A List of My Software

I was thinking it might be helpful for you to see a list of all of the software I use and the what and why of it. So here goes:

1. 7-Zip 9.20 (x64 edition) – the most efficient compression software there is.
2. Acronis Plus Pack for Acronis True Image Home 2011 – the Plus Pack allows me to restore an Acronis image to different hardware. Very cool. I can image my machine and then restore it to a VM and have everything work.
3. Acronis True Image Home 2011 – I use this to make disk image backups so I can restore my boot disk when it fails.
4. Adobe Acrobat X Pro – This is part of Adobe Master Collection CS5.5 – I use it all the time.
5. Adobe PDF iFilter 9 for 64-bit platforms – Important to install this if you want Windows to be able to index PDF files.
6. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3.4 64-bit – I use this to manage thousands of images.
7. Adobe Premiere Elements 9 – I use this to do simple video editing.
8. Adobe Reader X (10.0.1)
9. Airfoil – This allows me to use my Apple AirPort Express from any application, not just iTunes.
10. BackupOutlook – This is the way to completely backup you Outlook mail and settings.
11. Bonjour – A necessary evil when working in an Apple or iTunes world.
12. Carbonite – My choice for online backup. It works and works well.
13. CCleaner – I use this to clean up my system.
14. CDBurnerXP – I use this for almost all my disc burning needs. In fact when I setup a computer for a friend I remove whatever it comes with and install CDBurnerXP.
15. CodeWallet Pro 2006 Desktop Companion – This is an old program but I use it to store all of my product serial numbers and other important data tidbits. I need to migrate all this data to RoboForm (see below)
16. CutePDF Writer – Although I have the full Adobe suite I sometime find it helpful to have this installed. This allows you to print documents to a PDF file.
17. Directory Report – Have you ever wanted to have a document listing what is on disk? This tool solves that problem. Most of the time running DIR /B list.txt from the command prompt is sufficient, but when it is not I use Directory Report.
18. Diskeeper 2011 – I have been using this lately to make sure my disk don’t get fragmented. I still need to get a clearer understanding of how it is helping me.
19. Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11 – Voice control and dictation, I really want to use this but still have not gotten it woven into my daily work.
20. Dropbox – I use this to share files with certain users. It has issues but it easy for normal (non-techie) people to use.
21. DxO Optics Pro 6 – I use this to work with photos and remove all optical distortions, it is an amazing program.
22. Everything – Windows tries to do a good job at indexing but sometimes does too much. Everything indexes just the file names and is super-fast.
23. EXIFutils for Windows – This is a set of command line utilities for modifying EXIF data in image files.
24. FastPictureViewer Codec Pack 3.0 – I finally found this about a year ago, now I can view thumbnails for all the image files I happen to come across.
25. Fences Pro – This is something Windows should have built in. It allows you to create fences to your desktop and then you can put icons in the fence. You can then hide or move the fence. It is nice as I like things organized. There is a free version so give it try to help tidy up your desktop.
26. FileHippo Update Checker – This helps me keep my applications up to date.
27. FileZilla Client – This is my preferred FTP client.
28. FlipShare – This is installed by the Flip video camera and allows you to download and share Flip video.
29. FontExpert 2010 – I use this to manage my fonts as well as browse them and install them. It helps if you have a lot of fonts.
30. Gemminco FolderInfo – I use this find out what is taking up all the space on my disk. This allows you scan a disk or folder and gives you its size in a nice navigable report.
31. Google Chrome – Another browser
32. IrfanView – One day I got tired of Windows taking too long to preview an image so I installed IrfanView and have never looked back. Super-fast!
33. iTunes – I really only use this to backup my iPhone and iPad. I really don’t like it.
34. K-Lite Codec Pack 7.0.0 (Full) – There are so many codec out there and so many downloads that claim to be the right one to download. Don’t do it! I finally spent the time and K-Lite is the one to download.
35. Logos Bible Software 4 – I use this to access bible study and other theological books. Especially useful because it allows you to cut and paste sections from the books you own so you can use them.
36. MagicDisc
37. MagicISO Maker
38. MalwareBytes Anti-Malware
39. MediaMonkey – I use this to manage all my music. This is the best music manager and player there is. It has the most amazing organization and renaming features – Absolutely awesome.
40. Microsoft Expression Web 4 – I use this and Dreamweaver for HTML editing. It works very well.
41. Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 – Word processing, spreadsheet, presentation and database programs.
42. Microsoft Office Visio 2010 – I use this to do technical diagrams, an awesome program.
43. Microsoft Security Essentials – This is all the virus protection I need – no need to use anything else.
44. Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Professional – Microsoft’s development platform.
