|
There have been various different SA-based useful app lists, but all the good ones are now out of date or not very easy to use. The Windows and Windows Software Megathread contains plenty of app discussion but doesn't carry an exhaustive list of useful software in the OP, and the old shsc.info list is only available to internet archaeologists. The recent "Must-Have PC Software" thread was a good idea, but wasn't executed very well and the OP disappeared. movax suggested that someone else could take on curating and updating a similar thread. What I think we need is a reliable, up-to-date list of useful, user-recommended Windows applications, with quickly-accessible rundowns of pros and cons so that we can individually decide what's best for our needs. It would also be useful to know what to avoid, and why. This list is not finished! And it'll never be finished. If you quickly read through the list below, you'll probably notice that it doesn't contain your favourite app! If that's the case, suggest it in the thread! Briefly overview it, say why you like it, and tell us why we might hate it. Then, other posters should discuss the app, and once a small consensus has been reached, I'll add it to the OP if it's worth doing. (This won't be a particularly strict process - all I need are a couple of rough opinions and that'll be fine). Without community support, this thread won't go very far. Between us all we probably know the best stuff to use for any given task. It shouldn't take long, between us, to build something pretty extensive and well-organised, and then it'll be way easier to maintain it whenever something new and good comes along. So post, throw in suggestions, and discuss what you want added and removed. The second post in this thread will be used for things like FAQs as they arise, and will also suggest the most important things that you guys could help add to the list. I have PMs, so if there's a great suggestion in the thread and a week goes by without me addressing it, please feel free to PM me a reminder. Sometimes I need a kick up the rear end to get around to things. The Directory (last update: 29 Jan 2013) INTERNET!
Documents
Media
Security
Utilities
Leovinus fucked around with this message at Jan 29, 2013 around 20:27 |
| # ? Jan 24, 2013 21:27 |
|
|
| # ? May 22, 2013 20:42 |
|
FAQs/Notes (last update: 22 Jan 2013) I want to add a piece of software to this list! Excellent. Suggest it in the thread. The best format to use for me to quickly get it into the OP is like so: Program Name - [description] The program link should be in bold and link to the most appropriate page - not necessarily the download page. If the software has a domain to itself, like, for example, MetroTwit, link to that. Don't link to third-party file download sites like CNET unless there is no other suitable source. Make sure that your description also talks about what your program doesn't do well! This isn't about finding the best possible app for a certain task, it's about finding the best app for a certain user. Things the thread could use:
Leovinus fucked around with this message at Jan 26, 2013 around 19:06 |
| # ? Jan 24, 2013 21:27 |
|
-Media Player MPC-HC - lean media player for Windows. Includes common video and audio file codecs. Does not include support for broadcasting/trans-coding like VLC. -IM/Chat Jitsi - multi-IM SIP client. Features encryption for video/voice/instant messaging. Uses self contained Java libraries. -Security EMET - helps prevent vulnerabilities in software from being successfully exploited. -Archiving/Compression PeaZip - archiving/compression utility. Features a clean interface. Performance is on par with 7Zip/WinRAR -Cleaning/System Maintenance Secunia PSI - automatic way to keep most of your software up-to-date. Tends to get stuck "examining" depending on the program it's trying to update. If you want an on-demand alternative use PatchMyPC or FileHippo Update Checker instead. CCleaner - used for cleaning junk/cache/history from Windows. Closed source, can only clean the current logged in user's profile. CCleaner Enhancer - automatic way to update definitions and then silently run CCleaner on startup. You can manually download definitions from here and copy it to your CCleaner directory if you don't want to use CCEnhancer. winapp2.ini adds 1000+ definitions to CCleaner. JavaRA - simple way to update or forcibly delete files, directories and registry keys associated with JRE. System Ninja - file scanning engine that removes junk files from your computer. It uses a heuristic way of determining what files are junk. Pay attention to what you're removing because you can potentially break programs/games that rely on thumbnail caches. PC Decrapifier - remove bloatware from new computers. Features a way to remove programs en masse sequentially after the automatic bloatware removal. Can only make your own removal rules/list with the paid version. -Misc RAMDisk - creates a virtual RAM drive. Also includes an easy to use interface to save/load disks from file. Free version can only make up to 4GB drives. cs25230 fucked around with this message at Jan 25, 2013 around 20:22 |
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 01:06 |
|
For lightweight PDF viewing Sumatra PDF definitely deserves a mention. As a longtime user of Foxit, I've grown to like this more over time (and it's fast as hell). It's color scheme can be retina searing though.
