Software Utilities: PortableApps Part 1

Written by Marc Roberge | 08 December 2010

For people on the move, one of the more interesting projects to have come about in the last few years is the PortableApps platform for any USB portable device including flash drives, iPod, memory card, portable drive and more. PortableApps is an extremely well designed launchpad for all of your favorite Open Source or Freeware applications that you install directly to your USB drive which allows you to use them on any Windows machine without having to install anything and without leaving any trace of your activities.

There are currently over 50 different free applications for you to add to your pocket arsenal including Firefox, Thunderbird, the entire OpenOffice.org suite, PDF, antivirus, screen capture, audio, video, games and more.  In this first installment, we will learn more about PortableApps as well as how to download, install and configure it. In Part 2, we will look at how to find, download, install and use applications.

I’ve been using PortableApps for about 2 years and can’t imagine life without it. One of the biggest advantages is that I carry Firefox and Thunderbird with me and always have my bookmarks and email handy. Computers at work require administrative rights to install software but PortableApps allows me to run GIMP, Blender 3D, Firefox and other applications I use daily without having to install them. Furthermore, your portable storage device, even with PortableApps installed, remains a portable storage device.

For more information about PortableApps and what it can do, please visit About PortableApps.