You should not have more than one anti-virus programme running on your computer at the same time but multiple anti-spyware programmes can be an advantage. Most anti-virus/spyware programmes can be set to automatically scan your system (at a frequency you determine) and to receive online updates as they become available. Adobe Reader   (for opening *.pdf files) This is a totally free version and is all you need to for reading and creating these files. You can buy other versions that allow you to edit *.pdf files, do design and graphics etc but generally the free version is fine. jZip   (for file compression) A free WinZip alternbative based on 7-Zip technology by Igor Pavlov.  IrfanView   (Image editing software) Highly recommended if you need to convert, resize or edit image files. There are probably a lot more features with this one that I haven't discovered yet. Trend Micro provides a free house call (online virus scan) & free evaluation copy of their spyware detection & removal programme. When this expires you can keep using it but wont be allowed to update unless you buy. AVG Anti-Virus (avg71free_362a652.exe) Download and install this programme from the Grisoft FreeWeb download page for free virus protection SpyBot Search & Destroy for spyware detection and removal Lavasoft Ad-Aware SE Personal Edition   (Spyware detection & removal) Lavasoft has a number of free trial versions for other stuff you may want to check out MS Windows Macromedia Flash Player for playing animated image (video) content. MS Windows Media Player 10 The all-in-one media player that provides the best experience for discovering, playing, & taking your digital entertainment anywhere. MS Windows Media Player 9 for MAC OS X This new version opens the world of Windows Media 9 content to Macintosh users, enabling them access to the best audio and video on the Web. Google Earth   (global exploration, search and discovery) This is not like any map you have ever seen. Google Earth is a 3D model of the real world in photographic detail, based on real satellite images combined with maps, guides to restaurants, hotels, entertainment, businesses and more. You can zoom from space to street level instantly and then pan or jump from place to place, city to city or even country to country. Watch your monthly download limit. This programme does use a lot of resources relatively fast. Motivation A program that allows you to store and access any type of file, in any format using your current e-mail account. It uses your POP3 or IMAP email address allowing you to store files remotely. eXTReMe Tracking   (Free website tracker) Placing the trackercode on your site is quite simple, however you need to be familiar with HTML. Cerberus Mini-Toolbar Help a good cause & support Friends of the Cerberus by accepting their free mini toolbar. It takes up no extra room on the screen as it fits to the right of the menu bar or browser icons. The Cerberus Mini-Toolbar allows instant access to the main Cerberus website pages. It also allows easy searching of the most popular search engines & access to many other services. There is no advertising, spyware or logging of urls or searches. It's just a useful add-on for MS IE5.0 and higher operating with Windows 95, 98 ME and XP. It can be easily removed if no longer required. Zoom Search Engine Zoom Free Edition is designed for use on small personal websites. It's a nag-free application, that lets you use Zoom with no time restrictions.