The Freeware and Open Source Software Thread

[Raz]

I hope you do get around to updating this; this is the second most useful thread on the org, surpassed only by the babe thread.


Thank you for the time and effort you've put into it so far!

[Montmorency]

I have always been the sort to keep many Internet browser windows/tabs open at a time, even during those years when memory capacity and IE confined me to no more than 25 tabs before the desktop froze or crashed.

First, it was an extensive folder system of IE Favorites.

Then, it was txt files or email drafts packed with categorized and annotated links.

Then, after Chrome and 8GB of RAM let me push past 100 tabs, it was periodic browser crashes followed by tearful History archaeology to salvage what I could.

A few years ago, I adopted Chrome extensions such as Session Buddy to keep track of closed and open tabs, and that was a godsend.

Nevertheless, memory leakage would inevitably bring my OS session to 90+% physical memory usage. While not necessarily leading to lag, freezing, or crashes much of the time, I was still left with the problem of being unable to run anything other than utilities and minimally-intensive games without closing my browser first.

When I got that brand new computer a year ago with 16GB of RAM, I could comfortably run 150+ tabs and most-anything else simultaneously, but maintaining the browser (I usually keep the computer running on Standby when not in use, or Hibernate for longer periods) would eventually eat through uncommitted memory. In the end, I would still have to regularly go pruning in task managers to get respite for fresh work.

Now, for the first time in a decade of personal memory use, I asked myself: shouldn't there be something to optimize browser memory usage without obliging me to manually fiddle with memory allocations - or worse, actually compromise on my active tabs?

So I did a search and picked one of the first things I came across. A simple and undocumented tool, but it makes a tremendous difference. Where previously Chrome at 150 tabs would stabilize around 10-11GB usage, with occasional spikes to absolute ceiling depending on my activities, it now is contained at half that (i.e. 5-6 GB). This is all without Adblock or Noscript, mind you. I dropped Skyrim a month after I got my new rig because, as tedious as all the modding had been, it was even more tedious to keep my playing and my browsing largely separate. Now I can comfortably play Skyrim without special arrangements.

A good step IMO. I'll probably get around to adopting a more rigorous optimizer at some point - in a year? As for user hygiene, well...

[Beskar]

You could close tabs when you are done with them. You don't need to read 150 odd at the same time!

[Husar]

I wonder how you manage 150 tabs, I would imagine you either have problems clicking them at the top (if they're all there at once) and remembering what is open in which one anyway or you'd have multiple lines cluttering most of your screen, or have to scroll left and right through the list. Whatever it is, it sounds like just using well-sorted bookmarks or quick-select options would be faster.

[Montmorency]

You could close tabs when you are done with them. You don't need to read 150 odd at the same time!

I'm never done. Many stay open for months before I'm done, or compromise, or give up. In terms of a Ship of Theseus, you might call this the same set of windows I had at some point in 2013 (App Data copied over during computer replacement).

I wonder how you manage 150 tabs, I would imagine you either have problems clicking them at the top (if they're all there at once) and remembering what is open in which one anyway or you'd have multiple lines cluttering most of your screen, or have to scroll left and right through the list.

On a 24" monitor, the tabs in a single window aren't uncomfortably crowded unless there are, say, more than 115. I use multiple windows at a time - minimally a second window for prurient content...

Generally, I have a good idea of what stretches of tabs are what sort of content, when I opened them, and what I need to do with them. For example, I keep my email pages, forum pages, and any other important services involving user accounts, adjacent to each other near the left edge of all the tabs.

Whatever it is, it sounds like just using well-sorted bookmarks or quick-select options would be faster.

It's not - I have the experience.

[peeriazu]

Any freeware that could help get back Windows password?

[MaminEry]

Ophcrack works on Windows 7 pcs:
http://ophcrack.sourceforge.net/
Kon-Boot works on Windows 10/8/7 pcs:
https://kon-boot.com/docs/
https://www.winpwd.com/
And What Windows computer you are using now?
The last methods support all Widnows OS.