101 Essential Freelancing Resources
The web is such a big and wonderful place, packed with tools and resources which you all too often don’t know about. So to help all you freelancers out there we have compiled a gigantic list of resources, categorized up for your benefit. If you know a resource that we’ve missed, let us know as we’re always looking to grow this list!
Update: Well it’s actually 126 resources now, thanks to all the people who added resources in the comments.
Update: This article has been translated into Brazillian Portuguese by Rafael Marin.
This article has also been translated into Spanish by Diana at Artegami.
This article has also been translated into Italian by Matteo at Rails On The Road.
Timing
These are tools to help you time and track your work. Some of them plug into invoicing programs and some even come with them built in:
- SlimTimer – A Start/Stop little timer that tracks jobs on a main web interface
- Tick – Timetracking application focused on keeping track of your budgets
- Time Assistant – Professional timesheet software
- Harvest – Simple and efficient time tracking
- FourteenDayz – Online time tracking for teams
- PunchyTime – A simple time tracking tool for creatives
- TimePost – Timer that plugs into Harvest, Basecamp and Tick
- FunctionFox – Timing for creatives (subscription pricing)
Invoicing
When you don’t invoice, you don’t get paid, so it literally pays to stay on top of your billing. Here are some tools to help:
-
Billing Orchard – Electronic billing and invoicing software, starting at $14.95 per month
- Billable – Service and invoice tracking
- SimplyBill – Easy to use invoicing software
- Blinksale – More easy to use invoicing software
- Quickbooks – Small business financial software
- Side Job Track – Free web-based job tracking, invoicing, reporting and project management for the part-time independent contractor
- Freshbooks – Tracks time, sends invoices by email or U.S. mail, and generally makes invoicing easier
- InvoicePlace – Easy Invoicing and Quotes From Anywhere
- LessAccounting – Is your job title Accounting? Probably not. Do less accounting!
- MS Office Accounting Express (Free) – Free Microsoft Accounting
Project Management and Organization
These resources will help you stay organised and manage those projects and clients
- Proposal Kit – Proposal and contract management tools
- Ta-Da Lists – a simple (free!) to-do list application that can be shared with the world
- Backpack – Service that integrates to-do lists, notes, files, images, and a calendar with reminders that can be sent to your email or cell
- Writeboard – Sharable, web-based text documents that save edits, so you can collaborate, roll back and compare
- ConceptShare - Share designs and get feedback with visual annotation tools
- Wridea – Free tool for writers focusing on idea generation
- GoPlan – Note-taking, calendaring, task management, issue tracking, file management and online real-time chat
- Toodledo – Another web based to-do list
- ActiveCollab – Open source collaboration and project management tool
- MonkeyOn – Your to-do list for things that you want other people to do
- Remember The Milk – Another To-Do List manager
Stock Libraries
Templates, Photos, Flash files all to help make you look good
- ActiveDen – A resource selling stock Flash, audio, video and fonts for as little as 50 cents
- Dreamstime – Royalty free stock photography for $1 – $2
- Getty Images – When price is no object and quality is essential
- Istockphoto – Royalty free stock photography, videos, and illustrations for $1 – $50
- Veer – Rights managed and royalty free photography, illutration, type, and motion
- Stock.xchng – Completely Free stock photography
- Ice Templates – Website templates in Flash and HTML
- Template Monster – The biggest website template company on the web!
- MyFonts – All the fonts you could ever want and a very handy font identification tool as well.
- IconBuffet – Icons, more icons and even more icons
- VectorVault – Vector illustration sets
Business Tools
Resources to help with the business of freelancing…
-
HighRise – Track communication and conversations with leads, employees, clients, colleagues, vendors
- Campfire – Real-time group chat and file sharing
- Central Desktop – Shared workspaces and web conferencing
- Relenta – Manage your email, contacts, documents and activities
- Google Apps – Communication and collaboration tools from Google
- Zoho – Free office tools
- Campaign Monitor – Email newsletter software
- MailBuild – More newsletter software
- Breeze – Email campaign and newsletter software
- Business-Paper – Easy business cards
- GoToMeeting – Easy online meetings
- Wufoo – Make forms to survey your clients
- AIGA Spec Letter – Sample letter to communicate with clients who want spec work or free pitching
- CPA Directory – Find an accountant (in the US)
- SBA – Small Business Administration, help and advice
- Paypal – Online payment system
- Moneybookers – Online payment system
- Escrow – Online payment system that protects the buyer and seller, useful for those bigger jobs with anonymous clients.
- Resources for the Design Entrepeneur – Free sample forms and agreements
- Work – How-to guides to running a small business
- XE – Quick and easy currency converter for all your international transactions…
- Trendwatching – Consumer trends and insights resource
- FaxZero – US & Canada – Send Faxes for Free
Legal
Because you have to protect yourself and your work…
- My New Company – Legal and general start-up information
- Designers Toolbox – Free legal forms for graphic designers
- Copyright – Everything you need to know about US copyright
- AIGA Form of Agreement – Standard form of agreement for design services trmplate
- HelpMeWork – US – Services to help you focus on what you know best
- CreativeCommons – For licensing…just about anything
Job Boards
A whole bunch of places to find jobs, and don’t forget FreelanceSwitch will be adding its very own job board real soon!
- 37signals Job Board – Mostly full-time design and programming jobs
- Authentic Jobs – Full time and freelance job board for standards aware designers and developers
- Coroflot Job Board – Designer job board
- WebProJobs – Freelance and full-time jobs for designers, developers, copywriters and marketers
- Jobpile – Aggregates the best job boards on the web
- Krop – Creative and tech jobs
- FWjobs – Web jobs board
- SlashDot - Jobs for IT professionals
- CSS Beauty Job Board – Job board for web designers
- MinistryCamp Job Board – Job board for Christian designers and programmers
- Guru – Freelancer listing service with job board
- Elance – List yourself for freelance jobs
Web Tools
Tools to get your Web Presence Up and running…
- Squarespace – Very nice publishing system for websites and blogs
- Rackspace – dedicated hosting and customer service that is second to none
- Mosso – Advanced hosting at a reasonable price
- MyDomain – Domains for $8.50 per year
- Media Temple – Easy to set up and use hosting
- Light – Content management for designers and ad agencies
- SiteKreator – Instant websites – just add your content
- StrongSpace – Back-up and store important files
- psd2html – Builds websites in html from Photoshop files
- xhtml iT – Website builds from design in 24 hours
- ExpressionEngine – A neat little CMS app
- Inblogit – A great free blogging tool for web designers
- PublicSquare – Easy Web Publishing
- WordPress – The best damn blogging tool around
- AgencyFusion – Outsourcable programmers
- XHTMLized – The original – you supply the design and they do the XHTML/CSS
Advertising and Marketing
A few ways to market and advertise yourself online…
- Text Link Ads – Text ads to sell your wares and improve your traffic ranking
- Review Me – Get your service or Web site reviewed by bloggers
- Adbrite – Text and banner ads on over 20,000 sites
- AdEngage – Text and Photext ads (image and text ad combined)
- Adwords – Text ads on Google searches
- Professional On The Web – Get yourself Listed
Miscellaneous
All the many things we couldn’t fit anywhere else!
- Creative Public - Useful site for anyone starting a freelance graphic or web design career. A $49.95 fee buys unlimited access to forms, manuals, pricing guides, contracts etc
- You Send It – Send files up to 2GB online
- Jewelboxing – superior packaging for short run CDs and DVDs
- eFax – Send and receive faxes by email
- PowerXChange – Extensions for a variety of creative software, including Acrobat, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and Dreamweaver
- Coroflot – A great resources for designers to showcase their portfolios, share work and network
- Cloudmark – Block spam on your PC
- SpamSieve – Block spam on your Mac
- Dropsend – Email up to 1GB of files
- Media Fire – Send 100MB files online
- Box – Store, share and access files online
- Icebrrg – Simple web forms
- Formsite – Web forms and surveys in minutes
- Lorem Ipsum – Lorem Ipsum generator for dummy copy
- Textmate – The essential programmers text editor for Macs
- ETextEditor – Like Textmate but for Windows
- Kuler – Colour scheme picker
- Pixie – A useful little colour picker
- ColourSchemer – A bunch of colour tools
- Jungle Disk – Online storage for 15 cents a gigabyte
- AskCharity – free online contacts for journalists
- TechInline – Remote Desktop Software
- Protolize – Web Resource Directory
Do you have a resource we missed? Leave a comment and let us know!
The idea for this post came from the always helpful IHelpYouBlog‘s 101 Great Posting Ideas that Sizzle …
Leave a Comment
Wow guys, you’ve outdone yourselves, that is a HUGE list, how long did it take to compile?
You should add Expression Engine (http://expressionengine.com/) to the web part, its pretty handy…
Thank you for the mention of DropSend – great list, lots of these apps and sites are life savers for us, as a small company.
It took forever is how long
No actually Cyan and I worked on it for about 3 hours last night and 3 hours today just sorting through everything. Worth it though, this is a page to keep in the bookmarks!
Hi Collis, under Invoicing I would like to suggest adding Invoiceplace – http://www.invoiceplace.com (which I have developed).
Under Project Management and Organization there are two reminder services I have found very useful: MemoToMe – http://www.memotome.com and Remember The Milk – http://www.rememberthemilk.com/
Lastly for Stock Libraries I would suggest adding IconBuffet – http://www.iconbuffet.com/
Thank you for the mention of DropSend – great list, lots of these apps and sites are life savers for us, as a small company.
