drive cleaning utility because of its effectiveness, thouroghness, safety, and most of all easy to use because all of its programs are centralized into one program.



5. Be Warned They CHARGE for Call in support now!!

   In my opinion; Norton used to make some great products. I used to recommend their Norton Utilities and Anti Virus programs to friends and install them on computers I assembled for them. Sadly, this has changed. They now have an online forum where you are forced to ask your questions. They may even get around to answering your question, but it takes days to get correct answers (if ever). The quality of their software has plummeted also. Several other companies make similar products that are FAR superior. Not only do I not give them a positive review, I strongly recommend you do NOT use them.

2 comments about Family Tree Maker Deluxe 5.0 (4 CD Set).

1. I really enjoy this program and have found it excellent for saving all of my family data. But it's method of saving is a bit obscure. It has what is a backup system to floppies which can not be read from, but must be reloaded to a hard drive instead to be read. I find this tedious, and would much rather the program save to floppies like most programs and then be able to read the information directly from those floppies. I have also found that I have had little luck finding ancestors on any of the additional CDs, so would not recommend purchasing anything beyond the 4CD set. Although you might get lucky, one never knows. It really depends on where your family came from and where they settled in the United States. Otherwise it is a very user friendly program and a great way to store family information and photographs and I would recommend it to anyone trying to organize their genealogy.



2. This is a great product and I would highly recommend it for a beginner. I have no problem saving data. It saves automatically. It allows you to fill in the blanks to add info and also gives you tons of room to add notes. It also gives you a variety of methods for report viewing and printing. Info can also be used in "copy/paste format". I studied and priced alot of this kind of software, and decided to invest in a least costly product for my first purchase. I will definately update as I get more info and experience in geneology.

1 comments about Monarch 5.0.

1. I've been using Monarch since version 3.0. It just keeps getting better and I keep getting better at it. It's relatively simple to use whether it be handling a small amount of data or thousands of pages (I'm not exaggerating) of data. It has definitely helped simplify my life.

5 comments about Linspire Five.0 CNR Edition.

1. Linspire takes a free (as in beer and as in speech) Linux distribution known as Debian, and then charges for the "service" of downloading software from a repository that is about 1/7th the size of the Debian repositories. If you wish ease of use, and adhere to the Debian ideal, get yourself a free-of-charge copy of Ubuntu courtesy of http://shipit.ubuntu.com, and then access the Ubuntu and Debian archives WITHOUT having to subscribe to anything.



2. A lot of people have complained about various features that Linspire offers. The most common being the use of the CNR client. What these people seem to not understand or in their bias against Linspire just plain omit is that there are two versions of the CNR membership.
   
   CNR Basic and CNR Gold.
   
   The second review on here "Why are you paying for free software??" fails to mention the reason this is a pay service. Yes you could use apt-get to install debian packages but CNR goes through the trouble of making sure each package has no dependency issues. While most current users of Linux don't mind a little trouble shooting must users of computers want something that just works.
   
   At the time his review was written Basic was $20a year. It is now free, it is better than apt get in the sense that it is graphical, as in no command line a scary land similar to dos prompt for all the newbies and converts.
   
   CNR offers an aisle system so all the programs you want can be organized and set to install with a single click instead of manually doing each one.
   
   Best of all that so called horrible cost of $50 for CNR Gold well it isn't that bad at all. For one thing you get an unlimitted number of aisles. Two you get discounts on every click and buy program, because like it or not even in debian not every program is free. Believe me, I know. In just the last 4 months my CNR Gold membership has given me over a $80 savings subtract that 50 and I still saved 30. Think of your membership like one for Costco or Sams Club.
   
   It just drives me crazy when people bash this service, it is a time saver and a headache saver. And I am not just some newbie. I have been using Linux for over 5 years now. I started with Redhat 8, I own a copy of Suse 10 and I have been with Linspire ever since they launched Linspire 4.5.



3. The is a great software it has the look of windows and security of linux but lilk any linux you can use this as a server i took one of my old pc's that needed new hard drives well i found out it had EIDE drived so i got a new MOBO and 4 750 drives giveing me 3T Then put linspire on snd i have new server on my home network one nice thing about cnr witch stands for click and run is it gives me acces to all sorts of software the best feature of linux to me is that both a windows or mac cac access it since i have them both but that is somthing that can be done with all linux OS.



