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You probably made New Year resolutions, because — if nothing else — you’re superstitious. But, those resolutions don’t happen telepathically. You’ve got to make an effort to meet those goals at least halfway to fulfill them at least fifty percent. But the Webmaster has special problems, as this job requires long hours and a ton of frustrations. Those hours are filled with stressful clients, server emergencies, and browser incompatibilities. What do Webmasters do to stay healthy, both physically and mentally?

You may smoke, drink way too many energy drinks, eat too much or you don’t eat enough just to cope with all your work-related woes. But don’t sweat it - we’re here to help with 101 tips and resources geared specifically to a male or female Webmaster’s physical and mental health problems. Although the following list provides great information, these sites don’t take the place of a health professional. If you fear the worst, don’t hesitate to see a professional about your worries. If you are in medical crisis please contact your doctor, therapist or dial 911 (or equivalent local emergency number in your area).

The list below is categorized by topics listed in alphabetical order. The links are also listed alphabetically. The numbers mean nothing other than to let you know that we’ve provided 101 tips and resources to help you become the healthiest and happiest Webmaster around!

Addiction | Carpal Tunnel | Diabetes | Dieting | Eating Disorders | Emotional Problems | Ergonomics | Exercise | Self-Help | Sexual Issues | Stress

Addictions

The following resources deal with addiction as a disease, and they cover a wide area although some sites are specific as to the type of addiction. No matter if you’re a smoker who wants to quit, or a family member of a drinker who doesn’t want to quit, or if you find yourself in bed with your computer mouse after you’ve checked your email for the umpteenth time, you can find information about your issues at any one of these sites.

1. Addiction Recovery Basics: Although the 12-Step program may sound corny to you, many people who use this program for recovery from their addictions will tell you it’s the only program that worked for them. If you need more help with your obsession, no matter what it is, you might give this idea a shot.
2. Alcoholics Anonymous: AA online is the 12-Step site for recovering alcoholics. The site also is available in French and in Spanish. As you go down the recovery path you may discover local chapters of AA online. Family members of alcoholics can find help at Al-anon/Alateen.
3. Internet Addiction Recovery: Learn how to deal with your computer compulsions at this site, where you’ll find information about Internet addictions at work and in your private life. They also have a test for you to determine if you’re truly addicted to your computer.
4. Narcotics Anonymous: Although similar to Alcoholics Anonymous in concept, drug addicts have different issues that need to be addressed. Hence, NA rather than AA. Family members of a drug addict can find help at Nar-Anon.
5. Science Daily Addiction News: ScienceDaily offers groundbreaking news about addictions across the board, no matter if it pertains to smoking, cocaine, or overeating. This online journal touches all bases so you can learn more about why you can’t refrain from your addiction or why you never developed one.
6. PscyhCentral Internet Addiction Guide: This one-page guide offers many resources on Internet addiction, including opinions on whether an Internet Addiction Test is valid or not.
7. Psychology Today Addiction Center: This online treatment center deals with addictions that range from alcohol abuse to sex and love. Learn the signs and symptoms that lead to full-blown addictions.
8. The New Science of Addiction: Although the science of addiction isn’t new, the information about how people become addicted to certain objects and actions is constantly under scrutiny. From this line of study, it appears that genetics may have something to do with addictive behaviors. Find out more about this line of thinking at this site.
9. The Work Addiction Syndrome: Never mind being addicted to the Internet. What if you’re addicted to work in general? What a ghastly thought! This article lays out some parameters that define the workaholic.
10. Tobacco Addiction: If you can smoke at work (and if you work at home you might), you can see the damage that tobacco does to your body if you look inside your computer’s tower. The works inside will covered with a sticky brown substance that will slow it down or kill it completely. This report goes further, as it explains precisely what tobacco does, and how a smoker can find help to kick the habit.
11. Workaholics Anonymous: Here’s one self-help solution for the person who’s addicted to work. Meetings aren’t available in all states, but you can contact them to find someone that can help you get on the road to recovery.

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Carpal Tunnel

Do you have carpal tunnel syndrome? Are you sure? If you have this ailment, do you know how to alleviate the pain? If you’re not afflicted, do you know how to prevent it? The following sites may point you in the right direction to answer these carpal tunnel questions:

12. Mayo Clinic’s Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: This site explains carpal tunnel syndrome, its symptoms, treatments and prevention in an easy-to-understand tutorial.
13. MedlinePlus’s Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: MedlinePlus provides a resource-heavy explanation about carpal tunnel, including tutorials in Spanish.
14. Carpal Tunnel Exercises: This is a very simple site that holds an exercise you can do to help prevent and ease the pain of carpal tunnel syndrome.
15. Carpal Tunnel Surgery: WebMD offers a concise explanation of what you might go through if you choose surgery to relieve your carpal tunnel syndrome.
16. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome & Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome: Learn more about what carpal tunnel is and isn’t all about from MedicineNet.
17. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Fact Sheet: “You’re working at your desk, trying to ignore the tingling or numbness you’ve had for months in your hand and wrist. Suddenly, a sharp, piercing pain shoots through the wrist and up your arm…” Although this page begins like a novel, their information about how to avoid this problem and how to treat it is factual.

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Diabetes

You may not have diabetes now. But, if you sit in front of a computer all day, don’t exercise, overeat or eat incorrectly and if you have a family history of diabetes, you may meet this disease head on sooner than later. Although diabetes has, historically, developed in people over age forty, it is increasing among younger adults and in adolescents. For your information, the type of diabetes that most inactive and/or overweight people develop is Type II.

18. American Diabetes Association: This is your first stop to learn more about how to treat diabetes and, most importantly, to learn how to avoid it. For instance, the tips on what to eat and how to exercise represent healthy choices even for healthy individuals..
19. Diabetes at Work: This site focuses on the impact of diabetes in the workplace. Even if you’re self-employed, you might find information here to help you to avoid or to manage this disease.
20. Diabetes Public Health Resource: This site offers information for the public and for professionals about diabetes, including research, statistics, and educational publications.
21. dLife: This site focuses solely on what it’s like to live with diabetes, both at home and at work. You can learn about both types of diabetes along with blood sugar management, food and nutrition, and receive support and inspiration from other diabetics.
22. National Diabetes Education Program: This site offers solutions on how to prevent or delay Type II diabetes as well as information on how to treat it.
23. National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse: Discover information about diabetes, treatments, complications and more at this easy-to-use site.
24. WebMD Diabetes Health Center: Another great site that provides overall information and specifics for each type of known diabetes.

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Dieting

Sitting in front of a computer all day can lead to an urge to eat and drink far too much. Before you know it, you can’t sit in front of that monitor without something in your mouth. This is called “developing a bad habit,” a learning behavior that can harm you if you don’t nip it in the bud. Additionally, a sedentary lifestyle can affect your metabolism, which can also affect your weight. The following sites and programs can get you back on track with a balanced diet and lifestyle. Be careful about using diet plans that bring the food to your door - you could become addicted to these programs because they’re just too easy to use…

25. 6 Ways To Improve Your Diet At Work: No matter if you work at home or in an office, this list contains some simple tips you can use to help you maintain that diet at work.
26. Dieting and Metabolism: Unfortunately, you cannot count calories and expect to lose weight. You also need to get active. Renee Cloe, a personal trainer, explains the rationale behind the metabolism mystery.
27. Dieting Calculator: First, you need to determine if you’re really overweight or if you just need to exercise. This calculator will help you determine your caloric intake and shows parameters for various lifestyles.
28. Fad Diet: “Dispensing horrible advice since 1998!” Being overweight is a problem for your health, but get over it - you can laugh about your current situation, because it’s reversible if you work at it. This site will help with the laughter part, as sometimes laughter is…well, sure…the best medicine.
29. Free Dieting: Outside of offering tons of tips about dieting, this site’s main contribution is the comparison of free diet plans both on the Internet and through books.
30. Jenny Craig: If you want to learn how to portion your food, this is one way to begin your lessons. The food is mainly wheat-based, however, so if you’re allergic to wheat or if you’re a celiac, then you dare not try this program. Otherwise, try their low-calorie chocolate cheesecake for desert!
31. Nutrisystem: This eating plan is different than Jenny Craig in that Nutrisystem don’t focus on females and they offer a wider variety of eating plans. For instance, they offer a male diabetic plan and a vegetarian option for both genders. Many foods in this plan also do not contain gluten (or wheat). Once again, the idea behind this systematic approach to eating is to re-learn how to eat and to learn correct portion sizes.
32. The Calorie Counter: This tool provides one way to count your daily caloric intake. The chart is easy to read and the different types of food contained in this database is amazing. You don’t need to register to use this tool.
33. Tips for a Healthy Diet: If you ever wanted all the basic diet information you’d ever need on one Web page, this is it. Take a look around the site, however, to find more interesting information about emotional and physical health and well being.
34. Weight Loss, Dieting, and Obesity: This site seems outdated, but the links aren’t. The information gathered here can help you make an intelligent choice about the type of diet you might need along with information about other factors that may lead to weight gain.
35. Weight Watchers: Turn your food into points and make a game out of losing weight. The difference between this plan and other plans is that there is no prepackaged food and you attend meetings. Some experts have claimed that the meetings are what work for this program, as they provide motivation. With that said, if you’re shy or if you’re bogged down with work, you can do the Weight Watchers Online program.

