Miscellaneous Tools
The following half-dozen downloads don't fit neatly into any category, so we put them in our Everything Else classification. They're just what the doctor ordered if you want to handle attachments in Windows Vista Mail, capture Vista screens (including shadows), save battery life on a Vista laptop, and more.
Windows Help Program for Windows Vista
In Windows Vista, Microsoft introduced one often-overlooked change that has proved to be a significant annoyance for people who use older Windows programs: The new operating system won't read Help files saved in .hlp format. So what do you do if you have a program that uses .hlp files, or if you download and informational files in .hlp format from the Internet?
You use this program. Download it, and it will let you read .hlp files from the unfriendly confines of a Vista OS. Not an earth-shaking download, certainly, but a highly practical one nevertheless.
Download Windows Help Program for Windows Vista.
ISO Recorder
Here's one of those one-trick-pony downloads, that does its thing exceedingly well. ISO Recorder lets you burn .iso files to CD or DVD.
An .iso file is single, large file that--when burned to a CD or DVD--contains many files, a file system, and data, and that can be used to install an operating system. For example, Windows Vista betas were made available as .iso files; if you wanted to install the beta, you had to download the .iso file, burn it to DVD, and then boot from the DVD to install the unfinished version of Vista. In some instances .iso files can be used for other purposes, such as creating music or video, but ISO Recorder won't create images of audio or video CDs.
The program can create .iso files as well as burn them. It integrates itself directly into Windows Explorer. Right-click an .iso file, and then follow the instructions to burn it to CD or DVD.
Download ISO Recorder.
Windows Mail Attachment Extractor for Vista
If you use Vista's Windows Mail program, and you often need to save files attached to e-mail messages, give this program a try. It simplifies the task of saving and managing e-mail attachments.
You can, among other things, have the program extract only pictures, and you can then save those pictures in a specific directory every time. Or you can have it automatically extract document files into a specific directory. The program will also create a report of what it's done for you.
If you don't need to manage a large number of attachments, don't bother with Windows Mail Attachment Extractor for Vista. But if you field a lot of them and want to extract them from a single folder, this program will help.
Download Windows Mail Attachment Extractor for Vista.
Window Clippings
For capturing screen shots in Vista, Windows Clippings is just the ticket. It's available in free and for-pay ($10) versions, it's simple to use, it can save to an array of formats, and it includes a particularly important feature for capturing Vista screens--the ability to capture window shadows.
To use it, press the Print Screen key, click the window you want to capture, and then double-click. You can instruct the program to prompt you each time to tell it where you want to save a file, or you can designate a specific folder to receive all screen shots.
For basic screen captures, the free version works fine. But if you want to capture a mouse pointer, snag specific areas of your screen, or use a timer for taking screen shots, you'll have to pay.
Download Window Clippings.
Feeds Plus
Fans of the RSS blog reader built into Internet Explorer 7 need this program. It enables you to read all of your feeds from a single location, instead of having to read one feed at a time. This is especially useful for people like me who subscribe to dozens of feeds. Rather than wasting precious moments clicking from feed to feed, you'll find them all in a single location. And because IE 7's feed reader has exceptional filtering, sorting, and searching prowess, finding a specific blog item is still easy. Another treat: Feeds Plus will alert you when your favorite feeds have new content.
This program works with Internet Explorer in Windows XP as well as with the version built into Windows Vista, so XP users will be happy with it, too.
Download Feeds Plus.
Vista Battery Saver
Few things are more frustrating than having your laptop run out of juice during a cross-country flight, or at your favorite café. This program promises to lessen the likelihood of experiencing those frustrations. It automatically deactivates Windows Aero and the Windows Sidebar when your laptop runs on battery power, which (according to the author) will extend battery life. Alternatively, you can have the program automatically turn off Aero or the Sidebar when your battery level drops below a limit that you specify.
Download Vista Battery Saver.
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