There are a few utilities out there which can make your life so much easier, you wouldn't contemplate living without them. As someone who works on the web, I'm taking screenshots all the time and SnagIt is the only tool I'd use for this vital element of my job.

In its latest incarnation, SnagIt has added a lot of new features and a jazzed-up interface. While the old familiar 'big red button' remains, much of the UI (particularly in the Editor window) has been completely overhauled. Gone is the XP blue of previous versions, replaced with a Vista-friendly charcoal look which works pretty well.

The program's key features (taking and editing screenshots) remain pretty much unchanged. You still have a huge amount of power of just what type of screenshot you can take, with timers, cursor settings and profiles all still playing a major role. I was pleased to see that my profiles from the last version of SnagIt were kept as it would have been a real nuisance to have to re-program them.

The biggest improvements to this new version are certainly connected to the Editor window. For example: whereas previously, you had to take a capture, work on it, save it and then take your next one; now you can take as many screenshots as you like, using whichever profiles, and work on them all as you wish. This is a huge time-saver and a very welcome addition to the program.

Another feature that has been added is of less obvious use. SnagIt now supports meta-tagging and labeling of captured images. The idea behind this feature is that you start to use SnagIt to categorize your images as well as capture them. I can understand the thinking behind this addition but I'm not sure if it's really much more than feature-creep. I can't see myself changing my workflow to fit with SnagIt, nor do I want to lose the capability of moving image files around at will (if you use Windows Explorer to move tagged images, the tags and labels are lost).

SnagIt 9 represents a big step forward for a great utility. While some of the new functionality may not appeal, the most significant changes are major improvements to what was already a very good piece of software. Strongly recommended.

Download SnagIt 9.0.0.351 in Softonic

Aero Fox is a theme for your Firefox browser which I am sure many of you will like. It adds a black, glossy style to your favourite browser, but apart from the main navigation bar and icons, it doesn’t change the way menus look.

This theme will probably look great with a Vista PC given the colours’ resemblance, but in computers with Windows XP installed, the blue bar at the bottom and at the top will not match at all.

What I also found strange is that when moving the cursor over an icon, instead of becoming brighter, as if you where ‘activating’ it, it becomes very dark, as if in some way you were switching it off – a counter-intuitive behaviour. Furthermore, if you have many bookmarks saved in your toolbar, you will have trouble finding the arrow which brings you to the links that don’t fit in the bar. That said, many users like it and it has become one of the most downloaded themes, so why not give it a try?

Aero Fox brings a black shiny look to your Firefox, and fits perfectly with Vista PC, but not necessarily with Windows XP’s bright blue style.

Download Aero Fox 1.0.5 in Softonic

Mac and Linux users have been used to them for a long time now but Virtual Desktop managers are one of the most convenient ways to organise your workspace.

VirtuaWin is a virtual desktop manager for the Windows which lets you organize applications over several virtual desktops (also called 'workspaces'). You can create up to 20 desktops which you can chop and change to using desktop shortcuts - just hold down the Windows key and use the cursor keys. This application can be taken anywhere on a USB stick so it's useful for those that don't have a laptop or don't have enough disk space to install the original program. Unfortunately, it seems that this portable version has a few bugs, most annoying of which is the gaps that sometimes appear in the taskbar when you change desktops. The developers say this is caused by a bug in the 'Group similar taskbar buttons' feature of the Windows taskbar which cannot always correctly handle the large number of window state changes that occur during desktop change. However, it can be remedied by disabling the taskbar option although this is quite a drastic measure to take to ensure this program works properly.

A useful way to organise your Windows and desktop but this portable version is still prone to bugs.

Download VirtuaWin Portable 4.0.1 in Softonic

If you’ve had enough bad experiences upgrading your Microsoft products, you’re too poor to upgrade to Vista or you just refuse on principle, you can always customise Windows XP to make it look like Vista. The Windows Vista customisation pack gives you all the flashy features of Vista without having to shell-out a few hundred dollars for the original. It’s certainly proved a hit with Softonic users so far who have made this pack one of the site’s most popular downloads.

The pack includes a booty of Vista features including transparency of the windows, 3D Vista style icons, mouse cursors, boot screen, login screen, and a whole host of Vista themes to name a few. After installing the pack, you’ll be asked to restart, when you’ll find that your system has been through an impressive transformation although the fact that Windows Vista isn’t actually that radically different from XP, shouldn’t be held against this pack.

