mrdave, I have found that avast sometimes gets in th way of the normal behavior of programs at times. Just recently "Leo Laporte" The tech guy (twit.tv) had a user that under examination found that the problem that she was having could be related to avast. Do a google search on avast issues. Her issues may have been related to the way avast substitutes its own certificate in place of other more legitimate ones, like facebooks for instance. Disable avast and retry, it may work. I dont use avast anymore due to a somewhat related issue. I got errors that avast created and once I found that its wasnt a simple matter to uninstall (you must dl avastclear) I decided to trust microsoft antivirus along with Mcafee. I dont like programs that try to bind you to them. I still am of the idea that its a personal pc (computer) and I choose what I want to use. If this is your problem, you now know that avast, although good, does have some issues. Use it with this in mind.

Romey, I've been happy with Avast! so far but appreciate the warning and will look into the issues. I've used several different antivirus programs and have looked into dozens more, maybe it's time for another change.

I looked into the Leo Laporte report (http://www.thesafemac.com/avasts-man-in-the-middle/, from March 2015), got scared, then worked through his test cases that should show the terrible security from Avast!. All the tests failed, so Avast! is no longer replacing security certificates with it's own. At least not on a PC, or on the test websites. I'll be watching on other sites!

mrdave, Thanks for the link. Somewhat suprised that its an issue from 2015, just recently listened to the podcast. Hope that avast is now functioning more like a program designed to protect rather than cause problems. I will look into it again. Have you ever heard of Reaper? Its a fully functioning digital audio workstation with more power than other well known free audio editors. Its free, not disabled, but if you decide to keep it after 60 days or so, its "asked/recommended" that you purchase a license. I havent used Protools, but the interface remindes me of it. If you like it, you can get a liscense for $60. Protool's is $600. The cool part is that if you go past 60 days, it still works, you just have to deal with a nag screen. If you find that you are using it for more than testing it out, its worth the $60. I doubt that you fine another fully featured daw for the same price. Thanks again for the info.

mrdave, BTW here is a link to a deep review of reaper. I think that you will like what you read.
http://www.extremraym.com/en/reaper-5-review/

Romey, thanks for the info on Reaper. For multitrack recording I'm currently using Magix Samplitude Music Studio. It works well and does most of what I want. Sometimes the user interface takes a break and updates everything with blank white space, so I shut it down and start over. Their support is not very helpful, and every upgrade is considered an entirely new program. Features are dropped, different ones added, and old projects no longer load. So I started looking at Reaper, got a free version of Tracktion when I bought my guitar interface (Behringer U-Phoria UM2 - works great!). It's all fun stuff but takes more time to master it than I have right now. But I appreciate the reminder on Reaper and will look at the review you pointed me to. Would love to see more musician-oriented software on GOTD. They surprise me once in a while so I keep coming back!

jmjsquared, Strange thing..... the same exactly software... under a different name... has been offered many times through the years on this site and other sites. (Free or not.)
It's not a bad software in itself but... what's the deal, really?

GAOTD#1FAN, I said what I said. That's the "deal".

Why? Can you show anything FACTUAL to contradict ANYTHING that I've said?

By the way, how can this be, "the same exactly [sic] software" if it has a different name? Same is same. Similar is another thing, altogether! Sheesh!

Provide facts to support what you say, like I did. What other sites? What other names? What possible proof can you possibly have that this is the "same exactly software" as ANY other since it is not digitally signed and provides absolutely NO details in its properties sheet??? Do all those alleged "other" software also silently install modules that have nothing to do with the software's stated purpose; and, worse, do so without the user's knowledge or permission???

You hold yourself out to know this software so well. So, tell us, tell ME: What is the purpose of "goup.exe"? Who wrote it? Does it secretly communicate with a remote server and, if so, does it send personally-identifiable information, location, computer specs, passwords, numbers it may find on the user's computer -- like credit-card or bank-account numbers???

What "fixes" and "enhancements" did YOU get when YOU used it to "update" YOUR version of this or ANY other "same exactly software"? Be specific, if you can, although we both know you cannot, because you never received any "update" to ANY software's features from that module, have you?!?

