download

The open source download canard

I'm not sure why we continue to persist in talking about downloads, but I'm with Stephe on this one: downloads are not the best measure of success in open source. In fact, they're often not even a remote predictor of success (i.e., sales). Having them, as Stephen O' Grady notes, is much better than not having them, but it would be erroneous in the extreme to assume a company with 100,000 downloads per month necessarily has a bigger market opportunity than a company with 20,000 downloads per month.

The 451 Group's Matt Aslett points out that marketing automation software like Loopfuse can help to supercharge an open-source company's conversion rate. Same number of leads in, many more conversions (sales) out. I agree with that. Aslett writes:

Of course, the statistic [in Loopfuse's results] that will have jumped out for many people is the drop from a 40X increase in qualified leads to an 8X increase in engagements. The theory that leads are not enough in open source software has also been well documented. The ability to turn those qualified leads into paying customers remains a missing piece of the commercial open source puzzle.… Read more

Grab and convert YouTube videos in one go

There are tons of YouTube video-grabbing downloads out there, but relatively few also convert those FLV files for later viewing on a cell phone, iPhone, or other flavor of mobile device. Since we don't like using two apps when we can use one, here's a hand-picked collection of apps containing the packaged set.

1. Out of all the downloader/converters I tried, nothing felt more honest than CinemaForge, with its homegrown UFO-shaped interface. The freeware app lays down a simple 6-step downloading and conversion trajectory that includes finding a video's "real" URL, as opposed to … Read more

Killer Download: Top free CD/DVD burning apps

Just about every computer available these days comes with a CD/DVD burner as part of the package. Whether your primary use for this drive is to make mix CDs for the car, backup data, or burn DVD backups for your movies, you need a good program with the right type of features for the job. Though Windows offers some burning features, you're not going to get the options you'll find in a stand alone app.

There are many paid CD and DVD burning apps to choose from and some of the most popular in this category--like Nero … Read more

Power Downloader manages a superhero-size music collection

Aside from his storied history of mastering downloadable software and ensnaring cyber-ne'er-do-wells around the globe, Power Downloader is also a longtime music collector. Since the very first 78rpm record he received as a young boy on Christmas Day untold years ago, Power has combed the stacks of record stores everywhere he travels. From Jerry Lee Lewis, the Beatles, and the Stooges to Arcade Fire, R. Kelly, and The White Stripes, Power Downloader has acquired a gigantic music collection that now also lives on his PC, portable MP3 player, and via software, any connected computer, or iPhone in the world.… Read more

Free MP3s: Indie To Go Vol. 12

We're only a few weeks into 2008 and you can tell that it's going to be a great year for music. New releases by British Sea Power, Sia (we have her full album stream!) and The Oaks are worthy of the Best of 2008 (let's just hope we remember them at the end of the year). But we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves -- we're still enjoying the Best of 2007. Indie To Go is an iPod-friendly sampler that features topnotch indie newcomers and chart-toppers. Stream the playlist below (while you work), then visit the … Read more

Unlike Trent Reznor, Saul Williams isn't disheartened

Saul Williams chuckles when asked about the word "disheartening."

That's the word Trent Reznor chose to describe the sales generated by William's new album, The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust, which the two men collaborated on.

The public has the choice of obtaining the digital release for free or pay $5 for a higher quality download. Reznor, the artist behind the band Nine Inch Nails, ignited wide debate about the effectiveness of Radiohead-esque giveaways and the value of music when he revealed last week that 80 percent of those who downloaded the album were unwilling … Read more

Music industry urged to drop download prices

The music industry needs to drastically cut the price it charges for downloads if it wants to survive the Internet revolution, according to CEO of one of the world's most successful independent labels.

Terry McBride, CEO of the Nettwerk Music Group, which manages such best-selling acts as Avril Lavigne, Barenaked Ladies and Dido, told the CES conference today that the music industry needs to "let go it's control and let consumers own their music" in order to survive.

The industry, McBride says, has been "hitting a glass ceiling" in terms of sales. It won'… Read more

Killer Download: Top free image editors

Once I've taken care of installing security software on a new a PC, one of the first programs I end up downloading is an image editor. Whether I'm using it to make a quick edit to a screenshot, convert a digital photo to a more Web-friendly image format, or even something as mundane as cropping an image for a desktop background, an easy-to-use image editor is a must have. Those of you with recently acquired computers probably have a lot of holiday photos you've resolved to go through, so this little collection will definitely come in handy.… Read more

New year, new PC

Computing hope springs eternal every new year. Certainly 2008 will be the year we finally get our ducks in a row, right? No more in-boxes filled with hundreds of unread messages. No more junk files from apps uninstalled long ago. We'll keep adequate free space on our hard drives, and even defragment them regularly! (Well, at least for a month or two.)

For those of you who scored new PCs for Christmas or your year-end holiday of choice, it's literally a year of new computing. Your top-of-the-line, screaming-fast, quad-core machine is only as good as what you can do with it, however, and that requires quality software.

Luckily for you, we've collected some of our favorite downloadable software for Windows in two collections perfect for new PC owners. Our Security Starter Kit ensures that your pricey investment is properly protected, and the Windows Starter Kit provides a bevy of top-rated products from a wide range of categories that are free or free to try. Start editing pictures, chatting online, swapping files, or burning music mixes with this collection of essential apps for new PC owners.… Read more