Amongst the major differences you will notice are some jazzy changes to your systems icons, skins and toolbars as well as new enhancements to your desktop such as a dock bar or if you prefer, a totally different system tray clock. Transfer file progress dialogs are transformed with swanky new 3D graphics and the sounds scheme has been beefed up to blow you out of your chair. Microsoft certainly spent lots of time designing these features. It was recently reported that they spent a year and a half just coming up with the start-up music alone.

Other changes include Windows Media Player which also receives a facelift although nothing worth getting excited about. The colours have been changed to a metallic-blue and the drop down menus have been replaced by an invisible menu which pops up when the mouse is waved over it. However, this feature actually becomes increasingly annoying with regular use and is best deactivated.

Whilst initially impressive, after a while these changes can cause problems. Users have reported that the new schemes not only slows down their PC’s but also cause it to crash randomly. It can also be a pain whenever there’s a problem with your PC. Since you are running a somewhat modified version of XP, normal troubleshooting guides may not work. You’ll subsequently have to uninstall the pack to make sure that it isn’t causing the problem. Fortunately however, the pack comes with an uninstaller that makes reverting back to XP simple although in time honoured Windows style, you’ll have to restart the computer.

For anyone who doesn’t add or remove programs regularly, we’d recommend this pack as it does an impressive job at emulating the $200+ Vista look. However, for those that make regular changes to their PC, the pack can end up being more hassle than its worth as the changes made can conflict with interfaces of other programs.

Download Vista Customization Pack 3.6 in Softonic

Are you completely bored with the way that Windows looks? Do nyou wish you had more icons or at least better icons to choose from?

Well why not make your own? ArtIcons allows you to create your own as well as make sure that Vista icvons are compatible with Windows XP. The program looks a little like MS Paint but don't let this fool you - this is a very powerful program with lots of cool icon editing features. For a start, it now supports the highest resolution icons possible which means those up to 256 x 256 in dimension, making them suitable for high-DPI displays. This take about 400Kb of disk space, which is more than the standard 25Kb of an XP icon but because the program uses PNG compression, this isn't a problem. Hey presto, you've got high definition XP icon images without the huge file sizes. You can make XP look remarkably like XP from an icon perspective and yet still retain normal use of your favourite operating system. Probably the best feature of this program though is that it makes distinguishing your icons and folders so much easier. There's no need to worry about labelling them correctly - just use the design instead.

A super program for anyone that wants to spice up their desktop or just wants to give XP a bit of a Vista look.

Download ArtIcons 5.19 Standard in Softonic

Digitope Pixelshop is excellent for icon and cursor development. With this full-featured icon and cursor editor, you can create and edit existing icons (ICO), cursors (CUR) and animated cursors (ANI), in all sizes and formats, including the new Windows XP Alpha format.

You can create an icon by using Pixelshop’s easy to use, built-in utility for converting an image (most formats including Adobe Photoshop Images) to an icon, or by using Pixelshop’s simple icon designer interface.

You can also apply several effects to your icons, such as a 3D drop shadow, smoothing or colorizing. Incorporated in Pixelshop is an extensive help file, including tutorials. Create personalized folder icons. Customize your desktop. Add a favicon to your website. Make a cursor. Import Adobe Photoshop files. Modify your icons. With Pixelshop you can.

Download Pixelshop 5.12.7 in Softonic

This is a powerful, easy to use utility for finding, extracting, creating and editing icons, cursors and managing icon libraries and image lists. Windows Cursor and Icon Editor With IconLover you can:

• Manage icons, static and animated cursors, icon and cursor libraries, image lists
• Create and edit smooth semi-transparent icons, static and animated cursors for Windows XP
• Create and edit icons in standard and custom sizes, with color depth up to 32-bit True Color
• Make stylish icons from your images
• Paint images with gradient and chess fill
• Create multi-layer images
• Modify images with drop shadow, opacity, smooth, negative, grayscale, colorize, rotate, roll and mirror effects
• Import and export ICO, BMP, JPEG, ANI, CUR, GIF, PNG, TGA, TIFF, WMF, WBMP, XPM, XBM and Adobe Photoshop PSD image formats
• Import Mac OS icons from ICNS and RSRC files
• Manage icon libraries for better and more efficient image storage
• Extract icons from Windows executables, libraries and animated cursor files, ZIP and RAR archives
• Download icons from the Internet
• Modify icons inside executables
• Search in folders for icons and cursors
• Convert or apply effects to multiple icons at once
• Customize desktop and folder icons

Download IconLover 4.22 in Softonic

There are many Vista packs out there now promising to convert XP into the World's newest Microsoft operating system and this one is definitely up there with the best of them.

