OpenOffice 3.0 is already here, at least in beta version. The most popular alternative to the almighty Microsoft suite has released its first public beta to allow users to provide feedback and help fine-tune the final product. So here's our two cents.

First, though the OpenOffice site displays a warning about possible instability issues in this beta, fear them not. The complete suite was perfectly stable during our tests, with all its applications running as smoothly as expected. This new OpenOffice is compatible with all file formats from Microsoft Office, including the latest docx, xlsx, pptx and so on from Office 2008.

All OpenOffice tools, along with your more recent documents, are easily accessible from a launcher ("Start Centre") with freshly designed icons, which is one of the main new features in this version. The launcher includes a handy template manager as well, though it's quite empty at the moment.

The suite's applications met our expectations in every aspect: they're easy to use (especially if you're used to working with Microsoft's suite) and feature all the necessary tools to create complete documents, spreadsheets, presentations and databases. I particularly liked the wizard-style interface in Impress (the "Power-Point" app) which enables you to create presentations in no time.

OpenOffice 3.0 left a very good taste in our mouths. In spite of being labeled as Beta, the whole suite works perfectly fine and enables you to enjoy all of its new features right now.

Download OpenOffice.org 3.0 RC 4 in Softonic

MioNet is the first and only personal private network that makes remote access and file sharing seamless, simple and secure. It is incredibly easy to set up and use - no dedicated hardware, networking protocols or firewall reconfigurations required.

It can access anything you want on any of your computers running MioNet - documents, music, photos, and more - regardless of where they're physically located. And you can access them all immediately since each computer simply appears as another drive on your local desktop. You can also share photos, home videos, work folders, webcams, you name it.

Finally, MioNet is seamlessly integrated with your Microsoft OS, so everything you can do on one computer you can now do across all your computers - simultaneously. Desktop search, Microsoft Office applications, photo and music management, even backup.

Download MioNet 3.6 in Softonic

Remembering passwords is never easy, especially with so many different sites requiring some kind of registration.

Password Memory 2009 encrypts and manages your passwords and helps you to log in to websites much more easily and quickly than having to enter them every time you visit them. Firefox already offers this option although Password memory 2009 is surely a much safer way of storing particularly sensitive passwords (such as for banking sites). In fact, Password Memory 2009 uses several different algorithms to guarantee a very high level of security.

The interface follows the same format as that of Microsoft Office and simply requires you to add passwords into a clipboard where they will then be automatically transferred into the right fields when you surf to that particular site. If you want a hard copy of your passwords, you can also export them to XML, HTML, text files and Excel in a few clicks.

Password Memory is a very powerful password manager that offers maximum protection and makes life a lot easier than having to remember passwords for each separate site.

Download Password Memory 2009 in Softonic

Do you need the processing power of Microsoft Word but don't have hundreds of dollars to pay for the Office package itself?

Jarte may be your answer. It's a free word processor based on Microsoft WordPad's word processing engine. It's extremely fast and easy to use. In a way it acts more like WordPad on steroids, adding tons of useful features to the basic word processor. It's very portable - it can fit on a USB stick - and yet it can open any document compatible with Word and WordPad.

Believe it not, Microsoft is continually upgrading the simple WordPad editing engine, although WordPad itself hasn't changed. never know it by examining WordPad. Jarte however takes advantage of these changes and has evolved to take advantage of the new useful features that Microsoft have added. These include tabbed document windows for easy access to open documents, larger buttons for the most commonly used functions, instant dictionary and thesaurus word look-up and a free spell check and text search tools that do not impose themselves on top of the text you are trying to edit.

There are many new features in Jaxtr that make it a superb option for those that can't afford or access Word but need it's processing power.

Download Jarte 3.3 in Softonic

If there's one thing I've just about had enough of, it's Windows Live Hotmail but with Microsoft Outlook Connector there is a way around it.

If you want to avoid Windows Live Mail's bloated, unintuitive, RAM sapping, vomit inducing interface you can use Outlook to access it instead using Microsoft Outlook Connector. Microsoft Outlook Connector allows you to access any Windows Live Hotmail (and Office Live Mail) account from the far more civilized Microsoft Outlook.

With Microsoft Outlook Connector, you can use Outlook 2003 or Outlook 2007 to access and manage your e-mail messages and contacts for free which is great although rather annoyingly (and typically Microsoft), management of calendar, tasks and notes requires a subscription fee. If you do pay for this, you can synchronize multiple calendars between different Microsoft applications such as Microsoft Outlook and Windows Live Calendar through Microsoft Outlook Connector.

Microsoft Outlook Connector also means you benefit from Outlook's spam filter which you can apply to Windows Live Hotmail's incoming mail so no more mails from fake political exiles requesting you to send your account details so they can deposit a million dollars in your account (I get these constantly and am starting to think that being a political exile must be extremely lucrative).

