class="align-left" style="border: 0px none; margin-left: 20px; margin-top: 5px; float: right;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/intro3.jpg" alt="linux office suite" width="180" height="210" />Many people install class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/pages/getting-started-guide-linux">Linux on their machines for its simplicity, believe it or not. Distributions like class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/ubuntu-1010-maverick-meerkat-linux/">Ubuntu and class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/linux-mint-your-best-choice-for-a-desktop-linux-os/">Mint target the class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/whats-this-linux-thing-and-why-should-i-try-it/">curious inexperienced user and provide a complete suite of free software to tackle most PC-related tasks.

If you’re regularly tapping away on a word processor, balancing the books with a spreadsheet or knocking your boss’ socks off with a killer presentation then you’ll appreciate the importance of a decent office suite.

Here’s a selection of completely free work-related tools that you may or may not have heard about.

id="more-61841">

class="vt-p" href="http://www.openoffice.org/">OpenOffice.org

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/openoffice.jpg" alt="linux office suite" width="580" height="473" />

Chances are you have heard of this one. It comes pre-installed on a myriad of Linux distributions, including the massively popular and newbie-friendly Ubuntu.

Now at version 3.2 this freeware powerhouse provides a complete solution for any discerning Microsoft Office convert. Modules include:

• Writer – a word processor that natively exports PDF files.
• Calc – a spreadsheet application also with PDF support.
• Impress – a presentation program which can export to SWF & PDF and handle PowerPoint files.
• Base – a database program similar to Access.
• Draw – a vector image editor.
• Math – a tool for calculating mathematical formulae.

It also works on Windows and Mac, so if you’re thinking of making the switch you can try it out on your existing OS first.

class="vt-p" href="http://www.calligra-suite.org/">Calligra Suite (formerly class="vt-p" href="http://www.koffice.org/">KOffice)

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/calligra.jpg" alt="linux office" width="580" height="241" />

This year the KOffice team decided to rename their product Calligra Suite, with the aim of promoting the suite’s creative applications (as well as the boring office stuff you’d expect to find). This makes Calligra Suite a rich package, with 12 years of development behind it and a cracking line-up.

Some highlights from the package include:

• Words (formerly KWord) – a word processor incorporating style sheets.
• Tables (formerly KSpread) – a spreadsheet application with templates.
• Stage (formerly KPresenter) – a presentation application.
• Karbon – a new vector image package.
• Krita (formerly KImageshop) – a bitmap graphics package.

There’s plenty more in the suite, which requires class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/kde/">KDE and its libraries to function. This package also works on Windows and Mac.

class="vt-p" href="http://live.gnome.org/GnomeOffice">GNOME Office

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/gnomeoffice.jpg" alt="linux office" width="580" height="381" />

Comprising of several applications designed for the class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/gnome/">GNOME platform, GNOME Office provides a competent solution for your office needs.

Whilst not as feature-rich as the previous two, there’s still a tool for every job:

• AbiWord – a word processor with support for the OpenOffice.org (.ODT) format.
• Evince – included with your normal GNOME installation for viewing documents, including PDFs.
• Evolution – an email client, also included as part of GNOME.
• GNUMeric – a basic spreadsheet application.
• Ease – for creating presentations, still in development.
• Inkscape – a popular vector image editor and presentation tool.

You’ll need to download each individually, though if you’re using a distribution that uses GNOME you’ll notice a few of them on your machine already.

class="vt-p" href="http://symphony.lotus.com/software/lotus/symphony/home.nsf/home">IBM Lotus Symphony

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/symphony.jpg" alt="linux office" width="580" height="370" />

Symphony is a refreshing change from the usual approach to office software. Instead of providing several different applications to perform each task, Symphony uses a single application in several different ways.

The program can handle class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/harvest-the-web-for-data-with-outwit/">word documents, spreadsheets and presentations and even has a built-in web browser (useful for checking links in documents without losing track of your work).

You’ll need to supply IBM with a little bit of information before downloading, but if you’re after a lightweight single program for office duties then you might be impressed with Symphony’s fairly unique approach.

class="vt-p" href="http://docs.google.com/">Google Docs & class="vt-p" href="http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/web-apps/">Microsoft Office Web Apps

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/officelive.jpg" alt="linux office suite" width="580" height="255" />

My wildcard! The two forerunners in cloud-based office and publishing solutions, both Google and Microsoft’s products will work on any PC with an internet connection and compatible browser.

They’re not strictly Linux applications, but they do function just as well on the Linux platform as they do on other operating systems.

