File Utilities You Should Not Live Without

» Agent Ransack
"If only I could find that certain piece of text I saved last week!" This problem will no longer be a frustration with this program. No more wading through piles of files saved on your harddrive and opening each one! Though much like the search function in Windows, this takes it one step further. Instead of just searching file names, this program searches the texts of files on your whole hard drive, or places you specify, and displays both the file and the text in an Explorer-like interface. Freeware. For more info or to download go to http://www.agentransack.com.


» Messer MP3 Recorder

If you need to listen to MP3s in your research, this will record them so you can later transcribe the needed portions much more easily. No more endless re-buffering and waiting! This is the only freeware MP3 recorder I have found, and it is excellent. Go to http://www.dago.pmp.com.pl/messer/ for more info or to download.


» PowerMenu

Biblioscape Pro and ScholarsAid (related Thread) include a function comparable to this program. If you choose another bibliographic program, you should consider installing PowerMenu. The program is a shell extension that comes in extremely handy while using your bibliographic software in conjunction with your word processor. It creates a right-click option in the program bar on the task bar that enables you to command the bibliographic program to "stay on top." As well, you can give the program some transparency. You enable PowerMenu, select "Stay on Top" and set a transparency level, re-size your bibliographic program to a small size, and there it ever sits, semi-transparently, to the far side of your word processor document. No more endless clicking back and forth between programs, just click, cite! Freeware. Go to http://www.veridicus.com/tummy/programming/powermenu/ for more info or to download.


» Saver

In case it has gone un-noticed thus far, Microsoft Word no longer supports auto-save, instead relying on its new "auto-recovery" function. This little program allows you to command it otherwise! It will also auto-save for any program you specify that supports auto-save (CTL+S), or all open and supported programs if none are specified. You open Saver, type in the name of the program you want it to auto-save for, set a time interval for auto-saving, and...wa-la! Don't lose your hard work and creativity to a crash or power outage! NOTE: this program runs invisibly after it is started, so if you want to turn it off you will need to bring up the Task Manager by hitting CTL+ALT+DEL once. You can turn the program off from there. It also turns off after a shutdown or reboot until you click it back on. Freeware. Go to http://anonymoussoftware.20m.com/ for more info or to download.


» SuperFormat

No, this is NOT too good to be true: This little program formats 3.5 floppies to hold 1.72 MBs of data instead of the normal 1.44. If you wind up running any programs from a floppy, this can be useful. Freeware. Download at http://195.241.84.246/zdnet/dlweek0127/sformat.zip.