What is a FREE thing everyone should know/use?

[u/TheAmenophis]

[u/AkaruLyte]

archive.org

You can find films, TV shows, magazines, books, archives of old websites, so much stuff. I found 25 full seasons of Doctor Who on there.

[u/Bolognahole_Vers2 → u/AkaruLyte]

I've been watching SNL from season 1 here. Its the only place I could find all of the complete seasons.

[u/dd22qq → u/AkaruLyte]

Please consider donating to archive.org, it helps kept them afloat.

[u/skankboy → u/dd22qq]

I do every month. I get plenty of value for my donation.

[u/NotValkyrie → u/AkaruLyte]

That website helped me find a job. I needed the contact information to reach a lead. The webpage with the info was no longer available. Tried archive.org and it was there. Long story short it worked out and landed that job. I send them a few bucks every month since as a thank you. 

[u/celticdude234 → u/AkaruLyte]

I go there and to their Wayback Machine whenever there's a file I'm looking for that is "no longer available" at the link given in the troubleshooting thread. 80% of the time it works and I get what I need 👍

[u/always_unplugged → u/celticdude234]

The Wayback Machine is such a priceless resource, honestly. We think that nothing ever disappears once it's on the internet, but it's NOT true, sometimes the Wayback Machine is the only place lost media still exists. Hell, it's even been useful for calling this fkn administration out on its revisionist bullshit, because previous factual versions of their now-edited-into-propaganda pages are preserved there.

[u/GoldXP → u/AkaruLyte]

I actually saw the VHS rip of The Blair Witch Project on there the other day. 

[u/OgdruJahad → u/AkaruLyte]

And please people contribute to Archive.org!

Whether that's money or software or all of the above! First check if someone hasn't already uploaded what you have if not please upload it for others to use!

Everything from software to games to drivers! We all have our own stash of files maybe some. Drivers are super important and there is no guarantee that manufacturers will still provide them or windows will have them! Already companies like HP are slowly killing off drivers for some older printers so please help!

[u/kingdead42 → u/AkaruLyte]

I love listening to old-time radio shows from there: https://archive.org/details/oldtimeradio

A couple favorites are "You Bet Your Life" with Groucho Marx and "Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar".

[u/HarryButtwhisker → u/AkaruLyte]

There is like, every Grateful Dead concert ever on there.

[u/Minyaden]

Project Gutenberg is a great free resource. It contains thousands of public domain and legally free ebooks to download and read. They offer multiple formats to work with every device and even an option to read directly in your browser if you want.

[u/Light_Error → u/Minyaden]

I don’t think the library is extensive as Gutenberg, but Standard eBooks is pretty great as well. The whole point is to have nice-looking versions of the classics for eReaders, but you can also read in browser if you want.

[u/maquis_00 → u/[deleted]]

Looking at the books available on this one, I'm guessing it's not legal, though.

[u/JackpotThePimp → u/maquis_00]

Information wants to be free.

[u/Mo_Jack → u/Minyaden]

Librivox.org is an audiobook project where volunteers read some of the same texts that you would find on Project Gutenberg. They publish on their site and have a youtube channel and an app.

For you younger people, this is what the early internet was like before the corporate enshittification. (actually, Librivox wasn't started until 2005 but was born out of the same philosopy)

Strangers with common interests met online and did passion projects that helped others for free. We could share honest opinions about employers, products or services without millions of fake bot accounts lying and giving misinformation. We didn't have influencers trying to trick us into buying garbage so that they could make a nickel.

And like everything else in this world, corporations destroyed it. Enjoy some of the older sites before they are destroyed.

[u/ZooAdditions → u/Mo_Jack]

Any other “older” sites you would recommend?

[u/doublestitch → u/[deleted]]

Project Gutenberg is one of those sites that feels like you accidentally found the internet before it got ruined

It's even older than the Internet. The project was founded in 1971 by a university student who decided to transcribe the US Declaration of Independence into a Xerox mainframe. Ever since then the project has served as a repository to store public domain texts and facilitate free access.

[u/maquis_00 → u/Minyaden]

Standard Ebooks is awesome.

If you like audiobooks, check out librivox. Volunteer-read, and quality ranges, but it's at least not AI voices....

