Everyone needs a workhorse sound module - something to call on when you're at the songwriting stage and just need to load up stock sounds quickly - and now you can download one for free in the shape of SampleScience's Orion.
Using 3GB of public domain samples, the sonic bases covered include pianos, basses, percussion, world instruments, analogue synthesizers and modular synths. There aren't a great many editing features to speak of (though you do get an ADSR envelope and a Glide control), but simplicity is the watchword here.
Orion can be download for free from the SampleScience website and comes in VST/AU formats. The plan is for expansion packs to be released for it in the future.