If you’re torn between the two I’d recommend class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/google-docs-spreadsheets/">Google Docs as it allows you to download your work in a variety of formats, rather than Microsoft’s limited proprietary Office file types. Both allow you to print directly from the application and support collaborative editing.

If you’re really after that “application feel” try using Chrome and creating Web Shortcuts. You’ll might even forget they’re running on the cloud!

Conclusion

There should be at least one or two offerings here that take your fancy if you’re looking for that perfect-fit office solution. Considering they’re free, you might as well try them all till you find the one that fits. With selections like this, it’s a wonder why you’d ever pay for an office suite again really.

Do you have a favourite office suite? Do you prefer cloud-based or locally installed software? Any on the list that don’t cut the mustard? Let us know in the comments. />
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class="align-left" style="border: 0px none; margin-left: 20px; margin-top: 5px; float: right;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/git-for-windows.jpg" alt="version control" width="250" height="167" />There comes a time in any coder or non-coder’s life when keeping track of file changes in your own head just gets out of hand. When that happens the logical next step is to move your files, whether it be code, configuration files, text files or other; to a version control system.

class="vt-p" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Git_(software)">Git is a popular version (or revision) control system which is in wide use today and is built for speed and reliability. Although other protocols are available (for example, class="vt-p" href="http://www.nongnu.org/cvs/">CVS or class="vt-p" href="http://subversion.apache.org/">Subversion), Git is one of the more popular ones to use because of its speed, ease of use and availability on a variety of operating systems.

id="more-55012"> /> Git is a great system for many different kinds of items, from configuration files to code, on projects where one person to a whole development team are working on. The Linux kernel is one of the more famous projects which currently use git for version control.

While many power users prefer to use the flexible and powerful git command line, several Windows clients are available which make using a git easier for someone who is not used to the system.

class="vt-p" href="http://code.google.com/p/msysgit/">Git For Windows

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/git-gui.png" alt="version control" width="550" height="423" />

Git for Windows is a Windows port of git with a lightweight interface. It includes the git binaries and a GUI to work with it. Git for Windows, or git-gui, is the most stable of the options even if it lacks some of the more advanced features that the ones below do have.

Make sure you write down the first file – “Git….windows” rather than msysgit, which is command line only and is used in some of the other projects below.

class="vt-p" href="http://code.google.com/p/tortoisegit/">TortoiseGit

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/tortoisegit.png" alt="version control software" width="394" height="470" />

If you are familar with TortoiseSVN, TortoiseGit is a very similar program. Instead of working with an external GUI, TortoiseGit is a shell extension which integrates with your Explorer content menu within Windows. This has both its upside and downsides – you don’t have an external program to deal with but you do need to use the TortoiseGit software to do your merges, check for comparisons (diff) and other features.

class="vt-p" href="http://www.syntevo.com/smartgit/index.html">SmartGit

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/smartgit.png" alt="version control software" width="550" height="435" />

SmartGit bills itself as the ‘easy to use’ git client, and it delivers. SmartGit is probably my favorite of the group, due to its ease of use, built in tools and complete feature set.

One thing that I absolutely love about SmartGit is that it has integration with class="vt-p" href="https://github.com/">GitHub. If you use GitHub to manage your code, this integration makes it a breeze to work with your code. If you are new to git, SmartGit is a good program to start with.

SmartGit requires that you install class="vt-p" href="http://code.google.com/p/msysgit/">msysgit as a prerequisite. It is commercial software but is free for personal use.

class="vt-p" href="http://www.eclipse.org/egit/">EGit for Eclipse

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/egit1.png" alt="version control software" width="497" height="297" />

EGit is an class="vt-p" href="http://eclipse.org/">Eclipse IDE (Integrated Development Environment) plugin. It works to manage your code in the git filesystem while you use Eclipse to actually write your code. Eclipse is a popular free development environment, which is why this is mentioned here.

class="vt-p" href="http://code.google.com/p/gitextensions/">Git Extensions

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/git-extensions.png" alt="version control" width="550" height="404" />

Git Extensions is a Windows Shell Extension for Git, much like TortoiseGit. I have read good things about it, but honestly after I installed it I had some problems and errors that seemed not normal. I was able to fix it by removing the line “hideDotFiles = dotGitOnly” from my .git/configure directory. It also requires that you install 2 external programs, class="vt-p" href="http://code.google.com/p/msysgit/">msysgit and class="vt-p" href="http://kdiff3.sourceforge.net/">Kdiff.

