No tutorials, no nagging about updates, no breaking news this week. This week’s column is just about fun. Free fun.

Free movies for days

If you want a change from YouTube’s Dramatic Prairie Dog (http://youtu.be/oTKybiHJBKA) and the Numa Numa guy (http://youtu.be/KmtzQCSh6xk), here’s a site where you can watch more than 6.000 documentaries for free. All you need is an internet connection and a working browser to enjoy the content on Watch Documentary (http://watchdocumentary.com/). Browse by category, or search for something specific. They have a Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/WatchDocumentary) and an Android app. (Be sure you know what your data plan allows before you start watching documentaries on your phone!)

You can watch all kinds of movies for free on the Prelinger Internet Archive. Read about the archive here: http://archive.org/details/prelinger or jump right in here: http://archive.org/details/movies. Use the navigation bar at the top of the page to find audio books, old time radio shows and music, including an extensive collection of live Grateful Dead performances. This site is not pretty, but it is incredibly rich in content.

If you happen to like film noir, an excellent list of free movies lives at Open Culture.com, here: http://www.openculture.com/free_film_noir_movies. Explore the Open Culture site (http://www.openculture.com/) for links to other genres of free movies, free language lessons, free audio books, and more. Open Culture aims to find great stuff and give people links to it in an organized way, and there is a lot there.

Photo: Contributed

Free books and free music

Your local library probably has free eBooks and free music. If you’re in the Okanagan, our library has books you can read on a Kobo reader --- and on the Kobo Desktop application. Check with your local branch or visit the website here: http://www.orl.bc.ca/. You don’t need a dedicated piece of hardware to read eBooks! You need Kobo-compatible software to borrow eBooks from the library. See this page for more information: http://www.kobobooks.com/desktop/, or ask your local library people for help.

You can read books in the Kindle format without a Kindle, too. See this page: http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_pc_mkt_lnd?docId=1000426311. I have been using the Kindle for PC and Kindle for Android to buy (or get free)books and read them on my home computer, my netbook and in some cases my cell phone. Want to know where to get free eBooks online? Check this list: http://www.techsupportalert.com/content/50-places-free-books-online.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+gizmosbest+%28Gizmo%27s+Best-ever+Freeware%29. One of the best places to get free books from Amazon is Hundred Zeros, here: http://hundredzeros.com/.

Audio books are available, too. Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/) is the best known source of audio books, but you need a paid subscription. Podiobooks (http://www.podiobooks.com/) doesn’t have as extensive a collection, but all the books are free. LibriVox (http://librivox.org/) makes books in the public domain available as audio books. It’s completely free, but if you feel like giving back, you can record some chapters! Awesome!

Free music is also likely to be available through your local library. It’s available through the Okanagan Regional Library here: http://okanagan.freegalmusic.com/homes/index. If you’re not in the Okanagan, check with your local library system. You’ll need a library card and there is a limit of three downloads per week.

If you just want to listen (rather than download) music, try CBC Music (http://music.cbc.ca/) if you are in Canada, or Accuradio (http://www.accuradio.com/) if you are anywhere. I like Accuradio a lot at Christmas, but there’s plenty of other music available there, too!

Do you know of any other good sites for free movies, books, music, language courses, or the like? Send a link to me at help@computercarekelowna.com and I’ll share the good ones (with all due credits!) in future columns.

Do you need help with your computer? I'm here to help you and your home or business computer get along!

Cate Eales runs Computer Care Kelowna (http://computercarekelowna.com/) a mobile service helping home users and businesses get along with their computers. To arrange an appointment phone her at 250-764-7043. Cate also welcomes your comments and suggestions. Send email to help@computercarekelowna.com.

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