URL Helper Editor's Review

Have you ever wondered where the video you just saw on a webpage came from? I did sometimes, and I found myself searching like crazy for the link where I could download this movie. Well now we don't have to search anymore because URL Helper shows all the hidden links that are accessed by the Internet browser. It does this by sniffing network traffic and searching files. I don't see a beginner using URL Helper with much success at first. But once you get the hang of things, it's rather easy to filter the links you need.

The problem comes from the fact that most of the times, when you see a movie on a webpage, you also see advertisments, banners and other pictures. These aren't always properly filtered by URL Helper so the program produces a lot of results, letting you choose the right ones. I recommend you try sorting the URLs by clicking the FileName column. The program will sort the captured URLs by their type, making it easier to distinguish the ones you were searching for.

The options dialog provides you with settings for filtering certain types of files. You can also choose different background colors for Windows Media, Real Media, Apple Media, MP3, and Flash Media files.

Pluses: A search function is provided, allowing you to find the URLs by keyword, and by type. You can also select which type of packets you want to capture: only packets directed to the workstation's adapter, only broadcast packets, only multicast packets belonging to groups of which your network adapter is a member, any multicast packet, and so on.

Drawbacks / flaws: Vista users should run URL Helper as an administrator: Right-click the icon of URL Helper, and then click Run as administrator.

In conclusion: Great tool for an average user, wanting to find a multimedia stream on a specific Internet page. Of course, you should pay attention to copyright issues.

version reviewed: 3.4.4