|
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 01:24 |
|
I'm always down for more free, handy software. While I download far more of it than I actually end up using I've got a nice little set of computer maintenance programs: HDGraph- Scans any sort of computer drive and reports its contents back in a multilayered pie chart. Good for figuring out where large files and folders are, and how to best free up disk space. A bit slow at times but that probably varies by machine. Secunia PSI- Scans your computer for out-of-date programs and directs you to new updates. There's a paid version but the free one here works just as well. Can be a little slow, plus it picks up programs that you can't always update. Malwarebytes- Great, fast, free anti-malware program. Microsoft Security Essentials might cover a lot of the same ground but it couldn't hurt. Spybot Search & Destroy- Anti-spyware program. Admittedly I haven't used it to clean out spyware lately since I think MSE or MBAM does this, but Spybot has a feature that notifies you when a program attempts to make registry changes, which could be handy. Or annoying, since every time you install a new program there are registry changes being made. C-Euro fucked around with this message at Jan 25, 2013 around 16:42 |
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 01:28 |
|
Mr. Gravy posted:For lightweight PDF viewing Sumatra PDF definitely deserves a mention. As a longtime user of Foxit, I've grown to like this more over time (and it's fast as hell). It's color scheme can be retina searing though. Seconding this. I used to use Foxit, but Sumatra is just so much faster. When installing, make sure you check the box on the first screen that lets you customize some installation options. Otherwise you might not get the excellent browser plugins (not sure if the installer still doesn't have these checked by default).
|
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 02:10 |
|
IM/Chat KVIrc is not pretty, but it is full featured and cross platform. It also features just about everything mIRC does with an entire object oriented scripting language. Music Players/Organisers Musicbee is like Songbird if songbird had gotten good. It uses BASS as a backend, so it can play drat near anything, features a dizzying array of features for getting music/podcasts organized and onto things the way you like them, and even has limited support for Winamp plugins. Video Players Someone already suggested MPC-HC and it is the correct answer.
|
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 02:56 |
|
Another vote SumatraPDF. Also, for image viewing, I like XnView. e: How do people feel about the GIMP and Inkscape? zachol fucked around with this message at Jan 25, 2013 around 04:14 |
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 04:08 |
|
I also prefer SumatraPDF. I would recommend CutePDF for generating PDF documents. http://www.cutepdf.com/ Also, I don't see PuTTY on the list yet: http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~...y/download.html "PuTTY is a free Win32 Telnet and SSH client" Not technically a Windows app, but in your description of Winamp I recommend you mention aWARemote http://www.geb-dev.de/ which is a great Winamp remote control for Android. ~~~~ For clarification, is this list for free software only? I think you will generate some discussion with a few of your choices. In particular the choice of MSE and the recommendations in the music player categories. I look forward to reading them and seeing what people are using these days. I still go with Eset. NotWearingPants fucked around with this message at Jan 25, 2013 around 04:56 |
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 04:54 |
|
CutePDF is great for printing PDFs. Found it works better than the "Export to PDF" options I've tried (like with LibreOffice). In Windows 8, I think MSE is just bundled with the OS, the way the firewall has been. Go into the security center, turn on the antivirus, without installing anything. Maybe a mention of this, and some comments on whether people feel it's sufficient?
|
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 05:09 |
|
No mention of foobar in the music section?
|
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 06:34 |
|
Everything search. Everyone is already using that though, right?
|
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 13:44 |
|
I use Pandora pretty regularly for music, but hated having some garbage Flash applet running somewhere. My buddy found Elpis and I've been using it ever since. Cuts a lot of the nonsense out, runs natively (skipping their Flash applet), and works with media keys (pause/play, next). It's also open-source! As for another handy utility for discovering which directories are full of files, I use TreeSize. Gives me a pretty simple representation, and lets me directly access the folders from the right-click context menus. Now, something for people that use eBook readers (I use a Kindle), this thing has been pretty much essential: Calibre. Handles converting file formats, organization, fixing up table of contents and covers, storage management, etc. It's updated regularly.
