Complete software guide for Windows: essential programs

Informatec Digital » Resources » Complete software guide for Windows: essential programs

Building a Windows PC from scratch or using a brand new laptop always raises the same question: What programs do I install? to have it ready and not miss anything two days later initial Windows setupWindows 10 and Windows 11 come with a good number of pre-installed applications, but as soon as you start working, studying or simply tinkering, you notice that the system falls short for many everyday tasks.

In this guide you will find a very complete selection of Windows software covering office applications, security, multimedia, backups, productivity, maintenance, and much moreIt's a large compilation because it integrates recommendations from several of the best specialized websites, but explained in different terms, with examples, and differentiating when it's appropriate to use a free, open-source, or paid alternative.

Essential programs that every Windows system needs

Before getting too picky with advanced tools, it's worth making sure you have the basics covered: Browse the internet, work with documents, play video and audio, compress files, and keep the system clean and secure.These are the first programs that most people end up installing after formatting or getting a new computer.

In the field of web browsers The go-to options remain Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Microsoft Edge. Edge comes pre-installed and, being based on Chromium, is now compatible with almost all Chrome extensions, so it's no longer the "download another one" browser it once was. Chrome stands out for its integration with Google accounts and its enormous catalog of extensions, while Firefox is popular for its... focus on privacy, blocking trackers, and free software philosophyThere's no problem having two installed, using one as the main one and the other as a backup.

For working with documents and spreadsheets, the classic is Microsoft Office, with Word, Excel, PowerPoint and moreIt's the standard suite in businesses and educational institutions, with different plans for home, business, and education. If you don't want a subscription, LibreOffice and OpenOffice offer free and open-source office suites with word processors, spreadsheets, presentation software, databases, and formula editors. They have greatly improved compatibility with Microsoft formats and include templates, spell check, autocorrect, and collaboration features.

As for PDFs, although Edge can open them and allows highlighting, commenting, and even reading aloud, a dedicated viewer is usually useful. Adobe Acrobat Reader remains the official Adobe viewer.with support for viewing, printing, signing, and basic annotation functions. If you prefer something lightweight and very fast, SumatraPDF is a minimalist gem which doesn't get bogged down with extra features. And if what you're looking for is advanced PDF editing (modifying text, adding images, forms, etc.), PDFelement and Foxit Reader offer free versions with many options., leaving the more advanced features for paid editions.

To play video and music, VLC It's practically mandatory. This open-source player includes its own codecs, so it plays almost any video or audio format without needing to install additional packages. It works on Windows, Linux, macOS, and mobile devices, and supports subtitles, playlists, and even network streaming. If you want to go a step further and set up a complete media center for movies, TV shows, music, and photos, Kodi It is a very powerful solution, with a living room-style interface, support for almost all formats and an add-on system to add online channels, DTT via IPTV and many additional features.

For music streaming, Spotify It has become the standard on Windows. The free version includes ads, but it gives you access to a huge catalog without having to save thousands of MP3s to your hard drive. On PC, the free version is less limited than on mobile, so it's very convenient for working while listening to custom playlists, artist radio, or podcasts.

Compressed files are another everyday essential. Windows opens ZIP files natively, but in practice you'll often end up encountering... RAR, 7Z, ISO or other formatsWinRAR is the classic program for working with RAR files (although it's a paid program, its trial license doesn't actually expire), and WinZip was the king of ZIP files for years.As free and open-source alternatives, 7-Zip and PeaZip allow you to compress and decompress in a multitude of formatswith good compression rates, password encryption, and integration into Windows Explorer.

To keep the system clean, CCleaner was for a long time the benchmark. to delete temporary files, caches, and uninstall programs. Today, many users are migrating to similar tools such as BleachBit, which cleans systems and browsers and allows you to securely delete filesIt's also useful to have advanced uninstallation managers like Bulk Crap Uninstaller (BC Uninstaller)which removes program remnants left behind by standard uninstallation and allows you to remove many programs at once and consult guides for force the uninstallation of programs.

Free software for Windows you should know about

Although the Windows ecosystem is full of paid applications, There is also a huge catalog of free and open-source programs that cover almost any need.Many come from the Linux world and have successfully ported to Windows, maintaining a very active community behind them that keeps them updated and secure.

