Design software; starts at $1899 For design professionals, this suite of tools remains a class act. Adobe's CS5 introduces fresh refinements alongside Web-friendly features. (#26)
Adobe Creative Suite 5 coverage | adobe.com
Norton Antivirus 2011
Antivirus software; $40 one-year, single-PC license In our tests, Norton's software posted consistently high malware detection scores. Its well-designed interface is easy to work with, as well. (#37)
Norton Antivirus 2011 coverage | Download (trial) | norton.com
XMind
Productivity software; free and $49 versions If you're interested in mind mapping--a visual way of recording your great ideas--you can pay $349 for the gold standard, Mindjet's Mindmanager, or you can pay nothing for the free edition of XMind. The free version has all the basics, and it works on Windows, Mac, or Linux computers. (#50)
PC Tools Internet Security 2011
Security suite; $50 one-year, three-PC license This suite's pricing makes it a great value, and it put up strong all-around malware detection scores in our tests. (#51)
Download (trial) | pctools.com
Genieo
Browser add-on; free This downloadable add-on for Firefox or Internet Explorer keeps track of where you go and what you read on the Web, and then creates a newsy home page with stories you'll actually want to see. And don't worry: The index stays on your local machine. (#81)
