Best Free Software

This is a continually updated list of recommended free software by DoSu writers for your Windows PC. We try new software all the time and these are the ones we personally use and recommend. If you have any further suggestions, we want to hear it!

BROWSER

- Mozilla FireFox 3.0 — the default choice
- Opera 9.6 — our preferred browser

EMAIL CLIENT

- Gmail — can be used as a POP3 and IMAP client.
- Thunderbird — if you need a local copy of emails

ANTI-MALWARE

- AVG — recommend only using it for manual scans.
- SpyBot Search and Destroy — good for detecting most malware
- HiJack This — tool that displays and allows you to delete auto-starting applications that are not listed elsewhere in Windows tools

IMAGE VIEWER

- Irfanview — image viewer & browser.
- XnView — similar image viewer & browser.

FILE COMPRESSION

- IZArc — PK’s recommended compression tool
- TUGZip

BURNING SOFTWARE

- CDBurnerXP — general burning application.
- ImgBurn — specializes in burning and creating images.

BITTORRENT

- µTorrent — hands down the best torrent app I’ve used

INSTANT MESSAGING

- Miranda — best customization.
- Pidgin — best non-bloated out-of-box.
- Trillian — most built-in features.
- Digsby — social networking integration.
- Steam Friends — ubiquitous for a PC gamer

VOICE CHAT

- Ventrilo — gaming, group conference.
- Skype — 1-on-1 calling.

VIDEO/DVD PLAYER

- VLC Player — all-around player.
- Miro — internet video aggregator and player.

AUDIO PLAYER

- MediaMonkey — great library, light player.
- Winamp — great out-of-box and customizable player.

CODECS

- DIVX
- Quicktime
- Flash
- Real Alternative — only if you really need to play Real media.

GAMING

- GameTap — 145+ free games.
- Cheap Games Round-Up — Our list has several free games and more coming.

OTHER SOFTWARE

- Process Explorer — view & manage detailed process information.
- CCleaner — clear up hard drive space, clean registry, manage start-up & uninstall software.
- Hamachi — Easy to use virtual private network.
- FileZilla — Handles file transfers using the FTP.
- Daemon Tools — CD/DVD discs emulation.
- Peer Guardian 2 — An IP blocker to protect your privacy on P2P.
- Foxit Reader — Light-weight and fast PDF reader.