Registry entries are not for everybody and few are the users that dare to enter and edit them. They are the main cause of Windows crashes and degraded system performance. They contain all the information that makes your computer respond to your actions. To give you an example, in the registry entries lies the key to get rid of the Recycle Bin shortcut on your desktop (it cannot be deleted unless you operate a certain change in the registry).

There are myriads of softwares that can take care of your registry entries and some of them can take care of them for good. Easy Cleaner is the one I most trust that it will not scramble them in such a way that I will have to reinstall my Windows or restore my backup copy of the registry entries.

Infoworks Technology Company makes available Reg Doctor, a registry problem fixer for $29.95. The trial version will work an indefinite amount of time as the restrictions appear when fixing the registry problems. The trial version of the application will not fix all the problems, as you can clearly see in the screenshots below.

The interface of the program is not much, in fact it is pretty weird as the buttons are not clearly visible and are painted with a gradient mix of white and blue. They look interesting, so the weirdness in not negative in this case.

Handling the functions of the software is easy as everything is out into the open and there are only three main buttons you should be interested in. Quick Scan will perform a scan of your System Registry in certain areas of the registry, like Registry Integrity, ActiveX/Com and its subsections, File Extensions, Application Paths, Help Files, Microsoft Shared and Uninstall registry entries. It will provide the easiest way to fix the registry errors.

Deep Scan is the second scan option available in the program and provides a more complete verification of the registry than the quick scan. In addition to the areas scanned in the previous option, Deep Scan will also check for invalid Windows shortcuts and VxD (a virtual device driver) related problems.

After one of the scans is complete, the user can unfold the directories with the problems and take a look to see what files has RegDoctor detected as problems. Each folder in which the software finds problems will have a threat level which goes from Low to High. Check the boxes for the issues you want the application to fix and then click the "Fix the Problems" button in the right hand lower corner of the application window.

If you are using the trial version you will receive a warning message telling you that not all the problems can be fixed in the trial (it will fix only the issues in Help and Application Path).

Restoring option will allow the users to restore the entries detected by RegDoctor and labeled as problems during a previous check. This is a very good thing as the application will perform a backup of the registry before fixing the problems. This way you can restore the registry entries to a certain date (the program will not delete the backup file when a new scan is performed and when Restore is activated the user can choose the backup according to the date).

Backups can be deleted and the path to their location is displayed in Restore window.

The configuration of the software comprises options like always backup before cleaning Registry, running at startup and minimize the software into system tray when Windows is opened. Backing up the registry is the recommendation of the developer and also my own and this option should always be enabled.

The user can customize the areas the software should search in the Registry by going into Settings and checking or unchecking the options available (registry Integrity, ActiveX/COM and its subsections, File Extensions, Application Paths, Device Driver, Windows Fonts, Help Files, Microsoft Shared, Windows Startup, Uninstall Section, VxD Section and Ms-DOS Shortcuts).

The Good

The application is easy to use and pretty good looking. Also the reliability level is pretty good and if you take into consideration that you can restore the registry entries after the cleaning is performed, you can relax and clean the registry entries how many times you want.

The Bad

Considering that there are similar applications that are free, I would say that the price is pretty high.

The Truth

Easy to handle and equipped with a backup and restore option. Every user can work with it as if there is false detection you can restore all the fixed problems and look for the issue yourself.

Here are some snapshots of the application in action: