A little tip that may save you money on your Microsoft software downloads is to use a software program called "F-Droid". The "Free and Open Source Software" program are easy to install, no antivirus needed, no problem. And you know the best part? You can also use it to check on Windows updates and free software downloads for your computer, if you want. Free software may be free, but it still takes up space in your hard drive, consumes resources like disk space and processor cycles, and most importantly, will actually make your computer slower because Windows Update is constantly updating itself.
Free or open source software (FOSS) is probably the easiest way to go. In other words, if you can download it from the Internet for free and have an Internet connection, you can use the best Windows software available for free. Sometimes, this software is even better than a paid version.
If you are not familiar with FOSS, it means that you can get the software for free, but then you have to ask someone else to pay you if you want to use it. The software you need for a standard Windows computer is not a big deal for a FOSS, although there are special case solutions. Free software applications typically have no graphical user interface (GUI) on the interface screen. What you see is just a plain text file, where you can read the file and select the option that you want. A GUI gives you a graphical user interface, allowing you to manipulate the program, change its options, and many more.