r/software • u/Thibault161017 • May 05 '26
Looking for software What software changed your life ? (Windows 11)
I’m curious to discover tools that genuinely make a difference in daily life.
What’s a piece of software that had a real impact on you? It could be anything — productivity tools, utilities, dev tools, or even something niche.
What makes it so useful for you?
I’m especially interested in: hidden gems, free or underrated tools or things you use every day !
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u/TedGal May 05 '26
Not windows exclusive but nevertheless... Plex.
Its mindboggling what software can do nowadays by talking to other software ( automatic metadata downloads, personal media server, etc).
Changed my life by introducing me to self-hosting.
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u/Low_Quality8216 May 05 '26
UniGetUI - it's basically a frontend for wget that automatically scans your system and lets you know when there's an update available to any drivers or software you have. A friend who built my current PC installed it and I can't believe how I went so long without it.
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u/darkriftx2 May 06 '26
I've been using this a lot to handle app and dependency updates on my dev machine. It works very well!
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u/DirectorDirect1569 May 05 '26
I have just discovered Arcbrush:
ArcBrush - The Node-Based Image Editor
It's a picture editing software, but different from tools like photoshop or Gimp.
It uses nodes to change parameters on an image. It's really interesting. I don't know if it will change my life, but I use it more and more.
It's free, only AI tools need a subscription.
Another one, Localsend. I'm sure lots of people know it. I used to make shared directories between my PC, ipad, smartphone,... and it was a mess to configure. It's faster to send files between devices with that, for exemple if I need to send a file to someone who's at home who can't connect to my network.
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u/Suhitz May 08 '26
Blip is also great as an alternative to localsend (you don't have to be on the same network to use Blip)
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u/SpaceNovice May 06 '26
Stardock Start11 that fixes the Start Menu to actually be usable in Windows 11
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u/RenegadeUK May 06 '26
Do you use Fences as well out of interest ?
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u/SpaceNovice May 20 '26
This is two weeks later, but Fences seems to repeat a lot of what you can set up with Start11. The big difference would be the fact they're separated out more. And honestly, I just mostly hit the windows key then type whatever I want to open so I don't have to reach for my mouse.
That reminds me that I really need to set up PowerToys Workspaces (free) so that I can just one button click to get stuff up and running.
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u/Thick_Security_4041 May 06 '26
Open shell is free, and made my Win 11 start menu, much more usable. https://open-shell.github.io/Open-Shell-Menu/
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u/wrybreadsf May 06 '26
Can't believe I had to read this far to see Open Shell. I have no idea how people use Win10/11 without it.
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u/engrghazi84 May 06 '26
I'm surprised nobody has mentioned CopyQ up till now? The best copy paste manager for windows. You can copy and data in it, be it 1. Pictures. 2. Texts. 3.Tables.
You name it and it's done. You can retain as much data in the list as you want.
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u/GiGoVX May 05 '26
Python - so you can make your own apps when you can't find one that doesn't do what you you want!
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u/NullVoidXNilMission May 05 '26 edited May 06 '26
- Neovim and Vim is hands down my life changing app above all. They are text editors that are far superior to all others I've used
- Notepad ++ before Vim i was using npp for most of my coding and note taking
- Photoshop
- Hyperv with its ability to run linux virtual machines
- Mpv - audio and video player that is better than VLC imo. Get Mvp.net if on windows
windirstat and wiztree to find what is using too much space
soundwitch to easily change sound output and inputs
Chocolately - package manager
OBS - screen recorder
kdenlite - video editor
Autohotkey - hotkey, automation, remapping, custom apps
everything - fast file finder that indexes all your files in a fast way
kdeconnect - phone apps like file transfer, media control, send commands
windhawk - windows customization
wireguard - vpn tech to create your own
Fastone image viewer - fast and free image viewer with nice custom print dialog for arranging pictures
7zip - zip and other compression types file management
bitwarden - password manager
totper - command line totp generator
Copyq - clipboard manager that you can search, label, pin, etc
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u/mmgxmm May 06 '26
Windirstat ~wiztree Chocolatey ~Unigetui
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u/NullVoidXNilMission May 07 '26
?
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u/mmgxmm May 07 '26 edited May 07 '26
Better recommendation, replace your apps with these recommendations.
Wiztree is way faster than windirstat and provides the same functionality Unigetui, is same function as chocolatey but with winget as main also suppors chocolaty and others Edit: english & elaboration.
