FTP -- "File Transfer Protocol" -- utilities handle the task of uploading files from your computer to a Web server, among other tasks. Essential for anyone with a Web site, unless you actually prefer the clunky, one-at-a-time FTP clients in your browser or, God forbid, AOL.

3D-FTP 3.0 is a high-tech looking, skinnable FTP client. $30 from www.3dftp.com.

7-Zip 2.21 is a powerful, free file compression utility that supports ZIP, CAB, RAR, TAR, and GZIP formats, and can be operated from a DOS prompt. Get the lowdown from www.7-zip.com/.

Absolute FTP 2.0.3 lets you drag and drop files between local and remote systems, and it does it in an interface much like Windows Explorer. $30 from www.vandyke.com/.

AceFTP 2.06.3 is a $30 file transfer utility from www.visicommedia.com/ or freeware.aceftp.com/that earns its keep by letting you transfer multiple files simultaneously, or transfer files to multiple servers simultaneously.

Aladdin Expander 5.0 is a free unzipping program that handles a large number of PC compression formats and even the Mac's Stuffit format. Check it out from www.aladdinsys.com/expander/expander_win_login.html.

Antechinus Quick FTP 1.0 is an easy-to-use FTP client with a comfortable interface. It is primarily designed as a FTP browser for downloading and only displays the remote file structure (not your local files); however, it can be used for file uploads as well. Free from www.c-point.com/.

Bearshare is a large, well-known file-sharing program. Watch out for lots of spyware that come along with your downloads. Free from www.bearshare.com/.

BestFTP Explorer 2000.4 is a quite powerful, flexible, and well-documented FTP client. $15 from www.kis21.com/~hdlim/.

BlueZone FTP is an FTP utility that bills itself as easy for the inexperienced user. Free from www.renex.com/download/.

Bullet Proof FTP 2.0 is a $30 FTP utility that tries to balance ease of use with plenty of options. Check it out at www.bpftp.com/.

Catfood FTP 2.00.0070 is a command-line (i.e. no GUI, no Windows) utility that makes it easy to handle multiple file transfers. Among other features, it automatically determines whether a file should be uploaded in ASCII or binary mode, determines which files have been modified since the last upload, and more. The "downside" is that you should be familiar with command line protocols, i.e. command switches and the like. Free from www.catfood.net/products/cftp.html.

Cerberus FTP Server 1.71 is a multi-threaded FTP utility that usurps very little of your system resources. Lots of useful extras, and free from www.greenepa.net/~averett/cerberus.htm.

CocoFTP 1.0 is an advanced FTP client. $30 from www.cocoftp.com/.

CoffeeCup DirectFTP 5.1 is a full-featured FTP client; even features an HTML editor. $30 from www.coffeecup.com/.

Core FTP Lite 1.3a is a full featured FTP client with SSL/TLS support, queuing, sessions, remote file searching, resume of transfers, bandwidth control, recursive deleting and more. Offers a simple interface similar to the traditional WS_FTP interface, as well as different view layouts to choose from. Free (other versions offer more from prices starting at $20) from www.coreftp.com/.

Cupertino 1998-10-10 is an FTP client that smooths the clunky download procedure for you. It even allows you to move files from one FTP site to another. Free from members.nbci.com/CupertinoFTP/.

CuteFTP 4.2 is a well-regarded FTP utility that makes it easy to handle sometimes confusing FTP details. $35 from www.cuteftp.com/; the Pro version is much more full-featured and goes for $60. Note: I had problems uninstalling my trial copy of CuteFTP.

Download Accelerator Plus is a freebie from www.lidan.com/, that does just as the name implies: speeds up your Internet downloads by working with multiple download sites to speed data transference. Works with both Netscape and MSIE, at least with the newer versions.

Download Butler 2.21, from www.downloadbutler.com/btlrratings.asp, makes it easy to keep up with the goodies you download; it categorizes, unzips, and scans for viruses. It shuts down after a 30-day trial, but I can't find a price for it on its Web site.

Download Mage 1.11 is another download manager; free from lctek.tripod.com/dnloadmage/.