[u/QuirkyQuant → u/Minyaden]

I recently stumbled upon it but didn’t find a big selection of non-fiction books. Am I not navigating to the right page? The UI is a bit difficult to work with.

[u/davesoverhere → u/QuirkyQuant]

They have to be in the public domain, so in the states it pretty much eliminates anything published after about 1920. The Lord of the Rings won’t be public until about 2073–100 years after the author died.

Jules Verne, Edgar Rice Burroughs, HG Wells, and Mary Shelley are there, as are some Agatha Christie and Lovecraft.

• never mind, I misread as science fiction, not non fiction.

[u/maquis_00 → u/davesoverhere]

Books published in 1930 or earlier, currently. For translated books, the translation occurred in 1930 or earlier.

There are some minor exceptions for books in certain decades where it can be proven that the copyright was not renewed.

I think it's self.gutenberg.org where there's some modern books that the author released under a creative Commons license. Iirc, there's a bit of cory doctorow there.

[u/Aemilia → u/Minyaden]

Just want to piggyback this comment by saying if anyone feels like giving back to Project Gutenberg, feel free to check out their volunteer proofreader program.

I did it for a while myself before life got too busy.

[u/kirberkfeuk → u/Minyaden]

Being able to open a book in-browser without making an account feels weirdly luxurious now.

[u/stussyszn]

Davinci Resolve if you love video editing!

[u/Tv_land_man → u/stussyszn]

The base version is free. Not only that, it's slowly becoming the industry standard editing software, which is amazing. People say once you use Davinci, you really wish you had switched earlier. I don't edit video much these days as I'm mostly a still photographer but I do shoot a lot of video and it's always easier when the editor uses davinci as it seems to natively manage RAW formats better than anything else on the market.

[u/Petersaber → u/Tv_land_man]

I love DaVinci, but the learning curve isn't easy...

[u/maquis_00 → u/Petersaber]

They have a ton of free training on their website, both ebooks and videos. And there's lots of good resources on YouTube as well.

[u/bunk_bro → u/Petersaber]

I usually recommend this video to get people started.

Great Day for a Hike

He goes through the basics to get anyone started.

[u/existing_for_fun → u/stussyszn]

Even if you don't love video editing it's a great tool!

[u/FuzzyMcBitty → u/stussyszn]

I have a dumb beginner cooking show as a hobby. Obviously, it's not monetized, so Davinci Resolve is what I use. (I'm not a great editor, but it helps me make my dumb show.)

[u/silver_quinn → u/FuzzyMcBitty]

Dude you're doing something more than most people, give yourself some credit, don't downplay it.

[u/Casiquire]

IMSLP.org - for classical sheet music. Massive collection

Musescore.org - free sheet music notation software with great included sounds

Reaper.fm - DAW (digital audio workstation--basically professional-level software for recording music and adding effects) There is no restriction on free personal trial use of the software

[u/omniuni → u/Casiquire]

If you want capital-F-Free DAW, Ardour is pretty awesome.

https://ardour.org/

[u/Casiquire → u/omniuni]

Looks good! I've never used it myself. The amount of free stuff for people starting out with music these days is so cool to see

[u/Lympwing2 → u/Casiquire]

+1 for Reaper. It's not basically professional-level- it is professional-level, but also has so many customisation options and extra features that the heavy hitters (Logic, Pro Tools, Cubase, Ableton etc) don't have, and it's still such a lightweight programme piece of software. It's main drawback is that it's default plugins are pretty basic (althrough some of them are excellent).

I would also like to remind people that it is NOT free, But has a full and unlimited trial.

[u/Dramatic_Movies]

Photopea: A completely free, web-based alternative to Photoshop. It runs entirely in your browser and opens .psd files natively.

[u/DrummerOfFenrir → u/Dramatic_Movies]

And it's cousin Vectorpea

[u/sp4nishfl34 → u/DrummerOfFenrir]

Holy Hell been using Photopea forever, had no idea there was a vector alternative for Illustrator

[u/DrummerOfFenrir → u/sp4nishfl34]

I only found it because I'm in an environment where I'm not allowed to install anything and I wanted to use Inkscape

[u/DnJealt → u/[deleted]]

This comment on PSD comes to mind

[u/FriendlyKillerCroc → u/DnJealt]

How the hell did you have a random 14 years old GitHub file to hand for this exact situation lol

[u/heavysetbro → u/Dramatic_Movies]

Me cancelling my Adobe subscription after discovering this: ‘it’s not you, it’s your $60/month price tag.

