The Kitchen Sink Collection [discontinued]

Discuss anything related to portable freeware here.
Message
Author
User avatar
webfork
Posts: 10818
Joined: Wed Apr 11, 2007 8:06 pm
Location: US, Texas
Contact:

The Kitchen Sink Collection [discontinued]

#1 Post by webfork »

Update: This project was taken offline based on license issues.

More info: http://kitchensinksoftware.blogspot.com ... fline.html


Downloads have been taken offline until I can get that ironed out.

---

Why not take everything with you (but the kitchen sink)? Since flash drives are just getting more spacious and cheaper, that's the question I asked. Still, no two programs should do the same exact thing -- that's lame... and skip the games.

Well, I ended up with a 650 meg zip file that expands into a 1.4 gig archive of 234 programs for Internet, Office, Security, Troubleshooting, and much more.

- - -

If this sounds familiar, its because I've posted to here before about this:
http://portablefreeware.com/forums/view ... highlight=

... and took a lot of feedback both from PFWC folks and others.

I re-released my collection of software from here at portablefreeware:

Kitchen Sink Software
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dmg8ntv_10dmmks4

I'm still trying to shake out the bugs so please e-mail me, give me feedback, help me make it better. If it sucks, tell me!

User avatar
Ameri-CAIN
Posts: 121
Joined: Thu Nov 01, 2007 9:11 am
Location: Orange County, California

#2 Post by Ameri-CAIN »

Nice collection! It is organized quite well via PStart.

Island Boy
Posts: 123
Joined: Wed Sep 19, 2007 7:56 pm

ArtRage v2.2 ?? portable??

#3 Post by Island Boy »

ArtRage v2.2 ?? portable??

iwoolf
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Sep 12, 2008 5:07 am
Location: Sydney, NSW

Re: The Kitchen Sink Collection

#4 Post by iwoolf »

Is there a torrent of the collection anywhere online? I've made several attempts at downloading, only to have them fail, or take so long I had to log out. If it was a torrent it would be fast and people could resume downloads. I got to 400 meg before I had to go home!
webfork wrote:Why not take everything with you (but the kitchen sink)? Since flash drives are just getting more spacious and cheaper, that's the question I asked. Still, no two programs should do the same exact thing -- that's lame... and skip the games.

Well, I ended up with a 650 meg zip file that expands into a 1.4 gig archive of 234 programs for Internet, Office, Security, Troubleshooting, and much more.

- - -

If this sounds familiar, its because I've posted to here before about this:
http://portablefreeware.com/forums/view ... highlight=

... and took a lot of feedback both from PFWC folks and others.

I re-released my collection of software from here at portablefreeware:

Kitchen Sink Software
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dmg8ntv_10dmmks4

I'm still trying to shake out the bugs so please e-mail me, give me feedback, help me make it better. If it sucks, tell me!

User avatar
FlightGeek
Posts: 49
Joined: Wed Aug 30, 2006 6:12 am

#5 Post by FlightGeek »

As long as we are talking about the difficulty of downloading large files, the IP protocol does not provide an adequate end-to-end check. On a large file, it is not only possible but even likely that it will contain one or more errors. An MD5 or SHA1 has may tell you it’s hosed, but it won’t help you fix it.

Please consider using ICE ECC http://www.portablefreeware.com/?id=310 to provide an Error Correcting Code file which can be used to not only detect, but fix a large file with a few errors in it.

Regards,
FG

User avatar
m^(2)
Posts: 890
Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2007 2:38 am
Location: Kce,PL
Contact:

#6 Post by m^(2) »

Most archivers, including probably all that create zips add checksums to the data, so every data corruption should be detected.
Also, smarter ones like Rar, Squeez and FreeArc allow you to add some additional data to repair corrupted archives.