If you're an Outlook user, you'll never go back to using Windows Live Hotmail's own interface after trying Microsoft Outlook Connector.

Download Microsoft Outlook Connector in Softonic

I've always used MS Word for my word processing needs but if you don't have Office installed, then it's not exactly a cheap option.

AbiWord can read and write all standard industry docs ranging from open source efforts such as those created in OpenOffice to those created in professional apps such as Microsoft Word. It also features support for WordPerfect documents, Rich Text Format documents, HTML web pages etc. Although the editing options can't compare with Word, I do like the fact that this is a very light word processor that doesn't take up much more processing power than even MS Text. This makes it especially suitable for those working on slower machines who haven't got a decent word processor installed. What's also nice is that AbiWord is fully customisable with several different plugins to extend its capabilities. These can vary from format converters, document importers and thesauruses to image importers and a text format managers.

This may be basic but it's generally a very impressive word processing app that has everything you need to edit simple documents.

Download AbiWord 2.6.4 in Softonic

OpenOffice.org is both an open-source product and a project. The product is a multiplatform office productivity suite. It includes desktop applications such as a word processor, a spreadsheet program, a presentation manager, and a drawing program, with a user interface and feature set similar to those of other office suites. OpenOffice.org also works transparently with a variety of file formats, including those of Microsoft Office.

Localizations of OpenOffice.org are available in 27 languages, with more being constantly added by the community. OpenOffice.org runs on Solaris, Linux (including PPC Linux), and Windows. Written in C++ and with documented APIs licensed under the LGPL and SISSL open-source protocols, OpenOffice.org allows any knowledgeable developer to benefit from the source.

Download OpenOffice.org 2.4.1 in Softonic

I use Gmail so much now that in many ways, I prefer it to even using Outlook. However, integration with Windows is nowhere near as good as Microsoft Outlook for obvious reasons.

gAttach! bridges that gap somewhat by allowing you to attach files directly to Gmail or Google Apps Mail directly from Windows. In other words, just right click on a file, select "Send To" and "Mail recipient" and the plugin will automatically open your Gmail client with the file already attached. It not only attaches files directly from Windows Explorer - it also opens up a whole new world of attachment possibilities from Microsoft Office, Adobe Acrobat, Windows Live Photo Gallery, Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox.

There's not much more too it than that - it integrates perfectly into Windows Explorer. However, you may experience some glitches. If you are sending a file attachment whose filename is in a different alphabet to the one you use normally (e.g. your computer uses English but you're sending a Spanish attachment), it may not recognize or attach the file. It's also limited by Gmail's 20MB file attachment restriction. If you're logged into your Gmail, it won't prompt you for your details but if you are not, then it does ask you for your username and password which you may or not feel comfortable submitting.

For any Gmail fan, this is an excellent utility that makes attaching and sending files so much easier than opening your web client all the time.

Download gAttach! 1.2008.7.7 in Softonic

Whenever I hear the word "Pro" and "Microsoft" in the same package, I get inherently nervous because it's often nothing more than a few add-ons for hundreds of dollars more.

The first thing to warn you about is upgrading from Office 2007 with this package. You are almost certainly going to experience a myriad of upgrade problems, compatibility issues and goodness knows what else. certainly. Note that you'll certainly need a considerable amount of time to adjust to upgrading to this new version of Office although those used to the Classic version will probably have least problem and for the cost of the upgrade, it's debatable whether it actually increases productivity or speed of use at all. The ribbons in particular are still cluttered, poorly organised and occupy too much of the desktop. In addition, there's not much added functionality although they have manged to make sure that the ‘saved’ file sizes are smaller. I really can't see much reason in upgrading from Office 2003 based on this very frustrating version of 2007 but if you really do enjoy constant technical hiccups and error messages, then go ahead.

This is one Microsoft upgrade to definitely avoid although the one advantage is that saved file sizes are smaller.

Download Microsoft Office Professional 2007 Beta 2 in Softonic

The productivity suite market is generally dominated by two main options: you either use the proprietary Microsoft Office suite or its open source alternative, Open Office. But if you don't like any of them, I'm glad to inform you there's a third choice.

Kingsoft Office is a fully featured, completely free office suite you can use for your daily work tasks. It includes three main applications: Writer, Presentation and Spreadsheets, to create DOC, PPT and XLS files respectively. The three of them are installed and launched separately – unlike Lotus Symphony, which uses a common interface. There are no apps for databases, email, or web publications.

