# Great Software?



## fredtgreco

Just because I am curious, I would like to start a thread where we can post software that has been very helpful to us. Now I don't mean for this to be for the very obvious. Don't say "Firefox is great" or "Microsoft Word is awesome!" I mean something that is at least somewhat non-standard. If you aren't sure, post it anyway, but I may clean the thread up to avoid having to scroll through 10 posts that say how useful Acrobat is. 

For example, I use a screen capture program called SnagIt. I have never seen anything as flexible or useful in its field.


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## Hippo

Whne I was messing around with adverts for my short lived County Music internet radio station I loved Audacity: Free Audio Editor and Recorder, for fine control over audio it was superb, powerful and free.


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## gene_mingo

OpenOffice. Its a free alternative to MSoffice. It has a similar layout to the MS version so the learning curve is not bad if you have used MSoffice in the past and for those of us on limited budgets, the price is great.


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## blhowes

Like Fred, I like Snagit for its flexibility. You can easily capture screens, windows, drop-down menus, etc. 

One thing that's real handy is its ability to do bulk image conversions. You can easily take a folder full of images, change them from color to black-and-white, modify their brightness, change their format, etc., then output them in bulk to a specified folder. What a time saver!


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## danmpem

WinPatrol is thing to have! It manages your startup programs, delayed startup programs, IE "helpers", ActiveX, running services, and actively running programs. Most use it just for the startup program management, but it's nothing that you can't do by just clicking Start-->Run-->Type in "msconfig"-->Disable all startup programs. And disabling startup programs is a GOOD thing - frees up RAM and all sorts of good stuff!

Also, Spybot Search & Destroy and Windows Defender for Spyware Protection.

Angry IP Scanner (For multiple OS') It finds other computers on your local network in a jiffy.

Scanner (Yeah, simple name) It scans your computer and gives you a graphic as to where the different quantities of files are located. If you know your computer should have more free space, use Scanner to find where all those extra files are and get rid of them.

Foxit Reader (For Windows) It's a GREAT .pdf reader. A wonderful alternative to Adobe Reader. Faster, not as bulky, and no annoying Adobe Download Manager.

Also, Ad-Aware 2008 was just released. I am very interested to see if it's even worth keeping in the computer.
Ad-Aware 6 --> Good
Ad-Aware SE --> Awesome!
Ad-Aware 2007 --> What happened???

Spyware Doctor is simply the best. It's a $30 subscription, but it's worth it. While no one program can catch every piece of spyware, Spyware Doctor is as close as it gets.

BitDefender. Like Spyware Doctor, this is as good as it's going to get for a home computer for just $30.

CamStudio is a great, free screen recorder for Windows.

Here are some sites for Windows freeware: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13. 

And some freeware for the Mac: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.

Knoppix Linux Live CD will help you save your files in case of a massive hard drive crash. Since it's a Linux live CD, you get all the features of Linux, but with programs that come with it especially for hard drive management. It has NTFS support and a very short learning curve.

Also check out DistroWatch for more info on other releases of Linux.

Other recommended Linux distros for beginners: Fedora Core, Ubuntu, and Debian.


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## jwithnell

I've been impressed with two OpenSource programs, Gimp (a professional photo editing program) and Inkscape (a professional vector graphics program). I just haven't had the time to really explore all their capabilities.


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## sastark

I've only recently become aware of the OpenSource text editor Notepad++. If you do any programming/HTML/text editing, it is wonderful. And free!


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## Casey

I also use OpenOffice, the Gimp, and Inkscape. Another open source program I've used is GnuCash. jEdit for programming. I also have paid for Visual Thesaurus.


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## CovenantalBaptist

This is a great thread idea. I used to teach a class on software that makes the seminary student/professor/pastor's life easier. Some day (in my non-existent spare time) I wanted to turn this into a blog.

When I evaluate all the software that I use for preparation and devotion two ones come up time and again for me - one free and one very expensive:

Instaverse - is perhaps the most useful thing for online Biblical research and for lovers of 2 Tim 3:14-17. It "instantly" pops up when you mouse over any biblical reference John 3:16, Jn. 3:16, etc. It is great. You get the KJV for free with the download but if you invest in any Doxa (reformed software) package (like the Reformed Baptist Theological Collection, or the Kuyper or Berkhof collections) you get the ESV version free. 

