Write Tool Ten

Ten Things for the Writer's Cyber Tool Box

Freeware caution: always scan free downloads of anything for bugs and other threats before dumping the programs into your hard drive.

CoWord freeware "converts MS Word into a real-time multi-user collaborative word processor. With CoWord, you and your collaborators can edit the same MS Word document at anytime (the same time or different times) over the Internet. Changes made to the document are immediately displayed for all users to see. As CoWord retains the "look-and-feel" and functionalities of Word, you will be able to edit collaboratively in your familiar environment" (OS: Win 2000/XP, requires Microsoft Word 2000, XP, or 2003)

DeskTask freeware "connects to Microsoft Outlook and displays your calendar and task items on the desktop. Your tasks will always be visible, saving precious time to launch or switch to Outlook. Just minimize every window, and see what are the items due for today or tomorrow. DeskTask displays the whole week so you can be prepared to organize your work. Besides the calendar items, the Outlook to-do list (Folder Tasks) is also displayed. If you work with Outlook, DeskTask is for you" (OS: Win 9x/ME/NT/2K/XP/2K3/Vista)

GizmoMarks freeware is "a secured electronic block-notes. The data of that block-notes are classed in topics and each topic consists of a unlimited number of categories : Categories of notes, Categories of links to applications or documents located on your computer or the network, Categories of link to web sites or electronic mails, Categories of passwords. All data of a block-notes can be saved and crypted by a 128 bytes key" (OS: Windows, Mac, Linux)

JDairy 2.0 freeware is a "diary developed with Java with functions like login, remember me, enable/disable login, set user´s photo/name, shoutout, search for certain diary" (OS: Windows XP/Vista, requires Java Runtime Environment)

Repetition Detector freeware "allows you to detect repetitions in texts." Features are listed as: "Process text without size limitation, Word and letter count, Top 50 of most frequently used words, Highlight small repetitions (two indentical words which are close), Highlight intermediate repetitions (words used too often inside two or three pages), Highlight each occurrence of a word by clicking on it, Take into account similar words, i.e. with same beginning, Customizable and automatically saved parameters" (OS: Win 98/ME/NT/2K/XP/2K3)

Sweet Home 3D 1.5.1 freeware "is a free interior design application that helps you place your furniture on a house 2D plan, with a 3D preview" (OS: Windows XP)

TheSage English Dictionary and Thesaurus is "a professional software package that integrates a complete dictionary and multifaceted thesaurus of the English language into a single and powerful language reference system." There's also an online version here (OS: Windows XP/Vista)

tinySpell freeware is "a small utility that allows you to easily and quickly check and correct the spelling in any Windows application. tinySpell can watch your typing on the fly and alert you whenever it detects a misspelled word. It can also check the spelling of text that you copy to the clipboard. tinySpell installs itself in the system tray for easy access. It comes with an American-English dictionary containing more than 110,000 words" (OS: Version 1.8: Windows 2000/XP/Vista; Version 1.5: Windows 98)

Tolon Notekeeper 0.9.7 freeware is "a multi-functional hierarchical information manager for Windows. Store notes and images in virtual folders in one file! Many notes and images can be stored in a single NoteKeeper file and can be grouped into flexible virtual folders enabling easy, intuitive access at all times . . . strong encryption keeps your data away from prying eyes" (OS: Win 9x/ME/2K/NT/XP)

Word RMR (Read in Microsoft Reader 1.1.3) is a Microsft Word 2000/XP/2003 Add-In that allows you to "use Microsoft Word 2000/XP/2003 to create your own Microsoft Reader eBooks. Microsoft Reader makes on-screen reading more like reading a printed book, while adding active reading capabilities" (OS: Win 98/ME/NT/2K/XP; website note: "In order to receive the full functionality of the Read in Microsoft Reader add-in, it is recommended that you install Microsoft Reader. RMR 1.1.3 is an update that enables conversion support for Word 2003. To learn more about Microsoft Reader, visit the Microsoft Reader Web site.")