Free Downloads of Paid SoftwareWe're the first to extol the benefits of polished, user-friendly, feature-packed proprietary software, but that doesn't mean we want to be charged an arm and a leg for it, either. We're not alone in our thinking - a ton of users jumped when Adobe CS2 was rumored to have gone free this January (sorry folks, it's not free). Fortunately, there is still a lot of pieces of paid software out there that have gone free or become open source (not to mention the numerous giveaways and promotional releases that go on). Here are a few that have piqued our fancy including good software gone open source and limited time freebies.Don't forget to check out ',' while you're at it!
Prev Page 1 of 13 Next Prev Page 1 of 13 Next. BlenderFormerly a proprietary software by Not a Number Technologies, Blender was eventually released as open-source software, providing users worldwide with a free, high quality 3D animation and rendering tool. While it may not be the most user-friendly tool around, with a lot of patience and practice, Blender allows everyone, from hobbyists to amateur and professional animators, to create impressive visual effects similar to those seen in short films and.Verdict: Blender requires a lot of practice and patience, but rewards users with the ability to create professional and polished 3D renderings and animation.Score: 4.5/5 Prev Page 2 of 13 Next Prev Page 2 of 13 Next. BRL-CADBRL-CAD is a computer aided design system used by the US military as far back as the 80s (BRL stands for the Ballistics Research Laboratory), before being released to the open source world in 2004.
The UWP provides a guaranteed core API across devices. Choose from over 30 gestures, roam your gestures between all your devices MultiSwipe has the following gestures for 2,3,4 and 5 fingers, only 2 finger gestures are shown below but the remaining ones for more fingers are available for customization when you download MultiSwipe Gesturesign.
A multi-platform CAD system with a storied heritage, BRL-CAD uses Constructive Solid Geometry ( CSG) (instead of the more common Boundary Representation) in order to and can be used to render objects or to aid in the study and design of objects and their physical properties.Verdict: A CAD tool with a long history that's been released to the open source world, BRL-CAD might be a bit on the esoteric side, but is nevertheless a powerful and free alternative to paid CAD suites that can run in the thousands of dollars.Score: 4/5 Prev Page 3 of 13 Next Prev Page 3 of 13 Next. Adobe CS2Last January, the internet was abuzz with the news that Adobe had released the Creative Suite 2 software package for free, with full installers and serial numbers.
Users were scrambling to get their hands on a dated but still powerful suite of media creation and editing apps. Well, that's not quite the whole story. What really happened was that Adobe took the old CS2 authentication servers offline, and posted the serial numbers and installers for users who had already purchased CS2 and needed to reinstall or repair their installations. So if you want to legally download and install it, you'll need to have purchased a CS2 license.Verdict: While outdated by the standards of current generations of Creative Suite and even some open-source projects out there, CS2 is still a very good set of media editing and creation programs.Score: 4/5Prev Page 4 of 13 Next Prev Page 4 of 13 Next. Serif WebPlusUK-based Serif makes a line of affordable desktop publishing packages, built for ease of use and accessibility.
Serif WebPlus Starter is a user-friendly web page designer with a WYSIWYG interface more out of a desktop publisher rather than a codemonkey's HTML editor. It's pretty neat on the graphic design end, but there are a lot of advanced features lacking. Serif WebPlus Starter comes with 30 days free hosting.Verdict: Easy to use and focused on visual design and layout rather than the meat and guts of coding, WebPlus Starter is great for amateur hobbyists who are code averse, but lacks the business and advanced features of the full version. You will also need to put up with the ads and nagging to buy the full edition.Score: 3.5/5Note: WebPlus will attempt to add a browser toolbar during installation, so keep an eye out to avoid unecessary clutter. Prev Page 5 of 13 Next Prev Page 5 of 13 Next. Serif PagePlus StarterAnother of Serif's starter versions of its software, PagePlus Starter offers a basic desktop publishing tool for users looking to.
Serif DrawPlus StarterDrawPlus Starter is the last of the Serif starter packs we'll take a look at. It's a neatly designed drawing and graphics design package that includes features like layer based editing, customizable brushes, and transparency effects. Again, you can see the blocked out menu choices showing content removed for the free version. The Starter package is a neat tool for hobbyists and for basic drawing and stuff like logo design.Verdict: Again, DrawPlus Starter is an okay drawing and art package but it's not quite incredible drawing and art package. The feature set just doesn't quite match with up with more powerful (if less user friendly) free alternatives.Score: 3/5Notes: DrawPlus will try to add on a browser toolbar, so keep an eye open during installation. Prev Page 7 of 13 Next Prev Page 7 of 13 Next.
