Kagerjays Favorite Software List

Kagerjay11 appsUpdated Nov 26, 2017

This is a list of all my favorite applications that I have used and thoroughly tested, in as many workflow / methods I could possibly imagine. The list below meets the following criteria:

App has wide support and future development
App is easy to learn and is portable
App stack is beneficial to everyone, regardless of what field you work in

I've avoided some relatively common apps like Chrome, Firefox, etc. I've also avoided putting things like programming IDE's, since different editors are specialized for different languages.

The major focus of this appstack is for quick image editing capabilities, notetaking, automating repetitive tasks, etc. Applications include project management, students who want to take better notes, developers looking for a code snippet manager and tools to supplement it, among other things.

This is a windows-only OS based list, some apps only work in windows

Autohotkey is windows OS only, Applescript is MacOS equivalent. Linux has nothing
ShareX
DirectoryOpus

Airtable
Like
Highly customizable, user-friendly tool for creating relational databases that you can edit like a spreadsheet. Organize anything, with grids, forms, views, filters and grouping, calendars, Kanban, templates, collaboration, and integrations.
Cost / License
Freemium
Proprietary
Application typeApplication types
Team Collaboration Tool
Project Management Tool
Platforms
Mac
Windows
Online
Android
iPhone
Android Tablet
iPad
+7
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
A hybrid between Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, and Google spreadsheets. Anytime you find yourself using excel, use this program instead.
Anki
Like
Anki is a program that makes remembering things easy. Because it is a lot more efficient than traditional study methods, you can either greatly decrease your time spent studying or greatly increase the amount you learn.
Cost / License
Free
Open Source
Application typeApplication types
Flashcard Learning Tool
Language Learning Tool
Platforms
Mac
Windows
Linux
Android
iPhone
BSD
iPad
+14
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
Anki is a flashcard app based on a learning algorithm. I use this everyday. Pairs well with ShareX since I can annotate an image and dump it into anki.

Applications that I use it for

Practicing interview questions

Memorizing things that require an extensive amount of memorization (CSS rules and syntax)

Lessons learned as I develop

Learning new language vocab
AutoHotkey
Like
An open-source Windows scripting language enabling task automation through hotkeys, macros, and keystrokes, useful for creating custom forms and automating data entry.
Cost / License
Free
Open Source
Application typeApplication types
Task Automation App
Text Expander
Platforms
Windows
+1
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
Whatever phrase-express can't natively handle, I generally use autohotkey instead. Its not for the lighthearted, the syntax is ugly, and its hard to semantically understand. But if you want to automate XYZ, the answer is yes, autohotkey can do it but it might not be easy.
PhraseExpress
Like
Autotext expander organizes reusable texts in folders, inserts phrases by shortcut or abbreviation, syncs across devices, supports macros, and offers clipboard memory.
Cost / License
Free Personal
Proprietary
Application typeApplication types
Text Expander
Clipboard Manager
Platforms
Mac
Windows
iPhone
iPad
+12
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
PhraseExpress is a cross-OS platform software for automating repetitive tasks. Its a swiss-army-knife for handling many repetitive tasks
Clipping Magic
Like
Easily remove the background from your photos to create masks, cutouts, or clipping paths, all done instantly online with ClippingMagic.com
Cost / License
Paid
Proprietary
Application type
Image Editor
Platforms
Online
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
A paid service but is extremely useful when it comes to cropping out backgrounds on images. You could opt to use fiverr but I find I get very nice quality crops here. Not free program
Microsoft OneNote
Like
Microsoft OneNote, part of the Microsoft 365 Copilot, is a digital notebook application that gives people one place to gather notes and information. It also offers shared notebooks, syncing between multiple computers and devices via Windows...
Cost / License
Freemium
Proprietary
Application typeApplication types
Note-taking Tool
Todo List Manager
Platforms
Mac
Windows
Online
Android
iPhone
Chrome OS
Windows Phone
iPad
Apple Watch
Android Wear
Kindle Fire
+4
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
I currently only use this to get access to the native WIN+S shortcut screenclipping command. It pairs up extremely well when you use this with a program like shareX
Marq
Like
Marq, formerly Lucidpress, is a brand-templating platform that empowers everyone to build on-brand.
Cost / License
Freemium
Proprietary
Application type
Document Publishing Tool
Platforms
Online
Software as a Service (SaaS)
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
I use lucidpress as a quickl layout tool. The closest thing to this is Adobe Indesign, which I use professionally as well. Pairs well with ShareX.

I use this to make my own cheatsheets for webdevelopment. For work I use it for lightweight brochure flyers / marketing
Imagus
Like
Adds hover zoom for image enlargement, a customizable viewer, rule-based image detection, and a gallery to organize, bookmark, and manage images.
Cost / License
Free
Proprietary
Application type
Image Viewer
Platforms
Google Chrome
Mozilla Firefox
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
This chrome extension is very useful when you pair it up with dynalist + shareX for writing notes. You can have small thumbnailed images and use imagus to "zoom in" images by hovering over mouse.
Directory Opus
Like
Explorer replacement offering dual-pane navigation, folder tabs, advanced search, built-in viewers, metadata editing, archive support, and batch tools.
Cost / License
Paid
Proprietary
Application typeApplication types
File Manager
File Search Utility
Platforms
Windows
+1
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
Directory Opus is easily one of the best windows-based apps you can buy. Its not free, it costs about $100 USD for 2 liscenses. But its well worth it.

Everything about this software speaks professionalism. Youtube tutorials are topnotch. Forum and the creators of this software respond immediately to any questions you might have.

The reason why directoryOpus is better than all other file explorers in its class is as follows:

Ability to have floating shortcut icons

Image/Data preview for thumbnails, excel files, mp4, etc.
Dynalist
Like
Dynalist is a web app that lets you break down and organize your thoughts in the format of lists.
Cost / License
Freemium
Proprietary
Application typeApplication types
Note-taking Tool
Todo List Manager
Platforms
Mac
Windows
Linux
Online
Android
iPhone
iPad
+7
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
This is my main notetaking application. It is superior to any other notetaking app in the market in my opinion. I have written several blog posts regarding this topic
ShareX
Like
Free and open-source tool for screen capture and recording; enables file uploads, annotation, dark mode, 4K support, and customizable themes.
Cost / License
Free
Open Source
Application typeApplication types
Screenshot Capture Tool
Screen Recorder
Platforms
Windows
PortableApps.com
Steam
+29
Ka
Kagerjay’s note
Don't use version 11.6+, the image editor as of 11/26/2017 is not any good. Compared to apps like snagit, nimbus note, etc this app is extremely lightweight and gets the job done with as little fuss as possible, works nicely with all other apps in this list