Have U looked at Open Office? That is what I use. It is almost like word to me & free.
Dar

definitely get the new version of Open Office which is version 3 this is an excellent free alternative to Microsoft office and also of course you do have the option of using online versions like Google docs etc.

Welcome to Google Docs

Go to the OpenOffice.org homepage

ThinkFree

glad you are back if you need help setting up your security programs and selecting them just ask. Getting those up and running is essential as is getting all the critical windows updates so you stay safe.

OpenOffice is a great program and is getting closer and closer to completely compatible with MS Office. For most uses, it's probably close enough to use all the time.

Another free option is Lotus Symphony.

If you absolutely need 100% MS Office compatibility and don't use it for commercial purposes, you have some other options.

MS used to offer a version of Office that was only available to students and teachers (but could be installed on more than one computer in the househould). They've changed the licensing with Office 2007 and now only say that it can't be used for commercial use. It still allows it to be installed on up to three machines. It doesn't have all the programs that the professional product has, but it has Word, Excel, Poerpoint and OneNote. Amazon has it for about $75 and NewEgg has it for about $60.

If you only use Word and don't need the latest version (you can open docx files with older versions if you install a free plug in from MS ) you can get MS Works Suite for around $20 used at Amazon.

And don't forget you already have Wordpad on the computer at Start, All programs, Accessories, Wordpad. Obviously it is not as robust as Word but not knowing your needs you might look to see if it fits the bill.

Thanks for the tips! Ok ravencajun, it's probably not a bad idea to get some help setting up the security programs and selecting them.
So far we have windows updates installing automatically, we have the windows firewall on and we have the free AVG antivirus 8.0. Is that enough or are there any other options? Thanks!

are you using windows xp or vista? if vista then the windows firewall is good if xp then you need another software firewall like zonealarm free.
I would definitely add to your list superantispyware, update it and run a full scan weekly
malwarebytes antimalware, update it and run a full scan every week.
spywareblaster update weekly and enable all protection
secunia tool to make sure you have all updates on your pc installed programs.
SpywareBlaster

Secunia Personal Software Inspector

SUPERAntiSpyware Free Edition

Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware

Firewalls

Pay close attention when doing installs of any programs and if it ask if you want to also include something extra such as a toolbar or office program or stuff like that be sure you uncheck those you do not want any of that extra junk just the actual program.

The windows firewall and AVG only are definitely not enough for my liking, I would add the above. Remember to always update a program before running a scan so you have the latest definitions.
And it is a very good idea to run an online virus scanner from time to time to make sure the one on your pc is doing it's job
FREE Online Virus Scan

and of course use firefox browser.
Firefox

these are the directions for malwarebytes antimalware
download Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware to your desktop.

* Double-click mbam-setup.exe and follow the prompts to install the program.
* At the end, be sure a checkmark is placed next to Update Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware and Launch Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware, then click Finish.
* If an update is found, it will download and install the latest version.
* Once the program has loaded, select Perform full scan, then click Scan.
* When the scan is complete, click OK, then Show Results to view the results.
* Be sure that everything is checked, and click Remove Selected.
* When completed, a log will open in Notepad. Please save it to a convenient location. The log can also be found here: C:\Documents and Settings\Username\Application Data\Malwarebytes\Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware\Logs\log-date.txt

Ravencajun thank you sooooo much for all your advice, you are the best!! We will start on these things tonight (I'm at work now).