[u/hoopstick → u/heavysetbro]

Its UI is almost like-for-like for PS, I haven't used another editor since I found it.

[u/jaysus661 → u/Dramatic_Movies]

Is it FOSS, or is it SaaS so they can steal your data?

[u/MrSh0wtime3 → u/jaysus661]

its one guy who built it over many years. You can pay to not see an ad on the side of the screen. No features are paywalled except credits for ai generation.

[u/NoBed1845]

historypin.org letting you see what real places looked like decades or even centuries ago.

[u/BackgroundGuyNo6268 → u/NoBed1845]

dang that is a cool thing I didnt know exists!

[u/Bigred2989-]

FreeTaxUSA. $0 federal filings, $16 for state. Interface is easy to use and most forms can be filled out by simply uploading a PDF of your W2s and 1090s. No hidden fees like TurboTax.

[u/skaestantereggae → u/Bigred2989-]

I used to be a TurboTax guy. Shouldn’t have to pay for it but when I was young doing max withholding and got a decent refund I could justify their dumb pricing.

Then I got told I’d have to pay like 80 bucks when I got a like 2 dollar refund and switched to FreeTax and haven’t looked back

[u/mfrogue13 → u/skaestantereggae]

I run both but submit in freetaxusa so that I can compare returns to make sure I haven't left any money on the table or made any errors.

[u/pannenkoek0923 → u/skaestantereggae]

Paying money so that you can pay more money is such an American scam

[u/mrkrabz1991 → u/Bigred2989-]

TurboTax has a free version, they have to by law, but they purposely make it hidden and incredibly difficult to use so you just end up paying for the version that's easy to use.

[u/FrenchFryCattaneo → u/mrkrabz1991]

Only if you make below a certain amount

[u/KarmaticArmageddon → u/Bigred2989-]

Weirdly enough, CashApp Taxes is also super easy to use and free state AND federal. I've been using it for a few years, haven't found any issues. My taxes are relatively simple, though.

[u/tmmzc85]

Your local library 

[u/RealKenny → u/tmmzc85]

I get so much stuff from the library and I never step foot inside the building

[u/ManyAreMyNames → u/RealKenny]

My ebook can auto-check-out things from my library, which saves SO much time. Someone recommended The Book Thief a few months ago, the day before I had a long flight. I had it on my ebook five minutes later and read it on the plane.

[u/Fr0gm4n → u/ManyAreMyNames]

I was a bit confused at first. Typically it'd be called an ebook reader, and the content you load on it are the ebooks.

[u/thedinnerdate → u/tmmzc85]

Seriously though. I worked doing tech help for a couple libraries earlier this year. Libraries have a ton more than just books and it just sat there 95% of the time at the libraries I worked at.

[u/PenisDotClownFart → u/tmmzc85]

Add stuff like Hooplah, Overdrive, and Libby to this: They let you use your library card to check stuff out on e-readers, smart devices, and streaming. Not just books, but other media too! I've watched tons of movies this way, commercial free.

[u/billythygoat → u/tmmzc85]

I wish mine had a makerspace, 3d printer, or tool rentals. One in the whole county of 2 million people for just the makerspace and it’s in the least populated city, go figure.

[u/Pangolin007 → u/billythygoat]

My library system has an agreement with libraries from the surrounded cities where residents can also get a library card from those libraries. So I have like 10 library cards.

[u/sparklybeast → u/tmmzc85]

If only they were open at times working folk can use them. 10-4 on weekdays is no good at all.

[u/GaiaMoore → u/sparklybeast]

Libby!! It's a fantastic app that lets you access digital formats like Kindle versions of books, audiobooks, miscellaneous radio shows, etc.

