Many people are happy to stick with the default browser set up when they fire up their computer for the first time, which means Edge if you’re a Windows 10 user and Safari if you’re on an Apple Mac. Both browsers have improved massively in recent years, but part of…

If you are using a word processor, it is likely that you need to focus on getting words onto the page. The problem with many modern word processors is that they are so feature packed that the program interface itself can be a serious distraction from what you are meant…

Think open-source email client, and Mozilla’s Thunderbird comes to mind, but despite resuming development after years of neglect, there are still frustrations with the project. Betterbird is one of several forks designed to address these issues, with the added cachet of being run by the man who maintained Thunderbird while…

TeamViewer 15 is the latest version of the popular remote access/control program. We handle support for novice computer users and you’ll be surprised how many of these customers do not understand the basics of computing. Sell them security software and many can’t install the new suite as they’ve never fully removed…

QOwnNotes is a versatile open-source notepad and to-do list manager. The strong core editor handles rich text notes, with images, hyperlinks, tables and text styling. You can create documents by clicking buttons and menu items, or entering markdown, and the results may be exported as PDF or HTML. You’re able…

OnionShare is an open-source Tor-based tool for sharing files securely and anonymously. Rather than using public servers (from companies such as Google Drive, DropBox, WeTransfer) to host your files for sharing, OnionShare uses the ‘DarkNet’, meaning no-one knows where they are hosted, sourced or who supplied them originally. This is…

Anyone who has attempted to set up a virtual private network will be aware that it can be fraught with problems. OpenVPN is a comprehensive VPN tool which perfects the balance between ease of use and security which can be used to enable remote access on any scale and allow…

We all spend far too much time in front of our computers these days. Dire warnings of repetitive strain injury (RSI) and ruined eyesight are ignored when many people’s livelihoods depend on being in front of a monitor tapping away for hours at a time. The simplest way to protect…

FreeCAD is a powerful 3D CAD modeler and drawing tool which is targeted squarely at the mechanical engineering and product design fields. The program’s 0.12 version number tells you it’s not yet ready for prime time, but if you’re interested in this area – particularly if you’re familiar with Python…

Back in the late 90s, the rage was to make Internet software as easy to use as possible. Indeed, I ran a business based around producing a suite of software that got users on to the net with ease. One particular suite, Turnpike, was sold to Demon Internet, for millions…