Use trial software indefinitely

This is related somewhat to my other post regarding portable software and traveling kits.

When I was still searching for (preferably free) software to make my apps portable as easy as possible, I stumbled upon a really awesome application virtualization piece of software called Altiris SVS. The personal version of SVS is free and can be downloaded here:

SvsDownloads

Just click on the right side button "Get SVS".You will need a personal license which you can get from here. Just click on the "Accept" button and you will download a zip file containing your license.

Like I previously said, Altiris SVS does virtualization at the application level, meaning it "contains" or traps each software in it's own virtual layer and allows it to run without interfering with any of the files outside the layer.

This means no more corrupted operating files, no more different versions of .net installed since you can bundle each program with it's own .net version and run it in a separate isolated layer, no more different versions of Java JRE, no need to have to uninstall an application because it got corrupted (you can just "reset" the virtual layer and it will return to it's original, fully functional state) and many other benefits.

It occurred to me a little earlier today that application virtualization can also be used to be able to run trial software for an indefinite period of time (legally I believe).

Once 30 days pass for instance, you can get reset the layer and start a new 30 day period all over again.

I'm not particularly interested in this at the moment, but I guess it could come in handy at some point.So far I virtualized all my apps and could't be happier, no problems so far.

If you plan to use SVS, do not skip on reading the manual.You will need to setup a sandbox in order to do a clean capture of the program you want to virtualize.You can use MokaFive, Virtualbox, VMWare etc...just do a search for desktop virtualization software and you will find something that fits your needs for sure.

You can also watch a product tour of SVS here if you want to find out more:

SVS Product Tour

Softwares similar in functionality to antiviruses, firewalls, print to pdf drivers, drive defragmentation ones etc will most likely not virtualize correctly.Read the manuals once again, can't stress this enough.

Also, software that has hardware-based licensing activation would be pointless to install into a virtual sandbox.If you know you have software of this type, do a fresh operating system re-install, install SVS and then capture the install process of the software in cause so that when you activate the software, it will generate a license that matches your real hardware.

Ultimate travelling kit

I've been doing some research lately on how to better protect my data when traveling and how to be able to carry my favorite software and use it from a USB flash drive.

I'm a strong adept of the saying "Paranoia keeps me alive".

First, I looked for a flash drive that provided encryption without having to install additional software... I found something even better coming with hardware encryption provided by a cryptochip that prevents encryption keys from being transferred and stored onto PCs:

IronKey flash drive available in 1,2,4 and 8GB capacities, waterproof, with metal casing, self destructs after 10 failed password-guessing attempts.Data will be completely unrecoverable after that.Ships with Firefox installed and optionally a user can use IronKey's dedicated TOR network for anonymous surfing.

IronKey's official website: www.ironkey.com

I then wanted a hardware firewall on a USB interface.

I found several ones from Yoggie. Prices from $119 to $249 depending on the device's ability.

These are the main benefits of using a hardware firewall over a software one:

* no extra CPU resources are consumed if you use a hardware firewall
* no extra RAM used
* does not affect bootup times
* no nasty popups or all sorts of warnings (think of a default config Zone Alarm that can drive you crazy sometimes)
*minimizes overall system performance loss
*physical separation from the network

These things have way too many features to be mentioned here.Visit Yoggies site and pick the one suitable to your workflow.

Yoggie official website: www.yoggie.com

Next I wanted to be able to carry my software with me and use it from a usb flash drive.

There's the (illegal) option of making your own portable software using the Thinstall virtualization suite...I'm saying illegal because you have to be crazy to pay more than 5k for an official Thinstall license just to make your software portable.

I then found Ceedo which together with the addon Argo allows you to make your own portable software.I already successfully made my MS Office suite portable using this, so chances are most apps are portable.A license for Ceedo Personal + Argo costs just $39, very affordable.

I found out about Ceedo by taking a closer look at Lexar's PowerToGo drives and found out the "magic" software they come with is in fact provided by Ceedo.

The trial version I used is available for 45 days so there's plenty of time to test it before you decide to buy.

Ceedo's official website: www.ceedo.com

Another option: MojoPac

Tried to make portable another software this time with MojoPac, unfortunately it failed and because it took such a horrible amount of time to start I decided against attempting one more time.

However, you might have more success and patience than me. Btw, MojoPac Personal is free.

MojoPac's website: www.mojopac.com

3rd Option: Prayaya V3

Seems to work on similar principles, however I did not test it myself.

Prayaya official site: www.prayaya.com

4th option: MokaFive

For complete desktop virtualization, based on VMWare.This is a bit overkill because you can basically create a complete "pc" using it...you have to install an OS first, I chose Win Xp and then you can install any apps you want inside the virtual machine you created.

If you frequently need a sandbox, then MokeFive will probably be very useful to you.
Obviously, you need lots and lots of RAM not to feel any serious performance loss when running a "LivePC" as they call it.

Their ExpressSolution I tried is completely free.

Although based on VMWare, it comes with many other extra features, find out more at MokaFive's official website: www.mokafive.com