I just did a clean install of my new XPS M1530 laptop.  Here is my current list of must-have software that I install on Day One.  Have other suggestions?  Leave a comment.

  • Windows Vista Business
  • Drivers (of course) - it would be nice if Dell provided a simple "install all" option on the driver disc
  • Mozilla Firefox (my web browser of choice)
  • Microsoft Office 2007 Ultimate
  • Visual Studio 2005 Team Suite
  • Visual Studio 2008 Team Suite
  • SQL Server 2005 Management Studio and Books Online
  • Launchy - keystroke launcher reminiscent of Quicksilver (version 2 is excellent)
  • Live Messenger
  • Live Writer - the best blogging client I’ve ever used
  • Adobe Reader
  • Adobe Flash Player
  • Zune software - the best podcast catcher (and the over-the-air sync with my Zune devices is brilliant)
  • PureText - pastes clipboard contents as unformatted text
  • ClipX - clipboard history manager
  • SharpKeys - so I can remap keys, which I inevitably do with any laptop keyboard (on the XPS I have the context menu key mapped to Right Ctrl and the Right Ctrl key mapped to Right Windows)
  • Vista Battery Saver - automatically switches features off when you unplug power from your laptop
  • Adobe Creative Suite 2 (CS2)
  • Yahoo! Music Jukebox - for listening to music from Yahoo! Unlimited
  • Microsoft Expression Web
  • Microsoft Expression Design
  • Skype
  • Google Talk
  • Plaxo Toolbar for Outlook - keeps contacts and calendar synced
  • MozyHome backup client

I then head over to the Devcasting episode on Firefox extensions where I grab the links for most of my must-have Firefox add-ons:

  • Firebug
  • Foxmarks Bookmark Synchronizer
  • IE View
  • Web Developer
  • MeasureIt
  • ColorZilla
  • FireFTP

I also install the Alexa Sparky and Live PageRank add-ons for Firefox.  Within a few weeks I install Audible Manager, Audacity, and the ASPX Edit Helper.

That’s my list.  What do you install when you repave your computer?