The software world is constantly evolving and changing. Old products get a fresh new design and all-new features, new software applications come out to challenge the way we do things, people who helped create hugely popular applications leave them behind and go on to come up with something new and amazing.

That is precisely the case with these three. After they helped create 3 of the most popular applications in the world, they left the companies they founded and came up with some awesome new applications that you… probably know nothing about.

1. Wire, the messenger backed by Janus Friis, who created Skype



Everyone knows that Skype, the messenger application that has millions of users around the world, is a Microsoft product. While it’s true that Microsoft owns Skype, it doesn’t mean that Microsoft created Skype. Microsoft bought Skype for $8.5 billion, way back in 2011. Fun fact: Bill Gates was all for the acquisition, even though he was no longer Microsoft’s CEO.

As I was saying, Microsoft bought Skype from the guys who created it: Niklas Zennström, from Sweden, and Janus Friis, from Denmark. Friis is currently working on a new project called Wire. It’s a messenger application that has quite a lot to offer. Here’s a list of its most interesting features.



Wire – Main Features

• IM, voice and video – socialize with others via instant messages or via voice and video chat. Wire works brilliantly when you want to talk one-on-one as well as when you want to have group conversations.
• End-to-end encryption – privacy and security are important. Consequently, Wire uses end-to-end encryption to protect all your conversations.
• No annoyances – no popups, no banners, no takeovers, no ads.
• Use it anywhere – Wire is available for Windows, Mac OS X, iOS, Android, and the web. If you don’t want to install Wire on your device, you can use it within your browser (just like these other messengers).

Get Wire for Windows right here on FindMySoft.

Get Wire for other platforms, learn more about it here.


2. Brave, a browser created by Brendan Eich, who co-founded Mozilla



When I say the word Mozilla, I immediately follow it with Firefox. You know, the browser that has more than a billion users around the world (as of December 2014). You might not now this, but the Mozilla project, Mozilla Foundation and Mozilla Corporation were co-founded by Brendan Eich. He also served as Mozilla’s CEO until April 2014.

Brendan Eich is currently the CEO of Brave Software, company that is working on an eponymously-named web browser. Just like Opera Software has the Opera browser, Brave Software has the Brave browser. The most interesting thing about Brave is that it automatically blocks ads and trackers, which is great from a security point of view. Speaking of which...

Brave put a lot of emphasis on security and privacy:

• It blocks trackers and 3rd party tracking.
• It shields against intrusive ads and malvertisement.
• It blocks tracking pixels and tracking cookies.
• It blocks phishing and malware.
• It redirects sites to HTTPS by using the EFF’s HTTPS Everywhere.

Brave is a free and open source project. The browser is available for Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, iOS and Android. If you think it’s based on Firefox, it’s not. It’s based on Chromium.

Get Brave for Windows right here on FindMySoft.

Get Brave for other platforms, learn more about it here.


3. Vivaldi, a new browser from Jon von Tetzchner, Opera’s co-founder and former CEO



Opera has been making the news recently, and for all the right reasons. The Norwegian company integrated a free and unlimited VPN into its browser, built native ad-blocking technology into it, and more.

Opera Software was co-founded by Jon von Tetzchner and, for quite a long time, it was led by the Icelandic programmer and businessman. That is no longer the case. Jon is no longer with Opera Software. He’s now the head of Vivaldi Technologies and he’s working on a new browser called Vivaldi.

Vivaldi moved out of early preview earlier this month. The first major release, Vivaldi 1.0, was released to the public on April 6th, 2016 and it’s recently reached version 1.1. Go get the browser and you’ll love the fact that it lets you customize everything.

“While other browsers strip down their offerings, Vivaldi adds features and powerful personalization options to help the web’s most demanding users increase their productivity and efficiency,” says Vivaldi Technologies.



Vivaldi – Main Features

• Speed Dial – so you can quickly and easily access your favorite sites.
• Quick Commands – use text commands to open tabs, access the settings, and more.
• Rewind – return to the first page you’ve visited at a site.
• Tab stacks – reduce clutter and stay organized by creating tab stacks. To create a stack, just drop tabs on top of each other.
• Tab stack tiling – tile tab stacks and see multiple pages at the same time. Works great on a big screen.
• Sessions – save a set of tabs as a session and access the session at a later time.
• Notes – take notes while you browse and link them to a specific site.
• Mouse gestures – perform browser actions with mouse movements.
• Side panel – provides easy access to bookmarks, downloads and notes.
• And lots more.

"We set out on a mission to make web browsers powerful again," said Jon von Tetzchner, CEO, Vivaldi. “So Vivaldi 1.0 is both a throwback and a look ahead. It’s a ‘Modern Classic’ designed to help our users get the most out of all the time they spend with their browser.”

"Millions of people have already agreed that they want a better browser, one that puts them in control," von Tetzchner continued. "Everything we build is in service of the user. We have no investors and their agendas to dictate our progress. There’s no exit strategy and we’re here to stay. All we want to do is give people a browser they’re proud to use and that we’re proud to call Vivaldi."

Get Vivaldi for Windows right here on FindMySoft.

Get Vivaldi for other platforms, learn more about it here.