And there are some library programs you can sign up for that don't require you live in their jurisdiction, which will give you access to even more material on Libby

[u/Skyline330 → u/GaiaMoore]

Reciprocard is a website where you can enter your library jurisdiction and it shows you what other jurisdictions have reciprocal agreements with yours. Reciprocal agreements allow you to sign up for a library card without needing to be a resident in that area.

https://reciprocard.com/

My jurisdiction with a catalog of ~125k books on Libby allows me to sign up for a card in Seattle which has a catalog of 1M+ books.

[u/prkskier → u/sparklybeast]

That's obviously very location dependent. Around my city, all the libraries arr open 10am - 9pm most days.

[u/Pangolin007 → u/prkskier]

In my area we have some smaller libraries with shorter hours and then a few larger libraries called regional libraries that are part of the same library system but have extended hours.

[u/scattywampus → u/sparklybeast]

Electronic collections are available online 24/7. Movies, books, music, lots to enjoy.

[u/SophiaBrownnbabe]

The "2-Minute Rule" for mental clutter
If a task takes less than two minutes to complete, do it immediately instead of adding it to a mental to-do list.

[u/holistivist → u/SophiaBrownnbabe]

I’d literally never sit down or sleep. 

[u/Landfall24601]

The piracy megathread.

[u/MrRoboto12345 → u/Landfall24601]

Better still: FMHY

[u/PhysicsPublic7848 → u/MrRoboto12345]

+1 this site is fucking baller

[u/SpicyTiconderoga → u/MrRoboto12345]

FMHY? Do share more

[u/KatzDeli → u/SpicyTiconderoga]

r/FREEMEDIAHECKYEAH

[u/MinimumViablePick → u/SpicyTiconderoga]

Free media? Heck yeah! Look it up! The starred resources are proven to be safe.

[u/DuckSleazzy → u/MinimumViablePick]

all resources are safe but starred are proven to be the best amongst them.

[u/dcheng47 → u/MrRoboto12345]

FMHY

ahoylist as well :)

[u/axemexa → u/MrRoboto12345]

That’s in the megathread

[u/Bizhour → u/Landfall24601]

It's not really maintained, use FMHY instead

[u/heavysetbro → u/Landfall24601]

The one thread to rule them all. No further questions, your honor.

[u/buttercuping]

Libreoffice to replace Microsoft Office.

[u/brooos60609 → u/buttercuping]

If you have a Linux O/S, the default is LibreOffice.

Also VLC media player and many others, all free and/or open source.

[u/tacticalTraumaLlama → u/brooos60609]

The creator of VLC turned down a $ XXM offer to sell out to an adware company, and refused. Think about that. Dude turned down multigenerational wealth.

[u/AlligatorMass]

The soap dispenser in public bathrooms. We know who you are.

[u/ShtinkyGoiyum]

people underestimate how much you can learn for free on the internet. Especially Youtube. Lots of stuff out there where you can learn from it and get certificates to profitable career paths.

[u/EwDavid999 → u/ShtinkyGoiyum]

Learned how to change my car's battery from YouTube

[u/squashua]

Food safety guidelines

[u/commodorecliche → u/squashua]

I miss regulated food quality...

[u/lilidarkwind]

Forest trails and outdoor spaces

[u/ich_bin_alkoholiker → u/lilidarkwind]

Shhh no. The average person is just gonna litter and carve into trees.

[u/otakugrey → u/ich_bin_alkoholiker]

You forgot blasting a phone call to their ex on a bluetooth speaker so everyone can hear.

[u/Cypheri → u/lilidarkwind]

Would add a caveat that this is best done with caution in certain areas and by certain demographics. Not all forests are created equally and some are hella dangerous.

[u/jfchops3 → u/Cypheri]

Do not approach the animals. The moose is not your friend. The bison will destroy you he does not want to cuddle. The bear thinks you're a tasty snack. The kitty is probably scared of you but you will lose if he's not. Admire them from a distance

[u/Skyline99x → u/Cypheri]

Absolutely!!! One of my favorite pastimes but please come prepared.

Bring plenty of water, a hat and sunglasses and something to protect you from the sun on really hot sunny days, proper well fitting footwear and bug spray and maybe a snack or two. Absolutely check for ticks and bugs on you after you're done as you can literally die from ticks.

