The best free software downloads available from the Electronic Revolution
United States of America (Press Release) February 5, 2008 --
The Best Free programs on The Web
By: Erick "Wantsome" Pauley
E-Rev Co-Founder and Writing Staff
They say the best things in life are free, and the same is mostly true on the web as well. With more years of my life spent with the Internet than with out, I feel compelled to share with others the cool widgets and programs I use. I've written up a description of my favorite free programs on the web, accompanied with a picture for your viewing pleasure. These programs range from graphics to just flat out making your machine look sweet. Some are popular, some are not . I think you'll find at least a few that will fit your fancy.
AbiWord
I actually used this program to write this article, it is a much smaller download than Open Office. Abiword offers a fully functional cross-platform word processor for free. AbiWord comes out of the blocks with support in multiple languages, spell check, tables, and a grammar checking ability that rivals Microsoft�s. It can open nearly all the usual file formats, as well as having the ability to save in .doc/.rtf/.html. If you're looking for a great word processor and don't have the means to purchase Microsoft Office, or the time to download Open Office, AbiWord is the only program for you.
Abiword Download
Abiword
Smartftp
 This is the best free ftp client program that I have run across. Operational in over 20 languages, the GUI is visually appealing and easy to work with. Smartftp has a 256-bit secure connection, File/Folder synchronization, which is a feature I use often in web development. It also has unlimited multiple connections and a neat URL watcher feature, which works if you have an ftp address keyed up in IE or Firefox. The URL watcher feature in Smartftp will alert you and automatically insert the ftp:// in to its command line. While I don't have much else to say, I've used this program for years and have never been disappointed.
Smartftp Download
smartftp
AVG Free
 Ah, the battle of free anti-virus vs. subscription ant-virus. I've personally worked as a sort of computer repair man for about 8 years. During that time, I have found that Norton and McAfee are very good at finding a virus, but nearly useless at getting rid of them. I've been using open source or free anti-virus for almost a decade now, and have found AVG to be at the top of the food chain for the time being. In the early 90's I experimented with a great program called Inoculate IT; however, support for the program died out long ago. AVG offers weekly updates, sometimes more; very precise scanning procedures, featuring the ability to select areas to scan, as well as the date and time; and, a virus vault, very nifty for system restores. If you don't want to pay yearly for an anti-virus that does nothing more than tell you it�s sick, download AVG and protect your system today.
AVG Download
avg
Star Dock Object Dock
 So, you've modded your case. You have cool lights on your keyboard and you paid way too much for that mouse. What now? Well, as all of us PC enthusiasts know, we often lose out on that cool modern aesthetic software design that the Mac industry has. Object Dock offers you a great visual effect, much like the menus seen in Jaguar on the Mac. With a huge user base, sweet icons are not hard to find, with everything from Ventrilo to CoD4. I recommend downloading the custom icons, as they are much more visually pleasing than the defaults.
Objectdock Download
object dock
Mozilla Firefox
A program the majority of readers will have already tried or are currently using, it still deserves its spot on the list. Introduced in 2002 under the name "Phoenix" and renamed to Firefox in November 2004, Firefox is now the second most popular web browser in the world. With a feature list that now, in my opinion, far exceeds Microsoft's Internet Explorer, the Firefox line continues to improve upon itself. Said feature list includes: tabbed browsing, integrated spell checker, live book marking, a nifty download manager, and a search system that was developed by Google. With over 2,000 downloadable add-ons and skins, it�s truly the PC enthusiast�s browser. With a superior security sandbox over Microsoft, you need not worry about your personal information when using Firefox. A few of my favorite integrated features on Firefox are FireFtp, a great simple in browser ftp client, and the ability to skin it. While still dwarfed by IE, Firefox is on the rise. Check this browser out, you won't be disappointed.
Firefox Download
mozilla
Vicmans Photo Editor 8.1
Here's a program that I actually hand out quite a bit. With Adobe PhotoShop and PaintShop Pro taking up the majority of the middle to high level ends of graphic design, a good �free� program is few and far between. Vicmans offers a nice set of features for that ever important free price tag. With the capability to open 20+ image formats, I haven't run into any compatibility problems. Features range from all the basic tools you get in Microsoft Paint, to high end image filters and 3D extensions. While not on the same level as PhotoShop or PaintShop, Vicmans is well above the average free program.
Vicmans Download
vicmans
Meebo
While Meebo isn't technically a program, it is a website that offers you the ability to access four different instant messenger programs simultaneously without actually downloading the clients. Access MSN, Yahoo, AOL, and even ICQ off of the Meebo website. With a slimmed down list of features for each program, it isn't nearly as powerful as the individual clients. However, it does allow you a much faster route to access these tools at work or home.
Meebo Download
meebo
Rainlender
Along the lines of the Object Dock, Rainlender is a very nice looking calendar program that can be fixed to your desktop background. It's fully customizable with yet another large user base to continue providing new skins. Rainlender allows for event notification, days, weeks, or even, months in advance. Rainlender is a great looking, simple, feature packed program which gives your PC a sweet new look. I have had some small problems running Steam games with this program installed; occasionally crashing due to the overlay feature. However, it's easy to reset this in the Rainlender settings.
Rainlender Download
rainlender
SysMetrix
 Another awesome program and probably the most feature packed on the list is SysMetrix by Xymantix. SysMetrix sits on your desktop displaying useful information about your PC. With display for everything from CPU/Memory usage, IP address, time, drive space, system volume, to your unread email, the feature list is about 100 items long and is fully customizable via skins. This is an awesome program to use along side Rainlender and Object Dock and it just makes your machine look that much more sophisticated.
