It has been a long time since I mentioned the vast amount of good freeware available online. Software such as OpenOffice, GIMP and IrfanView are a given. These are great free programmes I have previously reviewed.

I still use AVG as my anti-virus software, but I find it difficult to use and when it scans my system, I can barely use my computer. Why not try the free edition of Avira AntiVir? It is getting good reviews from a number of sites, and is the top pick at Gizmo. Download.com's editors give it 4.5 stars out of five, while noting that the latest version is a step backward from the previous one. AVG gets a five star rating, so make your pick.

My favourite all time image editor for quick batch processing of jpegs is Irfran View, but there is also PhotoScape, which gets the same rating. Both programmes are not a substitute for Photoshop or GIMP. However, when I want to get photos of my son up online fast, I use Irfran View. PhotoScape is a slight step up due to its templates, which allows users to automate the creation of photo collages, comics and such like.

If you are into a bit more sophistication with your photos, try Picturenaut, which is not available on Download.com The software allows you to create high dynamic range (HDR) images. You create a HDR photo by taking a still scene at different exposure settings, at least three, of which one is under exposed, one is at "normal" exposure and the other is overexposed.

The software then combines the scenes so that you capture the detail in the dark and light areas, which may be hidden or wiped out in a normal exposure. Get it at www.hdrlabs.com/picturenaut. It is created by an image community in Germany.

"Picturenaut is released as Donationware, because we believe in open access and good karma," they say. "If you like it or use it in a commercial project, you should support the development with a donation."

I have tried a few desktop file sharing and collaboration programmes but I have abandoned all as they were difficult to use, chewed up processing power and generally made me lose time. Try TeamViewer, which bills itself as a help for "business collaborations". However, be aware, like many programmes it is only free if you only use it for non-business tasks. Using TeamViewer you can share your screen with another user on another computer, or remotely access a second computer.

For archiving, compressing and uncompressing files I use 7-Zip, as it is easy to use and can unzip any format that I have found so far. I dropped WinZip a long time ago for the reasons the editors of Download.com cite in giving it a five-star rating.

It can create and unpack TAR and GZ archives and shrinks files up to 40 percent smaller then ZIP equivalents. You can also create self-extracting archives. IT developers love it, but it is still a cinch to use.

I still use Microsoft's Media Player and RealPlayer, but I am slowly moving over to VLC Media Player. Often, I find I can't play some streaming files in the two dominant video players. Then I open up VLC Media Player and they appear. Keep it hand for those moments. You can also use it for frame-by-frame advancement and for live recording of streaming video.

While I use the commercial Adobe Acrobat to create PDF files, there is now a lot of free software that allows you to do the same thing. One of these is PrimoPDF, which receives 4.5 stars from Download.com. You can convert Word docs into PDFs.

I often reference CNet's Download.com as this is the safest site to get software. You have to be careful when downloading software advertised as free from sites that are not trusted.

It's a good way to let a hacker take control of your machine without you knowing.

Next week I intend to look at some of the great video and audio editing suites out there, so if you have any favourite freeware, please send me a quick email.

Contact Ahmed at elamin.ahmed@gmail.com