Times are tough -- especially for cash-strapped university or college students trying to put themselves through school during a recession.

Tuition, books and accommodations can all add up, but if you have an Internet-connected computer you can save money in a variety of ways.

Here are a few notable examples.

Look ma, no hands!

Rather than spending money on phoning relatives and friends around the world and paying long-distance charges, chat for free using your PC and with video, too. Free instant messaging (IM) services -- such as Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger or Skype -- allow you to use text, voice or video to chat in real-time with others. Many laptops already have a webcam included, or you can add one for as low as $20.

Sound advice

Instead of paying for song downloads or buying a CD, many online radio stations stream music to your computer to enjoy while you're surfing the web. Free software like FlyCast and MP3 Radio let you select which music genre you like and it begins in seconds, plus the latter also offers an integrated recorder (then you can copy the songs to your iPod or other MP3 player) or schedule a recording in the future like a personal video recorder (PVR).

Ditch the drive

External hard drives could cost hundreds of dollars, so those on a tight budget might opt for a free virtual drive solution. Windows users can take advantage of Microsoft’s Windows Live SkyDrive, which offers up to 25GB of free online storage via a password-protected site. Not only is an Internet back-up solution ideal for protecting your irreplaceable documents or photos from theft, fire or flood (as the files are stored offsite) but you can access your files from any Internet-connected computer in the world.