Whether you’re adding a new member to the team or are spoiling yourself with a new buy, setting up a new pc can seem a little daunting. There are so many things you need to do in order to get it up and running so that you can carry on with business as usual. Installing new programs/software is one of these things, and it’s hard to know where to start.
Luckily for you, we’ve made a simple checklist, listing the must-have software to get you on your feet, so to speak. Whether you’re setting up your pc yourself or have a Stratus IT expert at your aid, this checklist will give you the peace of mind, knowing that you have it all covered.
14 Essential Programs to Install on Your Brand-New Windows PC:
- Microsoft Office – This suite includes Microsoft Word, Excel, and Power Point. Microsoft 365 have various plans to suit many different needs.
- Adobe Acrobat Reader – You can read files such as PDFs using Acrobat Reader.
- Anti-Virus Software – There are many different Anti-Virus Software options, with most of them having versions for everyone, from free to the full enterprise suite. Our recommendation would be Bitdefender and the commonly ranked top 10 picks from PC Mag.
- Team Viewer – This software allows tech savvy family member or tech experts, such as ourselves, to remotely control your pc to help fix any issues you may be experiencing. Stratus IT SLA clients enjoy custom and secure remote software for our team to assist you setting up your pc or as needed.
- Remote Meeting Software – There are many different virtual meeting programmes available, with the most popular ones being Microsoft Teams and Zoom.
- Image Editor – In order to crop and touch up your images, you’ll need this installed from the get-go. There are lots of options here. So, the one for you will depend on your needs.
- Printer Driver – Every printer has its own driver software that allows it to connect and communicate with your pc to print as intended. If you’re having issues with your printer, for example, odd characters printing, wrong colour combinations, printing blank pages etc., then you probably need to look at your driver software.
- Password Manager – It’s best to get enhanced password protection going from the very start. Programs such as Keeper require a bit of time to setup but are well worth it to keep your information safe.
- Photo Resizer – Programs such as Fast Image Resizer are extremely intuitive, making them easy to use, dragging and dropping the images you want to reduce in size.
- Cleaner Software – This cleans up junk and unused files, freeing up space on your pc. We recommend using CCleaner for a spring clean.
- Internet Browser – Windows has its own Edge Internet Browser built in, but you may be unfamiliar with this and prefer to work with Google or Firefox, for example.
- Cloud Storage – OneDrive is a cloud-storage program (that comes with Windows) that you should be sure to setup and use to prevent data loss. Another common one is Drop Box. So, ask to have this setup if you’ll be using it and aren’t sure how to set it up yourself.
- Media Player – Windows has a built-in video player. However, each media player has its own perks, so make sure you have one that you’re comfortable using. A good complementary media player is VLC.
- Screenshot Tool – If you have a Windows 10 (and later) pc, you can simply use the keyboard shortcut, ‘Shift + Windows Key + S’ and then use your mouse to select the section you want by holding down your click and dragging your cursor across the screen. Alternatively, you can download ‘Snipping Tool’ if this does not work for you.
Have all these programs been installed? You’re now ready to take on the world! And, if you don’t and you’re struggling to set them up yourself, you can always call on us for professional IT assistance. We’ll get you up and running in no time.
