dotjesper.com | My favorite tools

What tools do you rely on to stay productive every day?

Everyone has their own collection of favorite tools and utilities - most people I know have a list of tools they feel are essential. These are my favorite tools and utilities, covering Windows built-in tools, desktop apps, browser and PowerPoint add-ins, and online resources. Some I use every week or even every day, and others are in the nice-to-know-about category. I strive to use free tools only, but I might have added one or two non-free tools to the list as they are essential to me and worth the money.

Windows built-in tools

Windows built-in tools are often overlooked, but these four ship with the operating system and deserve a spot in any productivity setup.

Windows Magnifier

Magnifier enlarges part of your screen, making words and images easier to see.

Windows Package Manager

Windows Package Manager, or winget, command-line tool is part of Windows by default as part of the App Installer.

If you are running an earlier version of Windows and the App Installer is not available, you can get App Installer from the Microsoft Store.

Windows Sandbox

Windows Sandbox provides a lightweight desktop environment to safely run applications in isolation. Software installed inside the Windows Sandbox environment remains “sandboxed” and runs separately from the host machine.

A sandbox is temporary. When it is closed, all the software and files and the state are deleted. You get a brand-new instance of the sandbox every time you open the application.

Windows Snipping Tool

Microsoft has introduced the new Snipping Tool (Shift-WIN+S). Snipping Tool can be used to take screenshots, use tools like a pen or pencil to draw on it, and share it wherever you want.

Apps vs. applications

Apps vs. applications is a distinction worth considering. I always look for an app alternative before installing applications. Here is the list of Microsoft Store apps I install, enjoying the benefits of apps being easy to add and easy to remove, and automatically updated by the Microsoft Store app.

App Installer - Enables sideloading apps and includes the winget command-line tool.
Files App - A modern file manager with tabs, dual-pane view, and cloud integration.
Microsoft Whiteboard - A freeform digital canvas for brainstorming and collaboration.
PowerShell 7 - The cross-platform version of PowerShell, updated independently from Windows.
Slack - A messaging platform for team communication and collaboration.
Spotify - Music streaming to keep the focus flowing.
Windows App - Connects to Windows 365, Azure Virtual Desktop, and Remote Desktop Services.
Windows Terminal - A modern terminal with tabs, profiles, and GPU-accelerated text rendering.

Tools

The tools below are the desktop applications I rely on for everything from file compression and version control to screen recording and code editing. Most are free and all can be installed using winget.

7-Zip

7-Zip is free software with open-source. You can use 7-Zip on any computer, including a computer in a commercial organization. You do not need to register or pay for 7-Zip.

7-Zip integrates into Windows Explorer and opens everything you throw at it, happily opens TARs, ISOs, RARs to CABs and more. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "7zip.7zip" --exact --silent --source winget

Install 7-Zip using winget

Note

Windows 11 includes built-in support for common archive formats like ZIP, RAR, and TAR. For basic extraction this may be all you need, but 7-Zip still offers broader format support, encryption, and archive creation.

Brave Browser

The Brave browser blocks ads and trackers that slow you down and invade your privacy. Discover a new way of thinking about how the web can work. I use Brave Browser for testing anonymous access to Microsoft 365 for testing and validation e.g., Conditional Access. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "BraveSoftware.BraveBrowser" --exact --silent --source winget

Install Brave Browser using winget

Fiddler Classic

The easy, clean, and powerful debugging proxy for checking out HTTP between here and there. It even supports sniffing SSL traffic. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "Telerik.Fiddler.Classic" --exact --silent --source winget

Install Fiddler Classic using winget

Gimp

GIMP is an acronym for GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a freely distributed program for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. Whether you are a graphic designer, photographer, illustrator, or scientist, GIMP provides you with sophisticated tools to get your job done. You can further enhance your productivity with GIMP thanks to customization options and third-party plugins. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "GIMP.GIMP" --exact --silent --source winget

Install GIMP using winget

Git

Git is a free and open-source distributed version control system designed to manage everything from small to large projects with speed and efficiency. I use Git to integrate Visual Studio Code with GitHub repositories. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "Git.Git" --exact --silent --source winget

Install Git using winget

Markdown Monster

While I love Visual Studio Code, Markdown Monster does one thing incredibly well. Markdown. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "WestWind.MarkdownMonster" --exact --silent --source winget

Install Markdown Monster using winget

Microsoft PowerToys

Microsoft PowerToys is a set of utilities for power users to tune and streamline their Windows experience for greater productivity. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "Microsoft.PowerToys" --exact --silent --source winget

Install Microsoft PowerToys using winget

OBS Studio

OBS Studio is as close to an all-in-one solution for live video capture and streaming as you are likely to get without having to pay for one. This open-source application rivals many of its commercial counterparts in both polish and flexibility. It supports capture from single windows, whole desktops, or fixed regions of the screen, on-the-fly switching between views, and overlays from various sources (still images, pre-captured movies, live video, etc.). And it provides equally flexible support for audio capture. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "OBSProject.OBSStudio" --exact --silent --source winget

Install OBS Studio using winget

Sizer 4.0

If you like me often write documentation, creating screenshots and prefer windows are the same size, Sizer is the tool for you.