What about http://www.LessAccounting.com?
Very handy list. Bookmarked in Delicious. Here’s hoping this list will be maintained and grow over time…
very usefull, tnx!!
i need now a little bit of time to read ”^-^
Hi Collis, I suggest this new web app, Professional on the Web, a directory where web agencies and freelancers can list their profiles and easily manage showcase of their projects. Users can search web professionals by tag and also rate projects instantly. No need to register or sign in. You can subscribe to the ever increasing list of designers and projects being added to Professional on the web via RSS.
It’s a way for freelancers to get new Jobs and for customers to find out new freelancers from the top rated list and looking their portfolios.
I must add your URL to http://katrineholmreview.blogspot.com
Really good list!! Great Resources! Tks!
Total Basecamp addict. This 37 signals app has totally saved my butt with the multi-tasking aspect of freelance life.
Simply PERFECT .. i wanna get teme for select each section of tools ideas and just explore this huge supply …
Hi, thanks for mentioning Work.com. We are always looking for more great how-to guides for freelancers, so you are welcome to write your own Work.com guide about any aspect of the freelance experience.
Ey Cyan,
you guys ‘nd girls over at flashDen and of course here are doin’ some very very good things for the community and its great to see people like you so passionat about what they do…thanX a lot
cheers
Thanks for all the new links and positive feedback! We will keep expending this list as we go, as there are lots of amazing tools/resources out there we haven’t heard about. The current list is basically what we’ve found useful or heard good things about – we waded through all our old bookmarks
Fantastic list. This has to be one of the most indispensable I have seen online in a long time..
Really nice. saved in delicious
Well, I’ve just added 7 new resources to the list, thanks for the suggestions people, keep ‘em coming!
Yeah thanks for that very useful list.
I actually use my myob program for my invoices but the examples you used are probably easier (and cheaper).
Think WordPress and other free templates, cms etc could be a handy addition to the list. Some times its easier to use an existing template to start a website.
Other than that, great work
Thanks, this list is fantastic.
There are some great tools in here that I hadn’t heard about before. For instance, I paid for ColorImpact, while the Adobe Kuler tool is WAY more advanced and even web-based.
Very useful list.
I am coming from a more marketing angle. Why not include ablewise.com to the list under marketing. It should help some up and coming free lancers advertise their services or business.
Nice list, on a quick scan I spotted enough sites that I know do the business to investigate the others. I’ve used MediaTemple for a couple of years now and apart from the odd glitch with the gridserver setup over the past couple of months you can’t touch ‘em.
Nice ordering too, start with the boring but essential stuff we all try to ignore.
You should add XHTMLized.com under tools. We’ve tried several different design companies to code companies but these guys were by far the best.
Thanks for sharing… This is usefull resources for Freelance like me (web designer)…
Cool…
This list is excellent, Thank You. I just signed up for Breeze…
These links are awesome!! Thanks for sharing!
Great! It is one of the best list i have ever seen.
pixie (color getter) http://www.nattyware.com/pixie.html
or
colorschemer’s colorpix: http://www.colorschemer.com/download.php
they both will let you grab the color values and screen coordinates at any pixel on your screen. use it daily. Both are free, too.
and http://www.protolize.org is a site that lists resources as well.
Three quick additions:
1. K7.net lets you setup a free phone number to receive voicemail and/or faxes. Any fax sent to the number is scanned and emailed to you as a TIF file.
2. FaxZERO is a service that lets you send faxes of up to 3 pages for free, although it includes an advertisement on the cover page. You can send longer faxes with no ad for $1.99 each, and there’s no monthly subscription fee.
3. Microsoft Accounting 2007 Express is a free download for bookkeeping and invoicing.
DivShare – File Sharing Unlimited for free. No registration required either. http://www.divshare.com/
thanks for the articles, its motivated me
Amazing list of resources.
Another great website vendor is Agencyfusion.com. They’ve been easy to work with and I can alway trust that they’ll get my sites done the way I design them. (I’ve been burned by other freelance guys before) And the sites they build from your design come with a CMS baked right in. Good if you don’t want to deal with the programming stuff yourself.
And thanks again for the resource list. I’ve already bookmarked several. As a freelancer, I love the insights into support areas.
Mike
Thanks a lot for the links
wow. nice stuff in the project management category. Even some things, I didn’t know about
Where did you find http://www.professionalsontheweb.com ? I like that site very much.
I’m an active freelancer and every tool I have used is included in the list :O
Nice work and nice blog! I just discovered it through innovationzen.com and I’m impressed. Kudos to you
Hi, I’ve been using http://www.openair.com for a number of years to handle invoicing and think it would hold up well against the ones included here. Nice list btw, and I’m enjoying this site.
One you missed. http://www.allfreelancework.com
I’ve always had good luck on the job board there.
This is great! Thank you so much for doing this. Bookmarked
What about portable-emploer-of-record services like http://helpmework.com/ and http://mybizoffice.com/ ?
Fellow freelancers, Please please please dont use rackspace (as suggested in the list). They have received tons of customer complaints, problems and issues. Just read any review sites on them and you’ll see. I’m not going to suggest who to use for hosting but please think twice before using rackspace.
Hi, nice list – thanks for putting it together.
One point, FYI – ‘Breeze’ is just a re-branded (and more expensive) version of MailBuild, brought to you by the good folks behind Campaign Monitor. Maybe you could list MailBuild instead?
http://www.mailbuild.com/
You missed htmlhelp.com, a reference which I find absolutely indespensible.
super article!
http://www.van20.com/story/192/
AWSOME LIST. PERIOD. I do have a few you should add though.
Job Boards:
Communication Arts Job Board, http://www.creativehotlist.com
Time Management:
Function Fox, http://www.functionfox.com
Hosting:
Host Gator, http://www.hostgator.com
(great reseller ability with tons of free php/mysql things with the aid of ‘Fantastico’)
Rock on. Great site. I have been looking for this website for years! Thanks for all the work.
CMS For Designers: http://www.obdev.at/products/webyep/index.html
real basic stuff, but worth it in my opinion for what it delivers.
Excelente recopilación. Bye.
This list is an absolute treasure, thank you so much! I am surprised I haven’t heard about some resources like zoho and sitekreator, they seem to be a real find!! Well-done!!
Great list … but …
Bit US biased – would be nice if list indicated resources that are really
only of interest to a particular country. And also it would be useful to indicate if the resources were free or not.
For now though I’ll visit them all ….
Thanks
Great list. I’d add Creative Commons to your list of legal resources. http://creativecommons.org/
Aquent’s another friend of freelancers looking for gigs. They match you up with mostly design and marketing work. Good clients and they treat people well (health, 401k, and vacation).
http://www.aquent.com
Awesome list! Thanks a lot!
But you missed remote desktop access tools in the Business Tools category:
http://www.techinline.com
It’s a great service for freelancers!
Great tool but I can’t see many research sites like the one we run http://www.askcharity.org.uk This can save freelancers lots time because it is a search engine of charities’ PR people and their mobile numbers and allows journalists to send out case study requests to hundreds of charities at once
Hello, I just noticed a little problem on your site.
Your post 101 Essential Freelancing Resources at:
http://freelanceswitch.com/general/101-essential-freelancing-resources/
Has 102 posts so the text saying so overlaps your image.
I looked at your HTML and CSS and found that you have a static image which the text lays over top of here:
http://freelanceswitch.com/wp-content/themes/FSw%202/images/comments.jpg
If you were to make this into three different images
1) Left part of image with little girl and a little bit of the green
2) A rectangle block of green just a few pixels wide
3) The Right port of the image
You could have that text say 1,000,000 posts and the image would never break again.
Give it a shot if you feel like it some time.
I’m not sure if you have many post numbers that high, but I’m sure as your website continues to grow you will see it more and more.
Please, feel free to email me any questions or comments.
Have a great day!
- ByzX
This is a great site and I have book marked it and will be coming back. I thought I would add a timetracking tool I use to your list. It is called timepanic…www.timepanic.com…I have found it very useful. It is inexpensive and easy to use.
Just thought I would add to your list.
Greeeeat list!
You need webzine administration:
PublicSquare
@ByzX, Thanks for that, yep that is my dodgy CSS, I hadn’t really thought about what would happen when we had comments numbering in the three figures
I’ll get that sorted, thanks for the tip off!
I must say Timepanic ( http://www.timepanic.com ) looks very impressive – I may have finally found a replacement to my 8 year old Microsoft Access time keeping database!
thanks great resources!!
Anyone on the Mac looking for a great project timer that works with Basecamp, Tick or Harvest? Timepost ( http://www.timepostapp.com/ ) is a great piece of software for Mac OS X that automatically posts project hours online.
I have found a very good web based office suite. It offers everything you can think about similar to word, excel. powerpoint, crm, Project management, planner, wiki, Chat and many others.
Add the site http://www.zoho.com. Great Suite!!!
One more great site: http://www.tutorialized.com
Regards
Rajesh (http://www.rajeshshakya.com)
I can’t believe you didn’t mention wordpress.
I’ve written a shareware time sheet application which automatically records how much time you spend working in each kind of Window on your computer, and lets you assign the time to jobs. If you can recognise which job from the window title, you can tell it to make the assignment automatically. I think it’s the best time sheet program available (but then I would, wouldn’t I!).
It’s fully functioning shareware (no nag screens, no crippling, no timeout), so it’s free to try, and I’m very much looking for user feedback.
http://www.trumphurst.com/TimeSheet.phtml
Anotherone for the Stock Libraries: imageafter.com. Free hi-res images for commercial use without the need to credit the site.
