Online Universities

There are thousands of free software programs available to students that help them complete school projects and stay in touch with friends and family. Here are several of the best free software for students in 2012 including free competitions.

OpenOffice

OpenOffice, Oracle’s open-source software, is the perfect free software alternative to Microsoft Office. Students can use it to make word documents, spreadsheets and presentations. The user-friendly alternative runs on many operating systems, and it is accessible to users in many languages. A great feature of OpenOffice is its ability to save documents, spreadsheets and presentations in several different file types so that they can be opened in programs such as Microsoft Office.

Firefox

Firefox has quickly become one of the most popular browsers among students. The free and open-source browser blocks pop-up ads, offers useful and fun themes and extensions, and has many features that make it the top choice among students. One helpful feature is the Awesome Bar, which allows users to enter search keywords and then choose from a list of search engines. Firefox was also one of the first browsers to offer tabs, which aids multitasking and productivity. Other great features include one-touch bookmarking, automatic updates and a password manager.

Skype

Skype is an excellent method for students to chat with friends and family while they are away at school. Students can reduce their phone charges by using the free internet phone software. Users can use the free program for instant messaging and making voice and video calls to other Skype users. Students can also use Skype for online meetings and file sharing. The program can even be used used on computers, tablets, televisions and even smartphones.

CutePDF Writer

It is hard to live without CutePDF Writer once you discover the free program. CutePDF Writer allows users to convert just about any Windows applications to PDF documents. The program quickly converts documents such as word documents and spreadsheets to PDF files by acting as a printer subsystem. The user simply chooses CutePDF Writer as a printer, and the file converts to a PDF. This program is perfect when submitting large documents to professors. Also, converting a finicky document to a PDF ensures that the document will appear exactly the same on all computers without any formatting changes.

AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 2012

Every student needs an anti-virus program. AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 2012 is the perfect solution. It is easy to download, trusted and tested. It provides anti-virus and anti-spyware protection on Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP platforms. The AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 2012 is ideal for users like students, who typically use their computers for surfing the web performing research. The LinkScanner Active Surf-Shield detects and warns against threats right before a user clicks on a link. The program is simple and provides protection against many threats, while using limited computer resources to perform its job.

GIMP

Many students love using Adobe Photoshop to edit photos and to do graphic designing, but Adobe’s software is expensive. GIMP is an excellent alternative to the pricey Adobe photo-editing program. Students love GIMP because it offers many of the same features as Adobe Photoshop, and it is free. It is compatible with Windows, Max, Linux and several other operating systems.