Forte Agent for Windows

User Reviews

• Forte Agent hasn't changed much since 2005

  amethyst_igorFebruary 17, 2014

  Pros

  Agent is functional. You can email and download binaries with it.

  Cons

  Version 7.2 really doesn't have any new features worth mentioning. The only thing that really changes with each new version is the version number. There has been no attention paid to downloading binaries, which is the main task users will want. If Agent is closed at any time during downloads, for any reason, all download tasks are erased permanently. Agent cannot "remember" tasks. Agent cannot unpack archives and does not know how to handle text files or info files or any other type of file except image files such as .jpg. When messages are highlighted and selected for download, Agent has to think about that for a while, maybe ten or twenty minutes or even longer. During that time, no updates are made to the display, and Agent will not respond to any user input.

  Summary

  The product is rather high-priced for what is offered. The PAN newsreader is superior in many ways and free. PAN can remember download tasks if it is interrupted by power outage, etc. Basically Forte Agent is just a vehicle for antispam patents Forte hopes to make money off. The news subscription is rather overpriced as well.

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• forte hosts hijackware

  dimethylethylphosphateMarch 4, 2013

  Pros

  was once modestly usable

  Cons

  obligatory "toolbar" download now bundled in with forte, which happens to be hijackware.

  Summary

  used to trust forte as a reader. now that it has infected my drive with a viral "toolbar" inclusion, i am still fighting to regain my connect. therefore; don't even think about it.

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• Buyer Beware

  MrAzeraLimitedJanuary 24, 2012

  Pros

  Great news reader

  Cons

  Pathetic technical support. Forte does not provide customer support. This is stated in their license for the software. In the day and age of live chat options and free long distance on our cell phones Forte has chosen to ignore the customer. You can send a "ticket" to support which in my case averaged a 2 day wait for a response each time I sent one. Really a shame as it is a great product but seems like it does not work at all with Windows 7 though it did work fine when I was running Vista.

  Summary

  Just another example of service after the sale (or lack thereof). They can process your credit card order in 10 seconds but take two days to respond to a technical support query. They offer no number to call for technical support and are essentially completely useless. Great program but if you need help with it forget it.

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• Best Newsreader I have found.

  dbpcflMay 23, 2011

  Pros

  Simple to use

  Cons

  Its not free

  Summary

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• It was not easy to setup, or use. I tested several news

  steveow1May 22, 2010

  Pros

  I personally did not like any of the features. I have been using the NR reader for years and I am just used to that.

  Cons

  I found it difficult to assemble .rar files in the program, actuall it was not working at all for me.

  Summary

  I tried several news readers, and non of them are better than NewsRover (currently causing memory leak) still the easiest to setup & use. Easy to customize, and manage files.

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• It's Better then Most Newsreader

  ke4jcdSeptember 3, 2008

  Pros

  Works fine for reading and posting to news groups, and I use outlook for my e-mail so can't comment about the e-mail side if the software.

  Cons

  If you wish to post to more then one group you have to manually add the other groups.

  Summary

  <br /><br /><span class='notifyMsg'> Updated </span>on Jan 3, 2010<p/>I NO LONGER USE Agent and have removed it and replaced it with Mozilla Thunderbird it dose E-Mail and Newsgroups much better then Agent. Agent in my view is out of date and it's programmers are living in the days of DOS and windows 3.1 - Text Based E-Mail. Mozilla Thunderbird 3.0 ROCKS!

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• What did they do to Agent ?

  WTFHappenedAugust 18, 2007

  Pros

  Probably still has all the old functionality in there somewhere ( If you can find it )

  Cons

  All the simple and clear things about the old user interface have been made unnecessarily complex and changed for the sake of change. Did forte get a barrage of email from users requesting a "folders and desks" arrangement ? I don't think so. What was wrong with the old list of all groups that you could quickly sample at will and 'subscribe' if you want to. Now the list of all groups is hidden away on the menu for no reason and you have to go back to the main window to see the contents. Terrible.

  Summary

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• Product works great once you get it to work

  KlifnoteMay 2, 2007

  Pros

  It is fast and does what it says it does and then some.

  Cons

  This is a difficult program to get up and running. Difficult instalation. Tech support is e-mail only and it is time consuming. Errors, errors, and more errors. <p>There has to be a better way. Get a tech. guru to help you install. It is not for an average computer user.

  Summary

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• No more Free Agent

  DiskoboyMarch 17, 2007

  Pros

  Excellent all around newsreader

  Cons

  Older versions would turn into Free Agent with slightly less functionality if you chose not to buy the software after the trial expired. It no longer does that. After I installed this version, I could not go back to my older version.

  Summary

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• Vast Improvement Over Previous Versions

  Barbara866November 29, 2006

  Pros

  Has the ability to manage and display many groups. Good support page from Forte for many issues. Also has e mail capabilities.

  Cons

  Problems with loading and getting to run on XP Home. Needed to install as admin and run and config as limited users. Forte needs to address this problem from the install point of view. Kept getting access denied messages... had to call tech that I knew. Did anyone test this on the average PC for the average home user first?

  Summary

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