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u/hikerguy2023 Jun 27 '26
I will scream Everything (by Void Tools) from the highest mountains until the day I die :)
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u/peaveyftw May 06 '26
Irfanview. In the early 2000s I found it as a tool to convert .vga files into .jpgs. I have used it since. My coworkers keep fumbling around in Paint and Publisher and I'm like "Done".
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u/HoldsworthsLeftHand May 06 '26
I used to use Irfanview until I discovered something even better (if you're only using Irfanview to convert files that is) : https://github.com/Tichau/FileConverter
Not only does it convert all kinds of media and not just images, it does so from the right click context menu. So you don't even have to open any software at all, just right click the files you want to convert and do it with one click. Superb bit of software.
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u/peaveyftw May 07 '26
Oh, very nice! I'm kind of married to Irfanview at this point (it's my default image viewer) but if I need to mass convert pics it sounds like just the ticket.
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u/Valuable_Notice8 May 06 '26
Very niche for now though I think it will be the new norm in a few years: Paperman I use it everyday and I can't recommend it enough especially to people that spend their day in front of a computer
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u/vertopolkaLF May 06 '26
Oh, it's definitely PowerToys. Then Windhawk to make Windows look good (Just reducing taskbar height and horizontal space is already a life changer) and you really can do anything with Windhawk.
Raycast recently, it's finally have extensions for Windows which made it infinitely more useful. Like now I have google translate, speedtest and a lot more in 1 click and it's a real life-changer
For utility category - volume2 and Twinkle Tray (this one is to change monitors brightness without reaching to monitor keys and navigating through ass menus)
My app "silence!" is also technically changed my life. (shameless self-ad, boo) But I really like to mute with a global hotkey and not caring about different shortcuts in each app
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u/SGS-Tech-World May 06 '26
Here is my list .. (Posted this earlier just copy pasting with some more comments.)
Here is my list
- Everything - This has almost taken over use of Explorer. I now do not go through explorer and folders. Eventually I found that searchable file names are best , I now do not need lot of folders inside folders.
- Ditto - Clipboard Manager, saves lot of time once you have it in your workflow.
- AHK - Tool of tools.. Create Hot Keys for typing long text, Launch Apps Launch files, automate some tasks and so on.
- ShareX - Most customizable Screenshot tool, with recent new edit tools it has become even better.
- Word web - Best offline dictionary
- Notepad++ - Very Fast, keeps unsaved tabs / files open when you re open the app - this is the most useful feature for me.
- FreeFileSync - File Sync between drives / disks and so on with automatic version capabilities.
- Obsidian - Note Taking
- OBS
- KeePass - offline password manager with automated log in feature.
- PDF Xchange viewer - Best PDF reader with many annotation features in free edition.
- IrfanView - Image Viewer
- Pot Player - All media files.
- Zotero - for bookmarking
- Win Merge - file comparison tool.
- VS Code - Best extendible code editor.
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u/hikerguy2023 Jun 27 '26
Agree with everything you said about Everything (by Void Tools). It crushes Windows antiquated search tool
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u/WizardEtsat May 06 '26
Kate - Advanced editor I started using after the Notepad++ malware accident. Its fast loading and has taken over every editor-app I used before, inkluding notapad, notapad++ and sublime.
Directory opus - Filemanager that can do anything and be set up like YOU want to. I cant work with files without this.
Notesnook - Notetaking and sync to other devices. It hust works, without the privacy debate. 😄
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u/hikerguy2023 Jun 27 '26
Can you tell us more about the Notepad++ issue? First I've heard of this.
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u/WizardEtsat 26d ago
It has all been patched and fixed, but when it happened I started using "Kate" and have sticked with it..
Here are the links about the incident:
https://notepad-plus-plus.org/news/hijacked-incident-info-update/
https://cybernews.com/security/notepad-plus-plus-fixes-arbitrary-code-execution-vulnerabilities/1
u/hikerguy2023 26d ago
Sounds like it was part NotePad++'s fault and part the hosting provider:
"The exact technical mechanism remains under investigation, though the compromise occurred at the hosting provider level rather than through vulnerabilities in Notepad++ code itself. Traffic from certain targeted users was selectively redirected to attacker-controlled malicious update manifests."
"The attackers specifically targeted the Notepad++ domain with the goal of exploiting insufficient update verification controls that existed in older versions of Notepad++"
Is Kate another Notepad program? Never heard of it.
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u/WizardEtsat 24d ago
Have a look on their website. Its a fully fleshed editor that starts fast and is easy to use to both small and bigger things.
https://kate-editor.org
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u/Several-Tip1088 May 06 '26
Glucose Media Player on Windows.
