Last week I picked up my new PC and thus spent some time to set up the new system. I figured this might be a good time to mention the software I use.
Hardware
Wacom Cintiq 24 HDT – It’s already several years old and the exact model I have is not available anymore. While I sometimes ponder upgrading to the even larger ones I don’t really need it.
Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Keyboard – Bought this when I was still dealing with constant wrist pain issues. I only use the Keyboard, not the mouse. It took a bit to get used to it, but I find it much more comfortable than a regular, flat keyboard.
Mouse – I have several mice that I rotate through depending on how I feel.
- Logitech G400S – The main mouse I use and have been using for years
- Evoluent Vertical C Wireless – I like this one for it’s sturdyness. Unfortunately the mouse wheel on mine squeaks, which is rather annoying.
- Anker Vertical Wireless – I use this one mainly when I feel the wrist is already taxed. The Anker mouse is very light, which I usually don’t like.
- CSL TM137G – Ok mouse, similar to the Anker mouse. The first one I bought. It doesn’t get as much use time as the others.
Corsair Void Elite Wireless Headset – Since I don’t have to deal with much background noise anymore I like using this one over my Noise cancelling headphones. Good sound, comfortable, good microphone.
Logitech Brio 400 camera – good image quality, responsive, inbuild lense-cover for when you’re not using the camera
Software
I’ll start with work-related software and then move on to system related software.
Adobe Photoshop – Self-Explanatory
Lazy Nezumi – Photoshop extension which among other things allows for line smoothing. Still better than Adobe’s inbuilt option, in my opinion.
Lasso Draw – Photoshop extension which among other features allows to auto-fill selections upon closure.
Adobe Bridge – I actually only use it to ensure IPTC-Core meta data is correctly assigned to my psds and jpgs.
Clip Studio Paint – Depending on what I need o draw i still prefer to use CSP over Photoshop. Especially for the many ruler-options.
Edrawmind – For when I want to create mindmaps for projects I will never pursue. Fun exercise though.
Faststone Image Viewer – I’ve been using Irfanview and Xnview in the past, but I experienced performance issues with both. So far I don’t have these issues with Faststone
Microsoft 3D-Viewer – Double-click on any stl and “quickly”(depending on your model of course) open it without having to launch it in your dedicated 3D-software. I also often use it to open a 3D model as reference when doodling with pen & paper.
Pureref – Great to quickly compile extensive reference and mood boards.
Blender – 3D Software, I mostly use it for quick blockouts that I draw over.
PDF-XChange Editor – An alternative to Adobe’s Acrobat.
Sevdesk – SaaS for writing invoices.
Beyond Compare – Software to compare and sync files and folders. I use it to back up my data. I used dedicated backup software in the past, while the incremental backup structure leads to smaller files, when I actually had to make use of backups I found it easier to navigate through a 1to1 copy of my folder structure than browse through the increments.
One Commander – I prefer using this one over the Windows Explorer. Windows Explorer now has tabs, but since I often access files from multiple folders I prefer using OnceCommander’s customizable viewer.
OBS – Software to record/share your screen. For streaming on twitch for example.
DaVinci Resolve – Video editing software
CrystalDiskInfo – To check SDD and HDD-health
Free Download Manager – As the name implies.
7-zip – free file un-/packing software. Nothing special.
Eartrumpet – Useable volume sliders! Windows volume sliders are ok, but Eartrumpets sliders are better by far and also easily allow for controling volume per application.
Wiztree – Get an overview of what uses up your drive space quickly. Much quicker than WinDirStat or DiskTreeSize in my experience.
Veracrypt – For additional data encryption
Tresorit – European alternative to Dropbox. I prefer using that over Dropbox even though it’s a bit more pricey.
Lastpass – Password manager
Thunderbird – Been using Thunderbird for my e-mails for years. I’m used to it.
Musicbee – My music-player of choice
YT-DLG – A GUI for a youtube-downloader. I saw last week that you can even install it from the Microsoft-store. Great for when you need/want to download videos from the web.
Video Lan VLC – video player
Fontbase – Windows Font manager. I used FontExplorer for years until Monotype stopped all Windows Support for it. I only switched to Fontbase relatively recently.
Rainmeter – Small software that allows for Customization of your Desktop. It’s open source and the user experience leaves room for optimization, but there are plenty of youtube-tutorials for it. I have a big clock visible on my desktop, day and date and weather information & forecast. I also have a couple of icons on the desktop to show CPU/RAM/GPU usage and Network usage.
Office 365 – Excel, Word, Powerpoint get regular use. As does Task Planner, ToDo and OneNote, and Sticky Notes.
Microsoft Powertoys Run – Microsoft Powertoys is an extensive suit of tools aimed at power users that should come pre-installed in my opinion. I’m by now means a power user, I almost only use “Run”. It allows me to hit ALT+Space in any applicaton, opens up a “search bar” and allows me to start any application from it. Great for when I already have both hands on the keyboard.
Eset Internet Security – Software Firewall
Windows 11 Pro
Special mention:
Hall of Framed – A website showcasing the best of the in-game photography community. I get my desktop backgrounds from there most of the time. Currently Witcher 3 visits my desktop once again.