It would be truly remarkable if your next comment provided *specific* , factual answers to my *specific* , precise questions. Not today, huh?

jmjsquared, Very strange, you warn against installing this software, with no proof and a lot of strong language. And now someone else has to prove that what you are saying is not true? It is true that this software has come around in different versions under different names; I installed these versions numerous times: no problems whatsoever.

jmjsquared,
I did the update by GOUP and AVG was not pleased.

Map Temporary Internet files and "C:\DOCUME~1\WINXP_~1\Application Data\New Version Available": there was a warning.
I sent the program to virustotal:
https://www.virustotal.com/nl/file/1855dedeb4cda2a2209a63bd637bca7defd8a7c774fdac76fdce031ef43ddc90/analysis/1473456728/
Strange, that 2 programs of the last week hes the same update:
"Power Audio Extractor 8.7.5" van PowerSE Co. Ltd. en "AVAudioEditor 7.5.6" van Av Media Inc.

Ootje, That is not so "strange", IF the purpose of this goup.exe is not to update a safe, legitimate AVMediasoft product but, rather, to direct as many users as possible to do I-still-don't-know-what.

If you can't trick people into doing it with one product, then try with another 'giveaway' product... and another... and another until they do.

IF, hypothetically, I were working for an hostile foreign government that wanted to create the largest possible worldwide botnet of unsuspecting computer users, THEN, I would give away as many trojan-infected copies of software as possible. I would have nearly unlimited resources to create an attractive website; to rent desk space at a respectable location like Park Place, New York, NY; to copy-and-rebrand working software and to offer them again and again and again... for "free". If I also managed to actually sell any such software, that would be icing on the cake.


Is this what AVMediasoft is doing? I don't know but WhoIs puts them in Beijing, China and not in New York, NY and, further, informs that "DAVID BENNETT of Fisher Park Pl" [NOTE: There is no Zip Code in the U.S. mailing address!!!] may really be "HANG XUESONG of Haidan, Beijing".

For me, there are too many questions for far too little reward.

Voor zo lang. :)

Sara: don't fret about it.

Locational information on a developer's website is not to be taken seriously unless you already know you're dealing with a major player. Today's developer is based in China. I have no idea what its other products might be but having seen TK's post at #14 am inclined to her / his view that this particular publisher is another of the many Chinese re-sellers who deal in licensed software of re-badged style but unchanged substance.

Nothing wrong with that if you want what's being offered, so long as you don't get too hung up on where you might think it's being offered from. . .

Sara, Probably Park Pl. I think there is a building there called the Fisher Building.

Sara,
https://www.yelp.com/biz/fisher-park-plaza-new-york

Whew I missed it that XP wasn't in the list or might not have tried it....it worked. The big "tick" I get lately is some GOTD don't mention it "won't" work on XP and I'LL NEVER CHANGE....100 Millon around the world still think it's GOOD.......Tried later MS....:PHOOEY on all of them including 10....With over 100 programs in the PUTER, that do the job, XP is the standard.......I'll go Apple when I have no other choice.

Winston, to me a reasonable question.

.
Winston, try free http://bongiovidps.com/

... or headphones ...

... or external self-powered speakers.
.

Jake,
not for me

arthur,

IMHO the message says it all: "Windows SmartScreen prevented an unrecognized app from starting..." SmartScreen didn't recognize it, which doesn't mean it's good or bad really.

"Aren't these things checked out ahead of time?"

Quite thoroughly by the GOTD team, with a remarkable history of never having had a malware infected GOTD. If you want to double check yourself, check the app's files after installation at virustotal[.]com. If you're worried about the installation procedure, run it 1st in a VM or sandbox [e.g. using TimeFreeze].

arthur, Let me get this straight; two of the most popular and arguably most reliable malware and anti-virus programs tell you the program is safe, but Windows SmartScreen tells you that is unrecognized and you take that to mean it's not safe?

At first take it raises a question; do you know what Windows SmartScreen does? It did not tell you that it was unsafe, it told you that it does not recognize the file against a list of programs that other Windows 8 & 10 users have downloaded. Probably the reason AV Media has let GOTD use it as a "Giveaway"; to make itself known and hopefully make it more popular.

While I admit to having my problems with GOTD of late I've never had a malware or virus problem with a file I've downloaded and installed from a GOTD offering.

