At the best of times, downloading software over the Internet takes time - the larger the filesize, the longer it takes. To keep the download time as short as possible, TUCOWS maintains over 1000 "mirror sites" around the world. Since we don't know where you are downloading from, we ask you to choose the closest geographical download site. Sometimes your usual download site is temporarily slow or unavailable, so choosing the site yourself each time gives you control over where you get your software from.

TUCOWS has provided a shortcut to always choosing a country/region. MyOwn TUCOWS allows you to set your download software libraries and locations once - and it remembers them for you, cutting out several steps toward downloading. Read more about MyOwn TUCOWS.

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To subscribe to a TUCOWS Newsletter (which will be sent to the email address you specify) go to http://mailman.tucows.com. Type your email address in the box provided, then click the drop-down box and choose Subscribe. Click the second drop-down box to select the mailing list you want (you may have to scroll down to see the whole list). Click the Submit Request button to subscribe. It usually takes a day (12 hours) for your request to be processed.

To unsubscribe to a TUCOWS Newsletter go to http://mailman.tucows.com. Type your email address in the box provided (be sure to enter the email address you entered when you subscribed), then click the drop-down box and choose Unsubscribe. Click the second drop-down box to select the mailing list you no longer want to receive (you may have to scroll down to see the whole list). Click the Submit Request button to unsubscribe. It usually takes a day (12 hours) for your request to be processed.

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Downloading software can "not work" for a number of reasons:

• The download process is interrupted because you lost your Internet connection (e.g. someone picked up an extension telephone, or your Internet Service Provider (ISP) disconnected you);
• You didn't note where on your hard drive the downloaded file was being saved, and as a consequence can't find it or don't know what to look for (download files often have obscure filenames which aren't obvious or related to the name of the product you downloaded).
• You've downloaded a Macintosh file with a ".sit", or ".hqx" extension and you can't open or install it. Macintosh program files have to be prepared differently than Windows program files for downloading over the Internet, and thus usually require an unstuffing program to already exist on your Macintosh. Stuffit Expander is a useful (and free) utility which will unstuff (or decompress) most compressed Macintosh download files. Downloading Stuffit Expander is problematic since Stuffit Expander needs to be compressed to be downloaded (and thus decompressed or unstuffed to be used on your Macintosh). So, if you don't already have this program on your computer, you'll have to get it from a friend or see if it's included on any CD-ROMs you may have.

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"Box-less" software means no box included or required. It's a way of selling software over the Internet and using the Internet to deliver the software directly to your computer. There are two ways to buy software from TUCOWS:

1. purchase before you download it;
2. purchase after you've downloaded it and tried it.

You can buy software from TUCOWS directly from TUCOWS Shop, or from the TUCOWS download sites, wherever you see "Buy Now!"

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If you have virus concerns you've come to the right place! TUCOWS has lots of anti-virus software to choose from - for all platforms. Click now to search TUCOWS for anti-virus software for your computer.

As "Fast, Easy & Virus-Free since 1993!", TUCOWS software downloads are assured to be virus-free before being added to our sites. If you want to learn about viruses that affect computers, email and Internet software, here're some places to start:

• www.symantec.com
• www.mcafee.com
• IBM's Antivirus news
• F-Secure
• Sympatico Virus Help

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Download times depends on a few factors: your Internet connection speed (including your modem's speed and the time of day), your computer's speed, and other factors that inconsistently affect download times.

You can minimze download time by choosing the closest download location, or using MyOwn TUCOWS.

Here's a guide to approximate download times:

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On TUCOWS, BSD stands for "Berkeley Systems Development", and is the name of a UNIX-based computer operating system. TUCOWS has a site dedicated to BSD and BSD downloads: http://bsd.tucows.com. Interestingly, Macintosh OS X is based on BSD.

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You can imagine that there are thousands of such acronyms, abbreviations and file extensions - more than we could explain here! However, here's a list of Web sites that strive to explain all those terms (be aware that some acronyms and abbreviations have several different meanings):

• Acronymfinder.com


• The World Wide Web Acronym and Abbreviation Server


• O'Reilly & Associates online dictionary of terms


• One Look List of Dictionaries and Glossaries


• Whatis?com

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For both PCs and Macintoshes, start by double-clicking the file icon. Usually, PC files with a ".exe" extension will open automatically (".exe" means "executable") without the aid of special programs. If your computer alerts you that it cannot open the file (meaning that you don't have the necessary program to open that file), then you need to find a progam which will open a file with a specific extension. First find out what program the file extension belongs to, then search TUCOWS for that program.

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First, identify what kind of file you have (see help with acronyms and file extensions, above). Try searching this Extension Search database. And there's a handy list of Macintosh file extensions in the Apple Tech Info Library. Next, search TUCOWS for a matching viewer or program with which to open or use the file you have. Either browse the TUCOWS categories that correspond with the type of file you have, or use the file extension as a search term (enter the file extension into the TUCOWS search box). Read the software descriptions to find a compatible match with your file extension.

