Air Sharing is an essential iPhone app for transferring and viewing files.

Lets you transfer files from computers to the iPhone and back. Works with Mac, Windows, and Linux. Offers Web access to files on iPhone. Thorough built-in help.

Some limitations to Office file viewing. No file-editing features.

Webroot AntiVirus with AntiSpyware 6.0 excels both at cleaning malware-infested systems and at keeping threats out of clean systems.

Removed almost all traces of sample malware. "Shields" blocked almost all malware installation. Comes with 1GB of online backup as a bonus; also local backup.

Full system scan is slower than average. Some infested systems required a Safe Mode install. Some systems lost connectivity after cleanup (easily repaired)

OneTap Movies makes finding movie locations and schedules on your iPhone far simpler than if you had to fire up Safari, find a movie site, input your ZIP code, and so on. Cyrus Najmabadi's Now Playing and Flixster's Movie provide essentially the same ...

Finds theaters and showtimes based on your location. Serves tons of trailers

No search. No ticket purchasing

The OneTap Movies iPhone app can help you locate a nearby flick when you're on the go, and lets you watch previews. There's no ticket buying capability like what you find in competing app Now Playing.

Zaroboo's SpeakEasy Voice Recorder is a high-quality voice-recording app that's worth the $2 download.

OpenOffice.org, now released in its long-awaited 3.0 version, is a free, open-source replacement for Microsoft Officeand the first and only application suite that can be seriously considered to be a substitute for the massive power and flexibility of ...

Free. Open-source. Feature-packed. Highly compatible with Office 2007 formats. Single interface for all apps

Interface uninformative ; makes little use of spacious monitors. Some features are unreliable. Not all Office features are supported

OpenOffice.org 3.0 is the best, cheapest alternative to Microsoft Office, but there's no need to switch if you don't require open-source software and you've already paid for a copy of Microsoft's suite.

Unless you're using a Gutenberg press, you've probably printed many, many ghost pagessheets that are blank or contain nothing but URLs, footers, and other generally useless information. With seemingly countless hard-copy output devices on the planet, ...

Needs no printer setup. Clean, functional interface. Includes PDF generator. Reports savings

No switch from color to black-and-white. Preview generator tends to lag. Free version displays ads

All three versions of the GreenPrint paper-conservation software seamlessly integrate with the Windows print dialog to give you a practical way to save paper, ink, money, and the environment.

When software problemsmalware, bad drivers, corrupted Registry keys, and the likeslow a PC, fixing the trouble can consume a lot of time. If you have more than one faltering system, the minutes quickly become hours, so tools that automate even part of ...

Simple to use. Automated. Inexpensive

May require creation of an XP boot disc. Left one PC running slow ; failed entirely on another

Reimage has potential as an automated PC repair tool, but judging by our tests it doesn't yet perform well enough to earn our recommendation.

Zune Marketplace is the software and online music store portion of Microsoft's low-key effort to beat the Apple iPod leviathan. It works only with Zune MP3 players, such the Zune 120GB, which currently wears our Editors' Choice crown. Since the last ...

Slick album graphics and MixView. Now sells TV shows in addition to music. Can download music wirelessly with Zune players. Sells some DRM-free tracks from all four major labels. Works on all Zunes sold to date

Perplexing point system for song and video purchases. No movies, rentals, games, or apps available. Significantly smaller library than competition offers. Browsing still difficult for some categories

Slowly and steadily, Microsoft has improved the Zune Marketplace to the point where it's a slick, viable alternative to the Apple iTunes juggernautbut only for music lovers, and only if you can get past the point system.

In our current financial train wreck, you need to be careful with money. This simple online financial service helps you plan and keep control of spending.

Delivers daily financial info via e-mail. Customizable e-mail, Web interface. Helps plan for future spending, keep spending in check. Alerts you to upcoming bills.

Shows only a few recent transactions. Financial tracking is much more basic than with competing services. What's Left calculations don't factor into total current debt. No detailed spending history.

Facebook's iPhone app delivers basic social-networking features for mobile users, but little else.

Free. Delivers basic Facebook functionality. No ads.

No search function to find new friends. No News Feed or Applications. Doesn't use iPhone's GPS functions.