Automenu (1987) 1 Utility DOS

Automenu is a sophisticated commercial menuing system that lets you control your computer using custom menus, rather than using DOS commands. It features small, compact memory usage and built in help.

• 4.x

Back-It (1986) 0 Utility DOS

Back-It, from Gazelle Systems, is a fast and compact hard disk backup utility. It was sometimes part of OEM system bundles. It was kind of low-end, and changed backup formats between releases but otherwise did what it was supposed to do.

• 3.x

CheckIt (1988) 13 Utility DOS

CheckIt, from TouchStone Software Corporation, is a diagnostic tool for generic PC/XT/AT compatible computers. It can perform tests on RAM, hard disks, video cards, floppy disks, motherboard resources, and I/O devices. It has an easy to use menu interface but can also run tests non-interactively. It was followed up by the product WINCheckit.

• 1.x

Copy II PC (1985) 5 Utility DOS

Central Point Copy II PC is a disk duplication program that can successfully copy many copy protected disks using only standard IBM PC hardware. It is generally considered the best software-only solution for duplicating such disks. "snatchit".

• 4.xx
• 5.xx

Direct Access (1988) 2 Utility DOS

Direct Access is an easy to use menuing program designed to simplify access to applications on systems with many programs loaded on the hard drive. It is customizable, includes screen blanking, and includes password protection and usage logging. Later versions also detect common programs already installed on the hard disk.

• 4.x

Disk Technician (1987) 0 Utility DOS

Disk Technician, from Prime Solutions Inc., is a hard disk utility and surface monitor. It contains an interleave adjuster and pattern tester similar to Spinrite. The Gold version also includes a defragmenter and disk-level virus protection.

• 4.x
• Advanced 3.x

Diskette Manager (1988) 0 Utility DOS

Diskette Manager, from BLOC publishing, previously from Lassen Software, is a software tool for the IBM PC and Tandy that inventories the contents of your floppy disks in to a database. It enables you to quickly and easily search for files or print disk labels.

• 3

DS Manager (1987) 0 Utility DOS

DS Manager is a menu and file management shell for DOS. It features password protection with the ability to display different menus for different users.

• 1.0

DS Optimize (1988) 0 Utility DOS

DS OPTIMIZE is a disk defragmenter tool. It has a few more options than its competitors, and has a "fast" mode that does not protect against interruptions. This tool competed against Mace Utilities, The Norton Utilities, PC Tools, and many smaller defragmenter tools.

• 2.x

DS Recover (1987) 1 Utility DOS

DS Recover, from Design Software, is a set of file utilities for DOS that lets you unerase files and directories, and unformat disks. It competed against the Norton Utilities, PC Tools, and Mace Utilities.

• 2.x

FastBack (1986) 0 Utility DOS

Fastback, by Fifth Generation Systems, Inc, is a backup utility for DOS. Its key feature is that it can read and write both a floppy disk and hard disk at the same time by making use of dual-channel DMA. Combined with speedy data compression, it can make a very fast backup.

• Plus 1.x
• Plus 2.x

FastTrax (1987) 0 Utility DOS

FastTrax is a disk optimization program for MS-DOS on IBM PC computers. It rearranges and defragments files to make file access faster.

• 3.x

Flu-Shot Plus (1988) 0 Utility DOS

Flu-Shot Plus (usually written Flu-Shot+) is a tiny tool that prevents unwanted reading and writing to boot sectors and specified files on a hard disk or floppy disk. The package flaunts its ability to block virus spreading, but despite this, it is not a virus scanner, and can not detect or remove viruses.

• 1x

GOfer (1987) 0 Utility Document DOS

GOfer is a desktop search tool capable of searching many document formats. It loads as a TSR and can be called while other programs are running. It support multiple word search, operators, and inexact searches. It does not use an index, that makes it slower but requires no additional disk space.

• 1.0

Grammatik (1988) 4 Utility DOS

Grammatik is a standalone grammar checker, and was possibly the first grammar checker for personal computers. Later versions were built in to Word Perfect. It competed against RightWriter.

• II
• III

IBM PC Print (1987) 0 Utility DOS

PC Print, written by Gary Dix of IBM and part of IBM's Personal Productivity Series, is a print formatting tool for printing text files. It adds the ability to print sideways, use custom fonts, print with bold/doublestrike, split continuous text in to individual pages, and print every other page for double sided printing.

• 1.00

IBM Personal System/2 Software Sampler (1987) 2 Utility DOS

The IBM Personal System/2 Software Sampler is a set of tiny and fairly useless sample applications bundled with some IBM PS/2 computers. It includes three disks, Education, Entertainment, and Personal Productivity.

• 1.x

IBM PS2 Collegiate Kit (1987) 1 Utility DOS Windows

The IBM PS2 Collegiate Kit is a set of floppy disks that contain a system tutorial and a runtime of Windows 1.04 with a PS/2 mouse driver. It was included with some PS/2 machines as an educational promotional deal.

• 1.00

Labelwriter (1987) 1 Utility DOS

Labelwriter is an inexpensive, self contained, and easy to use database program just for printing business or customer mailing address labels. Labelwriter combines the essential information-handling features you need with versatile printing options to make it easy to maintain and print business mailing lists on self-adhesive, continuous-form labels with your PC's printer.

• 1.x

Lightning (1987) 1 Utility DOS

Lightning disk cache, from Personal Computer Support Group, is one of the earlier disk caching programs for MS-DOS IBM PCs and compatibles. It supports read and write caching of both floppy and hard disk drives, and can use EMS memory. as smaller name programs such as Super PC-Kwik.

• 4.x

Mace Utilities (1987) 4 Utility DOS

The Mace Utilities, from Paul Mace Software, is a suite of disk and system tools similar to the Norton Utilities and PC-Tools. Notable features in included the ability to undelete files, recover re-formatted disks, a defragmenter, and disk caching software. In 1989, Paul Mace Software Inc sold the Mace Utilities to 5th Generation Systems. After "Mace Express" in 1991, the product seemed to vanish?

• 4.x

MenuWorks (1988) 2 Utility DOS

Menu Works, from PC Dynamics, Inc, is a DOS based menu program that lets you boot your computer to a friendly menu of options rather than a confounding DOS prompt. It supports mice, features custom menu creation, sub menus, automatic scanning for known programs on your hard drive, on-line help, built in file management, and a built in file search function.

• 2.x

Microsoft MS-DOS Manager (1987) 5 Utility DOS

MS-DOS Manager is a friendly file manager shell provided through OEMs for use with MS-DOS 3.x. It was bundled with systems from Zenith, 3COM, and others. It is similar in operation to the Windows 1.x and 2.x MS-DOS Executive. single or split screen file list (but no drag-and-drop), files may be viewed with details or as a compact list, supports associating file type with external applications, and programs installed on your computer are easily added to an "Applications" dropdown menu.

• 1.00

Norton Commander (1986) 70 Utility DOS

Norton Commander is a MS-DOS based file shell that was widely popular due to it's two column design. You could easily copy and move files between one folder or another, execute DOS commands and more. It competed against many other file managers including Gazelle Q-DOS and Xtree

• 2.x

Norton Utilities (1983) 79 Utility DOS

The Norton Utilities is a suite of disk and system utilities designed to enhance system performance and stability. It started off as a set of disk utilities written by Peter Norton, and later was sold by Symantec. It competed against Central Point PC Tools and the Mace Utilities. In 2003, Norton Utilities was merged with Norton SystemWorks, but later split back out.

• 4.0
• 4.5