Best Freeware of 2006

MacMerc.com recently published its Best Freeware of 2006:

The Google Browser:

Browser Sync and Toolbar beta
Google grabs top web browser honors – without a browser. With tools to synchronize your data between computers and drag-to-window Word and Excel editing the Web OS is here.

Honorable mention: Firefox 2, Flock 0.7

Freeware Classic:

NeoOffice
OpenOffice.org meets Aqua. We know OpenOffice.org is working on a Mac native version, but for now count on NeoOffice to let OpenOffice.org 2.0 loose from X11.

Honorable mention: Abiword

System Extension:

Quicksilver
This free application has grown from a novelty to a whole new way to use your Mac. QuickSilver has a cult following and powerful time-saving features.

Honorable mention: YASU, rooSwitch lite

Best Plugin:

PodTube
This was the year of YouTube. Get PodTube and get all those dancing ninja clips off YouTube and on your iPod.

Honorable mention: Flip4Mac WMV, Growl

Best Cross-Platform:

Firefox 2
With 2.0 Firefox is fast and more Mac-native that 1.x. Hundreds of cross-platform extensions help Firefox deliver a great experience on both OS X and Windows.

Honorable Mention: YamiPod

Best Mac Switcher:

Skype
Skype introduced a feature-par version for the Mac, including support for video calling.

Honorable Mention: Google Earth

Best Web Service:

activeCollab
This web service is a do-it-yourselfer. The ability to enjoy Bascamp-like project management online for free is indispensable to the creative Mac professional.

Honorable Mention: Writely (now Google Docs), NetVibes

Best Mac-Only:

ImageWell 3
With version 3, ImageWell is only getting better. New features offer a better interface and more editing tools to know out and upload images easily.

Honorable Mention: iSquint, Xcast

Pro App:

Scribus
This Open Source page layout application runs without X11 support and includes powerful document management capabilities.

Honorable Mention: Google SketchUp

Road Warrior:

iStumbler
iStumbler sniffs out WiFi, Bluetooth and Bonjour. You won’t find a free wireless detector with a more refined interface and feature set.

Honorable Mention: Chicken of the VNC, Hotspot Shield

Source: “Freeloader Friday Download of the Week: Best of 2006” by Brian Burnham, published at MacMerc.com.