Drag and Zip 3.0g is a $25 utility from www.canyonsw.com, is a full-featured file compression program designed to work hand-in-glove with Drag and File and Drag and View.

Feel bad about using a downloaded copy of WinZip without paying for it? Try the freeware program EZip Wizard from www.edisys.com. It does most of what the big boys do except compress files. For the full-featured version, you gotta pay $30. The good news is, even the biggest idiot among us can use it to easily unzip downloaded programs.

FileZilla is a free FTP program from filezilla.sourceforge.net/ that is powerful and intuitive. I've been using it for a while, and it works very nicely.

FlashGet 0.95 is a download management utility, formerly called JetCar, that lets you "break apart" downloaded files into chunks that can be downloaded simultaneously for quicker downloading. An ad-supported version is free from www.amazesoft.com/, or you can pay $15 to get a version that's ad-free. An Opera plugin version is also available.

Forgotten FTP Password 1.0 emulates the FTP server to retrieve forgotten FTP passwords. $30 from www.zzee.com/ffp/.

Fresh Download 3.75 is an FTP client and download manager. Free from www.freshdevices.com/freshdown.html.

FTP Commander 5.55 is a no-frills, free FTP client that should provide plenty of oomph for personal and small-business use. Find out more from www.vista.ru/2inter.htm.

FTP Password Recovery 1.0 emulates a local FTP server and thereby allows you to recover the FTP login password for any FTP account you may have, as long as it is cached inside an FTP client program. Free from members.ams.chello.nl/a.boros/fpr/.

FTP Control 4.2 is a more full-featured FTP client than many you find on the shareware market, while keeping an easy-to-use interface. $29 from www.ftpcontrol.com/download.html.

FTP Voyager 9.1.0.3 provides an Explorer-like (and skinnable) interface for searching and downloading FTP files. $40 to keep from www.rhinosoft.com/.

FTPSearch is a utility that searches FTP sites for your uploading, and downloading, needs. Free from www.flashpeak.com/ftpsearch/ftpsearch.htm

FTPx is an older, but simple and clean, FTP engine that's free from www.ftpx.com/.

GetRight 3.3.4 from www.headlightsw.com/ lets you manage your file downloads quickly and easily while you're not browsing the Web. Easy to configure for late-night downloading. It also resumes failed downloads so you don't have to start over from scratch. Free to try, $17.50 to keep.

Gnutella is the granddaddy of all file-sharing programs. Free from www.gnutella.com/.

Go!Zilla 3.9 is the latest version of the granddaddy of download utilities from Radiate (formerly Aureate) Media. If you download a lot of files, grab this one first ($25 to keep) and find out just how useful it really is. More info and download sites are at www.gozilla.com.

iMesh 1.02 isn't an FTP client per se; it is a free shared file service, giving you an alternative to more traditional FTP and download sites. Think Gnutella. Free from www.imesh.com.

Intel Download Calculator 2.0 is a freebie from www.intel.com/english/home/funstuff/dcalc.htm that calculates probable download speeds for whatever modem or goodie you're using, and helps you decide when the best time to download that new app would be. Try it online before downloading; you'll need MSIE 4 or above, or Netscape 4 or above, to use this one.

Internet Neighborhood 5.0.1 allows you to integrate FTP and Windows Explorer; you can download files from FTP sites without an FTP client with this utility. $30 from www.knoware.com/.

IW Classic FTP is another cheap ($10) program that allows you to resume interrupted downloads without having to start over. Find it at ironware.net/iwftp.htm.

LimeWire has become a popular file-sharing alternative to the now-defunct Napster. Free from www.limewire.com/.

Look@FILE Secure File Transfer 1.20 is a powerful and user-friendly network file transfer program. Free from www.lookatlan.com/.

Morpheus is a popular file-sharing utility for music fans. Free from www.morpheus-os.com/.

Netzip Download Demon 3.2 is a free download manager that lets you pause, resume, and schedule downloads. Find out more from www.netzip.com

PentaZip 5.1 is a full-featured FTP client that supports various file formats, including .ZIP, .ARJ, .ARC, .LZH, .LHA, .CAB, .GZ, .RAR, .TAR, .ZOO, and .BH. $50 from www.pentazip.com/.

