Most systems crash due to the ignorance of the owner to detect and know which type of software should be install on the system. I will be analysis the most essential software
that you need for the PC and if you wish you can add more (but regard them as extra lights to a vehicle).As the softwares i will be analyzing shortly some are very critical such as the antivirus software, nevertheless you have a choice to determine is you need them or not.
Microsoft office/Open office
An office application suite that will give you a word processor, spreadsheet and presentation software. The most famous is the Microsoft Office and an alternative is the Open office which you can download free at http://www.openoffice.org/Antivirus Software
As soon as your PC is setup with the basic applications, download the free antivirus
software AVG at http://free.avg.com/
This free antivirus works very well in protecting your computer from viruses. Although
it is free, you‟ll still get free updates to the program almost daily. Many people have
used this antivirus software for a long time without any problems.
Download Manager
FlashGet at http://www.flashget.com is a download manager which allows you to
download programs and data quickly from the internet. You can use it to download
several files at once and it also helps you in resuming downloads if your internet
connection is broken half way. Flash Get is free and will save you a lot of time in
managing your downloads.
Compression Software
The most widely used compression software is WinZip at http://www.winzip.com It
compresses any files you have to reduce the size. Normally this utility is used to
make the file smaller to be sent over the internet or to consolidate several files and
folders into one zip file. A good alternative to Winzip is WinRar which you can
download for free at http://www.win-rar.com/ It compresses file into .rar extensions
but it also supports Winzip files.
I also HIGHLY recommend this free one http://www.zipgenius.com/
Backup Software
Backing up your PC is one of the most important things you need to do regularly, to
prevent yourself from disasters. If your hard disk crashes or is damaged, then you
have a good chance of losing your data. Also, if you try to install your computer from
scratch, it will take you a whole day to install all applications and applying the latest
updates from the internet.
You can save a lot of time by using backup software so that you can retrieve
important data.
FBackup at http://www.fbackup.com/ is a free backup software which can safely
secure your data if disaster happens. It is advised that you set up a schedule to
backup your data such as daily, after you finish working.
This software has a user friendly interface and does the backup job effectively. An
added benefit is that the software will also backup your „open files‟. These are files
which are in use when you are working on your PC. This means that you can make a
backup of your PC while you are working on it.
You can use the software to backup your data to an external hard disk or onto DVDs.
Mirroring Software
A mirroring software is essential although you‟ll rarely use it. It makes a mirror image
of your entire hard disk so that if you want to reinstall your PC, you can do it quickly
by restoring the mirror image. So after you have installed all the basic software for
your PC and are updated with the latest Windows patches, you can create a mirror
image of your hard disk and store it onto DVDs.
Whenever you want to reinstall your PC you can do so within an hour or so by using
the software.
A good free mirroring software is Macrium Reflect at
http://www.macrium.com/ReflectFree.asp
Wishing you all the best.