Git Extensions also includes a plugin for Microsoft Visual Studio 2005, 2008 and 2010.

To Each Their Own

The number of Windows git clients is growing constantly. What works for one person might not work for another, so it is important to try out several clients until you find one that works for you in your workflow. There are a number of projects which are working to build some Windows-native git clients such as class="vt-p" href="http://www.eqqon.com/index.php/GitSharp">Git# and also more cross-OS compatible ones like class="vt-p" href="http://eclipse.org/jgit/">JGit.

Do you have a preferred Windows Git client that is not mentioned here? Let us know in the comments below.

Image credit: class="vt-p" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-39089305/stock-photo-program-code-background-hi-res-digitally-generated-image.html?src=321eae4f756275039e7499fafa26bdfd-2-42">Shutterstock, class="vt-p" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.eclipse.org/egit/">Eclipse.org />
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class="align-left" style="border: 0px none; margin-left: 20px; margin-top: 5px; float: right;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/nirvanalogo.png" alt="getting things done" />Getting things done, or GTD, is a popular category of web application software. We have covered class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/manage-tasks-online-gtd-methodology-plancake/">many class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/some-more-gtd-personal-productivity-with-timegt/">GTD class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/gtd-getting-things-done-roundup-time-to-organize/">programs in the past and they each have their own little pros and cons. I am going to introduce you to another one called class="vt-p" href="https://www.nirvanahq.com/">Nirvana ( class="vt-p" href="http://twitter.com/nirvanahq">@nirvanahq on Twitter) and go over some of the things that make this particular product unique and useful.

Before we start, I should mention that Nirvana is currently in private beta. However, Christiane over at Nirvana has kindly offered us beta invites for 500 lucky readers!

id="more-52251">

Getting Things Done (GTD)

A brief summary of Getting Things Done is appropriate here. GTD is a productivity philosophy created by class="vt-p" href="http://www.davidco.com/david_allen.php">David Allen which basically says that in order to maximize your productivity, you need to empty your mind of the tasks on hand and focus on one task a a time.

GTD apps do this by doing a “brain dump” of everything on your mind, giving you the peace of mind that you won’t forget anything yet allow you to work on one project at a time. In today’s fast paced, multitasking world many people (including myself) have found this to be a refreshing take on things, allowing us to “get things done” in the most efficient way possible.

What Is Nirvana?

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/nirvanahq3.png" alt="getting things done" width="550" height="356" />

We have previously covered class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/gtd">lots of GTD apps so I wanted to focus on what makes Nirvana different rather than a list of features, most of which are similar to other task applications.

The one thing that sets Nirvana apart from other GTD apps is its strict adherence to the basic tenets of Getting Things Done. Many apps I’ve seen have gone feature crazy and the end result is an overbloated, complicated mess of a task manager. Toodledo has been my go-to app for managing my ever growing task list, and it has been great to me. However I think Nirvana’s brilliance is in its simplicity.

You can enter tasks by themselves, or group them into Projects. The tasks entries are fairly straight forward, with the following options available:

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/nirvanahq2.png" alt="getting things done" width="235" height="159" />

• Scheduled For
• Due Date
• Effort (Time)
• Energy

Tasks and projects can also be broken down into Areas, such as home, work or school; allowing you to separate these areas and use Nirvana for each particular focus area of your life.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/nirvanahqticklers.png" alt="productivity software" width="316" height="261" />

Another important tenet of GTD are “ticklers.” In an old office setting these were folders which you would put things that were due for that particular day – 43 folders of them (12 for months, 31 for days). In Nirvana, this is accomplished by email ticklers.

On each day, you can be reminded of what tasks you have scheduled or due on that day. This is handy for remembering to pay bills, or tasks that have been given due dates by your superiors. These are set up in the account settings, where you can also find a specific email address you can use to send tasks to from anywhere.

Mobile

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/photo-e1282741174125.png" alt="productivity software" width="350" height="525" />

Many apps now have iPhone and/or Android applications to complement their web offerings and I think this is an important aspect of keeping in tune what you need to get done. Often I do my best thinking when I am in the car and it is essential to be able to get my thoughts down into my task manager.

Nirvana is no different. Instead of going the ‘App’ route, they actually have created a compelling mobile website which is customized to your platform. When using this on my iPhone, the web app is responsive and feels like a native app, which impressed me the most. Transitions are intact and everything feels very fluid.

An iPhone native app is planned for the future, and I would be keen to try this out as well.

