I have been using this product since its early releases (purchased this version as an upgrade through Acronis). This backup software got me out of trouble a few times including one incident which my PC’s hard drive completely crashed. I was able to recover all my backup data and got my computer going again within 1-2 days. It took about 4 hours on the average to backup 250 Gbytes of data with the verify option turned on.

The installation of this software went pretty smooth and it automatically downloaded the latest version from the internet through the installation process. I also did a performance benchmark test using PCmark (a standard PC benchmarking program) before and after the installation. There were no noticeable differences in the PCmark score (6206 before the install and 6224 after. The higher the score the better). I also did a full scan after the installation.

I have been using the Corel VideoStudio software for many years for creating family videos and my Youtube videos.. I am very pleased with its vast selection of features, ease of use, and stability. The Corel VideoStudio Ultimate X7 packs with a lot of new enhancements particularly its support of the 64 bit performance support. Another new feature I like is the Fastflick with pre-loaded video templates which makes it easier for our video projects.

The Kaspersky Internet Security software works pretty well on my desktop PC and Android devices. The installation was pretty straight-forward without any issues. What I like about this product :nn- one license for multiple devices (PC, laptop, smartphone, tablets)n- real-time protection with anti-theft featuresn- malware protection and identity theft protectionnnRecommended

I have been using Norton 360 for all of my PC and laptops at home for many years. It is a trusted product and is more stable than many similar products out on the market. Here is what I like about this product :nn- easy to install and very user friendly to usen- provides robust protection against on-line threats and virusesn- does not take up a lot of CPU and memory resourcesn- automatic and user programmable scanning and optimizationn- automatic backup of key files with encryption option

I have been using the TurboTax Premier software for many years for preparing and filing my Federal and State tax returns. The software is easy to use and is great for those who have investments, rental properties and itemized deductions. I can import stocks trading transactions from my financial institutions to my 1099. We can also import previous year’s data with the convenience of electronic filing. A nice new feature included in this year’s version is the retirement tax help feature which is tailored to helping those who are retired to maximize their returns.

I have used several paint programs including the Corel Painter X3 which is intended for more serious and professional applications. The Corel Painter Essentials 5 provides a set of nice features for general photos touch-up and artwork painting. I like its simple user friendly interface which requires very little learning to use. The program also works nicely with my Wacom tablet. On top of its standard painting tools, the program also has an auto-paint feature which automatically enhance our photos with various styles and effects.

I have been using many different types of Anti-virus and Anti-spyware products for many years. The Norton 360 ranks amongst the top for the following reasons :nn- Stability. I seldom have any installation issues installing this software on my PCs with different OS (XP and Vista) and hardware configurationsnn- Speed. Virus scanning is relatively fast as compared to other productsnn- Automated scheduled scanning for tuning up your PC. The feature which I did not enjoy was the backup function.

I have been using the Corel PaintShop Pro software since its earliest version and it is still the main photo-editing software I use everyday among other photo-editing software including the PhotoShop. What I like about the Corel PaintShop Pro software are its ease of use and the wealth of features for general quick /easy and the more advanced photo editing. Here are some of the features I use most often for quick editing :nn- smart photo fix : allows a 1-click photo enhancement with real time review and adjustment to our likingn- various photo brushes (clone brush, scratch remover etc) for quick touch-up of the photosn- white balance adjustment for the perfect color balancingn- skin smoothing which makes us look years youngernnThe software comes with a wealth of advanced features including layering, masking, vector objects, stack filters, raw processing and a variety of photo effects.

I have also taken a local community college on-line course on DreamWeaver CS5 training. This video in comparison is quite a bit better in terms of the rich contents and course layout. The video has 17 sections covering the key elements of CS5 which allow the user to learn how to create a local web site from scratch and uploading it to the server. Each section is also broken down to several 3-6 minutes sub-sections which is just right in terms of the duration.