Here is the list of some apps that will save you plenty of time on your PC and are Free for personal use. The apps have been tested on Windows XP and should work in Vista and 7.
This utility will allow you to create hard links to files on NTFS Volumes by adding shell extension to windows explorer. By creating hard links you can keep a file in two different folders. The link will behave as if it is an original file. You can create such links for folders, thus creating Windows 7 Library Effect. LSE works on windows XP, Vista and 7. [DOWNLOAD LINK]
Windows’ built in search tool sucks (at least in XP). Desktop Search is fast but takes lot of resources in indexing. But, Everything Search Engine will scan your NTFS partitions without causing any noticeable load on system and will give you results at unimaginable speed. This works on XP, Vista and 7. [DOWNLOAD LINK]
This is a backup utility. SyncToy synchronizes two directories on your system. You can select the direction of synchronization (so that changes made on one side does not effect on another side) or you can have both folders to be mirrors. SyncToy works on XP, Vista and 7. [DOWNLOAD LINK]
QTTabBar adds tabs to windows explorer, like nautilus does. But, it gives you a lot more control over the tabs than nautilus. You can select actions on mouse events and windows behavior. This works on Windows XP and Vista, and has been tested on 32bit systems. [DOWNLOAD LINK]
Linux has a beautiful feature: it puts link to all the mounted media (removable drives, CD and DVD) on the desktop. If you want the feature in Windows then install Desktop Media and you have it. Works on all versions of Windows. [DOWNLOAD LINK]
If you work a lot with Photoshop, then you should create multiple backup copies (one at each stage of revision) of the file you are working on, so that if something goes wrong or you don’t like the final effect you can go back to some revision. But, it is very difficult to compare all the files by opening them individually. Compare PSD will compare two PSD files layer by layer for text, filters, transforms etc and will tell you where they differ. ComparePSD works on Windows XP and later versions. [DOWNLOAD LINK]
This will scan your System for installed apps and will check with FileHippo for the latest version available. It notifies you whenever a higher version of the software is available. Works on Windows XP and Vista.[DOWNLOAD LINK]
This is it. The list is over.
