Page 36 - IT Essentials And Data Recovery For Online Businesses

save documents in MS Office-compatible formats, allowing for easy exchange. It

lacks a grammar check feature, and some users have complained of some
incompatibility issues when it comes to bulleted and numbered lists. Open Office is
also reported to use more memory and run more slowly than MS Office. These are

minor drawbacks however, considering the price ($0!), and development is

ongoing.

GIMP, or the General Image Manipulation Program, is a “raster graphics editor” – in

other words, it allows the user to edit photos and even create images, then save

them in the most common graphic file formats (.jpg, .gif, .png and .tif). Like
Photoshop, the user can remove cosmetic imperfections from photo images, draw
with various sizes and types of virtual “brushes,” change image colors, add text,

composite images with the use of paths, layers and channels as well as add effects.

On the down side, GIMP lacks support for many “plug-ins” that Photoshop users

depend on. The magnetic lasso tool is not as precise, and the free application lacks
the undo history “snapshots” that persist between sessions in Photoshop.

Nonetheless, if you can live with these limitations, GIMP is an excellent alternative
to Photoshop.

Both GIMP and Open Office are available for Windows, Mac OS (“Classic” and X)

and Linux.

Beyond these two, the kind of specialty software your business may require will
depend on the product or service you are offering. Again, an online search will

assist you in determining and locating specific applications you may need.

Comparison shopping is a good idea, since software package prices can vary widely
between the various resellers. Also, don’t hesitate to use an older (up to two years)

version – most applications have “backward compatibility,” meaning that you’ll be
able to read and edit a document created by a newer version of an application using

an older version.