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Eating Disorders

Some weight issues may not be physical in origin. If you have developed an eating disorder thanks to emotional issues, then some of these sites may help you out.

36. Anorexics and Bulimics Anonymous: The people drawn to this group of individuals want to gain “sobriety” in eating practices and help others to gain a foothold in ’sober eating’ as well. “The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop unhealthy eating practices.”
37. Eating Disorders: The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) provides a one-page rundown on eating disorders that’s easy to understand. This is a ’starting point’ for anyone who is unfamiliar with eating problems.
38. Finding Balance: This is the first video-on-demand Web site that deals with eating problems and body image issues. Visitors can interact with this site through self-tests and find more information through books, links, and their panel experts.
39. In Memory of Polly Williams: If you don’t think eating disorders can lead to death, think again. Polly Williams, made famous from her appearance in Lauren Greenfield’s Emmy-nominated documentary Thin, died from an overdose of sleeping pills on February 8, 2008. At age 33, she could no longer deal with a life filled with anxiety over her eating disorders. A study has shown that depression that stems from eating disorders can be deadly, especially for women.
40. National Eating Disorders Association: NEDA is dedicated to expanding public understanding about eating disorders and promoting access to education, advocacy and research. Their hope is to help prevent some eating disorders while offering solutions for other eating problems.
41. Overeaters Anonymous: While many folks who join this effort may not have eating disorders, many individuals who develop problems seek help through this organization, which is based upon the original 12-Step program for recovery.
42. Something Fishy: This Web site is dedicated totally to eating disorders. The materials on this site emphasize that eating disorders are not about food and weight, but symptoms of something deeper going on inside the individual. Although this site was initiated by a working couple, they recently have relinquished ownership to CRC Health Group, an organization that deals with eating disorders.
43. Women’s Health Eating Disorders: This information is from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women’s Health. They list the various types of eating disorders along with symptoms and offer resources through links at the end of the article.

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Emotional Problems

If your job promotes isolation in a cubicle at a busy office or at home, it may not take long for you to develop some emotional issues. If you’re naturally shy, isolation will enhance that shyness. If you tend to become depressed, isolation may enhance that problem. Even if you’re surrounded by people at work, chances are you seldom share those inner fears. Too much disclosure can harm a career, after all. And, if you lose your job (like many techies did following the 2001 dot com bust), the emotional issues can be rife. The following sites contain information about a variety of emotional problems, how they might originate, how they progress, and what you can do to help yourself (or others).

44. Depressed Anonymous: This site is older, but it seems that the links are in working order. Based upon the 12-Step recovery program, DA brings information about local groups where you can meet (and still remain anonymous if you want), online information about depression, and more. Their philosophy is that mutual aid empowers people and that it’s a therapeutic healing force.
45. Depression.com: You know you can’t simply “snap out of it” when you’re truly depressed. And, while most of the symptoms are easily diagnosed - even by the sufferer - the recovery isn’t that simple. Some depressions are thought-induced and others may have physical origins. This site will help you understand depression and help you find help.
46. Dual Recovery Anonymous: You may have been diagnosed with “co-morbidity, co-occurring illnesses, concurrent disorders, comorbid disorders, co-occurring disorder, or dual disorder,” but basically what you’re dealing with is “double trouble.” In this case, a simple 12-Step recovery program is just one part of your self-help process. This site will lead you to more ways to cope with ongoing emotional issues.
47. Emotions Anonymous: EA is another self-help group that focuses on 12-Step recovery, but their mission is to deal with a range of emotions, not just depression. If you have to ask about other emotions, try anger, broken or strained relationships, grief, anxiety, low self-esteem, panic, abnormal fears, resentment, jealousy, guilt, despair, fatigue, tension, boredom, loneliness, withdrawal, obsessive and negative thinking, worry, and compulsive behavior just to name a few.
48. Emotional Health Anonymous: If you feel the previous two groups won’t work, try this one. The bonus to this site is that they lay out the twelve steps, their mission, and their activities in an easy-to-read format. They’re very specific about dealing with emotional issues that aren’t related to substance abuse.
49. National Alliance on Mental Illness: If you know you have an emotional problem, but you can’t seem to nail the symptoms to a disease, then visit this site. NAMI defines a broad range of emotional disorders and provides information on how to get professional help or directions on how to obtain self help.
50. Obsessive Compulsive Foundation: This foundation deals specifically with people who develop obsessive-compulsive disorders and the emotional issues that surround recurrent, unwelcome thoughts and behaviors. If you suffer from these afflictions, you’re not alone. One in 40 adults and one in 200 children suffer from OCD at some point in their lives. This means that at any one time in the United States, at least 5 million people experience OCD symptoms (which include nail biting!).
51. Shake Your Shyness: Did you know that some celebrities fight shyness? And you thought you were special! In reality, nearly fifty percent of the adult population in the U.S. is believed to be shy and shyness is on the increase at the rate of approximately ten percent over the last decade or so. Does the onset of the computer age have anything to do with this increase? We don’t know the answer, but this site may provide clues along with some sane advice and links to a multitude of other sites that zone in on shyness.
52. Social Anxiety Support: SAS deals with social anxiety, a problem that’s a tad more severe than run-of-the-mill shyness. SAS provides a place where people who develop social phobias can learn how to reconnect with others. So, if you feel that you may be judged, scrutinized or humiliated by others and this feeling has led to total isolation in your social and work life, then visit this site to learn more about your real and imagined fears.
53. Wrong Diagnosis: If you visited the previous sites, be aware that self-diagnosis is a risky venture. You may think you’re depressed when you really have problems with an inactive thyroid - or visa-versa. This site will help you either relieve some of your worries or point you in a more refined direction. And, as with any other problem that affects your physical or emotional health, you might use self diagnosis as a stepping stone and then visit a professional for the final word.

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Ergonomics

If you sit in front of a computer all day long, you may develop joint and muscle problems, back pain, posture problems and more. The following sites explain the issues and offer solutions.

54. Computer Posture: Are You Sitting Comfortably?: This one-page informational sheet contains photos that illustrate correct and incorrect computer posture as well as links to more information about ergonomics.
55. Ergonomics.org: This site is dedicated to the exchange of information between the fields of ergonomics and the Alexander Technique. The latter program deals with all issues surrounding the lack of healthy work situations.
56. Guidelines to Improve Posture: Spine-health.com provides information on how to improve your posture in front of the computer. You can also snag some tips on best posture stances while walking, driving, standing and more.
57. Improve Your ‘Hunched over the PC’ Posture’: The Dumb Little Man brings ways to improve the stress of sitting in front of the computer all day. Although these exercises won’t improve your posture, they will help to relax and energize you and make you more aware of your posture as you continue to work.
58. Office Ergonomics Training: This site contains office ergonomics information aimed at ergonomics committee members as well as office workers in general. Learn ergonomic tips and tools that will make your Webmaster’s job much more comfortable.
59. Posture for a Healthy Back: This one-page article details how to improve the chances to develop and maintain a healthy back. We like the image of the guy in the car, a drawing that looks somewhat like a young Jay Leno.
60. Safe Computing Tips: This site is dedicated to safe computing and focuses on providing information about office furniture that will help your physical health and safety.
61. Seated Posture Tips: ErgoSum Consulting provides tips and images to show you how to sit in that office chair correctly. You’ll learn that it’s not healthy to “sit up straight,” but that it’s better to support that lumbar region. Otherwise, you’ll end up in a great deal of pain.
62. Three Simple Exercises to Improve Posture: St. Luke’s in Iowa offers three simple exercises that you can do at home or in a work cubicle to improve your posture.
63. U.S. Department of Labor Ergonomics: Most of the information at this site is based upon OSHA (Occupational and Safety Health Administration) research and solutions about ergonomics. It’s probably one of the most comprehensive sites around on ergonomics, especially in the workplace.
64. Workstation Setup: This site provides a step-by-step overview on how to set up an ergonomic workstation. The online exercise that teaches ergonomic essentials will take about 45 minutes to absorb. This is a fairly easy-to-use yet comprehensive self-help tool that may prevent physical injury down the road, no matter if you work in an office or at home.

