Angela Booth, Julian Schoffel and Alan Hilvert-Bruce select the best general, business, games and educational shareware for the home, business and school.

The Winners

The Finalists

General Applications
Business Applications
Desktop Utilities
System Utilities
File Management Utilities
Archive Managers
Australian Shareware
PIMs & Calendars
Graphics and Multimedia
Interner browsers/utilities
E-mail programs

Games

Education

With so many great programs available, choosing a 'best' was almost impossible. Arachnophilia wins, not only because of the price (free), but also because it has something to offer both beginning and experienced Web page creators. Beginners benefit because the program teaches you enough HTML to get you started, as well as inspiring you to learn more. Experienced users will find the program fast and easy to use, and it is especially helpful as you can create macros, which really speed up your work. See 'HTML editors' for more information. -- Angela Booth

The king of first-person shooters, the Quake II demo features a staggering three playable levels, with multiplayer support. Featuring brilliant 3D graphics, and stacks of action, it is the best PC game demo currently available. See 'Games' for more information. -- Julian Schoffel

This program provides in-depth information about music for young and old, beginner or novice. From figuring out what C scale is to mastering a particular area you're a little rusty with, there is something for everyone. See 'Education' for more information. -- Alan Hilvert-Bruce

The Finalists

Yeah Write (16- and 32-bit)
URL: www.wordplace.com
Registered price: Freeware; registered version ($30) has additional features
Rating:

Yeah Write is a clever word processor created by the developers of WordPerfect. The interface is brilliant; it stores your documents in cabinets, and then under tabs, so that you can quickly find your work. The main feature of the program is the multiplicity of templates: hit any tab such as fax or memo or letter etc, and a new template is immediately available. The program is freeware and features include templates for your diary, general purpose documents, journals, business letters, personal letters, memos and notes. However, if you register for the full version, additional templates include: address books, e-mail, fax, envelopes, letters with return address, to-do lists, international (faxes, memos), kids (address books, assignments, school papers), and more.

VisiMap (32-bit)
URL: http://www.coco.co.uk
Registered price: $90
Rating:

VisiMap is a mind map creating program: a graphical business tool, which allows you to develop and organise your ideas, projects and tasks. Simply type in your main idea, then add branches with additional ideas, colour coded if you wish. From these ideas you can develop even more branches, even adding complete new maps. You can attach large text descriptions or graphics to branches, or attach files created by other programs. VisiMap is ideal as a project management tool, and an invaluable aid in developing Web sites -- you can even save your maps in HTML format, ready for placing on your site. Need help creating a presentation? You can export a map as an outline and import it into your presentation program, or you can place a graphical version of a map onto a slide by copying and pasting from the clipboard.

Super NoteTab Light (32-bit)
URL: http://www.notetab.com
Registered price: Free
Rating:

This program is a brilliant replacement for Windows Notepad. Features include: the ability to edit files of up to 2Gb in size; search and replace files on disk; strip HTML tags from files; create 'favourites' to organise your text files, and much more. The program is very fast.

Issue Manager (32-bit)
URL: www.winnovation.com
Registered price: $75
Rating:

Much more than a simple to-do list, Issue Manager is designed to help you track issues and projects through to completion. You can track action items; ensure that every item for all issues is followed up; track customer queries until they're resolved; and maintain a powerful personal task management system. When you create an issue it is assigned a status, such as "open". Each time an event occurs that involves that issue, you create a change item for it, which includes a date, description and a new status. This means that you have a powerful history feature for each issue you create: you know exactly what occurred on each date, and what you or a staff member did about it. This program is invaluable for any small business owner.

Business Card Designer Plus (32-bit)
URL: http://www.camdevelopment.com
Registered price: $40
Rating:

This program allows you to create graphics-enhanced business cards on any printer. Features include: drawing tools; templates; clipart for business cards; TWAIN-compatible, so you can acquire images from your scanner; colour printing features; OLE functions; CardExpert wizard for creating a business card within seconds; cropping marks for doing your own cutting, and much more.

Screen Loupe (32-bit)
URL: http://www.execpc.com/~sbd
Registered price: Free
Rating: 

Screen Loupe shows a magnified view of whatever is beneath your mouse's cursor, just like a jeweller's loupe. When you move your mouse around your desktop, the program's display shows the area underneath the mouse at selected magnifications -- normal, 2X, 4X and 8X. You can resize the display as necessary. The program is ideal for desktop publishing and even includes a horizontal ruler, as well as an ASCII chart. You can also copy the display to the clipboard for use in other programs, as well as launch multiple instances of the program.

