Blog

List of useful software

List of useful software

Copied from Reddit because I found it useful.  Credit to /u/liufangi

All software listed here is free.

This turned out to be a community project of recommended software.

Before installing software – i recommend scanning it for viruses here: https://www.virustotal.com

You can check for program alternatives here: https://alternativeto.net

Check my guide about simple and automated windows 10 gaming pc setup: https://www.reddit.com/r/pcgaming/comments/7xwvco/simple_windows_10_gaming_pc_setup_from_scratch/

Check my guide about windows memory: https://www.reddit.com/r/pcgaming/comments/81q61c/understanding_and_choosing_correct_memory_for/

Hardware and Monitoring

  • OCCT (link) – hardware test (CPU, RAM, GPU and PSU) and monitoring.
  • HWInfo (link) – hardware information
  • HWMonitor (link) – hardware information.
  • Open Hardware Monitor (link) – hardware information.
  • Speccy (link) – hardware and system information.
  • CPU-Z (link) – CPU, Mainboard and RAM information.
  • GPU-Z (link) – GPU information.
  • SSD-Z (link) – SSD Information.
  • SidebarDiagnostics (link) – simple sidebar for Windows desktop that displays hardware diagnostic information.
  • AIDA64 (link) – CPU and RAM stability and benchmarking.
  • Prime95 (link) – CPU and RAM stability test (also produces maximum possible heat for CPU – can be dangerous for new processors, use with caution).
  • Linpack (link) – CPU and RAM stability test.
  • CrystalDiskInfo (link) – HDD and SSD information.
  • HDDScan (link) – HDD information.
  • SeaTools For Windows (link) – hard drive diagnostics suite from Seagate, works with any brand of hard drive.
  • MSI Afterburner (link) – hardware monitoring, GPU overclocking, fan control, video recording, fps monitoring.
  • WinMTR (link) – network diagnosis tool.

System Tools

  • RUFUS (link) – bootable USB creator.
  • Etcher.io (link) – bootable USB creator.
  • CDBurnerXP (link) – CD/DVD/Blu-ray burner.
  • Hiren’s BootCD (link) – first aid kit for your computer.
  • Macrium Reflect (link) – disk cloning and imaging solution.
  • MiniTool Partition Wizard (link) – partition management as well as cloning and troubleshooting.
  • HDD Regenerator (link) – fixes bad sectors and rebuilds MBR errors that cause cloning process to fail.
  • AOMEI Partition Assistant (link) – partition editor.
  • Chocolatey (link) – easy installation, configuration, upgrade, and uninstallation of Windows software.
  • Ninite (link) – install and update all your programs at once.
  • TeamViewer (link) – remote access client, letting users access each other’s systems/files.
  • Display Driver Uninstaller (link) – for clean install (conflict-free) of graphics drivers.
  • Winaero Tweaker (link) – an assortment of tweaks and registry edits for improving Win 10.
  • VeraCrypt (link) – For simple file encryption to stop others on a multiple user pc from accidentally reading any sensitive files, along with any other reason you’d want to encrypt a volume.
  • Incinerator (link) – secure file deletion (does 4 times overwrite on deleted sectors).

Browsers and Communications

  • Discord (link) – voice and text chats.
  • Google Chrome (link) – most advanced web browser.
  • Firefox (link) – web browser.
  • Vivaldi Browser (link) – web browser for power users.
  • Opera (link) – web browser.
  • Brave Browser (link) – very fast web browser.
  • TOR (link) – web browser that bypass provider domain block (alternatively change your DNS).
  • Namebench (link) – Automatically finds the best DNS server for you.
  • FileZilla (link) – FTP server and client.
  • QuiteRSS (link) – RSS feed aggregator/reader.

