NOT such a simple question. To even begin to answer anything except a reflexive "NO" (given "free for non-commercial use" and "on my office PC") we would need to know:
- Specific software EULA
- Type of organization (commercial, non-profit, government, education & level, etc.)
- Country (as some of above can be quite different)
- Ownership of PC (or other applicable hardware)
- General intended use by you
- Type of application
Many "free for non-commercial use" examples I've looked through use an arbitrary but reasonably clear definition: ok to install on your personal home PC but not on an employer-owned PC. So, yes to a family PC but installing an entertainment oriented app on an independent software developer's home office PC is perhaps slightly grey (as long as it is for entertainment) depending on the wording. Other examples stress intent more strongly: OK for a software developer to install an audio player but not an IDE on an employer PC. Still others (like MS) distinguish sale/production/deployment from educational/experimental (with development in one or the other).
Each author defines "freeware" (and its many overlapping variations such as personal-use freeware, charityware, donationware, postcardware, adware, etc.) slightly differently. The creative commons study @ernie mentioned is only one many references that illustrate the complications. Take a look at the the newsgroup alt.comp.freeware over many years (if you can wade through the trolls) for many discussions from a user perspective and an extensive list of sometimes conflicting definitions. (My favorite link is dead.) Some developer newsgroups have similar discussions about licensing.
You could contact the author for clarification if really not clear but remember that the author is providing a free product and trusting you to decide responsibly. Do you really need to ask? Does the author's FAQ/forum/site already answer the question?
8No...But contact the author of the software for clarification. an office computer is typically considered commercial use. – Ramhound – 2013-10-08T20:44:33.037
1You probably should not try to re-sell or bundle with your product a software you have a regular (commercial use allowed) license for. – Daniel Beck – 2013-10-08T21:21:50.880
1
See also on SO: What does “commercial use” exactly mean?
– unor – 2013-10-09T05:34:45.370