Web Resources

Technology in Action Companion Web Site: www.pearsonhighered.com/techinaction. Here you’ll find additional resources to support and supplement chapter topics, including an Online Study Guide and Web Research Projects.

24x7 Pearson Product Support: http://247pearsoned.custhelp.com. Use this site to obtain help by phone, e-mail, or chat, or explore the knowledge base to find answers right on the site.

Chapter 4: Application Software: Programs That Let You Work and Play

• The Nuts and Bolts of Software
  • Appscout.com: www.appscout.com. Provides reviews of the best software, Web sites, and Web applications.


• Productivity Software for Home and Office
  • OpenOffice: www.openoffice.org. A free, downloadable productivity software suite that has many of the same features as Microsoft and Corel products.
  • Word Processing Software
    • AbiWord: www.abiword.com. A free, downloadable word processing application that has many of the same features as Word and WordPerfect.
    • Tips for Wordprocessing: www.tipsforwordprocessing.com. Need some help? Check here for tips about most versions of Microsoft Word.
  • Spreadsheet Software
    • Online Spreadsheet Resources: www.ncwiseowl.org/kscope/techknowpark/freefall/resources.html. If you need a little help with spreadsheets or another resource to help a student, this Web site includes valuable resources.
  • Presentation Software
    • Wildform Flair: www.wildform.com. Presentation software that helps you easily create Flash presentations, product demos, training videos, and sales and marketing materials.
    • Presenting with PowerPoint. http://www.microsoft.com/business/en-us/resources/technology/business-software/powerpoint-tips.aspx#Powerpointtips. PowerPoint, like most presentation applications, is only one tool used in a presentation. This article gives some tips on how to use this presentation software effectively.
  • Database Software
    • Data Mine: www.the-data-mine.com. Learn the value of mining data in a database.
    • MySQL: www.mysql.com. The world’s most popular open source database, including news, downloads, and documentation.
    • PostgreSQL: http://www.postgresql.org/. A powerful open source object-relational database management system.
  • Note Taking Software
    • Evernote: http://www.evernote.com/. A freely available Web app that allows you to take notes and keep them synchronized with your portable devices.
  • Personal Information Manager (PIM) Software
    • Chandler: www.chandlerproject.org. Open source PIM software.
    • Google Calendar: http://www.google.com/googlecalendar/about.html. Google’s calendar system allows you to not only keep track of meetings and important dates, but also provides a task list, sharing capabilities, and the ability to sync your calendar with other programs such as Mozilla Thunderbird.
  • Personal Finance Software
    • Mint: www.mint.com. A Web-based program that is great at analyzing your spending habits and offering advice on how to manage your spending better.
    • TurboTax: www.turbotax.com. Tax preparation software that guides the user through preparing his or her tax returns step by step.
    • Wesabe: www.wesabe.com. An online financial management tool that has an extensive online community that provides helpful tips and discussions with other people in similar situations.


• Media Software for Home
  • Voice Recognition Software: www.e-speaking.com. A free, downloadable voice recognition program.
  • Speech Recognition in Windows 7: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/Windows7/Set-up-Speech-Recognition. Windows 7 comes with its own speech recognition software built in. See how to set this up.
  • Digital Image Editing Software
    • Pixlr: www.pixlr.com. A free online image editor.
    • Xfig: http://www.xfig.org/. An open source vector graphics program.
    • Gimp: http://www.gimp.org/. An open source graphics manipulation package that is very similar to Adobe Photoshop.
  • Digital Audio Software
    • Audible: www.audible.com. Purchase best-selling novels, newspapers, and radio shows as audio files.
    • Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net/. A free cross-platform sound editor.
  • Media Management Software
    • Flickr: www.flickr.com. An online photo sharing and photo storage site that lets you organize your images and then share them publicly.
    • Google Picasa: http://picasa.google.com. An online photo sharing, editing, and storage site.
    • Kodak: www.kodak.com. An online photo sharing and photo storage site.
    • Shutterfly: www.shutterfly.com. An online photo sharing and photo storing site.
    • VLC Player: http://www.videolan.org/vlc/. A very versatile open source media player that supports most media formats. VLC Player even allows you to play a video straight from a disk image.