Files and Explorers

  • 7-zip (link) – archive creator and extractor.
  • WinRAR (link) – archive creator and extractor.* WinCDEmu (link) – mounting disk images.
  • Virtual CloneDrive (link) – mounting disk images.
  • Notepad++ (link) – text editor.
  • Sublime Text (link) – text editor.
  • IrfanView (link) – image viewer.
  • XnView MP (link) – image viewer, browser and converter.
  • SumatraPDF (link) – very fast and lightweight PDF, ePUB, Mobi, XPS, DjVu, CHM, CBZ, CBR viewer.
  • STDU Viewer (link) – TIFF, PDF, FB2, DjVU, etc viewer.
  • LibreOffice (link) – office software.
  • qbittorent (link) – lightweight but flexible torrent client.
  • transmission (link) – lightweight torrent client.
  • Deluge (link) – powerful torrent client.
  • Vit Resistry Fix Free (link) – clean registry and junk files, uninstall manager, startup manager.
  • XYplorer Free (https://www.xyplorer.com/free.php) = freeware and customizable tabbed file explorer for windows (free version is discontinued)
  • Directory Opus – Replacement for explorer, fast and easy to navigate. Dual pane file display, supports 4K monitors.
  • Q-Dir (link) – 4-paned replacement-alternative for standard Windows Explorer, can be configured into 1/2/3/4-paned views.
  • Clover Tabs (link) – adds tabs to windows explorer (works on windows 10).
  • QTTabBar (link) – adds tabs to windows explorer (works on windows 10).
  • TotalCommander (link) – extremely powerful file management software. Capable of many things view and edit files, mass rename files, ftp with bookmarks, queued file transfer, custom columns.
  • ShellExView (link) – edit the right-click context menu.
  • SpaceSniffer (link) – shows disk usage and folders structure.
  • WizTree (link) – finds files and folders using the most of disk space.
  • WinDirStat (link) – disk usage statistics viewer.
  • FolderSize (link) – to find what’s taking all the space on your drives.
  • TreeSize Free (link) – disk usage statistics viewer.
  • Unlocker (link) – unlocks system-locked files, allowing to move/delete.
  • ShadowCopy (link) – file/folder copier that uses Window’s Volume Shadow Services to create copies of files even when they are in use by OS.
  • Voidtools Everything (link) – Replacement for Windows Search in that it actually works and will find everything plus http and ftp server.
  • TeraCopy (link) – replaces the shitty windows copy handler with something sensible.
  • Recuva (link) – lets you recover deleted files.
  • MiniBin (link) – puts your recycle bin in the taskbar so you can have an icon free desktop if you want.

Other Tools

  • SuperF4 (link) – program to kill unresponsive game clients.
  • Process Hacker (link) – process viewer and replacement for Windows Task Manager.
  • Sysinternal Process Explorer (link) – process viewer.
  • MobaXterm (link) – enhanced terminal for Windows with X11 server, tabbed SSH client, network tools and much more.
  • HappyDroid focus (link) – find out which program comes to the foreground and steals active focus.
  • Wox (link) – application launcher.
  • Keypirinha (link) – fast application launcher.
  • Launchy – application launcher and search.
  • f.lux (link) – it makes the color of your computer’s display adapt to the time of day, warm at night and like sunlight during the day. Can reduce fps in games.
  • LightBulb (link) – reduces eyestrain by adjusting gamma to the current time.
  • SpeedCrunch (link) – a very powerful and high-precision scientific calculator, using keyboard as input method.
  • CleanMem – CleanMem keeps memory use in check on the system without the memory being pushed to the page file. This in turn keeps the system running smoother.
  • Sandboxie (link) – sandbox tool, letting you execute files and programs in an isolated environment.
  • KeePass (link) – password manager.
  • VirtualBox (link) – virtualization software, lets you run an operating system in a window.
  • Unified Remote 3 (link) – use your phone to control your PC.
  • AutoHotKey (link) – Scripting lenguage to create macros, complex keybinds or automate sofware.
  • LatencyMon (link) – Monitors latency caused by interrupts from all sources. Used when having audio problems(crackly sound) to identify drivers/software causing the issue.
  • StartIsBack (link) – real start menu for windows 8 and 10.
  • Classic Shell – windows 7 start menu for win8 and win10.
  • Ditto (link) – clipboard manager, is an extension to the standard windows clipboard. It saves each item placed on the clipboard allowing you access to any of those items at a later time.
  • CLCL (http://www.nakka.com/soft/clcl/index_eng.html) alternative to ditto.
  • DisplayFusion (link) – a must have if you have 2+ monitors.

