Smart free tools make Windows better

Do you know Desk Drive? Or Osrik? Probably not – because we have collected largely unknown free pearls that improve Windows.

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These tools make Windows better, some even faster.
© (c) iStockphoto.com / asbe
Windows 7 and Windows 8 were successful operating systems. Compared to the slow Vista or its crash-prone predecessors, there is not much that can be improved on Microsoft Windows. But the current MS Windows 10 operating system is far from perfect either. We have therefore collected helpful free programs that turn the right screws and make Windows a bit better. We have deliberately avoided using known tools that are probably already doing their job on your hard drive anyway. Bet you don’t even know half of these programs?

Desk Drive
If you connect an external storage medium to your PC, you have to start Windows Explorer in order to access the content – the freeware shortens this route by creating a suitable icon on the desktop.
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Windows 7, which is still widespread, is quick to boot, but there is still more to it that can be teased out. A clever way to speed up Windows startup is Osrik. The free tool lets you postpone the start of selected programs. Windows should – the makers promise – thanks to this technology, it should be ready for use up to 45% faster.
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But our gallery doesn’t just offer auto-start accelerators. With the SystemRescueCd rescue CD, you can take precautions if Windows does not start. The disc will rescue important data from the hard drive and then try to repair Windows. Because it is better to be safe than sorry, you should always have such a rescue disc in your drawer. And the look is also taken care of in the gallery: for example, you can swap the background image when you log in to Windows. Who has wanted to see the same picture while booting for years?