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The software in the TUCOWS libraries is submitted by authors or publishers, and is, in turn, reviewed by TUCOWS staff. The description that appears beside software listed on TUCOWS is written by TUCOWS staff, not simply reproduced from the software publisher's documentation.

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We rate the software we make available for download using a 1-5 cow rating system. Software submitted to TUCOWS is rated according to the following criteria:

• Interface & Documentation (help files, graphics/sound)
• Functuality of the program
• Ease of install/uninstall
• How it runs (system resources)
• Innovation
• Reviewer's opinion

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You do need to know what you're looking for - either the software name or what it does. Ask others you know for recommendations. If you're unsure whether certain software will suit your needs, read the description that appears beside or underneath the listing. Get more help on how to find software on TUCOWS.

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That depends on whether the error you encounter is during the download or installation of, or while using the software you got from TUCOWS. If you have trouble downloading the software from TUCOWS, try using a different mirror site, read our download tutorial, then contact us. TUCOWS staffs test all software posted on TUCOWS. If you encounter errors using the software after you've downloaded it from TUCOWS, you should contact the author or publisher. Most software has a "Help" or "About" menu item (usually in the upper left of the menus). Click Help or About and you'll see information about how to contact the software publisher.

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A "404 Not Found" error means a the link you just clicked does not work anymore. If you get this error when you click a link to download software from TUCOWS, it's very likely as a result of a temporary unavilability of that software. Try again later, or try choosing a different mirror site.

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TUCOWS is often praised in the press! But it's not easy to provide a direct reference for where to find specific software on TUCOWS. To find software on TUCOWS you can browse our categories, or search for a specific title or part of a title. Read more about finding and searching for TUCOWS software.

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These terms refer to different kinds of downloadable software. Their definitions can be found in the TUCOWS Glossary.

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Not necessarily. Most TUCOWS software is downloadable for free, and works only for a limited time, after which you must pay to continue using the software. However, some TUCOWS software you can buy up front. See our tutorials on How to Buy Software with TUCOWS.

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We appreciate being notified of any errors on our Web sites. You can notify us on our Contact Us page.

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Usually no. Since TUCOWS software is mirrored internationally, the software is the same on all TUCOWS mirror sites. There may be some software which is designed to work with local technology standards (e.g., PAL or NTSC video software, fax software, answering machine software, etc.), but it still doesn't matter which TUCOWS download site you get it from.

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Most software has a "Help" or "About" menu item (usually in the upper left of the menus). Click Help or About and you'll see information about how to contact the software publisher. Most software also has a "Read Me" file which is easily opened and worth reading.

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Computer files sometimes break, and when they do, they are considered "corrupted". This is the classic reason to backup your program and data files, so that, in the event of a corrupt file, you can reinstall from a backup.

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Despite thousands of downloads occuring every day from TUCOWS, several things can go wrong with the process. Don't despair! Help is close by. It could be a problem with your computer, or with your Internet Service Provider (ISP) disconnecting you unexpectedly, or that you don't have enough disk space to complete the download, or that you can't find where on your hard drive you downloaded it to. For more help, read My download didn't work; what do I do? above, and our Download Tutorial

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Coming soon.

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No. TUCOWS cannot send software to you via email. However, you can order the Best of TUCOWS software on CD-ROM if you prefer. Otherwise, you must download software yourself from the TUCOWS site.

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A "Mirror" is a copy or an original. So a "mirror site" is a Web site that duplicates the contents of another Web site. TUCOWS mirror sites are a way to offer software downloads on servers located around the world. TUCOWS Content Partners maintain "mirror sites" of TUCOWS software.

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To mirror some or all of the TUCOWS software libraries, apply at the TUCOWS Affilliates site. At the very least you must manage your own DNS server and meet other technical requirements.

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To start the process of getting your software added to the TUCOWS software libraries, go to the TUCOWS Submit Center. All programs are reviewed by TUCOWS staff before being accepted. The review and acceptance criteria is on our ratings page. Read more about this at the TUCOWS Submit Center.

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Submit your software to the TUCOWS site which most closely matches either the operating system your sofware works with (Windows NT, Macintosh, etc.), or the intended user base (children, games, java, etc.) The TUCOWS Submit Center will help you decide the best match. Read our tutorial for submitting software to TUCOWS.

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Yes! You can link to us from your site. But we ask that you use specific html and TUCOWS images to do so. Read the instructions for linking to TUCOWS.

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Yes. We have TUCOWS graphics - clickable button images - that you can use to link to TUCOWS sites from your Site. Read the instructions for linking to TUCOWS.

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