Open-Source Programs
Brian Gongol


The following are programs recommended for a variety of applications. They are all open-source programs, meaning they are (a) developed by users, for users; and (b) free.

Program Purpose
FileZilla FTP client program for updating websites and transferring files
FireFox Web browser
Firefox - most-used plugins Links to the plugins for a variety of media players, including products from Adobe, RealPlayer, QuickTime, and Windows Media Player
Thunderbird Open-source e-mail program. Better protection than Outlook.
Pidgin Open-source instant messenger, with compatibility across AOL-IM (AIM), IRC, ICQ, MSN, and Yahoo services
Audacity Sound processing
Gimp Image editor. Lighter (that is, smaller in file size and quicker to run) than PhotoShop. Does most everything you could want.
Inkscape Image editor for vector graphics
OpenOffice Word processing, spreadsheet, and other office functions, including a PDF maker. OpenOffice extension files offer additional utilities.
LibreOffice Word processing, spreadsheet, and other office functions, including a PDF maker.
Scribus Desktop publishing
PDF Creator Prints virtually anything to PDF
LMMS - Linux Multimedia Studio Audio synthesizer


The following programs are not open-source, but they are available free of charge:

Avast Antivirus Anti-virus software for home use only.
AVG Anti-Virus Anti-virus software for home use only
DraftSight CAD software
Opera Web browser. Doesn't offer add-on tools like Firefox, but another good alternative to Internet Explorer.
Apple Safari Web browser
Spybot Search and Destroy Anti-spyware/malware tool
SketchUp 3D modeling tool
Apple iTunes Offers music downloads and streaming audio
Orca Search A program that allows web designers to create custom search engines for their sites
Palm Desktop For users of PDAs running on the Palm operating system
Pazera 3GP to AVI converter For converting movies recorded in the 3GP format on mobile phones to AVI format, which is more widely-used
Verizon Access Manager For Verizon users who need to tether their mobile phones to their computers