Version 1.1.7 of VLC media player doesn't actually look that much different from previous versions of VLC but it does introduce many new features, formats and codecs to the VLC multimedia framework. It also fixes several major bugs that were in earlier versions.

Firstly, don't be fooled by appearances. VLC media player may look basic, but it's this simplicity and power to play anything that makes VLC media player so good. This includes downloading streams from the web. Indeed, we've often found that where other media players have failed, VLC media player has always allowed me to stream content quickly and reliably. This is because VLC media player is so lightweight and doesn't spend as much time processing images as some players do. If you want to stream your own audio or video across the net, there's also a useful streaming wizard to help get you going.

VLC media player isn't quite as intuitive as iTunes when it comes to media management - it's much more basic and stripped down in that respect - but it's a much more flexible player in terms of file formats. And if VLC media player doesn't recognize the file type it will often try playing it anyway and will display the scrambled video in its raw form.

If you don't have any media to play, then VLC media player also offers superb integration with video channel streaming services such as Channels.com giving you access to channels such as ESPN, Reuters and National Geographic. Just right-click or CMD-click on the playlist, select Services Discovery and Channels.com. Channels.com will then appear in your playlist. Click on it to reveal the the different categories of channels available on VLC media player. Click on the category you want and a drop down list of all available channels appears. Just click on the channel you want to watch and streaming should begin almost immediately.

As regards control, VLC media player offers superb hotkey support allowing you to define a key to do anything from taking video snapshots to skipping tracks. It also features subtitle support for all major subtitle formats and even allows you to switch languages in the click of a button.

Note that all versions of VLC media player compatible with Mac OS X 10.1 to 10.6 are available here. The main download link is for the 64 bit Intel version compatible with OS X 10.5 and above. However, you will be offered download links for older OS X versions when you click the free download link. Alternatively, you can download older versions at the foot of this page if you know which one is compatible with your OS. There is not, and there will never be, a version of VLC media player for Mac OS 9.

There's very little to fault with VLC media player. It's a superb lightweight media player that will successfully play the most stubborn files where other players fail.

Download VLC media player 1.1.12 in Softonic

Microsoft ended support for Internet Explorer for Mac on December 31st, 2005, and does not provide further security or performance updates. Since the browser is no longer designed to handle the requirements of most modern web pages, we strongly advise you to try Firefox, Chrome, Safari or Opera instead. Alternatively, just check out all of the other browsers available for Mac.

However, if you really can't help yourself and are an Internet Explorer nostalgic, you might want to try it for a trip down memory lane. However, for normal internet browsing we'd really discourage you from using it. We couldn't even render the Softonic website in it and indeed, most websites failed to load properly. Internet Explorer for Mac is incredibly slow, buggy, prone to crashes and freezing and is woefully short of security settings.

Since development finished in 2005, Internet Explorer for Mac doesn't offer even the most basic features that you would consider a prerequisite on any browser nowadays like tabs, extensions, saved sessions or private data management.

There are absolutely no compelling reasons to use Internet Explorer for Mac. If you've just switched from Windows to Mac, try one of the browsers suggested above instead.

Download Internet Explorer 5.2.3 in Softonic

In fact, FrostWire has more than just a few similarities to Limewire although unlike the latter, it does not carry advertising and there are no annoying pop ups. Just as Limewire was, FrostWire is straightforward and easy to use. A simple search bar, divided by category, makes it a breeze to browse for a file, whether it is a video, image, audio, or program. FrostWire also has a What’s New button to check out what popular files users have recently exchanged.

One particularly handy feature of FrostWire is a special direct connect option. If you know the IP address of one of your friends, type it in the box and FrostWire will browse to that user’s files. This is a quick way of sharing files with someone you know although it would be even better if you could enter the username of a user rather than the IP address.

