I decided to write this guide after spending about fifteen years trying many of the free software packages available on the Internet. I always enjoyed using free software, mostly because it is free and I am a cheap skate. Nevertheless, I know that I am not alone and that there are many people out there who share my spend thrift ways. Most likely if you are reading this, then you might just be one of those kindred spirits. In the course of these years I have found some software that was great and some that was not so great. This is a culmination of those experiences in a hope that I can save you some time and frustration.
One of the biggest annoyances associated with free software was the constant and annoying nag screens as well as spyware which made the software not worth the price of free. For all of you up and coming software developers, please feel free to offer your software for free. You can even throw in some ads to generate some revenue, feel free to even require payment to unlock special features, but please do not make the ads a hindrance to using the program itself. All of the software mentioned throughout this article is 100% free. Where it is applicable I will make mention of the software package’s commercial equivalent.
First off, I would be remiss if I did not make mention of software that makes it possible to even run all of these software packages. I am of course, speaking of the Operating System itself. Currently, the free Operating Systems are based on Linux and they are all just different Kernel builds of the same System developed by Linus Torvalds. There are many different versions of this OS but there are only a couple of which that stand out above the others. As a note, I will mention the Linux Operating Systems but some of the free software that I will be mentioning later in this article will be only Windows compatible.
Operating Systems:
Ubuntu – Equivalent Microsoft Windows XP
Ubuntu is a really clean and stable Operating System. Ubuntu has really made a name for itself and is considered one of the best free Operating Systems available. The OS has a very easy to install interface which makes it as simple to install as Microsoft Windows. There are instances where some hardware may not be compatible with the Linux Operating System, but that is becoming a rare occurrence.
Ubuntu also comes in a LiveCD version which can be booted from your PC so that you can try it out without committing to installing the OS first. In many cases you can simply go to your hardware manufacturer’s website and download drivers that are specifically written for Linux. You can find more information about Ubuntu at this website, http://www.ubuntu.com/
gOS – Equivalent Microsoft Windows XP or Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard
gOS is the Operating System that is being distributed with the new $300.00 PCs from Wal-Mart. However, the developers of the OS have been kind enough to provide the Operating System as a free download from their website. Quite possibly this is because they are hopeful that they can get the market to turn a little from Microsoft to Linux. This one is a little tough to really associate with Windows because it is much more like the Mac OS, although it does run on PCs.
This is a really solid Operating System and the layout makes it that much simpler for the user to perform common task. While many Windows based games are not compatible with the Linux Operating System, there are utilities that will allow you to emulate a Windows PC in the Linux environment so that you can play your favorite games. You can find more information about gOS at this website, http://www.thinkgos.com/
Now that we have the Operating System out of the way, what would a PC be without some free Utilities? These utilities will ensure that your PC runs efficiently and securely. There are a plethora of free utilities available for free on the Internet. Many of these do not work well, are buggy, or simply do not perform to par with what they claim. Here are some of the very best utilities available.
Utilities:
Security
ZoneAlarm – Equivalent Norton 360
ZoneAlarm has come a long way since its first appearance on the Internet. ZoneAlarm came at a time when personal PC security was becoming a major issue with many people. ZoneAlarm was first introduced as a personal firewall. However, over the years the developers have been actively increasing the features of their software that have now made it a complete security and Antivirus suite.
ZoneAlarm is by far the best free full security suite available. There is also an option to pay for a premium license which will give you many more features. However, the standard free version is sufficient for most users. To find out more information about ZoneAlarm you can go to this website, http://www.zonealarm.com/store/content/home.jsp
PC Maintenance and Cleaning
Advanced WindowsCare Personal Edition
WindowsCare is a very good system maintenance and cleaning program. This software will monitor you PC and notify you if it finds a problem. It will even check through your registry and search out any errors or invalid entries. WindowsCare will check your system for errors and will clean old and useless files from your hard drive. This is a very useful utility and it does a great job of keeping your PC running in tip top condition. For more information about Advanced WindowsCare you can go to this website, http://www.iobit.com/advancedwindowscareper.html
File Recovery
Undelete Plus
If you have ever inadvertently deleted a file, you may have been relieved to find that file still resting safely in your recycle bin. However, I had the experience where I had even emptied my recycle bin before I had realized the file was among the many, ready to be trashed. Luckily I found this really awesome free file recovery software called Undelete Plus.