Logos - I have spent more time and more effort setting this up and as a former software applications instructor I have been both frustrated and awed at this product's overall capabilities. It does not compare in terms of speed to something like Bibleworks but its customization and extensibility far exceed any of its competitors. Half of my theological library is electronic and 80% of that is in Logos Libronix. These days if it is an ST or a commentary, I prefer to buy it digitally. It helps that I was given a free copy of the Scholars' Library edition at a Logos tech seminar I attended.


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## fredtgreco

sastark said:


> I've only recently become aware of the OpenSource text editor Notepad++. If you do any programming/HTML/text editing, it is wonderful. And free!



This is a very nice program. I use it as well.


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## fredtgreco

CovenantalBaptist said:


> This is a great thread idea. I used to teach a class on software that makes the seminary student/professor/pastor's life easier. Some day (in my non-existent spare time) I wanted to turn this into a blog.
> 
> When I evaluate all the software that I use for preparation and devotion two ones come up time and again for me - one free and one very expensive:
> 
> Instaverse - is perhaps the most useful thing for online Biblical research and for lovers of 2 Tim 3:14-17. It "instantly" pops up when you mouse over any biblical reference John 3:16, Jn. 3:16, etc. It is great. You get the KJV for free with the download but if you invest in any Doxa (reformed software) package (like the Reformed Baptist Theological Collection, or the Kuyper or Berkhof collections) you get the ESV version free.
> 
> Logos - I have spent more time and more effort setting this up and as a former software applications instructor I have been both frustrated and awed at this product's overall capabilities. It does not compare in terms of speed to something like Bibleworks but its customization and extensibility far exceed any of its competitors. Half of my theological library is electronic and 80% of that is in Logos Libronix. These days if it is an ST or a commentary, I prefer to buy it digitally. It helps that I was given a free copy of the Scholars' Library edition at a Logos tech seminar I attended.



I love Logos as well. I use it every week as a pastor.

There is a nice Bible reference tool for use with Firefox. If you use Firefox, you really should check out the Greasemonkey extension. There are many good scripts (including a good many for Gmail) but there is one called ESV Bible Refalizer. It basically recognizes Bible references in any web page and turns it into a link to the ESV Bible. Bible Tooltips is similar and nice also.


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## Semper Fidelis

RoboForm: Password Manager, Form Filler, Password Management - I have this both on my desktop and on a U3 Smart drive. With all the passwords and forms out there this is probably the most important utility I have.

GoodSync : File Synchronization, File Backup Software, File Sync Software - Sync my files between computers because I work among several

WinSCP :: Free SFTP and FTP client for Windows - Great utility for managing my server online. Supports SFTP and SCP and allows other custom commands.

FTP GlobalSCAPE - Secure FTP Server and FTP Client Software - My preferred FTP client.

Adobe - Photoshop Lightroom - the best program to ever come out for managing your photos as well as an intuitive and quick workflow for "developing" digital prints


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## Southern Presbyterian

I use this on almost daily: pdf995 it's a utility that will convert any text or picture file (any thing you would normally print via your printer) to a pdf document. The free version is ad supported, but you can purchase their entire suite of programs for under $20. You can also combine existing pdf files into a single document, you can remove selected pages from a larger pdf document. It also lets you add "stamps" to pdf files like, "Copyright Protected", "Property of...", etc. All in all, a very useful program. I can't remember when I've gotten a better deal for $20.


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## Semper Fidelis

Southern Presbyterian said:


> I use this on almost daily: pdf995 it's a utility that will convert any text or picture file (any thing you would normally print via your printer) to a pdf document. The free version is ad supported, but you can purchase their entire suite of programs for under $20. You can also combine existing pdf files into a single document, you can remove selected pages from a larger pdf document. It also lets you add "stamps" to pdf files like, "Copyright Protected", "Property of...", etc. All in all, a very useful program. I can't remember when I've gotten a better deal for $20.



 Great program.


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## Arch2k

Semper Fidelis said:


> RoboForm: Password Manager, Form Filler, Password Management - I have this both on my desktop and on a U3 Smart drive. With all the passwords and forms out there this is probably the most important utility I have.
> 
> Rich, you turned me on to this program over a year ago, and it has been AMAZING software. I don't think I go a day without using it. Besides your passwords, it is also a form filler, so you can enter in all of your bank/credit card info, and then anytime you purchase something, a click of the mouse is all you need to do to fill in all of those repetative forms. I also have it on a U3 and my pocket pc. It didn't take long to upgrade from the free version to unlimited accounts either!