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Exercise

Ever hear of a Webmaster who won the triathlon? We didn’t think so. Webmasters can develop serious health problems from inactivity, but you don’t need to practice for serious competitions to get in shape. If you take fifteen to thirty minutes a day to exercise, your health benefits will increase dramatically. In addition, lack of exercise can ‘muddy’ the brain. So, take a walk or do a few stretches in the office to wake up that grey matter and to keep your metabolism running strong.

65. 15 Minute Travel Workout: Even if you never travel, this exercise routine is great for folks who don’t own exercise equipment. The animations show you what to do and the written instructions tell you how often to do each set.
66. Core Exercises: If you don’t know about core exercises, CNN’s Health Library contains some information that will help you along. Just remember that the core includes your back, not just your abs. You need strong stomach and back muscles to truly balance that core. Their link will take you to the Mayo Clinic, where you’ll find photographs that illustrate top core exercises you can do just about anywhere but the mall or a busy parking lot.
67. Dr. Kravitz Travel Workout: Here’s another workout that doesn’t need equipment and that will provide some variety to the first routine listed above.
68. Easy Cardio At Home Workout Tips: This short list of easy ways to develop a cardio routine at home is ideal for the person who works out of a home office and who has space for some exercise equipment. Some of these ideas are ideal for the public office, too, as long as you have access to equipment such as treadmills.
69. Exercise for Weight Loss: The Mayo Clinic provides a concise guide on how many calories you can burn during your lunch hour or in that hour after work and before dinner. If you don’t have an hour, the Mayo Clinic doesn’t give up on you. They also provide an article entitled, “Aerobic exercise: What 30 minutes a day can do.” and another one entitled, ” How to Burn Calories While You Work.”
70. Fitness 101: The Absolute Beginner’s Guide to Exercise: MedicineNet provides beginners with advice and tools to begin an exercise program. You might read this before you go to the gym or hire a personal trainer so you can at least appear somewhat knowledgeable about what you’re getting into.
71. How to do Office Yoga: In these free videos you can learn simple techniques for yoga stretching that you can do in confined spaces.
72. Learn to Dance: So what if your legs turn to water when you’re in public? You don’t have to speak, because you can learn to dance! Dancing burns calories, it’s fun, and you may meet that special geek while you burn up the dance floor. This site provides online lessons, an inexpensive DVD, and a dance directory to discover whether you live near a studio or not. Better yet, you can Bust a Move or you can learn how to dance with Napolean Dynamite (flippin’ sweet!).
73. Office Workout: About.com provides some simple exercises you can do at your desk. Although these exercises may not help you lose weight, they’ll boost your metabolism, help your posture, and keep you on your toes!
74. Personalized Online Fitness Training: Unsure about where to begin with your fitness program? Well, you can begin by walking more, but if you’re serious about developing a set of Webmaster abs, then you might try help from these folks.

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Self Help

All the twelve step programs listed above are geared toward emotional and psychological self help. The programs listed below also focus on self help, but from a physical perspective. We didn’t say that self-help was free, however. Some of the sites below offer help for a price, but the prices we viewed were very tolerable considering the alternatives (personal trainer fees, etc.).

75. Calorie-Count: Register to use this site sponsored by About.com. Look up foods on your phone, learn how to burn calories, and create a diet that fits your lifestyle. The only thing Calorie-Count can’t do is make you stick to your new routine.
76. Diet and Fitness Today: An online resource for diet and fitness including weight loss, low fat recipes, vitamins and minerals, nutrition, health and fitness. You also have access to health calculators, a special body fat percentage section to estimate your body fat based on bmi, skinfolds or body dimensions. They also have a new section devoted to fitness vacations.
77. Diet.com: It never hurts to tap into as many “diet” self-help Web sites as possible before you jump into a regular self-help routine. This site is the first we’ve seen that addresses the issue about people who may not want to be thin - being overweight does have its advantages, after all. You can hide behind fat, use it as an excuse to avoid public outings, etc. Other topics covered here include fitness and you have access to forums, recipes, challenges, and more.
78. Dr. Weil: Talk about a geek leading the geeks…this is a perfect place for Webmasters to learn certain life skills. Dr. Weil promotes a lifestyle that incorporates both eastern and western medicines and practices. This site covers everything from learning how to breathe correctly to eating right and to news about supplements that will help fill in the rough spots.
79. eDiets: Although this site focuses more on diets than on fitness, the activity angle is here along with ways to build a diet for your lifestyle. Once again, this is a diet that includes food delivered to your door. If you work at home and find little time to take care of yourself, this is one way to kickstart your get-well routine. This site combines all the best of Weight Watchers (weekly online meetings), SparkPeople forums and discussions (see below), and the food delivery weight loss system. You can choose among diabetic plans and wheat-free plans as well.
80. FatSecret: Well, it’s not a secret, really. But, these folks may unlock the help you need to feel better about your self image and to gain better health. You can browse around before you register, and this site is not affiliated with any diets or diet companies that are referenced on the site. Everything is free, so this is a great place to begin to learn what your motivations are and the level of commitment you’re willing to provide for yourself.
81. SparkPeople: If you’re a woman you may feel totally at home here, although this site doesn’t discriminate. It just seems that more women have found this place as a means to help them get and stay in shape. You can build menus or have them built for you, including calorie counts and information on how to quickly burn those calories. Register to gain access to forums and more to help build your physical fitness support group.
82. Fitness.com: This global fitness community offers forums, recipes, reviews on fitness equipment as well as equipment for sale and more. Register to use the “MyFitHome” tools to help you gain and maintain a healthy lifestyle.
83. FitDay: Use the free online journal to keep track of calories and keep track of weight loss goals. If you like their free version, the download version is inexpensive and integrates with your computer system.
84. Revolution Health: Revolution Health is one of the few sites that addresses both physical and mental health. This is a portal that provides online tools and calculators, fitness articles and videos, and food and nutrition information. If you’re courting diabetes, they address this issue. If you worry too much, you can find information about that problem as well.
85. WebMD: Yes, you can learn about all sorts of illnesses here, but you can also develop a health and fitness program through their Fitness 101 offerings. This site provides information from mild diets and walking to extreme fitness and strength training. Best of all, it’s free.

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Sexual Issues

Whether you have a healthy sex life or not is up to you to decide. Many people don’t realize that their sexual problems are, indeed, problems until someone else breaks the news. On the other hand, you may believe you have sexual issues, and these issues may be real or imagined. Either way, the following Web sites will help you learn more about your problems and lead you to groups, online forums, and more to get on the road to better and healthier sex life.

86. HIV Anonymous: HIV Anonymous is run by the HIV Anonymous World Service Organization (HIVAWSO). Their goal is to assist people with HIV or AIDS and their loved ones in taking control of their spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional health by providing current, comprehensive information in one source. They are a touchstone for HIV support groups, patients, and organizations through a volunteer network.
87. No-Porn.com: This site has helped men and women from all backgrounds to recover from pornography addiction since 1997. They utilize hypnosis among other tools to help individuals break the porn bond. Unfortunately, there are few other recovery efforts online, but tons of information from Christian-based organizations, government studies, and news stories. Simply type, “Pornography addiction” into any search engine to learn more.
88. Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous: Like AA, this program’s recovery efforts are based upon a 12-Step recovery program. So, if you’re addicted to love or if you’re obsessed with sex and both issues are clouding your judgment and hurting a career, you might want to stop into this site and say “hi.”
89. Sexaholics Anonymous: “The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop lusting and become sexually sober.” If you answered, “yes,” to one or more of these twelve questions, you may need Sexaholics Anonymous. This site hosts information for anyone who thinks that sex is disrupting his or her life.
90. Sexual Conditions Health Center: Not all sexual issues are caused by psychological problems or by previous traumas. Sometimes, just day-to-day stress will mess up a good thing. WebMD provides a comprehensive overview on sexual health, and helps individuals define what “healthy” conditions really mean.
91. Sexual Compulsives Anonymous: You probably figured by now that anytime you see the word, “anonymous,” you’re dealing with a self-help 12-Step recovery program. It’s no different here, but the topic is far different…the people who visit this site want to stop having compulsive sex.
92. Survivors of Incest Anonymous: Children harbor healthy, natural needs for love, attention and acceptance, and they often paid high prices to get those needs met. This site is intended as a serious resource for survivors of incest and child sexual abuse. It’s based upon the 12-Step recovery program, and it contains localized and global resources.

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Stress

If you don’t know it already, you might want to know that work-related stress can kill you. But, then again, that news might add more stress to your life. But, any major life changes also add stress. We’ve lined up some resources below that will explain stress in all forms and solutions for relieving some of that anxiety, both physically and emotionally.