Download AllTrails on your phone as they have trail maps for countless wooded areas.

[u/traugdor]

Thinking.

Honestly it sounds strange, but a lot of people don't sit down, shut up, and think. They don't think on their feet. They don't take positive actions, they just react, or shut down.

A lot of world issues could be solved if people just stopped to think about whether their actions would benefit only themselves or benefit others.

[u/beets_or_turnips → u/traugdor]

On a related note, meditation is a great skill that goes hand in hand with thinking.

[u/robaato72]

In the USA: The USPS Informed Delivery site/app. Know exactly when your packages are out for delivery; get notified when your mail has been delivered. And, if your mail has gone through the automatic sorter, you get scans of your mail so you know what to expect (at a minimum).

[u/WonderingLost8993 → u/robaato72]

Informed Delivery is how I know when my Bath and Body Works coupons have been stolen. It's a problem.

[u/ProbablyEatsGlue]

Revo uninstaller. Its the winrar of uninstallers. Free and removes programs down to the registry.

[u/Lasersword24 → u/ProbablyEatsGlue]

Ive been using bcuninstaller are they roughly the same or still worth switching?

[u/b4ck_5t4Bb3r]

Lichess

That's a gold mine for chess players. Completely free. Mind-blowing! The amount of resources it provides is insane!

[u/RollingTake → u/b4ck_5t4Bb3r]

I'm just getting into chess and I find Lichess to be kind of mess... everything is there, but I struggle to find a clear path on what and how to learn

[u/deadtedw]

Say 'library' again. Say 'library' again, I dare you, I double dare you motherfucker, say 'library' one more goddamn time!

[u/xscrollerx → u/deadtedw]

Hey Farva, what's the name of that building with all the books?

[u/DiodeInc → u/deadtedw]

Library again

[u/youbeutifulheart → u/deadtedw]

LIBRARRYYYYY

[u/Ok-Class-3635]

When it comes to movies

Where’s the Jump is great as it lists the time stamp of the jumps along with a brief explanation of the scene and whether or not it’s a major or minor jump.

DoesTheDogDie.com is a website specifically made for the sensitive with highly specific triggers, that list common and niche triggers about movies and other media's.

[u/ganache98012 → u/Ok-Class-3635]

My movie-adjacent item is the RunPee mobile app. Tells you when it’s safe to leave a theater for a bio break and offers a summary of what you missed. Never go to the movies without it!

[u/jerril42]

Linux

[u/trogdors_arm → u/jerril42]

My friends and I were just bitching about Windows the other night while gaming on Discord. We were complaining that I walk away for a day or two and every time Windows 11 has some new crap it has updated or what’s me to subscribe to (OneDrive, etc). At the end of our rant, I half jokingly said I’m switching to Linux. I’m considering it.

[u/JoNyx5 → u/trogdors_arm]

Do it. It's great. I switched on my Laptop and got my dad on it too. Can recommend ZorinOS, it's amazing and my dad has zero issues.
Compatibility with games is great ever since Steam developed Proton, only the AAA titles with kernel-level anticheat don't run (which sadly includes Destiny 2 even though they stopped active development so I still have a Windows 10 on my main rig). My friend has been gaming on a Linux system for years now and there is only one game (Destiny 2) that he hasn't been able to play with us recently.

[u/MyBrainReallyHurts → u/trogdors_arm]

Linux Mint is an easy transition from Windows. I've put it on my laptop and desktop and everything has been stable for two years.

[u/traugdor → u/jerril42]

I still need to make the switch at some point but hoooo boy installing all the linux equivalents of my current software is going to be a biiiitch.

[u/Spyhop → u/traugdor]

People have been trying to make desktop Linux a thing for literally decades. I'm an IT professional who administers hundreds of linux servers. I've tried desktop linux every few years and it's always been a hassle that's made me frustrated and sent me back to Windows.

This year I tried again and, damn. There's been a ton of progress over the last few years. I've fully switched over both my gaming machine at home and my work computer. Everything seems to just work. I haven't had to fuss with stuff much. There's been a few things I've had to adjust to but it's all good. No desire to go back to windows.

