“Is there a free alternate to application X, Y or Z?” Probably, but just how the heck do you find it? (Hint: You go to AlternativeTo.net)

404 Tech Support - AlternativeTo – Free Replacements for Popular Desktop and Mobile Apps

“AlternativeTo provides a simple, straight forward means to finding free software that will provide the same functionality as a commercial title. It offers listings for Windows, Mac, Linux, and online applications. They also have a fairly new Mobile section that offers listings of alternative software for smart phones like the iPhone, Windows Mobile devices, Android, Blackberry, S60, Palm Pre, and more.

Let’s say you need to edit some photos, particularly some .PSD files. So you start looking into Adobe Photoshop, but you find that it costs an Arm and a Leg in a better market than we’re in today. So, you just choose the tab that corresponds to the OS you’re looking for, Windows, Mac, Linux, or online or stick with the All tab and then type a search out for ‘Photoshop’. This will bring up a list of results and …”

AlternativeTo

“AlternativeTo is a new approach to finding good software. Tell us what application you want to replace and we give you suggestions on great alternatives! Instead of listing thousands of more or less crappy applications in a category, we make each application into a category. Think of it like forever evolving blog posts about good alternatives to the software that you're not satisfied with. And the "blog posts" are generated by you through suggestions, comments and votes.

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Yesterday, I was doing a fresh install of Windows 7 and needed an ISO mounting utility. I had used Virtual CloneDrive on Vista and was happy with it, but seeing that I now a fresh, clean and happy OS install, it was worth checking if there was a better alternate.

How do you find it? bing it and then hunt and peck, tweet, etc, etc?

Better yet, go to AlternativeTo.Net!

How is that I’m just now finding this site? It’s pretty much exactly what I need when I hunt for software…

[BTW, In the end I stuck with Virtual CloneDrive and it’s working great :]