The 10 Best Portable Apps

If you find yourself working on a lot of public or shared computers, then Portable Apps should be your best friend when it comes to productivity. These programs are designed to run from a USB memory stick, Portable Hard Drive, or even an iPod, allowing you to take your files and settings from one computer to the next. Best of all, they are all open source, and free of charge. Here are the10 Best Portable Apps to load on your Memory Stick right now.

1. OpenOffice.org -This app is actually five programs bundled together, including a Word Processor, Presentation Tool, Drawing Program, and Database...all of them are compatible with Microsoft Office, making this indispensable to get work done on the go.

2. Mozilla Thunderbird -This popular email client allows you to manage correspondence from several e-mail accounts. It doesn't leave any personal information on the host computer, plus you can install add-ons for more security.

3. Mozilla Sunbird -A great Calendar with Task Management capability. Make a schedule, and create a to-do list that you can update on any computer.

4. Sumatra PDF -This portable PDF viewer will always come in handy, since you know you'll end up with a PDF file to read.

5. Frets on Fire-If you like Guitar Hero, then you'll dig this portable clone. It comes with 3 songs, with many more available for download online.

6. Sudoku Portable -Another great time waster, the popular puzzle game that's known to be very addictive.

7. Skype - A portable version of Skype, it includes IM, Video Phone, Standard Phone Calls, and Audio Conferencing.

8. VLC Media Player- A must have if you like to play movies on the PC. Plays just about any video format, so you never get caught without your entertainment.

9. GIMP-Great Photo and Image Editor. Easy to learn, and very powerful, so sooner or later, you'll be glad you have it.

10. 7-Zip-File archiver and compressor, great for opening compressed files downloaded from the internet.

Of course there are a lot more Portable Apps out there, one for just about any type of task you can imagine. A great place to start exploring is Portableapps.com, where you will find all of the programs listed here, plus many more. They also have a suite that includes some great starter apps, along with a Start Menu that launches programs similar to the Start Menu in Windows.