36 MA XIMUMPC APRIL 2006
SyncBack
There’s never been a better time to back up your data
Data backup: It’s a task as exciting as clipping your nose hair or get-
ting a colonoscopy. But both tasks are a necessary part of nose and
colon maintenance, just as backing up data is necessary to maintain-
ing your PC. Our favorite utility for this task is SyncBack , an incredibly
powerful—and totally free—backup utility that’s as easy to use as it is
powerful.
SyncBack lets you create numerous backup scripts and schedule
them to your heart’s content. You can quickly sync fi les and folders,
and even restore accidentally deleted folders if you make a boo-boo.Creating and scheduling backups in SyncBack is easy like
a Sunday morning.SpeedFan
Track temps and futz with fans the right way
It’s probably not healthy, but we’re obsessed with controlling our system’s temps
and sound output. That’s why we like—nay, love— SpeedFan. It’s an awesome utility
that reports system temps (including hard drive temperatures), and lets us control fan
speeds based on the temperature thresholds we determine.
The temp reporting is useful, but the real value is the fan con-
trol. You can use it to set the maximum and minimum fan speeds
based on the temps your mobo reports, so your fans spin up when
things get hot and spin back down when they’re no longer needed.Whether you’re looking to monitor your system temps or
quiet your rig, SpeedFan delivers on both fronts.VLC Media Player
The only media player you’ll ever need VLC Media Player is the one media player to
rule all formats. It plays everything , including
VOB fi les, MOV fi les, FLAC, Divx, AVI, MPEG,
WAV, MP3, SVCD—you name it. It won’t play
Real player fi les, but we usually avoid those on
general principle.
And VLC isn’t just for Windows. It runs on
every possible platform, including BeOS, BSD,
Linux, and OS X. It can be a bit sluggish, but
its fl exibility is unmatched, and it’s free, so you
won’t catch us griping.In addition to playing every type of me-
dia file imaginable, VLC can also act as a
streaming server.FREE WWW.2BRIGHTSPARKS.COMFREE WWW.VIDEOLAN.ORG/VLCSofty Awards
speeds based on the temperature thresholds we determine.trol. You can use it to set the maximum and minimum fan speeds
based on the temps your mobo reports, so your fans spin up when
things get hot and spin back down when they’re no longer needed.Whether you’re looking to monitor your system temps or
quiet your rig,VLC Media Player
The only media player you’ll ever need
FREE WWW.ALMICO.COM/SPEEDFAN.PHP