Vistapack basically changes the Start menu, icons, toolbar, adds transparencies, changes sounds, cursors etc etc up to around 240 file changes according to the developers - not bad. The installation is easy taking you through the process gently and warning you about any changes it is about to make. They've also accounted for the fact that the program is wiped out in the case that you have to reinstall Windows. In which case the program comes pre installed with "Vistapack Reloader" which monitors and replaces deleted files and reinstalls them all again when you reboot. The pack also must be one of the first to support Windows 2000 as it comes with 32 bit support. The only problem however is that you'll invariably experience either slow downs due to the increased RAM consumption that some of the transparencies and graphics require or you'll find that occasionally, XP just freezes. However, the look is absolutely stunning and is enough to make any Vista users angry that they splashed out on the real thing.

A superb Vista emulator that every XP user with decent RAM should put through it's paces.

Download Vistapack XP 2.3 Beta in Softonic

CursorXP is a program that gives your Windows Vista, XP and Windows 2000 cursors a wide range of effects. Your cursors can be semi-transparent and have more advanced shadows and alpha blending.

Download CursorXP 2.0 in Softonic

We can customize our computer in many ways - by changing the screen, the colors of the windows, fonts, cursors etc. Now with Windowpaper XP, you can customize the bottom of your folders.

In Windows 98, this was a standard function although in Windows XP onwards, Microsoft seem to have mysteriously removed it. There, these developers have designed a tool which uses any picture of your choice as the background for a particular folder. It is very easy to use - simply select the folder you want to customize, choose the photo you want to place in it and you're done. You can undo any changes within the main program so you can experiment o your heart's content. You can use photos in the most common formats (BMP, JPG, GIF) and preview the results in real time on the program interface. Be warned however that it's best to use small resolution images and big ones can take ages to render and can actually slow your folders down. You can also modify all the folders within a folder by checking the "include subfolders" option so that you don't need to go through every single one separately.

A very nice little utility that performs a function that still should come as standard in Windows anyway. it's not essential but it makes your folders look much cooler.

Download Windowpaper XP 1.01 in Softonic

SmartCapture is a professional, easy-to-use screen capture tool for capturing any contents of the Windows desktop. It can capture rectangular screen areas, whole objects, windows or screens and it can acquire images from Twain compatible data sources (e.g. scanners, digital cameras, etc.)

The captured images can be cropped very easily and the color depth can be changed to any desired value from monochrome to true color. Images can be printed, saved, copied to the clipboard, sent to an email recipient, MS Word or any image editor, etc.

SmartCapture supports all major file formats, image manipulations (e.g. resize, flip, rotate, color replace, invert, optimized color palettes, dither, etc.), multiple monitors, full automation, capture wizards, capture profiles, multi-level undo and much more.

Features include:

• Capture modes: rectangle, window, active window, screen, area, fixed size
• Capture the mouse cursor
• Multiple monitor support (Windows 98, ME, 2000 and XP)
• Separate Hot-Keys for different capture modes
• Twain data source support (scanners, digital cameras, etc.)
• Image sources: capture, paste, load, acquire from Twain compatible data source
• Image destinations: save, print, copy, email, edit, MS Word, send
• Supported file formats: BMP, GIF, JPG, PNG, TIF
• Transparency support for GIF and PNG files
• Photocopy
• File conversion
• User-definable profiles for each task
• Color conversion: 1, 4, 8, 24 Bit, color or grayscale
• Color reduction: dither or nearest color, optimized or standard color palettes
• Color replace, invert, auto invert
• Brightness, contrast
• Image geometry: resize, flip, rotate
• Print size support (dimensions and dpi)
• Undo and redo (multi-level)
• Automation, script support
• Clipboard text accumulator, URL launcher
• Print multiple images on one page (collect mode)
• Header and footer on printed pages
• Clear image areas

Download SmartCapture 1.9.2 in Softonic

For many people, the only reason worth upgrading to Vista if for the look since the functionality and basic framework really don't differ that much from XP.

If you think the same way, then you'll be more than happy with Vista Transformation Pack. Once installed, the program makes superficial changes to XP that give it the Vista look. The main changes are that it "Vistarises" your start-up screen, cursors, sounds, screen-savers, tool bars, clock, etc. The transparent effect in Vista is hard to emulate on XP machines but by combining with Windows Blinds, Vista Transofrmation Pack does a surprisingly impressive job. Be warned however that some users have complained the program changes driver DLLs in XP which make it difficult to remove, or at least, it leaves problems behind when you do so.

