Security Software

Internet virus infections are best managed by preventing them from happening in the first place.  Proactive measures and educated practices are the best protection against internet parasites.  Protect your computer with both an active virus scanner and firewall.  Always get the latest updates for windows and the virus protection software in order for the virus protection to work.

We recommend the following free antiviral and firewall software:

Recommended Sites of Reading

Free Encryption Software

Guide to downloading and using FreeOTFE Explorer Encryption Software

Free (List of tools)

Most of the software you need is available for free.

Software Sites

You can search for specific software you want on these sites:

http://download.cnet.com – Download the most popular freeware and shareware programs.
Sourceforge – SourceForge.net is the world’s largest Open Source software development website, with the largest repository of Open Source code and applications available on the Internet.

Internet Browsers

Firefox – Popular alternative browser.
Internet Explorer – From Microsoft.
Opera – Fastest browser.

Image Manipulation

The GIMP – Gnu Image Manipulation Program, on par with Photoshop
Irfanview – Simple to use image editing software!

Multimedia Software

VLC – Great free audio and video player. Plays local or network multimedia files.
Audacity – Audio capture & editing software, available for Windows, Mac, & Linux.
WinAmp – Reliable audio player

 

Email Software

Outlook Express – Included with older versions of Internet Explorer and new versions of Windows Operating Systems
Mozilla’s Thunderbird – We recommend Thunderbird as an email client.

Software Application

OpenOffice – Popular office suite alternative.
Googledocs – Online office.

Online Tutorials

http://cln.vcn.bc.ca/basicskills1 – Excellent for first time computer users!
http://www.ckls.org/~crippel/computerlab/tutorials/mouse/page1.html – Learn and practice using the mouse cursor.
http://www.w3schools.com/ – Web design and programming.