93. Human Resources: This About.com site deals with human resources issues, including sress in the workplace. The ‘related topics’ below this article will lead you to more resources about this issue.
94. Major Life Changes: This list is a handy tool to keep available at all times. Anytime you’re faced with major changes, you experience physical and emotional stress. This list will help you make choices about how many stressful situations you’re willing to juggle at one time. For instance, if you’re expecting a child, it might not be the best time to consider relocation, a new job, or decide to head back for that college degree.
95. Major Life Change: Chaos Could Be a Good Sign: Although this article is brief and to-the-point, life coach Laura Young looks at the positive side of stress. When you deal with crises (we mean multiples), you can develop inner strength and confidence in your abilities. Read on to learn more positives!
96. Stress at Work: NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) provides a comprehensive yet concise list of tools and information where you can learn all angles about work-related stress and relief from that stress.
97. Stress Management: This is another About.com site that focuses on stress management in all areas of life. This is one of the most comprehensive sites we’ve encountered on this topic, as it provides a blog, articles, and tools to help recognize and deal with stress issues.
98. Stress Relief: Relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, visualization, progressive muscle relaxation, meditation, and yoga can help you activate this relaxation response to stress. This site shows you how to plan for and achieve a level of relaxation that may help you to cope with everyday stress triggers.
99. Stress Relief Exercises: Unlike exercises for physical strength, these tools will help you learn how to relax so you don’t hurt your body or shorten your lifespan.
100. Top 10 Steps to Making Life Changes: This PDF file was created by life coach Steve Davis, and he provides some sound advice on how to alleviate many stressful situations. For instance, if the bank forecloses on your apartment building, the stress won’t be half as bad on you if you have money set aside to handle a blow like this.
101. Work-Related Stress: Health & Safety Executive (HSE) provides a four-pronged approach to work-related stress. Learn how to ‘tackle’ stress, about management’s role in this issue, about ‘good practices,’ and advice for individuals.

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Not every proprietary program can drive a person crazy, right? Some, like Norton Ghost, are superb tools for anyone to use. But, the fact that these tools are proprietary can drive open source fanatics up a wall. It’s not the price of the software that makes the real difference (although it’s a reason to migrate from one software to another for many people); it’s the idea that proprietary software comes with boundaries that keeps the user experience confined to…well, being the user. That’s enough to drive any developer crazy.

The following fifty proprietary programs are listed in no particular order within broad categories along with their open source alternatives. In some cases you could probably write your own book on frustrations with the proprietary programs shown here. In other cases, you’ll discover that the open source alternative isn’t quite up to snuff yet. And, in other cases still, you’ll learn that some proprietary programs are real gems, but that the open source advocate can replace those gems with equally shiny objects from the open source repertoire.

Basics

1. Windows Vista OS to Ubuntu OS: This is Microsoft’s operating system (OS), and even Microsoft fans have become disillusioned with this product. Open source OS alternatives have expanded; but these OS often are difficult for the average user to install, learn, and operate. Why deal with it when Ubuntu has become so easy to use that even the most computer illiterate can jump into this operating system with very little time spent on a learning curve? In fact, users can purchase a Dell computer with Ubuntu already installed. Remember, however, that when it comes to using open source software that the open source community often focuses on applications that can be used through Windows, Mac, Linux, or Unix with the majority seemingly devoted to Windows.
2. Internet Explorer Browser to Firefox Browser: Sure, Internet Explorer (IE) is free; but, that’s because it comes packaged with Windows’ operating systems. Free is far different from open source software, where users have more control over how that software works. While you might feel more comfortable with a proprietary operating system, you can still use an open source browser like Mozilla’s Firefox, an exceptional product that expands its use with ‘add-ons‘ created by avid users.

Office Suites

3. Microsoft Office to OpenOffice: If the price makes you feel that Microsoft has worked you over, then switch! If you compare Microsoft’s Office with other products, then you’re looking for something that includes an email client, a word processor, a spreadsheet tool, and a multimedia presentation application. The only product that provides a competitive edge against Microsoft is Google (that includes Gmail, Google Docs, Google Presentation and more). But, some would argue that Google isn’t truly open source. So, the next best bet alternative would be OpenOffice, an open source project that includes everything you’d find in Microsoft Office except the email client.
4. Mactopia to NeoOffice: Another Microsoft office suite, but this time meant for MacIntosh computers. Try NeoOffice instead. NeoOffice® is a full-featured set of office applications, including word processing, spreadsheet, presentation, drawing, and database programs for Mac OS X. This suite is based on the OpenOffice.org office suite, but it has integrated dozens of native Mac features and can import, edit, and exchange files with other popular office programs such as Microsoft Office.

Office Tools

5. MathWorks MATLAB to Scilab: MATLAB is a highly used application for numerical computing. It provides a programming language that allows users to work with numbers in any possible way imaginable through visualization. Scilab is the open source alternative to MATLAB, and it provides visualization of numerical data just as MATLAB does. Scilab is partly compatible with MATLAB, and both tools are suited for Windows, Linux, and UNIX.
6. Microsoft Access to Kexi: Microsoft Access is a versatile tool for creating database-driven applications and to maintain office or personal data. Access contains an embedded database engine, but it also connects to other databases through ODBC. On the other hand, Kexi allows users to design forms to gain access to and to create data, just like Access. Kexi also contains an embedded database engine and it can import data to Microsoft Access databases. Plus - Kexi is open source, whereas Access belongs to Microsoft.
7. Microsoft Word to OpenOffice Writer: If you want to break that office suite down and begin to replace the suite item by item, then you can start with this product first. Writer is the word processor component of the OpenOffice.org software package that is similar to Microsoft Word, and with a roughly equivalent range of features. Writer can be used across a variety of platforms, including Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows, Linux, FreeBSD and Solaris. Writer also includes the ability to export Portable Document Format (PDF) files with no additional software, and can also function as a WYSIWYG editor for creating and editing web pages. One plus over Word is that Writer carries functions and number formats in its tables from Calc, OpenOffice’s spreadsheet application.
8. Microsoft Excel to OpenOffice Calc: Another Microsoft product, Excel still carries its productivity pluses as a spreadsheet, but it no longer carries an air of absolute necessity. Google’s Docs can bring an online, sharing atmosphere to your spreadsheets now. As for a truly open source product that can replace Excel, try OpenOffice.org Calc. This tool provides full spreadsheet functionality incl. a huge number of statistical and scientific functions, pivot tables and charts.
9. Microsoft Visio to Dia: Visio actually is a great application that allows users to go from complicated text and tables that are hard to understand to diagrams that communicate information at a glance. The only thing that spoils the context is the fact that this software is that it’s not open source. Instead, use Dia, a GTK+ based diagram creation program for Linux, Unix and Windows released under the GPL license. Dia was ‘roughly’ inspired by Visio, which should make this tool easy for transition.

Productivity

10. Blackboard to Moodle: Blackboard has been the CMS (Course Management System) ‘industry standard’ for educational purposes for many years. This program allows instructors to build courses, manage student workloads, and more. But Moodle has gained significant ground as an open source alternative to Blackboard, as it helps educators to create effective online learning communities in a scalable package that costs nothing to use.
11. Box to Cabos: If you’re into file sharing, you’ve probably heard of Box.net, if not used them. Not only can you share files, Box allows you to store your files securely online, allowing you to access them from any computer, phone or mobile device for a fee. Cabos, another file sharing program that’s open source, provides simple sidebar user interface, firewall to firewall transfers, proxy transfers, Universal Plug and Play, iTunes + iPod integration, “What’s New?” searches, international searches, and more. All you need is Windows 2000 or later. Mac OS X 10.2.8 or later. Mac OS 8.6 or later. Granted, you don’t have the file storage capacity, but at least you can share files with Cabos without that extra storage capacity.
12. Microsoft Project to Open Workbench: Microsoft allows users to control project work, schedule, and finances, and effectively communicate project data to other users. But, it costs to do that with Microsoft. Instead, use open source Open Workbench to accomplish exactly the same project details for free. When users need to move beyond desktop scheduling to a workgroup, division or enterprise-wide solution, they can upgrade to CA’s Clarity™ system, a project and portfolio management system that offers bidirectional integration with Open Workbench.
13. Mindjet to FreeMind: Mindmapping is a way to share ideas among individuals and groups for productivity. This type of activity takes time, but it saves time. So why should you pay for a product when you can save money by using FreeMind? This latter product will accomplish all the Mindjet does and more. That “more” is the fact that FreeMind is open source.

