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Recommended Free Software
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This page contains links to sources of a variety of computer software. Your computer may have come with factory-installed programs that support some of these functions, but you may find that the programs listed below are more reliable and have more features than the ones that came with your machine, particularly if your computer is several years old. Free versions of all the applications listed below are available. We have provided links to each maker's home page so that you will know you are getting the most current versions. Installation instructions are normally available on the web sites. On most Windows machines it's a simple matter of downloading and running the installation file. Among these packages are applications that AU staff have tested and in some cases are currently in use on AU-owned computers. However, the fact that they have worked for us is no guarantee that they will work for you. We provide these links as a service but with the understanding that neither Aurora University nor the AU Information Technology Services department can provide any support for these programs or guarantee that you will be able to successfully install them on your system. |
Office Software |
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| PowerPoint 2003 Viewer Word 2003 XML Viewer Excel 2003 Viewer |
These programs give users who do not have MS Office the ability to display and print common Microsoft file formats on their own computers. |
Network Clients |
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| Firefox | Firefox is a free-standing, full-featured web browser, based on the browser packaged with Mozilla. Available for MS Windows, Linux and Macintosh. |
| Opera | An alternative to Mozilla. Includes a browser and an email client and a variety of features and security tools. Available for MS Windows, Macintosh, and several unix-based operating systems including Linux. |
| Nvu | An HTML editor for creating web pages, similar to MS FrontPage. This application is based on the web authoring tools packaged with Mozilla. Available for MS Windows, Linux and Macintosh. |
Security Tools |
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| ZoneAlarm | ZoneAlarm is a personal firewall for MS Windows computers. For use as an extra layer of protection from the hostile networking environment. |
| AVG Anitivirus | Antivirus software package for MS Windows computers. If you install this program be sure to set it up so that you receive regular antivirus file updates. |
| Avast Antivirus | Another antivirus package for MS Windows machines. Full protections requires that you update the antivirus files periodically. |
| Spybot: Search and Destroy | Spybot is a program for locating and deleting spyware from your MS Windows computer. |
| Ad-Aware | This program is useful for fighting spyware, unwanted advertising, trojans, and other forms of malware. For MS Windows. |
Other Utilities |
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| PowerArchiver | A file compression and archiving program for Windows computers. Supports most common compression formats. |
| 7-Zip | Another file compression and archiving program for Windows computers. Supports most common compression formats. |
| WinSCP | File transfer program for Windows that supports the secure file transfer (SFTP) protocol. Includes a set of file management utilities. |
| Adobe Acrobat Reader | A tool for viewing and printing PDF documents. Versions are available for Windows, Macintosh, Linux, and Solaris. |
| Java | The Java Runtime Environment is a set of software tools that support running Java-based programs on your desktop computer, including some applications associated with web pages. |
