What's New

VPN Lifeguard is a free open source software program for Windows devices that adds a kill switch to VPN connections to avoid IP leaks.

A VPN is one of the better ways to improve privacy while your connected to the Internet. The main reason for this is that it blocks sites and services from identifying your device's IP address.

While there are ways to get around this, WebRTC comes to mind for instance, it is without doubt adding a protective layer to the connection.

Opswat Metadefender Endpoint is a free security scanner for computer systems running Microsoft's Windows operating system.

The program checks settings, installed programs and security, and computes a score based on that. It furthermore provides you with options to remove potentially unwanted programs from the computer system.

You need to fill out a form on the Opswat website before downloads for Windows or Mac OS X become available. The information is not verified though, and download links are provided right after you enter the information and submit the form.

The Tor Project released ooniprobe designed to run checks to see if you are being censored for Android and iOS mobile devices.

The app is designed to run a series of tests to find out about evidence of censorship, and information on the speed and performance of the network used by the mobile phone.

Before you can use it however, it walks you through a series of informational pages, a quick test that you have to pass, and a configuration page for the program's data collecting functionality.

Here we go again. Microsoft re-released the Windows 7 telemetry update KB2952664 and the Windows 8.1 telemetry update KB2976978 yesterday.

YouTube Go is a new application for Android by Google designed for markets where available bandwidth and reception may be lacking.

While the official YouTube application for Android works well in many situations, it is not the lightest of applications.

YouTube Go has been designed by Google to improve the experience by creating a lighter app that is not as taxing to the device, and plays better in low-bandwidth or bad reception scenarios. It features a couple of unique features, but lacks also many classic YouTube features such as commenting or channels.

The Vivaldi web browser ships with an interesting option to block all keyboard shortcuts on the active web page.

It happens that I use keyboard shortcuts accidentally in the browsers that I'm using. Hitting F12 for instance opens the Developer tools, or Ctrl-Shift-B the bookmarks manager (when I intend to hit Ctrl-Shift-V to paste without formatting).

Opera Software has just released Opera 43 to the Stable channel introducing performance improvements and classic Opera's link selection method to the browser.

The three new features that Opera Software highlights in the new release are instant page loading, PGO for Windows, and classic link selection.

The author of EPUBReader launched a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign recently to finance the migration of the add-on to WebExtensions.

Mozilla plans to discontinue Firefox's add-on system in 2017 to replace it with the up and coming WebExtensions standard.

The following guide offers instructions on how to turn off sounds and voiceover audio notifications in Avast Free Antivirus for Windows.

Google announced an update to Google Maps on Android yesterday that brings real-time commute information and more to the company's app.

The new version of Google Maps for Android features a new section at the bottom of the home screen. All you have to do is swipe up to see the new options and interact with them.

The three new options help you beat traffic, catch the next bus or  find nearby restaurants.

404 Bookmarks is a brand new browser add-on for the Firefox web browser that helps you identify and remove dead bookmarks from the browser.

Most modern browsers support bookmarks, and it is easy enough to add them to the browser. In Firefox, all you do is click on the star icon to add it to the browser.

If you do that regularly, you end up with a growing list of bookmarks in the browser. Not really a size problem, as Firefox handles large bookmarks lists well.

KeePassXC is a free cross-platform client based on KeePass that could be useful to users who run devices with different operating systems.

KeePass is a Windows-only software by default. The password manager is a local program, meaning that it does not store any data in the cloud or requires an Internet connection to function.

Kodi 17 is the latest version of the popular cross-platform media center software that enables you to play media on all devices that it supports.

Kodi's main features are the ability to play media streams from local and network storage, or from the Internet, adding information from various sources to media collections that you add to the program, and an add-on system to extend the program's core functionality.

The following guide provides you with a solution for fixing the dreaded "no Internet secured" notification that signals Wifi connectivity issues on machines running Windows.

I bought a Microsoft Surface Pro 4 device back then when it first came out, and like it a lot. It is the device that I use mostly when I'm traveling as it offers all I require in a compact package.

For the past year or so, I noticed a strange wireless Internet connectivity issue regularly when connecting the device using WiFi. Connections to the WiFi hotspot work, but Internet did not at times.

HabitHub Habit & Goal Tracker is an application for Android that helps you keep track of activities, goals and rewards.

If you have troubles keeping track of activities and goals, or reaching them, you may need a little extra push in the right direction.

Goal trackers are certainly no one size fits it all solution, but they help you track and visualize progress that you make.