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## fredtgreco

Jeff_Bartel said:


> Semper Fidelis said:
> 
> 
> 
> RoboForm: Password Manager, Form Filler, Password Management - I have this both on my desktop and on a U3 Smart drive. With all the passwords and forms out there this is probably the most important utility I have.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Rich, you turned me on to this program over a year ago, and it has been AMAZING software. I don't think I go a day without using it. Besides your passwords, it is also a form filler, so you can enter in all of your bank/credit card info, and then anytime you purchase something, a click of the mouse is all you need to do to fill in all of those repetative forms. I also have it on a U3 and my pocket pc. It didn't take long to upgrade from the free version to unlimited accounts either!
Click to expand...




I was just remarking yesterday to my wife that I would be lost without it.


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## Semper Fidelis

fredtgreco said:


> Jeff_Bartel said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Semper Fidelis said:
> 
> 
> 
> RoboForm: Password Manager, Form Filler, Password Management - I have this both on my desktop and on a U3 Smart drive. With all the passwords and forms out there this is probably the most important utility I have.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Rich, you turned me on to this program over a year ago, and it has been AMAZING software. I don't think I go a day without using it. Besides your passwords, it is also a form filler, so you can enter in all of your bank/credit card info, and then anytime you purchase something, a click of the mouse is all you need to do to fill in all of those repetative forms. I also have it on a U3 and my pocket pc. It didn't take long to upgrade from the free version to unlimited accounts either!
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I was just remarking yesterday to my wife that I would be lost without it.
Click to expand...


I just "discovered" a feature I hadn't really used in that program as well with Safe Notes. Customer number, activation codes, etc can be saved. I really like the way the Roboform adds a new entry for each item and makes it really easy to sync password entries between computers.

True confessions: I was actually thinking of getting a Mac at one point. There are a number of reasons I'm glad I didn't but one of the things that kept me from doing so is that I wouldn't have Roboform.


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## fredtgreco

Semper Fidelis said:


> fredtgreco said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Jeff_Bartel said:
> 
> 
> 
> Rich, you turned me on to this program over a year ago, and it has been AMAZING software. I don't think I go a day without using it. Besides your passwords, it is also a form filler, so you can enter in all of your bank/credit card info, and then anytime you purchase something, a click of the mouse is all you need to do to fill in all of those repetative forms. I also have it on a U3 and my pocket pc. It didn't take long to upgrade from the free version to unlimited accounts either!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I was just remarking yesterday to my wife that I would be lost without it.
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> I just "discovered" a feature I hadn't really used in that program as well with Safe Notes. Customer number, activation codes, etc can be saved. I really like the way the Roboform adds a new entry for each item and makes it really easy to sync password entries between computers.
> 
> True confessions: I was actually thinking of getting a Mac at one point. There are a number of reasons I'm glad I didn't but one of the things that kept me from doing so is that I wouldn't have Roboform.
Click to expand...


That is really funny. I have been using Safenotes for a while now. I had to hold off on Firefox 3 Betas because they would not work with Roboform!

And no, I never thought of getting a Mac - although I'll probably get an iPhone.


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## jogri17

most of the stuff here is for pcs not macs  At least logos is making the switch over.


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## Hippo

I am also a big fan of Dreamweaver for website creation. It may not be cheap but older versions still work (I am using MX 2004) and its big advantage is that it is as free form as you want it to be. After you understand a few principles of HTML you can start writing your own websites from scratch or just make a start with the many templates that are available.

I did use a mid-market alternative but it was really hard to change things as you wanted, in Dreamweaver you can just bash in some HTML at whatever point you want (which is easy to identify), moving from the Design to Coding view and back at the touch of a button.


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## Nebrexan

I'll add a few of my favorites, all freeware:

PSPad, a text editor with more features than any other freeware editor.

FileZilla for ftp

Free WMA to MP3 Converter for ... well, you can guess

JKDefrag, a great disk defragger

Process Explorer, a substitute for Task Manager

xplorer2 for file management to replace Windows Explorer

IrfanView, a graphics viewer/editor


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## skellam

Interesting topic. 
Since I haven't seen much Mac software suggested, here are a couple I like:

ExpanDrive - if you do any remote administration (such as church website) or even other computers in your home, this is one of the best remote sftp programs I've seen.

Aperture 2 - I do a fair amount of amateur photography and I have found this the best digital photo management software by far. It features non-destructive photo editing so your original photos are never touched and easy backup system using Vaults.

SuperDuper! - you'd be hard pressed to find a better whole drive backup solution. Extremely simple to set up and forget while it does it's job in the background.