Shamless plug: For freelancers who work in media, my company, mediabistro.com, offers a number of invaluable tools. Our premium AvantGuild membership offers benefits including discounted health insurance, personal LexisNexis accounts, How to Pitch Guides for more than 180 publications, and lots more. Meanwhile, our Freelance Marketplace service allows users to post their profile and clips in a searchable database so that employers can find them.
I invite anyone with questions to check out the site (www.mediabistro.com) or send me a message at http://www.mediabistro.com/aboutus/contactus.asp?to=gh&subject=message%20for%20greg
Best,
Greg Horowitz
Membership Director
mediabistro.com
Hi.. very good work…
You could complete your list with billster, http://www.billster.net, a web2,0 site for invoicing and keeping track of expenses…
Seems appropriate to add WriteMaps here – http://www.writemaps.com – Create visual sitemaps online.
This is so good! Thanks for sharing and for helping the freelance community!
Mega source you must checkout http://www.jumpola.com
Also I’ve worked with http://www.voice123.com and it might be the best voice talent site on the web. I got 350 quotes & actual samples of a voice-over I needed within 24 hours and the service is basically free to find talent for publishers, and advertisers.
New Timepost update is available with support for Blinksale (http://www.blinksale.com/) and Checkboard (http://www.checkboard.com/).
Get it while it’s hot:
http://www.timepostapp.com/download
AWESOME list!!!
I’d add http://www.w3schools.com to the list for “foot-in-the-door” quick intro/tutorials for HTML, CSS, server-side technology… It’s where I send my students when there’s not enough time to cover everything in class.
Resources for Freelancers? Sure.
Graphic Define Magazine: Focuses on the business of running a graphic, interactive, or web design studio
Creative Latitude: a worldwide community that unites various creative disciplines for collective promotion, education and ethical business practices
BoDo: Business of Design online
There are a ton more (you can find them in the Creative Latitude and BoDo resources) but one that should absolutely not be missed is Creative Business
Thanks for the [very] helpful list – I’ve got two to add, both of which provide free media. The first is http://www.morguefile.com – an online resource for hi-res, royalty-free stock images. The site is wonderfully intuitive, and a large number of the images are former stars (but are now dead and in the “morgue”…) The second is dafont.com – yet another beautifully intuituve site that offers a myriad of free fonts, and comes complete a preview for the line of text of your choice. These two are on the top of my list. Hope that helps!
Under “Timing” my free desktop timer for mac should be added downloadable from http://www.gersh.no/
Aah, its named Worktimer (forgot to mention)
Hi Cyan,
I would also like to suggest Fanurio which does both time tracking and invoicing (I’m one of the people involved in this project).
We have designed Fanurio to help freelancers manage their work and be paid for it. It can do basic project management, time tracking and invoicing in order to have all the functionality in one place.
Thanks,
Nicu
There are many resources out there for designers that feel more like a dumping of links and some banner ads. It’s hard on the eyes and hard to digest. This site gets it done right. After all, you are catering to people who spend a great deal of time simplifying information for the eyes. How refreshing that you consider that with your layout.
Like the friendly characters and delicious colour palete. But most of all – i dig the content. I hope that this site grows into something successful, without loosing it’s philosophy. Proud to support it. – Respect.
To manage your finances in an easy way, try http://moneytrackin.com
It’s a simple yet powerful tool
Thank you for compiling this huge and helpful list. Another program that may be helpful for anyone with some programming background is Visual Web Developer by Microsoft (A mini version of the Visual Studio IDE). http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/express/vwd/
And no, I don’t work for Microsoft =P
Another good resource for fast coding of designs is codeyourdesign.com. Very friendly, fast, and best of all he is a student doing this side project to help costs of school.
A great list and resource. Thanks!
Does anyone have any positive experiences with any web ad services?
I’m trying to push my vector art collections. Budget is certainly a factor.
Looking for something that gets results at a reasonable price.
Anyone?
http://www.vectorvault.com
My vector software collection got a fantastic review.
Check it out:
http://www.bittbox.com/news/vectorvaultcom-product-review-interview-with-adam-jarvis-and-the-future-of-free-vectors-online/
http://www.vectorvault.com
Nice list, Thanks. I found a couple things I hadn’t seen yet.
Thanks again,
Shelby
My online list management application http://listigator.com is sort of a Tada on steroids, with item categories, list import&export, extensive sharing options and more.
Excellent list. Thanks
I think you should add http://www.stockxpert.com to your Stock Libraries section.
Check this:
http://www.8ung.at/ukrebs
You should/must include Kalender in
http://freelanceswitch.com/general/101-essential-freelancing-resources/
Kalender is a fantastic diary-and-to-do application, which I selectd from a few dozen other freewares. It is much better than several paid softwares.
There can only be one not 101
Interesting reading – but honoustly you only need one!
http://www.comapping.com / see the video first to make sure
that all 101 resources are covered –
If any of the above 211 comments do not agree please
send a comment -
ps. I am using this tool for a collaboration project with
a IT school in Burkina Faso and Ghana -
Big ups to all!!!
Hamayun
Toggl (http://toggl.com/) is the best free time-tracking tool I’ve used.
Good job! Your site is great!
this is a really good (and possibly only) xml/xsl based cms – symphony
Here’s a couple definitely worth taking a look at:
Editor + FTP + CSS + Terminal + More
http://www.panic.com/coda
Simply send large files (Free)
http://www.senduit.com
Hi,
nice list. CAN I TRANSLATE it in Hindi and post it in my above Hindi Blog?
धन्यवाद (Thanks!)
thanks for the great resource!
A low cost alternative to WebMeeting and any kind of Voice conferencing is Infinite Conferencing (www.infiniteconferencing.com).
It’s actually very reasonably priced and high quality of customer service.
For all the freelance web designers out there, I’d add Protonotes – a great free tool I use every day to communicate with my clients to discuss their website designs. It lets you easily add/share notes on any webpage. http://www.protonotes.com/
Try this for Web Freelancer Humor and Therapy: (Flash Game)
http://www.templatekit.com/tstore/wrapper.php?file=propgame.htm
u forgot http://www.getafreelancer.com. it’s one of the best freelancing sites. http://www.essaywriters.net is also a pretty good one
In time tracking I would suggest Rachota. It is free, open source, runs anywhere, and can run from a USB drive (portable). It is an excellent task management tool.
rachota.sourceforge.net
Fixing link:
rachota.sourceforge.net
Please consider adding http://LiveTimer.com to your list of Timing applications. We’ve spent quite a bit of time making LiveTimer.com as flexible, yet easy to use, as possible. LiveTimer.com is especially well suited for freelancers because every account, regardless of size, is protected with SSL security. There’s a 30 day free trial if you’re interested. Thanks!
Great list! All my tools are on there except for Protonotes – I use it to collaborate on web design with my clients. It lets you add/share notes on any webpage. http://www.protonotes.com/
nice collection of freelancing tools. sad to know that activecollab is not going to be fully free next time.
Hello – A site you may want to add to your list: my web site, WebDevBiz.com, offers resources for freelancers, web developers in particular, including free articles and a package of documents and forms for sale called “Professional Web Business Tools”. It looks to me like it would belong under your “Business Tools” section, if you decide to include it. The site is http://www.webdevbiz.com.
Any questions, feel free to contact me.
Best regards,
Patty Ayers
WebDevBiz.com
VancouverOnlineMedia.com is another great resource for those developers on the west coast of Canada.
What is Vancouver Online media?
Vancouver Online Media, or ‘VOM’, is an online resource for Vancouver based developers. Here you can:
* Discuss projects and receive help in the message forum
* List your portfolio items through the Portfolio Manager
* Publish your resume through the Resume Manager
* Browse job listings through the Job Manager.
* Use your profile on VOM as a ‘home base’ to send clients to when looking for potential work.
It’s a nice list, but to be honest, what would have made it even better is if you’d indicated the cost of the individual software packages beside each listing – would have made referencing the list even more valuable.
2c.
wow, very helpful, have been trying to figure out for the last year how to get my billing in order..
Please think about adding our tool for remote control over the Internet, TeamViewer (http://www.teamviewer.com)
Our solution offers a very quick and simple way to give support over the Internet, even through firewalls. TeamViewer also includes full file transfer.
The solution is completely free for non-commercial use, commercial licenses start at $460.-
Thanks a lot for this great listing you provide!
What a great list! I would like to add a few more resources:
1. Alertbox – Jakob Nielsen’s personal newsletter
2. AListApart.com provides really useful wide collection of articles on web design.
Enjoy,
Faina Shpiler
http://www.formvisual.com
it-globalized.com is another job resource site for freelancers, web designers and programmers to connect and build relationships with project buyers. The site doesn’t yet have the scale of some of the other players, but the site is definitely growing.
Kind Regards
Bjoern Fredriksen
CEO – IT-Globalized.com
http://www.it-globalized.com
TRUE!
monkey on your back.. i love that!
nice list for a freelancer or a to-be freelancer.
i simply would recommend this page to everyone i know.
good work.
Add some organization to your business. Big Contacts is the BEST on-line tool to help you manage your contacts. I have used Act!/Salesforce etc… Big Contact is the BEST!. Basic Version is free. Works great with a team! http://www.bigcontacts.com
Another site to help technical freelance consultants find local clients (and vice-versa) is http://www.FreelanceLocalTech.com. It’s organized around the idea that most clients want to work with local freelance consultants instead of somone on the other side of the world… and freelance consultants can be much more successful working to create lasting relationships with clients in their respective communities instead of jumping from project to project with no obvious long-term prospects. It’s free to post your services or your projects.
