It may not have all the functions of Microsoft Word, but on tonight's episode of "The Screen Savers" we have a contender that has everything you probably want, including a spell checker.

AbiWord, a free open-source word processing application from AbiSource, works with Windows, Linux, QNX, FreeBSD and even Solaris. The perfect tool for those who can't live without Microsoft Word, but wish they could, offers compatibility with OpenOffice.org documents, Microsoft Word documents, WordPerfect documents, Rich Text Format documents, and HTML pages, among others. (Read about all its features and compatibility at its website.)

Downloading the small and robust program won't take you into next week. The Windows version weighs in at only 4MB. You can also control how much space extra features take up by only adding the plug-ins you want. Don't you wish Word would let you have a say in how much space it takes up on your system and in what ways?

AbiWord is sure to make you happy and save you money.

Download AbiWord now

AbiWord's evolving

Do you want to help topple the Goliath in Redmond, Wash.? Send your suggestions for AbiWord or download the source code and tools to write your own code and make improvements. AbiWord is open source; it's legal!

I need more!
For those of you who need more than a word processor, we recommend another free open-source program, OpenOffice.org. The alternative to Microsoft Office includes a word processor, a spreadsheet app, presentation software, a drawing program, and even a database tool.

Download OpenOffice.org now

Enjoy!