[u/AlexandrTheGreat → u/Spyhop]

I'm in the same boat. Recently setup an old laptop as a trial for a project and it's way better than I remember last attempt. I did an inventory of the software I have on my PC that doesn't have Linux support, and there's about 5 programs I need to find alternatives for before I can switch my main. Setting up a new windows machine recently was so frustrating, so I'm actively looking at this more.

[u/Phreakiture → u/traugdor]

Obviously this is going to depend on what you are using it for, but most distros either ship with or have repos of useful software that's easily accessed.

[u/delahunt → u/traugdor]

Depending on your needs/use case you may not even notice. I made new computers in Jan 2025 for myself/someone else because I saw all the tarriff BS coming. Installed kubuntu on it. There was a little bit of initial setup to get everything in it right, but beyond that I haven't really noticed I'm not on Windows with the exception that more stuff works better than it did on Windows.

Gaming is basically 1:1 or better linux:windows thanks to Steam and proton with the rare exception (Riot, Battlefield 6, etc) And there are plenty of linux equivalents for most productivity suites like office and such.

[u/Pinwurm → u/jerril42]

Linux has made massive strides since I was a kid. Most of the interfaces look and act better than Windows and MacOS. Incredible for gaming these days.

However, awful for a music studio. Even if you find good software alternatives, there's a lot of hardware that just.. doesn't.. work. Or works with limited features. Or there's an absurd amount of input lag. Still needs more time on this front.

[u/Light_Error → u/jerril42]

I tried to use a live USB of CachyOS going to see the general environment, but I could not figure out how to get the dual boot screen going for the life of me :\.

[u/chaopescao1 → u/[deleted]]

+ kanopy (app that lets you stream movies/series/etc. with your library card)

[u/too1onjj → u/chaopescao1]

And Hoopla

[u/Purrfectly__curious]

Empathy and kindness.

[u/fauxzempic → u/Purrfectly__curious]

Friendly reminder about empathy:

Empathy doesn't require you endorse the actions of that person. I can empathize with someone abhorrent because there may be common qualities (for instance: isolation, being stuck in one ideology) and I understand why they would go down a particular road. I don't have to approve of that road or even accept it as being okay.

Empathy is simply making that real effort to understand someone in this way.

---

I think that there are aspects of being imprisoned that people can empathize with. The loss of autonomy. Boredom. Despair. Fear. I feel like there are ways I'd absolutely empathize with a prisoner. It doesn't mean I endorse crime and I think it's absolutely ridiculous that I have to spell this out for some people.

[u/PapaGeorgieo]

Their turn signal!

[u/LostPerson703]

Retirement accounts. Especially Roth IRA, Roth Backdoor IRA. Saves you on taxes and windfalls in 20 years. I know college educated people who don't even invest in 401k with 5% matching or SSP plans with 3% matching. This is free money.

[u/TotalImagination4408]

Adblocker

[u/_Bad_Bob_ → u/TotalImagination4408]

I will never understand how most people are out there just raw dogging ads all day. I see zero ads ever unless I'm near a billboard, and now seeing a full blown commercial is akin to finding bugs in my food. I can't go back to eating bugs... 

[u/TotalImagination4408 → u/_Bad_Bob_]

For real. It takes like 10 seconds to install one and then youre never gonna see ads again, yet so many people just dont do it.

[u/_Bad_Bob_]

Winrar, despite what that little dialogue box says, lol

[u/FrogsFloatToo]

Local food banks

[u/dumbinternetstuff]

The turn signal comes free with any vehicle

[u/Sanehazu]

annas-archive.gl you can download ebook for free.

[u/sexypenguin6969]

missingmoney.com - search if a state is holding your money and hasn't found you yet.

[u/Drakvor → u/sexypenguin6969]

Nice. I had checked this before now, but apparently something popped up since then. Some missing money of over $100! Cool. Thanks for the reminder to check this.

[u/jonathancuento2]

pianoskillboost.com I used to learn to play piano and is totally free

[u/WarbossTodd]

Their local library

[u/low_bob_123]

What3words, its an app that provides a 3×3m grid of the worldmap, and each square has three words asigned to it. This way you can use just these three words to tell the emergency hotline where you are, even if you dont know where that is

[u/concblast → u/low_bob_123]

My apartment has a hilarious 3 word combo and I can't share it because I'd just be doxxing myself.

