I just got a new PC last month. The first thing I do whenever I'm setting up a new computer is install a whole load of software on it, and this time, I decided to get ready in advance while this one was coming in the mail. Used my spare laptop to download a bunch of stuff, put it all on a flash drive, and run through the entire bunch when it finally came time to set up. So, since I consider all of this to be must-have software, why not share it here too?
Get ready for a big list of stuff!
INTERNETING:
Waterfox Browser - My main browser, a privacy-focused fork of Firefox.
Discord - Needs no introduction, really.
Steam -
DOOOOOOOOONG
Bitdefender Antivirus - A slightly less well-known, but brilliant free AV.
uBlock Origin - The most powerful adblocker on the web. Even Youtube hasn't been able to knock it out yet.
GENERAL PROGRAMS:
Winamp - An old, but great music player. (I still only use MP3s to this day - no thanks to Spotify)
VLC - The best video player.
LibreOffice - A great free alternative to Microsoft Office.
Notepad++ - Powerful, coding-oriented alternative to the standard Windows Notepad. I love it mainly for its multi-tabbing.
TeamViewer - For PC remote control. I use this when I need to control my computer away from home, using my phone.
7-Zip - File manager, unzipper, archiver. Great for working with .zip, .rar, and other compressed files.
Iriun - Lets you use your phone as a PC webcam.
Voicemeeter - An audio mixing console. I use it to volume boost and alter the sound of my mic.
OBS - The reigning king of screen recording software.
ImageGlass - Image viewer. Better than the one that comes with Windows.
Kdenlive - A fantasic video editor, basically a free alternative to Vegas 16.
Audacity - The classic audio editor.
Handbrake - A video encoder/transcoder. Very useful for compressing, cutting, cropping, or converting videos.
Defraggler - For all of your defragging needs!
qBittorrent - Arrgh!
QUALITY OF LIFE IMPROVEMENTS:
Open Shell - Replaces the awful newer start menus with one more similar to the menus from Windows 7 and before.
K-Lite Codec Pack - Makes it much easier to use a wide variety of video file formats in different programs, including Windows's default video players. Also comes with Media Player Classic (MPC-HC).
Visual C++ Redistributable Runtimes All-in-One - If you've ever been annoyed at having to install some version of VCRedist for a program, this bundle includes every single one in a single download, with one install program.
Windows 7 Task Manager - Replaces the default Windows 10/11 Task Manager with the one from Windows 7.