User avatar
m^(2)
Posts: 890
Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2007 2:38 am
Location: Kce,PL
Contact:

#7 Post by m^(2) »

I didn't manage to download it yet (I lost connection at 100 MB...), but I already have 4 suggestions.
- Find a faster hosting
- Use 7zip Ultra with 96 MB dictionary if you have enough RAM. I really see no reason to use old zips anymore.
- Copying dlls to system is not a good idea. A better would be a batch file like:

Code: Select all

set path=%path%;%~dp0lib
start "" "%~dp0pstart\pstart.exe"
and putting these dlls in .\lib
- You still have multiple copies of some dlls. Move them to the shared package.

garbanzo
Posts: 248
Joined: Thu May 15, 2008 3:00 am

#8 Post by garbanzo »

the hosting isn't so slow. i grabbed it from the mirror yesterday and had it in about 30 mins using a download accelerator. i split it into 100mb chunks and wanted to upload it someplace nice, but my (neighbor's) upload speed just isn't good enough. but i will be able to do it from work on monday if nobody else has...

User avatar
m^(2)
Posts: 890
Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2007 2:38 am
Location: Kce,PL
Contact:

#9 Post by m^(2) »

It was mirror, where I had connection broken yesterday, tried today 4 times - once download didn't started, I clicked on the link and went to browsing other sites, after 10 minutes - nothing. 2 times, as yesterday, download finished before the end, once - it just stopped feeding me with data, transfer 0, I closed it 5 minutes after I noticed.
Deposit Files - no free slots for my country, but later - without issues, though it took 9 hours.

Now about the programs...
1. So many programs duplicate their functions. Why?
2. You left your downloads data in BitComet. :P
3. Firefox secure? It would be much more secure if it was a small Linux VirtualMachine with FF installed running under QEMU.
4. Some programs have forgotten uninstall data.
5. You could really rename PhotoFiltre directory.
6. It really needs categorization, all these programs in 1 directory is very messy.
7. You have some programs with launchers, even though they are portable by themselves. It only slows startup down, increases risk of false antivirus warning, or bug.
8. Don't you think that pglite is a better choice for portable use than full PeerGuardian?
9. With PeerGuardian for sure, possibly somewhere else too - no x64 compatibility.
10. Why do you include multiple versions of the same program like with Winamp or Clipboard Recorder?

User avatar
m^(2)
Posts: 890
Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2007 2:38 am
Location: Kce,PL
Contact:

#10 Post by m^(2) »

JFYI, I checked how well it can be compressed with popular software.

Code: Select all

Your zip                        680632018 B

7z -mx=9                        499250007 B
FreeArc -mx -ld96m -lc500m -ma- 502427337 B
FreeArc -mx -ld96m -lc500m      503013668 B
SQX -mx                         553121245 B
rar -m5                         620173705 B
I strongly suggest using 7zip, if you think that people who don't know what .7z is still exist, make a sfx.

User avatar
webfork
Posts: 10818
Joined: Wed Apr 11, 2007 8:06 pm
Location: US, Texas
Contact:

General Response

#11 Post by webfork »

Thanks to Ameri-CAIN, iwoolf, FlightGeek, and especially m^(2). You guys are great. I sank a ton of time into this and I'm glad to hear that there's ANY response to it.


== The 7-zip Issue ==

Future releases will *definitely* be in .7z at the highest compression possible. ZIP was used simply because one of my early users asked me to put it in that format.



== Torrents issue ==

Will try to have a torrent service up and working soon. I already have three people who say they will host torrents to push up speeds.

Link will appear on web page when its ready.



== Duplicate functions ==
(a.k.a. several programs do the same thing)

I've had some user feedback about this and will get a little more lethal with my selections. Some overlap is okay just like with regular tools: you'd rather have two screwdrivers that work in different situations than just one, even if they're basically the same.

For example, uTorrent and BitComet for example are both torrent clients but both have many different features; uTorrent has a great scheduler, BitComet has a great catch-all downloader setup.


---

To user "m^(2)":

Thanks for the advice on DLLs. I'll give that a shot.
Last edited by webfork on Sun Sep 14, 2008 9:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
webfork
Posts: 10818
Joined: Wed Apr 11, 2007 8:06 pm
Location: US, Texas
Contact:

Specific Questions Response

#12 Post by webfork »

I have the next release loosely scheduled for the beginning of August. I'l try to address the concerns you all have posed by then.

