Ultimate Free Stuff Compendium
What is this?
The Ultimate Free Stuff Compendium (UFSC) is a compilation of products (primarily software) that are available for free. It will be updated as new products are discovered by me or submitted at the source code repo. Open source/source available products are preferred.
Key
- Open source. The source code is readily available or distributed with the product, and modification and redistribution is allowed.
- Source available. The source code is readily available or distributed with the product, but does not allow modification or redistribution.
- Closed source. The source code is not available.
- Contains features locked behind in-app payments, or subscriptions which add extra features or extend existing ones. Does not include software which is free for personal use but requires a license for commercial use.
Games
Sonic Robo Blast 2
— a free 3D Sonic the Hedgehog fangame built on the Doom engine. Features a lively 25+ year old community and robust modding support.
Homepage
Source code
Cave Story
— iconic 2D side-scrolling platformer. Kept alive by a dedicated community.
Homepage
Cave Story Multiplayer
— online multiplayer version of the above game.
Homepage
TETR.IO
— a modern yet familiar Tetris-esque online stacker game.
Homepage
Productivity software
LibreOffice
— free suite of office programs, including Writer, Calc, Base, and Impress. Good as an alternative to Microsoft 365 (AKA Microsoft Office).
Homepage
Source code
Obsidian
— Markdown-based note recording app. Connections between notes are visualised in a spider diagram. Entirely offline, notes are saved locally!
Homepage
Image manipulation
Paint.NET
— Windows 10/11 exclusive image editor program (I use it!).
Homepage
Microsoft Store
GNU Image Manipulation Program or GIMP
— robust image editor suitable for a range of activities. Can be extended through plugins.
Homepage
Source code
Art and animation
Krita
— FOSS digital art and 2D animation program. Sports a highly customisable GUI and advanced features such as colour profile management and plugins.
Homepage
Source code
Aseprite
— Industry standard pixel art and animation tool.
Homepage
Source code
Piskell
— web-based pixel art editor that can be downloaded and ran offline. Designed for animation.
Homepage
Source code
Blender
— 3D creation software. Covers the entire pipeline: modelling, rigging, animating, physics simulation, etc.
Homepage
Source code (mirror)
Motion Canvas
— TypeScript-based vector animation tool, allowing for animations to be programmed and previewed in an editor.
Homepage
Source code
DAWs
OpenMPT
— music tracker software for creating music in .MOD and related formats.
Homepage
Source code
Furnace
— another music tracker software with support for over 50 sound chips and counting.
Source code
LMMS
— FOSS sequencer and composition tool.
Homepage
Source code
Media viewers & processors/Audio players
VLC
— video and audio player with support for a wide range of formats including online radios, digital camcorder, and teletext.
Homepage
Source code
foobar2000
— plays music.
Homepage
LosslessCut
— fast GUI video and audio editor based on FFmpeg.
Source code
HandBrake
— convert videos to and from a wide range of codecs.
Homepage
Source code
Power user utilities
Microsoft PowerToys
— free collection of plugins to enhance the Windows 10/11 experience. Targeted towards power users.
Documentation
Source code
youtube-dl
— command line program for downloading videos from YouTube and a ton of other sites. Notably survived an attempted takedown from the Recording Industry Association of America.
Homepage
Source code
NirSoft
— a free software compendium in its own right. All developed by one man.
Homepage
Bulk Crap Uninstaller
— fully automate the process of uninstalling programs en masse. Minimises required user input.
Homepage
Source code
Miscellaneous
Notepad++
— lightweight text and code editor. Can be considered a more feature-complete version of Windows' Notepad. Has a portable version.
Homepage
Source code
Visual Studio Code
— IDE from Microsoft. Supports many languages.
Homepage
Source code
OBS Studio
— app for recording and streaming your screen. Widely used by many streamers.
Homepage
Source code
OpenStax
— collection of free textbooks and learning resources.
Homepage
Neocities
— free personal website host, reminiscent of Geocities.
Homepage
Source code