Best Free Software for Students (and Others)

I am constantly asked which software programs work best, with the unspoken request for something that is FREE. After much trial and error, reading reviews, and working on both PC's and Mac's, this is my list of the best freeware for everyday users.

If you are a geek or want to download software torrents illegally, then this list is not for you. In truth, there are fine freeware programs put out by inventors and open-source teams all over the world. If you really like a program, send the developer a small donation. "Pay it forward" is the operative word in the freeware world.

But what is right for me may not be right for you. If one of these programs (or their alternatives) doesn't work, then go to the download sites I mention.*

*Mac users might try one of the special sites for Mac although I found them frustrating: In some categories, most of the "freeware" was really "shareware"--you have to pay once your short trial time runs out. I spent hours wading through commercial products until I could find some REAL freeware. In the Windows/Linux world, that is enough to get you booted from respectable company. My advice: Go to download.com and click the Mac tab, then do your searching. Ditto with open source software at sourceforge.net

Here is the Wikipedia definition of freeware and open source (I count both categories as "freeware").

NOTE: Some commercial software is available at steep discounts at your school. Ask your information technology people. Even better, some software is available for FREE because your institution may have bought a bulk license. However, the choices offered by your school may not be the best for you so check this list and others.

Feel free to suggest a program to add to the list. Remember that it has to be geared to the everyday user.

PS: If you are a Linux user, some of these programs might work but it took me long enough to work on Windows and Mac; few students or teachers are using Linux and there is just so little time in life. . . Point students to a list you think is best for Linux.

Clipboard on Steroids: How to Capture and Keep Multiple Clips

One of the annoying oversights of PC and Mac is the lack of a "clipboard extender": a clipboard that can clip all types of material (plain text, rich text, hyperlinks, images) and keep a list of your last 100 clips for recall later. Seriously, once I discovered the power of a good clipboard extender, I don't know how I lived without it! This is a "must" for any one working with text, images or web urls.

Clipmagic was my favorite for many years. It is free, powerful and you can customize what it does. Go to http://www.clipmagic.com/clipboard-extender.html

Grade: B+

Recently, however, I was in search for a 64-bit clipboard program (Clipmagic is 32-bit). I stumbled upon a little treasure that costs $17 (with educational discount) for two computers:

Clipcache Pro. Even more powerful and slick than Clipmagic, and rock-solid stable with both 32-bit and 64-bit versions.

There is a 30-day trial on Clipcache Pro. Give it a try. Whichever one you choose, you will never go back to the old way: Extenders are way better than one-clip-at-a-time clipboards!

Grade: A+

If there is an equivalent free program for Mac, I haven’t found it but Mac users might try iClip or Savvy Clipboard. Mac users can send me suggestions.

PS: There are many junkie clipboard extenders that only do plain text. I tried about 30 of these before stumbling on Clipmagic and Clipache Pro.

Digital History for America

There are many web sites for history but few as all-encompassing as

http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/

This site focuses on U.S. history and does it very well. It includes a full online textbook (free), many documents, images, and media (all free). Plus it is just plain fun to read tests like this one:

"Could You Pass the 1885 Admission Test for High School?"

Definitely worth bookmarking for the teacher (or student) who might need to grab something for class.

Hot Pick! Tube Download/Player/Converter (UPDATED)

UPDATE: Version 2.4 now includes a download accelerator and a box for "Use Same Video Quality as Source": No easier way to eliminate the hassle of video converting! They fixed the audio sync so that now the built-in player works flawlessly. I like a company that responds swiftly to feedback and improves their product.

REVIEW:

The software development team at YouTomato, based in China, describe themselves as "a group of digital aficionados who are dedicated to making audio and video editing and processing as simple as brewing coffee or using a blender."

As a digital aficionado I have spent decades working with audio and video, both for my music and for teaching history. In the 1980s, I worked at a high-end "stereo salon" selling equipment that cost more than my annual salary! Still, I am always on the look out for software tools that will make my life easier and more productive. With the online availability of high-definition video, the question is "what tools do we use?"

I've tried them all: ten different Firefox extensions for downloading audio and video, converting it, renaming files and so on. The Firefox extensions include Video Downloadhelper, "Download Youtube Videos in HD MP4," Downthemall!, Flashgot, etc., etc.

On top of the Firefox extensions, there are the various software programs I describe elsewhere on this site

Any Video Converter (conversion)
VLC (player)
Jetaudio (audio/video player and converter)
Youtube Downloaders (download from Youtube only)
Mediamonkey (audiophile's all-in-one for audio).

I won't bore the reader with all the programs I've used but they share a common, frustrating inability to deliver the "whole package": one program downloads HD videos but only from Youtube (not other sites), another program downloads from multiple sites but every file is named "video," most programs download audio or video but then you need a second program to convert and hope it preserves the original resolution. Tweaking with video settings is not my idea of fun.

So along comes TubeDownload (formerly Youtube Video Downloader). I've used it for several weeks and liked it so much I bought a full copy (the one added feature is conversion after 30 day trial limit runs out). TubeDownload is simple, intuitive, and powerful:

*Set to find HD video (or audio) if available. Many High-Definition videos are hidden as redirected links but TubeDownload found them each and every time!

*Fast downloads: the latest version (2.4 as of this writing) includes download acceleration. I tested on a DSL and T1 line: The download speeds are 2-3 times faster than prior versions of Tube Download! I then tested the speeds against Firefox extensions (Downthemall!, Video Downloadhelper, others). Result: TubeDownload was faster than those as well.

*Conversion: Several options here:

*Automatic conversion after download: Preset to convert downloads to a file type of your choosing. This eliminates having to convert after the download.

*Quality settings: convert to Excellent, Good, etc. This makes it easy for a newbie to convert without having to fiddle with bit rates (although that is possible for expert users).

