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When we first saw the title of this program, we were hoping that it would help us create the flip books of our youth, those tiny cartoons in book form that were animated by the flipping of the pages. As it turns out, Flip Book Maker Free Version is actually a program for creating virtual photo albums, which in our opinion isn't quite as fun. That said, the program still does a good job at what it's meant for, and it's worth checking out if you miss flipping through physical photo albums in this age of digital … Read more

It's not uncommon for people to have multiple computers these days: home computer and work computer, or desktop and laptop. Although the ubiquity of computers is convenient, spreading our computer use over several different machines can make it difficult to keep up with our data. Fortunately, bookmarks are something that you can easily sync across machines or browsers thanks to Xmarks for Chrome. This simple extension keeps your bookmarks consistent across locations, ensuring that you always have access to the sites you need to remember.

Like most Chrome extensions, Xmarks installs easily. The extension then guides you through a … Read more

Page Refresh is a free Google Chrome extension that automatically refreshes idle Web pages at various intervals. It can keep pages from closing due to inactivity or refresh them to display the latest scores or prices or whatever it is you're tracking.

At 12.86KB, Page Refresh is probably close to some kind of quantum threshold for functional Windows software. Like other Chrome extensions, it essentially installs itself instantaneously without requiring a browser restart, and it's managed from the Extensions page under Tools in the Chrome settings menu, which we accessed by clicking the wrench icon on Chrome'… Read more

Defense of the Ancients, or DotA, is an expansion of Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos and Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. The official DotA Web site, playdota.com, lists all of the heroes used in the game and gives a detailed profile for each one. Included in these profiles are lists of sounds, the spoken phrases that heroes use in the game. Players who'd like to save these sounds for their own use should try PlayDota Hero Sounds. This Chrome extension makes it easy to save DotA sounds as MP3 files.

Like most Chrome extensions, PlayDota Hero Sounds is … Read more

Chrome Toolbox sounds like something you'd be afraid to use for fear of dents and scratches, but it's actually a free extension that adds many useful tools to Google's Chrome browser. It can launch apps, Web pages, and shortcuts quickly; save form data; reopen closed tabs; mute all tabs; and add keyboard shortcuts to its quick-launch drop-down menu, among other neat tricks.

While most Chrome extensions have few options, Chrome Toolbox has several, which we could access either by right- or left-clicking the Chrome Toolbox icon or via the browser's extensions management page. The Options page … Read more

Windows supports text files natively and also incorporates a search function, but it doesn't go out of its way to put the two together. MuseTips Text Filter is a compact, portable, and free tool that can quickly and thoroughly search text files. It searches as you type and displays matching terms in contrasting colors. It also offers autosuggestions, full support for regular expressions, multiple query modes, and extensive filtering.

At less than 500KB unzipped, Text Filter is certainly lightweight, and since it's fully portable, it runs from any location, including from a USB drive or other portable device. … Read more

We are predisposed to like any program that makes life easier, especially if that means collecting a lot of useful information in one place. That's exactly what Computer Specifications does. It's an extremely simple program with few features, but if you want a quick look at what's going on with your machine, you might find that it does exactly what you need it to do.

The program's designer didn't waste any time on aesthetics; Computer Specifications' interface is about as bare-bones as it could be. There's a series of text boxes displaying information and … Read more

The Bible can be a source of comfort and inspiration, and reading it periodically throughout the day is a great way for devout Christians to stay connected to their faith. Bible Verse Popup can make the Bible a part of your work day by displaying Bible verses periodically on your computer. We would have liked to see more features, but the program isn't bad if you're not too particular.

Bible Verse Popup's interface is plain and not particularly attractive. The Bible verses appear in a gray text box, and users can skip to the next or previous … Read more

Facebook is everywhere these days, we hear, but it really only exists inside your browser. If that browser happens to be Google Chrome, you're in luck: BuildAGadget's Facebook Dashboard Extension makes it easier than ever to access the world's largest and most popular social networking site. You can instantly check messages, update your status, and post likes and comments, even while you're doing other things.

After downloading and installing this extension, we were prompted to sign in to Facebook via the extension's Chrome page, with an option to stay signed in. When we'd logged … Read more