SOFTWARE SITES

VADS CORNER — Office · PDF · Photo and video · Everyday tools
Last updated 20 October 2026

This is the updated version of this page. The original version, a list of Windows software download sites last revised in July 2004, is archived at oldsw.html.
Please read. I have no financial or other interest in any product, company or website listed on this page. I am not an employee, consultant, agent, affiliate or shareholder of any of them, I receive no payment, commission, free product or other benefit for listing them, and the page carries no advertising. A listing is not an endorsement or a guarantee. Anything you download, install, subscribe to or upload is entirely at your own risk (or your organisation’s, if you use it at work). I accept no responsibility or liability for any loss, damage, cost, data breach, infection or other harm arising from the use of any site or software mentioned here, or from reliance on what I say about it. Check the maker’s own site for current prices, terms and privacy policy before you decide.

The first edition of this page pointed to download libraries, because in those days that was how you found software. Several of those sites have since closed or changed beyond recognition, and most people now get what they need from the maker’s own site or an app store. So this list is arranged by job: the office suites, PDF tools, photo and video editors, audio, browsers and everyday utilities, then the safer places to download from. The aim is to get you to the maker’s own page, and to tell you what it costs before you click.

Reading the flags. FREE free to use as it stands (including open-source software). Some need a free account, and a few ask only for non-commercial use. FREE TIER a free version or free plan exists, but the full product, extra features, AI credits or storage are paid. No flag means a paid product: it may offer a trial, and I say so where I could tell.

Prices and free plans change often, and companies move features between free and paid without notice. Treat the flag as a guide and read the maker’s own pricing page before you commit, particularly for anything that asks for a card number to start a trial.

Which tool for which job?

A quick guide.

Letters, spreadsheets, slides at no cost: LibreOffice, or the free web apps from Microsoft or Google. · Reading a PDF: Acrobat Reader. · Editing photos: Affinity or GIMP. · Editing video: DaVinci Resolve or Shotcut. · A poster in ten minutes: Canva or Adobe Express. · Scanning a document with your phone: see Document scanning. · Meetings and meeting notes: see Meetings and AI notetakers. · Installing safely: see Downloading safely.

On this page:
Office suites PDF and documents Document scanning Photo editing Graphics and design Video editing Audio Screen recording and streaming Media players and converters Browsers and email Utilities Virus scanners Cloud storage Meetings and AI notetakers Downloading safely Related Vads Corner pages About this page

Office suites

The big three, and the free alternatives that open the same files.

PDF and documents

Document scanning

Phone apps that turn a photograph of a page into a straightened, readable PDF. Before you install anything, check what your phone already does: the iPhone Notes and Files apps can scan documents, and the Google Drive app on Android has a scan button. The Microsoft 365 app also scans.

A scanning app uploads your page to somebody’s cloud unless it says it keeps it on the phone. Do not scan patient records, identity documents or contracts with an app whose privacy policy you have not read.

Photo editing

Graphics and design

Video editing

Audio

Screen recording and streaming

Media players and converters

Browsers and email

Utilities

Virus and malware scanners

Start with what you already have. Windows 10 and 11 include Microsoft Defender (open “Windows Security”), which updates through Windows Update and is on by default. Macs have built-in malware protection, and Android has Google Play Protect. For most people one real-time antivirus is enough. Do not run two at once: they conflict and slow the machine (Windows normally switches Defender off when you install another one). Use a second scanner only for a one-off second opinion.

Checking a file, a web address or a password

Beware of a pop-up in your browser that says your computer is infected and tells you to call a number or download a “cleaner”. It is a scam. Close the tab, and if it will not close, restart the browser.

Cloud storage

Meetings and AI notetakers

Video meetings

AI notetakers

These join your meeting (most as a visible “participant”), record it, then give you a transcript, a summary and action items. They work with Zoom, Teams and Meet. Free plans are really a taster: they usually cap the transcription minutes, the number of AI summaries, or how long recordings are kept, and the numbers change often.

Before you record. Tell everyone on the call that it is being recorded and transcribed, and get their agreement. Never use an AI notetaker on a clinical consultation, a case discussion with patient details, or a confidential business call without the approval of the people involved and your organisation. The recording and transcript sit on the vendor’s servers, and where they are stored and whether they are used to train the vendor’s AI are questions for the vendor’s privacy page.

Downloading safely

The old download libraries were fine in 2004; today the main risk is a bundled extra or a fake copy of a popular program. Get the program from the maker’s own site or an official store where you can. If you must use a third-party site, decline any extra toolbars or “offers” during setup, and scan the file before opening it.

About this page

Disclaimer · cyberdoc@vadscorner.com