To be fair to them, the developers advise you to view their user discussion board before installing to be warned of any potential problems as they readily admit that they are not aware of all the bugs it may cause. Note that if you're simply updating Vista Transformation Pack, there's no need to uninstall the original - just install the patch. They've also added a user selection feature whereby if you log onto your PC as a different user, you can select whether you want to transform your XP desktop to Vista.

This is probably one of the best transformation packs out there although be warned that it's likely that you'll suffer conflicts with programs from time to time, and may have problems with XP when it's uninstalled.

Download Vista Transformation Pack 8.01 in Softonic

Ubuntu XP is not a strange mixture of operating system, as you could tell from that name. It's a complete kit to transform Windows XP into Ubuntu – at least in its appearance.

The pack includes everything you need to give XP the Ubuntu look, from a new visual style (with several color variations) to mouse cursors, featuring also wallpapers, new logon and boot screens, skins for Firefox, icons and even a clone of Beryl, the 3D windows management system used by Ubuntu to change between applications.

The good thing about having a package with all these elements, categorized in several different folders, is that you can choose what to install and what to leave unchanged. The downside is that you have to do it step by step, and sometimes you even need a third-party application - like in the case of the new boot screen, which needs the Bootskin tool. This installation procedure can therefore be a bit complicated, as there's no documentation to explain how to apply the whole kit properly.

Give Windows the clear, colorful Ubuntu look with Ubuntu XP

Download Ubuntu XP 1.0 in Softonic

IconUtils is a collection of individual tools by Aha-Soft that let you perform a series of modifications to icons and that comes to you as one convenient file, making it easy to install and use. This package includes IconLover 4.10, AhaView 3.13, Any to Icon 3.30 and Icon to Any 3.0.

Features:

• Create and edit icons in either standard or custom sizes, in color depths up to 32-bit True Color
• Create and edit smooth semi-transparent icons for Windows XP
• Create and edit static and animated cursors
• Paint images with gradient and chess fill
• Modify images with drop shadow, smooth, grayscale, rotate, roll and mirror effects
• Make icons and cursors from various graphic formats, including ICO, BMP, JPEG, ANI, CUR, GIF, PNG, TIFF, PCX, WMF, WBMP, XPM, XBM and Adobe Photoshop PSD
• Convert Mac icons to Windows format
• Save icon images as ICO, BMP, JPEG, CUR, PNG, WBMP, XBM, XPM, PSD (Adobe Photoshop) and RC (Resource Compiler) files
• Convert multiple files at once
• Create and manage icon and cursor libraries for better and more efficient storage
• Extract icons and cursors from Windows executables, libraries and animated cursor files
• Modify icons inside executables
• Search in folders for icons and cursors
• Customize desktop and folder icons
• View images fullscreen
• Browse folders in thumbnail mode
• Convert images to BMP, JPEG and PNG formats

Download IconUtils 4.2 in Softonic

If you're considering moving to Linux but haven't made up your mind yet, ClearLooks can tip the scales in favour of the open source option. This Windows theme includes two new visual styles that resemble Linux Ubuntu's appearance, with new colors and a refreshed window style.

Simply run the msstyles file and you'll be able to choose the visual theme in Display settings. ClearLooks includes a couple of matching skins for Y'z Toolbar in case you use it, and also a cursor set that must be installed one by one in the Control Panel > Mouse configuration window. However, I missed having some wallpapers bundled in the package.

ClearLooks is a Linux-based visual style that enhances the appearance of your desktop.

Download ClearLooks 2.2 in Softonic

Some time ago Microsoft launched Royale Theme for Windows XP, a slick, elegant blueish theme that many people adopted immediately. A new Royale theme appeared after that, this time in a very elegant black. However, this dark Royale was apparently not finished and you could tell it clearly needed some polishing. The same happened with the Zune theme created by Microsoft to celebrate the launch of their MP3 player. It seemed someone had leaked them without having tested them properly.

Bearing that in mind, an independent designer has finished the job on his own and now presents Royale Remixed, a theme for Windows XP that fixes all the bugs in the Noir and Zune themes and adds everything the original themes lacked.

Royale Remixed will not only change your desktop wallpaper and windows appearance, but it will also replace your system icons, mouse cursors and system sounds with new files. The result looks like a completely new system with a really attractive design.

That said, note that Royale Remixed is not as easy to install as it seems. If you have problems installing it, it's probably because you need to patch a DLL file (see Notes). I had this issue and it took me some time and a few Google queries to find out what was happening. Also, if you want to customize the shutdown window to match the rest of the system, you'll have to modify another couple of DLL files. Fortunately, this process is very clearly explained in a TXT document included in the program's ZIP file.

