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Top Free Software Alternatives Online
By
Michael |
April 18th, 2009 |
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Uncategorized |
3 comments
Michael Simmons is the resident tech advisor at our Mommy Tech Department. He is the President of Conquer Technology, an IT company specializing in managed services and social marketing. Connect with Michael on Twitter @ConquerTech.
Why pay for anything you don’t have to? Software can be expensive, so always do your research before buying to find out if there is a free alternative available. Below are some tips for finding free software online that will save you tons.
Free AntiVirus Software
- Some anti-virus companies have a free version of antivirus software. Here’s one – AVG Free.
- Avast – the home user edition is free.
Cloud Computing Services
If you want to take advantage of some “cloud computing” and domain services, try these:
- Microsoft Office Live – You bring the domain name, you can get a free website hosted there.
- Google Apps – Free email, word processing, spreadsheets, group calendars, group chat, and more.
Operating Systems
Picked up an old computer and can’t see spending the money to put Windows on it? Try Linux. Some people love it, some people don’t understand it or are afraid of it, and some people just like what they’re already using. But nobody complains about the price tag of Ubuntu, one of the best “linux flavors” for a home pc or laptop.
Other Open Source
- More open source options include Open Office instead of paying for Microsoft Office.
- For a free, web-based Photoshop replacement I suggest Aviary (super-cool site, too!).
- And finally, if you find you’re getting a whetted appetite for open-source software, give Osalt a try, where you can find open-source alternatives to popular programs like Adobe Photoshop and Acrobat Pro.
I’ve personally tried a lot of open source software. Usually I find it’s not as good and harder to support than the mainstream, paid-for software. But what do you expect for free, right? And did I mention it’s free?!
What free software have you come across? Let us know (with links) in the comments!
Lots of people use this as a PhotoShop alternative: http://gimp.org/ From their site:”GIMP is the GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a freely distributed piece of software for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. It works on many operating systems”
I have used OpenOffice for Mac, PC, and Linux. It performs beautifully.
Ubuntu Linux is familiar looking enough so there isn’t much new stuff to learn. It really is very similar to Windows. When you install Ubuntu, the installation already includes Open Office, GIMP, photo management software (similar to Picassa or iPhoto), a music player, and some cool time-wasters (games). It’s ready to go right out of the box more so than Windows and Mac OS X. Most people will never have to install any additional software.
GIMP is pretty cool, but I still have a strong preference for Photoshop.
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