The Future

The future also looks very bright for Nirvana. Nirvana is a startup based in Montreal and their team is very accessible if you have feature suggestions or bug inquiries. They have a list of class="vt-p" href="http://help.nirvanahq.com/faqs/site-updates/whats-next">things they are actively working on, which includes a developer API, feeds and an improved import/export. One feature I see lacking, and this may actually be a plus, is the lack of any type of group organization or task management. For some I see this as a benefit, however if you are looking for a group task manager it would be best to use another GTD style app.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/nirvanahq1.png" alt="productivity software" width="550" height="198" />

On to the beta invites! Use the code ‘makeuseofgtd‘ in the class="vt-p" href="https://www.nirvanahq.com/account/signup">New Account Signup box to receive your invitation instantly. When you enter your email on the first page, they will confirm your email address and continue with the signup process.

Let us know how you find Nirvana, we found this app to be refreshing in its simplicity and design and hope you find it useful as well. />
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Most of us encounter this situation at some point, you buy a new Pc, it functions fine for a couple of months and unexpectedly your computer just isn’t the same as it used to be, you start getting these annoying error messages, system 32 errors and maybe even software malfunctions. Luckily, professional Advanced Registry Fix Tool can quickly repair most of these problems. By reading this review you’ll be able to put an end to most of these problems.

Ever wondered about what windows registry is? Well, Win-registry is a Win db which basically stores various information and configurations about software & hardware installed on your computer. This information is being used by your PC’s Windows os. When time passes by, several software installations and other files that are being used can corrupt your windows reg., causing your computer to start popping up a wide range of errors, reducing your PC’s speed and even affecting your Web access speed.

As you can see it is necessary to preserve your Windows registry database clean and undamaged. The more we do that, the better. Now, you probably already ask yourself how you can do that. If you know how to access and maintain your registry, then that can be easily done manually, it should be quite easy for you, but when it comes to hundreds and even thousands of h/w & s/w settings on your Pc you may find this task quite frustrating since it would require much of your time & effort. Many pc users don’t even know where to begin or what to do, so it is necessary to either let an experienced technician to repair and maintain your registry (Can be very expensive…) or try a professional registry cleaning software.

Very quickly – Advanced Registry Fix Tool is a tool which enables you to quickly scan, find and repair/eliminate unwanted items from your Pc’s registry. Such software solution enables you to prevent and eliminate popular computer problems, blue screens, iexplore errors, Windows startup errors and a wide range of other popular Computer errors that most of us usually experience on a regular basis.

A quick web search reveals dozens of Advanced Registry Fix Tool solutions on the Net, it is advised to compare between several top programs and identify which programs are truly effective on helping you to easily improve your Pc’s performance.

Is the term adware new to you? For the technically proficient people, such term may not be entirely new to them. But for those who are intrigued by the term, it is now high time that you brace yourself with the truth behind its name.  Adware stands for advertising-supported software. What is this all about then? Adware is in truth any kind of software package that displays, play, or downloads automatically all sorts of advertising materials into the computer either after the installation of such software or during such time when the application is currently being run or used.

How can this be? You might be wondering. Basing on its application procedures, the adware is some kind of software that is either bundled together with another program or is integrated into a particular software. Adware is often used by a programmer because it is a means of recovering the overall programming development costs. Most of the times too, adware permits the use of the program with either no charge at all or at a relatively low price. Thus, the use of the adware continuously motivates the programmer to maintain, write, and upgrade such kind of software product. Some of the existing adwares are likewise sharewares. How does each of them differ in characteristics and use? Adware is primarily oriented to be advertising supported. The users of the software are also offered choices of whether or not to pay for the licensed or registered copies so as to do away with all those popping up advertisements.  

Apart from all these, the existence of the adware is held up in controversy. Why so? It is because the adware is a software which is a disguised as a type of spyware. The adware vehemently tracks, reports, and usually resells the particular information about a user and his activities without his slightest knowing. Oftentimes, adware is also a malware. Meaning, it is able to interrupt with the rest of the computer software applications in use so as to force the computer users to visit the advertised website. Adware, spyware, and malware are the terms which may be misconstrued for one another. The shortest explanation to this confusion is when the user gets to install adware on one particular computer and then is geared towards activating it for a tracking tool; then, the adware now becomes a spyware. Meaning, when another user comes to use that certain computer, his activities get tracked by the adware without him knowing it.

