What you'll find here
Knowledge tools are applications, utilities and web resources that I've discovered over the years and that deliver optimum efficiency in getting work done online. Some of these are well known, others are almost unknown. All our eminently useful.

Document Management
Most large online documents are published in Adobe Acrobat (pdf) form. To read them, you'll need to get the free Acrobat Reader here. Follow the same link to buy the full version of Adobe Acrobat. I'd recommend it for any person/business that relies on document sharing, distribution and publishing across versions and platforms.

Bookmarks
Ever found a really good website and then lost the bookmark for it? Or know you have a bookmark somewhere but don't know which folder you put it in? Powermarks is probably the most invaluable utility I own. It does away with all hierarchical folders and stores bookmarks in a flat database accessible by keyword search. It's lightning fast, simple and loaded with features (such as internet backup and sharing), yet costs only $25. They also let you freely download the full version and ask that you register if you want to keep it after 30 days. Believe me, you will--so go get it now!

Questions, Questions?
How often do you wish you had your own personal guru at hand for all those questions that pop up when you're online: What does that word mean? Where is that place? Who is that person again? Well, now you do! GuruNet is a "free one-click information service that works whenever you're online, in any Windows text application. It automatically analyses pointed-to text in context and pops up a simple window without linking or leaving your document. You don't even have to select the word. Just Alt-click it! Depending on what word or phrase you Alt-click on, GuruNet provides you with the appropriate information for that topic (e.g., dictionary, encyclopaedia and thesaurus entries, as well as translations, maps, geography, weather, news, sports and stock quotes)." Get it free here.

Downloading
With all these new programs to get you first might want to get a download manager that speeds up and automates downloading, and can resume downloads that terminate. There are two popular free ones available: GetRight and Gozilla! I find Gozilla more intuitive and easier to use. With this program you can copy download links straight into Gozilla and have it download them immediately or schedule them for later. It automatically switches to the fastest sites to get the file from, drops downloads that stall, and can leech entire sites. Download it here.

Clipboard Expander
Multiple Clipboards is a free utility that expands Windows 95/98/NT clipboard up to ten. This means you'll never have to labour over unnecessary copying and pasting again. Instead you simply switch between clipboards. An icon in the tray bar indicates the active clipboard, and there is also a viewer that shows the contents of all clipboards. Get it free here.

Searching the Web
If you don't recognise the name Google you'll soon be thanking me abundantly for bringing it to your attention. It's the smartest, fastest search engine available and you'll almost never have recourse to any other option when searching the web. Try it now and you'll see. Google now offers a toolbar for your browser allowing direct entry of searches and other search customisation options. You can find search tips, more info and the toolbar here.

Browser Toolbar
Hotbar is a free toolbar for your web browser that brings you added features including quick links, news, games, shopping, downloads, etc. However, I only really use it for two things: to replace the normal grey background with a nice looking picture, and to translate pages directly with Altavista's Babelfish. Find it here.

File Compression
The most common file compression type in use is zip. So you'll need a program to unzip these compressed files and zip them yourself. The most popular free utility is Winzip. However, the best one available is Enzip--it's free too! If you come across new files you can't open, try using RAR--it's a new compression type that's becoming more popular.

Got a Knowledge Tool?
If you know of an application or website that should be featured here, let me know.