• Software Fun for Home
  • Gaming Software
    • Entertainment Software Rating Board: www.esrb.org. Helps consumers choose the computer and video games that are right for their families by providing information about game content so that consumers can make informed purchasing decisions.
    • Gamemaker: www.yoyogames.com. A free product that allows you to build a game with no programming at all.
  • Educational Software
    • Lumosity: www.lumosity.com. Online brain training games and programs designed to improve the health and function of our brains.
    • Thinkforce: http://www.thinkforce.com/. A business-oriented training provider. Thinkforce provides content through the Web, on-site workshops, and print media.
  • Drawing Software
    • Blender: www.blender.org. Download a free copy of this 3D graphics program and utilize its help, support, and tutorials.
    • Google SketchUp: http://sketchup.google.com. Google’s 3D modeling software.


• Business Software for Home and Office
  • Business Software Association: www.bsa.org/usa. The voice of the IT industry, whose mission it is to promote conditions for the IT industry to thrive.
  • Home Business Software
    • CutePDF Writer: www.cutepdf.com. A freeware program that creates PDF files.
    • Nvu: http://net2.com/nvu. Free Web authoring software.
    • Kompozer: http://kompozer.net/. Open source multiplatform Web authoring software. Kompozer offers multiple views of content and the ability to publish files to remote servers.
    • Microsoft Small Business Center: www.microsoft.com/smallbusiness/hub.mspx. Tools and articles for small businesses.
  • Large Business Software
    • Mapquest: www.mapquest.com. A leading mapping and directions Web site, providing users with navigation directions.
    • Yahoo! Maps: www.maps.yahoo.com. A leading mapping and directions Web site, providing users with navigation directions.
    • Google Maps: http://maps.google.com. Google’s map software that provides satellite images and street-level views of most locations.
  • Specialized Business Software
    • Autodesk: http://usa.autodesk.com. The official Web site of AutoCAD design and documentation software, one of the world’s leading 2D and 3D CAD tools.


• Getting Help with Software
  • Malek Tips: www.MalekTips.com. Free computer tips, help, and hints.
  • Microsoft Communities: www.microsoft.com/communities. A technical help Web site, including forums, blogs, technical chats, newsgroups, webcasts, and user groups.
  • Microsoft Help and Support: http://support.microsoft.com. A robust Web site with help topics and tutorials for all Microsoft programs. Downloads and updates are also available.
  • Computer Companion: www.computorcompanion.com/LPMArticle.asp?ID=66. If you need a little help with calculations in a spreadsheet, this article provides an understandable explanation of how formulas work.


• Buying Software
  • Software Licensing
    • Microsoft Piracy: www.microsoft.com/piracy. Learn how to protect yourself from piracy on the Internet.
    • Business Software Alliance: www.bsa.org/country.aspx. Learn more about software piracy and how to avoid it.
  • Web-Based Applications
    • ThinkFree Online: www.ThinkFree.com. A document creation program, like Microsoft Office, that works on a multitude of environments, including mobile computing platforms, Windows, Macintosh, Linux, and UNIX.
    • Zoho Work. Online: www.zoho.com. Use Zoho to run business processes, manage information, and be more productive while at the office or on the go.
    • Google Docs: http://docs.google.com. A Web-based productivity software site that has wiki-like features to promote online collaboration.
    • SaaS: www.saas-showplace.com. A Software-as-a-Service resource.
  • Discounted Software
    • Academic Superstore: www.academicsuperstore.com. An education-focused retailer, offering thousands of top hardware and full-version software titles at great discounts.
    • Ascentix Corporation: www.ascentix.com. A software design and development company.
    • Campus Tech: www.campustech.com. An online software supplier that offers software applications to students at reduced prices.
    • Journey Education Marketing: www.journeyed.com. A software marketer to K–12 and postsecondary educators, making software more affordable for students and educators.
  • Freeware and Shareware
    • Shareware.com: www.shareware.com. Provider of shareware and freeware products.
    • SourceForge: http://sourceforge.net. The world’s largest open source software development Web site.
    • TechSmith: www.techsmith.com. The world’s leading provider of screen capture and recording software for individual and professional use.
    • Osalt: http://www.osalt.com/. Find open source alternatives to most well-known commercial software packages.