There's no reason why you need to pay lots of money to keep your computer safe, be productive or have fun on your computer. Free, open source software has become very competitive with licenced software and in some cases may be better than the stuff you pay for. Here is a list of tested, reliable and powerful software alternatives.
MICROSOFT OFFICE ALTERNATIVE
Libre Office - This office suite comes from a project stemmed from the Open Office project. The new Libre Office is very powerful, fully compatible with Microsoft Office and has some nice additional features too. Includes Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Presentation, Database, Graphics and Math programs. Get your copy for Windows, Mac or Linux for free or more information by visiting http://www.libreoffice.org
Open Office - Another free open source alternative that provides very powerful applications. Includes a Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Presentation Database, Graphics programs. Get your copy for Windows, Mac or Linux at http://www.openoffice.org/
ADOBE PHOTOSHOP ALTERNATIVE
Paint.NET - While not as extensive as Photoshop, Paint.NET boasts a huge number of features that meet the needs of most people wanting to process and doctor up their photographs or create impressive graphics from scratch. Get the free open source program and more information by visiting http://www.getpaint.net/download.html#download
GIMP - Try GIMP to see if this open source tool can’t provide you with all the power you need for your photography and graphic design needs. GIMP stands for Gnu Image Manipulation Program, and it’s the solution that comes closest to emulating the Photoshop environment. Get it at http://www.gimp.org/
NORTON/MCAFEE ANTIVIRUS ALTERNATIVE
Avast Free - The worlds most popular anti-virus/anti-spyware program with over 180 million users. This program is FREE. One nice feature of Avast is that it will do updates for you, automatically, in the background to you don't have to think about updating your virus definitions. You will need to register for a free serial number for the product and the registration is good for a whole year. They will remind you when you need to update your free licence. More info and the program can be found at http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download
Free AVG - Another award winning free and very popular product for protecting your computer from viruses. They too claim to be the best on the market and indeed, it is very good. The protection seems to be only for viruses and does not include spyware but updates are free. You must manually update the virus definitions. For more info and the program, visit http://free.avg.com/us-en/homepage
Malwarebytes - Another great product for detection and removal of malware from your computer. Real-time protection is not included in the free version. More info and the program can be found at http://www.malwarebytes.org/products/malwarebytes_free
Microsoft Essentials - Made by the same people who made your Operating System. Originally designed by another company, this product was purchased by Microsoft and tweaked for optimum performance on Windows based computers. All scanning and updates are done in the background so you don't have to worry about keeping up with updates and new versions. Get it and more info at http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/products/security-essentials