Table of contents
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| Introduction |
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Topdownloads is a library of over 380,000 free and
free-to-try software programs for Windows and Mac,games
and drivers. We review and categorize these products in order to
allow the visitor/user to find the exact product they and their
system needs. We strive to deliver only the best products to the
visitor/user together with self-made evaluation and review
notes. We add more than 100 items on our sites every day. All
our services are FREE of charge for the visitors/users. There is
a membership system, but it does not require a payed
subscription, although it offers a series of advantages for the
registered user.
Topdownloads is composed of the following sections, each one
with a specific purpose:
The
WINDOWS section lists a wide range of freeware,
shareware, trial, and demo software products for the Windows
OS.
The
GAMES
section provides gamers with the latest demos, freegames,
onlinegames, information on upcoming release and so on.
The
DRIVERS section helps you find the latest drivers for
your hardware, for all versions of the Windows Operating
System.
The
MAC section lists a wide range of freeware, shareware,
trial, and demo software products for Macintosh Systems.
The
MOBILE Wallpapers section is designed for mobile phone enthusiasts
and people interested in communication industry news.
The SKINS section is updated daily with the latest skins for
ICQ Winamp Yahoo.
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| Navigation and Search
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The Navigation Menu is located in the header and is
composed of six buttons, one for each Topdownloads section:
Windows, Games, Drivers, Mac, Mobile and Skins.
The TopdownloadsSearch Engine has one mode
Quick Mode performs a quick search using a search term
provided by the user, without imposing any restrictions on
the returned results
Sometimes the number of programs in a category is very large, so
they are listed on multiple pages, 30 on each page. The program
listing format is similar to that of the index listing. An
additional option is that users can sort the programs list by
some criteria as: Last Update, Number of Downloads and Rating. |
| Reporting Broken Links
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When accessing the
download page associated to each product we present on our
sites, you have the option to report a broken link. However, you
should not abuse this, and preferably manually check if the
producer's homepage is still online.
The comercialware products do
not have a downloadable version available on the internet,
so they cannot be downloaded from our sites,
there are no mirrors available. |
| Troubleshooting Download Problems |
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In the following guide we will try to help users which have
problems related to downloading files. We will list here
solutions to the most common problems that may arise, for
problems not solved here, please send us a message using the
feedback page.
1. I clicked on download but nothing happens. I see only a
popup with some text and banners.
Among the text you are seeing in the download popup, there is
the mirror list (the list of locations where the file you are
trying to download is available). Normally, the download should
start automatically after 3 seconds using the first online
mirror, and the browser (Internet Explorer, Opera, ...) should
prompt you to open or save the file. If the download did not
start automatically, just left click on one of the mirrors, and
choose "Save" when prompted.
2. I'm using a download manager and it asks for a password
when using topdownloads.net mirror (download.topdownloads.net).
You are probably using DAP (Download Accelerator Plus) or some
other download manager that does not send some information
needed to start the download from our download page. The solution is to
use another mirror or switch to a download manager that manages
properly the referer.
3. I am still asked for a password while downloading files,
even if I'm using other download managers or none at all.
Some firewall programs block the information that download
managers send in order to make the download possible (this
information is called "referer" and is basically the URL of the
page from where you are starting the download). Zone Alarm
firewall is known to block the referer but other similar
products may behave in the same way. The solution is to change,
if possible, the settings of the firewall program in order to
allow the passing of the referer to the download server. It that
is not possible, temporarily disabling the firewall will do the
job.
4. While trying to download I get a page that says something
about "Offsite linking". I'm not using a download manager.
You are either using a firewall program that blocks the referer,
or you are downloading by Right Click + Save As... Simply left
click on the link, and close firewalls that block the referer
(or change settings).
5. I receive "timeout" errors or the download stops before it
is complete. Why?
Usually this is because the connection between the server and
your computer has been lost. This is caused by a network
congestion. You should try again at non-peak hours, or use a
download manager to avoid redownloading the whole file.
Here is a list of download managers you can choose from.
Alternatively, this may be caused by a temporary connectivity
problem between your ISP (Internet Service Provider) and the
website hosting the file. Try again later.
6. I downloaded the file. What should I do with it?
If the file you just transferred has an .exe extension (the last
three letters of the filename), then just double-click it to
launch the installation process (follow the on-screen
instructions). Otherwise, in most of the cases it is a .zip file
(a compressed file which contains one or more files). You will
to uncompress the archive to access the installation program. To
do so, you need to have installed an archiver (program that
handles compressed files) unless you are using Windows2000 or
WindowsXP which have builtin .zip support. To get an archiver
program, go
here.
7. I receive errors saying that the zip file is corrupted.
What should I do?
Most likely, in the download process, an error has occured, and
that lead to the corruption of the file. The solution is to
re-download the file, and if you are not yet using a download
manager, it is high time to do so.
Here is a list of download managers you can choose from.
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| Topdownloads Secure
Downloads |
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Download links marked with the text "Topdownloads Secure Download"
depict download sources located on servers owned and controlled
by Topdownloads. All files available from those mirrors have been
thoroughly tested for viruses and other malware. Moreover, these
files will always be available, you will not encounter errors
such as "bandwidth exceeded" or "file not found", our servers
are reliable and secure. |
| Software Submission
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Software Producers can
submit their products directly to us by filling in the form
available on the "Submit Program" page which can be reached
using the link in the site's menubar.
Here is a shortcut.
You have 2 options for submitting products. One is to fill the
entire form, the other is to provide a PAD-file (more details
about PAD-files
here).
The second options is much better, both for the producer and for
us. The producer submits only once the PAD-file URL and from
that moment, the new versions of the product will be published
in a very short time on our sites thanks to a proprietary
automated system of monitoring coupled with a PAD-file database.
To submit a PAD use the link in the Submit Program page
Note: Before submitting a product, please check by
searching if it is not already listed on our sites. |
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| New Games