I thought it would be interesting to focus the lesser known freeware applications that are available instead of just listing all the popular freeware applications (Firefox, SmartFTP, etc). I’ve tried to attach a screenshot with each program so you can get a feel about what the program does before downloading it.
Feel free to comment if you think I missed something and would like it added. Remember that the focus of this post is not to point out well known pieces of software but to focus on the lesser knowns.
- Acrobat Reader Speedup
- This program will dramatically increase the speed it takes for Adobe Acrobat Reader to open. I can’t imagine not using it.
- UPDATE 1: Foxit Reader - Replace Adobe Acrobat all together with this program. This is a lightweight program that is less than 2mb. Since I have no specific need for Adobe I’ve recently switched.
- allSnap
- Another simple program that snaps your windows automatically like you see in Winamp. You can go to the site to see a video of it in action.
- AutoHotkey
- A simple utility that allows you to map hotkeys to perform certain actions.
- Billy
- This is a really small and portable mp3 player. Good for a USB thumb drive.
- Burrrn
- This tool is for creating audio CDs with CD-Text from various audio files from wav, mp3, mpc, ogg, aac, mp4, ape, flac, ofr, wv, tta, m3u, pls and fpl playlists and cue sheets.
- Citrus Alarm Clock
- A simple program that has whatever audio program you pick start playing music at a set time. It will play any music choice, has a fade in feature, lets you choose day of the weeks and times. Cheap way to replace that alarm clock.
- CoreFTP
- Another alternative to SmartFTP and FileZilla, this is a lightweight FTP client.
- Dark Room
- Taken from the site, “Dark Room is a full screen, distraction free, writing environment. Unlike standard word processors that focus on features, Dark Room is just about you and your text.”
- DriveImageXML
- If you need to make a backup of XP or 2k3 or clone a drive, this utility is for you.
- Eraser
- If you really need to delete a file then I would recommend this. It will remove a file from your PC and remove all traces of it.
- EverNote
- Taken from the website, “With EverNote you can easily capture, store and quickly access typed and handwritten memos, webpage excerpts, emails, phone messages, addresses, passwords, brainstorms, sketches, documents and more!”
- Faststone Capture
- Pretty cool screen capturing utility. Allows you to select windows, objects, and even free hand selections.
- UPDATE 1: FastStone Screen Capture went shareware beginning with Version 5.4 as of 05/14/2007.Version 5.3 is the last true freeware (for personal use) version.Version 5.3 can be downloaded here.
- HFS (HTTP File Server)
- This program allows you to setup file sharing using an open source http server. Works right out of the box. I use this daily to transfer data from my main PC to my media center PC.
- IZArc
- An alternative to 7-Zip and WinRAR. It extracts all the well known formats along with the lesser known ones. I love it and it’s free.
- jEdit
- “jEdit is a mature programmer’s text editor with hundreds (counting the time developing plugins) of person-years of development behind it.” It is a multi-platform program since it is written in Java.
- Launchy
- This program allows you to launch programs based on its indexed database of programs. Similar to Vista’s search and run feature, but much more powerful.
- Lclock
- While you probably won’t need this if you run Vista, this utility has a configurable popup calendar that opens when the system tray clock is clicked.
- MP3Gain
- MP3Gain analyzes and adjusts mp3 files so that they have the same volume.
- Multimon
- It manages your dual monitor desktop. I actually use Ultramon but this one is free for those not wanting to spend any money.
- nLite
- nLite allows you to build custom Windows CDs. You can exclude certain features so they don’t even install in the first place. A way to make Windows how you want it on installation.
- Notepad++
- One of my favorite notepad replacement programs. Has features like syntax highlighting and tabs. Check out this HOWTO article on replacing the default notepad.exe with this one.
- Notepad2
- Another notepad replacement. It is very simple, which I like. I use it often at work instead of Notepad++.
- Password Gorilla
- A small little utility that can fit on your USB thumb drive. It is program and database combo that stores all your passwords. Just plug it in and you can connect to any site. Sure would suck to lose it.
- Portable Apps
- This application allows you to use your USB drive to run all types of apps built for a USB drive. It also has an optional menu interface to launch them.
- PrimoPDF
- You can easily convert any file into a PDF file. It pretty much does any type of printable file type. And it’s free and not just a trial version.
- Process Explorer
- Now you can replace your task manager with something that has a little more power and and provides more details. Gives you a ton more data when hunting a process.
- Programmer’s Notepad
- This notepad was designed with special featured aimed at the coder. Check out the site for more details.
- Quicktime Alternative / Realplayer Alternative
- Simply put, you can install these and not have to install Quicktime and Realplayer to view movies anyone. Though, who still uses Realplayer to encode movies?
