Free is good!

And in this case Free is GREAT.

Here are some of my favorite FREE programs that I use on a regular basis. Techie or not these programs will make a good addition to your arsenal.

If you have a favorite useful program that is not listed please post it in the comments… (make sure it’s FREE 🙂 )

Top Free Programs you NEED!

1. Acrobat Reader : come on, you need to be able to open all those PDF’s.
2. Mozilla FireFox : Yes, get this browser! It’s safe, fast, free and fancy… well maybe not fancy but, it’s free!
3. Internet Explorer 8 : OK, I know I just said get FireFox but sometimes you NEED IE to access some sites. IE 8 is Microsofts newest release and appears to be better than previous versions.
4. Zune Software : Ok, Ok.. Don’t get a Zune, I don’t care but, do use the software, it’s really great for managing your mp3s, videos, podcasts, etc… Give it a try. It is a little big 100 meg(ish) download but, worth it!
5. Audacity : Everbody needs to record some audio. Audacity is great!! I used it to create some funny Station IDs for brink.fm
6. Open Office : Open Office is a perfect, Free solution to shelling out 100’s on MS Office.
7. Foxmarks/Xmarks : Ok, now that I’ve got you using FireFox AND IE 8, you’ll want to synch your Favorites.. Foxmarks is the perfect solution.
8. Tweetdeck : For the twitter obsessed… this is a must!
9. AVG Free : AVG is a good, free, light on memory Antivirus. Unlike McAfee and Norton this AV wont bring your computer to a crawl.
10. Tools: These I will combine into one: Adaware, Malware Bytes, Spybot, HiJack This, and Combo Fix

*Update:

I’ve forgotten a few and had been adding them as comments… I’m going to add those to this post in a new list:

1. Windows Live Essentials : Windows Live Essentials gives you instant messaging, e-mail, blogging, photos, and more.
2. Jing : Jing is a GREAT and Free program that you can use for screen captures and Screen Casting.
3. 7zip : 7zip is a utility to compress and decompress zip archives.
4. Mozy: Can’t believe I forgot this one… Mozy is online backup. They have a free (for home use) account for up to 2gig of backup. or for $5 a month you can get unlimited backup.
5. Live Mesh : Synchronizing life. Sync, share, and access the information you care about—wherever you happen to be.
6. …. check back for more

© 2009, Robert Owen. All rights reserved.