[marko]

Isn't it all too common now when you buy a new computer your told you need this, that and the other thing??!! And it's often the case that your bargain laptop of £300 has now cost you £500+.

We've compiled a list of software below that will get you started with any computer, whether it's a desktop or laptop. Please be aware that this is merely the "essentials" in what most people would need to safely start using their machine on the net and isn't by any means a comprehensive list of software but more of a compilation to download, install and rest assured that your computer is safe to use.

The list is generally made up of recommendations from members and the popularity from the download section and a big thanks to all those who contributed to the discussion through this thread, from the newsletter or by PM/email to me direct :lol:. We have packaged and zipped some of the downloads below and made them into a single download which you can find on our downloads section HERE and where there are 2 listings from the below category we have chosen the first software title listed to incude in the package. The Office Suites in particular are quite sizeable and so we decided not to inlcude them in the package although the complete recommended listings are below, so here we have it, the best of the best!! Happy downloading ...

FIREWALL
ZoneAlarm 8.0.020.0
Keep hackers and data thieves out of your computer with ZoneAlarm, the PC firewall that protects against Internet-borne threats like worms, Trojan horses, and spyware. ZoneAlarm provides the basic protection individuals need to secure their PC and keep their valuable information private.
More Info & Download

Online Armor Personal Firewall Free 3.0.0.190
Online Armor FREE - powerful Windows Firewall. Provides a blend of usability and hard-wired PC security to ensure a good user experience. This award-winning program is easy to use and provides 100% leak protection out of the box.
More Info & Download

ANTIVIRUS
avast! 4 Home Edition 4.8.1290
avast! 4 Home Edition is a free complete ICSA certified antivirus software for home noncommercial use. avast! obtained VB100% awards in 2002/4 Virus Bulletin comparative reviews under Windows.
More Info & Download

AVG Antivirus Free 8.0.175a1382
With this free distribution version of the popular AVG Anti-Virus system, you will get a reliable tool for your computer protection against computer viruses.
More Info & Download

ANTI-SPYWARE/MALWARE
Spybot - Search and Destroy 1.6.1.38 Beta
Spybot - Search & Destroy can detect and remove a multitude of adware files and modules from your computer. Spybot also can clean program and Web-usage tracks from your system, which is especially useful if you share your computer with other users. Modules chosen for removal can be sent directly to the included file shredder, ensuring complete elimination from your system.
More Info & Download

Ad-Aware 2008 7.1.0.11
Ad-Aware 2008 Free is a popular anti-spyware product for computer users around the world, with nearly one million downloads every week. This free anti-spyware version provides you with advanced protection against spyware that secretly attaches and takes control of your computer, resulting in aggressive advertising pop-ups, sluggish computer activity, even identity theft through stolen bank details, passwords, and credit card account numbers.
More Info & Download

INTERNET BROWSER
Opera 9.62
Opera is an Internet browser with a pop-up blocker, multiple-windows navigation, mouse gestures, keyboard shortcuts, e-mail client with Spam filter, and integrated search all for user security and speed. The cross-platform browser includes a multitude of other functions such as integrated built-in e-mail client, IRC-compatible chat, support for RSS newsfeeds, password manager, one-click customization and privacy protection settings.
More Info & Download

Apple Safari 3.2.1
Safari offers you a superior Web experience with outstanding performance. Even the most complex of pages load at breakneck speed. In fact, it loads pages more quickly than any other Mac Web browser. But that´s not all. Safari uses the advanced interface technologies underlying Mac OS X to offer you an all-new view of the Web, one that´s much easier to use.
More Info & Download

OFFICE PACKAGE & UTILS
OpenOffice.org 3.0.0 Final
OpenOffice.org is an Open Source, community-developed, multiplatform office-productivity suite. It includes the key desktop applications, such as a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation manager, and drawing program, with a user interface and feature set similar to other office suites.
Sophisticated and flexible, OpenOffice.org also works transparently with a variety of file formats, including Microsoft´s.
More Info & Download

SSuite Office - The Fifth Element 1.2
This office suite runs on all Windows platforms and all hardware systems. With its full 32-bit architecture and stability, it can improve your productivity and document format compatibility. This office suite introduces some new innovative concepts in interface design and user-friendly application interaction. You get instant system access, top class application design and a cleaner desktop to name a few.
More Info & Download

UNINSTALLERS
Revo Uninstaller 1.75
Revo Uninstaller is a freeware innovative uninstall utility much faster than Windows Add/Remove applet. With its advanced and fast algorithm to scan before and after uninstall of an application you can remove unnecessary files, folders and registry keys left over in your computer.
More Info & Download

CHILD/INTERNET SAFETY
K9 Web Protection (Child Internet Filter)
Blue Coat® K9 Web Protection is a content filtering solution for your home computer. Its job is to provide you with a family-safe Internet experience, where YOU control the Internet content that enters your home. K9 Web Protection implements the same enterprise-class Web filtering technology used by Blue Coat's Fortune 500 customers around the world, wrapped in simple, friendly, and reliable software for your Windows 2000, Windows XP or Windows Vista computer.
More Info & Download

CD/DVD BURNERS
CDBurnerXP Pro 4.2.3.1110
CDBurnerXP Pro is a freeware burning solution with many features. It can burn any Data on CD-R / CD-RW / DVD+R / DVD-R / DVD+RW / DVD-RW, including double layer mediums, Blu-Ray discs and HD-DVDs. It can also burn and create ISO files and burn audio discs.
More Info & Download

CODECS
K-Lite Codec Pack Full 4.3.4
K-Lite Codec Pack is a collection of codecs and related tools. Codec is short for Compressor-Decompressor. Codecs are needed for encoding and decoding (playing) audio and video. The K-Lite Codec Pack is designed as a user-friendly solution for playing all your movie files. With the K-Lite Codec Pack you should be able to play all the popular movie formats and even some rare formats.
More Info & Download

[stargazrroger]

http://www.revouninstaller.com/
windows in a box
ccleaner, firefox 3,http://www.videolan.org/,http://www.aignes.com/products.htm video lan, http://www.mythicsof...m/agentransack/. These will get you started, if you need any more e-mail me.
Roger

[stargazrroger]

agentransack ,cc cleaner,windows in a box , Revo uninstaller, foxit reader, aim deadlink, dvd flick, gimpshop,

[marko]

Some nice suggestions there Roger :lol:

Revo uninstaller is definately on the card I think

[marko]

Sorry, meant to say thanks to the 2 guests also who posted, suggestions on-board :lol:
Cheers
Marko

[marko]

Definate with the codec package and nice suggestion about the burning software - noted :lol:
Marko

[sundaram]

Small utilities like finding Windows Key, IP Address, driver back ups, font uninstaller etc. may be added. It won't take much space.
Limit the package to 50 mb or less. You can add number of packages. I hope it is easy to download who have lesser bandwidth connection too.

[sundaram]

Google Talk (Very nice and simple you know) may be included.

[marko]

I'm not sure the smaller utilities would be wise Sundaram as this could possibly serve merely confuse new computer owners - I think if we stick to the "essentials" as in what would prove essential or extremely useful to newbies then we can both reduce the size of the package and not overload people (and their PC's!) with useful, but not essential, software :lol:

[sundaram]

Yes. I agree with you that new users will confused.

[marko]

More great suggestions guys, noted :lol:

[marko]

Thanks for those suggestions I can definately see some of those in there :lol:

[marko]

Does anyone have an opinion on the PC Tools range of firewall, antivirus and spyware software?. I've tested these in the past and found them to be extremely easy to use and very effective. Because they provide a three-in-one solution, I'm thinking this will offer the best solution for new PC owners?