One cross platform, open source entry -- VirtualBox  - I've used Parallels and VMWare in the past but this one works just as well and it is free. Works on Linux, Windows and Mac.

I would also put a plug in for GoogleApps -- We set up our church website using Google Apps and now use it to store all our vital information. You can set up member areas. You can provide free e-mail addresses for everyone in your church using your church domain. Google Apps provides free spreadsheet, word processing, and calendar applications that everyone in the church can collaborate on. They charge for businesses to use the service, but churches and non-profits get free access with full technical support.


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## danmpem

jogri17 said:


> most of the stuff here is for pcs not macs  At least logos is making the switch over.



I don't know if this was what you were referring to when you said "most", but check out my post above; it has some Mac freeware there.


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## Broadus

Scanning through these posts, I haven't seen Nota Bene mentioned. For research and writing, I don't think anything is comparable. I used it in my PhD work and found it a great asset for writing my dissertation. I use it almost daily in sermon preparation.

Bill


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## ChristianHedonist

Microsoft OneNote is great, although it's not free. It's one Microsoft program that I really like. It's great for organizing, scheduling, journaling, converting from paper to digital, you can print documents to it, and it's especially good for staying organized in school. It's even better if you have a tablet pc because you can do all kinds of pen input stuff with it.


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## fredtgreco

Broadus said:


> Scanning through these posts, I haven't seen Nota Bene mentioned. For research and writing, I don't think anything is comparable. I used it in my PhD work and found it a great asset for writing my dissertation. I use it almost daily in sermon preparation.
> 
> Bill





ChristianHedonist said:


> Microsoft OneNote is great, although it's not free. It's one Microsoft program that I really like. It's great for organizing, scheduling, journaling, converting from paper to digital, you can print documents to it, and it's especially good for staying organized in school. It's even better if you have a tablet pc because you can do all kinds of pen input stuff with it.



I'm interested in Note programs, but don't need dissertation level bibliography stuff. Can someone tell me how OneNote compares to NotaBene, to EverNote, to Zotero?

I have a thread on that here:
http://www.puritanboard.com/f66/evernote-34466/


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## jaybird0827

I can't say enough good about PrintMusic. This is one of several packages offered by Finale Music.

I started with their introductory, free Note Pad and went about upgrading from there. I use PrintMusic in conjunction with my work as a congregational precentor and it has just enough of what I need.

I use PrintMusic to transcribe Psalm tunes into both MIDI files and sound files to help people familiarize with the tunes that are sung in our congregation. The ability to transpose quickly into another key is important for us. For example, we found that the congregation is challenged if they have to sustain E5 (the E that is an octave above the E above middle C) or hit it several times. Just lowering that to an E-flat makes a big difference, and with PrintMusic it's a "breeze".

The sound files are nice because it's easy to make CD's. At public Psalm sings we use a boom box with a CD player and play each tune before we sing the Psalm. That way guests who may not be familar with the tune get to hear it and if it's a tune we haven't sung in awhile we get to brush up on it as well.

Also with PrintMusic I am able to create sheet music "on the fly". While it is true that embedding words between musical staves is still a challenge, I prefer to create music sheets that are upper half music and lower half text. The congregation is already accustomed to the format because we use a split-leaf Psalm book. 

We use these sheets mainly at public Psalm sings because it saves people time from having to leaf through their Psalm books to find the next passage and the tune paired with it.

4-line common meter, short meter, and long meter tunes are easy. While it's somewhat more challenging with a longer tune, PrintMusic also give you the ability to shrink the size of the music, text, or both, so we're still able to get, for example DCM or 66 88 88 types (Psalm 148) all on one page.


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## jaybird0827

Hippo said:


> Whne I was messing around with adverts for my short lived County Music internet radio station I loved Audacity: Free Audio Editor and Recorder, for fine control over audio it was superb, powerful and free.


 
QUESTION: Can this software be used to make live recordings of up to five minutes? Suppose I had a group and we wanted to sing a song and make a recording of it - would this software do the trick?


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## reformedcop

Bayden Systems - SlickRun - This is a great piece of software that gives you instant access to anything on your hardrive as well as websites all by the use of hot keys that you set up. Great program!


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## Quickened

Ccleaner



> CCleaner is a freeware system optimization and privacy tool. It removes unused files from your system - allowing Windows to run faster and freeing up valuable hard disk space. It also cleans traces of your online activities such as your Internet history. But the best part is that it's fast (normally taking less than a second to run) and contains NO Spyware or Adware!



