I've always liked playing with software. Download it, try it and, in most cases, junk it because of gross defects. Software is always a compromise; none is perfect and none does absolutely everything you want done the way you want it done. I've always looked for software that does something well instead of software that tries to do everything in an average or below average way.
In September 2003 I purchased my first digital camera. I thought it might be just the ticket for my forthcoming vacation snaps and for pictures of the new granddaughter. It was. Originally I was going to use my company laptop (with Windows 98SE) to store and manage the photographs. Given the age of that machine it soon became apparent that it was not a good idea. So, I bought my first MS Windows computer. It took me a couple of years to find some decent software and utilities for it.
Most of the software mentioned below is freeware though a few are shareware but the price is usually very reasonable. I have not personally tried any of the mentioned software with Windows Vista and I don't plan on trying it out soon.