|
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 14:41 |
|
I'm going to have to pimp Dexpot for virtual desktops again. It's free for private use, multi-mon compatible and even plays nice with UltraMon's second taskbar.
|
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 15:22 |
|
Some great suggestions already - I'll update the OP later this evening. One thing I want to ask is that if you're recommending something, don't only list its good points, list the things it doesn't do so well, too. People want different things out of a program, so even if your amazing DVD ripping software suggestion can compress a 3-hour film into a 50MB file which will play on any device with a monitor, you should still mention that the GUI is a bit poo poo. Edit: Case in point, MPC-HC. I haven't used the program in a while, so it'd be useful to know the drawbacks - do you still need to install codec packs for it to be any good? Leovinus fucked around with this message at Jan 25, 2013 around 16:33 |
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 16:17 |
|
No, MPC-HC is a fork of MPC that includes codecs and is optimized for home cinema use. But I'll go back and add some pro/cons to the programs I suggested in my other post.
|
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 18:49 |
|
Here's a few I use every day: -Utility Process Hacker - Task manager replacement Pros: System tray histogram icons (CPU is very useful), vast amount of information and diagnostic functions, service and driver control screen, portable Cons: No help file, overwhelming number of options, easy to crash/lock up processes if you start meddling Note: Suggested companion literature for programmers: Windows Exploratory Surgery With Process Hacker PDF Serviwin - Windows services and drivers control Pros: Far superior to Windows services screen, drivers in a separate screen, portable Cons: Real easy to mess your system up if you're not careful Speedfan - System temperature and fan speed controller Pros: It's the best at what it does, includes SMART disk monitor Cons: Difficult to set up, not all hardware supported Windows System Control Center - Utility suite, combines Microsoft's old Sysinternals Suite with Nirsoft's free utilities Pros: A zillion utilities, some very powerful, central program for launch, search, and updates, portable Cons: Many obscure, CLI, or poorly documented utilities, can be overwhelming Note: WSCC includes Process Hacker and Serviwin, it has a lot of other "must-have" programs that you might want to install even if you don't want the whole WSCC shebang. --- -Desktop DesktopOK - Remembers desktop icon positions Pros: Small, set-and-forget, autosaves and remembers different screen resolutions Cons: That's all it does Note: Author has a lot more mini utilities --- -Antivirus Kaspersky Malware Removal Nightly Builds - Malware removal Pros: Portable, self-uninstalls, includes its own database, for on/offline scanning of infected/suspected infected systems Cons: One-time use, nagware, doesn't update itself, new version every few hours (save the URL, get the program as needed) Avast Antivirus - antivirus suite Pros: comprehensive, good, real-time, sandbox, popular, the last of the "Big 3 A's" to not succumb to adware/crapware Cons: activated through email Eset Online Scanner - downloads and runs an antivirus scan Pros: Good for cleaning up malware Cons: One-time use, nags --- -VPN Teamviewer - PC remote control/VPN/video conference Pros: Fairly easy use/install (for instructing family members over the phone etc), video, text, and audio chat, good for fixing grandma's computer Cons: "casual" VPN program, nagware --- -Drivers 3dChip Drivers - Driver scanner & installer Pros: Portable, 3DNet contains a big database of LAN drivers Cons: Not a total solution, but just enough drivers to get a system online --- -Disk Utilities Crystal Dew World - Disk benchmark and monitoring utilities Pros: Diskmark is a popular benchmark program, DiskInfo monitors SMART and temperature, portable Cons: Some versions of the installer may want to install OpenCandy IOBIT SmartDefrag - online disk defragging Pros: Set-and-forget, runs as needed entirely in the background, good for grandmas computer Cons: lack of options, nagware Defraggler - another disk defragger Pros: Popular, good, can defrag individual files and directories Cons: Doesn't defrag real-time Note: Piriform makes several good freeware utilities, but be careful when using CCleaner. --- -Firewall Zonealarm - software firewall Pros: Good at keeping programs from getting out Cons: A bit gaudy Comodo Firewall - Firewall suite Pros: powerful, lots of settings, sandbox, process security, antivirus Cons: avoid the sucky antivirus, overwhelming number of options RevSyd fucked around with this message at Jan 26, 2013 around 05:55 |
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 20:10 |
|
Meta Ridley posted:Everything search. Everyone is already using that though, right? Killer, thanks. To contribute, ZoomIt is pretty cool doing presentations/demos. JDiskReport is great for seeing what's chewing up your disk and is especially handy if you manage file shares at work.
