Security:

Recently I noticed a few folks getting burnt by ne’er do wells on facebook and elsewhere. This would seem to indicate out of date or no antivirus solution. Not good. For many reasons from the annoying to downright identity theft dangerous just not good. Especially when there are free antivirus tools available. I have used a few over time, but my present favorite is AVAST antivirus. It is free and available from CNET’s download site here:

AVAST on CNET

Note: Before buying a software solution or downloading software from a questionable site CNET’s download.com is worth a look. Download from articles only and not the ads. Items with high editor and high user ratings are usually the best bet.

Case in point…

MS Office alternative:

Some time ago I stumbled across Microsoft Office compatible software that could save one about to purchase Microsoft Office Suite for the home about $400.

I can only assume they are giving this away as a poke in the eye to Microsoft. Regardless I like good free stuff that saves me money.

I found it after having recently purchased a home PC, the Office trial ran out and I was just about to begrudgingly cough up the $400 to buy Microsoft Office until I found this. It did what I needed to do and I set it as the default program to open and create Word, Excel, Powerpoint and other documents. My wife and I have found the transition to be totally transparent. Documents I create or modify with Openoffice are completely compatible with Microsoft programs (make sure you select an office compatible format when saving). Complex macros may have issues, but this is not a realistic concern for many. I had intended to test the free version and buy the supported version afterward, but the free version has more than met my needs. The menus are intuitive so there is basically no learning curve, and there are benefits like the built in ability to create Adobe PDF files out of your documents with a single click.

I am rarely impressed with software (or near anything free) since the ‘You get what you pay for’ adage usually applies, but this is an exception. Who doesn’t want to save $400?

Here is a PCMAG review for those who may still be apprehensive:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2332504,00.asp

Here is the CNET download site:

http://download.cnet.com/OpenOffice-org/3000-18483_4-10263109.html?tag=mncol

Here is Sun’s download page:

http://www.openoffice.org/

God bless,

Eric