Sizer 4.0 is latest version of the popular utility used to accurately resize and reposition windows. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "BrianApps.Sizer.Dev" --exact --silent --source winget

Install Sizer using winget

Visual Studio Code

Microsoft Visual Studio Code is a tool that combines the simplicity of a code editor with what developers need for their core edit-build-debug cycle.

It provides comprehensive editing and debugging support, an extensibility model, and lightweight integration with existing tools. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "Microsoft.VisualStudioCode" --exact --silent --source winget

Install Visual Studio Code using winget

ZoomIt

A true classic but also the answer to the number 1 question; how do you draw on the screen when you are sharing your screen?

ZoomIt has been that tool for many presenters and should be in your toolbox too. Take some time and learn how to do boxes, arrows, colors and more and you will be a more effective screen-sharer. Read more

Install using winget:

winget install --id "Microsoft.Sysinternals.ZoomIt" --exact --silent --source winget

Install ZoomIt using winget

Microsoft Edge Add-ins

A Microsoft Edge Add-ins extension provides a niche experience or function that is important to a target audience.

Amazing Icon Downloader

Easily find and download SVG Icons from a certain cloud management portal.

Amazing Icon Downloader

Design Analysis

Design Analysis helps you inspect and analyze the visual design of any web page, including layout, spacing, typography, and colors.

Design Analysis

Graph X-Ray

Graph X-Ray reveals the Microsoft Graph API calls behind the Microsoft 365 admin portals. It helps you understand which Graph endpoints are being used when you interact with the portal, making it easier to automate tasks with scripts or applications.

Graph X-Ray

Microsoft PowerPoint Add-ins

Microsoft PowerPoint Add-ins can save valuable time when building presentations. I put a huge amount of time into my presentations, and Add-ins often help me work more efficiently. Here are the ones that made it into this list:

draw.io diagram

Easily embed draw.io diagrams from cloud storage. The easiest way to embed flowcharts, UML, mockups, mind maps and more types of diagrams.

draw.io is a free, open-source diagramming application that stores your diagrams on your preferred cloud storage solution.

draw.io diagram

Pexels

Free stock photos. Despite Microsoft Office having its own solution for free stock photos, sometimes a little extra is just nice. Pexels gives you that and works in both Microsoft Word and PowerPoint - and it is free.

Features include:

Search for images, including an excellent feature that allows you to search for pictures based on colors - really makes finding images less cumbersome.

Pexels

Pro Word Cloud

Create word clouds from your text. A wonderful way of visualizing a piece of text or a news feed. The cloud gives greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text. You can tweak your clouds with varied sizes, fonts, layouts, and color schemes. It works in both Microsoft Word, and PowerPoint - and it is free.

Pro Word Cloud

QR4Office

I often add QR codes into my PowerPoint presentations, replacing links to surveys, social profiles, or similar. QR4Office is a straightforward way to add QR codes - and works in both Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint - and it is free.

Features include:

QR code images get embedded within the document.
Customizable color, background, and size.
Ability to set QR error correction level.

QR4Office

Online resources

Online resources round out my toolbox with free stock photos, fonts, icons, and other creative assets I reach for regularly.

bensound.com

You can use this royalty free stock music for YouTube and your multimedia projects if you credit Bensound.com (in the description for a video).

bensound.com

Coolors

The super-fast color palettes generator, create your own color palette for any project.

Coolors

dafont

Registration is free, however no need to register if you just want to download the fonts.

As a registered member you can, in addition:

Submit and update your own fonts
Create selections (to compare fonts side by side, or favorite lists)
Add comments on the fonts
Post on the forum

You can sample your own text, great for finding fonts for e.g., logos or headers,

dafont

Noun Project

Noun Project is building a global visual language that unites us - a language that allows quick and easy communication no matter who you are or where you are.

Noun Project

Pexels

Pexels provides high quality and completely free stock photos licensed under the Pexels license. All photos are searchable and tagged, and easy to discover through the discover pages. Pexels is also available as a Microsoft PowerPoint Add-in .

Pexels

pixabay

Download Photos, Illustrations, Vectors, Videos, Music, and Sound Effects.

Registration is free, however no need to register if you just want to download content. For example: Music: https://www.bensound.com/

pixabay - Stunning free images & royalty free stock

SVGO, short for SVG Optimizer

SVGO, short for SVG Optimizer, is a Node.js library and command-line application for optimizing SVG files.

I often use SVGO, as an easy converter from web-based SVG entries to extract these (and optimize) SVG files to be able to use e.g. logos etc. in documentation and/or presentations.

SVGO