In the field of communications, Thunderbird is one of the best free email clientsDeveloped by the Mozilla community, it lets you manage multiple email accounts in a single inbox, add calendars (like Google Calendar), integrate messaging, and extend functionality with add-ons. It's a solid alternative to Outlook for those who want complete control without using the web interface.

If you're concerned about online security and tracking, Mozilla Firefox is a browser that focuses on blocking trackers, third-party cookies, and cryptominers.It includes a password manager, cross-device synchronization, and a good number of extensions, and its open-source code allows anyone to audit its security. It's a very serious alternative to Chrome and Edge, especially if you value privacy.

Regarding passwords, there are two very popular approaches. LastPass offers a cloud-based password manager with a limited free versionwhich integrates into the browser and saves logins for websites and applications. On the other hand, KeePass suggests storing all your keys in a locally encrypted databaseIt's protected by a master password. It's free software, very lightweight, and has tons of plugins to integrate it with browsers and improve its usability—ideal if you prefer not to depend on external services.

If we're talking about free office software, LibreOffice is probably the most complete and active suiteIt includes Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Base, and Math, with extensive compatibility with Microsoft Office documents. OpenOffice offers something very similar, although its development has been somewhat slower. In both cases, you have access to templates, spell checker, styles, macros and pluginsall without paying for licenses.

It is also a strong point possibility of adapting the software to specific needsIf you have programming skills (or know someone who does), you can modify the code, add languages, automate functions, or integrate it with other tools. In proprietary software, this is, at best, limited to what its APIs offer.

In the field of content creation, free software also has a lot to offer. GIMP is the ultimate free alternative to Adobe PhotoshopAdvanced image editor with layers, filters, masks, brushes, and plugin support. It has a learning curve, but for basic and intermediate photo editing it's more than enough, and with practice you can achieve very professional results. For vector illustration, Inkscape fills the gap left by Adobe Illustrator or CorelDRAW.allowing you to create logos, icons, infographics and all kinds of scalable graphics.

For video editing, the range is also wide. OpenShot was born on Linux and is now available on Windows and macOSwith a fairly intuitive interface, unlimited tracks, trimming, transitions, text and 3D effects. Lightworks offers a free version with very advanced featuresIt's even used in professional environments, though some export formats are limited to the Pro edition. And if you're looking for something very powerful in terms of color, effects, and audio, DaVinci Resolve brings together editing, color correction, and sound post-production in a single program, with a tremendously comprehensive free edition.

Other very useful free programs for everyday use are Calibre, an ebook manager that organizes your library and converts between formats such as EPUB, MOBI, or PDF., and Visual Studio Code, the Microsoft code editor that has become a standard for programmersVS Code also serves as a souped-up notepad for those who want tabs, syntax highlighting, and extensions without the hassle of a heavyweight IDE.

Backup and security tools for Windows

Windows security is no longer the disaster it was years ago, among other things because Microsoft Defender comes pre-installed and offers very decent protectionEven so, it's advisable to supplement that protection and have some extra tools for delicate situations, such as try suspicious programs without getting infected.

If you're looking for a simple, free antivirus to forget about the issue, Avast Free Antivirus remains one of the most popularIt installs, you activate the free license, and it handles signature updates and real-time protection. It also includes extras like a firewall, email protection, web shield, and Wi-Fi network analysis, which help strengthen the overall security of your computer.

For a “second opinion” regarding malware that may have escaped the main antivirus, Malwarebytes It's practically indispensable. The free version doesn't run in the background, but it allows Launch on-demand scans that detect adware, spyware, and other malware that traditional antivirus programs sometimes miss.Running it occasionally is a good habit to keep the system clean.

In environments where forced file encryption is a particular concern, tools such as EaseUS Todo Backup helps you keep your data up-to-date. and they can be used for clone Windows to the new SSDIt allows you to schedule automatic backups, create incremental copies, and restore entire systems or specific files. Combined with cloud storage, it protects you against hardware failures, human error, and ransomware attacks.

Another important aspect of security is knowing who is connected to your WiFi network at any given time. Applications like Fing allows you to scan your network and list all connected devices.so you can detect intruders (that "smart" neighbor stealing your signal). If you want to go a step further, WiFi Guard adds an automatic scanner that periodically checks the network and alerts you if a new suspicious device appears., helping you react quickly.

