Here is a list of software in various categories which I think is the best of the best. All these links go direct to their respective download sites and are safe for anyone to use. Not included in this list is any software that has adware or malware present.
Browsers
Firefox
Still my favorite browser with a fantastic plugin system.
Opera
A speedy alternative to firefox and internet explorer.
Media Players
Foobar2000
Foobar2000 is an advanced audio player for the Windows, plays many formats and contains non of the bloat found in most of the alternatives.
Media Player Classic
My favorite movie player at the moment is zoomplayer, this is the best freeware alternative - clean and simple.
VLC Media Player
VLC media player is a highly portable multimedia player for various audio and video formats.
If you require certain codecs to play various formats such as xvid and x264 I highly recommend CCCP over any other codec pack. Comes with mediaplayer classic and Zoomplayer free.
Compression
7zip
Great free alternative to Winrar and Winzip.
