10 Best Windows Programs?

A few weeks ago, an excellent columnist over at ZDNet, Ed Bott, wrote an article about about his 10 favorite Windows applications. It was interesting, but was still just one man's opinion. I have my own opinions on the subject, but then again, so do you (unless, of course, you are a MAC fanatic). Well, a whole lot of people who also read Ed's column wrote to him about their favorite programs. Ed, being a good listener, compiled a list of everybody else's favorite and wrote a second article listing them. I must say, it was far more interesting to me because it gave a consensus of opinion of many folks rather than just one...and it introduced me to some programs I didn't know about.

So, I thought I would pass the article on to you and make a few comments as there are some good programs you might want to know about. Some are free and some are not. So here goes:

Microsoft OneNote - I had never heard of this program. Now, I am glad I have. It is part of a fairly new class of software known as "Notebook Software." OneNote is a good program that has one fatal flaw, at least for me. I am going to save any further discussion of OneNote and other Notebook-class software for my next blog, so stay tuned...it will be worth it.

Skype - I have never used this as we have a terrific Internet phone service, Packet8, where I can call anywhere in the US and Canada for free. But, many folks tell me that Skype is good...and free.

Xplorer2 - This is the by far the best file manager software available today. I have been using it for a couple of years. So should you. It is so much better than Windows Explorer...and it is also free.

WinRAR - An excellent utility software that handles different kinds of compressed files... another freebie.

Windows Live Writer - Another new Microsoft program that I had not heard of. But, unlike OneNote and most other Microsoft software, it is FREE! And you know what? Even folks who hate Microsoft grudgingly admit that this is a very good program. Live Writer is made for blogging. I loved it within minutes of trying it out. As a matter of fact, I am writing this blog on Live Writer. So if you blog, I strongly suggest you get this. You can write your blogs on your own computer rather than on-line...and when you are done, you can post it directly to your blog. What is even better is an enterprising young man named Scott Kingery recently created a way to make it portable so you can install it on a USB drive, which is where mine now resides.

IrfanView - I've written about this graphic software before, but still have not given it a try. The good new is that is is free and always being updated and improved.

I suggest you read the full article to learn about some of the other software that people like...and there is a link to Ed's original article that has more good information.