I had some issues in the past with my system running slowly and lagging. I ran this and it seemed to fix the issue.


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## sastark

jaybird0827 said:


> Hippo said:
> 
> 
> 
> Whne I was messing around with adverts for my short lived County Music internet radio station I loved Audacity: Free Audio Editor and Recorder, for fine control over audio it was superb, powerful and free.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> QUESTION: Can this software be used to make live recordings of up to five minutes? Suppose I had a group and we wanted to sing a song and make a recording of it - would this software do the trick?
Click to expand...


Although I have not used this software for that purpose, I know it can do recordings and I know it does not have a time limit built in - you are limited by the amount of space available on your hard drive. So, I think it could be used as you describe. It's a pretty cool little program.


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## skellam

Another great free application that some may find useful is called Hamachi. The full usefulness of the program may not be immediately apparent but it is basically a zero-configuration VPN service. After you install it and log in to the hamachi server, you basically have fully encrypted, secure access to your home network from anywhere in the world. It assigns you an IP address in the 5.x.x.x range. For two computers with Hamachi running, it appears that they are on the same LAN no matter where they are. You can use this to access files on your home computer, you can fire up your iTunes on Windows or Mac and share it with your laptop on the road, you can access your printer remotely, you can combine it with VNC client and securely access your desktop.


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## danmpem

sastark said:


> Although I have not used this software for that purpose, I know it can do recordings and I know it does not have a time limit built in - you are limited by the amount of space available on your hard drive. So, I think it could be used as you describe. It's a pretty cool little program.



True, but it's not the hard disk that would be your first limitation - it would be your RAM and pagefile capacity. This is where your audio is first recorded, and then when it is saved, it goes to your hard disk. You can save as many files as you want until you fill up your hard disk, but each recording is limited to the space of RAM and the pagefile (which is just some hard drive space used to supplement the RAM).


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## Wannabee

Perhaps there's another program that can do it better, But I've found ACT! to be a great database for contacts. Form letters, history, calendar, phone calls, emails, etc, can all be recorded as you're doing it. You can make a call through your computer, and it records the event. It records every letter you send to someone. All contacts can be separated into single or multiple lists (i.e. members, visitors, family...). Birth dates, weddings, etc., can all be inserted and it will remind you. It also comes with software for handhelds and can sync.


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## Broadus

Copernic Desktop Search 2 Home Edition. Free desktop search, much better than Google Desktop, in my opinion.

Bill


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## danmpem

Hiren's Boot CD. It is a DOS Bootable CD that does everything a DOS bootable CD shouldn't.


> Hiren's Boot CD is a boot CD containing various diagnostic programs such as partitioning agents, system performance benchmarks, disk cloning and imaging tools, data recovery tools, MBR tools, BIOS tools, and many others for fixing various computer problems. It is a Bootable CD; thus, it can be useful even if the primary operating system cannot be booted. Hiren's Boot CD has an extensive list of software. Utilities with similar functionality on the CD are grouped together and seem redundant; however, they present choices through UI differences.



I just used it last night when my friend's logon password for Windows stopped working. We reset it using Hiren's.


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## fredtgreco

Broadus said:


> Copernic Desktop Search 2 Home Edition. Free desktop search, much better than Google Desktop, in my opinion.
> 
> Bill



Good, but not as good as X1 Enterprise Search Solutions in my opinion. For a purely Outlook search (and more) program, try Xobni: Email organization, search, and navigation for your Outlook inbox.


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## fredtgreco

Anybody try this?

Dropbox - Home - Secure backup, sync and sharing made easy.

By the way, a great place to find out about new tools is:

Lifehacker, tips and downloads for getting things done


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## Semper Fidelis

fredtgreco said:


> Anybody try this?
> 
> Dropbox - Home - Secure backup, sync and sharing made easy.
> 
> By the way, a great place to find out about new tools is:
> 
> Lifehacker, tips and downloads for getting things done



Dropbox looks really good. I wonder how much space is included in a home account and how much it costs.


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## Broadus

fredtgreco said:


> Broadus said:
> 
> 
> 
> Copernic Desktop Search 2 Home Edition. Free desktop search, much better than Google Desktop, in my opinion.
> 
> Bill
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Good, but not as good as X1 Enterprise Search Solutions in my opinion. For a purely Outlook search (and more) program, try Xobni: Email organization, search, and navigation for your Outlook inbox.
Click to expand...


X1 Enterprise Search is not free, though, is it?

Bill


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