Adware removal is done by employing certain programs that will detect, then quarantine, and totally remove the adware as well as its being a spyware. Some of the best adware removal applications include Lavasoft’s Adware, BulletProofSoft’s BPS Spyware Adware, Sunbelt Software’s CounterSpy, Patrick Kolla’s Spybot Search and Destroy, Intermute’s SpySubtract, Webroot’s SpySweeper, and PCTool’s Spyware Doctor. These adware removal applications are devised to detect the spyware present in the system and also to stop them from producing viruses that will harm the computer system. Aside from using these adware removal software, there are likewise several modes to prevent its attack on your system. For one, activate the general security especially when you are browsing the Internet. Also, keep an updated Windows Update, make use of an alternative browser, and install the ad-blocking software. You can always protect yourself if only you know how.

Have you had enough with your slow windows? Well, there are few steps you can take in order to speed up windows xp shutdown, but, there is even an easier way to do that which basically doesn’t require you to have any special skills or require you to fix your Computer manually. Read the following quick article and easily find out the best way that’ll enable you to effectively improve your pc’s performance.

Does your computer keep ‘freezing’? or maybe you probably experience unknown error messages, boot errors, and other familiar windows performance issues – in most cases it is is probably about your Windows registry system. When time passes by, when you install and uninstall different programs onto your operating system, it happens that few applications aren’t installed properly, while corrupting parts of your windows registry.

The registry is a Windows database – it stores information about your different installations. Your windows system uses this information while using each of your hardware or software. Now you can imagine how sensitive your operating system is.

If you wish to speed up windows xp shutdown you must preserve your win-registry in one piece – damaged windows reg. can cause your System serious malfunctions that in most cases stop or even freeze programs and even your entire pc.

As you probably already understand the registry is quite complex, it is highly recommended not to try and fix it on your own unless you know for 100% what you are doing – it can cause you even more problems. The most effective way to speed up windows xp shutdown is to use a professional registry repairing program and let it scan, identify, and remove any registry error for you. This cleaning process can at minimal effort repair your Pc’s performance issues and maintain your Pc’s productivity on the best side. A wide range of these applications provide scheduled auto-clean up tasks and automatic system updates, so it easily enables you to maintain your windows optimized day-by-day.

I went to bed last night at 2am because my anti virus software started to scan my system and since this takes up a lot of resources I figured that when I woke up the next day that everything would be done. Boy, was I wrong. I’ve been using computers for a very long time, a lot of years. I do Spyware scans, Adware scans and virus scans every day because I am running Windows as my main operating system. I need to seriously think about getting a Mac instead.

Every day now this maintenance routine takes longer to complete. I don’t have some enormous hard drive, I only have about 160 gigs total but 40 gigs are free and 20 gig is for another operating system so in reality I only have to scan maybe 100 gigs. I saw a 1,000 gig hard drive at the computer store and I have given some serious though to getting one but if it takes almost an entire day to scan 100 gig just think how long it would take if I had a 1,000 gig hard drive.

I have a lot of Windows programs installed on my machine but most of them are also available in a Macintosh version. I could get one of those new Mini Mac’s and still have part of the drive running Windows. I would have the bigger part of the drive running Mac OS though. The only reason I don’t switch everything over to Linux is because the GUI runs a lot slower than Windows does. But in reality Windows was Bill Gates stolen Mac OS. Mac OS was the first of its kind, an operating system with a GUI that ran a lot easier than doing everything at command line like Do and Unix.

Some Day in the near future all applications will be web based not just things like word processor, spreadsheets and desktop publishing b ut hopefully things like Dreamweaver. When this happens in the near future then whether you are using Windows or Mac OS everything will run. Switching over will almost be completely painless.. I foresee this happening by the year 2010 but to have to go through another 3 years of scanning daily for Spyware, Adware, viruses and trojans is something I cannot grasp.

Macintosh still has some of the same threats that windows has but on a much lighter scale. For every 120 Windows threats the Mac maybe has 1. The Mac has always handled memory a lot better than PC’s and the Mac is the preferred system for anybody that works in design using graphics. PDF documents will run on Windows and Mac’s. Without web based word processors then you would need to take all your doc files and convert them to a Mac format but now with Web applications I don’t think this will be a heavy concern.

Using a computer is something that most people do just a couple hours a day at most but no more since it takes so damn long for my computer to check for viruses. It used to take maybe an hour or two at most but it never has ever taken 20 hours before. Hell, I could have major surgery done in a lot less time then it takes my computer nowadays to check for viruses. When you compound this with having to check for Adware, Spyware, and trojans we are talking about a major time investment if you are using a computer that has Windows on it.