what other compilers are there out there?
The most popular free compiler (comes with DEVC++ and is a must for BlitzMax) is Mingw. The other are Open-Watcom. Borlands C++ 5.5 and Digital Mars.
For IDE's the best free one so far that I have used is Code::Blocks
Here's a place to look for most things http://www.thefreecountry.com/