Version: 2008
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Communications

You'll find all the latest e-mail software and chat clients at CNET Download.com, as well as e-mail utilities and spam filters, VoIP software, Web phones, Webcam applications, and everything else you'll need to reach out and touch someone. See all 159 products in this category. See all 159 products in this category.

for the week of: November 01Visits
  1. 1.
    Yahoo Mail

    E-mail Software265

  2. 2.
    eBuddy

    E-mail Software187

  3. 3.
  4. 4.
    Meebo

    E-mail Software97

  5. Create dashboards from any data source with point-and-click ease.
  6. 5.
    Phonezoo

    E-mail Software18

  7. 6.
    Imo.im

    E-mail Software16

  8. 7.
    YouCams

    E-mail Software13

  9. Continuous Data Protection.
  10. 8.
    AIMExpress

    Chat13

  11. 9.
    Userplane Webchat 2

    E-mail Software9

  12. 10.
    Talkster Free World Dialing

    E-mail Software9

See all most popular software

  1. Reduce multiple passwords to one single item.
Release date
  1. Intra Communication Solution Aug 25

    E-mail Software

  2. 1-2-All Email Marketing Software Aug 06

    E-mail Software

  3. Flamingo Email Jul 17

    E-mail Software

  4. iTickleMe Email Tickler Jun 09

    E-mail Utilities

  5. Pilot Newsletter Software May 21

    E-mail Software

  6. BigResponse Apr 16

    E-mail Software

  7. TrioLive Apr 07

    Chat

  8. Omnistar Tell-A-Friend Feb 24

    E-mail Utilities

  9. Windows Live Essentials Jan 07

    Chat

  10. Radus Nov 12

    Chat

See all new releases

  1. 1.
    Windows Live Essentials

    Stay connected, feel protected, and share your files from anywhere online.

  2. 2.
    Yahoo Mail

    Check for messages you get via Yahoo! mail.

  3. 3.
    eBuddy

    Chat with your MSN, AOL, and Yahoo buddies without any program or Java applet.

  4. 4.
    Meebo

    Chat with your friends in popular IM networks via Web-based interface.

  5. 5.
    Imo.im

    Send instant messages to AIM, Google Talk, MSN, and Yahoo Messenger users.

  6. 6.
    Gmail

    Check for messages you get via Gmail.

  7. 7.
    Jaxtr

    Call and hear your online friends from your landline or mobile phone.

  8. 8.
    Phonezoo

    Personalize your phone with custom ringtones created from music you own.

  9. 9.
    Yahoo Messenger for the Web

    Communicate with your friends in online mode.

  10. 10.
    Talkster Free World Dialing

    Make free international and long distance calls from your regular phone.

See all editor's picks

from the download blog

Mozilla's e-mail group looks toward the cloud

Posted by Stephen Shankland on Nov 05, 2009
Mozilla Messaging, while about to release the Thunderbird 3 desktop e-mail software, also is turning its attention to cloud computing with its Raindrop project.
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an introduction to Communications

The Internet is all about communication. From e-mail software to chat clients to the latest in VoIP software, Download.com's Communications category has everything you need to reach out and touch someone.

Of course you use e-mail, but which e-mail program should you use? A number of e-mail programs are free, from the venerable Microsoft Outlook Express to our current favorite, Mozilla Thunderbird. Thunderbird supports IMAP and POP mail protocols and can handle all your RSS feeds. It features cutting-edge antiphishing and spam filters in addition to advanced security features such as S/MIME, digital signing, and message encryption.

You'll also want to download all the latest e-mail extensions, such as spam filters and programs that notify you when e-mail is sent to your online accounts.

If you're too impatient for e-mail, chat software allows real-time communication between any two PCs. Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk, MSN Messenger (soon to be Windows Live Messenger), and AOL Instant Messenger are the major players in the chat market, with ICQ still a popular choice among hard-core chat fans.

If your friends use different clients and you don't want to install them all, Trillian lets you chat with everyone regardless of chat platform, including IRC-based chat rooms.

Of course, why bother typing e-mails when you can just talk to someone over your PC? Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP, allows you to turn your PC into a Web phone to call other Internet-connected PCs and talk as long as you want at no charge. Programs such as Skype, GloPhone, and BuddyTalk are painless to install and easy to use, and all three allow you to place calls to regular phones by signing up for a calling plan. For more information, check out the Download.com guide to Net Phones.