Free, legal alternatives to paid software

Paid: Outlook  (E-mail client for desktop) Cost $100+

 Part of MS Office suite, but can be bought separately. While it is the superior email client for Windows operating system, 90% of people do not need all the features it provides. Before you pay more than $100 try out other email clients that are free.

Thunderbird: free

The best alternative for outlook. May lack some of advanced features that Outlook has, but enough for 90% of people. The main difference is the luck of built-in calendar. But you can download and install a free addon - Lightning. Speaking of add-ons. There are hundreds. Everything you may ever think of -it got it. Change the color and lok of your interface, synchronize your calendar with Gmail, create automatic replies or change your signature depending on the address you are sending mail to. Too much clicking on different folders and buttons? Try the tabs feature! Open new email? the whole folder or a search filter in it's own tab (just like your web browser).

Postbox Express: free

Another email program. This is a free, lighter version of Postbox. You can expect mostly same features as thunderbird with few additions and a cleaner, nicier interface. It has a built-in support for social networks. You can post to twitter or facebook. You can even upload your contacts there. Uploading pictures to picasa is a very easy process. But has only a handfull of extensions (does have a calendar)

Gmail: free best webmail

 Why don't consider not using email client at all, but use a good webmail? If you already have an email account on another website, gmail can work just like email client for you: it will collect all of your email from other email providers. You will be able to recieve and send messages from one place. Wonna go offline? Like to be notified of new mail by a popup on your desktop screen without having to open a gmail page? No problem! With gmail you can install an extension for your web browser to be able to view and cocmpose your messages offline. Also you will be able to get notification of new mail with having to open your browser at all (you may need to switch to Chrome broser instead of Internet explorer or Firefox).

Paid: Microsoft office Cost $120+

$120 for a home/student version that doesn't have outlook and some other programs. Make sure you buy 3PC version. For the same price you can install it on 3 computers. This cheapest vesrion of office has: Word (for typing documents), Excel (for spreadsheets),  PowerPoint (for presentations), OneNote (for taking and organizing notes).

Open office: free

The best alternative to the Microsoft office. (Doen't have email client - use Thunderbird). It can open files that were created by Microsoft's Office and save 

Paid: Adobe photoshop Cost : $700+

The best picture and photo editing software. Has a literally ton of features, but as always with proffecional programs, 90% of people don't really need it. There are free alternatives that will satisfy the need for most of us. But you can always download a 30-day trail.

GIMP: free

One of simplest alternatives to photoshop.

Paint.NET: free

Another alternative for photoshop. Is a little easier to master than GIMP.