Software Programs

Computers without software don't do much besides make good door-stops! This page lists some software packages which may be of interest to you.

Commercial Software Through AICT

The traditional software model involves paying someone for a license to use a particular program. Thankfully, students often get some pretty good deals on software. The Product Sales office at the university provides a number of software programs to students at reduced rates. Make sure you read the site carefully - some of the listed software is only available to faculty, staff or university departments!

One program of special note is F-Secure Antivirus. The university licenses it for use by faculty, staff and students. This software can be downloaded free of charge from the AICT Software Download Centre with a valid CCID and password.

Other Commercial Software

Software vendors often provide academic or educational pricing on their products. If you are thinking about purchasing a program, ask if discounts are available to students. It cannot hurt, and may save you money!

An example of such a program is the Microsoft Ultimate Steal. As long as you are a full-time student at a qualifying institution (U of A qualifies), Windows users can get a full copy of Microsoft Office for only $64.

Open-source and Free Software

An increasing number of open-source products are available that are mature enough for everyday use. The list below is not even close to complete, but provides a starting point if you are interested in exploring the use of open-source software. If you are interested in other products, check out SourceForge.Net, a well-known repository for open-source software.

Some of the items in the list below are free but not open-source. Unlike open-source programs, you cannot look at or modify the program, but you can legally use them.

  • 7-zip is a program to create or open archives.
  • Audacity is a sound file editor.
  • FileZilla is an ftp / sftp / scp program used for transferring files. Check out WinSCP below as well. WinSCP is installed in the AICT and SLIS computer labs, so you may want to start with it.
  • Firefox is a standards-compliant web browser.
  • GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) is a powerful and complex image creation and editing program.
  • Greenstone Digital Library is a digital library software used in LIS 538 use it for coursework. Installation tips based on previous experiences may be useful, especially for Mac users.
  • Notepad++ is an advanced text editor.
  • OpenAFS is a file transfer program that uses the AFS file system protocols. If you decide to try this, make sure you look at the instructions from AICT.
  • OpenOffice.org is an alternative to Microsoft Office.
  • Picasa is a tool from Google for editing, organizing, creating and sharing photos. Not open source.
  • PDFCreator allows the creation of PDF files from any program by creating a virtual printer. You "print" the file to a PDF.
  • PuTTY is a secure shell (SSH) and telnet client. It is used heavily at U of A for authentication in the labs, and can be used to access your server space in a command line environment. An install file that includes some of the configuration necessary for U of A is available from the AICT Download Centre.
  • Spybot Search & Destroy is a malware detection and removal program. Not open-source.
  • Thunderbird is an email client.
  • TrueCrypt is a file encryption program. It can protect drives or files on your computer or USB drive.
  • VirtualBox is an open-source virtualization product from Sun Microsystems. There is also a commercial version of this program.
  • VMware Player is a program that can be used to run virtual machines. VMware makes an entire line of virtualization products. Not open-source.
  • WinSCP is an ftp / sftp / scp program used for transferring files. It is installed in the U of A and SLIS computing labs.
  • XML Copy Editor is an advanced editor specifically designed for editing XML files.