I've found GOTD's offerings to all be safe. Some from questionable vendors, but all safe. My experience.

JonE,

"Windows SmartScreen prevented an unrecognized app from starting. Running this app might put your PC at risk" message appears because the application has
files that are NOT DIGITALLY signed and have no publisher information, just like AVAudioEditor itself.

Unless companies BUY the certifications or PAY Microsoft to approve their software you will see messages like the above.

Good old Microsoft believes that not only should you pay for their software, but other software companies should pay them to use their software with Microsoft products. Their greed is infinite!

Avira and Malwarebytes told you everything you need to know to give you peace of mind.

Lenny,
It's very kind of you to post your concerns.Thanks for that.

I did some testing and I'd like to add a few things:

1.Virustotal reports the setup file as being clean.(1 / 56 )
The original setup.exe has been stripped of 'relevant knowledge',thanks to Gotd I guess,but they forgot to adjust to install script.
So relevant knowledge is not installed.

2.Whenever you close the program you will get an update notice but please do not go for it.

If you like to remove this rather irritating notice go to the AVAudioEditor program folder and rename goup.exe to goup.exe.disabled.

Hope this helps.

Lenny, Despite the very, VERY significant amount of words and time, I imagine, that went into your generous, trying-to-be-helpful comment, you are making a critical, basic error in assigning high probative value to Symantec's Reputation Scoring or any other "crowd-sourced" opinions.

Being based on the subject software's so-called reputation, if the software is relatively new and, therefore, not being used by a large number of *Symantec* customers, Symantec makes the ABSENCE off positive feedback into a negative. That, IMO, is inherently NOT a trustworthy measure of any PARTICULAR software's safety. By analogy: Remember applying for your first bank loan or credit card? The ABSENCE of a credit history resulted in your having a low credit score, even though you were NOT a deadbeat and would --given the chance-- pay any debts as agreed.

Absence of proof is not proof of malware (or anything else, for that matter.)

Matter of fact, I have scanned the file with Symantec's own antivirus and it gives it a clean bill-of-health. So does VirusTotal's 55/56 scan engines.

I'll further prove that ranking based solely on a crowd-sourced reputation is unreliable: Look at the ratings commenters give to software offered here on GOTD, sometimes because they make silly mistakes like not looking in spam folders; have no clue that anti-virus /malware programs ARE SUPPOSED to recognize ANY changes to one's system, including those made by safe, legitimate software, and evaluate the alert further.

Finally, since I tend to be as long-winded as you :) , please accept my respectful, collegial and fact-based opinion in the spirit in which it is offered: In limited, specific circumstances, you SHOULD disable anti-virus/malware/ransomware/etc software. If you are paranoid, like I am, you can even monitor what happens to your system during that pause in protection by using an install-monitor software, checking system logs, etc.

Ciao.

Lenny,

"Managed to unpack second download but when I ran the setup.exe file Norton flagged it as WS.Reputation.1 and removed the file."

What would be important there is if Norton were flagging the GOTD wrapper, setup.exe, or the setup file(s) it unpacked prior to installation. The 1st would be almost certainly meaningless -- if you got the actual GOTD setup.exe file it's contents are protected so Norton simply could not see anything. If you wanted to check the app's installation file(s), maybe download & run the trial installer.

"The reputation-based system uses “the wisdom of crowds”"

Reputation lists are like Facebook Likes -- any individual or group on Facebook can have a sometimes overwhelming number of Likes, & still be despicable, or fraudulent etc. The reverse is also true -- a group or individual can be perfectly fine, but someone(s) took it on themselves to damage their reputation. So while reputation lists can be useful, that usefulness is limited.

"Don't suggest I disable my AV software, it ain't gonna happen... I'm aware this could well be a false positive but I am not going to put my system at risk and will pass on today's infested offering."

Companies selling security software [quite] frequently error on the side of caution, which is in their interests. Like any other Windows user, you get to decide what's in your interest, so passing on AV Audio Editor &/or relying 100% on Norton is fine. The only real concern I'd have is that you don't develop a false sense of security -- no security software, including Norton, can or will keep you completely safe, e.g. phishing is maybe the most reliable, easiest way for criminals to compromise your systems.

