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Many of you are getting new PCs these days, either as a gift, or just because there's a shiny new operating system out there. But once you get it fired up and the operating system installed, it's time to populate it with good software. Don't just take all the dreck off your old machine people. Use this as an opportunity to start fresh. Let me give you the seven essential pieces of software for your new PC.
First, there's security. You need an antivirus app, and it's not something you need to pay for. CNET's Download.com gave AVG Free Antivirus edition five stars out of five. And if you're not a big company, it won't cost you a dime.
Now that you're protected, it's time to browse the Internet. Don't just go with the Web browser that came with your operating system. There's Opera, and Google Chrome, and Firefox, and so many other options. And you know what? I'm not going with any of them. I recommend Sea Monkey. Why? Because it has the Firefox Web browser, but it also bundles e-mail, an IRC client, and Web page editor as well. If IRC and Web editing doesn't matter to you, then maybe go with Firefox and Thunderbird for e-mail. However, to get the most bang for your byte, I say go Sea Monkey.
Next, you need to tell all your friends of your experience on your new computer. So get an IM client. On Windows, I recommend Pidgin. For Mac use Adium. They both are free, open-source multiservice clients that work great.
Next, it's time to save you a few hundred bucks. Don't go out and drop dough on Microsoft Office. Open Office from Openoffice.org is better than it's ever been. I use it daily for word processing, spreadsheet manipulation, presentations, and more. If you're an Excel superuser, you may have issues with it, but for the average Joe, it's going to do everything you need--for free!
Productivity is covered. Now for some entertainment. For that, you need VLC media player. It can handle almost anything you throw at it. Have DVDs won't play in that piece of crap software that came with your PC? VLC will handle it. Music? Any format you can think of. And it's got that magic price you love.
Two more and we're done.
Now you need a graphics editor. How else will you put your friends heads on celebrity bodies. For Windows there's nothing better than Paint.NET. It's free and powerful. For Mac? It's tough. I like Acorn, which is free to download but $50 to keep. For free that stays free, try Seashore, which is based on the GIMP engine, or Skitch.
Finally, one last security piece of software. Antispyware. You can go with a cocktail of Ad-Aware, Spybot Search and Destory, Windows Defender, and so on. That's not a bad idea, but if I was backed up against a wall and forced to pick just one, I'd pick Hijack This. Trend Micro has given us one of the most powerful malware removal tolls you can find, and it's freeware.
Now there's certainly many other apps you need, such as registry cleaners, torrent downloaders, FTP clients, and so on, but they start to stray into niches that vary for different types of users. I can say without a doubt that these seven programs are essential for you to install on every PC, no matter who you are.
And you could also get a free Magic 8 Ball Yoda. I admit it's a bit beat up, but that's why we call it a "lame prize," right? So post your answer to the trivia question in the comments below and cross your fingers that your name will be drawn.
Oh, and someone asked that we start posting the answers to the trivia questions. Duh. Why didn't we think of that. So the answer to last week's Worst Downloads question was Alien Communicator.
Best of luck this week!
Rafe and Tom answer tech questions about getting Microsoft software for cheap, the security of bank apps and more.
Listen now: Download today's podcastSubscribe now: iTunes (audio) | iTunes (video) | RSS (audio) | RSS (video)
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Sony has a deal with Google that lets users of the Sony Reader get all kinds of public domain e-books for free. But what about the Kindle users? Not to worry. Thanks goes out to Buzz Out Loud listener Dave for sending along a tip for downloading free e-books right to the Kindle, no computer necessary. That's something that the Sony Reader can't do. Here's how to do it.
First, make sure your Kindle's on and the wireless connection is active.
Press menu and select experimental.
Then select basic Web.
Press menu again and select enter URL.
Then enter www.feedbooks.com/mobile.
Now you can browse through books by title or author. It's a little tedious using the navstick to move down and select the titles.
Once you've found the book and clicked, it will ask if you wish to download it. Say OK.
It downloads. And once it is finished--press Home and the book will show up on your list of books. No charge! The full public domain book is there, absolutely legal.
Feedbooks.com also makes a Kindle Guide that you can download and use instead of the browser. When you download the guide, it shows up in your list of books on the home page. And then you can open that guide and browse for books from there.
The thing is, I could not make it work on my Kindle 2, and even when we did get it working on a co-workers Kindle, it kicks you out to the browser to make downloads anyway. The browser-version worked just fine, so you might just want to go with that. And keep in mind any books you get from feedbooks won't sync to other Kindles or to the iPhone application.
This week's Top 5 has a lot of free stuff. First and foremost, it contains Jason Parker of Download.com's Top 5 best free iPhone games. That alone would be enough, but we don't stop at enough. Watch the video and you will receive instructions on how you could win a slightly used 3D puzzle of an Imperial Star Destroyer. And just in case you think that would be enough, it's signed by Molly Wood.
After you watch the video, come back here to this blog post and you'll know what to do. Do it right and you'll be int he running for the puzzle. As soon as we have 10 qualifying posts below, we'll announce the winner right here in this post. Best of luck!
WE HAVE A WINNER
Say congratulations to Hacker5849 who correctly guessed Jelly Car. I can't believe more folks didn't get it. I dropped a big hint in the video! Best of luck to y'all next time.
Have your heard Rihanna yet? She of "Umbrella" fame, her hit collab with Jay-Z that's been all over the charts, radio, and Web lately. You can stream it for free on Download Music--and this week she's also the star of our ongoing Best New Music video report, a collaboration with our buddies over at CNET TV. Watch and listen as Anngie Dehoyos gives the lowdown on what makes the song so gosh-darn great. Then catch Peter Gavin's take on indie heroes Blonde Redhead and my own shakedown on the haunting new album from Charlotte Gainsbourg, daughter of French icon Serge and a well-known film actress to boot (think Science of Sleep).
The crew at Download Music is always on the prowl for great new music--we do the heavy lifting so you don't have to--and as usual we've dug up some cool and groovy stuff to get you through the weekend and beyond. For starters, we've got a brand new track from R&B hero Jill Scott; a couple of laid-back French-pop-styled songs from Dean & Britta, former members of Galaxie 500 and Luna; and the first pop album from hot electronic DJ and techno artist Matthew Dear.
You can catch quick reviews and song samples from each of these artists in our latest video report. Pop it on and hear what we're talking about.
What are the cool kids spinning? Not that we at Download.com Music are all that "cool." OK, well, maybe we are a little. Whatever you want to call us, you can't deny the music in our latest Download.com crew video report--produced by our good friends at CNET TV--is rather tasty. Bjork chimes in wth a brand-new track, along with former Pulp maestro Jarvis Cocker, rising hip-hop star Phat Kat, and the crazy dance rhythms of Bonde Do Role.
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