5 Apps I Can't Live Without

Probably my favorite thing about using Windows is the amount of free, open source applications that are available. Using these "apps" you can make your windows experience better and be more organized, as well as using your media in a much more user friendly way. The following are my five favorite apps for free...

1. Speedfan (www.almico.com/speedfan.php)

This application is perfect for monitoring the health of one's computer. It giver you up to date info on temperatures of various components of your computer, which is very useful when you're trying to perfect airflow inside your case to lower temperatures, or are just worried that your computer may be overheating. Speedfan also has a S.M.A.R.T. tab, which will monitor the health of your hard drive, perfect for predicting hard drive failure, if that would occur.

2. Dropbox (www.getdropbox.com)

After downloading the program and getting an account, you can upload any files you which to your "dropbox" by placing them into the appropriate folder. The beauty of this is that you can download your files from any other computer with dropbox. This method of moving files is much easier and safer than carrying a USB drive or an optic disk, not to mention it's FREE...

3. Picasa - (picasa.google.com)

Picasa is absolutely amazing Photo Editing and Organizing app from the devs at Google. The editing side of the program is pretty basic, but the power on the organizing side is quite awesome. You really can't explain why this app is awesome, you just have to try it for yourself.

4. Malware Bytes Anti-Malware- (www.malwarebytes.org)

This software has actually save me once, and since then, I have scanned my computer at least once a week. It really is a good piece of software. In my experience with this app, It has found two Trojans and a dormant worm. Truly scary stuff, and I'm glad I had Malware Bytes.

5. Truecrypt - (www.truecyrpt.org)

Truecrypt is an encryption software that is quite powerful for what it does. It makes and unbreakable encryption on whatever files you want, and even goes so far as to make a "ghost" file, so if someone tries to torture the password out of you, they could get in anyways. That's hardcore.

Well, those are five of my favorite applications right now. You can bet I'll stumble upon something worth our attention, and you can bet I'll give you the lowdown.