The site only launched two months ago, but they’re actively marketing it and reporting that traffic is running about 50-50 between clients and consultants. Check it out!
Cyan, I would like to request that you add SimplifyThis.com to the invoicing section. While there are a lot of options out there already, we strongly believe there is additional value being provided by Simplifythis.com, including the ability to see and do everything from one single screen. Thanks!
I just found one free domain name lookup service.http://www.ajaxlookup.com, Free and instantly checks domain name availability and see whois detail. Pretty cool stuff! …
Need an Ajax loading gif, favicons, or a cool sounding web 2.0 name? If you answered yes to any of those, then head on over to WebScriptLab. This site is simple yet utterly practical. The first tool out of the lab is a gif generator; if you haven’t already got a little round icon to indicate your Ajax is loading you can create one; simply pick an indicator type, background color, foreground color, speed, and presto, you’ve got yourself a handy yet elegant loading icon. To create favorites icons upload a picture (150KB max.), convert it to the 16×16 Favicon standard and hit generate. The same goes for your web domain, just click generate and see what’s available. WebScriptLab may not have tons to offer, but what they’ve got so far is pretty useful.
http://www.solocrm.com is a new crm tool designed for freelancers and independent professionals.
The client portal included is really helpful in managing clients.
-Adrian
Thanks for coming up with the idea for this list. Looks like a good resource.
Vasudev Ram
http:/www.dancingbison.com
http:/sourceforge.net/projects/xtopdf
http:/jugad.livejournal.com
This is fascinating piece of work. It seems like you can find anything you need to get started or to improve yourself! Great job and thanks!
This is a great Canadian Job Board. Creative, Development and Marketing Jobs. Here the link: http://www.CDMJOBS.ca
Excelente colección de 101 recursos para webmasters. Gracias.
Saludos!
NestaVista.com
Ohhh this is so so useful to me! Especially the Misc where I discovered several new things. Thanks.
Cyan,
Great list and great looking website! I run a startup (www.BeenVerified.com) that helps freelancers find and stand out to clients by marketing verified only information about their identity and credentials. Think of it as a network of freelancers whose resumes have all BeenVerified. With all the noise on current freelance websites, we thought it would be a nice change of pace to have a network of individuals who you could trust their claims are real. Freelancers can learn more at http://www.beenverified.com/freelancers. Keep up the awesome work!
Hey Cyan,
Just wanted to let you know that activeCollab is no longer free or open source, however ProjectPier (www.projectpier.org) is a fork of the old code that has been improved and is being actively developed further.
Also, I’m a bit surprised that you mention Basecamp in one of the items descriptions, but don’t explicitly have it on your list. Either way, great list and glad to see you’ve been updating it.
I cant believe Getafreelancer.com is not on the list. Its one of the biggest Freelancing websites on the internet! I started on it and Its my favourite. Much user friendly than rentacoder and doesnt ask you to pay such huge amount as Guru when you start. You should add this site!
http://www.snapcontract.com is a great new tool that allows you to create and sign contracts online. Electronic signatures are legal in many contries including the US.
The tool is free.
http://www.snapcontract.com
-Adrian
I’m working as a contractor on part of a small, distributed, creative team. We’re looking for a way to manage digital assets. Not as tightly controlled as CVS, but something that is sane.
How do you manage large graphic files in a distributed way, available to people working remotely?
Hi Susan ,
Managing people or sharing a file remotely is pretty rsiky, I found OfficeClip which provides CRM, Timesheet, Issue Tracker, Document management and many other online applications. It’s an All-In-One Software to manage customers and employees, allowing the businesses to become more efficient and profitable.
Thanks! Very, very useful list of resources!
Great list! Nice collection of freelancing tools. Thank you!
Thanks for this amazing list. I’ll be putting a link to it on our site – http://www.freelancentral.co.za – which is an online directory of freelancers in South Africa’s creative and IT industries. Maybe you’d consider adding us to your List if you have a South African readership? Thanks.
WOW! Thanks for this great list, full of resources. ^_^
Hi,
I would also like to add http://www.nineMotion.com under the categories of Project Management & Organizations and Job Boards. It is another excellent resource for freelancers to showcase their talent and win projects.
Cheers
Monique
In the interest of designers and photographers everywhere, I ask that you remove the micro-stock companies such as iStockphoto due to their market killing strategies of pricing RF images and illustrations for as little as $1. Not only does it kill our industries, it also floods the advertising market with less than sub par work letting clients think its perfectly acceptable to buy “sub-par” imagery on the cheap.
Here’s my time tracking tool. You need a web host to deploy it for yourself, and it only supports one user. Free and unsupported, but you get the code. Does not require a database. Designed for Firefox. http://riceball.com/drupal/?q=node/345
How about Billings for timing and invoicing…
very good in every way, but only for the mac
i think £40 for a single-user license
i use it, and i find it really good
scriptable, customisable
Sam
I just stumbled across this using roScripts. Awesome resource. Thanks!
you should add http://getcashboard.com to the invoicing list.
I haven’t tried most of the other listed, but I’d definitely recomend cashboard. Plus the guys behind it are very responsive and good about addressing anything you bring up. fixes, changes, and new features.
This should really help freelancers find freelance jobs, be more productive, manage their business and be more successful.
Add to it http://TheFreelanceNation.com, a network of 119 local freelance websites that help freelancers market themselves on the Internet and find freelance work and self-employment support.
What about the people who don’t know how to land the freelance jobs yet? Luckily, I have them covered. I’ll have to add your link to my site so that they can have access to these tools since I haven’t gotten to the part about listing all of the tools yet!
I’ve mainly focused on teaching people how to find legit jobs and how to land them since it’s a very competitive market where you have to know how to stand out above the other hundred proposals that have been submitted for the same work at home job!
I’ve started a new blog on freelancing here http://freedomfreelancing.blogspot.com/ or people can go directly to my site where they can find the report at http://www.virtualfreelanceguide.com
Good luck everyone!
Here’s an excellent new Freelance Site. This one gives you all the essential tools to help get that next client or project. Everything from E-marketing to directory service to freelance jobs to event posts.
I’ve built this site in order to help my fellow freelancers and try to provide as much as possible. Feel free to give me some feedback and what you think might be good on this site.
Check it out at: http://freelancerlisting.net
Whizolve.com – network of freelancers and clients.
I would like to invite to freelancers working in the construction business to try out our site (http://www.tangentworks.com) and, if you care to, let us know what you think.
The construction administration forms are fairly vanilla and allow for some customization.
There is demo-verse available via the “Test-Drive” buttons on the marketing site. It has enough data within to give one an idea of the possibilities.
Signing up to try the site is free as well. No 30 day limits.
By the way, we aren’t much for marketing emails, newsletters, etc so please free to write to us. We guard privacy jealously, and tread lightly the path to your inbox.
Thanks!
Zaina
Great resource list!
For online client collaboration, I’d like to add ClientSpot, which handles project and task tracking, time tracking and reporting, calendars, and file sharing.
Check it out at: http://www.myclientspot.com
What a great and very stumbleworthy list! Bookmarked
Cheers,
Dana
Heres a completely free freelancer site http://www.eTEQ.com check it out.
J
Hi, Just wanted to update the status of one of the Project Tracking and Invoicing applications. http://www.sidejobtrack.com no longer accepts new accounts. The say go to basecamp.. what the @#$% !
Cheers
MJ
Amazing List! So resourceful!
However, i think tracktime record nicely about what had already happen (past), it would be nice if the software can suggest/ hint the future base on what one have done in the past, e. g. if i had use iphoto for long period of time on last monday, there will be a popup or some kind of reminder, suggesting that i should use iphoto again on monday, that way, one will always have things to do….
Amazing list, very useful! Very appreciated
Thanks a lot that list! You should add also “evoice” to it… from the same guys of efax you mention… voicemail with your choice of area codes… great to add to business cards instead of own cel#
http://www.evoice.com
Great list you’ve got going there! Very well done!
How about free domains? http://www.prizecollect.com
Bless this site!!
You need to mention http://www.mbopartners.com. MBO is an awesome way to work as a freelancer — by joining, you can either just outsource your back office administration to them and stay your own corporate entity, or you can work with them as your portable employer of record, and get group benefits and a bunch of other advantages. I particularly appreciate the complimentary E&O insurance that I have to carry as an independent consultant. Their former name is MyBizOffice, mentioned above by another commenter.
Thanks, great list!!
Products and projects can be complex – project management tools do not need to be – that’s what these guys believe in – http://www.statuswiz.com
Unfortunately, I suspect at least several of the listings here, which appear to be users recommending some company (for example an agency), are actually those companies recommending themselves while pretending to be a “user”. Other than that it seems like a useful list.
I got another site to add to the list.
http://www.FreelancersUnion.org
They offer health insurance to members in the US and have a job board as well. It’s mostly New York-centric.
The post is/was a great one. Thogh i think that since then a lot of new tools came to light, it would be just wonderful to see a new list….if it is possible
, , , , , , . . , . .
I agree, Skellie, it’s been a year since this list was published. How about another one with all the new contributions in it and some of the no-longer-good sites dropped? This is too awesome of a list to just leave it as a long-ago blog entry.
I would say out of all of these sites, the one that I have used and really hate is efax. They didn’t get the job done. If you could do a review of faxpipe.com, or just include them in the list here, I think everyone would be greatly benefited.