- Simply put, you can install these and not have to install Quicktime and Realplayer to view movies anyone. Though, who still uses Realplayer to encode movies?
- Rainlendar
- This is a small little desktop calendar that has useful things like a todo list and reminders.
- RightLoad
- Since I’ve installed this application, I can’t imagine not having it. It integrates FTP support into your right click menu. You can now upload a file is two clicks.
- Screamer Radio
- Stream internet radio for free. As simple as that.
- Snippy
- If you have a need to easily copy information from a website then this utility is for you. Click on the Snippy icon – mouse cursor changes to a pen – mark an area of the screen – the marked area is now in your clipboard.
- StrokeIt
- “StrokeIt is an advanced mouse gesture recognition engine and command processor.” This utility allows you to make mouse gestures to perform certain actions on your computer. When it recognizes the gesture it will fire off a set of commands.
- Synergy
- This program is probably one of my favorites. It allows you to use one mouse and keyboard with two computers without needing a KVM switch. One computer runs the server software and the other runs the client software. You can have a dual monitor setup (without dragging windows from one to the other, but close) with a few minutues of configuration. Highly recommended.
- Taskbar Shuffle
- “No hotkeys, no extra steps, just rearrange the buttons on your Windows taskbar by dragging and dropping them. Allows you to rearrange your system tray icons by dragging and dropping as well (but that does require a hotkey).”
- Teracopy
- Teracopy will replace the horrible Windows copy dialog with one that allows you to stop, pause, and recover copying. Lightweight and free.
- ToDoList
- A freeware to-do-list. Real simple to use.
- True Launch Bar
- This is a Windows Quick Launch replacement. It is very customizable and obviously exceeds the features that Windows has.
- UPDATE 1: Sorry for the confusion. True Launch Bar is not freeware. I got Free Launch Bar and True Launch Bar confused. Free Launch Bar is a lighter version of True Launch Bar.
- unxutils
- Not exactly my thing but I know some of you out there like this type of stuff. This is just a set of some common GNU utilities for Win32 without needing Cygwin.
- Volumouse
- You can now control your sound volume on your system just by using your mousewheel. It’s a really cool piece of software. I’ve been using it for awhile. I was worried it wouldn’t work in Vista when I upgraded but it did.
- Weather Watcher
- I was amazed when I came across a weather program that wasn’t a front end for spyware. While I’d prefer a different UI it gives you your weather without ads.
- WinDirStat
- This utility will show you, visually, how your hard drives look. Really cool if you’re looking to free some space and need to find the larger files. Alternatives include SequoiaView, Spacemonger, and JDiskReport.
- WinExpose
- While still under development, this program aims to mimic Macs OS X’s expose feature.
- Winwget
- A Windows version of wget. It acts as a simple download manage
Here are some other resources for more freeware. I’ll be looking over those lists to add to mine if I see something that is lesser known.
- Large list of over 450 freeware applications - Link
- Freeware listing for both Windows and Mac - Link
- Another list of all the popular freeware - Link
UPDATE 1: Added some of the recommendations users have left behind. Cleaned it up some.
nice list. found a couple that might be keepers, thanks!
An outstanding list, which I have linked on my Links to Free Software page: http://newsandtips.carputers.net/carputers-links/links-to-free-software/
A minor point of clarification, if I may. FastStone Screen Capture went shareware beginning with Version 5.4 as of 05/14/2007. Version 5.3 is the last true freeware (for personal use) version.
http://www.faststone.org/order.htm
“FastStone Capture is shareware. You may try it free for 30 days. Once this 30-day period has expired, you will need to either purchase a license to use the software, or uninstall it from your computer promptly.”
Version 5.3 can be downloaded from here:
http://www.pctipp.ch/downloads/grafikfoto/34434/faststone_capture.html
It’s shareware now? To be honest, I didn’t verify if it was freeware on the website because it always has been, so I just assumed it still was.
Thanks for the update.
Mark wrote:
Thank you for the list, and for allowing my bit of “shameless self-promotion”!
I’ve been using allSnap for a while now. Of course, I’m a Linux geek, so I can’t stand my windows *not* snapping…
Some of the other tools I use:
VIM (Yes, I’m a Linux geek) http://www.vim.org
Virtual Dimension (multi-screen) http://virt-dimension.sourceforge.net
Pidgin (all-in-1 chat) http://pidgin.im/ (formerly Gaim)
Keytweak (remap some of your keys) http://webpages.charter.net/krumsick/ (my scroll-lock key now opens calc)
I love Pidgin, though I wish it was updated more and had a larger selection of plugins.
