Freemium Software

Posted by Jim Van on August 30, 2011 under entrepreneur, eOffice, small business | 2 Comments to Read

A couple of posts back, I started to discuss ‘freemium’ software, software that is free to the user, in exchange for either information, advertising, or a bit of both. I’d like to run through ten really good applications that every windows user should own:

SECURITY: AVG anti-virus suite has been around almost as long as Norton and McAfee, but is not nearly as well-known, due to a less-pronounced distribution model. While Norton and/or McAfee (and now Trend) comes pre-installed on many new systems as trialware, AVG requires that you: a. find it and b. download and install it. That shouldn’t stop you from taking advantage of one of the best anti-virus applications around, for free.

The free version doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of the paid version, but it does a solid job of protecting your system (it constantly ranks in the top three, according to VT100, a group of independent testing labs who regularly test and review most security software applications). To download it, visit download.com and search on the keywords ‘avg free’

SYSTEM CARE: One of the best tools out there for controlling malware, registry corruption, disc fragmentation, security and system optimization is free! Advanced System Care 4 Free is an excellent tool that you should run weekly to keep your system in top operating condition. It can be downloaded from http://download.com, searching on ASC free. Ignore the numerous entreaties to upgrade to the paid edition. Apart from the ability to schedule when it runs, there is no significant difference between the free and paid editions.

REMOTE ACCESS: Log Me In Free is one of the great remote access tools. Did you notice the word FREE in its name? Very simple to install, and once put onto a machine, that machine can be accessed securely from any PC with a web browser and internet connection. Http://www.logmein.com.

PRODUCTIVITY: Two tools really stand out here, and offer significant savings for most users:

LibreOffice – when OpenOffice was acquired by Oracle Corporation a few years back,many engineers and programmers who were involved in this open-source alternative to MS Office flocked to form their own independent corporation. Both, OpenOffice and LibreOffice are open-source and free, but LibreOffice is perhaps a tad more updated. It is an excellent alternative to Microsoft Office and is $280 cheaper than the Office Pro suite. Excellent online support through user forums. Libre Office

PrimoPDF: Why spend $200 on Adobe Acrobat Standard if all you need is a way to convert a Word Document over to a .pdf file? That’s just the beginning of what this application can do. Worth a drive. Go to Download.com Search for PrimoPDF.

COMMUNICATIONS: We’ve been using Skype for a decade and watched it get better and better. With its recent purchase by Microsoft, we’re not sure about its future, but we do use it as our primary messaging tool, and have for years, eschewing Yahoo IM, AOL and MSN messenger. It has a lot of great bells and whistles. We also use it for nearly all our outgoing calls (at $2.95/mo for unlimited US/Canada calling), our inbound number ($30/year, and we receive over 500 calls/year without problem) and, in spite of itself, is relatively easy to use. I speak to my cousins in France at least once a week (Skype to Skype calls are free anywhere in the world). My former partner used it daily to have video calls with her son when he was studying in Paris. Versions for iPhone, Android and iPad are also available for free. http://www.skype.com

WEB: Two really great browsers, both very speedy, both very different:

Google Chrome: speedy, minimized, without the bells and whistles, and the overhead, of Internet Explorer. When you want to surf, this is the board to use. http://google.com/chrome

Opera: I first read about this browser, originally a product of the Finland telephone company, in a copy of the International Herald Tribune while lounging in a Paris cafe. It’s an awesome browser, particularly when one is surfing sites that comply with the standards set by the World Wide Web Committee (W3C), the standard body for things Web. It’s fast,powerful, and yet has lots of great features that you won’t find in other browsers, at least not without loading them down with plugins. Bonus: it has its own mail client, which works pretty well. http://www.opera.com.

MUSIC: How could any list be complete without a couple of products to be able to partake of the ‘opium of the masses’ as Karl Marx once called it:

iTunes – you don’t HAVE to own an i-Product (Pod,Phone,Pad, etc.) to take advantage of iTunes as a music and video organizer, though if you own an i-Product, you must have a copy of iTunes installed (arguably). I really like its organization, capabilities, and the ability to create playlists. On the computer, it also has a Radio section, though which one can tune in to thousands of stations. You haven’t lived until you’ve heard Botswanian rap, tho you can also listen to many local stations as well…iTunes Site

Pandora – widely available on iPhones/Pads, Android, Blackberry and other mobile devices, this site lets you listen for free as well. And, like the app, you can create your own ‘stations’. I have stations based on Dave Matthews, Flora Purim, the Chili Peppers, and others. It doesn’t have the programming oomph behind it of Sirius XM, but it IS free…Pandora Radio

There are many other freebies, some good, some awful, out there. CNET is often a good source of reviews, and links to their download.com, from which you can download most of the software described here. With all of us getting hit with this changing economy, it really makes sense to take advantage of some of the new free applications out there!