Thought I’d throw this one into the mix, would be a good one to add if a new version of the list is published.
http://www.TeamLive.com – an online collaboration tool, great for mocking up website designs and collaborating with clients. Also useful for highlighting changes to existing websites using the capture tools.
Mark
Single Wrench is a file sharing solution that is secure, reliable and easy to use. With no software to install or maintain, Single Wrench requires only a web browser and works on all operating systems. Whether you need to send or receive files, Single Wrench has an extensive feature set that makes it the perfect file sharing solution for your business.
There are several ways that businesses can share files, each with its own set of drawbacks. Email attachments are limited by size, often blocked by corporate firewalls and suffer from a lack of security. FTP has similar security weaknesses, requires ongoing maintenance and is difficult for users to understand. Finally, burning DVDs or other media is expensive, time-consuming and requires the use of couriers to ultimately deliver the files. Single Wrench addresses these shortcomings with one comprehensive file sharing solution.
Yeah, I agree with Andy and Skellie you should update the list. This is a great list as it is by itself, with some new modifications it is even better.
The service buysellads.com is new and really amazing, I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to outsource ad management.
really great info here, I found them really useful, thanks!
Another great site: http://www.tutorialo.com/
Another great resource you should include in this list is Contract Worker. I’ve always liked how the author shares the lessons of his freelance experiences.
I couldn’t help to notice that you missed the company that I work for. It’s call TSheets.com and it’s an online time tracking resource that’s free for the freelance type.
I’m impressed with the size of your list, quite impressed in deed. Great work!!
123rf.com is my choice for stock Photos. Its much cheaper than nearly all others and have some great features like lightboxes and searching for vector only pieces.
Does anyone have a good resource for finding out when to/not to charge sales tax?
Thank you, I can feel my productivity grow as we speak. That might just be my hunger pangs…………
This is probably THE most impressive list of resources I have come across in a while. Thanks alot for this one.
Peter Piper’s Palette Picker. Neat little tool for juxtaposing colors when you’re looking for a color scheme.
http://www.worqx.com/color/palette.htm
I always tell everyone I know about this site
Its been helpful to so many, thank you many times over.
I thought that this may be of use
http://www.lance-it.com
Free Hi-Res Texture Library:
http://www.textureking.com
http://www.iJobid.com! That’s all.
Cheers, great freelance resource. Congrats freelanceswitch.
Excellent list! Take a look at http://www.billingboss.com as well. It is a free online invoicing app where you can share your data with your bookkeeper.
http://www.adderuppa.com – simple time tracker with a base tariff of £1 per month – you decide how much to pay on top of that !
Thanks for the list – love to see all this in one place (including the additions via comments from the community) and can’t wait to go check things out!
Thanks for the article!
I’d recommend http://www.celtx.com as an addition. It’s a free sofware / online service, that combines a script editor, storyboarding, character and crew lists and much more and let’s you share it all online so your team can be anywhere and you don’t get confused with the version numbers of your Excel sheets. It can be used for comix, theatre, audio plays, film etc.
I see someone already mentioned portable employer-of-record services and mybizoffice.com, which is now http://www.mbopartners.com. They are a fantastic resource and offer services from several different categories that you’ve listed resources for: invoicing, legal, timing and organization to name a few. You find your own clients, and they set up contracts for you; you keep track of your hours in their incredibly user-friendly system, they bill your clients, and process your payroll at certain times or intervals that you pick. They offer access to group healthcare benefits, retirement funds, flexible spending accounts, expense reimbursement. The best part of it all is, you get ONE W-2 at the end of the year, making it very easy to file your tax returns, and you don’t have to bother with the hassle of setting up a legal entity, but still reap all the benefits of running your own show. Can’t beat it, I would never work any other way after using MBO Partners!
Dear Cyan,
My name is Gijs Nelissen and I actually work in the web marketing department over at Track My People (OK, so technically I’m also the technical support manager and the guy who has to clean the desks after hours but that’s beside the point).
As a regular reader of freelanceswitch.com i wanted to get in touch to see if you could possibly check out our time tracking solution and possibly add it to the above list (if you think it’s relevant, i surely do).
Another free reminder service
Free email reminders and SMS text alerts
Hope it’s of use to you all.
There are new ‘crowdsourcing’ marketplaces (job boards as well as contest boards) emerging that are tailored to specific industries/services.
Advertising
- OpenAd.net
Graphic/Web/Logo Design
- DesignBay Freelance Web, Logo, Graphic Design Jobs
- Logosauce for Logo Design Contests
Photography
- istockphoto
The most affordable PSD to HTML service for freelancers with high-quality slice
in 24 hours for me is
http://www.mydesign2html.co.uk
Great list bookmarked thanks for help!
Hey!!
I’m a freelancer from paraguay and your tips are very usefull!!!
My url: http://www.designfreelance.info
Thanks a lot!Thanks a lot!
Andre Darugna
Great list,great analyses.Good job.
Creative Briefcase is a subscription-based, online resource for Graphic Designers that focuses on the business side of running a creative services business. For a small annual fee, members can access articles and tips on how to run their business, grow their sales, and more. They’ll have access to a resource directory – an online “yellow pages” full of companies that can help them improve their profitability and better serve their clients. Plus, they’ll have access to a member-to-member forum to share ideas and advice with other members, business forms they can customize, and more.
Some of our contributing authors include nationally recognized speakers and authors including: Ilise Benun, Lee Silber, Steve Gordon, Jr., Peleg Top, Emily Cohen, David Berman, Jere Gradone, and many more.
http://www.creativebriefcase.com
Great list,great analyses.Good job. Thankyo very much
Hi Guys..
For all your freelance work.
Use http://www.siteclipse.com
Its easy to use and affordable.!
Cheers
Hi Cyan,
There’s a great free Web tool that I would like to suggest for your list: Mikogo – the free online meeting tool http://www.mikogo.com
With Mikogo you have a free screen sharing, remote support and online meeting tool all in one. Great for freelancers or anyone who needs an affordable solution to Web conferencing. Simply start a meeting and invite up to 10 people to view your screen in real time. Features: switch presenter, remote keyboard and mouse control, application selection, file transfer, Skype Extra, 256bit AES encryption, and more.
Feel free to contact me if you would like more info. I’d be interested in hearing from you and discussing how Mikogo can benefit freelancers.
Cheers,
Andrew
The Mikogo Team
andrew(at)mikogo.com
A new application for Client & Project Management is Freelance Suite. It’s lean, fast, and looks impressive. FreelanceSuite.com
For Projects and Tasks Management I would recommend a new tool:
5pm (www.5pmweb.com).
Wow!!! This is very helpful. Thank you!
Another great tool for freelancers is Intervals, as it it a web-based app that handles time tracking, project management, and invoicing, all under one login.
Wow, I don’t even know where to begin with this list. Very comprehensive! Thank you for taking the time to compile it.
Best wishes,
Shannon
First thanks for this wonderful artical, As i m a starter Freelancer and i m having problem to find work , i have around 3 years of exp and worked allmost all technology in web design. some of my website is world famous in design , but y i don’t know i m not getting work. Is it that i m going on a wrong way or there is any trip or trick. can any one just help me in stating it.
Contact : Mikulgohil@gmail.com
you left out Bill4Time – it does time tracking, billing, and project management. more info and free trial at http://www.bill4time.com
Very interesting list for a freelancer or a to-be freelancer. I would recommend this page to everyone I know.
Thanks for your effort in putting this article together.
For all your Domain and Hosting Needs!!
Dorbank!
hi there
you missed
curdbee – http://www.curdbee.com
a Free web based invoicing service
Home appliances, cool price etc., many video – irons и blenders
I know this is like a year later, but wow, what an awesome list! Thanks for taking the time to put something like this together
I just stumbled upon this article and I think a site called Amazing Mail (http://www.amazingmail.com) would be good for the advertising and marketing section. It’s a postcard printing company that freelancers could find handy to send out to clients for discounts, promotions or even just to say hi.
-Sam
Hi,
It’s a gr8 post. But, I have one more “Project Management and Organization” tool that generates proposals, business letters, contracts and invoices. Get free TRIAL at: http://www.proposalsmartz.com
Thanks
I´ve got a cool link to. Its a project management app. really cool thing and free.
http://collabtive.o-dyn.de/
have fun
I design custom invoices!
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16870138
I did not see http://www.ifreelance.com on the list. i have pulled many great freelancers from this site for various creative projects.
I’ve not seen Jexxe Freelancer in the list,
I think its new, I only found it myself last week but had good comments from
clients already
Well worth considering for the list
I recommend to look also at http://youweyoucoding.com – they offer the best price/quality ratio for PSD to HTML and PSD to WordPress slicing service.
TimeXchange is a free-to-use site where time can be tracked, reported and improved for freelancers or project groups. Simply create a project and invite team members. All time tracking communication is than managed for you. Add workers, admin, managers and even clients to your project team.
There is even an iPhone app for tracking time on the go and loading it to your TimeXchange.net account.
This is great! Thank you so much for doing this. This definiteley worth Bookmark.t
Your designers toolbox link doesn’t seem to be working…..
I tell you what, this is a fantastic site. I wish I would have thought of it first. Good luck
I love this site I think it’s excellent for a beginner like my self and I found that this site could be very rewarding as well http://www.msxvipconcierge.com
This site is AWESOME! Thank you for the feedback and links.
I just found a good tool at http://www.easynth.com/profriend , it can subscribe job information from many freelancer sites, and remind me to bid once the new jobs come.
