Alternatives to Common Space Hogging Software

Lifehacker posted a list of software commonly found on PC’s that slow things down, use too much space, and often don’t offer full-use rights resulting in nagging “purchase now” reminders.  For each of these  “crappy” pieces of software, Lifehacker provides alternative software options, most of which are free and that can do the job better. The list of “crapware” includes Adobe Reader, iTunes, AOL and MSN Messenger services, and McAffe, Norton, and Symantec Anti Virus among others.

Check out Crapware: Superior Alternatives to Crappy Windows Software to learn more.

Get Money for Your Creative Project from Kickstarter

Are you a fledgling artist, filmmaker, musician, writer or creative soul? Need some cash to pursue your creative project? Then check out Kickstarter, which touts itself as the largest funding platform for creative projects in the world. Don’t worry that investors will have part ownership of your project. Through Kickstarter you keep 100% ownership over your work.  Instead, investors are thanked or compensated in other ways such as copies of the completed project. Current projects include documentaries, game boards, comics, art app for iPad and more.

If you don’t have a project, but are interested in supporting artists, Kickstarter has thousands of project looking for your help.

To learn more, visit Kickstarter.

Find Something Good to Watch on T.V. with Suggest a Show

Can’t find anything to watch on T.V.? Let Suggest A Show help. Enter the name of shows you like (or liked in the case of cancelled shows), and Suggest A Show will give you a list of television programs that are similar. It’s free and fast. Check it out at Suggest A Show.

Record Skype Calls with Pamela – Perfect for Podcasters

For over two years I’ve been doing a weekly podcast at Work-At-Home Success. I’d avoided podcasting for a while because the set-up to record the call was tedious and not always reliable. I had to use an old laptop, because my newer one didn’t work right with the equipment I had. I had to hook up my phone to the computer’s recorder through a little Radio Shack device. Using Windows Movie Maker to capture the recording, I’d then need to convert it from WMV to MP3, transfer it to my new machine and edit. Fortunately, Skype and Pamela have changed all that.

Skype allows me to call via my computer to anyone anywhere. Its free to other Skype users and just a few cents a minutes to call landlines. Pamela records the call and saves as MP3. All I need to do once the call is over is edit and upload. No converting or transferring. No extra devices…just my headset and computer.

Pamela features include:

• Skype Call Recording
• Skype Video Recording
• Skype Chat Recording
• Skype Call Transfer
• Rich Mood Editor
• Answering Machine
• VideoMail
• Mega Emotion Sounds
• Auto Chat Reply
• Birthday Reminders
• Email Forwarding
• Contact Personalization
• Auto Start Applications
• Skype Publishing
• And more.

Pamela has a free version with a time limit of 15 minutes of recording and a few other limitations. It also has standard, professional and business versions for a fee. I opted for the Professional version which has a 30 day trial and is $38.95 if you want to keep it (there are less expensive options as well). It includes unlimited recording and all the other features such as blogging and podcasting.

Visit Pamela Systems to learn more!

Get Discount Codes on Shopping Sites from DropDownDeals.com

One of the hassles of frugal online shopping is finding something you want, then having to hunt for coupons and discount codes. But not anymore. DropDownDeals.com offers a free toolbar that will provide discount codes while you’re at the online store. It saves you time and money!

The DropDownDeals toolbar is available for IE 7, IE 8, IE 9, and all versions of Firefox and Chrome on Windows, and Firefox on Mac.

To download or learn more, visit DropDownDeals.com.