Sysmetrix Download
sysmetrix
By: Erick "Wantsome" Pauley
E-Rev Co-Founder and Writing Staff
They say the best things in life are free, and the same is mostly true on the web as well. With more years of my life spent with the Internet than with out, I feel compelled to share with others the cool widgets and programs I use. I've written up a description of my favorite free programs on the web, accompanied with a picture for your viewing pleasure. These programs range from graphics to just flat out making your machine look sweet. Some are popular, some are not . I think you'll find at least a few that will fit your fancy.
AbiWord
I actually used this program to write this article, it is a much smaller download than Open Office. Abiword offers a fully functional cross-platform word processor for free. AbiWord comes out of the blocks with support in multiple languages, spell check, tables, and a grammar checking ability that rivals Microsoft�s. It can open nearly all the usual file formats, as well as having the ability to save in .doc/.rtf/.html. If you're looking for a great word processor and don't have the means to purchase Microsoft Office, or the time to download Open Office, AbiWord is the only program for you.
Abiword Download
Abiword
Smartftp
 This is the best free ftp client program that I have run across. Operational in over 20 languages, the GUI is visually appealing and easy to work with. Smartftp has a 256-bit secure connection, File/Folder synchronization, which is a feature I use often in web development. It also has unlimited multiple connections and a neat URL watcher feature, which works if you have an ftp address keyed up in IE or Firefox. The URL watcher feature in Smartftp will alert you and automatically insert the ftp:// in to its command line. While I don't have much else to say, I've used this program for years and have never been disappointed.
Smartftp Download
smartftp
AVG Free
 Ah, the battle of free anti-virus vs. subscription ant-virus. I've personally worked as a sort of computer repair man for about 8 years. During that time, I have found that Norton and McAfee are very good at finding a virus, but nearly useless at getting rid of them. I've been using open source or free anti-virus for almost a decade now, and have found AVG to be at the top of the food chain for the time being. In the early 90's I experimented with a great program called Inoculate IT; however, support for the program died out long ago. AVG offers weekly updates, sometimes more; very precise scanning procedures, featuring the ability to select areas to scan, as well as the date and time; and, a virus vault, very nifty for system restores. If you don't want to pay yearly for an anti-virus that does nothing more than tell you it�s sick, download AVG and protect your system today.
AVG Download
avg
Star Dock Object Dock
 So, you've modded your case. You have cool lights on your keyboard and you paid way too much for that mouse. What now? Well, as all of us PC enthusiasts know, we often lose out on that cool modern aesthetic software design that the Mac industry has. Object Dock offers you a great visual effect, much like the menus seen in Jaguar on the Mac. With a huge user base, sweet icons are not hard to find, with everything from Ventrilo to CoD4. I recommend downloading the custom icons, as they are much more visually pleasing than the defaults.
Objectdock Download
object dock
Mozilla Firefox
A program the majority of readers will have already tried or are currently using, it still deserves its spot on the list. Introduced in 2002 under the name "Phoenix" and renamed to Firefox in November 2004, Firefox is now the second most popular web browser in the world. With a feature list that now, in my opinion, far exceeds Microsoft's Internet Explorer, the Firefox line continues to improve upon itself. Said feature list includes: tabbed browsing, integrated spell checker, live book marking, a nifty download manager, and a search system that was developed by Google. With over 2,000 downloadable add-ons and skins, it�s truly the PC enthusiast�s browser. With a superior security sandbox over Microsoft, you need not worry about your personal information when using Firefox. A few of my favorite integrated features on Firefox are FireFtp, a great simple in browser ftp client, and the ability to skin it. While still dwarfed by IE, Firefox is on the rise. Check this browser out, you won't be disappointed.
Firefox Download
mozilla
Vicmans Photo Editor 8.1
Here's a program that I actually hand out quite a bit. With Adobe PhotoShop and PaintShop Pro taking up the majority of the middle to high level ends of graphic design, a good �free� program is few and far between. Vicmans offers a nice set of features for that ever important free price tag. With the capability to open 20+ image formats, I haven't run into any compatibility problems. Features range from all the basic tools you get in Microsoft Paint, to high end image filters and 3D extensions. While not on the same level as PhotoShop or PaintShop, Vicmans is well above the average free program.
Vicmans Download
vicmans
Meebo
While Meebo isn't technically a program, it is a website that offers you the ability to access four different instant messenger programs simultaneously without actually downloading the clients. Access MSN, Yahoo, AOL, and even ICQ off of the Meebo website. With a slimmed down list of features for each program, it isn't nearly as powerful as the individual clients. However, it does allow you a much faster route to access these tools at work or home.
Meebo Download
meebo
Rainlender
Along the lines of the Object Dock, Rainlender is a very nice looking calendar program that can be fixed to your desktop background. It's fully customizable with yet another large user base to continue providing new skins. Rainlender allows for event notification, days, weeks, or even, months in advance. Rainlender is a great looking, simple, feature packed program which gives your PC a sweet new look. I have had some small problems running Steam games with this program installed; occasionally crashing due to the overlay feature. However, it's easy to reset this in the Rainlender settings.
Rainlender Download
rainlender
SysMetrix
 Another awesome program and probably the most feature packed on the list is SysMetrix by Xymantix. SysMetrix sits on your desktop displaying useful information about your PC. With display for everything from CPU/Memory usage, IP address, time, drive space, system volume, to your unread email, the feature list is about 100 items long and is fully customizable via skins. This is an awesome program to use along side Rainlender and Object Dock and it just makes your machine look that much more sophisticated.
Sysmetrix Download
sysmetrix
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