*"Use Same Video Quality as Source": No easier way to eliminate the hassle of video converting! I've tested this and it actually works. My main complaint with other video converters is that is is too darn difficult. With TubeDownload, this is my favorite setting because I don't have to be an educated guesstimator with bit rates, screen size, etc. What a relief.



*Right-click conversion: TubeDownload Play and Convert are integrated into your right-click context menu (you can turn this feature off). Right-click a MP4file and convert to WMV (or vice versa). There is also a conversion option within TubePlay (see below).

*Convert to devices: It will automatically convert files so they fit your iPhone, Blackberry, Sony PSP, etc.

*Tube Player: this is neat. Once a download is complete, there is a play button that opens the built-in Tube Player. This will play most file types, both audio and video. Other neat feature is it opens FOLDERS, not just files. If I open my video file folder, it shows large thumbnails of all my videos, along with their file types. Hover over a thumbnail and it gives you the video (or audio) properties. One problem: the default file type is FLV so it doesn't show all videos unless you click the drop down to choose *.*

*Lightweight: TubeDownload and Player come in a single 3MB program file. Amazing.

*Batch downloads: from playlists or simply adding multiple URLs. I haven't used this function much but others might find it useful.

*Browser button: TubeDownload installs as a small button in Internet Explorer or Firefox (I dont' know about other browsers).

The full version costs $30 but is worth every penny. The free version has ALL the features minus the converter. Since purchasing TubeDownload I have gotten rid of eight Firefox extensions and desktop applications. Less is more.

SUGGESTIONS (to developers):

1. Batch convert: the right-click conversion allows conversion of a single file but it would be nice to batch convert entire folders or many files at once. This is the one feature I miss from Jetaudio Plus.

2. Fix "bug": : TubePlay will play AVI, SWF, WMV but if you add them as default file types, the program does not remember and clears the settings back to FLV only. You have to go into Windows Control Panel and change the default settings for each file type.

BOTTOM LINE: "A+"

The New Deal Project

With all of Washington, D.C. buzzing with talk of a "New New Deal," it is helpful to research the old New Deal(s). This web site is very useful for teachers of U.S. history. Read a high school newspaper from the 1930s, ex-slave narratives taken by the WPA, and much more.

Hot Pick! American Presidency Project

For a feeling of past times, check out the splendid online archive of presidential speeches, news conferences and radio addresses, “The American Presidency Project.” Search for “Reconstruction Finance Corporation” or other terms that interest you. Here is an excerpt from his annual message to Congress, 8 December 1931:

RECONSTRUCTION FINANCE CORPORATION

In order that the public may be absolutely assured and that the Government may be in position to meet any public necessity, I recommend that an emergency Reconstruction Corporation of the nature of the former War Finance Corporation should be established. It may not be necessary to use such an instrumentality very extensively. The very existence of such a bulwark will strengthen confidence. The Treasury should be authorized to subscribe a reasonable capital to it, and it should be given authority to issue its own debentures. It should be placed in liquidation at the end of two years. Its purpose is that by strengthening the weak spots to thus liberate the full strength of the Nation’s resources. It should be in position to facilitate exports by American agencies; make advances to agricultural credit agencies where necessary to protect and aid the agricultural industry; to make temporary advances upon proper securities to established industries, railways, and financial institutions which can not otherwise secure credit, and where such advances will protect the credit structure and stimulate employment. Its functions would not overlap those of the National Credit Corporation.

and the link to his signing of the RFC legislation.

Hot Pick! Copernic Desktop Search

After gathering documents, writing papers, and collecting images, how does one search them all? To deal with this problem, companies have come up with desktop search engines Windows Search comes built into Vista: type in the space at the bottom left corner of your screen and Windows Search will find files that contain your search term. The Apple equivalent is called "Spotlight." Google Desktop Search is also popular but very sluggish and privacy-invading.

These three programs find file names containing your search term but do not go to the precise location of your search term; instead, you have to open the file you think you need and then scroll through a preview screen (even worse, Apple Spotlight requires you to open a second program to simply Preview and scroll, scroll, scroll). The Window, Apple, and Google engines are also limited to a certain number of file types--you need to add plug-ins for additional file types. You also need to add "filters" to play PDF if you don't have Adobe on your computer.

The Windows and Apple search engines perform like go-carts compared to the Porsche of Desktop Searching: Copernic.

The free version of Copernic is

*Lighter and faster than its competitors

*Indexes remarkably fast

*The interface includes a built-in preview pane

*The preview pane can play music or video from within (no need to open a separate player)

*No need for plug-ins or filters: Copernic plays all file types "out of the box."

*Most important, the preview pane highlights your search terms and jumps to them as you hit on the term you are seeking. This is a REAL time saver if you are zooming through documents that are very long. No more futile scrolling.

*If you have Vista, install Copernic and check the box to replace Window Search. Turn off the Windows Search function so it isn't indexing too; you will see a major boost in the performance of your PC. Copernic works right from the Orb (the search space at the bottom left-hand corder).

Mac fanboys rave about Spotlight but it is clear they have not used the best Windows desktop search engine. I found Spotlight to be primitive at best compared to Copernic and even Windows Search. For all of the above reasons, Copernic is the tops! Show it to your Mac friends and then ask them for a demo of how they find information. Think of the famous advertisement: "Hi, I'm Mac Spotlight," "and I'm Copernic." Except this time Mac loses.

REVIEWS:

http://www.consumersearch.com/www/software/desktop-search-engines/

http://www.filesworld.com/downloads/file/fid,24670-order,1-page,12-c,desktop/description.html


http://blogs.pcworld.com/tipsandtweaks/archives/002800.html

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/reviews/102276/copernic-desktop-search-2.html