8 ms·

Ask HN: What are your favorite utility desktop apps?

92 points by ezekg 8y ago

I'm a big fan of small, often indie, utility apps. Some apps I really dig: - Monodraw: https://monodraw.helftone.com/ - Postgres.app: https://postgresapp.com/ - Lungo: https://sindresorhus.com/lungo - Duet: https://www.duetdisplay.com/ - Magnet: http://magnet.crowdcafe.com/ What do you like?

jplayer01 8y ago
- z (Linux): https://github.com/rupa/z https://github.com/rupa/z builds a database of every folder I ever go to on the command-line and uses fuzzy search to open the most likely folder when I give z any string argument. It's been such a huge improvement for my CLI workflow. I no longer need to traverse entire directories if I've been there before. I just need to enter the shortest possible part of the path that'll take me to my destination, often just a couple of characters. - chocolatey (Windows): https://chocolatey.org/ https://chocolatey.org/ Package manager for Windows which means I only rarely need to manually download and install programs anymore. I can even tell it to update all installed programs, which is a decent time saver. +1 for Everything mentioned in another comment.
jeena 8y ago
- FeedTheMonkey https://github.com/jeena/feedthemonkey https://github.com/jeena/feedthemonkey - KeePassXC https://keepassxc.org/ https://keepassxc.org/ - GNOME Calendar https://wiki.gnome.org/Apps/Calendar https://wiki.gnome.org/Apps/Calendar - GNOME Screenshot https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gnome-screenshot/tree/master/ https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gnome-screenshot/tree/master/ - Darktable https://www.darktable.org/ https://www.darktable.org/
Tomte 8y ago
AutoHotKey: https://www.autohotkey.com/ https://www.autohotkey.com/
- ChrisGranger 8y ago
  AutoHotkey is amazing. On Linux, there is also Autokey. https://github.com/autokey/autokey https://github.com/autokey/autokey
- tahebrvr767hv 8y ago
  Can be very handy for automation (I ended up automating ice mining in Eve Online with it as an experiment)
numbers 8y ago
- Alfred https://www.alfredapp.com/ https://www.alfredapp.com/ - BetterTouchTool https://folivora.ai/ https://folivora.ai/ - Sip https://sipapp.io https://sipapp.io (even tho the new pricing isn't great) - Spectacle https://www.spectacleapp.com/ https://www.spectacleapp.com/ (if you want a Magnet alternative) - Calibre https://calibre-ebook.com/ https://calibre-ebook.com/ (not sure if this counts)
- ezekg 8y ago
  Sip looks very useful! I'm going to try that one out.
- scarcely 8y ago
  Re: sip, why not just use a custom HTML file. I store vast majority of my data in custom HTML files custom written with custom js and CSS and custom elements. Level of customizability is extremely high and you can represent the data with infinite flexibility and you can display your data via an infinite number of views and it's just a matter of switching stylesheets. All hail the age of custom written HTML pages intended for personal use! Hooray for the practice of keeping your data in HTML! Boo markdown which is tremendously tremendously overrated. The age of writing HTML for other people is over. The age of writing HTML for your own private consumption is on us!!!
  - tugberkk 8y ago
    I was actually wondering if there was anyone storing textual data in html, I also think it is pretty useful and nice. Do you have any additional information? Such as your html organizations etc.?
Yhippa 8y ago
On Windows, Rainmeter: https://www.rainmeter.net/ https://www.rainmeter.net/ On Linux, Guake: http://guake-project.org/ http://guake-project.org/
- ktm5j 8y ago
  Man I haven't used Guake in a long time!
  - Yhippa 8y ago
    Did you go to UVa?
    - ktm5j 8y ago
      I work there.
- flamtap 8y ago
  Rainmeter gave me a nostalgia trip back to Windows Vista widgets.
pndy 8y ago
- Sizer http://www.brianapps.net/sizer http://www.brianapps.net/sizer (because I prefer my windows spawning with customized size and placement; pretty sure KDE offers similar stuff by default) - Xlaunchpad http://www.xwidget.com/ http://www.xwidget.com/ (mimicking OSX Launchpad feature on Windows; I'm using it with double-click the desktop to invoke setting) - Everything https://www.voidtools.com/ https://www.voidtools.com/ (default W10 files indexing and search replacement) - Notepad2-mod https://xhmikosr.github.io/notepad2-mod/ https://xhmikosr.github.io/notepad2-mod/ (Notepad replacement)
- ChrisGranger 8y ago
  I can't speak about KDE in particular, but I use a command line program called wmctrl to size windows to specific pixel dimensions. https://linux.die.net/man/1/wmctrl https://linux.die.net/man/1/wmctrl
- nbutyllithium 8y ago
  Sizer - I have been using a custom script in DisplayFusion* to accomplish a similar purpose but I like the interface with sizer more (especially the ability to make preset sizes). Thanks for sharing. *https://www.displayfusion.com/ScriptedFunctions/View/?ID=2263df17-abb0-441b-8923-626f3251023e https://www.displayfusion.com/ScriptedFunctions/View/?ID=226...