When you need to delete sensitive information, the typical Windows "Delete" option is not enough. Eraser overwrites files with different patterns to make recovery extremely difficult.Ideal for confidential documents or discs you plan to sell or recycle. It's the exact opposite of what a recovery program does: here, the goal is to make it irreversible.

Speaking of recovery, if the disaster has already occurred, the health of your hard drives can make all the difference. Utilities like CrystalDiskInfo monitors SMART parameters of hard drives and SSDsIt warns of reallocated sectors, high temperatures, or read problems that foreshadow an imminent failure. Knowing this in time gives you the opportunity to back up and replace the drive before losing data.

Cloud storage, backups, and synchronization

Today, it's common to combine local storage with cloud storage. Services like Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, and Mega offer official clients for Windows which create a synchronized folder on your PC. Everything you copy there is automatically uploaded to the cloud and replicated on other devices where you have the same account.

Dropbox, for example, It stands out for its stability and collaboration optionsShare folders with other users, manage previous versions of files, and maintain automatic backups. OneDrive comes integrated with Windows and works very well with Office, while Google Drive is ideal if you use Gmail, Docs, or Google Photos a lot.Mega offers plenty of free starter storage and end-to-end encryption.

If you have a lot of photos and don't want to lose any of them, Google Photos can also be used from WindowsThrough its client or as a web app, it allows you to automatically back up images from specific folders, apply basic edits (crop, rotate, adjust color), and have all your photos accessible from your mobile device and browser. It's a very convenient way to avoid relying on a single physical hard drive.

For more traditional backups, designed to protect all the contents of your PC, CrashPlan is a solution that uploads your data to the cloud with historical versions, so you can recover even files deleted long ago. Combining this type of remote backup with local copies on external drives is a very robust strategy against hardware failures, theft, or physical disasters.

Maintenance, diagnostics and advanced management

As you use your PC, it fills up with programs, temporary files, games, projects… and it's easy for the system to suffer. Good maintenance and diagnostic tools They extend the lifespan of Windows and save you a lot of headaches; plus, it's always helpful to follow guides for Speed ​​up slow Windows by disabling visual effects when you notice a drop in performance.

In addition to BleachBit and advanced uninstallers, it's advisable to monitor what runs when the system startsAutorun Organizer lets you see at a glance the programs, services, and scheduled tasks that load at startup, and gives you the option to disable or delay them; it's a handy alternative to Use Autoruns to speed up startupThis way you make Windows boot much faster and prevent resources from becoming overloaded as soon as you turn on the computer.

To find out what's going on "under the hood", Process Explorer, from Microsoft's SysInternals suite, is an advanced task manager It displays detailed information about processes, CPU usage, disk access, and open files. One of its most interesting features is its integration with VirusTotal, which allows users to check if any suspicious processes match known malware on the online service.

If you're interested in monitoring hardware, Speccy and HWiNFO show detailed information about CPU, RAM, motherboard, graphics card and disks. tools like Rainmeter, for its part, allows you to place widgets on the desktop with CPU, RAM, network or temperature usage data, creating a fully customizable visual control panel.

Disk space is often a recurring problem. Although you can see how much free space is left in File Explorer, it's not always obvious. Which folders are taking up the most space?That's where utilities like TreeSize and SpaceSnifferThey analyze a unit and display a hierarchical or visual map of the size of each folder and file, and help you to know which files are taking up space on the disk. As you go down the structure you see where is the "big junk" hiding that you can delete to recover gigabytes.

To manage disk partitions, MiniTool Partition Wizard provides a much more user-friendly interface than the Windows disk managerallowing you to create, delete, resize, and format partitions in different file systems. It's useful when you add a new disk, want to reorganize space, or prepare USB drives, and there are practical guides on how to do it. partitioning a 1TB disk.

In networks and advanced diagnostics, The NirSoft Utilities and SysInternals Suite collections are two veritable toolboxes.They include utilities for recovering stored passwords, analyzing network connections, reviewing startup entries, examining system files, etc. For convenient management, NirLauncher acts as an organized pitchergrouping all those small portable tools into accessible categories without complicated installations.

Finally, if you want to have Fine-grained control over privacy in Windows 10/11O&O ShutUp10 (also known simply as O&O ShutUp) centralizes options for disabling or limiting telemetry, location services, and other data collection mechanisms. This allows you to adjust the extent to which you want Microsoft to have access to your activity, beyond basic system settings.