I must admit these three apps are almost identical to their Microsoft Office equivalents, so identical in fact I'm beginning to wonder if it's just a copy. Whatever the Kingsoft developers thought about when creating the suite, I'm happy to be able to use a complete suite without having to pay for it. Also, the fact that it's so similar to other suites you may have been using up to know makes the learning curve practically non-existent.

Kingsoft includes interesting options such as the ability to export any document to PDF format and support for document encryption. On the downside, the suite felt a bit unstable during our tests: the Spreadsheets app, for example, crashed on one of our machines but worked perfectly well on a different one.

In any case, Kingsoft Office 2007 is a great free alternative for productivity suite users who don’t want to tie themselves to the same old choices.

Download Kingsoft Office 2007 6.3.0.1371 in Softonic

In the beginning was Microsoft Office. Then OpenOffice appeared as an open-source alternative. And now IBM makes a new move and offers its own productivity suite, all free of charge. The idea is not new: there have been a few free suites launched lately, but all of them were online. IBM Lotus Symphony is the only desktop suite that, together with OpenOffice, can offer a free alternative to Microsoft's proprietary apps.

IBM Lotus Symphony offers three tools: word processor, spreadsheet and presentations. It's true that other productivity suites are usually more complete. However, Lotus Symphony stands out for a convenient, single-windowed interface from which you can launch the three apps. Simply click on the "Open" button and select the kind of document you want to open: the program's toolbar will change accordingly. What's more, you can have as many opened documents as you want at the same time, no matter which type, and switch between them in the top tab bar.

The suite includes all the basic tools that you could expect in such an application: spell checker and tables for documents, predesigned templates for presentations and charts for spreadsheets - to name a few - besides the usual configuration options as regards fonts, colors and the like.

In my personal opinion, I'm glad to have another possibility to choose from when deciding which suite I'm going to use. A little rivalry is always good and usually produces better and wider options for computer users. And it seems IBM is beginning to take the suite competition quite seriously.

IBM Lotus Symphony has left the beta stage behind and now offers a stable, highly functional productivity suite that, despite not being as complete as other suites, may perfectly fit your needs.

Download IBM Lotus Symphony 1.0 in Softonic

If you're on the open source side you'll probably be using Open Office instead of Microsoft Office. But did you know there is more than one version of Open Office?

Go-OO (that is, Go-Open Office) is a fork of Open Office, that is, a special version or development build that features some interesting improvements regarding the suite it's based on. Among these improvements you can find support for OpenXML and Microsoft Works files, an optimized Microsoft binary file support, and perfect import of Wordperfect graphics, among others. You can also work with Excel VBA macros and Visio diagrams.

Other than that, Go-OO is visually identical to the original Open Office suite and includes exactly the same apps, namely Writer, Calc, Math, Impress, Draw and Base.

If you need the specific improvements included in this special version of Open Office, give it a try; if not, you may as well download the official version because there's not that much difference.

Download Go-OO 2.4 in Softonic

WordPipe is used by IT personnel to repair hyperlinks when a server gets renamed, by SMEs and large organisations when they change their contact details, name or office bearers, by translators to apply massive search/replace lists - the list of uses is endless.

WordPipe applies one or more replacements to thousands of documents, to every part of your Microsoft Word documents. To use WordPipe, you simply add a list of search/replace pairs, and for each one, specify where in the document it should be found. Then you tell it which files to process - that's it!

What it can be used for:

• Standardize corporate name changes such as your organization's phone number, address, web site or CEO
• Performing server consolidations where document links need updating
• Server renaming or replacement where document links need updating
• Standardize Policy Headers
• Changing part numbers or SKUs across multiple files
• Removing digitized signatures from documents prior to converting them to PDF and placing them on the web
• Translating documents
• Correcting OCR (scanned) documents
• Detecting 'TOP SECRET' documents that have been saved in the wrong folder (by security identifiers located in headers)

Download WordPipe 5.7.1 in Softonic

Microsoft has added new file formats to the 2007 versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint to reduce file size, improve reliability, and enhance integration with external sources.

To help ensure that you can exchange documents between Microsoft Office releases, Microsoft has developed a Compatibility Pack for the Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats. By installing the Compatibility Pack (Beta 2 Technical Refresh) alongside Microsoft Office 2000, Office XP, or Office 2003, you will be able open, edit, save, and create files using the robust file formats new to the 2007 Microsoft Office system.

Download Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack 2007 Beta in Softonic

If you've always wanted to add a check box, radio button or combo box, to your PDF documents and felt frustrated because you couldn't find any easy to use tool to help you, well look no further, this is the application for you.

