Not everyone gets by with the default browser on their computer, and when it comes to picking an alternative, Firefox is one of the most popular out there, having clawed back support from upstart rivals like Google Chrome and Opera in recent years by switching to a rapid release cycle, ensuring major new versions of the browser are released every six weeks.

It’s true to say that individual updates often fail to deliver anything substantial, but cumulatively they roll together to produce a web browser that is radically different to the one – version 4 – that marked the start of a new era back in 2011.

Some of the landmark new features we’ve seen include a per-site Permissions Manager, enhanced Sync options, tabs on demand, silent updates and add-on enhancements. We also saw the launch of specific development branches including UX, which has led to the new Australis user interface, which sees a streamlined tab, revamped menu and customisation features.

One group particularly well served by the rapid release cycle have been developers, and a plethora of tools from Javascript Scratchpad (Firefox 6) to full-blown Developer Toolbar (Firefox 16) have worked their way into successive builds as Firefox courts this important community of users.

And underpinning this all are a constantly evolving set of performance improvements, standards support (HTML5 and CSS3 are constantly being added to, for instance) and bug fixes.

Firefox 62.0 is now in the stable channel. Improvements/changes include:

- Firefox Home (the default New Tab) now allows users to display up to 4 rows of top sites, Pocket stories, and highlights
- “Reopen in Container” tab menu option appears for users with Containers that lets them choose to reopen a tab in a different container
- In advance of removing all trust for Symantec-issued certificates in Firefox 63, a preference was added that allows users to distrust certificates issued by Symantec. To use this preference, go to about:config in the address bar and set the preference "security.pki.distrust_ca_policy" to 2.
- Added FreeBSD support for WebAuthn
- Improved graphics rendering for Windows users without accelerated hardware using Parallel-Off-Main-Thread Painting
- Support for CSS Shapes, allowing for richer web page layouts. This goes hand in hand with a brand new Shape Path Editor in the CSS inspector.
- CSS Variable Fonts (OpenType Font Variations) support, which makes it possible to create beautiful typography with a single font file

Not everyone gets by with the default browser on their computer, and when it comes to picking an alternative, Firefox is one of the most popular out there, having clawed back support from upstart rivals like Google Chrome and Opera in recent years by switching to a rapid release cycle, ensuring major new versions of the browser are released every six weeks.

It’s true to say that individual updates often fail to deliver anything substantial, but cumulatively they roll together to produce a web browser that is radically different to the one – version 4 – that marked the start of a new era back in 2011.

Some of the landmark new features we’ve seen include a per-site Permissions Manager, enhanced Sync options, tabs on demand, silent updates and add-on enhancements. We also saw the launch of specific development branches including UX, which has led to the new Australis user interface, which sees a streamlined tab, revamped menu and customisation features.

One group particularly well served by the rapid release cycle have been developers, and a plethora of tools from Javascript Scratchpad (Firefox 6) to full-blown Developer Toolbar (Firefox 16) have worked their way into successive builds as Firefox courts this important community of users.

And underpinning this all are a constantly evolving set of performance improvements, standards support (HTML5 and CSS3 are constantly being added to, for instance) and bug fixes.

Firefox 62.0 is now in the stable channel. Improvements/changes include:

- Firefox Home (the default New Tab) now allows users to display up to 4 rows of top sites, Pocket stories, and highlights
- “Reopen in Container” tab menu option appears for users with Containers that lets them choose to reopen a tab in a different container
- In advance of removing all trust for Symantec-issued certificates in Firefox 63, a preference was added that allows users to distrust certificates issued by Symantec. To use this preference, go to about:config in the address bar and set the preference "security.pki.distrust_ca_policy" to 2.
- Added FreeBSD support for WebAuthn
- Improved graphics rendering for Windows users without accelerated hardware using Parallel-Off-Main-Thread Painting
- Support for CSS Shapes, allowing for richer web page layouts. This goes hand in hand with a brand new Shape Path Editor in the CSS inspector.
- CSS Variable Fonts (OpenType Font Variations) support, which makes it possible to create beautiful typography with a single font file

LibreOffice has long since moved on from being an offshoot of the OpenOffice project. It's now the go-to alternative to Microsoft Office, enjoying regular development and a constant tweaking to keep it up to date, stable and secure.

While LibreOffice lacks the slick presentation of rival Windows freebie Kingsoft Office Suite Free and its Office-inspired ribbon interface, it has the major advantage of offering a full set of office applications, including database, drawing package and mathematical tool on top of the requisite word processor, spreadsheet and presentation tool found in most free office suites.

While it’s definitely more navigable than before thanks to better placement of tools and visual previews of styles direct from the main toolbar, it still looks a little dated, despite the refreshed icon sets. Nevertheless, this is still a powerful suite capable of meeting most people's needs, making this zero-cost alternative to Office a valuable tool to have in your armoury.