This recovery software will not only find recently deleted files, but it will also find files that are still residing on the hard drive after a format, or even an FDISK. This little file recovery utility was a lifesaver and I highly recommend that you get it. To find out more about Undelete Plus you can go to this website, http://www.undelete-plus.com/
Compression Utility
IZArc – Equivalent WinZip and WinRAR
IZArc is a full featured compression utility. This file compression tool handles all of the popular compression formats such as ZIP, RAR and ACE. However, it also supports just about every other compression format available. The interface is very clean and easy to use. This is simply the best free archiving tool around. You can find more information about IZArc by going to this website, http://www.izarc.org/
CD and DVD Burning Software
CDBurnerXP – Equivalent Nero
CDBurnerXP is a great little CD and DVD authoring software that is completely 100% free. This burning suite can handle authoring CDs and DVDs. It is also capable of burning disk images and it can even convert Nero’s NRG files to ISO, or even BIN. CDBurnerXP allows you to burn audio disk without any gaps between your music tracks. One of the best features is that CDBurnerXP is capable of burning Blu-Ray and HD-DVD disk. To get more information about CDBurnerXP you can go to this website, http://cdburnerxp.se/
Productivity Software:
Office Software
OpenOffice – Equivalent Microsoft Office 2003
OpenOffice has been around for some time now and it just keeps getting better with each release. OpenOffice is a complete Office suite that is capable of doing everything that Microsoft Office can do. Included in the package is Writer. This is the equivalent to Microsoft’s Word and is just as easy to use. This software comes with a built in spell checker and also gives you the ability to update with custom dictionaries or even different languages.
Impress is also included in this software suite and is used for creating dynamic PowerPoint presentations. Although, this presentation package comes with very few pre-built templates, it is possible to find many on the Internet which you can use for free. Impress is a very clean and neat program which makes it simple for even a new user to master in a short amount of time.
The other programs in this software suite are just as impressive. There is Math which is used for creating mathematical equations, Draw that is used to create vector drawings and Calc which is used in creating spreadsheets. OpenOffice is capable of reading, creating, and even converting Microsoft Office documents. The totality of this software suite makes it a valuable addition to your PC and you get it all for free. To find out more about OpenOffice you can go to this website, http://www.openoffice.org/
PDF Files
Foxit PDF Reader – Equivalent Adobe Reader
If your experience with Adobe’s Reader is anything like mine, you have gone crazy waiting for the software to load and actually render your PDF document. If you have done it in a browser window from a website, the experience is even more excruciating. Thankfully, somebody came along and did something about it. The developers at Foxit Software have done a wonderful job in designing a free software application that can read, create, and even convert other file formats to PDF.
Some of the features are completely free, however, to use all of the features available you must purchase a license for a nominal fee. Regardless, this is a software download that is well worth the time. You are sure to save yourself a lot of time in productivity and frustration by using the Foxit software. To find out more about Foxit Reader you can go to this website, http://www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/rd_intro.php
Internet
Firefox Web Browser Equivalent There is no comparison
Although, pretty much all web browsers are free, I feel that I must make mention of the best browser on the available. Firefox is a web browser which is a derivative of the Mozilla Project. Mozilla is an Open Source software that was aimed at a security and feature rich browser. The developers of Firefox have taken their browser to the next level while still considering the average computer user.
One of the nice features of the Firefox browser is the ability to alter its look by using easily installed themes. The Firefox browser also speeds up your browsing time. Firefox has a very useful download manager which will ensure that if your computer freezes or crashes, the download will pick up where it left off. To get more information about Firefox you can go to this website, http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/
Games:
This guide would not be complete without some games to blow your time with. There are several games that are free on the Internet. Nevertheless, I have found that many of them are buggy, impossible to download, or I could never connect to a server to play. Therefore, here are a couple of games that were simply awesome to play and easy to setup.
America’s Army
America’s Army is a MMPOG (Massive Multi-Player Online Game) that was developed by the United States Army. The games is about as real to life as it gets and the attention to detail is unsurpassed. In order to actually get to play in the online servers you must complete the basic training course. The online servers are setup in such a way so that you may have to actually complete additional training such as, Airborne, Ranger, or Special Forces. This is a very awesome game and well worth the download. This game is sure to give you hours of enjoyable game play.
However, it is a huge download so if you decide to go for it, you had better use the Firefox browser with its download manager, or find another that will resume the download if you should lose your Internet connection. If you want to learn more about America’s Army you can go to this website, http://www.americasarmy.com/
Tribes
If you want quick and dirty battle action, then Tribes is the game for you. Although, this game was originally only available commercially, Sierra started giving it away free when they released Tribes Vengeance. Nevertheless, the original Tribes is absolutely awesome and I have been playing it for years. It is a highly addictive game that just never gets old.
In tribes you play online against a community of gamers from around the world. In this game you blow up stuff, kill your enemies, and capture their flag to win the match. The thing that I like most about this game is that when you die in battle, you instantly respawn so there is no waiting for the next match to begin. If you want to learn more about Tribes you can go to this website, http://www.download.com/Starsiege-Tribes-full-install/3000-7453_4-10294998.html?tag=lst-0-3 This link is long because it is also the download link where you can actually get the game.
Alright, so we have covered some of the most useful software, as well as, some fun stuff. There are so many free pieces of software available that it is almost impossible to cover them all. However, this small sampling is enough to get you started on your way to some productive and fun times on your PC.