Our company is small but growing fast, and outgrew our Excel timesheets. We are now using Pacific Timesheet On-Demand (http://www.pacifictimesheet.com) for the last few months and it has really streamlined time tracking, time report and billing. We added payroll integration last month to integrate with our Lawson system, and have seen near 100% adoption across the company.
Jamil
Pacific Timesheet – Web Time Tracking Software
This is a great list. There are some I’ve already been using but many more that were new to me. Thanks for the hard work. David, from http://www.WriterIncome.com
Under invoicing you could also add Bionic Books (http://www.bionicbooks.com) – its a proper accounting app behind the scenes, but v easy to enter invoices, cash in and out.
Wakoopa!!!
Also, check out this excellent post summarizing on-line tracking apps: http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/10-excellent-online-time-trackers-to-track-your-time-effectively/
Nice list. Paymo is another great tool. You can manage all your projects, track time, export invoices, and more. They also have a widget which makes things that much easier. I highly recommend checking it out.
http://www.paymo.biz/signup/
Great list of tools there, thanks. I’m not sure what to make of online invoicing though… I really like the oldschool postbox trick! Someone make me change my mind about this!
Here’s another great resource for online invoicing and business forms:
http://www.FastDue.com
FastDue provides essential online tools for businesses.
Here is how FastDue’s online tools can help a small business and freelancers stay organized, save money, and help them survive this tough economic environment:
• Collect Anything from Anyone Anywhere – FastDue invoices are extremely easy to use and are sent instantly via email so you get your money faster. Automatic past due reminders ensure that your clients won’t forget. Customizable forms maintain a professional appearance with details including your company’s logo.
• Negotiate and Execute Business Contracts Online – an internet first. All parties can negotiate within the contract form and add legally binding electronic signatures. Now you can have signed contracts and agreements at internet speed.
• Organize with FastDue So You Don’t Have to –FastDue keeps track of all transactions and contacts in your My Accounts section. Easily view the current status of your invoices, agreements, and accounts receivable and payable. Import or export contacts to and from your FastDue Address Book.
• Reduce the Need to Hire Expensive Lawyers – FastDue online agreement forms let you easily create common business contracts with FastDue’s intuitive, interactive templates. Forms include Non-Disclosure agreement, Non-Circumvent agreement, Finder’s agreement, Consulting agreement, Sale of Goods agreement, Promissory note, General release, Residential Lease, At Will Employment, and Intellectual Property.
Add http://www.aceproject.com to this list for project management.
Jenn
This is, without any doubt, THE POST! Thank you so much!
I noticed that you have ActiveCollab on the list, however it has recently become a licensed product. There is a similar open source software package called Project Pier http://www.projectpier.org/ that is built from the last open revision of AC.
One Royalty Free Stock Photo library missing is http://www.123rf.com, I was just comparing the hi res price for the same photo on iStockphoto and 123rf and it’s $45 on iStock and $8 on 123rf (Australian dollars).
Hi guys,
You should add Digiprove to the ‘Legal’ section of this list: http://www.digiprove.com. Digiprove is a great tool to help freelancers protect their intellectual property – Digiprove any piece of work (a photo, a website, a blog post, etc) to prove your ownership of it.
Digiprove also provides a certified email service, so if you need to be able to prove you sent something, as can often be the case in business or legal transactions, just use Digiprove to send it and you’ll have an indisputable record of the content, time and date of the communication.
Great list. Thank you! Don’t forget all the social networking groups to stay in contact with clients and partners like LinkedIn, Facebook, etc.
Please vote for me in the Start up Nation’s Leading Moms in Business contest: http://www.startupnation.com/leading-moms-2009/contestant/4170/index.php
Hello,
I want to appeal to people working in the field of website creation and referencing freelance.
We want someone familiar with the Internet and its mechanisms.
I can train on the specific tools if needed.
Thank you kindly send a resume by email.
Another great time-tracker app out there is Tempo – http://www.KeepTempo.com
What a wonderful list, this solved lots of headaches.
Awesome list! Really helpful information here. It’s already in my favs.
Just one thing, Diana from Artegami did not actually translate the list, just the intro…
Hi, Great Post!
Anybody know ” 22. TechInline – Remote Desktop Software ” working on Mac OS or Linux OS?
Thanks
Adobe Air app Klok:
http://klok.mcgraphix.com/klok/index.htm
Easy to use time tracking!
This is the first time I came across this site..it’s an amazing experience to have so much information..great going..
Thank you for the resource…don’t forget CurdBee for invoicing.
http://wwwIconfinder.net should be on that list
What about Skype and DimDim.com?
(shameless plug below but genuine.)
Can I add on a vote for Mingle, a project tracing/collab tool for agile projects. I find it tremendously useful for all kinds of projects not just software ones.
Free for upto 5 users with and all functionality and no time period lockdown
Good list but why does Your Web Job constantly get left off your lists?
Another list?!
WOW!!! More sources!!! Yay!
Great post! I think you should add Amazon S3 for extremely affordable file storage and file distribution. Very handy if you need to serve some files that you know are going to be hit massively on your website… therefore saving your bandwidth.
Follow me on twitter.
Another great FREE (important for us little guys) invoicing tool is Billing Manager from Intuit (yes, the same people as Quickbooks). Check ‘em out:
https://billingmanager.intuit.com/billing/welcome.url
I just wanted to add http://timr.com to this list. timr is a time tracking and drive log application that can be used via a modern web UI and from your BlackBerry or iPhone.
We are currently in an Open Beta program and you can get 3 months of free usage.
http://www.GotFreeFax.com is a better choice for sending free fax online to the US and Canada as they don’t add any Ads to your fax, which is important for faxing formal documents.
Great information you have here guys. Definitely going into my bookmarks list on my laptop’s browser. Wouldn’t have known other great resources exist out there. What’s with http://www.ninemotion.com/? Is it temporarily down or totally gone?
The link for #19 isn’t working
8 June 2009 – TimeXchange.net has improved its commerce and collaboration network for people who work in virtual project reporting teams. Version 3.0 was launched last week and includes a simplified navigation and new features such as a timer for project tasks and a more robust tracking of time submitted for approval. Additional third-party affiliates with tools such as mobile companion devices were also announced.
Great list. Of course I have to post a tool I use for managing and creating project proposals for my clients — http://DrawbridgeApp.com — Drawbridge helps any freelancer manage and create project proposals and quotes for their clients. And it’s totally free!
Great post! Thanks for all the useful information!
Thanks for yet another great post, always good to see inspiring new tools to make all of our design lives easier
steve
Hey, great list! You did miss two large stock library resource:
fotosearch.com and canstockphoto.com
Awesome work Cyan, that would be one of the most comprehensive lists of its type although you did miss us for the freelance boards. How very disappointing :p
This is a great resource for freelance professionals. Keep up the good work. We regret we didn’t make your list.
This is a good starting list. In addition, gain inspiration, entrepreneurial guidance, and learn how to start and run your own business as a freelancer, consultant, or small business owner with Embrace Your Freedom: Doing What You Want For A Living by Jan Manon, an e-book over 100 pages in length that is designed to offer you the confidence and knowledge you need to follow your dreams of pursuing a career and lifestyle you want.
Find out more at www.epebooks.com. Read a few chapter excerpts for free or listen to the audio. You can purchase the e-book via Paypal and Amazon.
Amazon Kindle version at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002K8QAZ4
nice one
Great collection! I hope that this will have some updates too as new technology comes into play as well as new sites and job boards. This is surely a onestop shop for freelancers. Way to go!
Thanks!
I’d have liked to see HyperOffice (http://www.hyperoffice.com) make the cut!
Great list! A lot of inspiring projects!
As a freelance designer, I love http://contentcube.com . It is kinda like visual FTP. You can have all your originals organized online and then share proofs or deliverables with your clients. They automatically generate previews of PSD and AI files too. Great presentation tool as well.
Very nice. Take a look at http://www.HourVille.com too. A marketplace and set of tools (including online scheduling and payment).
Great resources!
I specialize in online marketing training and coaching for people starting a second career as business owners. http://www.SmartSalesProcess.com
I will definitely pass this one to my clients to help with all the areas a new business owner struggles needs a reference for.
Wow, what a useful list… Thank you so much!!
Nice!!!!!!
I was looking out for some invoicing solutions for my blog and stumbled upon this page. Great List! Will give few of them a try.
Great list!
A couple of things that you should add:
HOSTING
Hostway.com is a great value. They have amazing tools to help new-to-the-web people get started and they have great 24/7/365 service to help you.
ValueWeb.com is AMAZING! Unlimited bandwidth, Unlimited storage and 24/7/365 customer service for under $5 for the first three months and then under $10 there on.
TIMING
toggl.com is free and is extremely powerful. It can, of course, be upgraded and do invoicing for you yada yada yada. But the free version is all we’ve ever needed since we invoice out of QuickBooks.
BLOG
Completely agree with WordPress. Make sure your hosting company has a easy install solution…and if you’re a newbie, make sure they will hold your hand. Most won’t. See my hosting suggestions above.
GOOGLE APPS
Best thing since…since…Google. We run our whole business of them.
EMAIL MARKETING
You nailed it with CampaignMonitor.com
An excellent list. Another service to keep in mind is Bill On Site: http://www.billonsite.com
Bill On Site is a full-featured web-based invoicing system, with a unique twist: you can use Bill On Site on your mobile phone, enabling small business owners to send invoices to their customers while still on their client’s site. All you need is a semi-recent phone – one with a web browser on it – and internet access on your phone.
