Despite the lack of user guidance, this video-file downloader is easy to set up and use. VDownloader's interface is on the plain side and no Help file is offered, but it shouldn't take most users long to get the hang of downloading videos from their favorite sites.

The interface contains four large icons: Download, Search, Browser, and Settings. By default, VDownloader is set to monitor the clipboard when it's running, so as soon as we copied the link to a video, the program responded and asked us for Save As information. It's a small thing, but some programs don't allow you to choose a file name up front and it can be hard (without opening each file) to know what video you've downloaded if the file name is auto-assigned. The download began immediately after choosing the file name and location. You also can change this setting and manually paste a video link in to the URL field, but we preferred the time-saving clipboard monitoring step. VDownloader also lets you select the format you want to save video files in, another nice touch. Options include AVI, MP3, iPhone/iPod compatibility, and the original format.

The free program includes two useful extras. The first is the Search capability, which allows you to enter a video name and simultaneously search YouTube, Daily Motion, Google, and Yahoo Video. You can uncheck any of the four sites, but you aren't allowed to add any extras. The second extra is a built-in browser, which doesn't have any of the niceties you'll find in Firefox or Internet Explorer, but does include more than 20 bookmarks to video sites and a quick Download Video button for when you find a file you want to save. We recommend this free, easy-to-use video file downloader for any user.

Download (5.06MB)


* Reviewed by: CNET staff
* Reviewed on: February 23, 2009
* Version reviewed: VDownloader 0.83

This simple freeware application works pretty well, given how basic the interface is. It has two main features: to download FLV files from YouTube, and to convert them to most major formats. If there's a YouTube URL in your clipboard, it will automatically paste it for you when you click on the dialog box. From there, just hit OK and the downloading will commence. One more left-click is all it takes to load the file in the converter, which supports iPhone, iPod, PSP, cell phone, AVI, MP3, WMV, and Xvid. Surprisingly, there's also a basic video editor for cropping videos by time stamp. You can also cut out the sound when converting.

This is one of the lightest editors around, but the simplistic interface belies its functionality and it performs exactly as advertised. We'd like to see support in future editions for hunting down missing codecs, and version 2.1.5 and earlier won't work because of embed code changes on YouTube itself. Still, the YouTube Downloader is proof that not only is video-making accessible to everyone, so is video downloading and editing.

Download (3.03MB)


* Reviewed by: CNET Staff
* Version reviewed: YouTube Downloader 2.1.7

If you're sick of hopping from one chatware program to another, looking for the perfect mix of video, audio, and text socializing, CamFrog might be what you're looking for.

The chat rooms feature everything from music lessons to sign language to non-English chatting, and integrating video, audio, and text components are a great leap forward for chat communities since a Webcam is not a requirement. Be warned, though: There's also a slew of X-rated chat rooms--this is not a program that kids should use without supervision.

The interface should be familiar to anyone who has used any messaging software. You can create your own chat room and password-protect it, and the Contacts list has a section for favorite rooms and one-click contact adding, user searching, and profile management. New in Version 5 is high-resolution video support, interface tweaks, and the ability to send little "virtual gifts" to both friends and anonymous recipients that borders on the annoying.

Cautious users should note that the install includes several toolbars and a Weather Channel widget, which you can opt out of. Despite those drawbacks, if you're looking for a well-trafficked video chat program that serves a diverse community, CamFrog is cool place to land.

Download here (11.28MB)

* Reviewed by: CNET Staff
* Version reviewed: Camfrog Video Chat 5.3.215

From its start as a post-Napster clone to its leading role as the quintessential Gnutella client, LimeWire is the highest-profile P2P application. Version 5 re-envisions LimeWire for a Web 2.0 world, with an emphasis on sharing with friends, square buttons with rounded corners, and overall a cleaner interface.

Two search bars and two sidebars cap off the redesign. The uppermost search bar is the global search that scans what everybody is sharing over the P2P network, while the secondary one on the right searches your library. The sidebars are set up in a similar way. Both are on the left, with the outer one offering three options: your library, the global P2P network, and your friends. Click on My Library and your inner sidebar shows your collection of music, movies, and documents. The P2P Network option shows what you're uploading and downloading, while the Friends option lets you share your library specifically with your Google/Jabber contacts, which you can import. Search results can be presented in both the new Web 2.0-style that surfaces just the most relevant information, with an Information button to dive deeper or the "classic" spreadsheet view.