  - pndy 8y ago
    I'd suggest using 4.0 version and set it to run with administrator rights - I'm not sure if author has already solved this but context menu invoked on window border tend to bug in the past under W10.
apolymath 8y ago
- GrepWin https://tools.stefankueng.com/grepWin.html https://tools.stefankueng.com/grepWin.html
- flamtap 8y ago
  +1. It’s pulled me out of a few jams, and the GUI is simple and without bloat.
warpech 8y ago
- ShiftIt (macOs) https://github.com/fikovnik/ShiftIt https://github.com/fikovnik/ShiftIt
MiddleEndian 8y ago
Ditto - Clipboard manager for Windows. The nicest I've used on any OS. Great for managing the last N items (set to remove items after a week for me) and it's easy to delete or modify entries. Klipper - Clipboard manager for Linux. It's part of KDE so I'm not sure if it counts but it doesn't seem to be well known. Basically the same as Ditto for Linux but a bit clunkier. 7+ Taskbar Tweaker - Tool that modifies the Windows taskbar. My favorite two features: 1. Hiding the Windows logo/start button so Win+1 correlates with the first icon, Win+2 with the second, etc. 2. Making it such that if I click an application icon with multiple windows, the first window will just come to the front (and the second if the first is already at the front, etc.) instead of having to click from a list of windows. SharpKeys - Windows tool to remap keyboard keys. Equivalent to using the Registry but more pleasant.
- brokenmachine 8y ago
  With ditto, can you copy a few things into the clipboard, then paste them in order somehow? So for example I copy my password, then my username, then you can press, say, ctrl-shift-v and it will paste your password and remove the topmost item so the next paste will be my username? Or something like that?
  - ChrisGranger 8y ago
    Is there any clipboard manager that can do this? It sounds like a good idea. Edit: it would be easy enough to whip this up using Autokey (Linux) or AutoHotkey (Windows), but I wouldn't be too keen on having a password in plain text in a script... At least with a clipboard manager you can clear that password right after use.
    - brokenmachine 8y ago
      Arsclip is meant to be able to do it, but I couldn't work out how to do it.
- ahoka 8y ago
  Windows 10 seems to have built-in clipboard manager: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4028529/windows-10-clipboard https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4028529/windows-10-... Anyone using it? Not my thing, but I thought I might mention it, maybe somone finds it useful.
mpurham 8y ago
- Focus Window for macOS https://focuswindow.app/ https://focuswindow.app/ - ByWord for macOS https://bywordapp.com/ https://bywordapp.com/
- vinhnx 8y ago
  "Focus Window" looks great, thanks for recommending!
sigjuice 8y ago
github.com/Pyroh/Fluor brew cask install fluor I have it set up so Fn keys automatically behave like Fn keys in Terminal (?), Emacs.app, Screen Sharing, VMWare Fusion.
jsonau 8y ago
OSX: Dash - Snippet Manager and API Doc Browser https://kapeli.com/dash https://kapeli.com/dash Flycut - Clipboard Manager https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flycut-clipboard-manager/id442160987 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flycut-clipboard-manager/id4... Spectacle - Window sizing Manager https://www.spectacleapp.com/ https://www.spectacleapp.com/
akulbe 8y ago
Chocolatey. WizTree. Arq. Ditto. wsltty. youtube-dl.
atRonan 8y ago
KeePassXC - https://keepassxc.org/ https://keepassxc.org/ One of the Best cross platform password managers at the moment!
HackOfAllTrades 8y ago
Beyond Compare (Windows)compares Drives, Folders, & Files. Very fast and flexible -- both of which are important. Can also be used to copy files, to synchronize folders.
- dev_north_east 8y ago
  Aye, it's my goto for viewing diffed files from mercurial and git. Really nice tool.
vkaku 8y ago
- PDFStudio - GoldWave - Dash (macOS) - TexturePacker - GIMP - Mp3Tag - Daemon Tools (Image Mounting)
jjeaff 8y ago
Greenshot - the best screenshot software out there. Open source and beats all the paid options. Maps to print screen key. Let's you draw a box around what you want to snip, then you can send it straight to the clipboard, or open in a quick editor for notes, or go straight to imgur or a myriad of other programs.
- nbutyllithium 8y ago
  If you're using windows I'd also recommend checking out share-x (https://getsharex.com/ https://getsharex.com/). I'm not exactly a power user for this type of application but share-x appears to have some more advanced features that some here may appreciate.
