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Access granted to free stuff on Web

By Julie Hutchinson, Special to the Rocky

Published January 12, 2009 at 12:05 a.m.

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Tapping the wealth of resources that are available free on the Internet is a little like living around the corner from the Library of Congress, down the street from the Smithsonian Institute and a stone's throw from the main branch of the Denver Public Library - all at once. There's plenty of stuff there - you need only learn to access it.

From simple games and e-postcards to sophisticated graphics, calendar programs, conferencing utilities and Web- building applications, you can save real money when you compare these free resources to the cost of buying comparable software packages.

"There is almost always a free version of something, if you're willing to give up a little polish," said Tyler Hurst, a 29-year-old writer from Phoenix, in an e-mail exchange. "The simpler apps are usually just as polished as paid versions."

Hurst, who calls himself a "huge geek," relies on sites that help him keep track of software "that's easily as good or better" than the paid versions: macupdate.com tracks programs for Mac users and versiontracker.com catalogs free programs and updates available for PC users.

Deb Kolaras, a 44-year-old small-business coach who lives in Boulder, said in an e-mail exchange that she actually prefers downloading free versions of software utilities rather than purchasing their expensive counterparts.

"After testing it myself, if it performs as advertised, I'll use it and often recommend it to others, including my clients, Kolaras said. "The beauty of this, vs. buying off the shelf, is I get to test it and contribute back to the developer. The best products are not always the expensive ones."

Kolaras, a self-described junkie when it comes to taking advantage of free programs available on the Internet, has learned to use Google to help her search for a program when she discovers a need.

"Typically if I'm in need of a tool, I'll first search Google and see what's available," Kolaras said. "Second, I'll read some reviews and take a pulse on what others are saying, good or bad, and even search the term on Twitter to see what my network is saying about it."

Jason Levine, a 33-year-old Web master who lives in Albany, N.Y., is also a fan of the free. "There are many free programs out there that can do the same work as programs that cost hundreds of dollars," Levine said. In fact, he subscribes to a program from snapfiles.com that keeps him updated with regular e-mails on the latest versions of free programs.

Sachin Agarwal, a 28-year-old Chicago entrepreneur who runs an online marketplace for video games, systems and accessories, has learned the way of the free and couldn't be happier.

"Unless you already have learned a particular program that you can't part with, there is a good free alternative out there," Agarwal said.

Internet entrepreneurs are going into the business of helping clients learn to use free software in operating their businesses.

John Locke operates his Seattle-based Freelock Computing as a service for small businesses seeking to learn to use free software. And he practices what he preaches: He operates his business, with a staff of seven, on almost exclusively free software. Locke uses Linux to operate his workstations and servers; Asterisk to handle the company phone system; Drupal to power the Web site, www.freelock.com; WordPress to operate his blog, SugarCRM to handle contact and customer management; and LedgerSMB for his finances.

It all started in the early 1990s when a free program called Adobe Reader began appearing on computers around the world. The program allowed people to view files created by proprietary programs without requiring users to own those programs to view the files they created.

Acrobat Reader ranks as one of the most-used pieces of free software developed by Adobe. Although Adobe owns many of the major, high-priced software programs including Dreamweaver and Photoshop, its free Acrobat Reader brings the company widespread name recognition as well as millions of hits to its Web site when people download the free program. And everybody knows that in the corporate world, lots of Web hits adds up to real money.

Since Adobe Reader became available, millions of free programs have followed its lead and helped create a generation of techies who not only write programs to share with the world - known as freeware or shareware - but also have grown up to expect lots of software and other tech-type things to be free.

Learning to anticipate what's available - like walking into the British Museum just knowing the place must have a Gutenberg Bible (it does) - can help you access a world of valuable computer programs that will make your life more productive, creative and communicative - as well as save you money.

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* Upgrade your computer to discover that old word processing and spreadsheet software won't run on it? Take heart: Programs that mimic the look and feel of programs such as Microsoft Office are available - free! Conduct a Google search for "free office productivity software" and you'll probably end up at openoffice.org.

* Got a digital camera and think you'll need to shell out real money for photo-editing, filing and storing software? If you know how to look, myriad free programs to handle your photos are yours for the asking. Check out Google's Picasa, available for Windows and Macs, along with IrFanView, irfanview.com.

* Does having your own blog seem like an impossible dream because you think it requires expensive software and expertise? If you know where to look and how to ask for help, your blog can be up and running tomorrow morning. Just do a Google search for "free blog" and you'll find a host of possibilities.

* Think viral video is the property only of the young or the technologically gifted? Visit youtube.com for plenty of information on getting everything from creating your video to posting and hosting it on YouTube.

* Think you need to pay big bucks for online conferencing? Once again, the Internet has inspired a whole new free world, and online conferencing can be free, too. A current favorite is the program available at skype.com. Also, Google's Calendar application allows groups to use and view scheduling calendars.

* Does the whole subject of the Internet make you want to lock the doors, crawl into bed and pull the covers over your head? Fear not: The Internet is stuffed with sites offering tech advice for the newest of novices. A good place to start is cnet.com, which features free software downloads, tech news and lots of how-to advice.

Comments

  • January 12, 2009

    9:49 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    Colorado_Bill writes:

    If you Google "Smithsonian," you'll find the second word in their name is "Institution." For free.