Graphic Programs

14. Adobe Illustrator to Inkscape: Adobe’s vector drawing system is one of the best in the industry. However, like Photoshop, the price can be prohibitive for some designers and artists. Try Inkscape instead, an open source vector graphics editor similar to Illustrator, CorelDraw, or Xara X. Inkscape uses the W3C standard Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) file format and it supports many advanced SVG features (markers, clones, alpha blending, etc.). Finally, the streamlined interface is easy to use to edit nodes, perform complex path operations, trace bitmaps and much more.
15. Adobe PhotoShop to GIMP: Even if you’re paying for upgrades instead of the original package, the price for Adobe’s Photoshop can be prohibitive for some photographers and graphic designers. Try GIMP to see if this open source tool can’t provide you with all the power you need for your photography and graphic design needs. GIMP stands for Gnu Image Manipulation Program, and it’s the solution that comes closest to emulating the Photoshop environment.
16. Adobe Premiere to Avidemux: Premier is state of the art real-time non-linear video editing for any format including High Definition (HD). Supports 16-bit color resolution, GPU accelerated rendering for faster effects and even advanced DVD authoring. On the other hand, Avidemux provides Windows, Mac, and Linux users with an easy-to-use open source tool for DVD/DivX converting and editing. Avidemux also has scripting support for automation and even offers DVD authoring with the addition of the open source software, dvdauthor.
17. AutoCAD to Archimedes: AutoCAD is an AutoDesk tool used by any designer who creates design drafts - mostly architects. Archimedes is an open source computer aided design (CAD) alternative that focuses primarily on architectural design. AutoCAD definitely has the winning score thus far, but Archimedes shows promise. The latter program contains all the drawing features a designer would need, but its interoperability is weak. Designers still can export scalable vector graphics, so there’s a real market for this open source tool (this opinion isn’t based upon Archimedes’ newest release).
18. Microsoft PowerPoint to OpenOffice Impress: You can make a move away from this Microsoft tool with the use of Google’s Presentation or with OpenOffice’s Impress. Both tools represent full-featured presentation applications that allow users to create and modify diagrams and pictures right within the application.
19. Microsoft Paint to Tux Paint: While not a serious graphics program, it is widely used by many computer users, mostly children Try Tux Paint instead of Paint, as this open source product stands apart from typical graphics people edit software (such as GIMP or Photoshop) in that it was designed to be usable by children as young as 16 months of age. The user interface is meant to be intuitive, and utilizes icons, audible feedback and textual hints to help explain how the software works.
20. TruSpace to Blender: Caligari offers a range of products that enable designers and artists to produce 3D images - at a hefty price. Blender, on the other hand, provides one tool that provides full multiresolution sculpting capabilities with 2D bitmap/3D procedural brushes (Paint, Smooth, Pinch, Inflate, Grab) supporting symmetry. And, that’s just the beginning of Blender’s capabilities. This open source software is free to download and use.

Web Editors

21. Adobe GoLive CS2 to Mozilla SeaMonkey: GoLive is an integral part of the Adobe Creative Suites products, so it works with your InDesign documents and allows those documents to be converted to Web pages. But, you might want to try Mozilla’s SeaMonkey before you commit to the total Adobe suite option. The Mozilla SeaMonkey project includes a Web-browser, email and newsgroup client, HTML authoring program and IRC chat client. The Composer is simple but it handles tables, CSS, positioned layers and more without sweat. Add-ons currently include Scribefire, the blog blog editor that integrates with your browser and lets you easily post to your blog.
22. Adobe Dreamweaver to NVU: While this tool is a powerful WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) HTML editor, other options exist that can save money. NVU (pronounced N-view, for a “new view”) is a complete Web Authoring System for Linux Desktop users as well as Microsoft Windows users to rival programs like FrontPage and Dreamweaver. Use NVU to create Web pages and manage a Website with no technical expertise or knowledge of HTML.
23. Macromedia Flash Professional to OpenLaszlo: Developers use Flash to create multimedia events on the Web. Since the program utilizes vector-based graphics, it provides a venue that goes beyond the Web. As an open source product, OpenLaszlo provides developers with a platform to create zero-install Web applications with user interface capabilities of desktop client software. In other words, OpenLaszlo applications developed on one machine will run on all leading Web browsers on all leading desktop OS. These applications, like Flash, provide animation, layout, data binding, server communication and more.
24. Microsoft FrontPage to Bluefish: While not as powerful as Dreamweaver, FrontPage is a widely used proprietary application used to create Web pages. Take a gander at this list to understand your many open source options for HTML editors. Try Bluefish as one option that can save you money and, possibly, time.
25. Windows Notepad to ConTEXT: Yes, you can get the world’s most versatile HTML editing tool absolutely FREE when you purchase Windows version 2.0 and above. But, why would you want to do that when you can work with open source ConTEXT? This application is a small, fast and powerful freeware programmers text editor, developed to serve as a secondary tool for software developers.
26. Altova XMLSpy to XML Copy Editor: XMLSpy is one of the most popular XML editors on the market today. Its editing features and support for both schema and DTD development along with XSLT, XQuery and XPath development make it an ultimate XML tool. As an open source alternative, XML Copy Editor is a versatile XML editor primarily focused on text editing with XML files. However, XML Copy Editor provides many other features including validation of DTD and XML schemas - as well as XSLT and XPath with tag-free editing. Both tools are Windows applications.

Publishing

27. Adobe Acrobat to PDFCreator: Yes, you have a free trial to create a PDF through Adobe. However, this PDFCreator easily creates PDFs from any Windows program. Use it like a printer in Word, StarCalc or any other Windows application.
28. Adobe Framemaker to DocBook: Adobe Framemaker software represents a powerful authoring and publishing solution for technical communicators who want to author and publish technical documentation in multiple languages. While this software is reliable, so is DocBook, an open source publishing tool. Additionally, you have access to all the free wikis and documentation that shows how to install, use, and customize the tools and stylesheets.
29. Microsoft Publisher to Scribus: When it comes to Desktop Publishing (DTP) Microsoft’s Publisher provides more control over document elements than Microsoft Word through a DTP-oriented approach. However, professional users still consider this program an entry-level application. Since it’s part of the Microsoft Office Package, many users will find its costs negligible as well. With that said, Scribus offers an open source DTP alternative. Scribus brings award-winning professional page layout to Linux/Unix, MacOS X, OS/2 and Windows desktops with a combination of “press-ready” output and new approaches to page layout. Scribus supports professional publishing features, such as CMYK color, separations, ICC color management and versatile PDF creation.

Communications

30. AIM to Pidgin: Give it up. AIM, AOL’s Instant Messenger, no longer rules. The open source alternative is Pidgin, a multi-protocol Instant Messaging client that allows you to use all of your IM accounts at once. Let’s break that down: No matter if you use Windows, Linux, BSD, and other Unixes. You can talk to your friends using AIM, ICQ, Jabber/XMPP, MSN Messenger, Yahoo!, Bonjour, Gadu-Gadu, IRC, Novell GroupWise Messenger, QQ, Lotus Sametime, SILC, SIMPLE, MySpaceIM, and Zephyr. Can AIM do that? No? Well, then.
31. FeedDemon to RSS Bandit: FeedDemon for Windows constantly searches through feed search engines with keyword-generated searches as well as generalized searches. It also allows offline reading as it ‘prefetches’ your subscribed feeds. NewsGator also synchronizes with FeedDemon so you can gain access to news without your computer. Except for the fact that FeedDemon isn’t open source, it’s an ideal, robust reader. But, for open source fanatics, RSS Bandit provides an equally robust alternative RSS and Atom reader that allows you to keep track of all of the news feeds you follow. Its newspaper view can be customized and the templates are compatible with those used in FeedDemon. Plus, RSS Bandit allows you to synchronize everything with NewsGator online. Finally, RSS Bandit also provides access to news on news servers (similar to Google Groups) - it uses NNTP to read and post to newsgroups anywhere on the net. It integrates to Google Groups by linking to posts on their website.
32. Microsoft MSN Messenger to aMSN: Microsoft offers MSN Messenger to the masses as freeware on Windows, and it’s grown from a simple IM application into a trendsetter in a competitive market. Features include voice and video chatting, gaming, remote support - on top of that it allows connection through mobile devices when you are not near a computer. aMSN, the open source Windows alternative to MSN, aims to mimic its proprietary competitor as much as possible. Most of its extra features are added through plug-ins. You can add, at your leisure, POP3 email support and translation, voice clips, Webcam support, Chat logs, Conferencing support and more.
33. Microsoft Outlook to Thunderbird: Say that you decided to switch to OpenOffice, but you need an email client to replace Microsoft’s Outlook. Try Mozilla’s Thunderbird, an application that carries a similar interface and that is easy to use. Additionally, you can use Lightning to integrate Mozilla’s Sunbird calendar application with Thunderbird.
34. Skype to Wengophone: Skype is a very strong freeware internet VoIP (Voice over IP) product in the telecommunications industry. It started with a simple and free PC-to-PC telephony, but today offers full integration with existing telephone systems. Skype today also offers voicemail, video conversations and sending SMSs. Its open source alternative, WengoPhone, also provides free PC-to-PC calls as well as chat and video conferencing. Created by Wengo, this phone also can provide SMS and call-out features that allow users to communicate with any phone at reasonable prices.

