There is a bunch of software out there. Some good, some bad but there are some programs that are must have’s on any computer.

First, and most importantly, virus protection. Whether you’re buying a brand new computer or getting your hands on a previously owned one, you need to have virus protection if you’re using a PC. Microsoft Security Essentials makes an excellent product and it’s free! Click here to see our blog about Microsoft Security Essentials.

Have you ever gone to a webpage and things just don’t look right? You see square boxes with little red x’s in the top left hand corner and can’t figure out why you can’t view the content of the page properly. These two small programs will make all of your worries go away and will help your web experience tremendously. Adobe Flash Player allows you to view video on web pages properly. The majority of sites on the Internet are now using Flash Player and if you don’t have it installed, the page will not load correctly. Java… no not the coffee. Java is a small program that allows certain scripts to run on webpages. These scripts allow special content of the page to load correctly. Without this program installed, you could see those ugly square boxes with red x’s.

VLC Media Player: VLC Media Player is an excellent audio/video content player that installs special codecs (codecs are special files that allow certain types of video to play) on your computer that allows all types of audio/video to play. Windows comes with Window Media Player but it lacks several different codecs that Microsoft doesn’t support. With VLC Media Player you get all the codecs you need with one simple program.

We all know that Microsoft Office is essential. We need it to create word documents, spreadsheets, and power point presentations. The problem is Office is EXPENSIVE. There is a free program out there called Open Office. Open office contains its own version of Word, Excel, and Power Point. The program allows you to create, edit, and save documents/spreadsheets/power points all in a format that is compatible with Microsoft Office. Oh and did I mention it’s free? This is an excellent piece of software that is a must have if you don’t want to fork out the dough for Microsoft Office.

Real Player: See our blog about Real Player. With Real Player installed you have the option of downloading any video online and storing it on your local computer. What an excellent way to save video’s that you really want to keep.

iTunes: Whether you want to download your favorite tunes and organize them or subscribe to your favorite podcasts, iTunes is a software must have.

Mozilla Firefox: Much like Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox is a web browser that allows you to view different web pages and Internet content. People usually say “I use Firefox because it’s faster than Internet Explorer.” That’s true to an extent. Your Internet speed will be only as fast as the connection to your computer. The reason why people seem to think Firefox is faster than Internet Explorer is because the program is able to process scripts much faster which allow Internet pages to load faster. I use Firefox as my default browser and love it.

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware: The second most important piece of software on this list. This program IS NOT virus protection but it does remove spyware and viruses from your computer. This program DOES NOT protect your computer in real time from viruses. Ideally, you should have an antivirus program installed on your computer as well as this piece of software. This software does a fantastic job of removing “garbage” from your computer and allows it to run properly. You have to initiate the scan on this program but you’ll only need to run a scan twice a month or so to keep your computer in tip top shape. (Note: once this program is installed make sure you click on the update tab to install the latest updates for this software. Without the latest updates, the software will not pick up any “garbage” that’s new)

Mint: Mint is not a program you install on your computer per se, but it’s a website you go to. www.mint.com allows you to track all of your financial information in one, free, secure, easy to use website.  You can link your bank accounts, credit card accounts, retirement accounts, and various other financial accounts all to this website for a full glimpse of your entire financial portfolio. You can even schedule bill reminders and payments from this site. It’s a great way to get yourself financially organized to actually see where every penny goes.

Looking for a way to organize all those photos at home? Windows Live Photo Gallery is great way to organize your photos. The program does it all for you! You simply drag and drop your photos into the program and it organizes them by date. You can even tag people in the photos so you can simply search for people instead of clicking through pictures. (note: Windows 7 required for Windows Live Photogallery) If you don’t have Windows 7, Picasa is a great, free alternative that will allow you to store, edit, and organize your photos.

Adobe Reader: Everyone has used Adobe Reader before. The program is pretty basic and it allows you to view (not edit) pdf documents.

Carbonite: You need to backup all of the data on your computer to protect yourself in case something were to happen to your computer. By using Carbonite you can. See our blog about Carbonite.

We hope you make use of this must have software. All of the above are free with the exception of Carbonite which costs $54.95 per year. You can click on each italicized word to be taken directly to the download page for each piece of software. Enjoy!

Home PC backup is cumbersome at best for home computer users. Most people have tons of data on their home computers that they don’t even know where to start when thinking about backing up their files. Even if they do backup their data, their either burning several DVD’s or copying their data to an external hard drive. Either way, both tasks are time consuming and require the user to initiate the task. Which means finding the time to do the manual backup. In addition, some home computer users don’t understand the importance of backing up their personal computer files. If a hard drive crashes on a home computer and the data isn’t backed up, it means that all of your pictures, important personal budget files, and video’s of your children are gone.  JUST. LIKE. THAT.

One of the best ways to backup your home computer data is to use an Internet website called Carbonite. I personally use Carbonite at home and it’s a fantastic service. Upon signing up for Carbonite you will be asked to download a small piece of software to install on your computer. This piece of software will backup all of the data on your computer and send it up to the Carbonite servers quickly and securely via your home Internet connection.  After doing the initial backup of your computer, Carbonite will automatically recognize changes made on your computer and will back them up on demand, without the user having to do anything. Carbonite offers you unlimited storage space for your data. So if you have 200 gigabytes worth of pictures and music, Carbonite will backup that as well as anything else you may have.

You will know that your data is backed up completely by the little green circle on the bottom right corner of files and folders. If the data has yet to be backed up and is currently waiting for backup, you will notice a yellow circle.

Carbonite costs $54.95 per year and is a great investment in knowing that your personal data is backed up safely and securely in case anything ever happens to your computer. We invest money for retirement, college education, and spend money on life insurance to protect us in case something horrible was to happen. Look at this as $4.57 per month to protect yourself against losing the video of your child’s first steps, your entire photo library, or your monthly budget that holds all of your financial information. You might be thinking “does this guy work for Carbonite or something?” Not in the least and I promise you, I am not even receiving a year of free service for writing this blog. What I can tell you is I have seen the pain on people’s faces when I’ve told them that their hard drive crashed and their data is gone.  Hopefully I don’t have to say that to you and if I do you can say “I backed it up and I’ll get it back.”