Most professional software can set you back thousands but sometimes, free or cheaper alternatives can really get the job done just as well. So here are some inexpensive software replacements to help you create.
Video Editing
Expensive: Adobe Premiere Pro, Avid Motion Graphics, Final Cut Pro
Cheap: Lightworks Basic (free) or Pro version (£179.99)
Platform: Windows, Mac OS X, Linux
Details: Lightworks is a professional editing tool used for many big Hollywood films such as Pulp Fiction, Shutter Island and The King’s Speech. It’s a powerful tool and the basic version is absolutely free and has all the power of the pro version. The only real difference is you can only export to MPEG-4 (Web, YouTube and Vimeo) at a maximum resolution of 720p. The pro version is not that expensive though if you wanted all the export options.
Audio Editing
Expensive: Adobe Audition
Cheap: Audacity (free)
Platform: Windows, Mac OS X, Linux
Details: Free open-source, easy-to-use multi-track audio editor. Record, import and export, edit and add effects to your audio. Not as many features as some expensive software but it certainly has everything you need to edit audio.
Image Editing
Expensive: Adobe Photoshop
Cheap: GIMP (free)
Platform: Windows, Mac OS X, Linux
Details: GIMP is a great free software that allows advanced photo retouching and it supports all the main file formats (TIFF, JPEG, GIF, PNG, PSD) you would expect. Each interface is customisable so you can change widget spacing, colours, icon sizes and custom tools.
Vector Graphics
Expensive: Adobe Illustrator
Cheap: Inkscape (free)
Platform: Windows, Mac OS X, Linux
Details: Create a wide variety of vector graphics such as logos, illustrations, diagrams, maps and web graphics. It has many of the same features as Illustrator but without the cost. You can create and manipulate objects easily or draw freehand.
Productivity
Expensive: Microsoft Office
Cheap: OpenOffice (free)
Platform: Windows
Details: This is another free, open source software for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics and databases. It’s easy-to-use, simple and the software will read most file formats including those created in other office suites like Word or Excel.
Animation
Expensive: Autodesk Maya,
Cheap: Blender (free),
Platform: Windows, Mac OS X, Linux
Details: Blender is an open source platform and has many great tools for modelling and sculpting 3D objects, characters and landscapes. It also simulations such as crumbling buildings, fire and rain. It also includes a game engine, so you can create a 3D game right inside the software. It has a completely customisable interface and is a perfect alternative to expensive 3D animation software.
Website creation
Expensive: Adobe Dreamweaver
Cheap: KompoZer (free)
Platform: Windows, Mac OS X, Linux
Details: This is a simple WYSIWYG FTP site editor and just like Dreamweaver, you can view both the WYSIWYG and the HTML code.
PDF editing
Expensive: Adobe Acrobat
Cheap: Foxit Reader (free),
Platform: Windows
Details: While you can’t directly edit the PDF text with Foxit Reader, it does have many tools available such as adding pop-up notes, annotations, add text on the page, add sticky notes and attachments. Many people actually prefer this software to Adobe Reader because it’s so lightweight and simple. Foxit Phantom is their PDF editor, similar to Adobe Acrobat, and that is available for $89.99.
Desktop Publishing
Expensive: Adobe InDesign
Cheap: Scribus (free)
Platform: Windows, Mac OS X, Linux
Details: A great, free alternative to Adobe InDesign which has many of the same features. It can be tricky to the hang of it at first but it allows creation of page layouts, supports CMYK, spot colours and many other features found in Adobe’s professional software. So this is perfect if you’re looking to create print-based literature for your business.
Anti-Virus
Expensive: Norton, McAfee
Cheap: AVG Avast, ZoneAlarm-free, Avira, Panda
Platform: Windows
Details: Any of these are great, free anti-virus tools to protect your computer. These days paying for software is not always needed as these free alternatives offer the same security and in some cases work even better, are simpler to use and for the average computer, they do the job.
Tags: Application Software, Mobile device