Media

35. iTunes to Songbird: If you’re accustomed to the equation where “Apple + iPod + iTunes” equals a ton of money, then you might consider a switch to Songbird. Songbird is an open source player and a platform committed to “playing the music you want + from the sites you want + on the devices you want.” Songbird thereby challenges the conventions of discovery, purchase, consumption and organization of music on the Internet.
36. Nero Burning Rom to K3b: Nero Burning Rom is a popular tool to burn CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray discs. This software includes backup, cd copying, audio features and more, and it’s easy to use. But, it’s not open source like K3b (Windows). This latter program creates and burns CDs and DVDs, including ripping with DivX/XviD encoding, DVD copy, ISO burning, Video CD (VCD) creation, Audio CD creation for almost any audio file, CD-TEXT support for audio CDs, support for DVD-RW and DVD+RW and much more. Oh, and did we add that it was easy to use?
37. Quicktime to Darwin Streaming Server: Apple’s QuickTime 7 Pro is good for everything from creating podcasts to transcoding media in more than a dozen formats. And, the software isn’t that expensive when compared to other products. But, why not use an open source application that shares the same code base as Quicktime Streaming Server? Darwin Streaming Server is an open source project that’s perfect for developers who need to stream QuickTime and MPEG-4 media on platforms such as Windows, Linux, and Solaris.
38. TiVo Desktop to Galleon.tv: Tivo-to-Go users were disappointed to discover that their Tivo software wouldn’t work with Windows Vista. Some answers to this problem included spending more time and money on various solutions that might work to restore that software’s functionality. One solution included using the open source software, Galleon, instead of trying to “fix” Tivo or Windows Vista. Galleon is a free open source media server for the TiVo® DVR which allows you to enjoy many kinds of content and interactive applications right on your TV. The server runs on your home computer and organizes your media collection so that they can be viewed on your home network. Galleon also brings Internet content and applications to your TV.
39. Windows Media Player to Miro: This application seems ubiquitous…no matter what you try to open, Windows Media Player is in your face, right? Well, replace that in-your-face attitude with Miro, an open source program that turns your computer into an internet TV. Miro has 2,500 unrestricted channels with a huge selection of HD content. Plus, you have access to any publisher with video RSS feeds, including anyone on YouTube, Revver, Blip, and many, many more.

Utilities

40. CuteFTP to Filezilla: Sure, CuteFTO is cute, but it’s not free. Sure, it’s reliable, but so are many other File Transfer Protocol applications. Try Filezilla, a fast FTP and SFTP client for Windows with tons of features - easy to install, easy to use, very reliable, secure, and open source.
41. iBackup to ZManda: Who can you trust with your backup files? It’s difficult to decide, as price alone means nothing. You want safe, reliable servers or tools that can keep your backups available and intact. iBackup has proven to be worthy of that task, but you might want to look at ZManda as well. This open source solution protects more than half a million of servers and desktops running various versions of Linux, UNIX, BSD, Mac OS-X and Microsoft Windows operating systems worldwide. Not only do they backup information, they’re into recovery as well.
42. Norton Ghost to Partition Image: Norton Ghost isn’t a shabby backup system, as it’s a complete tool that backs up everything but the kitchen sink. If you have a complete disk failure, Norton Ghost can bring it back to life on a new hard disk (although you don’t need to make a complete backup every time). You can take this backup to external drives, CDs or DVDs. If you’re an open source advocate, however, Norton Ghost doesn’t cut the cake. You’ll want something like Partition Image (for Linux) or Ghost for Unix (G4U) for Windows or Unix users. Both tools are disk cloners that act differently, but they’re as robust as Norton Ghost. Read more at their respective Web sites before you make the jump. (For a complete rescue disk including Partition Image see SystemRescueCd).
43. Rational Purify to Valgrind: IBM’s Purify is a well respected and much used debugging tool. It uses topnotch memory corruption and memory leak detection to keep hard-to-find bugs from any application. As an open source alternative, Valgrind also detects leaks and other memory related programming errors. But, it also detects threading bugs and includes a call-graph profiler that detects bottlenecks in code. as well as threading bugs. A user might say that Valgrind is better than Purify, even if it is open source.
44. WinZip to 7-Zip: Some of us grew up with WinZip, so it’s sad to say goodbye. But, we all gotta leave home at some point, and when the open source 7-Zip beckons, maybe you should heed the call…

Security

45. Kaspersky Anti-Virus Personal to Winpooch: Kaspersky Anti-Virus probably is among the top products on the market for Windows-based anti-virus tools, mainly because it’s well known for its outstanding detection rates. It commits to multiple tasks as it protects against viruses, script viruses, checks file archives (such as zip files) and removes viruses from mail. It also provides protection against spyware as well as adware. As an open source alternative, however, Winpooch also scans files on your computer, detects malware, and prevents all the viruses, trojan horses and other problems that Kaspersky hunts down as well. Winpooch, by the way, adds a real-time scanning capability that ClamWin (noted below) lacks.
46. McAfee VirusScan to ClamWin: McAfee is well known as one of the oldest companies in the anti-virus market. Many individuals need to deal with this software company, as its tools come packaged with many new Windows OS computer systems. The plus side to McAfee is that it is reliable and that it offers 24/7 support. The downside is that it’s not open source. ClamWin, on the other hand, is a free Antivirus for Microsoft Windows 98/Me/2000/XP/2003. It features high detection rates, scheduler, automatic download of virus database updates and a plug-in for Microsoft Outlook. As noted above, ClamWin doesn’t provide on access realtime scanning, but when combined with WinPooch, this capability is added.
47. Norton Personal Firewall to WIPFW: Many people could work with Norton in their sleep, as this company has been around that long. The Norton Personal Firewall for Windows will monitor and check all Internet traffic and it will reject any attack or intrusion attempt. Ubiquitous popups and permissions are part of the game, as it seems that each new Website carries its own set of Norton no-nos. As an alternative, WIPFW is a firewall for Windows based on IPFW for FreeBSD UNIX. It provides virtually the same features, functionality, and user interface as Norton Personal Firewall. The big difference? WIPFW is open source.

Financial

48. Authorize.net to OpenSSL: Granted, Authorize.Net’s preferred payment gateway connection, Advanced Integration Menthod (AIM), provides the highest level of customization and security to merchants for submitting transactions online. But, why pay for a secure SSL when you can get an open source product for free? The OpenSSL Project is a collaborative effort to develop a robust, commercial-grade, full-featured, and Open Source toolkit implementing the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL v2/v3) and Transport Layer Security (TLS v1) protocols as well as a full-strength general purpose cryptography library. A worldwide community of volunteers uses the Internet to communicate, plan, and develop the OpenSSL toolkit and its related documentation manages the project.
49. Microsoft Money (Plus) to TurboCash: While Microsfot Money Plus is much more than a personal accounting software, Turbocash can boast that claim plus more. Turbocash is open source and free to use. In fact, you might compare TurboCash more to Quickbooks than to Microsoft Money. However, as a personal finance tool, TurboCash is much more user-friendly to the average home budgeter than Compiere.
50. Quickbooks to Compiere: Few people are unfamiliar with Quickbooks, as this software has made its way into many a small business computer. If you feel that few opportunities exist to switch, think again. Compiere, produced by Global Era, provides one solution to open source ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and CRM (Customer Relationship Management) solutions for any small to large business. Compiere 3.0 marks the introduction of Compiere Professional Edition, a new premium offering targeted at larger organizations that require more advanced services and commercial licensing from Compiere.

If you’re interested in games for a Linux platform, then you know that game probably is open source, free from cost in most cases, and free to modify. The latter attribute is why Linux games are so popular…a developer can take a great game and make it even better, share it with the world, and become a hero. So, why waste your time and money on proprietary games when so many great Linux games are available?

We’ve listed the top 25 Linux games for 2008 below. While we believe that Spring is defintely tops on the 2008 list, we had a difficult time aligning the other games by numerical order. Therefore, take those numbers with a grain of salt, because each game is so different and it’s the best in its league. Take FreeCiv, for instance (#3) - some players will love this game, yet others will like the simplicity of Battle for Wesnoth even better (#6). Or, some people may not like civilization games at all, as they may be addicted (and will continue to be addicted) to the older game, Tux Racer (#18).

While the games listed below focus on Linux distribution, we’ve also added whether each game was avialable for Windows and Max (OS X) as well. We’ve also added any details on price and a link to download each game.

