Word processing and spreadsheets were the first of the killer apps for home computers when PCs first started to propagate to the millions of households out there. Then, there were Internet Browsers that took everyone by storm. So what are the hot categories and hot products now? There are more products then ever out there for the home shopper and many of them not that good. We looked over many, many different products and product categories to find the best home products, the hot home product categories, and the best software products period. The list is neither exhaustive nor scientific, but the products listed here are definitely great! If you have a computer at home, take a look at these products!

The Hot Product Categories

When searching reviews and products out there on the web some of these categories were not the top on my list, but nevertheless, they are not only out there, but getting a lot of attention. Here are ten top selling software categories for the home computer:

* Home design and gardening software
* Spyware and Adware
* Family Tree Legends
* Video Sharing
* Website builders
* Speech to text conversion
* Parental control and Internet filtering
* Disk-imaging utilities
* Spam Blockers
* Internet Security

Top 10 Best Software Products

The home software market has never had so many choices and for the categories listed above there are too many products to mention. Below are ten standout products for each of these areas.

* Home design and gardening software - Home Designer Pro 7.0
* Spyware and Adware - CounterSpy 1.5
* Family Tree Legends - Family Tree Legend 5.0
* Video Sharing - Grouper
* Website buildersSiteMaker
* Speech to text conversionDragon Naturally Speaking 8
* Parental control and Internet filteringContentProtect 2.0
* Disk-imaging utility - Acronis True Image
* Spam - Cloudmark Desktop
* Internet Security - ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite 6

The information about Home Software Programs presented here will do one of two things: either it will reinforce what you know about Home Software Programs or it will teach you something new. Both are good outcomes.

For each of these products there are additional information in the following articles. Take a look at these home software products!

Below are some things to watch for in 2006, some of them are good and, unfortunately, some aren't.

First the good news:

- We are getting a lot more serious about our security. This has a lot of reasons behind it. For example, new privacy laws are mandating organizations to tighten their security. Look to see more consumer privacy laws passed in the coming year and more tightening of security systems.

- Authentication requirements are increasing. This is closing in large security holes. Corporations are requiring a great deal more of authentication to get into secure systems (this also is on the bad news side)

- There is a plethora of sophisticated programs to help us be more secure and they will continue to get better. Competition right now is strong in the security industry sparking a lot of innovation.

- ISPs are now taking on the responsibility to help us with our security. Take AOL's recent commercials as a good sign that others will follow the trend.

Now the bad news:

- Securing our networks is costing us. Most companies are globalizing their organizations and making them secure costs a lot of money. It will get worse before it gets better.

- Authentication requirements are increasing. This is getting claustrophobic. Corporations are requiring a great deal more authentication to get into secure systems (This is also on the good news side) Unfortunately, for the end user, it is one more thing to be unhappy about, not unlike airport security lines.

- Hackers are getting more sophisticated. For example, Botnets are becoming more complex and harder and harder to catch and stop. Do a search on botnets on the Internet. They really are causing a whole lot of problems, but it does not stop there. The number of viruses and malware out there is staggering.

- Spammers keep finding more creative ways to fill our email boxes. Don't look for this trend to stop anytime soon.

So now you know a little bit about Home Software Programs. Even if you don't know everything, you've done something worthwhile: you've expanded your knowledge.