Find The Right E Mail

AOL Web Mail

Novel features and useful integration with AOL's other services may make this a natural fit for AOL devotees, but setup and sign-in woes caused us to curse.

Eudora 7

Eudora 7 is a good choice for e-mail users who manage lots of messages and need better searching than Microsoft Outlook provides.

LogMeIn Backup

Act 2006

Act 2006 is a solid choice for sales pros but a nonessential upgrade for version 2005 users.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows 2000 Server, Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition, Microsoft Windows XP Professional, Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional, Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Web Edition, Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition, Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition, 550 MHz, CD-ROM, SVGA monitor, 550 MHz, Windows

Microsoft Outlook 12 (beta 1)

WordPerfect Office Small Business Edition 12

WordPerfect Office 12 Small Business Edition is an affordable productivity suite with a powerful set of core applications--a good buy for smaller companies that don't import a lot of Microsoft Office documents.

Specs: 5 users, Complete package, Microsoft Windows 2000 SP4, Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition, 300 MHz, 12, CD-ROM, SVGA monitor, Mouse or compatible device, 300 MHz, Windows

Corel WordPerfect Mail

WordPerfect Mail is an inexpensive yet powerful e-mail app that's good for small businesses on tight budgets. While its IMAP support needs work, it's a fine alternative to Microsoft Outlook, Netscape, Eudora, and other competitors.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition, Microsoft Windows XP Professional, Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition, 500 MHz, Internet connection, Mouse or compatible device, 500 MHz, Windows, Internet Explorer 4.0 or later

Cloudmark Desktop

Cloudmark Desktop is good at stopping spam, but it offers fewer features than either Qurb or MailFrontier.

Ipswitch WS_FTP Professional 2006

WS_FTP is a powerful and capable file transfer client that is worth the expense if you have serious data transfer needs.

Specs: Complete package, CD-ROM drive

LogMeIn

LogMeIn's excellent features and performance, not to mention its free service, rank it at the top of remote access solutions.

Qurb

Qurb 3.0 is a very close second behind our favorite spam blocker, MailFrontier, and leagues ahead of Norton AntiSpam.

Specs: 1 user, License, Microsoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP, 3.0, Windows, Microsoft Outlook XP, Microsoft Outlook 2000, Microsoft Outlook 2002, Microsoft Outlook 2003, Microsoft Outlook Express 5.5, Microsoft Outlook Express 6.0 or later

McAfee SpamKiller 6.0

SpamKiller's day has come and gone. Without a major overhaul, this filter just can't keep up with the competition.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP, Intel Pentium, 233 MHz, 150 MHz, 6.0, CD-ROM, Intel Pentium, 233 MHz, 150 MHz, Windows, Internet Explorer 5.5 or later

MailFrontier Desktop

Move over, Norton AntiSpam. MailFrontier Desktop is our pick for pain-free yet effective spam relief.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package

PC-cillin Internet Security 2004

PC-cillin 2004 includes a firewall and antispam tools--features not found in Norton AntiVirus 2004 or McAfee VirusScan 8.0.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows 98, Microsoft Windows XP SP1, Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition, Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition, Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional SP3 or later, 233 MHz, 300 MHz, CD-ROM, 233 MHz, 300 MHz, Windows

Microsoft Office Outlook 2003

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows XP or later, Microsoft Windows 2000 SP3 or later, 233 MHz, CD-ROM, 233 MHz, Windows

Anonymizer Private Surfing 2.1

Your identity is safe with Anonymizer, but its yearly subscription fee is less attractive than Steganos Anonym's onetime price.

Norton AntiSpam 2004

Norton AntiSpam 2004 earns an Editors' Choice for its simplicity, efficiency, and ability to work inside Outlook Express.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows 98, Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition, Microsoft Windows XP Professional, Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional, Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition, 300 MHz, 155 MHz, CD-ROM, 300 MHz, 155 MHz, Windows

McAfee SpamKiller 5.0

Limited e-mail integration, poor MSN filtering, and sorry support mar SpamKiller 5.0's efficient spam-stopping skills. Pass on this.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows 98, Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition, 8 MB, 5.0, CD-ROM, Windows

AOL Communicator

AOL Communicator is a much better way to manage AOL mail and content, but its tech support isn't up to par.

Network Associates Mcafee Spamkiller 4

Though a tad pricey, SpamKiller is an effective spam filter for virtually any e-mail software.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows 95, Microsoft Windows 98, Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition, Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4.0, 5 MB, CD-ROM, Windows