Beat mobile broadband problems with the right software toolkit

This week, broadband forum expert Matt Powell looks at the various free software options available to improve your broadband experience, especially if you're using mobile broadband. 

As the old saying goes, you need the right tool for the job. It's a truism that applies just as well to streams of 1s and 0s as it does to DIY and gardening - having the right programs installed on your PC or laptop can give you more control and security and is especially important for mobile broadband users, who need to maximise their connection speed and watch data usage to avoid extra costs.

That's why, for the second of this month's techy blog posts, we're going to check out some essential applications and software related tips. Home broadband users shouldn't feel left out either, as most of this applies to speedier fixed-line connections too.

Lock the doors

Security is the first and most important thing to consider. You won't come under fire from viruses the moment you go online, but they are out there, so anti-virus and other security tools are a must-have.

• Avira AntiVir

Your PC may have come bundled with Norton or McAfee anti-virus, but there are free applications which perform as well, or better. Avira AntiVir is my favourite, as it doesn't slow things down and has excellent detection rates. Also worth considering are Avast and AVG.

• SuperAntiSpyware

SuperAntiSpyware is an efficient, unobtrusive free tool for detecting and eradicating spyware: sneaky programs that can get up to all kinds of mischief, from monitoring your activities for advertising to redirecting your web browser. Spyware is more common than viruses, so it's important you're protected.

• WinPatrol

The very handy WinPatrol keeps a careful eye on your system, watching for changes. If a program tries to boot itself with Windows or make edits to your system files, WinPatrol lets you know. With this installed you've got a much greater degree of control, and it's particularly useful for monitoring programs which may try to run updates in the background and use up that precious data allowance.

• Windows Firewall

A firewall monitors and filters network traffic, the idea being to prevent hackers and viruses jumping on-board. Not as vital as anti-virus, but the firewall built in to Windows does a perfectly competent job, so check it is enabled (it's accessed via Security Centre).

However, mobile broadband users may want to install something a little more advanced, such as Comodo, because one of the things you can do with a firewall is block outgoing network traffic (Windows Firewall isn't so hot at that). This is great if a program insists on trying to update without your knowledge - just block it through your firewall and save on the data costs.

Smart surfing

Web browsers allow you to control the type of content that's displayed on a page, and that's extremely handy for mobile broadband users. Switch off multimedia content and pages will load a little quicker and use less data. In Internet Explorer you can do this by opening Internet Options then clicking on the Advanced tab, but the alternative web browser Firefox, with its huge library of plugins, offers far more flexibility (and is quicker than IE).

Firefox has thousands of free add-ons available to download at the home page, and some are extremely useful.

AdBlock Plus does what it says and blocks ads, not just annoying pop-ups but embedded ads, too. Makes web browsing a more pleasant experience and pages load quicker.

FlashBlock prevents Flash content from loading automatically, so when you go to YouTube, for example, you have to click a little icon before the video plays. Saves bandwidth and, since heavy Flash usage can slow your browser, makes surfing the web a little smoother.

NoScript offers the ability to block plugins such as Javascript and Java, which can be a security risk as well as throttling your browsing speed.

There are many more add-ons available, so go check it out, but these three are a good place to start and essential for everybody, not just mobile broadband users.

Not a Firefox fan?

Firefox isn't the only alternative browser, though - there are a couple of others worth considering. One popular choice is Opera, a powerful and feature-packed app with lots of useful extras. Of particular interest to mobile broadband users is its 'turbo mode', which speeds up web browsing by routing the connection through Opera's own servers, where images and other data are compressed before being sent on. It also has lots of widgets which can be installed to increase functionality.

Google Chrome is another IE alternative, and its main selling point is a minimalist approach. Firefox has been criticised for becoming increasingly bloated and memory-hungry recently so Chrome is carving out its own niche by aiming to be the quickest to load and leaving the smallest footprint on your system, definitely a plus point if you have an older PC or low-power netbook. It lacks many features you may be used to in other browsers, but it's fast. It's also quite stable too, as Chrome has a neat feature that isolates browsing tabs; so if a web page causes a crash it won't take down the whole program.

Windows Update

If the connection is sluggish or you've got to carefully ration your data allowance little applications like the Firefox add-ons can make a difference. There are also a few other things you can do to make your system more efficient.

I mentioned this in my last blog, but it's worth repeating: make sure applications aren't automatically downloading updates whenever you go online, because it can use a lot of MB. Most applications will allow you to prevent this very easily through the settings, and may offer the option during installation, some are a little more stubborn. Like the very irritating Adobe Acrobat Reader which keeps trying to download a 60MB update when I'm tethered to my mobile phone.

Windows updates can be huge as well, but you shouldn't disable them completely. If you're on mobile broadband the best option is to go into the Windows Automatic Update and set it to check and notify you, but not download. Just remember to download them at some point or it could leave Windows open to attack.

Keeping an eye on your usage

File sharing applications shouldn't be left running and sharing data, uploading uses just as much bandwidth as downloading. Watch out for applications which minimise to the system tray (lower right hand corner of the desktop) when closed as they'll keep running until you exit manually, which is typically done by right clicking on the system tray icon or by closing it through the program's File menu.

If you regularly download files it's a good idea to grab a download manager, such as Free Download Manager. Not only can this speed up downloads, but it offers numerous other advantages, particularly for anyone on mobile broadband. Pause if the connection gets slow, and resume later when you're back on a faster home connection. Set it to shut down your PC after a download finishes, or control the speed of downloads to let you carry on browsing.

These tips and apps can help secure and control internet usage, but everyone on mobile broadband should be aware that providers do not support the use of third party applications to monitor usage - you must use the services they make available to check your data allowance limits (so check with your provider if you're not sure). It is something at which we're going to be taking a closer look in the near future.