The Advanced Tools feature is also new, which lets power users drill down and get highly specific information about who they're connected to, similar to what's available from torrent clients. This data includes IP addresses, bandwidth, the program being used and its version. The new features and overall functionality make this by far the most mature version of LimeWire to date. Despite the typical performance flaws found in all file-sharing clients, this latest version continues to offer solid performance and good looks across the board.

Download here (15.71MB)


* Reviewed by: Seth Rosenblatt
* Reviewed on: February 12, 2009
* Version reviewed: LimeWire 5.1.4

Downloading videos, Flash games, and large batches of files is greatly simplified with this freeware download manager, but Firefox users may have difficulty with integration.

Orbit's primary interface is bland, but the basic toolbar and info boxes guarantee everything is easy to find. Orbit shines with Internet Explorer integration. To get a media file, simply right-click a video or photo and choose Download from your context menu. Grabbing a Flash game is even easier. Hover over a Flash file, and Orbit displays a button for a fast download.

Fast and small are key traits of this application. It uses a bare minimum of memory, and downloads are much faster than with a browser alone. Where Orbit shines is its one-button simplicity for downloading multiple files on a site. From there, you can easily filter for file type. Orbit's numerous configuration options make it one of the more flexible download managers available.

Although designed to integrate with the IE, Firefox, Opera and Maxthon, we had great difficulty getting Orbit to work seamlessly with Firefox. We finally gave up trying to get the Flash download feature to work. Nevertheless, anyone downloading large numbers of files will find this freeware indispensable.

Download here (2.17MB)


* Reviewed by: CNET staff
* Reviewed on: November 7, 2008
* Version reviewed: Orbit Downloader 2.8.13

There are plenty of solid compression utilities to choose from, but this shareware powerhouse offers the features and ease of use that place it at the top of the compression category. WinRAR is easy to use, lightweight, and flexible.

An intuitive interface lets you mouse over icons to see their functions, and if you don't like their candy-coated appearance, you can always choose from several themes at the developer's site. The Folder Tree Panel makes sifting through your directories to find files easier than ever. But once you see the size savings of a RAR archive, with a compression ratio of 8 percent to 15 percent better than the ZIP format, you'll understand why so many users and developers are making the switch from other apps. With virus scans now integrated and minor interface tweaks for Vista, only the slightly slower decompression speed holds the app back.

Beyond its good looks and right-click readiness for basic compression and unzipping, WinRAR offers unpacking support for a large number of archive formats, including TAR, ACE, BZ2, JAR, ISO, and ZIP. WinRAR's advanced features are icing on the cake, with Unicode support for international formatting, embedded file comments, damaged archive repair, archive locking, self-extracting archives, and easy encryption. There's also the option to automatically delete temporary files and just-archived files. Anyone seeking an all-in-one archiving solution would be remiss to not check out WinRAR.

Download here (1.18MB)


* Reviewed by: CNET Staff
* Version reviewed: WinRAR 3.80

This utility offers a one-stop-shop for cleaning and maintaining your computer for better overall system performance. The interface is very simple, featuring only a few buttons, which makes it easy to get down to cleaning immediately (in fact, it automatically runs on start-up) and doesn't confuse you with multiple steps.

The Maintain Windows section focuses on four areas of maintenance: spyware removal, Registry cleaning, a privacy sweep, and deletion of junk files. The Diagnose System button provides system optimization tools, detects spyware, defragments your disk, and scans for hijacked Windows settings. In our tests the scan and clean for each of these areas took less than 10 minutes to complete. In many of these scans, it is difficult to tell what exactly is being accomplished by some of the tools, but we were able to test against other trusted apps, which confirmed Advanced SystemCare's efficacy in those areas.

Under the utilities section you are given several tools, which are similar to plug-ins, for other areas of optimization and diagnostic tests. Overall, Advanced SystemCare Free is a good way to maintain your system's speed and clear out junk files, but you'll need to remember to run it regularly because scheduling of scans is only available in the paid Pro version.

* Reviewed by: Jason Parker (Download.com editor)
* Reviewed on: December 18, 2008
* Version reviewed: Advanced SystemCare Free 3.3.4