Perfect Screens (32-bit)
URL: http://labe.felk.cvut.cz/PerfectScreens/ps32.htm  
Registered price: $45
Rating:

Perfect Screens is a virtual desktops manager. You organise your work on as many desktops as you wish, and switch between them at the click of a button -- it's like having several monitors rather than one. You can copy and move windows easily between screens, and your work goes faster because each screen remembers which files, programs or URLs you accessed last. Features include: launching of specified applications when entering a screen; flexible and customisable buttonbars; network support so that it can be used by several people; and privacy -- screens can be password protected. The program appears as a buttonbar and you can use it as you do any other -- launch programs, add items to it, etc.

Windows Commander (32-bit)
URL: http://www.ghisler.com
Registered price: $80
Rating:

Windows Commander is a file manager for Windows 95, which is similar to Windows 3.x Program Manager, as well as to a popular DOS file manager. The program's best feature is its speed. Other features include: keyboard functions, which are similar to the DOS original; drag and drop; extended copying, moving, renaming and deleting of entire directory trees, including full directories; archives handled like subdirectories -- the appropriate archiver is called up from your system to handle them or you can use the internal archivers; enhanced search functions; configurable menus, and many more.

AlarmMaster (16-bit)
URL: http://www.galttech.com
Registered price: $45
Rating:

This program is for you if you find yourself missing appointments, important phone calls or running late. It allows you to set any number of single, daily or recurring alarms. The program includes an online timer with a log, so that you can track your online charges. You can also use it to time your tasks, which is useful if you bill by time.

Turbo Browser 98 (32-bit)
URL: http://www.TurboBrowser.com
Registered price: $100
Rating:

Fed up with Explorer? Try this brilliant replacement. This new version features complete viewers for Office 97 documents, as well as an integrated ActiveX viewer for HTML documents, plus viewers for e-mail, ZIP archives, word processor documents, spreadsheets, images etc. You can also print from the program, play your multimedia files, and much more.

WingDir (32-bit)
URL: http://www.nettally.com/silverwing
Registered price: $18
Rating:

WingDir helps you to synchronise your directories. The program displays side-by-side directory windows. You can move, copy, delete and rename files between the source and target directories and between drives. LANs are supported. You can use filters to select all, the same, identical, different or unique files. You can even switch source and target directories and can print directory listings. This program eliminates mistakes and confusion in file management.

WinZip (32-bit)
URL: http://www.winzip.com
Registered price: $45
Rating:

WinZip is the de facto standard in handling Windows archiving, and if effective archive management is important to you, you need this program. In this latest version, you can choose between the standard interface and the compression wizard, for those who are new to handling archiving.

ZipMagic (32-bit)
URL: www.mijenix.com
Registered price: $45
Rating:

ZipMagic makes zipping and unzipping files completely transparent on your computer, because ZIP files become just like normal folders. You can even open and run files from archives. This program includes a multitude of features: if you handle a lot of zip files, this program is indispensable.

FreeZip (32-bit)
URL: http://www.ganggang.com.au/
Registered price: Free
Rating:

This Australian program adds itself to the right button context menu in Windows 95 and offers full archiving capabilities.

LifeTrax (32-bit)
URL: http://www.ganggang.com.au/
Registered price: $27
Rating:

LifeTrax is an attractive Australian PIM, which comes complete with graphics images sets. You get everything you'd expect in a PIM, including appointments, to-do lists, contact management, and more.

Above and Beyond 98 (32-bit)
URL: www.1Soft.com
Registered price: $80
Rating:

Above and Beyond is a unique PIM in that it takes over much of your time management for you. It features dynamic scheduling, which manages your time and work flow. It does this by automatically calculating the timing as you juggle the order of your tasks by sliding them with your mouse: this makes it an efficient way to plan your day. In addition to the many dynamic scheduling features, Above and Beyond has all the usual PIM features: an address book, notes, recurring tasks, postponements, week and month at a glance, choice of page sizes for printing to your paper organiser, etc. When you try this amazing program, you'll see why it's used in 34 countries, and why it's popular with many of the largest companies worldwide, as well as individuals.

Time and Chaos (32-bit)
URL: http://www.isbister.com
Registered price: $80
Rating:

The best feature of Time & Chaos is the interface: everything is visible on one screen, giving you an excellent perspective of what you need to get done. Drag and drop saves time; for example, you simply drag and drop from your contacts list to your appointments list to create an appointment. Right-click on any area and it becomes a full screen. The phone book is very powerful: it will place voice calls, launch faxes and e-mails, and launches your browser to take you to any World Wide Web address. The program also features tight integration with your other software: you can launch programs, insert OLE data, and more.