|
| # ? Jan 25, 2013 22:19 |
|
Antivirus Malwarebytes Anti-Malware If Microsoft Security Essentials is your set and forget protection, this is its backup. The free version doesn't run passively, but if you suspect a virus got past MSE, a scan with this should be your next step. Utilities Launchy Launchy is a program that will automatically index shortcuts and run programs from a few keyboard strokes. While it's functionality is largely duplicated by the startbar search, it has, in my experience, been faster, and better at learning what the more commonly used programs are. It also supports plugins to extend its functionality. One of my favourites is the built in calculator. VirtuaWin VirtuaWin is a program to create virtual desktops on a windows computer. Virtual desktops allow you to organize windows so that they aren't all cluttering your screen or taskbar. They are a great way of simulating multi-monitor functionality on one screen. If you are familiar with it, it's the same thing as Spaces on a Mac. VirtuaWin allows you to create window rules to keep certain programs on certain desktops. One con is that it doesn't work perfectly with steam. To work around this, create a window rule to show it on all desktops. Display Fusion Display Fusion is a great tool for people running multiple monitors. It enables window snapping, taskbars on all monitors, better wallpaper management than built into Windows 7, and a ton of customizable hotkeys for positioning and resizing windows. It also includes classic style start menus if you are so inclined. While there is a free version, it has a ton of functionality removed from the full version. The full version costs $25 for a single computer licence or $35 for unlimited computers. WinDirStat WinDirStat will analyse your hard drive, and provide a graphic display showing what files and folders are taking up space. It is incredibly useful when you have to be space conscious, like on an SSD.
|
| # ? Jan 26, 2013 16:58 |
|
Utilities WizMouse - WizMouse allows scrolling of non-focused application windows with your mouse wheel. Also offers reverse mouse scrolling (like OSX Natural Scrolling?) and enabling of the mouse wheel for applications lacking mouse wheel support by converting mouse wheel commands into scroll bar commands. Cons: Apparently doesn't work on Windows 8. SuperF4 - I can't really explain this any better than the developer: "SuperF4 kills the foreground program when you press Ctrl+Alt+F4. This is different from when you press Alt+F4. When you press Alt+F4, the program can refuse to quit. Windows essentially only asks the program to quit, and lets it decide for itself what to do." Super useful if some crappy game locks up in fullscreen or whatever. TheCoon fucked around with this message at Jan 26, 2013 around 17:35 |
| # ? Jan 26, 2013 17:31 |
|
WinSplit Revolution - Stuck in window management hell? Have multiple monitors? Just want to make better use of the one you have? Probably the best window snapping tool there is. Like Aero Snap on steroids. Well worth your time. Free. Edit: http://www.ninite.com should feature somewhere at the top of the list - because it is an ultra convenient way to install many of the recommended bits of software in one go. HalloKitty fucked around with this message at Jan 26, 2013 around 22:57 |
| # ? Jan 26, 2013 22:55 |
|
Waterfox - Not much to say, it's a 64bit build of Firefox optimised for modern CPUs rather than for the original Pentium. Significantly faster than Firefox though updates come out a little slower. You can get a 64bit version of Flash from this page, which also has 64bit versions of Java and Silverlight, but I'm not sure why you'd want to install those. You do not need special 64bit versions of Firefox extensions, just the plugins.
