There has been a rise recently in the Free & Open Source Software (FOSS) movement to provide computer programs that compete with non-free, commercial applications. Free software has been around for a long time, but the rise in FOSS's popularity has increased its development which has in turn made it much easier to use than it has been in the past. One of the main reasons it's gained popularity is because the openness of its development makes it more secure (less prone to malware infection and system instability). That and little or no cost to the end user. While you'll find some of these programs not quite as easy to initially use as ones you would otherwise pay for, their Help documentation is usually very good and most have an online community (discussion forums, email lists, chat rooms, etc) you can turn to for more help, also at no cost. So, you can just spend a little of your time learning instead of your money.
While most are free, you'll notice that not all the programs provided here are. Ones that are marked "100% Free" are just that; totally free and legal for anyone to use at zero monetary cost. If the program is not marked 100% free, it usually does have at least a trial period or limited free use of some kind. While free software does provide some excellent alternatives, sometimes proprietary, paid-for software does have the better option. I advise everyone to evaluate which program works best for you and go with what you prefer. The value in the free software is that you can try it and you've lost no money if you don't like it.
Unless otherwise stated, all software here will run on current versions of Microsoft Windows (XP, Vista & 7) as well as other operating systems mentioned on their websites (Mac, Linux, etc). You can download the software right from the manufacturer's site. Some have their download section in obscure places. For those, I've provided a link directly to their download sections.
I can install, setup and provide limited support for all software mentioned here.
