Chris WiegmanWe all have our favorite software packages, and for all of us that list is directly affected by what we use out computers for. In my case I spend my computer time working on websites and trying to find better ways for my company to get things done. With that said I’ve definitely found a few apps I couldn’t do without:
1.) Firefox: This is without a doubt where I spend most of my time whether working on my sites or researching a new program. I had been a big fan of Internet Explorer for years, but now with Firefox 3 and the Foxmarks extension I don’t see how I could ever go back.
2.) Syncplicity: I primarily use two computers interchangeably. For the last 2 years I had been carrying an external hard drive around with me. Now with Syncplicity I don’t have to worry about that anymore. Everything is synchronized automatically between my computers without me lifting a finger or worrying about forgetting my drive somewhere.
3.) 7-zip: With large amounts of files I always find myself archiving old projects to both save space and help me keep organized. 7 zip beats everyt
hing else I’ve tried for this in speed and resource utilization, and best of all, it’s free.
4.) FileZilla: As a web developer I couldn’t do my job without a good FTP client. I’ve tried a good number of clients over the years, but now I always find myself going back to Filezilla.
5.) Microsoft Office: I’ve used office for years and even with new software such as OpenOffice I just can’t seem to pull myself away from the old standby.
6.) GMail: GMail is another new addition to my collection. While not a local app, it’s ability to allow me access to all my email regardless of what computer I use is simply un-beatable.
7.) CCleaner: I wish I didn’t need a cleaner for Windows, but with all the software I test and all the computers I support CCleaner just makes my life a little easier.
8.) DreamWeaver: I’ve tried alternatives, but with it’s truly unique built-in FTP features I just can’t get away from using this old standby to hand-code all of my websites.
9.) Photoshop: There are some good free image editors such as GIMP, but none of them can combine the ability to edit both raster and vector graphics.
10.) Digsby: Before finding Digsby I had used Trillian and Pidgin for some time. What finally made me switch is the ability to synchronize accounts and setting over multiple computers. As often as I reformat computers this feature alone will keep me from using anything else.