freeware (missed)....

sorry - as i rebuild a system this weekend, i will continue to add additional utilities i use i forgot to list....

missed two of the most important ones..... free (and very very good) antivirus

avast! - http://www.avast.com/eng/download-avast-home.html
avg - http://free.grisoft.com/doc/1

filezilla - http://filezilla.sourceforge.net/ ftp client
stickies - http://www.zhornsoftware.co.uk/stickies/index.html post it notes

lavasoft adaware - http://www.lavasoft.de/software/adaware/ spyware removal
spybot s&d - http://www.safer-networking.org/ spyware removal and protection
spyware blaster - http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html spyware protection
(Note: i use all 3 of the spyware utilities. just one doesn't seem to cut it these days.)

scanner2 - http://www.steffengerlach.de/freeware/ "this tool uses a unique concentric pie chart to display the usage of your hard disk or other media. the chart shows all major files and folders from all directory levels at once. "

---

grant mentioned something in his comment on the previous post, that it's good to keep in mind.
these aren't the be all, end all..... they are free options and alternatives. there are stability issues with some of them, and in the case of firefox - it can't do it all. (specifically because many sites use activeX controls, which firefox won't touch. However, ms made the decision with ie not to support the css standards). firefox really is a better browser grant - especially for speed and safety, but we do run firefox and ie as browsers because it is still necessary.

no software is perfect. you get what you pay for (most times. the above free anti-virus software really is excellent stuff.) free opensource software requires additional work on your part for support or issues.

but..... it's good to keep in mind there are alternatives. and people out there working on innovative ideas they want others involved with. and we all do things differently - so it's good to have a choice.

it's a good thing :)