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 Beta 2 in Softonic

Hospitals and medical care facilities are on area where there simply isn't enough software to cater for the huge potential there surely is in this field.

FileMed is an effective Electronic Medical Record (EMR) solution for small and medium sized medical care facilities. It's recommended for those facilities holding up to around 200 users. FileMed basically offers simple patient management so that you can keep track of your patients conditions and ailments without having to sift through bulky boxes of papers or appointment cards.

FileMed also allows you to create Clinical Charts for patients according to their condition and allows you to attach diagnosis reports. Of course, FileMed also allows you to schedule that most important of details - schedules and appointments of patients. After a consultation, you can also attach clinical charts, X-rays and other documents that you'd like to scan in and store offline. FileMed also makes it relatively easy to setup an internal office network so that you can share documents and patient data between doctors, receptionists and other assistants.

If you're a small or medium sized medical facility, FileMed may make it easier for you to track and keep on top of your patients visits and conditions.

Download FileMed 4.0 in Softonic

Security is one of the key elements in a healthy computer life. And with tools like Rising Antivirus staying safe is now much easier.

Rising Antivirus is a free antivirus tools that offers comprehensive protection for your system against viruses, worms, Trojans, rootkits and other nasty creatures that may threaten your computer.

Behind a sleek dark interface, Rising Antivirus keeps a powerful array of security tools with which you can analyze your system according to a customizable schedule, keep an eye on currently active applications and automatically scan email messages and Office documents.

Rising Antivirus features several types of scan and includes a highly detailed configuration menu. I especially liked the fact that it's quite unobtrusive and doesn't bother you with warning messages all the time, like other antivirus tools do. On the downside, the general system scan is quite slow.

Keep your system safe from all online threats with Rising Antivirus, a free antivirus solution.

Download Rising Antivirus 2008 Free Edition 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

There's an increasing demand for alternatives to Adobe's resource hogging, RAM sapping, not least expensive PDF creator and PrimoPDF weighs in as an excellent alternative.

The fact that this program is free makes it all the more appealing. One of the problems with these PDF programs is that invariably, they change the formatting of your text, once you've converted your Word, Publisher etc. document to PDF. PrimoPDF largely avoids this however converting to PDF as faithfully as the original. It's also remarkably fast and the installation is equally speedy.

Once installed, the program appears as a virtual printer in your Printer Driver preferences too. The main downside, of which there are few, is that you are regularly prompted to register although this is a small price to pay for an excellent program. It's also a bit unreliable when converting images. Text is fine but images can sometimes be in the wrong position or formatted incorrectly when converting from Office documents. It also doesn't use Windows standard way of saving documents - it has it's own format which doesn't suggest a file name but it's a small drawback.

A really excellent PDF creator that will have Adobe critics laughing all the way to their virtual printers.

Download PrimoPDF 4.1.0.9 in Softonic

Just when you thought that the snake concept had died on the PC and was relegated to the world of free mobile phone games, Snake Charmer arrives.

Snake Charmer has nothing to do with Indian men playing music to dancing pythons in sacks or boxes. It's quite simply the classic Snake game. Snake Charmer is one more snake clone. Snake Charmer has clearly been designed with the office worker in mind - one of it's few "extras" is a Boss Key that you can hit if you get caught wasting time while you should be working.

In addition, there is a top score list should you want to prove your superiority to friends and there are a few levels to choose from which differ only in the speed at which the snake travels across your screen. It would have been far more interesting if the developers had tried to give Snake a modern new look with realistic snake style graphics but as it is, Snake Charmer looks like something you might have played on your Commodore VIC20.

It doesn't look pretty and it's no classic version of Snake but if you're a snake fan, you'll enjoy Snake Charmer for just a few minutes at least.

Download Snake Charmer 1.0 in Softonic

The worst part of buying a new computer is the fact that you have to backup your stuff in the old PC and move it all to the new one. Luckily there are some software apps that can help you with that.

One of them is FEBE, which stands for Firefox Environment Backup Extension. As it name states, this Firefox add-on lets you create a backup copy of all the important information in your browser (bookmarks, extensions, preferences, themes, cookies and more) and restore it in a different location, all in a very easy way.

