Back-To-School: 3 Must Have Free Software For Your Laptop

You've already spent at least a few hundred dollars on a laptop for your high school- or college-bound students. Do you really need to spend hundreds more on an office suite, anti-virus software, and backup utilities?

No, no, and no. Let's take a look at the best free software for laptop-toting students.

Kingsoft Office Suite Free 2013

Kingsoft Office 2013 includes three applications, Writer, Spreadsheets and Presentation. The newest version of Kingsoft Office’s industry leading productivity suite ups the ante with a variety of new student-friendly features, ranging from robust paragraph adjustment tool to better copy and paste options in Writer. For users who need a new office suite to go along with a new computer for school, it should definitely be on your list. Along with an updated interface, Kingsoft Office also added the ability to change your interface to different color scheme, so that power users can tweak it to their liking. Other enhancements include better Microsoft Office compatibility, PDF converter, multi-tab interface and tons of free templates to download.

Avast Free Antivirus

Effective security software doesn't have to mean expensive security software. Avast Free Antivirus is among a handful of products offering comprehensive protection from both viruses and spyware. It even supports remote control, meaning a more tech-savvy friend or relative can connect to the PC to help troubleshoot problems.  There are also coupon codes available for Avast if you have a need to upgrade to their paid versions.
Again, there are other security freebies worth considering, most notably AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition, but Avast routinely scores top marks from both CNET editors and everyday users. It's the single most popular download on CNET's Download.com.

BatteryBar

How much paper-writing time do you really have left before your laptop's battery runs dry? Windows historically does a poor job reporting a system's charge status, meaning you might suddenly find yourself staring at a blank screen even though Windows said you had 20 minutes left.
Enter BatteryBar, a free, easy, and so-smart-it-should-be-built-in power gauge that's compatible with XP, Vista and Windows 7.
The program adds a full-time, at-a-glance gauge to the right side of the taskbar, which by itself is handy. Mouse over the gauge, however, and you get a wealth of additional information, including total battery capacity, charge/discharge rate, AC status, and even a lifetime estimate based on historical charge/discharge data.