Whether you’re an occasional browser or a constant streamer, there is a multitude of tools that can enhance your computer-using experience. Whether you want to be able to access everything you’ve copied to your clipboard for the past hour or create an actionable list of tasks to organize your life, and whether you’re looking to streamline work processes or improve family communication, the tools below are designed to help.

1. Screen Recording Tool

Whether you’re contacting support to troubleshoot software problems, or you want to send something funny to a friend, recording clips is much better than taking a static screenshot in a lot of cases.

Loom doesn’t have the best mobile apps but it is quick and its somewhat limited feature set works in its favor because it isn’t overly complicated. There is a limit to how many clips you can store on Loom, but you can download the videos and store them elsewhere once you hit the limit.

2. Antivirus

Our computers act as portals to every element of our lives. We use them to communicate with work, update friends and family, keep our cherished photos, and even for daily banking. Unfortunately, that means they store a lot of personal and private information.

If you need antivirus software, choose one that protects you from all types of malicious software, is compatible with your devices, and offers real-time protection as well as regular system scanning features. According to tech expert Krishi Choudhary, TotalAV is great for beginners and advanced users and even has a free smart scan feature. Choudhary further explains that antivirus software can protect a computer against malware, spyware, and ransomware. This makes antivirus one of the most important tools for your computer because it keeps your computer and your data safe. 

3. Note Taking

Windows has Notepad. Mac has TextEdit. They are functional, but very basic, note-taking applications. You can essentially write a few lines of notes and save them. In some cases, you can even pin the notes, but that’s about as far as the functionality goes.

As a standalone note-taking tool, Google Keep is OK but it isn’t an upgrade over the native tools offered by operating systems. Where it comes alive is in its integration with Google’s massive and continuously growing suite of tools. Open Gmail and Keep will pop up with notes you’ve taken. Similarly, it pops up in the sidebar of Calendar, Docs, and almost every other Google app.

4. Calendar

Calendar apps do more than just show you the date and time. They can be used to set reminders, sync with other apps to update with meetings, and they can integrate with other tools. If you find yourself turning up to hairdresser appointments a day early or missing work submissions because you got the deadline wrong, you need a good calendar app.

Which calendar app is best for you will depend on what other software or platforms you use, and especially which email package you use. Microsoft users are best with the Microsoft Outlook Calendar while Google users are better off with Google Calendar. Apple Calendar is the best alternative for Mac and iPhone users.

5. Email Software

It’s 20 years since Google introduced Gmail which changed the way many people email forever. It offered more storage than other webmail applications and the kind of functionality we had come to expect from Microsoft Outlook’s desktop program but with better search features. Today, though, some power emailers are turning back to desktop software.

Microsoft Outlook is still a great tool, combining the features of a desktop email program with a calendar, task list, and more. But, for some, that’s too much, and it means leaning heavily into Microsoft applications. Spark is email software designed to optimize your email experience. It has features like snooze, customizable shortcuts, and offline caching, but it doesn’t muddy the waters with additional and often unnecessary features and tools.

6. Task List

Whether you work from home or you have as many browser tabs open as ongoing projects around the house, task list software is really beneficial. It allows you to list everything you need to do, even breaking down larger projects into smaller jobs, and it replaces scrawled notes on scraps of paper.

Todoist is compatible with just about every platform you might want to use, which is important. It means you can add to your list on your iPhone and have it updated on your computer and even your Mac. It incorporates natural language processing, too, so add a task like “work meeting Wednesday” and it will add a to-do item on Wednesday titled “work meeting”. There are simple options available, but Todoist is easy enough to get to grips with and offers more than the most basic apps.

7. Messaging

Gmail might have changed the way we email, but it was arguably MSN Messenger that started the whole digital messaging phenomenon. Launched in 1999, the Microsoft app enabled cross-platform messaging and it would, later, even integrate with Yahoo and Facebook Messenger. It was later replaced by Windows Live Messenger, but it has lost its edge and is by no means as popular as its forerunner was.

Today, there are a lot of messaging options available, from Facebook Messenger to WhatsApp, both of which are popular with casual and regular message senders. Discord has become very popular with gamers, streamers, and other users, thanks to its communities, as well as its voice chat and mobile accessibility features.

8. Video Meeting

Video meetings aren’t as popular today as they were in 2020, but a lot of people still benefit from a hybrid working model, working from home or coworking spaces. This necessitates improved communication between remote and disparate workers. Video meetings are more personal, and they enable the reading of body language and emotions, compared to voice-only meetings.

It was Zoom that made its name in 2020 and it remains popular today, but Google has upped its game with Google Meet, while Microsoft Teams has also seen big improvements. Zoho Meeting and Slack are other options, and the video conferencing app you choose is likely to be determined by what other team members and businesses require.

9. Advanced Clipboard

Typically, when you copy text or other content, it stores that information on your clipboard. When you copy something else, it overwrites the last piece of copied data, meaning you can only ever paste the last thing you copied. But it isn’t always the last few lines of text you copied that you need access to. You might have stored a crypto gambling wallet address in the morning before copying lines of a work email in the afternoon. With standard copy and paste, the wallet address is gone and you’ll have to go back and copy it again. With an advanced clipboard, you can still access that wallet address later.

The advanced clipboard software you choose depends on the device you’re trying to copy from. Clipper is great for Android devices, including Chromebooks. Maccy works well on Macs, and Clipboard Master allows much greater clipboard functionality in Windows.

Conclusion

There are tons of tools that can enhance your computer-using experience. While many are specific to the kind of work you do or the activities you partake in most often, some should be installed on every computer you use, or that are great for general computer use. These underrated tools improve the overall experience, reduce stress, and can even turn you into a power user.