I’m going to be techie today and blog about the cool but most importantly free software downloads available in the internet.

Microsoft has created some pretty neat web tools. Although I haven’t tried all of them yet, the ones I tired have my seal of approval.
1. Windows Live Writer. If you are into blogging, Windows has just created the Windows Live Writer application where you can write your blogs offline, then send them to the web. Windows Live Writer provides ease-of-use. Some blogsites aren’t user friendly, but with Windows Live Writer, you don’t always need to compose your blogs on the blogsite itself. You can write & edit the blog, add links, add & layout photos offline then save them on your computer and publish them when you’re ready. I like Windows Live Writer because it’s not exclusive to Windows Spaces (which is Windows’s version of Blogger or Wordpress). You can add your blogger and wordpress accounts and publish your work to these sites via Windows Live Writer. Now, I can update all my blogs in one software, and reach more people in the net.
2. Windows Messenger. There’s an upgraded version of Windows Messenger and I’m gradually shifting to Windows Live Messenger. The reason? I don’t get the same connection problems with Windows Messenger. I don’t experience lags or sudden disconnections. And there are other great features like you can draw, record sounds and send them to your chatmates. It includes the usual features such as pc-to-pc calls, emoticons, photosharing and more. You can also chat with friends that have Yahoo! accounts, just add them to your WM, and you can chat straight away (except some features like certain emoticons may not be available).
3. Windows SkyDrive. This is your online external hard drive which you can access anywhere as long as you have internet access. You can store your documents including photos and videos on the web. You can choose to make the files private or accessible by your network of friends. I haven’t tried all the Skydrive features yet, but it’s very convenient especially if you don’t have a usb flash in handy, or you need a bigger storage space for your files. You can also add your favorite links which you can access from a public computer.
4. Windows Live Mail. Windows Live Mail is an alternative to your MS Outlook which is free. Instead of going to the internet to access your emails, you can access your hotmail or msn emails from your desktop. Again, ease-of-use.
5. Picasa 3 . So much for talking about Windows new tools. Google has some pretty cool stuff , too. If you havent downloaded the upgraded version of Picasa, I suggest you do. Picasa 3 is now available and it has additional features like photo retouching and adding texts. It has new templates for your collages and lots more. Picasa 3 now comes with a photo viewer. View your images right from your desktop, without going inside Picasa. You need to configure this during the installation.
6. Picasa Web Albums. Upload your photos in the web using Picasa Web Albums to share to your network. You can easily do this using the web photo upload function from Picasa itself. You can also create a slideshow and embed the url link to your blogger account.

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Tags: blogger tools