Other invoicing services offer web-based access, but completely ignore the mobile web, making sending invoices on the go difficult at best, and impossible at worst. For Bill On Site, it’s our sole focus, and something we’re working on improving all the time.
We just launched this week, so feel free to give it a try. All accounts come with a free 30 day trial, so if you wanted to try out the service, go ahead. No payment information is collected, so it is absolutely no-risk.
Very nice post.
Thanks a lot.
cheers!
Great list, thanks!
Add to the list http://www.cogi.com for recording and transcripts of important meetings.
This is really a great resource alike for beginners and pros. I can imagine how much time would have been spent in collecting and placing at one place the resources. Really…really a Great job. Thanks from the core of my heart.
Awesome list. I refer to it regularly. I too am a freelancer, and this list is pure gold.
Keep it up!
-Victor Out
Hey thats great news for freelancer and me also. excellent article
I’m working on an app that’ll make a great addition to this list: http://quoterobot.com
This is a very comprehensive list. It’ll take me a while to try out everything though.
Thank you so much for sharing.
Wow! This is an amazing list and it’s great to learn about some new resources. I’d recommend a http://www.voices.com as a job board for freelance voice talent.
Another great business tool is dktext.com its free and allows you to create a text message update system based off the dotgo.com system. They also provide a FREE mobile website that they host for you or you can download to your own hosted site and are working on the same solution for a full website. This system also lets you update your website on the fly using a text message.
It is a nice list for freelancers. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Very interesting list. Thansk for sharing links to the voiceover business with us.
Very helpful list, thanks in advance, as I’ll be testing out a few of these apps.
Cyan,
Great list! http://www.criminalwatchdog.com is an additional resource I find particularly useful.
Great help! Thanks for sharing these tools and I hope this would be read by many, learned a lot.
Thanks for the list!
I would also add Billings to timing or invoicing (it does both really well), Espresso and Coda to Misc (You already have textmate), as well as Skype and Google Apps, both essential, to me at least, when dealing with international clients.
Some good stuff on the list though, and hundreds of comments!
This is a very intriguing list of tools for the freelance professional. I have two tools to suggest for this list:
-DimDim at http://www.dimdim.com/ for low-cost web meetings. This service is much cheaper than GoToMeeting and it very useful. They even offer a free web meeting platform.
-Freelance & Create Magazine at http://FreelanceCreate.com as another resource for tools and guides for the creative freelance professional. It’s not another FreelanceSwitch, but it’s a great resource to have in your bookmarks!
I enjoy reading the content here at FreelanceSwitch! I hope other readers benefit from these suggestions to the list.
Don’t forget LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com).
A great tool for finding the right people to communicate with in organisations, and finding jobs. 55 million subscribers can’t be wrong!
Thanks! This is a very comprehensive list and it’s definitely going in the bookmarks! Some other resources to consider:
For tracking where your time and productivity are going – RescueTime (https://www.rescuetime.com)
For design & marketing work: Aquent (http://aquent.us/)
Thanks, again, for your work pulling these together!
Great stuff guys! I really don’t know how much time it takes for your guys to compile such a list of excellent resources but it takes a lot of time for me to digest it all! Keep up the good work! Thank you!
This list is awesome! I very much appreciate job you did.
Great list! Lots of resources to take into account, I would like to recommend Voice123.com for freelance voice over jobs.
Milton is an online app that combines contact management, project management, invoicing, expenses, and time tracking into one tool. It’s perfect for freelancers and small service companies. It fits into at least 4 of the categories above.
Great list, and some great info in the comments. Thanks for your great efforts.
Andy
Great compilation guys! But you did fail to mention oDesk.com. that’s where I have been getting work. but nevertheless, the list is great! will be taking some of your tips!
Wow, this is a great list. Thanks for compiling all of these resources! I’d like to recommend OnRequest Images for freelance photographers.
Thanks for the link…..we have begun to refer this list to our customers as they come through the door….it’s a good resource for them to have.
Do you think you’d be able to list our company in the resources?
Thanks!
Really really great list…
But i don’t see any good todolist manager that like software, all of them are web based, can you suggest me one?
Nice list, Thanks. I found a couple things I hadn’t seen yet.
Thanks again
Great list! I also found many things I haven’t seen
This is a great list and one that I am starting to work through to see what suits me – however is there a FREE timing tool that is recommended by anyone?
I am just starting out and would love to use a free time tracking tool.
http://www.fileden.com is another pretty good file storage provider.
I’d also suggest trying DropBox.com – It’s a file-sharing website with a handy downloadable app that creates a folder so that instead of uploading files or emailing them to yourself, you simply place a copy in the folder and then can access it anywhere. I’m obsessed!
I second the DropBox.com suggestion. You can access it anywhere, the 1st 2 gigs of storage are free, and they have version control. It’s pretty awesome!
I use PamFax as my online fax service. Works very well, and the price are very cheap! Also you got no subscription and monthly fees!
Thank you for a very useful list. I would also add Drupal in the section of Web Tools as this content management system allows you to build your website, though a little bit more difficult than WordPress, but with much more functionality. In functionality, Drupal is CMS #1 in the world, so I advice to all freelancers needing a good site to pay attention to this one.
wow, looks like a young graduate, so young
I did not find http://www.ofreelance.com in the list. OFreelance.com is a great site for work at home no fee.
Ofreelance does not charge any fee both from freelancers as well as job posters.
Thank you guy, as always, great post
Shawn
I did not see http://www.getappsdone.com/ or http://www.freelancemachine.com on your job board list. These 2 are also great resources.
Great collection. This can save freelancers lots time because it is a search engine of charities’ PR people and their mobile numbers and allows journalists to send out case study requests to hundreds of charities at once
Thank you so much for sharing this great list of useful resources for freelancing people. This will definitely help me to develop my freelance career!
Don’t forget <a href="http:twitter.com/b2bee".@b2bee, a simple, clean invoicing, payment, and tax management system, which was just launched. It’s as good as it gets, and we give $.25 of each monthly subscription payment to fund honeybee research as well.
A wonderful list, thank you! You can also add Alertpay to the list of payment systems and credit card processors in Business Tools Section.
This one is good too, stamp duty calculator
There are huge free freelance resources in the Internet, but most of them are not much valuable as they are free. However these resources are really very useful.
Great resources, this list worth gold!
such a huge collection of design layout tutorials…. almost overwhelming me…. but it is very fantastic too…. looking through these all very slowly…. thanks again
This is great tool and they offer a 100% free account….
Top quality work, efficiency and cost effectiveness are some of the most essential aspects to a freelancing business. It is therefore very important to have the best resources and tools, without having to pay hugely for it.
As a freelancer, I need to use many resources and tools, and it can be time consuming to go hunting for these online. This is the most comprehensive list that covers a wide spectrum of a freelancer’s needs.
You have listed many resources and tools I haven’t used, and I am going to check them out.
Thanks for compiling this – much appreciated!
Great list of resources. I know from past experience that this takes a lot of time to assemble. Just wanted to let you know I have already used it and found a valuable resource. I will be using it again!
Awesome list of resources. Most of it, I already use, but there are a few very good tools that I didn’t know anything about.
For file transfers tho, I used to use You Send It, but now I use Spider Send simply because there’s no monthly membership, and it’s basically pay per use, which is great for those of us who don’t send large files too often.
Send Large Files with Spider Send
I would also add Webmoney to the list of business tools, the ones responsible for collecting payments. This is a reliable payment processign system which can work in those parts of the world where such system as Paypal is not available.
This list is an absolute treasure, thank you so much! I am surprised I haven’t heard about some resources like zoho and sitekreator, they seem to be a real find!! Well-done!!
Thanks IHelpyoublog for this useful information. This is like an encyclopedia
I have been a freelancer since last five years, however, recently I came across http://www.geniebazaar.com and I found it better in terms of pricing and width. They also have local gigs freelancers for remodeling, plumbing, etc. Customers like it because they verify each freelancer and customer’s identity in addition to the regular escrow account.
I will be using it again! Does anybody know when the new version is coming out?
Hey, thanks for your great resources here! What about http://www.123rf.com ? It can be added under the category of Stock library. Their images is less than $1. I used them sometimes!
Thanks for the list. It’s very useful for me.
shame i didn’t find this list earlier. i’ll have to make sure i take enough time to read it all as there is plenty to keep me busy here. great work and thanks.
Thank you for this awesome list! Under Web Tools you could add Skysa.com, they provide a really simple way to add social features to a static site. I’ve used it for some clients that wanted those features and was able to up sell it along with the hosting to make a little extra re-occurring revenue.
Awesome list of resources. Most of it, I already use, but there are a few very good tools that I didn’t know anything about.
Very useful lists. I’m gonna use some of them, thank you for sharing.
Great resource list. I’m sure it will come in very handy.
Awesome list!!
I suggest an other cool website for searching & sharing cheat sheets: http://www.quicklycode.com
Really useful for web developers…
Awesome post! Thanks for sharing all this great info.
Sweet post. I have bookmarked several of the 101 resources already.
Great list!
I’d like to add Send-It Confidential. It allows you to send completely confidential messages and prevent recipients from printing, forwarding, saving or editing your messages and attachments. Good for sending samples of work or work that the customer hasn’t paid for yet.
This is an incredibly helpful resource! I’ll be bookmarking and referring back to this often. Thanks
I learned about this post through problogger.net
You have a great list post here. Thank you for sharing.