Lum fucked around with this message at Jan 27, 2013 around 01:09 |
| # ? Jan 27, 2013 01:05 |
|
Wow it is faster. I need to stop watch this poo poo.
|
| # ? Jan 27, 2013 02:25 |
|
Is there anything for Windows 7 that makes windows that you resize snap to a grid of some kind? I often have a couple things open and it would be cool to have stuff resize to a grid (sort of like a Diablo style tetris inventory?) so I could lay it out nicely.
|
| # ? Jan 27, 2013 08:48 |
|
Sylink posted:Is there anything for Windows 7 that makes windows that you resize snap to a grid of some kind? I often have a couple things open and it would be cool to have stuff resize to a grid (sort of like a Diablo style tetris inventory?) so I could lay it out nicely. Winsplit Revolution can do this, press Ctrl + Alt and then drag the window around, and there's a blue transparent rectangle to preview what the window will be resized to.
|
| # ? Jan 27, 2013 09:40 |
|
I've been using Astra32 for many, many years to scan a (Windows) machine and find out everything possible about what's in it. It tells me detailed specs about the hardware, down to the brand of the DIMMs. It's saved me hours of work on many occasions. It uses a table to associate detected info with known parts/brands, and it's constantly being updated. As far as PCI devices and peripherals go, what Astra detects doesn't always line up with what's printed on the actual device, but it will usually tell you what chipset it's actually using as opposed to whose brand is on the outside. It can occasionally cause hang-ups/lock-ups, especially when running tests on the memory subsystem(you can choose which tests are run.) This is mainly on older(pre-2006) hardware, though, and I haven't seen it crash in years. There is also a DOS version for when you don't have a bootable OS on-machine but I've never used it. Zen Punk fucked around with this message at Jan 27, 2013 around 19:51 |
| # ? Jan 27, 2013 11:58 |
|
DropIt: http://dropit.sourceforge.net/ A utility for automatically copying or moving files from one location to another. I use it to automatically move files on my laptop to various locations on my file server, such as moving all MP3s from my 'Downloads' folder and putting them in the 'Automatically Added to iTunes' folder on my server. AutoUnpack: http://www.see-and-be.com/AutoUnpack/index.php Scans a folder every 5 minutes. If it sees any ZIP or RAR files it will automatically extract them. Saves you having to do it manually in WinRAR or 7Zip or whatever, and works really great in conjunction with DropIt to automatically organise files.
|
| # ? Jan 27, 2013 13:46 |
|
Leovinus posted:Firefox - Customizable as all hell. You can set Firefox up pretty much any way you like depending on how deep you want to go into the settings. It's still pretty poorly optimized, though, so expect it to chew up a lot of resources and memory leak like crazy. Lum posted:Waterfox - Not much to say, it's a 64bit build of Firefox optimised for modern CPUs rather than for the original Pentium.
|
| # ? Jan 27, 2013 16:36 |
|
It's claimed that IonMonkey, the new JS compiler, does work on 64 bit as of WaterFox 18. I'll go find a JavaScript benchmark and compare them. Edit: Well it looks like the sunspider results would agree with you, though the difference is slight: Waterfox 18: 215.0ms Firefox 18: 193.5ms Lum fucked around with this message at Jan 27, 2013 around 18:49 |
| # ? Jan 27, 2013 18:31 |
|
Leovinus posted:
I don't know why I never did it before, but I tried using Keepass this morning. This is a godsend and something I should have used ages ago.
|
| # ? Jan 27, 2013 21:50 |
|
CPU-Z http://www.cpuid.com/softwares/cpu-z.html -- Displays very useful information about the precise CPU on your computer, including its current voltage, clock, multiplier, and bus speed. Also provides some specs on your motherboard, RAM, and GPU (though bare bones, so you'll want to use some other utility for more detailed info. I believe they have a GPU-Z for GPUs). Hardware Monitor http://www.cpuid.com/softwares/hwmonitor.html -- Gives a quick overview of the status of pretty much any hardware you'd be concerned about. Various motherboard supply voltages, temperatures, fan speeds, CPU temps, HDD temps, and GPU temps are displayed. The GPU information doesn't work for multiple cards if they're in a Crossfire or SLI configuration, though. MSI Afterburner http://event.msi.com/vga/afterburner/download.htm -- I'm not quite sure if it works with nVidia, but for my Radeons, it's a very useful tool. Works with all manufacturers, not just MSI. Basically, it allows you to monitor all sorts of GPU info such as fan duty cycle, GPU temp, and GPU usage. It also allows you to overclock your cards. You can set your fans to run at a specific duty cycle, or customize the temperature vs. duty cycle curve of your video card. I'm sure there are other programs out there, but it's a solid one. Putty Tray https://puttytray.goeswhere.com/ -- A simple TTY/SSH/TELNET client for Windows. Differs from normal Putty in that it minimizes to the system tray and not the taskbar. Otherwise, does what it's supposed to. SSH into servers and tunnel your connection, play some nethack, whatever. Visi Pics http://www.visipics.info/index.php?title=Main_Page -- Honestly I don't like this program that much, but it's also the only one of its kind I've found. Got a folder full of pictures? Not sure you remembered not to save the same picture seven times? This will compare every picture in a folder (or folders), finding duplicates for you to compare side-by-side and either keep or trash. PerrineClostermann fucked around with this message at Jan 28, 2013 around 07:16 |
| # ? Jan 28, 2013 07:12 |
|
PerrineClostermann posted:Visi Pics http://www.visipics.info/index.php?title=Main_Page Second for Visipics. Unlike duplicate file finders, that just get exact duplicates, this can get variations, different sizes, and different quality levels, and lets you compare them. Although honestly I wish the automatic picker was smarter, going through them all manually is a pain.
