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Last Updated on July 26, 2019

Sometimes you just need to take your apps on the go. Whether you’re providing support or just trying to make a strange computer feel more familiar, having a collection of portable applications is very useful. From development to security, these apps are some of the best tools you’ll ever keep in your pocket. Development Edit code wherever you are with these handy tools.

Vim: The Vim text editor has lots of features that are great for source code editing, like file comparison, regular expressions, and GUI mode. It’s also highly portable, working with even obscure platforms. Dev-C++: This integrated development environment is much like Microsoft Visual Studio, except that it has DevPaks that offer additional utilities, libraries, and templates. Server2Go: With Server2Go, you’ll have access to PHP, MySQL, Apache, and Perl. Notepad++: Notepad++ is a free source code editor that offers an efficient binary as well as a customizable GUI.

Graphics Edit graphics, create animations, and view images on the go with these pocket graphics apps.

Anim8or: Anim8tor, though small in size, is packed with loads of features and tools. It also has plenty of easy tutorials for modeling and animation. IrfanView: Using this image viewer for Windows, you can view, edit, and convert image files, as well as play some video and audio formats. It even supports formats like Flash, MP3, and MPEG. ArtRage: ArtRage, a bitmap graphics editor, is great for use on tablet PCs. Available mediums on ArtRage include oil painting, pencils, and tools that offer textures and other special effects. Inkscape: Inkscape is a vector graphics editor application that runs on nearly any operating system, making it a great tool for using on unfamiliar computers. FastStone Image Viewer: Use FastStone to view images, manage thumbnails, and perform various image editing tasks. Blender: This 3D animation program can be used for a number of different uses, including modeling, rendering, and animating. GIMP: The GNU Image Manipulation Program is used to process digital graphics and photographs, and even create basic GIF images. UnFREEz: Coming in at a tiny 19.5 kb, UnFREEz just might be one of the smallest apps ever. Using this tiny GIF app, you can combine a series of images to create an animation.

Documents Have your office with you wherever you go with these portable document applications.

Open Office: This office suite works on a number of different operating systems, and offers document functionality in word processing, spreadsheet, presentation, database, and more. Foxit Reader: Take this small, fast PDF viewer with you wherever you go to avoid having to use Adobe Acrobat. NoteTab: This text editor offers the option of a tabbed document interface, making it easy to manage multiple documents at once. Scribus: The Scribus desktop publishing program offers layout and typesetting as well as the ability to create PDF forms with animations and interactive functions. RagTime: Using RagTime, you can create documents in spreadsheets, word processing, HTML, and even AutoCad files. TextPad: The TextPad app offers easy text creation and editing, as well as helpful features like a clip library.

Internet Get the Internet the way you want it with these portable browsers, chat programs, and email applications.

Firefox Portable: Take your Firefox, with all of its bookmarks, plugins, and extensions anywhere using Firefox Portable. ChatZilla: Get this IRC client, and you can chat on any platform that has a Mozilla web browser, like the aforementioned Firefox Portable. Google Talk: You can use this application for VoIP and instant messaging on nearly any Windows machine. Portable Thunderbird: Using this portable email app, you can keep your email, address book and settings right in your pocket. PuTTY: This little gem is a terminal emulator that can act as a client for a variety of protocols, like SSH and Telnet. Pidgin: Use Pidgin, a multi-platform IM client, to enjoy encrypted IM discussions. XeroBank Browser: This internet browser has Tor access built in, so you can stay anonymous. Adium: This Mac OS X instant messaging client can be used with AIM, Google Talk, ICQ, Jabber, and many more messaging services. FileZilla: Use FileZilla, a very popular cross-platform FTP client, to share and remotely access files. Trillian Anywhere: Take Trillian, a multiprotocol IM application, anywhere using this app. Portable Bookmarks: Keep all of your bookmarks on your flash drive with Portable Bookmarks. uTorrent: With uTottent, you can buse BitTorrent while using minimal computer resources. Gaviri PocketSearch: This file management software makes it easy to locate files across all of your devices. Miniaim: Get around instant messaging restrictions with this minimalist AIM client.

Multimedia Get mobile media functionality with these awesome tools.

Audiograbber: Extract audio from CDs and convert into a number of different formats like WAV, MP3, and WMA. DeepBurner: Take this CD/DVD authoring program on the go to burn discs and ISO images. VideoLAN: This software plays video and other media formats on the go. REAPER: This digital audio workstation uses very light resources and can currently be used on Windows, with Mac OS X soon to come. MediaCoder: Use MediaCoder to batch transcode, compress, or convert audio and video. StationRipper: With StationRipper, you can record audio from podcasts, Shoutcast, Last.fm stations and more, all with iTunes integration. Audacity: Edit digital audio on the go and on a number of different platforms with Audacity. Winamp: Use this popular, skinnable media player for music and more on the go.

Security Ensure a secure workspace, or just help Grandma get spyware off of her computer using these portable security apps.

KeePass: Carry your password safe around with you, and rest assured that your information is encrypted. Ad-Aware: Take this popular adware zapper on the go to find trouble on any computer you might be using. ClamWin: Use ClamWin to scan for viruses on a Windows machine with the Clam AntiVirus engine. Eraser: Make sure you’re safely deleting files when you leave a strange computer by using Eraser. RoboForm: This program won’t just manage your passwords, it will also fill in web forms for you. HijackThis: Find and destroy malware with this freeware spyware-removal tool.

More Get even more use on the go with the USB apps.