Finally bought a laptop for home – to be used for keeping pictures/music on mainly as well as light web browsing.

I have installed iTunes and Picasa but what else is recommended – I don't want to pay for anything (but equally don't want illegal software). I am thinking image retouching software, firewall software etc.

(Running Windows 7 Home Premium).

Ta

Image retouching: http://www.gimp.org/

Office: http://www.openoffice.org/

GIMP is the open source (free) image editing software however it is a bt clunky coared to photoshopor paintshop pro. – http://www.gimp.org

OpenOffice is the standard open source office package with word, excel and powerpoint equivalents. http://www.openoffice.org

nuts. I shouldn't have typed so much, might have got my reply in first and not look like such a copy cat.

Look at DM52 copying. 😉

Try comodo as a firewall. All software firewalls can be fairly intrusive but that's the best one I've seen. It comes with some bundled packages so be careful as you install.

Firefox, thunderbird, AVG

AVG or Avast as virus scanner.
BBC iPlayer client.
7zip for compression
Skype for calling folk

look for Paint.net rather than GIMP for image editing – GIMP can be a bit excessive for just cropping a few photos

zonealarm as a firewall alternative.

+1 for openoffice (free office as you'd expect), avast or avg free antivirus's

look for Paint.net rather than GIMP for image editing – GIMP can be a bit excessive for just cropping a few photos

the features in Picasa are just the job for basic retouching, cropping etc.

If you don't wnat to install open office (good by the way) you could use Google Docs

Essential & free – http://free.avg.com/gb-en/download-avg-anti-virus-free

If you're using iTunes, you might need this too – http://www.mp3tag.de/en/screenshots.html

Formatfactory is very useful.

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/

This site usually gives away some decent software – a different piece of software every day, I've picked up some decent stuff off there.

Also…

http://www.dvdvideosoft.com/free-dvd-video-software.htm

Use Microsoft Security Essentials as a spyware/anti-virus.
Paint.net is a very good photo/image tool with lots of add-ons.
I've never used a software firewall – never seen the point really.

Avg
spybot
open office
irfanview for batch photo resizing
dvdshrink
VLC (particularly if you use the iPhone remote app)

foobar2000
vlc
firefox
irfanview
7-zip
avast

Ditch windows, install ubuntu, the world of free software at your disposal (even when you're a total ignorant, like me).

🙄

CCleaner is a useful app. For cleaning up temp files, the registry and also disabling all those useless startup items that all that other stuff installs.

STAY AWAY FROM REGISTRY CLEANERS 😉
Unless your clued up on which of those registry files you really really want to permanently delete from your system
Like system files 😯
These 'cleaners' usually see non problems as problems and recommend you remove them.Unless you know what files are in there and what other programs, files and system info theyre sharing ,i wouldnt touch.
Delete the wrong thing and you lose everything on your haarddrive and its a full install ,system drivers,modem the works
You dont really want the horror of a registry cleaner 😯

Couple of free safe progs are
Firefox[stay away from Internet Explorer its a friggin sieve ]
Spybot and malwarebytes anti-malware.[keep you safe]
Open office ,as said above
Google sketch-up[fun to play with]
MS windows picture resizer[f'ing brilliant]
Right click on any pic on your system-select sml/med/lrg either size loads on most sites[no probs for retrobike if you go there too]thats all you do.It sorts the focus and resolution itself so the pic doesnt blur as it gets bigger.
Google Earth 8)……………………. 😉
Steam[free games,demos,mods,downloads.Totally secure]
available on Steam is the Arma2 demo
😯
Makes farcry look like pacman 😉

Unless your clued up on which of those registry files you really really want to permanently delete from your system

Point of order: a "registry cleaner" cleans the registry. It doesn't delete files.

But you're right, they are powerful tools and can make things worse if you don't know what you're doing.

Only put on what you really need, don't go installing stuff just for the sake of it; even now Windows tends to get fragile if you do lots of install/uninstalls and before you know it you'll be into re-installing the OS in the hope of a magic cure.

Windows' own Firewall should be fine (make sure it's turned on), likewise Microsoft Security Essentials should be ok for virus/spyware unless you plan to be really careless (in which case nothing will help you). Ccleaner seems to be fairly harmless if you need that sort of thing (hiding your tracks). Use Firefox if you like it but don't get too hung up on the supposed security problems with Internet Explorer, Firefox has similar issues. Use Open Office if you don't want to pay for MS Office, but you may have MS Works already which does most of what most people need. I've never found a good free image retouching tool for Windows so good luck with that one…

I've never found a good free image retouching tool for Windows so good luck with that one…

Picasa, Paint.net, gimp all do good jobs and offer a range of complexity.

