Nothing reduces productivity more than a slow computer.  Not to mention, it is extremely frustrating. 

You buy a new computer or install a fresh version of windows and things are running great.  A couple of weeks and 20 applications later, things are starting to slow down.  Does that sound familiar?

Well, there is a neat solution to this problem - PortableApps.com.  It’s a simple way to access a bunch of really useful tools and applications without installing them.  The best part is that you can keep all the applications and related documents on any USB drive (even your iPod) and use them on any computer.

How I do it?

Since I use multiple machines and don’t want to install the same applications over and over on each machine, I carry around a USB drive that contains a working set of my data and the PortableApps I use most.

I created a folder on my USB drive called PortableApps then I downloaded the PortableApps.com Suite and ran it.  I entered the L:\PortableApps as my "installation" folder.  This doesn’t install anything; all it does is create the PortableApps folder with all the necessary files.  Tip: If you install it to the root folder of your drive then it will auto start when you plug it in.

If you run the StartPortableApps.exe, it adds a taskbar icon which is just a launcher to your portable apps

I use this menu to launch my applications, back them up and change settings.  All the changes I make are saved within the PortableApps folder I specified, so nothing gets written to the registry, start menu or anything else i.e. zero impact on my windows installation.  So, all I have to do to back up my PortableApps is just make a copy the folder.  Tip: I use SyncToy to sync my PortableApps folder on the portable drive back to my computer - this way if I ever forget the portable drive, I will still have my applications.

What you should do?

First of all go ahead and download PortableApps and "install" it to any location you like - ideally a thumb drive.  Run StartPortableApps.exe to run the launcher. 

Try out the applications that come packaged with the initial install and remove the ones you don’t like.  To remove an app, just open up the launcher and click Options > Remove an App.  All this does is take you to the folder where the apps are installed and all you have to do is delete the folder for the application you want to remove.

To install new apps, just download them from www.portableapps.com.  Downloaded applications filenames end paf.exe.  After they are downloaded, click Options > Install a New App in the launcher.  Then browse to the downloaded file and that’s it.  All that happens is a folder gets created for the application under your PortableApps folder.  Nothing gets installed per se, so no start menu entry or registry modification

Here are some applications you should try out:

1. Notepad ++ (link)
2. 7-Zip Portable (link)
3. WinDirStat Portable (link)
4. WinMerge Portable - (link)
5. VLC Media Player - (link)
6. FileZill Portable - (link)
7. Firefox Portable - (link)
8. Miranda IM Portable - (link)
9. Sudoku Portable - (link) WARNING - PRODCUTIVE KILLER
10. WinSCP Portable - (link)

Videos

A very quick tour of PortableApps (~2 minutes)

A quick how-to for PortableApps (7 minutes)

Resources

1. PortableApps - www.portableapps.com
2. Tech Tip 128 - Computing on the Go with PortableApps
3. PortableApps Review
4. What is a portable app?