2006 April 12

Some call it radar love – I just call it “finding cool things on the Internet.” Here's something every Windows user will appreciate – as it's even easier to use than VersionTracker for OS X. RadarSync will scan your computer for all the installed devices and software, tell you what needs to be updated, and point you directly to the file that needs to be downloaded for the upgrade. Yeah, it's THAT simple – and yeah, it really works well. Of course, you can do the scanning part for free, but if you want to use the direct link service, you'll have to pay an annual subscription fee. I opted to use the information and scout out the downloads independently. For the most part, I think it did quite nicely; I had no idea version updates were available for some of my programs. This is probably most useful when you first install Windows and all of your favorite utilities. I'm happy this exists.

Read more on On My Radar…

If I told you to download something called “Strider URL Tracer with Typo-Patrol,” you'd think I was mad. Doesn't sound half as sexy as “Picasa” or “Napster.” Then again, Microsoft has never been known for its naming prowess (”Windows Server 2003 R2 Enterprise, x64 Edition” is anything but succinct). They do, however, have a few smart folks in their Research arm – and some of them have developed a program that will help you possibly counteract typo-squatting for mispelled domains. The project summary page explains:

Read more on An Unsung Microsoft Hero…

Jeez, you didn't have to take the compliment literally!