Nikon ViewNX is useful if you're shooting RAW.

Open Office (free version of Microsoft Office)
Spotify (Free music)
AVG (free, crappy anti virus)

All of these are legal of course

Handbrake – for turning DVDs into files you can play on laptop, phone, iPod etc.

Yeah I have been looking a bit more and it appears we have MS Works which is, as far as I understand, free to use because it has ads. My wife did ask whether it is compatible with Office – I assume it is?

I have installed Chrome as it is my preferred browser.

I will spend a bit of time looking to see what is bundled in the way of firewall etc too – as said above, I don't want to ram it full of pointless stuff – it is simply one of the cheapest laptops I could find with a 500gig HD (£400) so I can store all my music and pictures on and for my wife to do a bit of browsing (I tend to do mine at work/on my iPhone).

But I will certainly be looking at the AVG and GIMP suggestions. I appreciate that GIMP won't be as flexible at Photoshop but if I ever need to do any more than basic retouching I can use CS4 at work anyway.

One question re Picasa if anyone can help… It seems to automatically rotate images within the programme, but if I then open the file outside of Picasa they are still the wrong way around. The question is – how do I actually rotate them????

I think Works is deliberately not compatible (at least not easily) with Word. I have all sorts of pain when kids email me homework as a works document, not just om my Mac but on PC as well, I think…

You've bought a PC!!!

And you call yourself a designer!? You should hang you head in shame!!

😉

I think Works is deliberately not compatible (at least not easily) with Word.

Never had a problem with this, and Microsoft list it as a feature –

"Share & edit Works Word Processor and Spreadsheet files with Microsoft® Office Word and Microsoft® Office Excel and vice versa"

If you regularly do word processing, presentations or spreadsheets then just splash the cash and get Microsoft Office.

It is far, far better than Works and a lot more usable and less buggy than OpenOffice.

It really isn't very expensive if you look at the Home edition or know someone with an academic email address.

You've bought a PC!!!

And you call yourself a designer!? You should hang you head in shame!!
It made sense to me – I have as much access as I need to Macs at work all day every day and a laptop is half the price of a Mac. All I am doing is using it to keep pictures and music on and I catalogue them in an identical way on a Mac anyway.

If you regularly do word processing, presentations or spreadsheets then just splash the cash and get Microsoft Office.

Again, I have access to all my work tools and have a work laptop with Office installed so we have that if we need it – I just want something that is usable for any day-to-day stuff like writing letters, home finances spreadsheets etc. The reason I got it was just so we had our own machine that is separate from work stuff (in the past we have borrowed from work/friends etc) but I decided I wanted something that we never have to give back – I spend hours last year putting loads of stuff on a Mac that we had sat in the office gathering dust. Then we started to expand and I had to take it back to the office and start all over again.

or know someone with an academic email address

My wife will have one soon – she is about to start a new job in a school… I guess it will be about £70 then??

Don't forget all that free clip-art in case you don't get something finished at work and it needs some finishing touches…

Don't forget all that free clip-art in case you don't get something finished at work and it needs some finishing touches…

How very dare you – it isn't free – we use iStock so it usually costs about £4!!!
😆

You gotta get Power Point too. That's just the best. Centralises everything really easily. And a brilliant selection of the designers' favourites….bullet points.

MS Office home version is excellent value at £70 ish, Open Office is definitely not as good, but still good, and definitely even better value at £0. I went with MS because I could, and I like it.

You gotta get Power Point too. That's just the best. Centralises everything really easily. And a brilliant selection of the designers' favourites….bullet points.

😆

I just want something that is usable for any day-to-day stuff like writing letters, home finances spreadsheets etc

in which case, OpenOffice or Google Docs will probably do you.

she is about to start a new job in a school… I guess it will be about £70 then??

That's the non-student price! You can get Office 2007 Standard Edition for £39 here:
http://www.software4students.co.uk/Microsoft_Office-software.aspx

Ahh cool – I will mention it and see if she can get it then 🙂

I bet in a few months time you'll be wishing you bought a second hand Mac Book.

Excel is fun for graphs and pie charts – just thinking of your business like…

try here for free legal stuff http://www.filehippo.com/