Portable and/or Financial Software

Following up on my post the other day about portable software, it is worth noting that while a lot of software isn't specifically labeled as "portable," it can be made portable with a few tweaks. Sometimes this is as easy as moving the program from its default install location (typically %programfiles% or "C:\Program Files") to whatever portable location you so choose.

Other software isn't so easy. Some software installs additional support files to the system or drivers folders or requires specific services installed or configured or just has a load of registry entries. It may not be possible to make the software portable at all, or it may be worth it to find software that is portable that does the same thing.

If you have the smarts enough to install/uninstall software and copy files, it might be worth looking into the option of making it portable. A good rule of thumb is that the smaller a software package is, the less likely it is to require support files or lots of registry entries.

In the case of the two programs I recommend below, both by default will install to %programfiles% and both create a few registry entries. I have, however, successfully tested both of these apps as "portables." The few registry entries each creates are in fact only informational and/or information about the uninstallers for Windows.

To make these (and similar) programs "portable," follow these simple steps:

1. Install the program as usual.
2. Navigate to the %programfiles% folder. Copy (Don't move) the new program folder to the new portable location.
3. Use Add/Remove Programs to uninstall the program from %programfiles%
4. Test the program, you'll find out very quick whether or not it will still work. If it does, great, if not, delete the folder in the new location, no harm done.
   
5. If necessary, update shortcuts and links to the new location.

The reason you want to copy and not move the program in step 2 is so that step 3 will work. The reason you want step 3 to work is make sure that your system is not littered with non-essential files and registry entries.

That all being said, I take no responsibility for your actions should you go mucking about in your Program Files, Windows, system or anywhere else on your computer, including the registry. I also take no responsibility should you follow my instructions, as I don't recommend you do this, especially if you don't know what you're doing, I'm just pointing out that it's possible. If you screw something up or void your warranty or violate the license on the software or piss off your sysadmin, it's your problem, not mine. Step up and take responsibility for your actions, ya lazy bum.

Two bits of software which I use on a regular basis are both freeware programs for financial calculations.

The first is a replacement for the windows calculator, called by some as "JD Free Calculator" and others as "JD Standard Calculator" or just as "JDCalc," depending on where you download it. It's about 313 KB, making it rather small, but has a lot of features, including a tape. As I said before, all calculators should have a viewable tape. JDCalc's tape is not only viewable, though, it's printable with a big, friendly button that says "Print Tape," which is just plain awesome. JDCalc also has built in loan and savings calculators (albeit summary versions only, though you can view two loans side-by-side), which make it for its size a good competitor against all the other windows-calculator-replacements out there.

Because JDCalc's loan calculator only provides a summary of a loan, in order to get a full amortization schedule for a loan and run estimates, I use a program called Amortizer by Quantech Software. In addition to giving you a full schedule, it also allows you to specify irregular or balloon payments on your loans, something that is useful if you want to see what would happen if you pay a little extra each month on your mortgage or skip a credit card payment (other than the bank releasing the hounds I mean.)

I have a few other thoughts on little utilities, but those shall wait for another day.