Lenny, Blah Blah Blah. Dude, read some forums -- you need to learn stuff.

beans,

Thanks for your really useful feedback ... NOT. Firstly I did make a point of saying that it could be a false positive, secondly I do read forums and as for learning stuff, I run my own IT business and have probably forgotten more stuff (as you put it) than you'll ever know, but I don't need to justify myself to you. I posted this information in the hope that someone might find it of interest as I had read that some others here had commented that Malwarebytes flagged the site as malicious, that's all nothing more. I do not believe that GOTD would allow infected software to be downloaded, I've been a follower of GOTD for many years and have never known it to happen. I, however, prefer to err on the side of caution.

jmjsquared,

I'm probably more paranoid that you and agree with what you say. I didn't have time to fully check out the reason that this was flagged by Norton because I was too busy with other things, but I know that it was nothing to do with the GOTD wrapper, never had any problems in the past, like you say "ranking based solely on a crowd-sourced reputation is unreliable" and could be that this particular piece of software hasn't been around long enough to build up a good reputation, I haven't actually had the chance to check release dates and that is why I made a point of say it could be a false positive.

Lenny,
CORRECTION should has said "that can't see that" ...

.
mike, no, this offer is not wrapped.
.

TODDLER,

Please read my comment over here:
https://www.giveawayoftheday.com/avaudioeditor-7-5-1/#comment-516424

Mark Moran,

Audacity's fine, but you might want to check out Wavosaur, which is smaller, lighter, easier, & also available in 32 & 64 bit versions. Or if you want to go more pro, check out the free version of Presonus.

That would be everybody's first question: how does this stack up against Audacity? Having used Audacity for a lot of projects over the years, I would say that it's certainly possible to improve on Audacity for common routine operations, but it would be hard to match the depth of Audacity for some of the complex operations. For example breaking up a long presentation into individual slide commentaries by placing labels along on the entire sound track and then telling it to Split All.

mike, Thanks, but I've tried Wavosaur before. It's OK for simple quick little jobs like cutting and joining ... but the 100% free Audacity with it's heaps of free plugins has served me well for years.

Mark,

Although I've used Audacity for years (mainly for remastering audio recorded while shooting video for a community access cable station), there are times when I don't need the "weight" that comes with that venerable program. At those times my go-to audio editor is Waveshop. I highly recommend it for those who have more pedestrian audio editing needs, as it's less complicated than Audacity (although highly capable).
IIRC it doesn't support VST plugins, although it comes with a ton of very good quality LADSPA plugins.

Essentially, it's the program I recommend to someone when I think Audacity would be overkill, but when something more than 'entry-level' is needed.
So if that objective fits the bill for someone reading this, try it out, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

http://waveshop.sourceforge.net/index.html

Corrie, Thanks...That's the first thing thought that popped into my mind when I saw this offer...'is it any better than Audacity'? Having read the other reviews on here I think I'll give this a miss.

Thomas Kelly,

Sorry. Would you like some cheese?

Thomas Kelly
i downloaded software.
than i extracted zip file
than i read note
than gone to cyberlink as pr written address on note (extracted zip )
than logup my email id
than login again
than atonce appear password
than i installed software with that password. (note they also sended password to me thr email ).
this is very good software.
thanks to giveawayoftheday & Cyberlink.

Thomas Kelly,
The website still exists.
I used the link in your comment and filled in a mail-adres.
And I did get a code in the next screen:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/k85sn2ihl02xsoh/CodeLater.png?dl=0
on Saturday sept 3, 2016

Thomas Kelly,

Well, it seems to be your lucky day.The link you mention is still valid .Enter a name and an email on that page and you will be redirected to a page displaying your serial and the download link.
Take care.

Steffo,
Just a guess; try to rename goup.exe in the program map. That one asks for contact with the internet:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/14f8tkomckqv107/Internetcontact.png?dl=0
And try the GOTD-program.

I am curious about why someone would give away a software that might malfunction, and without any possibilty to upgrade it to a version that doesn't.

Even XP x64 have started to warn about i use a version that might malfunction....

Uninstalled in XP x64 and 7 Ultimate x64.

Steffo,

Please read my comment on how to do that over here:
https://www.giveawayoftheday.com/avaudioeditor-7-5-1/#comment-516424