Thanks for those though, I’ll check them out (and yes, I use vi as well when in Linux, for quick edits anyway).
Thank you for putting those up! I have heard of some of those, but generally have focused on open source stuff. I will try some of those and add some to my software page next time I update my site!
Chris Davis
www.chrisdavistech.com
faststone is availabe at last freeware version and aplus freeware if the othes play out
http://www.aplusfreeware.com/categories/mmedia/FastStoneCapture.html
http://www.321download.com/LastFreeware/index.html
Hey! Great list! But you forgot one, Foxit Reader. Forget Acrobat Reader completely, the spyware-riddled piece of bloat. Foxit is a drop-in Acrobat Reader replacement with 0-second load time (from scratch, not preloaded), better scrolling, cleaner appearance, and countless other things that Adobe’s Reader should have had.
I still grabbed that Explorer file-copy replacement (TeraCopy). That thing rocks. And the alarm clock (Citrus). Great apps! And you have nLite on there, w00t! Don’t install Windows without it.
Great list! Found some programs I will use. I have one additional OpenSource program which I never see in the “Top Open Source Programs” and didn’t see it here either:
VirtualBox from www.virtualbox.org
and/or
VMPlayer from www.vmware.com
Thanx for your time and efforts providing us with such a compilation!
Matt Falcon wrote:
Yeah I love it. While it really isn’t needed in Vista, it’s great for XP. If you haven’t already, you can have it come up by default whenever you copy something. I use it all the time to help me copy large files (TV and movies) over a wireless network that, at times, the signal is up and down. Nothing is more frustrating when at 95% you get an error saying it cannot find the source anymore and it stops copying.
hey guys
fed up of ADOBE PDF reader?
Here is the solution
Foxit Reader Ultra Fast and as small as 1.67MB pdf reader
http://www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/rd_intro.php
enjoy
Another free capture program that will capture all or part of a screen
http://www.gadwin.com/printscreen
A very handy little app that will minimize any program to the systray (ie Outlook)
http://www.teamcti.com/trayit/trayit.htm
Hi truelaunchbar is shareware!
From the site:
“True Launch Bar is shareware, which means it may be used freely for a 30-day trial period. During this trial period, True Launch Bar will be fully functional, with only a small screen at running shortcuts as a reminder to register, and demo text on toolbor.”
john wrote:
I should have been more clear.. they make
http://www.freelaunchbar.com/
Which is similar, but free. Sorry about that.
Great list. Will check out some of these for sure, though I use most.
FreeRAM XP Pro I use to cleen broken programs and unused RAM - works silent and mostly perfect!
http://www.yourwaresolutions.com/
Hey, great list. I found a couple keepers.
Overdisk!
The best graphical disk space usage browser I have ever seen.
http://users.forthnet.gr/pat/efotinis/programs/overdisk.html
For screen capture, I love cropper http://blogs.geekdojo.net/brian/articles/Cropper.aspx
Only downer is it uses the .Net 2.0 framework, which is a hefty download.
A guy on reddit mentioned Gridmove (http://www.donationcoders.com/jgpaiva/gridmove.html), which is absolutely stellar. I thought I’d put it here, to have them all in one place when I Scrapbook this article. Nice list.
http://www.cogitum.com/
I used the free Co-citer to great effect. Highlight and right-click to copy text and pics on Web sites. Stored in Co-citers “tree” structure and records the URL etc.
Easy to create new folders, move stuff around, edit saved stuff. Great for the researcher, student, etc.
Other freebies at the Cogitum site.
Revel
What a truly extensive list. I definently just grabbed allsnap, billy, dark room, HFS, IZArc, and teracopy xD
A few freeware and open-source that I’d like added would be:
AllToAVI
http://sourceforge.net/projects/alltoavi/
Although it originally started as a program to convert just MKV or OGM files to AVI, it is now all-encompassing and will convert anything to avi. Latest version includes the support of plugins, which are being coded by just about everyone.
WinKeySim
http://mwganson.freeyellow.com/winkeysim/
Useful for filling out forms on your computer that you fill out daily. Isn’t restricted to web browsers, so if the form is a pdf or word file, it can still work fine. Works well in XP and Vista. I personally use it to fill out video information on Veoh after I upload a video. Better than hitting the same keys for 10 videos and having to hit Tab about 40 times for each video
WakeUpOnStandby (or hibernation)
http://www.downloadjunction.com/product/software/115106/index.html
Wakes your computer up from Standby or Hibernation at a specific time, on specific days. Can also perform some commands during wakeup. Uses very little resources. Save money on the nights that you don’t need your computer up and running.
and a few that others might have heard of:
Orbit Downloader
http://www.orbitdownloader.com/
Please don’t call it a download manager, but it definently aids in extracting videos, images, etc from websites. IT GIVES YOU THE POWER TO DOWNLOAD WHATEVER YOU WANT TO DOWNLOAD. It’s powerful for those who don’t wanna use TamperData or URLSnooper to find an flv file.