It's a Microsoft Word plug-in and it requires an updated version of Office i.e. your word processor must be updated with the latest Service Pack. Having said that, the CenoPDF bar and menu are very clear to use and the tools you can add on your Word document are well symbolized with self-clarifying icons. It is of course based on the principle of 'what you see is what you get' (WYSIWYG) so if you are not happy with the size or the location of one box, you can easily move it and resize it. An option menu for each function lets you decide all the settings you might need to personalize. Finally, you can export your document as PDF and see immediately the final result.

CenoPDF is useful to add special buttons to your PDF documents such as list box, text box and check box, but why does the program have to disable the auto-saving function in Word, which is indeed a work-saving tool!

Download CenoPDF 3.0.55.0 in Softonic

In Animal Fun House 32 animal categories are available, each one containing many thematic clipart elements. The way they are designed is childish and simple, but very funny and sweet.

They are perfect if you need a cartoon image of an animal to add as a logo in your documents or if you want to play with your younger brother, nephew or son, colouring these cute cubs. The way they are designed in fact leaves plenty of space for colouring them, both using Paint or, after printing, with real colour.

After choosing a category, copy the image file by pressing the sheet icon at the bottom of each drawing, in this way the file is copied in the clipboard and you can paste it in the program you like.

Have fun using these sweet animal icons in your documents and if you feel like going back to the best, carefree years of life, colour them with Photoshop, that’s a good use for it, or even better, print and paint them!

Download Animal Fun House 5.0.1 in Softonic

There's nothing more frustrating than having to rename several files at once and then finding that you have to go through them one by one.

Mass Renamer allows you to change and rename files easily and quickly but not just that, it allows you to change some of the information contained in the document properties. It's particularly useful if you've been in a position where your files have been deleted and you need to restore them to their original state but don't have enough time to go through them all separately. Mas Renamer goes beyond renaming just file names however and also allows you to change whole directories (including subfolders) in one step. You can define rules for file changes and setup complex tasks to be carried out automatically while you are away from your PC. The problem is that this program seems mainly designed just for changing documents rather than other types of files. So for example, you can change documents according to Keyword, Template, Last Author and Revision History, but you wouldn't be able to change music or multimedia files.

A useful mass renamer but only for those that are editing mainly documents and need to search by a specific key field.

Download Mass Renamer 1.0.0.49 in Softonic

I've always used MS Word for my word processing needs but if you don't have Office installed, then it's not exactly a cheap option.

AbiWord can read and write all standard industry docs ranging from open source efforts such as those created in OpenOffice to those created in professional apps such as Microsoft Word. This is the portable version which means you can put it on a USB stick and take it pretty much anywhere. It also features support for WordPerfect documents, Rich Text Format documents, HTML web pages etc. Although the editing options can't compare with Word, I do like the fact that this is a very light word processor that doesn't take up much more processing power than even MS Text. This makes it especially suitable for those working on slower machines who haven't got a decent word processor installed. What's also nice is that AbiWord is fully customisable with several different plugins to extend its capabilities. These can vary from format converters, document importers and thesauruses to image importers and a text format managers.

This may be basic but it's generally a very impressive word processing app that has everything you need to edit simple documents.

Download AbiWord Portable 2.6.2 in Softonic

AutoDialogs is a Windows program that was developed to provide quick access to the folders you use most often in standard Open / Save as / Browse for folder dialogs (including all Microsoft Office versions and Windows 2000/XP/2003 dialog boxes,) Windows Explorer and many other programs.

Using AutoDialogs, you can automatically insert preselected folders into your dialog boxes using a system tray menu (requires only two clicks) or a pre-assigned hot key (one keystroke.) With AutoDialogs, you no longer need dozens of mouse clicks to navigate to that desired folder!

The new version introduces better AutoDialogs menu organization, better Properties dialog and a detailed Tutorial which will guide you through the AutoDialogs features.

Download AutoDialogs 2.4 in Softonic

Microsoft Office is probably the most widespread office suite in the world, but that doesn't mean you can't use other office packages instead.

One of them is SoftMake Office, a fairly complete office suite that includes a word processor, spreadsheet app and presentation tool, all in one single package. It's not as fully featured as the Microsoft suite, but it's compatible with its formats (DOC, XLS, PPT and more) and it's also remarkably faster - and of course, a lot cheaper.

The suite includes also Smash, a Windows Explorer add-on that improves some shell functions and enables you to access the suite's apps from Windows taskbar, and BasicMaker, a Basic source code editor. However, it doesn't include an email client or any other equivalent app to Microsoft Outlook.

SoftMaker Office gives an overall impression of a very professional package. What's more, you can install the whole suite in a USB stick so you can use it anywhere without leaving any trace on the host computer.

If you'd like to try an alternative app to the almighty Microsoft suite, SoftMaker Office is a very good option, but bear in mind that it's not that complete.

Download SoftMaker Office 2008 in Softonic