24 Useful Freeware

 24 Useful Freeware You Will Definitely Find Handy

1. E-mail: Gmail.
   Not exactly a software since it’s web mail, but its hands down the best
   email managing system IMO. (and I’ve used other email clients before
   like Outlook, Lotus, Yahoo).
2. Browser: Google Chrome.
   I switched from Firefox last year. It took some getting used to in the
   first week. But after that, I started loving Chrome. I love that it lets
   you shift your tabs around, unlike Firefox. It also lets you “pin” your
   frequently accessed pages so it becomes a small icon on the navigation.
   It’s fast, minimalistic in interface,  and very reliable as a browser.
3. Calendar: GCal.
   Keeps all my schedules in check, and it’s web-based so you can access
   it anywhere – even your phone if it has the web-surfing function
4. Task Shuffler:
   Ever felt the need to move the programs around in your task bar? I know
   I do. This is an extremely handy program that allows you to do just
   that, simply via clicking/dragging/dropping. For Windows only. (Special
   thanks to reader Matt for sharing!)
   Update Jun ’12: Seems like Windows 7 (onward) has
   this function by default, so if you’re using Windows 7 or newer
   versions, you don’t need to download this.
5. Screen Capture: Snipping Tool if you are using Windows Vista (in built), Zap Grab if you are using other platforms. Just click and grab any part of the screen, and you have your image. Extremely useful.
6. Automated Computer Shut Down: Switch Off.
   Automatically Shuts down/Hibernates/Restarts/Logs Off your computer at a
   time you input. Great if you are downloading something which is taking a
   while but you need to leave your computer before it finishes.
7. Audio: Audacity. Free, open source software for recording and editing sounds.
8. Document Processor: Libre Office.
   This is almost a direct clone of MS Office set (Powerpoint, Word,
   Excel) – about 99.9% similar. I find it hard to believe that this is
   free! The only issue I’ve experienced so far is the slight change in
   formatting when you convert to MS office extensions (.doc, .xls) – but
   it’s manageable.
9. PDF: PDF Creator.
   Libre Office already comes with an inbuilt pdf creator. But if you want
   to create PDFs from other applications, PDF creator is for you. As long
   as there’s a “Print” option, you can generate a pdf from there.
10. Graphics Editing: GIMP.
    Very similar to Adobe Photoshop. Some functions are named and organized
    differently than Photoshop, so if you are a Photoshop user you can
    download GIMP Shop
    to change GIMP’s interface similar to Photoshop. The amazing thing is
    how GIMP packs with so much graphic editing prowess in such a small
    program (installer is 15.2meg, while Photoshop is over 700meg).
11. FTP: Filezilla. Excellent FTP program that does its job well. You got to love open source projects
12. Chat: GTalk.
    Extremely low-resource and fast chat application with functions that
    supersede MSN (example: logging of chat history which is integrated with
    and automatically saved in Gmail Chat folder). For even more functions
    (emoticons, group chat, etc), check out Gtalk Labs Edition.
13. Blogging: WordPress.org if you are looking to host your own blog and WordPress.com for the free hosted version. Personal Excellence is using WordPress.
14. Journal: Daily Diary.
    A very simple yet effective free journaling application that lets you
    type and store your entries on your computer. Comes with password
    protection and multiple journal creation for different purposes (e.g.
    record of different goals, areas of your life, etc)
15. Video player: VLC Media Player.
    The best multi-format media player. With so many different media
    formats out there, this one is a catch-all player that plays almost
    anything. And it’s resource light too.
16. Information Storage: Ever Note. Storage central for information captured across any environment – Computer, Web, Phone.
17. To-Do Lists: Remember The Milk. Very effective for getting your tasks in check. It’s web-based, which means you can access it anywhere.
18. Post-It Notes: Morun Sticky Notes. Minimalistic post-it notes on your desktop. Convenient placeholder for storing commonly-accessed or used information.
19. Mind Mapping: Free Mind. It’s a great open-source mindmapping software. Great tool and very user-friendly.
20. Timer: E.gg Timer.
    This is a web-based app and not an actual software. It’s an online
    stopwatch you can time yourself and it’ll beep at the end. Very useful
    if you want to timebox when doing a task, exercising, etc.
21. Internet Calls: Skype. Gtalk works great too as a backup. Both support video conferencing.
22. HTML Editor: NVU
    is a free, open source web editor, which you can use to build your
    website via a WYSIWYG editor (what-you-see-is-what-you-get). According
    to the website, it rivals programs as Adobe’s Dreamweaver and
    Microsoft’s Expression Web even, in functionality. Usually I use notepad
    for webpage edits outside of the WordPress platform, but when there’s
    heavy coding involved, NVU is a great time saver. I used it to build the
    PEBook and 30DLBL sales pages.
23. Always on Top:
    Keeps a particular window of choice on top of other windows. Great for
    keeping certain notes or a browser window on top of other windows (if
    you’re watching a video). Watch my video tutorial to learn how to do it
    and download the utility: How To Make Your Window *Always* Stay on Top of Other Windows
24. Text Expansion:
    Increase your typing speed by leaps with a text expansion / text
    substitution utility, where the software automatically replaces preset
    keystrokes with large chunks of text. Watch my video tutorial to learn
    how to do it and download the utility: How To Increase Your Typing Speed by 500%!