In terms of speed, much will depend on the speed of your own connection. It definitely helps though if you've correctly opened your router’s ports and whether you’re downloading a popular file or not. To avoid the risk of downloading copyrighted or adult material, FrostWire also allows you to apply content filters. Another handy feature of FrostWire is a built-in media player. Video and audio can be tested using Frostwire’s media player which gives you an immediate preview of your file.

However, one major annoyance with Frostwire is the number of fake files on it. Many songs and files look genuine but are in fact either completely fake or in the worst case scenarios, malicious. You should be very careful when opening files. It should also be noted that FrostWire is basically a stripped-down version of Limewire, but is a not-for-profit project. The developers claim it will never support Digital Rights Management (DRM) or any type of advertising. However, the demise of Limewire due to legal issues mean that FrostWire may well be targeted in the future for closure.

FrostWire for Mac is a hugely popular alternative for anyone who misses Limewire but there are a lot of fake files and it doesn't quite measure up to the latter in most areas.

Download FrostWire 5.3.2 in Softonic

It's not often that a Microsoft product gets remade for Mac but Paintbrush is more or less a version of MS Paint which comes by default with Windows - you know, the kids app that you never used when you were on Windows. Be warned that it's not quite as simple as Paint, but it follows a similar pick-up-and-paint format and is easy to learn with just a little perseverance.

Paintbrush is an extremely simple app – don’t make the mistake of thinking it’s a photo editor or replacement for an image editor like Photoshop. You've got a toolbox which allows you to use a paintbrush, rubber, color palette, area selector and little more than that. In other words, Paintbrush won't appeal to any serious artist but it could be useful to keep your kids happy for a while or simply if you want to doodle a few minutes away.

You can save your Paintbrush masterpieces in most major formats, although you can only select one default save format (.PNG). It's not easy to paint on Paintbrush when using a mouse, however; the app should support the addition of a light-pen and pad to make it more usable.

Simple to use and easy to get going, Paintbrush is the blank canvas that will take you back to kindergarten.

Download Paintbrush 2.1.1 in Softonic

RAR is from the same developer who brought you WinRAR for Mac but of course, it isn't called WinRAR because it's a Mac and not a Windows application! RAR is a powerful archive manager. It can back up your data and reduce the size of email attachments, decompress RAR, ZIP and other files downloaded from Internet and create new archives in RAR and ZIP file format. The application not only includes support for extracting virtually any kind of file compression format, it also boasts a no-nonsense approach to reducing file sizes.

When you download RAR, you might be confused by the fact that it's just a folder of files. This is because there is no graphical user interface for RAR. It works only via the command line using Terminal so if you've got no experience of using Terminal, then you're going to be a bit stranded. If you're willing to learn however, here's how to do it...

Place the files in any folder on your hard drive, and run the utility by typing in the full path to the application (e.g. to run from the current directory, type "./rar" or "./unrar" followed by the appropriate parameters). If you get stuck, simply type the application name (RAR or UNRAR) without any parameters to see list of useful commands.

However, this will no doubt prove too complicated for most general users and considering the fact that you have to buy a license too for RAR, there are far better applications out there such as Zipeg which is both free and has a GUI thus making it much easier to use.

RAR is a powerful compression tool but if you don't know how to run programs from the Terminal, it won't be much use to you.

Download RAR (WinRAR for Mac) 4.0.1 in Softonic

Firstly, like the latest version of Messenger for Mac, you should know that it doesn't work with webcams. This seems criminal I know, but Microsoft has seen fit only to allow those willing to upgrade to the corporate edition to use a webcam with it. However, the rest of it is pretty much as you'd expect. It is fitted with all the basic functions you'd want from Messenger and the application lets you organize your contacts into different groups, set your status, and use emoticons, etc. New conversations open up in a new window, which you can be moved around anywhere on the screen.

While it's fairly easy to check your Hotmail account thanks to the Mail button at the top of the interface, sending files and images to other users can be a bit slow. MSN Messenger is sufficient as a basic IM client, but we'd recommend upgrading your version of OS X and updating to the latest version of Messenger for Mac. Not only is it more secure, but it will also offer more features and a sleeker interface.

