Free Software

Free Software We Recommend

This is a list of software that is completely free (or even open source) that we feel may be of use to our users.

FireFox (Windows) is a browser that doesn't suck. We highly recommend it for Windows users as the default Windows browser is very problematic.
Nvu (Macintosh/Linux/Windows) is a graphical web page authoring program, based on the Composer component of the Mozilla suite. It aims to be a replacement for Dreamweaver or FrontPage.

Thunderbird (Linux/Macintosh/Windows) is an email client with spam filtering, quick search, RSS news reader, and much more. It does not work with Exchange (considered a feature by some), but does work with any IMAP/POP account.
Sylpheed Claws (Linux/Windows) is an email client that offers a host of features geared towards advanced users but after initial setup is quite easy to use. It works with all Internet standard protocols (some features of Microsoft's proprietary Exchange protocol may not be available).

Putty (Windows) is an command line ssh client.
WinSCP (Windows) is a graphical scp/sftp file transfer utility.
Fugu (Macintosh) is a graphical scp/sftp file transfer utility.
Cyberduck (Macintosh) is a graphical ftp/sftp file transfer utility
Trillian (Windows) is a multi-protocol (AIM, Yahoo, MSN, IRC, etc.) instant messaging client.
Gaim (Linux/Macintosh/Windows) is a multi-protocol (AIM, Yahoo, MSN, IRC, etc.) instant messaging client.

7-Zip (Windows) is a utility that handles zip compression as well as a number of other file compression formats.
MacOS X comes with a builtin zip utility available from the command line (ie Terminal). For those who fear such mysticism, Zippist provides a graphical interface.
PDF Creator (Windows) is a driver that allows you to print documents to PDF files. (download here, get the GNUGhostScript one)
Antidote SuperLite is a simple, run-once virus checker.

Notepad2 (Windows) and Metapad (Windows) are both editors for those who are stuck on Windows and have outgrown the limitations of Microsoft's Notepad. Both handle the cross-platform compatibility in a more robust way and provide extra features for programmers.

Videolan Client (VLC) (Macintosh/Linux/Windows) is a video/movie player that handles many media files that the OS's builtin player often will not. It plays DVD/SVCD/VCD too.
iTunes (Macintosh/Windows) is a digital jukebox that helps you organize and play your music. An iPod is not required ... but highly desirable.
IrfanView is a feature-rich image viewer and manipulator for Windows. Fast Stone Image Viewer is another one.

OpenOffice (Macintosh/Linux/Windows) is an office productivity suite (word processor, spreadsheet, drawing) modelled after Microsoft Office.
AbiWord (Macintosh/Linux/Windows) is a word processor.
Inkscape (Macintosh/Linux/Windows) is a vector-based drawing tool (like Adobe Illustrator)

GMail is a free web-based email service provided by Google. It offers 1GB mail storage, spam filter, and a unique "conversation" based interface to your email. Please ask us if you would like an invitation to an account.
YouSendIt is a convenient way to send someone a file that is too large for email. Just upload your file and specify the email address of your recipient. Dropload is a similar service that requires registration. This page provides a comprehensive listing of similar services.
FastMail is an email service that is fast, reliable, and has a clean interface. The free account provides 10 MB storage, webmail, and IMAP.
Jetable, SneakEmail, and PookMail provide temporary/anonymous email addresses that you can use when you don't want to give your real address out. They all work a little different, try them out!
del.icio.us is an online bookmark manager. It allows to you save and "tag" bookmarks online so that they are available on any net-connected computer. Tagging allows for easy search and retrieval of your bookmarks.
MyPunBB hosts message boards (forums) for free.

Human Genetics Computing Support

By hhahn at 2005-03-15 14:30 | printer-friendly version