Practical Standards

UKtech exists to offer free help, support and advice to people who are both new and established  computer users. As such, the advice offered on these pages should be accepted as the personal view of a support professional - who has no affiliation with the products or systems reviewed.

I do not get any payments by making product recommendations on this website. They are made only from personal review and use of the product - views which can and do change over time.

My personal standard is to only make recommendations for Open Source or freeware products that:

• Performs its function adequately and 'as advertised'.
• Has a long development history. (Usually - though there are some exceptions).
• No spyware, malware or adware - though minimal advertisements are acceptable.
• A well thought out user interface and graphic design.
• Reasonable operational stability.
• Installs and uninstalls relatively cleanly.
• Does not have functions that disappear after a short period of use - unless these are clearly mentioned up-front.

Clearly though, programs that have been recommended on UKtech will not please everyone and may not run satisfactorily on some machines. Computing, however it is marketed, is a really complex  concoction of hardware and software and the end users abilities and expertise.

Ultimately it is a matter of learning, experience and personal preference that determines what is best for you - UKtech can only help with avenues of exploration.