Applications
This page contains tools that I find indispensable for getting work done. Most are open source. All are free or have free versions.
Document & Image Creation
Greenshot
The best tool on Windows for taking screenshots. Also available for Mac.
winget install Greenshot.Greenshot
Grammarly for Windows
Pervent tipos.
winget install Grammarly.Grammarly
Draw.io
Create many different kinds of diagrams.
winget install JGraph.Draw
- Open Source, Free
- Windows, Mac, Linux
Xournal++
Great tool for writing notes with a digital pen.
winget install Xournal++.Xournal++
Paint.net
Best free tool for simple to moderately complex image editing.
winget install dotPDN.PaintDotNet
Inkscape
Create vector graphics.
winget install Inkscape.Inkscape
Video
VLC media player
Plays any file format.
winget install VideoLAN.VLC
OBS Studio
Stream or record your desktop.
winget install OBSProject.OBSStudio
ScreenToGif
Create small animated gifts of your desktop.
winget install NickeManarin.ScreenToGif
FFmpeg
Many video editing tools require FFmpeg to create video files.
winget install Gyan.FFmpeg
Virtualization and Simulation
Oracle VM VirtualBox
Open source desktop virtualization platform.
winget install Oracle.VirtualBox
VMware Workstation Player
VirtualBox alternative. Stable. Works well. Proprietary. Free for personal use only.
winget install VMware.WorkstationPlayer
Docker Desktop
GUI application that runs containers on top of the Windows Subsystem for Linux.
winget install Docker.DockerDesktop
Rancher Desktop
Alternative to Docker Desktop.
winget install suse.RancherDesktop
GNS3
Emulate real network hardware using desktop virtualization. Used by networking professionals.
winget install GNS3
Windows Subsystem for Linux
Run Linux inside Windows. Required to run tools like Docker on Windows.
- Install via the Windows Features.
Cisco Packet Tracer
Simulate networks using Cisco hardware.
- Download for free from SkillsForAll.com
System Tools
7-Zip
Work with any archive format on Windows.
winget install 7zip.7zip
Everything
What you wish Windows search was.
winget install voidtools.Everything
balenaEtcher
Flash operating system ISOs to a USB drive. Also converts USB drives from operating system installers to regular flash drives to store files.
winget install Balena.Etcher
SumatraPDF
The fastest way to open PDFs on Windows.
winget install SumatraPDF.SumatraPDF
Development
PyCharm
The best Python IDE. (Students get free professional licenses.)
winget install JetBrains.PyCharm.Professional
Notepad++
Puts Windows Notepad to shame.
winget install Notepad++.Notepad++
GitHub Desktop
Easy way to manage git repositories on Windows.
winget install GitHub.GitHubDesktop
Git
Distributed source code control. Installing git installs many useful Linux utilities.
winget install Git.Git
Pandoc
The Swiss Army knife of document conversion.
winget install JohnMacFarlane.Pandoc
XAMPP
Set up an Apache / PHP / MySQL / MariaDB server quickly.
winget install ApacheFriends.Xampp.8.2
Vim
You can now struggle to quit Vim on Windows.
winget install 'Vim 9.0'
Networking
PuTTY
Use SSH, telnet, and other protocols on Windows.
winget install PuTTY.PuTTY
Nmap
THE network scanning tool.
winget install Insecure.Nmap
OpenVPN Connect
Connect to OpenVPN servers.
winget install OpenVPNTechnologies.OpenVPNConnect
Tailscale
Connect to Tailscale VPNs.
winget install tailscale.tailscale
VNC Viewer
Connect to servers running the VNC protocol to use their graphical user interfaces.
winget install RealVNC.VNCViewer
WinSCP
Use FTP, FTPS, SFTP, and other protocols to transfer files securely.
winget install WinSCP.WinSCP
Wireshark
THE manual packet analysis tool.
winget install WiresharkFoundation.Wireshark
NetSpot
Use for Wi-Fi scanning to detect nearby access points and security settings.
- Find it on its website.
Content Management
Amazon Kindle
Read your books.
winget install Amazon.Kindle
Anki
Spaced repetition software to remember facts.
winget install Anki.Anki
ProjectLibre
- Install via the Project Libre website.
Obsidian
Free tool for managing your notes.
winget install Obsidian.Obsidian
Zotero
Open source citation manager. Essential for academic research.
winget install DigitalScholar.Zotero
Vulnerability Assessment
Burp Suite Community Edition
The premier website vulnerability discovery tool.
winget install PortSwigger.BurpSuite.Community
qFlipper
Software to manage firmware on the Flipper Zero.
winget install FlipperDevicesInc.qFlipper
Forensics
Autopsy
Open source tool for analyzing disks.
winget install SleuthKit.Autopsy
AI
LM Studio
GUI application for using AI models locally.
winget install LM-Studio
Ollama
Open source tool for running AI models locally using a command-line interface.
winget insall ollama