Security

  • Glasswire (link) – firewall and network monitoring.
  • Malwarebytes (link) – virus cleanup and protection.
  • Kaspersky Virus Removal Tool (link) – portable system virus scanner.
  • Adware Removal Tool (link) – adware removal scanner.
  • Spybot (link) – scans and removes malware.
  • Sophos Home (link) – simple to use and very effective anti-virus completely free for home use.
  • uBlock Origin (link) – block web advertisements and tracking which slow down the page and can be used to deliver malware.
  • Privacy Badger (link) – protects your privacy from web trackers specifically.
  • Malwarebytes anti-rootkit (link) – standalone software that finds some of the stuff regular Malwarebytes doesn’t.

PC Gaming

  • Borderless Gaming (link) – play your favorite games in a borderless window.
  • WidescreenFIxer (link) – to play older games in widescreen resolution.
  • GeDoSaTo (link) – to play in any resolution you want.
  • Flawless Widescreen (link) – to configure Field of View (FOV) in games that don’t allow configuring it.
  • CRU (Custom Resolution Utility) (link software)) – for the games that don’t work with Gedosato (like Fallout 4 and Dark Souls 3).
  • ReVive (link) – VR “hack” that lets Vive owners play Oculus exclusive games and vice versa.
  • Vireio Perception (link) – VR “hack” that lets you play some non-VR games in VR.
  • ReshadeMe (link) – custom shaders for d3d8, d3d9, dxdi (10-12) and opengl games.
  • SplitView (link) – emulate two screens on one (for local co-op).
  • Xpadder (link) – use any controller any way you want.
  • InputMapper (link) – to fully customise the controller and even set up macros and shift keys.
  • Duranzo (link) – is a must for older controllers, allows you to calibrate deadzones, remap any button to any other button, invert your sticks axis.
  • Gopher360 (link) – turn your gamepad into mouse.
  • UCR (https://github.com/evilC/UCR/releases) – lets you remap keyboard, mouse, controller, joystick to any of the above.. (eg use mouse as a joystick if you don’t have a joystick, etc).
  • X360ce – lets any non-Xinput controller function as an Xbox 360 controller
  • Cheat Engine (link) – program memory editor (used for hacking in single player games).
  • ArtMoney SE (link) – program memory editor (mainly used for hacking currency or life in single player games).
  • Archi Steam (link) – unlocks all of your available steam trading cards by fake playing the games.
  • Steam Achievement Manager (link) – unlock any and all achievments on any game you own on Steam.
  • UWPHook (link) – add Windows store games and Apps to Steam without having to deal with scripting or permissions.

Game Emulators

  • MEMU (link) – Android emulator.
  • NOX (link) – Android emulator.
  • Droid4X (link) – Android emulator.
  • CEMU (link) – Wii U emulator.
  • RPCS3 (link) – PlayStation 3 emulator.
  • Xenia (link) – Xbox 360 emulator.
  • PCSX2 (link) – PlayStation 2 emulator.
  • Dolphin (link) – Gamecube/Wii emulator.
  • Citra (link) – 3DS emulator.
  • jNES (link) – NES emulator.
  • Snes9x (link) – SNES emulator.
  • Project64 (link) – N64 emulator.
  • MAME (link) – multiple arcade machine emulator.
  • Higan (link) – multi-system emulator.
  • Retroarch (link) – emulator for everything else.
  • LaunchBox (link) – frontend for emulations and game collections.
  • GameEnd – alternative to LaunchBox.

