· Stuff we find useful (almost every day) ·

What is this stuff?

We asked our technical staff what little software tools, utilities and web sites they find useful. You may find them useful as well.

Web Sites:

GRC's Password Generator - Generate high quality, random, cryptographic-strength passwords up to 64 characters in length. Useful as an encryption key for your wireless network (WPA) or as a really random password for some other purpose.
GRC's Shield's Up! - Check the security of your computer (and firewall hardware or software).
Symantec Norton Security Scan - An online virus scan, if you think your computer might be infected (if it is, you may not be able to trust any antivirus software installed on your computer), use this website to check.
Power Supply Calculator - Thermaltake offers this handy online tool for working out how big your power supply should be to run your computer properly.
David's Blog - all sorts of interesting stuff about the world of computers.

Software:

Ad-Aware from Lavasoft - protect yourself from spyware. Available in free and commercial versions.
Remote Assistance - If you need help we can connect to your computer over the Internet using the software that you can download from us using this link.
Firefox - a web browser. Firefox is a great alternative to Internet Explorer. It offers some features and capabilities that Internet Explorer lacks and we've found it generally more stable (less likely to crash). Try it out for yourself.
BurnIn Test - stress test your computer. OQi uses this software extensively in our workshop. It places all internal components in your computer under high load and can be useful in identifying faults.

Please note: use of these tools is at your own risk. There are many factors that effect how well these tools will work in any given situation. If you are unsure, please consider bringing your computer to a professional repairer rather than risking damage.