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Free Stuff and Open Source Column
We like FREE... and we think you do too!
These are a few links to products that will probably make your life easier...We use them ourselves!
Here at Bells of Ireland, we are a firm believer in the Open Source movement. Put simply, Open Source Software is shared with the world for FREE!
And in our book... FREE is good!
(We use these programs. However we make no warranty of use or guarantee them in anyway shape or form...)
FREE Open Source Productivity Links
Originally a Sun Microsystems product, OpenOffice is an "Office" suite of programs that include a word processing program, spreadsheet program, and a presentation slide program! You can save and read Microsoft documents! You can even save as PDFs!
A photo editing software that is on par with the pros! Its not intuitive, but keep in mind it was designed for the pros! There are lots of YouTube videos on how to use this one!
A calendar AND email program that resides on your computer, that can pull information from online calendars (gmail). Comparable to Microsoft Outlook's' calendar!
More Free Stuff (but not Open Source Links)
Ok...so the links in this column below are not "Open Source," but are web based services that are still FREE!
A webhosting service that allows you to easily make and maintain webpages with out having to be a web genius (It just makes you look like one)! If you would like to have more features, they do have a small fee service that will give you more flexibility! Currently we have two non-profit clients that use this service! It is a great choice if you have very little in the way of a marketing budget!
A free utility...but it only runs on Windows... Has been compared to TheGimp. A favorite of the trainers at Constant Contact.
Yeah, we know...everyone has heard about it...This is probably nothing new to all of you; BUT did you know Google is way more than just a search engine for the web?
Google Voice: A great service that allows you to have ONE phone number and to bring it with you and administer it where ever you can get to the internet!
Google Mail (gmail): Gmail is a free mail service that is where the "in the know" people have email accounts! Did you know that people that have gmail accounts are taken more seriously? You may want to read this article, especially if you want to know what your email service says about you!
Google Calendar: This is a phenomenal service that is webhosted! You can have multiple "calendars" just like MS Outlook! You can share with people and even write to their calendars (with permission of course!)
Not so "Free" software that we find helpful, but may require small fee.
A GREAT email distribution service! They have USA based support! They are quick to answer the phone or pick up a chat session when you get confused! Because of these reasons, we are a partner and cannot say enough nice things about these people!!!!
Quick disclaimer here: We have partnered with Constant Contact. Why? Because aside from a great business move for us, we think they are awesome!
A web hosted client tracking system. This is all accessed through a web page or your mobile phone! This is great for people who need to track jobs and people...and invoices!
This is a MUST for my creative clients! This allows sewing enthusiasts to organize and reference their sewing patterns! A time saving monthly subscription is available allowing you to enjoy "pre-filled" fields and social capabilities!
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