Ever-improving support for third-party file types (including both new and classic Office formats) means you're not cutting yourself off from industry standards while cross-platform support means you can run LibreOffice on Windows, Mac or Linux without having to retrain yourself to a new way of working each time.

What else is new in LibreOffice 6.1 (see changelog for more info)?

- Colibre, a new icon theme for Windows based on Microsoft's icon design guidelines, which makes the office suite visually appealing for users coming from the Microsoft environment;
- A reworked image handling feature, which is significantly faster and smoother thanks to a new graphic manager and an improved image lifecycle, with some advantages also when loading documents in Microsoft proprietary formats;
- The reorganization of Draw menus with the addition of a new Page menu, for better UX consistency across the different modules;
- A major improvement for Base, only available in experimental mode: the old HSQLDB database engine has been deprecated, though still available, and the new Firebird database engine is now the default option (users are encouraged to migrate files using the migration assistant from HSQLDB to Firebird, or by exporting them to an external HSQLDB server);
- Significant improvements in all modules of LibreOffice Online, with changes to the user interface to make it more appealing and consistent with the desktop version;
- An improved EPUB export filter, in terms of link, table, image, font embedding and footnote support, with more options for customizing metadata;
- Online Help pages have been enriched with text and example files to guide the users through features, and are now easier to localize.

Malwarebytes 3 is the next generation of the popular malware killer, Malwarebytes Anti-Malware.

The product is a combination of every Malwarebytes technology, including anti-malware, anti-exploit, anti-ransomware, web protection and more.

The interface is straightforward and familiar. A dashboard displays your current status, you can launch a scan with a click, and most of the time there's nothing else to do at all.

This doesn't mean you won't notice any changes. Despite all the extra technologies, for instance, Malwarebytes says system scans are now 3x to 4x faster.

Experienced users will also find an array of options, switches and settings to help tweak the program.

To take a single example, you don't just have an option to turn the anti-exploit on or off. You can also configure 6 separate six component technologies (DEP, anti-heapspraying, ASLR, more), eight memory protection methods, five application behaviour checks, five Java technologies, and individually define the types of apps where each of these will be used (browsers, Office, PDF readers, media players, more).

Please note, this version willl automatically update any existing Malwarebytes Anti-Malware, Anti-Exploit and Anti-Ransomware installations to a 14-day trial of Malwarebytes 3.0.

What's new in 3.6.1.2711 (see changelog for more)?

- TBC

TeamViewer 13 is the latest version of the popular remote access/control program.

As with previous editions, you can use it to access your own computer across the internet, maybe recovering some important document you've left at home. Or you can use it to remotely control another PC where TeamViewer is also installed; so if a friend's having technical troubles, you can log on to their system, even through most firewalls, and troubleshoot the computer as though you were sitting in front of it.

What's new in TeamViewer 13.2 (see the changelog for more info)?  

- Single-Window User Interface. 9 out of 10 users are extremely satisfied with the new design, that condenses and simplifies multiple windows and tools into one easy-to-use, re-sizable client window, that also remains open when establishing a remote control connection.
- Reports in servicecamp. Use the in-built reporting functionality, or instantly integrate servicecamp data into tools such as Excel, Power BI, and Tableau, or any other data environment you are familiar with, to gain even greater insights.
- Active Directory Connector. Ensure the right people always have access to a company TeamViewer account. Use the new graphical user interface of the AD Connector to configure and synchronize multiple AD groups, execute test runs, and set up scheduled synchronizations.

The speed at which some programs update can be frightening. While some may alert you every time an update becomes available, quickly and (relatively) effortlessly installing the new version for you, others remain stubbornly outdated. Who knows what bug fixes, performance improvements and new features you might be missing out on?

You can, of course, stay up to date by regularly trawling this very site for your favourite software, but why put yourself through all that hassle when this app exists to make the task of updating your software that much easier?

The Downloadcrew UpdateScanner – as its name implies – will scan all of the software installed on your PC and compare it with our database. If there’s an updated version of your software on the site, you’ll be alerted to the fact.

You can either review updates manually, click “Download them now” to view them all in a single, convenient window or report unrecognised applications to us for further investigation. You can then update the ones that interest you and, hey presto, job done.

The app will then continue to monitor your system, alerting you to new updates as well as free software giveaways on the site, so you’ll never miss out on a full, free commercial app giveaway again.

You’ll need a free Downloadcrew account to use the service – click here to register.

Version 2 of the UpdateScanner features an "App Store" (name change forthcoming), alerting you to the latest and most popular downloads on the site, news and tips from sister site Softwarecrew and a selection of great savings to be made on software purchases.

Important: note that the UpdateScanner does not support betas and unreleased versions. If you install an alpha, beta or newer version than we have on Downloadcrew, then you'll receive a notification than the installed version is newer than the latest version! Also, if a developer gives their software an obscure version number (Paragon Software products are good examples), then these are also unsupported.

Build 2.1.1.0 is a minor maintenance release which includes these improvements/fixes:

- Now uses https with a secure connection to the update service
- Removed XP and Vista support