1. Spring - (Linux, Windows) If you’re looking forward to 2008 rather than backward to 2007, then look to Spring (also known as TA Spring or Total Annihilation: Spring) as the open source game of the year. TA Spring currently can execute most of Total Annihilation’s original gameplay flawlessly with its original units in their original format. Large battles are limited only by your computer’s power, with support for up to 5,000 units. You’ll wage those battles on large, highly detailed 3D maps with camera modes that allow you to view the battle scene from almost any angle. Games are played using one of a number of mods. Price: The core game is released under GPL License. Fortunately as of now, there are also two mods which have been released under the GNU/GPL, and several more which do not have clear licence terms (owned by their modder). However, there are also several mods for which some parts are still under copyright of Atari. For these you need to own the original TA game if you want to play.Download.
2. Tremulous - (Linux, Windows, Mac) This is a free open source team-based first-person shooter (FPS) with a game play similar to Gloom for Quake 2. NS. Tremulous features a two team FPS, humans and aliens, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Players on both teams are able to build working structures in-game RTS elements. The overall objective behind Tremulous is to eliminate the opposing team. This is achieved by not only killing the opposing players but also removing their ability to respawn by destroying their spawn structures. The game has been downloaded over 200,000 times. It was voted “Player’s Choice Standalone Game of the Year” in Mod Database’s “Mod of the Year” 2006 competitio, and it placed fifth in the annual Moddb.com competition among Indie games in 2007. This, despite the fact that a new version hasn’t been released since early 2006. Price: Free.Download (Linux, Windows) Download (Mac).
3. FreeCiv - (Linux, Windows, Mac) The open source game FreeCiv begins in prehistory where your mission is to lead your tribe from the stone age to the space age. This game is similar to the popular PC Civilization series created by Sid Meier. Freeciv is a turn-based multiplayer strategy game, in which each player becomes the leader of a civilization that fights to become the greatest civilization in history. Your goal is to build cities, collect resources, organize your government, and build an army. This is probably one of the most addictive and widely acclaimed open source empire-building strategy games around. The game supports three rulesets, an almost mind-numbing array of features, tweaks, and options, along with a set of unofficial options that will keep you busy for the rest of your life. The game is so popular that it’s been translated into twenty-nine different languages. Freeciv supports up to 30 players and LAN/Internet play. Price: Free. Download.
4. Nexuiz - (Linux, Windows, Mac) Nexuiz has been in development for close to 5 years by a team of amateur developers called Alientrap, lead by Lee Vermeulen. Their goal is to create fun action games that remain free, yet that compete with commercial game titles. Nexuiz is a 3d deathmatch game made entirely over the internet. The purpose of the game is to bring deathmatch back to the basics, with perfect weapon balancing and fast paced action, keeping itself away from the current trend of realistic shooters. It uses HFX textures by Evil Lair, and currently has 27 maps to frag in. With an advanced UI, the user can select between 15 different player models to use, with an average of two skins for each, and can connect to a master server to play people from all over the world. This game is an open source, cross platform, first person shooter. The current version, 2.2.3, was released in January 2007. Price: Free. Download.
5. Alien Arena - (Linux, Windows) Alien Arena’s real-time turn-based strategy action has been frantic, fast, and fun. The game contained a single player campaign, but the multi-player action was outstanding. Why are we speaking in the past tense? Because gamers now can enjoy version 6.10 of Alien Arena, with major changes, enhancements, and surprises. Alien Action first was released in October, 2004. Since that initial release, nearly every aspect of the game has been revamped. It’s like an entirely new game. The newest version includes seven brand new arenas with sound, a more balanced and responsive weapon set (including a new weapon - the Violator!), and the ability to 1-to-1 through a duel mode. Input and netcode are improved, resulting in fluid gameplay even at 150+ pings. Last, but not least, CURL is implemented, allowing for much faster map and content downloads. Price: Free. Download (If you already have Alien Arena 2007, you will need to install version 6.10 over top of your existing installation in order to patch it.)
6. Battle For Wesnoth - (Linux, Windows, Mac) Fight a desperate battle to reclaim the throne of Wesnoth, or take hand in any number of other adventures in the just-released version 1.3.15. The game is set in a fantasy environment with 16 races and 6 factions. There are over 200 units which yield different types of weapons and abilities. There are six major races available to the player. These include humans, elves, orcs, dwarves, undead and drakes. As the game progresses, the player can ally with other races such saurians, merfolk, nagas, ogres, trolls and woses. The game supports online play for you to challenge up to 8 of your friends. Some players will prefer Wesnoth over Freeciv due to its accessibility. The Web site alone is entertaining, with a history of the game and of Wesnoth, along with characterizations, location descriptions and more. Price: Free. Download.
7. Scorched 3D - (Linux, Windows, Mac) Scorched 3D is a combat game based heavily on the classic DOS game Scorched Earth, “The Mother Of All Games.” Scorched 3D adds a 3D island environment and LAN and internet play. At its lowest level, Scorched 3D is just an artillery game with two+ tanks taking turns to destroy opponents in an arena. Choose the angle, direction and power of each shot, launch your weapon, and try to blow up other tanks. That’s basically it. The mods are what make this game a winner through 2008. The game includes an Apocalypse mod, Operation Scorched, Scavenger Hunt, Scorch Wars mod and more. Version 41.3 Released was just released on 20 January 2008. Price: Free. Download.
8. Frets On Fire - (Linux, Windows, Mac) Winner of the Assembly Demo Party 2006, Frets on Fire is a Finnish music video game created by Unreal Voodoo. Players use the keyboard like a guitar to play along with scrolling on-screen musical notes to complete a song. One hand is used to press the ‘frets’ (F1 to F5) and another is used to press the ‘picks’ (Shift or Enter). Colored markers that appears are to be played by pressing ‘frets’ of the correct color and ‘picks’ at the correct moment. There are also song editors and tutorials featured in the game. Frets on Fire is free and open-source software. The game is written in the Python programming language and is licensed under the GNU General Public License, though the game incorporates other free and open-source code under other licenses. The game’s included song files and some internal fonts are proprietary, however, so their redistribution is not permitted. Price: Free. Download.
9. Secret Maryo Chronicles - (Linux, Windows) Secret Maryo Chronicles (SMC) is an open source two-dimensional platform game with a style designed similar to classic sidescroller games. Gorgeous graphics and interesting levels make for a refreshing take on Super Mario. SMC comes with an in-game editor - activated with the F8 key in the game. You can insert enemies, change the player start position on the level, insert active Sprites, and create half-massive Sprites which the Player can jump through, but can not fall through, etc. and more. The Powerup collections are where you begin to beat levels. Go to the site (linked above) to learn more about various graphics, sprites, and change player starting positions along with various levels and worlds. Although this is a simple game, the Powerup layers make SMC complex and fun. Price: Free. Download.
10. World Of Padman - (Linux, Windows, Mac) WOP is a new and free comic style game that uses the Quake 3 engine. The game was recently featured in 3 German magazine covers; PC Action, BRAVO Screenfun and Linux Intern. This game features full bot support for all game types. All you off-line gamers out there will be happy to play Spray your Colour, Big Balloon and Last Pad Standing with bots. The bots play very well, and most maps have been optimised for good bot play. They included all engines to all installers, so you don´t need to download WoP multiple times if you have more than one OS running, but the installer for your preferred OS - look for the engines in the XTRAS/engines folder. Padman grabbed fourth place in the Mod of the Year Awards 2007 for Indie games. Price: Free. Download.
11. Vendetta - (Linux,Windows, Mac) This MMO permits thousands of players to interact as the pilots of spaceships in a vast universe. Users may build their characters in any direction they desire, becoming rich captains of industry, military heroes, or outlaws. A fast-paced, realtime “twitch” style combat model gives intense action, coupled with the backdrop of RPG gameplay in a massive online galaxy. Three major player factions form a delicate balance of power, with several NPC sub-factions creating situations of economic struggle, political intrigue and conflict. The completely persistent universe and detailed storyline add to the depth of immersion, resulting in a unique online experience. Price:Try the game for free, no strings attached, no credit card required. Sign up for a trial account, download the client and play whenever you like, up to a total of eight hours in the game. If you decide Vendetta Online suits you, it’s easy to upgrade to a paying account (major credit cards, PayPal, and other methods accepted). Rates are configured by the month, and they offer bulk discounts for larger blocks of time. Download (trial account).
