Media Viewing
- Music: Foobar2000
Remember Masstag, SACD, TAK, TTA, Monkey (APE), Free Encoder Pack (includes FLAC), rename FreeDB server configs (text replace all phrases “freedb” to “gnudb”) - Pictures: IrfanView (fast),
XnViewMP (thumbnail, good use of screen estate) - Image in archive: CDisplayEX (fast)
Remember to set “Automatically load next file” and “Include archives when loading next file”) - Video: Media Player Classic BE (efficient)
PotPlayer (~Superset of MPC-*). Remember to enable Playback/Thumbnail - Codes: Shark Codecs
Media Conversion
- free:ac (Free Audio Converter)
- RIP CD: Exact Audio Copy / Audiograbber (old version 1.83 SE made free)
- Cut/Convert video: Handbrake, MKVToolNix GUI (MKV files), AviDemux
- Mp3tag
Media Authoring
Productivity / Tools
- FreeOffice
- Groupware (Email, Calendar, Contacts): Mozilla Thunderbird / Windows Live Mail
- Acrobat Pro 8.0 (There’s an official giveaway version if you caught it long time ago)
Engineering
Connectivity
- Remote Desktop Clients: mRemoteNG (saves password & config)
- Remote support: TeamViewer
- Block ad & scams: HostsMan
- Wake on LAN: Aquillia WOL (installer), Nirsoft WakeMeOnLAN (loose files)
- FTP: Filezilla (supports Unicode properly. No multi-part transfer)
Use BitKinex for free Multi-part transfer, but no Unicode.
SmartFTP does both brilliantly, but it’s too expensive for occasional use. - Multi-part download: uGet (can replace BitKinex or SmartFTP if you have a few big files. It’s basically a wrapper around aria2 which supports 16 simultaneous threads parallel download)
- Remote repair only the corrupted portion of file: FileRepair
- SSH/Telnet/Serial: PuTTY (use this mod so you can choose to have ENTER key do CR+LF which is necessary for talking to a variety of test instruments, which demands at least an LF to terminate the command)
Dealing with files
- Compression: 7-zip
- Find files: AgentRansack
- Floppies & VHD: WinImage
- Advanced Renamer, Bulk File Changer
- CRC Check: Hashcheck Shell Extension
- Secure Wipe: Eraser Portable
- geteltorito – an El Torito boot image (boot sector of CDs) extractor, command line
System Utilities
- Temperature & health: Speedfan, CrystalDiskInfo, Open Hardware Monitor
- Registry tweaking: Tweaking.com – Simple System Tweaker
- SpeedGuide TCP Optimizier: mucking with MTU and other TCP settings
- Enable/disable drivers & Services: Serviwin
- Convert executable to Windows Services (headless): NSSM
- Eject USB drives when Windows won’t: USB Disk Ejector, ProEject (obsolete), EjectUSB by William Hedrick (obsolete)
- Systray menu for removing SATA drives live like USB: HotSwap!
- ProcessExplorer: Pimped up Task Manager with a lot more details about process
Disk Virtualization
- RAMDisk: SoftPerfect v3.4.7 (last free version)
- ISO Virtual Drives: WinCDEmu, Kernsafe Total Mounter
- VHD mounter (persist between boots): Kernsafe Total Mounter, Simple VHD Manager
- Linux Partition on Windows: DiskInternals Linux Reader
Windows User Experience
- Multiple Monitor: WinSplit Revolution v11.04 (last free version)
- WinXP Start Menu feel: Classic Shell
- Screensots: Greenshot
Language:
- Change codepage on the fly: piaip AppLocale,
- Locale Emulator
- pAppLocale (improved appLocale with right-click menu integration)
Specialty Software
- VirtualBox
Software for test instruments
- Agilent MDI, Acqiris
- Agilent Intuilink (Newer 54600), Benchlink XL (Older 54600)
- Keysight BenchVue, Connection Expert
- AlazarTech DSO
- Gage Compuscope
- Plotter emulator, GPIB Toolkit by John Miles
- Lecroy: ScopeExplorer
One-use gadgets
- Slipstream: nLite / ntLite
Downloading all updates for offline install: WSUSoffline - Discovering command line switches: USSF (Ultimate Silent Switch Finder)
Useful for finding undocumented switches for silent installation - Set boot menu: EasyBCD
- Urescue – USB Pen Drive (Corrupt Firmware) Repair
- PE Builder: build bootable recovery utility discs
- Shellbag Analyzer
Software Engineering Developer’s Software:
- Compare files: WinMerge
- Text Editor: Notepad++
Programmer’s Notepad if you need to print on 11″x17″ paper - Hex Editor: HHD, HexProbe, FlexHex for Home
- IDE: U++
Analyzing Programs, expert level debug
- Disassembler: CheatEngine
- Portable Executable (EXE, DLL, object code, etc) analyzer: Explorer Suite
- Crash analyzer: BlueScreenView , WinCrashReport, TurnedOnTimesView
- DLL Hell: Dependency Walker, DLL Export Viewer
- SYS/DLL drivers: DriverView
Old computer gadgetry
- Extract DMI info (extra stuff manufacturers put in) in BIOS: DmiDecode
- Modern MSCDEX: Jason Hood’s SHSUCD
- HDDErase: low level SSD wipe
One use tool (like benchmarks, system info)
- CPU-Z
- IntelBurnTest
- LanBench, iperf3, NetIO
- AS SSD
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