Screencast

• CamStudio- this software is able to record audio and screen activity. It can be used to create videos for demonstrations or tutorials. You can use it to make videos for just about any purpose. this software is free to use and compatible with almost every computer. http://camstudio.org/

• Wink - is also a tutorial and presentation creation software. This software is geared toward creating tutorials for MS-Word, Excel, Etc.. Using this program you can capture screenshots and add boxes and buttons. It is higly effective tool and easy to use. This software is also free. http://www.debugmode.com/wink/

• Screencast-O-matic - This software is also free and easy to use. It is used to create video of your screen and then you can upload to any hosting site. The maximum length of these cast can only be 15 minutes though. http://screencast-o-matic.com/
  

Microsoft Office Alternatives

1. Corel WordPerfect Office X4 - has one-click PDF, HTML, and XML publishing, includes redaction and password-protection, and supports 60 file formats. It can create polished documents, turn complex spreadsheets into charts and graphs that are easy to read. it can also present slideshows, proposals, demonstrations, and interactive reports. It can be shared with many other computers programs with little or no distortions from virtually any source.(http://reviews.cnet.com/office-suites/corel-wordperfect-x4/4505-3524_7-32938021.html?tag=rb_shell;rb_mtx)
2. StarOffice 8 - it provides basic productivity tools and has a couple extra programs such as a drawing program. Many people prefer staroffice because it is very easy to use, many consider it more efficient. (http://reviews.cnet.com/1990-3524_7-5140428-1.html)
3. OpenOffice 2 - is a free of charge office software source for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases and more. It is available in several languages and works on most computer. It stores all your data in an international open standard format and can also read and write files from other common office software packages.(http://why.openoffice.org/)
4. Apple iWork '08 - Apple has added the spreadsheet application Numbers which is much like Microsoft Excel. With the release of the numbers program apple users can now stick to this much less expensive option.the downfall is that Microsoft Office 2007 is not compatible with the apple program. (http://reviews.cnet.com/presentation/apple-iwork-08/4505-3525_7-32564562.html?tag=rb_shell;rb_mtx)
5. IBM Lotus Symphony (Windows) - consists of word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation applications. IBM's Documents, Presentations, and Spreadsheets are foils to Microsoft's Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. (http://reviews.cnet.com/office-suites/ibm-lotus-symphony-windows/4505-3524_7-32624740.html?tag=rb_shell;rb_mtx)