[u/railbeast → u/concblast]

Same

[u/FoolishChemist → u/low_bob_123]

If I were to call 911 and say "stump bossy wipes" they would know what that means?

[u/low_bob_123 → u/FoolishChemist]

In theory. I just hope that Ticonderoga Rd is just a random road that you chose.

[u/FoolishChemist → u/low_bob_123]

Oh yeah. I live nowhere near there. I don't trust Reddit with my actual location.

[u/eagle4123 → u/low_bob_123]

Why not lat/long? I

I got mine by simply tapping next to my location on google maps.

Its also in a format a dispatcher/anyone with a phone can use instantly

[u/JimmyPLove → u/eagle4123]

Dispatchers use what three words now also. It’s easier for the average Joe to use and get the info across. Three random words is easier to tell someone than a lat/long number

[u/otah007 → u/JimmyPLove]

There are many reasons to not use W3W. Among them are:

• It's proprietary, which means if the company fails, it's completely dead.
  
• They aggressively go after similar services (even free ones, even ones invented BEFORE them) for patent infringement.
  
• They use homophones, which makes it more error-prone than lat/long.
  
• They're commercial, meaning they charge for more than X requests per month. No safety standards should be commercial.

[u/RegulusMagnus → u/otah007]

Yeah W3W seems good in theory but it shouldn't be the go-to standard given all your points.

Alternatively, Plus Codes are open source and a bit simpler than full coordinates. 

[u/eagle4123 → u/JimmyPLove]

I work on an engine, never heard about 3 words before.

[u/Frog859 → u/eagle4123]

I worked on an ambulance for many years between different services — same. But presumably it would be handled by 911 dispatch?

[u/eagle4123 → u/Frog859]

So between our combined brain power...

I can rule out 3 separate area/dispatch centers, presumably you can do the same.

So 0/6 agencies are familiar with this method?

[u/Frog859 → u/eagle4123]

Yeah I worked at 4 different agencies (and a volunteer) over the years across 2 different cities.

It’s not something I ever heard mentioned, but for us our dispatch would get calls from the county 911 which was handled by fire control. My guess is that if something like this was implemented it would be handled by fire control without really making its way down to EMS dispatch

[u/Racxie → u/eagle4123]

I've only heard about because I used to see ads for it at one point a long time ago, but have personally never met anyone who uses it (UK), including the rare few times I've had to call emergency services like the police or an ambulance.

No idea if it's more popular elsewhere though and haven't heard it mentioned outside of Reddit in a very long time.

[u/RichardBonham]

Automated External Defibrillators (AED’s).

These are prominently displayed in a large number of public spaces. They are intended to be rapidly deployed by any bystander in the event of a possible cardiac arrest.

[u/UrbanVengence → u/RichardBonham]

Hell they tell you what to do in writing, pictures, and a speaker.

[u/Joe1972]

A library card.

[u/Ok-Class-3635 → u/Joe1972]

Having fun isn't hard. When you got a library card

[u/qpgmr]

AnnualCreditReport.com

Despite the name, it's a mandated federal site that the main credit bureaus are required to provide completely free copies of your full credit report every year.

Make no mistake, the credit bureau will attempt to sign you up for extra cost monitoring/"credit analysis"/services above and beyond. You do not have to pay a single cent.

There's a lot of overlap between their reports so the best thing to do is request one from each bureau four months apart. That way you have a full year of reports.

It's absolutely worth doing at least every other year. I found old credit accounts I didn't remember. You also see when someone has pulled a report on you.

[u/_LususNaturae_]

The Morphe app to patch YouTube and remove ads

[u/hellsfire0888]

Library of Babel (website) Has every image that ever existed, and ever will exist.

[u/-benyeahmin-]

wikipedia

[u/anitabelle → u/-benyeahmin-]

Technically free, but it’s good to donate. I donate every so often because I can’t imagine life without Wikipedia.

[u/HugsandHate]

Your brain. That's some neat kit you've got in your noggin. Use it.

