Tom's Top 5

Hosted by Tom Merritt.

Tom cuts through the clutter, and counts down what's trending in the geek zeitgeist. From the hottest gadgets and downloads to the weirdest internet memes, Tom's Top 5 is the newest go-to resource for what people are really talking about in the nerd-osphere. Read More

Tom's Top 5: Worst Free Software

Tuesday, September 21st, 2010 – running time 04:02

Sometimes free can cost you time and frustration. Avoid these downloads.

I absolutely love free software. I am a firm believer that for almost every expensive app out there you can find an adequate free and often open source replacement. But that doesn't mean some free software doesn't suck.

Now some of the more vociferous in the open source and free software communities may take issue with highlighting the bad instead of the good. But to them I say, my audience is humans. Schaudenfreude speaks loudly tot hem. And perhaps by showing them the bad, it will allow them to value the good more highly.

Or at least they'll have a good time laughing at the aforementioned sulkiness. You just can't tell with humans.

In other news of free things, don't forget to click on discussions at Tom's Top 5 to answer the stupid trivia question for a chance to win the bag full of Mage Warriors. Fighting the fight for good free software!

Got your own idea for a top 5? Open source it! Tell it to us in the forums or send me a reply on twitter to acedtect.

If you're an IT or software consultant - you're always looking for ways to be competitive. You need to grow your business - but can't be in two places at once! That's why there is remote support with the new GoToAssist Express. The faster you can connect to a customer, the faster you can move on to the next challenge! With GoToAssist Express you will increase revenue by handling more support requests, reduce travel time and overhead costs, support clients even when they are not at their computer, rise above the competition by providing faster, more professional service. For this special offer, you must visit go to assist dot com slash tom. That's GoToAssist.com/tom for a FREE trial.

Connect with Tom's Top 5

  • last year

    RT @acedtect: What are the most wanted game consoles? Top 5 has the answer http://t.co/uNUA8t1E

  • last year

    5 gadgets to get your techie hands on this October, like the world's first true gaming laptop - the Razer Blade! http://ow.ly/6Gqg0

  • over 2 years ago

    Try to guess the top 5 Google searches of Spring '11 - GO! Then watch @TomsTop5 to see the results: http://ow.ly/4D73X

  • over 2 years ago

    Happy St. Pattys Day! Want to know which tech you'll need to survive the bar? @acedtect counts 'em down: http://t.co/kLxnoip

  • over 2 years ago

    Wanna be the coolest geek in the bar? Then you need these 5 essential pieces of bar tech: http://t.co/6lsGU3z

  • over 2 years ago

    We saw a lot of great tech in the 2000s... but we saw a lot more terrible products. @Acedtect runs down the worst http://t.co/1zySCRT

About the Show

Details
Show Title:
Tom's Top 5
Description:
Tom cuts through the clutter, and counts down what's trending in the geek zeitgeist. From the hottest gadgets and downloads to the weirdest internet memes, Tom's Top 5 is the newest go-to resource for what people are really talking about in the nerd-osphere.
Categories:
Technology & Gadgets
Launch Date:
Jun 22, 2010
Episodes: