We get so caught up these days in “open source” this and “proprietary” that. Sometimes it’s a good idea to forget the dogma and just talk about what is simply good software. I decided to do this in a top 10 list, and as you will see, it is not tied to either Windows or OSX. This is just a list of software I love: (In no particular order)
10 – Mozilla Thunderbird (Free)
There are tons of email clients out there. I don’t have a single thing bad to say about them really. I use Outlook 2010 at work, I have Mail and Windows Live Mail installed on my Macs and PCs respectively, but for my home use, on both PC and Mac, I use Thunderbird. I host my personal mail via Gmail and Thunderbird works very nice with IMAP mail. I did use Postbox for a while, and really liked it also, but sometimes you just can’t beat free. Thunderbird is free, cross platform, stable, fast and I just like it.
9 – Windows Live Writer (Free)
I am writing this blog using it as we speak. I use it for both personal and professional blogging on a variety of platforms (WordPress, SharePoint, Community Server) and it’s rock solid and easy to use all the way around. Unfortunately for you Mac guys out there, it’s PC only, but it’s so good that I know for a fact I am not the only one who keeps a VMWare or Parallels running on my Macs so I can use it when I need to.
8 – Pidgin IM (Free)
If you communicate with a ton of people, you can’t be tethered to a single protocol. Some people don’t mind tons of Windows and apps running. I guess my OCD tendency for order and control takes hold here. Give me one list, and one chat window, tabbed with all of my conversations, regardless of network. That’s what Pidgin does, it supports MSN, Yahoo, Gmail, AOL, Facebook, Myspace, the list goes on and on. It’s PC only, I solve this problem on the Mac using Adium.
7 – Adobe Photoshop Lightroom ($239)
Ah, the program that knocked Adobe Photoshop out of my rotation. I actually own a legal licensed copy of Adobe Photoshop CS4. The sad reality is I use it about once a month maybe. That might be exaggerating actually. I use Lightroom all the time on my Macs. It’s PC also, but I only bought the Mac version. For going through tons of photos, making adjustments and minor corrections, and quickly publishing them to services like Flickr or Facebook, it’s a photographer’s dream.
6 – Zune (Free)
I am sure you are thinking that if I didn’t have a Zune, I wouldn’t use this software. I’d slap you in the face for saying that sir! It’s all about the ZunePass. I get all you can eat music downloads for $15 a month. I can download 10 songs a month free and clear as MP3s, and run the software on 3 PCs, as well as have my music on 3 devices. To be clear, I DO have 3 Devices, a Zune HD, a 120GB Zune and an 80GB Zune, but I would have it either way. It’s beautiful, it helps you discover tons of music you never knew existed, and it’s Microsoft man!
5 – Tweetdeck (Free)
This time a year or so ago I was blogging about how I just don’t get Twitter. Now I do, and boy do I. I don’t think I could manage it the way I do without Tweetdeck. I use it at work to keep up with the world’s conversations about our products, and I use it at home to keep up with my geek pundits and tech news as a whole. It’s free, runs on Adobe Air so it runs on any platform.
4 – Dropbox (Free)
I know I have blogged it recently, but I freaking LOVE Dropbox. Probably my most favorite software right now by far. I use it all the time. I use it on my iPhone, I use it on all my PCs and Macs, I move files back and forth with it all the time. I use it with my wife and friends to share files. It’s just an amazing way to keep access to all of your files, as well as share files with others. It’s just there, it works like you would expect, and it’s fast as hell.
3 – Foxit Reader (Free)
Let me make this clear. I HATE Adobe Acrobat Reader. Not only is it the most bloated software in the world, it also tries to sneakily install crap you don’t want. Foxit Reader is a very lightweight and easy to use Acrobat Document (PDF) reader. It’s free and works like a charm.
2 – X Marks (Free)
I use Internet Explorer 8 all the time. I use Firefox a fair bit. I use Safari from time to time. How do I make sure I never have to worry about finding bookmarks? X Marks keeps them perfectly in sync on any browser on any platform. It’s install and forget. You can also manage your bookmarks online which is very handy.
1 – Handbrake (Free)
Those of you that know me, know me to be pretty damned complaint when it comes to legal software, legal music, legal video. I buy them all. One thing that grinds my gears (thanks Peter) is that when I want to watch video I have legally purchased on the go, I need to repurchase it?!? No thanks. I use handbrake on the Mac and the PC to rip my DVDs into files I can carry along with me.
Conclusion…
Wow, a top 10 list of software I love, and only one of them isn’t free. Go figure. I have of course many paid programs I use and love (Final Cut, Logic Studio, Pro Tools, Photoshop, Office, Windows) but I wanted a list of stuff that is very useful to a broad set of people. Looks like the cost of general productivity software is getting low!!! If have provided links so you can download (or buy in the case of Lightroom) I hope you enjoy the recommendations.