PowerArchiver 2001 6.1 is a full-featured compression utility, free from www.powerarchiver.com/.

Pumpkin TFTP 2.5 lets you send files to another person without using a traditional FTP client or even an e-mail server, thus letting you avoid the usual file size constraints. You just need the file location and the IP address you're sending it to. Free from kin.klever.net/pumpkin/.

RemoteHome2000 allows you to connect between two separate computers via the Internet and transfer files via FTP protocols. Ideal for road warriors who need to retrieve a file from the home computer. Free from www.jpsoft.dk/uk/freeware.html.

RobotFTP Client 3.0 offers task scheduling, comparison and synchronization of files, server-to-server transfers, remote file search and more. $30 from www.robotftp.com/.

Seagull FTP 3.2 is an excellent Explorer-like FTP file transfer program which works with virtually all FTP hosts. It features drag 'n drop file transfer, command line switches for batch files, can resume broken transfers, tracing facility, PASV mode, and more. Free from www.seagullsoftware.com/products/free_ftp.html.

SecureFX costs you $60, but promises secure FTP transfers. Not for the novice. Check it out at www.vandyke.com/.

Send To FTP 2.2 puts a "Send to FTP" item on your Send To menu within Windows Explorer, and does so quickly and easily. Excellent for those of us who dislike futzing around with the complexities of an FTP client. Free from www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Garage/7334/SndToFTP.html.

ShutEye 1.00.0094 is a download management utility that handles file downloads for you, even shuts down Windows upon completion. Get some sleep instead of staying awake watching the file transfer. Free from www.codearchive.com/~mark/.

SiteFTP 2.01 is a simple-to-use FTP utility that requires the Visual Basic runtime files. $15 from www.karmadromesoft.com/software/siteftp.html.

SmartFTP 1.0 is a slick little FTP utility, and the price is right. Free from www.smartftp.com/.

SmoothyFTP is a $25 FTP program that combines efficiency with fun graphics and ease of use. Unfortunately, the home page shows exactly why you shouldn't use too much Java in your coding, but the download page, venus.spaceports.com/~donsoft/downsmoothy.html, loads fine.

StarFTP 1.252 is a $24 FTP utility; not the best for high-speed modems, but for the plebians among us, it works fine. Download it from louka.port5.com/. The shareware version allows for 150 uses before going belly-up.

TinyUpLoader 1.1 is a simple, free FTP client from www.volny.cz/svopex/tinyuploader/tinyuploader.html. Don't let the site's uncertain grasp of English throw you.

Trellian FTP 2.06 is another highly regarded FTP client. Lots of advanced features. $45 from /www.trellian.com/ftp/.

Uploader! 3.1 is a simple FTP utility. Free from www.dummysoftware.com/uploader.html.

Web Drive 6.03 displays FTP directories in an Explorer-like pane, making FTP usage much easier. $40 from www.webdrive.com/index.php?pg=./products/webdrive/index.

WinMX is another file-sharing utility, free from www.winmx.com/. I use this; it works well, and does not put spyware on your system.

WinSCP uses the SCP secure file transfer protocol; DOS-like commands and plenty of security. Free from winscp.vse.cz/eng.

WS_FTP Pro 7.6, from www.ipswitch.com/, is a warhorse FTP transfer utility that makes downloading and organizing files from the Internet much easier. $40 to keep. Or, if you don't mind a more bare-bones FTP client, the free WS_FTP LE 5.08 should suit your needs. It certainly works well for me. (Note: Ipswitch has discontinued the free version, and I can't find it on the Net. If you find it, keep it -- it's old, but works well. If not, you'll have to look elsewhere.)

Wyn32 FTP 1.00c uses an unusual "tree" view and a drag&drop interface for its functions. $20 from www.at32.com/doc/wyn32ftp.htm.

XXCOPY 2.50.7 is a souped-up version of the original DOS XCOPY. Free from www.xxcopy.com/xxcopy/betatest/.

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