4. It was easy to install,had a few problems with drivers,but were sorted easily,this is a excelent program,and the CNR was the best,no endless patches and updates to load , like other systems



5. Recently I had the opportunity to try Freespire. Just to make sure I wasn't missing out on anything, I went ahead and installed it to the hard drive of a Lenovo Y410 where the Windows OS had gone south.
   
   As to the good points:
   
   Installation was a breeze. Put the disk in and tell it to install. Took about 20 minutes total, give or take.
   
   Slick interface. Really nice main page with bright colors and a minimum of fussiness. Very close to a Windows interface. Fact is, it's the Ubuntu Linux desktop with some enhancements. Ubuntu is a great OS if you haven't used it before.
   
   Prefer the KDE desktop over the Gnome? Tough. You get what they load which is great for the uninitiated but not so great if you prefer a choice. This is both good and bad. If you have no experience with Linux then you go for the Windows-like Gnome interface; however, most newbies don't know this.
   
   It detected my USB printer and camera and downloaded drivers for both. Windows never did this right.
   
   It quickly found wireless hotspots, and it even detected my Ethernet connection without hesitating.
   
   Instead of a gaggle of included apps, it offers something called CNR (Click And Run) which is an online website via Freespire where you can check out apps before downloading them. No only do you get in-depth descriptions of the apps but you also get customer reviews.
   
   It's quicker than Windows once booted but is no quicker than Windows to boot. This is common among Linux systems. All operating systems do a system check upon booting so get used to it.
   
   Mainly all of the apps, like OpenOffice are merely free clones of equivalent Windows based programs. This is good because one interfaces with the other without too many problems. You even get a free clone of Adobe Acrobat which costs close to $400 for Windows.
   
   Virus problems? What virus problems? Very few are written for Linux so that worry is not something you have to fret over.
   
   Freespire is based upon the Ubuntu release which means you get a steady OS and periodic free updates.
   
   Now for the bad:
   
   I got my distro from a Linux magazine that includes disks, but if you want to buy a disk it will set you back some bucks. Fact is, you can contact Ubuntu and they'll send you a disk for free or you can go to the Freespire website and they'll allow you to download the distro for free but you'll have to burn an ISO disk to run it. Amazon's price is not bad at all.
   
   The Firefox browser included is dreadfully slow because the DNS check has been enabled (supposed to offer greater security against phishing and bad websites, but it's awfully poky). I had to do a quick Net check to find out how to disable the DNS (enter about:config in the URL area and scroll down and disable DNS). This is common to all new Linux distros that use Firefox and is not indicative of a Freespire problem.
   
   Typical of Linux, there is still no standard for sound cards. The Linux Standard Architecture would not recognize my Soundblaster card and I had a devil of time getting it to work. I finally installed a USB sound device which it recognized right off the mark, but this required I use headphones. My onboard speaker system never worked. I had the same problems with Mandriva and Suse.
   
   Unless you download a special app, you can forget playing DVDs. Due to copyright constraints it ain't happening anytime soon. Secondary apps do exist to play DVDs but there is no guarantee that they will work with Suse completely. Once I did get the DVD to work the playback was horribly choppy and erratic.
   
   Although the CNR system is slick and rather nice, it does have its drawbacks. The parent company is on shaky financial ground and some of the apps on the CNR website are woefully out of date or, worse yet, placed in the wrong categories. I found an educational app in the games section where it most definitely didn't belong. In addition, the version of OpenOffice at the CNR is an older version than the one you get on the disk. Ditto for the Linux Instant Messenger called Pidgin. It was originally called GAIM but the name was changed because of AIM complaints. If you download GAIM it won't work but if you download Pidgin it will. They are the same program, though.
   
   While it may seem the bad points outweigh the good, it's a matter of perspective. Linux always has had some bug issues but so does Windows or Apple OS. Linux suffers because it's an free OS (most can be downloaded for free but they do charge to mail you disks) and the Big Boys don't like the Free Guy knocking on their doors.
   
   Fact is, Freespire is a slick OS that merits mention and is third behind my choices of Mandriva and Suse (one and two, respectively).

No comments about Peachtree Complete Accounting Value Pack 8.0 (Unlimited User).

No comments about 123 5.0 Multimedia.

1 comments about Photo Express Platinum.

1. This software is pretty good. Usually this works okay. It does have cool effects. The reason I gave it a three is sometimes it get messed up. Like if you have two buttons close together they overlap. Then if you hit one button it actually hits the other one.

