Let's say you recently purchased a new computer or laptop, and you'd like to move or copy the installed applications from the old computer to the new one... or maybe you purchased a second hard drive that's bigger and faster than your current hard drive, and you'd like to move programs from the old hard drive to the new one.

If you've lost or don't have access to your original installation CDs, then it could cost you hundreds of dollars to buy licensed versions of each software application to install on the new system or hard drive.

Fortunately there are a couple easy ways to transfer your software programs from one hard drive to another, or from one computer to another - and without breaking the bank.

1. Laplink PCmover is a migration utility that moves programs, files, and settings from your old PC to your new PC.

The Best Selling PC Migration Utility.Windows writes certain keys to your computer's registry when you install a program, and makes associations with other modules and/or installed programs. It's almost impossible to manually transfer these settings to another computer, which is what PCmover does automatically.

You'll need to install PCmover on both your old and new computers (handled by a single license) and it will determine which programs, files, and settings need to be moved. When the transfer is complete, your new computer will have the personality and functionality of your old PC plus all of its own pre-installed software.