I’m often asked for software recommendations. In maintaining homebrew-cask I’m in frequent contact with new apps, but that does not mean I use them. Yet, some I decide to save for later as they look like they would make fine recommendations. This is where I save them to.
Suggestions is the main interest point. I haven’t used the majority of software on that list; they’re recommended on the basis of their perceived usefulness or third-party praise. They’re all free to use, as most people I know don’t pay for apps.
An alternatives list is also included. You’ll know an app has an alternative by the asterisk next to its name. Unlike with the suggestions list, the alternatives are all software I currently use or used heavily in the past. They’re considered alternatives because they’re either paid or too advanced for most users (command-line apps, for example).
- Airpass: overcome time constrained WiFi networks. (macOS)
- Caption: subtitle downloader. (macOS / Windows / Linux)
- Dashlane*: password manager. (macOS / Windows)
- Deadbolt: file encryption and decryption. (macOS / Windows / Linux)
- Dozer*: hide menu bar icons. (macOS)
- Etcher: burn disc images to SD cards and USB drives. (macOS / Windows / Linux)
- Gaze: watch videos with another person over the web. (Website)
- Gifski (GUI)*: convert videos to gifs. (macOS)
- Hidden Bar*: hide menu bar icons. (macOS)
- IINA*: media player. (macOS)
- Kap*: screen recorder. (macOS)
- macOS storage manager: disk space visualiser. (macOS) (native)
- Maccy: clipboard manager. (macOS)
- QuickTime Player: screen recorder. (macOS) (native)
- Open Access Button: find legal, open, and free alternative sources to paywalled research papers. (Extension for Chrome)
- Soda Player*: media player with support for bittorrent playback and downloading subtitles. (macOS / Windows)
- Space Radar: disk space visualiser. (macOS / Windows)
- Unpaywall: find legal, open, and free alternative sources to paywalled research papers. (Extension for Chrome / Firefox)
- Vanilla*: hide menu bar icons. (macOS)
- ViDL*: download video from various websites. (macOS)
- VOX: music player. (macOS)
- Whereby: video chat in the browser without plugins or accounts. (Website)
- 1Password: alternative to Dashlane. (macOS / Windows) (paid)
- Bartender: alternative to Dozer and Vanilla. (macos) (paid)
- gifski (CLI): alternative to Gifski (GUI) (macOS / Windows / Linux)
- mpv: alternative to IINA and Soda Player. (macOS / Windows / Linux)
- ScreenFlow: alternative to Kap. (macOS) (paid)
- yt-dlp: alternative to Sacar Musak and ViDL. (macOS / Windows / Linux)