Computer software required for courses can be very expensive. Even with student discounts, a new student setting up a computer may pay more than is comfortable. Luckily, most students can get what they need to succeed without paying anything.
Instead of Microsoft Office ($20 at IPFW bookstore), use Google Documents (included with IPFW Email).
Microsoft Office, which includes Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, is one of the suggestions for new students, but there is a free solution that, for most people, works just as well if not better. Included as part of the Google email that is available to all IPFW students, the Google Documents suite replicates the basic functions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Furthermore, because it an online editor, it is accessible from any computer with a web browser, meaning that if your computer crashes, your big essay didn’t die with it.
It does have some limitations, in that it will not perform some of the more advanced functions of MS Office, but most users won’t miss these. The other major limitation is that to use it, you have to have a steady internet connection. However, if you can get over these, Google Docs is a sufficiently well-featured office suite than can easily replace Microsoft Office.
Instead of paying for texting (varies with provider), use Google Voice (voice.google.com).
If you spend a lot of time in front of a computer screen, Google Voice is one of the best tools you can have for your phone. It offers transcribed voicemail, call filtering, and has many other features, but one of the places it really shines is in providing free SMS texting. While it may not replace your texting plan completely, it may let you downgrade to a cheaper one.
Instead of Photoshop Elements ($10 at IPFW bookstore), use The GIMP (www.gimp.org).
If you use Photoshop as part of your career, this one is probably not worth replacing. If you only use it occasionally to mess around with an image though, The GIMP can save you a lot of money. It has most of Photoshop’s features, but without the price tag that normally comes with them.
Instead of Adobe Reader (Free) use Foxit (www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/reader/).
I know it seems silly to replace one free software with another, but this replacement is worth it. Foxit is lighting fast, and performs all the other functions of Reader as well.
