05:Tools I Could Not Live Without

In my last blog post, I talked about the huge differences in doing business in today’s technology environment versus a few decades ago. Probably the most thrilling part of that for me is the increased access to free or very cheap tools with which I can do all of my creative work. I will be writing a series of articles about some of my favorite tools and how I use them for much of my work.

I will be discussing tools that you can use on your computer desktop, and I will also explore the emerging tools available on our mobile technology – smartphones and tablets.

These are several of the areas that I intend to cover over the next few months:

Graphics tools – used for creating or modifying the variety of graphics that are needed to make our websites and other communications look as professional as possible

Video tools – used for creating or modifying the videos that are increasingly dominating the Internet as the primary tool of communication

Audio tools – a video is only as good as its accompanying sound, so we need tools that give us the professional quality audio that will capture and keep our viewers’ interest

Utility tools – these are the basic productivity tools that make our lives easier and help us work faster and more efficiently

Many of these tools are my favorites because they are either free or low cost and they get the job done adequately. Occasionally, I need to buy something that is expensive, but it is rare, and I always look first for a suitable substitute before I finally buy a tool. By doing this, I have saved thousands of dollars over the years.

My posts will not be full-blown reviews, but rather I will discuss the ways that I personally use the software. I will offer useful hints, to whet your appetite, but will refer you to YouTube to explore the abundant videos that can train you on how to use the tools.

My next post will be about a graphics tool that is my favorite, by far: Paint.Net. Stay tuned…