  - jjeaff 8y ago
    Ooh, I'm a sucker for a slick interface. And this one looks a bit more polished than greenshot. I will be checking it out. Thanks
4bpp 8y ago
rofi (https://github.com/davatorium/rofi https://github.com/davatorium/rofi). I use it as my primary window switcher.
- impostir 8y ago
  I use dmenu with i3 now, but I have considered switching to rofi for a while. Do you know the advantages over dmenu?
PeOe 8y ago
I like 1Clipboard on Windows http://1clipboard.io/ http://1clipboard.io/ but I'd love to find a Windows version of Flycut for Mac https://github.com/TermiT/Flycut https://github.com/TermiT/Flycut where you can use a shortut to view & toggle through the latest clips (since that's usually my use-case). Any ideas? Click.to http://www.clicktoapp.com/ http://www.clicktoapp.com/ is also super useful (I use it mostly for looking up German translations & wikipedia stuff)
rusinov 8y ago
Keyboard Maestro (https://www.keyboardmaestro.com/main/ https://www.keyboardmaestro.com/main/) lets you automate tedious tasks on a Mac
sir_terenced 8y ago
OSX: - Alfred https://www.alfredapp.com/ https://www.alfredapp.com/ - BetterTouchTool https://folivora.ai/ https://folivora.ai/ - Chunkwm https://github.com/koekeishiya/chunkwm https://github.com/koekeishiya/chunkwm - 1Password https://1password.com/ https://1password.com/ - Bartender https://www.macbartender.com/ https://www.macbartender.com/ - Clipy https://github.com/Clipy/Clipy https://github.com/Clipy/Clipy - Karabiner-Elements https://github.com/tekezo/Karabiner-Elements https://github.com/tekezo/Karabiner-Elements
WaltPurvis 8y ago
MacOS utilities I rely on: -- Typinator - text expander / autocorrector - https://www.ergonis.com/products/typinator/ https://www.ergonis.com/products/typinator/ -- Keyboard Maestro - indispensable macro program - https://www.keyboardmaestro.com/main/ https://www.keyboardmaestro.com/main/ -- PopClip - use this 50 times a day - https://pilotmoon.com/popclip/ https://pilotmoon.com/popclip/ -- HazeOver – dims inactive windows/monitors – https://hazeover.com/ https://hazeover.com/ -- Paste – clipboard manager - https://pasteapp.me/ https://pasteapp.me/ -- ScreenFloat - screenshot app - https://www.screenfloatapp.com/ https://www.screenfloatapp.com/ -- Spectacle - window manager https://www.spectacleapp.com/ https://www.spectacleapp.com/ -- Window Tidy - another window manager (I use them both) - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/window-tidy/id456609775?mt=12 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/window-tidy/id456609775?mt=1... -- Dash - developer docs browser - https://kapeli.com/dash https://kapeli.com/dash -- Cold Turkey - Internet distraction blocker - https://getcoldturkey.com/ https://getcoldturkey.com/ -- Bartender - https://www.macbartender.com/ https://www.macbartender.com/
PascLeRasc 8y ago
ImageOptim is incredible: https://imageoptim.com/mac https://imageoptim.com/mac It does lossless and lossy image compression, removes metadata, the UI is excellent, and it's FOSS. It's effortless to use - just drag in images from any directory and it'll replace them with the optimized versions.
actionowl 8y ago
- LittleSnitch - Unclutter - Magnet
flamtap 8y ago
Bulk Rename Utility (Windows) is something I’ve been using for years to rename my music and video libraries in a uniform way. I usually just use it to rename seasons and episodes of shows incrementally, but it's capable of a lot more advanced rules. It works well, does everything I ask of it, and it’s just totally free of bloat. Hasn’t changed in years in fact. Just does what it says on the tin. Renames your files in bulk. https://www.bulkrenameutility.co.uk/Main_Intro.php https://www.bulkrenameutility.co.uk/Main_Intro.php
jocoda 8y ago
TotalCommander - (https://www.ghisler.com/ https://www.ghisler.com/) the only way to drive on Windows MidniteCommander (apt-get install mc) not as good as totalcommander but still way better than simple bash/whatever commands
- nbutyllithium 8y ago
  I had never used a side-by-side window manager before but, after seeing a coworker using TotalCommander, I stumbled across Double Commander (https://doublecmd.sourceforge.io/ https://doublecmd.sourceforge.io/). It's open source, cross platform, and "is inspired by Total Commander and features some new ideas." While I cannot comment on how it stacks up to Total Commander, I've ended up liking it quite a bit.
binaryman2 8y ago
Directory Report - Find hidden disk hogs on Windows: http://www.file-utilities.com http://www.file-utilities.com