You can get Something for Nothing

What I am talking about is computer programs. Not those from the very big names in the business and not ripped off or otherwise dodgy material. A few months ago I found a web site called Giveaway of the Day where a fully working program is available for download for 24 hours. All sorts of programs have been available, a different one each day. From what I have seen and tried some are excellent others leave much to be desired. What I do is to look each morning to see what is on offer. If the program looks interesting I wait until later in the day and check back to see what others who have tried the program think of it. Just click on the Proceed to Download button. Nothing is downloaded at that stage. It takes you to the download page and also shows comments left by others who have tried the program.

You will notice that, like many sites, right next to the download button is an offer to scan your drive for errors. Personally I always ignore such offers. I like to know what programs are checking my drives and only use trusted programs I have used for years. 

If you are interested in a program then it has to be downloaded and installed before the 24 hour period ends. Just read the text file which is in the zipped download to find out how to activate it. What you do not get is free help or free updates, otherwise the program is normally functioning in the same way as a paid for version and will continue working for as long as you keep it. Also, as the activation is only available for that short period, if you lose the program through a drive crash or change computer then you will have lost the fully working program. All is explained on the web site.



Yesterday's giveaway was an excellent collage program which I used to make the above picture. This was not the first time Picture Collage Maker had been available so you never know, it may come up again in a few months time.

From what I have seen it would appear there is such a thing as a free lunch! I cannot see any catch in the system, no advertising, no unsolicited emails, no viruses so far, just fully working programs which normally cost money.

If you find the occasional program which looks to be of interest then you have to make the decision yourself as to whether it is suitable for your computer as I can only say what works here. Always check which operating system is recommended as I cannot be held responsible for any problems which may arise on your set up. I have no connection with Giveaway of the Day other than being an interested observer and downloader.