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Shareware and Freeware for download

 

On this page: 
Warnings
Categories of free software
Sources of free software

Software can be found all over the World Wide Web. It is possible to purchase and install many packages without handling a disk, going to a store, or even receiving something in the mail. The process is so easy, and so cheap from the supplier's point of view, that software developers often offer a lot of things for free. What follows is some general categories of free-for-download software, and their respective shortcomings and advantages.

Warnings

You need to be careful loading any free software. Freeware (see below) can have problems, and can, in rare cases, mess up your computer configuration. If you find an interesting title, see if there are any reviews of it on line - they may give warnings.

All the other titles are commercial. Downloading and installing free commercial software  is, in a matter of speaking, inviting a stranger into your living room. That stranger may prove to be more intrusive than you intended. A few hints . . .

1) Don't use the "default" install - select "Custom" rather than "Standard" or "Automatic" when asked what sort of install will be done. One of the screens of a custom install is the assigning of file associations. If you still want Media Player or other title to handle WAV or MP3 files (for example), make sure those boxes are un-checked in your new install so that it doesn't take over those responsibilities. This is particularly irritating with player/utility installations like QuickTime, Music Match or Real Player.

2) Don't download software unless you're going to use it! If Windows Media Player covers your needs, why junk up your computer and risk problems with a new program? Adolescents are constantly downloading and installing stuff, and usually their computers are messed up enough to testify to that fact.

Categories of free software . . . 

Demos Demos are not really free software, since they are intended just to demonstrate the capability of a software title, without actually giving the consumer anything to work with. Demos are useful if you just want a peak before you buy, but if your intent is to get free use of software, demos aren't it. 
Shareware Shareware is software which is offered free for download as a way to try software before purchase. It is either not fully-functioning (limits saves, or not all features are enabled), or it ceases to work after a certain amount of time ("times out"). Such software is not free - if you use it in a lab setting for many users, or use it past its "time out," you have violated the agreement. 
Freeware  Freeware is actually free - it is software that is offered by a single individual or non-profit entity, and is completely free of commercial attachments. Since there is no commercial interest, sometimes the software is buggy and otherwise not constructed very well, or the help files are in another language, or absent. However, if you are willing to take a chance and experiment, it can be worth the trouble. True freeware is marked as such.
Free software "Free Software" should not be confused with "Freeware," which is a separate category. Free software is generally offered by a commercial concern with a vested interest in your using their product - most commonly a foot in your door for massive amounts of  Internet advertising. Browsers themselves (Internet Explorer and Netscape) are good examples, as is AOL Instant Messenger. Since the Internet is dotted with teens and pre-teens with entertainment dollars to spend, there are hundreds of music software titles that fall into this category, in an attempt to leverage these consumers (and their parents) out of their money. Be wary -see Warnings above.
Adware This category enjoyed some popularity a few years ago, but it's beginning to wane, and most of the titles are games. Adware is commercial but free software - generally fully-functional, but providing a constant stream of advertisements embedded directly in the software which you cannot turn off unless money changes hands.

Sources of Software

Again - this is by no means a comprehensive list, and all links are provided without endorsement. A general search will produce many sites, but general searches for free software often produce a lot of advertising for the seedier side of the 'Net, so it's not a good idea to turn students loose on such a project. 

http://shareware.cnet.com/ CNET bought out shareware.com a few years ago, one of the earliest and most active of the download sites. As a result of its new corporate home, most of the freeware is gone. CNET also maintains it's download-for-sale big brother http://download.cnet.com/
http://www.tucows.com/ Tucows is the stuff of Internet legend. Unfortunately, like most such ventures, it's pretty commercial now, but they still have a lot of good free titles.
http://www.zdnet.com/ zdnet made its name through "The Computer Shopper," the largest and most popular hard-copy computer hardware catalog (now defunct). They provide free downloads, but require your email address for membership - a ruse to get you on a mailing list.
http://www.completelyfreesoftware.com/ Completely Free has genuine freeware, and some commercial shareware titles.  Not an extensive library, but less buried in hype and ads than the others. It has an apparent religious affiliation - hence the awful MIDI on the splash screen!
http://www.jumbo.com/ Another commercial download site - probably not as large as the big guys, but the layout is good.