FeedMyTorrents Offers TV Torrent Feeds without Duplicates [BitTorrent]

Web site FeedMyTorrents publishes RSS feeds of torrents for popular TV shows. Just subscribe to your favorite show and let your BitTorrent client automatically download new episodes as soon as they're available.

FeedMyTorrents isn't the only web site of this kind—perhaps the most notable alternative being tvRSS—but it's a good deal more simple to understand and use than tvRSS. Where tvRSS has an undeniably larger collection of shows, FeedMyTorrents is strict about a duplication-free feed, meaning you don't have to tweak the feed or weed out downloads you don't want. Just pick the show you want to subscribe to, set it up in your BitTorrent client of choice, and you'll always have the latest and greatest episodes of your favorite shows as soon as they're available. Thanks Jason!

iPhone 3G Unlocked, Free Unlock Software By End of Year [IPhone]

The jolly band of hackers known as the iPhone Dev Team have successfully unlocked the iPhone 3G for use on unsupported GSM networks. Right now they've simply confirmed the 3G unlock, but according the the Dev Team blog post, a free unlocking software should be available by New Year's Eve. [via]

Most Popular Free Windows Downloads of 2008 [Best Of 2008]

In the past year we've highlighted hundreds of Windows apps aimed at making your life easier, boosting your computer productivity, and powering up your PC.

For those of you who weren't able to keep up, here's a look back at the most popular Windows downloads of 2008.

Keep in mind that this list is based on the popularity of posts we've published in 2008 only, regardless of the original release date of the app. Many were brand new this year, while others were solid updates to popular software. Here's the full run-down of the 12 most popular Windows downloads of 2008:

Firefox 3 Is Released, We Download

Firefox 3 was easily one of the biggest events in software in 2008 regardless of what platform you run. We may be well on the way to Firefox 3.1 now, but if you're looking to brush up on your Firefox 3 chops, be sure to check out the top 10 Firefox 3 features and our power user's guide to Firefox 3.

Mojo Downloads Music from Your Friends' iTunes Libraries Over the Internet

Mojo makes it easy to download music from your friends' iTunes libraries over the internet. Mojo comes in both free and premium flavors, but the free version offers plenty of functionality for the money. If you're just getting started with Mojo, check out our guide to using Mojo.

Free PDF to Word Doc Converter Does What It Sounds Like

It's easy to convert or print Microsoft Word documents to PDF, but what about when you want to go the other way around? The aptly named Free PDF to Word Doc Converter does exactly that. (Original post)

OurTunes Grabs Music from Shared iTunes Libraries

If the limitations on Mojo aren't for you, the open-source classic ourTunes—which downloads music from any shared iTunes library on your network—made a comeback earlier this year, as a new developer took up the reigns and continues to release updates. (Original post)

CCleaner Clears the Crap from Your PC

The popular PC colonic CCleaner (the first 'C' stands for Crap) pushed out a 2.0 release earlier this year and you were quick to update and enjoy the crap cleaning goodies. (Original post)

AVG Free Anti-Virus 2008

AVG Free Anti-Virus 2008 hit the streets in May, and the application that you voted the best antivirus applications for Windows was unsurprisingly popular. (Original post)

Windows Vista Service Pack 1

Microsoft released the first major service pack for Vista, Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (x64 version), in March, and you were eager to download and update to the latest and greatest from Redmond. (Original post)

Hotspot Shield Gets Around US-Only Blocks and Content Filtering

Looking to protect your browsing privacy or access US-only content from outside the US? HotSpot Shield received a lot of attention in '08 from users looking to do that and more. (Original post)

Quick Media Converter Easily Converts Media to Any Format

Quick Media Converter converts virtually any media file (audio or video) from one format to another. The application has an emphasis on simplicity: Just drag and drop a file you want to convert onto the app, click the icon of the device you're converting for, and let Quick Media Converter take care of the rest. (Original post)

DExposE2 Brings OS X's Expose to Windows

Freeware application DExposE2 is a clone of Mac OS X's Expose feature for Windows XP and Vista, providing an attractive, innovative interface for switching and managing windows in Windows. Check out the original post to see a video DExposE2 in action.

Dropbox Instantly Syncs Files Across the Internet

Instantaneous file syncing was huge in 2008, with free, cross-platform application Dropbox leading the pack. Dropbox boasts web-based version control, fast and instant syncs, and a dead-simple setup. Among other things, Dropbox makes for the perfect password syncer. (Original post)

Executor Challenges Launchy, Impresses

Open-source application Launchy has long been a favorite of savvy keyboarders looking for quick app launching in Windows, but a saucy newcomer called Executor hit the ground running when it was released earlier this year. Check out our original post for a more detailed rundown of what makes Executor so impressive.

Sharepod Frees Your iPod from iTunes

Want to free yourself from the shackles of iTunes but still want full functionality from your iPod? Sharepod is a lightweight iTunes alternative that runs directly from your iPod, so it's with you whenever and wherever you plug in your player. (Original post)

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What's your favorite Windows download of 2008?
( polls)
Whether or not your favorite Windows download of '08 won out in the popularity contest, let's hear more about your favorite download of the year in the comments.

StandaloneStack Brings Leopard-like Stacks to Windows [Featured Windows Download]

Windows only: Like the look of OS X Leopard's Stacks feature—which provides attractive, quick shortcuts of any folder on your desktop—but you're on a Windows PC? Free application StandaloneStack brings Leopard-like stacks to your quick launch toolbar.

Since StandaloneStack only runs when you launch the shortcut (which can be launched from anywhere), it doesn't have to run in the background and doesn't waste any resources unless you're using it. On my computer, the stack only consumed about 5MB when open. The stacks themselves are animated and can display in both fan and grid views (as illustrated in the two screenshots here). Be sure to read the documentation on the home page for details on how to set up stacks for different folders.

StandaloneStack is a free download, Windows only. If you prefer dock launchers like RocketDock or ObjectDock, StandaloneStacks is a standalone version of the Stacks Docklet that works in either app.

Open++ Adds Anything You Want to Your Right-Click Menu [Featured Windows Download]

Windows only: Free utility Open++ adds a new submenu to your right-click context menu with advanced options for adding virtually any function you could want. Rather than add a bunch of its own custom commands (though it does have a few handy defaults, like Copy Path), Open++ provides a versatile utility for adding your own functions. You can launch files, folders, or applications complete with special arguments, a user-defined working directory, custom icons, and even custom file associations (so the command only shows up when you right-click a certain file type). For a similar app, check out previously mentioned FileMenu Tools. Open++ is a free download, Windows only.