Paint Shop Pro 4.14 (32-bit)
URL: http://www.jasc.com
Registered price: $110
Rating:

Paint Shop Pro is a raster format image editing program. Features include: drawing tools; photo retouching tools; special effects, such as drop shadow, buttonise, seamless welder, gradient fill, hot wax coating, chisel and cutout; screen capture; image enhancement and editing tools, such as flip, mirror, rotate, crop; colour enhancement; image viewing and printing; and an image browser. Whether you're creating images for the Web, for business presentations or for school, Paint Shop Pro has all the tools you need.

Poster 5 (32-bit)
URL: http://members.aol.com/postersw
Registered price: $35
Rating:

Poster easily creates large signs, posters, banners and murals, which are difficult (or impossible) to create using standard Windows word processors and graphics programs. Banners can be up to three metres by three metres and even larger at lower resolutions. Features include: complete flexibility in placing graphics; drawing tools; over 100 special effects, such as 3D, rotate, and arch; text and graphics enlarged and tiled over multiple pages; support for all TrueType and ATM fonts; import graphics in popular formats; and full colour text and graphics. You'll also find support for non-standard paper sizes.

Opera (32-bit)
URL: www.operasoftware.com
Registered price: $50
Rating:

Okay, you need to pay for Opera -- but the program soon pays for itself in the time you save. It wins the browser category because it works on older machines, and because it's small, fast and user-friendly. You can try it out for 30 days free and by that time you'll be addicted to it. The many special features include: multiple windows -- Opera retrieves multiple documents and graphics at the same time; a full keyboard interface; document scaling and zooming; and a simple and useable bookmarks manager.

WebFerret (32-bit)
URL: http://www.ferretsoft.com
Registered price: Free
Rating:

With WebFerret you can easily locate the information that you need on the Web. The program queries several of the largest Web search engines simultaneously, and catalogues the results for you, discarding any duplicates that it finds. Results are returned quickly, and you can access the sites by clicking your mouse.

Calypso (32-bit)
URL: www.mcsdallas.com
Registered price: $55
Rating:

Calypso is an excellent full-featured e-mail client, with a familiar Explorer-like interface. It has all the features you expect, plus a lot more, including the ability to create multiple e-mail accounts, automatic reply, spellcheck, import and export address books, etc.

The Bat (32-bit)
URL: http://www.ritlabs.com/the_bat
Registered price: $50
Rating:

The Bat is a new e-mail client. It includes all the features available in older programs, as well as some new ones. You'll find: support for multiple e-mail accounts, multi-language support, an address book, and the ability to check message headers without downloading the whole messages. The program also includes templates for messages as well as replies, plus macros to simplify message handling.

Arachnophilia (32-bit)
URL: www.arachnoid.com/arachnophilia
Registered price: Free
Rating:

Arachnophilia makes it fast and simple to create Web pages, even if you've never created a Web page before. All you need to do is drag an RTF file onto the Arachnophilia screen, and voila! Instant Web file. However, if you want to create HTML pages from scratch, the program makes that easy, too. It includes a complete HTML tutorial. Although it's ideal for novices, the program has lots of features for the experienced, including: tables, frames, forms, graphics, macros, and more. One of the best features is the ability to analyse a site, and to update it automatically. Don't be put off by the fact that this program is free -- it has all the features of shareware programs that you pay dollars for, and then some.

ATRAX (32-bit)
URL: http://www.winwareinc.com
Registered price: $140
Rating:

ATRAX is a new shareware HTML editor with an intuitive interface. ATRAX constructs Web pages in a similar way to desktop publishing and layout applications. This object-oriented style is favoured by high-end commercial HTML editors costing thousands of dollars. The toolbox module contains all the objects you can put on a Web page. The page window lets you drag and drop objects onto it: these objects can include headings, paragraphs and graphics. All the pages you create with ATRAX are stored together as part of one project; this makes it easy to keep track of pages and upload them to your server.

The Secrets of Mastering Your Destiny (32-bit)
URL: http://www.positivechanges
Registered price: $50
Rating:

The Secrets of Mastering Your Destiny is a goal-setting program with PIM-like features. There's a to-do List, a calendar and a timer. However, one of the best features is that you can set the program to flash your goals at you at intervals, which means that there's a fair chance that you'll keep working on your goals because you're reminded of them.