12. Sauerbraten - (Linux, Windows, Mac) Sauerbraten (a.k.a. Cube 2) is a free multiplayer/singleplayer first person shooter, built as a major redesign of the Cube FPS. Although Sauerbraten shares most of its design goals and philosophy with Cube, it sues a new 6-directional heightfield world model. This allowance provides much more complex level geometry and easier editing. Much like the original Cube, the aim of this game is not necessarily to produce the most features and eye candy possible, but rather to allow map/geometry editing to be done dynamically in-game, to create fun gameplay and an elegant engine. In addition to the FPS game which is in a very playable state, the engine is being used for an RPG which is in the preproduction phase. The scenes are reminiscent of Myst, with Gothic perspectives and realism. Price: Free. Download (Linux, Windows) Download (Mac)
13. VDrift - (Linux, Windows, Mac) VDrift is a cross-platform, open source driving simulation made with drift racing in mind. With 19 tracks and 28 cars, you can see plenty of action from this game. It uses a simple networked multiplayer mode, and the physics are realistic. Plus, you have options for the Mouse/joystick/keyboard driven menus. You also have the ability to ability to exchange replays, allow the player to tune the car in the game and exchange settings, grip mode with single player time trial, head to head multiplayer, and time trial multiplayer, drift mode with single player time trial, head to head multiplayer, and time trial multiplayer, autocross mode with in-game editor, singleplayer time trial, multiplayer time trial and more. Price: Free. Download.
14. Vegastrike - (Linux, Windows, Mac) Vega Strike is a GPL 3D OpenGL Action RPG space sim that allows a player to trade and bounty hunt in the spirit of Elite. You start in an old beat up Wayfarer cargo ship, with endless possibility before you and just enough cash to scrape together a life. Yet danger lurks in the space beyond. As you play, you will see that several species and numerous political entities are present in the game, and they do not all co-exist peacefully. With the invasion of the Union of Dispossessed Colonists,a lesser political entity, the brink of war has been reached between the human dominated Confederation of Inhabited Worlds and the Aeran Ascendancy even as the border between the Rlaan Assembly and the Aera still smolders under a long, tense cease-fire that has failed to become a peace. The Vega Strike engine serves as the foundation for the Privateer Gemini Gold, Privateer Remake, Vega Trek, and Pi Armada projects. Price: Free. Download.
15. Battlestar Galactica: Beyond the Red Line - (Linux, Windows, Mac) Beyond the Red Line is a stand-alone total conversion for the award-winning Freespace 2 released by Volition and Interplay for the PC. It is based on the popular new tv-show Battlestar Galactica, not the one from the 70s. You’ll enjoy detailed high-resolution ship models, quality engineered audio, original in-game soundtrack in addition to pieces by Bear McCreary and Richard Gibbs. Head online and go head-to-head with your friends—and foes—in intense multiplayer missions including Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, and others as you experience exciting Viper combat with authentic weaponry and flight controls. Price: Free. Download.
16. Excalibur: Morgana’s Revenge v3.0 (EMR 3.0) - (Linux, Windows, Mac) EMR is a unique scenario based upon the Aleph One (Marathon) engine. It is a first-person action adventure game, featuring an epic and in-depth story line. As a Federation Marine resting after your last mission, you start aboard the exploration class Starship Kronos where you learn that your real mission has yet to begin. You are re-acquainted with the AI Merlin, who introduces you to Kronos time traveling technology, and reveals your new mission: to save mankind from the clutches of Morgana and her minions. Through untamed raptor-infested jungles, castle arenas, and war-torn streets of the future, you will wield weapons from all time periods - including the Sword of Power, Excalibur - in an effort to thwart the diabolical plot that unfolds. The EMR adventure, spread across 42 solo levels, weaves a tale of truth and honor, knighthood and bravery, and darkness and treachery. EMR also delivers 27 adrenaline pumped network levels. EMR immerses you in an amazing new world, creating an addictive, fun and unique gaming experience. Price: Free. Download.
17. TrueCombat: Elite (TC:E) - (Linux, Windows, Mac) TC:E is a modern world total conversion modification of the free, popular, stand-alone FPS Wolfenstein Enemy Territory. Meaning, Truecombat Elite is an entirely free game, made by gamers, for gamers. TC:E currently is being developed by GrooveSix Studios and TeamTerminator. While TeamTerminator is known for the famous Q3 based TrueCombat series, GrooveSix Studios was initiated by retired TeamTerminator co-founder Coroner to develop a Return to Castle Wolfenstein modification that is not released. Thus, as very experienced Quake3 based content creators, TC:E hopes to serve the gaming community with a quality offering. Until then, TC:E puts you into the role of elite mercenary soldier in the conflicts of two internationally operating forces. Their recent Nations Cup game was a total success. Price: Free. Download.
18. Tux Racer - This is a 3D game that stars the Linux mascot, Tux, the penguin as he races down steep, snow-covered mountains. Enter cups and compete to win the title. Your journey starts as you compete on local courses. Win and you will unlock other courses and cups that will lead you to more exciting and challenging races. As you can tell from the Web site, the last release of Tux Racer was version 0.61 on 29th October 2001. Despite its age, Tux Racer is a friendly open source game that derives its popularity from its replay value and the fact that it can be extended with easy modification. Tux Racer includes a variety of options for gameplay, including the ability to race courses in fog, at night, and under high winds. Users can create new maps by making three raster images to indicate height, surface, and object placement. Price: Free; Download.
19. The Open Racing Car Simulator (TORCS) - (Linux, Windows, Mac) TORCS is a highly portable multi platform car racing simulation. It is used as ordinary car racing game, as AI racing game and as research platform. TORCS features more than 50 different cars, more than 20 tracks, and 50 opponents to race against. You can steer with a joystick or steering wheel, if the device is supported by your platform, but it’s possible to drive with the mouse or the keyboard as well. Graphic features lighting, smoke, skidmarks and glowing brake disks. The simulation features a simple damage model, collisions, tire and wheel properties (springs, dampers, stiffness, …), aerodynamics (ground effect, spoilers, …) and much more. The gameplay allows different types of races from the simple practice session up to the championship. Enjoy racing against your friends in the split screen mode with up to four human players. The next big development goal is an online racing mode. Price: Free. Download.
20. Flight Gear - (Linux, Windows, Mac) The idea for Flight Gear was born out of a dissatisfaction with current commercial PC flight simulators. The Flight Gear project is striving to fill these gaps. The goal of the FlightGear project is to create a sophisticated flight simulator framework for use in research or academic environments, for the development and pursuit of other interesting flight simulation ideas, and as an end-user application. These folks are, without a doubt, developing a sophisticated, open simulation framework that can be expanded and improved upon by anyone interested in contributing. In addition, Flight Gear has some of the most accurate and realistic terrain of any simulator. You can do some virtual sight seeing while practicing your flight! Price: Free. Download.
21. ManiaDrive - (Linux, Windows) ManiaDrive is a free clone of Trackmania, the great game from Nadéo studio, and is an arcade car game on acrobatic tracks, with a quick and nervous gameplay (tracks almost never exceed one minute), and features a network mode, as the original. Once you’ve got that installed you’ll be bumping along at break-neck speeds and flying off the track with an incredible ease reminiscent of Stunt-Trak Racer. In Maniadrive it’s both incredibly hard to stay on track and to complete the race in under the allotted time. This game features complex car physics, challenging “story mode,” a track editor, LAN and Internet modes, dedicated server with HTTP interface, and more than 30 blocks - full soundtrack. rading off some advertising for music appears to have snagged Maniadrive some excellent musical accompaniment. The music is both appropriate and has a very high production quality. Price: Free. Download.
22. D2X-XL - (Linux, Windows, Mac) D2X-XL is the most advanced and feature-rich user-enhanced version of Descent to date, as it offers many features like colored lighting, smoke, real-time shadowing, new weapon effects and new game modes that enhance the single-player experience and give new twists to multi-player games. As most ports, it retains full compatibility with the original game and can be switched in appearance between a graphically updated version, and the original look and feel of Descent. When you go to the Web site, make sure you roll your mouse over the side menu to understand the range of levels that can be downloaded. Price: Free. Download.
23. Hexen II: Hammer of Thyrion - (Linux, Windows, Mac) In 2000, Raven Software released the source code to their class based shooter game Hexen II and its multiplayer extension HexenWorld. Since then, there has been some source ports of this game, such as the now discontinued Anvil of Thyrion project, but nothing has been done for Linux since the beginning of 2002. The Hammer of Thyrion project is a cross-platform source port effort: The developers continue the progress for Linux, BSD and Mac OS X people, with continued support for Windows users as well. Many bugs are fixed and even new features are added: New sound modes, improved mouse handling, improved video modes, OpenGL glows and more. Price: Free. Download.
24. Ultimate Stunts - (Linux, Windows) This game makes the list because it’s a great work in progress, and we hope that it becomes one of the coolest auto games around. UltimateStunts is a remake of the famous DOS-game stunts. The game is not yet finished, but it already has some important improvements compared to the original game. Stunts was an old DOS game with simple CGA/EGA/VGA graphics, but Ultimate Stunts is a modern multiplatform application. Racing in Ultimate Stunts involves some really spectacular acrobtics, like loopings, corkscrews, bridges to jump over, etc. But the best thing about the new edition is that you can design your own tracks. It also has some new features, like 3D sound and (Internet) multiplaying. Price: Free.