Windows 11 All-in-One For Dummies

Chapter 6

Discovering the Best Free Windows Add-Ons

IN THIS CHAPTER

Finding out which Windows apps you must have

Getting the lowdown on the best of free apps

Figuring out what software you don’t need

Much as I like Windows 11, it has a few glaring holes that can be fixed only by non-Microsoft software. For example, playing video files with the Movies & TV app works well, but it doesn’t hold a candle to VLC Media Player. That’s why, in this chapter, I step you through two different kinds of software. First come the (few) programs you need to fix holes in Windows. Second is a much larger group of programs that just make Windows work better. Both collections have one thing in common: They’re free for personal use.

At the end of this chapter, I turn to one of my favorite topics: Software that you don’t need and should never pay one cent to acquire. Lots of snake oil salespeople are out there. This chapter tells you why they’re just blowing smoke.

Windows Apps You Absolutely Must Have

Depending on what kind of Windows 11 machine you have, there’s a short and sweet list of free software you need.

VLC Media Player

Although Microsoft made a few minor improvements to its media handling ...