45. Notepad++ – A good fast programmers and general editor.
46. Nuance OmniPage 17 – I use this when the OCR built into Acrobat is not enough for the task.
47. NuSphere PhpED – A great PHP development environment with debugging!
48. ObjectDock Plus – An application launch dock. I use this at the top of my center monitor (I use three monitors) and it gives me quick access to everything I use frequently. A must have in my opinion.
49. Opera 11 – Another browser
50. PNGGauntlet – This allows me to create the smallest PNG files possible. Very useful when you are trying to make the fastest web site possible.
51. Proshow Producer – The best tool for professional slide shows. You can also check out its younger brother ProShow Plus.
52. Reasonable NoClone 2011 Enterprise – A very good duplicate file finder. The enterprise version works on network drives as well. The UI could be better but it is good enough.
53. Recuva – File recovery software that works very well.
54. Registry Mechanic 10 – Registry maintenance and general system utility.
55. Replay Converter 4 – Easily convert media files between formats.
56. Replay Media Catcher 4 – When I need to capture video from a web site I use Replay Media Catcher.
57. RoboForm – My choice for saving passwords and forms and credit cards and the like for use in the browser. I use the everywhere version which automatically syncs all of my computers, my laptop, my iPad and my iPhone. It has great encryption and is a must have!
58. Safari – One of the many browsers I have installed to test with.
59. Secuina PSI – Another must have! Secunia lets you know if any of your installed software has security issues and directs you to the update. Simply great, install it now and update your system!
60. SimplyFile – This works with Microsoft Outlook and makes it easy to file messages. A single click puts the message in the correct folder. It learns as you decide how message should be filed.
61. Skype 5.3 – Instant messaging and voice calls to other computers. I use this with Trillian.
62. Snagit 10.0.1 – I use this for all my screen capture and annotations.
63. Speccy – A nice simple system benchmarking software.
64. TeamViewer 6 – I used this as a free user for a long time and finally decided to purchase. It is so nice having the ability to quickly connect to a remote users machine. It works with both Mac and PC too!
65. TeraCopy Pro – This is an accelerated copy utility. I have it setup so I can use the Windows copy routine or optionally use TeraCopy. It works great and I use it quite a bit.
66. Tiles – This utility adds a docked panel to side of the desktop that shows you thumbnails of each running application. I have not gotten used to using it yet but I think it will be helpful as I get used to it.
67. TortoiseSVN 1.6.15.21042 (64 bit) – This is used for managing versions during development.
68. Total Uninstall 5 – I use this to remove every last trace of an application. It is the best uninstaller out there.
69. Trillian – My choice for instant messenger. Trillian supports all major IM services; I have it running multiple MSN, AIM, Google Talk, Yahoo and ICQ account. I also use it with Skype, Twitter and Facebook too. There is a great free version and a version for iPhone too.
70. UltraCompare v8.10 – When I need to compare one file to another I use UltraCompare.
71. UltraEdit – A fast editor that can edit large files.
72. UltraMon – I have three monitors. UltraMon offers some nice enhancements to allow you to move apps between monitors. Right now, I actually have it turned off.
73. VanDyke Software SecureCRT and SecureFX 6.6 – The best SSH client there is. I especially like it because it allows me to save my username and password!
74. ViceVersa Pro 2.5 – An industrial strength batch copy program. You setup profiles of what to do, for example copy K:Video to M:Video and synchronize the directories. Extremely flexible and reliable.
75. Virtual Account Numbers – This works with one of my credit cards to generate virtual credit card numbers on the fly for use for web purchases.
76. VLC Media Player – This is the media player that plays everything, it is just that simple.
77. VMware Workstation – I do quite a bit with virtual machines and VMware Workstation is my choice.
78. VS.NETcodePrint 2010 – A nice utility to print .net source code.
79. Windows Live Essentials – Don’t install this unless you really need it. Or at least selectively install only what you want or need. For example Windows Live Photo Gallery installs a Microsoft SQL server, which isn’t bad if you use the Photo Gallery. But some people just install stuff and never really use it. So if you have installed it and don’t use it, uninstall it. You will get some performance back.
80. Windows Live ID Sign-in Assistant – This is one part of Windows Live Essentials that I find really helpful. Over the years I have accumulated quite a few MSN and Live ID’s, this helps you out by making it easier to login to different services with different ID’s at the same time.
81. Windows Live Mesh – This is another part of Windows Live Essentials that is helpful. It allows you to sync folders between machines, just like Dropbox, but it’s free and has no size limits. Plus you can also remotely control a machine you have Mesh installed on.
82. Windows Live Movie Maker – Because I do lots of video work I have this on here so I can open these files.
83. WinRAR – The longtime leader for file and folder compression.
84. WinSCP – A nice SCP client and free too.
85. Winsome File Renamer 7.1 – This is my primary tool for renaming bunches of files. It has a simple useful interface. Highly recommended.
86. Xenu’s Link Sleuth – So you have a web site and need to know if you have any broken links, this is how you find out. Very nice.