DOWNLOADING FILES
It has often surprised me how very few PC owners make use of
the vast amount of Shareware and Freeware software available on the Internet.
This is no doubt because many would not know what to do with any files they do
succeed in downloading or are wary of collecting a virus. My PC is continually
monitored and protected by Norton Anti-virus. First of all I must warn against downloading anything
unless you know exactly what if does, and also how long it is likely to take to
download, which can be estimated if you can see the size of the file. Much of the software available comes in the form of .ZIP
files, but not all. Some files automatically install software as soon as you
click on them such as Windows updates, which is why you should be wary of what you download. This also applies to a great deal
of the software supplied on the CDs supplied with PC Magazines. Some of this can
alter the setup of your systems, but be difficult to uninstall afterwards. You
should have no trouble with all the free simple programs and games from this
site.
Once you click on a
link to download you will be asked to confirm whether to Open the Zip file or
Save it, chose to Save. Next the filedialog will show to decide where the file is to be Saved on your disk
driv. So before you consider any downloading, use My Computer to examine the
folders on your disk drive. I suggest you create one using File/New/Folder, such as Temp and even another as
Temp2, you will find useful. Once you have downloaded a ZIP file you may need
suitable software to unzip the contents such as Winzip. Windows XP and higher
now has the facility to unzip files included. You can determine if either is already installed by just clicking on a ZIP file. This is where a Temp
folder becomes useful, to direct the contents once you click on the Extract
option under File etc. Note most of the ZIP files when unpacked create their own
menu now.
You may find one of the files is INSTALL or SETUP which when
activated, will install the software, so you may need to use Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel
to uninstall it afterwards, Try to keep all original ZIP files on CD as Backup
or in case you wish to pass them onto a friend sometime. Some software cannot be properly
installed unless you have everything in the original ZIP file. When you click
onto a ZIP file using Winzip, you will see a list of the files packed, one of
these may be a TXT or HLP file. If you click on these files, you system should
temporarily open it up and display its contents, thus allowing you to see the
purpose of the software, and you can to decide if you really wish to install
it before committing yourself.
If you do not have Winzip installed go to www.shareware.com or www.zdnet.com and search for Winzip. A second part of Winzip allows you to ZIP up any selected files useful for sending large files by email, providing of course the receiver can unzip them. I have never experienced problems with 'catching' a virus using these two web sites above, and generally Games are unlikely to upset the system. Some Graphics or Media packages such as Real Player, will try to automatically associate with certain Image or Sound files if you allow them to do so, perhaps making it difficult to restore previous settings. The sort of software that can cause also problems are often those involved with the Email and the Internet, such as alternative Browsers like Netscape or Opera.
Gordon Sweet