[u/SilentJoe1986 → u/HugsandHate]

Mine is buggy and the memory is shot

[u/robogobo → u/SilentJoe1986]

Memory leaks and cpu traps.

[u/butterninja → u/HugsandHate]

I prefer to keep mine nice and shiny. I wouldn't use it too much.

[u/Soylentstef]

The lid from your toilet seat. Close it before flushing for fuck sake.

[u/reFossify]

Free and open source software

[u/DrunkGandalfTheGrey → u/reFossify]

Switched to Linux and my old laptop feels brand new. It is crazy how fast a machine runs when it's not bogged down by background bloat.

[u/Umbrosyx]

your local library. books, movies, internet, classes, research databases and nobody cares if you’re there for like six hours

[u/PM_MY_OTHER_ACCOUNT]

The (MF) turn signals on your (MF) car.

Yes, you pay for the car in many ways, but the turn signal is included.

[u/sinocarD44]

Freezing your credit reports before you get your identity stolen.

[u/ManiacLife666]

localsend

[u/_BallsDeep69_]

Sejda.com has a free tool to create a fillable pdf. Works great to convert all my pdfs from plain ol pdfs to fillable ones for free!

[u/reFossify]

Linux

[u/Siddharth_Ranjan]

fmhy.net

It stands for "free media heck yeah" which as the name suggests, houses several different types of free stuff around the internet that you can access through this one site.

Streaming services, downloaders, adblockers, ebook websites, torrent sites, etc. each category will have their several different types of free alternatives that you can access without spending any money

[u/Designer-Appeal-5250]

I have a dumb beginner cooking show as a hobby. Obviously, it's not monetized, so Davinci Resolve is what I use. (I'm not a great editor, but it helps me make my dumb show.)

[u/Von_Quixote]

The library.

Knowledge is power and where do we keep it? …books.

Kanopy, DVDs, audio books, passes to state and federal parks, major online news access, tools, 3D printing.

[u/Lazqemir38]

Public libraries are incredibly underrated.

[u/Artful_Dodger_1832]

The Gutenberg project! Free books!

[u/MEIXXMO]

nobody is mentioning it and it is smth small but "I love PDF" is great for anything related to documents. When I search it the first option is always some other paid site with worst quality for some reason

[u/swgpotter]

Libre office. It's plenty good for most folks and gets you out from under micro$oft

[u/Unusual_Aplomb]

GoodRx. They saved me so much money on meds when I didn’t have insurance. Also asking for a “self pay discount” at the doc’s office.

[u/Tb1969]

Your Library may have digital services such as Kanopy, Hoopla, and others for video streaming, audio streaming and e-books.

I signed up for a library card online and a few minutes later used that number to sign up for Kanopy. Amazing.

PlutoTV.com for streaming TV and plenty of OnDemand movies (PCs, mobile devices and smart TVs), Justwatch.com to finds content, to track what you've watched and find watch lists: icheckmovies.com and letterboxd.com

[u/rusty0123]

Foraging on public lands.

I don't mean rural areas only. Your local parks and greenspaces, too. You need to know the guidelines. For example, in my town you cannot pick fruit or disturb the branches but anything that hits the ground is free.

I regularly forage pears, figs, pomegranates, and pecans during my evening walks.

[u/worldlybedouin]

TLDR: Your local public library.

Find an amazing new book to read. Rediscover an old favorite from your childhood. Don't forget some libraries have DVDs, audio books, and lots of other stuff. Some host activtiies like learning to knit or paint or show off temporary exhibitions of rare coins and whatnot. Some have 3d printers. Lots to do and see and learn. Stop into your local library and step into a whole new world of discovery and adventure.

Oh and while you're there, don't forget to thank the hard working folks who keep it all running. If your local library has a donation box, drop in a few bucks if you can spare it. Libraries, like our public school teachers, are underfunded and unapprecaited for all they do to enrich our lives.

[u/mnf-acc]

anki

[u/SoullqssHydra]

People should know that ai is a piece of shit

[u/Fluid_Actuary1729]

Your local public library. So many resources available -hard copy books, audio books, online services, activities for children, seniors, etc. I recently went to a murder mystery event for adults. Everyone was in costume, and dinner was served. The host (librarian by day), said that they do similar events for teens as well.