Posts from Online Tech Tips for 05/08/2019

In this issue: The Best Open Source Software You Should Be Using - [View in browser]( Tuesday, May 07, 2019 The Best Open Source Software You Should Be Using by Mark O'Neill | [Online Tech Tips]( There was a time when, if you wanted a quality piece of software for your computer, you had to get your wallet out and pay for it. Microsoft products were – and still are – a prime example of this. But then the open source movement picked up steam and suddenly we were treated to outstanding quality products. The price? Absolutely nothing. Don’t you just love the Internet? But What Is Open Source? There are two forms of software – open source and closed (proprietary) source. It’s important to understand the difference. Open source is when the source code (the code that runs the software) is freely available for anyone to inspect. You can see how features work, clone your own versions of that software and release them as open-source too (meaning you don’t make a profit on it). Open-source projects are always free. That is the whole point. On the other hand, closed source (proprietary) software is, as the name says, completely closed. The companies don’t want you to see the source code because they rely on the source code to make a profit with their products. For example, you will never see the source code for Microsoft or Apple products. It’s just not in their best business interests. You can run open source products on Microsoft or Apple operating systems but getting under the hood of Windows or macOS to inspect their code? Yeah good luck with that. Below are what I feel are the biggest and best open source projects around. Obviously “biggest and best” is very subjective so maybe you disagree with me? If so, please do let me know. [Linux]( Linux is probably the biggest, most well-known, and most popular open source project in existence. Since it began in 1991, there is now [easily a couple hundred active Linux operating system “distros”]( for distributions). This includes [the Tails system]( which I recently profiled, and high-profile ones such as [Ubuntu]( [Linux Mint]( and [Debian](. Linux is attractive to people who are turned off by the thought of having to pay for expensive operating systems or by people with a hatred towards Windows. Linux is supported by most major software apps but its downside is that installing those apps is not as straightforward as it would be on Windows or macOS. Some technical ability is required. [Mozilla Firefox]( I’ve made no secret of my fondness for Google Chrome, but I still have a place in my heart for Mozilla Firefox. Firefox has been around longer than Chrome has been, and Firefox were the ones who started to destroy Microsoft’s browser monopoly. I’m surprised though that not many people know that Firefox is open source and that its owner Mozilla is a non-profit foundation. You can freely inspect the code, volunteer to help develop the browser, and even make your own browser based on the Firefox code. Three examples are [WaterFox]( [PaleMoon]( and [the Tor Browser](. [LibreOffice]( If there was ever a reason never to pay for Microsoft Office again, LibreOffice would be it. Even paying for Office 365 is pointless when you see free alternatives like LibreOffice and Google Suite. LibreOffice is a word processing suite which includes text documents, spreadsheets, databases and “presentations” (their version of Powerpoint). Although LibreOffice has its own file format, other file formats, such as Microsoft files, are fully supported, and there is a nifty one-click PDF generation button. [KeePass]( Not so long ago, [I wrote about my love for KeePass]( and despite shinier rivals trying to get my attention, my affection for KeePass has never waned. Sure, KeePass is a bit plain and functional. But sometimes that’s all you need. As well as storing your passwords, it also has a very easy-to-use password generator. When you accept the password it offers you, it automatically pre-fills the KeePass fields so all you need to do is “save”. Since KeePass also has a portable version, it is easy to stick the password database file in cloud storage and sync it across computers. [WordPress]( Along with Linux, this is probably the other most famous example of open-source projects. It is used by a staggering 60 million websites to power everything from online shops to portfolios to blogs (and many more uses in-between). Let’s just say that if WordPress decided to stop development tomorrow, a lot of websites would have serious problems. To extend its usability, WordPress relies heavily on its vast library of [plugins]( and [themes](. Most of them are free but there are a lot of premium options as well. [Chromium]( I mentioned earlier on that Mozilla Firefox was the best open-source browser, but Google has also been working on their own light open-source offering. Not to be confused with Google Chrome, Chromium is Google’s open-source browser. Most of Google Chrome’s code is based on Chromium but Chromium is also a browser in its own right. Many other browser developers use Chromium code for their own browsers. This includes Amazon Silk and Opera. As of this year, Microsoft Edge will also incorporate Chromium into their browser. Cryptocurrency Finally, cryptocurrency. Yes, even that is open-source as anyone can take an existing cryptocurrency, study the code, and make a new one. For example, I could take Bitcoin and use the code to make an ONeillCoin if I was so inclined and had the developing skills. But that is for another article and for someone who knows what they are talking about. You may also like these other posts from OTT: [How to Configure Do Not Disturb Settings on Android]( [5 iOS Games Worth Buying an MFi Controller For]( [How to Make Sure You Get the Network Speeds You Pay For]( [How to Make Great YouTube Thumbnails for Your Videos]( [Three Photo Editing Apps You Need to Make Any Picture Instagram Worthy]( Check out more posts from our publishing family: Help Desk Geek Posts [7 Easy Ways To Radically Speed Up Your WordPress Website]( May 7, 2019 by Mark O'Neill To quote a classic movie, “I feel the need, the need for speed!”. That is now also Google’s mantra when it comes to ranking websites. Is your site fast enough for mobile visitors? If not, you are going to find your beloved first page ranking ripped to shreds. Google provides a handy tool which measures […] [READ MORE]( [Google Chrome Crashing, Freezing or Not Responding? 7 Ways to Fix It]( May 6, 2019 by Ryan Dube Google Chrome is a fantastic web browser, but there are times when Google Chrome crashes, freezes, or simply stops responding. There are a lot of reasons these behaviors can occur, so it’s important to be very methodical when you’re troubleshooting and trying to fix the issue. This article will walk you through the typical fixes […] [READ MORE]( The Backroom Tech Posts [Best Practices for Signing a Windows PowerShell Script]( May 7, 2019 by Christopher Jan Benitez There are a lot of benefits of using Windows PowerShell over the more popular Command Prompt. But using PowerShell without digitally signing scripts can leave you vulnerable to attacks. This post will explain the importance of PowerShell script signatures and mention some best practices so your scripts remain secure. What is Windows PowerShell? Windows PowerShell […] [READ MORE]( [How to Use the Microsoft Anti-Malware Script Interface]( Apr 22, 2019 by Dan Franciscus Hackers are increasing the malware attacks executed in memory. One of the main execution methodologies for in memory attacks is to execute a script directly without ever writing to disk.  Traditional anti-virus works by comparing signatures to files on disk. But what do we do when the executing code never touches the disk? Or worse, […] [READ MORE]( Switching To Mac Posts [How To Backup Your iOS Device Using iTunes]( Apr 12, 2019 by Mark O'Neill As every iOS device owner knows, you can quickly and easily back it up on iCloud by using the device’s settings. But another way to back it up is to make an encrypted backup to your computer using iTunes. It’s another insurance policy in case a backup fails, then you have another one in your […] [READ MORE]( [How To Wipe & Reformat Your iOS Device]( Apr 11, 2019 by Mark O'Neill Previously, I discussed how to wipe and reinstall your MacOS operating system, which is recommended due to a gradual accumulation of gunk. But your iPhone is no different. It is still a computer, albeit a tiny one which fits in your pocket. It collects digital debris like any other computer. Which is why you should […] [READ MORE]( ABOUT ONLINE TECH TIPS Welcome to Online Tech Tips – A blog that provide readers with daily computer tutorials, technology news, software reviews, and personal computing tips. My name is Aseem Kishore and I am a full-time professional blogger. I graduated from Emory University with a degree in Computer Science and Mathematics. Copyright © 2019 Online-Tech-Tips.com, LLC, All rights reserved. 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