Productivity, automation, and various utilities

Beyond maintenance, there is a good set of tools designed for Save time, automate tasks, and make daily PC use more convenient.Many of them become indispensable once you get used to them.

If you often write the same texts over and over again or want to launch actions with key combinations, Launchy and FastKeys are two great alliesLaunchy lets you open programs, files, and perform searches simply by typing a few letters after a keyboard shortcut, avoiding having to go to the Start menu. FastKeys goes even further and It offers text expanders, custom shortcuts, and task automation.Ideal for those who write a lot of email, code, or documentation.

When it comes to screenshots, the Windows Snipping Tool has improved, but it's still basic. ShareX offers advanced screen capture and desktop video recording, with options to annotate, blur sensitive data, add arrows and export to different formats. PicPick is another very user-friendly alternative, combining captures with a small image editortemplates and effects such as frames, shadows or watermarks.

In the area of ​​downloads, Torrent managers like Transmission and qBittorrent allow you to take advantage of P2P networks in a convenient and legal way.provided the content you download allows it. Transmission prioritizes simplicity, while qBittorrent adds advanced queue management, filtering, and search options, all without ads or bloatware. For direct downloads, JDownloader centralizes links from multiple serversIt automates waiting and captchas, and automatically extracts compressed files upon completion.

For video conversion, HandBrake stands out for its ability to re-encode videos to other formats, resolutions, and bitrates.You can reduce file size with minimal quality loss, ideal for freeing up space or preparing videos for specific devices. Its predefined profiles greatly simplify the process for those who don't want to grapple with technical parameters.

If you regularly virtualize operating systems, VirtualBox offers a free and very complete solution for creating virtual machines. on which to install Linux, older versions of Windows, or trial systems. VMware Workstation, on the other hand, provides a more polished and professional environment in exchange for a license. It is also available for Windows Pro. Hyper-V, the native virtualization tool, with excellent performance although with a somewhat less beginner-friendly interface.

To keep the drivers up to date, Snappy Driver Installer allows you to download and apply updated drivers Even offline, very useful for technicians working with many devices. And if you need to create bootable USB drives with various tools or systemsVentoy simplifies the process: you install Ventoy on the USB once and then you just have to copy ISOs into it; Ventoy itself takes care of providing a multi-boot menu.

Finally, there is one particularly curious type of tool: centralized installation and update packages. UniGetUI provides a graphical interface for managing package managers such as Chocolatey, Scoop, and Winget.so you can install, update, and uninstall software from a single location, without having to type commands or visit ten different websites.

Free software on Windows: advantages, disadvantages, and when it's worthwhile

Although Windows is a proprietary system, Free software has found its niche and offers very solid alternatives to almost any commercial program.Browsers like Firefox, email clients like Thunderbird, office suites like LibreOffice, graphics editors like GIMP or Inkscape, and compression programs like 7-Zip are clear examples of this.

Among the main advantages of free software is, of course, the price: You don't have to pay for licenses or subscriptionsThis is a significant advantage when considering office applications, design, audio/video editing, development, etc. Furthermore, being open source, The community can audit security, fix bugs, and add features without being entirely dependent on a single company. Many projects have forums, wikis, and very comprehensive documentation that act as "community support."

It is also a strong point possibility of adapting the software to specific needsIf you have programming skills (or know someone who does), you can modify the code, add languages, automate functions, or integrate it with other tools. In proprietary software, this is, at best, limited to what its APIs offer.

Of course, it's not all advantages. One of the common drawbacks is that Immediate compatibility with the latest versions of Windows is not always guaranteed.especially in small projects with fewer people. Sometimes the learning curve is steeper: by including many advanced features, the interfaces can be less user-friendly for very novice users. And as for support, You don't usually have a phone number to call; you have to rely on forums, documentation, or external companies. that offer paid support for those free tools.

However, for many everyday uses (office applications, non-professional image editing, compression, browsing, email, development, etc.) free software on Windows is an excellent way to Equip your PC without spending a penny.Maintaining a good level of security and with the peace of mind that behind it there are entire communities focused on improving and debugging the code.

With all these categories and examples on the table, you can build a Windows system tailored to your needs: From the essentials for any average user to very advanced tools for administration, security, programming or content creationThe key is not to install for the sake of installing, but to choose what truly adds value to your daily life, to combine free and paid alternatives effectively, and to occasionally review what you actually use to keep the system agile, secure, and free of junk.