Unlocker
http://ccollomb.free.fr/unlocker/
DELETE THOSE UNDELETABLE FILES. See what programs are trying to access them, and have Unlocker end the process while simultaniously delete, rename, or move the file. The first program that I install after a fresh windows installation. I seriously RECOMMEND THIS TO THE WORLD
How about the portable pen drive applications found at http://pendriveapps.com
Just some more cool portable freeware to add to the list.
Lesser know freeware for Ubuntu (about 20,000 packages).
http://packages.ubuntu.com/feisty/
Apparently this post got picked up, which is awesome.
I’ll take a look at all your suggestions and add them to the list in the next day or two.
Thanks everyone
How about Libra, the Books + DVD cataloging software:
http://www.getlibra.com/
It’s one of the most beautiful freeware around, and makes good use of your webcam (for barcode scanning).
you should add CrapCleaner, really good cleaning utility http://www.ccleaner.com
Very similar to Teracopy is the GPLed supercopier, which i like very much. It already saved me hours of copy-time (error-resume, pause, reorder, enqueque same destiation etc)
http://supercopier.sfxteam.org/modules/mydownloads/viewcat.php?cid=1&orderby=dateD
May I add:
- Ditto - clipboard history with incremental search
- JumpWin - move window to other monitor using WinKey+Enter
- PushTheFreakinButton (freeware version) - automatically close annoying dialog boxes
- SlickRun - define 2-3-letter shortcuts for launching programs and websites
- TinyResMeter - tiny bar-graph display of CPU and RAM
- TimeSnapper - takes a screenshot every minute, so you can see what you were doing a half-hour ago in the event of a crash
- Screen Calipers v1 - on-screen calipers for measuring pixel distances
- CutePDF - print to PDF file
- FlickrWebCam - upload webcam pics to Flickr at a predefined time interval
- Folder Guide - add favorite folders to the right-click menu - useful for Windows’s Open dialog
I second one of the last entries by Jonathan Aquino, SlickRun is amazing, i have been using it for about a year now; it’s great for those of us that prefer to get around by keyboard.
It can launch programs/paths via defined magicwords, you can also create magicwords that link to search engines; and the really cool function is the @multi@ function where one magicword cranks up a job lot of applications. See the Morning command.
very useful for me that one!
Great list, with several I hadn’t seen before. I’d also add:
KeePass - secure password database
http://keepass.sourceforge.net/
SyncBack SE - file backup
http://www.2brightsparks.com/downloads.html
Sumatra PDF - very lightweight PDF viewer (beta)
http://blog.kowalczyk.info/software/sumatrapdf/
PDF ReDirect - PDF creation
http://www.exp-systems.com/
CrossLoop - easy to use VNC-based system
http://www.crossloop.com/
Tweak PNG - PNG optimisation
http://entropymine.com/jason/tweakpng/
Inkscape - vector graphics, including SVG
http://www.inkscape.org/
XnView - image organisation, conversion and more
http://www.xnview.com/
just some recomendations:
frostwire (p2p)
autoruns (startup manager)
Hi!
A great list
However, I strongly suggest that you take a look at the file manager “Total Commander” (former known as “Windows Commander”). Once you start using it you will never go back to “Windows Explorer”. The URL-address is:
http://www.ghisler.com
/ Per
Most of this is very well known. Only 2 programs had I never heard of before.
Thank you for posting these; I’ll look forward to investigating them.
Thanks for the list. I already had some of them, but others seem useful and I’ll look into them.
I saw you added other related programs to WinDirStat, well if ever you’re looking for another lightweight program that does the job there’s TreeSize that I’ve been using for quite a while, it’s also been reviewed in PC Wold (which you can also download from there).
Mark,
Great list!
How did you create those screenshot video thingies…they are neat/unusual.
Jespard
Great list, many thanks for sharing…bookmarked! Regards, Keith Johnson, Webmaster, “FreeMathRescue.com”.
you can also check Pitaschio for the window snap and other stuff too.
I suggest another good software.
What about NVDA, a totally free screen reader for the blind?
http://www.nvda-project.org
One that I use nearly on a daily basis is PowerMenu. It adds a menu to nearly every window to allow you to make it Always On Top, Change Transparency, Minimize to tray and change priority.
http://www.abstractpath.com/powermenu/