Random - 5 Free Things People Pay For 1/3/2010 All Random posts

Remote Desktop vs GoToMyPC

If you're looking to connect to your home computer from anywhere (given the fact that you know your IP Address or are using some type of Dynamic DNS) without paying for products like GoToMyPC.

It amazes me how some users aren't even aware that Remote Desktop has shipped with Windows for some time and is 100% free. Follow the steps in my previous post to get up and running.
 
GoToMeeting still makes sense for group desktop sharing.
 

Annual Credit Report vs FreeCreditScore

The U.S. Government allows you free access to your Credit Report from all 3 major credit reporting companies once every 12 months.

 
"This central site allows you to request a free credit file disclosure, commonly called a credit report, once every 12 months from each of the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion."
 
The tactics of Free Credit Score and Credit Score are truly deceptive. Unless you read the finest of their fine print you will be unwittingly subscribing to their "monitoring" services and can look forward to a nice monthly bill.
 

Stack Overflow vs Experts Exchange

Stack Overflow has been on the scene for some time now and has taken over the Q&A market for developers. It is built on their Stack Exchange framework and has created a community where information is shared freely and points are coveted.

 
Experts Exchange is a paid subscription service that both limits the pool of "experts" that answer questions and has a terrible user interface. Not to mention their poor implementation due to the Google Caching Exploit. Nice work! You're giving away for free what your members are paying for!
 

Google Documents vs Microsoft Office

With the securing of the online document market with Google Documents you can remove Microsofts steel-toes boot from your temple. Google Docs is free, open, and compatible with other popular document formats. You can also easily export to other popular types, all without software running on your computer.

 

Shipping

In this day and age you should never have to pay for shipping. 2010 saw many online vendors come around to this trend (most with a minimum purchase amount). If your preferred vendor doesn't offer Free Shipping check out Google Products to easily compare vendors and their shipping options.