Ashampoo WinOptimizer 2013Ashampoo's WinOptimizer is a well regarded line of all-in-one that brings a load of useful functions such as registry cleaning, defragmenting, and more, in a single package. While WinOptimizer 2013 isn't as top of the line as their newest paid version ( WinOptimizer 10), this full-featured version is frequently released as a freebie or promotional giveaway. You will need to sign up and register the program, so use a disposable email address, unless you happen to like marketing promotional materials in your inbox.Verdict: A step up from WinOptimizer Free, WinOptimizer 2013 brings a good set of tools and modules into a single package, which makes for a nice computer maintenance toolkit.Score: 4/5 Prev Page 8 of 13 Next Prev Page 8 of 13 Next.
Ashampoo PhotoCommander 9Ashampoo's PhotoCommander 9 is an older version of Ashampoo's PhotoCommander line of image editing and photo management software. While not top of the line, the full version is available for free with registration at Ashampoo's site. The program features basic image editing features like red-eye correction, while also providing photo management tools to make sense of and categorize your photo collection. This includes tagging, duplicate finding, and more.Verdict: A decentpiece of photo management software, that, while occasionally glitchy, lets you do a lot of organization and cleanup operations as well as edits for your photo collection.Score: 3.5/5 Prev Page 9 of 13 Next Prev Page 9 of 13 Next. URexsoft Video Converter Platinum 3.0uRexsoft released its Video Converter Platinum 3.0 for free as part of an Easter promotion. Video Converter Platinum allows users to convert video into various common media formats, such as.mkv,.mp4, and more.
Numerous output options allow you to tweak resolution, bitrate, frame rate, aspect ratio, and numerous other audiovisual settings. Besides simple format conversion, Video Converter Platinum also includes some basic editing features, such as applying effects and taking video clips.Verdict: A sound base of supported formats, an interface that keeps important conversion output settings at the forefront, and a smattering of basic editing features make uRexsoft Video Converter Platinum 3.0 a neat freebie if you do a lot of video conversion, or just want to squeeze an HD flick into a more mobile friendly format.Score: 4/5 Prev Page 10 of 13 Next Prev Page 10 of 13 Next. Debenu PDF ToolsAs part of a Facebook promotion, Debenu made its Debenu PDF Tools Pro package (normally $59.95) free to netizens who liked Debenu's Facebook page. Essentially a Windows Explorer extension on steroids, the Debenu PDF Tools Pro package is accessible through the right-click menu and includes afor quick document viewing, tools for editing attachments, bookmarks, PDF conversion, image and text extraction, splitting and merging, and more. That said, we have noticed a slight lag time when right clicking on particularly large PDF files.Verdict: If you do loads of work or reading on PDF files, Debenu's PDF Tools might be of use, so get it while it won't cost you an arm and a leg.Score: 4/5 Prev Page 11 of 13 Next Prev Page 11 of 13 Next. Pointstone System Cleaner 7Our final software freebie for the day is Pointstone System Cleaner 7, a one-stop.
Task automation also allows you to set maintenance schedules and putter on while the app does the heavy lifting for you. While the software is available for limited trial download, Pointstone currently has a Facebook promotion that hands out full registration keys to users liking their Facebook Page and supplying an email address.Verdict: A one-step system cleaner with a good set of tools and task automation that you can activate for free by liking a Facebook page? Fair deal, we'd say.Score: 4/5 Prev Page 12 of 13 Next Prev Page 12 of 13 Next. Bonus: Giveaway of the Day, & other free softwareAs a bonus, we'd also like to mention, a popular website that promotes commercial software by making daily free giveaways of full version proprietary software. The mix can be eclectic, from PDF tools to multimedia editors, wallpaper packs, and more, and it changes daily.
While it's a bit of a crapshoot as to the giveaway, it's worth visiting regularly or chalking up into an RSS feed for the occasional neat freebie. Prev Page 13 of 13 Next Prev Page 13 of 13 Next.