With FEBE you can then have a perfectly synchronized copy of Firefox in each one of your computers, be it your desktop and laptop or home and office computers. It's also a great tool to have a backup copy of your browser just in case it crashes or if you want to test new versions without taking any risks. And if you can't be bothered creating a backup copy by yourself, use FEBE's scheduling tool and let the extension take care of it.

FEBE is seamlessly integrated into Firefox interface: open the Tools menu and you'll be able to access the extension's options menu and main functions. The only drawback we could find to the extension is the sounds played by the program when displaying any warning: they're a bit annoying so remember to turn them off in the settings menu.

If you want to have a complete backup copy of all your Firefox data or need to move Firefox settings from one PC to another, this is the tool you're looking for.

Download FEBE (Firefox Environment Backup Extension) 6.0 in Softonic

Google Docs has to be one of Google's greatest innovations in recent times making it easier than ever to share documents and not mess around sending attachments all the time.

Ok, it's still not as good as using an Office suite (and still lacks a decent Powerpoint equivalent) but it's immensely useful in a variety of situations. gDocsBar is a sidebar extension for Firefox that makes your Google Documents closer than ever. Rather than having to access the Google Docs site, you can simply access your documents via a sidebar.

gDocsBar allows you to even drag and drop multiple files and documents into the sidebar to upload. So, if you need to work on a Word document while on the move, just drag it into the gDocsBar sidebar and you'll be able to edit it online. In addition, you can also search and filter documents from the sidebar. It also includes some snazzy templates, webclips and smart folders. Of course, this requires access to your Google Account and there's no guarantee that gDocsBar doesn't store that data although the developers assure that it's totally secure using SSL.

If you are constantly on the move and need to access your documents anytime anywhere, the gDocsBar is definitely worth a look.

Download gDocsBar 0.5.7 in Softonic

How many times have you walked up to a system in your office and needed to click through several diagnostic windows to remind yourself of important aspects of its configuration, such as its name, IP address, or operating system version? If you manage multiple computers you probably need BGInfo.

It automatically displays relevant information about a Windows computer on the desktop's background, such as the computer name, IP address, service pack version, and more. You can edit any field as well as the font and background colors, and can place it in your startup folder so that it runs every boot, or even configure it to display as the background for the logon screen. Because BGInfo simply writes a new desktop bitmap and exits you don't have to worry about it consuming system resources or interfering with other applications.

Download BGInfo 4.14 in Softonic

WiPeer enables sharing files directly among computers, playing multi-player games, chatting, and collaboration over both Wi-Fi and home/office networks. These networks are not centralized on a single computer and do not need Internet access.

The only thing you need to enter the network is a username. Then you can start sharing files, chatting or even playing chess, reversi, connect four and checkers. Chat rooms may be public or private, as well as file sharing, which can be done individually or with more than one user simultaneously. Network users can have their own personal profiles including data such as name, location, language, age, sex, etc.

Download WiPeer 0.72 in Softonic

With SkypeCap you are able to record microphone audio chatting and moreover, the most interesting part - webcam real-time Skype video. Your partner won't be aware his/her video and audio session being captured by SkypeCap.

How does it work? Just launch and login to Skype. Launch SkypeCap. Status bars will let you know If SkypeCap is conected with Skype and it is ready for video and audio capturing. Choose an output directory.

Make a call to any of your friends from Contact list. Begin audio or video session. Now SkypeCap is ready to capture or it is already capturing audio or video (with audio) if you set it for automatical beginning. So now, everything what you see or hear by Skype is recording as you see it. You can also capture audio chatting in Skype-out mode. You can make a call to any of your friends cell phone or office number and start recording and saving it.

Download SkypeCap 2.3.3 in Softonic

If you don't have the confidence to use Linux or it's not really practical for day to day use but you like the way it adds and removes programs, Quick Winapt Tool could be for you.

Quick Winapt Tool displays a list of programs arranged by categories, much in the same way as Synaptic on Linux, which are ready to download and install them directly. Quick Winapt Tool makes programs much easier to update automatically rather than having to do them separately or visit developer pages.

The range of programs supported by Quick Winapt Tool is quite wide, including applications for the Internet, office programs, games, system accessories, etc. The first time you run Quick Winapt Tool, you will be prompted for a simple configuration process which just involves choosing the base directory that need to save the downloaded files. You can then update DB file by clicking the "Update" button in main control panel.

For Linux lovers, Quick Winapt Tool is a cool little application that makes it easier to update programs although you'll find that many mainstream apps simply won't update with it.

