10 most valuable brands in 2009

"Each year, branding industry group Interbrand ranks companies by the amount of revenue that is attributable to their brands, using a formula that takes into account the brand's future strength and its role in creating demand. The firm assigns a monetary value to each brand and measures annual growth, in this case from July 1, 2008, to June 30, 2009."

Click here for the Top Ten.

Free software can pay off in savings and performance

"If there's one price everyone can get behind, it's free. While you sometimes get what you pay for, that's not always true with computer software. Some free programs are very high quality and even superior to paid software.

Students on a budget or users looking to take advantage of new operating systems by Microsoft and Apple can find free substitutes for pricey programs that fit their needs."


For more on free software, click here.