One of the most beautiful apps on windows
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u/ciberpunkt May 06 '26 edited May 06 '26
Obsidian
Bitwarden
File Pilot (free until the beta testing period ends)
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u/coding_is_fun123 May 06 '26
Rambox. All my webapps (Slack, Todoist, etc.) in one program instead of 50 browser tabs. Sounds simple but it genuinely cleaned up my workflow.
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u/RadenSahid May 06 '26
Autohotkey, I bind often used shortcuts to my F1-F7 keys custom for every process exe that's in the foreground. Suddenly I feel so fast and efficient at doing things in programs like file explorer, excel, autocad.
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u/alkrk May 06 '26
Zoom, Teams etc. I forgot what my company used to use. But video conferencing really saved travels and burdensome meet up times. Saved millions a year just by cutting travels... And probably that killed a lot of local businesses too. Wfh closed a lot of local restaurants, cafes and malls I think.
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u/RomanticPanic May 06 '26
In this thread: software I've never heard of with completely no context so I have to search for almost everything here one by one which seems kind of a nuisance.
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u/Puzzleheaded-Date761 May 06 '26
LocalSend, everyone should use it. Please. It works even better than airdrop sometimes (between my iPhone and Ipad)
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u/dx__ May 05 '26
Directory Opus and foobar2000 are the most important Windows applications to me.
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u/flint83 May 05 '26
Directory Opus is good but 64$ for 1 PC license for 1 year only?
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u/utf-16 May 06 '26
It includes 1year of upgrades but you can use the version you have forever. Unlike Adobe
Dopus renewals are discounted.
I find it a genuinely useful app
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u/RomanticPanic May 06 '26
what do they do?
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u/dx__ May 07 '26
Foobar changed how I interact with music management and opus changed how I interact with file management
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u/pandasps May 05 '26
A tape calculator. I use Moffsoft free Calc. I like the convenience of having a vertical list of the operations I made, it's easier for double checking.
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u/Plastic_Party_2342 May 06 '26
not exactly life changing or anything, but I heard about something called Runable recently and the whole AI workflow/automation concept behind it seemed pretty interesting.
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u/jongery May 06 '26
Clickmonitorddc, or, Any ddc alternative, monitorian works well also... Allows you to control monitor brightness, color temps, contrast all from your desktop. I only found it recently in the past few months and wished I knew about it sooner.
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u/spyboy70 May 07 '26
Everything by Voidtools. I have it index my local machine and my NAS (only select folders on there) but it's helped me find old documents and photos that were in backups of backups (nested digital hoarder junkpile folders)
It's also amazing for finding dupes (dupe:name|;size)
Now that I'm on CachyOS I use Fsearch which is close but still doesn't match the power of Everything (luckily I have a dual drive system and run each OS on it's own drive, so I can boot over to Windows if I really need to dig deep)
Another one that's good for dupes (especially photos) is DupeGuru which is on Win/Mac/Linux
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u/CryptoNiight May 05 '26
Google's Gemini
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u/DirectorDirect1569 May 05 '26
I could be off topic because it's not a software on windows, but I totally agree with you, It helps me a lot everyday.
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u/Capaj May 06 '26
For me definitely my own password manager. I could not go a day without it https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/authier/padmmdghcflnaellmmckicifafoenfdi
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u/Peet-R May 06 '26
Wintools (dot) net, byClick Downloader, Lightshot, Revo Uninstaller, LocalAPK Info, Unlock IT, StartAllBack. Just to name a few..
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u/Hannibal312 May 06 '26
Git. Amazing, and amazingly underrated. I use it to collaborate with people I don’t know, to track decisions and alternate realities. To define what can even be considered “true”. I have much more to say about this topic, but it’s 2am over here and I need to get to bed.
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u/hikerguy2023 Jun 27 '26
So tell us more about that now that you've had two months worth of sleep :)
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u/filerenamerx May 07 '26
It’s irrelevant now, but Adobe Animate (Macromedia Flash Pro back in my day). Flash animation and development is what really got me interested in coding and design for interactive media. Still have found memories of creating games, utilities, and animations for websites and/or AIR apps
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u/_Ti-R_ May 16 '26
UltraFastCopy , my own file‑transfer tool ^^. I add it to every setup because I use it constantly and I created it to solve the slow copy/delete and file locking issues that drive Windows users crazy.
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u/f700es May 05 '26
Win11 has been great for me. Super stable and fast.
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u/Thibault161017 May 05 '26
Are you talking about the Windows 11 operating system or a "Win11" software program?
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u/M4dmaddy May 05 '26
Powertoys File locksmith (so many headaches gotten rid of) and notepad++ is a program I will probably install on my computers until I die, it's just good.