Good free programs

Due to its simple and multilingual interface, this archiving tool is a perfect option both for amateurs and professionals.

Verdict: Zipeg is a free program with an intuitive interface designed specifically for extracting files from compressed archives. With Zipeg, you can view the content of the archive and extract necessary files. Thus, it is possible to save hard drive space. Zipeg allows you to control both the process of extracting the content of an archive and the process of data decompression.

The program is great for professional use as it works even with rare file types. Verdict: Xarchiver is an open-source archive manager with a simple GUI. It is developed specifically for Linux and systems created on the BSD license basis. This free zip software comes with impressive functionality. It allows you to combine multiple files into one catalog as well as compress, read, unpack files and create multi-volume archives. Using this program, you can perform multi-volume data archiving as well as simple tasks like viewing and extracting files.

KGB has a slightly higher compression ratio compared to popular files like 7Zip and RAR, but it requires more time to archive and extract files.

This program can create self-extracting archives and uses AES encryption. Currently, AES offers one of the safest encryption methods for data protection available on the market. KGB Archiver is a very user-friendly program. Therefore, this free unzip software is perfect for novice users. Hi there, I'm Ann Young - a professional blogger, read more. App launchers let you activate software far faster than navigating Windows, even if you use the Windows key and search for an app by name.

But Launchy can do much, much more: Open any file or folder in mere seconds, shut down your PC, or even kill processes and perform math calculations with the right plug-ins. Launchy is another Windows utility that is unto itself; however, the developers do accept donations, and we highly recommend tossing the developers a few dollars for this excellent program.

A lot of them cost money. You can even encrypt 7-Zip archives with a password to send them securely. If you spend all day unzipping massive archive files then maybe a faster utility like WinZip is worth it. For most of us, however, 7-zip is just great. Your PC might have a DVD-playing program installed if you bought a boxed system, but if not, the simply wonderful VLC media player can play your flicks and music, and podcasts, and… for free. It can even play some Blu-ray discs with a little fiddling.

You can, however, send the VideoLAN organization a donation as a thank you for its hard work. It has a challenging learning curve, but its capabilities are damned impressive once you wrap your head around it. Check out our roundup of the best free Photoshop alternatives for more no-cost programs for everything from quick and dirty tweaks to nitty-gritty image edits.

Free image editors are generally great and GIMP is looking better than ever. If you need to record or mix audio without spending big bucks on pro software, Audacity is hands-down the best option around.

This powerful open-source audio editor offers excellent production capabilities—and a dizzying array of buttons and options. Keep in mind, however, that Adobe Audition is a pro tool and not a starter option.

As for the minuses - the process takes a little longer, when compared with other programs. Verdict: Renderforest is a universal online video, animation, logo, and website maker. To create an easy animation, you have more than 50, unique graphic files to choose from and more than ready-made templates for mobile devices. Here you have hundreds of animated video templates at your disposal to suit your needs, including slide shows, splash screens, explanatory videos, logo displays, corporate presentations, and animated infographics.

Verdict: Toontastic 3D is a free mobile application from Google, originally created for children, but the functionality is also enough to generate corporate animated 3D-videos. A nice bonus — this free animation software for beginners also works offline, so you can create videos on the go or when Wi-Fi is off. According to Google developers, you can create a one-minute video with six scenes in just a minute, excluding the time spent on creating characters.

Verdict: Powtoon online application is mainly used for creating short videos and dynamic video presentations. There are some limitations in the free plan: you can create HD videos lasting up to 3 minutes, and the storage capacity is limited to MB. In Powtoon, you can choose your own style, change the proportions and sizes of the animation, export videos to YouTube, Facebook, Wistia, and Vimeo.

There are also handy Powtoon tutorials, which makes mastering the app even quicker. Verdict: Pencil2D Animation software free is used for creating 2D animated videos. It allows users to create more traditional, hand-drawn scenes. Verdict: Synfig Studio is another free online 2D drawing animation software.

Here you use vector graphics to create timeline animations. To make the movements of the drawn characters more natural, the developers integrated a bone system.

Thanks to the parameters of the layers, you can create dynamic characters. Verdict: TupuTube is a free 2D animation program. You can use a mobile application or a desktop version. The program supports vector illustrations. Other good options include FileZilla and CyberDuck.

Are you a web developer or coder? Looking for a good HTML editor? Want to learn more about the WiFi networks around you? Ever wanted to create a family tree? Legacy is a free genealogy that you can use to keep track of family and relatives. Another good app is ScionPC. If you constantly use the same programs over and over, it might be a good idea to download a quick program launcher.

One of my favorites is Find and Run Robot. Ever wanted to automate a certain task in Windows? Maybe you want to have your computer turn off every day at 10pm? Or certain keystrokes you want to record and repeat over and over again? Whatever the case, AutoHotKey is an awesome program for automating many tasks in Windows. Looking to secure your browsing traffic with a VPN?

In 14, I mentioned two professional and free movie editing programs, but they are quite complex. Got kids? Need some parental control software? The best options are Qustodio and Kidlogger. Free versions are limited obviously. Also, read my post on the different ways to childproof a computer.

If you have a lot of music, you might want to consider a music management program like Media Monkey. Another good program is MusicBee.

I talked about a VPN for secure browsing in 39, but you can also use a different browser like Tor to hide your identify. Revo Uninstaller will get rid of any program whether it wants to or not.

They have a whole free games section. If you have sensitive data on your computer that you want to permanently and securely delete from your hard drive, I would suggest using a program called dBan. Do a lot of reading? A great app for reading in Windows is the Kindle app. It will also sync down to your phone or tablet too. Love using Instagram? Want to download a photo, video or story from Instagram?

Check out 4K Stogram. Looking for good screen capture software? A really good one is Screenshot Captor. Of course, Windows has a lot of built-in ways to capture screenshots too. Ever wanted your computer to speak out what you have written? Do you have a lot of programs that load when Windows starts? Does it take several minutes for your computer to become useable? If so, check out Startup Delayer , a program that delays the startup of programs so that your computer loads faster.

In addition to the Office suites we mentioned in 35, you can also use Canva and Prezi. Follow a lot of blogs online and still miss Google Reader? RSSOwl is a good alternative.