|
| # ? Jan 28, 2013 07:41 |
|
zachol posted:Second for Visipics. Unlike duplicate file finders, that just get exact duplicates, this can get variations, different sizes, and different quality levels, and lets you compare them. True, but if we had put forth the effort earlier and simply organized our pictures, we wouldn't have to use Visipics now. I found it when I went through a stint using Chrome when it first came out. For some reason it didn't remember the last download location, defaulting to some folder in My Documents. A month later, I switched back to Firefox and used Visi to remove the mess of duplicates in that folder, which had accumulated some 2000 unorganized images.
|
| # ? Jan 28, 2013 07:47 |
|
Leovinus posted:
It seems that this is no longer as good as it once was. http://www.techspot.com/news/51367-...tion-again.html
|
| # ? Jan 28, 2013 09:06 |
|
If you need a free antivirus program similar to MSE (but not poo poo) Bitdefender Free Edition is pretty great. Pros: Better 0-day detection and really simple interface similar to MSE. Works well with Malwarebytes Pro. Cons: Uses slightly more resources then MSE but the trade off is worth it for using a better AV solution. cs25230 fucked around with this message at Jan 28, 2013 around 14:35 |
| # ? Jan 28, 2013 14:21 |
|
Anybody have a simple clock widget or something that I can move/scale and that will sit in the foreground? I like to keep my taskbar hidden but I want to be able to see the time without having to mouse over it again.
|
| # ? Jan 28, 2013 14:55 |
|
Actual Window Manager Swiss army knife of several window management tools. Runs in the background and automatically controls new application windows according to whatever rules you define. Want a particular application to always open on the top right of your secondary monitor? Want your chat application to always be on top, without the maximize or minimize buttons? Want to automatically close any window that has "goatse" in the title? Actual Window Manager actually does all that, and lots more. Not free, but the individual tools can be purchased seperately, if you don't need all the features of the complete app.
|
| # ? Jan 28, 2013 14:57 |
|
KiTTY It's a putty fork that adds support for clickable links and some other things like minimizing to the system tray. Super Putty It's basically just a wrapper for putty that adds support for tabbed sessions. It also supports using kitty (or any other putty fork I guess) as well as cygwin sessions inside tabs.
|
| # ? Jan 28, 2013 20:59 |
|
The Third Man posted:Anybody have a simple clock widget or something that I can move/scale and that will sit in the foreground? I like to keep my taskbar hidden but I want to be able to see the time without having to mouse over it again. I think you might want to look at Rain Meter. I haven't used it all that much myself, but it comes with a clock widget, and I'm pretty sure you can set it to always be on top.
|
| # ? Jan 28, 2013 21:16 |
|
|
| # ? May 22, 2013 20:42 |
|
unpronounceable posted:I think you might want to look at Rain Meter. I haven't used it all that much myself, but it comes with a clock widget, and I'm pretty sure you can set it to always be on top. Rain Meter's a good way to rice up your desktop, if you're into that. I've seen some really neat setups using it and some sort of shell replacement. Unfortunately, they never seem to be that functional and are a bit bloaty.
|
| # ? Jan 28, 2013 23:46 |




This list is not finished!





