Customize Windows XP with this shiny, elegant black design.

Download Royale Remixed Theme 1.47 in Softonic

Providing one of the easiest ways to change Windows into a fully skinnable OS, TopThemes manager allows you to apply popular desktop themes that can completely change the appearance of Windows, especially Windows XP Service Pack-2. It changes the wallpaper, appearance, icons, cursor, sound, logo, logon UI and screensaver much more with just one click.

Top features:

• Replaces, deletes & makes the desktop themes for Microsoft Plus
• Support for free desktop themes from TopThemes.com
• Supports automatic installation & uninstallation of desktop themes
• Create and edit a desktop themes package with just a few mouse clicks

Download TopThemes Manager 2.0.0 in Softonic

ArtIcons is an advanced icon utility for Windows. It allows professional and amateur alike to create and edit cursors and manage cursor files and libraries. The application boasts a range of powerful features designed to help you produce pixel-perfect results.

The program allows you to:

• Create and edit static and animated cursors in color depths up to 16 million colors
• Create and edit cursors for Windows XP in 32-bit color depth with 8-bit alpha channel
• Create and store images containing several layers
• Paint images with gradient and chess fill
• Modify images with drop shadow, opacity, smooth, negative, grayscale, colorize, rotate, roll and mirror effects
• Import cursors from .cur, .ani, .ico, .icpr, .wmf, .emf, .bmp, .wbmp, .jpg, .gif, .xbm, .xpm and .png files
• Export cursor images to .cur, .ico, .icpr, .bmp, .jpg, .gif, .png, .xbm, .xpm, .wbmp and .rc files
• Export animated cursors to animated .gif images and image list bitmaps
• Extract cursors from Windows executables, libraries and animated cursor files
• Create cursor libraries for better and more efficient storage
• Collect cursors from folders and subfolders into libraries
• Work with image lists in BMP and PNG formats
• Delete identical cursors in libraries
• Drag and drop files from file shells
• Drag and drop cursors from one library to another
• Drag and drop cursor images from one cursor to another
• Copy and paste cursors in libraries
• Copy and paste images to other applications

Download ArtCursors 5.16 in Softonic

FlyakiteOSX is a transformation pack. It will transform the look of an ordinary Windows XP+ system to resemble the look of Mac OS X. The installer simply automates the process of replacing critical system files, setting registry tweaks, and installing extras such as cursors, sounds, visual styles, etc.

In case you are not happy with the results of FlyakiteOSX, everything is completely removable. Just run the uninstaller from the Start Menu or from Add/Remove Programs. FlyakiteOSX does not contain any spyware or ad-ware of any kind. All files needed for FlyakiteOSX are stored in the Windows directory in a folder named 'FlyakiteOSX' that is hidden by default.

Download FlyakiteOSX 3.5 in Softonic

Animated cursors are animated mouse pointers that can replace the default arrow cursor in Microsoft Windows. Such animated cursor files are given the .ani extension and are recognized by Windows and any application that handles cursors. You can get more information about the animated cursor format here.

AniTuner makes the creation and edition of these animated cursors easy: everyone can create his/her own animated cursors in a snap. You can use animated cursors not only to customize the appearance of Windows (desktop themes) but also to produce animations for your Web pages, e-mails, documents, manuals or even applications...

Features:

• Open and display any animated cursor
• Convert animated GIF and AVI into animated cursors (ANI)
• Import existing image files (BMP, GIF, PNG, PSD, ICO, CUR...) to turn them into cursors or animated cursors
• Export frames from your animated cursors to several image formats
• Modify existing animated cursors and change their color depth or size
• Convert animated cursors into animated GIF, AVI, static bitmaps or even Macromedia Flash SWF movies
• Edit frames, change their duration, modify them in your favorite image editor and save changes back to the animated cursor
• AniTuner handles all cursor sizes (not only 32x32) & color depths (from 1bpp to 32bpp)
• Special support for 32-bit cursors with a 8-bit alpha channel (partial transparency for Windows 2000/XP)
• Turn your old 16 or 256-color animated cursors into 32-bit animated cursors with a semi-transparent shadow for Windows XP
• Export (and import) animated cursors as a series of PNG files (with alpha channel optionally) for easy editing
• Create animated GIFs, small Flash movies using the Frame editor and the Import/Export functions
• Browse for animated cursors on your computer and easily preview them

Download AniTuner 1.1 in Softonic