No comments about Half-Life 2 "Dog" BattleMat Mousepad.

2 comments about ProVenture Label Maker.

1. This software is very efficient to print simple business related labels



2. This is a review of ProVenture Label Maker v4.0, which may be the product that some Marketplace sellers are selling here, here, here, here, and here. Amazon may display this review on the page of another version of this product, for which this review may not apply. After reading this review, please click on the links and e-mail the respective Marketplace sellers to find out what version they are selling, so that you can be assured that the product this review applies to is the same one you thought it was for.
   --------------------------------------------------
   
   I will be reviewing ProVenture Label Maker v4.0, which was released in 2006 (according to the copyright date on the blue and white box).
   
   Product Information
   * Developed by: ProVenture
   * Published by: Avanquest
   * UPC: 018059051249
   * Serial/SKU/Model: 5124
   
   System Requirements:
   * Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
   * Pentium III or higher
   * 95 MB disk space
   * 128 MB RAM
   * CD-ROM Drive
   * Inkjet or laser printer
   
   I bought this product because I wanted to have a 32-bit replacement for the label making component of the old 16-bit Print Shop Deluxe that I've been using (it came out in 1994 and was designed for Windows 3.1!!!). I saw this on the shelf at MicroCenter, and although I don't buy boxed software anymore (at least not without downloading a trial first), I couldn't resist the ten dollar price tag, so I bought it.
   
   This review will actually be a quick list of notes I wrote up as I was testing out the program. Some are criticisms, and others are notes on using the program. These are somewhat organized in the order in which you'd come across these issues when installing and running the program, though the information on the registration nag is at the end so it is easier to read.
   
   -- Run setup.exe to directly install the program without having to go through the trial screen interface (trial copies of other programs are available on the CD). You still will be nagged to install a payment service (to accept credit card payments for your business) and the NewsFlash program (used to send you company updates). You can easily say NO to both.
   
   It would be nice to not have ANY kind of nags like this.
   
   -- The program doesn't copy the clipart folder from the CD to the hard drive, even though it makes an empty Clipart directory in the program directory.
   
   -- Some program settings are found in mylabels32.ini in the C:\Windows (or C:\WinNT) directory. This file is not deleted if you uninstall the program.
   
   -- The program saves _FOUR FILES_ for every saved label (the files have the extensions .lbl, .bcf, .fsif, .msif). Even if you just have a label with one piece of data on it, and nothing in the databases, it still saves it as four files. For a simple label with just a name and address on it (no database entries), the combined size of the four files is 35 Kb. Other label making programs save only one file, with a size between 1 and 6 Kb.
   
   This is the primarily deal-breaker for me. This is the reason why I'm no longer keeping the program. If I make 10 labels, I will have 40 FILES(!) to deal with. That's just not right.
   
   Unfortunately, MicroCenter won't take the item back because they don't take back opened software (as is the usual policy for most stores). I can't take advantage of the publisher's 30-Day Money Back Guarantee because I didn't get a chance to install the software until a bit more than 30 days after I bought it. Granted, ten dollars isn't a big loss, but it's still a loss.
   
   -- To print an entire sheet of labels containing the same data on each label (just a single name and address - hard-coded to the design, not from a database), you must set the number of copies on the Print dialog box to the number of labels on the sheet (30 for the Avery 5160/8160/8660/6460 layout). This is not very intuitive, as the Copies field normally selects the number of PAGES to be printed (as it is standard in all Print dialogs for ALL Windows programs).
   
   This is the other deal-breaker, especially since the number of "copies" resets to 1 every time you run the program (as that is what Windows normally does in the Print dialog window of ANY program). So every time I open and print one of my labels (as I tend to create labels with singular data, not from databases), I have to remember to change the number of "copies" to 30. The program won't even save that information to any of the four files that it creates for each label.
   
   -- If there are multiple records in your database, and you just want to print one, select the record you want to print by entering the same record number in both From and To fields in the Print Range.
   
   -- How to remove the registration nag without registering (which is free but shouldn't be necessary): Amazon wouldn't let me include the text in my review that you'd need to copy and paste into Notepad, so you'll have to go to this product's forum (near the bottom of the product's main page) and read the instructions that I posted there. Look for the topic entitled "ProVenture Label Maker Registration Nag" and you'll get all the information you need. I wish I could have included that information in my review, and I really tried, but Amazon blocked all of my efforts. Shame on you Amazon!