MSN Messenger is a decent if basic IM client for anyone with a Mac OS under 10.3.9 but the lack of webcam function is a major drawback

Download MSN Messenger 4.0.1 in Softonic

However, if neither of these are particularly important to you then version 7 might still be useful to you. Of course, whichever version you choose, you still have to sign in using your Hotmail or Windows Live account. Once installed, the first thing you'll see is that Microsoft Messenger 7 offers a slightly updated interface to version 6.

Messenger 7 offers Bonjour support, so you can detect and connect with users on the same local network as you. Features like sending files, displaying a picture or emoticons are unchanged. You can change your display name and add a personal message just by clicking on them.

One new feature is that you can give nicknames to your friends. Just click on their display name and start typing. We also liked the search feature, which is really handy to quickly find a contact or email address.

It's obvious that this upgrade is aimed at corporate users as they get the most significant updates though. The highly touted audio and video feature, with which you can have video conferences with your contacts, is only available to them.

The same goes with detailed presence information, as you'll need a version of Office Communications Server 2007 to use it.

Corporate users will love the new features in Messenger for Mac 7, like Bonjour Support, detailed presence information and especially audio and video. General users will find barely anything different from version 6 and should download Microsoft Messenger 8.0.

Download Messenger for Mac 7.0.3 in Softonic

LimeWire is one of the most popular peer-to-peer file sharing apps out there based on the Gnutella file sharing network.

However, like Vuze before it, LimeWire appears to be encouraging legal downloads with the LimeWire Store. The library is so far a little limited compared to competitor download stores, but we expect this will expand.

Otherwise it's business as usual on LimeWire all via a simple and and clear interface. The latest design makes scanning your search results much easier, and downloading files is totally intuitive. The inbuilt player is still unintrusive and useful for checking audio and video files, but no more.

As mentioned earlier, LimeWire goes out of it's way to check you are aware of the legal implications of illegal filesharing and on installation you have to agree to not infringe copyright, and if you download a file for which LimeWire can't find a license you will be warned and can stop or continue at your own discretion.

The friends function has been much improved. You can sign in with your Gmail, Jabber or LiveJournal accounts, and share files between any of your friends there who are also on LimeWire. This is much easier than tapping out IP addresses, and if enough of your friends use LimeWire, it could become great community sharing tool.

LimeWire searches remain within the Gnutella P2P network, but you can open torrent files with it, and it functions very well as a torrent download client. This is not the most advertised feature of LimeWire, which may a way of keeping legal challenges at bay, but it's a shame that you can't search for torrents within the program.

LimeWire is one of the simplest, most legal and user friendly P2P file sharing applications out there.

Download LimeWire 5.5.16 in Softonic

By now everyone who has ever used a computer surely knows about Peer to Peer file sharing and the controversy it has stirred up since the days when Napster rocked the music industry. Although it's still illegal and you run the risk of being taken to court if you're caught with substantial copyrighted material, there are still plenty of file sharing networks and clients you can use to obtain free music, video and files like FrostWire.

What is special about aMule?

Using the eDonkey network, aMule stands out from most of its rival P2P clients because it is open source. This frees you from pesky spyware and adware, leaving you able to get on with your downloading in peace. In addition, aMule doesn't rely on one central server like many older clients. By using a multitude of different servers, the network is virtually impossible to shut down and is consequently very secure.

aMule is simple to use. This doesn't mean it lacks depth though, and aMule's features are some of the most advanced to be seen in a P2P client. For example, you can view all kinds of information on machines you're downloading from, call up charts outlining downloading stats and check download status through aMule's advanced progress bar.

What are the results like?

