Subcategories

• Accounting / Finances

  Software for keeping track of your accounting and finances. These are alternatives to Quickbooks, Quicken, Microsoft Money, etc.

• Antivirus / Security

  Anti-Malware and Anti-Virus software is perhaps the most important software you can have.  It keeps you protected from nasty viruses and Malware from being installed on your machine. Although even with this software running on your workstation you can still get a Virus or Malware. Number one recommendation is be careful on the web and don't click on strange pop-up windows. Just close out of them.

• Desktop Tools

  Helpful tools to make your computer perform better.

• E-mail Related

  Some great alternatives for viewing your email to the paid programs.  Microsoft Outlook is a great program with lots of features but if you are not connection your email client to a Microsoft Exchange Server then you will not benefit from Outlook. Try one of these programs for your email and calendar.

• Firefox Add-ons

  Firefox is one of the most popular web browsers used today. One of the reasons behind this is the growing number of Add-ons you can download to enhance Firefox to fit your taste. Not only is Firefox free for all to use but so are the millions of Add-ons available to download at https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/

• DVD Related

  This software can be used to make an ISO copy of your DVDs or to make an additional disk copy of a DVD.  Copying of commercial DVD is illegal and should not be done for any reason. Please only use this software to copy DVDs that you own the rights to.

• FTP / SFTP

  Most home uses do not have a need for a FTP/SFTP program, but if you have a personal web page FTP is most likely the way you upload your files. Below are some great FTP programs that I use every day.

• Graphics / Photo Editing

  Programs for editing or drawing graphics or just resizing.  Open Source graphic photo editors are a great alternative to expensive paid programs. Photo editing software is some of the most expensive software on the market and unless your a professional you can usually find a free app that will do what your looking for.

• IM - Instant Messaging

  Instant messaging is a crazy world these days as there is so many companies that provide it. Theirs AOL, Yahoo, Microsoft, Facebook, Google, Myspace and many others.  The biggest hassle with it is that some of your friends and family may be on AOL while others are on Microsoft or Yahoo.  While most people don't know that there is apps that will do it all. You can chat with Yahoo, Microsoft, and AOL uses all in the same program.

• Joomla Extensions

  Joomla is the world's most popular open source CMS (Content Management System). with 2.7 percent of the Web running on Joomla, the software used by individuals, small & medium-sized businesses, and large organizations worldwide to easily create & build a variety of websites & web-enabled applications.  With thousands of extensions to improve its functionality finding an extension can be hard. Check out my list of favorite free extensions to improve your Joomla functionality.

• Music Related

  Apps to play your music, convert it, just anything that is music related.  There is so many free music apps out there I'm amazed.

• Network Tools

  Tools to help you manager your network and or trouble shoot network issues.

• Office Apps

  I bet some of you have purchased a computer and thought it came with Microsoft Office just to find out it was really a trial version. Well here are some great alternatives to spending money on something most of you will just be writing a resume with.

• PDF Related

  A PDF is a great way to send someone a file you made without them being able to edit it.  But who wants to spend a lot of money on Adobe Acrobat. While Acrobat gives you some amazing editing capabilities the majority of people are just looking to beadle to print a document to a PDF file.

• Remote Access/Support

  Applications to give remote access to your computer or support to someone.

• Server Applications

  Tools and apps to help you manage your server. From a FTP server to exchange monitoring there is an app to help you get a few more nights sleep.

• Server Migration Tools

  A list of tools to make your life a little easier when migrating a company to a new server. Everything from files to printers its always nice to have an app to make the process a little easier.

• Server Monitoring Tools

  Free tools to help you monitor your servers. From Active Directory to your website there is free tools out there to make your day at work a little easier.

• System Tools

  Tools to find information out about your system.

• Video Related

  This category is for any video related application. Video editing, screen recording, video converters, etc.

• VMware Tools

  Free tools to make managing VMware virtual servers easier on you.  The free version of VMware vSphere is a great virtualization host but it does lack in management capabilities. These tools will help you manage your vSphere host without paying for the expensive VMware management tools.

• Web Browsers

  What web browser isn't free is the question? But I know a lot of people use Internet Explorer because it comes with Microsoft Windows and they don't realize other apps are out there that do a better job.  Open source web browsers are a great alternative as they are open source and anyone can create add-ons for them to do more then just display a website.

• Web Services

  Websites that provide free online services. Everything from email, sharing files, content filtering, and online virus scans.  Web apps are a great because there is no software to install and you can access your app from any computer with an internet connection.

• WordPress Plugins

  WordPress is web software you can use to create a beautiful website or blog. WordPress is the #1 blogging software on the internet and is used by small and large companies to create websites and blogs.  WordPress has over 16,000 plugins available to empower its functionality to fit your needs. This list is of my favorite free WordPress plugins.