• 7zip | File archiver
Many programs and general downloads come in the .7z format, you will need 7zip to extract and use them
• Any web browser
uBlock Origin is also recommended as a browser extension.

uBlock Origin | Adblock | My config file
Additional uBlock Origin filters (uBlock Origin settings > My filters list > copy and paste selection)


Hide Shorts on YouTube filters

---
! Hide shorts button in sidebar
www.youtube.com##ytd-guide-entry-renderer:has(yt-formatted-string:has-text(/^Shorts$/i))

! Hide shorts section on homepage
www.youtube.com##ytd-rich-section-renderer:has(#title:has-text(/(^| )Shorts( |$)/i))
www.youtube.com##ytd-reel-shelf-renderer:has(.ytd-reel-shelf-renderer:has-text(/(^| )Shorts( |$)/i))

! Hide short remixes in video descriptions
www.youtube.com##ytd-reel-shelf-renderer.ytd-structured-description-content-renderer:has-text(/^Shorts remixing this video$/i)

! Hide shorts category on homepage and search pages
www.youtube.com##yt-chip-cloud-chip-renderer:has(yt-formatted-string:has-text(/^Shorts$/i))

! Revert YouTube new layout
www.youtube.com##ytd-rich-grid-renderer, html:style(--ytd-rich-grid-items-per-row: 4 !important;)
---
SponsorBlock | Skips sponsorships on YouTube | My config
• IrfanView + plugins | Image viewer
• mpv + config (along with yt-dlp and ffmpeg) | Video player
A config is used to change the UI and add features, linked is my own config I maintain
• Video codecs | You might need to install these to view/play certain files
• Dark mode mouse cursors | Cool

General
• Steam | Games storefront
• Discord + Vencord | Social | My config
• ShareX | Screenshotting tool | My config
• Twinkle Tray | Control brightness (and volume) of connected monitors
• WizTree | Disk Space Analyser

Programming
• Visual Studio Code | Code editor
• Git | Version control system
• Python | Python programming language
• Eclipse Temurin | Java programming language
• NVM For Windows | node.js version management utility

Tools
• VirtualBox | Virtual machine
• DaVinci Resolve | Video editor
• qBittorrent | P2P torrent client
• Blender | 3D graphics software

Minecraft
• PrismLauncher | Minecraft launcher
See https://kinoposts.web.app/mksocserver/ for more Minecraft info

Emulation
The process of configuring and picking settings will be different on each system and based on preference, which is why I haven't provided config files here, be sure to check the respective wikis of each emulator when configuring them.
• Parallel Launcher | N64 Emulator
• pcsx2 | PS2 Emulator
• Dolphin | Gamecube/Wii Emulator

Additionally, on new installs I use the Chris Titus Optimiser to clean some Windows stuff.
It can be run in an administrative PowerShell window with this command:

Run this if you need to activate windows/office