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Free Software List





Free Software

The term "free software" means different things to different people. In some cases it refers to software that you can legally get without paying for it - "free-of-charge".

It can also refer to software which protects your freedom and meets the Free Software Foundation definition, in that you can:

  1. run the program, for any purpose (freedom 0)
  2. study how the program works, and adapt it to your needs (freedom 1)
  3. redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor (freedom 2)
  4. improve the program, and release your improvements to the public, so that the whole community benefits (freedom 3)

This page lists software that is either available "free-of-charge" or that meets the FSF definition of free software, or, in many cases, both.


Definitions

Free Software
Software that has been developed by the Free Software Community, has its source code freely available and is under a free licence. Because the source code is available open source is distributed free-of-charge, because if the developers charged for it then someone else would take the source code and put out a free version. Open source software preserves your freedom and supports the open source development community, therefore it should be your first choice when looking for an application.
Freeware
Software that has been developed by commercial companies but is distributed free-of-charge. Freeware does not have the source code available, is released under a proprietary licence and, while it is "free-of-charge", it does not protect your freedom. Some freeware may contain spyware, adware or other undesirable components. It should be your second first choice when looking for an application and generally only when you can't find an open source application to do the job.
Shareware
Software that has been developed by commercial companies and is generally available for free for an evaluation period, then they expect you to pay for it. In some cases the evaluation period is unlimited or during the evaluation period the application leaves a mark on the document to show its status. Shareware is really free-of-charge software that is distributed for marketing purposes. Some shareware may contain spyware, adware or other undesirable components. Because of the limitations these applications have built in, open source or freeware applications are a better choice, where available.

The software listed below has been tested by and is recommended by members of the National Capital Freenet Free Software Discussion Group (NCF members only). For more information on each application have a look at the discussion group.

Many of these are also reviewed in our own Ubuntu Diaries for Linux software, or on our Our Windows Free Software/ Freeware Project page for Windows software.

There is also a list of free software that I personally use at the bottom of my home page.


Anti-Spyware

Freeware

Anti-Virus

Free Software
Freeware

Astronomy

Free Software

Audio Editing

Free Software

Backup Utilities

Free Software

BitTorrent

Free Software

Bookkeeping

Free Software

Bulk File Renaming

Free Software

Calendar

Free Software
Freeware

CD & DVD Burning

Free Software

Desktop Environments

Free Software

Desktop Recording

Free Software

eBook Readers

Free Software

→ See also: Free eBook downloads


Email Clients

Free Software

File Compression (Zipping)

Free Software
Shareware

File Browsers

Free Software

File Transfer Protocol (FTP)

Free Software
Freeware

Firewalls

Free Software
Freeware

Games

Free Software
Freeware

Genealogy

Free Software

Geography

Free Software
Freeware

Image Editors

Free Software

Image Viewers

Freeware

Income Tax

Freeware

→ See also: Canada Revenue Agency's list of certified software


Integrated Development Environments

Free Software
Freeware
Shareware

Interior Home Design

Free Software

Media Players

Free Software
Freeware

→ See also: Free & Legal Music Downloads


Miscellaneous Utilities

Free Software
Freeware

Networking

Free Software

News Readers

Free Software

Office Applications

Free Software
Freeware

Operating Systems

Free Software

BSD Systems

Linux Systems

Windows-Like Systems


Password Management

Free Software

Photo Downloading

Free Software

Photo Management

Free Software

PDF Creators

Free Software
Freeware

→ NOTE: PDFCreator is no longer recommended due to the inclusion of a malware toolbar in version 0.9.8 and laterSoftware for Windows

Shareware

PDF Readers

Free Software
Freeware

Scanning

Free Software

Smart-phones and Tablets

Free Software

Social Networking

Free Software

Text Editors

Free Software

USB Creators

Free Software

Video Editing

Free Software

Video Viewing

Free Software

Virtualization

Free Software
Freeware

VOIP and instant messaging

Free Software

Web Browsers

Free Software
Freeware

Webcam Applications

Free Software

Website Link Checkers

Free Software

Window Managers

Free Software

WLAN routers and embedded system firmware

Free Software

Free & Legal Music Downloads


Free & Legal Books

Free Books
Free Audio Books
Free Software Books

Useful Web Resources

General Links

Data Recovery

Encrypted Email Services

Free Software Artwork

Free Software Media

Internet Connection Speed Tests

Market Share Statistics

On-line Virus Scanners

Search Engines

Security Testing

URL Compression

User Agent String

Switching to Linux & BSD

Background Information & Reasons to Switch:
Distributions & Applications:
How to Switch:

Fun Linux Ads


Supporting Free Software - T-Shirts and More


Computer Hardware & Parts in Ottawa


Computer Hardware OEMs