Car Book Plus (16-bit)
URL: http://www.PrimaSoft.com
Registered price: $35
Rating:

Car Book Plus consists of two modules: the Car Mileage Book and the Car Expenses Book. The program provides easy access to all your car records: services, maintenance, repairs, insurance, fuel costs, leasing details, mileage, etc. You can view and print the information you enter in a wide variety of ways. The program's interface, with a format similar to a ring binder, makes using it fun, and it's easy to learn.

by Angela Booth

Games

Quake 2
URL: http://www.idsoftware.com/
Genre: 3D Shooter
Classification: MA15+
List price: $89.95 (full version)
Rating:

This new three level official demo includes multiplayer support. Quake II is the king of first-person shooters combining gorgeous 3D graphics with relentless action. It definitely gets my vote for the best PC game demo currently available. To fully appreciate the visual splendour you will need a good 3D accelerator. At this stage there is direct support for 3Dfx, Power VR PCX2 and some OpenGL compatible cards.

Total Annihilation
URL: http://www.totalannihilation.com/
Genre: Real-time strategy
Classification: G8+
List price: $89.95 (full version)
Rating:

Total Annihilation is currently the best real-time strategy game on the market. With great 3D polygonal graphics and a huge array of command options, this game blows a raspberry in the face of traditional real-time strategy conventions. The demo provides a good sample of what you can expect in the full release via a small selection of missions.

Battlezone
URL: http://www.activision.com/
Genre: 3D action/real-time strategy
Classification: G8+
List price: $89.95 (full version)
Rating:

Based on the '80s arcade classic, Battlezone uses the latest in gaming technology, combining real-time strategy with first-person action. The demo gives you a good idea of what to expect providing training and combat via a variety of missions. Unfortunately, the demo doesn't include support for deathmatch play. The full version of Battlezone really requires a good Direct3D-compatible card to run at its best -- and that goes for the demo as well.

Dark Reign
URL: http://www.activision.com/
Genre: Real-time strategy
Classification: G8+
List price: $89.95
Rating:

With its innovative command options and terrain variables, Dark Reign was definitely a contender for real-time strategy game of the year. Unfortunately for Activision, Total Annihilation eventually won over the majority of strategy fans. However, Dark Reign is definitely worth a look and the demo provides a couple of campaign missions, along with multiplayer support.

Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee
From: GT Interactive
Download the demo from:
ftp://sunsite.doc.ic.ac.uk/Mirrors/ftp.gamesdomain.co.uk/pub/demos/ABEODD.EXE
Genre: Arcade
Classification: G8+ (contains some low-level animated violence)
Full version: Available now
Local Distributor: Roadshow
List price: $89.95
Minimum system requirements: P120, 16Mb RAM, PCI graphics card, Windows 95 <DirectX3.0>
Rating:

Oddworld is an innovative action/puzzle game from GT Interactive. It follows the story of Abe, a strange looking little fellow whose entire race is threatened by an insidiously evil fast-food chain. The graphics are gorgeous with some hilarious villains and fiendish puzzles. This demo doesn't cut any corners, providing you with a sizeable chunk of gameplay.

Tomb Raider II
URL: http://www.eidosinteractive.com/
Genre: Action
Classification: M15+
List price: $89.95 (full version)
Rating:

While I was a little harsh when reviewing the full version of Tomb Raider II, primarily due to its lack of innovation, the demo still provides some gorgeous visuals and challenging foes. And as a demo it is one of the best because you get a lot of action for a measly 3.5Mb download! This is another game which really requires a good Direct3D compatible accelerator card to run at its optimum settings.

by Julian Schoffel

A Music Tutorial
URL: ftp://ftp.flashnet.it/mirror/simtelnet/msdos/music/mtdos13.zip or ftp://ftp.flashnet.it/mirror/simtelnet/win3/music/mtwin16.zip  
Registration: $US19.95
Rating:

A Music Tutorial is excellent for teaching anyone to read treble and bass clef. Top games include the Drive, Note and Piano Key and you can run classic songs such as Sonatina in G by Beethoven and Strauss' Blue Danube Waltz in the background as you play other games.

Math Function Mania
URL: ftp://ftp.sheppardsoftware.com/index.htm
Registration: $US19.99
Rating:

This amusing multimedia game for Years 7 to 12 teaches functions, algebra and problem-solving skills. First detect which function is being used and then click the correct answer. Features include 20 levels of play, a virtually unlimited number of problems, hints, 20 practice rounds and a head-to-head combat option.

Prime Time Math
URL: ftp://ftp.sheppardsoftware.com/index.htm
Registration: $US19.99
Rating:

Improve your word problem solving skills with Prime Time Math, a game for Year 7 to 12 students. It covers skills in prime numbers, factoring, squares, cubes, remainders, fractions, percentages and algebra.