if you got used to Microsoft Office then you will find MS Works unprofessional. so if you are a professional user choose Microsoft Office. for beginners Microsoft Works would look easier and more dynamic.
i always preferred Windows Media Player than Winamp specially if you download and install Media Player Add-ons. the reason is simply you don't need few players to do same things for you
i have:
jet audio to record audio (it's another player , nice one)
real player and quick time because each one of them plays their own formats
and also Adobe Player for flv formats
and Nero player which is automatically installed with Nero.

here is a list of "features" of Wmp against winamp:

Memory Usage:
Taken from the task manager.

WMP - 8776k
Winamp - 7264k

Playing song:

WMP - 21328k
Winamp - 23114k

First Run:

WMP - Very quick. Very simple. It sets up and scans your library within 10 minutes or at least on my machine.
Winamp. As as WMP. Done everything in about 10 minutes.

Plugins:

WMP - Has a good number of plugins ranging from visual to effects to codecs.
Winamp - A large community of developers. 100’s of them.

Skins :

WMP - Has a selection. Not a good selection but a selection none the less.
Winamp - A huge number of skins! Many are great and can totaly change the way you use the program.

HotKeys

WMP - Can’t add custome keys but will use the media controls on your keyboard
Winamp - Uses media keys plus allows the creation of custome keys.

Sharing Media

WMP - Simple to use and share.
Winamp - Can only do it with a plugin and even then its horrible.

Playlists:

WMP - Handles them nicely. Very simple. Allows you to save them in several different formats.
Winamp - Very simple, just like WMP. It also allows your to save them out in a few different forms.


well... i use winamp... the new version is friendly and good

Replying to coolcat50
I understand the C++ stuck mind problem :)
Not for Recording Desktop
Well, there is recordMyDesktop for linux.


-reply by pedrofmj

Microsoft Office is too expensive, better have your time learning Open Office. A good screen capture software eh? Try Freez Screen Capture. Here is link http://www.smallvideosoft.com/screen-video-capture/

Hey, well personally I do not prefer Winamp nor Windows Media player, I currently use RealPlayer 11 which is pretty much good. And I have DFX to enhance the sound to the maximum (I have a subwoofer as well) so my sound system (software and hardware) is really great.

Concerning OpenOffice or Microsoft Works, I suppose OpenOffice is much better because the interface is more friendly and it is free as well. And they both have almost the same features anyway...

I do not know of any good desktop recording program but I will suggest some other useful software: Kaspersky Antivirus is the best so far, so I advise you to use it if you want to protect your laptop. You will also need WinRAR, Mozilla Firefox which is MUCH better than Mircrosoft Internet Explorer (faster and much more stable), Adobe Reader, Adobe Photoshop CS3 or maybe GIMP (if you want something good and free). I guess these are the most important software you might need.

i dont know about open office or works but i say open office because it's free but if works already came with the laptop you should leave it alone unless it'realy bugging you.

for the media player i say WMP i works pretty good for me.

for recording my desktop i use camstudio it works realy well but it would probably slow down the game.

This post has been edited by etycto: May 31 2008, 05:13 PM

I would recommend OpenOffice (although if you have professional needs and have the money for it, you should pay and get MSOffice instead).

As for the media player, I'd forget about winamps and windows media players... Why not use foobar2000? It's a free player with tons of features. It's not the prettiest (but it can be prettier, if you really need it). Also, what's the point of having a skinned media player when all it's going to do is sit right there in the system tray? Go for foobar2000, believe me.

As for the recording thingy, there's a free software like camtasia called camstudio, I think. Some other user has already mentioned it :)

About media player, you can try KMPlayer (http://www.kmplayer.com/forums/forums.php). It's free! But it's really amazing. It can plays most of media files (music and movie files, flash, CD, DVD, ...) and provide many useful tools, plugins for watching movies, listening to music.
I like the 'Subtitles' options most. It's very convenient because you can choose the position, size, effects and it can display many subtitle languages at the same time! (for me, it's good for learning English).
Try it! And you will like it! ^^ IT'S FREE!

So, i'd basically recommend you install OpenOffice, foobar2000, mpc (media player classic), CCCP (combined community codec pack), and camstudio, a free desktop-recording software... I don't really know if camstudio records games... never tried that. You can always try fraps for that (not free).

This post has been edited by pedro-kun: Aug 11 2008, 06:14 PM