If you are citizen of an European Union member nation, you may not use this service unless you are at least 16 years old.
You already know Dokkio is an AI-powered assistant to organize & manage your digital files & messages. Very soon, Dokkio will support Outlook as well as One Drive. Check it out today!

Recommended Software

Page history last edited by The Overseer 9 years, 2 months ago

2014 Recommended Windows Software List

Backup:

Backblaze: ($5 monthly) Unlimited online backup with automatic uploading. Can download from the cloud or have a drive shipped with your data if needed. Can save money if paying ahead (ex. $95 for 2 years = $3.96 a month average).
Genie9 Timeline: Automatic local incremental backup (similar to Time Machine on Mac). Pay-for versions adds extra backup location features.
Macrium Reflect: Hard drive cloning software (similar to the classic Norton Ghost):

Can be used to backup drives & clone drives.
Can be run live (can clone while Windows is running). Pay-for version adds automatic schedule.
Pay-for version ($45) adds automatic scheduled backups.
Can incrementally update a full image clone (speedier backups)

Multimedia:

DVD Flick: Easily burn nearly any video file to DVD format.
Firefox: Specifically for the Video DownloadHelper plugin (allows you to download Youtube & other embedded video files).
Handbrake: Convert & compress video files.
ImgBurn: CD/DVD burner. Can also make ISO images from discs (useful for digitizing software CD's).
MakeMKV: ($50) Rip Bluray & DVD movies.
Pismo File Mount: Mount ISO & ZIP files as folders (useful for installing imaged software without burning a disc).

For the images that won't play nice, such as AutoCAD 2014, use SlySoft's free Virtual CloneDrive

Photos:

Irfanview: View virtually any image file.
Paint.NET: Basically like Photoshop "lite" (similar to Jasc's Paint Shop Pro or GIMP) for basic.
Picasa: Photo album software (with basic editing capabilities), also useful for importing photos from a camera.

Security & Internet:

Adobe Reader: PDF viewer.
CCleaner: Register fixer & temp file cleaner.
Chrome: Fast browser.
Flash: Included with Chrome, but needs to be installed to be used in Internet Explorer (if you have websites that require IE).
Java: Required for a lot of stuff.
Malwarebytes Live: A lifetime "Pro" license is available for $40 on Newegg.
Microsoft Security Essentials: Called "Defender" in Windows 8.
Silverlight: Microsoft's Flash equivalent (needed for Netflix).
Skype: Chat (text, voice, video) for free.
Tinywall: (Vista/7/8 only, no XP) Awesome firewall.

System:

AJA System Test: Hard drive speed test software (you can vary the size of the test file from 128mb to 16gb).
Belarc Advisor: Computer hardware & software inventory; will also tell you the license keys for your software (ex. Office & Adobe Acrobat). Generates a webpage (can be saved as a single file in Internet Explorer with the .MHT extension). Speccy is also good.
HD Tune: ($35) Hard drive speed test & error analyzer (for SMART status). Can be used as a temporary, one-time trial for checking a drive. The older version 2.55 is available for free.

Utilities:

7zip: ZIP archive utility.
CutePDF Writer: Adds a virtual PDF printer - print anything to a PDF file instead of paper (Protip: download the zipped bundle; it requires installing 2 files).
Everything: Simple filename search app. Lives in the taskbar next to the clock. If you know the name, part of the name, or the extension, it brings it up quickly thanks to indexing.
GeekUninstaller: Forces programs to uninstall.
Recuva: Recover accidentally deleted files.
Snagit: ($50) Excellent screenshot tool (Greenshot is a free alternative, also available on Download.com; the Snipping Tool is built into Windows Vista/7/8).
SpaceSniffer: View used & free space on your hard drive visually (similar to TreeSize & WinDirStat).
Taskbar Shuffle: (XP only) Lets you move the order of taskbar buttons around (like Windows 7 does, after opening programs)
Teamviewer: Remotely access your computer (includes access via webpage & smartphone apps).
TeraCopy: Improved file & folder copy tool (faster, includes "pause" function, error recovery, etc.).
TrayStatus: Shows you Numlock & CAPSlock status, which is especially useful for wireless keyboards without LED indicators.
UltraFileSearch Lite: A more advanced file search, including search by folder & network locations (Windows 7 dropped easy network search). It does not require an index (nothing to maintain or run constantly).

Word Processing:

Evernote: Keep Word-style notes (text formatting, pictures, etc.) in folders, backed up to the cloud. Great for school, recipes, accounts, etc.
Office: ($140 Home & Student version, single license) Word, Excel, and Powerpoint.

Office 365 ($10 a month, 5 licenses plus 5 tablets) is a subscription version.
LibreOffice is a free alternative (lacks some compatibility).
Google Docs is a free online editor & storage service (free with a Gmail account).

Resources for finding software:

You don't have permission to comment on this page.