Keep the comments and thoughts coming! I'm just one person but I'll keep working on it until it really works for as many people as possible.


---


> Island Boy: ArtRage v2.2 ?? portable??

http://www.softpedia.com/get/PORTABLE-S ... tion.shtml

Its not been accepted by PFWC but this was a program I couldn't leave out. Its just too cool.


m^(2) :

2. You left your downloads data in BitComet. Razz

Yes, I use this archive daily in the interests of customizing it to the "average user" and not just what the developer likes. Unfortunately that means I sometimes leave data behind. (D'oh)


3. Firefox secure? It would be much more secure if it was a small Linux VirtualMachine with FF installed running under QEMU.

Absolutely and that's a very cool idea but, just like a PGP solution I'm very interested in, I don't think most people would want that. Being more secure in this case means a little more privacy and a few barriers; the average user doesn't want a fortress.

(Unless of course I'm wrong about that and people DO want a fortress.)


4. Some programs have forgotten uninstall data.

Good catch. When you update 10-15 programs at a time, sometimes you rush.


5. You could really rename PhotoFiltre directory.

Agreed -- and many other directories I need to do that to. Its just a gradual process.


6. It really needs categorization, all these programs in 1 directory is very messy.

I'm trying to strike a balance between too many subdirectories and too many noisy submenus. I'll go the direction you suggest with the next release.


7. You have some programs with launchers, even though they are portable by themselves. It only slows startup down, increases risk of false antivirus warning, or bug.

Gotcha -- I'll clear that up.


8. Don't you think that pglite is a better choice for portable use than full PeerGuardian?

I don't know -- I'll look into it. PG has worked very well for me for a long time so I haven't tried alternatives.


9. With PeerGuardian for sure, possibly somewhere else too - no x64 compatibility.

Check.


10. Why do you include multiple versions of the same program like with Winamp or Clipboard Recorder?

This archive has gotten very big and sometimes I can't keep track of it all. I'll run a duplicate search for any others.


> iwoolf: I've made several attempts at downloading

My host is having issues with his machine. Hence the deposit files link. Will hopefully switch / add servers sometime soon.


> FlightGeek: ICE ECC

I like the PAR2 solution for data redundancy a little better but I think BitTorrent will better address any missing data. However, if I have a lot of users asking for that, I'll totally post it.

User avatar
webfork
Posts: 10818
Joined: Wed Apr 11, 2007 8:06 pm
Location: US, Texas
Contact:

Update! 0.9.8.5

#13 Post by webfork »

I got some time this weekend and updated the archive with some basic changes based on this forum's suggestions.

http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dmg8ntv_10dmmks4

What's new?

* Torrent now available. Should be very fast:
http://www.darkstar3.com/kitchensink-0.9.8.5.7z.torrent (right-click and select "save as")
* As requested, saved in a high-compresion 7-zip archive, making the archive about 120 megs smaller.
* Updated some 40 entries in the CAFE program that lets you double-click on any file on your computer and have it open up in one of Kitchen's programs.
* Removed 100s of non-English language files
* Removed around 30 uninstall files that have been lingering.
* Removed a few programs I've been meaning to take off (Foxit PDF, checkDisk, BitComet, EOL Flash video player, Disk Redactor)
* Cleaned up directory structure and internal file list

Please keep telling me what you think! More to come!

User avatar
m^(2)
Posts: 890
Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2007 2:38 am
Location: Kce,PL
Contact:

Re: Update! 0.9.8.5

#14 Post by m^(2) »

webfork wrote:* Torrent now available. Should be very fast:
http://www.darkstar3.com/kitchensink-0.9.8.5.7z.torrent (right-click and select "save as")
0 peers, 0 seeds.
I guess nobody has external IP.

User avatar
webfork
Posts: 10818
Joined: Wed Apr 11, 2007 8:06 pm
Location: US, Texas
Contact:

Torrent issue

#15 Post by webfork »

> 0 peers, 0 seeds.
> I guess nobody has external IP.

I'm testing it now and it appears to be working. I got some updated tracker services. Please re-download the torrent and give it another shot.

Thanks for checking, m^(2)

Post Reply