Download Quick Winapt Tool 0.1.0 Beta in Softonic

Want to keep time tracking on your project or view it in a timesheet later? Frequently forget schedule in the office or write it to the Notepiece on the wall but forget to look? Find something useful on the Web but tired of open NotePad to paste and save with a similar name then hard to find it? With TimeRecorder, all of these become easy, let the software do it for you.

TimeRecorder is a handy program for recording what do over a period of time, reminding you about everything, saving what you write or paste in the clipboard automatically. It can be run as a timer, reminder and memo, in other words, a Personal Information Manager.

Download TimeRecorder 4.38 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

Portable OpenOffice.org allows you to carry an entire office suite -- word processing, spreadsheet, presentations, drawing, etc. -- with you on an iPod, USB thumbdrive, portable hard drive or any other portable media. You can plug it right into any Windows computer and use it just like you would on your own.

Portable OpenOffice.org is a repackaged version of OpenOffice.org designed with portability in mind. It works just like regular OpenOffice.org installed on your computer does, except it allows you to use it on any Windows computer without installing anything. It has all the features of the excellent OpenOffice.org office suite except for the Data application. It also includes some special enhancements to make it work even better from your portable drive.

Download Portable OpenOffice.org 2.4.1 in Softonic

If you're like most people, you have at least a few web sites that you go to on a regular basis. Whether it be BBC World News, Wired or Slashdot, there's a wealth of information out there, constantly changing.

Awasu (TM) is a free Windows news-reader that runs in the background on your computer and monitors these sites for you. When it sees that something new has appeared, it will let you know. Awasu will also keep track of what you have already read which saves you even more time since you no longer need to search through your favorite sites for new stories.

No more surfing the web looking for interesting stuff to read. Instead, Awasu will watch what's happening around the globe and let you know about events almost as soon as they happen. No more trawling through pages full of ads or popups. Now you can get only the stuff you're interested in, delivered to your desktop.

You're not limited to just news services either. You can keep an eye on the current weather in New York, the latest sales data from your London office or which band is playing at your favorite club this weekend. You are limited only by your imagination!

Download Awasu Personal Edition 2.3.3 Alpha 2 in Softonic

Wouldn't it be nice if you could edit PDF documents in the same way that you edit Word documents?

Well you can with Abdio PDF Editor (formerly known as Microadobe PDF Editor) which is a professional PDF editing application. Abdio PDF Editor aims to make creating and editing PDF files just like using Mircosoft Office Word and for the most part, it succeeds. Abdio PDF Editor also allows you to work with a wide range of file formats such as native Word and HTML files.

Creating a new PDF is easy in Abdio PDF Editor. Simply open a new project, select the page size you require and the background color. Next you have the option to import a document into Abdio PDF Editor. You can import by selecting "File" and then "Import" Word (DOC), RTF, TXT, HTML and XML formats. From here, you can edit text much as you would in Word. You can insert images and tables, hyperlinks and edit the header and footer just as you would with any Word document. To secure your document at the end, you can define a password so that it can only be opened by authorised users in Abdio PDF Editor.

If you're not a big fan of editing in Adobe's PDF own editor or are a grand master at using Word, Abdio PDF Editor is a considerably easier way of editing PDFs.

Download Abdio PDF Editor 8.6 Build 80705 in Softonic

Your webcam can be much more than just a communication device - it can help protect your property while you are away.

Webcam Monitor provides you with email notification along with a photo directly into your mailbox as soon as a motion or noise intrusion is detected by your webcam. You can customize alerts so that you can even receive video and audio recordings, snapshots with date and time, alarms and SMS notifications. In addition, you can automatically upload recorded video, audio, and snaps to an FTP server of your choice. It goes far beyond just monitoring small areas though - you can also monitor large areas using multiple cameras with recording sessions set to start and end at any time of the day.

All movement and any monitored activity is recorded in an event log for quick reference later. On the other hand, if you want your security cam images to be broadcasted live on the internet, you can set up a web site where the images are constantly updated by WebCam Monitor. In addition, limited enhancement is possible as you can digitally zoom any camera up to 200 and configure one or several cameras to focus on one particular area.

Webcam Monitor can turn your webcam into a powerful security monitoring device that you can control from any location.

Download Webcam Monitor 5.05 in Softonic