The Best Free Software – Part 5
Internet Browsers: Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera
E-mail: Thunderbird, Postbox Express, Gmail Notifier
Communication: Skype, Pidgin, Digsby
Internet Browsers
Google Chrome
The web has moved from viewing to doing. Google Chrome is a fast, simple browser that lets you make the most of the modern web. Chrome’s browser window is streamlined, clean and simple.
Chrome also includes features that are designed for efficiency and ease of use. For example, you can search and navigate from the same box, and arrange tabs however you wish — quickly and easily.
Chrome is designed to keep you safer and more secure on the web with built-in malware and phishing protection, autoupdates to make sure the browser is up-to-date with the latest security updates, and more.
Chrome has many useful features built in, including extensions, translation in the browser, themes, and more.
Firefox
The Firefox browser is created by Mozilla, a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote openness, innovation and opportunity on the Web. Get to your favorite sites quickly – even if you don’t remember the URLs. Type your term into the location bar (aka the Awesome Bar) and the autocomplete function will include possible matches from your browsing history, bookmarked sites and open tabs. Tabs are above the Awesome Bar to make it easier to focus on the content of the sites you visit.
Safari
Safari is designed to emphasize the browsing, not the browser. The browser frame is a single pixel wide. You see a scroll bar only when needed. And if you choose, you can hide almost the entire interface, removing virtually every distraction from the browser window. A great browser should get out of your way and let you simply enjoy the web. Safari does just that. And it does it regardless of platform. (OS: WinXP, Windows Vista, Windows Vista x64, Windows 7, Windows 7 x64, Mac OS X)
Opera
Newest Opera browser features tab stacking, extensions, visual mouse gestures. Opera Software debuted the newest version of its award-winning browser today. Opera 11 combines elegant design, smart updates to some of our most popular features and new ways to customize Opera to your preferences.
Make your web browsing faster. Everything from loading webpages to opening tabs is optimized to happen almost instantly. You can even speed up browsing on slow connections, with Opera Turbo. Reduce your exposure to threats on the Web. Your safety is ensured by industry-leading security, Fraud and Malware Protection and an address field that clearly shows your security level. Use great features that make common browsing tasks faster and easier. Opera has more features built-in than any other browser. You can also add new functionality with extensions.
Thunderbird
If you like Firefox’s tabbed browsing, you’re going to love tabbed email. Tabbed email lets you load emails in separate tabs so you can quickly jump between them. Perhaps you’re responding to an email and need to refer back to an earlier email. Tabbed email lets you keep multiple emails open for easy reference. Double-clicking or hitting enter on a mail message will now open that message in a new tab window. Right-clicking on messages or folders will open them in a tab in the background.
Postbox Express
Postbox 2 is first class email software that puts you in the driver’s seat. Stay on task, find information quickly and act, not react. Postbox 2 now supports Unified Inboxes, which lets you combine messages from multiple accounts into one Inbox. Accounts can also be organized into Account Groups, so you can keep your work and personal messages separate.
Add as many accounts to a group as desired. Then, select a group to get a unified view for messages within the group.
Download Postbox Express Here!
Gmail Notifier
Gmail Notifier alerts you when you have new email messages in your mailbox. Also, you can read emails, delete or mark them as read. Use Gmail Notifier to check up to 5 Gmail accounts. Feature list: – Counter of unread emails – Sound and tray icon alerts – Full email preview – Delete emails or mark as read – IMAP connectivity over SSL – Support for multiple accounts – Support for UTF-8 emails – Support for mailto links – Support for Google Apps
Communication
Skype
You can use the program to chat with other Skype users anywhere in the world for free either via telephone or the built-in chat feature. However, some overly optimistic users may be disappointed to learn that you still need to pay for credits to make calls to landlines and mobiles with Skype, through the SkypeOut function. Luckily, this is a very painless process, and Skype has recently added a plethora of different ways to pay.
Pidgin
Pidgin is an instant messaging program. You can talk to your friends using AIM, ICQ, Jabber/XMPP, MSN Messenger, Yahoo!, Bonjour, Gadu-Gadu, IRC, Novell GroupWise Messenger, QQ, Lotus Sametime, SILC, SIMPLE, and Zephyr. Pidgin can log in to multiple accounts on multiple IM networks simultaneously. This means that you can be chatting with friends on AIM, talking to a friend on Yahoo Messenger, and sitting in an IRC channel all at the same time. Pidgin supports many features of the various networks, such as file transfer, away messages, and typing notification.
Digsby
Digsby is a multiprotocol IM client that lets you chat with all your friends on AIM, MSN, Yahoo, ICQ, Google Talk, and Jabber with one simple to manage buddy list.
One combined buddy list for all your AIM, MSN, Yahoo, ICQ, Google Talk, Jabber, and Facebook Chat Accounts. Manage multiple conversations with tabbed conversation windows. You can drag tabs out into their own windows for important conversations. Send your friends SMS messages right from the IM window. Manage your Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo Mail, AOL/AIM Mail, IMAP, and POP accounts right from digsby. Get popup notifications when new email arrives. Clicking a popup takes you right to the message with auto-login into webmail accounts. Perform actions such as “Mark as Read” or “Report Spam” right from the email InfoBox. And many more! Download Digsby Here!