Game Development

  • Unity3D (link) – game engine, focused on C#.
  • Unreal Engine 4 (link) – game engine, focused on C++.
  • Godot (link) – open source 2D and 3D multi-platform gam engine.
  • Adventure Game studio (link) – make your own video games (2D point and click games are the focus).
  • Eclipse (link) IDE with many languages support.
  • Visual Studio Community (link) – IDE for C++, C#, VB.

Media Playback

  • MPC-HC (link) – lightweight media player with built-in or external codecs.
  • PotPlayer (link) – high-quality playback with built-in codecs.
  • MPV (link) – lightweight and high quality media player.
  • VLC (link) – plays everything.
  • Plex (link) – host your own media server and access your content from anywhere.
  • Kodi (link) – manage and play your media, ideal for Home Theater PCs.
  • LAV Filters (link) – video and audio decoders.
  • MadVR (link) – video renderer (for MPC-BE).
  • MusicBee (link) – a modern and very customizable audio player.
  • foobar2000 (link) – very flexible, customizable and powerful audio player.
  • Clementine Player (link) – modern music player and library organizer.
  • AIMP (link) – music player with lots of options and customizability.
  • TapingRadio Free (link) – to listen radio stations online with reconnect feature.
  • SmoothVideo Project (SVP) (link software)) – converts any video to 60 fps.

Video Recording

  • OBS Studio (link) – very flexible and powerful video and audio recording/streaming software (supports AMD and Nvidia hardware encoding).
  • GeForce Experience (link) – hardware-accelerated recording for Nvidia GPU.
  • AMD ReLive (link) – hardware-accelerated recording for AMD GPU.
  • AMF Encoder (link) – AMD hardware encoding plugin for OBS Studio.
  • Lagarith Lossless Codec (link) – lossless encoding support for MSI Afterburner.
  • ShareX (link) – video and image capture software with auto-upload and copy [link] features, OCR and many many more.
  • Lightscreen (link) – image capture software with upload function.
  • Lightshot (link) – alternative to Lightscreen.
  • MediaCoder (link) – video/audio decoding, encoding, transcoding with Nvidia hardware acceleration support.
  • FFMPEG (link) – video/audio decoding, encoding, transcoding with Nvidia hardware acceleration support.
  • Handbrake (link) – powerful video encoder and converter.
  • As Video Converter (link) – video/audio decoding, encoding and transcoding with AMD hardware acceleration support.
  • MKVToolNix (link) – mkv container joiner and extractor.
  • MP4Tools (link) – mp4 container joiner and extractor.
  • Shotcut (link) – powerful video editor.

Media Creation and Editing

  • Blender (link) – open source 3d modelling, video editing, rendering and other features.
  • OpenShot Video Editor (link) – a very powerful video edition suite.
  • DaVinci Resolve (link) – non-linear video editor, up to 2160p resolution.
  • Hitfilm 4 Express (link) – linear video editor with up to 1080p resolution supports.
  • Lightworks (link) – video editor with free version up to 720p resolution.
  • MagicaVoxel (link) – voxel editor.
  • Krita (link) – professional illustration and painting program.
  • Gravit (link) – image editing, Photoshop alternative.
  • FireAlpaca (link) – image editing and drawing tool.
  • Photofiltre Studio (link) – image editor and optimizer.
  • Paint.net (link) – image and photo editing software.
  • OpenToonz (link) – open sourse release of Toonz – classic-style animation suite that was used to create all Studio Ghibli’s animated films.
  • GIMP (link) – powerful image editing and creation software.
  • GraphicsGale (link) – pixel art program.
  • Piskel (link) – lightweight pixel art editor.
  • RawTherapee – advanced RAW file editing software that pairs very well with Gimp, a must for people who are into photography on a budget.
  • LMMS (link) – audio workstation for creating digital music.
  • Audacity (link) – audio editor.
  • Paul’s Extreme Sound Stretch (link) – stretch your audio up to insane levels, can turn 1 minute of audio into 10 hours or more.
  • Aegisub (link) – subtitle editor (allows shifting time codes to match subtitle with video).

Leave a Reply