Since aMule uses a large network of servers its search results are pretty vast. There's one major annoyance that can come up with aMule though: it's very slow at downloading files. This is largely because of the way aMule handles download priority, which looks at the number of servers you're connected to, the connection speed and the size of the file.

aMule also relies heavily on a credit scoring system, where people who use the service a lot are rewarded with faster downloads. While some may champion this as being in the true spirit of file sharing, the system makes it frustrating for new users who get penalized with ultra slow downloads.

Still, with its simple interface and loads of features, it's not difficult to see why aMule has become a very popular P2P app.

Download aMule 2.2.6 in Softonic

Open up your archive with the program and it will take care of the rest. It's most important feature is handling multi part archives, quite useful when you're expanding a file containing multiple video parts for example.

RAR Expander will also work with password protected files, but you'll have to make sure you remember your password before expanding.

While this is one of the most common formats you'll come across, it's a shame that the program doesn't let you expand other popular formats like Stuffit Expander does.

Users have also been known to prefer unRarX, which effectively restores corrupted archives, something that RAR Expander doesn't seem to handle.

Download RAR Expander 0.8.5 Beta 3 in Softonic

There's no doubt that Vuze offers some spectacularly fast download times but this comes at a price. Mainly the fact that Vuze is extremely bloated and tries to install two toolbars when you install it. On the upside, because Vuze is an open source project, there is a large community of programmers, designers and users who are continually testing and improving it and there's an excellent FAQ.

You receive comprehensive stats about every file that's downloaded with Vuze (most of which will mean nothing to you though) but most importantly it gives you the all important Estimated Time of Arrival and Share Ratio which tells you how much of a particular file you have uploaded or given back to the community. Apparently, in a perfect world, every file should have a share ratio of two which means for each file you download, two users download it from you.

Possibly the most notable feature of Vuze, however, is the media website that's embedded into the application. It looks like an entertainment website and that's pretty much what it is only the entertainment can be downloaded via Vuze. These include gameshows, user generated content, sports and more.

Vuze has a rather overwhelming interface as a result. It's far more bloated than other P2P clients such as uTorrent and Transmission. It takes some getting used to at first the upside is that it is much more customisable than most Mac P2P apps. For example, if you want to configure Vuze to work only with a VPN, you can do unlike uTorrent and Transmission.

Vuze is generally an excellent P2P application that may be a bit more bloated than most but works well and has plenty to offer.

Download Vuze (Azureus) 4.7.0.0 in Softonic

The major new feature in Adobe Photoshop CS5, however, is an extraordinary set of completely new tools developed to improve the way you work with your images and create more attractive, professional-looking pieces of art.

Among the new features in Adobe Photoshop CS5 we find the content-aware healing brushes, which let you remove any object or detail from an image while magically filling in the space left behind; the smart selection tool, thanks to which selecting difficult elements like hair or tree leaves will be much easier; the so called wet brushes, which behave like real life brushes in terms of paint mixes and the fun puppet warp tool, with which you can move, stretch or warp selected elements in an image.

As usual, the interface in Adobe Photoshop CS5 is highly flexible, which means you can customize the menus, brushes, patterns, tools presents and almost everything you find on the program.
We also recommend getting used to Adobe Photoshop's keyboard shortcuts, as they'll save you loads of time and mouse clicks.
Adobe Photoshop is definitely an application for professionals and as such, has quite a steep learning curve.
But this long process of learning does have a reward: the more you practice with all the tools, filters and effects included in Adobe Photoshop, the better results you achieve.
Also, there is a huge quantity of web resources, tutorials and manuals all over the internet and using the free Photoshop trial download will help you get the practice you need before moving onto the full version.

Finally, don't forget that although it runs beautifully on Mac, Adobe Photoshop CS5 is a powerful application that can get quite heavy on system resources, especially when you start opening more and more high-resolution documents with multiple layers.

Though probably overwhelming for beginners, Adobe Photoshop CS5 is simply a must-have for anyone with an interest in imaging, particularly professional photographers and designers.

Download Adobe Photoshop CS5 9.0 in Softonic