I just stumbled across this using roScripts. Awesome resource. Thank you
Can call this database of freelance resource! Brilliant work. the Web Tools list was outstanding! million thanks for sharing this with me..
Nice post, thank you very much.
Excellent post. I used to be checking continuously this weblog and I’m inspired! Extremely helpful information specifically the ultimate part
I maintain such information a lot. I was seeking this certain information for a lengthy time. Thank you and best of luck.
Cool resources, going to come back and check out what you have next.
Great list, I do free lance myself so always refreshing to see contacts like this. Cheers
thank for sharing ^^
I hope I have a work soon
regard!
Good list of free lancing,I am regular local gigs of modeling…..as users like choose better pricing
Hello, guys!
It is a great project, i found it very useful.
I’d like to sugest one web site, which helped me a lot when I needed to place different php forms in my site. It is http://phpforms.net. Business tools is just the right category for it.
Great list, wouldn’t get by without some of these helpful sites and tools. http://w3schools.com is very helpful for your HTML and CSS needs. http://voicesonlinenow.com is great for all your voice over needs to help get you voice recorded and on the market.
I first came across this list 6 months ago and tested about a dozen suggestions, with great results.
I have just revisited for the first time since then and seen a whole lot of programs i skipped over last time.
Better get test driving.
I use billingboss.com for invoicing. It’s easy to use and the best thing is, it’s totally free. You can integrate paypal paying option and keep record of your payment and earning too. I think its worthy to be listed.
Wow! Thanks for the resources. We were looking for an invoicing package too!
Here are a couple more.
The simplest Time Tracking and Invoicing around – https://paydirtapp.com/
Collaborative website editing and bug tracking – http://www.bugherd.com/
Hi there I have one website for your attention I registered not so long time ago and satisfied so far, for it has lots of business tools and android and iPhone apps. the website is called Workforcetrack.com . NJoy!!
Have you ever accomplished that fully without errors?
This is an incredible list! I really appreciate how you covered the different aspects of small business tools instead of just focusing on one or two areas.
One great internet fax service that wasn’t mentioned is FaxitFast.com. Their service is very reliable and the prices are pretty cheap… only $6 / mo for 250 inbound or outbound faxes. Plus they offer a risk free 30 day trial so you can try the service for a month before you actually pay.
Definitely worth taking a look at if you need a reliable online fax service, especially if you need to send / receive faxes on the go from your smartphone.
Great list.
I’d love to add Connected (http://connectedhq.com)
It is contact management for professionals and small business without the work. Integrates with Google mail, calendar, and social networks.
I found this great tool that helps convert client’s text lists into html lists. Another time saver when the clock is ticking! Thanks for the great resources!
http://www.code-pal.com/listify/
Hey all I think you should stop into SlignPlan and check out our toolset. Great set of features for anyone looking to really keep track of their projects, clients, and personal information.
ColourLovers.com is a cool color generator site that allows you to make pallets and colorize patterns.
Very usefull informations for freelancer. Thanks for sharing …
May I suggest ProjectFramework at http://www.projectframework.com ?
It allows to gather requirements from customers/prospect in a step by step manner and automatically create project documents – word and excel based – to be directly handed out to customers, saving a lot of time. It is based on best practices within the IT and Consulting word, so it might be worth to give an eye on it.
Cheers
Marco
Wow!
a great Resource, very helpful
Hi,
Great list. Feel free to add http://www.freelancersoutpost.com to the list of job sites.
Thanks,
Didn’t see it on the list, but shirtmockup.com is an amazing resource for designers who need to make a quick mockup of a design on a tshirt
Crazy list of wonderful resources. I really found that sometimes you have to get your clients on the phone together to discuss a project and get everyone’s opinion at the same time. http://www.freeconferencecalling.com/ is the a real easy way to have conference calls.
I use http://minsay.com to hold brief chats with clients when I don’t want them to have my personal messenger details.
Just send them the room link.
I use OroTimesheet for my time tracking. It is really easy to use. I can track the time I spend on each project and then invoice my clients easily. I can also export my invoices to QuickBooks which is an amazing feature for me.
You can visit the company’s website at http://www.orologic.com/ for more information.
I recommend to read http://whichlance.com/ , it has all details about different freelancing websites, customer reviews, ratings, feedback and all these are 100 real.
Thanks
Vijay
I’d definitely add Odesk as it’s been a good source of qualified work force for outsourcing some of the tasks. Your list is awesome and I got it bookmarked so I don’t loose it
)
Let me add, there’s a new 100% free Time Tracker in town. It’s sleek and intuitive, with some nice functionalities. If you want, you can track your tasks in real time, so that you don’t have to fiddle with time-sheets anymore.
Im using it personally for my freelance work, and not only because I’m one of the devs
You can check it out here:
http://www.onepageonly.net/Homepage/Home.aspx
Cheers,
Chris K
Thanks for the resources. We were looking for an invoicing package too!
hey everyone! This really great. thanks for share all this matter to us! thanks once more.
Great resource list, thanks! One small issue, the goplan link seems to be broken. Should it point to goplanapp.com ?
Well, you made TONS of good explanations and fine links, this is great ! Tanks .
Nice list, but you left off Fanurio.
Fanurio helps with the less appealing aspects of freelancing like invoicing and keeping track of time. It’s a useful application, with a user-friendly interface.
I recommend to use the service to make business proposals online. Here you can find some variants http://www.quoteroller.com/proposal-templates/
Time Tracker = toggl (toggl.com)
Project Management = Smartsheets (www.smartsheet.com) 30 day trial, monthly membership also has a free basic version.
may i suggest trying out freelance tools and marketplace in http://www.xamun.com
Xamun is one of its kind solution that provides a platform for consulting companies and freelancers globally to do their key business activities online in addition to seek and collaborate on projects they want to work together. Most exiting solutions currently are focusing on single key aspect of their business like CRM or Project Management without providing the benefit of an integrated solution that helps plan and optimize use and benefit from it. Xamun is also customized to the unique nature of business for consulting and not just make do with modified systems made for manufacturing and distribution business.
The Xamun community integrates seamlessly with Linkedin and Facebook to enable a huge supply-chain of experts that can collaborate to deliver global projects with ease and scale instantly. Xamun provides a foundation for enabling true social business for the largest growing industry of the future in an effortless manner.
its free!
These two lists are really great if you’re freelancing or run a small business. See: http://blog.jobcrowd.com/101-top-resources-freelance-professionals-small-business/ & http://www.guerrillafreelancing.com/101-freelance-resources/ . Really helpful resources.
As you already have Harvest as a time tracker, I would love to see it in the invoicing section as it proves itself more than just a time tracker, and is a great web app for invoicing clients as an alternative to Sage, FreshBooks, etc.
Job Board: oDesk. a great place and tool for freelancers! low fees, easy-to-navigate user interface. Very transparent system. I use only odesk. It’s awesome!
Team management software: TransparentBusiness.com, lets you track your team’s work and progress by capturing your team member’s computer screen, giving you total time spent on a particular project, progress of the project, and it also lets you communicate with your team easily through discussion boards that come with each project or through one-click connection via skype.
Hey guys!!
I’ve set up a freelance account on http://www.peopleperhour.com, which as i see is not on your list!
I find it pretty amazing! What do you think? Should i switch to another?
ps. i’m looking for freelance writing jobs..
Thanks for the resources!Very very helpful!
Georgia
These are actually enormous ideas in regarding blogging.
You have touched some nice points here. Any way keep up wrinting.
Great and useful list! For online faxing I use faxinating.com (they deliver world wide and it’s a pay as you go service) a good one for me
How about Hyperoffice! I believe it has much to offer than just document and project management (http://www.hyperoffice.com/).
Some of these links don’t work! such a bummer, especially the ones I was so interested in!
Hi there,
Job nicely done but few links are dead now
M
I have used some of the resources mentioned above and I have my own set of resources too, which includes – invoicera for invoicing, Replicon time clock for time tracking, etc.
I have used some of the resources mentioned above and I have my own set of resources too, which includes – invoicera for invoicing, Replicon time clock for time tracking, etc. Good collection though.
Very useful list, and not only for freelancers. Google apps are a real lifesaver
May I also recommend InEx Finance an easy-to-use web app for money management and budgeting that works internationally in any currency. Here is the site: https://www.inexfinance.com/
Thanks for the resources. I like this
A few I use on a regular basis:
SugarSync – file sync/backup – https://www.sugarsync.com/
ScreenConnnect – remote access/training/remote meetings – http://www.screenconnect.com/
Viber – VoIP calls – http://www.viber.com/
Google Voice – free text messaging
I would suggest you to add some time tracking tools to your list, something that is dedicated employee tracking and billing, such as employee time tracking software.
I have used some of the resources mentioned above and I have my own set of resources too, which includes – invoicera for invoicing, Replicon time clock for time tracking, etc. Good collection though.
I have used some of the resources mentioned above and I have my own set of resources too, which includes – invoicera for invoicing, Replicon time clock for time tracking, etc. Good collection though.
Marvellous list! Thank you for bringing up these crucial apps and sites. Keep up the good work.
I would suggest http://www.nutcache.com a free invoicing and time management web app for freelancers !
Free with no limits or time trial.
Check it out
I like TeamworkPM.net. it has a pretty good mix of features and value.
This is a great list for our students, many of whom have started their own development companies before finishing high school. It’s pretty cools times that we live in that a 14 year old with access to open source (and low cost) tools can launch a business and learn more from that experience than what they can in most classrooms. Love the community here.